As I sit writing I am listening to The Devil's Dictionary - Aeolian Winds (a CBC production). It is a wonderful collection of classical (neo-classical? - all composed in the 20th century) pieces for flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon and horn which sometimes sounds like the soundtrack to an old LooneyTunes cartoon. Mainly because of the lightness of the music and the lyrical rhythms.
I have to backup a bit to the 18th of February. For my birthday Cathy (a dear friend) took me to the NAC for the Black and White Opera Soiree. For those who have not heard about this event it is an annual fund raiser for Opera Lyra Ottawa and the NAC Orchestra. A great night of fancy dress-up, great music and song. The NAC Orchestra, the Opera Lyra Chorus and guest voalists, hosted by Colm Feore. Lots of the rich, famous and infamous of Ottawa and Canada along with several other dignitaries attend this event. It is a feast for the eyes with all the glitter and glam, tuxedos and fancy hairdos.
Well, it was a great evening. Cathy's friend Dan came too and all three of us really enjoyed it. Cathy is not an opera fan so was not certain about an evening of opera but I felt she would enjoy this. And I was right (I love when that happens). It is so much different than sitting through one whole opera... one composer, one style, one theme. The Opera Soiree is like an opera sampler, live. Several composers, styles, themes and combinations make a great variety. And of course Colm Feore (easy on the eyes ;-) introducing the pieces broke it up nicely. And then there's the rubbing elbows with the rich-folk ;-) and the checking out who's wearing who/what. Trust me... rich does not mean good taste :-}
This was a great birthday present... thank you so much Cathy. I really loved getting prettied up and going out to do something so elegant and classy. It also gives me a hit of opera that I really do enjoy. Oh, yes, and when they play the overture for the Barber of Seville I still can't get the image of Bugs and Elmer out of my head. Or, for that matter, Figaro and at least one other piece that were made popular by the Looney Tunes studios.
The very next day was the Dancer's Bazaar. This event is organised by Tracey and this was the third or fourth time I volunteered at it. For more details and info visit http://www.tav-creations.com. It was a great success and, as usual, lots of fun. This is an event where Belly Dancers gather to buy and sell pretty, shiny, fancy, girlie glitter. Costumes, veils, jewellery for all parts of the body, canes & swords, zills, shoes & slippers, hip scarves, head pieces, fabric& trim to make costumes, beads, etc., etc. And tarot readings too. Way too much to mention here. The one thing I've been saving up to buy was not there but Catherine is hunting it down for me. I'm looking for 4-6 inch amethyst bead fringe to trim an existing costume (some of you saw it at the Christmas party and show.) I need at least one yard or metre. If anyone finds it somewhere, please contact me. For my contact info go to http://www.gailene.com
After everything was cleared up and the last vendor cleared out a few of us went to DuBerry's Buffet for supper. I was so hungry that I attacked the buffet like a ravenous animal. Ended up eating too much too fast. Went home and passed out in front of the tube while watching a movie.
Last week my boss Poul and his wife Rosalyn went to Mexico for a week of R&R. There was much speculation during the preceding week about what might go wrong while they were gone. Every time either Poul or I take time off for vacation there is a mini-disaster at work (server crash, infrastructure outage, etc.) which has the person left behind scrambling to get everything working again. So you can understand my concern with Poul being out of touch for the entire week. Yes, I was very concerned. But I was not prepared for what happened. On Tuesday in the wee small hours I fell ill (no I'm not going to go into the long, boring details) and ended up in hospital. I was pronounced OK (mostly) at the Civic Hospital Urgent Care. And now I'm being treated for the problem that caused the concern. Not to worry, I'm fine. But that was a bit scary. And I broke a tooth on lunch on Friday. I blame Poul for going on vacation ;-)
On Wednesday night I attended a Life Mapping Workshop put on by Laura Young at the Crystal Dawn. Another tool for accessing the positive energy of the universe. I found this to be an eye-opening experience.
This past Saturday was a very productive and enjoyable one. It started slowly... slept in and lolled about the apartment until well after noon. Then Cathy and I went over to Gatineau to a furniture store I've been wanting to visit for a couple of months now... Vice Versa on rue Montcalm. I just loved this store. The best part is that I found exactly the furniture I have been envisioning for my home. It is designed by Normand Couture (Montreal) for Shermag. The design is called cameleon - Jelly Bean and I must have it. What blows me away is that this stuff is exactly what I had in my head and was all ready to start building because I never thought I'd find what I was looking for. Now I have to find other furniture stores that sell it to do some price comparisons. Check it out at http://www.shermag.com/eng/shermag.html
Following that great find we went to Cube Gallery to view some artworks. Very nice and relaxing thing to do while the snow blew wildly about outside. We decided to stop at Thyme & Again for soup so I could pick up food to take to a potluck later that day.
After going home and resting a bit I headed out to the SCUBA meetup potluck. Bev hosted, again. Thank you Bev for inviting us into your home. Art had his photos and video of his last cave diving trip to Florida which was the premise for the gathering. After lots of great conversation and watching Art's video we got to talking about downhill skiing. There were a couple of avid skiers there including Andy who is with the Ski Patrol. As a "Crazy Canuck" style skier from long ago (more than 25 years past) I was delighted to hear all the details about the hills in the area and the changes that have taken place over the years. Not to mention the huge changes in the technology of skiing and ski equipment. I had noticed the gradual changes over the years while watching Canada's great ski teams compete at various televised meets. Then out of nowhere Art says "Gailene, let's go skiing tomorrow. Come on!" It is very hard to say no to Art. His youthful enthusiasm is infectious. So after another "Come on. Let's do it" I said yes, sure OK. It was at that point that I realized how late it was getting and that I needed to get home to bed. After brunch, Art would be picking me up at 11:00 to go to SkiVorlage for the afternoon. During the drive home I did what any woman of my age does when she has not skied in over 25 years... I questioned my own sanity. Several times. But the prospect was exciting.
Apologies to Bev for running out so suddenly. I would have stayed to help with the clean up but I really did need the sleep before going skiing. Next time clean up is my job!
I awoke early Sunday to prepare myself and my clothes. It was blistering cold and windy despite the bright sun. It had snowed lightly overnight. Yes, near perfect ski day. I was pumped. I raced off to Patty's for brunch arriving ahead of everyone else (a first - except for that time switch thing last autumn ;-). I ordered my food even before anyone else got there because I had to leave at 10:30 to go home and get changed. Several layers would be needed to keep me warm on the hills.
Skiing again was great. I did a couple of warm-up runs on the lowest of the bunny hills then a couple of runs on the bigger green hill. Art skied with me for those first few runs just to make sure I was comfortable on my skis. Wow what a difference. The skis (rental gear) were about a foot shorter than the last pair I had, the boots higher on the leg and hinged at the ankles with a definate angling forward to force you to stay bent at the knees. The poles too are so much shorter. Even more so since the last 20 years I've been X-country skiing and am used to very long poles. The skis are quite curvatious too. So I had to get used to the difference in the way they acted.
Well, Art was very encouraging and patient with me. Once I felt fairly comfortable I sent him off to ski the big hills while I practiced a bit more. This was actually his first ski day this year and he only skied twice last year. Art is a young athletic guy and, though he hasn't skied alot, he is a quick learner and was anxious to get onto the black diamond runs. Ah, I remember that feeling. It took me back to my own wild ski youth. We met up for a quick food and bathroom break then went up on the big hills together. Art had scoped out a few of the blue runs that he felt I could handle and he had planned out a 'route' of sorts. On the very first one, at the very top of the hill before even starting the main run, I ran into a snow bank and went ass-over-teakettle. We were both laughing so hard. I struggled to get up on my feet (still laughing) while Art took photos. Yes, there are photos in Art's camera and I hope to get them soon :-))
The rest of the day went without any more butt to snow contact. I was feeling really good and really enjoying the day so did a few blue runs. But about 4:00 I was getting tired and decided to stop before I really hurt myself... which happens when you are tired. Trust me, I know, I've learned the hard way. So I returned to the lodge while Art went off to play on the black diamond runs and the tougher blue runs. He even did the double-diamond run a couple of times. The hill closed at 5:00 and I think Art was the last off the hill. A great day and I thank Art for suggesting it. I had lots of fun. Not bad for an old-broad, eh?
Well I woke up Monday with a pain in the ribs. No doubt strained connective tissues of the ribcage. Sneezing is quite painful and coughing hurts along with taking deep breaths. So I am avoiding these things. The sore rib is keeping my mind off all the other sore muscles though. A visit to the chiropractor might be needed. But with the meds for my chest and the dentist visit to fix the tooth I have to watch my pennies this week. Not many left and the rent is due tomorrow!
Well that is enough for now. It is late and I'm off to bed. Good night all.
Just got home. Michele and I went to see the V-Day Vagina Monologues (http://events.vday.org/2006/World/Ottawa). This is something I've wanted to do for awhile and now seemed an excellent time. A thoroughly enjoyable evening full of laughter, some sadness and always lots of honesty. Highly recommended for everyone, women and men, girls and boys. There's another performance tomorrow evening at the Bronson Centre. I strongly suggest reserving tickets. It looked like tonight was a sell-out and we were glad we reserved.
It's important to note that these performances are fund raiser's. All the cast and crew are volunteers but are by no means amatuerish. Stellar performances by all... even the 2 senators. No, I won't tell. It's a surprise.
What a fabulous birthday weekend. Thank you so much to all my friends who came out to various events to celebrate. I am feeling very spoiled. I'm such a lucky person to have so many wonderful people to call friend.
It all started Friday evening after a shopping trip on the way home. I bought myself a couple of treats (bargains of course) and then called Michele to join me for a bite to eat. Now this was not part of the celebrations but it was a good start to a busily fun weekend. We ate, drank beer and had a nice visit.
Then Saturday morning I was up early to get bundled up for a few hours of Winterlude activity. Sue and I met at the Rideau Centre then walked to Confederation Park to see if there was anything left of the Ice Sculptures. The big ones were looking pretty sad following the near record high temps and rain of the last 2 weeks but there were still several that were recognizable and in fairly decent shape... considering. We enjoyed a few minutes of watching the 2 hour ice sculpture challenge that was about 25 minutes gone when we arrived.
A short SnowBus ride over to the Snowflake Kingdom at Jacques Cartier Park and the real fun started. We started with the very adult activity of viewing the snow sculptures. These are gorgeous. Some really fantabulous work indeed. Then we toddled over to the sliding area. First up, or should I say down, was the inner tube slide... a nice long run down into the hay stacks. We then prceeded to each and every slide to try them all. What a hoot... 2 grown women. Old enough to know better and too old to care. There we were, amongst the 2-10 year olds, acting like a pair of 12 year olds and enjoying every moment. Thanks Sue. Definately a day to remember. But that's not all.
After that we walked back to Ottawa across the Alexandra Bridge so Sue could get some photos she has been wanting. Back in the Market we stppoed at The Brig where we were lucky enough (and early enough) to get that prime table right in front of the fireplace. Ooooo, so toasty. We had an excellent lunch and a couple of beers. Sue's treat. I felt so spoiled and honoured. Then a stop at Chile-Chillies where I purchased spicey chocolate (my personal favourite is the Lime Tequila Dark Chocolate) and Sue stocked up on spicey goodies. Then we stopped at the Expedition shop so I could pick up a stow-away nylon backpack like Sue's. She got it a few weeks ago and when I saw how good it worked for her I wanted one. But get this, she bought it for me. I am such a lucky woman!! Thank you Sue. You are truly a good friend.
So now you're thinking "that was a great day for Gailene" but that's not all.
I went home, took a shower, prettied myself up and the evening's entertainment began. Michele and Tracey met at my place which was our jumping off spot for the night. I was treated with gifts first. Michele had knitted a beautiful scarf for me that is now in use and Tracey's herbs are already in use in sachets, etc. Thank you Michele and Tracey for the great gifts! A taxi whisked us off to Absolute Comedy. The 3 of us had a nice supper (thank you Michele and Tracey for treating) and were joined after by Elizabeth and Peter. We got our seats upstairs, ordered up drinks (thank you Elizabeth and Peter for treating me to lots of brew) and laughed for the next 2 hours. It seemed that everyone enjoyed it. Elizabeth and Peter had to go home (too sad, but couldn't be helped) so the 3 girls headed back to the Market to Suite 34 for dancing. Not Michele's scene and since she isn't really into the dancing and Tracey and I are danceoholics, Michele said her good nights early. Tracey and I stayed to dance until it got too crowded to dance (the way we like to dance - you know, with lots of room) then just headed home. It was an early night but it had also been a long day. Thank you Michele for organizing everything and thanks to Tracey, Elizabeth and Peter for coming to make it even more fun. Again, I feel so lucky to have all of these wonderful people to call my friends. Truly blessed.
Sunday was actually my birthday. The usual Sunday brunch came with a couple of additional surprises. Sara and Linda were at brunch. We don't get to see them often lately and it was special to have them both there for my birthday. Sara gave me wine (always a good gift) and Linda gave me a pretty little crystal angel in a treasure chest. Thank you both for the great gifts. I received cards and many good wishes and felt very warm all over. I really like my friends!! Thank you all for being there. So nice and loving. I can't say this enough. I feel truly spoiled to have such generosity heaped upon me. Sara, Linda, Michele and I went off to Sunnyside Books so Sara could buy a copy of Diane Lanthier's book "On Lonliness - Angelic Wisdom to Comfort and Inspire" which was recommended by Tracey. Linda decided to get one for herself and I. Another birthday present. What a lovely surprise and quite a treat. Thank you again Linda.
Linda said her goodbyes and the remaining 3 girls dropped into Chrystal Dawn on the way home. Laura Young was there doing mini-readings so Sara decided to put her name down for one. We ran off to put things in her car and drop stuff at my place before going back for our readings. Yes, I decided to get a reading too. Laura really is good and this reading was right on as per usual. My third mini-reading from her over the past couple of years. Then I went home, saying my goodbyes to Sara along the way. I did a few chores and had a brief rest before getting ready to go to Mom's.
On the way to Mom's I bought a Winter Olympics hat at The Bay. I've been wanting one since the first time I saw them advertised and in the Bay displays. This is the first time I've liked Olympic clothing enough to spend money on it. It was my birthday present to myself. So a bus ride to Mom's for supper. When I got there Mom told me that the gang would be arriving later for desert. The whole gang (family) except Dave and his family. They were moving his father-in-law into a nursing home yesterday so were unable to attend. I was expecting to just spend the evening with Mom but got to see the family. An unexpected treat. My Grand-niece Cassandra is the centre of attention. At 2 1/2 years old, she is too cute and quite the little comedienne. She is quite bright and such a little princess too. But as the first of her generation in our little family she deserves all that attention.
So that was my busily enjoyable birthday weekend. It finished with a quiet bus ride home. I was the only passenger on the 18 from Scott St. to Centretown so I just read all the way. Now that is not the end of the birthday celebrations though. Cathy is giving me a night out at the NAC and has chosen my favourite, The Black and White Opera Soiree. This is especially generous as she is not even sure she'll enjoy it much. She says she's not a great opers fan. But I love this event because it is not just all one opera. So you get a sampling of composers, performers, styles and eras. It's like an opera sampler live and up close. AND we get to wear our fanciest dress-up clothes. I love dress-up! I have new pretty, sparkly, shiny clothes and accessories for the occassion. I've made a hair appointment too. Oooo. How exciting. I'll tell you all about it next week.
Then on 5 March "Les Girls" (Michelle V. & her daughter Madeleine, Debbie, Christine, et al) will gather at Michelle's place for another celebration. I am really dragging this out this year. This is a good thing. Party, party, party! Oh, and just for an extra nice treat... today's mail contained the cheque from my insurance company to pay for my glasses. Yes, glasses. Something new. I got my first ever pair of prescription lenses in early January. They are to correct astigmatism and night vision only but I do notice a big difference. Especially at night and when my eyes are tired after a long day at work in front of 2 monitors.
It's late and I'm done.
The weekeend was good.
Michele and I went to see Brokeback Mountain. A very well done movie and very enjoyable. I even shed a tear or three. I recommend it to everyone.
Sunday's Stitch and Bitch was excellent and I look forward to the next one. Michele was the perfect host and Daniel (cat) was very well behaved. He wandered around in total confussion... so many women to flirt with, laps to sit on (but he did not jump up) and ears/noses to snuffle. He seemed to like Jessica best. He came to the door to greet me and tell me all about the crowd in his livingroom.
For more details on the Stitch and Bitch check out Michele's website/blog at http://www.mishka.ca where there are links and photos and stuff.
My birthday (no I'm not telling) is on Sunday 12 February. Michele is organizing a night out at a local comedy club. I've already started getting e-cards. Thanks Julie.
Must run... errands to run.
Well, now that Michele has blogged it, it is probably safe to post my own feelings on the subject.
Michele had a horrid week and, as her empathetic friend, I have had a difficult week with this myself. When one of my friends is in pain I feel it too. Too much life experience does that to a person ;-). Her friend Caitlin and I took her out for beer, comfort food and chocolate to help her through the upset. I am constantly uplifted by the way women will cluster together to give support, understanding and love to a sister in need. Michele was so worried about the posibility of "I told you so"s that she was almost as upset about having to tell people about her heartbreak as she was about the heartbreak.
None of her friends said "I told you so". Which is a reflection of how many truly excellent friends she has attracted to herself here in Ottawa. Everyone has been very supportive, according to Michele. And though she may still feel the sting of disappointment, this too shall pass and a stronger Michele will emerge. One of my favourite platitudes is "What doesn't kill you makes you stronger" and that is what I hope for her now.
This Sunday is the first monthly Stitch and Bitch. Michele initiated and is organizing this event and it will be a fun one.
Back in the days of our great grandmothers and grandmothers these female gatherings were called knitting bees and quilting guilds. Women would gather together to keep each other company, discuss current events (there's a new minister at the church) and gossip (so&so is doing youknowwhat with youknowwho) while working on projects that were needed to keep family warm in winter and protected from the sun in summer. They sewed clothes, knitted sweaters, crocheted caps and quilted comforters. They added embellishment to their Sunday "going to church" clothes with needlepoint and lace. They darned socks, mended torn pants and enlarged childrens jackets.
In almost every woman there still beats the heart of a crafter. Various levels of skill and talent lead to a variety of craftwork. All of it wonderful because it is all created by hard working hands.
And that is why we gather together. To exchange ideas and materials. To support each other's efforts and applaud each other's skills. Aw, the supportive environment that only group of women can nourish. I look so forward to this nurturing afternoon.
I will be taking my current craft... counted cross-stich Wizard. A kit given to me by Michele, the organizer of this gathering. I will also be taking whatever I have to share with others. As a life-long crafter (I've done almost everything) I will also happily contribute my expertise when requested or needed.
I look forward to seeing everyone there.