I'm THRIFTY, not cheap!

I am cheap. There, I said it. Actually, I like to consider myself thrifty, frugal, prudent or even conserving, but somehow the word cheap sounds so, well, cheap! My family has accused me of this trait for many years and razzes me about it constantly. Well, geez, they're going to thank me some day, I know it.

I took out a whole whack of old slides the other day. Most of them are from my Mom's collection, over a thousand I'm sure. Then a few boxes from my M-I-L's. They had been sitting in my closet collecting dust for so many years and I felt it was time to dig them out to have them copied to DVD. Being the ever thrifty person I am, I wanted to save myself a buck and try to do it myself. I did some research to see if it was possible to scan them on my flatbed scanner. I found a few directions, went out and bought the necessary supplies, all to find that it did not work. I wasted a lot of time, but spent only $9 on a fluorescent light, [which I returned]! No biggy.

After that initial failure, I figured I would bite the bullet and have them copied professionally. Walmart could have done each slide for pennies each, but my slides were so old, they would not fit in their scanner. Bummer. Costco doesn't do slides anymore. Bummer. Black's Photography does slides for $1.99 [wow, pricey] but my slides wouldn't fit in their scanner. Bummer. So, I found a place downtown that could do them for $2.00 per slide. I figured it would cost me at least $200 to do the ones I wanted. Only problem is my slides are so old and dirty, I had to disassemble each one to clean the glass inserts. Big job, but I figured worth it. So I began the task of cleaning old slides. For those of you over 50 years old, you might remember the slides I'm talking about. Thick plastic case, two glass inserts and the slide.

As I was having lunch one day with my daughter's boyfriend the other day, he said to me, "couldn't you just take a picture of them while displayed on the projector?" What a genius!! Why didn't I think of that? Long story short [ya, right] that's exactly what I did! I saved myself a couple of hundred dollars by doing it myself! I think they turned out wonderfully! I'm in the process of editing them now [hundreds] but thought I'd show you a few of my favourites.

So these are essentially, SOOC from the original camera and then from my camera after taking the picture on the screen. With a little tweaking in Photoshop, I think the results are pretty darn good! And I saved a buck again! You wouldn't call that cheap would you??

SOOC, on my projector screen:
This is me, about 45 years ago at Algonquin Provincial Park in Ontario


SOOC



My dad, sisters and me - circa 1962



CIAO, and thanks for visiting!

Words

I like words. Words are my friends. I think I discovered my love for words when I was 11 years old and wrote my first poem. I was hooked. Thirty-eight years later, and I'm still fascinated with the written word.

I love to read, I love to do crosswords, I love to write poems and stories, I keep a daily journal and I like to think I'm pretty good at grammar and spelling. Nothing drives me more crazy than words used incorrectly, spelled wrong or with poor grammar. I'm no english major, and I don't care if someone doesn't speak right, but if you're going to write it down for other people to see - make it right!! Look it up in the dictionary if you have to, but make it right!

As much as I enjoy reading a good book, I'm not into classic literature like Shakespeare. Dostoevsky, Orwell, or Bronte. I've never read Crime and Punishment, War and Peace or Wuthering Heights. Sure, I've heard of those timeless authors and famous books, but give me a good Dean Koontz, [my fav], J.K. Rowling, [she's a genius I say!!], Johnathan Kellerman or Patricia Cornwell novel and I'm consumed for hours in their tales! I don't like Romance books or Sci-Fi. I don't care for Non-Fiction unless it's about True Crime or Forensics, [another one of my interests]. I like characters like Kay Scarpetta, Lincoln Rhymes, Alex Delaware or HARRY POTTER!


My favourite poets are Rod McKuen and Emily Dickinson.

I enjoy doing a Crossword puzzle while sitting on the dock at camp in the early morning. Listening to the birds and the sound of the waves is so tranquil - great place for thinking! I like word games like Password and Balderdash and Scattergories, oh, and I LOVE Scrabble. No one else in my family is a fan of Scrabble, so I don't get to play it as often as I'd like!



When I first started writing poetry, I was totally into free verse. Reading back over some of my poems now, it seems I was into weird as well! What was I thinking?? Now I have fun writing in rhyme! Maybe it's because when I was younger, my vocabulary was smaller and I couldn't think of enough words that rhymed!

As some of you may know already, my favourite poem of all time and such an inspiration to me is DESIDERATA, by Max Ehrmann. When I first read his words when I was about 13 years old, they had a profound impact on me. It all made so much sens!! Does anyone remember the recording of this song by Les Crane in 1971? Kinda cheesy, but I love it!



To this day, I'll often turn to those words to remind me that the universe truly is unfolding as it should. And as Max says,

"With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful. Strive to be happy. "

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Thanks for visiting Cheers!!

And you've got to have friends....

It has always intrigued me how easily some people make friends. I know that some people forge a friendship in grade school and remain close with that/those people well into their adult lives. Some people meet in a casual capacity later in life and strike a bond and become close friends for the remainder of their years. Other people make dozens of friends throughout their lifetime. Some close, some casual, some fleeting. Friends come and go.... and for me, they mostly go! I don't know how I've had such bad luck with friends. I'm easy to get along with. I'm kind and compassionate. I think I'm funny. Since I was very young, I have lost touch with so many of my friends, mainly because they have moved away. Some of the closest and 'bestest' friends I had as a youngster moved to other cities with their families. That was way back in the day before email or MSN or instant messaging. As young children, our only means of communicating over the miles was through snail mail. [Long distance phone calls were expensive and reserved for family only]. And as young kids often are, we weren't very reliable in keeping each other up to date and before you know it, we had lost touch and moved on.. At least 3 of my Grade school 'best friends' moved away.
Once in high school I had many buddies that I would spend my free time with, chat with on the phone, go shopping with and do girly things with. Two of those friends were particularly close, but one I considered to be a best friend. But once again we lost touch. It's a long story but it is still today one of the biggest regrets I've ever had.
Some psychologists might be able to give me insight as to why I've never been able to secure a lasting, close bond with a friend. I know I couldn't have helped it if someone moved away, but with relocation, strained relationships, and having some weird friends along the way, I have since become very hesitant to open up my heart to just any body. Don't get me wrong, I've got many acquaintances and many social friends that fulfill both DH's and my lives but I will always regret losing that one, best, do-anything-for friend.
If you have one of those friends, tell him/her how much they mean to you. You never know what tomorrow will bring.

*ETA - just found out today that two of our closest friends are calling it quits. I am so saddened by this news.

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Here's a few photos of the friends that are a part of our lives today!!

My FURRY Friends

Life just wouldn't be the same without the animals in my life!

First and foremost, our darling Vegas Grace [Gracie] who is our BEST friend! I don't have enough room in this post to brag about her!!



Then there's Finnigan [aka Mr. Finn, aka Finny], my daughter's cat. He just left our house to move in with her in her new apartment!! When he was a kitten, he and Gracie would cuddle and snooze together. They'd play fight and chase each other all over the house. So cute.

And this is Mally, my sister's Shitzu/Maltese. Mally is a little shy and insecure. She mostly sits on my sister's lap and watches life from up high!


This is Indy, DH's buddy's dog. Poor Indy had some issues as a young dog [snapping, biting, barking] but he's okay now! Whew.



Now, Spencer is a friends dog. He's old and crotchety. In the first minute he visited us at camp he chomped down on Gracie's nose, gave her a good bite as if to say, "this might be your place, but I'm boss around here." Poor Gracie, being the ever gentle soul she is didn't know what the heck was going on. Needless to say, she let him be boss and totally ignored him the rest of the weekend. He's actually a sweet dog - and still loves swimming, for hours!!!



Sadie-Lynn is Spencer's little [adopted] sister!! She doesn't like swimming so much.

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And I have been tagged to list 8 things that you might not know about me!

1. I once met Colin James. Doug and I took him to a lake for fishing. We enjoyed a BBQ together. Then I drove him to the airport after his gig. Very cool day.
2. I am ANAL about recycling. I will NOT throw anything away that belongs in the Blue Box.
3. I hardly ever wear socks. I hate how hot my feet get. Even in winter, I usually only wear moccasins inside, with no socks.
4. I hate white noise. I don't like the sound of fans, heaters, blowers, etc., or any noise that is persistent and steady. Drives me INSANE. I don't like listening to radios or music before bed either.
5. I have three tattoos. The initial 'D' right above my cleavage. A sun/star on the nape of my neck. A design on my right calf. I designed the first two and my daughters designed the other.
6. I desperately wanted a third child ... probably until only a few years ago!
7. I skipped Grade 2. Being a New Year's baby, I didn't start school until I was almost 6 years old. [There was no such thing as Junior K back in my day and you had to be 5 to start Kindergarten]
8. For as long as I remember I have had a secret desire to be a TV or Movie actress. hee hee.

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That's all for now! Thanks for visiting.

The Men in my Family... [err, the MAN]

I didn't realize at first that I had posted only women in my last Blog post! [BTW, thanks for the nice comments. My mom is always thrilled when someone comments on her photos! I'll be sure to tell her about these comments too!] And I'd also like to say that this week's theme is fun. I'm enjoying looking at everyone's posts.


So today, the men in my life. Both my Dad and my DH's Dad have passed away,and we have more women than men in our family. Besides one brother-in-law, the only guys in our family are two nephews, two nephews by marriage and 4 great-nephews. I don't get a chance to capture the guys very often because they're either not at the family events, or they're off doing their hunter-gatherer huddles around the BBQ grill! You know, where they stand in a circle around the meat and grunt! ha ha. In winter, you can usually find them in front of the TV or hovering over the food in the kitchen. Because I have no pictures of the other men in my family, I'm going to post of few of my darling DH!

Speaking of grunting by the grill......
Almost looks like he's trying to grill his face!

Doug is a musician. One day, when he was 31 years old, he said, "I'm going to learn how to play the guitar!" The rest is history! He plays lead guitar in a local band. I took this when he was jamming by the campfire and applied a filter to it!

I don't know if it was a midlife thing or what, but he bought himself a Yamaha VStar Classic motorcycle for this 50th birthday! Somehow, I never pictured him as a biker -- but one look at this photo and you can tell he's definitely not your average biker dude!! What a guy!


And this one from today is DH trying to change the oil filter. One thing led to another and he ended up with broken parts and even an extra part!! Needless to say he was not a happy camper, uh... biker! Not sure if he'll get it back together for his road trip on Sunday.

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Thanks for stopping by.

My Family [well, a few of them!!]

I am so fortunate to have almost all my family living in the same city as me! Out of an extended family of 26 people, only 2 live across country and another 6 live about 5 hours away. Even though we all live close by, we don't get together very often, so when we do it's usually quite an event. But even then, we're always missing somebody! Busy schedules prevent us from always being able to be at the same place at the same time! At Christmastime, we try to all gather on one day for a family dinner. It's hard to plan for a day when everyone can be there, so when that does happen, it makes it an even more special event!

We had a nice gathering this summer for a BBQ and party. Most of these photos are from that day. I imagine the next time we'll be together will be Thanksgiving and/or Christmas!

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I've been catching up on everyone's Blog posts from the last week or so. I haven't left comments everywhere, but I wanted to say that I am enjoying the peeks!! Thanks for visiting mine!

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This is my Mamma! She's 83.


My big sister...!


My niece...

My nephew's girlfriend...


My great-niece...

At Camp

Hey, everyone!
I've just spent a glorious 6 days at the cottage and it was WONDERFUL. It started out sunny and cool, but then the temps went up to the mid 20s [C] again! We had one day of rain, so we did some inside work. Had a few campfires. It was surprisingly not windy, as it usually is this time of year, so it gave us a chance to burn some brush I had cut last time we were there.
We had a few saunas, and the lake water is still quite warm, about 70º F.
I've been reading a lot. I'm reading a Steven King novel, 'The Dark Half'. I used to be a fan of his years ago, but after discovering Dean Koontz, I kind of put King on the back burner of favourite authors. I'm almost done the book. It's okay, but it not wowing me like I hoped.
I usually like to sit on my lounge on the dock, but as Fall approaches, so does the change in sun pattern. In the summer, we have full sun on the dock until evening. Now by mid afternoon, the dock is in complete shade. Bummer. As much as I love the sun, I DO wear sunscreen. So now I put the lounge in the back yard. It's not as scenic, but comfortable just the same.
We finished putting the steel roof up on the addition. Doug installed the door and insulated around the new windows. Next comes the fascia and soffits and then we can open up the wall between the old camp and the new addition. Whoo-hoo, can't wait. D starts his second set of holidays in 3 days, so we'll be going back to camp for three weeks, give or take!! I'm hoping the heat-wave will return just for us!
Still having some abdominal pains. Meds aren't working as good as I thought they would, but I am MUCH better than I was earlier this summer. I'm so hungry though. I guess that's a good thing since I had lost so much weight, but I hope I don't eat so much and end up gaining more than I lost. It's fun eating though! Bring on the junk food!!
Dial-up at camp is SO SLOW. I try not to be online more than 1/2 hour per night. I've only got 10 free hours a month here. It sucks because I can't upload or download any photos. Takes way too long. So, I catch up over on TwoPeas once I get home.
We were invited to a corn roast at a cottage around the bay. I've heard that this group of people have the party every year, taking turns on who's cottage, so I kind of feel honoured that we've made the list this year! Doug had to work until 5pm, so we missed the afternoon celebrations, but arrived just in time for the Corn Roast and Pulled Pork. Met about 40 other fellow cottagers. I've already forgotten most of their names, but I've got pictures!!

Meg and Jay were at camp for the long weekend. Gracie was SO happy to see her favourite human friend!! Meg's friends joined us from Maple, On for two days, and Lauren brought two of her friends who are on their way to a new life in Toronto from Vancouver! It was a fabulous day!
Hope everyone had a great long weekend!
CHEERS

Here's my charming hubby. I swear this man will fit into any crowd and make friends in an instant!


This man was just one of many taking part in the Horseshoe Tourny! Wish I could remember his name!!


Friends, a setting sun and a bottle of wine! Need I say more?



This is Meg's boyfriend, Jayson. DH couldn't be happier that he's a musician too! They had a great time jamming together by the campfire.



Here's Meg doing her lesson preps on her laptop by the campfire. She just got hired a few days ago to teach grade 10 math, grade 12 math and grade 10 civics. She starts tomorrow, so she needed to 'work' while at camp!


And friends and family would not be complete without our best friend, Gracie! Just look at that face!!!!

Lauren and Meghan

LAUREN

This one was taken when Lauren was at the School of Toronto Dance Theatre. I had a point and shoot then and now when I look back on the photos from that day I wish I could go back and reshoot with my Pentax!! These girls had a small dance group they formed and called themselves "Stir Crazy". This has always been one of my favourite dance shots. We had gone for a hike on our favourite winter trail, and I [with a new Point and Shoot camera] wanted to try some freeze shots with it! First shot and this was the result!!

MEGHAN

In 2000, the Performing Arts Department presented CATS, the Musical. Meghan was so thrilled to get the role of Victoria, [the white cat on the left]! What a wonderful show, such talented kids.

This shot was taken on almost the same trail as the one above, but taken last fall. I still didn't have my Pentax at this time, so oh... the possibilities NOW!! Thanks again for peeking at my old stuff. I'll be at camp for a few days, so likely not able to post for a bit. I need to get out in the bush and find something interest to photograph while I'm there! Have a great week!!

Dance

You know, at first, I thought that the POTD theme this week would be perfect for me! Afterall, DANCE has been a part of my life since 1985 when my oldest daughter Lauren took her first lesson. After looking through the hundreds and hundreds of photos I have of her and of Meghan, who started dancing in 1989 I realized that this theme isn't as easy as I thought it would be. Sure, I've got hundreds of photos to choose from, but which one do I pick? The one of Lauren's first tap class with her shiny black shoes with the big black bows? Meghan dressed as a lamb for the Little Bo Peep Character ballet piece? Lauren's first Modern solo? Meghan's solo in CATS as the white cat, Victoria? Lauren as Eliza in THE KING AND I?

Classes and rehearsals. Costumes and makeup. Ballet slippers, Pointe shoes and calloused feet. Sore joints and bruises. And fundraising!!

From the first cute little Ballet lessons of 'tap tap tap' and 'point point point' to Arabesque, Développé, Fouetté and Pas de Deux. From early Modern classes of 'stretch and reach' to Contraction, Spiral, High Release and Bre-e-e-athe! And how many times have I heard "and...five, six, seven, eight!"

Lauren began Ballet and Tap at a very popular studio in town. I thought it was THE place to take her. After a year or two, I realized that it was too 'hoity-toity'. There was too much emphasis on show and not enough on the technique and the fun. I will never regret pulling her out of that studio and bringing her to a tiny studio in our former small town. The Lesley Kallio School of Ballet is where both my girls truly began to love DANCE. Lauren began there at 9 years of age and Meghan at 7. Soon they were bumped up with the more advanced girls and began honing their craft. They were GOOD. That's just not Mamma talking, but they had a talent that certainly did not come from me! I am so uncoordinated when it comes to dance. Yikes.

They danced with Lesley for about 5-6 years until her studio closed. Lesley recommended another studio in town for them to go to and the rest is history! Sudbury School of Dance, under the direction of Denise Vitali is where my girls are still involved. Mostly a Modern Dance studio, Lauren and Meghan excelled in the Graham method of Modern Dance. As well, they both attented Sudbury Secondary School, a Performin Arts High School where they majored in Dance. There, they took Ballet, Jazz and Modern as well as Choreography. They both earned Honours and many awards there. As well, they were in almost every school musical. Recitals, Concerts, Festivals, Performances and Shows were part of their lives.

After High School, Lauren went on to study Professional Modern Dance training at the School of Toronto Dance Theatre. Meghan continued to teach dance occasionally at both the high school and the studio.

So, here we are - 22 years later and DANCE is still a huge part of their lives, and ours. We are so proud.

Since last year, Lauren has been teaching Modern Dance and some Ballet at two studios. She teaches 6-8 classes a week. She just returned from an intensive two week Modern Dance workshop with Dance Theatre David Earle.

Meghan is now a qualified High School Teacher and one of her teachables is DANCE!!

If any of you have children that are just starting out in dance, this story just might be yours some day! Encourage them. Support them. Inspire them.

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If you've read this far, thanks for hanging in there! Back to the POTD. To be fair, I suppose that I should be out taking new photos, but classes don't start here until the first and second week of September and I'm not usually in the studio any more with my girls. I hope you don't mind that I post some of my favourites! Hope you enjoy these from the early years!

Lauren's first year of Ballet, 1985.

Meghan as an "Aristocat" in 1991.

A Trip to Killarney

Killarney is a tiny little community where the North Channel (above Manitoulin Island) meets Georgian Bay, about an hour southwest of my home town of Sudbury. The hills around the town are topped with white quartzite crystals.

The town was originally a fur-trading post, and a popular resting spot for voyageurs, midway between the French River and the North Channel, on their way to the St. Mary's River to Lake Superior. The town was once only accessible by water to Manitoulin Island until 1962, when a highway connected the community to Sudbury. One of the nicest Provincial Parks is located nearby. Killarney is now a quiet vacation town except during FISH AND CHIPS season!

For the past several years, actually more like 15 or maybe more, we've made at least one trip a year to Killarney for fish and chips. Herbert Fisheries, a little chip stand that has been around for decades serve the BEST [and I mean the BEST] fish and chips.... ever! They serve out of a small red school bus from May through October, 7 days a week. I can't imagine how much fish and potatoes they must serve each summer! They truly are to die for!!

Anyway, it is such a small town [only about 600 population], but such a huge tourist place. There's not much to see, as they have only one main road, but what is there is beautiful. Wonderful views of where the channel opens up into Georgian Bay. Sometimes humongous, honking yachts go sailing through and then you might see a canoe or kayaker go by! Some of the towns people have quaint little homes and others look like old cottages, barely standing. There's one church, a few gifts shops and a General Store. Two resorts are situated on either end of Main Street and both are wonderful places to stay.

Back to the fish and chips, because it's really all about the fish and chips. We started taking our girls there when they were small. At first they could barely get through their shared order of fish and chips, but now find that it's not enough! For $11 [it went up this year] you get 3-4 pieces of lightly dusted fried fish and a whole bunch of fries. You can have lemon sauce, tartar sauce, vinegar, malt vinegar, salt or pepper on the side! It amazes me how organized and efficient they are in serving the hoards of people that order. My dad especially loved going on our annual trek and I always think of him now when I'm there. He SO loved the fish. Today, we took Meghan's boyfriend with us. It was his first time ever there and he was not disappointed!

I took quite a few pics today. Used my 50-200mm which I don't normally do. It was very sunny, so I had some exposure issues, but all in all I thought they turned out pretty good. I just posted some of my favs. Even one of little 'ol me!!

Hope you enjoyed my little tour of Killarney!!
Thanks for stopping by.

I'm anxious for the POTD Dance theme! I'm gonna rock with this one!!!

My Diagnosis

Thank you friends, family and web buddies who have asked how I've been. It's been a long haul, but I'm finally starting to see some sunshine regarding my health issues. If you don't want to read any more about bowels and gastrointestinal stuff - you can be excused! Thanks for dropping by! :)

Yesterday, I had a colonoscopy. Some you might be saying to yourself, "ew" - but really, you need to do yourself a favour and have one. For some, it can be a life saver. For me, it confirmed that I have Crohn's disease.

If you wish to read my first two health posts, they're here and here.

A few months ago I had an upper GI and Small Bowel Follow Through exam. The prep for the test was HORRENDOUS! First I had to eat soft foods for a day, then the next day drink fluids only. I had to take a solution called Citro-Mag. Ewww, ewww, ewww. It tasted like pure lemon juice with the consistency of a thick syrupy drink. That stuff was wicked!!
I had such incredible cramping and pain during the night and the trips to the bathroom were many and violent. I was so exhausted and weak the next day. The test itself was a breeze, although time consuming. After I got home I ate and then went to sleep!

For the colonoscopy test all I had to do was drink fluids the day before. I drank clear juices, tea, broth and Gatorade [recommended]. I swear, I will probably never, ever drink Gatorade again if I can help it!! At 6pm I had to take a solution called Pico-Salax. You mix the package into a half cup of juice or water or Gatorade. The next dose was taken the following morning at 5am. This time I had very little cramping but I was nauseous and threw up once. I slept all through the night without having to go to the bathroom once. I guess the second dose made things kick in because by 7am things were moving!! I expected much worse, so I can honestly say that this prep was a breeze!!

I had to be at the hospital one hour before the test. Not sure why because I just sat there in my hospital gown and housecoat doing nothing. It was kind of funny, really. I felt like a cow being led to slaughter!! There were about 5 or 6 patients at a time in the waiting room. All of us in our hospital garb, waiting for the inevitable test! I struck up a conversation with one woman who was there on the advice of her doctor. She was there for a routine scope. She had to be there TWO hours before. Can't figure that out!

Finally a nurse asked me to sit in a little cubicle where she asked me a few questions about meds and health history and she took my blood pressure and weighed me. BTW, at this point - I have lost a total of 13 pounds since my symptoms started. I'm actually quite happy at this weight and I'd be happy if I stayed here.

In the mean time there are patients coming and going every 5 minutes or so. To and from a scope of their own. I'm amazed at how many people are having this procedure done. From what I understood, there were three doctors at the hospital on that day. Perhaps they are only done on Wednesdays, but still, that's a LOT of scopes!!

Now I'm led to a curtained area to a stretcher. My belongings and my housecoat and shoes are put on the shelf below and I'm covered with a blanket, given a pillow for my head and wheeled down the hall wait for my turn. About 15 minutes later I'm taken to the "procedure" room. My doctor and another nurse are there. I'm fitted with a pulse monitor and given an IV of a mild sedative. I felt it kick in, but I was still awake, kinda. The scope itself seemed to last only moments. But I think it generally lasts about 15-20 minutes. There were some moments where I felt a lot of pain, but the doc just eased off on the air and I was relieved somewhat. He removed a small ulcer near the inflammation site and will send it for biopsy. I am not concerned about cancer at this point because all my other tests have been positive and are not leading to that at all.

Then I am taken to the "fart room". I laugh, because a friend of my DH has scopes done every 2 years. He calls the recovery room the "fart room". This is where you are encouraged to pass gas before you go home! Too funny! There we are, 3-4 people on stretchers being asked to pass gas!! Of course, all of being ladies in the room, we were quite discreet! We were given juice and cookies and about 20minutes later, we could leave! Because of the sedative given, we are asked to have someone drive us home. I felt quite fine and because I live only a 5 minute walk away, I decided to walk home.

The first thing I had when I got home was my usual morning latte! MMMmmmm. Then I had a bowl of cereal and a nap!

So, everyone, I encourage you - no I urge you to never, ever be embarrassed to have a colonoscopy. It's truly not a bad experience at all. It could literally save your life. Mine diagnosed Crohn's, which is completely manageable - but for some it reveals colon cancer. Early detection is key.

I was given a prescription for a very mild dose of Prednisone for 5 weeks duration. Each week the dose is decreased by 5mg. I am also taking Pentasa, which is an anti-inflammatory. Hopefully in a few days I will be feeling more like myself again. I am looking forward to becoming active again and enjoying life a bit more than I've been able to lately. My camera has certainly taken a back seat in the last few months.

Thanks again to those of you who have asked about me. I appreciate your concern for me.

If you suffer from Crohn's or know someone that does - I would love to hear from you.

Keyboard Shortcuts for PS

I use PS7, but I think these shortcuts work for all versions. Just upload the file and print it out for future reference!

Hope the link works for you!

http://www.gigasize.com/get.php/-1099773304/PS_Keyboard_shortcuts.pdf

I've been tagged!

I've been tagged by Amy and I must list 8 facts/habits about myself and then list who I'm tagging in return.



1. I spend WAY too much time on my laptop. I tell myself in the morning, "okay, just check your email, your forums and then walk away...". Never happens! I don't spend all day on it, just longer than I should.

2. I can't stand the sound of windshield wipers. When I'm driving, I set it to the slowest speed I can possibly tolerate. If Doug is driving, he usually puts them at the highest speed and I grit my teeth and seethe inside. I especially go nuts when it's stopped raining or slowed down and the wipers are still on high. Once, he got upset with me for telling him to turn them off, so now I have to grin and bear it and anxiously wait for the rain to stop. If he happens to run into a store or something, I quickly reach over and turn them down. If the wipers squeak -- it's even worse!! I can't explain it but they drive me NUTS!!!

3. I once met Colin James. Doug was his chauffeur in 1991 for a gig here in town. He drove him and his crew to and from their hotel. We got to watch the concert and afterwards DH introduced me to him. We got to talking about how much he loves fishing. We invited him to go fishing the next day and he accepted! He came over to our house, came inside, had a coffee. He autographed Doug's guitar for him and signed one of his CDs. We spent the day at the lake and he caught a few bass. While he was gone fishing with his manager and Doug, my niece and I prepared a BBQ. I went inside the cottage and noticed his clothes on the chair. I tried on his cowboy boots! haha, I wish I had taken a photo of them. But I did get a few pics of us and him!! Doug had to work that night, so I became chauffeur and drove him to the airport! What a great memory!

4. I do not like to travel by car. I'm fine within the city limits, but on long trips I am not completely relaxed. I find road trips are long and boring and unsafe. I would much prefer to travel by bus or train!

5. I write in a journal every day. I started in 1990 and I have not missed a day since. I also keep one at the cottage.

6. I love eating cereal at night instead of dessert. A bowl of Fruit Loops, Golden Grahams, Corn Pops or Reese's cereal is just the right amount of sweets for me! Yummmm.

7. My eldest daughter's middle name is Quinn -- named after Quinn Cummings from "The Goodbye Girl"

8. I am not religious, but I am very spiritual.


I will tag:
twinsmom
handpuppet
michelle davies
hahcc
leahca
armance
dar

I heard on CBC radio recently a story about how some developers and communities are trying to ban the use of clotheslines! Apparently, in some communities this bylaw is already in effect! WHAT???? I don't get it! The energy use of the dryer alone has GOT to have an impact on not only the individual home-owner's hydro bill, but on the country's overall energy consumption. THAT can't be good for global warming and the environment. And what about the toxic chemicals that are infused into each and every dryer sheet that is being 'fluffed' into our clothing and out into the atmosphere from our dryer vents? Then those dryer sheets are thrown into the trash where they take a really long time to decompose! Not to mention the allergies that a lot of people have to scented things and perfumes - and we're pumping out those scents through our dryer vent into the air!
Clothes that are dried outside even SMELL better!
And how much of an eyesore can a line of clothes really be? They're only on the line for a short time. A neighbourhood doesn't look great on trash day either. All those garbage bins and blue boxes out on the curb for everyone to look at! I'm surprised that they haven't been banned too! Maybe we'll soon have to put our garbage out into neat, tidy, cedar lined fancy boxes - all the same. I'd much rather look at some t-shirts and towels on a line that icky, dented, stinky trash cans!
I mean, C'MON - it's a clothesline!! We've been drying clothes on a line for centuries - I just don't get it.