Water water everywhere and not a drop to drink

There are some things about our human race that absolutely drives me nuts. OK, maybe there’s more than just “some” but this morning, I was reminded of one in particular:

What rediculous over-consumers we are.

This morning, as I head out in my rain slicker (both on me AND my dog), it’s clearly raining and what do I see? My neighbour has their sprinklers running full tilt. Now, I could understand if it had been dry for a few days and grass was drying out and turning brown, but this is VANCOUVER for crying out loud. No one here has irrigation systems because we don’t need them!!! It has been raining since Sunday. The park I take my dog to has practically become a mud bog, and some dude feels he need to further dampen his front lawn…WHILE it’s still raining, nonetheless. Meanwhile, last summer, we were on a water conservation program.

Ahhh…people never cease to amaze me.

Burgers and Booty

Ironically this seems to be the topic of the week…a friend of mine blogged about a similar topic. But I was listening to the radio the other day, and the DJ was doing a sort of survey on what guys wish women knew. The general consensus was summed up by one guys quote:

“All men want is ‘burgers and booty’.”

Translation:

Men are simpler than we give them credit for. And I don’t mean that in a derogatory way, in fact, quite the opposite. We as women are notorious for complicating men because, plain and simple, WE are complicated, so we assume everything should be just as complicated. All men want in some good quality cooking and a little lovin’ and they’ll be happier than pie.

Now why can’t we women figure out how to be so easily pleased??

R.I.P. Luc Bourdon

Very sad news all over our papers today.  Yet another example of why I hate motercylces.

Bourdon got motorcycle licence only two weeks before fatal crash

SHIPPAGAN, N.B. — Luc Bourdon received his motorcycle licence just two weeks before his bike veered into the path of transport truck in northern New Brunswick, killing the promising NHL defenceman instantly.

RCMP investigators said Friday that Bourdon’s inexperience may have played a role in the death of the Vancouver Canucks rookie. Bourdon’s uncle, Robert Boucher, said his nephew dedicated himself so much to hockey that he took no time off in the last five years as he pursued his dream of playing in the NHL.

Boucher said Bourdon came home to Shippagan earlier this week for a one-month vacation so he could play golf and hang out with his friends.

So many of those friends own motorcycles that Bourdon decided to buy one, too.

“He loved to have fun,” Boucher said in French during a news conference at the town hall in Shippagan, an Acadian community of 3,000 about 250 kilometres northeast of Fredericton.

“Like anyone who is 21, he loved motorcycles. He wanted to buy a bike. That was his choice.”

Bourdon was the first-round pick of the Vancouver Canucks, 10th overall, in the 2005 NHL draft.

He also played a key role in Canada’s gold-winning teams at the 2006 and 2007 world junior championships and was expected to have a bright future on the Canucks blueline.

Bourdon was named to the all-star team at the 2006 world juniors. At the 2007 event in Sweden, Bourdon scored the third-period goal that tied the game and forced overtime against the U.S. in the semifinal game.

Bourdon split last season between Vancouver and Manitoba of the American Hockey League. He played 27 games with the Canucks, scoring two goals and collecting 20 penalty minutes.

Boucher described his nephew as a fun-loving guy who “liked to be crazy and do crazy things.”

“He was always ready to help people out – people in the family and others as well,” he said.

“We lost our little Luc, but I think that Shippagan as well has lost someone important.”

RCMP Insp. Roch Fortin suggested weather might also have been a factor in the crash. He said the wind was gusting heavily at the time of the accident on a winding, two-lane road between Shippagan and Lameque.

He said Bourdon’s bike crossed the centre line and collided head-on with the truck.

“The truck driver tried everything is his power to avoid the accident,” Fortin said.

The crash occurred not far from Bathurst, where another sports-related accident in January killed seven members of the Bathurst High basketball team and an adult.

Anna Boucher, Bourdon’s great-aunt, said his family is struggling to cope with his death.

“It’s so sad,” she said. “He was a good guy.”

She said that although Bourdon’s NHL career took him to Vancouver, he often returned to Shippagan and gave back to the community.

“He came to the arena and he used to talk to all the little guys there and he used to play hockey with them,” she said from her home in Shippagan.

Boucher recalled that sports were Bourdon’s driving passion in life and he excelled at many, including hockey and golf.

Jacques Robichaud lives across the street from Luc Bourdon’s father.

“Naturally, the community is saddened,” Robichaud said in French. “We all followed his hockey career from the beginning.”

Flags at Shippagan’s town hall were flying at half-mast.

The beginning of the end

Well, some say “Congrats”, some say “Another one bites the dust” but regardless, it’s official: Cor is off the market! *gasp*

Most of you know the story by now but for those who don’t here are the gory details. I came up to Juneau last Wednesday for about a week and a half. I guess I should preface this by saying that we had been talking about getting engaged but I had no idea when it was really going to happen. Unfortunatly, it got out that Andy had already sent my dad a letter asking for my hand (it doesn’t get much more romantic than that) so I knew it wasn’t in the too distant future, but honestly, I wasn’t expecting it THIS soon!! Anyways, we came home from the airport and sat down with a cup of tea, just casually chatting. (I have to admit, Andy was very calm and collected, which was another reason I wasn’t expecting it) Anyways, he gets up and says he wants to give me my birthday present early, so he pulls out of the cupboard this gorgeous lime green Marmot rain jacket. Which was perfect because I’m sure he’s completely tired of my endless complaining of the rain in Vancouver and how it sucks walking my dog when I have no rain gear. Anyways, I was of course very taken up with trying the jacket on and checking it all out. I stuck my hand in one of the pockets to discover and small little wooden box. I just about died!! It was perfect!! And even Andy admits, that for him, that was pretty creative…not to mention romantic! Anyways, after admiting he’d never done this before (whew) he asked me to marry to him and spend the rest of our lives together to which I could say nothing except, “OF COURSE!”

So needless to say, I am absolutely elated. Quite arguably the happiest girl alive and, as Andy’s uncle put it, being the fisherman that he is, Andy has caught his prize trophy! lol

We have some plans already in motion for the big day which will be next spring, probably late April, in Kelowna. There’s a ton of paper work to be done, so we need the extra time to get it all organized. I will be moving up here to Juneau, which is one of the most breathtakingly beautiful places in the world, so I am really looking forward to the transition!

I cannot wait for everyone who has not yet met Andy to get to know the amazing man that has invited me into his already functional and fulfulling life and shown me the most exciting and promising future a girl could ask for.

I cannot describe the feeling of peace that comes with finally being with the person you are intended to spend the rest of your life with. It is a feeling I hope I never take for granted.

Thanks to all of you who have already extended your warm wishes, we can’t wait to start our life together and have all of you be a part of it!

Feel free to peruse my Picassa pictures (the link is on the top right corner of this page), I’ve posted some of our engagement pictures as well as some pictures of the beautiful ring Andy designed all by himself!

not-so-sweet dreams

It’s Monday morning, it’s pouring rain, and I’ve been sitting on my couch for half an hour, ready for work. Whay is this a problem? Well BECAUSE…it’s MONDAY MORNING…that’s an extra half hour of sleep I could’ve had. It was just one of those mornings where either, I dont care what I look like, or it was just easier to get ready. (I’m hoping for the latter) But my internal clock these days has really been annoying me. For about 4 mornings in a row about 2 wks ago, my lovely little pooch decided that she was going to start getting up at 6:30AM (which is utterly rediculous when I’m never up before 8:00AM). Completely random, we were still going to bed at the same time the previous night, still doing our usual outside runs, she was just on a mission. Finally, I broke the habit…but only with her it seems. To this day, I am waking up like clockwork at 6:44AM every morning. Now, granted, I can go back to sleep, but I’m really not a fan of having my beauty sleep disturbed…and some of you early morning callers have found that out the hard way!  So now, not only am I waking up at 6:44 every morning without reason, I’m also popping wide awake at 7:49…11 minutes before my actual alarm. WHAT DOES A GIRL NEED TO DO TO GET A GOOD NIGHT’S SLEEP?!?!? lol

 

There…that’s my rant for the day!

 

 

If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em

So this just takes the cake! Vancouver has all kinds of stereotypes (most of which are socially incorrect so I won’t go there) but this has got to be one of the best! We are known for our bad drivers…perhaps in some parts of the city more than others but I’ll just leave it the generalization of “Vancouver”. This article is priceless and only justifies this stereotype even more!

Canada’s Worst Drivers looking for Vancouver ‘talent’

Last season’s worst driver is from city, year before from Lower Mainland

John Colebourn, The Province

Published: Wednesday, April 09, 2008

There’s no shortage of talent around the Lower Mainland when it comes to bad drivers. That’s why a crew from the hit Discovery Channel Show Canada’s Worst Drivers is coming back to find more suitable candidates for the upcoming season.

“There’s some dreadful drivers in the Vancouver area,” said Guy O’Sullivan, the executive producer of the hit television series.

“We don’t know exactly why.”

In last season’s production, Vancouver’s Jason Zhang, 42, was found to be the worst driver. The year before, Michael Telford, another Lower Mainland resident, was given the dubious honour.

“I’ve never been comfortable driving,” Zhang said yesterday. “The problem for me was I never learned how to drive properly. I’m just not confident on the road.”

Despite efforts by the crew of the series last season to improve his driving habits, Zhang said he will not be driving a car any time soon.

“There are bad drivers everywhere,” said Zhang, who commutes by bus. “You can’t say Vancouver is the only place there are bad drivers.”

The ultimate goal of the TV series is to teach the terrible drivers some correct driving procedures. According to O’Sullivan, Zhang should not drive at all.

“He was the person we made the least improvement with,” he said.

The Toronto-based O’Sullivan said the crew goes out with the drivers to see how bad they really are.

“We will spend a few hours testing them,” said O’Sullivan of the worst of the worst. “You can tell a bad driver pretty quickly.”

In some cases, he said, his crew has come back “ashen-faced.”

“It’s like a career in the army. You really are on the front lines.”

O’Sullivan said he doesn’t know why Vancouver seems to have an inordinate number of bad drivers.

“That’s the great mystery to us,” he said, “how they got their licence in the first place.”

 

And the BEST part….check out this comment:

Boo Hoo

Wed, Apr 9, 08 at 10:36 AM

Forget Vancouver – save your time and visit Richmond. You will find the worst of the worst right here. Richmond, the land where the most common vehicle is the Autobody Courtesy Car.

WELCOME TO VANCOUVER!!!

Rock Hard

This has got to be the craziest work out I have ever seen. You’ll get the gist of it in the first few mins but if you don’t want to watch the whole thing, at least fast forward to the last minute and a half and check out the determination of the chick in the white. These women are ANIMALS! I’m pretty sure this makes me a couch potato! LOL

Wedding Festivities

We just had the most wonderful few days. Dean and Jacqui and Lucy, along with Jacqui’s family all made their way out here to join us in the celebrations of their wedding. Most of the family all arrived at the start of the week to spend a couple days checking out the city. Luckily Mother Nature took pity and they had some nice sight seeing weather. Wednesday we headed over to Galiano Island, one of the beautiful Golf Islands just off the coast of Vancouver. Wednesday afternoon us girls spent at the Spa and enjoying the resort while the boys chased balls around the course. Then we all reunited at the Hummingbird Pub for a fun dinner. Thursday at the crack of dawn a few of us crawled out of bed to enjoy a few gorgeous hours on a chartered tour boat and saw the golf islands from a different perspective. It was breath taking. Back at the resort we had a leisurely breakfast and then all went our separate ways preparing for the afternoon of pic, ceremonies and celebrations. Jacqui was an absolutly beautiful bride and my brother the stunning gentleman we all know he is! Once again the weather was amazing and we were able to have the ceremonies outside in the brisk fresh air! We came back to the mainland early Friday morning and my week got even better having Andy arrive Friday night for the rest of the weekend. We did lots of family bonding and a bit of sight seeing again at the mercy of our natural elements! I could not have asked for a better week! Click on the pic to check out my collection of memories from the past few days!

Ode to The Man’s Man

to my non-metro sexual (you know who you are), this is for you…

 

I‘m Still A Guy

When you see a deer you see Bambi
And I see antlers up on the wall
When you see a lake you think picnics
And I see a large mouth up under that log
You’re probably thinking that you’re going to change me
In some ways well maybe you might
Scrub me down, dress me up oh but no matter what
remember I’m still a guy

When you see a priceless French painting
I see a drunk, naked girl
You think that riding a wild bull sounds crazy
And I’d like to give it a whirl
Well love makes a man do some things he ain’t proud of
And in a weak moment I might walk your sissy dog, hold your purse at the mall
But remember, I’m still a guy

I’ll pour out my heart
Hold your hand in the car
Write a love song that makes you cry
Then turn right around knock some jerk to the ground
‘Cause he copped a feel as you walked by

I can hear you now talking to your friends
Saying, “Yeah girls he’s come a long way”
From dragging his knuckles and carrying a club
And building a fire in a cave
But when you say a backrub means only a backrub
Then you swat my hand when I try
Well, now what can I say at the end of the day
Honey, I’m still a guy

And I’ll pour out my heart
Hold your hand in the car
Write a love song that makes you cry
Then turn right around knock some jerk to the ground
‘Cause he copped a feel as you walked by

These days there’s dudes getting facials
Manicured, waxed and botoxed
With deep spray-on tans and creamy lotiony hands
You can’t grip a tacklebox

Yeah with all of these men lining up to get neutered
It’s hip now to be feminized
I don’t highlight my hair
I’ve still got a pair
Yeah honey, I’m still a guy

Oh my eyebrows ain’t plucked
There’s a gun in my truck
Oh thank God, I’m still a guy

-Brad Paisley

King Kook…this is for you ;)

So by popular demand, here is the update on my trip to Juneau. A week ago Thursday (wow is it already that long ago??) I woke up at some gosh awful hour of the morning to make it across the border to Seattle and catch a flight up to Juneau, Alaska. The flight was quick and painless (not sure why I expected it to be anything more) and I was there in a mere 2.5hrs with Mika the minpin in tow. Thursday was the only day of sun so I at least got to see some of the more appealing parts of Juneau in its “grandeur”. I can’t lie…Alaska is as gorgeous as everyone assumes. I was stunned by the breath taking scenery. Friday was an interesting experience…we went out on the boat and pulled up shrimp pots. Ok, check that, I can’t say I personally had anything to do with pulling them up…all credit goes to the mountain and his side kick, Owen. But I WILL take credit for gettin down and dirty while popping heads off the shrimp. Who’da thunk this little princess of a city girl would be poppin shrimp heads! Andy promised the “full Alaska experience”…clearly he wasn’t about to let me down. LOL Friday night we met with a few of Andy’s friends for some eats and drinks…the main reason for the “rendez-vous” was originally to watch the Wild vs Canucks game. I even came prepared with my Canucks paraphernalia (hmmm…interesting choice of term), all dressed for the occasion. Lucky for Andy’s friends, the game wasn’t on Dish or I have a feeling it could have gotten a bit messy…  Saturday was a day (or at least a portion thereof) at the local ski hill, Eaglecrest. I’m pretty sure I’ve done enough bragging about the hill but just one last time for good measure…THAT HILL IS REDICULOUS!!! And I honestly mean that in the BEST way…anywhere from thigh to waist deep powder on a hill that looks like it MIGHT be the size of Cypress mountain, here in Vancouver. (All you locals know what I’m saying) Now most of you are saying “ya no kidding Cor, it’s Alaska..no kidding there’s a ton of snow”. But the crazy part was, there was no snow right in Juneau and the ski hill is a mere 15-20 min drive away…not like you’re trekking miles up a mountain. Saturday night Andy spoiled me with a home grilled salmon dinner, complemented with the sauteed shrimp we brought in the day before. Seafood doesn’t get much more fresh than that! Sunday was a great day…meeting in the morning and a fabulous home cooked Easter dinner in the company of the cutest old couple I’ve ever met. The rest of the weekend was awesome with lots of chilling out, walking dogs and good old fashioned bonding. I had the most generous host you could imagine and I cannot wait for round 2! For those of you who seem to be a little behind the ball (not mentioning any names coughkingcoughkook), click on the pix and it’ll take you to my album with the rest of them!