get this...

"wattlebla" is actually, "wad blower". Yep, that's how thick those Northern accents are. Sheesh, and to think that I've created a whole identity based on a crude MTB track name. Kinda cool actually. misunderstanding.

renewal

Got a chance to get away for the long weekend. Thursday night, J and I caught the last ferry to Vancouver Island(with a reservation 'cause I can't stand the suspense). Woke up on Friday morning with the knowledge that we had four full days before we had to be back at work....yaaaaaa.

J went down to Vic to visit some old navy friends on Friday night. I stayed behind since, although I would love to see those guys, I couldn't imagine myself enjoying a BBQ centered around drinking at this point. Had a really nice time on my own though, wandering the beach and reading. Watched a good movie called "Squid and the Whale" and ate samosas and hummus. We spent Saturday up at the market and hiking around the caves, more good food for dinner. Sunday we drove up to Ucluelet to visit a friend who is building up there. Super fun day since we haven't been to that area in over three years. Didn't get a chance to do any surfing since we got up late and didn't want to be driving back in the dark, but I'm not sure if surfing is the best pregnancy sport anyway. Came back on the ferry yesterday; thought we had a reservation for the 3pm, but it turned out that I made it for the wrong date. Got on the 5pm instead. It was a really great weekend and I feel pretty good about being back at work today.



In other news, I've discovered e-bay. It started innocently enough: I hate to shop but am currently in dire need of some new clothes (having outgrown most of my pants already). Since my dislike of shopping exists mainly in relation to boutiques where the salespeople "watch me" I was seriously stalling on going to a maternity shop of any kind. Then, I discovered e-bay. Over the course of the past week I've spent $93.00 (including shipping) on enough clothes to get me through the next 6 months. In fact, when I broke it down it figures out to a whopping $5.81 per item...how easy is that? Most of the items still have the tags on (thanks to the abundance of outlet shops in the States...all the items are coming from people in the US of A). I guess the only drawback could be if the clothes don't fit, but then I can always take them to the snooty little consignment store and get my money back that way.

I am such a voyeur.

I have a confession to make. I’m obsessed with Googling people. Almost everyone I meet these days gets run through a thorough search in Google; you would be amazed at the details available. Usually there is at least one hit for someone’s name that belongs to them; either a university, or a petition they have signed online, or an article, etc. From there I can usually find out where they work and from there, the possibilities can be endless depending on how much they’ve done in their lives. The question is, am I invading their privacy? Is it wrong that I know the academic and professional history of people that I am merely acquainted with when they know literally nothing about me? Which brings me to my next point, is it fair that I have created a web identity that is completely removed form my real name? If you search me in Google nothing will come up that has anything to do with the actual me. If you search “wattlebla”…there I am.

Tried to go snowboarding today and the mountain was closed! I guess they close for good after the Easter long weekend anyway, but I was really looking forward to one more good snow session.

A little while later…

I just had a great conversation with one of my co-workers. Typically I’m fairly shy at work so I don’t often get a chance to really hash it out with the people I work with. He told me all about himself and the story has satiated my daily need for personal details about the people around me. Going back to the Googling obsession; it’s clear to me that I should be engaging in actual human relations to get these details that I crave so much instead of furtively searching for them on the internet.

Hmmmm, food for thought.

on my side

crash monkeys. cartoon crazy crach monkeys. cartoon crazy college-bound crash monkeys.

Heard the baby's heart on Wed. - what a sound. I think I'm in love already.

Am reading, "The Princess Bride" right now. Picked it up out of curiosity because the movie is such a cult classic. I have to say, the book is even better (of course, that's usually the case). A lot of the movie dialogue is straight out of the book but there are a lot of small details that obviously couldn't be included in a two hour film. Good book overall, but a very quick read. Choosing books lately has been hit and miss. I just can't seem to find much that peaks my interest after the first couple of chapters. Would love to join a book club or reading group - maybe now is the time for that.

Have been thinking a lot lately about the past. I suppose it's a common thing to reflect back from time to time. It's hard to believe that I've lived so much life already. Being 31 is just a number, but when I think about all that I've done, all the places I've been, the people I've met, the opinions I've held...it seems like an eternity.


I was surfing the web recently, looking up the website of an old friend in Australia and I found this picture. That's me at 23 years old - 8 years ago almost. The crazy thing is that I don't feel any different. I don't even really look all that different, but 8 years has past. Time is so easy to ignore and knowing that, I realise that I will probably wake up one morning, look into the mirror and see a 60 year old face looking back at me. Amazingly, while this thought used to cause me great anxiety, it doesn't really phase me now. Maybe it's the knowledge that I'm preserving a part of myself with this child - death just doesn't seem quite so final anymore. And as for time, I would still jump at the chance to be immortal (there isn't much I wouldn't do for such an opportunity); but I'm enjoying my time a lot more lately and that's pretty much all we can ask for, isn't it?

i ♥ tuesdays

Somehow Tuesdays always end up being fantastic. I think it has something to do with starting work so late in the day that I get to do what ever I want in the morning and afternoon - it's like having two days in one. Today I went snowboarding with a friend. It was unbelievable conditions, so much snow and so soft! We were practically the only people up there. Took turns taking pictures with her new digital SLR and felt like pros using the continuous click mode. It was so fun. Funny thing though, lately, whenever I am doing something that I really enjoy I always start thinking about how there is this extra little person there with me. This baby is actually big enough and old enough now to look like an actual person. It has ears and fingers and toes and a heart and even most of its little bones are formed. So, technically, today was my first time snowboarding with my child. Cool.

Took my mum to a musical last night called "Promises, Promises". A Neil Simon with music by Burt Bacharach. The music was great and was performed by a live orchestra. The production overall though was terrible. So terrible it was actually funny. It was a fundraiser for a really worthy charity that helps youth at risk. But, it was still pretty bad.

Here's some of our pic's from today. You can't tell in these shots but I had to leave my pants undone to accomodate my growing belly and ass. Yes, I've gained 10 pounds, but I can still rip it up on the mountain.