The Dolphin Lives!

The Dolphin Theatre in North Burnaby has been closed for about a year. There was a fire in the theatre then it closed and it looked like that was it. No more Dolphin. Ex-theatre vacant across the street from ex-McDonald's restaurant. I thought, "Oh no, more condominiums for sure." But yesterday I drove past it. The boards were down off the lobby windows and there was a new sign on the marquee: GRAND RE-OPENING THIS WEEK - INDIANA JONES

This makes me incredible goofy with happiness. The Dolphin is the theatre of my Saturday matinees. My sister, brother and I, and assorted neighbourhood friends, would take the bus to the Dolphin on Saturday afternoons when we were 9, 10, 11 years old, to watch old movies for 50cents a show.

Saturday would start like this. Wake up. Phone the Dolphin Theatre. There was a recorded message. "This week at the Dolphin Theatre: The French Connection at 7 and 9pm nightly. Saturday Matinee at 1 o'clock is Girls and Coconuts, starring Lulu Lafou and Crock Huntson."
It didn't really matter what was showing. We were going to the movies.

Sometimes we'd eat cheap hamburgers and fries at the old McDonald's then go to the movie. Usually we just brought a dollar the theatre: 50 cents for the movie and 50 cents for a Mackintosh's creamy toffee and a small pop. We whacked the toffee on the seat in front of us (so much the better if some kid was sitting there and you made him jump). After the toffee was gone, we used the boxes for whistles. This was especially useful if there were kissing scenes in the movie. Smooch-smooch-smooch-Tweeeee-squeeee-hoooooT! If we got tired of that we could squirt coke out of our straws or throw ice cubes across the theatre at other kids. We had to be careful not to get kicked out when we did that. Whistling was safer.

Besides crappy old Doris Day movies and some Robin Hoods and King Arthur movies, we saw Chitty Chitty Bang Bang at the Dolphin Theatre. There was a lineup around the block for that one. Also there was an animated Flintstones movie, I think.

As an adult, I went to the Dolphin once or twice, but I didn't live in North Burnaby any more, so it was out of the way. It was my theatre of choice when the kids were little, though. It was inexpensive, and usually had a family friendly film showing any time. By that time, they had divided the auditorium into two smaller theatres. I still expected to see half a big screen running right up to the dividing wall whenever I went in there, but they did a better job than that.

Now my family is speculating. What will the Dolphin look like after the fire? Did they get digital sound? better seats? I'd settle for Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and a Mackintosh Toffee. Just don't anybody squirt coke at me with their straw.

question: do you think the Dolphin will go on?

mompoet - surely hoping so

just one question

How can one small cat, who eats 1/2 cup of dry food (carefully measured) per day and drinks only from her small dish (except for the odd sip from the dog's bowl) and does not eat any of the dog's food because the dog inhales it, and who never goes outdoors MAKE SO MUCH POO AND PEE IN ONE SHORT WEEK?

question: that's all for now

mompoet - cat box is clean until next week, going to change every garment I am wearing

I am not sure what this sign is telling me to do

If I am riding a bike, I may choose the path to the right or to the left. If I am walking, am I supposed to walk into the pole?

blank slate and a bucket full of chalk

It's the Victoria Day weekend. We have Saturday, Sunday and Monday off. There's lots to do, but no set schedule.

We began the weekend in our chairs out on the road with our neighbours, enjoying a drink and each others' company. All of our kids are older now. It wasn't long ago that we used to watch them play hockey and ride their bikes while we visited. Now they are all driving off in their cars to spend time with friends, while we sit at home.

Today, Andy went for a haircut then headed for the beach. I drove Fi to rehearsal then got my snow tires off, then ran some errands for her. I know that it has not snowed since February (well maybe March) but I wanted to be sure I would not be driving through the mountains. Now I am sure, so I can dispense with them. All 4 of them. I am cautious, yes. The errands went quickly. Nobody's hanging out at the mall or the dance shop because it's a perfect late spring day.

Fiona will go to Kelowna later today and stay for a few days with her theatre group. They will perform Peter Pan while they are there, and come home on Thursday. It's another chance for them to sing and dance and fly, and an exciting road trip. Neither Andy nor I will go this time, so she'll stay with a friend and her mom. I'll go down to her rehearsal soon, to bring her luggage and see her off. Then I'll have a nice long walk home, because Alex will have taken off in the car to go to work. It's a glorious summer day outside so I'll take my sunglasses and my camera.

Alex worked last night, and will work again tonight and tomorrow afternoon. Today I took him out for a sushi lunch to celebrate his college acceptance. He is feeling on top of the world - 18th birthday, new job, graduation, going to college. It's a very good time for him. Grad dinner dance is next Saturday, so he'll pick up his suit some time this week.

Mom and Dad got home from their Alberta/Cranbrook trip last night so I'll treat Mom to a belated Mother's Day lunch on Sunday after church. If the weather holds, we go to Rocky Point Park and enjoy Pajo's fish and chips outdoors. Mom's able to walk a ways out of doors now as she recovers from hip surgery in December, so this will be a treat for all of us. I know Mom will read this blog, so I'll tease her here and remind her of how I used to trick her into walking "one more block" which ended up being miles and miles and miles. I promise I will not do this tomorrow, Mom.

Depending on when Andy gets back from the beach tonight, we may go out, or just stay in and veg with a movie. I have a bunch of studying to do for my final exam for the course I'm taking, so I'll get to some of that this weekend some time too. I suppose at some point I must also clean the house. hmmm perhaps.

Monday night, I'll go to the Anarchy Slam at the Vancouver Poetry Slam. It's a "no rules" poetry slam that promises to be weird and wonderful.

Aside from that, the weekend is wide open. It will surely fill up with fun as well as time for relaxation. We have the luxury of making it up as we go along. I like that.

question: do you ever find lack of structure luxurious?

mompoet - relatively directionless and spinning happily

wordless

too close for comfort

My Mom and Dad are visiting my sister and her family in Cranbrook. Today a helicopter crashed on a residential street there, killing all three people on board and a pedestrian on the street. Here's the story.

The crash was just a few blocks from my sister's house. What a horrible thing. I phoned to make sure everyone was okay. Barb, Kim and the kids were at school when the crash occurred, but Dad goes out walking while he's there. Barb reassured me that helicopter did not fall on my father today. I was relieved, but also sad to know that four people died.

question: how did it happen, I wonder?

mompoet - a bit shaky

he's going to college

Alex just received an acceptance letter from Capilano College Film Production Program. He is over the moon. This was his first choice for post-secondary and he's in.

Coincidentally, in today's paper, this announcement about some of this year's grads getting internships with Brightlight Pictures.

We can't wait to see what happens for Alex. We're delighted that the path is opening up as he has envisioned it.

question: have you ever watched a rising star?

mompoet - catching a glimpse of a bright future.

mother's day haikus

all the days of the
year - the cat picks this one to
pee on my duvet

the e-card shouting
made me squeal with laughter and
shout and laugh again

mysterious cake
of the sinking blueberries
was plum delicious

son, you can take me
to the movies anytime
I'll buy the popcorn

the new bathroom tiles
make the walls look hideous
next weekend, we paint

my mom's on the road
she's somewhere near Drumheller
we email greetings

the dog thinks I'm Mom
she did not pee on the rug
nor on the duvet

question: how many syllables in your Mother's Day?

mompoet - many many, all good (except for the duvet)

good bag

My friend Myrna is really smart about things that work, and make life a bit sweeter. She gave each of us ladies one of these bags a few years ago. It's from the Ontario Liquor Board, and meant for carrying up to 4 bottles home from the store, or out with you. I find that the pockets are good for more than bottles. Here it is, loaded up for a visit to Myrna's place for Friday evening chips and dips and wine (and tulips).

It's mother's day

Tom and Andrew were going to retile the downstairs bathroom last weekend, but Tom was not feeling well, so they're doing it today. Best place for me is out of the house and away from it.

Fiona made me a bagel for breakfast (my request) and Alex will take me to the movies (his idea) for Mother's Day. They'll both be out by supper time - Fiona at the play she's helping with, and Alex at work.

My mom is out of town leading a fiber arts workshop somewhere in Alberta. We'll celebrate Mother's Day for her when she returns. I mailed her card to Cranbrook, where she'll visit my sister and her family this coming week, before returning home.

Happy Mother's Day to all of you who are moms.

question: if you could request any breakfast, what breakfast would you request?

mompoet - I like bagels

Alex is 18

Here's our son, now grown. He is happy to be 18. We are very proud of him. He will graduate from high school next month, and hopes to begin in a film production program at a university nearby. He'll live at home a while yet. Seems like yesterday he was born.

some spring

The cherry trees on our street are looking much better. Last year they were plagued by tiny caterpillars that swung from threads and got stuck in your hair when you walked past. Pesticides are illegal in our city, but the tree guys came by with something organic that would make them "do better next year," and it worked. I hope this means they will leaf up beautifully too. It will be nice to have our happy trees back. The fluffy cherry blossoms that come at the end of blossom season always remind me of the day Alex was born. I looked out of the hospital corridor windows at them for several hours while I paced, trying to accelerate labour. That worked too, come to think of it.

listen to your mom

Our son, who loves film and hopes to study it and pursue a career in film-making, still needs the occasional nudge to go see this movie or that movie. Of course he's up on the blockbusters, especially now that he's working at the movie-plex, but there are so many other good movies. There are some that we agree on and have seen together: Superbad, Juno, Fahrenheit 911, Sicko. I had to convince him to see Napoleon Dynamite and Little Miss Sunshine before they caught on with big audiences and were all the buzz with teen moviegoers. Today I got him to go see Young @ Heart with me. Of course he loved it.

Young @ Heart is a documentary about a chorus of elder citizens who sing rock and roll songs. The film follows the rehearsal period leading up to the start of a tour. The singers, with their band and musical director, work to learn new songs and develop arrangements and interpretations that fit just right. Interspersed through the film are hilarious music videos made by the chorus (imagine The Ramones "I Want to Be Sedated" dramatized by seniors in pajamas in a care home). There are emotional moments too, when members struggle with ill health, and when the group performs for a group of prisoners in a local jail. The story is told with real affection and respect for its subjects. There's frank talk of the same subjects that interest us at any age: life, death, sex, money, art, friendship, love. All in all, it's a beautiful movie. Alex shouted with laughter, and got concerned when I cried. After the movie, I told him that I hope he will make films like the one that we just watched - original, funny, revealing and full of heart. He said, "Okay Mom."

You may want to take your mom or dad to see it. I recommend that you also insist on taking a young person. They'll be able to watch Ironman or Forgetting Sara Marshall anytime. Movies like this one don't come around every day.

question: what do you do with the teens in your life?

mompoet - enjoying shared vision

things to do, while by the wayside (see last night's post)

• eat porridge and read the Saturday newspaper, then drink coffee and read some more
• clean the house
• go see a movie
• spend time with friends - just sit and listen and laugh
• snuggle with beloveds
• bake something
• pet the cat
• walk the dog
• crank the stereo
• blog
• phone someone for no reason
• wear a sweater
• walk in the rain with no umbrella
• wish someone happy birthday when it is not her birthday
• stare at tulips until they look like something else
• paint toenails
• make a list then don't do anything on the list
• put fresh sheets on the bed
• watch a dvd in bed
• cancel one commitment
• say yes to something random and unusual
• find a penny, give a penny
• leave yourself a voicemail at another number
• make an appointment for a haircut and colour
• ask little of self, expect a small pleasant surprise some time in the new future
• be still
  

maybe its just spring

I am well, life is delicious, I laugh loudly several times a day, love and am loved, and look forward with pleasurable anticipation to many things on an ongoing basis. My energy is ample for what I need to do, and I have many choices and not a lot of stress. I am busy and a bit tired, but from performing actions and pursuing things that have meaning for me.

At the same time, I feel inclined to dawdle, get muddle-headed and forget small details, and fantasize about just bundling up for a few days and doing nothing. It's not about resting up. It's more like backing out, and feeling like that would feel good for a while. Usually I charge up the hill, either that or roll down pell-mell, cackling with glee. Right now I'm sitting partway up the slope, grumbling a bit because the grass is making my butt itch.

I get this way in the springtime. Life goes on with merry goofy goodness, real sadness, sour injustice, extreme beauty and redemption that anchors my faith in the meaning of it all. I stand beside the flow of it for a while and say, "I am not part of this." I go through the motions like an actor, but inside I stop (or at least slow substantially) while it goes on.

I do this every springtime. I have since I was little. Today it found me again.

Here I stop.

There it goes.

question: did you ever?

mompoet - tuning my fork to a glossy green rhythm, still alien to my winter ears

where I would like to go

My friend Kristene has moved with her husband Fred to a place in the Cook Islands called Aitutaki. Together they are managing a small resort on the beach. Here is a link to Kristene's blog, the Coconut Chronicles, in which she tops herself each week in making all readers (and viewers) wish they could just be there NOW (or preferably yesterday, and now).

question: would you like to, too?

mompoet - me too

please take care of the fog

My friend Diane sent me this link. I'm bookmarking drain. It looks like good stuff. Interesting to see this on the same evening that we hosted a poetry slam for Burnaby Youth Week.

question: who will take care of the fog?

mompoet - I think I know, but it's not just them. It's us too.

spirited away

Fi and I finished watching Spirited Away on dvd last night. I usually dislike animated features, and I've never paid attention to anime. My only glimpses of it have been when the kids watched Pokemon when they were little. I guess I have been missing something, because this movie was wonderful.

We watched the English version of it that was released in theatres a year or so ago. It won lots of awards. I'm sure I missed it at the time because I ignore animated movies. I had better rethink that.

Spirited Away is the story of a little girl, Chihiro, who gets lost in a world of spirits. She loses her parents and her name, and is forced to work at a bath house to survive. The story has a dream-like quality with many mythical elements, and themes of coming of age and self-discovery. The characters and situations that Chihiro encounters are frightening, confusing and funny. Chihiro is a regular little girl in extraordinary circumstances, figuring out what to do with witches, dragons, stink spirits, soot balls, bouncing disembodied heads and a giant baby. Like in most good young fiction, the children are smarter and more brave than the adults, and there's danger, reckless risk-taking and lots of guk. I loved it.

question: is there a type of movie that you never watch? have you ever been surprised?

mompoet - delightedly surprised

also

The minister at our church offered us his resignation about a month and a half ago. He'll stay until June. In the meantime, we are looking for a new minister. Last time we sought a minister we went through a process a lot like workplace recruitment and selection. This time, the congregation voted to go with a process called Settlement. That means that the local church Conference (for our province) recommends candidates (mostly newly-ordained ministers) who have also requested settlement. All of this week I have been thoughtfully and prayerfully participating in the process of considering candidates, as a member of the settlement committee for our church. Simultaneously, the candidates are considering the information sent to them by BC Conference about the churches that are seeking ministers. The process is confidential. It feels like God has a bigger hand in putting us together with our new minister, although I know that's not the case. God's here, no matter what the process or activity.

We should have a resolution in the next few weeks, and soon meet our new minister.

question: who will come to us?

mompoet - waiting for our new leader and friend

gratitude dance

What-all

I have been spinning busy, alternating with flop-tired slumping. Working backwards, here's the catch-up.

Tuesday (today) was school at work. I got my first assignment back - 82% which is okay but I'm a pushy-for-perfect student. Average was high seventies. I want 85 or better on assignment 2. We're bonding as a student group (22 of us) and our teacher is very good. She helps us digest the information from our voluminous homework reading, and keep us awake and sharing for 7 hours, which is quite a feat. Our training department head says the Parks people are worst for wiggling and snoozing after lunch. I think it's because we need to move around. Leila, our teacher, lets us move around in our imaginations and socially, so it's not too bad. And I go for a brisk walk at lunch with my new friend Blanka from the Clerks Dept. That helps too. Tuesday evening: casserole construction, laundry folding, telephone conversations miscellaneous and many, debrief with Alex about his interview this afternoon (went well). Early bed soon.

Monday advertised itself as an unstructured day at work, but turned into a jumbo-juggle bumble when the planned HVAC work was scrambled by a broken crane. Rooms we had closed were open. "Safe" rooms were out of bounds or partially disassembled by the time we came in. As a team, we combined our efforts and Monday morning brainpower to move our various groups and courses to safe a suitable rooms (a tight squeeze under normal circumstances). Instead of catching up on the pile on my desk, I cruised the building, smoothing and explaining. The day flew by, and it felt good that we got through it but wheww! I walked home to unwind. It's one hour from work to home. It bucketed rain the last 15 minutes. When I got home I put on my pajamas just in time for a lightning storm. Late supper, early bed in anticipation of early morning Tuesday for longer bus trip to faraway course location.

Sunday - Fi had a workshop downtown at 10. I booked out of church, and Andy and I drove down together with Fi. After we dropped her off we went to Stanley Park. We parked at Prospect Point and walked to the middle of the Lion's Gate Bridge. English Bay was surreal in its mist shroud. We walked around the reconstructed portion of the seawall. Not many people out on a damp Sunday morning, but it was warmer than it has been for days, so very nice. Later, we rendezvoused with Alex for Szechuan lunch, then he and Andy did a practice drive out to Capilano College for Alex's entrance interview. I ran a few errands then picked up Fi from her workshop at 4. We had a rainy barbeque supper at home, then watched the first half of Spirited Away (English version). Good stuff.

Saturday - Drove Fi to rehearsal. Alex took off to his new job at the movie theatre in my car. Then Andy and I drove out to Surrey and found tiles for our downstairs bathroom floor re-do. Back on our side of the Fraser River, we took a sunny walk along the dike at the Pitt River, then went to the pub for lunch. Saturday night evening we went to the Metro Theatre in Vancouver for a production of Anything Goes. It was very funny and quaint.

Friday - Knocked off work at noon. Met friends for lunch - Happy Birthday Chris! - then picked up Fiona and her friend Natasha from school and drove them and Fi's friend Shannon out to the Chandos Pattison in Surrey for a benefit concert. I did some reading for my course at Tim Horton's while they did a run through, then I watched the show with the other moms and dads. It was all about artists and their art. It was cute and funny.

This takes me back to my last post of a lounging cat. I did my impersonation of her in between flurry bursts. All in all it was a good weekend and start of the new week.

There it all is. Or most of it, anyway.

Question: what-all you been doing?

mompoet - what what what

happy cat

Here's Amy in a relaxed mood.

happy days

We celebrated volunteer month at the seniors centre where I work with a luncheon to thank all of our members who volunteer at the centre. The theme was 1950s. Here's a photo of the staff team. From left to right: my boss Cindy aka Mrs. Cunningham, me aka Shirley, Stephen aka Squiggy and Linda aka Laverne. We had fun.

Just Jeans of my Life So Far (For Jeans Day)

My very first pair of jeans was delivered to my house in a blue Simpson Sears truck. I convinced my mom to order them from the Spring –Summer catalogue. They were “Western Style, Fly Front.” These were my first zip-up pants with a waistband and belt loops, and I was nine years old. Before this, I had worn mostly skirts, sewn at home by my mom, and stretch-pants, also from Simpson Sears (the kind that came in a set with a matching candy-coloured striped stretchy shirt).

I felt like a cowgirl when I squeezed on my new jeans. I was still a “goblin-shaped” girl, so I sucked in my tummy to help the zip reach the top, then threaded a hand-woven inkle belt through the loops. I finished the outfit with one of the tops from my stretch pants sets. It was the first of many mix-and-match fashion adventures.

I wore my jeans to school almost every day. One day, at recess, something made me laugh so hard that the zipper on my jeans split wide open – broken. The principal drove me home and waited outside while I changed back into my old stretch-pants.

Soon, I was in high school, where I joined the jeans explosion of the 70s. Star Jeans, with a rat-tail comb in the back pocket for grades 8 and 9; Seafarers, and Le Cullotier in grade 10. Jeans were the uniform that signaled every kid’s status. There were real and fake styles, depending on how much Mom and Dad were willing to spend. Regardless, we wore those jeans long, with platform shoes, and stepped on the hems, dragging them through the mud on the way to school until they trailed behind us in cool tatters and wicked the dampness halfway up to our knees.

Then there was graduation and university and the new wave Euro-chic 80s, with stone wash, acid wash, floral print, skinny legs, coloured high-top shoes and asymmetrical jackets to match our trendy haircuts. I listened to my boyfriend’s import EPs, studied the album covers to see what people were wearing and sewed my own jeans to beat the trends.

Then, out of nowhere, there were babies, whose jeans had snaps up the insides of the legs for easy diaper changes, then denim overalls from Please Mum. I focused on dressing the children, and slipped off the fashion bandwagon to the ease of Cotton Ginny – and that was on a good day. Sweat pants were the new jeans.

Now the babies are grown, and I negotiate: HOW MUCH?! When my children shop for new jeans, and stifle my boring stories about the days when $24 for a pair of French Jeans (with the red white on blue stripe label stitched into the seam) was thought by my parents to be excessive.

I wear Mom jeans, with just a tweak of spandex for comfort, and watch “What Not to Wear” on television, and hope I won’t embarrass the kids with my fashion ineptitude. On the weekends, yoga pants are the new jeans, and I never, ever suck in my tummy to help the zip reach the top.

question: what are your jeans memories?

mompoet - miles and miles of denim in one lifetime

basking outside on an april evening

We are tired of waiting for warm weather, so on Saturday night we gathered on the street outside of my house for a glass of wine after supper. Here are the photos. It is not warm yet, but we had a lovely time.

milestone weekend

Today was a pretty ordinary weekend for Andy and me, but for our kids, it was huge.

On Saturday, Alex began his new job at the movie theatre. He got a job at Silvercity, which is a gigantic complex with 20 screens that shows all of the mainstream features plus livecast sporting events and the opera. I think a church also holds its services in one of the theatres on Sunday mornings. Alex will be trained as an entry level "cast member," so he'll learn to work at the box office, the concession and on the floor (ticket-taking, cleanup, ushering). He's doing his training now and likes it very much.

On Sunday, Fiona sang at the honours concert for the Coquitlam Music Festival. She will represent the festival in her age category at the Performing Art BC Provincial competition in May. This is a wonderful honour and a big challenge.

We are totally and wonderfully proud of our kids all of the time. Weekends like this are reminders of their bright potential, and testament to their hard work and good character. Their success tells us that the paths they have chosen are good ones, and that they will be just fine in the future. That's what every parent wants to know.

question: what milestones do you see (or anticipate) in your life or the lives of the ones you love?

mompoet - standing by the side of the road, smiling

outgoing about going out

Thank you to Carol for this quiz:

Your Social Anxiety Level: 0%

You have low social anxiety. You don't have any social anxiety. In fact, you love being social. You're well adjusted and likely quite outgoing. Your social skills put others at ease.

Are You Socially Anxious?

I am not totally free of social anxiety. The survey didn't ask:

Do you mentally rehearse what will happen at a social event before you go?
Do you obsess about what you will wear to a social gathering?
Do you wonder if everyone else in the room feels like they might not find someone to talk to?
Do you dream about the party before you go?

I think I work out the anxiety in these ways. Anyway - take the quiz and find out for yourself.

question: do you sit on the couch, perch in the kitchen, or move around the room(s) at a party?

mompoet - usually happy to meet you!

Spark your Dream by Candalaria and Herman Zapp

On Sunday, Andrew and I went to the mall to meet a couple from Argentina who is traveling the world in a 1928 car with wooden wheels. Herman And Candalaria Zapp dreamed of traveling, put it off for a long time, finally did it, starting without money or a working car, had 3 babies in different parts of North and South America, and are heading next to Asia.

Herman told me, "Maybe our next kid will be Asian. One baby for every continent." Having met Herman and Cande, I think this might be possible.

Cande disappeard to go feed the baby and get some lunch for herself while Andrew and I looked at the map of their travels and investigated the car. Their car is shiny, tiny inside and very cool. It has a pop-top sleep tent and a cargo area jammed with toys for the children (5 years, 3 years and 4 months) and wooden wheels. The tires are regular tires, but the wheels are wood. They have to be kept wet during travel, or they will warp and crack. When the family drove through the desert they had to stop and wet the wheels along the way.

I asked Herman if they were home-schooling the children along the way. He smiled and said no, they are road-schooling. He spoke of visiting museums and historic sites along the way, and meeting people of every walk of life, culture and religion. He told me he wants his kids to know that Christians, Muslims, Jews and others are all the same people. They have opened their hearts and their homes to the family and helped them along the way.

I bought their book. Herman signed it, asking the names of our children to include in the inscription, posed for a photo, and bid us farewell with generous and friendly hugs. "You will have a home to stay in if you ever come to Argentina," he promised. "Unless you're out traveling," was Andrew's reply. We all laughed, and I nearly cried.

Herman and Cande are living their dream. The purpose of their travels is to do this, and by doing it, encourage others to do the same - not to wait, but to go for it.

When I told Herman that I had heard him and Cande earlier on the week on CBC Radio, he said, "That guy Rick is great. Most of the time they just ask - what's the farthest north you have been? what's the farthest south? Rick, he got it about the dream. That's what's important."

question: do you know anyone who lives his or her dream?

mompoet - filled with wonder

instant poetry is beautiful

On Monday night, my friend Amnesia Jane Smith and I hosted an Instant Poetry Slam at the Vancouver Poetry Slam. This was part of the "alt-slam" series - themed or alternative-format slam nights on the second Monday of each month. The poets' scores don't count for standings, and standard slam rules are warped or morphed for fun and creativity. In January we had a Group Piece Slam. In February, it was the Pan-African Slam. In March, it was the Sista'hood Slam. Different hosts step up to organize these slams, so a variety of styles and preferences take the stage for a unique night of poetry for the sake of play, once each month.

Amnesia Jane and I were a bit worried about getting poets for our slam. Participating was a risky proposition:

Come to the cafe at 7pm
Receive a writing prompt
Write a new poem starting NOW
Perform you poem in the slam, beginning at 8:45pm

We were delighted to find 15 poets ready to be in the slam. The writing prompt was "shake well before use." The poetic responses were varied in content, style and presentation, but were all related by their use of the prompt. Judges were instructed to rate the poem half on their overall assessment, and half on how well the prompt was incorporated. Amnesia Jane and I wrote too. We didn't perform our work though, because there were more than enough brave poets ready to write and perform without a net. It was an excellent night.

I have posted my unperformed Instant Poem in the post below this one.

question: would you, could you, write and perform something, all in one evening?

mompoet - I bet you could

Shake Well Before Use

my heart
chunks tight to the top front of my chest
the place where
swallowing is impossible
forcing me to
set down all crunchy past parodies
and accept dreams as nourishment

you
consume my thoughts
you
are beautiful
I know that you deny this
your repertoire of self-effacement
is polished as antique mahogany
subtle
as a fresh-hewed speed bump

I say
"I like your hair that way."
you say
"my bangs are hiding a zit that's about to pop
quick - pass me a bucket"

I say
"your idea is the best idea I have heard all day
you
are a genius"
you say
"that was your idea"

I say
"I can't stop looking at you"
you say
"what - do I have spinach in my teeth?"

while I find your humour endearing
I tend to think
when you pummel your own
artichoke
you are really staking claim to a separate superiority
KING OF THE DORKS
The BEST of the Liverwurst-hearts
Creamed something-not-very-good on toast

which prompts the lump-chunk
sticking spot
that magnetizes me in your direction
to say
give it up (please)
because you
are beautiful
so here it is in a coconut shell:

I desire the imperfection of you
your zit
is a GOD-ZIT
and you are King Vesuvius
when you pull on your new bicycle pants
I think that nobody
could look as wonderfully awful in bicycle pants
as you do
and that makes you wonderful
but the best part is your overbite
your overbite enchants me so
I can only stand here and say
DING A LING A LING

when I call you adorable
and you counter with "abhorable"
I want to take hold of your silly head
screw the lid on finger-tight
and shake well before use
until you stop saying
abhorable
and start saying
beautiful
beautiful
beautiful

some time later
the jarring thought may occur to you

^^^^is^^^^doing^^^^to^^^ ???
why^^^ she^^^^^this^^^me
(because I might still be shaking you, just a little bit)

and when your contents settle
to a gleaming strata of
beautiful on top of
beautiful on top of
beautiful on top of
beautiful on top of
beautiful

you will know
why me
why you
why I say it

because I know when I say it
and you believe it
I will believe it too
(and not only for you)

because I know when I say it
I am really saying - from the
rock-gullet heart-stop place between chest and throat

beautiful

yeah, me too
me too

warm

Spring has been unseasonably cold. Cold and damp. Damp most of the time, cold always.

I have not got out of black shoes and fuzzy coats yet, and it's mid-April. Until Saturday.

Warmth was predicted days in advance. We all walked around buzzing "20!" (this referring to degrees Celsius). Giddy with hopefulness we shivered through the week, almost afraid to believe it could happen.

Saturday arrived. By 9am it was 11 degrees outside. By early afternoon it was 22. We opened all of the windows to the house to let the warm, fresh air in. Flowers bloomed. Cherry blossoms popped. It was instant spring. In our car, we rolled down all of the windows and let our hair blow. We saw kids wearing shorts and bathing suit tops outdoors. We stood on the balcony and blinked.

Sunday morning it rained a bit, then warmed again. Another beautiful day!

Today it rains again, but I'm sure it's not so chilly. Maybe I can put away my black shoes and fuzzy coat.

question: are you warm?

mompoet - talking about the weather is boring, but this is momentous to us

good for you (somewhat)

I heard on the radio today that Girl Guide Cookies are being criticized for their trans-fat content. A representative of Guides Canada said essentially that cookies are treats, and we all eat things that are bad for us, and that we should do it in moderation or we'll never have any fun. The story also quoted the argument that changing the recipe would change the taste. Well, the cookies have been re-reciped twice in the last 10 years after Dare took over making them from Christie, so changing them again wouldn't be breaking with a long tradition of tastiness.

I'm inclined to say that a little of a bad thing is okay, especially for a good cause, but it's also possible to make this bad thing better, so I think they should.

question: do you eat girl guide cookies? and if so, which do you prefer - choco-mint or vanilla and chocolate sandwiches? and what about this trans-fat thing?

mompoet - former brownie and guide and current cookie-eater (in moderation) and able to have plenty o' fun with our without the cookies

getting ready for grad

Alex will graduate from secondary school this June. In May, there's a dinner dance at a fancy hotel, followed by an all night fun party at the school to discourage dangerous partying elsewhere. For the fancy dinner, all of the students dress up. The girls all ordered their dresses months ago. Now the boys are shopping. Alex opted to rent a formal suit for the occasion. Here he is at the rental place modeling the one he chose. (He'll not wear the #420 on the lapel to grad.)

I think he looks very handsome.

question: what did you wear to prom/grad?

mompoet - I sewed my own grad dress.

blossom

daytime into dream consciousness

On Monday at work we had a sad incident with one of the men in the community. He has no place to live, and struggles with addiction. Late in the afternoon, we found him asleep under the bench at the bus stop outside our front door. My partner at work has been meeting with him and our community police rep. Together they have been trying to help this man get into treatment and find support and safe housing. He's still outside, and clearly struggling these days.

So at night I dreamed about homelessness. I somehow mixed in some sad news from the weekend and my festival experience to make a collage of unlikely events, but that's dreaming for you.

Mom and my sister and I are on the run from a bad man who wants to harm us. Our home is not safe. We must leave without coats, belongings or money. I have my cell phone. We have bus passes apparently, because we take the bus to the Queen Elizabeth Theatre in Vancouver to see a musical. We are sitting in the theatre, watching Cats, when I realise we can all go live at my house and we will be safe. My husband will protect us. So I'm watching Cats and trying to text Andy to tell him I'm coming home, and my Mom and sister are coming to live with me.

question: when your brain solves a problem in dream-life, where does it get its ideas?

mompoet - collaging

music in my heart

I spent the weekend at the Coquitlam District Music Festival with Fi, who won everything she entered. I will try not to be a boasting mom, because it was all the daughter's doing so she's the one entitled to boast (which she doesn't). We saw dozens of lovely performances by young vocalists and listened to encouraging and constructive adjudication notes from the wonderful Kevin Power. My heart swelled up to bursting over and over again. Most people never get to be in this place. I am happy happy happy.

question: did you ever witness something wonderful at its beginning of wonderfulness?

mompoet - experiencing wonder on an ongoing basis these days

fern shadow

bromeliad ecosystem

My Mom sent me a link to this delightful article about life in the top of a pineapple.

question: would you like to be tiny for a few days?

mompoet - marveling at the world around us

I though April 1 passed me by

Then I read Stephen's blog this morning and the fool's day was redeemed.

question: did you get fooled?

mompoet - no fooling (sigh)

school again

The last time I took a college-level course was in 1984. Just to give you an idea, I prepared every university assignment I have ever done on a typewriter. A lot has changed.

Now I'm heading into a Supervisory Skills course tomorrow. It's part of the leadership course I am taking at work. In a lot of ways, it's a cushier ride than when I was in university. The course is paid for, the books are paid for, I get paid to attend. There's a free lunch. I still have to do the reading and homework and show up and participate, and I get credit for a BCIT business course. By the way, I have never taken a business course at university or college.

I have heard from last year's participants that this part of the program has a heavy workload. We have 3 chapters to read from the text before tomorrow morning (I have read two). It's pretty straightforward, and mostly material I have encountered before, in the course of my work and in seminars and workshops that I have attended through work over the years. There will be written assignments and a final exam, but that can't be too much different from written reports and a big day at work when I need to have my ducks all in a row.

I'm excited, and hope that it will be informative and challenging. This is the year to stretch my brain, expand my horizons and refocus my compassion and engagement with the world. I hope that Supervisory Skills will be an interesting part of it.

Now to Chapter 11.

question: what's the last course you took?

mompoet - student again

blueberry scones

Breakfast this morning:

2 2/3 c whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
6 Tbs brown sugar
(Stir these all up in a medium-sized bowl)

1/2 cup butter or marg
(Add this and incorporate thoroughly with a pastry mixer or two knives)

1 1/2 cups blueberries - fresh or frozen
(Stir in gently)

3/4 cup milk
3 Tbs lemon juice
1 egg
(mix in a measuring cup and add to the dry/berry mixture)

Stir just until combined. It will be sticky. Move the dough lump onto a parchment-covered large baking sheet. Pat down to a big circle (about 10" diameter). Use a bit more flour if you need to keep it from sticking to your fingers.

Cut the circle into 8 pie-pieces. Gently separate these to spread them out across the baking sheet. Sprinkle the tops with a bit of sugar if you like.

Bake about 20 minutes at 450 degreesF. They're done when they're golden and the berries are bubbly.

Yum yum yum. Best eaten still warm from the oven. Serves 4 for a meal or more for a snack.

the end of the shelter program (for this winter)

Here are a couple of articles about the Cold Wet Weather Mat Program, from this weekend's local newspapers.

The Now

The Tri-City News

My impression from following the stories, attending rezoning hearings and volunteering when the shelter was at our church is that the project yielded better immediate results than we could have imagined. It also promises long-term results for the people who have found shelter and treatment where needed, and for the development of a permanent shelter and transition facility in our area.

question: have you heard the story?

mompoet - enjoying the happy end to this chapter, looking forward to what's next

the drop-off documentary

Alex and his friends made this in film class last year. Alex is in the film (interviewer #3 with the glasses and short light-brown hair, and one of the greeters in the final scene).



question: where do you drop off?

mompoet - heeding the signs all of the time

good things happening too

The Tyee ran this article that filled me with delight.

question: have you found the poetry on youtube

mompoet - more there than you could imagine!

some things I missed in the news lately

Canadian Poppy Quarter Spy Coins
(who knew that US defense contractors carried their coins in plastic bags in their inner coat pockets? arrr Canadian spies foiled again!)

Some Christians Believe that Environmental Stewardship is Unnecessary
(what about "on earth as in heaven?")

Sometimes the thoughts and beliefs of some people cause me to
tremble
tremble
tremble
tremble

question: did you know?

mompoet - boggled and saddened by this thinking and believing

always listen to your dog

Dooce is my favourite blog. Yesterday Heather Armstrong posted this story about her wise dog, Chuck. It comes with photos by Heather's husband, Jon.

question: do you have a dog?

mompoet - listen to your dog

Easter Weekend - the list

I have enjoyed a great 6-day break from work and routine. Today is day 6 of 6, so I am looking back. Here's what-all happened.

• I got a haircut.
• I swept the winter blowdown off the deck.
• I bought vegetables and reorganized the fridge.
• My sister and her family arrived from Cranbrook.
• My family and I spent lots of time at Mom and Dad's place, visiting with the whole big family.
• I attended church twice (Good Friday and Easter Sunday).
• I lounged at my parents' place with my Mom, Dad and sister while the girl teenagers had a supper party at our house and the boy teenagers and husbands went to the hockey game.
• I chatted on the phone with various friends.
• I finished reading a novel.
• I worked on a poem.
• I wrote morning pages.
• I saw the movie The Counterfeiters.
• I shopped at T&T Supermarket.
• I went for some nice long walks outdoors.
• I roasted a turkey and made mashed potato casseroles.
• I didn't let anyone else mess with the gravy.
• I played home-made balderdash with the whole big family. Now everyone calls Grandma "Gumma" which is really gross if you know the definition of gumma.
• I finally had supper at Cap Hill Szechuan with my sister and her family and my family and my Mom and Dad. Sister and family have been waiting 2 and a half years for this.
• I played Apples to Apples with some of the family.
• I hid Easter baskets for the teenagers.
• I hunted for chocolate eggs, hidden by the teenagers for the adults.
  
• I drove various kids around in my car.
• I gave my car to my son to drive various cousins around in.
• I painted my toenails.
• I slept in.
• I read newspapers and magazines.

It was a nice break.

question: what did you do for Easter weekend?

mompoet - going back to work tomorrow, rested and replenished

and now for something completely different

Matthew Baldwin posts great links at his blog Defective Yeti. Here's one:


Delicious Snacks Distract Congressmen From Horrors Of War

heaven

The Vancouver Sun had a good dialogue about heaven on Saturday. Here's a link to the story.

question: what is your heaven?

mompoet - working on the idea of heaven in us and all around us, rather than as a future destination with a turnstyle and entry eligibility

day 3 of six

like halfway through the top scoop of a two-scoop ice cream cone and my favourite flavour is on the bottom and someone dipped the cone tip in chocolate so it's waiting too

I love long-long-long extra bonus weekends

question: how is your weekend going?

mompoet - everyday delicious, yes indeed

like a tickle in the throat

or an itch wanting a scratch

the solution to a poem-partway-done then abandon is bump-bumpa-lumping at the back of my mind

but there are dishes, and groceries and a family supper...

wait poem, wait, please be still and don't evaporate. I'll be back.

question: when you listen to yourself, what do you hear?

mompoet - memorizing part of a melody so I can find it again when all is quiet

long weekend

I'm away from work for 6 days now. HOORAY! It's the first break I have taken since coming to my new job in January. Okay, it's only been a couple of months, but I like breaks. Don't we all like breaks?

My sister and her family will arrive from Cranbrook Thursday evening to spend the weekend with the family. This is a real treat, especially because Mom isn't ready to make the car journey to Cranbrook. Her new hip is healing well, but 12 hours on the road, with multiple climbs in and out of the car is a bit much at this early date.

The kids are looking forward to spending time with their cousins. I'm looking forward to gang-cooking and a big goofy game of balderdash. It will be nice.

question: is there someone who you have been missing? will you see that person soon?

mompoet - I will see them soon

something we all need to hear

listen

some pictures of pictures of the shelter

The party at the church for the people who helped at the shelter

On Friday night we had a party for the shelter volunteers. I got things organized and sent out invitations. The rest was easy. People from our church brought delicious desserts and lots showed up to help set up and decorate and serve. About 60 attended, out of a total of 130 volunteers. We had a lovely and delicious time. It felt good to say goodbye and "until next winter" to many good friends we have met during our shelter weeks.

question: if you could invite anyone you wanted to invite to a party, who would you invite?

mompoet - happy

some limericks for ye'

My friend Irene has been involved with the Vancouver Celtic Fest for the past few years as the Queen of Limericks. This year she wrote a tribute limerick for the festival's 5-year celebration:

Five years of superb celebration!

Five years of our awesome creation!

Research it and then ya

will know five millenia

of Celtics is huge inspiration!

I asked her to send me a couple more limericks to post today, in honour of St. Patrick's Day. I told her it would be okay if they are a bit naughty. Here we are:

What Now?

These orders from people I dread:

“Come here! Hurry up! Go ahead!”

Next time when I’m humming,

and screaming, “I’m coming!”

I certainly hope it’s in bed!

More to Love

I worried what Isador thought o’ me.

I’ll diet, I said, There’s a lot o’ me.

Said he, Oh no, Minny,

Start eating! You’re skinny!

I love when you’re bosomy and bottomy!

Full Tilt
A couple, in lust, if you will,
had sex on the side of a hill.
cried she, Oh you devil!
Though You're not on the level,
Your slant on it gave me a thrill!

All I Need

Small pleasures to give me a smile

And friends who will go the last mile,

And heavens above!

I do need some love

Without batteries once in a while!

Question: are you any Irish?

mompoet - Happy St. Paddy's to you

Two a Penny

This is the winner of the student prize at this year's Quick Flicks 48 Hour Movie Challenge. Alex worked as a grip on this project. He and his friends created it over the course of a weekend, using an "inspiration package" provided at the beginning of the contest. They were almost eliminated for not including a "head-hunter, scout, talent agent." Watch for the scout.

theatre of the couch

After a couple of crazy-busy weeks, we sloped into the weekend with ebbing ambition and a keen desire to be still and quiet. The kids are on spring break for the next week and a half. We're anticipating a visit over Easter Weekend from the Cranbrook clan. This weekend was about doing less, more slowly.

We rented two movies, both on the same theme it turned out, but with very different approaches. Martian Child is one that Andy worked on. There was a big lag from the time the project was completed until its theatrical release. Then its stay in the theatres was very short, so I has low expectations when we rented the DVD. I do love John and Joan Cusack, but the DVD cover image and back of the box synopsis made it sound like a cutesy version of My Favourite Martian. It turned out to be a lovely, warm-hearted story about a sad man, a bossy but loving sister, and a strange child. It's based on real experiences, and it felt pretty real to me. The story's main message is pounded in with a purple velvet hammer in the final act, but the rest of it was good enough that I forgave that. Fiona and Andy both liked it too.

Rocket Science was one I meant to see but missed. It's hard for me to see all of the movies that I want to see, but I'm going to try to see more. Luckily they all come out on DVD so there's a second chance. This one is about a boy with a speech impediment who is recruited to the high school debate team by the girl who is the star of the team. It's a notch and half to the grim side of Napoleon Dynamite, but with similarly real and quirky characterizations and relationships, and some really stellar moments of teen-age reality reflection. I liked that is was not a Hollywood portrayal of impossible love overcoming improbable odds. Fiona liked it but said it made her feel sad. Andy did not like it.

Then it was 11:30 and we all slept like rocks. It was the right choice for a tired ending to busy week. Sometimes my favourite theatre is our couch.

question: what have you rented lately?

mompoet - pajamas, slippers and popcorn, plus a glass of wine

life coach

I am a fruit basket of serendipity. I ask for apples and apples fall into my lap. Not to say that every day is easy, but I seem to find what I need when I need it.

Today I had my first session with a life coach, provided as part of my "Leading from the Front Line" course that I'm taking at work. I sat in my car with my cell phone (people walk into my office like it's the skytrain station) and talked for 45 minutes. Christina is the coach who will be working with me, and with the other students in the course, for the rest of this year.

We had a "getting-to-know-you" kind of talk. I had done the pre-reading, and knew that I should expect a conversation that was for me, about me, and intended to help me maximize my experience in the course and in life in general. We talked about journeys, mirrors, colour preferences, inner voices, obstacles, me-time, priorities, choices. It was good, and interesting. Christina mostly asked questions, then reflected and re-directed my answers.

At the end she asked what I think now of coaching. I told her it was interesting and I looked forward to the next session with happy anticipation. By paying attention to me, she help direct my attention to myself. That's an unusual feeling, having someone help you look at yourself for almost an hour. I told her I felt like she knew me a lot better but I didn't know her very well because she asked all of the questions and I did all of the talking (about me). She told me that I probably know more about her than I think, just from our conversation. She said, "People aren't really their stories." This reminded me of something a counselor told me once a long time ago: "You are not your experiences. They are things that you go through, and that go through you. You are you all the while."

I feel like the time is right for doing some reflecting and understanding. I'm sure it will help me get more out of the course, and life in general. It's a time of change, so the help is timely.

question: did you ever catch an apple when you needed one?

mompoet - sometimes I get a grapefruit when I thought I wanted an avocado, but it's all good.

Quick Flicks

Alex was invited to join his friend Joel's Quick Flicks 48 Hour Movie Challenge team. The weekend before last he worked as a grip on a film that they made for a contest. Last night was the screening and awards, and his team won the student prize.

Each team received an "inspiration package" of things that needed to be included in the movie. The team that Alex was on had to work with:

Object: paper cups
Character: head hunter/scout/recruiter
Location: elevator
Phrase: the creatives are being screwed

Here's the synopsis as published in the program guide: "On the brink of insanity, David Michaels embarks on an enthralling visceral journey in his struggle to write the elusive last note to his masterpiece." The title: Two a Penny.

What a thrill for them to win. I enjoyed seeing their film, along with all the others. Theirs made me laugh (as did many). One made me cry. The first prize winner was disorientingly weird. There was even a musical. It was good fun, and good to see a project in which Alex participated.

question: did you ever do something big in very little time?

mompoet - admiring quickness and creativity

neverland

Peter Pan was this weekend. I saw 3 of the six performances. Fiona played Wendy in some shows, and an Indian in the rest. I think it was the best show she's been in so far. Andy worked backstage, so I barely saw both of them for the whole week, during the theatre rehearsals and preparations. This weekend I sat in the dark and enjoyed it all.

The flying was absolutely amazing. I thought I would be frightened to see Fi and the other actors swoop up in to the air, but I just felt delighted. My heart raced, and I laughed out loud. Somehow, in just a few days of flying lessons, they learned how to be launched to the rafters on a wire and make it look real. I know I will probably never again see my daughter fly out of the bedroom window and into the night sky, or swoop through the treeptops with an arrow in her heart, and drift to the forest floor (not dead, just fast asleep).

My mind boggles at how 30 young actors can pull together (in about 6 months) something so completely wonderful. They sang and danced beautifully, supported one another like seasoned pros, and conveyed perfectly the comedy, adventure and love that are at the heart of this story. Fiona shone. We are so proud of her.

I cried less than I thought I would. It's sad for everyone when the show ends, but there will always be another and another and another. This one was a treat, a plum, a trip to Neverland, a job well-done.

question: do you believe in fairies?

mompoet - happy memories

by this time tomorrow night

I will have seen our daughter fly.

Friday is opening night for Peter Pan. Fi is playing Wendy. She has been at the theatre most of the time this week, learning how to fly. Along with her fellow actors, she has been preparing the singing, dancing and acting part since September. I can hardly wait to see it all come together.

question: would you like to fly?

mompoet - my heart soars

a yummy healthy recipe, and a yummy recipe

Monday was Linda's birthday at work. I brought blueberry oatmeal muffins. Tuesday, Bruce returned to the office after time at another job. I baked chocolate brownies with chocolate chips. Here are the recipes:

Blueberry Oatmeal Muffins

This recipe is from Canadian Living Magazine. I have simplified it and made it 100% whole wheat.

3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup low fat yogurt - plain/vanilla/fruit - they all work fine
1 ripe banana - mashed
1/4 cup canola oil
1 egg

Mix those ingredients then dump on top:

3/4 cup rolled oats (the magazine says quick oats but I prefer old fashioned oats because they are oatier)
1 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen)

Stir them in, just until blended (don't overmix)

Spoon the batter into 12 oiled or paper-lined muffin pan cups.

Bake 20-25 minutes at 375.


Chocolate Chocolate Chip Brownies

This is from the Joy of Cooking. I simplified it so much it's barely recognizable but every bit as yummy. I also increased the vanilla, eliminated the nuts (you can put them back in - 1 cup of pecans) and added chocolate chips.

1/2 cup canola oil
8 Tbs Fry's cocoa
4 eggs
1/4 tsp salt
1 Tbs. vanilla

Mix these 5 ingredients up.

Add and stir in:

2 cups sugar (DON'T REDUCE THE SUGAR - THIS IS BROWNIES, NOT HEALTH FOOD. JUST GO FOR IT.)

Add and stir in:

1 cup flour
1 cup chocolate chips

Pour into a greased 9x13" cake pan. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes. It should be firm around the edges and still a bit soft in the middle.

Dust with icing sugar while still warm.

question: do you bake?

mompoet - firm around the edges and just a bit soft in the middle

mark your calendar and get your sweater

my new wheels

First of all, Dad informed me that my car weighs approximately 2,500 lbs (and he hasn't even looked inside my trunk). So my earlier estimate of how much metal and rubber I was hauling around was significantly short of reality.

The 2.5 kilobrick sat in the driveway today, while I took public transit to work. It was my first day to use my new employer pass. It's a one-year bus pass that will pretty much let me go anywhere, anytime, seven days a week. Getting to the office is a breeze - one community shuttle with a cheerful driver who plays the radio and greets passengers with a friendly hello, then bids each one, "Have a great day!" as they disembark. It's almost surreal it's so nice. Today I had to ride all the way to City Hall. I figured out a 40 minute route, using two buses. Not bad, because it would take me 30 in my car at that time of day. Trouble is, the bus broke down. The on-board computer just quit and the whole big machine when GGGGggggrrrrnnnnnmmp. Then nothing. Luckily another bus came by in the opposite direction, so I jumped on that and found another route in. I just made it to my training session on time. After work, the ride home was sunny and uneventful, with perfect connections, and even a happy driver on the big bus. My pass is a funny flexible little card that gets scooped into the ticket-reader and spit back out, just like a disposable faresaver, only I keep it to use all year.

In the meantime, Alex took my car to school, but he's only allowed to do that once per week. School is a 15 minute walk from home, so on-foot is his main method of transportation.

Busing will definitely be good in the warm weather months. It has already saved me on a couple of snowy days when I preferred not to drive. I'll see how I do in the windy-rainy fall months. I think with proper rainwear I should be okay. If I can leave the big blue metal thing in the driveway most of the time, it will last longer before I need to buy a new one, and the environment will benefit. Besides, I want to test my theory about how many sincerely friendly bus drivers are out there. I hope my first not-happy one is dramatic and entertaining.

In the meantime, I have to pack my bag and get to bed. There's a bus to catch tomorrow morning.

question: what transit is your transit?

mompoet - figuring out new ways to do things

tender

Life has been busy, with lots of calls to be flexible, understanding and accommodating. We all do all of these things every day with barely a thought. Sometimes it catches up with us.

Friday in cycle class, the instructor was spurring us on to pedal harder and faster by offering a visualization: "Now imagine there's someone who your really want to see, just at the top of the hill. Go for it! Catch up with that person!" I immediately thought of my sister and began to cry. I did catch up with her though, and visualized a high plateau ride together through range country.

Spending the weekend with the family is an exercise in shifting gears, coming and going, doing chores and fun things, rushing and relaxing. There's lots of discussion about who wants what and what we do next. Several times I found my feelings hurt by benign comments that I just took the wrong way.

At church this morning I was one of the first up for communion. We sing softly while everyone takes their turn. "Eat this bread, drink this wine, come with me and never be hungry. Eat this bread, drink this wine, trust in me and your will never thirst." Again, I cried.

I wondered, "What's going on?" I realised that there are a few things: Alex is heading into his grad time. Exams, college application, summer job. I know he'll be fine, but I still worry some about how he'll weather this time of change and challenge. I want him to enjoy it, and feel optimistic and confident, even though I know it's natural for him to be afraid. Fiona's "Peter Pan" opens on the weekend. She's ready and excited, but I'm thinking past the beginning to the end and knowing there will be an element of sadness and let-down for all of us when it is over. Andy is focussed on preparations for his job as Assistant Stage Manager with the show, but it has resulted in a demanding and conflicting schedule with little couple time to catch up and connect this weekend. For me, I'm feeling sad about our Minister's recent decision to leave our church at the end of June to pursue a powerful call from God to do something different. He's not running from us, but to something else. Still, it feels like he broke up with us somehow. I respect and care for him, so I am glad he is following this call, but I feel let down and a bit lost.

It's my nature to always crane my neck and look farther up the road. For every hurt or sadness, there is a counter-action. I may get to see my sister at Easter, if her family's plan to find an inexpensive last minute Cuban vacation does not come to reality. If they're home, we'll drive to their home (about 12 hours from our home) and visit for the weekend. As far as my easily-hurt feelings, I have thought about a few conversations (with people than other than family members) that have left me feeling diminished. I am prepared to respond next time in a manner that will help me express my feelings better so I don't carry away the weight of a negative exchange. As for the church, we will survive, and possibly be stronger. We will always have a friend in Tim, and we will find and love a new minister who will take his place.

Before I hop on my bike and pedal towards the sun, I know I have to look the sources of my sadness in the eye and accept that I have them with me now. Then I can drop them off, trade them in, reframe them to things I want with me for the long ride.

question: are you bouncy or tender today?

mompoet - definitely delicate

The wonders of Thursday

I feel like I lived a lifetime in one day on Thursday. It was a long day, but also with so many different lives and worlds pieced together into one day, it was a real wonder.

I rose at 4:30am and got to the church by 5:30. It was my turn to cook at the temporary shelter that we are hosting, and I had a request from one of our guests for French toast. Tim made sure we had bread and eggs. I brought the icing sugar for sprinkling, some strawberries and some whipped cream. I used 3 long loaves of bread, 36 eggs and half a carton of milk, and kept 2 frying pans going for about an hour. We had a great team working in the kitchen and breakfast area, especially Frank, who loaded on the berries and cream in extravagant quantities. Everyone came back for seconds. I was the last to sit down to a warm plate of breakfast. It was better than any French toast I've ever tasted.

After that I stopped by Alex's school, where one of his teachers interviewed me for her Master's project before school began. She's doing a project on caring in the classroom, and how it affects students ability to take risks and exercise their creativity in a secure and nurturing environment. It was an interesting discussion. We also chatted about graduation and scholarships. I was reminded again how grateful I am for this wonderful school and the people who are there, and how proud I am of Alex's accomplishments.

So then I realised that I smelled like French toast, and it was still only about 8:45 in the morning, so I popped back home, grabbed a shower, and changed into work clothes, but I didn't go to work right away.

It was massage day! Our work arranges practicum visits for student massage therapists. We pay a small fee for a one-hour massage session. I was booked for 10am. It was wonderful as usual. The therapist worked on my perpetually-tight trapezius and shoulders, helping me to relax the muscles and sharing some tips for improving my work station ergonomics to reduce strain. She also worked on my tendonitis in my elbow, that had flared up after a marathon of computer cell-clicking during budget prep. It hurt, and it's still tender two days later, but the ouch of the tendonitis has disappeared. Lying on the massage table was relaxing. I stayed awake, but enjoyed the rest.

I stopped by Costco after that, to pick up some photos and stock up on dried fruit and nuts (really!). We were suddenly out of dried cranberries and almonds and also granola bars for work and school lunches. It was a quick stop. I won't say "fruitful" because that would be a very bad pun (get the picture?).

After that I met my friend Chris for lunch. We work together normally, but we've been separated from daily interaction by my new job that I'm doing for a year. We had lots of catching up to do about work and family life. Chris missed the "silly lunch" the week before, but it was very nice just to have some one-on-one time. Because I wasn't due at the office until 1, we had a nice, leisurely 90 minute lunch.

Then it was work time! As usual, life at the rec centre is a whirl of activity. There's administrative, planning and supervisory work to do, but also the day to day things that come up with our members, who are 55 to 94 years old and participate in all kinds of activities from card games to t'ai chi and badminton. Work time raced past, but I managed to grab a break and go for a walk in the sunshine. I took the trail that runs along the creek, and listened to bird singing and the water rushing. Things are starting to green up, and everyone was out in light sweaters and exercise clothing. It felt like spring. I took my Nordic walking poles with me, so the 40 minute walk was a good strong workout too. I've decided to keep my poles at the office. There's great walking in the neighbourhood and it's a perfect way to refresh during a busy day. I was closing my eyes at my desk before my break, but rejuvenated after. Better than 3 cups of coffee.

In the evening we don't have any seniors programs. I was site supervisor until 8 but it was quiet, so I visited with the staff and bumped into some people I know from the neighbourhood at the centre for evening activities. I tidied a few nagging tasks at my desk and slipped away right at 8.

I had one errand to run before I could go home - picking up a couple of needed items for the family at the mall across the street from the community centre. I was in and out of the store quickly, which is good. I was tired.

At home I had a bite of late supper and a glass of red wine. I caught up with Andy, Alex and Fi and found out what they did all day. When my head hit the pillow at 10 I must have disappeared into sleep within seconds.

It was a long day, full of a bit of everything, all happy though, and I made it.

question: have you had a long day recently?

mompoet - stretchy and resilient