Oh that was good

My big thing was today. It went fabulously. I did just fine. Everyone was happy happy happy.

Back at home L and T did school together today, which included a big walk around the farm to collect a hundred and one various seeds for a science lesson. In our Oak Meadow syllabus, it asks you to collect some seeds and figure out how they move/travel. L was inspired to bring along the camera. T was inspired by their pics to redesign the assignment into a PowerPoint presentation.

I was just awed by them both.

Craig who?

Craig Simpson won Battle of the Blades. I was so rooting for Claude Lemieux. Or Stephan Richer ... if Claude had suddenly dropped dead ... but I still don't know who the fuck Craig Simpson ever was.

I'm sorry, but even if you are Canadian, if your name isn't French, you aren't REALLY a Canadian hockey player.

If someone doesn't tap Luc Robitaille for next season (pleasepleaseplease let there be one!), they're missing some serious eye candy points.

It was a very long day

I'm only just getting back home again. I left this morning at 7am to get to a nearly day-long meeting in the Big City for work. Then, back home to change and go to relative's house for supper and cards. It was nice because there were lots there and I love a good card tourney (we played Hearts).

But, I'm really wiped, yet my brain won't shut down enough to sleep. As soon as my chamomile is steeped I'm taking it to bed with me.

The big thing

I have to host a big thing on Tuesday. It's the opening of a new centre for my job. It is the first rural one in the province. It's a big thing. I'm unusually anxious.

I was practising a speech I have to give and I found myself falling into a stutter that I haven't had since I was a kid. T has this same stutter sometimes. I am always as patient with him as my mother was with me. Thankfully, he doesn't have the painful self-consciousness that I had.

T says, "Okay Mommy. Just think it through and slow it down. You'll be fine."

Kind of hard to explain the tears that came with that.

It's purely a Canadian thing

I don't know if you are watching Battle of the Blades, but after tonight's show, I think I'm just a little wet for Claude Lemieux. He can lift, he can sing, he can body check your brains out.

Sharing the highs and lows

One of our sayings around here is "share the high!" -- said when one person is extra perky, happy or just plain pleased as punch. If you share it, it rubs off on others. So, we share things like, "hey! I got a great compliment on my work from a client," or "hey! I got more bushels per acre out of that flax than I've ever got before," or " hey! I got all my spelling words 100%!"

But... T has been down in the dumps the past couple of weeks -- since our last 4-H meeting. He's bothered that he's the only one doing livestock, and that we don't have a leader yet for him and the other two who wanted to do the Outdoor Living project.

I didn't realize how bothered he was until he came to me asking if he could "share the low." I was a little confused, until he explained what he's been down about lately. I'm sure we will find a leader for their group, and even if he's the only livestock kid in the group, that's just a chance to shine and perhaps show others how neat it is to do that project -- even if it is a lot more work.

So, yeah... share the low, too. It helps take the edge off it. Plus, it comes with cuddles guaranteed.

Back to the previous look

Since it's November and post-Samhain and Mrs. B's fabulous month-o-fun is done, I've reverted the template back to the previous one.

It's kind of grown on me and the clean lines are refreshing after the funky fuss of the holiday theme.

On the home front: I'm in a cooking mood. I get these occasionally where I get tired of the regular recipes and go searching for more. I have a stack of cookbooks from the library, including the new Martha Stewart Dinner at Home. Yeah, I read Martha. Go ahead and laugh. Her recipes are pretty good though, and the ones that look good, but have ingredients I either can't get or know my family won't eat are easy enough to tweak into a still-scrumptious dish.

I found some new cheese at the grocery store. It is called Creme de la Riviere, and it is a brie-style cheese from Quebec. I'm going to bake it in puff pastry and serve with some of the port wine jelly I made this summer. I was going to make our favourite Smoky Squash Soup to go with it, but I'm still on the fence on that. I'm itching for something new. Something with leeks maybe...

Happy Halloween!

'Tis the day all right. Boo! and Blessed Be to you and yours.

A few observations:

1. the clear skies are a surprise... if they last.
2. the folks in town have rolled out some truly excellent decorations this year (must be all those outsiders who have moved in recently!)
3. And file this one under WTF? I am somewhat shocked at the fundy churches who have "Harvest Day" celebrations to keep their flock away from the evils of the pagan holiday. Umm... does no one do their homework anymore? Samhain IS a harvest festival. Your jack-o-lanters with Jesus cut out on them are a really fine hallmark of the pagan reverence for the dead on this day. Your bonfire? Well... if you knew how that tweaked the nips of every pagan looking for an excuse for rolicking good Sabbat revelry, well... would you still do it? Seriously, people... if you're going to co-opt a pagan holiday, then proceed to secularize the hell out of it with candies and Power Rangers costumes, and THEN eschew it for something else, at least take the time to see that your something else isn't rife with even MORE pagan symbolism than the thing you were trying to eschew in the first place.

Got shots

T and I got our H1N1 vacs today.

L and I were wavering on this issue, leaning towards the "no" heavily. I will admit that the death of the 13 year old in Ontario struck a deep chord that resonated with us. In a way, I feel a little ashamed at giving in to a vac. But in another way, I feel relieved.

Hallow-week

Consider it a religious holiday (said with much sarcasm and blasphemy).

We're taking off the whole week of Halloween. No lessons for T, and for me, no work -- except for Wednesday, when I have some out-of-town meetings. Since I have to work Wednesday anyway, I'll finish up my end of the month reporting that day. The rest is finished already.

T thinks it is the "epitome of coolness" that he gets to have a Hallow-week vacation.