Auld lang syne

Happy New Year! The best of health and happiness to you and yours in 2006.

On the 4th day of Christmas...

These four little angels belonged to my mother and are older than me. Yes! That's very, very old. Thank you for pointing that out.

The poor things have had a rough ride over the years. If you look closely at 'N' right in the upper crook of the 'n' you'll see a dark spot. That would be where there's a piece missing as a result of poor 'N' losing her head. And there are several other spots that are chipped and bits that have been glued back on. But wear and tear notwithstanding, this is my favourite Christmas ornament because I remember it from my earliest Christmases.

Now my older daughter and I have a Christmas tradition in which we re-arrange the angels to spell something other than 'Noel,' with 'Leon' being the favourite. The trick being to do it without getting caught. Which in my ickle house is easier said than done.

Joyeux Lëon à toute!

Show and tell

So tell me. What was your favourite gift (either received or given), or event of the holiday season? Did you get something you've always wanted, give something that made someone's eyes light up, see a favourite relative/friend you didn't expect to see? Pull up a chair and tell us all about it...

Riley helped with the tree

Merry Christmas, Solstice, Kwanzaa, etc.!

Riley contemplates his chances of survival, should he attempt an all-out assault on the tree.

Well! Survived another one. Older daughter is now speaking to me again (best present of 2005), they have traded the sweaters I bought them, (each liked the other's better - I don't care as long as they're worn) the tree is still standing (as of this writing) and we got just enough of a dusting of snow last night to look Christmasy, without making driving difficult. The girls are now packed off to their dad's for the remainder of the day and I plan to snuggle down with a nice, new book and a glass of eggnog. Cheers, all!

I love my Beggin' Strips!

Riley admires his choice of gift wrap.

The new cat toy is a hit.

God bless us, every one!

Wishing a very merry Christmas (or whichever festival you celebrate) to all! And to all a good night!

Another year older and deeper in debt

Happy happy to me!

Where did you all go?

Tag, you're it!

I have been tagged with my first meme. And I am taking it very seriously because this is the first time I've been tagged and how cool is that? Hawkowl has tasked me with listing five weird/strange things about me. Should be a snap...

1. I moved from Saint John, New Brunswick to St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador. Write out the "saint" for the first and abbreviate it for the other. No one west of the New Brunswick/Québec border knows where either is or that they're two different cities about 1,000 kms apart. (except jkirlin and he knows everything)

2. My cat follows me everywhere. He's laying at my feet, curled up on the end of the blanket I have over my lap ('cause it's cold here in December, dudes!) as I type this. I have never had a cat do this before.

3. During my teen years, my friends and I ridiculed, I mean watched, a TV show out of Bangor, Maine, called "Stacey's Country Jamboree." Just the other day, I found out that jkirlin went to high school with Stacey's daughter.

4. I owe my very existence to the demon rum. But not in the way you think... my dad served in the Canadian Navy during WWII. While they were here in St. John's, his ship's company were given free tickets to a "Barn Dance." He and his buddies on board ship had decided before they got here that they would save up their daily tots of rum (definitely against regulations), have a card party when they got to St. John's and give the barn dance a miss. During the barn dance, a fire broke out. If my dad hadn't stayed on board ship to drink his rum, he may well have been one of the fatalities and I would never have been born.

5. I get premonitions and have been told I am audiovoyant. (similar to a clairvoyant except an audiovoyant "hears" the premonition, while the clairvoyant "sees" it). One of the times this seemed to be true was seven years ago. For about a month before I had a serious accident, I kept "hearing" the sound of a car crash almost everytime I approached an intersection.

On the morning of the crash, I was laying in bed considering whether to take my children with me when I went to pick up my friend about an hour out of town. They were at an age when they were just old enough to be left home alone for a couple of hours, so it was kind of six of one, half a dozen of the other as to whether they'd be better left at home or on the highway with me. The weather office had been predicting bad weather, but it wasn't supposed to hit until we'd be back in town. I was considering not going at all and had a feeling that I shouldn't, but then chided myself for being timid and decided I would go but would leave them at home and the minute I made that decision, the thought popped into my mind, "That way, they won't be with you when you have the accident." Note the second person... that's how I know the difference between my own thoughts and my premonitions. They're always in the second person.

When I was almost to my destination, I reached an open, windy area with a slight hill. I was the 4th in a line of cars. Part way up the hill, the road turned from wet to black ice from edge to edge. We were travelling about 90 kph and all started fishtailing, then my car started to spin counterclockwise. I thought I was going to slide into the car ahead of me and at the speed I was going, I was afraid my rear end would go right through theirs and hoped like hell there wasn't a baby or a small child in the back seat. I don't know how they got out of the way, but they must have only cleared my car by inches. Once I realized I wasn't going to hit them, this eerie calm came over me and I just hung on for the ride.

I finally slide off the road just at the right spot to wrap the right rear quarter panel around a short post. Seat belts only really work in head-on situations. In a sideways impact like that, they only stabilize your hips. From the waist up, I was flung sideways towards the passenger side door and ended up with a kind of lateral whiplash injury that still slightly affects me 7 years later. Had my children been with me, they would have been sitting in the passenger seat and the passenger side rear seat and their heads would have been violently flung against (and possibly through) the side windows. Good call, premonition!

And now I'm supposed to tag five other people, but it seems everyone I would tag has already been tagged. So I'll just link to their sites and you can go read their memes.

• Hawkowl
• Misty
• jkirlin
• Merlinprincesse
• Ivey

Scary Christmas

Christmas just got weirder. Earlier, we had what I think was the campus radio station on and it was playing strange Christmas music like the Arrogant Worms and Cheech and Chong and then what sounded like the Chipmunks' "Christmas Time is Here" came on. Except it wasn't quite that...

It sounded the same, then they started getting weird and ended with, "You could hardly stand us then and now we're back again!'

They ended up arguing with 'Dave' at the end, saying:

Dave: You know, you guys could be used in shampoo testing!

Dave: There's labs that would pay good money for you guys.

Melvin: (avoiding copyright laws apparently) Can they get us some Viagra? (in a chipmunk voice - make the shuddering stop)

Dave: You want me to let the cat in the room?

I think I'm traumatized for life.

Why I can't wrap presents

Have yourself a merry... Look! A shiny thing!

Oh my ears and whiskers! I'm feeling decidedly like the White Rabbit in Alice in Wonderland. Christmas is a week away and I am not ready. I'm not even ready to be ready. Usually, I am one of those annoying people who is able to truthfully say that I am ready several weeks before the day having, in fact, bought the first present in the last year's Christmas sales. But not this year.

Of course every year, being ready does not include the tree being decorated as it cant be put up until the last minute because of my demented cat, so I don't count that, but nothing is finished. Nothing.

Said demented cat right now, by the way, is sitting on top of the printer, eyeballing a wall calendar which he will, if i do not stop him, tear off the wall, as he has at least three times this week. He keeps looking at the calendar, looking back at me, as if he's calculating the odds of getting the calendar down before I swoop in. And he's given up. Cat - 3, Me - 1.

But back to Christmas. (See what I mean?) I seem to have some sort of holiday-induced, adult-onset ADD going on. I can't even wrap my head around a present list. I can't even wrap my head around who should be on the list. I'm not sure I can find a pen. Time to up the medication. Which I could, if there were any. Does rum count as medication? Pray for me.

And one more thing...

I'm a NIMROD!!! Just noticed Tuesday's post was dated this coming Friday. I typed that one from the time machine apparently. I am such a goof.

50 Things About Me

1. I was born in the year of the monkey.
2. I am a Capricorn and although I pay little attention to horoscopes fit the description to a ridiculous degree.
3. I can drive a motorcycle.
4. I am very handy and have replaced light switches in my home, amongst other repairs. It hasn’t burned down. Yet.
5. I have always hated clowns.
6. I am very good with language but a complete dolt at math.
7. Bullies make me very angry.
8. I'm 5' 1-3/4" but round up to 5' 2" because saying you're 3/4 of an inch is like saying you're 35 and a half.
9. The word most commonly used to describe me is 'patient.' Stop thinking 'mental.'
10. This being said, I have a very long fuse but there is a very big bomb at the end of it. Piss me off at your peril.
11. I like taking photos.
12. I took piano lessons for 7 years and voice lessons for 5. Can no longer play the piano (can still read music though) but can still sing. Rumour has it. See #13.
13. I love to sing, although am not impressed with my own voice. I did pass the audition for a choir, though, so may not be as bad as I fear.
14. The first album I bought was the Beatles "Twist and Shout." Yes, I am old. Shut up.
15. I have seen the Aurora Borealis.
16. I used to be married but got time off for good behaviour.
17. I am tired of being single.
18. I am afraid no man will ever love me.
19. I have never, ever had a one-night stand that was any good.
20. I chose my occupation because I couldn't find a job, couldn't afford university (yet) and I heard an ad on the radio. WTF - It pays the bills. Almost.
21. I am embarrassed that I never got a university degree.
22. At the end of my only year of university, my French prof told me I had a knack for languages and should pursue a career in that field. I did not listen. I have always regretted that.
23. I did not dare to try to enter a profession because I make mistakes. I found out too late that so do they.
24. I do not regret not pursuing the occupation I did one year of the four-year degree for, though.
25. Nobody wanted me on their team in school sports.
26. I can barely remember not having a cell phone, laptop computer, or digital camera although I am STILL constantly amazed by them.
27. I can’t help it. I love Wal-Mart. I know it’s uncool. I don’t care.
28. I put things off WAY past the last minute.
29. I would love to still be smoking but watched my mother die of lung cancer, so can't. Which is a good thing... the not smoking part, I mean.
30. I rarely watch TV. Sometimes documentaries or movies hold my attention but sitcoms don't anymore and reality TV is just stupid.
31. I like to stay up very late. Even if I am exhausted.
32. I don't like getting up in the morning. Mostly because of #31.
33. When I am alone, I prefer to have some background noise, like a radio or TV or CD. Total silence mostly weirds me out, unless I'm trying to sleep. I blame my mother because she always had a radio on in the kitchen when I was growing up. Okay, I don't BLAME her, but that's what created the preference. I actually get kind of antsy if it's totally quiet.
34. I am pathologically incapable of saying the correct direction the first time and will ALWAYS say right when I mean left, even though I know the difference and am thinking the right direction.
35. Oddly, this doesn't happen when I am stage managing and referring to Stage Right, which is my left or Stage Left, which is my right.
36. When I fly I am certain that I am living my last moments and try to comfort myself by convincing myself that surely God wouldn't let that cute little baby 3 rows up die in a plane crash and then remember that, "Oh. Right. Yes, he would."
37. Jkirlin has taught me The Great Secret. The Great Secret that I know is that your ability to see, hear, speak, desire, remember, be visually aware, eat, and live, is temporary. If I could choose to not know something it would be this. Curses on you, Jkirlin! (Not really.)
38. I have lost my ability to drink grown men under the table.
39. There are 5 clocks in my 8' x 10' kitchen. Not because I purposely put them there, but because every freakin' appliance you buy these days has a clock in it.
40. I'm just as content to be home on New Year’s Eve.
41. I am very near-sighted. And my eyes are too dry to wear contacts all the time, so I'm stuck with glasses most of the time. I don't really mind, but contacts are so cool.
42. I have both a terrible memory and a phenomenal memory. There is no accounting for what I will remember. I can remember the colour of a classmate's glasses from grade 4 but not to put out the garbage. I have not been diagnosed with any form of dementia. Yet.
43. I can be very funny. It is easier with an appreciative listener.
44. I used to be really shy. Now people laugh hysterically when I tell them that. I don't know when or why it changed, but I'm glad it did. I can still be very shy on occasion. Stop laughing.
45. I suffer from terminal low self-esteem, but am too stupid to let it stop me from doing things.
46. I have champagne tastes and a beer budget.
47. I love to read. I must read. My idea of hell would be a place where there were no books.
48. I leave lights on when I am away after dark. Not because I'm scared to enter a dark house, but just to possibly throw burglars off.
49. I borrowed/adapted some of these comments from Misty, petite anglaise and jkirlin. But only the ones that made me think, "Yeah! Me, too!"
50. That is all.

Snow

It's here.

Messiah, Part the Second

Hallelujah it's over.... not really. I enjoyed my second year performing Messiah so much more (i.e. much less terror). It all went very, very well. The Saturday night performance was broadcast live on CBC One and Two. Which means I can now say I was on Saturday night, live... sorry. Couldn't resist.

We had an almost capacity crowd and got standing ovations each night. All in all, we felt it was a job well done.

The photo was taken of a rehearsal last year (and scanned from the newspaper so apologies for the quality) and unfortunately, we're not in our performance outfit. The choir is even bigger this year, with 80-some members.

And in March we perform Mozart's Requiem in the same venue. Can't wait. Is there no end to my geekery?

I'm a hobbit

Which doesn't surprise anyone who knows me. I'm built low to the ground and my house is sort of built into the side of a hill. I don't have hairy feet though... so, which Middle Earth character are you?

Messiah

Lovely portrait of Der Handelmeister, wot? Nice 'do', Georgie boy.

Tonight it begins. The first rehearsal with the orchestra. 125 people (give or take) and some very large musical instruments crammed into a 75-person capacity room, rehearsing Baroque (so don't fix it) music for several hours. Oh joy, oh bliss! Rehearsals every night this week, the rest all at the Basilica (lots of room there!), with performances on Friday and Saturday night. It is indeed the most wonderful time of the year.

So, my lovely readers, (all 3 of you -a few more if we count the lurkers - I love you, lurkers!) I may be unblogged for the next few days. But I will be smiling like an eejit the while.

Which happy bunny are you?

Which happy bunny are you?

Yes, it's bunnies. But it's bunnies with wrath. RAR!!!

Now with 33% more wrath

It occurred to me this morning as I was waking up (when I have all of my most brilliant thoughts and revelations) that the title of this blog is a tad inaccurate. I mean a blog called, "The Wrath of..." whatever, should contain much wrath, should it not? Or at the very least a modicum of wrath. You know, wailing and gnashing of teeth. Break the mirror and rip the shirt kind of stuff. People may come here hoping to settle in for a good rant and here I am, prattling on about happy bunnies and deranged cats.

But I have to confess to not being a terribly wrathful individual. I can't even work myself up into a respectable snit most days. I'm a fairly contented person. Easy going, even. Um... None of you know my ex-husband, right? Excellent.

The name originated in a comment made on Zoe's blog by Ricardipus when he made some smart-alek remark he thought would incur my wrath. I immediately snapped it up, especially liking the play on the title of the Star Trek movie, Wrath of Khan. But not only do I not bear any resemblance to Ricardo Montalban, in or out of his Star Trek makeup, I just ain't that wrathful. Fed up, frustrated, annoyed, miffed even. But wrathful? That would require wishing some big time misfortune to befall those who annoy me and I can't say I do that. I don't even want to see an ACME safe fall on the ex (think child support).

To validate this belief, I decided to do some online research. I turned first to Google, where I typed in "wrath" and found 12,200,000 text and 60,800 images! That's a whole lotta wrathin' goin' on. Next, I checked MSN Encarta and found the following:

wrath [ rath, raath ], noun
Definitions:
1. great anger: strong anger, often with a desire for revenge
2. divine retribution: in some beliefs, God's punishment for sin
3. vengeance: the vengeance, punishment, or destruction wreaked by somebody in anger

Now, it's possible that definition number two applies. I could be in line for some devine retribution, because no one's perfect, but the revenge and destruction parts. Nuh-uh. Not me.

So that got me to thinking, does the content have to reflect the exact title of the blog? I looked around some more and decided to examine the correlation between other people's blog titles and their blog content. Scaryduck. Not scary. Not a duck. Hmmm. By his own admission, NOT scary, NOR a duck. So far, so good. Momentary lapses of insanity. Demonstrably NOT insane. Silly as all get out, with definitely forays into foolishness, but most definitely not insane. Dad Gone Mad. Again, not crazy, nor angry. Crazy funny, yes, but not certifiable. And on it goes. So I guess I'm off the hook on the 'truthfulness in advertising' thing.

So, 33% more it is, then. Because even I can manage that. 33% of none being none...

And a tabby cat in a pine tree...

My cat doesn't go outdoors. He looks out the door with interest, but has never attempted to go out. Well, there was that one time he escaped through the kitchen window and was gone all night, but that was it. We're not sure what happened that night (he won't talk about it) but he hasn't gone out since.

So, never getting the chance to bust his little kitty tree-climbing moves outdoors, when we put up the Christmas tree he is drawn to it like the proverbial moth to the flame and keeps climbing it no matter how many times we chase him away. This picture (pardon the quality - disposable camera) was taken during his first Christmas when he was about 7 months old. It was cute that year. A bit annoying, but he was tiny and it didn't hurt the tree.

It's gotten progressively less cute each year. We've tried everything to keep him out of the tree, water pistol, loud noises, even shining a flashlight beam around, which he loves to chase. All that accomplished was to teach him to climb the tree even more so we'd turn on the flashlight for him. There are no flies on this cat. Artificial pine needles, but no flies.

Fast forward 3 years to a 3-year old, 15 lb. cat. He's bigger. The tree isn't. It's like having King Kong climbing the jungle gym. And if he climbs high enough... the tree topples. Have you ever had a Christmas tree fall completely over? A word to the wise. You know those gold beads you use instead of garland? They do not come out of a tree-toppling incident unscathed. They must be completely removed and re-strung. And the pretty, shiny ornaments? They will break. Into eensy, weensy little shards that embed themselves in the carpet.

He toppled the tree twice last year, once before I'd even finished decorating it when I foolishly left the room for 5 seconds and again a few days after Christmas. We must hold the world record for fewest days to have a Christmas tree up each year.

So now he's 4 years old and the annual debate begins. Do we put the tree up? Or do we just admit defeat right now? After 4 Christmases of being molested by the cat, that tree ain't lookin' so healthy. The cat? Fighting fit.

Cat - 4, Christmas tree - 0.

*Ding!* Round 5!