garnigal | Entries tagged with life

I should have posted here a while ago, but I've been busy recovering.

Last weekend was my cousin Paul's wedding, a wedding I've been looking forward to since they got engaged. We adore Sandra, and together they are just the sweetest couple ever.

It was a lovely day - stormy in the morning, but it cleared up in plenty of time. Hot and humid in the church, but it was a reasonably short service. Derek and I snickered when the congregation and the parents were asked to offer our support to the couple with the words 'God help us', but a little bit of levity is always good.

The gathering at the farm was nice. It good to talk to everyone, great photo ops, and just relaxing before the main event - the reception. The food was excellent, and the DJ was pretty good; the floor was never empty for as long as we were there. I danced a fair bit, so that made me happy, and I got to watch another cousin and his father try to 'out-Parsons' each other. That is definitely a term that will make it into the family vernacular. I posted a few pics on my flickr page, mostly family.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/70084353@N00/sets/72157621294627783/

There was a very pretty bird outside my office window here in Waterloo. He hung out long enough for me to get a good look and know that it was familiar, but that I didn't know what it was.

So I went online and found a really cool bird identification site. Not sure how accurate it is for real birders, but I'm 100% positive that I saw a cedar waxwing in the tree outside my office.

Cedar Waxwing

Coolest little tool ever.

A huge thanks to the organizers and volunteers of Can't Stop the Serenity Toronto.

I had a fantastic time, the auction items were totally drool-worthy, and the movie (as always) was wonderful.

And now I'm going to watch it again with my friends who couldn't make it to TO. :)

I got a job, as those who follow me of Facebook already know. I start on April 27 at Agfa in Waterloo ON. I'm very excited, since the job itself is going to be a major step up and a great opportunity to learn a whole new aspect of technical writing - document management.

I'm hoping this isn't just a good sign for me, but for everyone else on my flist who is looking for work and/or worrying about losing their jobs. I've got my fingers crossed for everyone!

I've been getting lots of interviews and good feedback on my resume and applications and have been feeling pretty positive about the whole experience - until today.

There was a job that I was really gunning for, that I'd gone through the interview process for, that I'd gotten great feedback for, that I had friends in high places for... and I didn't get it.

I've still got lots of applications out there but it was a bit of a disappointment. Fortunately, we are doing okay and can weather me being out of work for a bit longer. But I'm starting to get really antsy!

I may have to actually clean my house to keep myself entertained, and that would be a tragedy.

As of about 10 am, I have joined the ranks of the unemployed. I'm assured it's a temporary lay-off, but I'll believe that when I see it. So far, D's found me 6 or 7 jobs to apply to and I've started on the resume updating/restructuring.

Wish me luck!

My friends V & S just had their second baby, so now I'm down to waiting on two more of my friends to give birth.

For those of you who know V&S, big brother Owen got a baby sister named Carys at 9:45am. Carys is 6lbs 9.4oz with black hair, but not as much hair as Owen had. S sounds good, at least, she managed to call me herself instead of making V do it. She also says she has good drugs and she's very happy about that. :)

Things have gotten better since last week and the drama of closing the mortgage on the townhouse. Even with the money we still owe Mom, having the house sold is a huge relief.

In additional good news, my new newphew was born last Saturday. I won't get to see Nate until Sunday at the bris, but I'm very excited. And I forgot to share my Christmas gift from my brother and sister-in-law; they're expecting a baby in June! I can hardly wait.

So things are looking up here, and I have a soft sleepy kitten curled into my lap for snuggles.

It's a really good day.

I've been looking forward to today for a month. Turns out it sucks.

We accepted an offer on the townhouse in early December. We'd been carrying 2 places for 6 months, so even though it was ten grand less than our previously agreed upon lowest price, it seemed like a decent deal. And really, it is. It's in line with other prices in the condo development, just 10 grand lower because of the market.

Anyway, today is the closing. We were supposed to have enough to pay back my mom the money she loaned us as a down payment on the new place (essentially a home equity loan) with a little ($500 or so) left over. Basically, today was our fresh start - debts zeroed out, money in the bank.

Except I forgot something in my calculations - penalty for paying off the mortgage.

The mortgage company finally sent the payout today - $9300 in penalties. We were figuring about $103,000 to the mortgage company, but with the penalties, it's $112,000ish. Which means we are $9000 short on Mom. Which means we still have debt and there's nothing left over.

I just keep reminding myself that we did make money on the house. We did get the house we wanted (and we'll never have to sell and move again). Our loan is to Mom, so we've got flexible repayment terms.

It's just not how I was hoping today would go.

and to all a good night.

Like everyone else, I had a very busy Christmas Day and then spent three days recouperating. I've finally caught up on my friend's list and wanted to wish you all the best for the coming New Year!

Love to all y'all.

Pictures stuck in camera. Because I packed all the camera accessories.

Do you think if I shake the camera over the computer the pictures will fall out?

Hello all. I can't believe how long it's been since I posted anything, but all my so-called "spare" time goes into the new house.

We still haven't quite moved in. We are in the enviable position of being able to carry both the townhouse and the new house for a couple of months, so we took advantage to do some stuff. Like put down gorgeous new hardwood in the bedrooms. Like paint practically every wall in the place, with all the prep that entails. Like thoroughly deep clean the walls, bathrooms and remaining carpet.

The house is finally ready for us, but we're not quite ready for it. This weekend is Hillside (local Guelph folk music festival) and Derek is therefore gone all weekend, and a family reunion for me. We get internet and cable on Monday and phone on Wednesday, so we'll be over there most of the time after this weekend, but the "real" move (all the big stuff we can't fit in our cars) will be Civic. What I wouldn't give for a pickup truck right now!

I will be hosting my first event at the new place next Thursday - Book Club (or as D calls it, Snack Club). I'm very excited to show off the new place to all my girlfriends.

And as a "save the date" head's up - everyone is invited for a BBQ, Pool Party, "hang and chill" gathering on Aug 8 through 10. Most of the people will be by on the 9th (Saturday) but feel free to come for supper on 8/8/08 (8 is a lucky number in Chinese culture and Derek is very excited about celebrating it).

Can't wait to catch up with all of you soon!

I have a USB key that I keep all of my writing on. I've had hard drives crash and lost games and writing, so I figured the USB key was safer. And it was. It's just... I've had it for at least 4 years, and I'd been thinking about backing it up. As soon as I start thinking about it, it's too late.

And it's too late.

I got copies of everything I've posted on

tamingthemuse and the stuff I'd posted on

open_on_sunday this year, and I have most of last year's drabbles from open on sunday (nothing after July though, and I'm too lazy to look for them right now). I have most of the finished stuff on my laptop, so in terms of writing it's not too bad. I'm sure I'll remember more stuff as the evening progresses though.

What tics me off is losing the free X-stitch patterns I'd downloaded, some of which were limited time offers. Oh well, that's just a sign to do more knitting. ;)

And now I'm going to back up my laptop hard drive and start online shopping for USB keys. Oh, and burn all my photos to disk (thank god that's not what died!)