2006: The Photo Cafe and the Bridget Jones Inspired End of the Year List

I have to admit that 2006 didn't start out very well. About 4 PM on December 31, 2005 I said, "I'm not feeling terribly well" and several weeks later I was still having nightmares where I'd wake up saying things like "please stop talking about cheese!" or "No! No! Not soup!" I'll spare you the details of where I was when my party guests were downstairs clinking glasses of champagne at midnight but let me say that the metaphoric value of my view at midnight was not lost on me and I was worried. Happily, this turned out to be one of the best years of my life despite its unpropitious start. In the spirit of reflection, I've assembled a Bridget Jones-inspired list to convey some of the highlights. Recently, I've been playing with .mac's home page builder and ended up creating a photo gallery to be a companion to the blog. I'm sending out an announcement of this site with its password: if you don't receive it, please email me and I'll send it out to you. Anyway, thanks for reading and for your comments throughout the year. Happy New Year!

Bridget Jones Inspired End of the Year List

Library degrees finished: one
Train trips taken between London and Windsor: 26
Ghastly stomach viruses caught: 2
Times said "I am sooo happy we don't have to leave Windsor" since May: 963
Seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer watched: all 7
Seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer just purchased last week: 7
Seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer re-watched this week: 1
Amazing jobs accepted: 1
Times laughed so hard I fell into shrubbery: 1
Times I heard Alec respond "oh no" to my statement, "You know, I've been thinking": 1
Times Alec probably thought but did not voice "oh no" to my statement, "You know, I've been thinking": it's probably best not to know.
Library school assignments completed: way too many
World Series play off games attended: 3
Times I made friends laugh while they were drinking something and it came out their noses: 9
Times Julie said "YESSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!" when the above happened to me: 3
Number of Monk-e-mails sent: 25
Jokes made about large hunks of floating amber gris since seeing a Bjork film with Nick and Johanna: 19
Number of Phone Calls from Dwight Schrute sent: 12
Number of people who are probably thinking "so that's who sent me that phone call from Dwight" after reading this: 2
Number of people I do not know who will receive a phone call from Dwight Schrute because I typed Susan's phone number incorrectly: 1
Number of people thinking "hey, how come I didn't get a phone call from Dwight Schrute?": too tough to call
Perfect black kitten heel slingback shoes purchased: 1 pair
Consecutive days gone without drinking coffee: 17
Tofu hotdogs consumed at Tigers games: 0
Times grumbled about unavailability of tofu dogs at Tigers games: 238
Amazing exhibits about hats seen: 1 When Philip Met Isabella
Times thought "this is the most amazing day of my life": 5 or 6
If pressed, the day I'd call the most perfect of the year: this day in Newfoundland
Tigers games attended: over 25
Futons removed permanently from our living room and replaced with real grown up furniture: 1
Exhibits at art galleries that took my breath away: 1: Janet Cardiff’s “Forty-Part Motet”
Times thought: "I love my life!": 4982
Times moved to speechlessness after a play: 1 for Ann & Seamus
Amazing meals had: Inoteca (NYC): they had a cheese list larger than most wine lists; Bin 151 (Windsor); Atlas Global Cafe (Detroit); Blossom in Charleston; Green Onion cakes at the Folk Festival; a 6 inch veggie sub at a Subway in Ottawa as my flu waned
Times I've said, "that movie was alright but it was no Nacho Libre": 8
Length of conversation I had about my frustrations with a freelance project on the phone with a total stranger before I realized that she was not Julie and she realized that I was not Sharon: 5 minutes
Times total strangers on the phone have wished me luck with finishing my freelance project: 1
Desserts had that have, I think, made me a better person: 1 Otherworldly good cherry ice cream between two thin chocolate wafers at a restaurant in Toronto with Ken and Alan
Perfect cafes opening in Windsor that have improved my quality of life tremendously: 1 Taloola Cafe
Times at the Reference Desk when people have sincerely asked for "a book... I don't remember what it's called or who it's by or really what it's about but it's green [or red or blue]": 3
Cafes that tempt me to fly to NYC just to buy their coffee: 71 Irving Place
Number of men who look like Dale at any given time at any given Canadian Tire or Home Depot: 12
Number of men I have briefly talked to at Canadian Tire thinking they were Dale: 2
Times asked "Do you have the British Parliamentary Paper online?" at a party when it was revealed I was a librarian: 1
Times I forgot that riding my bike at 7 AM in 30 o C weather on trash days is a really, really bad idea: 3
Times Dale and I have come really close to adopting more cats after visiting the Humane Society's Adopt-A-Pet section of Petsmart: every time we buy cat food
Times I worry I'm going to be one of those crazy old ladies with 90 cats: every time we buy cat food
Number of those little orange pencils they give you with your ballpark score card currently at the bottom of various purses and handbags: 9
Number of envelopes of baseball cards sent to our cat Maggie on Free Baseball Card Day: 1
Best Wishes to you for the New Year: infinite

I laughed and I laughed until I stopped

Tucked into a Christmas present from my parents was a tiny scrap of newspaper which I have appended here. The delivery of this little gem was brilliant-- subtly yet overtly tucked into a very thoughtful gift. When I saw it, I laughed and laughed and laughed. In fact, I probably haven't laughed that hard since I saw Nacho Libre. Some of you who know me well-- especially those of you whose names rhyme with "Men Keadows"-- may also find this rather amusing. Those of you don't know why this is amusing, well... that, my friends, is another blog. In conclusion, I will say this: my parents are funny, funny people.

A blue-skied Christmas Eve plus every other one I've ever had

It's the afternoon of Christmas Eve: it's warm and blue skied and I think I observed bits of new grass popping up in my front garden. It hardly looks like Christmas Eve but somehow it still feels like it. With the two of us staying here, Christmas silently sneaks up on us since there's not a lot of planning or as my grandmother would call it "all that to-do! Geesh!". We've not lived in the same region as our families for over 13 years and I think of those 13 years, we've only made it home twice. We've grown used to making this holiday our own and each year it's what Christmas should be; quiet and lovely and happy. In discussing holiday plans, friends' reactions to our staying here is always mixed: some indifferent, some envious, some sympathetic, some incredulous and, once and a while, some harsh. One such remark has had me reeling more than I should have let it-- so much so that I called my dad and said, "someone suggested we evidently don't love you very much because we're not going home for Christmas-- I sincerely hope you don't see it that way too." My dad laughed his comforting laugh and said, "of course not... the best present is to know that you're safe and tucked into your warm houses-- not driving in a blizzard to get here or stuck in an airport or crammed on a plane with hundreds of stressed out people." My parents and Dale's have certainly seen enough blizzards, blinding snow and black ice in December to know that traveling at Christmas can be perilous and they're the first ones to say "please come in the summer instead." We've also seen enough cars in the ditch and delays at airports in winter to say, "ok. See you in June." Although other people might view it other ways, I realize that my Dad's wish for us to be warm and safe at Christmas is about as potent a statment of love that you could wish for. And I also know that because we don't see each other very often, my family says things to each other we probably wouldn't say to each other if we saw each other everyday. Distance makes relationships different-- not worse-- just different.
Last night we were tucked in our warm house and I was thinking of my dad's gesture of love in wanting us safe. Watching the delays at Heathrow and Denver, I know he was right. Instead of camping out in airport lines, we're happy to be tucked in with our cats, books, tea, games and groceries for a number of really great meals. And, indeed, because it is quiet, I have time to think and imagine. Distance and time fade away and suddenly I'm anywhere I want to be and with anyone I want to see. Last night, I had my tea sitting on a silver tray my Mum had given me last year. It was a gift from my Granny's staff at the theatre she managed and it was engraved "Merry Christmas Mrs. Whyte, Christmas 1973." Looking at it, I could imagine her with me again. And, I thought about doing our annual Christmas puzzle with my mum. And my dad and me sneaking down to the stables after closing to put up apple-filled Christmas stockings for our favourite horses. Or giving my beloved horse Rhett his bag of Christmas carrots. Or looking out to the black silent sky over our farm and thinking maybe that red blinking light is Santa's sleigh. It's all very comforting to feel time and space disappear and to feel that love and happiness again. This, I realize, is what Christmas is. Anyway, Merry Christmas to you wherever you may be! Much love to you all, H
PS: the odd image up top is the view out my front door window-- my own white lights and my neighbours' red and blue.

This week on ITunes: Sarah McLachlan Remix

I've been writing all week (sadly, drafting an article not working on the novel) and all my usual writing albums weren't quite working for me so I went in search of a new album on iTunes. I've loved iTunes from the moment I bought a new album while writing papers in my basement room in London at 3 AM. This week, I was grateful for the fact that In a matter of minutes I'd found and purchased a Sarah McLachlan remix called Bloom without having to leave my office. I've been really happy with Bloom: it's fantastic and does what remixes should (I think) do: give you something new and exciting to listen to and also make you hear familiar things anew. I've been listening to this new album most of the week and am about 2 pages away from a really solid draft of my article. Hurrah!

Yuletide Site of the Week: Scared of Santa

This one's from Cindy: Nothing says Happy Holidays like a photo of sweet little toddlers screaming at Santa. I'm not sure what's funnier the kids or the Santas.

An interesting story from the Guardian

Museums boost economy by £1.5bn a year, says report
Britain's museums are not only vital to the economy, but are also the glue that binds communities together, reflecting society and providing ways of understanding the world in which we live, according to a report published yesterday.

Sock Monkey Santa

Nick and Johanna got us this Sock Monkey Santa and I just had to share it with you. I named him Socrates and Lily is totally captivated by him. And, really, what's not to love about a sock monkey Santa? And then there's the matter of the sock monkey dress, the Vulcan sock monkey(thanks Dale), and the Princess Leia sock monkey.

Site of the Week: New Wonders from the Deep

This is pretty cool. CBC has posted a gallery of New Wonders from the 2006 Marine Census. Click on the "Open in Full Screen" option to see them in all their sea-creaturey beauty. Favourites include the Jurassic Shrimp (not quite Pepe the King Prawn) and the Yeti or Furry Crab.

Finally. Windsor gets the attention it deserves.

In today's travel section of the Globe and Mail, Noah Richler wrote a really lovely piece on Windsor. Dale and I have had this feeling toward Windsor since we moved here. It's nice to finally see someone take the time to see Windsor and notice that, if you're willing to see it, this is indeed a gem of a city.

Hi Brad. How are you?

Apparently, I am not blogging enough. So, here's a photo from today-- which happens to be a lovely snowy and sunny day. More photos of such day are on flickr.

Two Unrelated Things: Baseball and Does This Make me a Grown up?

1. Does this make me a grown up? There have been moments this year where I should have felt like a grown up: things like signing a contract for a full-time permanent job or signing on the dotted line to have our house re-sided and re-roofed or, subsequent to our re-roofing, finding myself saying things like "Huh. Look at the downspout on that house." Oddly, it has only been this week that I've been singing The Pursuit of Happiness's "I'm an Adult Now." What is this transitional event? I no longer have a living room furnished with a futon. For the first time in my adult life, I have actual grown up living room furniture. Earlier this evening, I found myself staring at this odd furniture that cannot be unfolded or taken apart or turned into some other kind of furniture and I began to compose a new verse to "I'm an Adult Now." I must confess that my sojourn into real life adulthood lasted as long as it took to write those previous sentences. As I was writing that last sentence, I thought I'd get a handful of jellybeans which, I was miffed to discover, Dale had put in the highest basket in our kitchen. See photo, left, for the Heidi-eye view of those jellybeans in their top basket. I stood on my toes and couldn't reach them. I tried to jump up a bit but to no avail. Finally, I ended up poking them from below so as to dislodge them enough so they'd fall and I could catch them. Futon or no futon, it's hard to feel all grown up when it takes three attempts to dislodge candy from a too-high spot.

2. Baseball. In the "who am I and what have they done with Heidi" category, I found myself doing two odd things this past week. The first was meandering through the Tigers' website and then excitedly emailing Dale to tell him that the Tigers were offering 27 game packages for next season and did he not agree that going to 27 games next summer was "rather do-able." The second odd thing happened on our trip to Louisville, KY over the weekend. I was not only amenable to going to the Louisville Slugger factory, it was number one on my list of things to do in Louisville. Then, in the actual tour of the factory, we were handed some of the bats they produced for the pros. I meant to whisper, "This is A-Rod's bat!!" but it came out as a giddy squeak not unlike the squeak one might hear coming out of a thirteen-year-old girl who has just seen Justin Timberlake. And then I saw the 2006 Tigers' World Series bats. Well. Really. Who am I and what have they done with Heidi?

Anyhoo, there are pictures a plenty of Louisville on my flickr site. Make sure to view them in the two sets: I've still not quite mastered how to upload photos in order. Check out the sets "Little Curtis's Journey to Kentucky" and "Louisville." If you want to learn how to pronounce Louisville, click here.