What does an unemployed housecat do?

She bakes!



Saturday TM and I walked for SEVEN HOURS, starting with a tour around Stanley Park. As you may have heard, the park is in some disrepair, due to the insane weather. I'm thankful I only caught the tail end of the windy days. So far it hasn't been necessary for me to study TM's Wind Disaster Apartment Evacuation Protocol (WDAEP), which, as I understand it, he thought up while lying in bed on the night that most of the park's destruction took place.



Mostly we stuck to the perimeter, because all the paths had these signs posted at their entrances:



At first we were dutifully deterred by these blockades, but as walking beside the constant stream of Saturday traffic began to wear thin, we ventured onto a path -- only to find that after crossing a few barriers of smaller fallen trees the path got completely lost in giant overturned trees. We returned to the road via our own trailblazing a little the worse for mud and sap.



I remember the park from my last visit for the wonderful smell, the peacefulness, the animals with their studied air of indifference. Despite the unfortunate remodeling, it still delivers. And it was a spectacular day.


(TM's photo)

Interior Designers

I am sitting in the apartment waiting for our new couch.
OUR NEW COUCH.
Which we shopped for at many big box stores. And which I am slightly nervous will not actually fit through the front door of our apartment.
Our BIG new couch.
It is green.

We have these fugue states right now where we walk through department stores with eyes reddened from too much recycled air and try to decide how to express ourselves through furniture. TM says this was our last big purchase. Damn I hope so. Because my constant refrain of "(insert home furnishing item here) does not define me/you as a person" is getting old even to me.
As it turns out, there is very limited humour to be found in housewares. Especially when it takes a couple three trips to a store to buy a tablecloth (to cover up the fact that one of them is very clumsy with nail polish remover *sob*).

Many weeks later and far, far away...

Well, that was a long and semi-unintentional break. Just missed the entire month of December -- which is just as well really since it was completely and utterly a madhouse (a madhouse). And that glosses right over that. Who needs a dry and lengthy update anyway? "...and then I did some dishes, followed it up with some not sleeping, directly after which I wrote some entirely stupid final exams, during which I did not do any of my dishes, which was okay because when I got home there were lots to do, and I did some, and packed some, and spazzed out some more, then there were some presents -- some of them were dishes, which were then washed..." and so on. Yes it's all very familiar territory for everyone, I know.
What may NOT be familiar to you all, however, is that M&C is now broadcasting live from the West coast of this fine country. Vancouver has enthusiastically welcomed me into its myriad of sights and smells with a pre-apocalyptic weather system. It has been most impressive.
In between furniture shopping expeditions, episodes of Corner Gas, and the occasional afternoon nap (a luxury of the unemployed I fully intend to engage in until a change in my status), I have been job hunting. Today I had my first interview, and have spent the last three hours unwinding from it. I may fully describe my experience at a later time, but only if I don't end up taking the job and am not afraid to disclose the nature of the company for which I would be working. Having at this point made it past the many locks, the intercom, the CC video camera, the metal detector and the retina scan for the first interview, I wouldn't want to jeopardize my chances of being able to attend the second round by being kidnapped for my inside info. The animation business is, apparently, a cut-throat one. Anvils and pianos lurk around every corner.

(I was only joking about the metal detector and the retina scan...)