The best part about having the Paralympics in our city is the opportunity to drive groups to events. Tuesday I drove a group from a day program,full of enthusiasm and excitement to see a sledge hockey game between the USA and Japan.

They offered us free tickets to join them so we got into see most of the game. Amazing to see the speed and skill played on ice. Very impressive.

Its been a wonderful experience to have the Olympics and Paralympics in our city. I am very proud of all that has been accomplished by our athletes and the response by spectators. A once in a lifetime experience for sure.

Stopped by my fave coffee place this morning to get a java to go. Rolled up the rim to win and I did! $100 gift card. Made my day, put a skip in my step and a whistle in my walk!

The Olympic fever that hit Vancouver is still alive and well. In fact, it's awesome. I've never seen such patriotism in my life. Lots of red mittens still being worn, toques (yes that's what they're called) and Canada scarves.

Impromptu singing of "Oh Canada". My fave?

Driving a bus of 12 'mentally challenged' adults home from their day program and listening to their deafening version of our national anthem. You gotta love it. Nothing else mattered to them than singing with gusto. All the little hissy fits on the bus, 'who gets to sit beside who today', 'i don't like you anymore but tomorrow i may just be back in love with you' dilemmas gone.

Priceless.

Weekend Away

Chris and I snuck out of town early Sat morning and headed for the west coast of Vancouver Island. I've only been there once before and it was many many years ago. it's beautiful. Long Beach lives up to its name. The ocean is so vast, big high waves and surfers were in their glory.

One thing we love to do is people watch and people listen. Sat night we went to a place that was recommended by the front desk at the cottage where we were staying.

Real conversation:

We were sitting at a table by the window and I had my back to the front counter. It wasn't a formal restaurant so you could either eat in or take out. A woman came in by herself and the owner/cook/server asked if he could help her.

"I don't have much time, how long would it take to get a piece of fish and chips to go?"

"not long, I'll get it ready for you."

"No, that's too long. How long for a curry bowl?"

"About 6 minutes. Would you like one to go?"

"No, that's too long. Maybe I'll have fish. Why do you charge $14 for fish and chips to go?"

"Because that's the price. Would you like some to go?"

"No, well maybe. Maybe I'll have a burger. How long would that take?" "Why do you have a fish laying on its side that looks like it belongs in a museum?" "Your city hall is really run down, you should do something about it. We're having a whale exhibit next weekend, can I use your fish for a demonstration? It's for the children. You should let me use your fish." and so on and so on..............

Finally she ordered something and in the meantime she kept the guy from cooking her meal to go and we laughed hysterically behind her back. Way too funny.

We were the only seated guests so when we went up to pay at the register I asked him, "Can I borrow your Captain's bell? Why is your Captains' bell just sitting there doing nothing?"

He laughed and said, "Wow, crazy lady, too much pot"

Just booked our next trip to Hawaii.........thought you'd all want to know.

April 19 - 26........can't wait.........coconut shrimp, blue hawaiians, BB drinking her white wine no matter how appealing the special drinks look, staying in the same place............good times! Friends are all waiting, making plans......look out Hawaii.......here we come!

Loving the Olympics

So much has been said about the Olympics....how much it all costs, blah, blah, blah and on it goes. But I have to say the Olympics are a pretty exciting time to be in Vancouver. There's so much going on!

Today I drove a group of people from Langley to BC Place to watch the medal ceremony and go to different Olympic events around. They had a blast. Who wouldn't?

I picked up a client visiting from Germany from the Richmond Oval, home of the skating events. She was ecstatic about the Olympics and her experience in Canada.

Then on to a group of 4 from West Vancouver who had just gone to hockey game and loved it.

Back to the group I left earlier this afternoon and drove them all to their meeting place a little tired but very happy.

Such a great day. People were everywhere. Lots of people smiling, enjoying themselves and living in the moment of having a world event in their city.

Go Canada!

And That Was All She Wrote..........

10 Years Ago:

Alone
Lived in Surrey
Hated my job
Drove a '90 Toyota Tercel
Had just come home from a trip to Hawaii with my brother John

1 Year Ago:

Happy in love
Lived in Surrey
Love my job
Driving a '08 Pontiac G5
Just came home from Mexico

Yesterday:

Missing Chris
Living in Pitt Meadows
Love my job
Still driving the Pontiac
Booked my time off for Hawaii

Tomorrow:

Chris will be home!
Off for the weekend - Valentine's Day!
Watching the 2010 Olympics in my hometown!
Doing laundry that never ends.
Enjoying time with the one I love.

5 snacks I enjoy:

chips and salsa,
zuccini sticks at the spot,
chicken fingers and dip,
7 layer dip with nachos,
carrot sticks and dip

5 Things I Would Do With $1,000,000:

Give a bunch to JF, a ministry to people with disabilities,
pay the bills,
buy my mom anything she wanted,
take Chris to Europe,
get married

5 Locations I Would Like To Run Away To:

Hawaii,
California,
Holland,
Australia,
Spain

5 Bad Habits I Have:

scratching til I bleed,
drooling in my sleep,
can't think of any more

5 Things I Love Doing:

scrapbooking,
taking pictures,
going to hawaii,
going on road trips,
buying clothes that fit

5 Things I Most Likely Will Never Wear:

strapless evening gown,
tube top,
belly button piercing,
nose ring,
high heels

5 Movies I Like:

Jazz Singer,
Steel Magnolias,
Beautiful Life,
Bucket List,
The Joy Luck Club

5 Famous People I Would Like To Meet:

Maya Angelou,
Ellen De Generes,
Judge Judy
Joni Eareckson
Sandra Bullock

5 Biggest Joys At The Moment:

Chris,
Benson and Bailey,
drinking my first cup of coffee for the day,
planning my next trip,
going to see my mom

5 Favorite Toys:

Camera,
computer,
ipod,
pvr,
cell phone

This Morning's Events

Today I went to the Memorial Service of my co-worker Jeff C. He was a couple of years older than me, nice guy, married 27 years with 2 great kids. He took good care of himself, exercised, did yoga every morning. He was a philosopher and lover of books. He wrote Haiku and won Haiku writing contests.

There was a great turn-out of people supporting the family, both family and friends. I counted at least 25 co-workers there. The Pastor asked us all to raise our hands, I was proud that so many people took time out of their schedules to attend.

Jeff got sick very quickly. He was diagnosed with a rare heart disease in Sept and it made him weak and incompacitated and hospitalized. Not the way he wanted to spend the end of his life.

So much of our lives is spent working, doing, fulfilling our duties we forget to take time to live.

Live well, laugh often, love much is a phrase we have in different parts of our home. I look at it every morning in my bathroom. Life's too short to be unhappy I always say.

Here's to you Jeff. Go in peace.

2009 Submarine Races

and so the bickering continues..........as I've said all along nobody wins in a strike. The strike continues to divide people after we've gone back to work.

For 10 weeks we stood out in the rain and wind and cold and endured big promises from the Union, 'hang in there' 'we're all in this together' 'the employer is the enemy' and so on.

In the end the Union caved to the company's demands because they could no longer fight them. So what. The contract was a fair one and I was happy to vote for it. I was one of 42% that voted yes but 52% voted no so we were at a standstill.

They brought in Canada's best chief negotiator in labour, I was impressed. Way to go Vince. Vince looked at the contract and said, 'it's a good one, not much more I can do here' and to appease the people who wanted more money for driving he added a nickel an hour to our wages. Yup, a nickel.

And THEN he said, we're going to charge the company to give the Union a bonus of $400,000 to be distributed amongst the members.

But he didn't specify which members. The drivers understood it was the for them because we didn't get the wages being asked for. Then the office workers who make more money than the drivers wanted a piece of the pie. And I don't blame them. As a driver I made an extra $150/week driving an essential service shift.

So now, instead of deciding what to do with the money, we're voting on Super Bowl Sunday 'do we give the money to everyone who picketed or not'. What kind of lame vote is THAT? Of course we do! But, gee, wouldn't it be nice if those of us who were out there the whole 10 weeks got a little bit more than the ones who showed up the first week, said 'nope, not for me, I'm getting another job' and we never saw them again?

There's my rant for today. Grow up. Put your big girl panties on and grow up.

New Airport Security Rules

Anniversary Time

We don't usually make a public announcement so it's not like anyone knows to go out and buy us a card but every year Chris and I do something special for our Anniversary.





Anniversary of what you ask? Good question, you can make up your own answer in your own mind and then.......keep it to yourself. Understood? Good.






So this year on our anniversary we went for a 2 day getaway to the island to a fancy schmancy spa and resort place. Bee-yoo-tee-full!












It was fabulous, our own little log cabin with big girl soaker tub which opened doors to the living room! How cool is that! Except we didn't use it because we were across the street at the big ole Grotto Spa.









There we enjoyed swimming in the mineral pool with a cool refreshing shower at the same time. Swimming around the rocks and taking a dip in the really hot pool, then going back in the cooler pool. So refreshing!


The best part was eating tapas in our robes.......only spa attire allowed at the tapa bar and only accessible from the spa. Yes, just us being served in our spa attire. Very cool. And the prawns and scallops? To die for. If I ever have to list the menu for my last supper on earth it would be at the top. OMG. OK, I sound like a teenager here but really, it doesn't get any better.

We enjoyed a trip to the beach, watched a wedding party being photographed (boy did that chick in the strapless gown look cold) and a really nice relaxing weekend.

Airline Announcements

United Flight Attendant announced, 'People, people we're not picking out furniture here, find a seat and get in it!

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On landing, the stewardess said, 'Please be sure to take all of your belongings. If you're going to leave anything, please make sure it's something we'd like to have. '

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'There may be 50 ways to leave your lover, but there are only 4 ways out of this airplane'

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An airline pilot wrote that on this particular flight he had hammered his ship into the runway really hard. The airline had a policy which required the first officer to stand at the door while the passengers exited, smile, and give them a 'Thanks for flying our airline.' He said that, in light of his bad landing, he had a hard time looking the passengers in the eye, thinking that someone would have a smart comment. Finally everyone had gotten off except for a little old lady walking with a cane.

She said, 'Sir, do you mind if I ask you a question?'

'Why, no, Ma'am,' said the pilot. 'What is it?'

The little old lady said, 'Did we land, or were we shot down?'

***************************************

As the plane landed and was coming to a stop at Ronald Reagan, a lone voice came over the loudspeaker: 'Whoa, big fella, WHOA!'

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After a particularly rough landing during thunderstorms in Memphis, a flight attendant on a Northwest flight announced, 'Please take care when opening the overhead compartments because sure as hell everything has shifted after a landing like that.'

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Another flight attendant's comment on a less than perfect landing: 'We ask you to please remain seated as Captain Kangaroo bounces us to the terminal.'

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Overheard on an American Airlines flight into Amarillo,Texas on a particularly windy and bumpy day: During the final approach, the Captain was really having to fight it. After an extremely hard landing, the Flight Attendant said, 'Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to Amarillo. Please remain in your seats with your seat belts fastened while the Captain taxis what's left of our airplane to the gate!'

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'Your seat cushions can be used for flotation; and, in the event of an emergency water landing, please paddle to shore and take them with our compliments.'

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'As you exit the plane, make sure to gather all of your belongings. Anything left behind will be distributed evenly among the flight attendants. Please do not leave children or spouses......except for that gentleman over there.'

******************************************

Heard on Southwest Airlines just after a very hard landing in Salt Lake City. The flight attendant came on the intercom and said, 'That was quite a bump, and I know what y'all are thinking. I'm here to tell you it wasn't the airline's fault, it wasn't the pilot's fault, it wasn't the flight attendant's fault, it was the asphalt.'

****************************************

After a real crusher of a landing in Phoenix, the attendant came on with, 'Ladies and Gentlemen, please remain in your seats until Capt. Crash and the Crew have brought the aircraft to a screeching halt against the gate. And, once the tire smoke has cleared and the warning bells are silenced, we'll open the door and you can pick your way through the wreckage to the terminal..'

****************************************

Part of a flight attendant's arrival announcement: 'We'd like to thank you folks for flying with us today. And, the next time you get the insane urge to go blasting through the skies in a pressurized metal tube, we hope you'll think of US Airways.'

****************************************

Heard on a Southwest Airline flight - 'Ladies and gentlemen, if you wish to smoke, the smoking section on this airplane is on the wing and if you can light 'em, you can smoke 'em.'

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A plane was taking off from Kennedy Airport. After it reached a comfortable cruising altitude, the captain made an announcement over the intercom, 'Ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. Welcome to Flight Number 293, nonstop from New York to Los Angeles. The weather ahead is good and, therefore, we should have a smooth and uneventful flight. Now sit back and relax... OH, MY GOD!' Silence followed, and after a few minutes, the captain came back on the intercom and said, 'Ladies and Gentlemen, I am so sorry if I scared you earlier. While I was talking to you, the flight attendant accidentally spilled a cup of hot coffee in my lap. You should see the front of my pants!'! !

A passenger in Coach yelled, 'That's nothing. You should see the back of mine!'

Yesterday my mom and I went to see my step-father Paul on Vancouver Island. It's a long trek over there from Abbotsford, takes about 5 hours each way between driving and sitting on the ferry. My mom gets very stressed out from it and it's an emotional time for her.

Paul was very confused as to who we were. He knew our faces but couldn't place our names. He smiled when my mom came in the room and stood up and hugged her. But he didn't know her name. He hugged me and said it was good to see me in his usual loving way but no clue as to who I was.

Conversation is difficult between him telling us about his 'new job' with the Govt Health Dept (?) and the young couple that comes and visits him every day with their baby (Picture of his granddaughter on the dresser). He doesn't seem to think anyone else comes although I know his daughter and son come regularly.

I wonder sometimes why God keeps people around. My Opa thought God forgot about him when he got to be 98 years old and still alive. Paul is 86 and his body lives on without his mind. I can never figure these things out and when I get to heaven I'm going to ask what it's all about anyways. Why does God take home people who have their whole life ahead of them?

Paul is a wonderful kind, loving man who adores my Mom and has treated her like a Queen. He's been generous to me loving me like a daughter. He loved my brother John and wept when we lost him. He doesn't know my other brother and wife because they're never around.

I grieve for the loss of Paul whenever we visit. It's saying goodbye in bits and pieces as we watch his mind fail and body grow weak. He's a shadow of his former self. I look forward to the day when God takes him home and gives him a new body.
Here's to you Mr. Paul, hope 2010 is good to you and God blesses you and gives you His peace.

Strike's Over, Back to Work!!!

and with that news we all shout Hallelujah! Back to picking up the peeps in the short bus! Yippee! Honk for the Handy's!

Happy New Years!

As in our usual tradition of 'we're too tired to stay up so late' we called it a night at 10:30. I worked an essential services run yesterday so came home at 7. We enjoyed appies and wine, then a movie about young love (ah, young love) and hit the sheets. I'd say 'hit the hay' but we all know I don't do country.

Chris and I talked last night about our life together and how blessed we are. Who knew 7 years ago that we would be here today? In this place, at this time? No one but our Heavenly Father who designed the whole thing in the first place.

We have a wonderful life together, we bring out the best in each other, and are very much alike in some things and different in others and aren't we glad about that. Chris is my rock and I very much appreciate all that she does for me. She supports my decisions and although her opinion may be different than mine, she still stands by me and helps me through it.

I'm Chris's biggest fan. She needs to be challenged (on account of those big brains of hers) and I encourage her to go for it. She's not one to grow complacent and just accept life in a box. That's me.

Here's to 2010. May it be the best year ever!

Oh, and the strike is over, can we all shout Hallelujah! 10 Weeks! Over!

There's a website I like to go to written by Anita C-H. She writes extremely well and often after I read something of hers I think, I wish I could've written that, it's exactly what I'd like to say. Here's part of her New Year's wishes and although I didn't write it, it expresses my heart.


While some of us have navigated through this past year with relative ease fueled on by occasions of great joy and celebration, for others it was a brutal year; the personal losses too many to add up and the suffering too great to measure. 2009 has been as gentle as a lamb for some of us and as tough as a lion for others.

But whether you’re sadly waving farewell to 2009 or welcoming 2010 in with a sigh of relief and a swipe across your forehead, here we are. Still standing. Standing together with one another and surrounded in the mercy, compassion, and consolation of God, the One who knows us best and loves us most. However hard this year was for you, you made it. You have arrived at the end of a really rough year in your life and because you’re still here, that in and of itself is a monumental victory; a joyous celebration of your courage and resilience, and of God’s faithfulness to hold you through the darkest nights and the most torrential storms. God was faithful and so were you.

I pray that if 2009 was a year of loss and sorrow for you that 2010 would be a year of restoration and joy. I pray good things for you. I pray moments of delight and laughter for you. I pray truly good people surround you. I pray peace. I pray love. I pray that you find healing, wholeness, comfort, companionship, or whatever it is that is your deepest longing and need. I pray all this believing that God is not only able to perform a good work within you but that God desires and will settle for nothing less for you. These will be the prayers spoken on my lips and carried in my heart as 2009 turns into our yesterday and 2010 becomes our today. I look forward to the coming year, to see what God will do in us and through us, and that we would be open to saying yes to God’s call, wherever it might lead.

You are loved and beloved.
By God who gave you life.
By Christ who redeemed your life.
By the Spirit that wooed you in the beginning and that will carry you through to the end.

Know this one thing, treasure it in your heart, and it will keep you through whatever lies ahead.

You Know I Love JJ

but in other news.............the wheels of the bus are soon gonna go round and round!

So I Took a Personality Test

You are observant, cooperative, informative, and attentive. You are greatly concerned with the security of others and you often find assisting the downtrodden or people with disabilities to be satisfying.

You also find personal fulfillment in ensuring the safety of others and may be attracted to jobs that enable you to do this as a medical practitioner or insurance agent. You are also quite skilled at executing routines and this enables you to be skillful in jobs that require conservation skills such as a curator or police officer.

You are thorough, frugal and you abhor the squandering of material resources. You are comfortable working alone and you are often uncomfortable being in positions of authority. When you are in positions of authority, you often try to do everything yourself. You have a very strong work ethic and this can lead you to be overworked.

The least hedonistic of the role variants, you are willing to complete jobs other role variants manage to avoid, especially if it enables you to help those in need. You often talk about daily life and every day concerns; however, you are not as sociable as other role variants.

You tend to be talkative only among a close circle of friends. Your shyness with strangers can make you seem to be cold even though you are often warm and sympathetic. You are often undervalued as your commitment to security and your economies are often taken for granted. You value traditional ways of doing things and are not interested in experimentation or speculation. You deeply value family history, heirlooms and property as well as cultural norms and traditions.

You firmly believe in the stability offered by credentials, titles, offices, birth and other forms of traditional authority. You dislike situations where the rules are constantly changing. Famous Protectors include George H.W. Bush, Jimmy Stewart, and Mother Teresa.

hmmmmmmmmmmmm I think they got me. Couldn't have said it better myself. Words in bold are highlighted by me........because, well, they say it best.