Off to Saint John

Today I board the boat in Digby and sail the 75 kms or so (which takes three hours... ridiculous. Build a bridge or something! Sheesh...) to Saint John, where I will be until Tuesday. I'll stay for three nights with Lynnette (she's my Person) and two nights with the Youngs (they're my family). Lord willing, it will be a lovely time!

Oh, I just found out that I have funding for my job until the end of September. This is good news!

And finally, here is the video that Jilly and I made for work. :) Make sure your sound is on :)

Annoyed with Mac

I've been fighting with Baby Tony all night to get him to open movie files that I need in order to edit through iMovie. I'm not looking for help with this --- I can do it in a many step process on my PC... now that I've figured out how. I AM looking for reasons not to be annoyed. My friend Hannie shared as a comment to my last post a lovely trick regarding screen captures (Thanks, Hannie :) ), that I can't wait to use. Do YOU know any fun Mac tricks that will entertain and inspire? Hit reply and post them here :)

P.S. - I'm turning into a Rent-head. Does that mean my eternal soul is in danger? ;) I think I'm more turning into a musical-theatre junkie that only has one movie available to her right now. I need to return Rent to the library and find another, perhaps. Yarmouth theatre is doing "Oliver!" (i.e. Oliver Twist musical) with auditions starting in October --- I'm hoping to audition! :)

I miss Alt-Tab

But our Macbook is still pretty. I named him "Baby Tony" because Selinda has a Macbook Pro named "Tony".

I think I live in the most beautiful place in the world. I love it. There can be some pretty mean storms where there wants to be, though. The other night we accidentally left the spare room window open, and the whole room got soaked, with the exception (just barely) of the computer and Paul's guitar pedal. i.e. all the electronics survived, but everything else was waterlogged. Just as I finished laying down some towels, the power went out, and stayed out for 4 1/2 hours, coming back on just in time for me to get up and get ready for work.

Esther is back, and I'm very glad.

Pajamas is no longer a car cat, I guess. I took her out today on an errand, and she pottied and puked, then laid in the back of the car and didn't move for half an hour. Poor thing. When we got home I let her run around outside, though, and I think I made it up to her --- she LOVES to play outside, though gets to do it very infrequently. She takes a few steps, then flops and rolls, then jumps a foot after a bug, then repeats.

I led worship in the morning service today because Richard was gone and Peter had been in Europe and just got back yesterday. I was surprised at how NOT traumatic it was. I guess I'm healing.

On Thursday, I head for Saint John for a six day weekend, to be spent at Lynnette's and the Youngs. I can't wait :) :) :)

Our Macbook has arrived!

And he's some pretty!

The software is easy enough to navigate --- I think it will be the keyboard that will give me the most trouble (mostly just where the "home" and "end" buttons are different). But I think I'll manage!

Did I'm mention he's pretty?

A day on the high seas

Okay, so it was a few hours. And it was a lake. But it was fabulous. Me and Jilly and her husband Jules and their three-year-old daughter Chloe. And there was tubing and swimming. And I had a lot of fun. I am so blessed I can barely contain my gratitude sometimes.

I survived this entire day drug-free; my first drug-free Sunday since I've been here. (Drugs = Pepto or Gravol; probably an important thing to note.) Next Sunday I've been asked to lead worship for the morning service, and I'm going to do it. I can't believe it, but I feel ready.

I watched RENT yesterday, and have been inspired to seek out a musical theatre group within an hour range of here so that I can get involved. It would be worth the drive, for sure.

Now, an entire box of Kraft Dinner to cap off my day.

Fun and games

FUN
1. I still love my job. Next week one of my supervisors is away, so I'm holding down the fort in Youth Services. This means I work 8:30 to 4:30 from Monday to Friday, which will help me get in some extra hours so that I'll be able to go away near the end of August for a visit to Saint John! I'll miss my supervisor, though - she's a hoot!
2. This weekend, my friend Jilly and I are taking the Handycam that work gave me to use and hitting the road (in an office chair) to make a promotional video for my work. This is a "required" assignment for all CAP interns, and while video stuff is what I like to do, they have always tended to stress me out because they take so much time to do WELL (and I can't stand when things that CAN be done well AREN'T). However, I am determined to retrain my mind to find ENJOYMENT in such things, which is why I've asked Jilly to join me so we can just have fun together. I also need to keep in mind that any extra hours I have to log for the making of this video can then be applied to the aforementioned Saint John visit. So what am I stressed about?? This is a GREAT deal! I will post the video here when it's done.
3. We ordered a MacBook. It will be here Monday, most likely. This is VERY fun. Even the WAITING is fun.

GAMES
1. Rummy
2. Rummy-o
3. Bohnanza
4. Euchre
5. Settlers
6. Hand and Foot
7. Guitar Hero II

These are what we've been into lately. Peter and Esther are away until next week (I miss you, Esther!!) so it's just been Rummy and Rummy-o since they've been gone. And Guitar Hero, of course. How nice to have time to enjoy GAMES again! I mean, I played some in SJ, but there was always the "When I'm done this I need to get back to work" feeling. Or worse, the "I don't have time for this because I have so much work to do, so even though I'm going to play this I can't enjoy it" feeling. Not so anymore.

We are looking for suggestions for new games to learn and/or purchase. Ideas?

What a great place to live!

So, today Paul and I were sick with some stomach thing, carrying over from yesterday. This morning I had to call one of my internet training clients and reschedule. She also happens to live next door.

Here, when you're sick and people find out, I guess they actually CARE! She brought us fish chowder (which I'd never had before but was SO YUMMY) and rolls and two of the juiciest most tasty peaches I've ever encountered.

I feel so blessed to live in a place like this, though it's still so surreal, like nothing I've experienced.

Recent...

...reads: "How Happy To Be" by Katrina Onstad. I picked it up randomly at the library because it had a Canada flag sticker on it, and expected very little. My review: 3 thumbs extended and raised enthusiastically sky-ward.

...views: "Lady in the Water" was on the movie channel last night. Not at all what I expected, but I found it delightful.

...purchases: A water cooler.

...events: The other night I thought our hamster Ollie was dead, rotting in her little house where she sometimes secludes herself, wrapped in fluff and tissue and whatever other materials I provided for her that week. I removed the house, poked in the window, shook it, and there was no movement from inside. Then I realized that the tube that runs over her cage was partially disconnected at one point, and that she was on the loose in the house somewhere. This wasn't a concern --- all you have to do with a loose hamster is leave the cage open on the floor, and you find them back inside fast asleep by morning. But then it occurred to me that I hadn't seen Pajamas in a good long while, and that if I found her, I was likely to find Ollie as well. Which I did, behind the loveseat, being affectionately teased and mauled. So I put the poor cat-spit-covered thing back in her cage. Not dead at all.

...eats: Nothing. So it's time to make some lunch.

Because Esther said I should update...

...I am updating.

Have I mentioned that I love it here in this forum? Because gracious, I love it here.

Some people that I love, in no particular order:

1. Esther and Peter, our gaming friends across the road, who have learned Euchre and Beans and will soon learn Settlers. And Esther is also my walking friend (though we have only walked once so far). And they have three adorable children, one of whom is named Landon and is quite possibly the cutest little boy I have ever met.

2. Jill is my squishy. I teach her drums, she will teach me to ride horses. This is a good trade. Also, we email each other all day at work. Yesterday, we went swimming.

3. My boss Joelle. She is a silly individual who makes me giggle 20 times a day.

4. Kim the librarian is just as sweet as I'll get out. There's a CAP site in the library, so I'm there a lot. Today we cut out paper monsters. On Tuesday, she "made" me (well, I volunteered to) dress up like a fairy godmother (pictures to follow) to entertain four skeptical children.

A disjointed account, I know. But I just love it so much that I don't even want to take time to organize my thoughts. :)

That was not an exhaustive list, by the way. But it's time to go play Beans with Esther and Peter. More to follow.

Saturday is Paul's 30th birthday. Feel free to email him with well wishes and random Bible swears :) marshallmojo@hotmail.com