Reviews

Greetings my dear readers. Miss B. here with your week review of entertainment, food and beverages.

First of all the entertainment portion of this review:
Andre Riue 2006 Vancouver concert was incredible!!! The music was fabulous, the staging was good, the members of the orchestra were fun to watch. (Not to mention the percussionist who was not too hard on the eyes. Watched him well through my binoculars...oh wait! I didn't just confess to that did I?)There was much audience participation. We clapped, we sang along, we were in awe at the talent presented, there was dancing in the aisles and by the end we were sad to see it end. It was sort of like Christmas, you prepare for it, spend more money than you normally might on one day, then it comes and goes so quickly that before you know it you are planning for next year already. I believe this will definitely become a yearly event for me. In the meantime I just bought a great DVD set of many of his concerts on e-bay so I will be able to at least get a little Andre fix from time to time! Feel free to come and join me anytime! Music is best when its shared and for this concert I was blessed to have friends, new and old and family accompanying me.

Moving on to food and drink we begin our review in Vancouver,BC.
As always La Casa Gelato never failed to impress me with their variety of flavors. They pride themselves on having 218 flavors of ice creams (gelatos) and sorbetes (sorbettoes). The great fun of going there is that you can walk around and try little samples of different flavors before you have to make up your mind. I am continuing to grow my selection of cute little colored spoons each time I go. This time the most unusual flavor I sampled was mushroom. In the past I have tried alovera, garlic, vegemite, advocado, rosemary grapefruit, raspberry, etc. This time I also sampled basil, peanut butter and a few others. The flavor that won out was White Chocolate/Hazelnut. If we ever find ourselves in vancouver together I would love to share this little gem of the city with you.

Next we move on to more balanced meal options. We found ourselves seated in Hon's Won Ton House in China town browsing a very large menu. Right away we noticed that the prices were reasonable. The servers were pleasant and offered very constructive advice to poor white folk who tried to load up their table with plates of the same thing without even realizing it. The portions were large, the food was very good, prepared within sight of the tables and there was a steady stream of customers coming and going. The only down side was that it was cold when we first sat down but the thermostat was adjusted and hot tea brought so soon it was hardly noticeable.

Coming closer to home:
Pumpkin Pie syrup is in at Woods Coffee House in Lynden! Now is the time to finish off your day with a refreshing pumpkin pie italian soda or even mix it with white chocolate syrup as I did this evening for an even more tantilizing beverage. if you are the coffee drinking sort I suppose it might even be good in coffee. But in coffee you would miss the subtle smoothness that the cream and whipped cream gives the pumpkin pie flavor of the soda.

There you have it friends, ice creams, asian food, music and fall spiced beverages. Till next time, live, explore and be willing to try new things. You never know what treasures you might encounter.
Signing off,
Miss B

How Quickly Things Change

8:45 this morning found me quietly minding my own bussines at home when the phone rang. "Hello"
"Hi is this Crystal?"
"Yes"
"Hi this is Louise from work, CHCC and I was wondering if you were still interested in working for us a unit secretary becuause we are really desperate."
"Yes I am still interested but I thought you hired someone this week already so I already applied for another job within the facility. But on the other hand it will be a while till I know anything about that so in the mean time I would be interested in helping you out."
"Great! How many hours can you give us and when can you come in and meet with a few people?"
"Probably about 30hrs/week. I can come in about around 10 this morning if that works for you."
"Wonderful we will see you then and thanks so much. Bye."
At 10 I went and met with the computer guy and I found out that he was testing my skill level and general knowledge because the lady that they had hired earlier didn't work out for some reason. This was a job that they had told me about a while ago when I had applied for something else. Upon looking at my resume they thought I would be good for it but at the time they wanted full time and I wasn't able to give them that so that's about as far as it went. After meeting with the computer guy and showing him that I was pretty familier with the concepts that he was concerned about I didn't know what the next steps were and neither did anyone else really it seemed. The other girl doing this job wasn't sure if she was supossed to start training me or what and I certainly had no idea. Louise was busy so instead of just sitting around waiting for her I just jumped in and started doing things until she was free to meet with me in the early afternoon and we went from there.
So in the space of one phone call and about an hr. I was pulled of the floor, away from working nights and weekend and given a 32hr./wk postion that is day times and maybe a few Sundays but not at the moment and a raise for as long as I am filling this position! I have applied for another day position as a social worker which would be about the same but until I know more about that, if I even get an interview, I will be learning lots of new stuff, helping get things back on track with the current unit secretary and finally getting some normal sleep habits back! I ended up staying and working the rest of today and just did a few simple projects that needed doing but that were time consuming and learned more about one of 4 data systems that they use. Who knows I might even like this so much I don't want the social worker job even if they offer it to me. I don't know, time will tell but in the mean time I am still in shock, it all happened so fast, and yet so very excited. I was really not feeling challenged much any more as an NAC and with my already set schedule with Nicki and school, the hours that I could work were really tough and I wasn't able to get enough of them to really pay my bills. So with one little phone call, problem solved!! Still amazes me how prayers are answered in the most unusual way because I would never have thought about the person they hired not working out and them calling me in a panic. Wasn't even a scenario that I ever considered. I think I will miss working on the floor a little but i am sure if I ever want to help out here and there I can and besides it's not like I am leaving the people, I am still working for them just in a different way. So for the time being I am CHCCs newest Medical Records Clerk/Unit Secretary. :-)
So Kristi its not at the hospital but someone else agreed with your assessment and thought I would be good at this job too! Great minds think alike! So now I just have to prove you all right. LOL

Random Tuesday Thoughts

Ok so what's happening with all of you? I am just sitting here on a Tuesday with a collection of random thoughts going through my head.
I wonder how I did on my Chem test that I took week before last? I hope I passed. I really need to be doing homework right now...must get to that later.
Work today was really good...sort of nice to work in the daytime and come home at a decent hour. I have applied for another job within the facility but the way things go around there I wonder if I'll even get an interview. There is no such thing as process or real organization around there so even though I am well liked, have the education and experience that they want for the job and have worked there for over a year that might not even mean I hear about the job again until they have hired someone else. Crazy place to work from an organization prespecitve. Time will tell, will keep praying. I have been waiting for this job to open up for a few months now and I REALLY want it!!! Though I have to be content that some of God's greatest gifts are unanswered prayers.
Ok so what about singing toothbrushes? Check them out here. They play music through your teeth as you brush. When the bristles touch your teeth in an up and down motion the sound is sent through you teeth into your head and you can hear it. That would be something I would buy just to say I have tried it...pretty pathetic huh?! Too bad they didn't seem to have any good songs on the list of 18 different ones that you can get.
Oh these kittens are crazy! Running all around the house, chasing things, attacking each other. Who would have ever thought that a Dum Dum sucker would have ever given 3 of my cats so much entertainment. I think mom is putting an ad in the paper for the kittens. Wonder if we will get any calls. I will sure miss them if they go. They have been so much fun. OH MY I think my old cat just got her claw stuck in the ear of my other full grown cat who was pestering her!!!! There is certainly a lot of hissing and rolling going on. He has been playing with the kittens so much I think he forgot himself and who he was trying to play with! I don't see any lasting damage...poor dear.

Ok so homework definetly calls and I should stop boring you all with my mental meanderings...till later...

Weekend with Toddler

I had the privilage of spending the weekend with my god-daughter/"neice" who is a little over 2 and my what a weekend it was!
It was the first time I have spent that much time with her and the first time her folks had been gone for more than one night. I wasn't sure what to expect but it was a blast! For example you should try sleeping in a double bed with a wiggly toddler, a dog and 2 very large cats. There isn't a whole lot of room for anything else and that collection generates a lot of heat so trying to keep some semblance of constance in temperature throughout the night is virtually impossible! By the second night I had it down and hardly woke at all. And oh my do toddlers ever have a lot of energy! On Saturday we went to a park and Teagon ran and ran for about 2hrs. straight. She made me tired just watching her but she was having a blast and she slept well so it was well worth it. I taught her "If Your Happy and You Know it" on Sunday and it was hillarious watching her run around the living room, jumping up and down clapping her hands. She kept saying, "Happy, Happy, sing again, again!" When her parents got home she was happy to see them but she wasn't quite ready for me to leave until I had read a story to her a few more times and sang with her some more. At one point she wanted me to sing "Little Lamb" or "Merry" and I had no idea what she wanted. Then her mom got home and she made her request again. Her mother complide, breaking into, "Mary, had a little lamb..."! It hadn't even occurred to me that it could be Mary and NOT Merry. Sometimes I really need to think outside the box. LOL
There is nothing quite like snuggling with a little body, who is relaxed and content, little arms thrown around your neck and a binky held fast between little button lips. I think I could enjoy having a few of those myself sometime! I love toddlers, they are hillarious, exciting and the world is fresh through their eyes.
Teagon was absolutly wonderful all weekend. She behaved well the entire time and I will certainly look forward to the next time I get to spend time with her and take her out for a drive in "Aunties Truck".

Blue Again

Your Heart Is Blue

Love is a doing word for you. You know it's love when you treat each other well. You are a giving lover, but you don't give too much. You expect something in return. Your flirting style: Friendly Your lucky first date: Lunch at an outdoor cafe Your dream lover: Is both generous and selfish What you bring to relationships: Loyalty

What Color Heart Do You Have?

Hummm...Ok so I took another test to see what color heart I have and again it came up blue. I am curious about these results. Blue is certainly not the color I would have picked if you would have just asked me to name a color. I am not sure about a selfish lover...what is that supposed to mean? It is true I am not a good 50s housewife who is willing to do everything, rub his feet, have dinner on the table at 5 every night, keep the children scrubbed and perfect so he can throw his clothes on the floor, come home from work and watch TV till bed everynight and complain when I ask him to help me with something. Not me for sure!!! I am very loyal, this is true. I also agree with the very first point. In the 5 love languages my highest one is quality time, doing things together, being respectful and giving to each other, not a one sided relationship. So maybe this isn't too far off...Interesting.

Flower Color

You Are a Blue Flower

A blue flower tends to represent peace, openness, and balance. At times, you are very delicate like a cornflower. And at other times, you are wise like an iris. And more than you wish, you're a little cold, like a blue hydrangea.

What Color Flower Are You?

Humm...Not sure if that's me...people am I cold??? Please tell me, honestly! I guess at times I am very focused and direct and don't have a lot of time for warm fuzzyies which in the past has gotten me in trouble. People have thought I was mad at them or having a bad day, etc. when in fact I was just on a mission and focused, mainly in the areas of work or projects that need to be completed. On the other hand I am not nearly as invincible as I come across sometimes and am a lot more delicate than most would realize. And come on who wouldn't want to be though of as wise! ha, ha. LOL Interesting results...may have to take it again and see what I get a second time!