MEG...all things me

Happy New Years

2011-12-31T22:08:00.000-07:00

Job Stress, Holidays, and Near Fatal Car Accident

2011-12-18T11:46:00.005-07:00

It has been a very interesting last 2 months or so. I realize my lack of writing may have scared a few people and I'm sorry. In the briefest way possible, this is what has been happening in my life:
Job
Shortly after my last post my job became a little intense. We had five different front office staff quit or stop showing, including our office manager (who walked out one afternoon). I suddenly became the vet and some how the entire office was placed on my shoulders. I went from only working afternoons when I started, to working some full and 1/2 days, to working full-time 10-12 hr days with no overtime. I spend 1/2 my day at my job and have no time to have a life. I at least have a girl who works afternoons 4 days a week and another girl who works full-time but between the two clinics.

In October just after my surgery, I arranged to take 2 weeks off in November to go to the USA to spend Thanksgiving with friends and family. It didn't matter to me how stuck they were it was their own fault and things were already arranged (they didn't find anyone to cover me until the day before I left). I felt and still feel myself burning out and I knew I needed to get out of there.

Driving
Despite multiple attempts to convince or guilt me into staying we left on a Friday night. Chelsea and I had made this trip once a year when we came home for Christmas, so we weren't really worried about the weather. The only part of the drive that is usually bad in the winter are the three mountain ranges along the highway in Montana.

We drove to Cardston to stay with our grandparents and then were off to Driggs Idaho (which is about 1/2 hr from Wyoming) to stay with my friend Jenny. We also had our sister Holly with us, which made it nice to have an extra driver.

It was icy and winding. We got hit with a huge wind gust that was so powerful we thought we hit something. Idaho wasn't too bad till we got closer to Driggs and were up in the mountains again.

Idaho
We had a great time with Jenny, her husband, and the little one. I hadn't seen her in almost two years. It was too short but still worth it. Monday morning we headed for Idaho Falls. I had an appointment with my uncle because I fractured a tooth eating popcorn and had to have it removed which really made me sad. We also discovered that I needed a root-canal and a retreat on another tooth. My teeth are really special so he had to send me to an endodontist which ended up being $1600. Booo! plus I got put on antibiotics for 2 weeks. We spent 1 night with my aunt playing cards to the wee hours of the morning and another at my cousin Brittney's before leaving Wednesday.
Provo Utah
We got to the Ericson's that night. We were excited to spend Thanksgiving with them and the kids the next day. We cooked, laughed, ate, and talked all day until we decided to check out some pre-black Friday sales. We started at Wal-mart and it was so INSANE we didn't last very long. We headed to Target and it was just as bad. We decided to wait till the morning even though none of the girls wanted to get up that early with us. I knew it was easier to stay up late then wake up early and they would have to re-stalk for Friday. Holly, Chelsea, and I got up at 5:00 a.m. and headed to a few stores. We got everything we wanted and the crowds were so small and nice.

The girls went bowling and out for dinner one night which was fun. We also saranwrapped some dudes truck and crumpled newspapers and threw them in the bed. They all went back to school Monday morning so we stayed late on Sunday playing games and then drove to Brandees.

North Salt Lake Utah
Brandee, Saffy, and Brenannan were waiting for us so we decided to give Brandee her Xmas present early. Chelsea and I had been working on a New Moon scrapbook of the premiere for months and were excited to give it to her.

She had Monday off school so we shopped and went to see Breaking Dawn with her Camille and Kara. It was totally lame. She skipped school on Tuesday so we hung out and had her dye our hair. Wednesday we took Holly to Park City which was pretty picked over so shopping was disappointing. Thursday we shopped some more and there was a wicked bad wind storm that swept through that part of Utah. We also met up with some of my great friends from when I worked at the Temple in SLC. We had a great time catching up and hanging out on temple square. I was very happy to see my bestie Chalene. Im very blessed to have so many wonderful friends both at home in Canada and in the US!

On Friday Holly and Chelsea wanted to shop a bit more before we left to Idaho Falls and of course the closer we got to the mountains the worse the weather got. A three hour drive turned into five hours. We of course played cards again that night with my aunt and left too late Saturday afternoon.

Accident Driving Home

The whole trip we left later then we planed to and we paid for it coming back. We didn't get to Great Falls until 9:00 p.m. Were we stopped to eat and take a break. It was Chelsea's turn to drive and the roads weren't really good and about 1/2 hour from the boarder she hit a patch of black ice.

We started to fish tale a bit and then we were fish tailing between the two lanes before we started spinning. None of us really remember anything, it's amazing how you black out when things like this happen. I remember Chelsea just saying "I don't know what to do." I put my arm out to brace her and Holly was crying hysterically in the back. I can't tell you how many times we spun around on the highway before spinning out into the ditch. We poped up on the opposite side of the highway facing the other direction.

When we calmed down and gathered our thoughts. Chelsea and I got out to asses the damage. Of course were in between two podunk towns and there are no lights. There didn't appear to be damage and I got in the driver side and some how got us out of the ditch. We were so lucky; we didn't need to be towed, we didn't have any damage not even a scratch, we didn't roll the car (probably because Holly spent like $3000 and the back of the van was so low and heavy), we didn't end up in the ditch on the other side, which had wooden post and barbwire fences, and there were no cars on the road with us going North or South. We of course didn't think to take pictures when we were in the ditch, so these are after we got out.
We had to some how turn around so we drove back about 1/2 hour before being able to turn at an emergency turn out. We didn't get to the boarder until 1 a.m. where we had to get out to pay duty. We called our grandparents and our dad to let them know.

Of course they had a really bad snow storm as well, so an hour drive took us five hours to get there. The roads had about 2 feet of snow on them and the wind was really bad. I of course was now driving and was white knuckling it the whole time. It was a very stressful drive. Cardston wasn't plowed either so it was hard getting anywhere. We didn't get to our grandparents till 5:00 a.m. Sunday.

We slept late and decided to drive home regardless only we wanted it to be light and of course I had to drive again. So the roads weren't too bad, but I was grateful when we got home.

I don't know what the deal is with all my near death experiences lately, but would somebody please enlighten me?

Confessions of a Post Traumatic Hospital Experience

2011-10-18T01:16:00.000-06:00

I realize this post may seem a little off and maybe even somewhat depressive, but as you can see by the time of day it is something I can't stop thinking about. Without going into all the details and rehashing that experience. I want to share something new that I felt was too personal to put out there in the world. I did try to write posts objectivly about what happened and not about how I felt. So please don't be alarmed or freaked out and if you are I assure you that everything is fine.

I had my 6 week follow-up appointment with Dr. Steed (the OBGYN that did my surgery) last Friday and he said something to me that has really bothered me. It wasn't his answers to my questions about what went wrong? will there be permanent damage? will I get them again? can I still have children if I wanted to? did the pathology come back negative? or even menstrual issues. It was his response to a comment I made about "my traumatic hospital experience." He replied with a laugh and a comment that went something like this, "I find it hard to believe that someone like you was traumatized." My response, "what do you mean someone like me" "well with your personality your just so bubbly and pleasant." I didn't really know how to respond. I wanted to yell at him, to use all the curse words I could think of, and make a big scene. However, the appointment didn't last much longer and I would never have done something like that.

This experience brings me to the very personal thing that I mentioned earlier. After I went into surgery the first time and was put in recovery, 5 hours had passed before I really woke up. Yes, when I was finally able to fight my way through the darkness and open my eyes. It was bright and blurry at first as my eyes adjusted. The first thing I saw was a clock on the opposite wall. I thought it was wrong at first until I was able to focus more clearly and make out the time. It didn't take long for my knowledge of the OBGYN field and all the medical stuff that was crammed into my brain for me to realize something was terribly wrong. My head was too foggy so I can't really recall alot of what happened or questions that were asked, but I didn't have to I already knew.

I can't say for certain how many times the thought passed through my mind as I was in and out of consciousness for most of it, but I truly thought I was dying. I remember asking God that if I was going to die that it be quick, but the worst part was I didn't really care. The only thing I could think of that I regretted was not ever traveling and seeing the world like I always planned to. I was seriously okay with dying, in fact I wanted to. I was content with the idea of meeting my maker as they say and leaving this life.

During the extent of my visit there were at least three other times I remember thinking about and even wishing for death. When I received my first blood transfusion, then the next two, and then finally when my heart beat was over 200 BPM. I came to terms with it and excepted it as a viable option. When it didn't happen I can't really say whether I felt relief and hope or disappointment.

Of course there have been times in my life when I have thought that it would be so much easier if I didn't wake up the next morning or what would happen if I just turned the wheel of the vehicle this way. Now that I'm starting 8 weeks post-op I'm not sure what's going on with me. I know I'm different. I'm sad and angry. I can't help it. I do what I always do. I make jokes and pretend like every thing's okay when really I just don't wan't to think or talk about it. The only thing I can make out of all of this is that I need to make some changes and I mean some big ones. Living, job, education, the whole works. Because if I in my quiet moments I wish that I had died in the hospital, something is most defiantly wrong.

WOAH now don't freak out Im not suicidal or anything like that. I can see how that could be the message here but it's not. All Im saying is that this is WEIRD and I think my inner self is trying to tell me something or I'm a little more traumatized then I thought. I wrote this in the hopes that something would come to me as I reflected and wrote about it, but I don't think it has. Of course I know I need to make some life changes, but what kind I don't know.

Meaghan Smith Concert

2011-10-04T21:03:00.000-06:00

My friend Tasha called me Saturday morning and asked if I could meet her to pick up some free tickets to a concert that was going to be that night. It was free because Airdire was doing a bunch of art themed events called Artember. I've been to busy with work and life to really notice. I didn't have access to a vehicular device and I wasn't going to walk a long distance 5 weeks post-op. So she said she would try and convince them to give her an extra ticket. Luckily for me they did.

She heard about Meaghan Smith from her brother in-law Sloan, (who happens to be my third cousin) who lives in Halifax with his wife and child. Apparently, he is friends with her and her husband. Small world isn't it? The way Tasha described her to me was that she reminded her of Sarah Slean, one of my favourite Canadian artists. So I was willing to check her out. She actually reminded me more of Ingrid Michaleson. Sarah plays the piano and her counterpart in my opinion would be Regina Specktor. All though, all three women have similar quirky and fun qualities about them.

Meaghan was really fun and personable. Really Penelopeish or Anthro look about her. Her one man band was her husband. Her songs are really fun and kindof have an old 50s feel sometimes. She talked a lot and described all of her songs.

To my surprise one of her songs was featured on the soundtrack for 500 Days of Summer, which is a really cute movie and she won a JUNO this year (the Canadian version of the Grammys) for best new artist. People she is really good and has some really fun songs so check her out. I can't embed any of her music videos but follow this link to youtube to check them out.

Day Surgery My Eye: Weeks Following

2011-09-16T18:24:00.000-06:00

September 12, 2011

I was instructed by the Hospital nurse that my steri-strips could be removed after 7 days (September 6). 4 hours after I removed them I showered and noticed a strange yellow liquid started oozing out of my incision. I of course checked for signs of infection; no malaise (tiredness or lack of energy), abnormal redness or swelling, fever or chills, hot to the touch, or abnormal pain. There was some hardness to the area and of course the discharge; however, the discharge had no odor. So I called the Calgary Health Link to talk to a nurse who said I should call my surgeon. I called Dr. Steed's office and was referred to the nurse who assured me it was normal. At that time, it had been 3 1/2 days that I've been changing sterile gauze on the site. She said that it was normal for a few days and that if it past a week that I should go to Urgent Care. So I've been worried for almost a week that I have an infection and horrified at the idea of having to go back to the hospital.

I started work on Monday, I was told to take 6 weeks off but honestly I can't afford to do that when I'm only working part-time. All I do is answer phones, book apts, and collect money. They have to do the rest. Better to sit and do something and get paid then sit at home and do nothing. I was still draining which makes me feel gross, but luckily when I woke up Tuesday morning (13th) it had stopped.

There was nothing for 2 days. Then Wednesday (14th) I woke up and I noticed my incision was hot, red, swollen, hard, and more painful. I looked at it before I got in the shower and there were two small spots where it looked white like puss or fluid wanting to break through. After I showered, surprise it started draining again. This time it was darker, more of an orange colour. So I decided to go to Airdrie Urgent Care to at least help ease my mind.

I ended up waiting 4 hours before a doctor saw me. He looked at my incision and said it wasn't infected. So I had him clarify what exactly it was that I was looking for, since in my opinion I had all but fever and chills. Maybe because I know so much about the medical field I was self diagnosing something that wasn't there. Yet it still doesn't seem normal to me. He told me it was normal to drain like this for weeks after surgery, but of course after my experience I don't trust anyone. So that's where I'm at. It's a bad attitude and I'm trying to be more positive but I'm just waiting for something else to fall through.

Cut! Costume and the Cinema Exhibit

2011-09-07T20:00:00.000-06:00

At the Glenbow Museum in Calgary they've had an exhibit called Cut-Costume and the Cinema done by EDG- Exhibits Development Group. A collection of Cospro Costumes from The Phantom of the Opera, Ever After, The Dutches, Finding Neverland, Pirates of the Caribbean, etc. I went with two of my sisters. We were so excited to see them. I've been wanting to see a costume exhibit for a long time. We weren't allowed any flash photography, so some of the photos aren't very good but I'b including a link of all the movie costumes we saw at the Museum.

Josh Groban Concert

2011-09-05T13:17:00.002-06:00

September 1
I was really concerned for a while that I wouldn't be able to go. My sister and I bought tickets in February for my mom's Birthday in June. I know it sounds weird but whatever. Luckily, I stopped bleeding and was feeling good and figured I'd just be at home watching TV. The only difference was all the people, but we had really good tickets and people don't stand the whole time at a Josh Groban concert like they do at all the other ones we go to.

It was great, our seats were really good and he had two stages so we were able to see him really well. It was 2 hours, so he sang all the songs from his new CD Straight to You and a lot of my favourites. I kinda felt like a baby at one point. He started to sing You are Loved and I remembered listening to that in the recovery room and I got a little teary, but I didn't cry. All in all, he was fantastic and just as funny as I remembered. It was totally worth it.

Day Surgery My Eye: Day 6 @ Hospital.

2011-09-05T02:22:00.002-06:00

Tuesday August 20

A visit from a new doctor at 7 woke me up which was weirdsince they don’t usually come around till 9. I mentioned the Oxycodone theoryand he denied it and said I would need to follow-up with a cardiologist inabout a month. He checked my incisions, which I was getting sick of. At least3-4 people a day lifted my gown and checked my hoo-ha. In case you don’t knowwhat that is, it’s a nickname for vagina.

He was followed by another visit from Dr. Steed and the maleresident, which proved to be entertaining as I joked about them trying to killme and how I was such a Drama Queen. He at least laughed, but still couldn’tlook me in the eye. He asked if I wanted to go home and I said duh! He saideverything looked good and since everything came back normal on my heart I wasgood to be released today. I barrowed Jeanette’s cell phone and told my mom.

To my surprise, Beth was there for the morning shift. Shesaid once she was told she came right in to figure out what the heck happened.She asked why I didn’t press the button and when I told her I did she rolledher eyes and told me I should have kept pressing it till someone did come. Myexperience was they didn’t come if they were busy and the person on the otherend usually made an annoyed sound when they answered. Luckily, I was okay and being released. So shecame back to remove my JP tube, which was really uncomfortable and a bitpainful. She told me it was a really clean incision, a round hole, and wouldclose on its own so it didn’t need stitches. She gave me some gauze to takehome to redress it and she removed my staples and applied a bunch of steri-strips.

I was able to put normal clothes on which was hard but manageable.They were what I wore to surgery but they smelt so clean. My mom got to thehospital at about 10:00 a.m. and Beth came back in to give me my dischargeinstructions. I hugged her and Jeanette and left. I was so happy.

The drive was bumpy and uncomfortable and when we passed theCountry Hills exit, I realized my dressing had soaked through. So I had my mom giveme some Kleenex to soak up the extra blood. We needed to drop off myprescriptions and pick up a few things so I waited in the car. When we got homeI ate, talked with my BF Christine, called work and took another week off, showered,changed the dressing, and had a nap. Around 6 p.m. I noticed the dressing hadseeped through again and stained another pair of pants. I was getting a littleworried, but just changed it again. It wasn’t until my dad made a comment aboutneeding to go to urgent care if it kept bleeding that upset me.

I was trying not to think about it and my mom left to go getsome more gauze. I decided that I was going to try and sleep, but I prayedinstead and just started bawling. I don’t usually cry so when I do it’s hard tocontrol myself. I was afraid that I would lose control and either have issueswith my heart or breathing. I tried to calm myself down but the thought thatcame to me was to ask for a blessing. I calmed myself down and asked my dad,who then began the third degree which made it worse again. I had to leave andcalm myself down. When I came back out he asked me a bunch of questions and Ijust said I didn’t want to talk about it because it would make me more upset.Then the thought came to me to call a nurse I knew from our church, but as Iwas leaving a message I felt like I needed to call Jeanette.

Jeanette was supposed to have her JP removed and get an ultrasoundof her legs as well and I wanted to know the results. As I called and talkedwith her, Alex walked into the room and asked to talk to me. I told her whatwas going on and she reassured me it was normal and that it would stop even ifit took a few days. We chatted a bit longer before I went back to talking withJeanette. I knew it was inspiration from Heavenly Father and I was comforted. Iwas completely panicking and losing my mind. I was so afraid and just unable toexcept the idea of having to go back to the hospital. It was the first and onlytime that I fully allowed everything that had happened to me sink in, and nowthe possibility of having more issues seemed unbearable. I just couldn’t do it.

My dad reached someone to come over to give me a blessing andmy mom called our naturopath Helena, whom I adore. She was able to talk and calmme down and I made an appointment to see her on Friday and agreed to startusing Lavender on my bruises and near my incisions. Afterwards, I explainedbriefly what had happened before I received a Priesthood blessing, which Ihadn’t had in years. I again couldn’t control my crying and emotions as I toldhim about how many times I almost died and asking Heavenly Father to make itquick. Of course, neither one of my parents really knew any of this since noone at the hospital informed them. WhenI received the blessing, I literally felt all the fear and panic leave my bodyand when it was over I had to change my dressing and pants again.

Luckily, each time I got up throughout the night to use thebathroom I didn’t have to change it. I showered the next morning and changed it,but didn’t have any issues with it again.

OPINIONS/THOUGHTS: First, if it hadn’t been for the sweetnessof two of my nurses (Beth and Alex) I don’t know how I would have survived thathospital. Second, when I get sick IGET SICK! It’s not normal, so I just need to be more prepared. Not pessimistic,just prepared. Third, hospitalsSUCK. Fourth, I officially almost DIEDthree times; when I had internal bleeding and went in for the second surgery,when I had to have three blood transfusions because of the loss of blood, andwhen they had to pump my heart full of some crazy drug to normalize the rate. Fifth, follow all random thoughtsbecause there most likely inspiration.

Day Surgery My Eye: Day 4-5 @ Hospital.

2011-09-05T02:21:00.000-06:00

Sunday August 28

I woke up still a bit nauseous but it didn’t hit me till they brought breakfast in at 8. I didn’t even attempt it. When my nurse came in to check on me, she helped me sit up on the edge of my bed. I started coughing (which was so painful) and she grabbed the puke bucket for me to spit in. I was so happy; this huge piece of flem that I had been working on for days to get out finally did except I didn’t feel so well. I had the nurse come back and just hold the bucket. I told her I wasn’t sure but that I thought I was going to puke. The last time I puked was when I was 19 and had a wicked bad case of Mono (which also landed me in the hospital, not for days just for an IV). Sure enough, I puked. It was just bile but I felt a lot better.

It was a good day; I seriously thought I was going to be released. My catheter was removed, I kept everything down, I was walking around like a maniac, I farted, and apparently the colour in my face returned. My JP bag was still filling though so the male resident from my surgery said they wanted to keep me just to keep an eye on it.

It’s so funny, when you finally have that first fart you just feel like you accomplished the greatest thing in life and after the fart follows the first poop. Peeing on the other hand was a little more difficult. It took a while once you felt the pressure and sat on the toilet before you could actually go. I was supposed to push the button to inform my nurse each time I peed, because they needed to measure my output and perform an ultrasound of my bladder at least for the first three voids (pees). Like usual, when I pushed the button the response was I’ll let your nurse know and they never came. I had peed more than three times by the time a nurse came in to check on us and asked if I had gone, so I suppose the ultrasounds weren’t really that important.

The bathroom was completely disgusting which totally shocked me. No one had showered after Wendy left and the shower base still had hair and dressings from wounds in it. The floor was dirty and had splashes of blood on it. I know the nurses and the NA flush the catheter contents and the liquids from our JPs (which in both our cases was blood) down the toilets. It is possible that it was one of ours, but still blood borne pathogens are extremely dangerous and if it was mine and she was exposed to it or vice versa. Who’s to say it was one of ours, considering all the things that were still left in the shower how do I know it wasn’t Wendy’s?

Sterilization/sanitary instruments, working, and living conditions are so ingrained into your minds when you take medical classes and work in the medical field. It just didn’t make sense to me. At one point, I took a paper towel and wiped the wall and the railings near the toilet and I was shocked at how dirty they were. Even when I would walk around and watch them clean the dirty equipment in the halls, they just wiped them down. It just made my stomach turn, because when I worked in housekeeping when I was in college I had the privilege of seeing a special black light exposed in one of the bathrooms. Everything that showed was urine/fecal matter, and they were all over the walls, ceilings, floor, door handles, sinks, and even the showers.

I was supposed to start Iron pills and stool softeners that day because of all the issues with my blood, but the nurses didn’t give them to me so I thought I wasn’t supposed to. Until of course Beth’s shift started, she made me take them with dinner and high fived me for farting. I also had my first poop which was incredibly painful. My sister arrived just after I went into the bathroom and when she waited ½ hour for me she knocked and was a little concerned. When I finally pooped all I could think of was the Kings of Leon song, My Sex is on Fire, but in this case I was sitting on the toilet singing Yaaaa yaaaa My Ass is on Fire. I thought it was hilarious, but no one else did. Beth didn’t even know what song I was talking about.

Chelsea brought the cord to charge the iPod but for some reason it wouldn’t work, so we watched a totally illegal copy of Thor on her computer. It made me happy to be able to do something, since you had to rent TVs and phones at the Peter Loughheed hospital. So you spent most of your day sleeping, walking, reading, eating, or in the bathroom.

OPINIONS/THOUGHTS: First, how can any pt get better when they are constantly exposed in a dirty hospital? When my aunt visited me she talked to me about the reputation of Peter Loughheed, which is where my cousin had her baby and her traumatizing experience. So it’s going to be difficult for me not to judge all Hospitals with the only one I’ve had to stay at. Second, again what is the point of a button if you don’t answer? Seriously don’t tell me to do something if you’re not going to follow through on your end. Third, what is with charging for parking, TVs, and phones? No wonder the nurses are constantly being bothered in the mornings, everyone is so bored that all they can do is think about how horrible their life is. Maybe if each room at least had a TV, the nurses wouldn’t be bothered so much.

Monday August 29

I spent most of the night getting in and out of bed to use the rest room so I didn’t sleep well. I was in more pain than usual because once you’re off the Morphine drip; you no longer have control of your narcotics. If you’re in pain, you have to inform your nurse and if it’s within the proper range of time then you would be given your pain medication. I tried to stay away from the regular 4 hour dose and just took it when I felt like I needed it. At this point though, I was taking a regular dose of Oxycodone.

I wasn’t feeling well, I didn’t get a good sleep, and I was frustrated I was still there. Luckily, Dr. Steed was back from his vacation so he made the rounds that morning. He was accompanied by the male resident. They looked at my incisions just as they had done every morning and said they looked good and that I should be okay to leave later that day. Of course he was unable to look at me or even in my eye when he talked to me, he felt guilty for sure.

My nurse was different, there shifts changed at the beginning of the new week and she told me I was good to shower but that my incisions and IVs needed to be covered with plastic before I could. I told her how much I loved her because I hadn’t showered in 5 days and my own stench was repulsing me. Even when I breathed I could smell a hint of medication that made me nauseous. Luckily, my sister had brought me some things from home a few days ago since I wasn’t prepared to have been there that long.

An hour past and no one came to cover them with plastic, so when breakfast was delivered I decided to eat. They came in and prepped my roomy for the shower while I finished eating, and then I was prepped. I was told once I was done to push the button for one of them to change my dressings.

The shower was so nice, but my hair was a rat’s nest and it was very difficult to move around because you can’t bend. It’s not only difficult to wipe yourself after going to the bathroom but to reach anything in the shower. Luckily, I think someone had come by and quickly cleaned it either the night before while we were walking or that morning so that helped ease my mind.

When I was finished, I pushed the button and SURPRISE no one came. I pulled the plastic that was over my IVs off and laid in my bed for a while. I got a little frustrated, so I went back into the bathroom and got a hand towel (which is all they have so you have to use like 6). I proceeded to pat dry what I could and pulled off the plastic that had been taped over my incisions. The medical adhesive tape that is used to secure everything tears not only hair off but skin. As I groaned, the nurse came in and decided to change the dressings since they were soaked and she finally remember to bring my iron pill and stool softener, after we had already reminded her once.

I was able to walk around a bit but not too much because I still didn’t feel well. I sat in my chair and read a magazine till lunch came at noon. I was given my Iron, stool softener, and pain killer and tried watching a movie around 1:00. All I could think about was getting out of there and my heart started racing and I thought I was having a panic attack like I had while I was taking YAZ.

I tried to slow my breathing but was unsuccessful, so I moved to the bed to lie down. After about ½ hour I pushed the button for the nurse and the same thing happened, so I figured they were just busy and would come when they could. I lost track of time so it was somewhere between 1-1 ½ hours later, when the nurse came in to do our vitals. I told her that mine was going to be high because my heart was racing. She asked why and I told her because I thought I was having a panic attach.

After she took my BP and HR, she looked distraught. She said it was really high and that she thought I should have an EKG. The girl with the EKG came up and performed the test and left. So of course now they were making me panic even more. A Chinese resident came into my room and asked me some questions about a history of heart disease/ issues in my family and if this had ever happened before. I told him about the YAZ and he tried to massage some muscles in my neck to get my heart rate to slow. Then the male resident came in and looked completely panicked. He had me try to force my muscles to take a poo and told me that it triggers the heart to slow down. When that didn’t work they both left. I had to pee and the nurse told me I wasn’t allowed to get out of my bed and I didn’t understand what the big fuss was over a panic attach. They placed a bed pan under me and I obviously couldn’t force myself to go, so they left it just in case.

The next thing I knew my room was full of people. All the nurses and NAs from our floor, both resident doctors, three cardiologists, all people I didn’t recognize. They were asking me all these questions and my nurse was inserting a new IV in my right arm because both sites on my left were old and should have already been removed. The cardiologist had her place another IV site on the arm (I found out later it was for the CT scan medium). He explained to me that it wasn’t a panic attack and they were going to administer a drug to help my heart slow down. My eyes started to water a bit, because they weren’t really telling me anything and they were making it worse.

I could hear them order the drug but they wouldn’t release it to them, so one of the cardiologists ran to where it was to pick it up himself. My bed was moved so there was room enough for everyone, my gown was loosened and my breasts exposed so they could attach Leeds to my body in case I went into cardiac arrest and needed to use the defibrillator (no one had to tell me that’s what they were doing, I already knew. That’s the scary part; because of my education I knew a lot of what they weren’t telling me). I’m pretty sure I made a joke about getting more action then I had had in a long time. I couldn’t pass it up when there were all these dudes hovering over me. The drug was explained to me and then it was administered.

First my whole body went warm like I had been in a hot tub for hours or was having a hot flash, then it became more difficult to breath and I was gasping for air, it felt like my heart was stopping and I was dying, then I felt light headed and dizzy, and then like nothing had happened it was over. It was the strangest thing. The drug worked and my heart rate was stabilized. Normal heart rate for adults is 60-100 BPM; mine apparently was as high as 200 BPM. The girl hooked more Leeds to my body to perform another EKG and it was normal. They showed me the difference between the two and decided to leave the Leeds for the defibrillator on my body just in case. Every one dispersed and I was put on bed rest.

I was assigned my very own nurse; Beth wasn’t there that night so I got Alex, who was just as fantastic. She took such good care of me. All this time I still had the bed pan and was trying to pee, but who really could with such an audience. A CT scan and ultrasounds of my legs were ordered. So I was transferred to a gurney and taken to the CT room. That was really weird too, the medium/contrast they insert in the body for imaging makes you warm too, but it makes you feel like you need to pee. All I could think about was not to pee on the table.

When the CT scan was done I was wheeled into the ultrasound room, where they checked my legs for blood clots. When the Doppler was used and pressure was placed I couldn’t hold it anymore. I told the ultrasound tech that when she finished the left leg I had to pee. Luckily, they were prepared and had a bed pan. It didn’t take me as long to go and I was able to relax. She told me she didn’t find anything and I was good to go.

I was taken back up stairs and had another issue of needing to pee, but this time it took longer to convince myself and unfortunately it got on my gown. After an hour of bed rest I was allowed to sit up on the edge of my bed and eat dinner. I usually only picked and lunch and dinner because it was so gross. I also was able to get a new unsoiled gown.

My sister came and was pissed that no one called her, but I assumed it was because everyone was preoccupied with trying to save my life. I was able to calm her down, but with the amount of close calls I had at the hospital I think she was a bit traumatized. She didn’t stay too long since she didn’t get there till after work.

Jeanette and I went for a walk. Alex caught me in the hall as we were making our rounds and showed me my chart. She said she was wondering what had changed from the day before and the only thing she noticed was my drug intake. My Oxycodone had doubled since the night before, all within normal range every 4-6 hours. The difference was I hadn’t been taking it that regular before and maybe it was an allergic reaction. She said it was just her opinion that no doctor told her, but because all my tests came back normal it just seemed logical. It made sense to me since I had never taken it before and don’t really take drugs. She decided to take me off the Oxycodone and administer a regular dose of extra strength Tylenol to see if that helped, which it did.

We decided to venture after some vending machines for Jeanette and we ended up down stairs in the cafeteria where she was sweet and offered to buy me a bunch of stuff. All I wanted was a rice pudding. When she was done we went back up stairs and chatted for a bit. She finally got a TV, but you could only listen to it with head phones. I’m sure it was to keep the roommate unable to enjoy it for free. I stayed up later and watched Fast and the Furious and then fell asleep to a fully charged iPod and my lovely Josh Groban.

OPINIONS/THOUGHTS: First, Oxycodone is not my friend; better yet narcotics are the enemy. Second, the nurses call button=useless/pointless. Third, maybe if everyone exercised some self control and calmness maybe they wouldn’t have freaked me out so much. Fourth, officially decided the butterflies on the ceiling were not a good sign but I still love them. Fifth, decided Vin Diesel is actually good looking. Sixth, Josh Groban may have been one of the only things that got me through that whole experience. Yes my sister visiting, Alex and Beth, praying every day, and a good roommate helped, but none calmed me as much as he did. Seventh, what the heck heart? Eighth, when going into any surgery be sure to de-hair yourself. There is no reason to add extra pain to the experience when the tearing off of adhesive tape removes body hair.

Day Surgery My Eye: Day 2-3 @ Hospital.

2011-09-05T02:17:00.001-06:00

Friday August 26

I was hooked up to oxygen, a Morphine drip, saline, a catheter,and a JP bag (Jackson-Pratt).Which is basically a long plastic tube insertedinto the body and sutured into place. The tube connects to a bulb at the end thatcollects excess body fluids. In my case, it was collecting all the old bloodthat leaked from my left ovary. I could never remember the name of it and keptcalling it my BJ, which some people thought was hilarious.

I was told that Dr. Steed was able to save both ovaries andthat the left ovary had to be cauterized more. He tried to do it Laparoscopicalybut couldn’t get the bleeding to stop, so he performed a Laparotomy. Thisincluded a 3-4 inch incision just above my pelvic bone where my left ovary was removedso he could work on it, followed by disolvable stitches and 7 staples.

There are so many horrible things about the hospital;

Theoxygen makes it difficult to breath. These HUGE boogers about the size ofa nickel form right in the breathing canal. Once you blow your nose itstarts to bleed because it’s so dry.
The catheter tugs on your bladder, isextremely uncomfortable, and hurts when the nurses empty it.
The morphine mademy heart race, feel light headed, and added to my swelling so I didn’t like using it unless I had to.
In order to do surgery, they pump your stomachfull of gas till it is completely distended like a pregnant belly. It can be painful, but the worst thing is the only way to get rid of it is tofart. The pressure builds up so much, but your body can’t release it.
One of the side affects of anaesthesia is that it makes your shoulders,collar bones, and muscles throb.
Your legs andfeet swell, as they retain water from the constant saline drip and as long as your in bed they use a weird device in order to prevent clots. They call it a sock, but it's like a balloon that is velcrowed to your calves and filled with air. It squeezes your legs and makes them sweat and itch. My whole lowerbody was so swollen and tender that my legs and bum would go numb when I sat onthe toilet.
The bed and pillows were so uncomfortable that my neck and all mybones made me hunch in pain.

I discovered that there were three nursing shifts on myfloor; 11 p.m. – 7 a.m., 7 a.m. - 3 p.m., and 3 p.m. - 11 p.m. The shift that Isaw the nurse the most was from 3-11. The night shift just came in every 3hours to get our vitals and the day shifts were rarely ever available.

I was told thatmorning that I could get up and walk around. I was able to walk to the door andback a few times and decided I didn’t feel well. I made it back to my bed to lie down andstarted having issues breathing. At the time, my roommate Wendy was in thebathroom. I pressed the button for the nurse and was told that someone wouldcome. As my breathing got shallower, no one came. I don’t know how much time passed,but Wendy came out and asked if I was okay and when I didn’t respond she raninto the hallway to get a nurse.

I don’t remember what else happened, but my vitals weretaken and they were low. A phlebotomist drew blood. My right arm became theirbest friend; I saw them at least three times a day afterwards. They are suchVampires! I had to receive 2 more blood transfusions. It scared me to get thembut I knew I needed to.

Wendy was discharged at 3 and my nurse from 3-11 wasAWESOME. Her name was Beth, she was my age, and we got along great which wasnice. She and I talked a bit about my stay in recovery and she was shocked thatthe nurse told me to force coughs. She told me to stop forcing them and to letthem happen naturally. Later that day, my mom and sister Leah visited beforethey left for Montana. My cousin Tiffany and my sister Chelsea also came by. Ididn’t tell anyone about my surgery because I didn’t think it was a big deal,it was supposed to be in and out. I again went to sleep to the sweetness ofJosh Groban.

OPINIONS/THOUGHTS: First,what is the point of having a call button if no one answers? If they do, theysay they will call our nurse who then doesn’t show up. I understand that on ourfloor, there were a bunch of old and ethnic people who were very demanding anddifficult but come on. Second, whatthe heck recovery nurse? I think you should seriously reconsider yourprofession.

Saturday August 27

At this point, all I’m thinking about is getting out ofthere so I was willing to do whatever I had to. I was told that morning that Ineeded to get up and walk around before my catheter was removed, but that thenurse or the NA would be by to walk with me. A few hours later, the nurse camein and removed my catheter and said I was good to get up and walk around. Sheasked me some questions about my surgery and when she found out I almost lostboth and was still a virgin that spiked a conversation. She asked if it waspersonal or religious and I said both. I was also blessed with the opportunityto work in the OBGYN field, which provided me with a lot of knowledge andreassurance about my decision. I am grateful they were saved.

I wasn’t able to goto the bathroom on my own yet so I went for a walk. It was very difficult but Imade it on my own once around the floor. The NA checked my JP after I got backand it was full so she emptied it, about 15 minutes later I noticed it filledagain and when the nurse came into check on me and I had her emptied it. About15 minutes later; I had some serious pain, pushed my Morphine drip about 5times (I think it had a 6 sec delay), pushed the button for the nurse, and thesame thing happened from the previous day. I started crying a bit and liftedthe JP bag to see if it filled again, which it did. It’s not normal for it tofill that fast. Usually they only empty it 3 times in a day. I’m not sure howlong it took for the nurse to get there, but when she did she emptied the JPand called for the resident.

The female resident from my surgery came to talk with me andshe determined that it was probably just a pocket of blood that collected andsurged out after I stood. She ordered some more blood work and left. I wasokay, but was unable to pee which was so frustrating because I knew thecatheter would have to be reinserted. Sometimes morphine can make you swellmaking it impossible to release your bowels on your own and until you can peeon your own, release gas, and poop you don’t leave the hospital.

I got a new roommate named Jeannette, she was in her late 30sand I realized after talking with her that she was actually Dr. Steed’s pt aswell and the pt in surgery before me. Isn’t that ironic? She had a totalhysterectomy and he nicked her bladder during the surgery and was rushed toRocky View to have a specialist repair it. When she was okay they transferredher back. It wasn’t the smartest thing to put us both in the same room, but webecame buddies and would walk around together.

I was taken off the liquid diet at lunch and was able tostomach solids. My sister came to visit and brought her laptop so I couldcharge the iPod but she forgot the connector. My aunt Kathy also came andvisited which was nice. The nurses also decided to take me off the Morphine,because it didn’t make me feel very good. It was sad that I couldn’t listen tomusic to go to sleep and I paid for it. One of the other pts on our floor wasthrowing up all night, making it difficult for us to sleep and not to get sicktoo. At one point, I felt nauseous and the night nurse raised my bed a bit andgave me a bucket.

OPINIONS/THOUGHTS:First, whyin the world would you remove a catheter before the pts even standing orwalking around? I don’t understand it. If it was to save time because she hadsome at that moment, it didn’t work because she had to waste time reinsertingit. Second, talking with my newroommate was difficult because it made me question a lot about my experienceand my doctor. I realize the difficulty because I worked for an OBGYN, but Ican’t help but wonder. Was he in a hurry to leave on vacation or was he stillfrazzled from her difficult surgery which led to closing me before I was fullycauterized?

Day Surgery My Eye: Day 1 @ Hospital.

2011-09-05T02:12:00.002-06:00

This is going to be VERY long and personal. Hopefully fullof some laughs, but unfortunately I think it will be more things that willshock, horrify, and sadden you. If you get sick or squeamish when you read ortalk about: sex, body fluids, body hair, body parts, or death. Don’t read thispost. I am warning you! I am writing about every detail I remember happened inthe 6 days I spent in the Peter Lougheed Hospital in Calgary AB, but first the backgroundinformation.

Some of you may remember at the end of last August when Iwas still living in the US and working at the Fourth Avenues Women’s Center. Ihad an Annual to discuss my irregular periods, which I thought was due to myincredible weight gain in the last few years and all the stress from school. Ihad an ultrasound to be safe and was found to have a right ovarian cyst 4x5inches. I was put on YAZ to regulate my period and a month later I had afollow-up ultrasound to confirm if it had shrunk. When it hadn’t, I wasdiagnosed with a dermoid cyst (ovarian teratoma). They are usually benigntumours that grow from a totipotentil germ cell (primary oocyte) within theovary making it possible for mature tissues and structures to develop inside suchas hair, bone, teeth, neural tissue, and sebaceous (oily) material.

I met with my nurse to discuss the options right around thesame time we were told they weren’t going to extend our visas and we were goingto have to move back to Canada. Obviously, removing them was important. If itburst or twisted around my ovary it would put me in the hospital. My doctortalked to me about my options a week or so later, she’d be able to do it within2 weeks and she was even willing to extend my health benefits so that I wouldbe covered. The issue was that in America if you have good health insurance itsfine but if you don’t you pay. They have what’s called a deductable, which is acertain amount of money you pay out of pocket before they will cover anything.Mine was $1000.00 and then 20%. It would most likely have been most of mysavings and with having to move it just didn’t seem like the right choice.

Our visas expired mid October and we moved back to Canada inNovember. I took my records and was able to see my family doctor in December.He sent me for another ultrasound and they confirmed the one on the right andthought there may have been one on my left, but because I am still a virginthey were unable to do a transvaginal ultrasound to confirm. I didn’t hearanything until March, when I called my doctors office to get the results of theultrasound and what the plan was. His nurse told me they made be an appointmentfor June 1^st with an OBGYN. In June I met Dr. Steed, had an exam,and a surgery date was scheduled on August 25, 2011, for Right OvarianLaparoscopic Cystectomy possibly bilaterally, an in and out procedure withabout 10 days recovery. Quite literally 1 year from the time that I had my firstappointment in the USA.

Thursday August 25

I arrived at the Hospital at 6:30 a.m. I was told theprevious day when I called to get my appointment time that it would be at 10:10a.m., but I had to be there before 7:00 to check in. Why? I didn’t ask. They seemedto have a script that they stuck to so I just figured I’d find out the nextday.

I was ushered to the holding room for surgery at about 7a.m. where I was told to undress and leave a urine sample. A nurse and astudent nurse came in my area and asked me some questions. Basically confirmingwho I was, my doctor, and the surgery I was having. I only remember a fewothers; Do you smoke or drink? Do you have allergies or any known drugallergies? Do you have any false teeth? After the questioning, they weighed meand inserted an IV site on the top of my left hand and left.

I passed the time reading a book called Hard Times and Holy Places by Kristen Warren Belcher, which wasgiven to me for my birthday. I was cold so I laid down and noticed there werebutterflies painted on one of the panels in the ceiling outside by bed. Ithought it was ironic considering how much I love butterflies and took it as asign that everything was going to be fine.

Chelsea (my sister) finally made it to where I was. Shedropped me off to go find parking, because in Canada you apparently have to payto park at a Hospital. She stayed with me for a bit and even had the pleasureof seeing another pt across from me expose himself. The gowns aren’t reallythat modest and apparently an old man was adjusting himself in his bed and shesaw one of his testicles. I think it has scared her for life. There really wasno point in her sitting around waiting for me while I was in surgery, so sheleft to go check out the book store. The surgery was only supposed to take 80minutes and she was timing it to be back at the end.

After she left around 9:30 a.m., another nurse came in andintroduced herself as my surgery nurse and proceeded to ask the exact samequestions. About an hour later (a bit pastmy surgery time), the Anaesthesiologist assistant came and did the same. Sheasked and recorded all the same questions and then let me know that Dr. Joel Steedwas running a little behind. She told me the pt before me had somecomplications, but that it wouldn’t be too long.

Chelsea came back and realized that I wasn’t out of surgeryyet (which should have been around 11:30 a.m.). Apparently, in the waiting roomsthere are TV’s like the ones at the airport that report the status of pts bylast name. The statuses are colour codedand move depending where they are, and I hadn’t moved or changed colours sinceshe left. She came and found me and was pissed. I told her what the assistant had said and we just waited.

Now this is where events, time, conversations, and namesstart getting blurry. I believe it was around 12:30 p.m. (a good 2 hours pastmy time) when a Porter came and wheeled me to an area of the hospital justoutside the surgery doors. TheAnaesthesiologist came and talked to me about what to expect with anaesthesiaand asked if I had talked with my doctor yet, I said no, and she asked if I hadany questions. I just told her that I was nervous, she reassured me and left. Thenthere were two residents one male and one female, who both later visited methroughout my stay. The female asked ifan Rx for Tylenol 3 would be okay for after the surgery, I said yes and thensomeone (I think the same Porter from before) opened the doors and wheeled mearound the hall to my operating room. I got myself on the operating table andhad a mask placed over my nose and mouth. I took some deep breaths and then itwas dark.

Next thing I remember, I open my eyes and there was a womenstanding over me introducing herself as my recovery nurse with a French accent.Then I was out again. I opened my eyesand saw a clock on the wall across from me that looked like it said 6:00 p.m.and I started to panic. I asked what time it was and was told 6. I was confusedbecause the women that answered me wasn’t French, and she told me that she hadgone home. Even though I was really out of it, I knew that if my surgerystarted at 12:30 it should have been done at 2:00. I knew something was wrong. Itold my new nurse that someone needed to tell my sister. I knew she wasprobably freaking out if no one had talked to her yet, especially since we hadbeen at the Hospital almost 12 hrs at that point.

I remember my sister coming in to talk to me, but I don’tremember when or for how long. I remember after she left, the Anaesthesiologistcame in and decided to insert an instrument which I can’t remember or find thename of, into the artery of my right wrist to more accurately measure my bloodpressure. She attempted it four times (Ihave tiny scabs and bruises where everything was inserted) but she was unableto. I could tell by her voice that she was frustrated and in a hurry. Iremember her telling someone she was late picking her daughter up and they toldher to go. Another doctor attempted and was successful inserting it in my leftwrist and it was excruciatingly painful.

I mentioned that I had to pee so a bed pan was placed underme. I felt dizzy, got really hot and sweaty, and my breathing became shallow.My nurse asked what was going on and I told her, she then told me that we werejust waiting for Dr. Steed. My nurse also mentioned Dr. Steed was supposed tohave left for holidays already. I remember being in so much pain and so afraid atone point, that I was praying and pleading with all my strength that if wasgoing to die that it would be quick.

When Dr. Steed came in I remember asking him if there wasjust one cyst. He told me that he removed one from both ovaries. I asked how big they were and he gesturedabout the size of a golf ball. I knew from my ultrasound a year ago that theone on the right was 4x5 inches. He told me that the one on the right had threemolars, a jaw bone, and hair with in it and that it was one of the coolest oneshe’s seen. He then told me that I needed to go back into surgery because theysuspected I was bleeding internally and that I may have to lose both ovaries. Iremember crying and him telling me that he would do everything he could to savethem.

I was wheeled back to the operating room at 7:30 p.m. by myvery sweet and concerned nurse. Then there was the mask, the breathing, and thedarkness. I don’t remember what time I woke up but my sweet nurse let my momand sister come see me. They said it was around 10. I don’t remember what wetalked about or said but my sweet nurse was leaving and I was getting a newnurse that seemed really rude and grumpy. My sister asked me if I wanted her ipodand of course I did, she asked if I wanted it on shuffle and I said no I justwanted to listen to Josh Groban. I knew he would help calm me down and thegrumpy nurse made them leave.

The second recovery is more of a blur then the first and Idon’t remember as much. I think it has something to do with the fact that I hadbeen put under twice. My throat hurt so much, most likely from the breathingtubes that were inserted and removed twice. My shoulders were killing me.Literally they ached so much. Apparently, it’s one of the side effects ofanaesthesia. If I was lucky one my three nurses would get hot blankets to helpsooth them. All I wanted was water, butwas only given ice chips to suck on every once in a while. Peeing wasn’t anissue I had a catheter inserted during surgery. I was constantly coming in andout of consciousness and I couldn’t really remember anything.

My nurse was really short and impatient with me. At onepoint, she informed me that I was going to need a blood transfusion, butwouldn’t really tell me much about it. She was more concerned with trying tofind some consent form (I wonder how it would stand in court as a legaldocument when I was barely conscious). I could hear her and some other womensearching and calling people to find one. When she finally found one, she wokeme up to sign it and I asked her a question and she snapped at me. She told methat she had already answered the question three times and she wasn’t going todo it again.

Looking back, I’m shocked at how much it hurt my feelings. Icould barely hold the pen in my hand to sign it and the words were all a blur.I started signing on the wrong line and she got upset. When I finished she leftand I knew I was going to cry. I tried not to but I couldn’t stop myself. Itried to stop and slow my breathing but I just couldn’t. She came over and toldme that I had to gain control of my breathing and stop crying. Which just mademe more upset, she asked what my problem was and I started coughing. She thenmade me feel like an idiot for not holding myself to protect my incisions andsaid she had instructed me on this earlier, which I didn’t remember. She told me how important it was to cough toget all the flem out of my system and that if I don’t cough I should force acough each hour. I just tried to ignore her as much as I could, but when shehad to insert a new IV in my forearm and pull out the BP reader she tried todistract me by talking with me.

She asked me some questions and I told her I went to schoolin the US but that I had been home in Canada for a year and she insisted thatwe were in the US. I got really confused and said that we were in Canada notthe US. She started to argue with me and was dead set on making me feel like Iwas an idiot and was wrong. I just stopped talking and the other women in theroom told her that she was wrong and that she was in Canada. She laughed andsaid that she had worked in Arizona for 15 years and has only been back a fewmonths. At that point I was done with her; I put the iPod in and fell asleep tothe sweet voice of Josh Groban.

Next thing I know I’m on the move. I’m wheeled into a roomwhere a nurse takes my vitals asks some questions. I saw a clock on the wallthat said it was 4:00 a.m. I turned Joshback on and fell asleep.

OPINIONS/THOUGHTS: First,why the heck was there a three hour wait before surgery? Seriously! If everyonewas going to ask the same questions, why didn’t you all come in at the sametime and record my answers? In my opinion, it should have only been a ½ hourearlier. Logically, that is the amount of time it would take to undress,collect vitals, insert the IV, and ask all those questions. Second, nurses like that should findanother job. We don’t need people like you in the Health Care Profession lady.If you can’t handle it don’t do it. Third,I can’t help but question and wonder if Dr. Steed took the care that was neededbefore he closed me the first time, if this would have happened and or what theoutcome would have been if I did it in the US. Fourth, I shouldn’t have to tell Health care staff to inform thefamily members of what’s going on.

Self Reflection and More Whale Wars

2011-08-17T11:49:00.000-06:00

I've been reflecting on the choices I've made in my life and wondering what my next ones should be. My current situation is; I'm a college graduate in the medical field without a job in their field. So the questions that face me are; how can I make enough money to not only pay back my loans, but in order to survive? how can I make enough money to move out of my parents house and get a car? do I barrow more money and go back to school to get a university degree, or would that be a waste? do I take something that I'm actually interested in that I think would make me happy, or do I be practical and focus on a career that would support me? do I change gears altogether and learn a trade? do I try to find a job in my field in another place and move? The questions as you see are endless, consuming, overwhelming, and stressful.
The focus and drive in life shifted from what I was passionate about as a child and teenager, to what I had to do as an adult in order to survive and support myself. When did this happen? No wonder, in my quiet moments (which are few) I'm unhappy, restless, and I feel like something is missing. I've forgotten and pushed aside all that made me ME! My passions, talents, convictions, and beliefs.
I think LIFE sometimes can be like an abusive relationship. Forgive my analogy, but just go with me on this. As we get older and reality sinks in (were exposed to The Real World), we slowly lose our childhood beliefs, wonder, dreams, and playfulness. We find ourselves struggling to figure out what we should do, the decisions we should make, and how to spend our time. Should we go to college, what should we take, how can we make money to support ourselves/family, where should I work, where should I live, etc. These questions lead to decisions, that turn into actions that makeup our everyday routines necessary for our survival.

Our constant thoughts (about 3000 a day) and self dialogue about these things, fuzz our ability to make decisions or changes that would make us happier or give us a sense of purpose. Leading us to lose site of what we really want in life and become complacent in our situations. The focus isn't on the things that we WANT to accomplish, achieve, or explore. The focus is on what we HAVE to do in order to survive. We turn into drones, robots, or zombies if you will, that stick to the routine/grind of the everyday just to get through. Thus, LIFE can be an abusive relationship.

It isn't until you get smacked in the face with something that causes you to self reflect and gain some control of the situation (your LIFE). Allowing you to step outside yourself, out of the situation in order to examine from another perspective. Just like an abusive relationship, most don't even realize it's happening or how bad it was until they remove them selves from the situation and look inward instead of outward.

This self discovery was made in the weeks that coincided the watching of Whale Wars on Animal Planet. I honestly never knew these things were going on in the world. I don't watch the news because I feel like the people who are in power control the information that is reported to the mass populous. When I lived in the US, I felt like the government kept the people in a constant state of fear in order to control their actions and decisions. I'm sure it's not that people don't want to help, I think they just don't know about it, don't know how, and are unable to take themselves out of the busyness of their own lives.

Sea Shepherd, Whale Wars and Sea Conservation

2011-08-11T22:18:00.157-06:00

My dad has recently got my sister and I interested in an organization called Sea Shepherd.

Sea Shepherd's Mission StatementEstablished in 1977, Sea Shepherd Conservation Society (SSCS) is an international non-profit, marine wildlife conservation organization. Our mission is to end the destruction of habitat and slaughter of wildlife in the world's oceans in order to conserve and protect ecosystems and species.

Sea Shepherd uses innovative direct-action tactics to investigate, document, and take action when necessary to expose and confront illegal activities on the high seas. By safeguarding the biodiversity of our delicately-balanced ocean ecosystems, Sea Shepherd works to ensure their survival for future generations.

I think what they do is amazing and I honestly didn't even know things like this were still happening in the world. It's barbaric and unnecessary. I suppose I didn't know because I don't really watch the news. I think information reported to the public is heavily controlled and I don't agree with it. When I lived in the US, the media in my opinion had the mass majority of the public in a constant state of fear.

Luckily, Sea Shepherd has found away to bring there cause to everyone. Animal Planet produces a show called Whale Wars, which just finished its fourth season. It follows their fleet as they protest and fight against Japanese Whalers. All the horrifying, disturbing, and successful images/events of the 3 month undertaking are brought to you in the comfort of you own home.

I've never really agreed with extremist or professional protesters. I don't agree with endangering the lives of human beings by ramming into other ships to get them to stop either. I myself am not an extremist and have a hard time agreeing with some of the things that Paul Watson does. However, I understand his passion and desire to do whatever it takes to make this stop. At the same time, you have to practice what you preach. There are alot of people out there that don't like him. I found a website devoted to recording all of his acts of violence here. I also found The Unofficial Sea Shepherd website, which also had some interesting things to say, both came from a site called Animal Wrongs.

I'm trying not to excuse myself from being blissfully unaware. I know there must be so many things in this world that happen that we don't know or think about. I'm more familiar with things that are indecent to human life such as; forced human trafficking, child labour, and female genocide in 3rd world countries. I don't really know how I can help the Sea Shepherd, but it reminded me of when I was in Middle School and High School and how often I organized 30 hr Famines or presentations on world hunger and child labor and it makes me want to do something.

I have found a few interesting sites that include quotes or photos; Deboah Bassett's photos on her flickr account and Antiwhaling. In researching for photos and information on the volunteers of Sea Shepperd, I noticed an interesting and somewhat disturbing fact. There are a lot of people who seem to be more focused on how good looking some of them are and not on the message revolving around the whales. It's sad really. I'm sure the focus of the volunteers is souly on saving the whales and not on fame or fortune. Society as a whole places the evil FAME above all else and yet without the media backing them how would they get their message out there? I suppose it's a double edged sword.

There of course are some people who were our favourites. Malcolm Holland a.k.a. Mal, who was a Quarter Master on the Steve Irwin. He is well spoken, relatively calm, seems gentle hearted, and is genuinely concerned not only for the wildlife but for his fellow crew members. He has his own site called Escape Escapism and I found a fan site with a bunch of photos at Sea Sheperds for Life. Peter Hammarstedt, which I couldn't find too much on except news articles of his arrest in Canada. He in my opinion seems to be the most passionate and willing to do what ever it takes besides Paul. Of course there are some other really great volunteers and I could spend an entire blog just blogging about them, but lets face it. Yes what they do is commendable, but it's not about them. It's about the thousands of animals that are being slaughtered in the world with out any just cause.

So how do we help? That's a great question which I'm still trying to figure out. My thoughts:

You can always try volunteering or protesting if you have the time and ability to suck it up. It's not for the faint of heart that's for sure. Check out Sea Shepherds Get Involved section here. There are all sorts of organizations set up to help the animals of the world. Do your research and find one that's best suited for you.
Pay attention to things that you hear about or see in your own country. I had no idea about the seal slaughter in Canada till I read it on Sea Shepherd. Knowledge is power! Find out WHATS happening and WHY.
Google is your friend! If there are certain animals or causes you care about more. Put it in the search engine and see what comes up. Educate yourself, educate yourself, educate yourself!
Attend events on the things your passionate about. Environmental or on Sea Conservation.
Of course you can donate money. The problem though is like most organizations certain percentages are taken to run the company. How do you know that people aren't being paid out of the money that was supposed to go to the cause? You don't unfortunately, even if they tell you it doesn't there is no way to be sure.
Some of us who aren't as blessed financially can buy merchandise. It's a small way to support the cause but it still does. Sea Shepard sells some really cool stuff here. Even one of my favourite companies, Lush has a soap called Shark Fin and 100% of the proceeds go to Shark Savers.

The Office

2011-08-01T11:23:00.027-06:00

Chelsea and I purchased a few seasons of our favorite shows for around $10-$15 each which is totally awesome.

We just finished watching all 6 seasons of The Office. I LOVE IT! Dwight, Michael and Jim make me laugh so much. Oh the multitude of quotes and That's What She Said jokes. I just love it. I can't even bring my self to fully blog about it because I know it will end up being so long.

Cousins Wedding and KATY PERRY

2011-07-18T12:06:00.076-06:00

July 16, 2011

Well yet another crazy day. My cousin Beau is getting married in Calgary today at noon. Then their reception is at 5 pm. The only problem is that we bought Katy Perry tickets in February before we even knew when they were getting married and I didn’t spend that much on tickets not to go.

(photo from Bobbi-Jo Grunewald photography, she's my aunt's sister. You can see more photos of the Zemp weeding on her facebook page here.)

So we made it to the ceremony which was kind of a nightmare, my parents couldn’t find anyone to watch the three foster kids so they all came with us and were so tired and cranky by the time it started at 1pm. The ceremony was cute, especially when my cousin Beau started crying. I’ve never seen him cry, he’s a tuff dude who doesn’t show emotion just like my uncle Terry. I started forcing him to hug me when we were teenagers, it probably was rude but I didn’t care. I figured, he was my cousin and I love him and he needs to know it. So I would hug him, even though he wouldn’t hug me back. I did the same thing with my uncle and now both of them hug me and are a lot more affectionate.

Anyways, we went to Boogies Burgers to eat afterwards and then to Market Mall to waste time. We got to the reception around 7 pm and were there for 2 hours before we left. Of course it was just the receiving line and they just started to call tables up to eat. We went to visit, not that we did too much of that.

When we got to the grounds it was 25 bucks to park. I love and hate the Stampede. It’s fun yes and food is great, but the crowds and parking are just brutal. I get far too cranky about it all too really enjoy it. Jannell Monae opened for Katy Perry and I didn’t really like her. It just seemed like she screamed a lot and did far too many rifts. It hurt my ears, they weren’t too pleased! I don’t know she just seems like she should stick to eclectic coffee shop gigs. Maybe it's just not what I expected to open for a pop artist, she seemed more like she should open for Alicia Keys or Beyonce. Not to mention I think I only heard 2 or 3 songs that weren’t hers, the rest were covers. It could also be because I was cranky too.

When she was finished torturing us, a DJ called Skeet Skeet performed while the roadies took down her set. I was impressed that the time was kept to what the ticket said. Finally, when Katy came out we were all super excited.

Yeah so she may not be liked by everyone, but she puts on an awesome show. Her very persona is a sexy kitten who likes Hello Kitty, who kisses girls, dresses like a Japanese anime character, dances on table tops, has alien sex with Kanye West (YUCK), and likes making corky references to private parts.
I actually remember when her first album came out and my sister LOVED it and I was just like, what the HE? Girls kissing Girls and boyfriends sleeping during foreplay YEEESH!!!!!! And then I worked in an OBGYN (obstetrics and gynecology), basically a lady clinic and then all of my previous naiveties about sex and the human body went completely out the window. Of course medical school help, but it was a clinic that actually dealt with sex on a daily basis that did it. Sorry that was probably way too much information.

Anyways, it was awesome. I know some people thought it was too racy and inappropriate, but really why would you bring you children to that in the first place? You have listened to her lyrics haven’t you?

Her numerous costumes were colourful, corky, sexy, and fun. The stage was a candy land. Her dancers were crazy good and wore clothes from the 80s. She had a whole theme revolving around her falling a sleep and entering into this crazy dream land. During her costume changes there was a film that played, that followed the story line unlike other concerts that just have the band play. She had fog machines, a bubble/fog machine, confetti cannons, sparkle cannons, fireworks, and water cannons that didn’t shoot water but foam (that looked highly inappropriate). It was so fun.
During a costume change at one point, the back up singers sang candy inspired songs like I Want Candy, My Milkshake Brings All the Boys to the Yard, Tootsie Roll, and How Many Licks Does It Take. She came out and sang I Wanna Dance with Somebody. There was also another impromptu Katy Karaoke part where she talked about all the food and rides she went on at the Stampede the night before and then she sang some song by Rhianna, It’s Friday, I Whip My Hair, and some rap song I can’t remember. It was fun.

I don’t usually do much during concerts; I just listen and try not to fall over. I was on my feet having a good time and I even sang along sometimes. I think Chelsea was a little shocked. All in all it was a great concert, she even brought about 15 people on stage with her to dance and sing a long. She even made me want to buy a blue wig, but only if it’s as cool. Really good times had by all.

(there are almost 200 pics so brace yourself)
I found three photos of her and her dance crew at the stampede that I thought would be really fun to add. She posted them on her twitter account, so you know there legit. Chelsea and I were wondering how she would have made it around the Stampede without getting mauled. We figured she had an awesome disguise, but when Holly's boyfriend Bret saw the pics he said that's actually her hair colour. He's a bit obsessed, all her hair in the show were apparently wigs.

I know there were a few other celebrities that attended the Stampede. Not quite in as good of disguise as Katy, follow the links on their names to see their photos at the Stampede. Let's see of course there was The Duke and Dutches of Cambridge (William and Kate), The PM of Canada (Steven Harper), and Mathew Morrison from Glee (who opened for BSB and NKOTB). If there were any others, they slipped under the radar.

Harry Potter!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2011-07-16T01:00:00.022-06:00

July 15, 2011
Oh Yeah, its Chelsea’s birthday and Harry Potter time. I didn’t get out of work until 6 so I was late picking Chels up from work. She was afraid there would be a lot of people in line so she wanted to get there early. Of course we were the only ones there and the first in line.

It was awesome, but I was surprised that no one dressed up. It’s so different going to movies here in CAN. Not only are they twice as much money, but you don’t have assigned seating so you have to line up to get a good spot.

Here are some poster photos from the theater;

I Missed the Royal Tour

2011-07-13T10:06:00.043-06:00

Of course the only thing we really missed on our vacation was celebrating Canada Day and the Royal tour. I don't have much to say on it since I wasn't here, which is sad especially since they were here in Calgary for the first day of the Stampede. They went to the Stampede parade and then to the actual grounds to the Coral. You can see photos of all 8 days on the official tour site here, The Guardian from the UK has some good photos, and of course CTV which has some awesome ones.
These are my favourite photos;

I love that she wore Red and White for Canada and to top it all off, a super cute red hat with maple leaves.

In cowboy and cowgirl attire for the Calgary Stampede, so awesome.

On their last day in Canada. Wearing red with a white handbag and maple leaf broach. Just love it.

Trip to Idaho and Utah Day 8-11

2011-07-12T12:02:00.038-06:00

July 8, 2011
Again we didn’t do too much, just hung around and went shopping in Orem with the girls. We didn’t even watch any movies which are our tradition; we just wanted to enjoy each others company I suppose.

July 9, 2011

Same deal, not too much happened. We went to Red Robins for lunch with the girls because we wanted to take Sara to VS semi annual sale so she could get some bras, but we just hung around the Provo mall. We got some stuff for Aaron at Wal-Mart, and picked up some pizza and sodas for dinner.

We went to Macy’s to get Kong Cones like we used to, but it was a little disappointing they weren’t nearly as big as they used to be which was most of the fun. We watched the first episode of Little Dorrit but every one was so tired no one made it through. Chelsea and I showered before bed, because we were planning to be up at 6 and out by 7.
July 10, 2011
Of course, we didn’t wake up till about 8 and didn’t get out of Provo until about 9. What a disaster seriously. We still needed to stop in SLC to visit with my BFFL Chase. Whom I couldn’t get a hold of before we left, just to discover his number changed. So I had called him the day before and chatted for about ½ hour. I told him I would be there around 9 or 10, but I just hate being late.

We got to his new place around 10 and visited for a few hours with him and his boyfriend Jaren. O how I miss him. Being here in Utah the last few days has really made me miss it more. Not because I miss all the crazyness involving the church, but the friendships, shopping, and things to do. I feel like a hermit now in Airdrie. I go to my part time job in the afternoons and don’t get back until around 7 pm and then I do it again the next day. Oh well. It was a nice visit but it was too short.

Chelsea and I stopped and ordered Wingers to go. We didn’t get into Idaho till late, but we still stopped by my aunts around 6 pm. This whole trip neither one of us have been sleeping much so I was only able to make it to a rest stop just after Helena. We ended up sleeping almost 6 hours in the van. Not the most comfortable, but we were both out and better that then ending up dead.

July 11, 2011
Luckily, neither one of us had to work on Monday the only problem was we needed to be back in Airdrie by 1:30 because we both had appointments.

We were only about 1 ½ hours from the boarder and we never have any real issues getting back into Canada so we weren’t even at the boarder 5 minutes.

Trip to Idaho and Utah Day 6 and 7

2011-07-08T12:00:00.064-06:00

July 6, 2011

Chelsea and I wanted to hit all of our fav shopping places. We invited Brandee, but she had some errands to run and would meet up with us later. We ate at Costa Vida for lunch. YEAH! I love my life. That’s basically what we both thought.

The TJMax there has always been awesome and I picked up some super cute luggage. Well it’s just a shoulder bag and a roller duffle bag from Dakine in Neptune Stipe. I love them, and will try to do some research to find other pieces in that style.

We stopped at the Fourth Avenues Women’s center to pick up my cheque and to also say hi to everyone. We spent almost 2 ½ hours there just visiting, we felt a little guilty because we were distracting people from work, but at the same time we didn’t. We really missed everyone. We just wished we had more time so we could have hung out with some of them outside of work.

We met Brandee in Sugarhouse and looked around and stopped buy a beauty supply place called Cosmo Prof. We spent too much money there but it was fun just to spend time with Brandee.

We went to Gateway, where we looked around the Anthropologie and some of our other favourite stores before meeting up with Camille and Kara for dinner and a movie. Of course we saw Bridesmaids, it just so fits our personalities and relationships with one another and of course it was perfect. We all laughed until we cried and quoted it afterwards.

July 7, 2011

Brandee and the girls were heading to St. George to visit family so we were heading to Provo for the last few days. Before we all left we took some fun photos and headed to eat at Apollo burger. MMMM we love it but neither of us could finish our food.

We said our goodbyes and Chelsea and I headed to Park City to buy up a storm at the Tanger outlets and then we were off to Provo. When we got there we gave them their presents and chatted until the wee hours of the morning.

Trip to Idaho and Utah Day 5

2011-07-06T11:59:00.011-06:00

July 5, 2011
When I got up the next morning to switch over the laundry, someone already had. Our darks were in a pile on the counter and the whites were almost done. Unfortunately, who ever did it didn’t remove the items that are only to be hung dry. So I was just praying there wasn’t going to be any issues. It was my aunt Shannon, who I know was just trying to be nice. However, Chelsea’s shirt shrunk and my favourite silk shirt tore in like 3 places when I put it on. I’m sure it had something to do with the fact that the fabric was heated and destroyed, so I was sad. But are you catching on to the theme of this trip yet?

The reason we took a week off 3 months ago, is because once Chels turns 25 she is off my dads insurance and she had a crown and a filling that needed to be done. So this is when I booked them. I booked a cleaning for both of us; I just pay the hygienists salary since I don’t have insurance. I feel too guilty doing anything else, there were I think 2 or 3 fillings I needed over the last 4 years but I didn’t let anything else get done.

So to add to the disaster that is known as this trip, we discovered that I fractured a tooth. Yup, how it happened I don’t know. Does it hurt? Nope, but of course the tooth is split down the middle from the root to about the middle and there’s just this free floating piece in my gums. So there is no possible way to repair it and they have to pull it. Of course my uncle didn’t want to ruin my trip so we decided to do it later, but I don’t have insurance. Of course I’m pissed, but the only thing I can think of is that I did it eating popcorn. Oh well, such is life!

We didn’t get to Brandee’s place till about 10 pm and of course all the girls were up. We hid from the window so they wouldn’t see us and they all screamed when they opened the door. It was fun and nice to be missed and loved. We chatted and gave them their presents. We slept in the living room and went on a Mav run, just like we used to when we would have our slumber parties. We watched a movie called The Big Tease with Craig Ferguson. It was hilarious and so fitting since Brandee is in school to be a hairdresser.

Trip to Idaho and Utah Day 3 and 4

2011-07-05T11:56:00.013-06:00

July 3, 2011
We basically all slept in and didn’t do too much again. My aunt had us run some errands for her and pick some stuff up for the 4th the next day. We helped pack boxes and move out their MASSIVE food storage room, that they were going to store in Gary’s office. Then Chelsea, Brit, Zack and I went to stake out the spot like we have for the last 3 years.

This isn’t the most fun to be sure. You’re completely exposed on the street, there’s street lights beaming in your face, cars driving by all night, and you’re trying to sleep in a lawn chair. Needless to say, there isn’t a lot of sleeping that happens. We probably didn’t fall a sleep until after 4:30 am that was the last time I looked.

July 4, 2011
Debbie came by after the parade with everyone in Troy’s van. Brooke and Larissa were going to stay for a while so that we could go home to eat and get ready. Of course someone stole the picnic table they dragged over and tied to a tree. My aunt’s so crazy, when she spray painted the spot on the grass, she also sprayed table so she would know if anyone stole it. So she went searching for it, when she found it she got some dudes to help her drag it back. Yup that’s my aunt.
Brittney didn’t want to be stuck at the house all day so after we all showered and ate, she wanted to leave again. So after an hour we headed back. We parked our chairs under a tree and went in and out of sleep.

Of course we were all super cranky, I just didn’t want to do anything or go anywhere. I’m just not my self when I’m exhausted, but no one really is that’s why you can go crazy after a few days of no sleep. I just found everyone ungrateful and rude, so I tried not to talk to anyone and just steer clear. So many things happened that are silly and not that big of a deal, but really where at the time. The fireworks are always great, not that I could really see them because a few really ignorant people decided to move there chairs right in front of where we were laying.
When it was over I just wanted to go, but because I didn’t drive we had to wait. So instead of just sitting around, I started gathering everything into a pile so that it could be loaded when they decided the crowds were small enough.
When we got back we did some laundry and just chatted with Britt before she left.

Trip to Idaho and Utah

2011-07-02T11:52:00.031-06:00

July 1, 2011

So we didn’t get to their place until about 2 am and of course we fell a sleep super fast. We woke up at about 9 am, a little later than we wanted. We visited a bit before leaving.

We went to Superstore to get gas and to deposit my money and I didn’t have my bank card. The last time I had it, I used it to call my bank to make sure they wouldn’t hold it for 3 days. We drove back to Christine’s and it took us awhile to find it so she also found a CIBC bank that was close to their place so I could deposit all of the money (it is Canada day so none of the banks are open, except their ATMs). It’s just the way our trips go.

When we got to the boarder there was three lanes open, which was shocking. Neither one of us have ever seen more than one open. When we got there, the boarder guy asked where we were going, what we were doing, how long we would be, and then let us go. WHAT!!!!!!!!!!!!! We didn’t even get pulled over or searched. That NEVER happens. We had to pull over and celebrate.

We drove straight through Montana, well besides stopping for gas and potty breaks. Then made it to Idaho, we didn’t get to my aunts until 12 or 1 am I can’t remember, but surprise. My uncle troy, Aunt Shannon, and cousins Larissa, Dion, and Keandra were there too. So we were sent to the camper outside. I’m not complaining it was a place to sleep; it did make it a little awkward to shower though, not because we showered in there but we had to find someone willing to let us use theirs.
So our Canada day was basically spent driving, although we both wore our Canadian shirts all day.

July 2, 2011

We didn’t really do much today. We ate a Chuckaramas for brunch. I showered and sugared my legs. Chelsea and I ran some errands and did a little shopping, not much because the shopping isn’t that great in Idaho Falls. We ate Orange Leaf frozen yogurt and Taco Bell for dinner. Then the kids watched Salt in their theatre room. Their selling the house so it was our last chance to watch movies in the theatre room.

Something Wicked This Way Comes....

2011-07-01T11:49:00.073-06:00

June 31, 2011

So we are off for a week to the US. Of course like all our trips, we procrastinate and leave things to the last minute. This was no different, Chelsea ended up pulling an all nighter and I went to bed at like 4. We did laundry, packed, dyed Chelsea's hair, and got things ready to leave. We both had to work the next day, I usually work the closing shifts so I didn’t start till 2, but Chelsea worked at 9.

Our plan was to leave for Lethbridge after Wicked to stay with my best friend Christine the night and then leave for the boarder. I went to the bank before work and I couldn’t get any American, but was told there was an ATM in Country Hills I could get it from. I went to work, Chelsea forgot stuff at home so my dad dropped it off, I didn’t get out of work until 6 and didn’t pick Chelsea up till quarter after, we stopped at Country Hills and it dispensed CAN instead of American, we stopped at another bank but they were closed, then there was an accident where a bus collided with a semi truck on a two lane overpass, parking was a disaster and we had to be in our seats by 7:30, and so I was stressed and pissed before the show even started.

For the last 3 years, Chelsea and I have made it kind of a tradition to do something big and fun for our birthdays. If it’s not on our birthdays, we would make sure we did something fun on our actually birthday too. When we lived in the US we usually went to concerts, now that were back in Canada, it makes it a little difficult to do that. For Chelsea’s birthday this year, we bought tickets to Wicked for the Broadway across North America tour.

I wish we would have been able to see the original Broadway cast with Idina Menzel (who I adore) and Kristin Chenoweth, both of whom have guest stared on Glee. There are some great photos of the original cast here. This one was good, although I found the actress who played Glinda a little pitchy and at times hard to listen too. It was also difficult to understand what they were saying sometimes. I don’t know if that’s the actors or the venue, but it was still really good. I love the story of the play. To find and accept your self for who you are and to never judge another person until you get to know them. Both are good lessons for young women. I also LOVE the music. I've been singing it to myself for years and it was so exciting to see and hear the songs sung in the mix of the play.

Like all Broadway shows we see, we bought a program at the end of the play. As we were driving, Chelsea was looking at it and noticed that none of the actors from the version we saw were in the program which totally sucks, except I did find a list of the cast at the official Wicked site here. However, the cast is for the Edmonton show and there was nothing listed for Calgary but I'm pretty sure its the same people. I've also included the professional photos taken by Joan Marcus printed in the Calgary Sun. I couldn't find that much on her, except an interview by Playbill, another from the Washington Post, and I think her facebook page. The reason I’m including them is because, when ever I post the link for the photos for people to look at, the article disappears after a while as well as the photos because there no longer supported and I don’t want that to happen. I'm not trying to rip them off, I just want you to see the actors from the show I saw.

Under the Greenwood Tree

2011-06-26T03:09:00.001-06:00

Well I found myself bored one night, with nothing to do while Aaron played Black Ops on ps3. Luckily for me, Netflix works on his computer and I came across this suggestion. I was actually fairly pleased with it. It was cute in it's own way, but I couldn't find a lot of information on it. Masterpiece theater has a good page devoted to it here (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/greenwood/index.html) that includes the synopsis, photos, information on the author Thomas Hardy, etc. I'm not going to go on about it when you can just go to the link and get great info. Meanwhile, enjoy the promo photos I've found.

Prison Break

2011-06-11T17:56:00.004-06:00

I started watching Prison Break (2005-2008) on Netflix with my sister Leah a few weeks ago. I'm sorry to say, that I had never seen an episode. I know my aunt and uncle in Idaho were really into it, I'd even catch my cousins watching it every now and then. Leah has seen them all before, she watched them with our other cousin a few summers ago. She loved them and said that I would too and she was right. My brother Aaron walked in half way through the first episode and got hooked too, so we've been trying to watch them together.

The concept is totally brilliant, it's completely thrilling, and keeps you on the edge of your seat. The synopsis from Netflix is really good so I'm including it; "When his brother, Lincoln (Dominic Purcell), is wrongly convicted of murdering the brother of the U.S. Vice President, engineer Michael Scofield (Wentworth Miller) resolves to bust his innocent sibling out of the notorious Fox River Penitentiary in this intense Fox action-drama series. Chronicling the prison break and its aftermath, the conspiracy-rich storyline takes the Scofields and their accomplices throughout the United States and beyond." The following is a spoiler! I can't even begin to imagine the type of person that thinks of something like tattooing a blueprint and their escape plan on their body. It just blows my mind! It's sad that it's over after 4 seasons, but I understand that the story line just didn't really have anywhere else to go. It really has it all. Cute guys for the girls (my fave is Wentworth Miller) and action for the guys. If you haven't seen it I would recommended it probably more than any other show I've recommended in the past. It's like going to a really long action packed movie.

Season 1

For more prison break photos check out fanpop.

Season 2

See more promos here.

Season 3

See more promos here.

Season 4

For more promos go here.

I was so sad when I watched the finale episode, I even got a little teary eyed. Aaron was really mad at the ending and then we realized there was another episode that was 1 hr and 45 min. He didn't even want to watch it he was so mad, so I watched it with out him. Then Leah told me there was a movie called prison Break the Final Break, which really confused me but it's true. It's like that show I watched with Aaron called Dead Like Me. Anyways, I guess a lot of people were pissed the way Season 4 ended, so to explain what happened before the flash forward in the last episode the movie was made. I looked into it and Netflix included it in the episodes of season 4, but called it The Old Ball and Chain/Free. I appreciated it, although, it wasn't an alternate ending, it was nice to know what had happened that led to the finale. All in all it's a Top Notch show.

Defiantly Judge a Book By It's Cover!~Coralie Bickford-Smith Designs for Penguin Classics

2011-05-21T16:49:00.001-06:00

As you know, one of my favourite books is Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen and I actually own a few copies. It may seem a little glutinous I know, however; they are well loved. My favourite by far is a hardcover cloth bound version by Coralie Bickford-Smith a senior cover designer for Penguin Books England.

You know the saying "Don't judge a book by it's cover?" well I don't really think that applies here. Her designs are brilliant, gorgeous, enticing, quirky, and cute. The vibrant colours and designs draw you in and make you not only want to pick it up to read it, but just stare at it in wonder. They aren't just books, there art! What I love so much about them, is that they bring such colour and life to your book shelf, this is why they are one of my Favourite Things. There quirky/whimsical quality, is why I'm sure they grace the shelves of Anthropologie.

There is a great interview with Coralie here, about how she gets the inspiration for her book covers.

Chelsea and I first saw them about 2 years ago at the Gateway mall Anthropologie in Salt Lake City. As a student, $20 for a book regardless of how beautiful was too expensive. Especially when you SHOULD be spending it on something more important. We did discover through some research, that in the US; Barnes and Noble,Walmart, and Amazon sold them.

So as the frugal people we are, we made some comparisons. Amazon was much cheaper, anywhere between $12-14 a book and if you purchased them from the same place you could get free shipping. The ones Amazon didn't sell, we could get at Barnes and Noble, use my discount card, apply an email coupon for 25% off the entire purchase, and get free shipping for a purchase over $50. In Canada, Chapters/Indigo books sell them but, they are practically always sold out and they have no idea what your talking about if you ask a sales associate. We purchased most of our copies through Amazon and B&N before we moved home to Canada. The only problem we had was that Madame Bovary and Crime and Punishment are really hard to find, because there no longer being published so we couldn't find them in stock anywhere.

She has recently released four more novels that we need to add to our collection; Dracula, Gulliver's Travels, A Tale of two Cities, and Middle March. This is what made me remember that I never got around to blogging about my BEAUTIFUL books.

Songs Im Lovin

2011-05-18T20:49:00.002-06:00

Just a couple songs I can't get out of my head, and the videos are pretty great too!

Party Rock Anthem- LMFAO

The Lazy Song-Bruno Mars

Make You Feel My Love-Adele

Birthday Shmirthdays!

2011-05-12T19:33:00.021-06:00

Well at what point do birthdays stop being exciting? For me it was probably every birthday after my 16th. It was totally the most epic party I've ever had. I had a ton of people over, we ate, played games, had a sleep over, got toilet papered by a bunch of boys that were at the party earlier, we went to their house and toilet papered it back, got caught, went our separate ways, I went shopping with some friends, and then went to a youth dance in Calgary. It was so fun! Now with each passing year I keep getting older and older and older. Yet, I still only feel like I'm 21 (not that my body does). I guess it does help a bit that a lot of people are shocked or don't believe me when I tell them my real age. I suppose this means I'll look good when I'm 50!

This is a big one, it means only one more year till I'm 30. CRAZINESS! I woke up and didn't think anything of it. I thought I might be a little depressed, but thankfully I wasn't I just went about my day. Of course, I have been quite sleepless for the last few weeks worrying and thinking too much about my life and what I've accomplished or not. Just constantly thinking about what I'm going to do next. It's quite exhausting and I've had a few talks with my friends at work about it. Nothing official has been decided, but I will keep you all posted when something does.

I went to an Aromatherapy class that my mom's Naturopath taught last weekend for my present and really enjoyed it. This morning, however; one of my best friends Tasha surprised me with her two little girls and we went for breakfast which was really nice. I met up for lunch with Jeanne, a really awesome girl I work with. I went to work and she brought me sunflowers and a yummy red velvet cupcake which was really nice. When I got home; Tasha, her husband Vaughn, and their two little girls Elina and Meagan (yes she is named after me) came over to celebrate. We chatted and ate some Island Sherbet from Costco which is totally awesome and we watched the Disney's Princess and the Frog. Because my shifts are always in the afternoon and I didn't get a day off that week it was difficult to plan anything. So Tasha came back out on Monday afternoon (I traded a shift for the morning and got Tuesday off as well) and we got pedicures which was so fun and as a gift to myself I got a massage on Tuesday from one of the girls at work. I forgot how nice it is to feel pampered.

So all in all it was a good birthday, regardless of all the craziness going on in my head.

Attractive Actors part 3

2011-05-08T17:00:00.000-06:00

Well looking back on my other 2 posts on attractive actors I can't believe I forgot these two. Duh, they were supposed to be on them, I guess I just got too wrapped up in what I was doing! Okay, well just have a look and you'll know why. Both are British, have accents, have dark hair and eyes, are a little scruffy looking, and have longer hair. Need I say more?

Ben Barnes-Actor

Jim Sturgess-Actor/Singer

The Royal Wedding-Prince William and Catherine Middleton

2011-05-01T21:48:00.033-06:00

Okay so like most people in North America I totally watched the royal wedding. I didn't stay up till 2 am to watch the 8 hr special though, I had to work. It was really interesting to me that the Americans got so in to it. Please don't take offense. I love America I lived there for almost 5 years. It just amazes me because they fought so hard to become their own country and break away from British rule; that when they become obsessed with things like the union jack, British actors, their accents, and royalty it just confuses me. I'm sure that it has something to do with the whole modern day fairy tale, very Disney princess movie material but what do I know!

I know some people couldn't care less, some threw princess inspired parties, some flew to England to stand in the streets, some gathered in the streets of America to watch it, others thought it was a waste of tax payer dollars, and some thought it would increase the economy by all the business it would create. I myself, watched it like most Canadians just like I remember watching Princess Diana's funeral with my family.

I did see this really clever photo floating around face book that I thought I'd share. The one I have seen actually has digitally changed the colours of the prince's hair and clothes to match Williams and Cinderella's hair to match Catherine's, and of course the colours of the stepsisters to match. This particular photo I found here.

I am excited for their royal tour of Canada this summer, the royal couple is scheduled to visit June 30-July 8. The itinerary has not been released yet but according to The Globe and Mail they will be stopping in Alberta, The Northwest Territories, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, and Ontario. I don't know how I feel about the Canadian tax payers having to pay for everything; however, it's like what I mentioned earlier about some people not liking the fact that the British tax payers paid for the wedding. The money they spend on hotels, security, and so forth essentially goes right back into our pockets. I'm sure it's the same for when the Queen visits Canada, which has been more than 20 times, the last being in the summer of 2010.

If you want to know more about the Royal influence in Canada and or the Commonwealth Nations, here is the link to the official royal site for Canada.

Happy Easter

2011-04-24T13:10:00.055-06:00

Have you ever wondered why we celebrate Easter? Well, luckily for you I like to research things so that I understand things better. In return, I can share what I learn and explain things in an easier way to all of you. Just like I’ve already done for Halloween and Earth Day.

Generally, Easter is a Christian holiday that celebrates Jesus Christ’s resurrection from the dead. Some call it the moveable feast, because it doesn't have a set date every year. In the West, Christian churches celebrate on the first Sunday following the full moon after the equinox (anywhere between March 22-April 25). The Orthodox, use the Julian calendar to calculate the date and typically celebrated 1-2 weeks after the West. Interestingly enough, it was the Council of Nicaea (convened by Constantine), that decided Easter would be celebrated following the full moon after the equinox.

Why is it called Easter? It derives from the word Eostre (the Teutonic goddess of spring and fertility). The ancient Saxons celebrated the return of spring with a festival commemorating the goddess Eostre. In the second-century, Christian missionaries discovered these tribes and many of their pagan traditions. This pagan tradition, just happened to be the same time of year as the Christian observance of the Resurrection of Christ. So they merged them together to become what we know today as Easter.

There is also the Latin term hebdomada alba meaning white week (symbolizing the clothing worn during baptism, which represents the clothing of Christ). Then like all things, over time the translation got mixed up and became esostarum (old high German) eventually becoming Easter in English. The translation in Spanish (Pascua) and in French (Paques), derive from the Greek/Latin (Pascha or Pasch) for Passover.

Interesting isn’t it. I’m sure you could read better research else where, but who really needs really long wordy essays when I can paraphrase.

If you were religious, you would know that the Passover refers to the story of Mosses. When the pharaoh refuses to let the Israelites go, God unleashed the 10 plagues on the Egyptians. With the slaying of every firstborn son by the avenging angel being one of them. The Israelites marked their doorframes with lamb’s blood so the angel would recognize them and “pass over” each Jewish home. Of course, that was many years before the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

The Lenten Season, or lent (a time of reflection, temptation, fasting, and repentance) is the 46 day period leading up to Easter Sunday (representing the 40 days and nights Jesus spent in the wilderness), which starts on Ash Wednesday. It is 46 days because traditionally Sunday is the Lord’s Day, which should be celebrated and not include fasting. Interesting enough, the day before (Tuesday) is known as Mardi Gras (French for Fat Tuesday or Carnival). Essentially, it is a day to engorge yourself and get as much out of your system before the fasting begins. Lent is not in the scriptures, but in many languages actually means “fast”. There are some Christians who practice the Lenten season and many that do not. The most famous is New Orleans and their Mardi Gras celebrations.

Palm Sunday is the Sunday before Easter Day (representing Jesus’ last journey to Jerusalem, when people cut and spread palm branches along his path). In England, it was called Fig Sunday, because traditionally people ate fig pies and puddings. In Wales, it was called Sul y Blodau, meaning Flowering Sunday.

The week leading to Easter is called the Holy Week; which includes Maundy Thursday (commemorating Jesus’ last supper),

Good Friday (the trial and crucifixion), Holy Saturday (the transition between the crucifixion and resurrection,

Easter Day (commemorating the resurrection), Easter Monday (a day of celebration), and then Eastertide or Pentecost (50 day’s after Easter Sunday celebrating his ascension to heaven).

In the Council of Nicaea (A.D. 325), Constantine decreed that the Cross-would be the official symbol of Christianity and not just the symbol of the crucifixion. Many religions, including the Catholic Church don’t just use the crucifixion as a symbol of Easter, but a symbol of their faith. There are those like the LDS, that choose not to use the cross to constantly be reminded of the death of christ and choose to focus on his life.

So there you have the religious side of Easter, but what about the Easter Bunny and painted eggs?

The Easter Bunny has become a very predominant figure of Easter over the years and the tradition of it bringing goodies and presents on Easter Sunday seems to have over shadowed the real meaning. Rabbits are known to be prolific procreators (ever heard of “breeding like rabbits”?) and are the ancient symbol of fertility and new life. The Saxons used the rabbit as the earthly symbol of the goddess Eastre.

Some say it first arrived in America in the 1700s with German immigrants that settled in Pennsylvania. Who also brought their tradition of the Easter Bunny (Osterhase or Oschter Haws). The children believed that if they were good the “Oshter Haws” (Easter Bunny) would lay coloured eggs. The children would make nests/baskets in which the “Easter Bunny” could lay its eggs for them.

The Egg is an obvious symbol of new life and has been part of ancient/pagan beliefs for 1000s of years. The Christian interpretation is that the egg represents Jesus emergence from the tomb and resurrection. Decorating the eggs is a tradition dating back to the 13th century. One explanation is that eggs were forbidden during the Lenten season, so people decorated and painted them to mark the end of their fasting and penance, eating them on Easter to celebrate. Different cultures have different ways of decorating Easter eggs. My personal favourite are Ukrainian eggs.

Second to Halloween, Easter is the second largest confectionary holiday of each year. I totally agree with it, I love Cadbury cream eggs and mini eggs. Also another interesting thing about Easter is like other holidays, are the songs. Of course there are church hymns that are sung each year, but my personal childhood favourite was “Here comes Peter Cottontail”.

There you have it. I used a few different sources that I've listed below. If your a really into it. The holiday spot has a TON of great info you could read up on if you want.

Sources:

www.history.com

www.phancypages.com

www.theholidayspot.com

Happy Earth Day!

2011-04-22T14:15:00.002-06:00

It seems that Earth Day falls on the same day as Good Friday. For those of us who are religious, I think it's hard to remember to celebrate both. I know I regularly forget about Earth Day and have wondered why we celebrate it on Good Friday.

So how did Earth Day come about? There's actually quite a bit of debate on this topic, but this is what I gather. A peace activist by the name of John McConnell presented the idea of a global Earth Day in 1969. He chose the March equinox (the day spring begins in the northern hemisphere and autumn in the southern hemisphere) as the day to universally celebrate our earth. He presented the idea at UNESCO's conference on man and his environment, which led to the signing of a Earth Day proclamation by UN Secretary General U Thant in 1971. Now, Earth Day is celebrated on April 22; however, the UN celebrates each year in March with an Earth Day ceremony at the UN peace bell. Ringing the bell when spring begins followed by 2 minutes of silence. For more information on John McConnell go here. Now for the reason it's celebrated in April.

In 1963, Senator Gaylord Nelson persuaded President Kennedy to focus on the national natural environment by going on a conservation tour. Although, not fully completing it or being able to make the environment a national political issue, he states this was the beginning. Senator Nelson noticed the success of protests and teach-ins and thought this would work with his issue. In 1969, he sent letters to governors, mayors, and schools stating that his national teach-in would be held in the spring of 1970. The passing of the NEPA (National Environment Policy Act, New Years Day 1970) by President Nixon helped his cause tremendously. On April 22, 1970, thousands gathered together in the support this issue and the first Earth Day was held, leading to the creation of the United States Environmental Protection Agency. For more information on these facts go here. I personally believe it is possible for two complete strangers to have the same idea. Even though Senator Nelson gets the credit. I personally believe they both had a hand in the creation of Earth Day.

There are two good websites to check out; the United States Environmental Protection Agency and Earth Day Canada. Both sites have great information on Earth Day stuff and how we can GO GREEN! Which has got me thinking about what I can do to make a difference and the film An Inconvenient Truth. Although, I sorta have mixed feelings about Al Gore, I think the film is brilliant and scary as hell! Yes I think it is as scary as I imagine hell to be. If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it.

I'm not sure what I will do, I suppose being more aware of the Three R's (Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle). I know I wont give things up like meat, buying things, or watching TV. However, there are things that I can do to be a better consumer. Being aware of the meat I am purchasing, contemplating a purchase more before hand, and making sure that the electronics aren't always on. The above links have some other really good ideas you can check out too, so what will you do?

I Love Swamp People and Glee!

2011-04-19T03:25:00.002-06:00

Yes I've been watching more TV. It's so weird for me because we were with out it for so long and now I can't get enough. I do still have a hard time sitting through commercials but I'm willing to do it for my favorite shows. Recently I have rekindled my passion for the History channel. I also love E!, TLC, CW and A&E. Anyways, I've discovered a show called Swamp People. It basically follows a couple of different teams of hunters, who hunt alligators during the alligator season in Louisiana. Most hunt for the money and to help maintain the alligator population and there are some that hunt to relocate. I find it extremely entertaining and informative. It just started it's second season which is a must see. My whole families into it, isn't that cute? Every Thursday I sit down with all of my sisters and watch it, sometimes my brother and dad are there if not they catch it online later.

The other show I LOVE is GLEE!!!!!!!!!! (because I live in Canada there are some things that wont work from the official Fox site so here is the Glee site for Global TV in Canada).Who would have known, I guess that would be my BFFL Chase. Who's been trying to get me to watch it forever (well for as long as I've known him). I've never watched it because lets face it I hated about 95% of high school and didn't want to watch a show about it. However, the 5% I liked was because of my art classes, choir, going to Disneyland for choir, being on student council in 12th grade, and being an editor of the Yearbook.

Singing was a big part of my high school experience. It pushed me to not be as shy, although I could NEVER do a solo that terrified me too much, and I was absolutely fine with standing in the back. I ventured into community theater and did a few independent productions as well as Handles Messiah one year for Christmas, which is extremely challenging as a soprano.

What I love about Glee is how much GLEE it gives me. Yes, it does deal with a lot of teenage and high school drama. However, I believe it is very relevant and true to what the high school experience is really like. I do love the fact that all of these kids do what they love regardless of what other people think of them because of it. I think the show has a lot of really great messages for people and I just love the corporation of music into our everyday lives. I just LOVE IT! I love it so much I'm working on a slide show in photo bucket I'll add later.

My New Favourite Blog

2011-04-12T22:13:00.003-06:00

I recently discovered a new blog called Oh, Hello Friends that I absolutely adore. I was searching images and web buttons for my side bar and came across some super cute blank ones from her site that I uploaded to photo bucket and then edited myself. I honestly can't get enough of her site she is adorable. It's full of super cute photos, personal stuff, and crafty things. Thanks for such cute ideas!

I Am In Love With Mia Michaels Choreography

2011-03-26T13:17:00.011-06:00

I was sitting around flipping through channels on Thursday and came across the third season of So You Think You Can Dance Canada. I've mentioned in an earlier post how much I love dance films and shows on TV so I started watching. The opening number was one choreographed by Mia Michaels, who always does some of the most breath taking numbers. It was to Will I from Rent (I LOVE Rent!). It was so good I got goosebumps and so I've decided to share it and devote an entire post to my most favourite Mia Michaels numbers. I tried to find the best versions available, some of them have clips of the actual show that you can skip through. If you want to check out all of her routines there is a really good break down at Wikipedia.

Season 2 of SYTYCD

(she won an Emmy for this)

Season 3

Season 4

(nominated for an emmy)

Season 5

Season 7

SYTYCD Canada
Season 2

Season 3

MY FAV

I'm Finally Working

2011-03-24T15:22:00.007-06:00

My OPT work visa expired the middle of October while we were living in the US. It took us a month to close everything up, pack, and get ready to leave. We were going to have a party and try and see all our friends, but it didn't really work out that way. We moved back to Canada at the end of November and have been looking for work ever since.

Looking for work sucks. I've been blessed enough in my life that the majority of jobs I've received I've got through friends or family and people my family or I know. I've dropped off so many resumes, faxed, and emailed them. I've called every medical clinic in the phone book, searched online, and in the paper. I've got a couple of interviews but each was for a receptionist in the clinic so I pretty much came to the conclusion that I won't really be working in my field here and will have to go back to school. Not that I really know what I want to pursue or do.

My mom spoke with a friend of ours and her husbands Chiropractic clinic was looking so I sent him a copy of my resume. I didn't know that he became a part of another company so when I was called in for an interview I didn't realize it was for him. After three interviews, I was hired and started part-time this week as a CA (a clinic assistant). Although, I'm not assisting a doctor with procedures or specimens. I am working on the other aspect of medical assisting which includes billing, scheduling pts and so forth. So I'm excited and nervous all at the same time.

I Just Can't Get Enough of Adele

2011-03-19T01:19:00.003-06:00

Lately I just can't seem to get enough of Adele. I hope you've all heard her, because I've been singing this song for weeks. Of course my little sister had a bunch of her songs and Chelse and I had no idea about her in the States so for the last few months we've got all caught up I guess you could say. She really is great and I just love the video. Enjoy!

Fossil Handbag Inspired Desk

2011-03-15T16:10:00.028-06:00

I can officially say that I have completed refinishing my desk. I purchased a desk from DI (Deseret Industries) a second hand store in Utah for $25.00 about 2 years ago. When we moved to our friend Brandee's place we brought it along instead of donating it, because I just loved it and planed to take it back to Canada with me. I had a cream coloured vintage chair stored at home that would go with it perfectly.

Chelsea bought me this super cute hand bag from Fossil (which by the way is one of my favourite things) for my birthday last year and I just loved the colours. I was looking around Anthropologie one day, with this super cute bag and came across their drawer knobs and fell in love with a couple that matched my bag. Then it hit me, I could paint my desk similar colours, use my bag as inspiration, and buy Anthropologie hand knobs. It was perfect! I received a 15% off coupon from Anthro on my birthday and could use it for the knobs (cue angelic voices). Yes, Anthropologie is relatively expensive, however; when I looked other places they weren't nearly as nice and the prices were pretty expensive too. I did read on a blog recently that Hobby Lobby sells pretty nice drawer knobs that are similar to Anthros and cheaper, so if you live in the states check it out.

There wasn't a lot of space at Brandee's to work on such a big project so I waited till we moved home. I've been going out to my dad's work with him for a couple days for the last few weeks and finally finished it last night.

It started off a little rough. I was going to peal the laminate off the top and just stain the wood, but I realized it was just particle board and had to change the whole idea. I didn't want to paint the whole desk the same colour and so I found some wood veneer at Lowe's and thought that would work nice, but the guy there I asked questions to told me the wrong info. So for your information when you use a wood veneer it is very dry so you have to be very careful when you handle it. Luckily the roll was long enough, because the first bit I cut to match got nicked and a small piece about an inch was pealed off that was needed to cover the top. So I put it aside and used the other piece.

I didn't strip the paint, I just sanded it down and used a primer before applying the Martha Stewart inspired colour (Duck egg or Hummingbird I can't remember). Once that was done I worked on the navy blue details on the drawers.

Then it was time for the wood veneer, but just for your information you can't use WATER BASED Contact Cement (I just bought the one he said to) and you can't just use your hands to smooth it out or a rolling pin you need at least a 50 lbs roller. Needless to say our first attempt was a disaster and so I had to peal it off and sand it down. Luckily, I didn't discard the first piece, I just knew I had to be very careful with it.

After we purchased the right contact cement (which my dad had to get for his work so I didn't have to buy it) and rented a 100 lbs roller for $23.00. I had my dad, sister, brother, and me attach the wood piece and roll it out. I waited for a day just to make sure it stuck. Then I cut around the detail in the front, sanded it down, stained it, then used a clear coat on the drawers and rest of desk except the top, did the paint detail work on the front, and then clear coated the rest.

Of course I ended up spending more money on it then I wanted too;
Desk-$25.00US

Primer-Free (used some of my parents).
Paint, Clear coat, and Stain-$36.97 US
Anthropologie Knobs-$58.00 US
Paintbrushes and Exacto-knife-$20.98 CAN
Wood Filler, Sand paper, Wood Veneer, and Contact Cement-$49.31 CAN
Roller rental-$25.41 CAN
Detail paint-Free (used some of my moms).

=$215.67 (I didn't figure out US/CAN exchange)
However, I suppose if I were to purchase a desk like this already made from Anthropologie or somewhere else I'd be looking more at almost a thousand I think. Now all I have to do is decide what to do with the chair I have.

Pride and Prejudice is One of My Favourite Things

2011-03-02T00:27:00.225-07:00

I absolutely LOVE Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. I just love the complexity of the characters and how much of a ball buster Elizabeth is. I love that Darcy and Elizabeth make judgments based on their first impressions and end up totally wrong. It just goes to show, no matter how many times I personally judge someone I could be totally wrong. I love that Jane Austen never got married, that the majority of her characters are older, and that she puts a lot of her own personal experience into her books. I really do love all of Jane Austen books, and would love to see all of her historic sites in Europe one day. Not only have I read the book multiple times, but I also own both the 1995 BBC and the 2005 version, not to mention a few of the spin offs. I've watched the 2005 version so many times I have two copies for when one breaks down.

I love the manners, gentleness, behaviors, and cleverness of that era. There's just something romantic and magical about the way they lived, dressed, spoke, wrote, and treated one another. I know that it wasn't an ideal world/society for many reasons, duh, I'm not a total idiot. I just wish that we didn't loose that with all the advancements we've made in the years with woman's/human rights, evolution, and technology. That's why I escape into my favorite period books or movies, to get a taste of what it would have been like. I've learned to love blogging for part of that reason. I feel like I keep writing alive within myself and can express what I think and how I feel without judgment. It's like I'm writing letters to myself and my friends and there's nothing like getting a great letter sometimes. I know I don't have the best grammar or vocabulary and I switch between Canadian and American spelling all the time (I know I'm a confused individual!). Sometimes I think that human beings would be much better off if technology didn't exist. Without spell check, texting, msm, myspace, and facebooking; however, I have to think of what we would lose if we didn't have it. It really is a catch 22 scenario.

With technology taking over the way we communicate with one another, we really are losing something special. We lose the ability to properly construct sentences, write beautiful letters, understand and spell words correctly, develop wide ranges of vocabulary, speak eloquently and properly, read body language and facial expressions, use tact when talking with people, and to meet new people in social settings. Meeting new people is so much more difficult now a days when you can just chat or date online.

There are a lot of people who don't like period films for various reasons. My brother has asked me before why I like them and all I could think of was because I just do. I LOVE PERIOD FILMS! I guess it's because so many women long for just a small portion of that era. When ladies were ladies and men were gentlemen. When you got all dolled up and wore beautiful gowns. When social settings were balls or visiting people for months. When people did what they said they would do. When women were accomplished and talented and men were respectful. When people spoke to one another with respect and cordiality.

Anyways, I love both P&P films; the 1995 BBC version and the 2005 version directed by Joe Wright. This is my FAV P&P Blog, based on the 2005 film. It is constantly updated and has a great selection of pictures and stuff to look at. There is also a great French website here devoted to Kiera Knightly that has a great selection of pictures from the film. I also love this site that has a ton of stills from the film and Breakfast at Tiffany's which has picture collages of certain scenes in the film. When you buy the deluxe 2005 version on DVD, you get a interactive booklet. I actually found it online here, which is really interesting.

I know that the 1995 version is more realistic to the book and the era of costumes, but I just can't choose which one I like better because both are awesome. There is a great Russian website devoted to pictures from BBC period films and they have about 5 pages of good quality pics from the 1995 BBC version here. It was really difficult to find photos of all three movies, in fact, it took me about a week. So I've created a photobucket album for all three films so that all my hard work doesn't go to waste and now you can check them out (1995 P&P, 2005 P&P, and Lost in Austen).

Of course you should already know how much I love period films. I wish I could get away with wearing dresses and clothing like this all the time without being put in the loony bin. The Costumers Guide has a great break down of the costumes in the 2005 version, Elegance of Fashion has a great entry on costumes from 1995, and Pride and Prejudice Costumes breaks down costumes from both films. The Enchanted Serenity of Period Films has a great blog about recycled fashion including some costumes from the P&P films. Of course one of the things on my bucket list is to visit the Jane Austen's House Museum but also the Film and Fashion museum in Bath.

You can find some great Jane Austen quotes here. Some of my favourite P&P quotes are along the side bar of my blog, but here are some more; "Vanity and pride are different things, though the words are often used synonymously...pride relates more to our opinion of ourselves, vanity to what we would have others think of us." "To be fond of dancing was a certain step towards falling in love." "I could easily forgive his pride, if he had not mortified mine." "A girl likes to be crossed a little in love now and then. It is something to think of." "Laugh as much as you choose, but you will not laugh me out of my opinion." "The more I see of the world, the more I am dissatisfied with it." "Till this moment I never knew myself." "There is a stubbornness about me that never can bear to be frightened at the will of others. My courage always rises at every attempt to intimidate me." "I am only resolved to act in that manner, which will, in my own opinion, constitute my happiness, without reference to you, or to any person so wholly unconnected with me." "what are men to rocks and mountains?" "A lady's imagination is very rapid; it jumps from admiration to love, from love to matrimony in a moment."

There have also been a few P&P spin-offs like Bridget Jones Diary (with Colin Firth), Clueless, Bride and Prejudice, Pride and Prejudice-A Latterday Comedy, and my favorite Lost in Austen. Lost in Austen is actually the closest spin-off to the book in my opinion. It basically takes a modern girl (Amanda Price) who loves the story and somehow switches places with Elizabeth Bennett in the bathroom of her apartment. The story basically follows what happens because of the switch. Elizabeth isn't really the heroine in this version and kind of takes a back seat to Amanda Price as she finds her self in the 'real' fictional world of Pride and Prejudice. It's full of fun interesting twists, all the things you could imagine if a modern girl time traveled to that era. If you haven't seen it, I would defiantly recommend it although I don't think it's entirely appropriate for children. There are a few suggestive things in this version that I thought were funny and also cleaver, but could also offend some people.

So let's compare all the characters, there is a good website called My Pride and Prejudice that focuses on the book and characters. My favourite P&P site has a great breakdown of the 2005 characters here.
The Characters and Cast

Jane Bennet

1995 BBC Miniseries P&P- Susannah Harker
2005 P&P- Rosamund Pike
2008 Lost in Austen- Morven Christie
Elizabeth Bennet

1995 BBC Miniseries P&P- Jennifer Ehle
2005 P&P- Keira Knightley
2008 Lost in Austen- Gemma Arterton
(Amanda Price's Character switches places- Jemima Rooper)
Mary Bennet

1995 BBC Miniseries P&P- Lucy Briers
2005 P&P- Talulah Riley
2008 Lost in Austen- Ruby Bentall
Catherine (Kitty) Bennet

1995 BBC Miniseries P&P- Polly Maberly

2005 P&P- Carey Mulligan

2008 Lost in Austen- Florence Hoath

Lydia Bennet

1995 BBC Miniseries P&P- Julia Sawalha
2005 P&P- Jena Malone
2008 Lost in Austen- Perdita Weeks
Mrs. Bennet

1995 BBC Miniseries P&P- Alison Steadman
2005 P&P- Brenda Blethyn
2008 Lost in Austen- Alex Kingston
Mr. Bennet

1995 BBC Miniseries P&P- Benjamin Whitrow
2005 P&P- Donald Sutherland
2008 Lost in Austen- Hugh Bonneville
Mr. Collins

1995 BBC Miniseries P&P- David Bamber
2005 P&P- Tom Hollander
2008 Lost in Austen- Guy Henry
Mr and Mrs. Gardiner

1995 BBC Miniseries P&P- Tim Wylton and Joanna David
2005 P&P- Peter Wight and Penelope Wilton
Mr. George Wickham

1995 BBC Miniseries P&P- Adrian Lukis
2005 P&P- Rupert Friend
2008 Lost in Austen- Tom Riley
Charlotte Lucas

1995 BBC Miniseries P&P-
2005 P&P- Claudie Blakley
2008 Lost in Austen- Michelle Duncan
Charles Bingley

1995 BBC Miniseries P&P-Crispin Bonham
2005 P&P- Simon Woods
2008 Lost in Austen-Tom Mison
Caroline Bingley

1995 BBC Miniseries P&P- Anna Chancellor
2005 P&P- Kelly Reilly
2008 Lost in Austen- Cristina Cole
Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy

1995 BBC Miniseries P&P- Colin Firth
2005 P&P- Matthew Macfadyen
2008 Lost in Austen- Elliot Cowan
Georgiana Darcy

1995 BBC Miniseries P&P- Emilia Fox
2005 P&P- Tamzin Merchant
2008 Lost in Austen- Genevieve Gaunt

Lady Catherine de Bourgh

1995 BBC Miniseries P&P- Barbara Leigh-Hunt
2005 P&P- Judi Dench
2008 Lost in Austen- Lindsay Duncan
The Couples
Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy

(Amanda Price switches places with Elizabeth and falls for Mr. Darcy)
Jane and Mr. Bingley

(Jane and Mr. Collins get married in Lost in Austen)
Lydia and Mr. Wickham

(Lydia runs away with Mr. Bingly in Lost in Austen)
Charlotte and Mr.Collins

In closing, there is a fun quiz that you can do here to determine what Jane Austen character you are. I did it twice just for good measure. The first time I just picked the first thing that seamed like me and the second, I thought harder about what my choices were going to be and chose what I thought to be the best answer. So I ended up getting two different people, of which, I don't know who I'm most like. Both sound very close to me except a few things under lizzy I don't agree with, such as I am defiantly not tremendously beautiful or proficient in many things.

You are Elinor Dashwood of Sense & Sensibility! You are practical, circumspect, and discreet. Though you are tremendously sensible and allow your head to rule, you have a deep, emotional side that few people often see.

You are Elizabeth Bennet of Pride & Prejudice! You are intelligent, witty, and tremendously attractive. You have a good head on your shoulders, and oftentimes find yourself the lone beacon of reason in a sea of ridiculousness. You take great pleasure in many things. You are proficient in nearly all of them, though you will never own it. Lest you seem too perfect, you have a tendency toward prejudgment that serves you very ill indeed.

Anthropologie DIY Projects Part 3: Random

2011-02-25T16:37:00.003-07:00

So I've found a few more sites with great DIY anthropologie projects. If I was smarter, I would be keeping track of all the different things I put in the search engine so I don't keep finding and looking at the same stuff. Oh well, lucky for all of you I've had so much extra time on my hands.

P.S if you find anything I haven't please feel free to include a link.

Multiple items to check out

http://knockoffdecor.com/

http://www.rufflesandstuff.com/2009/08/tutorials.html

Mugs

http://www.designmom.com/2010/11/diy-monogram-mugs/

Decor

http://www.thesweetestoccasion.com/2011/02/diy-felt-garland/

http://retropolitanhip.blogspot.com/2011/01/anthro-knock-off-paper-mache-zebra-bust.html

http://www.purlbee.com/swatch-portraits/

http://sewhomegrown.blogspot.com/2011/01/diy-springtablecloth.html

Lights

http://itstoilegood.blogspot.com/2010/08/wanna-be.html

Jewelry

http://stitchinmysideregan.blogspot.com/2010/11/make-leather-pendant-necklace-anthro.html

Tops

http://stitchinmysideregan.blogspot.com/p/tutorials.html

http://thecrimsonowl.blogspot.com/2010/07/anthro-knock-off-tutorial.html

http://www.rufflesandstuff.com/2010/06/petal-tees-tutorial.html

And don’t forget to check out their new wedding dress collection at http://bhldn.com/

More Time Well Spent...

2011-02-20T16:11:00.013-07:00

As promised, I have finished a few other TV series as I continue my LACK of job issue. Oh poo! My brothers purchase of Netflix has proven to be both useful and disappointing. However, because of it we found a show called;

Dead Like Me which only lasted for 2 seasons (2004-2006) and I found out that after it was canceled they released a movie in 2009 called Dead Like Me-Life After Death, which I haven't been able to find and watch so that sucks. I found it on Netflix, but the thing is, they only allow so many things to be available at a time and who knows when it will be available. Anyways, it's basically about people who have died who have now become grim reapers. We liked it and were sad when it ended. The best info I could find on it was at Wikipedia.

Now for the reason it is disappointing. My sister and I LOVE Dog the Bounty Hunter and have for a while now. When we were going to school, sometimes it was literally the only thing that got us through and I'm not even exaggerating! Anyways, Netflix had 5 seasons so we were super excited to watch them cause we missed a lot the last few years. To our dismay, we realized after the Fifth volume that Netflix didn't have the complete seasons. We even compared what was listed on the Internet and what was available on Netflix and there were over 20 episodes throughout the 5 volumes missing. BLEEEERRRRGGGG!!!!!!!!
So now we are just coping. Our dreams have been shattered and my heart is bleeding. Well not really. Chelsea is so obsessed, god bless her, she made a spread sheet on her computer so we can track them. Laugh all you want, but when it comes to DOG we are not kidding. Luckily, one good thing about living at home is they have CABLE! Whoot! Whoot! So like big old nerds, nerding out we've started checking the marathons on Wednesdays before the new episode airs to see if any of the one's we've missed are playing and then have the satisfaction of not only watching that episode but crossing it off our list:)

Oh and another issue. I'm now on the fourth season of HEROES and it's really hit or miss if I can get it loaded. I could already be finished the series, but if it won't load there's nothing I can do. Other than that, HEROES is CRAZY. It is so intense I don't know how they would have been able to keep making episodes, where would they have gone with it? Anyways, LOVE LOVE LOVE that series and how could you go wrong with so many cute dudes?

100 Indie/Alternative Love Songs

2011-02-12T13:28:00.003-07:00

Of course this play list is already included in my play list label (although I only have two posted right now, the others still need a little work).
It's a compilation of most of my favorite Indie/Alternative love songs. There were a lot of songs I didn't include because I couldn't find them, the only one I can think of off the top of my head right now is Juliet by Royal Wood and a few by Sarah Slean. Anyways, this play list is full of songs that I would expect to hear if I was sitting in a coffee shop or at some artsy cafe. Of course a play list of Country, Pop, Classical, or Rock love songs could be made as well, but this is more of what I like. Happy Valentines Day!

I'm a Day Dream Believer

2011-02-07T21:02:00.013-07:00

In High School I had a friend that wrote this poem out for me. I found it among some random stuff and felt like sharing it. I also included a copy of one of my favorite paintings called Midsummer Eve by Edward Robert Hughes.

Dreams come through the darkness in swirls of colorful blends,

with their boundless visions upon us they descend.

Would there ever have been a pot of gold or leprechauns to guard them true?

Would children have feared the wicked witch as she cackled and stirred her brew?

Winged wonder "Pegasus," the unicorn, fairies, trolls, and clues

would never have graced the pages of the story books that line our shelves.

Perhaps the greatest thing we would have lost, is the concept of passionate love,

the connection of a gentle kiss with the flight of turtle doves.

Take heart, oh friend, take heart...weaver's of charms still live,

with their magic wands and mystical spells new worlds they still can give...

Purple dinosaurs can dance a waltz as the stars have noble wars,

enterprising captains still engage the unknown and uncharted course...

"Let's see what's out there," they say.

Lord of the Dance, tells us a fairy-tail with the regimented clicks of heels,

broadway clouds us with fantasy, film entwines us within the surreal.

Did you ever know that a cat could sing or talk?...No! Nor did I!

But the dreamers bring these things to life and we never question why.

Touch me with your words my poet...melt away my soul,

make me feel the charms of youth as I feel myself grow old.

Please share with me emotional bliss and relive pains I cannot bear,

express through words what I cannot...show me how to care.

Without the ones that dream it seems we would have no realities to live.

So next time you hear some one say about a child "He daydreams too much," this argument is one to give...

That car you drive, the song you sing, the meal you so enjoy, carnivals and fashion trends that transforming morphing toy.

All of them are daydreams that came into some ones mind,

so maybe we all should daydream more so solutions we can find.

There's a lot of things that need fixing and only the dreams can see the cure's...

life is but a dream. - Author Unknown

Time Well Spent or Time Well Wasted?

2011-01-31T14:49:00.024-07:00

Well ladies it is official, I have been home in Canada for 2 1/2 months and still haven't found a job. I've called all the clinics in the phone book faxed and emailed resumes. I've applied online to a bank. Watched jobs on the web and paper and found nothing. Dropped resumes off at the mall and started applying for jobs not even in my field. Hopefully by mid February I'll have a few interviews and a job.

As you can imagine I am quite bored. Of course I spend most of my days watching our three foster babies, cleaning, and doing laundry. Ya it's not really my responsibility, but I am living at home for free right now. So as frustrating as it can be, I still need to do something. I have used a lot of time or wasting a lot of time watching a few TV series.

First: I've watched 30 Rock. I borrowed the fist 4 seasons from my bud and loved it. Tina Fay is so funny and I just laugh and laugh. My sisters have even caught a few episodes and now we quote three things constantly. Bleerg! What the what? and This can eat my poop! One fun thing, is to watch to see what Frank's trucker hat will say, because every episode it says something new and totally random. A super awesome surprise was when Michael Sheen guest stared as Weesley. If your an avid reader of my blog you would know how much I love him and that I've met him before. So all in all this is a great series if you are a fan of SNL when Tina was still on it.

Second: I never thought that I would LOVE a cartoon series, especially an anime one. However, I LOVE Avatar the Last Air-bender (2005-2008), check out that link for a synopsis and a full cast and credits. You can also check out a great fan site here and the official Nickelodeon site. Every night for the last few weeks my brother Aaron, my sister Chelsea and I watch a few episodes. I saw the movie in the theater and thought it was good and then about a month ago Aaron rented it and loved it. I was talking with my bestie and she said she hated the movie because it wasn't really like the original and called M. Night Shyamalan a racist. After watching the series, I understand what she means, I'd say the movie is only about 45-55% of what the cartoon actually is. The cartoon version is so absolutely addictive, funny, cute, and intense. After about the first few episodes. I recognized the voice of Prince Zuko, I got all excited and asked my siblings if they knew and they didn't, and I yelled "it's RUFIO!" Yup, the actor Dante Basco from Hook. So I would recommend this to EVERYONE even people in there late 20s.

Aang, the Avatar-Zach Tyler

Katara, water bender- Mae Whitman (who also plays Bernice in Hope Floats and is the voice of Tinker Bell)

Sokka, Katara's brother- Jack De Sena

Toph, earth and metal bender-Jessie Flower

Prince Zuko, fire bender-Dante Basco. Read is own blog called My Take on Life.

I am currently finished the third season of Dexter, the third season of Dog the Bounty Hunter, the first season of Hero's, and working on a series called Dead Like Me. Once I've finished them I'll write about them too.

Ice Magic Festival 2011

2011-01-28T17:13:00.031-07:00

My siblings. my sisters boyfriend, and I drove up to Banff Lake Louis last weekend for The Ice Magic Festival. It was really fun. It took about 2 hours to get there and the parking was crazy, but we all had a great time. We found parking pretty fast at the bottom of the mountain, but then had to wait about an hour for a bus to take us up to the hotel/ski resort. Like usual I fell, I am such a klutz and I'm always falling. I slipped on the sidewalk when I stepped outside of the bus, but it wasn't to bad.

The only thing I regret is that we didn't know there was a pond/lake right outside where the ice sculptures were and we could have brought our skates. This was the first time any of us has attended an ice festival and it was totally worth it.

The Ice Castle on the pond and the Ice Bar.

The festival winner, Precarious Predicament aka Harry Potter!

Dragons dancing in the moonlight by candlelight. This one was awesome, I have no idea how they did all the bubbles as his scales.

Hyacynthie the fragrant, warm fairy. This was a beautiful sculpture but the fairy was naked and her boobs were so huge they were distracting everyone, that's why there's no photo straight on.

This was my second favorite. I just love the puzzle brains.

It is so incredible that people can make these works of art out of ICE! It's totally crazy, especially when there's a sculpture within the sculpture. It just blew my mind. I really loved the totem poll ones with puzzles for brains it was crazy. Our over all favorite was the one with Harry Potter. I found a great site with some gorgeous pics from the festival at Photography by Ginevre.

After we walked through all the sculptures we left and headed back toward Banff. We window shopped which is always fun and then we headed up to the Banff Hot springs. The road conditions out there were not good, they don't really get plowed. So as we were driving up the hill it was pretty slick and some IDIOT two cars in front of us stopped on a hill and started to pull a U turn in the middle of a two lane road. Oh my gosh! were on a freaking hill/mountain here dude. I honked like three times. I'm sorry but who does that. Needless to say we were stuck, I had to let my brother try and we backed down the hill into a turn to get some momentum and we got there. Craziness.

Sofia Coppola's Marie Antoinette is One of my Favorite Things

2011-01-21T20:51:00.037-07:00

I absolutely love this movie. It came out in 2006 and Sony still supports the website . It is a little different, as in it has a more modern feel. The soundtrack is awesome a little more alternative/indie then what you would expect from a period film.

Even though Kristen Dunst is American and doesn't use an accent in the film, I still love it and she does a great job embodying Marie. If you know me, you know that I love period films and costumes.

This film is basically eye candy! The costumes, makeup, hair, and interior shots are so unreal. The color schemes are gorgeous. Sometimes I just watch the movie to look at everything and I don't even pay attention. The above photo is a color palette that was used for the costumes and meant to match the color of the pastries. The pastries for the film were provided by a company called Ladurée in Paris France, who are known for their colorful and delicious macaroons. They've also been featured in a few episodes of Gossip Girl.

I have so many pictures from this film and I was going to break down all of the costumes, but I'm not going to because one of my favorite sites already has The Costumer's Guide to Movie Costumes is AWESOME. It breaks down 65 of Kristen Dunst's costumes for Marie and it includes some miscellaneous shots. Based on their numbers, my favourites are; #8, 10, 21, 22, 24, 25, 28, 31, 37, 41, 42,55, and 59. You can also find a lot of the original photo shoot pics at KristenDunst.org. There is a great article about Marie Antoinette and a small blerb about the movie called What Marie Antoinette Really Wore.

There was also an incredible feature in Vouge magazine in 2006. To see all the amazing photos shot by Annie Leibovitz go here. I've also include a few clips that were shot for a behind the scenes look at her life.

The Hair and makeup are just awesome. So I've included some great pics of Kristen's hair. There are so many people that worked on this, that I'm just including the IMBD link. To see larger versions of these pics just click on the pic.

Regina Specktor

2011-01-20T16:37:00.011-07:00

I just love Regina Spektor. I think it's this whole indie thing she has going on, she reminds me a lot of Sarah Slean (who I have blogged about in the past) and a little bit of Ingrid Michelson (who I will write about another time). She seems very quirky and fun like her music. I love almost all of her songs and her fun lyrics. I think any talented female artist who writes their own songs and can play the piano is worth my time, money, and affection. I just wish that I've seen her live, I've heard she is fantastic. So to little your ear drums I've included a link to her page on Youtube. I can't embed any of her videos to my site so check out my favorite songs; Fidelity, Us, Eet, and Music Box.

New Art

2011-01-19T17:15:00.003-07:00

I've been meaning to add this for awhile and just haven't. I did this monkey for my aunt and uncle as a thank you. While living in the USA, I was too old to be under my dad's health insurance like Chelsea and I didn't have dental. My uncle is a dentist so if I had an emergency I could see him and he'd just write it off, which happened a couple of times and I was really grateful.

It's to go along with her jungle theme in the basement. It's made from black charcoal, brown conte chalk, and green pastel chalk.

Dance Movies and Adam G. Sevani

2011-01-11T20:20:00.006-07:00

I don't know what it is about dance movies but I love them. It could be because I can't dance. I love Save the Last Dance, Take the Lead, all the Step Up films. I love watching So You Think You Can Dance and Americas Next Dance Crew, which is saying a lot because I don't really like very many reality TV shows.

Now there is one person in particular that we love (that would be me and my sisters) and that's the actor who plays Moose, Adam G. Sevani. There isn't a lot of information on him on the net. The link on his name is to IMBD. We all think the way he dances is AWESOME, really mind blowing actually. I do know about 2 years ago he and Miley Cyrus had a dance battle back and forth on Youtube and then in 2008 they settled it on the Teen Choice Awards where Miley won, which I think is stupid. I couldn't really find any dances other then a few from the Step Up movies. There are some dances we like a lot that I was able to find on YouTube.

Step Up 2 videos

Step Up 3D videos

Anthropologie DIY Projects Part 2: Accessories and Clothing

2011-01-01T22:38:00.010-07:00

Alright so Part 1 took a really long time because I added all the photos. I'm just not going to do that this time. I have separated all of the categories so you don't have to sift through them as much. If one site had more than five good Anthro DIY projects I got the link for you to check out yourself. There are two. These are by far my favorite ones. Made By Lex, is one of my favorite sites. She has so many refashioned clothes and tutorials. You will have to search under both categories. The other one is called Welcome to the Good Life. I've linked it right to all of the Anthro inspired tutorials, but it wouldn't hurt to search through it yourself.

JEWELRY/ACCESSORIES
http://lifeasapepin.blogspot.com/2010/12/easy-knock-off-craft-anthropologie.html

http://tatertotsandjello.blogspot.com/2010/12/guest-project-anthropologie-inspired.html

http://tatertotsandjello.blogspot.com/2010/02/anthro-inspired-nautical-necklace.html

http://redpunzel.blogspot.com/2010/12/anthropologie-inspired.html

http://mrspriss.com/2010/11/08/diy-anthropologie-inspired-flag-bunting-necklace/

http://mrspriss.com/2010/02/18/dainty-flowers-for-your-hair-yeahhh-its-another-tutorial/

http://mrspriss.com/2010/02/01/headband-makeover-how-to-make-a-bow/

http://mrspriss.com/2010/01/12/anthropologie-bonheur-necklace-tutorial/

http://mrspriss.com/2009/09/03/anthropologie-floral-necklace-diy/

http://allforthispenny.blogspot.com/2010/01/zipper-rose-tutorial.html

http://www.flamingotoes.com/tutorials-2/

http://ohsohappytogether.blogspot.com/2009/08/todays-tutorial-rag-bag.html

http://raegunwear.blogspot.com/2010/01/anthropologie-inspired-rose-headband.html

http://shyshirley.blogspot.com/2010/08/free-people-inspired-diy-vintage-flower.html

http://www.craftstylish.com/item/72070/how-to-make-a-diy-anthropologie-inspired-pearl-necklace

http://mykotori.com/blog/2010/04/15/diy-anthropologie-curls-coils-necklace/

http://sewingin-nomansland.blogspot.com/2010/08/anthropologie-scarf-tutorial.html

http://www.kaylaksthriftyways.com/anthropologie-inspired-bobble-cable-ascot/

http://ruffledblog.com/diy-bridesmaid-necklace-satin-crystal-anthropologie/

http://stitchinmysideregan.blogspot.com/2010/11/make-leather-pendant-necklace-anthro.html

http://www.bowerpowerblog.com/2010/09/fabric-flower-headband-tutorial/

http://www.mandipidy.com/2010/08/anthropologie-necklace-knock-off.html

SKIRTS/DRESSES

http://rufflesandrosescrafts.blogspot.com/2010/08/summer-of-skirts-anthropologie-ruffled.html

http://www.yourhomebasedmom.com/anthropologie-inspired-sweater-skirt/

http://communingwithfabric.blogspot.com/2009/09/self-drafted-anthropologie-skirt.html

http://jemimabean.blogspot.com/2009/07/anthropologie-knockoff-skirt-story.html

http://www.bzzagent.com/ap/ApHome.do?action=framedetail&ident=diy-anthropologie-skirts

http://sewingin-nomansland.blogspot.com/2010/08/falling-leaves-dress-tutorial.html

SWEATERS

http://tatertotsandjello.blogspot.com/2010/02/15-minute-sweater-refashion-for-2.html

http://tatertotsandjello.blogspot.com/2009/08/creative-fridays-sweater-redo.html

http://mytwobutterflies.blogspot.com/2010/10/anthropologie-inspired-cardigan.html

http://jennygarland.com/2009/12/03/anthropologie-knock-off/

http://www.cutoutandkeep.net/projects/anthropologie-sweater

http://www.adventuresindressmaking.com/2010/06/diy-anthropologie-annika-cardigan.html

http://twilasvintage.fatcow.com/?p=1568

http://craftopiaonline.blogspot.com/2010/06/anthropologie-knock-off-using-free.html

TOPS

http://tatertotsandjello.blogspot.com/2010/08/4-tee-1-dollar-store-towel-fabulous.html

http://chewynoodles.blogspot.com/2010/12/anthropologie-knock-off-curtain-call.html

http://yellowblackbird.blogspot.com/2010/11/refashion-9-anthro-inspired-rose-shirt.html

http://yellowblackbird.blogspot.com/2010/08/refashion-6-anthro-inspired-blouse.html

http://designeronabudget.blogspot.com/2010/03/inspired-by-anthropologie-corsage-tee.html

http://www.finecraftguild.com/design-your-own-t-shirt-a-la-anthropologie/

http://simplyhandmadebypaige.blogspot.com/2010/12/anthropologie-style-ruffle-shirt.html

http://abigailscraftshowto.com/2010/06/smocking-how-to-dollar-store-tee-to-anthropologie-inspired-tank/

http://08melissab.blogspot.com/2010/05/anthropologie-diy.html

http://www.adventuresindressmaking.com/2010/10/long-sleeve-ruffle-trim-tee-tutorial.html

http://thehowtogal.blogspot.com/2010/06/make-anthropologie-inspired-tee-with.html

http://www.adventuresindressmaking.com/2010/03/anthropologies-patchwork-v-neck.html

http://www.onepearlbutton.com/2010/03/blog-swap-anthropologie-winding-road.html

http://nikkishell.typepad.com/wardroberefashion/2010/11/another-anthropologie-inspired-cardigan.html

http://shwinandshwin.blogspot.com/2010/11/anthropologie-inspired-top.html

http://thecrimsonowl.blogspot.com/2010/07/anthro-knock-off-tutorial.html

Anthropologie DIY Projects Part 1: Home, Beauty, and Holidays

2010-12-30T20:58:00.049-07:00

There are so many DIY projects that I found online, so I have to split them up into categories. I'm sure that I have missed a lot as well, so do me a favor and if you know of one not on my list please respond with the link. I haven't had the time to try them all out yet, but when I do I will blog about it, or just go back into the posts and add my comments. Here we go;

HOME

Apartment Therapy has some good ideas on how to copy 5 specific projects; suitcase side tables, upholstered folding chairs, over sized photos and framed fabric, numbered dresser, and indoor clothesline. All of which were taken from the January 2010 catalogue. They also have another affordable anthropology inspired article called Affordable Anthropologie Inspired room #1 on how to make; reassembled mirror, ordinal dresser, and conservatory chair. There is also an article called Decorate Like Anthropologie Without Buying a Thing at Shelter Pop, it basically takes about seven ideas and then how to do them cheaper. There are some good insights on anthro upholstery that you can check out at Modhomeec. It has some links for tutorials on reupholstering folding chairs and so forth. I also found a good blog called Curious Sofa Diaries that has a lot of anthro inspired ideas on how to do things cheaper.

I saw this Taste Test Recipe Binder and loved it but I wasn't willing to spend $28 for it. I found a good tutorial at Flamingo Toes.

Here are a few cool mirror tutorials this one here is from Flamingo Toes and the other is an anthro mirror collage at Twilas Vintage.

These shell bottles are really cool I think and retail at $198 each, there's a few different types at Anthro but there is a tutorial at Craftjr there is also one at The Gloss.

I LOVE these fabric letters. I already own one. They retail for $14, I got mine half off; however, I found a great site where you can make them yourself at Just Showed Up.

The bedding at Anthropologie is in my opinion to die for; however, the prices literally will kill you. I found this great tutorial at Kojo Designs part one and part two on how to make the Knotted Duvet cover which retails at $400. There is also a great tutorial on how to make a version of the Cirrus Duvet cover that retails at $198 at Made By Lex, who I LOVE.

Shower curtains are fun as well as window curtains. The Smoldering Hues shower curtain retails at $118, you can make your own version for about $30. There's a version at Sweetie Pie Bakery. There is also a cute curtain called the Waves of Ruffles at Adventures in Dressmaking this curtain retails at $98. There is also a good tutorial on how to make the Navy pom pom Toorie Curtain that retails at $108 at Post-College Working Girl.

The Curators table runs at $698 at Anthroplogie, but you can make your own version for about $96 at Design Sponge. There is also a cool tight rope inspired end table that retails at $168 at Curbly.

Hanging Paper/Book lights. These were window displays but I found a tutorial to make these similar shapes at Readers Digest that was mentioned during a thread at A.T and I'm sure you could follow the next project to make them into lamps.

There's a few tutorials on making a teapot lamp that retails at $198. One at Country Living and the other at Blue Cricket Design. fabric lamp shade at All For This Penny Craft.

Ghost lamps. I found a few tutorials one at Ashley Ann Photography (this one I love) and the other In the Fun Lane.

BEAUTY

Felted soap. What a cute but expensive gift or treat for yourself. Retails at $14 a piece. I found two different tutorials. One from Wit and Whistle (one of my new favourite blogs) and the other from Mykotori.

HOLIDAYS

There is a great tutorial to make these felt flower ribbons at Gave That for gifts from the 2010 Christmas gift wrap at anthropologie. I also added a pic of some really cute wrapped presents.

These Christmas garlands made from ornaments which are based on the 2008 Christmas window displays are super cute. There's a great tutorial on Design Sponge.

Paper Christmas trees. These were used in window displays for Christmas 2010. The photo was borrowed from Black Eiffel, where they also have a lot of other photos of the displays you can check out. Learn to make them and 2 other versions at Apartment Therapy.

These are super cute, also part of the Christmas display. Felt leaf garland at The Old painted Cottage.

There's also this super cute pom pom garland that retails at $68, yeah right like I'd pay that for pom poms! You can make this at Tales of the Scotts. If your not a big fan of pom poms you could also use felt balls. There is another tutorial at Oh Happy Day. There's also a cute playing cards garland that was used in the displays 2009 that you can find at Recycled Lovelies.