Monday, December 26, 2011

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Sunday, December 11, 2011

phcuk philosophy

So today I am a prisoner in my own home.  To the hell on earth known as the final for philosophy of literature.  Oh I cannot wait to put this ridiculous subject behind me.  It's interesting, in theory, but much like Greek and Roman Studies... it's not something you want to be chained to for a semester, trying to earn good grades in.

I have to write roughly 1500-2000 words about something philosophical.  No, it's not a paper.  Even though its as long as one.  And yes, you can quote or note sources [I found out after an email inquiry].  Nothing more specified.  Erm, ok.  For a test worth 45% of my mark, it would be oh so helpful if oh I don't know, there were some more instructions... if the teacher actually taught us something this semester other than that there are bazillions of good books to read... *sigh*
Out of the 24 questions to choose from, this was the only one that didn't make me want to gouge my eyes out with a blunt spoon:


"Without religion there can be no morality, and with it there can only be bad morality." Discuss.

At least I've got lots to go on with this one.  Familiar topic and all.  So, I guess it's time I suck it up and write this thing.

Good thing I get to see my adorable nieces and nephew on Skype today :) 

gaga gleepisode

Hah!  This was awesome.  I want costume resources!

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

new christmas tradition

i found this beautiful stocking at Indigo and bough it on sale because i was inspired to start a new holiday tradition.  everyone enjoys having an advent calendar to count down the days until christmas [and get a nice chocolate too ;)].  but what about a creative play on the inverse of this...what about writing little notes each day--of things you are thankful for, something you enjoyed during the holiday season, etc--and putting them in a special stocking to be looked at christmas morning?

so that's what we are going to do this year.  there will be an advent calendar near some christmas stationary, and each day we can write a note and take a chocolate.  i think it will be a great way to look back at our holiday season after it's over.  it will also be a nice way to write something positive each day.

here's the pretty stocking [and it's lined too, which is perfect for putting notes in]:



well... i better get back to my art history studying *sigh* i'm so not feeling studious/focused lately.  i just want to start xmas projects, watch movies snuggled in a blanket, start reading new books, etc.... case in point: i cut out stockings today to make 1-2 more [for harlow and maybe adam too].  i already had the little felt cutouts done last year, but just never got around to making the actual stocking.  so...i will hopefully be finishing it this weekend so it can go up along with the rest of the holiday decor.

here's what it looks like so far:



i joined the glee club

I started watching this season of Glee, and I am now officially hooked.  I have started watching the 1st season now to get all caught up :)

To be honest I didn't understand the hype when it first started, and I never gave it a chance.  I'm glad I did though... it's awesome!

I really enjoyed the Adele medley on the latest episode.  The following video also has another song I love as the ad--We Found Love :)

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

saturday night, i feel the air is getting hot [with Twilight hotties that is]

I can't wait for Saturday night:


AND



= giddiness :)


Also, Gavin and I are going to put up Christmas decorations Friday night, and watch HP7 (part 1 and 2).

Pretty much the perfect weekend.

Of course, I have to work in some paper research/writing in there too, but at the moment I'm pretending that doesn't exist lol.

Sunday, November 13, 2011

i want snow!

the forecast called for snow and usually i would be happy by the delay, but i really wanted to see snow this weekend!

i have new winter boots, my winter tires are on... i love the first snow that sticks around.  i love going for a nice stroll with mittens on, and warm coffee in my starbucks mug.  harlow goes crazy sniffing and jumping in it, and i enjoy the crisp air and seeing the fresh sparkly snow [that harlow might have destroyed just moments later].

so.

what's your deal snow?  can't you come now and then end winter early for, oh i don't know.. an actual spring?

that'd be great, thanks.

for now:

i enjoyed the video below, almost finished my christmas shopping, and dreamt of christmas decorations, snow, and my annual christmas harry potter marathon [p.s. i got part 2 today!].

hope everyone had a great weekend.


[scattered flurries] from felt soul media on Vimeo.

Sunday, November 6, 2011

Halloween 2011

Some pictures of Halloween before it's already Christmas... 



The Dark Fairy:



Some of the Halloween decor:


Sweet-looking cupcakes:


Beetlejuice and Lydia (?)


Zombie Nurse and a Golfer (?)


Super cool costumes-->
Half-Dead Marie Antoinette and a Pop-Art Comic Character:




Hermione Granger and the Dark Fairy:


Teen Wolf, Dark Fairy, Half-Dead Marie Antoinette, and Retro Pop-Art Comic Girl:


HoPe EvErYoNe HaD a FuN aNd Safe HaLlOwEeN!

it's that time of year again

Well it's definitely Winter now.  I always look forward to the first bit of winter.  I love a beautiful white Christmas season.

I just need need the major snowfall to hold off until next weekend when I get my winter tires put on.  Pretty please with peppermint sprinkles on top?

This little clip put a smile on my face.  It kind of reminds me of Harlow's first Winter.  She loves hopping around in the snow, and rolling in it too.  I'm looking forward to a beautiful Winter season full of sledding, snow ball fights, walks in snow-covered Confederation Park, hot chocolate, gingerbread lattes, and a whole lotta Christmassy-ness! :)

P.S.  I gave my two weeks notice at Joeys yesterday!  Ahhh it felt good.  They are trying to convince me to stay if they can give me what I want, but we will see.

Hope you all enjoy this little clip and that it puts you in the holiday spirit! <3

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

this term i've learned:

that I suck at life.  and philosophy.  maybe more with philosophy than life.
 
This terrifies me.  I'm supposed to be the straight A student that gets into the killer law school.  Getting less than 80% in philosophy, which apparently is great for the LSATs and Law School, is making my confidence start to plummet.

at least this made me feel a little better, from "The Top 10 Most Worthless College Majors":

philosophy.jpg
Why It Won’t Help You Get a Job: This isn’t ancient Greece: No one is going to pay you money, or allow you to sodomize their attractive son, in exchange for your knowledge of existence. Never has there been an employer who’s said “Man, we’re having all kinds of problems, I wish we had someone on our team who could reference and draw conclusions from the story of Siddhartha that would pull up our fourth quarter numbers. I took many philosophy classes and it involved reading and smoking a shit pile of weed. You don’t need to pay 20,000 dollars a year to do that. All you need is twenty dollars and a library card.
What Job You’ll End Up With: Thanks to your extensive knowledge of philosophy, you’re now self-aware enough to know that most jobs out there will make you totally miserable. So most likely you’ll wait tables part time and hope someone starts paying you for the bi-monthly entries on your blog.
P.S.  playstation pipe = hilarity.
Well at least it made me laugh.  Better than tears.
Ok back to philosophy now.  Apparently that's all I'm going to be doing until Christmas, and it might not even get me an A.  Great.

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Adam meets the piano

My nephew Adam is about 6 months old, and the other weekend I introduced him to the piano.  He really seemed to like it.  Little Beethoven in the making! :)






And just because it's so cute:





Falloween

It's that time of year again...




Harlow loves all the leaves...lots to smell







3 Variations of the same image, but with different lenses on Hipstamatic:

 #1

 #2

 #3








I need to take some pictures of the exterior Halloween decorations as well, but that will be for next weekend :)

Happy Fall everyone!

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Go Brian Keating!

I was so pleased to hear that Brian Keating received an Honorary Degree from the University of Calgary.  I had my very first Anthropology class with him, and his passion rubbed off--inspiring me to become a Primatology major, and then get into Environmental/Conservational Law.  There are countless others on who he has had a similar effect.  

So way to go Dr. Keating!  One of the coolest, most passionate, lively, inspiring, and adventurous people I know.  You most definitely deserve it!

Stay tuned for Keating's TV show "Going Wild" which should be airing soon.  I can't seem to find an exact date yet, but it will be on the Discovery channel, last I heard.  I need to ask my Department head if she knows more... will keep you posted :)  

Note: The following is all taken from the U of C's Anthropology Department webpage 

Brian Keating

2011 University of Calgary Honorary Degree Recipient

"Receiving this degree from the University of Calgary is, in my mind, the ultimate form of the highest kind of recognition one could receive for a lifetime of work." – Brian Keating
By Carly Moran
The University of Calgary will confer an honorary degree on Brian Keating, a career-long ambassador for the animal kingdom, on Tuesday during the convocation ceremonies.
Through the sheer force of an engaging personality and an infectious passion for the natural world, Keating has turned thousands of people around the world into conservationists.
Keating channels his efforts, and those of the people he inspires, into significant environmental and conservation initiatives, particularly in North America and Africa. His efforts have resulted in more than $2 million in funding for various conservation initiatives. Brian has also been named an honorary chief for a village near the Wechiau Hippo Sanctuary in Ghana.
“Receiving this degree from the University of Calgary is, in my mind, the ultimate form of the highest kind of recognition one could receive for a lifetime of work,” says Keating.
“Words can't really express adequately how this makes me feel, but humbled and honoured are two emotions that immediately surface.”
The honorary degree is the university’s highest honour, conferred upon individuals who have distinguished themselves from others and who have achieved an exceptional standard of excellence in their chosen field.
From 1981 to 1996, Keating was the Calgary Zoological Society’s curator of education. More recently, he was its head of Conservation Outreach, retiring earlier this year to focus on his media production company, Going Wild.
A longtime guest on CBC Radio’s Homestretch program, Keating has produced and hosted numerous television programs and regularly appears on the Discovery Channel. He is also a sought-after public speaker and the author of a series of children’s books. In addition to his many accomplishments, Keating was the Reader’s Digest 2006 Canadian Hero of the Year.

Friday, September 23, 2011

oye with the philosophy reading!

So it's the end of my second week of my second year of university.

So far i'm really enjoying all of my classes with the minor exception that my philosophy classes are chowing down on the textbooks like they are candy.  Really good candy.

It didn't help that my textbooks only just arrived this Wednesday either.

But I'm catching up, and all will be well.

I made the executive decision to drop one Philosophy class.  5 classes (with 3 being philosophy ones) was just too much for me to jump into.  Plus, I am teaching piano 3 nights per week, and I've still been at the restaurant 2-3 times per week as well (as soon as I get more students I can finally quit that annoying job).  So... needless to say I was literally in tears trying to keep up with it all, and envisioned epic failure in the future if I didn't try to take something off my plate.

I'm just going to take a class in the Spring, which I think will actually be nice.  I'll probably be back at the restaurant for the Summer because it has good flexibility and earning potential for my circumstances, so I think it will work out well.

I'm joining the Anthropology club, the Kula Ring, this year.  So that should be fun.  Speaking of anthropology, I'm sad that I have no monkey classes this term.  Good thing I have 2 in the Winter term :)

Something else that is awesome:  I only have 1 registrar-scheduled final exam!  So hopefully it is early in  exam period because then I will get more holiday time!  And... I'm going to see Natalie and the munchkins January 2-7.  Going to buy my ticket by the end of next week.  I'm so excited to see them, and meet Daniel!

More awesomeness:  living close to campus.  I now only have to leave 30 mins before my class starts in order to be 5-10 mins early!  Ahhh.... I'm loving the extra time, not sitting on transit forever, walking, the convenience... everything essentially.  And my classes are all finished so early in the day which is great.  I've been enjoying little afternoon naps between school and work haha.

This weekend I'm going to Edmonton to visit some family.  Can't wait!  It should be a great weekend.

Oooo and I finally painted our front door Tiffany blue!  It looks pretty.  And I got a nice little Fall door decoration/welcome sign/wreath... I don't know what you would call it, but it looks really good.

I'm also getting excited for Thanksgiving (mmmmm turkey, stuffing, and pie!) as well as Halloween (which I have already bought decorations and candy for).  Huzzah for Fall!  At least when the weather gets chilly there are things to look forward to.

Ok, well I'm going to get back to my Philosophy reading now *gulps coffee*

truth be told

I just found out about a very interesting documentary...  The following is straight from their website


ABOUT FILM

TRUTH BE TOLD is a feature length documentary that  explores the lives of several individuals raised in the Jehovah’s Witnesses religion. The title of the film refers to the tendency by Jehovah’s Witnesses to regard their beliefs exclusively as ‘the truth’.
‘The documentary is not an indictment of religion but rather a retrospective. In a series of informal interviews, former Jehovah’s Witnesses discuss life experiences within the organization including the impact the religion had on their childhood and family, schooling, adolescence, and approaches to dating and marriage. The film also explores how being raised in that religion has shaped their  spiritual beliefs and attitudes.’
The trailer:
Truth Be Told - 'FREE' from Smithkraft Productions on Vimeo.


An acquaintance of mine is also working on a film that deals with the jehovah's witness stance on blood. There isn't a website or trailer yet, but there's an article about it...

Oh how I love documentaries.

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

so fitting to my life right now

No, I'm not yet in my career and no I do not yet have children... But the principles still apply.

How do you juggle a full schedule and still enjoy life?  What do you sacrifice?  What do you prioritize?

So for all my fellow ladies out there who feel buried under to-do-lists and responsibilities, who lie awake at night thinking of more things that need to be done, and who feel like they are hard pressed to stay showered let alone relax... feast on this new blockbuster coming soon:

Tuesday, September 6, 2011

BC Trip Pictures


The drive...






Beautiful Kelowna - Tug boat beach





Sailaica and Jules' cool rooftop patio


Mission Hill Winery












Skaha Beach, Penticton












Visiting Gavin's Grandma in Summerland... :)







Some apps I made for us one evening...mmm



Mmmm best chocolate croissant ever came from this little joint.



Sad drive home...