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.