My Flog for January 22 - Murk(y), Work(y) and Jerk(y) + No 1 Time Management!

I had a fog-free walk to the bus this morning, but there was plenty in Richmond to make up for that. However, the sun did pop out for a few seconds early afternoon - it was a nice surprise. Glad I wasn't blinking at the time, or I would have missed it.

Just as I was expecting to start unpacking/pricing/stocking 8 big boxes of stock at work today, 23 more big boxes of yarn came rolling in, so all afternoon it was yarn stuffing. I was so glad it was Tuesday - I told my boss to make sure everything was done before Sunday. Ha ha. Bet it won't be, but we'll see.

I had the idiot jerk of a bus driver this evening, the one who alternates five seconds of foot on the pedal with two seconds of foot on the brake. A couple of weeks ago, while he was idling by Brighouse Canada Line station, someone came to the door and asked him when he was leaving. He just shut the door and took off, laughing. He is so rude, never replies to a greeting. However, today he did talk to me. He said, 'If you want to talk on your cell phone, go to the back of the bus.' If I hadn't wanted to get home ASAP I would have told him what to do with the back of his bloody bus, and I think it would have been quite painful. 

Anyway - home to Coronation Street, then while I had eggs cooking on the stove, I mixed up some blueberry muffins and stuck them in the oven. While they were baking, I had dinner -Howard had already eaten. By then the eggs were hard-boiled, so I put them in icy water and did the dishes. By then the muffins were done, so I took them out of the oven. By then the eggs were cold, so I made egg salad for lunch sandwiches for tomorrow. Then I made sandwiches. And now I have the chance to sit and veg for a few minutes before I go to bed. 

Thank goodness tomorrow is a Day Off! Who knows, maybe I'll get some more story done!

• Breakfast - Toast and Coffee
• Lunch - Spinach Salad, Yogurt w/ Fruit and Granola
• Dinner - Beans, Toast 
• Snacks - Muffin - well, to be honest, 2 muffins, Diet Lime Pepsi, Iced Mocha

My Flog for January 21 - Bed'sCalling + A Blast From The Past - ORANGES ,,, or beer?

t's been another long day - up at 5, left home at 6:30, and a foggy walk to the bus stop. I didn't realize the sidewalks were icy until one of my feet started to slip-slide away. Walking on the grass where possible and carefully plodding my way over driveways got me safely to the bus stop, though. I don't know if there were any eagles around this morning - it was so foggy, plus the bus window was really dirty, plus late morning light from a hidden sun. I should have just slept all the way to Steveston.

 I was certainly tired enough - when I went to bed last night, I was so exhausted my body felt it was floating away, but unfortunately, I found it really hard to get to sleep. After two hours of tossing and turning and checking the clock, I started my little mind trick - this time it was thinking of 2 countries that begin with each letter of the alphabet. I'm not sure how far I got, but it did the job.

Meanwhile, I'm going to cheat with a 2-year old post from my Tamar's Day Off blog. I really don't have the energy or the awakeness to tackle the rewrite of my chapter 1, even though there are some really cool ideas going through my head as to where this story is going.

So - for those of you who haven't read this entry, hope you enjoy it. For those of you who have read - my apologies.

ORANGES....or beer? I don't think so

We've been married for 36 1/2 years, which is actually a number that seems way out of whack. I don't even feel old enough for that, and probably wouldn't feel as old as I do, if we weren't married that long. However, tonight made me realize just how well we know each other, a result of these long long years dragging behind our heels.

Due to a work injury, DH has been waiting almost three weeks for a Worker's Compensation claim to be approved (hopefully), so money is a wee bit tight right now, but we do have enough to buy the occasional potato and loaf of bread. At the produce market, where fruit and veggies are way cheaper than the supermarkets (I don't think they even call them supermarkets here in BC), I picked up two plump and juicy oranges and laid them gently in the basket he was carrying. Obviously not gently enough.

"Don't you realize these are going to cost a dollar each?'

So I picked them up and tossed them back in the orange bin, and we picked out our carrots and potatoes - russets for the guys' french fries, and reds for the gals' garlic mashed - yum.

On the way back home, he mentioned our Monster needed gas, so he thought he would go to the Petro and get some - and maybe pick up a half-dozen beer.

Even the air in the truck stopped breathing. I was dying to say it, but he didn't give me the chance, he just pulled into the driveway and parked.

So I'm blogging, he's upstairs with a glass of fruit punch, and I guess he'll do without beer - either until he gets a cheque or until beer costs less than oranges.

37 years in August.

• Breakfast - Toast and Coffee
• Lunch - Spinach Salad, Yogurt, Muffin
• Dinner - Leftovers from last night - Hash - and it was some good, b'y!
• Snacks - Hot Chocolate, Banana, Three Musketeers Bar, and another Muffin

The Joy of Writing - Thoughts and Fixes for the Story

Okay. I have to do a bit of a rewrite on Chapter One. How could I possibly think my heroine could do that much of a reno on her house with just an itty bitty of savings? And who, in their right mind, would leave the bill paying, especially the insurance premiums, to a husband who drank like a fish? After all, Carl worked, and his job offered him a nice policy - doubled if he died in an accident. So I think maybe Carl might have been operating a crane that toppled over - or got swooshed by a helicopter - or maybe he fell into a vat of soap - or the propane tank on his fork lift exploded - or maybe he just slipped and fell of a scaffold - the only thing I know for sure right now is it happened early in the morning, before he had his lunchtime beer.

So - she does get a nice big chunk of change. That should buy .... or at least rent .... a nice handy man. One would think.

My Flog for January 20 - Yawn and Burp + Sorry, No Bedtime Story Tonight

Another foggy day - this morning it seemed the high rises in New Westminster were floating on the clouds - this was taken from the Sky Train as it jerked and wobbled over the Sky Bridge, but you can get the drift.

The fog finally did lift during the day, but it turned really cold, a shivery wait for the bus. Anyway, 11 hours after I left this morning, I finally got home, to find dinner all waiting for me to microwave, and a kitchen full of dirty dishes to do. And because I know Howard will want them, muffins to finish making before bedtime - tonight's will be Raspberry Coconut, and I will probably have one before I go to bed -the dry ingredients are mixed in one bowl, wet in another, waiting for me to mix 'em together and stick 'em in the oven - but I have to sit for a little while or I'll collapse. Yawn.

So, there is no chapter 4 tonight, although there are lots of exciting ideas brewing in the muddled head of mine.

• Breakfast - Toast and Coffee
• Lunch - Spinach Salad, Banana
• Dinner - Roast Pork, Potatoes (not mashed, as Howard made dinner), Carrots, Gravy and Dressing
• Snacks - Hot Chocolate, Lemon Loaf, Yogurt, San Pellegrino (flavoured sparkling water)

My Flog for January 19 + A Grey Foggy Day, A Pink Foggy Evening and Chapter 3

So it's Saturday, and I have to do everything I didn't do during my 4 Day Offs, because tomorrow it's back to work for another three. So, a load of laundry washed and dried, which included my purse because I managed to spill half a bottle of Cranberry Juice in it last week (thank Goodness it's made of denimy style cloth), and nice fresh bread, and rolls to have with dinner. Grocery shopping in the morning - when I got home I remembered some things I forgot to put on the grocery list. I obviously need a list to make a list. Flour was one of the forgotten things - so muffins may a bit scarce this week.

However - the weather today provided a few cool pics - I think - it was so foggy, a lot of Surrey disappeared the closer we got. The sky scrapers faded into cloud - but the very tops of them caught the sun that was shining high above. Think Howard would stop so I could take a picture? Not on your life.

Looking down 92 Avenue, across King George Boulevard

And because the fog stayed all day long, it spread a glorious sunset across the sky, giving us yet again something to be thankful for.

My sky.

• Breakfast - Toast with Jam, Coffee. Wonderful gorgeous brilliant Coffee. Yes, with a capital C.
• Lunch - Salad - Baby Spinach, Tomato, Grated Cheddar, Boiled Egg, Green Onion, with Renee's Sweet Onion Vinaigrette - finally found it at Pricesmart after months of searching. So glad Mr. Pricesmart decided to carry it - I could only find it before in small one-serving packs sold with pre-made salads at the Great Canadian Super Store, and I rarely go there.
• Dinner - Chicken and Fries
• Snacks - Banana, Diet Pepsi

Regarding my story - I changed Brian's name to Carl, because I have known nice Brians. I know there are nice Carls, too, especially ones whose names begin with K, but I chose this Carl because of a real loser son-of-a-bitch on Coronation Street. After a marriage to him, his wife would deserve to have a terrifically fun and exciting life as soon as he had the grace to cross over  - and all my Number One fans wouldn't think I'm a terrible person to have her let loose with her husband's ashes barely cold .....

CHAPTER 3

MY PLAN: 

UPSTAIRS: 3 bedrooms almost ready to go, furnished, two en suites with shower stalls, one with tub/shower - the bed we slept in all these years has a relatively new mattress (I'll get me a new bedroom set! Yes!)

The 2 smaller rooms upstairs: knock out wall to make one larger - maybe bedsit, shower stall bathroom, small kitchenette - microwave and bar fridge? These two rooms take the width of the house, so depending on cost of reno - we'll see. Maybe a future plan.

DOWNSTAIRS: My part will be at the rear of the house, and take up almost the whole length except for the mud/laundry room and pantry which are behind the kitchen. So remove present bathroom door, and replace it for access from living space. That sounds easy. And I get new furniture! From Ikea! Plus I get that big get-away window. I love my house.

LIVING ROOM: The living room is separated from the back rooms (My Space) by a hall, which makes a letter T leading from the front door. At one end of the top of the T is the pantry wall, and at the other the stairs. So extend living room to include hall, knock down wall in front of stairs, install balustrade, and maybe shelf up the space under stairs. There is a gorgeous rough stone fireplace on the far wall - my pride and joy. Living Room will become 'Common Area.' It's pretty large and can accommodate another sofa and a couple more easy chairs easily.

KITCHEN: I love my kitchen - it's a big and bright eat-in, with the wonderfully asymmetric wooden table my dad made back in the 70's, my stainless steel appliances are relatively new, lots of cupboards and counter space, and a pantry and laundry room to the rear. The laundry room also gives access to the backyard. Did I mention I love my house?

Now all I have to do is find a man with a tool box. 

My Flog for January 18 + Chapter 2 of the Untitled Story

Today was awful. I had no coffee. And any thoughts I may have had during the night of going to Tim Horton's or A&W for breakfast and coffee were dashed by the cold temperature outside. I didn't even want to get out of bed, let alone travel a mile for a brew.

So, as days that start out in the mode of suck usually stay that way, this one did indeed. I did almost nothing - a few dishes, a half-hearted sweep of the kitchen floor, and of course the litter box. One must never neglect that cat accessory, no matter how lazy one feels. I watched the Food Network until I couldn't bear to watch any more, knowing there was no way to reproduce these wonderful dishes with little energy and fewer ingredients.

However, the morning wasn't a complete loss, because even before I got out of bed, I knew where my poor little excuse for a story was going - but that's about the only thing about it so far that echoes my life.

• Breakfast - Toast with Jam and (oh dear) Hot Chocolate, which did absolutely no good for me at all
• Lunch - Bread and Baked Beans (someone's got to eat them, as Howard said he didn't want any more, and I should be glad he didn't, as he planned to share their effects with me during the night)
• Dinner - Fried Eggs and a slice of bread. So how many slices of bread today? Only 5. I have to get to the store tomorrow and buy veggies and fruit. 
• Snacks - a few chips. If there was anything else in the cupboard to snack on, I would have snacked on it. But my cupboards are bare. My problem is, when I go to the store, I feel so proud of myself when I bypass the cookie and snack aisles - but when I get home I could kick myself. Oh yes - I also ate the last muffin. That's Howard's fault - he was supposed to take the 4 that were left to work, but he only took 3.

CHAPTER 2

So - last night, after finishing that bottle of wine (which was quite an accomplishment for someone who doesn't like wine) and stowing Brian's Urn in his liquor 'cabinet' - how apt was that? - I went to bed and slept the sleep of the righteous. The first few months since widowhood, I found it difficult to get to sleep. It was just as hard to fall asleep in the silence as it was to fall asleep with a room full of snores, but now I'm getting used to four silent walls.

And as I opened my eyes, I realized sleep had brought me a solution to the problem that was weighing heavy in my mind - how I was going to stretch my small income so I could remain in my house. Home for me was truly Home, as I was born to this house many years ago. The thought of selling and moving to an apartment or a townhouse where I'd be squashed into tiny rooms wasn't pleasant. Even though this house was built over 60 years ago, the rooms were spacious and we had kept it very well. When the girls were teenagers, they argued so much over bathroom time we had en suites installed in their rooms, and also in ours. The boys were left with the main bathroom downstairs, which still contained a beautiful claw foot tub, and a big window, perfect for sneaking in and out after bedtime. Adjacent to the bathroom was  the 'parlour', which boasted a fireplace, and had French windows opening onto a balcony which overlooked the back garden. Perfect bedsit for a modern woman.

So - if I used the bit of savings, I could transform this 5 bedroom into a Bed and Breakfast, or a Boarding House, or even a home for wayward women.. It felt good to have a purpose though. First thing was to Make A Plan, find a Handy Man (bonus) and buy some new linens.

My Flog for January 17 + Chapter 1 of a New Blog Story, so far Untitled

Today was a real lazy day, TV and Solitaire and a touch of Word Diarrhea.

• Breakfast - Toast and Coffee - the coffee was the last in the tub, and since I didn't go to the store, I'm not sure how I'm going to manage tomorrow morning when I slither downstairs and reach for my mug.
• Lunch - Left over noodles and rice - Chinese Food, the meal that keeps on going. Tuesday's $20 covered dinner for 3 (plus 2 kids who don't eat anything) and 4 lunches. Lots of value in that.
• Dinner - Slow Cooker Baked Beans - sooooo good. Anything with molasses and brown sugar has to be good. Entree and dessert all rolled up into one! Plus a couple of slices of nice soft just defrosted home made bread. 
• Snacks - Muffin, Yogurt

The rest of this entry is the beginning of what may be another mini-chapter story in the manner of The Clothesline Wars. I'm not sure where this is going, maybe nowhere, but every now and then I'll tap a next line and see what happens. My heroine hasn't a name yet, but I imagine she'll let me know the perfect one as I continue. Poor thing, she doesn't even have a plot either. 

CHAPTER ONE

64 years old today. Over half a century. If, as planned, I live to be 120 years old, over half my life is behind me. Well. I guess I should figure out soon what I'm going to do when I grow up.

Oh, I've already done all the normal things a gal born in the last century was supposed to do, which included maintaining my virginity until I married Brian, the first fellow to offer me an engagement ring (which I never got, by the way). I gave up my promising career (keeping house for two senile brothers) and settled into some kind of domestic bliss, which was fine most of the time, as long as I kept my mouth shut. Two boys, who grew up and moved away, and two girls, one who loves men too much, and one who doesn't care for men at all. If nothing else, the past has been .... interesting.

The past 10 years or so, it seemed the husband and I were just playing a waiting game, to see who would pop off first and leave peace and life insurance for the other. Seems like my liver won that particular race - although it came as a complete surprise to me that he had neglected to pay the insurance policy, and I was left only with the house (actually the one I was born in, so I can't even thank him for that) and a bar tab. Lovely.

The only liquor in the house now is a half-filled bottle of wine, which sits between the plate with the leftover pieces of birthday cake my oldest daughter, Julie, brought, and the urn with the leftover pieces of Brian. Since he had no wishes to discuss his send-off before he succumbed to cirrhosis, it's up to me to decide what to do with his ashes. I know where I want mine to go - a few scattered over the Atlantic, a few tossed in the Rockies, and a few in other places here and there - but the first place I think of for his would be River Livet. He'd never been to Scotland, but he would probably feel right at home where his beloved Glenlivet whiskey is distilled . I think he'd be happy there.

My Flog for January 16 + Chopped!, Shot and Cops

After sleeping in until 8 o'clock, then watching a movie about a crazy wife (imagine that, a crazy wife....) getting rid of her husband in a terribly bloody way, and an episode of Chopped! where they had to use canned cocktail sausages in a dessert - I realized if I was going to do anything note-worthy I had better get going. I did have a plan today - not a hugely exciting one, though.

Breehy and I actually took my left arm to Pricesmart because I needed to get a flu shot and thought that may be the easiest way to get one. It was chilly riding - and it was chilly walking also. I sure wish it would warm up soon so I can get my poor leg muscles used to pedalling again - I can't believe our long journeys of past summer, where I could go for miles and miles and miles. Oh well.

The pharmacist who toddled out with the needle paraphernalia looked like he may have gotten his medical training at a nursery school, a bit of a concern.

'You have done this before?' I asked him.

'Oh yes,' he replied, 'I've done at least 4 of these .......'

I was getting ready to bolt, and he continued

 '.....this morning.'

Okay. I could either trust him, or spend 3 hours on bus to my trusty, needle-practiced doctor in Richmond. Trust won. It was a bit jabby, but not too bad, and even though my arm is hurting like a bugger now, that is to be expected. I'd rather have a sore arm for a couple of days than the nasty flu that's starting its rounds.

But don't think that's the most exciting thing that happened today. After Howard came home, he heard a helicopter circling above - sure enough, a look through the window saw the police helicopter making small circles over the school on the other side of the road, and our house. The circles got smaller and smaller, and ended with one guy, who turned out to be an undercover cop, running after another guy, who turned out be a criminal of some sorts,  and 6 undercover cop cars. All of a sudden the criminal guy falls goes flat on the ground in a 'let's make a snow angel position' (although he was on his face side) and a slew of cops surrounded him. The chopper kept circling and some of the cops started searching around the school - not sure how long they were there. We figure the bad boy got rid of something as he ran, so they were looking for whatever it was. No idea what he did, but after about half an hour they bundled his sorry handcuffed ass into the back of a car and took off. With all the school-involved stuff going on lately, it was a bit more scary, but this all happened after a couple of hours after the kids had gone home.

• Breakfast - Toast with Jam, Coffee
• Lunch - Leftover Chinese food - rice and noodles. So good.
• Dinner - Just Fries. And Catsup. or Ketchup. Whatever.
• Snacks - a Cranberry/Apricot/Coconut Muffin - oh so also good

My Flog for January 15 -Eagles, Rubber Duckies, and Chicken Chow Mein - Life Is Good!

Yeah! I've got my big old week's work over, now I just have 4 glorious days to fill with me-stuff. Today wasn't bad actually, for a work day - and it was a work day, one that didn't finish until 9:00pm. Yawn.

I got up at 5 this morning, coffee and toasted and showered myself, got dressed, all that crap, and had an early morning walk to the bus stop, with my sneakers scrunching snow underfoot. Another dressed-for-outdoors-and-not-bus mornings, which isn't so great - but I saw 2 eagles in the Eagle Tree, which was very great. I'm just hoping my last-year's eagle has found a woman, and will raise a little family in that tree. 

I spent the last 2 days at work stuffing yarn and pricing/shelving stock, so the days went fast. These are about the cutest things we got today - I want one of each. 

After work, a feast of Chinese food from Top King's, who make the best Chinese food in the world. I'm sure it's even better than the Chinese food you get in China. We got a Meal for Two for $20, and we always have lots of leftovers. If I'm tempting you, and you live sorta kinda nearby, check out their menu.

Then it was - dishes, garbage to the sidewalk for early pickup tomorrow morning, feed the cats, unfeed the cats' litter box, and make muffins for His Majesty's lunch. Tonight's special is Cranberry/Apricot/Coconut - when you don't have enough of one thing, you throw in more than one thing, right? They smell very good - I haven't had one. Yet.

• Breakfast - Toast with jam, Coffee
• Lunch - Turkey Veggie Soup - now that's all gone. I think I'll make some kind of soup this week, I'm so used to taking some to work for lunch, Yogurt/Fruit Parfait
• Dinner - Pork Fried Rice, and Chicken Chow Mein
• Snacks - Hot Chocolate, Spiteful Pineapple Muffin, and 3 Chocolate Chip cookies

My Flog for January 14 + Not Much Else

Imagine this: a dark frosty morning, snow-covered sidewalks, frozen drizzle settling on my face as I walk to the bus stop. I'm not sure if 6:30 in the morning is a good time for a winter walk, but I really have no choice as I have to get to work. However -

I'm not cold, as I'm dressed like an extra for a Charlie Brown's winter special - yes, even my long johns are making the trip. Long johns, jeans, socks and sneakers, sweater, cardigan, jacket, woolly hat, woolly scarf, woolly mittens all work to keep Jack Frost from nipping at my toes, ears and everything inbetween. However -

I know I'm in trouble when the bus door opens and I notice the bus driver is wearing a T-shirt and shorts. Yes, he must be the only one comfortable in his warm cosy bus.

So my morning commute is shiver, sweat, shiver, sweat, ending with shiver and slippin' and slidin' over an icy sidewalk to the shop. However, I got through yet another winter day, and came that much closer to spring.

• Breakfast - Toast with Jam, Coffee
• Lunch - Pea Soup (that's all gone now - rest in peace, soup, you were very very good) and a Spiteful Pineapple Muffin
• Dinner - Left overs from last night. French Fries aren't very good when they are warmed up in the microwave, but the Macaroni Salad was decent. Rice Pudding (that's the last of that too - good job we get paid tomorrow as my fridge and freezer are getting quite empty)
• Snacks - small bag of Lays potato chips, Hot Chocolate, and a BAR. Yes, a BAR. I've been craving chocolate for ages so decided it was time to get one. Sort of a reward for braving this wild Lower Mainland winter weather.

January 13 + Sunrise, Sunrise, Morning Visitors, and Spiteful Pinapple Muffins

I know I don't get the beautiful sunrises that brighten up my far-away friends' mornings, but I will take what I can get, which included this pretty-in-pink sky early today. I had to take this picture from my bedroom window, and use my camera's little zoomy button - I know it would be 'that' much more if it were spread out over the water, but one takes what one can get.

And when I went downstairs to get breakfast - I got another little surprise - or should I say two medium sized ones. No wonder Blackie (my shy neurotic cat) was very interested in the doors, but refused to go out when I slid one open. He knew what was lurking in the shadows.

However, what was lurking in the shadows soon materialized, and when I first saw them I was glad Blackie hadn't gone out. The first thing I did was rush to the front door, where Teaser had just gone out to survey the surroundings - Teaser likes to do that first thing every morning, and last thing every night. I was glad to see he was still sitting on the outdoor mat, safe and sound. So back to the kitchen, with the camera. Howard had now made an appearance.

Aha. So now I understand why they were there. Howard went to the counter where there was some older bread than the bread I had baked yesterday, and after tearing it into pieces, threw it out to them. Yes, he was feeding raccoons, even though I told him it was illegal (I think) and how he shouldn't draw raccoons to our back door when we have two cats. Deaf ears. And this was obviously not the first time.

They were so incredibly cute though.

Not long after breakfast (both raccoons and mine, although I had to get mine myself,) I walked in the cold frosty air to the bus stop - a different one from the one a few weeks ago where I believed there had been some target shooting. This new stop also had some holes in the post - however, these holes didn't go all the way through. I now have decided that these were not bullet holes at all. It feels a lot safer that way.

Seems I had just missed the bus, though, as I had to wait over ten minutes for another one, caught a sky train right away - and had another 15 minutes wait at 22nd Street Station. The morning sky was quite impressive here too, I thought. The rest of my day was spent at work, so enough said about that.

• Breakfast - Coffee and Toast with APRICOT JAM! Same thing tomorrow, I won't mind getting up at all, even if that has to happen at 5 o'clock
• Lunch - Pea Soup, Blueberry Muffin
• Dinner - Ribs, Dressing, Macaroni Salad, a few Fries
• Snacks - Hot Chocolate, and a Spiteful Pineapple Muffin

Now you're probably wondering what a Spiteful Pineapple Muffin is. After eating dinner, which Howard made, and had ready when I got home (which I did appreciate, even though I knew I'd be washing dishes and pots and pans for an hour), I admitted I didn't have any treat for his lunch. He suggested there would be muffins. I just looked at him, and said I don't have anything to put in muffins. He said to Steve, 'Well, there's tinned fruit in the cupboard, but if I say use tins, she'll probably be spiteful and use tinned beans.' 

Well, some of you know me, some of you don't. Take it from me - I may complain at times, but I never was, and never am, spiteful. Never. So that almost made me use the Libby's beans just for spite. But I didn't. 

They are actually Pineapple Coconut Muffins, made by a kinda hurt muffin maker. I really hope he doesn't choke on them.

My Flog for January 12 - Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah

• Breakfast - Toast and Coffee. I am so excited, as tomorrow morning I get to have something new for breakfast - I think I'll go to bed as soon as I finish this, just so tomorrow morning will seem to come quicker.
• Lunch - 3 Spring Rolls, from the big box in the freezer, heated in the oven. They weren't so great, but they were better than the Smokies Howard fried up for Steve and himself. 
• Dinner - Bread and Jam. Home-made bread almost straight out of the oven, and Apricot Jam, so yummy. Now I think I'm going to hit a carb wall with a huge thud. 
• Snack - Rice Pudding

It was a beautiful, sunny, blue-skied day, but the temps didn't rise above zero, so needless to say i didn't venture far. We did go out this morning to get some groceries, but that was all. I spent the afternoon in a daze, accomplished nothing at all, and certainly didn't have any adventures. 

That's enough winter, now. Come on, spring.

My Flog for January 11 + I Really Shouldn't Complain About The Weather

• Breakfast - Toast and Coffee
• Lunch - Pancakes (only 2 - however, I could have made them smaller and had 4, or just made a big one and had only 1, as there would have been fewer calories in 1 - but I decided to splurge and have 2)
• Dinner - Turkey Veggie Soup that I was supposed to have for lunch, and a slice of bread and margarine - plus some A&W fries and a Chicken Strip - Steve brought a few bags of takeout and his family for dinner at our house. His reasoning? So he wouldn't have a mess of take-out garbage in his kitchen. Smrt boy.
• Snacks - Rice Pudding. This has been a gimme comfort food day for some reason. Maybe it's the thought of the wicked snowstorm they are having 'back home', or the fact that the temps are hovering below 0 here, but the thought of my dad standing by the stove stirring his yummy rice pudding was so strong I decided to try it myself, so I went trolling Yahoo! Search for a recipe. Found one. Not as good as dad's, but I'll still eat all of it. Just not at once. Square of Chocolate. The rest of Lizzie's Cream Soda. I wouldn't drink nearly as much pop if Poppy stopped giving cans of it to the kids.

I had to go searching for pictures of the winter storm - lots of people talking about it, but no one seemed all that eager to go out in it and take pictures for me to steal. These are probably from, or near, St John's, but I guess snow looks like snow no matter where you are.

I guess maybe I shouldn't complain when we get snow here in the Lower Mainland of BC. But of course I will. This was our snow storm in mid-December - as you can see, I was out in it waiting for a bus to take me to work, which didn't happen first nor last. But I did brave the weather, and yes, I even got some pictures.

However, if it was like this, I wouldn't have been nearly so brave, especially since I don't have a winter parka or snowshoes.

I remember snow storms back home - one in particular - when we opened the kitchen door to put the dog out to pee, and the snow was piled almost to the top of the door frame. Howard picked the dog up, hoisted him high in the air, and placed him on top of the snow. Needless to say, the dog wasn't long doing his business, and Howard reached up and brought him back to floor level.

I'll leave you all to share a little something  for my Newfoundland friends. 

My Flog for January 10 + Going Nowhere Fast, and a Blast from the Past (or should I say, a Whimper?)

Just another day in Paradise - temps wavering aorund 3 degrees, now down to 0, this house is definitely not warm and cosy. Electric heaters just don't do the job. Brrr. Plus I'm coming down with something - hope it's not the flu that just made the news headlines, as I still haven't got my flu shot.

So - I didn't go out today, and I didn't do much that didn't involve a couch or a computer.

• Breakfast - Fried Egg, Toast and Coffee
• Lunch - Pea Soup, Yogurt and a square of milk chocolate
• Dinner - Grilled Cheese Sandwich
• Snacks - Muffin, a few Smokey Bacon Chips, actually just the crumbs in the bottom of the bag, and part of a can of pop

Just because I have nothing to write about, I went digging in the past, just to see if this day last year was more productive. As you can see below, it wasn't. Maybe this particular day every year is one  where I should just stay in bed, due to the position of the stars, or the moon, or something.

2011 - My Flog for January 10 + I've Been Doing This All Wrong

I read somewhere this morning, probably on Yahoo news, that people who write about good things that matter to them lose more weight than people who write about just any old stuff (for example - the stuff I write.) So I guess the reason I'm not losing much weight lately is because instead of writing about all the good stuff in my life, I'm concentrating more on the 'demo ruffle yarn' and 'snoring husband pokes his elbow in my back' kind of stuff. So tonight I'll try to concentrate on the happy happy happy joy stuff, and see if makes a difference on the scale tomorrow morning.

Happy stuff. Hmmm. Oh well, maybe tomorrow night.

• Breakfast - Toast and Coffee
• Lunch - Sausage and Egg McMuffin, Coffee
• Dinner - 2 sausages, cheese and crackers
• Snacks - Muffin, Hot Chocolate, Grapes

My Flog for January 9 - Riding, Shopping, Goats a' Cropping

Day Off #1 and I just couldn't get up at 5 this morning, no matter how easy it would have been to get a cup of coffee at that time. I just stayed in bed, actually until almost 9, which really threw off my inner clock for the rest of the day.

After breakfast, and lunch a mere 3 hours later, Breehy and I walked/rode to Walmart. I don't know how she felt, but my legs were not happy at all. I found it hard to imagine a mere 4 months ago I was pedalling all over Surrey, and now I couldn't even push the pedals up a little bit of a slight incline. Oh well. 

And as far as my inner clock was concerned? I kept saying "Good Morning" to people I met on the path - until I looked at my watch and saw it was 1:25 pm. 

Here is a picture of one of my favourite blackberry patches, just dozing away the winter. I can't wait to rob these spikey branches of their luscious fruit come August - the berries I got last summer ran out a couple of months ago. I was almost tempted to spend $3 on about half a cup of them at Walmart before Christmas, but decided they wouldn't be as good as the ones I hand-picked last summer.

I had a very specific list of things to pick up at Walmart, as the total couldn't exceed the number of dollars at my disposal, but one of the things I really wanted wasn't on their shelves. I had planned to make the best Corn Bread as a side for dinner, and as a special treat for Lizzie, who absolutely loves it - but Walmart doesn't sell corn meal. After a few minutes of indecision, I decided to bike farther up Nordel Way to Save-On Foods for that, even though it was a bit of more uphill. And what did I see on the way?

Yet another Tim Hortons coming - that will only make 4 within a 2 mile radius. It seems the more donuts that are available to me, the less I want them. I can't remember the last time a Timbit or a Sour Cream donut gave up its life for me - we were going Christmas Eve after the carol service, but the one near there was closed., so we just came home for Hot Chocolate. And probably muffins, or Christmas cookies ... or Scottish tablet.

After a Corn Meal (and butter and cheese slice) purchase at Save-On (which is not a true name, as that store is so bloody expensive, and the only reason I bought the last two items is because they were on sale), I was glad to sit of Breehy as gravity pulled us towards home. Such a nice ride on a mostly downhill path. When we crossed the pedestrian/bike crossing on 134th Street I once again was thankful I wasn't in the middle when somebody crashed their car into it, smashing the rails off - they were lying on the side of the road.

These goats live on the other side of the Power Tower path. They're pretty much fenced in at the far end of the field, but my camera's zoom lens brought them a bit closer. I'm not kidding.

Their owners had fenced off a young holly bush - which is good for the goats, as holly berries are poisonous

• Breakfast - Toast and Coffee. Lots and lots of coffee.
• Lunch - Pea Soup 
• Dinner - Alberta Hot Pot, which is like a casserole (maybe it is a casserole) made with carrots, turnip, potatoes, onions and ground beef and swamped with Onion Soup Mix diluted in a cup of hot water, and it is extraordinary delicious, Corn Bread, and a Chocolate Chip muffin. Did I mention I also made Chocolate Chip Muffins and Apricot Muffins this afternoon?
• Snacks - Diet Pepsi, Yogurt, Apricot Muffin, and a square of chocolate

I started to write a flog again, instead of a blog, as I thought writing down everything I eat would help me lose weight. So far it's not happening. Maybe if I wrote instead of baking, it would help.

My Flog for January 8 - Less Rain and More Treats Please

This was a rainy day - a long pouring of wintry cold raindrops, splishing and splashing like mad. (In fact, it was Raining Cats and Dogs - when I closed the shop at 5:45, I had to be careful not to step in any poodles on the way to the bus stop.)

In fact, check this out to see how the day was - except I don't think anyone was singing or dancing down the street.

I did however sell two Laurel Burch umbrellas.

And even though some people made it difficult, I did manage to sell some yarn. The first customers this morning were two English-challenged women who brought yarn to the counter. One had one ball, so I rang in her purchase - told her the total - and the other said, 'No no, all together, all together,' and shoved her two balls of yarn beside the first one. So I entered two more balls, told the total, and she said, 'No, no, mine,' and pulled them back. So I deducted the last two, took the money, and finalized the sale.

On to Woman #2. I pulled her two balls of yarn over, and rang them in. Told her the total. She pulled them back, and said, 'No , no, only one. Only one.' 

I love my job. I love my job. I love my job. (Nope, not working ..... )

• Breakfast  - Toast and Coffee
• Lunch - Pea Soup, Yogurt and Muffin - if it hadn't been raining so hard I would have tempted to go to a sweet spot to get something chocolately or frosted or full of apple pie filling - but I didn't. I stayed in the back of the shop and made do with what I brought. 
• Dinner - Beans, Bread and oven wedgie fries
• Snacks - Muffin, Hot Chocolate, Orange Pop, Banana

I have to apologize for having such a boring day - but there are a few more coming up. 4 day offs with more rain, which means staying in - all by myself for the first 3 as Howard will be working - how sweet is that?

(Almost sweeter than chocolate!)

My Flog for January 7 + Inside Info About Cranberries, and Thank You, Mr Armstrong

• Breakfast - Coffee and Toast. After breakfast, I did some housework, and baked some Blueberry/Cranberry Muffins. How many of you knew that cranberries are white inside? They actually look really strange for a berry. I posed my watch in the snapshot because it is a really nice watch, and I've never taken a picture of it before

I always cut the big ones in half, just because I'd rather have a muffin with lots of cranberry bits rather than a muffin with just 3 or 4 big cranberries. My kitchen shears are very handy for doing this, although after the time I snipped a piece out of the top of my thumb as well, I'm a lot more careful.

• Later Breakfast - Coffee and Muffin (are you aware that 4 mugs of coffee in 4 hours acts as as really good diuretic?) I had a really good reason for having a second breakfast (also for getting up early on a day I don't start work until quarter to twelve, and for doing a little bit of housework at that ungodly hour) - a really wonderful person was going to come over for coffee and muffins and then give me a ride to Steveston. No bus. And great company - thanks, Marianne!
• Lunch - Pea Soup, Yogurt, and another Muffin - a banana one this time. I should really stop making muffins, but now that Howard actually likes them (the first 36 1/2 years he did NOT) I suppose I shouldn't stop. 
• Dinner - Basa Fish, Potatoes and Onions 'stewed' in the oven. Howard made dinner, which accounted for the great sprinkling of pepper and savory on top of the potatoes. It was good in spite of that - it had to be good, if not there would never be any more dinner waiting my homecoming after a hard half-day at the mines. A slice of bread helped to cleanse my palate.(Since I can still taste the pepper 2 hours later, that obviously didn't work well.)
• Snacks - Hot Chocolate, and you'll find this hard to believe - another muffin. If I weren't writing this flog, I would probably have yet another one before I go to bed. And a banana. 

I don't think I left anything out. It seems like a lot of food, but then there are a lot of words involved.

As we were driving along Westminster Highway, we were talking about Snow Geese -when I pointed out a whole slew of them on a field beside the road. Marianne pointed out that these geese were indeed swans - and she was right. A huge number of long necked white swans, decorating a field of old orange pumpkins. That was awesome. That was a gift. And farther down the road - the eagle was perched in his old tree. 

And I think to myself, what a Wonderful World.

My Flog for January 6 + Snow Geese, Old Words, and Where Can I Find Serenity?

Back to work, which meant walking to a bus stop, going upstairs to a sky train, downstairs to another bus stop - and then walking to the store. However, I was pleased to see some Snow Geese also spending Sunday morning in Steveston. These were my day's silver lining.

I Would Choose The Snow Geese is a post I wrote on Roxie's and my Smrt Gals blog a few years ago. I think a lot of you may have already read it, but it's here in case it's new to some.

Anyway, to sum up the day:

Work (cashiering, pricing, cutting fabric, climbing tall step ladders to reach yarn that someone really wanted - until she changed her mind, searching for a pattern for another customer - when I couldn't find it, she said she was in yesterday and no one could find it then either - I don't know if I should scream or whimper), Home (dishes, making 18 Banana Muffins, TV, knitting, getting coffee ready for tomorrow morning - and bed very soon.

• Breakfast - Toast and Coffee
• Lunch - Turkey & Veggie Soup, Yogurt
• Dinner - A Hot Dog. What's the best way to spoil a piece of lovely home-made bread? Spread it with mustard, wrap it around a cheap, rubbery no-name wiener and call it a Hot Dog. So to make up for that fiasco I had another slice of lovely home-made bread with butter and Bakeapple Jam (it's almost all gone now, Elaine!)
• Snacks - Hot Chocolate and Banana Muffin

My Flog for January 5 - Nothing Fun, Nothing Outstanding, Nothing Much At All

You know I've had a boring Saturday when the only picture I have is my lunch - a bowl of Turkey Vegetable Soup, which, believe it or not, tastes better than it looks.

I did absolutely squat as far as calorie burning is concerned - no bike, no walk, no Sweatin' to the Oldies. And I did try my best to conserve the calories I consumed - reading, knitting, watching TV, and snacking.

I'm knitting my way slowly through a pair of fingerless gloves, on the hopes that knitting will help unstiffen my fingers. No pain, no gain is the new mantra for arthritis, so this should give me lots of gain. We'll see. While knitting, I watched Big Bang Theory,  The Food Network (Chopped, Restaurant Impossible) and Les Miserables, I guess the original movie version. I have never seen the musical, or the new movie, but I really enjoyed this one.

And of course I ate.

• Breakfast - Toast and Coffee
• Lunch - Turkey Soup, Yogurt, Banana Muffin
• Dinner - Macaroni and Cheese, Hot Dog (without the bun, but if I just wrote down Wiener that would have looked funny), Milk
• Snacks - cookies that were hiding in the bread box and chips that were hiding in the pantry, banana

As far as this Saturday was concerned, it was too much like a regular Sunday, except I didn't have to go to work. Tomorrow is a regular Sunday and I do have to go to work .... so now I'm going to bed.

My Flog for January 4 + Stellar Jays, Aerobics, and Bye-Bye Turkey

After quite a sleepless night and early morning wake-upping by the grace of Howard, I fell back asleep for a fitful three hours, and got up just after 9 o'clock, when I dragged myself out of bed and over to the window for my daily Good King Wenceslas thingie. I saw a dull, rainy morning brightened only by a Stellar Jay chittering in a tree nearby. This was a call for breakfast - since he was obviously not going to shut up and fly away, I headed downstairs to the peanut gallery. Well, the peanut cupboard. I hope he and his two friends appreciated my pouring cracked up peanuts and birdseed into the bird feeder - especially since I wasn't the only thing pouring - it was still raining, and I was still in my robe. And it was before coffee.

Because it was raining and I was (am) cowardly, I put all plans for a Breehy outing out of my head. Instead I searched through many VHSes (yes, I still have a VCR) for my Richard Simmons Tapes. (Yes, I still have a few of these.) Sweating to the Oldies was something we used to do way back in the 80's. So I figured, if I could handle 30 minutes of aerobics, I wouldn't feel guilty over no walking, no biking, and two bed-time chocolates that didn't make last night's Flog.

Our old friend Richard didn't look one day older - but the tape itself didn't age well. There was a constant tracking disability that couldn't be fixed, but once I had the first 'song' over, I didn't feel like starting over with a different routine, so figured I'd go through with it.

I realized the stiffest part of me is my neck - that cracked and squeaked, still is cracking and squeaking actually, as I move my head now. I realized how completely unco-ordinated I have become - my feet can do something, and my arms can do something - but not simultaneously. The scariest parts were when everything came to a stop so the group could check their heart rates - and I never ever had one. And the most You Gotta Be Kidding moment was at the end, when 'we' were sitting on the floor with 'our' feet turned into each other, and were supposed to bend 'our' heads over between 'our' knees. Yes. Like that was going to happen.

However, I did make it through to the end, even through the places where the tracking was really bad and I had to imagine the movements. I figured if my feet kept tripping and my arms kept flapping, it amounted to the same thing. In fact, it wasn't too strenuous until I came to the TWIST. That's when I figured I'd need a shower at the end. 

And I must admit, after a shower, I felt pretty good. 

• Breakfast - Toast and Coffee (yes, I know, pretty boring, but that's what I GOTTA HAVE first thing in the morning
• Lunch - Pea Soup and Cherry Yogurt. Not mixed up together, of course. First course was Soup. Second course was Yogurt. And a chocolate sneaked in there somewhere.
• Dinner - Turkey Soup and warm Fresh Bread not long out of the oven. Today I spelunked until I found the Turkey Remains from Christmas Dinner, and made a pot of delicious Turkey/Veggie Soup. I also made 6 loaves of bread. That's a lot of breakfast toast for the future. We cut the tiny loaf - being the runt of the litter, it cooled off a bit quicker than its siblings, and I had a slice with my soup, and one slice of  'lassy bread after my soup. Mmmm good. I finished the 3-course meal with the last Black Magic Chocolate - now I know why Howard's stomach wasn't growling like mine before we ate.

My Flog for January 3 + A Walk, A Ride, A Box of Chocolates

I decided to brave the frosty foggy morning and walk to Walmart with Georgia - there were a lot of empty spaces in our kitchen that needed to be filled, most importantly, the cats' food dish.

The sun was trying hard to soak up the low lying mist, and seeing it spatter patches of brightness on the hoar- covered bushes made me glad I was outside. (Hopefully there were no hoar-covered hoars on King George Boulevard, although they usually do hang their short little skirts on the street corners there - they would have awfully cold knees this morning.)

 One part of the path was ice-covered, but unlike the 'pond' on Gun Hill, wasn't suitable for skating.

Winter colours aren't as pastel as Spring, or as green as Summer, or as brilliant as Autumn - but they are there nevertheless. Jack Frost sure did some delicate artwork on these leaves.

I was halfway home from Walmart when I realized I had forgotten the cat food. I would tell what I would have said at this point if I hadn't promised to give up swearing - for those of you who haven't read my Non Swearing Poem, I'll tack it to the end of this posting.

After a 'light' lunch, I dragged Breehy out of her winter hibernation, and headed up to Central City. I figured I could get cat food at Zellers, and also spend the gift card Steve and Nikkie gave me for Black Bond Books. My heart was set on Dean Koontz's new book, Odd Apocalypse, as I have read all the previous Odd books. So off we go, up the hill, not doing too badly - until the muscles in my thighs woke up from their winter's nap and started complaining. I think they were my Rectus Femerises, according to this picture, but I would have thought they were my Quadriceps - on farther investigation, I find that the Quadriceps are actually a group of muscles, which makes sense, as it felt like a whole group sending WTF messages to my brain.

Just in case you're wondering, the above is not a picture of my legs. The picture below would be more accurate if you're wondering about muscle definition - it also sums up some of my plans for this year, which include zip-lining, horseback riding, and whatever other unusual endeavour ends up in my bucket.

Holland Park is still a bit in the Christmas Spirit, and the skies were so incredibly blue. What a glorious day this turned out to be. However, 3 hours later, I am still cold, and my legs are still sore. Poor me.

And I thought, if I were to be a bird for a day, I would choose this day to be one. If I had to choose a winter day, that is.

And here is the parking lot at City Central - the only things that make it picturesque are the snow capped mountains in the distance. I was so ticked off when I found only one bike rack in the entire length of the mall - Surrey has miles of bike paths, but an utterly miserable number of places to lock on a bike. Maybe they want to encourage people to ride, but not stop.

I am so hungry. I can't remember the last time I was so hungry, thanks to all the Christmas goodies that passed between these lips. But I guess my 3 mile walk and then my 3 mile bike ride/walk combo has sharpened my appetite. I better have lost some weight by tomorrow morning or I may just give this all up.

• Breakfast - Toast and Coffee
• Snack - 3 Digestive biscuits. Biscuits with the word Digestive in their name must be healthy, even if they are coated in chocolate on one side
• Lunch - Spinach Salad from Walmart with half the Honey Mustard Dressing packed inside, and the last of the Banana Puddings.
• Snack - Banana
• Dinner - Chicken Breast, Seasoned Potatoes
• Snack - 1 (yes, ONE) Black Magic chocolate - the caramel one. There are 18 all together, but I don't have them hidden from the Man.

I'm not hungry any more.

And now - as promised - my Non Swearing Poem: 

HELL NO I DON'T SWEAR NO MORE

When I was young I never swore

My mamma smacked me when, at four,

I lost a game of checkers and said ‘damn’

And so I learned to speak all nice

I didn’t want a slapping twice

And future curses I made sure to ban.

And then there came the waited day

When I grew up and moved away

And that is when I learned to swear real well

My friends and I would let ‘em rip

Enough to make my mamma flip

And pray I wouldn’t die and go to hell

In school, as teacher, I’d refrain

And censor these words from my brain

But when at home again they’d all arise

Until I had my kiddies three

And since they learned their words from me

I’d have to put my swear words in disguise

Like jeepers, fudge it, darn it all

And cripes, and shoot – incredible –

They never worked well if I stubbed my toe

But I held strong, until one day

My kids grew up and moved away

And once again my words began to glow

But now my children bring their young

And say, hey, mamma, bite your tongue

Don’t let my babies learn to talk like that

So once again I clean my speech

And when I say that life’s a beach

You’ll know I’ve got the proper words down pat

The wise folk say when we grow old

Our brains get covered up with mould

Which eats the part that tells us ‘don’t do that!’

So watch out, people, when I’ll talk

My words will make a sailor balk

And make a pretty interesting chat.

My Flog for January 2 + Scattering of Pictures

I had really good intentions of a Breehy trip today, but when I realized how cold it was, I changed my mind. Instead I went 'up the road' and brought two kids back. There went my afternoon nap.

Because I have no exciting pictures of wonderful things from an amazing bike ride, I will take you on a haphazard trip, sort of like a ghost of Christmas past thingie.

December 27, pre 7:00AM, on King George Boulevard:
And what was I doing there and then, you may wonder. Well, I was waiting to hop on a bus, which would take me to the sky train, which would take me to a bus, which would take me to work. And while waiting for the bus, I noticed peculiar holes in the bus stop post.

Hmmm. Wonder if they went all the way through? Yup. The ones on the other side didn't have raised edges. Aha. Bullet holes. I'm glad I wasn't waiting for a bus while they were being delivered.

December 30, 9:30AM, on our way to Steveston:
Howard insisted on driving me to work through the fog. However, because the fog was so thick and the temperature so cold, he was worried there may have been black ice, so he wanted to leave ultra early. In fact he was sitting in the car with the engine running before I got out of the shower.

Hey - where's Richmond? In fact, what happened to the other end of the Alex Fraser Bridge? The fog was thick and low-lying, so when you looked across the water, you saw white-capped mountains and skyscraper tops sitting on a blanket of cloud.

As he wouldn't skip over to the far lane, I couldn't get a good snap of all that though, so you'll just have to use your imaginations.

The fog disappeared for a while as we headed into Richmond, and the snow-capped mountains here weren't fogged in at all. Thanks to the croppy thing on my Windows, they look a lot closer than they really are.

And as the roads were dry and non-skid, I was in plenty of time for my shift. As in an hour early. No comment.

January 1, 12 noon or thereabouts, give or take a few hours:
My garden isn't having a very pretty winter. I'm afraid it's been sorely neglected by me over the past few months, but will probably get a makeover as Spring arrives. However, all are still welcome, except of course for the mean raccoons who would like to eat my cats.

January 2, 7:15AM, in front of my house, looking eastward.
This morning I was up early enough to enjoy this beautiful gift.

•  Breakfast - Toast with jam, and coffee
• Unavoidable Snack - I needed to take an arthritis pill, and I HAVE to take them with food and water, or they will make me sick. The only food I could find at this time was a Chocolate Chip Muffin. That didn't work at all, as I spent a miserably sick afternoon/evening from that stupid pill. However, my fingers are great - I can even make a fist of sorts.
• Lunch - Scrambled Eggs and Toast, shared with Chris and Lizzie, who ate every scrap on their plates. They knew when they were done we would cut out and bake COOKIES!
• Unavoidable Snack - A sugar cookie. I had to test them to make sure the cookie dough hadn't gone bad in the fridge ever since Christmas Eve. It hadn't.
• Dinner - Left over ribs from last night (just the tiniest one, really,) a few French Fries and some Stove Top Dressing, or Stuffing, whatever you call it. Nothing was stuffed though - only me after a Banana Pudding, warmed up in the microwave because I don't like cold pudding. Only one more left now.

That's it. I don't think I've lost any weight yet, though.

My Flog for January 1

We spent most of the day house-working, and not New Year Daying. Howard took down The Christmas Tree and packed up all the ornaments, and I Dug Out and Rearranged Stuff in my room and the kitchen. All the floors got vacuumed or swept, all the things that stood still got dusted, and I found some more things I thought at one time I needed but obviously didn't. Check Craigslist Free listings if you want them.

• Breakfast - Toast with jam, and coffee. 2 skinny slices of my home made white bread, and not just skinny on one end either. I have been known to slice bread that you can see through on one end and is about an inch thick on the other end. The jam was called Giggle Jam, and it came from the wife of one of Howard's workmates. I have no idea what was in it, Howard vaguely remembers plum being mentioned, but it is mysteriously good, a bit tart, which I like.
• Lunch - Pea Soup and Banana Pudding. I made a batch of pea soup yesterday, now I'll be a month eating it. Gotta freeze it for lunches at work, if I can find enough containers to do so. The banana pudding is one I made myself (with the help of a box of Shirrif  Banana Pudding and Pie Filling mix.) And no, I didn't eat it all. Yet.
• Dinner - Ribs, Mashed Potatoes, Carrot Coins and Broccoli Trees. And oven-grilled fresh pineapple. Howard wouldn't trust me with the ribs this time, as I have been known to overcook them, but I did do the veggies, and must say I did a fine job with them. The thing about having a lot of different dishes on the table is that just a small bit of each makes a full tummy. 
• Snacks - a few bites of Bits'n'Bites, just the cheesy O ones as I'm not fussy about pretzels or wheatie squares. Now I did just bake a dozen Cranberry/Blueberry Muffins, and a dozen Chocolate Chip Muffins - they are still pretty hot and may be in danger before I go to bed. We'll see. Let's just say I ate two muffins anyway, because I'm pretty sure I will. 

Actually I only ate one muffin, a Cranberry/Blueberry one. I had no choice, as I hadn't had any fruit all day, and berries are such a good source of antioxidants.Gotta get and stay healthy this year for all my Planned Pedalling.

JANUARY 1, 2013 - Back to my Flog, Resolutions, and the Ghosts of Past New Year Resolutions

It's 9 hours and 32 minutes into 2013, and so far nothing seems to have changed much. I'm still sitting in my robe with a cup of cold coffee at my elbow, having just played about 2013 games of Solitaire, and wondering what I'm going to do to make this foggy but cold New Year's Day special.

Last night I wanted Howard to go downtown Vancouver to welcome the New Year, but nope .... even the free transit rides wouldn't change his mind. This morning I thought a walk around Stanley Park would be a good way to spend the first day of this wonderful new year - nope again. I guess it's just a waste of breath to ask him to take a Polar Bear Dip with me.

I really need a partner in crime - send a resume if you'd like the position.

As I was reminiscing over past New Year posts, I realized that we have spent three years in a row in three different houses. First in Richmond, then at Steve's house 'up the road' and now here in my nice dream home, which Howard wants to vacate after our lease is up in May - the lure of a garage is just too much for him to ignore any more.  If we do indeed move, there better be a dog house on the property too. And not for a dog. Just sayin'.

I did something really stupid last night, though. I checked back on the magic numbers I was tracking for a year - and found the one for January 1, 2012. It wasn't a bad number (158.5), which made the number I saw this morning when I stepped on the scale a bit shocking (171). So .... here I go again, back to a FLOG, to see if I can once again slip slide my way through another year tracking what I eat, in the hopes of taking up less space on the bus. That's a resolution.

I am definitely going to write more. That would go hand in hand with the above. My word pool has been hard to dive into lately, and I've been relying on pictures to get me through my meager postings, and while pictures are great when I go on my 'adventures,' ones of my DH sitting at the table in front of Christmas dinner leftovers aren't really thought provoking. That's another resolution.

And when the weather eases up a bit, Breehy and I are going to travel farther and wider, as there is so much more to see and do in this wonderful part of the world, and that's when my camera will get its workout, so I can share our adventures.

Below are postings from the past two years, if anyone wants a walk down Memory Lane.
Happy New Year to 2010
Happy New Year to 2011