Catching Up

I didn't take too many pictures while I was in Vegas. Only some candids, mostly of us girls in the hotel. I relied on the everyone else to take lost of pictures. So once the girls send me their pictures I will post a few.

I also found out while in Vegas that I didn't have a lot of room on my camera. I still had many pictures from Jen's wedding in October and Mr. Drang & Mrs. Drang's wedding in November. There are some pretty awesome pictures from the Drang wedding. Here are some of my favourites. The others can be seen here.

I love this picture. I look so happy, and Chris looks awesome.

Have another Mike.

Can you make you eyes any bigger?

There's the face we all love to see.

Relief - Part Two

My luggage finally arrived home from Gary, Indiana. I am sure it had a nice trip, but I am glad it is back home.

It was exciting opening it up and enjoying all my purchases again from Las Vegas. I can't believe all that I bought. I am gonna look and smell like one sexy gal with all the bath & body soaps/lotions, perfume, low-cut silky shirts and shoes that I bought. I am pretty elated about my Las Vegas splurge.

And I am currently comforted with listening to the beautiful Cirque du Soliel soundtrack from 'O'. Amazing...I can actually envision the performance in my mind. I think this will serve me well in the coming days as a good stress reliever.

Great Song

I heard this song on the radio on the way home from work. I feel in love with it right away. Music makes me feel so good inside.

Second Chance by Faber Drive

I found the phone
I must?ve missed your message
You got it wrong, It wasn?t what your friend said.
I can tell by your tone, I?ve taken it too far again.
Just when I thought I'd gone and fixed it all again.

Your friends are telling you, You gotta move on.
Just when I thought I'd gone and wrecked it all again.
You turned around so I could tell you what took so long.
I don?t know why i ever waited to say.
Cuz I?m just dying just to see you again .

Instead of holding you, I was holding out.
I should?ve let you in, but I let you down.
You were the first to give ,I was the first to ask.
Now I?m in second place, to get a second chance.

I should've known, took you and I for granted
Gotta let you know, I was never underhanded.
Tell by your tone, I?ve taken it too far again.
Just when I thought I'd gone and fixed it all again.

My friends are telling me they saw you with someone.
Just when I thought I'd gone and wrecked it all again.
You turned around so I could tell you what took so long.
I don?t know why i ever waited to say.
Cuz I?m just dying just to see you again .

Instead of holding you, I was holding out.
I should?ve let you in, but I let you down.
You were the first to give, I was the first to ask.
Now I?m in second place, to get a second chance.

My last mistake, putting my friends first.
I tried to laugh it off but I made things worse.
You were the first to give, I was the first to ask.
Now I?m in second place, to get a second chance.

What you give is always what you get.
There's so much I haven't given yet. (or theres so much i havent given you)
it seems so different with(out) a second chance.
Just when I thought I'd gone and fixed it all again.

My friends are telling me they saw you with someone.
Just when I thought I'd gone and wrecked it all again.
You turned around so I could tell you what took so long.
I don?t know why I ever waited to say.
Cuz I?m just dying just to see you again .

Instead of holding you, I was holding out.
I should?ve let you in, but I let you down.
You were the first to give, I was the first to ask.
Now I?m in second place, to get a second chance.

My last mistake, putting my friends first.
I tried to laugh it off but I made things worse.
You were the first to give I was the first to ask.
Now I?m in second place to get a second chance.

Instead of holding you, I was holding out? (second chance)
I should?ve let you in, but I let you down (second chance)
You were the first to give, I was the first to ask? (second chance)
Now I?m in second place, to get a second chance.

From here.

UPDATE: Their official website cycles through all of their songs. They are awesome. I really like this band. I went from not knowing they exist to loving their music.

Relief

Jenny, the Super Mega Awesome Cool lady from the Gary, Indiana airport called me this morning to tell me she had my bag. I haven't been that happy in a very long time. I think I told her I loved her and wanted to give her a hug. I was pretty happy. I was even happier when she told me that I was the first one she called: 'if I were you, I would want to know where my bag was.'

Apparently, their airline and Air Canada's the assholes airline share the same ground crew and someone screwed up by putting my bag on a flight that left 3 hours after our flight left for Edmonton. Figure that one out.

Unfortunately, the Gary, Indiana airport has no carriers going to Canada, so my bag must be shipped back to Las Vegas and then routed to Canada. Here's hoping their are no more screw ups. My fingers are crossed.

I have yet to receive word from the assholes. I did give all the information regarding my baggage reference number and the baggage claim centre to Jenny who promised she would call the assholes, as well as Stuart, the lead ground crew guy in Las Vegas to ensure that my bag would return home safely to me within the next couple of days. But knowing how the assholes operated, they probably won't make any attempt to call me until my bag is in Canada at the airport.

At least if there are any concerns, I know I can call a real person - Jenny - who was kind enough to provide me with her cell phone number in case anything else goes awry.

I love good customer service.

The Girl In Me

It's amazing how different personality traits and qualities surface when you are surrounded by different people. Somewhere in the pit of neuba there are traces of 'girl.' I wouldn't normally describe myself as being 'girly girl'; far from it, but I was a little taken aback this weekend at my behaviour while on my 'girls' weekend trip to Las Vegas. I don't think I have shopped that much in years - perhaps ever. Purses, wallets, shoes, and sexy girly shirts were some of the major items. First of all, I don't even like to shop; secondly, I rarely even like buying stuff like that. Perhaps this is a whole new me waiting to come out......I doubt it. Nevertheless it was fun to splurge; isn't that what vacations are all about.

Now for some of the highlights. WOW!!!! is a pretty good word to use when describing Las Vegas. This destination has never been on my 'must go see' list, but when the idea presented itself, I said, 'what the hell, I should go once.' The lights are amazing and the hotels are spectacular. There is so much to see and do, besides gambling, I am amazed we took in as much as we did.

Sirens of TI: This was the free show at our hotel. It appears to be presented as some sort of pirate battle, but in reality it is a slutty dance show with half-naked women. So for the men out there, perhaps this would be entertaining. For us girls, we thought it all sucked. Plus, the girls weren't even good dancers.

Caesars Palace: The most amazing hotel (of all the ones we saw). I wish I could have spent more time there. The architecture was awe-inspiring. I am not sure words could describe accurately how amazing it actually was. I pretty much feel the same about the entire trip. It is something that people have to experience. The Forum Shops was an amazing place to tour around, shop and eat. We had an amazing Mexican lunch at La Salsa for Jen's birthday yesterday. It was sooo good.

Margaritas: Lots and lots of margaritas were drank over the weekend. Probably a few too many at times, but oh so tasty.Kahunaville was were we tested our limits by purchasing Margaritas by the yard. Holy shit is that a lot to drink. The three of us that got them didn't even manage to finish the glass. It probably wasn't the best decision, but it was fun. I even made sure the glass got packed in my suitcase for future parties.

Cirque du Soliel: This was the best live show I have ever seen in my entire life. The combination of acrobatics, swimming, diving, comedy and dance was absolutely breath-taking. If we had gone Friday night instead of Saturday, I would have gone to a second showing. I highly recommend going to Vegas just for this show. Unfortunately, they don't release shows that are in production on DvD, so I had to satisfy myself with the soundtrack. I can't wait to listen to it.

Shopping, Shopping, Shopping: I pretty much didn't have any interest in shopping before arriving in Las Vegas. I figured I would want to break away from the 'power-shoppers', when in fact, I think I out-shopped everyone. It didn't help that the Fashion Show Mall was right across the street from our hotel. I think we spent about a total of 8 hours shopping, and I didn't even get the least bit annoyed. Quite strange for me. Although, I am not too concerned about it. Now that I am back home, I am sure I will return to my normal frugal shopping habits.

Gambling: Not too much gambling took place, although I seemed to be preoccupied with talking about it, 'when are we gonna hit the blackjack table?', or 'let's do some gambling.' The other girls weren't very interested in gambling at all, but I sorta had my heart set on trying out blackjack. Blackjack is a favourite of mine and I figured I should give it a shot since I was in Las Vegas. I got a chance to sit at a table yesterday. I threw 40 bucks down on a $5 min table and managed to play for about 1 1/2 hours. I only left $10 up, but it was fun to play. I was almost out on 2 different occasions - betting the last of my chips, but things always seemed to turn around. The slots pretty much just took my money right off the bat - I am really not a very lucky person.

Bodies: The Exhibition: While out sightseeing on Saturday, we ended up walking by the Tropicana Resort & Casino which was displaying the Bodies Exhibition. Since I missed seeing it while in Vancouver this past winter, I immediately jumped on the bandwagon to go and see it. I think I have a whole new appreciation for the human body. It was a pretty fantastic exhibit.

In conclusion, I would highly recommend going to Las Vegas at least once in your life. Even if you are not a gambler, the shows and sights are pretty amazing. I had a great time with my girlfriends, and we plan on organizing something like these every 2-3 years - New York was suggested as the next trip. Now all I would like to do is enjoy my day off and my purchases. So Air Canada better find my frakin' luggage, now!!!!!

One More Day

Tomorrow is the big day!

Three of us leave from the Edmonton airport tomorrow afternoon and the other two leave from Calgary. It isn't a direct flight, so the five of us meet up in Denver around the same time. We have a bit of a lay over, but it will be nice to catch up over supper. I haven't seen one of my girlfriends in over a year, so it will be good to see her again.

I need to do some laundry and finish up my packing tonight, and then I am set to go.

The shopping trip was extremely sucessful last night. I am not sure men understand just how important a good bra is. There is an amazing bra shop in West Edmonton Mall that I visited a number of years. The bra I bought their lasted me years...yes years. No crappy 6-month Wonderbras for me, I said. Or so I thought, as I never returned and continued to buy crappy bras. So, since all of my bras are crappy, I needed something with support and lift so that I could wear the new shirt that Suz helped me pick out a couple of weeks ago. Plus, I am just sick of my boobs looking saggy. Les Saisons sells wonderful, expensive bras. The expensive part doesn't bother me , because I know that I am getting a good quality bra. One of the bra's that I purchased was worn by the salesgirl for 8 years...she vowed it was an amazing bra. And it is..WOW! is pretty much all I can say. And it is sure nice to know what size I am...again, WOW!, I never knew. Anywho, I should probably stop talking about boobs and bras. In a nutshell - ladies go get fitted properly, it is worth every penny.

I also managed to find myself a really nice bathing suit and some good stylish walking sandels.

It seems strange to spend so much money right before a trip, rather than on the trip, but they were things that I needed to make the trip just right.

Almost Vacation Time

It is only 2 1/2 days until I leave for Las Vegas. Thursday afternoon I will be sailing through the sky on my way to see the neon lights.

I am extremely excited about this trip, it is going to be grand. Never in my life have I had a desire to go to Las Vegas, but when my girlfriends brought up the idea of going there for our yearly trip, I said, 'Sure, why not.'

It all seems a little over the top for me, and I would much rather be driving through the hills of Scotland (hey, I did that). But, then again, I thought I never had a desire to go to Paris, but once I went - WOW! So, I guess we'll see if I am WOWed by anything in Las Vegas.

The girls and I decided to only plan one major event. There was a pretty good consensus around seeing a Cirque Du Soleil show. My best friend recommended O. It is a water show, and looks pretty amazing. I have always wanted to see a Cirque show, so seeing one in Vegas should be pretty SMAC.

As for the rest of our short trip: shopping, gambling, eating, drinking, and touring. We are only there for 3 1/2 days, so sleeping has become an optional activity. I plan on sitting down for some blackjack, and I might even try the roulette table. But I don't want to get too carried away. I have only been to one casino in my life, and that was in Winnipeg. I only played the slots, and it was ok, but I could totally feel myself getting caught up in pulling the lever and hearing the coins drop. I can see how people develop gambling problems. I am not too worried, I have some great friends that will keep me in line.

Barbies and Card Games

I am at home visiting my parents for the weekend. So far it has been quite and relaxing...just what I need.

Mom & I played Canasta all day, and I whooped her butt, beating her by about 6000 points.

I got to see my neice and nephews for a little bit this evening. Mackenzie dragged out my old barbies that I played with as a kid. We had some fun dressing them up in different outfits. I must say, you are never to old to play with barbies.

Zachary will be 2 next month and he is a little football player - charging around getting into just about everything in sight.

I think Kevin was a little bored and was wishing Jeff was around to hang out with.

One more day of relaxing and then it is back to the grind. But only for 3 1/2 more days - Vegas here I come.

Reminders

I have been thinking a lot in the past few days about friendships and relationships. My friendships are extremely important to me. For the most part, they provide love, support, respect, advice, guidance, and companionship. It feels good to know these friendships contribute a great deal to who I am as a person and how I cope with the tough issues in life.

One thing I tend to think less of, but that I should really think a lot more about, is: how good of a friend am I? It is all well and good to have friends, but I think it is just as important, if not more important, to be a good friend.

For me, it has taken some self-reflection for me to figure this out, and I didn't really like it the first time I told myself, but when I become selfish in my actions I begin to take my friends for granted and become disrespectful to them. This is hard for me to admit because I never want to feel as though my own selfish needs and wants override the friendships I treasure so deeply. In the long run, it will only hurt myself and my friends.

Through this revelation, I have realized that I need to stay strong in my belief that true friendships are the priority and although selfishness satisfies us temporarily, it really isn't worth destroying the lives of those around you.

As I continue with many struggles in my life, I have a constant reminder of these thoughts. It is important for me to practice every day, respect of others, as that is the only way to receive it in return.

It can be unfortunate when you realize who your true friends are and those who are simply concerned with themselves.

Quote of the Day

Good judgement comes from experience, and often experience comes from bad judgement - Rita Mae Brown

Random Things

Well, I think I pretty much have everything in place. Most of the boxes have been unpacked, and the house is clean, so it looks like it is in relatively good shape.

It feels homey too, which is a good thing. There is always some uncertainty when you move to a new place - especially a new city/province - of feeling 'at home.'

Although I didn't have the greatest of weekends, it went by way too fast. I was glad to see my hubby walk in the door Sunday night. We had a good chat and relaxed the night away watching Crank
. The movie wasn't anything spectacular, but it was fast-paced and entertaining.

Work is still busy. My day went by so fast, I can hardly remember what I did with it. My calendar is packed for the rest of the week, and then it will be the weekend again. Hopefully Jeff & I can get out a bit this weekend and explore the city. That should be fun.

10 days and counting until the big trip - Las Vegas!! I am pretty excited, and so are my 4 girlfriends. It is going to be a blast. This is the first major trip we have all had a chance to go on together. We have planned various 'girls activities' over the past 12 years, but there has always been one or two people missing. This will be SMAC!

We've all known each other for a long time. Some only 15 years, others 27. We have committed to staying in touch and continuing our friendship and it has been wonderful. They are definitely true friends. I love them all very much.

I think that is enough rambling to tonight.

Thanks Bne

Although I am sure many people already know, I would like to tell the world that Bne is an amazing friend.

• Thanks for spending time with me this weekend when I was feeling down.
• Thanks for inviting me out with your friends.
• Thanks for being a goof, and making me laugh.
• And, thanks for all the hugs and cuddles.

You truely are one of a kind.

A lonely weekend

Betrayed is probably the right word to describe how I am feeling right now.

Why is that people say they are going to do one thing, and then do another?

Why is when you know you need to do something, you don't, you do the opposite?

Do true friends, lie, cheat, and steal against one another?

Helping someone make the wrong decision will only hurt you and those around you.

Why does everything have to be so complicated????????????????????????

Points to Ponder

The best day of you life is the one on which you decide your life is your own. No apologies or excuses. No one to lean on, rely on, or blame. The gift of life is yours - it is an amazing journey - and you alone are responsible for the quality of it. This is the day your life really begins.

The greatest thing is, at any moment, to be willing to give up who we are in order to become all that we can become. - Max De Pree

Courage is the capacity to confront what can be imagined. - Leo Rosten

I'd rather be sorry for something I did than for something I didn't do. - Red Scott

Almost Spring

It was a beautiful day today, +4. I think Spring is coming, and that makes me happy.

I found this on Wikipedia when I looked up 'Spring.'

Springtime is seen as a time of growth, renewal, of new life (both plant and animal) being born, and of the cycle of life once again starting. It is also used more generally as the start of better times, as in Prague Spring.

Other than me feeling pretty good about Spring, nothing to much is new. I have been slowly unpacking and almost have everything put away, but there is still enough to keep me busy. I hope to get the rest of the boxes unpacked this weekend when Jeff is in Saskatoon. I might also treat myself to a little shopping and massage in preparation for my upcoming Las Vegas trip in 2 weeks.

This weekend will be a great opportunity for me to get use to taking the bus around the entire city. It will be an adventure.

Nothing's New

Not much to report. I guess I just feel like writing this morning. By the way, this is way too early to be up on a Sunday morning...7:00am, blak!

Suz is in town this weekend, and it has been fantastic to see her. I gave her a BIG hug when she walked in the door. I need more of that these days.

Friday night we (Bne, Suz, Jeff & I) went out for dinner at the Olive Garden. I am sure we ate enough to feed a small village, but it was good nevertheless. As for yesterday, most of the afternoon was spent at the mall. I am not a big fan of shopping, or spending money for that matter (as most of you know), but it nice to be out with friends. Suz helped me find a 'cute' shirt, it is really nice...you know me, I try to stay away from cute/girly stuff, so let's say 'sexy' shirt...yeah, that's better.

Today we get our monsterous tv. It will be good to have another distraction in the house. I am actually getting sick of staring at my computer all the time. Plus, I should really take a trip to the book store, or at least unpack my books, so that I have something to read. The last book I read was Eleanor Rigby. Such a good book, I read it in one weekend, I couldn't put it down. And I generally don't like 'personal life story' books that much. But out of all the ones I have read, I would say this one takes the cake. Thanks Rilla.

I took the bus today

Since we only have one vehicle, and Jeff & I work in opposite directions, it can only be assumed that one of us has to find alternate vehicular accomodations. Due to Jeff's job being located in Sherwood Park, it is I that gets to take the bus.

I really don't mind at all. I had been taking the bus (or walking)in Saskatoon for the past 3 years. Sitting in a car during rush hour traffic isn't really my thing anyways.

I have yet to master the morning bus. There is a transfer involved in that route, but I am sure I will adapt with ease. For after work, I will be taking the bus to the nearest Rec Centre to make sure I get in my daily exercise. It was easy today...less than a 10 minute walk from my work to the bus stop...a 20 minute bus ride..and Viola!, I am where I need to be.

It works out pretty slick because I am off work at 4:30, whereas Jeff works until 6:00. I get picked up, and away we are home. Other than supper being late, it works out nicely.

After 5 days of 'no gym', I was glad to get back at'er. A good run always helps to release those nasty stressors I seem to be dealing with these days.

And tomorrow is Friday...yipee!