Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow

I realize that there has already been a lot of coverage and pictures and posts about the massive snowfall that Ontario received this past weekend- but here's my own experience of it.
I went to Waterloo for the weekend to visit rellies for Christmas. We had it all planned- my cousin Jo was picking me up at the bus station- we'd go get my hair cut and gossip over tea... then we'd pick up her daughters (I feel like they are my nieces and often refer to them as such for ease of explanation) Isabel and Emily who are 7 and 8. We went to se the movie "Enchanted" - very excited. Everyone loved it- and had popcorn and M&Ms and sugary beverages.
We left the theatre around 3:30pm and it was already starting to snow heavily. Jo knew that a storm was coming and so she dropped me off at my uncle Frank and Aunt Leagh's house and hurried home to get off the roads. Isabel (Belle to me and Izzy to others) stayed with me.
We hunkered down and had a cozy night watching Christmas specials while the adults drank Bailey's.

The next morning we woke to a winter wonderland. It was the BEST kind of snowfall. The whole city at a standstill- succumbing to the majesty of old man winter. But it was white and fluffy and beautiful- and not too freezing (if you were bundled up).


Frank, Leagh and I dressed up (I wore my new boots that I LOVE) and shoveled the driveway while Isabel made some lunch. I'm glad Frank had the snow blower- but it was still heavy going.

It was the greatest feeling to come in from the frosty outdoors be greeted with the old school scent of Lipton Chicken Noodle soup- with the warmth of the home. I loved it.

Belle and I then decided to brave the outside again to go for a walk. I got us to the end of the side street and said "Oh Belle I dont think we can do this. Tim Horton's is too far away- we might not make it."
To which Isabel replied (very sternly) "Sarah I'm not a giver upper. We're going!!" So I laughed and said "Alright Belle- Let's do this"
And we did. We made it to Tim's, had some milk and tea and got some groceries at the nearby Price Choppers and made it back to the house in just under two hours. It was a great adventure- and I'm glad I had her company.

It really was a bit of magic to have everyone tucked away inside and everything so quiet outside. When I got back to the city and wandered down Queen Street in Toronto- it was just so quiet and peaceful. For whatever reason I'm having a love affair with the snow this season- and loving all the peace and beauty it brings. (Maybe because we're Canadian and having warm winters is scary.) I say Let it Snow.

The Christmas festivities begin...

I had the most Christmas-y Saturday ever!! First I went to my dear friends Eric & Mario for a brunch. I made my hammalicious muffins (see a previous post for recipe) and chowed down on baked French toast and low fat bacon. Doesn't sound super yum but it was was. Then I got my ass beat down in a game of X-box- "scene it" and ran out of there in shame.
I actually ran out to go to my friends Robyn & Ivan's house to do some gingerbread house assembly. It was fantastic. Robyn made the gingerbread from scratch and we had all the ingredients to create a castle. Ivan came in to art direct. It was pretty intense as I was actually using tweezers in order to apply the silver balls. And Edlynne had this idea to take opaque candy, melt it down into shapes in order to form transclucent windows. no- this was not your average gingerbread house!!

I discovered Mulled wine-and we polished off 1.5L of the stuff- so good. (do not use powedered spices: uses the actual spices of cloves, cinnamon, allspice and nutmeg- as well as orange rind).

Then we finished things off by watching, in the cozy basement, covered in blankets, my favourite movie of ALL TIME: "It's a Wonderful Life". Robyn had never seen it- and LOVED it (of course). Ivan had never seen it and I won't bore you with his (lack of) response.
I love that movie. It was such a wonderful day. Here is a pic of the final casa. Worthy of the most discerning elf surely.

For real??

Can someone please explain to me how this woman is ON TV?! She is on National TV making the stupidest comment- that just reflects badly on Christians everywhere. Just watch for yourself...

Sympathy for South Carolina

I just had my own South Carolina moment... I was thanking the former mayor of Toronto for coming in to speak about the United Way to our team of senior staff here at work. I hadn't prepared anything to say but while she was speaking I thought - oh if I'm called on to talk I could say x: and x sounded good in my head, but on the way from my head to my mouth it transformed into something else. Something like bflxy78xsz. I started to ramble and just throw words together- not in any sort of order or anything mind you- and I floated out of my body and looked down and thought "Sarah- STOP talking!! Just STOP IT!!"
I managed to tidy it up and say a proper thank you by the end- and people politely applauded, but I still feel just like Ms. South Carolina in the Miss. USA paegent.



Okay, I wasn't that bad, but then again my standards are a lot higher.

Newest family member

There is a newest member of the Mitton family! Her name is Shelby- and she is the tiniest little thing. She's my uncle Ross's GRANDDAUGHTER, and the first great grandchild of the family. And with her arrival, as everyone adopts new roles, our identities shift slightly...
Here she is with the newest Grampy.

This is Sam and Sydney with her- they are her aunts - I would love to have been an aunt at that age (13 and 11).

And here is my cousin Elisa- also her aunt. Elisa, Sam, Sydney- you're AUNTS! I hope you're as good as mine have been to me :) (I think it's a really under reated but important relationship).

And yes time passes

Paula sent me some pictures of the family, as of course I was curious about everyone... the last time I saw Shaun and Chris (cousins) they were 8 or 10 or something??? This is them now...


The adults at least look the same (just a little older)- but I wouldn't know these guys if I passed them on the street. so crazy.

Here comes the Sun.

You know how somethings will happen, and they are unexpected and you are so happy for it. And then you stop and look around and can't believe how happy you are because of how much you have to be thankful for. And how many blessings you have- whatever you want to call them.
A dear friend of mine is going through this exercise in the month of November where everyday she posts something that she is thankful for. It's a nice sentiment as it gives her cause to pause and think about what are not just the big things (husband/kids) she is thankful for, but also the little things that make up a life (oranges and games). So of course it's caused me to pause and reflect upon what are my own riches- and at this moment-at this particular moment in time- I have an abundance that would surpass a year of Novembers.

First of all, my Stepmother, who I haven't been in touch with for MORE than TEN years- emailed me yesterday. I emailed her back tonight. It was so amazing to hear from her, as that is one relationship in my life that I have really missed. It was one of things that I thought I would fix "one day", and one day became ten years. Yet I knew if it didn't happen then it would become of the bigger regrets in my life. Not to say that everything is all rosy again- but Paula emailed me- she made the first step- for which I'm grateful- and I've responded. We'll see where we go from here. : )
And I think it's also due to my uncle Frank who is so good about keeping in touch via various forwards- which mostly just serve to let me know he's thinking about me. But there was the added element of seeing Paula's email address on them recently which has likely prompted this reaching out...

This is a sunny picture of some daffodils that David took with the new camera he got from my parents...
Which leads nicely to my next great thing: an email from my second Dad Cliff. I was commenting to my brother that though I talk to my Mom on a fairly regular basis I haven't talked to Cliff in months (since the spring I think) and that just wasn't right... but we've now been chatting for the past couple of days- and it's been great. He's doling out advice and telling me he's proud and being all 'parenty'...I just felt so good to "talk" with him... and I'm vowing not to let so much time pass again.
Those are the big things ... but the little unexpected things add up as well...
- Dinner with friends I haven't seen in awhile.
- Unexpected run ins with old friends who are like rays of sunshine.
- Good news to share (the boy called back)- and realizing that I had enough friends I wanted to share it with that I ran out of room on my text messaging "to" list- and that's an awesome problem to have.
- Old friends from high school coming back into my life.
- Starting the day off by sharing the subway with an acquaintance who is beaming with positivity.
- A great conversation with the President of Leo- which helped me feel that I have begun to set down roots in this new home.
I could go on - but this blog is already too long (and probably too boring for anyone but the diehard) without relevant pictures...
I just feel I have a lot to be thankful for. And be happy about. And I am both of those things. Just beaming. Just like I was in this moment in Agra in India. And it's not the magnificence of Taj doing it: but just... the magnificence of life.

Why is it so hard to do something so simple?

Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone in 1875, (Though Wikipedia clarifies that it was really some Italian dude 16yrs earlier who just couldn't afford the patent). I suspect if the first call he'd had to make was to a girl he liked, instead of just his assistant Watson, then the first call would have happened a lot later.

Let me put forth a hypothetical situation: A girl meets a guy in a pub (very important distinction: it was NOT a bar, it was a pub- hypothetically). They seem to hit it off- though boy doesn't leave with the girl's number. He does however rectify the situation by calling the bar and leaving his number with his friend still there- to give to said girl. Which is almost even MORE effort than just giving the number to begin with- and therefore better. (Though in retrospect it was really just him getting out of the heavy lifting!)

So now the girl has the number. And what does she do with it? She watches Heroes. (good episode by the way) and goes to bed.
I'm soooo glad I'm not a guy that has to face these pressures all the time.
And the worst part is that it's just a phone call! What happens when the face to face happens?! I don't remember how to do this anymore... dating gay boys is so much easier. Er...hypothetically speaking of course.

Makes me laugh

I know this was posted 2 years ago but it's so funny. (and I secretly love this song)

The world is full of odd things and it makes me thankful.

I was in a meeting today at work (where else?) and before the meeting began I was telling the group about this insane article I had read earlier. It was about a "treeman" - who had this incredibly rare disease that didn't allow him to ... well I won't get into it- but here is his picture. Turns out if he has high doses of Vitamin A administered to him- this problem will likely go away. He was from Jakarta, Indonesia.
OK- I Had a picture of this poor guy up here - but it was just too horrific and I had to take it down. If you want to see the guy (who IS going to get better) you can see through this link here: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/14/wtree114.xml

This story immediately prompted a dozen others from those around the table:
"Did you hear about the feral child in the Ukraine who was raised by dogs?"
"I saw a show last night about this woman who had elephantitus and her legs weighed 140lbs each"
"Well - did any of you see the Indian baby who was born with 8 limbs?" (I did see that one- another happy ending. A 36 hour surgery where the doctors removed a parasitic twin from the lively 2 year old- and she's going to be okay. The ironic thing is: If she had been born in Canada she would have been labelled a freak. She was born in India- where many of the Hindu gods have multiple limbs- and so she was revered as a goddess. In fact her parents named her Lakshmi- the same name given to the original goddess- wife of Shiva (the god of destruction) *ahem*.) Here is a picture of her- just before surgery.

I was just really struck by how many oddities the room was able to share- and moved to be thankful that, with all I have to deal with, my problems are miniscule compared to what some people have to face. And what could be a huge problem in a place like Jakarta is easily treated in a country like Canada. And while I'm sure that there are those with equally rare problems here- we have social assistance and health care to help. I'm so thankful to call this place my home! And I'm so thankful that right now I just worry about managing debt or finding time to exercise. I hear about these tragedies and say a prayer for those afflicted, and am thankful for the problems I have for they are not really problems at all.

wicked games

"If this strike lasts longer than three months, an entire season of television will end this December. No dramas. No comedies. No Daily Show. The strike will also prevent any pilots from being shot in the spring, so even if the strike is settled by then, you won’t see any new shows until the following January. As in 2009. Both the guild and the studios we are negotiating with do agree on one thing: this situation would be brutal.”

Seriously?? I read this quote from a celebrity blog today… and it made me think… would it be so horrible if this was the case? If we didn’t have new TV for ALL of 2008? Even though I LOVE TV- and watch it far more than I should- I almost think it would be a blessing in disguise.
Remember those ads that used to play at the beginning of movies for anti-piracy? You know- they showed the “regular joe” who worked as a ‘key grip’ or something on the set and he said “if you keep pirating movies- I’m the one that loses his job. It hurts me, not the big execs. Stop or these movies will cease to be made”.
To me that was a great outcome- not that the working stiff would lose his job- but that big budget movies would cease to be made (I don't think there is as much of an industry to pirate the indie flicks).
Most of the movies that are produced these days are such garbage- and actors get paid insane amounts of money to make them. So what if they don’t get made anymore? Are we really going to suffer? Or are we going to then be forced to watch quality movies made by independent producers- and actually give them a chance to shine? Maybe Cameron Diaz won’t work again but I personally wouldn’t miss her.
And now- here with the TV. How horrible would it be if I didn't want to race home on Thursday nights to watch "The Office", or eschew plans with friends on Sunday night in favour of "Family Guy" (not that I do that- really). Of course a downside is that there would be a proliferation of reality TV- as that is ‘unscripted’- but there would also be more free time for us to read, or go out, or play games, or engage with our friends. I’d LOVE to see the impact on our society if there was ‘no new TV' - but I don't see that happening... something will work out. (or maybe there will be non-stop "Beauty and the Geek"- which wouldn't make me terribly unhappy either!)

Remembrance

Today is Remembrance Day- and there are various ceremonies being held throughout the city. I meant to look them up last night- and attend one today but of course didn't do that until 10:45 this morning and the ceremony started near me at 10:55am.

In Alberta people have Remembrance Day off- and in Ontario that luxury is only for civil servants. When I first moved here I thought "How horrible- they don't honour their war vets?! They treat it as just another day?!" But then I thought about what we did in Calgary- and though there may have been ceremonies happening around the city on that day- aside from school- I had never attended one. Remembrance Day had become just another day off. Another day to sleep in and go shopping or see a movie. So maybe it's better this way?
A few years ago I saw the show 'Band of Brothers' (most of it). It's a 10 part series dedicated to WWII and told in such detailed (& horrific) detail. But not just about the battlefield- but also the moments leading up to it- and moments afterwards. What really differentiated it from other war movies- was that being told over 10 hours- it really gave you time to understand and know the characters. I felt as though I would get to know a character, and become attached to that character, in a way I wouldn't with a regular 2 hour movie.
In this way, when one of the soldiers would die in battle, it meant that much more. You could, in the tiniest little way, feel a bit of the pain, or if not feel it- then have a greater appreciation for it. And be able to empathize. It just resulted in a more powerful and personally moving appreciation of what the war meant.
I like to think that I have a respect for those that fought, and continue to fight. I also think that the more I expose myself to the history of the wars- and the realities- the less I will forget how lucky I am, we are, to be here. And to have our freedoms. And to be able to live the life we choose.
I don't feel as though I honoured the vets today- and I really wish I'd gone to a ceremony to show public support- but I did remember. I said a prayer for those that fought (including my own Grandfathers) and those that continue to fight. And I remembered to be thankful.

I hate Air Canada

No time to write why right now... but I do.

Who is this girl?!

I ran into my roommie Paul today in our lobby - he on the way out, me on the way in. I asked his advice about defrosting chicken- as I was preparing some ginger chicken for dinner. I was also wearing workout clothes as I had just come from the gym.
He asked me "Who are you?! And what have you done with my lazy, slothy roommate Sarah who has a regular diet of frozen dinners & M&Ms??" (Ok he didn't use such derogatory wording, but I could see them bubbling beneath the surface and it was only his good breeding keeping them down).
Yes- that is a SECOND dinner I've made in three days. I'm thisclose to become Nigella Lawson. Yes I even know who Nigella Lawson is...
I also got to see my ex-roommie Eric tonight- it was soo good to see him, I hadn't seen him since before I went to India. I gave him his 30th birthday present (which I cant' post because I got something similar for Jen & Kirsti's wedding present: that I still haven't given them). But I think he liked it. Also - Eric had HAIR- which was shocking. I've known him for 8 years (or so) and I've never seen him with hair before!! He looked so grown up. Here's a picture of him from Jen and Kirsti's wedding - with Mario- this is pre-hair. I'll take one this weekend of him to post.

Mini miracles

Last night something happened that hasn't happened for a long time. I pulled out a cookbook (a Christmas present from two years ago), cracked the spine and used a recipe. I made vegetarian chili but with ground chicken instead. (And added mushrooms). All la di da... look at me- just tossing in mushrooms, without a care in the world, even though they weren't part of the original recipe.
The dish turned out great- which was good since I had it for dinner, lunch and then dinner again.
This is all part of my new efforts to bring lunch to work, eat healthier, and save money. For those that know me- cooking is a rarely done activity- but I'm hoping not a novelty soon enough.
By the way - the recipe came from a book called "Eat, Shrink and Be Merry". It's a low fat cook book- FULL of recipes of regular dishes, slightly modified. It's a fun book because it's filled with fun food facts and jokes. It's a friendly cookbook.

The trainwreck finds validation

Everyone knows that Britney Spears is a complete train wreck and needs professional help (she's probably going to find herself in a 'tragic' demise due to the paparazzi before that happens)
But the killer part is she is STILL SUCCESSFUL! Her CD is #1 on most countries lists for itunes. Not just the song but her whole CD. She didn't do any promotions beyond abandoning her kids and partying it up- and having it all captured by US magazine- and she's #1.


I told a friend the other day that her CD (while it may actually be good) is not really a demonstration of Britney's abilities or talents, but more of a showcase of the talent around her- it acts as a commercial teaser of the different producer's who worked on the album.
The whole album is manufactured and synthesized- great- but created in a studio after the artist has long left the building...

Sometimes shoes are more interesting than celebrities.

I met some friends for dinner last night that I haven't seen in FOREVER. We went to Six Steps for drinks, but ended up chatting for so long we stayed for dinner. It was a bit over priced - but decent. The company made up for it.
Near the end of dinner I realized that we were sitting next to Ben Mulroney. I know he was eavesdropping on our conversation because he turned his head when we were talking about Jane's new 1940s shoes. She'd bought them at the goodwill that day for $8. They were gorgeous- but Jane had so much detail about what identified them as from the 1940s. I think that Ben was fascinated.
I'm posting a picture of him- this is pretty much what he looked like: A POSER.

And I'm back!

My relationship with Wordpress didn't work out. I'm back.

Changing site address

I've decided to start to use 'wordpress' instead of blogger for my blog posts from now on.

The new site is: http://smallseal.wordpress.com/



PLEASE update your links or your favourite list or whatever to make sure you have my new blog address. I hope you keep up and make the change with me. : ) xo
also please be patient as I figure this new site out...

Visiting the doctor in Jaipur

When I was in Roopengarh (the castle) I remember having a very serene moment where I was laying on a bench on one of the balcony's off of my room- with the sun setting to my right and the moon rising to my left.
There was a cool breeze and Indian music playing the background. It was really beautiful.

It was then that I got bit.
I noticed the next morning on the way to Jaipur that i had a welt on the inside of my thigh. "Oh" I thought, "I must have been bitten by a spider or something."
Off to Jaipur we go. Upon our arrival I thought I would show my roomie my bite mark, only to discover, to my horror, that it had doubled in size. I drew a line around the welt to see if it would continue to grow. It did.
The next morning it pretty much covered the entire inside of my thigh- about the size of a... oh I don't know- a dinner plate?! Oh and I broke out in hives all over my face. I looked like I had elephantitus and should be out on the corner asking for rupees. So Sherry took me to the doctor that day (only because she didn't want me to start drawing lines around the marks on my face too!). Apparently this was one of the best doctors in town.
I was examined by two nurses first.
and then the doctor was brought in. I was covered up in a sheet with just a hole cut out that went over the bite mark. Even in medical situations modesty is of utmost importance.
The doctor spoke two words of English- "tetanus?" (yes I have had my tetanus shot) and "medicine?" (no I am not on any other medication, but I am allergic to...).

He gave me a prescription which I promptly had filled and started to take. By the next day the hives were gone and two days later I was bite mark free.
It was also ridiculously cheap- the visit to the doctor was about $2.50 and the drugs And I had wanted an authentic experience...careful what you wish for! : )

Letter from Manish

Remember when I said i was done with my India posts?? Well I lied...

On the 'free' day we had in Varanasi I met a guy. His name was Manish. Basically he came up and started talking to me- and since his English was very good I started chatting with him. This wasn't unusual- but it was unusual in the market to not have every person approaching you with "Would you like to buy...??" He just asked if we were lost (oh don't get me wrong- he still wanted to take us to his 'uncle's' shop so we would buy stuff but he was not aggressive or pushy).
He just asked us where we were going- we told him where we wanted to go- and he showed us around the old town.
We ended up spending the afternoon with him in what would be one of the highlights of the trip.
He took us to the tower over the burning ghat where we could witness the ceremony of some burning bodies (where the souls were then directly transported to Nirvana I think I mentioned, circumventing the whole 'reincarnation' aspect of life). We could just observe from above as women weren't allowed down by the pyres. Women were known to cry- which disturbs the souls and prevents them from going to Nirvana. Also - women were known to throw themselves onto the burning pyre and kill themselves along with their sons/husbands. Widows are persona non grata in India (though I'm sure not as much anymore).
Anyhow- Manish wrote me a letter today- he addressed it to "hello blond girl in green" as he couldn't remember my name. He told me about a festival for "Durga" that is happening in Varanasi right now, the weather is getting colder... just chit chat. I can't think what I'll write back? Work is slow because we're waiting for a bunch of briefs to get finalized?! Hmm... I'll have to think about the reply...
Anyhow- I had given him my address not thinking I'd ever hear from him- but how great to now have a friend across the universe.
As soon as my friend Colette gets her pictures uploaded I'll put a pic of Manish. I didn't have my camera handy. In the meantime- here are a couple more from the trip. (Stolen from my friend Sherry)
There is birds in Pushkar.

Bathing at the ghat in Varanasi

Me in a tower in a castle? Palace? Fort? in Jaipur. (We rode the elephants up here)

Dancing in the streets in Pushkar

What else?

Of course I thought I'd be posting pictures from India for weeks and weeks, but I've already sent out the link to my album at Kodak Gallery and I've already bored friends and family with countless tales of my journey. Really - the only people interested in the trip are the people I went with- so I will continue to talk about it with them.
Now moving on...
My good friend Lori and her fiance Jeff (also a friend) were in Toronto last night- and we went for dinner at "Little India". (so yum). I hadn't seen them since March- so it was great to catch up.
Here we are after dinner- I look like I'm glomming (how do you spell that word?!) to Lori and she's thinking "Oh here we go again- Sarah is trying to sit in my lap" with a look of fear and, dare I say... love??, on her face.


My cousin Tara is also in town staying and she joined us. (I'm sooo glad she's home!) She's just been in South Korea for a couple of years- and is experiencing reverse culture shock. I think that's one of the reasons she came to Toronto- so she could go to Koreatown and get her fix!

FEED ME.

When is jet lag considered jetlag?

I keep thinking I'm not suffering from jetleg (and lucky for it) because I'm awake all day and go to sleep easily at night- and only wake up at 5am (not 3am or something). And lots of people get up at 5am normally right? Well getting up at 5am sucks. Seriously.
But I guess there's time to post more pictures.
These are out of order- but here are some pictures of Pushkar (there was the first one I posted- of the parade in town). This was on day 3- the first town we hit after Delhi.

Me and my camel. This is now my second camel ride- first one was in Morocco in the desert at sunrise. This one was in the country at sunset. I'm wearing an outfit I bought in Delhi called a salwar kameez- which consists of a long flowy top and loose pants. It was $5- because it was a pretty basic design. My friends bought some that were beautiful: but I wanted something basic that I could just wear to keep cool. It was 35C with 98% humidity and of course none of the clothes I bought were appropriate- especially to keep aligned with the modesty of the women. I wore this outfit a lot. (And while it was not the most flattering- it was super comfortable and cool!)


The sountryside while on the camel. This is where some people lived. They would wave at us as we walked on by. (They actually waved at us on the highway too as we drove through all the small towns. Young and old- though mostly the kids. They would chase the bus and wave).

The Brahma temple- the only one in India. Braham is the creator God. The other Gods have many temples all over India- but the creator just gets this one.

Sunrise over an amazing testament to love

and yes I took this picture! It's not a post-card : )

Walking the streets of Varanasi

Here is another video (shorter this time) again trying to capture the chaos that is the Streets of Varanasi after Puja.

Streets of Varanasi

Here's a video I took of the traffic in Varanasi. (Please ignore the fact that me and Sherry sound like valley girls.) We were just trying to capture some of the chaos that is Varanasi after the Puja (prayer). It was a rickshaw traffic jam, complete with cars, cows, bikes, tuk tuks, walking traffic with hawkers who were relentless in trying to sell us souvenirs, and irregular electricity- sometimes cloaking us in darkness- all very exciting!

India posts coming.

I've been so busy uploading and sorting photos and burning CDs, and unpacking, doing laundry etc... that I haven't had a chance to write in my blog. However I will soon BORE you to tears with countless tales of my trip. But the net outcome? I LOVED it. I have a few complaints about the execution through GAP Adventures- but more on that later. Here are some pictures for now. Also- have an album uploaded to kodakgallery.com- have to figure how to share it without uploading everyone's email addresses.

This the Bahai temple- The Lotus Temple. And a street parade in Pushkar.

Sad and dejected passport

So I didn't lose my passport- as my previous post states- I accidentally threw it out- of course my passport doesn't know that -it just thinks I've summarily rejected it out of hand. Poor passport.
and in case anyone is wondering: Yes I feel incredibly stupid about it. I know mistakes happen: but the fact that I was taking a major trip in just a couple of weeks time didn't give me pause to treat this document with a little more care?! what is wrong with me??? I think it's just evidence that I need this vacation...
just some advice for anyone out there who is planning a trip and has a passport: guard it ok?!

Yes India...

I realize that Im going to India on Friday- and while many of my friends here in town know this- my friends reach farther and wider than this little dot called "T-dot" and lots of people didn't know I was planning this adventure.
Well my adventure was nearly waylaid yesterday when I realized I had lost my passport. I JUST had it two weeks ago so I'm convinced I threw it out on the weekend when I was cleaning my room in mad dash to get sorted for Fall. I distinctly remember picking up the pile of magazines (where I believe the passport was tucked) and thinking "I should go through these" and then countering with "no Sarah- you're such a pack rat! Just learn how to get rid of things you dont need! You will never read these magazines again- throw them out!" and I proudly threw them all in the trash- thinking i was taking a leap towards becoming a better, more well balanced person.
Then last night I prayed I would dream about where my passport was... and I dreamt that my passport was with my other passport stuff- stupid dreams.
Anyhow- I went today to get an emergency passport (thanks Kirsti and Jen for helping!). Tomorrow I go to see about an Indian VISA. (Which was tucked into the passport). Their website says they can do same day turnaround but need my passport- which I get Friday at 8am. So Friday at 9am I will be at the office applying for the VISA- and then picking it up at 3pm so I can catch my ride to the airport for 4pm. Good times. I'll find out tom morning if it will all work out as I've planned.
As for the trip- Im going with my friends Jane and Jason. We're all shot and ready to go. We're doing a GAP Adventure tour for two weeks- in Northern India. We land in Delhi and then tour through .... well I won't write it all out-if you want the dossier it's here: http://www.gapadventures.com/tour/AHJH Jewels of India.
When I get back I'll post pictures of the Taj Mahal...
I've been wanting to go to India since my first year of University- so this is a fairly long time in coming... It came about because Jane posted her trip on facebook and said others should come along. I don't think she thought anyone would take her up on it- but I did.
I've always thought I dont have enough time/money or anyone to go with. Well I can make those excuses forever and never have enough time/money etc... so I just said "I'm going." and off I go.
It should be amazing. I just hope I don't get dengue fever and die (kidding Mom!!!)
And it's a tour- but it's a GAP Tour... my good friend Laura has done one of those and she said it's way more independent. Basically you have a place to sleep at night and a way to get to difference cities- so it's less stress travel. I only have two weeks so that's good for me.
Anyhow- Signing off so I can do a bit of packing- I'll write when I get back and post as many pictures as I can! Think of me next week when you're living your boring hum drum lives and I'm living it up in "culturally rich full of change my life experiences" India! xo : )

Hiding passport

If you were a hiding passport- that was put in a 'special place' so that you were not lost when the time came to use you... where would you be?! WHERE WOULD YOU BE?!

Shower games

I went to a good friend's wedding shower Saturday night. I have been lucky enough to be a party to a number of weddings and thus a number of showers. This one was a bit different because a) it was in the evening b) FAR more cocktails were consumed than in previous showers and c) the game we played was actually on the bride Jen.
Most of us contributed money for the honeymoon as the present. However it's not that fun to open an envelope of money so our friend Bobby had this great idea to buy her of bunch of tchotchke with which to decorate her home and deliver it with a straight face. We didn't think she'd actually believe that her good friends would give her such complete crap- but most of us had believeable stories about where we found our gems, and why we thought they'd be absolutely perfect. And through it all Jen thanked us and conveyed enthusiasm. However you can see in the pictures that she's clearly thinking "what in the hell???"


I kept thinking "She must think we are the WORST friends in the world. a) we don't know her AT ALL if we're giving her this crap thinking she'd like it and b) we're giving her the CHEAPEST stuff you can find!!!" One was a vase from Patricia- and when we peeled off the price sticker- the paint came off with it. Robert then had to rub it under the sink to get more paint off thereby giving it a 'distressed' look. I gave her two 'handcrafted and handpainted' display eggs with a sheep and bunny on them. I supposedly got them in St. Jacobs at a Mennonite market a few months ago. (I actually got them at the dollar store for $2 about an hour before the shower).
Jeff got Jen a rooster clock... but one of the best was Robert who got Jen some "original pottery from the place in the Distillery District" she was so fond of. It was a gravy boat shaped like a TURKEY. It was so hideous but I screamed out "Thanksgiving!! That's PERFECT for Thanksgiving!!"


Jen was such a good friend for thanking us regardless!! So much fun.

Last celeb comment

And only because it's Clive Owen. I went with a friend to the Gala opening of "Elizabeth: The Golden Age". The movie was only ok- with music dominating the show- orchestrating our emotions- and musical climaxes every two minutes. It would have been nice to see a story developing instead of 2 min increments punctuated by crescendoing music. But Cate Blanchett and Clive Owen were fantastic. Its not a great picture- but it's a pic of the cast on stage.

Go see "Lars and the Real Girl"

I heart Ryan Gosling. I loved him in Breaker High. I loved him in "the Believer". I loved him in Half Nelsen- and now i Love him in "Lars and the real girl". He's amazing- and the movie was phenomenal. It was funny, interesting, touching and sweet. I went to the opening tonight at the Ryerson theatre. My friend Kathleen and I waited in the rush line for over two hours! My good friends Bobby and Ian had real tickets and were able to save us seats in the fourth row- which is where I took these pictures from...



Who you see in the first picture is Craig Gillespie the director, Patricia Clarkson- so great. Kelli Garner, Paul Schneider and Emily Mortimer- all wonderful in the movie. The second picture is just Ryan saying something funny. Go see this movie when it comes out... I bet it gets him another Oscar nod.

Stalkerazzi

Friday night after work my friends Kathleen, Jen and I went to the opening of "Rendition" to see if we could see any stars walk the red carpet. We weren't there to get great 'seats'- but we did manage to get some pictures of Reese, Jake and Peter Saarsgard (I think that's how you spell his name).




I also walked by Queen street last night to see if I would be on time to see Brad Pitt- I wasn't. It was madness though- with hundreds of people lining the street. They blocked off the street between Queen and Dundas- and had police blocking the barricade where the giant SUVs rolled through. Madness.

Where all the boys have gone...

I finally found out where all the guys are... its a place called "Grace O' Malleys" on Duncan Street. I went there last night for my friend Caitlin's birthday. Some of my friends were scared off by the Halifax band (I admit I don't like East Coast music either- but they did play a lot of covers). And OLD SCHOOL music too- like "kissing in the dark" "Livin' on a Prayer" and the like. I felt like i was in high school- maybe that was the intention.
It's a mix of a pub with a dance bar- the kind of place that would suit most- as long as you accept it for what it is- wear minimal clothing because it's HOT and throw yourself in. People were having loads of fun- I had a great time.
Oh and the boys... right. They were EVERYWHERE! And the kind of guys that I love- scruffy looking, casual and NORMAL. No metrosexuals or condescending assholes like at "Ultra" or uber trendy's like "Supermarket" (although I like supermarket). Just guys out having fun.
Though my friend did get a cheesy pick up line from a guy who wanted her to "give her dance lessons". She just danced away... : )

TIFF time

Must. not. get. sucked. in.

It's that time of year again- where Toronto is overtaken by celebrities... Last year I avoided it by going to Europe. Two years ago I sat outside the Roy Thompson Hall with my now roommmate Paul, to catch a glimpse of an incredibly (short) but good looking Marky Mark. (and get a picture-thank you very much!)




This year I thought I'd take a gander (two days before it starts) at the film list and see if there is anything that tickles my fancy. OF COURSE nothing is available. All the gala events are sold out. What sort of celebs, er I mean movies am I missing out on?

Well Jake Gyllenhaal is in town to promote "Rendition"- Brad Pitt for "The Assassination of Jesse James" and George Clooney for "Michael Clayton". Not to mention Reese Witherspoon, Meryl Street and Cate Blanchett!!! Me- the girl who reads (and is disgusted with herself for reading) blogs like "perezhilton" everyday... I really just want to see the celebs- not pay $40 for a movie that I can see in the regular theatre in a couple of months time. Let's be real. So maybe I'll find my camera and do some stalking this weekend- get some better pics. The weather is supposed to be nice...

Incidentally the TIFF website has spelled Assassination wrong- not to make Canadians look sloppy or anything.