Support your local Scientit

Good day! I am back from Arizona a bit tanned and quite happy. Holy hotness Batman!
The training was amazing and I managed to get a few hikes in when it "cooled off" (ha ha) to 28 C one evening...

sunrise mountain hike on my last day

I could get used to resort living...

Now I'm back and trying to get things organized for my team that is running the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation's Run fro the Cure in 2 weeks. The Scientits are all trying to rais our pledges and I've gotten some great local Farmer's Market businesses to donate some gourmet goodness for a few raffle baskets too so hopefully we'll do well. I have pink fabric to make boob hats for us all (I tried knitting and well...I have half of one hat, so yeah...not enough for the team!).

As a side note, usually I keep my personal info separate, but if any of you would like to pledge to my run, leave me a message and I will email you the link to my team pledge page. :) I just don't want to post it out here on my blog...with my job I have to keep things very separate and private from my real life...hence the Geosomin and the lack of use of my real name. Maybe I'm a bit paranoid...but I hope you don't all take it personally. YOU all I trust...it's all the rest of the interwebs that worry me...

Have a great day :)

Coming to 'Murica

Tomorrow I go to 'Murica for a week for training. Scottsdale, Arizona to be precise. I'm hoping to have a bit of free time to check out Taliesin West (Frank Lloyd Wright...so excited) and maybe an outlet mall or just indulge my inner teen goth at the Hot Topic in town and leave it at that. I don't have much spare moolah to blow and the dollar sucks at the moment so I may just be wandering for my amusement in air conditioned places :) Mostly though I think I'll just find some decent local ale and sit by the pool in the sun and read a book or two when I'm not in training. It's gonna be really hot (33-40 C) and I don't want to go on any long hikes if it's gonna be that warm. It should be kinda fun exploring a bit...hopefully their transit system isn't to sucky. I like to explore new cities and check out their local charm and architecture and I'm expecting a lot of the surrounding city to be geared to oler people who like to golf so I'm just hoping I can relax and maybe find some authentic mexican food.
 The resort we're in for the conference seems pretty swanky (I'm an Econolodge kinda gal) so I'm hoping they have a good gym in it and a nice pool to sit out in. I'm heading down with a few coworkers so I won't be all alone, but I'm not sure if they're into the same sort of things I am so I'll wait and see. I'm hoping we can sync up for a few things...
We shall see.
I'll just be happy to find my passport and get down there alright...we leave here at 5:45 AM. Who flies a plane at that hour? Noone sane.

On a side note...I just googled going to America and this came up. So much sparkles and cheese. Hee hee.

And then it rained and rained and rained...

We spent the long weekend with friends helping to put on a music festival about an hour from my home town. It was small, and made smaller by the craptastic weather we had all weekend (~10-15 C with lots of rain). Nevertheless the people there made it fun and although I did get a bit chilly and damp at times I did have so much fun despite it all. I brought all I needed to stay warm and dry and enjoy myself and I could sleep in a cocoon of blankets in the van and drink all the cocoa and soup I wanted, so really all was well. The rusty nails on ice certainly helped cut the cold too. I am happy to report that my Doc Martens rain boots work so well and are very comfy...and I have some amazing friends. :)

J & I and friends in our backstage hideout

All my jackets smell of campfire now. :)

It lights the whole sky

“Even After All this time
The Sun never says to the Earth,
"You owe me."
Look What happens
With a love like that,
It lights the whole sky.”
- Hafez

 Hello :) It's been a great last little while here at Castle Neufeldo. J's birthday. Fresh veggies form the garden (no squash but oh the tomatoes!). Making crabapple jelly and pickled beans...and spending some wonderful days with my J.

Holidaze is officially over so I am back to Project Uberfrau. I almost ate myself up a dress size while on holidays and so I have some work to do. I don't mind tho - it was worth it. It's all about keeping yourself in check right? And so the next 2 months will be very dialed in and focused. Coming up in November I have my lat flap surgery (not that I have a date yet...sigh) and after that I have to be very gentle with my self...just walking for the first 3 weeks and my physio. Then I can hop on the bike. After 6-8 weeks I can start light exercise. So...I figure it'll be good to be in decent shape before that comes. Healthy to heal better and fuelling my body to be ready for all that surgery business. Having a smart TV has been great - I've just been picking a 25-30 minute workout off of the BeFit, PopSugar or Bodyrock channels and busting them out with my kitten hanging out on the couch with me to watch. A little bit every day makes a healthy happy me.

Fall is starting. I LOVE fall. The leaves are yellowing and the mornings are crisp. My morning walks to work are full of the start of all of the migrating geese on the river and sips of vanilla earl grey tea with sunshine streaming over the grain fields with the light catching the wheat fronds...I can tell I'm a prairie girl. It makes me smile every time. I was thinking this morning about how happy I am right now in my life.

I hope you're all happy too.
Have a great day!

Safety First

I've been helping a friend with a cool but ultimately doomed project every evening this week. He's throwing a post-apocalyptic gathering with dance music, drumming and it should be rather cool. We are making decor from drift wood, metal, wire, feathers and old electronics. The only problem is he is determined to have it this weekend when not a lot of people can come and unfortunately there won't be too many people at it, and a lot of people who'd like to help out aren't here either. Plus it starts at 11 and the doors are only open until 12 and then it goes until 6 am. He's trying to create a "mood" and I admire what he's trying to do...I just fear that there will be a small attendance. I have a feeling he's gonna lose out money on it and it could be so much more if it were another weekend, but we're trying to help him achieve his vision for the event despite it all and enjoy the process. I don't know how the party itself will be but I've had a blast making decor and little art installations to go around the venue. Seriously good stuff being made here. We've been giggling that some people get grants to do this kinda thing for a living and...there will be photos of what a society surviving the ashes would do to decorate their world that rises from the ashes...it would be so great to just make art all the time. Full time artists...I envy you.



And so I am tired.
How tired?
I'm drinking coffee. With caffeine.
Yup.
I know. But it's necessary.
Only 2 more weeks of crazy busy summer and it lets off a bit. I can tidy out my house and just relax and read and make things. All this crafting has been good for the soul and I want to make things in my own craft pit. There are bookshelves in it to paint so they can get out into my living room so I have space - both in my room and in my living room for stuff. I haven't been home and not busy enough to do anything with them since June. And I have a few renos to do around the house before my surgery...which has been pushed back to November (sigh).

And so....step 1. Coffee and work.
Then we shall see what else comes of this fine sunny day. I say the first yellow leaves of fall on my walk to work today. My favourite season is coming.
That'll do for now :)

Dad hugs cure everything

Spent the weekend with Dad.
There was much napping and cooking lazy food, dominoes, catching up with old friends and even a mushroom hunt in the woods. I worked with Dad in the shop on a few things and just enjoyed his company.
I was frazzled. Now I feel so much better. :)
Sadly J felt crummy all weekend but at least he got to curl up and nap in a beautiful place.
Get your dose of hugs and nature today :)

Beep Beep Beep Beep Beep

And then all the lab equipment broke.
Hooray!

OK actually only 3 things. But still.
Seriously.
Just one at a time please. Get in line.

Heeeeeeeere's Geo!

I'm back :)
What an awesome holiday - I feel like I've been away for months. First day back at work was spent catching up on old stuff and putting out fires, but not too crazy. I think it'll all be OK :)

There was much fringing when we could (saw some great plays) and Connect was a lot of fun. Really small and cozy and only 3 hours away. J even got to VJ at the main stage for over 4 hours of visuals during the headliners so he was very happy. I relaxed with more friends there than I thought would be there and came home quite happy too.
Then it was off to Ottawa. What a blast. The "house" we stayed in was on sale for about a million dollars...anyone have a spare million for me? I could very much get used to that life. We all fit in there and there was a 2 acre yard with trampline, 2 shaded decks, a giant hammock and a pool for us all to hang out in as well as a gloriously large main house area with a kitchen for us to all BBQ and visit in. SUCH a good time catching up with family. It's been too long. Then once everyone went home J and I did what we love to do best on holidays - found a central jumping off point and then spent 4 days walking around the city seeing historical sites and architecture, heating amazing food and just doing whatever we damn well pleased. There was a free outdoor video presentation at the parliament buildings which was awesome. On our anniversary we stumbled upon a Burmese restaurant that had some INCREDIBLE food and we wandered over to the Ottawa Riverside at the National History Museum to watch Belguim's contribution to the fireworks festival. It was all just great. The kind of holiday I love...the kind of life I love.
The day after I got back we had a spa day with my friend Heather and her 2 sisters - her hubbie wanted to give her a night out to relax and he rented us  a room so after manicure and pedicure we went out for a great meal and they yakked with beer until the wee hours - she even got a whole night of sleep. Yup...pretty stellar really. I've never been to a spa before...it was pricey but man...my feet feel amazing now :)

And now...back to normal life. Ah. 

I do at the zoo

Just got back from phase 1 of holiday 2015. It was lovely. J's cousin got married in Calgary at the zoo and it really was a wonderful time. The wedding went great and we stayed with my sister and her husband so we got in a visit with them too. Since it was at the zoo I even got to go and watch the penguins (meep) between the ceremony and the reception...so hooray.

we clean up pretty good

 Now we're back home for a few days before we head out for the weekend to the Connect music festival. It's only a few hours away but we've never been. Usually we're doing the Fringe festival thing but this year J is working at one of the festival stages so he is going up early today and I'm heading up with a friend on friday. Should be fun. We can still get in some shows next week, so we won't miss out completely. An old aquaintance of ours, T.J. Dawe, is doing his thing at the Fringe this year and is in town staying with us for a few weeks as a billet. He's keeping an eye on our critters while we are away which is nice. Plus he's a great guest - and he's just an amazing guy J got to know during his years covering the past Fringes. TJ's one man plays are really some of my favourites that I've ever seen at the Fringe...if he's ever doing his thing at your Fringe go and see him - you won't regret it. It's been nice catching up with him. Kindred spirit, definitely.

But I must say that for right now,  once J is on his way, I'm going to go get in some Xander time and laugh up the evening with Heather and nuzzle ze bebe.

Yup. I like holidays :)

I've just got to put these wings to test....

It's an Annie Lennox kinda day. She's one of my diva heroes...I've
been humming old Eurythmics tunes all day and am now onto her greatest
hits as I work away here on SOPs and the last of the documents before I
get to go on holidays for a few weeks.

I can't wait.

This last week I've been working on doing the Bodyrock 21
day beach bootcamp and it's been a good challenge so far. 30 seconds
work and 10 seconds rest is something I can get into. The workouts are
less than 30 minutes so I can fit it in my morning without too much
fuss. I'm determined to be as active as I can until my surgery in
September. Still don't have a date set yet. Hope to know soon...Then I
can start psyching myself up for it.

For now it's just keeping my head down to get all this stuff done and I can go away and relax for a while with my family.

Soon.

:)