Friends-a-plenty in Ottawa

Our house is full today - Scott, Lindsay and Monique are all in town and bunking with us. A full house, or fuller, anyway, but much appreciated. "The more the merrier" seems to be the motto of the day. Today we are going to the War Museum, and then tonight Chubby, Scott and I are going to the Islanders-Sens game at the Corel Centre. It should be a fun filled day!

Merry Crochet-mas?

Bonnie has recently taken up crochet. We now have many a dishcloth with fancy colours, in addition to some bigger projects: Bonnie made herself a toque. It is the cutest thing I've ever seen:
She's just relaxin' in her new toque, not a care in the world: just how a toque should make you feel. Bonnie's new hobby borders on obsession after only a month and a bit. That's some addictive stuff! While she can't get enough of crocheting, I can't get enough of Kill Bill. Bonnie insightfully gave me vols. 1 & 2 for Christmas (which we promptly watched), concretizing what was only a passing fancy. I really like those movies, or that movie, as Tarantino would no doubt say. I think they're in my top 10 (as one entry). We are also enjoying microwave popcorn for the first time in a while, as my mom and my sister got us a microwave for Christmas It's so useful! You can cook a lot of different things in a microwave. Like eggs. Who knew? Though the microwave is useful, we haven't forgotten about our beloved toaster oven, which has served us dutifully for years. You can't toast stuff in a microwave oven, and that will never change, no matter how advanced the technology gets. Anyhoo, Bonnie and I quite enjoyed our Christmas. It was a nice, relaxing day and we talked to our families and friends throughout. Though I worked Christmas Eve and Boxing Day, I still felt like I had a nice long, break. Scott's coming to Ottawa today and Lindsay and Monique are coming tomorrow: we'll have a full house for New Year's, but, as far as I'm concerned, the more the merrier!

PS here's what I mean about Bonnie's new hobby being a "big" thing:

PPS "toque" isn't in the blogger spellcheck dictionary. No surprise there. When will Americans adopt the term?

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Samberg and Parns save Christmas

If you missed last week's SNL (with Jack Black), you also missed a kickass "digital short" from Andy Samberg and Chris Parnell ("Samberg and Parns"). Slate's Josh Levin writes about it here: "Andy Samberg (aka Samberg) calls up Chris Parnell (aka Parns) 'just to see how he's doin'.' Soon enough, they 'mack on some cupcakes' from the West Village's Magnolia Bakery and debate which online map service will reveal the 'dopest route' to an Upper West Side screening of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Then the chorus kicks in: 'We love that Chronic—what?—cles of Narnia / Pass that Chronic—what?—cles of Narnia.'" Though the article is a pretentious jab at SNL's "decline", he thankfully links to the video. Check it out for that reason alone, but if the description above doesn't convince you, he also provides a link to the infamous "more cowbell" sketch about the making of Blue Oyster Cult's "Don't Fear the Reaper". Consider it a Christmas bonus.

Holiday spirit rising

Okay, so this morning Garry wasn't a happy bunny. Indeed, I was sad being away from friends and family for Christmas, plus the fact that I am working a heck of a lot in the next week. However, the holiday spirit has reached me this evening and today was, in the end, a good day. Chapters is really busy and sometimes frantic but people are always nice - only one or two rude customers today. I was cheered by the store spirit - people are happy when they find what they want for loved ones. I also heard from Scott today. He's coming up to visit us on the 28th to celebrate New Year's here in Canada. Then, on the 29th, our friends from Sk Lindsay and Monique are coming to Ottawa on their way home from Australia, where they are spending Christmas. It will be a fantastic Sk reunion for the New Year. Bonnie and I are quite excited. And this weekend, we are going to have a nice Christmas, even if it is just the two of us. So don't worry! We are happy and cheerful in this holiday season.

Christmas season - *sigh*

It's really early in the morning and I'm about to head off to work and it's cold - cold for here, anyway. It just got thinking this morning that it isn't like Christmas at all. We have the tree up, and I've been eating chocolate like there's no tomorrow, and we've received several packages from home - but Christmas in three days? Doesn't seem possible. I am getting a little sad for home, and worried that Christmas will be so different that we won't hardly recognize it. But the important part is that Bonnie and I are together and we'll make it our own Christmas - and it won't be bad. We miss everybody terribly, though. Enjoy your day, everybody.

A Christmas Must-Read

Marshall Heyman's review of The Truth About Diamonds by Nicole Richie, available here, proves that celebrities should be encouraged to write more books about their lives so that the average person can gain access to the glittering world of the famous. The book seems to have something to offer everyone. Even those of us who are fairly well-read can learn more about the English language. For example, I can now add the triple negative to my repertoire of writing tricks: "We were nothing if not unoriginal," the narrator, a character named Nicole Richie, tells us about her friends. Richie's language is rich and powerful, presenting the reader with similes and metaphors that will remain with her forever: A reporter is "harder to get rid of than body lice." Kicking heroin "is kind of like the worst flu you ever had combined with the worst food poisoning you could imagine, and then times the whole thing by forty." No matter how hard I try, I know I will never be able to create such gems.

I am truly in awe of such brilliance. I can only hope to find this under the tree on Christmas morning.

Christmas at Parliament Hill

Whatever the collective opinion of the occupants of the Parliament Buildings here in Ottawa, the buildings themselves are truly magnificent this winter. Bonnie and I ventured to the Hill this Saturday to take in the lights: The glint off the centre path made for some incredible images. In one picture Bonnie's breath is visible, making for another great shot: Here's one of Bonnie in her new coat:
Here's one of the "Saskatchewan" tree:
Ottawa is quite beautiful this time of year. Pretty soon we'll be skating on the Canal - we'll put pictures up then, too.

John Lennon 1940-1980

Today is the 25th anniversary of John Lennon's untimely death. I still get a little choked up when I think of the life that was wasted; while Mark David Chapman rots in prison getting fed and staying warm and being able to live, all those who loved John Lennon and/or his music must mourn eternally. This day was good, however, as I successfully convinced the management at Chapters to play 2 full hours of Lennon in the store today in homage, and I plan on listening to more Lennon here at home. If you can, listen to some Lennon music today, either The Beatles or his solo work, but hopefully not The Plastic Ono Band.

Anatomy of a Latte

Okay so this is a cappuccino, but they're virtually identical. Yesterday I was tutored in the ways of the barista, and I can now steam milk like no one else, save for, perhaps, every other coffee shop employee in the world. I made some mean hot chocolates last night during my second shift at The Second Cup. The customers had to wait while I fumbled my way through the process, but they weren't disappointed. Well, some of them may have been, but I didn't hear about it. It's a great place to work, however; my co-workers are all friendly and helpful, and we all want to serve the customer the best we can. I know this sounds like a shameless plug, but it's true. Anyhoo, I work again on Sunday night, and then on Monday morning at Chapters. I'll be tired, for sure, but those Christmas gifts aren't going to buy themselves.