The day is finally here... last day of work before SUMMER VACATION!!
WOO HOOOOO!!!
I'm so excited!! And I just can't hide it!!
I'm ready for a week of downtime and relaxation. Tonight I'm running for groceries. Tomorrow morning will be laundry, packing, and cutting the grass, before heading down to the Truck & Tractor Pull. I'm extremely excited for this event, and I honestly don't even know why. My memories of the Quyon Truck & Tractor Pull when I was a kid are vague, and I know I've been at the one at Shawville Fair, but really didn't pay much attention to the actual Pull. Other than that, I'm pretty much a newbie. But I'll be there with my cooler of Palm Bays and my camera, ready to take in the action!
Sunday we are off to the Draper camp for a few days of fun, sun, rest, and family time on the shores of the Ottawa River. It's one of my very favourite places in the world, and I can't wait to be back there again. Fingers crossed for good weather!
The rest of the week is still up in the air... I'll be celebrating a birthday in there somewhere (27 Forever!!), I hope to get to the movie theatre at some point, Netflixing, and who knows what else might come up.
And I.can't.frigging.wait.
Sleeping in. An extra coffee in the morning. Reading. Enjoying fun on the water at the camp. Watching TV & movies. Sitting out on the deck. Having a few drinks. Eating out. Staying up past my bedtime.
I love my birthday. I'm trying not to care so much about it as I get older, but there's still that little kid part of my heart that gets excited for my birthday. Why? I do not know. After 30, there's really nothing fun about getting older, so I'm learning. It just means more wrinkles and creakier knees and more "YOUR CLOCK IS TICKING WOMAN!" comments and this morning when I sneezed, I peed a little bit. (that was a new one for me. and I didn't like it.)
But I want a special treat for supper and cake and I want to celebrate with the people I love. As much as I dislike getting older, I also look at it as a privilege. Not everyone gets to grow older. Feel blessed, and thank the lucky stars when we get to.
So I'm going to unleash that little kid that still dwells within my heart, and release the 2016 edition of my Birthday Wish List! Here are all my wishes, wants, and desires...
Sunglasses
OK, maybe this is not something anyone can actually buy me, because shades are kind of a personal preference, but my good pair broke a few weeks ago and I had to dig out an old pair that are scratched up beyond belief. When I have my shades on, I kind of feel like I'm in a scratchy, visionless fog. I only buy Walmart cheapies because I throw them around and lose them far too often, so maybe on my week off, I'll go snag a pair.
Car Cleaning
My father is looking down upon me these days and shaking his head in disappointment... the man who took great pride in keeping a sparkling clean vehicle at all times raised a daughter who does not show her own car the same respect. I hate washing my car. And it's now in such a poor state that I don't think I can wash my car. It would take a whole frigging day. It's gross. I'd like to take it somewhere and pay them to do it for me, thanks.
Money towards my art investment
I have always wanted to own a "Shannon Purcell Original". My talented neighbour is an amazing artist, and while she's been guiding me this past year in creating my own art, I've always longed to own one of her originals. I picked out my favourite a few weeks ago and she's letting me make payments on it. The faster I can bring it home, the happier I'll be.
Blue Jays ball cap
Pretty sure my sister's already all over this one, so I think it might be a slam-dunk. ;) I've been trying to keep a hat on my head when I'm out in the sun this summer as much as possible, and I also like to rep my fave teams. I've got MVT hats, I've got Sens hats... now I need one to show my Jays pride!
Battery for my watch
My beautiful Fossil watch that I got for my birthday several years ago has never really worked properly. I sent it one day with my mom to have a new battery put in it, and they said there was nothing wrong with the battery, it was something else (a gasket?) that they fixed. It worked for a little while, but died again a few months ago. This time I think it must be the battery.
The Tragically Hip's new album
I don't buy a whole lot of CD's anymore, but I'd like to complete my Hip collection in CD format. I have missed the last couple, and I need to get them, including their most recent release, Man Machine Poem. Man, if I'm making birthday wishes, might as well throw in some magical tickets to their sold out tour this summer too. What I'd give to be at one of those shows...
iTunes Gift Card
As I said, I don't buy a whole lot of CD's anymore, and I've finally learned that buying music through iTunes is a far safer and more reliable way than illegally downloading. Hence, why an iTunes gift card would come in handy now... it's just so easy to tap that song and download it!
Movies Gift Card
The movie theatre is one of my happy places, so a Cineplex gift card never would go astray!
Books
Books are always a foolproof gift for me, because I love to read! Two of the current ones I'm wishlisting are: Mindy Kaling's Why Not Me, and First Comes Love by Emily Giffin.
Cosmetic-y stuff
I need foundation, and powder, and eye cream, and blush. Stupid little crap like that, yet it's a necessity.
A new razor & blades
My current razor is old, and Lord only knows the last time I changed the blade. That can't be good.
A camera bag that looks/doubles as a purse
Again, this is probably a "personal preference" thing that nobody else could choose for me, but I hate lugging around my camera bag AND my purse. But there isn't enough room in my camera bag for all the stuff I need in my purse, nor room for my camera in my purse. I need one of those big fancy camera bags that is nicer looking than a normal camera bag, and that also doubles as a purse. Room for everything, and more classy looking than a black Nikon bag. Oh, and while we're at it, I'm soon due to get a new memory card. Get me one with lots of gigs, K? ;)
As usual, I shall issue this disclaimer: I don't actually expect anything much. The gifts are not what is important. Sharing the day with people I love is what matters most. I'm just happy to have people in my life who help me celebrate turning another year older.
This morning, I thought I'd go with the Wednesday Hodgepodge questions, I kind of liked them!
1. Pokemon Go…your thoughts? Are you playing? Do you even know what it is?
Honestly, I think it's kinda cool. I mean, I get why people think it's silly, but I kind of enjoy when a phenomenon takes the world by storm like this. Yesterday at Confederation Park, the mayor of Ottawa joined hundreds of others out playing the game. I know many thought it was ridiculous and that he has better things to do, but why does everything always have to be so serious? Why not have some fun every now and then? Am I playing? No, at least not yet...but I did download the game this morning, so who knows. I might give it a whirl. Just to see what all the hype is about. I love me a good "craze". ;)
This is a photo of Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson (in the light blue shirt in the foreground) playing Pokemon Go at Confederation Park yesterday
2. What was something you collected as a child? Do you still have that collection? If you’re a parent what’s something your own children collected? Have you ever camped out, stood in a crazy long queue, or paid a ridiculous sum for a ‘collectible’?
While I always wanted to be a collector, most of my childhood "collections" turned out to be pretty dismal. One sticker book, a few Troll dolls, a handful of Beanie Babies... I never got far with my collecting. I think I've always been more of a "hoarder" than a "collector" lol. I'd say now that I have a pretty extensive collection of DVD's/movies, CD's, and books. And I used to collect every newspaper clipping on Wade Redden - most of which I threw out this past winter. (that was a bittersweet day!)
No children for me, but I think it's cool that my nephew Caden loves to collect rocks. He really seems intrigued by it.
I don't recall ever waiting in a long line or paying a ridiculous sum for a "collectible", that's not really my gig.
3. ‘Collect moments, not things‘…tell us about a moment you’ve added to your collection this summer.
It's really hard to pick just one...I've been paying attention and savouring many moments thus far this summer. There have been some great ones! But the first that comes to mind was one really hot & steamy day last week... I got to leave work half an hour early, and my friend Brenda had invited me to stop in for a drink on my way home. We had a couple of bevies and a good chat out on her deck, then I got a text from my sister to say they were at her in-laws swimming if I wanted to join them. So from Brenda's, I went home and got into my bathing suit, then over to Donna & Eric's to the pool. After an hour or so of swimming, we all headed down to the store for ice cream. As I sat out at the picnic table with my family, eating ice cream in my bathing suit and cover-up, I thought, "What a perfect summer evening this is." It made me feel like a kid again. I didn't even eat supper that night - just ice cream. And it was wonderful.
4. What’s something collecting dust in your home right now? Any plans to do something about it?
Lots of things. LOL! Right now, I'd have to say just my "junk room" in general. Yes, I have a whole room full of junk. I went on a purging mission this past winter, but I kind of only made it half-way through. Then I lost interest. The junk room was in the midst of the purge when I walked away. So I have Christmas decorations, scrapbooking and craft supplies, and a wide variety of just random junk lying around everywhere in there. And yes, it is getting rather dusty. Whoops.
5. A favorite song relating to time?
I'm sure there are better choices out there, but this Kid Rock's "Wasting Time" is the only one I can think of right now. And I do really like the song, it's a fun one!
6. What’s been your most frightening or your most interesting encounter with wildlife?
Hmm...trying to think of something good... the one that comes to mind is years ago, at the pier in Norway Bay, I was hanging out with friends. I wasn't in the water myself, thank God, because I would have literally shit my pants. (or my bathing suit, I suppose.) But there was a bunch of people in the water, and suddenly this giant turtle rose up to the surface and bobbed around. It was massive. Like a pre-historic creature. Everyone was screaming and laughing and scrambling to get away from it, or get out of the water. It happened a few times - it would go back under, completely disappear, and then a few minutes later, back up it would come. Every time I'm out at the pier, I think of that turtle!
7. On July 20, 1969 Apollo 11 Commander Neil Armstrong set his foot down on the moon. If you could travel to the moon would you go? Why or why not?
Hells no. The movies Apollo 13 and Armageddon scarred me for life. (and yes, I do believe they both portrayed accurately what life is like in outer space. LOL!) I've never understood why anyone would ever want to be an astronaut. Scary as hell.
8. Insert your own random thought here.
It is Wednesday. Which means this week is pretty much half over. Which means I only have a few more days until I'm on HOLIDAYS!!! And I simply cannot wait. Aside from the truck & tractor pull on Saturday, and going to the Camp for a few days, I have no set or major plans, but I'm looking forward to just a week off. Not having to wake to an alarm, not having to rush to do anything, not having to worry about the daily grind. My soul is ready for a little rest and re-charge. Looking forward to bobbing in the water, reading, maybe a Netflix marathon once we come back, perhaps a trip to the movie theatre... good food, good drinks, good people, and good times. I CAN'T WAIT!!!!
As I've mentioned a few times, it's been a really great summer so far. So great that I haven't had the time to upload and edit pics as often as I should! Last night I spent a solid three hours with my laptop, uploading, editing, and posting pictures from the last couple of weeks. Here are a some of my favourites of the bunch:
We'll start with an evening I spent in Norway Bay a few weeks ago at my friend Sara's. After supper, she and I took her girls down to the pier and beach to swim and play in the water. Talk about two very photogenic beautiful little girls. I love snapping photos of them!
Two Fridays ago, I had another Paint Nite at Shannon's with a group of friends. The end result is one of my most favourite (and least stressful) paintings I've done yet!
Two Saturdays ago, it was "60th Birthday Party Day" in town. ;) First, it was Eddie's 60th at the Lions Hall, where family and friends gathered to wish him well. They asked me to take a few family photos for them. Unfortunately, it was a day of solid, down-pouring rain, so we had to take the pics inside. Still, I think ended up with a few decent ones. It's hard to get that many people - especially little ones - looking and smiling at the same time!
This photo makes me laugh! They decided to re-create a family photo they had taken when Michael was just a baby. He takes up a little more room on his dad's knee now! hahaha!
Then, after Eddie's party, it was off to the Quyon Legion where Alvin & Calvin were also celebrating their 60th birthdays. I took the opportunity to snap a few shots of the party.
Lately, Tanner has been striking lots of poses for me when I try to take his picture. This one has to be my absolute favourite. I'm sure he calls this look "Blue Steel". LOL!
That Sunday evening, Mom and I attended the summer service at the little church in Norway Bay. The guest speaker was Rev. Dr. Anthony Bailey, whose father used to be the minister in Quyon back in the '70's. I've heard him speak & sing before, and he is absolutely AMAZING. It was such a treat to attend this service, as well as snap some photos outside. I don't know of many churches that would have this amazing view!
At the start of every service, they sing the hymn "Shall We Gather at the River". How appropriate!
Last week, Caden was staying at Mom's while Danica attended gymnastics camp, so he got a few extra treats... like going for ice cream, on SEVERAL occasions. lol!
One super-hot evening, Kara & Chris brought Danica up to swim at Grandma & Grandpa Provost's.
I love this shot of her starting into a cartwheel. She was so proud of all she learned during her week at gymnastics camp!
This past Saturday, Lindsay and Ryan hosted a pool party for a group of friends and their children. It is so much fun to watch the kids play, and great to visit with some of my favourite people! The food was delicious, the weather was perfect, and it was such an awesome day!
Stacy took on the job of making s'mores for everyone... they were flocking to her from all over the place! haha!
Summer really has been just so awesome thus far. And even more fun ahead! Tractor pull this weekend, heading to the camp for a few days on my holidays next week, and who knows what else might come up in August! I'm soaking up every single minute of it & I hope you are too :)
