Another Pleasant Run-in

Yesterday I was off to Leslieville to have wine and exchange pressies with a gal pal. I was on the Queen St. E. tram, just making my way to the exit, when I saw a very familiar face from my past. Could it be Tom? I haven't seen him since I was 21. Nearly 9 years to the day since we last hung out. He had short dyed black hair then. Now he had long light brown locks and his eyes are still bright blue. He had the same hook nose, so I was pretty sure it was him.

We got off the tram and I asked 'Are you, Tom?'

He looked at me like I was nuts. I asked the question again and he said yes.

I introduced myself. Tom stopped, looked at me blankly for two beats and then his face lit up and he gave me a big warm hug.

Tom was my first...well, yeah. He was my first everything. So he has a special place in my heart. We didn't end on bad terms. He lived in Guelph and I lived in Mississauga. We just lost contact. If there was bad blood it certainly wasn't apparent yesterday.

He was on his way to Rock Oasis, which lead us on the topic of surfing. He is going to surf in Morocco in February! I told him about Costa Rica and DR. We chatted on the street corner for about 10 minutes in amazement at the weird little similarities of travel and future plans.

What I liked was that there was no 'let's hang out again' nonsense. It was nice to know that Tom grew up into an awesome dude. That loose end of wondering what happened to him and if all is 'ok' has been answered. And it made me so very happy. :)

Feels a bit Famous (Kid)

Ok so ... this is weird.


I was at the gym after work. Some A-hole left 360lbs on the leg press - all in 45lb plates, so I was taking some off when a black dude in a wife beater rushed up behind me calling me 'home girl'. He asked if I needed a hand; if I understood how to use the leg press. I was a bit insulted, but then I realized this is a guy's way of picking up chicks - offering to help. I said no, but thank you for offering and he smiled big and left.

After leg press is squats then deadlifts (obviously, it was leg day!). As I was taking a quick rest between my deadlift set, he showed up again, but spooked me this time. He referred to me as 'home girl' again and asked if I was doing OK. I said yes and he went over to the bench press.

No idea who this guy is. But thought it was nice of him to check up on me, despite whatever motive he had. So when I was done my sets and finished stretching, I walked over, poked him on the shoulder and said thanks.

We introduced ourselves and he looked at me quizzically then asked if I went to school in Montreal.

Yes I did.

Did I go to 'insert name here' elementary school.

Yes I did.

Oh my God. Oh my GOD! And we both spit out each other's last names.

The last time I saw Ashton Bishop was when I was 9 years old. We used to play in the snow together. I had the hugest crush on him. And I found out he had the hugest crush on me too. Hilariously bizarre.

We went out for drinks later that night and had a hilarious time catching up. Apparently he is some big rapper now (@TheKidFamous on Twitter).

Here's one of his videos...

...Is Officially a Girl.

Because I love this song and I can't explain why.

There is no reason. I just dig it. I first realized it when I was dancing in my undies while getting ready for work this morning. I stopped. Realized what I was doing. Then kept on dancing. Who cares? I love the tune. Even though I think Minaj is ridiculous, lol.

But this coming from a gal who is in love with Fleetwood Mac, Florence & The Machine, Arcade Fire, Joe Strummer, Rancid, VNV Nation and Swedish House Mafia ... and this song:

I make no sense and neither does my music. Guess that's why it works ;)

Your Aw moment today :)

I literally 'Aw'd out loud when I saw this adorable picture!! BAMBI!!! HE'S REAL!!!!


And of course, I thought about my own little fuzzy, Cooper. Aw... :)

Fabulous Kitty!

This meme made me laugh way too hard today.

It also reminded me of the time my local office mouse invaded my brand new package of TimTams I had sitting in my desk drawer...

Now I'm hungry!

The age of weirdness

So there's a huge cafuffle about December 21, 2012. Depending on which source* you look up, a whole lot of something or a whole lot of nothing is going to happen.

Case work

1. Some believe in the literal - that an apocalypse will actually happen.

If an apocalypse were to actually happen, buying all the water and canned beans I can carry home in a shopping cart won't save me. To be honest, I would prefer immediate death over imminent death by radioactive waste. Plus, how many people can say they will die by the sun exploding? ...Oh... probably 6.7 billion. Ok, next case...

2. Some believe nothing will happen.

Need I remind you of the ever uneventful Y2K even 12 years ago? *Yawn*

3. Something will happen, but only those who are aware of it will see the difference

This one, I vote for.

The alignment of the planets and the enhanced vibrational energies are obviously unseeable. Plus, the ending of one cyclical calendar and beginning of another leave a lot open for interpretation. Oftentimes, people rush to conclusions which stem out of fear. People plunge into the negative whenever an end is to be reached.

For instance, the Death card in the Rider-Waite deck is not literal in the meaning that death will come. It does, however enforce that there is a firm ending.

It is my personal belief that this date marks a new age of awareness to cycle in. This is a sentiment shared with many spiritual folks, some of who have already gathered themselves in Central America for the celebrations.

There are loads of pulp about the Three Days of Darkness (Dec 19-21). Another thing people are taking literally.

People, there was no warning when the Christmas Tsunami wiped out Indonesia in 2004 and another in Japan in March of 2011. But apparently Europe and the North America is special enough to get a warning via the definition of an apocalypse. So let's all go to Japan. They already had their nuclear mess. Or we can hit up Chernobyl. Apparently it's not as radioactive as it used to be and there are lots of empty spaces to hide, so we should be safe enough.

Three Days of Darkness refers to the literal dimming of a cycle and the initiation of another. There is actually going to be a solar eclipse. That is so cool!

So don't stop working out because you think the world is going to end. Think of it as a new start to being a better You. :)


* = this and this and of course, this one.

The dog ate my shoes

I was carting about 30lbs of toiletries to a charity office for donation, when I happened upon two older gents hovering over a window display of men's shoes at Walking on a Cloud.

I have never seen men window shopping. What makes the scenario even more adorable is that these guys looked well into their 60s with tousled white hair. They were pretty snappy dressers and since I was hobbling by so slow, I could hear they're conversation.

What made me laugh was how one gent said to the other that his dog pretty much ate one of his shoes! Chewed it up beyond recognition. And the other guy was in disbelief. They weren't angry, it just seemed to them that the prospect of a dog eating homework seemed more possible. It was quite funny.

I too have been in a similar situation - however instead of a dog eating my shoes, it was my cat. My kitty, Cooper - a five year-old maincoon - loves to chew on my shoes when I am not quick enough to feed him when hunger strikes. Now, I keep a large black plastic rat by my shoes, which he often opts to chew on instead. It was a leftover Halloween deco that I forgot to put away. I'm glad I've found a use for it!