Another UK trip! Hurray! Can I leave tomorrow? ;-P
Saturday 31 December 2011
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year to all who may be reading this. I've enjoyed blogging for you thoughout this year and hope to have some new adventures to share as we say goodbye to the old and usher in the new. I carry my "kids" forward with me in my heart, and hope for good things ahead.
Another UK trip! Hurray! Can I leave tomorrow? ;-P
Another UK trip! Hurray! Can I leave tomorrow? ;-P
Saturday 24 December 2011
This huge Coca-Cola fan wishes you all a Merry Christmas!
I hope Santa is good to you all. I'd like to take the time to say thanks for reading my blog. It's been fun sharing my experiences with you. From the mundane to the surreal (UK anyone?) I've had a blast!
Here's hoping the New Year has some noteworthy surprises in store. If not, I'll just bore you with my everyday life!
Best Wishes,
Cindy
Thursday 22 December 2011
A pic-less couple of weeks...
Sorry I haven't shared more pics of Mom's beautifully decorated place or the not-so-pretty handmade chocolates we ended up butchering, but Mom and I are pretty much sharing a camera these days seeing as a) I live alone and have nothing worthy of picture-taking at the moment and b) Mom transferred all of her current pics to an external hard drive and ever since, she has been unable to send the images from camera to computer. (Likely a simple fix, but until someone has a good look at it/tells her how to fix it, we shall remain pictureless.) I'm a visual person so this bums me out, but I promise to "catch you up" once the issue is resolved. Let's just say our chocolates looked NOTHING like this...
There's talk of trying again but let's face facts, I'm no chocolatier.
There's talk of trying again but let's face facts, I'm no chocolatier.
Friday 16 December 2011
How to lose your mother in a parking garage.
Yup. I lost Mom for 2 hour tonight.
We went to a concert (totally crummy, old man choir, NOT fun!) She drops me off at home at 10:30pm and proceeds to go missing until 12:40am. I called family, woke them up, got myself into a total panick (and in the process realized that I have no idea what her license plate number is) ALMOST called the cops (the only reason I even hesitated was because between her place and mine there are three cities and I had no idea which police station to call.) Turns out, she was in her underground trying to get one of her candy machines to work (side business) She was taking it apart, adjusting it, filling it with candy, ect...Completely losing track of the time while I was frantically calling her home number and her cell in rapid succession. If I wasn't so relieved to hear her voice when she finally called, I would have hurt her myself!
She had her cell off thanks to the earlier concert and didn't make her way upstairs until well after my tenth message.
And how scary is this line?
Her sister:
"I don't know what to tell you, I'll call you tomorrow about it if I have time." No kidding. Santa needs to bring me some new relatives!
Already took down the plate number, tomorrow I'm buying her a cowbell so I don't lose track of her!
We went to a concert (totally crummy, old man choir, NOT fun!) She drops me off at home at 10:30pm and proceeds to go missing until 12:40am. I called family, woke them up, got myself into a total panick (and in the process realized that I have no idea what her license plate number is) ALMOST called the cops (the only reason I even hesitated was because between her place and mine there are three cities and I had no idea which police station to call.) Turns out, she was in her underground trying to get one of her candy machines to work (side business) She was taking it apart, adjusting it, filling it with candy, ect...Completely losing track of the time while I was frantically calling her home number and her cell in rapid succession. If I wasn't so relieved to hear her voice when she finally called, I would have hurt her myself!
She had her cell off thanks to the earlier concert and didn't make her way upstairs until well after my tenth message.
And how scary is this line?
Her sister:
"I don't know what to tell you, I'll call you tomorrow about it if I have time." No kidding. Santa needs to bring me some new relatives!
Already took down the plate number, tomorrow I'm buying her a cowbell so I don't lose track of her!
Sunday 11 December 2011
A nice dinner, a Christmasy Tree and a stolen purse...
Yeah, the title says it all. Home tomorrow morning--with details. In the meantime, enjoy this beautiful tree, I did until it all started to fall apart!
This isn't my pic because of course, we forgot the camera, we should have turned around at that point!
So, finally the promised update. It's been a few days because I've felt pretty beat after spending Thursday-Monday at Mom's. Her couch is so ridiculously uncomfortable that it seems to take forever for me to feel rested once I get home.
Anyway, we hit Yorkdale Mall on Friday (Mall close to Toronto) Busy, but not crazy. Very cool Santa setup. St. Nick looked pretty happy in his plush chair and surrounding decor and no kids were screaming so that's always a good sign. Pretty decorations within the mall itself but we were surprised that there were no carols playing overhead. Last year when we went to this particular mall, the stars overhead were actually flashing in time with the music. It was one of the reasdons that we wanted to go back.
Reason number two for our return was thanks to a $100 gift certificate for dinner at a swanky restaurant. Mom and I always think that $100 is WAY too much for two people, but we've learned pretty quickly how to enjoy all of it. :-) Frpm salads to soups to scrumptious entrees, it's safe to say we made good use of our funds.
An aged steak for me (honey garlic no less) and fish for Mom (yuck!) but she enjoyed it so it was all good. We had yummy food, good service and a staff that was more than happy to accept our radio gift certificate. (Not the case last week when we got into an argument with the manager at a crummy roadhouse.)
After dinner after making our way out to the car we decided to hit the distillery district of Toronto. Neither Mom or I had ever been, and they had a Christmas market in full-swing. We figured that we wouldn't have a lot of time given that it was already getting late, but we wanted to check it out while we were so close. That was probably our first mistake. We knew they likely closed up shop (even outdoor shops) by 9pm and it was already after seven when we left the mall.
We got a little turned around, finally stopping for directions and getting back on track. By the time we parked in front of the distillery area, it was already after 8 and getting cold...
Mom rushed to get me into the wheelchair and in our haste she didn't lock the door and somebody got in and stole her purse. Normally, we would have taken it, but we figured we would have a quick look around before closing time and I had money so she didn't need it. Unfortunately, it also had my rent cheques in it for the year as she was going to mail them for me. Enter a huge hassle with my bank (which has resulted in me deciding to leave next year when the cheques I've paid for are done) but that's another matter...
Anyway, it was a crisp, winter night at the distillery but so pretty with the big tree shimmering in the centre of the action. If you look closely, you can make out a mini ferris wheel in the back too. They had live music in some areas, piped in in others. With people gathered outside around fire pits having specialty drinks. One place even had a fire pit at each table with plush cushions to sit on.
There were artisan booths full of jewellry, ciders, handmade chocolates, cheeses ect...We even caught a glimpse of UK cadbury chocolate which yes, is MUCH better than our version.
Here's some more pics...
Sorry they're off the net but I wanted you to get a feel for it and we didn't have the camera given the short amount of time we had.
Here's a link for a slide show from last year...such a neat place. That's what i love about Toronto. So much diversity and culture. There's always something to see or do and you never have to do the same thing twice! (Unless you want to)
Enjoy the show!
http://torontochristmasmarket.com/photos/T
This isn't my pic because of course, we forgot the camera, we should have turned around at that point!
So, finally the promised update. It's been a few days because I've felt pretty beat after spending Thursday-Monday at Mom's. Her couch is so ridiculously uncomfortable that it seems to take forever for me to feel rested once I get home.
Anyway, we hit Yorkdale Mall on Friday (Mall close to Toronto) Busy, but not crazy. Very cool Santa setup. St. Nick looked pretty happy in his plush chair and surrounding decor and no kids were screaming so that's always a good sign. Pretty decorations within the mall itself but we were surprised that there were no carols playing overhead. Last year when we went to this particular mall, the stars overhead were actually flashing in time with the music. It was one of the reasdons that we wanted to go back.
Reason number two for our return was thanks to a $100 gift certificate for dinner at a swanky restaurant. Mom and I always think that $100 is WAY too much for two people, but we've learned pretty quickly how to enjoy all of it. :-) Frpm salads to soups to scrumptious entrees, it's safe to say we made good use of our funds.
An aged steak for me (honey garlic no less) and fish for Mom (yuck!) but she enjoyed it so it was all good. We had yummy food, good service and a staff that was more than happy to accept our radio gift certificate. (Not the case last week when we got into an argument with the manager at a crummy roadhouse.)
After dinner after making our way out to the car we decided to hit the distillery district of Toronto. Neither Mom or I had ever been, and they had a Christmas market in full-swing. We figured that we wouldn't have a lot of time given that it was already getting late, but we wanted to check it out while we were so close. That was probably our first mistake. We knew they likely closed up shop (even outdoor shops) by 9pm and it was already after seven when we left the mall.
We got a little turned around, finally stopping for directions and getting back on track. By the time we parked in front of the distillery area, it was already after 8 and getting cold...
Mom rushed to get me into the wheelchair and in our haste she didn't lock the door and somebody got in and stole her purse. Normally, we would have taken it, but we figured we would have a quick look around before closing time and I had money so she didn't need it. Unfortunately, it also had my rent cheques in it for the year as she was going to mail them for me. Enter a huge hassle with my bank (which has resulted in me deciding to leave next year when the cheques I've paid for are done) but that's another matter...
Anyway, it was a crisp, winter night at the distillery but so pretty with the big tree shimmering in the centre of the action. If you look closely, you can make out a mini ferris wheel in the back too. They had live music in some areas, piped in in others. With people gathered outside around fire pits having specialty drinks. One place even had a fire pit at each table with plush cushions to sit on.
There were artisan booths full of jewellry, ciders, handmade chocolates, cheeses ect...We even caught a glimpse of UK cadbury chocolate which yes, is MUCH better than our version.
Here's some more pics...
Sorry they're off the net but I wanted you to get a feel for it and we didn't have the camera given the short amount of time we had.
Here's a link for a slide show from last year...such a neat place. That's what i love about Toronto. So much diversity and culture. There's always something to see or do and you never have to do the same thing twice! (Unless you want to)
Enjoy the show!
http://torontochristmasmarket.com/photos/T
Tuesday 6 December 2011
The little (Canadian) Drummer Boy
Let's give it up for this 16 year old Canadian drummer boy. All the
rage on youtube right now. Here's a little blurb on him written by the
CBC here (Canadian Broadcast Corporation)
Many of his YouTube fans are praising the young drummer boy for encouraging a little Canadian pride with his stunning cinematography.
P.S. And you all thought I had no Christmas spirit! How about that snow? Yeah, glad I don't live there but hey, it LOOKS pretty!
rage on youtube right now. Here's a little blurb on him written by the
CBC here (Canadian Broadcast Corporation)
Using familiar streets and locales — and plenty of snow — a Winnipeg teenager created an homage to his city in a music video that's taking YouTube by [winter] storm.
Sixteen-year-old Sean Quigley, a grade-11 student at Winnipeg's Oak
Park High School, produced, directed and edited the video of his going-viral rock-heavy rendition
of "Little Drummer Boy." Quigley arranged, composed, recorded, mixed
and mastered the song, in addition to playing all the instruments on
the track.
Park High School, produced, directed and edited the video of his going-viral rock-heavy rendition
of "Little Drummer Boy." Quigley arranged, composed, recorded, mixed
and mastered the song, in addition to playing all the instruments on
the track.
"My dad was a drummer, so he got me into that early," Quigley told the Winnipeg Sun, adding that he began learning to play at age of 4.
"Then I just sort of expanded my music in general, learning
different instruments. A lot was self-taught. There were a few formal
lessons, as well."
different instruments. A lot was self-taught. There were a few formal
lessons, as well."
"Drummer Boy speaks to me so much," he told CBC News.
"The whole song is a story. It's about this boy who gets word of Jesus
being born and he goes to see him and he doesn't have anything to give
him; he's like 'I don't have money, I don't have gifts to give you. But
I can play my drum and that's more than enough.'"
"The whole song is a story. It's about this boy who gets word of Jesus
being born and he goes to see him and he doesn't have anything to give
him; he's like 'I don't have money, I don't have gifts to give you. But
I can play my drum and that's more than enough.'"
Many of his YouTube fans are praising the young drummer boy for encouraging a little Canadian pride with his stunning cinematography.
P.S. And you all thought I had no Christmas spirit! How about that snow? Yeah, glad I don't live there but hey, it LOOKS pretty!
Monday 5 December 2011
When is extreme couponing just too extreme?
I've watched the "Extreme Couponing" series on TLC from the get-go and I must admit, at first glance I was impressed. As a self-proclaimed radio prize junkie, I can appreciate the value of free or at the very least, low-cost. But how far is too far when it comes to coupons? Do you have a right to monopolize a cashier for three hours, or keep others waiting in line behind you? I ask because on the season finale of the show, one savy couponer kept the store open for an extra two hours PAST CLOSING TIME in the name of saving money and the worst part is, I never once heard a thank-you come out of her mouth. Now, maybe she said it off-camera, I'm not naive enough to believe that nothing on the show finds it's way to the cutting room floor, but it would have been nice if they at least TRIED to showcase this woman expressing some genuine gratitude. Instead, when they finally closed the circus down and asked her to finish up and leave the store we heard. "I'm really disappointed that I didn't get to finish my shopping." Seriously. She planned on purchasing over $4000 in products (at a fraction of the cost) and "only ended up" with $1300. This after spending the entire day at the store. She crashed the register (thanks to so many coupons) and they had to split things up and re-do a bunch of the transactions in smaller groups in order to ensure that the computer didn't run out of "line-space." (the computer can only accept so many coupons in one transaction before it will just freeze up.)
Staff spent HOURS re-configuring the transaction so that she could pay them pennies on the dollar. Pretty darn nice if you ask me. My guess is, none of those people ever want to see her pulling into their parking lot again.
This kind of couponing would never happen in Canada. We just can't/don't do it. Minimum wage in Canada varies, but I can tell you that in Ontario it's $10.25 per hour. So, if a cashier is part-time they will make at least that much and the majority of the full-time workers are unionized so will make more.We do have store cards that will offer discounts once you build up certain point levels but the stores will NEVER double your coupons. Not only do most coupons clearly say ONE per customer, no cashier that I know will ever do separate transactions to help you save.
I order a few coupons from a couple of sites online, but nothing worth talking about. I may be able to save $5 on a $100 order but that's the extent of any "deals." I love that some stores in the U.S. are now offering the opportunity to download savings DIRECTLY on to your store cards, saving the time/hassle of paper.
So, for all you bargain hunters out there, enjoy your discounts; and when that cashier offers to scan all of those tiny pieces of paper, give her a smile and say thank you, I'm sure it would be appreciated.
Staff spent HOURS re-configuring the transaction so that she could pay them pennies on the dollar. Pretty darn nice if you ask me. My guess is, none of those people ever want to see her pulling into their parking lot again.
This kind of couponing would never happen in Canada. We just can't/don't do it. Minimum wage in Canada varies, but I can tell you that in Ontario it's $10.25 per hour. So, if a cashier is part-time they will make at least that much and the majority of the full-time workers are unionized so will make more.We do have store cards that will offer discounts once you build up certain point levels but the stores will NEVER double your coupons. Not only do most coupons clearly say ONE per customer, no cashier that I know will ever do separate transactions to help you save.
I order a few coupons from a couple of sites online, but nothing worth talking about. I may be able to save $5 on a $100 order but that's the extent of any "deals." I love that some stores in the U.S. are now offering the opportunity to download savings DIRECTLY on to your store cards, saving the time/hassle of paper.
So, for all you bargain hunters out there, enjoy your discounts; and when that cashier offers to scan all of those tiny pieces of paper, give her a smile and say thank you, I'm sure it would be appreciated.
Friday 2 December 2011
I call this the lazy house because well, it is.
I sent this picture off to some friends a few minutes ago, but just had to share. This is my kind of Christmas decorating! LOL. I found it on the Ellen site as she was looking for some Christmas time-saving shortcuts and yes, this really IS somebody's house. Genius I say, pure genius and well, very Cindy-like in the approach. Totally my style--he can decorate at my place any time!!
I think they made the naughty list...
I think they made the naughty list...
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