Date night musings

We went out for supper tonight. How? Well, the sitter called and said she wasn’t available on our regular date night, but was available tonight and were we interested? Um, maybe a little. We salivated a little at the unexpected opportunity. Why? When we get to face each other across a table, or snuggle up side-by-side, we get a renewed sense of our affection for each other and we get to share a little laughter, unencumbered by small children and blended family ribaldry. We get to feel like newlyweds, sort of, for a bit. It’s great to have uninterrupted adult conversation (okay, Rob would say that I interrupt myself more than any four children could, but that’s another day’s post).

Okay, so where was I? Oh yeah, dinner. We thought we would go to the Wheelhouse Pub- uh, no thanks, waaaay too Langford (hick town, belatedly trying to grow up and capitalize on the meteoric building boom out here; more-or-less here we live now) for us. We wondered whether Smoken’ Bones could fit us in, it bein’ a Wednesday and all. When we went there a while back, on a Friday night (our usual date night), they shrugged us out- reservations are generally needed about a week in advance. (Get ON with it, Sal- the story...). Okay, so we got in. Rob was not terribly impressed by the decor, but I thought it was okay. The tunes track was totally appropriate, particularly when the banjo duel piece from Deliverance came on.) Rob had a heavy duty Surly Blonde beer (he doesn’t usually drink, so this was kinda fun to watch). We ordered the house specialities (Michelle, close your eyes here), and it was stunningly delicious. The restaurant purchases and prepares local food, and has built a solid reputation on the excellence of their “down-home” cuisine.

Now that I have a captive (and relatively attentive) audience at these dinners, I get to share my constant commentary (and verbal diarrhea: I even used the word alacrity in a sentence...) on my surroundings with someone other than my imaginary friends. ;) I particularly enjoyed making up a story about the couple sitting behind Rob. They were Langford, but genteelly so- picture trailer park managers. He was short, red-faced, neckless, with an astonishingly round visage, and a quiet demeanor. She was bleached blonde, with short, tousled hair and overly dark roots. She was directly behind Rob, so my view was impaired, but she seemed large. He was a less unhappy character than she, and appeared a little younger, perhaps as a result of temperament, or maybe the round-facedness was “youthifying”. I’m imagining that they don’t enjoy each other much, but would be lost without each other. I wish them well, but hope I don’t end up so subdued and seemingly empty.

Another group was clearly from Metchosin (a rural, artsy community, just down the road a piece), on a family outing. Three girls and their parents really enjoyed their meal- I wondered whether they were local producers themselves, since they looked the part of “back-to-landers”. The hairstyles, footwear and clothing choices were absolutely spot-on, and Rob, originally skeptical of my assertion as to their probable hometown, had to agree that they clearly were from Metchosin.

I wonder whether I’ll ever get to confirm the veracity of any of my little stories- that might be a lot of fun, or maybe it would be entirely deflating. Probably better that I don’t get to choose...

It'd be great to be blogging for fun

I subscribe to 30 feeds on bloglines, and I love my daily reads there. I’d like to participate more. I have many ideas, often inspired by other writers. I have images, and I sometimes have the words to describe them. What I don’t seem to have is the patience to record and transcribe my ideas through a keyboard. I am an aural, verbal, intuitive type, and I am impatient with the sloth of my ability to articulate myself.

I also have a great deal of trouble focusing on a single task at a time (which makes me an erratic driver, at best). I am currently sort of watching The Andromeda Strain, while writing, listening for my daughter’s nightmares, providing a cushion for the cat (why don’t they make cat-top computers; who has a lap anymore?). I have a dozen thoughts vibrating through my head, all wanting to be heard.

I battle my latent insecurities on many fronts (tardiness, separation anxiety, relationship sabotage, overly permissive parenting, over-dependence on goodwill), and have come to realize that I will always have a core of insecurity. I spend too much unproductive time on the computer.

Dangnabbit, this wasn’t meant as a piece of self-flagellation. I had intended to state my intention to write littler bits, snippits of journaling and diarizing, and post them more frequently. I don’t need to attend to the overwhelmingly big pieces of writing in my head; I (and my handful of readers too, perhaps) may be very well served by a frequent (daily?) expression of a few sentences of nothing much. Who knows? Maybe the therapy inherent in writing might actually move me along on my psychic, psychologic journey. That would be nice, wouldn’t it?

Why Not?

Annie published a "MeMe" called Gimme Five! today, and I (unusually) got inspired to follow suit, as did her husband Rob.

The meme is designed as a way to disclose information about ourselves, in a random, ink blot kinda way. You can use photos, links, songs or just respond in writing. Any order is fine.
1) evening wear
2) blue food
3) science fiction
4) sponges
5) plastics


Evening wear - O crap, I wonder whether anything in that mound of clean laundry still fits and is not so wrinkly that I can wear it and look half-way decent. Crap, can I find a needle and thread to repair that hem? O fiddle, can’t I just wear my smock and scrubs?

Blue food - I've been known to order brown food, warmed slightly. Blue food would be fine as long as someone else provides it for me, although I prefer that it not have passed too closely by the lips of my child first.

Sci fi -
Keith Hamilton Cobb

 from Andromeda.

Ditto Kevin Sorbo.







How about Discworld?







and Rincewind
.




Sigh. More of a sci fi geek than I want to admit to myself...







Sponges - Hate the texture of the real ones - like finger nails on a blackboard. Artificial ones would be great for cleaning the fish tank if I ever picked one up and applied it to the algae...


Plastics - Does everyone have a plastics cupboard? Why is it that I never have the same numbers of tops and bottoms? What happens to the matches - where do they go? Does Sydney use them all for projects and containers somewhere? Does Sam use them as Frisbees?

Anybody else want to share some nonsense amid the colossal tragedies unfolding around us?

Mother's Day Tribute to All Women

One Flaw In Women

By the time the Lord made woman,
He was into his sixth day of working overtime.
An angel appeared and said,
"Why are you spending so much time on this one?"
And the Lord answered,
"Have you seen my spec sheet on her?
She has to be completely washable, but not plastic,
have over 200 movable parts, all replaceable
and able to run on diet coke and leftovers,
have a lap that can hold four children at one time,
have a kiss that can cure anything from a scraped knee to a broken
heart -and she will do everything with only two hands."
The angel was astounded at the requirements.
"Only two hands!? No way!
And that's just on the standard model?
That's too much work for one day.
Wait until tomorrow to finish."
But I won't," the Lord protested.
"I am so close to finishing this creation that is so close to my own heart.
She already heals herself when she is sick
AND can work 18 hour days."
The angel moved closer and touched the woman.
"But you have made her so soft, Lord."
"She is soft," the Lord agreed,
"but I have also made her tough.
You have no idea what she can endure or accomplish."
"Will she be able to think?", asked the angel.
The Lord replied,"Not only will she be able to think,
she will be able to reason and negotiate."
The angel then noticed something,
and reaching out, touched the woman's cheek.
"Oops, it looks like you have a leak in this model.
I told you that you were trying to put too much into this one."
"That's not a leak, "the Lord corrected,
"that's a tear!"
"What's the tear for?" the angel asked.
The Lord said, "The tear is her way of expressing her joy,
her sorrow, her pain, her disappointment, her love,
her loneliness, her grief and her pride."
The angel was impressed.
"You are a genius, Lord.
You thought of everything!
Woman is truly amazing."
And she is!
Women have strengths that amaze men.
They bear hardships and they carry burdens,
but they hold happiness,
love and joy.
They smile when they want to scream.
They sing when they want to cry.
They cry when they are happy
and laugh when they are nervous.
They fight for what they believe in.
They stand up to injustice.
They don't take "no" for an answer
when they believe there is a better solution.
They go without so their family can have.
They go to the doctor with a frightened friend.
They love unconditionally.
They cry when their children excel
and cheer when their friends get awards.
They are happy when they hear about
a birth or a wedding.
Their hearts break when a friend dies.
They grieve at the loss of a family member,
yet they are strong when they think there is no strength left.
They know that a hug and a kiss
can heal a broken heart.
Women come in all shapes, sizes and colors.
They'll drive, fly, walk, run or e-mail you
to show how much they care about you.
The heart of a woman is what makes the world keep turning.
They bring joy, hope and love.
They have compassion and ideals.
They give moral support to their family and friends.
Women have vital things to say and everything to give.
HOWEVER, IF THERE IS ONE FLAW IN WOMEN,
IT IS THAT THEY FORGET THEIR WORTH.

Happy mother's day to all- please remember your worth and value in this world.

Love,

Sally

An opinion piece, more-or-less

A couple of news stories reported fairly widely by CBC in my neck of the woods have gotten me thinking and wanting to express some opinions, without interruption- I think that’s what a blog is for, right?

Story 1: 3 young children murdered in Merritt, BC- only suspect is their father, who is at large. He had been estranged from their mother, and had a criminal history; he had been released on bail the week before the murders, after having been brought up on charges for uttering threats to a child and the principal at his daughter’s school. the other child had apparently said or done something to induce tears in his daughter, and he presumably reacted in response to that. Protectiveness over one’s child? I can relate. Letting him out on bail, rather than holding him, when the risk was deemed to be minimal? Okay. Taking the lives of your own children? Seems so impossible, and yet it does happen from time-to-time. I ache for the mother and what she has been through, and I can only imagine the mental health deficits taking place in their relationship and within the father himself. This is a sad, sad story, and even when the father is found and dealt with, there will still be this ineffable sadness about the whole situation.

Story 2: A young woman, 19 years of age, an immigrant to this country, made a police complaint some months back, about the abuse she was suffering at the hands of her boyfriend, with whom she was cohabiting. She was pregnant with his child at the time. He went to trial this week, on those charges. She was to appear as a material witness in the prosecution, but failed to appear in response to being subpoenaed. As a result, she was apprehended and jailed, pending her appearance on the stand at his trial. She was reported to have been 9 months pregnant at this time, mere days away from giving birth (although it turns out she’s got another month to go). She’s been the subject of a fair amount of media attention, and has been adamant in her assertion that she would not testify against her boyfriend, and that she wanted him acquitted so he could go home to be a good father to their child. On testimony day, that’s pretty much what she did- recanted her previous (taped) statement about his abusiveness, and was then released to go on her way.

There was much hue and cry about how wrong it was to have the victim in this situation jailed, but in light of the other story, where a man with a criminal past and a hyper-reactive present was released, with tragic consequences, I certainly have sympathy with those who were trying to have the boyfriend convicted and jailed. It may be that their efforts will have been in vain, because of her most recent testimony, but also because her character will no doubt be called in question, and found wanting, since she has a previous child in her home country, being raised by her mother.

And so it goes. The chances of the unborn daughter having a real chance to lead a life unaffected by abuse, and not ending up like the kids in Merritt seems very slender. Legal recourses have not served us well in eliminating abuse within families- I wonder whether anything can work. How do we build enough self-esteem in our children, especially our girls, so that they can make wise choices in their partners, and be supportive, caring, loving partners and parents in turn? I hope that I can be that parent and partner, but today, I have been shooing away my kids, especially Sydney, who has been particularly clingy.

Okay- time to leave blog-land and attend to my little loves.

Big Cat Rescue in Florida

What else do you think a bunch of cat vet types would see in Florida? We were enthralled; bet you will be, too.

Big Cat Rescue



There were cows on the other side of the sanctuary fence...









Cougars may be my favourite animal ever.








All white tigers are inbred- this one has a cleft palate, but she's beautiful anyway.








This very handsome fellow spoke to me. We were able to have a feline non-verbal conversation; apparently my verbal feline is a different dialect, but the eye kisses and soft voice are the same across species lines.










Mrowr.










I so don't "get" the hunting thing- how could anyone stand to see such a beast stretched out like this, but bloodied and dead?











Yeah, sleeping is much preferable to dead.










Apparently, sleeping on your back, just begging for a belly rub, isn't just for domestic cats...









He was thirsty at just the right time- the water dish is sooo close to the barrier- we were within splashing range...









Tiger Conversation: This retired circus guy loves the tour groups- we had to leave him so he could rest, because as long as we were at his cage, he wanted to be social. The keepers at the sanctuary were so careful to ensure the well-being of these cats by monitoring their response to tour groups- it was great to see truly compassionate care for these big guys.



As a clinic, we decided to sponsor an ocelot from the sanctuary; like I said, we were enthralled. I hope to get a link up later, but here she is: Amazing Grace.

Fort Rodd Hill and Beacon Hill Park Petting Zoo

These are from March 8th and 9th:

Fort Rodd Hill and Fisgard Lighthouse...




Beacon Hill Park Petting Zoo...




The goat "stampede" at the end of the day...





Peacocks and ducks...











My online friends brag about their Shetland Sheep...



Three of our kids...