25 Random Things about Me

I did this for Facebook, and since I'm so sorely lacking in the posting department, I thought, why not throw it up here?

1. Once, for two weeks, I worked as a door to door salesperson…the kind that carried a duffel bag full of crap and specialized in going to commercial properties that have “no soliciting” clearly posted across the door. Wearing a mini skirt definitely helped.

2. I’m extremely shy and somewhat awkward…it’s taken a lot of effort and experience to cure myself of this, but now I’m just very shy and well…still awkward.

3. I can turn it on if I want to…or need to.

4. I was born on the first day of Spring.

5. I have oh…about 160 dresses in my closet. It’s a hobby.

6. My dad’s friend mistook me for a boy when I was 13. His exact words were “what a handsome son you have”. I grew out my hair and I’ve never cut it short since.

7. I was the lead actress in a low budget feature film. (It was not x-rated…get your minds out of the gutter!)

8. I also had a bit part on a Chinese soap opera – as a Japanese curator who gets stabbed, dies on the hospital bed while whispering the name of her killer to a gorgeous policeman and comes back as a ghost to haunt her murderer.

9. I love starting projects. It’s the finishing part that’s hard…speaking of which…what number are we on again? Sigh…

10. Music. Music moves me, it inspires me, it’s inside me, there’s so much beauty in it that it hurts me.

11. I’ve sleepwalked 3 times in my life – each time I had a high fever and a recurring nightmare involving the full moon and being inside a clothes dryer.

12. I have no patience for stupidity.

13. I love having my feet tickled.

14. I used to pretend I was Laura Ingalls on Little House on the Prairie.

15. I am the ultimate multi-tasker.

16. I am addicted to Vaseline. I can’t go anywhere without it. If I were on a desert island, Vaseline would probably be my one required item.

17. I kissed a girl and I liked it.

18. Alfalfa sprouts make me gag.

19. When I was on my honeymoon, I threw out my back…while leaning over the sink, plucking my eyebrows. I am an obsessive plucker. I heart my Tweezermans.

20. I know that sometimes, I’m a scary person.

21. I’ve lost my way a couple of times…but I’ve always found my way back. I’m a survivor.

22. My husband says I’m bossy.

23. There is just something about the smell of a certain stinky Rottweiler – it makes me smile.

24. If I could, I’d wear my pajamas all the time. House clothes and slippers ROCK.

25. I wake up each morning - thankful and ever so grateful for the life I live, for the people I love, for my little home, my family and friends.

So now you know 25 more things about me...but really, when it comes to it, still nothing at all. :)

Ye-Ye

My Ye-Ye (Grandpa) passed away on January 4th, 2009 at 91 years of age. My dad asked me to speak at his funeral today, as the eldest in my generation, and this is how I will remember him...

Some of my childhood impressions of Ye-Ye -
He was stern - but what an eight year old understood as stern, as an adult, I came to understand was more a sense of dignity and propriety.
He was always surrounded by books - he loved them. He was a scholar and a teacher.
He received many Christmas cards - dozens. So many in fact, that I knew, even at an early age, he must have touched a lot of people’s lives.
He was independent and very proud of his independence.

Although to see him go on now - at the end of his journey - is very sad for me and all of us left behind, I would like to take the time to remember these things that I’m thankful for…

I am thankful that he lived a long full life.
I am thankful that he and Grandma had 64 beautiful years together.
I am thankful that he raised 3 strong, successful children who have carried on his legacy through my sisters and cousins.
I am honored that he was a part of my life for so long, and that he was able to watch me and my sisters grow up.
I was extremely glad to have him there at my wedding and that he gave us his blessing. That he was able to get to know Shaun, enough even to give him a proper and very fitting Chinese name!
I am grateful to him for being gracious enough and brave enough to write out a lasting memento for us to cherish, even as he was battling Parkinson’s.
I’m glad that in this past year at the care home, I was able to support Ye-Ye when he needed me. That I was able to hug him and hold his hand and just be there.
I am thankful that his passing was gentle.
I am thankful that we got to say goodbye.
Most of all, I am glad that despite the age and cultural differences and at times the language barrier, I was able to know Ye-Ye, to have loved and respected him, and I hope he knows in return that we will continue to honor his memory through the generations to come.

Mosaic Me

This was great procrastinating fun...tsk tsk...taken, borrowed, inspired, what have you from Buffy's blog. It's funny how I selected the pictures that resonated most strongly with me (while keeping in mind the answer I gave), and not surprisingly, the mosaic me is very colorful...and somewhat cartoonish. HMMMMMMM......













If you want to try (because who am I to tag anyone seeing as I haven't been on in forever, and you've probably all stopped reading anyways, LOL), type your answer to the questions into Flickr Search

-Using only the first page, pick an image
-Copy and paste each of the urls in the Mosaic Maker

1. What is your first name?
2. What is your favorite food?
3.What high school did you go to?
4.What is your favorite color?
5.Who is your celebrity crush?
6.What is your favorite drink?
7.What is your dream vacation?
8.What is your favorite dessert?
9.What do you want to do when you grow up?
10.Who/ what do you love most in life?
11.Choose one word that describes you?
12.What is your Flickr name?

YAYYYY NOW I know how to make those damn mosaics...hopefully there will be more to come. XOXO

Jayden

My friend's oldest son was recently diagnosed with leukemia. This courageous little man is going through treatment and he's doing well, but he could definitely use all the positive vibes and prayers he can get so please think of him and his family and send them some love!

Last Request

Oh I'm loving this talented guy I came across on YouTube. Paolo Nutini. SIGH!

Princess Taj, this one made me think of you. The CD I promised you ONE YEAR AGO - can you believe it's been that long? - will be in the mail as soon as you need it (for real I mean). XOXO

Dearest Husband,

Two years ago this morning, right about now, you were standing in the blazing hot sun in a black tuxedo. A bead of sweat trickling down the side of your brow as you waited…and waited…and waited. In actuality I was only 5 minutes late, but it sure felt longer since it happened to be the hottest day of the year, but hey! I’m worth the wait! Two years has flown by so quickly - I just realized today that I don’t think we even took the time out to reflect upon the first year. So before we add yet another one under our belts, I wanted to take a moment and look back on this past year.

As usual, we’ve crammed a hell of a lot of “doing” into a small space of time. I have a feeling that we’ll always be this way, and I am fiercely proud that we get so much accomplished and that we’re constantly learning, ever evolving and always headed for the next adventure.

Travel memories – kicking your butt in poker at 100 Mile, trekking back and forth in the UK to see both your family and mine, finding Pygmy and Pumpkinhead in Amsterdam (and that’s all I want to remember about that trip!), debating over the giant Marley mask and being beach bums in Jamaica and your patience in La Conner as your mum and I went into EVERY. SINGLE. STORE. to “have a looksie”.

We’ve continued to build upon our home – last summer saw the addition of our new (albeit slightly leaky) deck, our desperately required (albeit tiny) dishwasher and finally this summer our much anticipated (albeit uninstalled) hot tub. But by far the best addition to our home this past year would have to be the flat screen TV in our bedroom. If I’d known that was all it took to get you to come to bed early with me (…um…besides the promise of all that wild raunchy sex we have of course), we’d have bought that when we first moved in together! You did an amazing job refinishing the pantry and workroom (glad I wasn’t there to hear all the cursing) and we survived a whole ton of team projects too. From putting together our giant wardrobe to assembling shelves to renovating the downstairs bathroom together – the best part of all these and the main difference from previous times is that we got through them without any scrapping. It makes me laugh to think of the cartoon thought bubbles that must be coming out of our heads at these times – yours filled with @#$#(%@**! and mine filled with bubbly cheerful anecdotes guaranteed to annoy the shit out of you – but we’ve obviously learned to adjust our communication styles and truly work as a team.

I'm thrilled that you've discovered a joy for cooking and are quickly honing your ability to prepare epicurean meals...and lucky me, I get to be the guinea pig. The chubby overfed guinea pig. But I'm not complaining - keep it comin' oh grillmaster! But know that one meal that you can't take over is the one I get to make on Sunday mornings for you. Those pancakes should be getting better tasting with each week that passes because I've been adding more of the secret ingredient every time.

We’ve been through some euphoric times this year, and on the flipside, some of the absolute worst times. You’ve held my hand, encouraged me and been my rock through everything. You are my bestest friend in the entire Universe and each morning that I wake up seeing your beautiful face next to mine, it's a reminder of how much I have to be grateful for. Thank you for making me whole.

I love you (you know HOW MUCH).

Your Happy Wife

P.S. And even though you ruined the garden, I still love you.

P.P.S. Just don't do it again.

Falling Apart

I'm going to indulge in a whine right now...my body is an itchy achey timebomb...

ITCHY...eyes are soooo itchy itchy itchy. I want to scratch them out with sharp nails or fork tines, or even better, run a nice thick hairbrush over my eyeballs repeatedly until the itchiness goes away. I try so hard not to rub my eyes - not only because I don't want to walk around looking like I haven't slept in a week, but also because I don't need to create more fine lines and wrinkles on my face than I already have. And the worst? In the shower...when it starts out with just a little rub to get the water out of my eyes and I find myself with my hands balled into fists and the knuckles digging into my corneas and it feels SOOOO good that I can't stop, the wrinkles be DAMNED! Arggggh. Allergies.

ACHEY...I'm working right now with a hot water bottle on my tummy. I don't know when this started...maybe when I hit my thirties, but when the period comes now, so do the cramps. And they aren't your run of the mill menstrual cramps either. These are so bad - they're the all I can do is curl up in a ball and whimper type cramps (which is what I did last night). Arggggh. PMS.

TICKING...my left eye that is. Unexplainable, never had this before, but my eye has been tic'ing NON-STOP for 8 days now. NON-STOP. As in, every 10 minutes. It's driving me insane. I'm going insane. And although I know I didn't start out stressed out 8 days ago, I sure as hell am now! Arggggh. Eye twitch.

Just waiting for the explosion to come. Hopefully hubby can manage to glue all my pieces back together afterwards.