Musings of a Brain Diva

We Have Come A Long Way...

2009-05-27T20:31:00.003-04:00

Someone passed along a link to these ads. It's just mind boggling to look at used to be acceptable not that long ago...

15 (very) sexist ads that may leave you as speechless as I am

12 vintage ads that are just plain disturbing

I Love Me Some TV

2009-05-19T20:33:00.004-04:00

I bought DVDs of the first season of Chuck and Andy Richter Controls The Universe. Even though the first season of Chuck was only last year, I had already forgotten a lot of what was going on back then. It's such a rewatchable show. I'm so glad it's been renewed for a third season, thanks to fan efforts.

Andy Richter Controls The Universe is a series that aired back in 2002. I remembered finding it very funny, but it got cancelled fairly quickly like most innovative and smart shows seem to. Anyway, I highly recommend it. I'm sure I'll be rewatching those DVDs often.

Finally, I was looking at my livejournal page, and all the keywords I had entered as interests. I think it describes me pretty well:

Aging, arrested development, books, cheers, chocolate, chuck, coffee, cooking, crosswords, dictionaries, french, grammar, montreal, monty python, movies, musicals, neuroscience, newsradio, non fiction, photography, politics, pride & prejudice, psychology, science, statistics, sudoku, teaching, technology, the colbert report, the daily show, the human brain, the office, the office fanfic, the x-files, toronto, writing

Farmers' Market

2009-05-09T09:08:00.006-04:00

Earlier this week, I discovered that there is a farmers' market on Saturday morning from 9 am to 12 pm close to my place. There's nothing I like quite so much to buy local products. So I got up early this morning, wanting to go. It was a beautiful day when I woke up. Now that I'm ready to go because the market just opened? The sky is dark as ink, thunder and lightening are raging, and it's pouring buckets of rain. Bah. I guess I'll have to try again next weekend!

Kitty Is Going On A Diet

2009-05-04T18:21:00.008-04:00

This is my cat:

She is a happy cat, but lately, her backside has been sore. She didn't seem to groom her backside as well either. I took her to the vet, and it cost me 400$ to find out that:

1) Kitty might be developing arthritis, and she needs shots.

2) She should lose weight. Putting her on a diet is going to be huge fun given that when the food is low in her bowl, she has no qualms about waking me up in the middle of the night for it.

3) Her fur was indeed somewhat matted in the bum area so the vet thought it'd be a good idea to shave her. So poor kid now looks like this:

She was apparently good when they were shaving her, but she looks a bit silly with her short black and white fur. It's a little cow-like. LOL

TV & Movies

2009-05-02T21:52:00.009-04:00

I was thinking of rounding up a list of cultural endeavours I loved in the last few months. You might know I love old movies so there are a few of that. I'll stick with recommendations.

TV Series

1) Chuck: Of all the new series from last season, this is my favourite. I lost my other love, Pushing Daisies. I cannot say enough good things about it. It's got comedy, spy action, and romance. I love the characters. It's perfect TV fluff. I really hope NBC doesn't cancel it!

2) Breaking Bad: Such a dark series about a chemistry teacher who learns he has 18 months to live after being diagnosed with cancer. To leave money for his family, he joins forces with a younger guy to make crystal meth. So it's a totally crazy premise, but the characters are flawed and interesting, and you just want to know what will happen next. It's a series by Vince Gilligan, who was my favourite writer on The X-Files.

3) Being Erica: I've talked about it before, but I was totally sucked into this dramedy about a 30-something girl who lives in Toronto. The season finale really makes me die to see how it continues.

I also really enjoyed two BBC miniseries I watched: Cranford and State of Play.

Movies

1) Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? What a fantastic movie! It's a creepy thriller, and Bette Davis and Joan Crawford are both great. That movie had me on the edge of my seat.

2) Vertigo:. I had a Jimmy Stewart double bill a few weeks ago: The Philadelphia Story, which I love, and a movie I had never seen, Vertigo. I don't know that I was totally sucked into the movie, but I can definitely see why it's been so influential in terms of film making. It's definitely very interesting as far as how it is shot. And the plot has lots of twists and turns.

3) Sunshine Cleaning: I saw this movie last weekend. It's the story of two sisters who start their own crime scene cleaning business to try to rise up above in their situations. It's a quiet little film about the struggles of life. It just touched some cords in me. Made me cry like a little girl.

Other mentions: Loved Rachel Get Married. It was my favourite Oscar season movie along with Milk. I saw Monsters vs. Aliens in IMAX 3D. That was just a whole lot of fun. On the more serious side, Waltz with Bashir, a movie about the Shatila Massacre in the 1982 Lebanon War, is very poignant.

I have a few old school movies lined up in the next few days: 1) Hitchcock's Rope, which I have seen before but is just a great movie, 2) To Have or Have Not, a Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall movie, and 3) Fellini's 8 1/2.

I'll be back tomorrow with my favourite books that I've read lately.

Montreal, Baby!

2009-04-16T13:10:00.004-04:00

I spent the long Easter weekend in Montreal, which was really nice. On Friday, my friends and I went to a fairly new French bistro called Le St-Urbain. It was really yummy. I had a risotto as I am wont to do in nice restaurants. Some of us also went to the Planetarium before the restaurant, something I hadn't done in years. It's always nice to gaze at the stars. There was a movie about the five great extinctions, which was really interesting.

On Saturday, I spent time with the family. We played Monopoly, and I lost again. I swear, I don't think I've ever won at that game. I also went shopping in the afternoon, and bought a new toaster oven to replace mine that is falling apart. It's all convection ovens out there nowadays. Can't wait to use it!

We went for brunch Sunday at Eggquis, which was really tasty. Then, I spent most of Sunday on the road, driving back to Toronto.

Monday and Tuesday, I was on the road again, in Windsor to go evaluate a patient over there. I stayed at the Hilton, and had a great view on the Michigan River, and Detroit's lakefront silhouette. However, Windsor was cold and rainy.

I'm now back in Toronto and we are having lovely sunny days! I love spring.

While I was in Montreal, I took lovely pictures, which I shall post up soon.

The Nanny

2009-04-01T18:32:00.006-04:00

Again, the Internet makes me rediscover things from years gone past. I love you, YouTube. Anyway, I've been watching some episodes of The Nanny lately. I had forgotten how funny that show was, especially in its earlier seasons, before it became way too corny. The last time I remember seeing this show on TV was when I first moved to Toronto. I have memories of crying, missing home late at night, and watching that show to cheer myself up.

I came across a clip where Fran Drescher saying that her inspiration for the show was a spin on The Sound of Music, and it's probably exactly why I like it. It has the romantic aspect to it mixed with silly antics. I do remember my thinking Mr. Sheffield was so dreamy. LOL Fran Drescher's physical comedy was always very funny to me, which is surprising given that physical comedy doesn't tend to be what makes me laugh most. Niles and C.C. are also very funny as are the kids. This is a show I'd never pick apart because plenty of it makes no sense whatsoever. It's like a silly vaudeville, but it doesn't pretend to be anything more than that. I was pleased to still be finding it funny, because some shows just age very poorly.

Sights of Toronto

2009-03-15T18:27:00.005-04:00

I have taken to carrying my camera with me when I'm walking around.

A cool alley mural...

The clock tower building is a fire station. Cool, huh? I love the architecture of this building.

Things I Bought That I Love

2009-03-12T11:01:00.007-04:00

I love for purses and shoes. Hence, an entry about purchases I love from the last few months. Most are awesome scores from my favourite store, Winners.

I got a purse from the Montreal company Matt & Nat a few months ago. They make vegan purses that are just as cool as leather products. I love their designs. I bought this purse with some birthday money...

I've gotten so many compliments over that purse. Everyone loves it, and has a hard time believing it's not leather.

I found love again with Matt & Nat and this purse...

Look at the weaved fiber, it's so nice...

It's going to be a great bag, I think. It's big enough to carry files and other stuff to work.

As for footwear, I got these cute boots at Target when we went to Buffalo a few weeks ago.

They make me feel so spring-like! :)

I also bought these Steve Madden shoes. Look how cute they are!

My feet love them so dearly...

The Daily Show and The Colbert Report

2009-03-05T23:52:00.002-05:00

I really enjoyed the economy-focused episode of TDS yesterday. It was one of the best recent episodes. There's nothing like Jon and the TDS writers going full spin on a topic. It was nice to see him calling out TV "financial analysts" who didn't see the recession coming and are now ranting about Obama wanting to help common people, not just big corporation.

As for TCR, Stephen Colbert's Doom Bunker is definitely one of the funniest segments they've ever done. I was laughing until I cried. FOX's Glenn Beck deserves every joke for putting such ridiculous fictional scenarios for doom analysis on TV.

Erica Strange's Video Blog

2009-02-26T22:18:00.006-05:00

I love the show Being Erica and I discovered they made video blogs of her talking to Ethan about a bunch of daily events.

Here's an example...

I can only relate too much to encountering a mouse, wanting to flee, and the fear of becoming a cat lady. I love this show.

Sometimes It's The Little Things...

2009-02-24T23:33:00.004-05:00

I had an okay day, I guess, but as I was unpacking groceries, my watch hit the shelf in the fridge, and a piece of the corner broke. I guess it doesn't even show that much, but I burst into tears. I have no idea where that came from except I've been feeling blue lately. What a stupid thing to get upset over. Sure, I love this watch, and I got it only a few months ago, but still... Meh, I can't wait for the winter to be over.

On the other hand, Stephen Colbert with his impression of getting on the Internet in 1997 made me laugh till I cried. Ricky Gervais on TDS was also a gift. Oh, and I couldn't believe Jason Jones's interview with guys who call Obama Hitler and the Anti-Christ!

I'm a Superhero

2009-02-21T11:45:00.003-05:00

Hee. This site is so much fun: The Hero Factory.

Three-Day Weekend! Woo hoo!

2009-02-16T17:44:00.005-05:00

Hit Buffalo on Sunday for a day of shopping, food, and art. We hit all the stores we don't have in Canada. I got cute rain boots from Target! We also went to the Albright-Knox Art Gallery for an exhibit on abstract art, which was super interesting.

Oh, and this is the song I loved from my high school days that I was trying to sing in the car on the way back... It comes complete with cheesy early 90s video!

Place Des Grands Hommes (1989).

A February Weekend in Toronto

2009-02-08T19:02:00.006-05:00

I went to see a play on Friday, Medea. It was interesting since I had never seen a Greek tragedy before. Of course, everyone dies at the end so it's a bit of a bummer.

The weather was positively spring-like this weekend. See, it's melting and there are puddles everywhere...

The weather was even nice Saturday night...

We had a lovely sunset on Sunday. You can see the moon rising as the sun is setting. I took these pictures from my apartment window. :)

Television

2009-02-04T19:43:00.003-05:00

I rented the season 1 DVDs of The Flight of the Conchords over the weekend. Very funny show. I noticed that one of the writers was the creator of one of my all-time favourite shows, NewsRadio so I'm not surprised it's up my comedic alley.

R.I.P. Kim Manners

2009-01-26T22:59:00.002-05:00

Kim Manners, the director of 52 episodes of The X-Files, died of lung cancer yesterday. He was certainly the most distinctive director of the show and appeared well loved by everyone on the show. He directed so many of my favourite episodes! R.I.P., Mr. Manners.

Snack

2009-01-25T14:01:00.005-05:00

I've discovered a new snack...

This is the result.

;)

Snow and TV Shows

2009-01-19T23:01:00.008-05:00

It's been a snowy weekend, so I had fun with my camera!

As far as TV goes, I'm so sad that Pushing Daisies has been cancelled. Now, ABC may not even air the last episodes. Boo, ABC, boo.

On the plus side, there's this new series on CBC on Monday nights (which I've heard will air in the US on SoapNet, but it's totally not a soap) called Being Erica. It's about a girl who gets sent back in time to moments she felt she screwed up to try to fix them or learn from her mistakes. The writing is really good, and I just got sucked into the show. The third episode was on tonight, and it's just so enjoyable. Plus, you get a lot of music from the 90s, which is so cool. The fact that the series is about a single girl in her early 30s living in Toronto and coming home to her cat and kinda of confused about it all might make me identify a tiny bit. ;) Highly recommended.

Chuck and The Office are also very enjoyable this year, and The Daily Show is on fire so I'm pleased as punch.

Oh, to end my post, here's a little cutie. :)

Picture Blog

2009-01-10T18:24:00.012-05:00

I finally bought a digital camera over the holidays! Yay! So I had a lot of fun taking pictures...

I love winter, and my hometown is so pretty with the snow all around. I took the next two pictures near my high school. The lake you see at the center in those pics has now become an ice skating rink since they've had enough cold days to ensure the ice is thick enough.

In front of my parents' house, we have a lot of snow. However, by the end of the winter, you usually can't see the door at all from the street.

My mom decorates the nicest Xmas tree:

This is my attempt at a little tree in my apartment:

Man-Made Terror

2008-10-28T06:52:00.002-04:00

Excluding any disaster that threatens your life, I think there's nothing quite as scary as waking up to the "can't boot computer" screen of death. I woke to it this morning, and I really wished I were still dreaming. My little PC had tried to reboot in the night after upgrading one program or another, and somehow failed miserably at the task of just starting up again. I think the terror comes partly from knowing this piece of aluminum and circuits will rule your day and suck your time until you can tame it into running again. I have to fix a problem with the Registry Editor, it seems. I can foresee fun computer times ahead of me in the next few days.

A Bad Case of The Mondays

2008-10-06T22:49:00.004-04:00

You know how the common wisdom is the life is made of a series of small moments? Well, all my little moments today kinda sucked! Let's make a list, shall we?

- Woke up at 4:50 am because I had nightmares. That hasn't happened to me since I was a kid. Couldn't fall back asleep because I was so freaked out. On the plus side, I had a lot of time to get ready for work.

- Had to come back up 3 times to my apartment on my way to work because I kept forgetting things. I got halfway down the stairs to realize I forgot my bottle of water. Second time, I got just outside the door of the apartment building and realized I forgot the keys to the office. Third time, I was halfway down the street to the subway when I realized I forgot my agenda, which I needed for all the phone numbers in it.

- Oh, that bottle of water? I would have been better forgetting it home since it leaked a bit and got my library book wet! The poor book is now wedged between huge tomes to get it straight.

- I had a really tough case at work. My boss was on my case about a bunch of trivial things that she keeps changing her mind about. When I asked her for some info to help me do my assessment, instead of getting the info for me, which would have been a courtesy given that 1) I was working a patient all day while she was home writing reports, 2) this info was needed today and 3) she should have known the info given that she's the boss, she gave me a phone number to call to get the info. When she called at the office at lunchtime to know how things were going, her first question was, "So, did you get the info?" Given that I had spent the last 3 hours trying to assess someone who didn't want to be there, NO I didn't get around to it yet. Argh.

- Also I didn't have time to have lunch.

- To cheer me up, I stopped by the music store right by the office to get a CD I couldn't find on iTunes. When I got home, opened the case, and THERE WAS NO CD in there! I mean, really?! So I have to go back to the store and explain that!

- I decided to cheer me up by going to rent "Forgetting Sarah Marshall". I get to the video store. There is a box for it on the shelves, and then they tell me they're out of it. Seriously, universe?

- I wanted to go deposit a check. The ATM is out of envelopes. Of course.

- My cat also won't stop howling at the moon.

- Oh, and of course, the cherry on top is that, as Cher Horowitz would say, God decided it was the day for me to ride the crimson wave too. That never helps in making you not a bitch.

So in conclusion, October 6, 2008= freak day. It will go in the books in the minus column. LOL

How Long Could You Survive Chained to a Bunk Bed With a Velociraptor?

2008-09-17T09:56:00.001-04:00

60 seconds

This concept makes me laugh far too much.

How I Wish I Had Call Display...

2008-09-03T22:48:00.005-04:00

This is a typical day at my apartment... I get maybe 6-7 calls, 4 or 5 of them are from telemarketing/survey people. I was waiting for an important call so I couldn't let it go to the machine. So I had to deal with super annoying people always trying to sell me the same crap. I don't need a new credit card/long distance plan/a free trip (yes totally free!)/cell phone plan. Leave me be.

In other news, I had the most amazing weekend. I took time off and it did me so much good. I went to Niagara with some friends. We saw the falls, went wine tasting, visited Fort George, and hung out in Toronto. We had good food, and it was the most relaxed I felt in months. So that was nice,

Also, newsflash: it is apparently the early 90s again and I'm 12 all over again, I listened to The New Kids on The Block new CD and watched the 90210 premiere yesterday. ;) NKOTB impressed me. I mean, I'm not going to start sketching little hearts in my notebook or anything, but what little I heard from their new CD sounds like good pop music. That's good enough by me. As for 90210, I was a regular watcher of the original for the first few seasons... I'm definitely too old for this stuff, but I love that Jessica Walter plays basically an unironic version of Lucille Bluth. Otherwise, it's just like any other teen soap, which basically means I'll have it on if I'm cleaning or really trying to avoid work.

Free Jenna Fischer!

2008-08-12T19:27:00.002-04:00

She has unfortunately been kidnapped by Rainn Wilson. She will not be given a peach smoothie unless we see Rainn's new movie. ;)

It's Funny Because It's True.

2008-08-06T14:28:00.001-04:00

The X-Files Shipper-Con 2008. ;) Well, not the shipper-con but everything else.

This Is What Happens...

2008-07-29T20:21:00.005-04:00

when I feel like going on and on talking. Instead of directly inflicting it upon other people, I write a stupidly long blog entry. lol It's been a while, hasn't it? I've been working a lot, and living in my head as always. I'm trying to enjoy the summer a bit.

I went in the Shawinigan wilderness two weekends ago, kayak and what not. This weekend, E and I went to open air market, and did some movie catching up. We went to see Wall-E on Sunday afternoon, which I enjoyed very much despite the two crazy children who were talking and running around during most of the movie. Seriously, I expect some noise when I see a kids' movie, but this was over the line.

On Friday night, we went to see TXF movie. You probably know how long I had been waiting for this (i.e., a long time! LOL). The X-Files has been one of those few things in pop culture that's ever really hooked me. My verdict? I must say upon seeing the movie, I was a little meh, but the more I think about it, the more I can't wait to see it again. (I will this weekend.) I know my friend E didn't like it quite as much. She was a more casual fan than I and found it boring in spots. She was also confused by certain things, not having seen the last few seasons. I think it was just marketed as a big action/thriller movie when it wasn't really what it was so it may have been a bit misleading as to what you expected to see. It might have also been better to release it in the fall since it wasn't a summer blockbuster. But anyway, it was a mixed bag, although I like it more than not.

SPOILERS FOLLOW...

The plot of the scary story worked more or less for me. It was kind of silly and confusing, focusing a lot on agents we didn't really know. I think it could have used a bit more editing and tightening of the storyline, although I understand that the writers' strike did put the whammy on modifying the script as the shooting went along.

In addition, I think not having Mulder & Scully in the FBI didn't quite make this work. I understand that it would have been a stretch justifying having them back in the FBI, but that was such a big part of their identity. I was missing the guns, the badges, the basement office, all the things that made The X-Files.

As for the Scully B-storyline, the less I say about that, the better. I adore Scully and her crises of faith, but Saint Scully was a pathologist, and now, she's apparently a pediatrician and a neurosurgeon? Please allow me to roll my eyes since that is not how the medical profession works. Also googling stem cell research? Yeah, not so much... This is the kind of thing when they push too far and it just becomes unbelievable.

However, the good stuff was the acting. Everyone was good. In addition, he Mulder/Scully relationship was really well done and exactly what I hoped to see. That's always what has made this show special, and on that front, I can only say I was pleased. The break up was a bit of an extreme reaction to the situation but Scully didn't overdo it; she was setting her limits as far as saying she didn't want them to go back to a dark place, which is fair enough seeing as Mulder has a tendency to go nutty when he becomes involved in a case. I thought they played the relationship in a very mature and real way, although I could have done without the violins when they kissed. LOL

The end with them on a boat in the middle of the ocean? (Points for Mulder wearing a red bathing suit! LOL) I'm not sure what it was supposed to mean except that they're riding (or more to the point, rowing) into the sunset, forever happy. By the way, when I saw the boat, I thought it might be The Lone Gunmen, CSM, Krycek and all other XF villains in a boat in the middle of nowhere. I thought that would have been funny!

I did like all the little inside jokes for the hardcore fans; I don't think it would distract new viewers, but added all this baggage for older fans. It was neat. So I don't know whether I'll be disappointed or not if we don't get a third movie... I think I'll always want more Moose and Squirrel. It's the nature of the fangirlish beast. ;)

Oh, also, someone told me today that David Duchovny is blogging for TXF movie. How did I not know that?

Next up: A new Arrested Development movie is rumored to be in the works! Please make it so.

Brilliant Brain-Related Art

2008-04-01T21:17:00.002-04:00

The Museum of Scientifically Accurate Fabric Brain Art. They even have wood-carved brains. And no, this is not an April Fool's joke.

Two Exciting Pieces of Info...

2008-03-31T17:12:00.002-04:00

or why I have a very low threshold of excitement. ;)

1) They're finally building a Tim Hortons' next to my place. Not that I go there all the time, but I had been living in a TH void in my part of Toronto so this is exciting.

2) A little bit of elementary/high school nostalgia. I will be watching with bells on, no matter how cheesy it is sure to be. And 20th anniversary! I feel old all of a sudden.

Burma! I panicked!

2008-03-08T00:48:00.003-05:00

I love Monty Python, and therefore I bring you the penguin on the television skit. I can't embed this one unfortunately, but it is really worth watching.

Another favourite: Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition!

Part 1:

Part 2:

Goodreads

2008-03-03T01:32:00.002-05:00

A friend of mine found a fun new website called Goodreads. It allows you to keep track of what you have read, write reviews of books, and share them with your friends. You can also keep track of what you want in the future. If you want to become my friend on there, let me know and I'll hook you up. ;)

Jimmy Kimmel, Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, and A Whole Bunch of Celebrities

2008-02-25T07:16:00.001-05:00

Somebody gave me a link to the song Sarah Silverman sang on Jimmy Kimmel a few weeks ago called "I'm F&%*ing Matt Damon".

I'm usually not a fan of Jimmy Kimmel or Sarah Silverman, but that was very funny. Both Matt Damon and Sarah Silverman were very game, and went all out.

So tonight, I didn't turn off my television right after the Oscars, and caught the beginning of Jimmy Kimmel's Oscar special. And he had a rebuttal for that initial song:

That was truly hilarious. I can't believe how many celebrities he recruited to sing about his love for Ben Affleck.

Brilliant Podcast

2008-02-24T13:42:00.000-05:00

John Oliver (of The Daily Show) and a fellow British comedian, Andy Zaltzman, host a weekly podcast called The Bugle. The tagline of their podcast is Audio Newspaper for a Visual World, which is hilarious and very appropriate. The podcast is formatted like sections of a newspaper, and their take on the news is just brilliant and hilarious. They skewer the news, but also are often just plain silly. They tackle news from around the world. It often makes me laugh so much, I cry. I can't recommend it enough.

How Many Days Until July 25th?

2008-02-23T22:25:00.006-05:00

After seeing these pictures and reading this, I am now officially excited about The X-Files movie. (Although a new agent named Dakota Whitney? That is one silly name!) I have seen maybe one episode in the last 3 or 4 years, but I am now looking forward to a new adventure. I'm only hoping it is good. I can't wait to see the trailer!

Oh, and new episode of Saturday Night Live tonight with Tina Fey hosting. It should be good.

I've been reading The Lucifer Effect by Philip Zimbardo tonight, which I just received in my Amazon package today. Very interesting read so far. :) I'll have to write more about it once I'm done reading it.

Mmmm... Food!

2008-02-19T00:52:00.003-05:00

I made some turkey meatloaf and garlic mashed potatoes on Sunday, courtesy of Martha Stewart's New Classics. It was a perfect Sunday evening meal. The sage in the turkey meatloaf makes it particularly tasty. This kind of food reminds me of the wintry Sunday night meals of my childhood when my dad would cook his roast beef with mashed potatoes or make a vegetable stew that would simmer all afternoon.

Oh, I read Ken Levine's blog on occasion, and tonight, I stumbled upon the posts (1, 2 and 3) guest blogger Peter Casey wrote about creating Frasier. That was quite timely with my previous post about my renewed love for Frasier. It's a really interesting account of the development of the series.

In other less fun news, I have to mark a part of 200 stats exams this week. This much marking always turns my brain to mush. Yuck.

I Have Been Quiet in The Last Few Months...

2008-02-17T00:46:00.005-05:00

It's odd how I used to blog quite regularly, but it seems to have just fallen out of my regular routine. I'm keeping quite busy as always. I did go out this afternoon, and went to see Definitely, Maybe, which I enjoyed even more than I thought I would. It's a very cute movie for a Saturday afternoon. :)

I've tried to pick back up my cooking of late, and I've made ratatouille and many other delicious dishes. I can't wait to buy myself a digital camera (which should be soon enough) to keep a visual diary of my culinary attempts.

Oh, and I finally, I've started watching Frasier reruns recently, and I had forgotten how much that sitcom made me laugh. David Hyde Pierce as Niles is particularly brilliant.

While I love shows like The Office, 30 Rock, and Pushing Daisies, I wish there were some good sitcoms in the vein of Frasier and Cheers still around.

Happy Holidays, Everyone!

2007-12-19T20:25:00.000-05:00

I have been quiet around here lately. Haven't had much to say. Things have been busy between my dissertation, teaching, and my part-time job as a psychometrist. I'm going home this weekend for the holidays. I've been in a festive mood for a while. I decorated mid-November this year. I love having all the lights and the tree. It's just so pretty! :) During the break, although I do need to work, I plan to take time to bake, go to the movies, and sleep! :)

I'm bummed out about the TV strike because I had been enjoying The Office and 30 Rock a whole lot this season. Plus I found 2 new shows I love, Chuck and Pushing Daisies. Highly recommend all these shows. Hopefully, the strike shall end soon. I am watching the new game show called Duel on ABC right now though, and kicking serious butt. I would have won all the duels. I guess it sometimes pays off to know a lot of random facts! LOL The host, though, is utterly annoying.

Happy Holidays, everyone! Best wishes to you and your family and friends! :)

All Is Well. Mostly.

2007-09-27T12:37:00.000-04:00

Term has begun. I am teaching a course, and have another part-time position one day a week to pay the bills. Besides that, it's me and my research. Oh yes, the demon is back. So it is.

I've started doing Yoga Booty Ballet recently. I know that it has the most ridiculous name, but it is fabulous. They're fun workouts and I'm already seeing changes in my booty and my ads. That's all a girl can ask for! :)

Besides that, tonight is The Office's season premiere. I can't wait. I watched Chuck on Monday night, and that's also a very enjoyable show I'll probably continue to watch. I love nerdy guys, which I am sure comes as a shock to all who know me. ;)

I've Been Pretty Quiet of Late...

2007-08-26T22:56:00.000-04:00

The summer has been a busy one. I'm currently wrapping up my internship. It makes me a little sad because I've had such a good time there. Worked a lot but it has been awesome. I'll miss it.

I got myself a new computer last week. It's a very pretty, very fast HP. And there were tons of sales so I got a good deal. Let's wish it a long life than my craptacular laptop.

Today, I went to the movies and saw Waitress, which I recommend, although I am not sure I liked the ending. Anyway, on my way to the movies, I saw a squirrel eating half an Areo chocolate bar. Oh, squirrel. Say no to refined sugar. Talk about the crazy diet of city-dwelling animals!

Cat Harbinger of Death

2007-07-26T17:14:00.000-04:00

I stumbled upon this article, A Day in the Life of Oscar The Cat, about a cat living in a nursing home. He can apparently predict which patient is going to die next. I must say, this has me very intrigued. I'm not one for superstition at all so I am just wondering what the cat perceives that lets him know the patient will die soon. So strange.

This article is The New England Journal of Medicine so it is not like Conspiracy Theory Magazine or something. LOL

Oooo, Cupcakes and Computers!

2007-07-22T15:51:00.000-04:00

Yesterday, the girls with whom I had dinner with had been to The Cupcake Shoppe before and were carrying those little delicacies with them. I will need to make a trip there to try some of their cupcakes because the menu looks divine.

In the realm of computers, my officemate found this nifty little software called Key Breeze that allows you to start applications, switch programs,... with only a key stroke. It's a pretty smart little tool to have that saves a lot of mouse clicking on your desktop.

The Shopping Blog

2007-07-21T22:55:00.000-04:00

I went shopping last night, and bought a pair of Keds! I almost bought these ones, but they were far too white (seeing as I am the world's whitest woman already!) and made me looked like I had stepped out of the 80s! It was Rainbow Brite/Carebears/My Little Pony inspired. I think it was the 6-year-old in me that really wanted them.

In other shoe news, I want these.

Last night, I also got a navy purse, and it is fabulous. It was on sale too, which always helped. I wanted to put up a pic of it, but I can't find it online. I need to get myself a digital camera one of these days

Tonight, I went out with Donna, who was in town from Boston, and other friends. We laughed a lot and fun was had by all, I think. :)

Not Much To Report

2007-07-15T17:52:00.000-04:00

I am working a lot, but I am in fact still alive. ;) Nothing all that interesting to report or link to. I'll need to work on that. I did see Miss Potter last night, which I enjoyed.

Where's Willy?

2007-06-29T20:07:00.000-04:00

As I was paying for lunch at the cafeteria today, I received a 5$ bill with a website address on it. The website is called Where's Willy, after Wilfred Laurier, a former Canadian prime minister whose face appears on the 5$ bill. It is so cool because it basically tracks how money travels. I'm such a geek but I find it fascinating! By the way, my American friends, there is also Where's George to track American currency.

In other news, Eve was supposed to arrive in TO tonight, but she is missed her layover and is stuck in Memphis instead. Bah. Take care, Evie. See you tomorrow. Actually, it will give me time to vacuum and clean so I think we're all winners here. LOL

An Effect of Birth Order on IQ

2007-06-22T23:07:00.000-04:00

Over my undergrad and graduate career, I've read a lot about intelligence. It's overall a very controversial topic in psychology. A new Norwegian study published in the journal Science quite convincingly demonstrates that older siblings (in the case of this study, they looked at 241, 310 men) will have a slightly higher IQ than their younger siblings. What is fascinating is that it is not so much the effect of being the first born as the effect of being the eldest in the family, because this effect was also found in boys whose oldest sibling had died during childhood and now found themselves the oldest of the family. A companion article by a psychologist at Berkeley outlines plausible reasons for this effect. The most likely theory is that oldest children find themselves in roles of tutoring youngest children and sharing knowledge and that this role benefits more the oldest child than the youngest. Anyway, there are many more fascinating intricacies to it all, but I thought this was so interesting.

Oooo, Extras DVD!

2007-06-18T08:07:00.000-04:00

David, I don't know if you still read my blog, but given that I don't have access to Hotmail (and consequently your email address) from work, I thought I would post this here to remember to tell you. Look what is coming out July 10!

Brilliant! Hopefully, my videostore will get it. At any rate, we'll need to have a viewing party because I can't wait to see it.

The Wonder That Is The Internet! Plus YouTube-a-palooza!

2007-06-11T22:57:00.000-04:00

Those who know me in real life know I have a fairly unusual name. So I was really surprised when someone with the same exact name contacted me on Facebook and she lives right near where I live. How crazy is that? Especially given that she speaks French, and it is not exactly full of French speakers around here. I thought that was cool.

I couldn't sleep early this morning so I played with YouTube from links at a board I frequent. But whenever I get one link, it leads me to something else and so now... Anyway, I present to you fun clips from my hunt.

100 Movies, 100 Quotes, 100 Numbers. This video is amazing. They've compiled 100 movie clips with each number from 1 to 100. It's so cool. Oh, and I had totally guessed what they would use for number 11! LOL (11, 43, and 71 are in my Top 20 favourite movies! :))

How cute are this puppy and kitten play fighting? This kitten is tenacious if a little foolish...

Oh, and an Office video just because... "It's Getting Hot in Here, Scranton Style." (Technically, I know "here" is written with 2 "R"s in that song, but I refuse to write it that way.)

Gravity, 2; Me, 0.

2007-06-09T00:23:00.000-04:00

If you are keeping track, last week I twisted my left ankle and fell in the stairs. I ended up with a few bruises on my legs but I was okay otherwise. Today, I twisted my right ankle walking home from the grocery store. I was wearing a knee length skirt and I managed to fall in gravel and dirt and scraped my whole left knee and upper tibia. Just lovely! It's a pain because it burns. It reminds me when I scraped both my knees when I had to do hurdle race in high school. (Not my idea of a good time, let me tell you!) Because of course we had to do that on gravel too.

Yay for Mix CD

2007-06-07T10:44:00.000-04:00

I made myself a new CD for the summer... I am loving it. Here is the playlist:

1) Never Again, Kelly Clarkson - Yay for angry chick music.
2) Makes Me Wonder, Maroon 5 - Their whole album makes you want to dance.
3) Girlfriend, Avril Lavigne - Faux-punk princess meets bubble gum pop.
4) Middle of Nowhere, Hot Hot Heat - A band from British Columbia with a funky sound.
5) Lost Without You (Acoustic Version), Delta Goodrem - An Australian teen singer; this piano version is particularly nice.
6) Unwritten, Natasha Bedingfield - I've been listening to her album for at least a year and I never get tired of it.
7) SexyBack, Justin Timberlake - Nothing to say that I can't not dance when I listen to that album... so I do!
8) Candyman, Christina Aguilera - I have enjoyed her throwback to 40s-50s music.
9) Here It Goes Again, Ok Go - Have Ok Go become mainstream at all? If not, they should.
10) These Walls, Teddy Geiger - "And even when I'm scared, I have to try to fly/Sometimes I fall/ But I've seen it done before/ I gotta step outside these walls"
11) When You're Gone, Avril Lavigne - Pretty ballad.
12) Extraordinary, Liz Phair - Girls rock!
13) Let Love In, Goo Goo Dolls - I hadn't heard the Goo Goo Dolls in a while... This is very good.
14) Courage, The Tragically Hip - The Hip = one of the best Canadian bands.
15) Islands in The Sun, Weezer - I just love it. You've seen the video with the band playing with animals? LOL
16) My Love, Justin Timberlake - See SexyBack.
17) Bad Day, Daniel Powter - Okay, so from what I understand, American Idol used that song a lot in previous seasons. It is still a good song though.
18) Keep Holding On, Avril Lavigne - Avril looks most unpleasant in interviews, but I like her poppy music.

(Not So) Clean Fun

2007-06-04T11:45:00.000-04:00

A link to a ton of random, but funny, IRC conversations here.

So after I went to the ballet on Saturday night (which was outstanding), I went to see "Knocked Up". Talk about a different plane of entertainment... LOL Anyway, it was funny and I liked, but not nearly as much as I had enjoyed "The 40-Year-Old Virgin". I think Steve Carell really took that movie to another level. Plus, his chemistry with Catherine Keener was wonderful whereas while Seth Rogan and Katherine Heigl were good, they were nothing outstanding. By the way, "Knocked Up" is raunchier than "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" if that is possible...

Before "Knocked Up", there were some previews and Seth Rogan's next movie is called "Superbad" and it stars Michael Cera (aka George Michael from "Arrested Development"!) Looks very funny. So I'll add that to my list of upcoming movies to watch out for. The one movie I want to go see this week or next is "Waitress". I need to go before it closes.

By the way, my blog turned 2 yesterday! How time flies by!

Stairs: The Silent Killer

2007-05-30T16:38:00.000-04:00

I was walking back to my office from a therapy session in another part of the hospital, and was a bit distracted. I took a lovely plunge in the staircase. Thank God I was on the level between two flights so I didn't fall down. I scuffed my hands and knees (and pants!), but mostly, I twisted my left ankle. I hope I haven't pulled anything because it does hurt a bit. I guess I'll see soon enough if it swells up. I also dropped my digital recorder and Palm Pilot. What better event for electronic equipment than hitting a cement floor? LOL

No Day But Today

2007-05-29T14:10:00.000-04:00

I was leading a group at work with clients who have memory problems. I must say, they always inspire me so much by their determination, and their resourcefulness and ability to cope with their difficulties. It always reminds me that we owe it to ourselves to try to make our lives as best as we can despite the obstacles. Plus, they've shown me how important to enjoy yourself in the present moment. Many of them don't remember what they've done a few minutes or hours ago, yet they say that if they felt happy while they did an activity, then it was worth it. :)

On a more superficial note... I got new lipgloss at Sephora: CARGO's Purse Gloss. I got it in the Montreal colour. How appropriate. It's such lovely lip gloss because it is not sticky. CARGO even sells lipgloss in little bubbles! What a brilliant idea!

Movies, Movies, Movies!

2007-05-25T11:24:00.000-04:00

I rented three movies in the last two weeks, which is some kind of record these days. How sad given that I used to watch that in one evening when I was a teen and my brother worked in a videostore (those were the days!). Anyway, I indulged in movies, which is always nice. I rented Music and Lyrics, Dreamgirls, and Catch & Release.

Music and Lyrics was cute, if very forgettable. I didn't feel much happened in the movie, which thinking back on it, is probably because the tension/conflict in the movie occurred with characters who we didn't see that much on screen like the writer ex-boyfriend or the pop singer. Still watching Hugh Grant sing cheesy 80s songs was fun and he had some good one-liners. I always enjoy Drew Barrymore so that was another plus for the movie. Would I rewatch it? Eh, wouldn't go out of my way to do so.

I always enjoy a musical so I liked Dreamgirls. The songs and music in it are fantastic and it is just an interesting storyline. I don't care much for Jamie Foxx and Beyonce though so I think that played into my not being over the moon about it. Jennifer Hudson though does a good job. Plus, my TV boyfriend pops in there for a scene so that is neat.

I really really enjoyed Catch & Release though. It is written and directed by the same screenwriter who did In Her Shoes. The movie is about copping with grief and discovering someone is not really who you thought he/she was. I am not sure how I felt about the ending, but as a whole, it just touched me a lot. I think it is worth seeing.

My friend Eve is coming to stay for the weekend to visit and find an apartment. Yay!

This Feels Like An April's Fool Joke...

2007-05-20T20:24:00.000-04:00

but I guess it isn't: Falling in Love With Objects. My brain is broken by trying to understand this. How can you be in a sexual relationship with an iBook? I want to know. As much as they want to claim they're not fetishists, I beg to differ. Anyway, I am not going to judge too much because I was far too invested and happy on Thursday night, knowing two fictional characters were finally going on a date. ;) Well, you know though it is not a deep-abiding love for fictional characters and I'm not sleeping with Jim and Pam action figures as of yet. LOL Although I may as well come out and say it, I would date Jim Halpert if he were real. Ha!

How cute are they? Very cute.

Oh Boys!

2007-05-14T12:21:00.000-04:00

I called home yesterday to wish my mom a Happy Mother's Day, and my brother was there so I chatted with him a bit. (Oh, by the way, my phone line was resurrected late yesterday afternoon.) So asking what was new in my brother's life, he said, "Oh there's this girl I've been on a few dates with." Nice, but I was sensing some kind of hesitation in his voice so being the big sister that I am, I probbed further. Well, turns out she is not quite broken up with her previous guy. Here is where I sigh in despair because this is not the first time my brother has done this to himself. He seems to have what I dubbed "the puppy dog complex". He falls for someone and follows them around. Last time, he was left with a broken heart for a long time because the girl did not in fact end up leaving her boyfriend despite months of promise to the contrary.

I cannot for the life of me figure out why he does this to himself. Now, I'm not an expert at relationships as my very pathetic love life will attest to. There is potentially something wrong with me for being unable to find and/or keep a boyfriend. LOL However, I do know that being single trumps dating someone who is still not quite broken up with their former partner. My brother says he won't wait around for months for her to break up, to which I said, "I hope not!". She might be a very lovely girl, but I am always a little suspicious of girls who don't think anything of dating two guys at once. It is just a really bad idea. Our parents have a very happy, very functional relationship so it is not like we are lacking a model for a good relationship. (In fact, I suspect that if my brother has mentioned this state of affairs to my mother, she probably shook her head and sighed in sadness!) I've always been protective of my brother so I just don't like the idea that a girl might mess around with his feelings, but I'll guess we'll see what happens.

Oh Yeah, In Case You Want to Call...

2007-05-09T21:41:00.000-04:00

My phone is dead. :( I changed the batteries in the phone, and all the proper panels light up. I tried a different extension cord, nothing. I tried both outlets in my apartment, nothing. I have paid for line maintenance insurance so at least, that's something. Still, ugh. Then, I went on the phone company website, and all I could easily see to get in touch with them was a phone number. How ironic.

I've always had a love/hate (okay, mostly hate) relationship with the phone company. I remember having to get a phone line when I first moved to Toronto. I went with Bell, the biggest phone company in Canada. What a production, it was. First, they wouldn't sign you up unless you had a phone number to give them where they could reach you. I kind of laughed at the clerk. "If I had a phone number, trust me, I wouldn't call you." Then, I couldn't believe how long it took to sign me up for a freaking phone line. You would have thought I was asking to borrow 20,000$. I had to answer at least 15 minutes worth of questions, and they then do an extensive background check before you can get a phone line. Seriously, if I don't pay my bills, just pull the plug. You know where I live.

Then, when I moved to my current building, my former roommate (yes, the one you haven't heard me complain about for almost a full year! LOL) had the place wired for two lines because she spent so much time on the phone. So I called Bell to sign up for a number for my line. They didn't believe me that the apartment was wired for two phones (WTF! The second line was used for a couple of years!). So not only was I going to have to pay 60$ to activate my new line, but I will have to pay like 90$ to have a technician come into my home to rewire my perfectly good line. I said to the clerk, "This makes no sense. Can you go talk to your manager about this?" Manager had on the same position, so I went to another company not trying to rip me off. They activated the line within a week without sending anyone to drill any holes or rewire anything that didn't need rewiring.

So there is no lost love between me and the phone company. I still miss my phone though. Let's hope it gets resurrected soon.

Movie, Why Do You Make Cry?

2007-05-06T01:28:00.000-04:00

I've seen 13 Going on 30 3 times, and every single time, the montage of Jenna going back home to her parents' home when her life is going all wrong makes me cry. It's such a fluffy movie, but that sequence manages to get to me. It's set to Vienna by Billy Joel, which is a song too beautiful for words. Plus, I think the 13-year-old in me can only empathize too much with the teenage self of the character feeling lost as a 30-year-old. It's the magic of movies.

Bon Jovi Night on American Idol

2007-05-02T18:04:00.000-04:00

Okay, so mock me all you want, but I've been occasionally watching American Idol this season after a few seasons of never ever watching it. I'm usually watching while working so I'm not allocating it my full attention and would have a hard time really providing a detailed rundown of what happens on most nights, but nevertheless, it is somewhat entertaining. Anyway, Bon Jovi music last night. Awesome. Gina, did you watch? I thought of you, since I know how you like his music. I really do too, and it was just nice to have Jon Bon Jovi there. Melinda kicked ass as always with her performance of "Have a Nice Day", one of the more recent and not as awesome Bon Jovi songs. The judges called her a young Tina Turner, and I couldn't agree more. LaKisha was quite good for the first time in many weeks with her performance of "This Ain't A Love Song". Judges really liked Blake's "original" performance of "You Give Love a Bad Name", but I thought it should have been called "ridiculous". I don't really care for Blake. He seems very creative, however, so I probably would appreciate him more with original songs as opposed to his trying to rework songs too much to "make his own, dog". I missed Jordin's and Chris's performances, and Phil? Eh. Although he was better than usual.

So Let Me Put This On Paper...

2007-04-30T14:26:00.000-04:00

or on screen or whatever to get it out of my head. I'm trying to write, but this keeps popping back into my head, but if I do commit it to a little corner outside of my head, it might stop running through my mind...

Yesterday, I went with a few colleagues to lunch to a prof's house. He has nice country home in a resort town and we drove out there. We do this a few times a year. We organize a potluck, and it is always a lovely time. The prof's wife is also in the same discipline as we all are, but the others are researchers while I focus more on clinical work as does she so she always tends to engage me on the topic. Nevermind that I've never asked for advice, that's all perfectly good and fine that she wants to dispense wisdom. Mentoring is helpful. The problem is, she kills my spirit. I am all for realistic appraisal of the field, its limitations, job prospects, and all that good stuff but she is such a downer. I have a feeling that she is a bit disillusioned with her career and she is not the most upbeat/relaxed person to start with but still...

I swear, every time I've had a conversation with her about this, she makes me feel like I should quit my degree and get myself to the unemployment office stat because that is where I'll end up anyway. She has repeated me things like "You should get experience and training with a pediatric population. That is where the interesting jobs are." It's all well and good except 1) I told her it is not of interest to me to work with children, 2) I am quite far along within my degree to pick up something like that which would require a lot more work, and 3) I don't think I could handle working with sick kids all the time. I am willing to make concessions regarding a lot of things, but I am not going to get trained in something just because I may find more jobs that I wouldn't want anyway. I also told her all my experience has been in setting X but I'd also like to explore setting Y after graduation through some contacts who might be able to hook me up with opportunities. I don't know if I'd like setting Y, I have a feeling setting X is more for me, but since there are fewer jobs in setting X and they don't tend to pay as well combined with a greater flexibility in setting Y, I want to give it Y a try. She proceeded to tell me that indeed setting X is much better, even if there are no jobs in it, and why setting Y is all wrong, and how it is so difficult to make ends meet in that setting. Thanks, that was very helpful.

This went on and on about a variety of aspects of the job for like 15 minutes. Basically, everything I am interested in about the job was either: a) the opposite of what I should do if I want to get a good job or b) will be impossible to find. I am always a little thrown by at 1) her lack of sensitivity towards my enthusiasm for my field and my future and 2) just plain discouraged and sad. It's not like I am getting a Ph.D. in Cloud Shovelling/Unicorn Chasing/Leprechaun Surgery. Anyway, people suck sometimes.

I Wrote A New Office Fic...

2007-04-28T20:37:00.000-04:00

entitled Paper Jam. It could be subtitled: "What I Wouldn't Do to Avoid Writing Reports and Do My Income Taxes." Hee. No, actually, I just felt really compelled to write that story, and more miraculously, I was able to finish it. I have at least five or six unfinished fanfics since September that are just lying dead on my hard drive. Sometimes, I just seem to have a chunk of story without anything else, and I usually don't force my hand to try to finish it. However, I do feel proud and satisfied of myself when I am able to write a whole story I feel doesn't suck totally. :)

Move Aside Motion Sickness, I've Got Audiobooks

2007-04-28T01:02:00.000-04:00

I am always in search of something to entertain me on my daily bus ride. I would love to read or do Sudoku puzzles but inevitably, I get motion sickness. I figured an audiobook would be a good solution, and so I went to the library and I borrowed Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim written (or in this case, read) by David Sedaris. I have not finished yet, but this is just beyond hilarious. I had to try to stiffle my laughter on the bus. The way he describes his parents' sleeping patterns as living with two housecats, his comparison of Santa Claus vs. the Dutch St. Nicholas, and his retelling of his brother's Paul wedding are endlessly entertaining. I suspect the audiobook may be even more entertaining than the written book since he imitates the voices of his family members and it is just hilarious. Not that he is new on the scene in any way, but I just enjoy when I discover a new author I have an affinity with.

Movie, Movie, TV!

2007-04-23T07:41:00.000-04:00

What is better than a movie with Colin Firth? Colin Firth singing in a movie?! It has Meryl Streep and Pierce Brosnan on top of it. I saw the musical Mamma Mia back in 2002, and it was highly enjoyable. This movie should be good too. That's one I'll be keeping my eye on.

We have a documentary festival in Toronto called Hot Docs. Anyway, this year, it has a very interesting documentary about Michael Moore and his ways of making movies. While I've enjoyed what Michael Moore was trying to do, let's say that I never thought what he did 1) were documentaries as much as commentaries and 2) I always suspected there was a bit more to it. Too bad it is sold out, but hopefully, it will released soon in theatres.

One last thing... I am happy to see they finally released Larry Sanders on DVD: Not Just The Best of the Larry Sanders Show. I think it aired on HBO in the US because I only was able to watch it in syndication on CTV very late at night in the late 90s. The article I linked makes me laugh a bit because they seem to say Garry Shandling appears currently very deflated and morose. Have they never seen Garry Shandling before? He was always like that as far as I am concerned! LOL Anyway, I hope I can rent that DVD set at the video store. I had encouraged the owner to buy Arrested Development once upon a time!

Starbucks PR! Plus, Rules of Conduct Apply to You Too!

2007-04-20T19:13:00.000-04:00

I used to be a Starbucks fan in my early years of grad school. In the last 4 years though, I rarely ever go to Starbucks since Second Cup coffee agrees more with my stomach and is closer to my house. However, by unusual circumstances, I ended up at Starbucks twice this week. I was walking from a meeting on Tuesday night and needed a little pick me up. The barrista was having a hellish time with the order of the previous customer so I ended up waiting about 10 minutes for my coffee. I wasn't in a rush though so I didn't really mind. But the barista felt bad so my coffee was on the house. I thought, "Nice." First comped Starbucks coffee ever. Tonight, I went to a totally different Starbucks near the hospital, because I needed a little fuel (Cinnamon Dolce Latte, to be precise) to finish my reports and it was 6 pm and everything was closed at the hospital. Anyway, again, I was waiting for my coffee, but the barista forgot about me, and it took a bit of time to get my coffee. But who cares, it is Friday night, and I am not in a rush. Nevertheless, he gave me a coupon for a free coffee. Is this a new policy at Starbucks thought up by the PR department? Or do I unconsciously put on a bitch face when I have to wait for a cup of coffee? LOL Although I guess the fact that you pay 4$ for a latte should probably buy some efficiency in the process of obtaining your coffee. But I will say that it is ironic that I never got free coffee when I was truly in a rush in the morning and I was actually genuinely annoyed at having to wait.

Speaking of being annoyed, as you may know, I help manage a fanfic archive in the Office fandom. Most of the community is great, but as always when you work with people, there are some who are a bit more difficult to deal with. Today, one of them decided to post a story that she knew was against the rules. It is not like she is a newbie who is unaware of the rules; she even acknowledged in her summary that she knew it was venturing in that territory that we don't allow. So I emailed her about it, saying I had deleted the story and explaining why. She actually replied back, acting all surprised and trying to challenge me on it!! I had started my email with "You probably know what I am going to say about story x", and she had the guts to reply "No, I don't read minds." Then, after arguing certain points with me, her defense was that she had no intention of offending anyone. I am not offended; I am annoyed. Because somehow, I actually don't enjoy feeling like I am talking to walls, and having to play bad cop with grown-ups who should know better. Shocking, I know. Why do some people disregard simple rules & then act surprised when people call them on it? Actions have consequences. What a concept.

Colbert For President

2007-04-18T22:05:00.000-04:00

Colbert Nation linked to 6 presidential-themed pictures Stephen Colbert did for GQ. They're very amusing although the baby in the first picture is the creepiest thing I've seen in a long time!

Oh, Wednesday, You're Right In The Middle

2007-04-18T20:27:00.000-04:00

Well, it looks like I am back to blogging more regularly. Apparently, I have things to say. Who knew?

Last night, after work, I attended a seminar/networking opportunity. It discussed the long-term cognitive effects of radiation therapy and chemotherapy in children who have had leukemia and brain tumours. It was very interesting stuff, given I know very little about child neuropsychology. I work at the other end of the age spectrum.

But, anyway, it made for a long day yesterday, and then I had 2 talks to attend from 8:00 to 9:00 and 9:15 to 10:15 this morning. Plus, I had two severely depressed clients to see this afternoon, which is tough because they're both in a really distressed state. All clients I see for therapy are having clinical depression and/or anxiety, but some of the other ones are not in such a dark place. As much as I am able to have leave that stuff in the office at the end of the day, it is somewhat draining at the moment when you're in the situation. Plus, I am still green, so I sometimes feel like I should be doing something more than what I am doing or that I'm going about therapy all wrong. However, as I have discovered from reading about cognitive-behavioural therapy, I have issues with wanting to do everything perfectly the first time around or else I want to quit, which is not a realistic or adaptive way of approaching things in life because a) it makes me sad and b) it makes me anxious. Instead of thinking "I can't do anything right and I am useless", I need to assess that thought realistically and correct it by saying, "I am human and I am not always going to do things perfectly, especially as I am learning. Even if I don't do it perfectly, it also doesn't have to mean I am doing everything wrong. My clients keep coming back so I am probably doing something right." Once you've been able to reassessed that thought in a realistic fashion, it decreases the amount of negative emotions. They're pretty powerful tools, those CBT techniques.

Holy Lack of Science Knowledge, Batman!

2007-04-16T23:29:00.000-04:00

I was looking up an urban legend and stumbled upon this real clip of the French version of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire during my snooping around:

The question was "What revolves around the Earth?" The choices were a) the Moon, b) the Sun, c) Mars, and d) Venus. The ignorance of the most basic scientific knowledge displayed not only by the contestant, but by the whole audience just dismayed me so much. Poor Copernicus is spinning in his grave.

So Funny!

2007-04-15T23:18:00.000-04:00

At a board I frequent on occasion, someone posted this diagram of how blog comments work, which is so hilarious because it applies to about any slightly contentious Internet forum/blog I've been to. Humans are predictable creatures.

Then, someone else posted a lightbulb joke as a variation on the same topic... I've clearly spent too much online, because that was all frighteningly familiar.

How many message board posters does it take to change a lightbulb?

One to change the light bulb and to post that the light bulb has been changed.

Fourteen to share similar experiences of changing light bulbs and how the light bulb could have been changed differently.

Seven to caution about the dangers of changing light bulbs.

Seven more to point out spelling/grammar errors in posts about changing light bulbs.

Five to flame the spell checkers.

Three to correct spelling/grammar flames.

Six to argue over whether it's "lightbulb" or "light bulb" ...

Another six to condemn those six as stupid.

Fifteen to claim experience in the lighting industry and give the correct spelling.

Nineteen to post that this group is not about light bulbs and to please take this discussion to a lightbulb (or light bulb) forum.

Eleven to defend the posting to the group saying that we all use light bulbs and therefore the posts are relevant to this group.

Thirty six to debate which method of changing light bulbs is superior, where to buy the best light bulbs, what brand of light bulbs work best for this technique and what brands are faulty.

Seven to post URLs where one can see examples of different light bulbs.

Four to post that the URLs were posted incorrectly and then post the corrected URL.

Three to post about links they found from the URLs that are relevant to this group which makes light bulbs relevant to this group.

Thirteen to link all posts to date, quote them in their entirety including all headers and signatures, and add "Me too".

Five to post to the group that they will no longer post because they cannot handle the light bulb controversy.

Four to say "didn't we go through this already a short time ago?"

Thirteen to say "do a Google search on light bulbs before posting questions about light bulbs."

Three to tell a funny story about their cat and a light bulb.

and

One group lurker to respond to the original post 6 months from now with something unrelated and start it all over again!

Wig Gate and Party Music

2007-04-14T18:17:00.000-04:00

Why do I enjoy the Internet? I'll tell you why. Because people can spend weeks discussing whether an actor is wearing a wig or not on a show, and they even provide evidence that his hair is much shorter in RL than on the show. Ha! I must say, regardless of whether it is a wig or not, John Krasinski's hair on The Office has been bugging me in the last few episodes because it does not look good. He was playing a 1920s football player at the same time he was filming The Office so they messed with the hair somehow. He needs to go back to his good hair days of Season 2 (how adorable!), although he was also looking good when he filmed License to Wed, which is coming out this summer. Which by the way, you know I will probably see, let's face it, because I have a hard time restraining myself in front of romantic comedies, especially when the only alternatives on July 4th weekend will be Bruce Willis being all macho again and 80s action figures.

On a totally unrelated topic, as I was running errands today, I was listening to music and felt like dancing. LOL Since dancing in public for no reason is not appropriate (ha!), I made a playlist in my head of 50 songs I'd like to dance to. I figure I can use that list if/when I have a party. If it is on my blog, it will be easier to find. By the way, I am fully aware I have music tastes that are pretty eclectic and sometimes veer towards cheesiness, but as Lucille Bluth says, I won’t hear it and I won’t respond to it.

So here is the list in no particular order: (I would have many more to add, but 50 is a good start!)

Sexy Back- Justin Timberlake
Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)- ABBA
Like A Prayer- Madonna
Island in The Sun- Weezer
Love Shack- B-52s
Go- Indigo Girls
Brian Wilson- The Barenaked Ladies
Candyman- Christina Aguilera
Dress You Up- Madonna
Pour Some Sugar On Me- Def Leppard
Unwritten- Natasha Bedingfield
Thriller- Michael Jackson
You Drive Me Crazy- Britney Spears
Lady Marmelade- Christina Aguilera, Pink, Mya, and Lil Kim
Middle Of Nowhere- Hot Hot Heat
We're Not Gonna Take It- Me First and The Gimme Gimme
Since U Been Gone- Kelly Clarkson
They - Jem
Holiday- Green Day
Higher Ground- Red Hot Chili Peppers
Inside and Out- Feist
I Will Survive- Cake
Here It Goes Again- Ok Go
Kick Your Game- TLC
Astounded- Bran Van 3000
Canned Heat- Jamiroquai
Extraordinary- Liz Phair
Breathe- Michelle Branch
I'm Just a Gigolo- David Lee Roth
Born To Be My Baby- Bon Jovi
Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting- Elton John
Groove is in The Heart- Dee Lite
American Girls- Counting Crows
Rhythm Nation- Janet Jackson
Walking On Sunshine- Katrina and The Waves
It's Raining Men- Geri Halliwell
Signed, Sealed, Delivered, I'm Yours- Stevie Wonder
For Once in My Life- Stevie Wonder
Where The Streets Have No Name- U2
Where's The Love- Hanson
Home for a Rest- Spirit of The West (The quintessential Canadian party song!)
If I Could Turn Back Time- Cher
I Want You Back- Jackson 5
New York, New York- Frank Sinatra
Rich Girl- Gwen Stefani
Crazy in Love- Beyonce
Girls Just Wanna Have Fun- Cyndi Lauper
Toxic- Britney Spears
You Shook Me All Night Long- AC/DC
Stop!- Spice Girls

Oh, and a slow song? Eric Clapton's "Wonderful Tonight", TLC's "Red Light Special" or "To Make You Feel My Love" covered by Billy Joel.

Happy Easter Everyone!

2007-04-10T18:16:00.000-04:00

Belated wishes, but nevertheless... I came back from Montreal late last night. My day has been a lovefest with the cat, who won't let me leave her sight and who is purring at the lightest touch. I think she wants to make sure I'll never leave her again.

Life is going okay. I took a few days off of work, but I'm getting back in the saddle tomorrow. I feel a little more rested, but I had so much to do; it didn't feel like too much of a vacation. But as I've said many times, as soon as I graduate, I am going backpacking somewhere far away from here for a while. I have a definite need for escape.

My internship is going well though. I still have a lot to learn, and some parts of it have been though, but I enjoy doing therapy even though I am still trying to find my bearings. It's just a lot of readings and practicing what interactions with clients need to look like. It gets me all anxious, as novelty usually does, but amidst the constructive criticism, I have also gotten some positive feedback on my general performance, which is nice. I have been told though by my supervisors that I have very good clinical skills and that my greatest strengths are being able to work with a variety of clients, being patient, explaining complex things in a palatable fashion, and making remarks in a non-threatening fashion. I must say that last one did make me snicker a bit, since if you were to ask my family, they would say that being diplomatic is not always my strong suit with them.

Speaking of my family, why is it that every time I go home, I feel like I am reverting a little bit to my 15-year-old self? I wasn't overly fond of her in the first place! It's as if I forget that my parents know exactly what buttons to push to get me irked or that there are all these little things I really don't miss about living with them like criticizing what time I go to bed at or what I eat or what my skin looks like. Yes, mom, I have an eczema outbreak on my cheeks; thanks, I hadn't noticed! I know they mean well. I do love them. I just wish I got better at handling it, and that it didn't bug me so much. Although if you ask them, they could tell you that I'm overly sensitive. ;)

Manic Monday

2007-03-05T05:34:00.000-05:00

Actually, these days the whole week is crazy. Although I was at a conference yesterday, as am I today and tomorrow. It's a nice change of pace. Things are winding down though overall, which is much appreciated. I've been going to bed early (well, my early which means like 10:30!) and catching up on sleep. My really demanding rotation of my internship is done, and I'm now moving to the therapy rotation, which is much less intensive and doesn't require extra work nights and weekends. That means more time to work on my dissertation, thank God, so I can try to make progress on that bad boy. I'm juggling a lot of balls in the air at the moment, but I feel good. I just feel a sense of self-efficacy, probably because in the last 2 weeks, I've succeded in writing and giving a one-hour seminar, write up and edit six reports, tutor more than my usual night of tutoring, prepare for a dissertation meeting with my supervisor, read up on my new rotation, and keep up with my usual load of patients (with all the prep, patient face time, and post work it requires). I'm pretty proud of myself. Anyway, you'll now get to hear me spout cognitive-behavioural therapy theory for the next six months. Hee.

Other good news, I got the results from my course evaluation from the class I taught last summer, and the students liked me a lot. That's always nice to hear!

Yesterday, I watched the documentary Wordplayall about crossword puzzles. It was quite enjoyable to watch, and now, all I want to do are crosswords! My mom and my grandma both love crosswords so I grew up in that environment. (In the French language, we even have a word for it. The word "cruciverbiste" describes people who like to do crossword puzzles.) I've always enjoyed word-based and reasoning-type of puzzles so crosswords are no exception. Now, I can even do crosswords in English, which is pretty sweet, although I can't do the really tough ones since I don't always have all the necessary cultural knowledge for it. Anyway, I need to find myself a book of crosswords or pick up the paper today or get crosswords somehow... LOL

That's Not Reassuring...

2007-02-18T15:07:00.000-05:00

I don't know if I ever blogged about that, but last winter (or was it the winter before...), I had what looked like very bad allergies for a while. I became worried that I was allergic to my cat. Yet, anti histaminic drugs did nothing much to help. Well, I think the mystery is solved and it is not pretty. My former roommate started developing the same symptoms this year. She actually had to move out and live at her boyfriend's since she was so sick. They found mold when tearing things out in the bathroom. The landlords though are not so great and proactive about it, which sucks seeing I still live in the same building, albeit in a different part of it. I'm perfectly fine here, but it is still not reassuring to know mold is lurking.

Yes, I Am Still Alive...

2007-02-04T12:00:00.000-05:00

I've been super busy recently so I haven't had the time and/or energy to blog. But anyway, I am still around. I just had to post a hilarious parody of Studio 60 (which I watch because of the good acting while simultaneously hating it because the storylines are lame & stalking is apparently real love). Anyway, so Mad TV did a parody of Studio 60, and it really made me laugh so much because it is so on target:

Canadian Spy Coins and High Maintenance Women

2007-01-14T14:52:00.000-05:00

Two topics that have nothing to do with each other except for the fact I encountered both this week. Okay, so I didn't encounter the spy coins, but I read about them. Seriously, listening devices in Canadian toonies? I thought this was the stuff of spy movies, but I guess not.

As for high maintenance women... I am one of the two interns in a hospital department. This week, there were two days of interviews for potential interns that will occupy our positions next year. It was my (and the other current intern's) responsibility to take them out to lunch. Most people were very nice and friendly. But one girl just stood out, and not in a good way. She was probably very nervous, but there was something beyond that. As an interviewee, you usually try to be accommodating, but she was being a bit of a pain for restaurant choice. Then, when we got to the restaurant, I swear to God, she ordered like Sally in When Harry Met Sally. It took her like 3 minutes to order a salad with all her questions and demands for changes to the chef's salad. I am really not exaggerating. But this was nothing compared to the fact that she didn't let anyone else talk during lunch, and asked the other intern and me a bunch of questions she barely let us answer. Yikes. Talk about not so good first impression.

Oh, one more thing... Golden Globes tomorrow night! Be there or be square.

A Beginner's Guide To Faking Your Death On The Internet

2007-01-08T20:34:00.000-05:00

This was so funny I was crying laughing... Encapsulates too much of the insane behaviour I've seen on the Net.

Oh Kids!

2007-01-07T17:13:00.000-05:00

You know your fandom is all grown up when you get caught in fandom wanking... There are actually people online who spend their time commenting on other people's insane fights on the Internet. What a weird and unproductive way to spend your time, not even participating in discussions on topics you like, although I guess making fun of total strangers is probably a hobby to some. The Internet is a strange place...

In other news, I've been back in Toronto for a week. Always a bit challenging to get back in the swing of things after the Holidays, but life is good overall. I am taking down my Christmas tree today, which makes me a bit sad. See you in 11 months, Christmas tree and ornaments and twinkly lights.

I got a lot of music for Christmas. My 2 current addictions: Justin Timberlake's Futuresex/Lovesounds (I know, shameful but it is highly entertaining!) and Ok Go's Oh No!

Random Thoughts

2006-12-20T12:49:00.000-05:00

For the last 2 days or so, I've been feeling strangely emotionally fragile considering my life is pretty much on track. I guess it is probably stress and fatigue catching up with me. Still, everything is going fine, but for some reason, I keep beating up on myself and feeling like I am unloveable. I keep feeling I'm not productive enough, not pretty enough, not nice enough. Nothing bad happened either, except people keep piling on work and telling me I need to get it all done now. I wish we grew out of feeling inadequate.

Family Love Brain Diva

2006-12-18T20:59:00.000-05:00

An Arrested Development reference is always appropriate! I'm going home for 10 days, and I can't wait. I'm happy that I get to spend time with family and friends, and I think the feeling is mutual. However, I just realized that I will be stranded as far as the Internet go. I will have to rely on my parents' crappy dial-up connection. My brother moved out and took with him his fancy computer and high-speed connection. It hasn't happened to me in about 4 years to have to rely on such a stupid connection. It makes me think of one of my techie friends who in 1998, had one of the first high-speed connection in Montreal. At the time, I couldn't understand his disdain for dial-up and he told me he couldn't use one anymore because it was too infuriating. Once you've experienced high speed, it is hard to go back. I guess, it will keep me off the computer for a few days! LOL

It is always weird to go back to suburbia as well. I can't walk anywhere. There is no coffee place around the corner. I have to drive at least 10-15 minutes to get anywhere. Wow, I've become such a city girl.

I Have A Big Head

2006-12-16T12:35:00.000-05:00

I have normally-proportioned feet. Shopping for shoes is a pleasure. I wear size 7 1/2 or 8. There are shoes aplenty. Hurrah.

My head, however, is another affair completely. I have a big head. Too many hats make my head look like a giant pumpkin when they fit at all. I had found the perfect winter hat two winters ago at Roots. Somehow, I lost it. It's actually a mystery how it came to disappear. I took it out of its storage place back in October when I put away my summer clothes and took out all my winter gear. I put it in the entrance closet, and the second time of the winter I was to wear my coat, I decided I needed my hat. Well, it was nowhere to be found. No idea where it went, which is very sad.

Anyway, this meant I had to get a new hat. Oh dear. I tried on a lot of hats and tuques, which all made me look like an idiot. I finally found a black hat today that is cute, comfortable, and minimizes the ridiculousness of my head. So yay! Let's just say I am glad I don't live in Victorian times when proper ladies wore hats.

Bloggie Blog Blog

2006-12-07T19:29:00.001-05:00

Blogs are a great invention because you get to read all kinds of interesting info you wouldn't find out otherwise. I stumbled upon a link to Ken Levine's blog, who was a writer on Cheers and Frasier. He gives insight on those shows, and on other writing matters. Fascinating. Well worth the read.

How Funny Is This Sleepy Cat?

2006-12-02T23:26:00.000-05:00

A Film About Football That Will Probably Be My Favourite Ever...

2006-12-01T10:03:00.000-05:00

It looks like George Clooney, my movie boyfriend, is about to do a movie with my TV boyfriend, John Krasinski. I think my head may explode from the prettiness and the love. Hee. If they only added Stephen Colbert, I would certainly lie in a puddle somewhere. ;)

Damn You, Cold Season!

2006-11-24T13:34:00.000-05:00

So I have a cold, in which my head feels like a bowling ball. (Stupid sinuses!) For some reason, in the week following my having a flu vaccine, it always seems to wreck enough havoc on my immune system for me to catch this kind of crappy bug.

My dearest wishes at this moment would be for the following:
1) my bed blankets to wrap myself in
2) my PJs
3) a cup of herbal tea
4) my kitty to snuggle with
5) a long nap

Instead, I'm:
1) sitting at my desk chair
2) in my work clothes
3) with a cup of water
4) I'm snuggling with my computer
5) I have to go in an important meeting!

Not quite what I crave. LOL

I'm Having One of Those Days...

2006-11-20T14:31:00.000-05:00

This has just been an all-around crappy day. I got up in a fairly good mood, but everything since then has contributed in making me grumpy as all hell. I came in to work around 7:15 to get a jump on all the writing I have to do. I start reading the comments my supervisor had left on a document. That left me highly irritated since basically what she wrote was the exact opposite of what she told me to do last week. After that, I start looking for testing material for the patient I was to see today, and not only one but TWO tests that belong to my service have gone missing. I have sent out a very nice email appeal for the borrower to return the material. We nicely loan our material to others, but I am seriously going to start locking up my stuff if this keeps happening. I need these things to do my job!

Then, I was working with a patient who kept crying during testing. She was so tense, it was unbelievable. Basically, I felt like I was kicking a puppy for about 3 hours, which is not a good feeling. Plus, people in the hallways around my testing room were being loud and were an additional irritant.

Now, it is 2:30, and I'm finally having lunch. My officemate is doing his weekly calls to his patients so he is speaking really loud on the phone because so many patients are hard-of-hearing.

Do you think a head can literally explode?

My Laptop Is The Biggest Pain In The Ass

2006-11-18T18:26:00.000-05:00

My laptop is yet again having fits. This time, the screen has decided to stop working. I swear to God, it wants me to throw it out of the window. Argh.

Anyway, to improve my mood, I went on YouTube and found this:

So funny! Bringing sexy back! Michael and Dwight are bringing on something, that's for sure... LOL

Yay For Molecular Biology!

2006-11-17T19:20:00.000-05:00

Scientists discover a key protein in the reproduction of the influenza virus. How interesting is that? I'm always so impressed when steps like that are made. Hopefully, it will mean more efficacious protection against the flu! :)

TV, Why Do You Make Me Sad?

2006-11-17T18:29:00.000-05:00

I watch very few dramas and comedies on TV, and I now remember why. Dear God, I can't take the angst! On last night's episode of The Office, the Scranton and Stamford branches merged, and Michael is now in charge of them all so that means more friends for him, which makes him so happy! Ha! He even made a welcoming video called Lazy Scranton, based on the SNL clip Lazy Sunday. Hilarious. One of the new employees, Andy, played by Ed Helms of The Daily Show, is the ultimate suck-up, which gets oh so much under Dwight's skin. That was all great.

They are trying to kill me with the Pam and Jim relationship though. Pam was so happy to have Jim back in Scranton, because she finally broke up her engagement and seemed ready to start something with Jim. He was being distant most of the day (he got rejected by her before so it was understandable to be on his guard.) At the end of the episode, Jim announced to Pam he was dating someone else! Kill me. This is like the Mulder & Scully dynamic but at least 10 times worst. LOL The new girl in Jim's life, another employee from Stamford who got transferred with him, has no idea what went down with Pam so it should be fun when that blows out in the open.

Anyway, this made me so sad because:

1) A comedy shouldn't be bumming me out.
2) I can't believe I care enough about fictional characters to be feeling sad about their fate (they are NOT REAL!)
3) Seriously, I don't want them to hate each other. It is not fun to watch.
4) I don't think I can tolerate another Mulder/Scully or Ross/Rachel type of relationship again. Because, by the end, I didn't really care what happened to those 2 couples. It had dragged on so long that I wasn't too fond of them anymore.

Let's hope Jim and Pam make up sooner than later. Otherwise, I'll be weeping in my corner. LOL

People's Sexiest Man Alive

2006-11-15T22:16:00.000-05:00

So People is the dorkiest, most suck-up celebrity magazine out there, but damn if they didn't pick my man, George Clooney, as the Sexiest Man Alive 2006. Good pick! Plus, they put my TV boyfriend, John Krasinski, in the top 15! (Although The Office is some serious angst these days, and is killing me a bit!) Plus, there is Johnny Depp. And Taye Diggs. And Jake Gyllenhaal. And Rodrigo Santoro. And Eric Mabius. Man, that is A LOT of pretty!

I've Joined The New Blogger

2006-11-13T21:05:00.000-05:00

We can now lock posts and such... Interesting. I'll have to look around more. I just hope it works right.

So I haven't been around in a while. Life has been pretty crazy recently, and I've been too tired to blog. How lame of me. I've been seeing some really interesting patients, and I am just learning a whole lot. I am very happy even though I am working all the time. Overall, life is good, and I feel I am where I am supposed to be.

I met some patients I know I'll never forget. I work in a Jewish hospital, and from time to time, we get Holocaust survivors. (Of course, they are not as numerous as they used to be.) I had a patient a little while ago, who told me all about his life in concentration camps. I know I'll never forget that. I actually got home that night and cried, because there is just something about the pain in his eyes that is indescribable. He was the nicest man, who has survived the worst things possible, and I was so sad to see he couldn't get peace of mind in the twilight of his life. A lot of survivors start to reexperience memories from the war more acutely in their later years when people around them start dying again and they start experiencing loss.

Anyway, those are the big things, but life is mostly a lot of minutae. I bought Christmas decorations over the weekend, and have started hanging it up. There is nothing that makes me quite as happy as Christmas decorations. I bought some blue cascading lights that I've put in my living room window. So pretty. I've also started decorating my tree, but it is a work in progress that I'm not quite satisfied with yet.

Last thing... Today was municipal election day in Toronto so I got to go vote. How exciting! Mind you, it is important because the city keeps doing things such as pulling apart one of the main roads to improve the transit system (good, if a hassle for now), but is going to redestroy it in 2 years to put electric cables underground instead of doing it all at the same time (stupid!). So yeah, it is important to vote.

I promise to try to update more regularly! Kisses and hugs to all! :)

Music Blog!

2006-10-20T22:19:00.000-04:00

I got Sarah McLachlan's new CD yesterday, which is a Christmas CD, but has a lot of winter-themed songs on it. River, one of my favourite songs, is covered, and she does a kickass job. I also adored her cover of Happy Christmas (The War Is Over). She also included Gordon Lightfoot's Song For A Winter's Night, which she already had covered on Rarities, B-Sides, and Other Stuff, but which is so beautiful. By the way, I fully realize that by listening to this CD, I am listening to Christmas music in October. I just can't help myself! Christmas music is one of my favourite guilty pleasures.

I also got k.d. lang's Hymns of the 49th Parallel, which is a collection of covers of great Canadian songs. I have wanted it for a long, long time, and it happened to be on sale so I jumped at the chance. It is absolutely gorgeous so I was pleased with my purchase. Both CDs kick ass so it was a good music buying session!

This is definitely a music-themed entry because the other thing I wanted to mention is that Jim on The Office last night was singing "Lovefool" by The Cardigans to drive another character crazy. Do you remember that song? I have a distinct memory of listening to that song while driving in my mom's car on the highway on my way to school. It happens to be one of those songs that is a terrible ear worm. Once you start singing it, good luck getting rid of it. I have been singing it all day so I am now sharing my misery with you all. ;)

My Brother Cracks Me Up...

2006-10-07T14:36:00.000-04:00

I was chatting with my brother a little earlier. He is going to a wedding tomorrow, and I was talking about how 2 couples I know got engaged recently/are getting engaged, both of which were really pleasant surprises to me. He was saying how surprising it would be if he were to announce he's getting engaged since he doesn't have a girlfriend. Hee. Ditto for me, I said. We were then talking about dating, and my brother, who never fails to crack me up, had an awesome line that had to be written down for posterity.

"We're like rock stars. (My brother was referring to the fact that he is studying to be an orthodontist.) Okay, maybe not rock stars, but you know, it is very hard to get into and they only take the very best students so the dentistry students are impressed by us. I think I need to use that to go flirt with the girls in dentistry." He just was so deadpan saying it, it was hilarious. So now you know. Orthodontists are the rock stars of the dentistry world! Hee.

Ballpoint Pen + Hand Sanitizer = No More Ballpoint Mark on Sweater

2006-10-04T18:12:00.000-04:00

I managed to make a big black ballpoint mark right in the front of my sweater this afternoon at work. I was not having the best day (pretty stressful), which led me to talk and wave my pen. Well, more than usual! LOL So I looked dumb with a big stain. I knew alcohol was the best way to remove this kind of stain, but I didn't have any handy...until I looked at the bottle of hand sanitizer on my desk. It probably wouldn't have clicked me with me had I not remember the season premiere of The Office where Meredith, the resident alcoholic, has a fondness for hand sanitizer. (That was a sad storyline.) Anyway, a little bit of hand sanitizer on my sweater, and the ballpoint mark is totally gone! Never let it be said that The Office is not useful in my daily life!

So yeah, today, hand sanitizer is my best friend, and not only because it keeps my hands germ free! :)

The Daily Show: Awesomely Cringeworthy

2006-10-03T20:25:00.000-04:00

Last night's coverage of the Mark Foley scandal on TDS is why this show is brilliant. So biting, but pretty darn appropriate in the situation. (And they used Monty Python!) If you watch the second part, I can't believe Newt Gingrich's comment about not stopping a pedophile because that would have been perceived as gaybashing. WTF? No words. Oh, and years of NAMBLA jokes finally paid off. Although I really wished they didn't.

Part 1:

Part 2:

Work Fun on Friday Night

2006-09-29T18:45:00.000-04:00

The department where I work at the hospital empties quickly between 5-6 pm, but none so more than Fridays. I was probably the only person left at 5, especially considering it is a 3-day weekend! It is Yom Kippur on Monday and since this is a Jewish hospital, we have the day off. Plus, Sabbath starts Friday at sunset so we are supposed to be leave before then, but since I am not Jewish, I am staying behind to get more work done, but laying low, of course. I have a couple of reports to write and I need access to the files so I need to stay here. I got myself a Starbucks latte, and it is nice and quiet. I have an office that I adore with big windows. Seriously, I couldn't be happier these days even if work is kicking my butt but good.

Oh, dorky me got all excited because I finally got some books I had ordered ages ago from Amazon. One of them is called Geriatric Neuropsychology, and I can't wait to read it. It looks like it will be so helpful. I also got the new edition of one of my work bibles called A Compendium of Neuropsychological Tests. It was like Christmas in September. Oh, and I had also ordered a DVD of a small movie called Lollilove because I am on an everything-Office-related kick and can't help myself when someone dangles a dark comedy in my face. ;) So that is what I will be watching tonight.

Speaking of The Office, they were killing me with the angst this week. It is funny, funny angst, but still... Too many sad/brokenhearted faces. I'll have to come back later to let that all out.

Back to work for me! :)

DVDs and Cooking

2006-09-28T06:20:00.000-04:00

I love cooking. I love TV. When I do both at the same time, it is like heaven. I was watching some episodes of the Office from my Season 2 DVDs as I cooked tonight (made an awesome dinner, by the by). Could I love my Office DVDs more? I don't think so, because it would then be very unhealthy. There are about 2 and a half hours of deleted scenes, and they are pretty much all extra awesome. It is too bad the shows aren't longer because so much good stuff ends up on the cutting room floor clearly just because they can't fit them in timewise! The episode "Sexual Harassment" has some delightful deleted scenes. There is one in which Michael Scott compares the HR rep Toby to the devil. Hee. Michael has a irrational hatred of Toby, who is calm, sensible, and low-key. Basically, everything Michael isn't.

There is another scene where Michael suggests fictional harassment scenarios and one of them involves dating Pam, and she says she'd drown herself rather than date him. Hee. The funniest deleted scene though is between Pam and Jim; I couldn't stop giggling for 2 minutes:

Pam: I know we’re having that harassment thing this afternoon...

Jim: Yeah?

Pam: Sometimes when we IM, I send you that little winking face with the lipstick... *She mimics the face.* I realized that might be harassment.

Jim: Yes, it is harassment, and I’m going to be suing the winking face. I’ve hired the angry face as my lawyer, and you should be hearing from him pretty soon.

Pam: Okay.

Jim: Okay. *Jim dings her on IM.*

Steve, That's A Stupid Thing To Say and You're A Stupid Person For Saying It!

2006-09-26T20:10:00.000-04:00

I have been MIA for a bit. Life is insane, and I just forget to blog. I'm tired, but it is a good tired.

Last week, as part of their 10 F&%#ing Years retrospective on The Daily Show, there was a segment of the best of Even Stephven, which is one of my favourite recurring segments ever on the show. It features Steve Carell and Stephen Colbert yelling, insulting each other, and fake crying a lot. It makes me laugh so so much:

I'm so happy nice YouTubers exist so I can rewatch these outstanding segments over and over again!

I'll be back later this week to post a bit more about life. :) Hope everyone is good and well!

So Disturbing...

2006-09-13T23:01:00.000-04:00

There was a shooting at a school (cegep, which is between high school and university) in downtown Montreal today. I have had shivers up and down my spine all afternoon. It can't help but remind me of the 1989 shooting of 14 women in a Montreal university. I was young then, but it always stayed with me. It was one of the first times I was ever aware incomprehensible acts of hate happened in the world. It is just unbelievably sad. The theme of this week is random acts of hate.

One of Those Memes That Takes Over The Internet!

2006-09-10T13:15:00.000-04:00

Things You Might Not Know About Me

1) What's your middle name? I don't have one.
2) How big is your bed? Double
3) What are you listening to right now? The sounds of cars driving down the street.
4) What are the last 4 digits in your cell phone number? Don't have a cell.
5) What was the last thing you ate? Coffee & Ritz crackers. I need food. LOL
6) Last person you hugged? How sad is it that I don't remember?
7) How is the weather right now? Cool but sunny
8) Who was the last person you talked to on the phone? My mom this morning.
9) What is the first thing you notice in the opposite sex? Height and smile.
10) Favorite type of food? Lots. Thai and Mexican probably.
11) Do you want children? You bet.
12) Do you drink? Yep, occasionally.
13) Ever get so drunk you don't remember the entire night? No.
14) Hair color? Brown.
15) Eye color? Greenish-brown
16) Do you wear contacts/glasses? Yes.
17) Favorite holiday? Hands down, Christmas.
18) Favorite Season? Fall.
19) Have you ever cried over a girl/boy? Ugh, yes.
20) Last movie you watched? 13 Going On 30 on TV last night.
21) What books are you reading? I was reading "Brief Interviews With Hideous Men", but I had to return it to the library before I was finished with it. Otherwise, mostly work stuff.
22) Piercings? Just my ears.
23) Favorite Movie? Too many to name. Top 5 (which changes all the time): Roman Holidays, Monty Python and The Holy Grail, When Harry Met Sally, Dirty Dancing, and This Is Spinal Tap.
24) Favorite college football team? Pass.
25) What were you doing before filling this out? I was on the phone with my mom.
26) Any pets? Yes, a cat.
27) Dogs or cats? Cats
28) Favorite Flower? Daisies
29) Have you ever loved someone? I love people, but been truly crazy in love? Not really.
30) Who would you like to see right now? All my friends and family back home.
31) Have you ever fired a gun? No. I'm so clumsy, I'd be a public menace with a gun!
32) Do you like to travel by plane? I do.
33) Right-handed or Left-handed? Left-handed.
34) If you could go to any place right now where would you go? Home or somewhere in Europe.
35) Are you missing someone? Yeah, I do miss home and the people there.
36) Do you have a tattoo? Nope.
37) Do you still watch cartoons on Saturday mornings? I watch cartoons, but not on Saturday mornings! Hee.
38) Are you hiding something from someone? Aren't we always not 100% truthful with someone somewhere?
39) Are you 18? Not so much.
40) What is the wallpaper on your cellphone? Dude, I told you. I don't have a cellphone.
41) Did you get enough sleep last night? Didn't sleep much, but I'm not tired.
42) First thing you thought about this morning? Coffee as always! LOL And strangely I had a craving for hashbrowns, which I haven't eaten in years. Weird.
43) What do you have handy at your bedside? My lamp and the case for my glasses.
44) Grilled or fried? Grilled.
45) What makes you unique? My me-ness. LOL
46) Are you afraid of the dark? Not afraid, but not necessarily crazy about it either.
47) Favourite hangout? My apartment. Or coffee shops.
48) 3 things you can't live without? Besides the people I love? Coffee, my laptop, and books.
49) Favourite song? Wow, one? That is tough. My Top 5: "All You Need is Love" by The Beatles, "Like A Prayer" by Madonna, "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" by U2, "Tupelo Honey" by Van Morrison, and "Terms (Path of Thorns)" by Sarah McLachlan.
50) What are you afraid of? Fire although that has gotten better with age.
51) Are you a giver or a taker? I am more of a giver than a taker.
52) What are your nicknames? Gen and Geny.
53) What is your dad's middle name? He doesn't have one.
54) What is your mother's middle name? Ditto.
55) Stuck on a desert island with only one thing, what would it be? My iPod or my laptop. It would pass the time.
56) Favourite TV commercials? I love infomercials.
57) First thing you'd save in a fire? My cat.
58) What's your favorite color? Purple.
59) What things do you always take with you? My purse, which is my treasure bag.
60) What did you want to be when you were a kid? A teacher.
61) What do you usually do when the clock turns 11:11? Nothing. What should I do?
62) The color of your bedsheet? Lilac.
63) What do you think about before going to bed? As a child, I used to make myself fall asleep by telling myself fairytales. Nowadays, I think about the next day. Nothing too exciting.

Sad News

2006-09-10T12:15:00.000-04:00

Émilie Mondor, a Canadian Olympic runner, died in a car accident last night. She was 25. She went to the same high school as I did, and she was 2 grades behind me. I didn't know her personally, but I remember that she used to win most track and field events at the school's olympics every year. She was the pride of the high school and her every move was followed by the local paper. So sad for someone so young to pass away.

Personality Test, Baby!

2006-09-09T00:11:00.000-04:00

Costa and McCrae developed a way of conceptualizing personality as breaking down into 5 main dimensions: Neuroticism, Extraversion, Openness to Experience, Agreeableness, and Conscientiousness. This is also known as the NEO-AC model (AC are at the end because they were added afterwards). The acronym we use in Intro to Psych though is OCEAN. Easy enough to remember all the dimensions that way. Anyway, so someone devised a little personality test based on that. Kiddo is to blame for linking me to it. ;) Now, this is not a standardized questionnaire like I like them ;), but it is fun nonetheless. Here are my results:

My Personality


Neuroticism	71
Extraversion	20
Openness To Experience	43
Agreeableness	88
Conscientiousness	66

Test Yourself Compare Yourself View Full Report

You are introverted, reserved, and quiet with a preference for solitude and solitary activities. Your socializing tends to be restricted to a few close friends. You can be very easily upset, even by what most people consider the normal demands of living. People consider you to be extremely sensitive and emotional. A desire for tradition does not prevent you from trying new things. Your thinking is neither simple nor complex. To others you appear to be a well-educated person but not an intellectual. You have a strong interest in others' needs and well-being. You are pleasant, sympathetic, and cooperative. You are reasonably reliable, organized, and self-controlled.

I think that describes me quite well. Although I'd like to think I'm not extremely emotional, but whatever. ;) I'm still impressed.

I Want A Chef's Knife!

2006-09-02T18:54:00.000-04:00

Most of you know my love of kitchen utensils and appliances. I'm getting really frustrated with my crappy knives. Really, really frustrated. I was trying to cut some fish last night, and it was an exercise in patience. I have been looking at chef's knives, but today, I decided to go investigate a bit further in stores. It turns out that the kind of 8" chef's knife that I'd like is priced for at least 130$. Hard to justify such a purchase. So I decided that to justify spending 130$ on a knife, I would use it as a reward to myself to help move along the thesis. LOL Hence, I shall buy myself a chef's knife only when I have completed a full first draft of my thesis. That should get me writing fast. LOL After successfully defending my thesis, even if I'm broke, I'm getting a Cusinart! Kitchen stuff= good bribery for me.

In other news, I got to see a swarm of police cars close the intersection I was crossing on Thursday. The policemen were saying a man in a car said he had a bomb strapped to him. Lovely. It turned out not to be the case, thank God.

Besides that, I started my clinical internship yesterday. Very exciting stuff. It is going to be so much fun. :)