Lovebonezzz!!!

Impossible!!!

08:41, 2008-Jun-27 .. 0 comments .. Link

Ok Kids!!

I have a mission for you!!! I do, I do!!

It is also impossible!!! It is, it is!!

Think you're awesome?

Think you're 1337?

Try this on for size:

I have a family reunion to go to next weekend. Lots of kids. Squirt guns. I need to mother of all guns, with which to defend myself.

THIS gun..to be precise

I am the guy at this reunion who is going to be attacked and mobbed by the kids at this reunion, because I am a big kid myself...

But, it is not available in Canada.

Nor can I order it via Amazon, Hasbro, Target, Walmart... Either they don't ship to Canada, or won't allow the address in the shipping info.

So here's the gig.

IF you can find a NEW Hydro-Blitz gun, AND you can have it shipped to me for somewhere around $60.00 (all in, shipping included) AND get it here before July 3rd, 2008... I will send you compensation...cash, or, if you prefer, I can get you something in trade from Canada

I will even include a little treat from Canada, that is unavailable in the U.S.

PM me, or comment below if you think you can pull this off...

If you can, you're fucking awesome.

S

Keeping up....awake...sorta

08:42, 2008-May-1 .. 3 comments .. Link

Hi Guys and Gals,

I know it has been a long time since I posted anything meaningful on here, and it's true...but I figured that I should give you the lowdown on what is happening.

hooooookay, so, as you know R and I are now engaged, as of Christmas. It was wonderful, and I think I detailed it on my post 'Little Thing I should Probably tell you'...anyway.

The past few months have been hectic to say the least. R suddenly got the wedding bug (surprise...no, not really) and has been a whirlwind of planning, and creating and constructing. That is to say, that she has already picked out our colors, already made the bridesmaids bouquets, the boutoniers, decided on a cake, and arranging the party favors, as well as deciding on a dress and all of the goodly little things that go along for the wedding ride.

The wedding isn't until Summer of '09...July we're thinking. We are planning on going out to B.C. this summer to check out possible locations for our nuptials, as well as meeting with some of the people that will need to be involved...churches, etc.

To that end, we have both picked up second jobs...pushing 18 to 19 hours...sometimes 20 hour days. To help with all of the financials involved. We are both working at Starbucks, pulling shots, and making some pretty fucked up coffees...Venti-Decaf-half-pump-hazelnut-2-pump-(dark)-mocha-1-pump-peppermint-extra hot-no-foam-with-whip-whole-milk-white-chocolate-mocha...I hate you.

R is incredibly frugal, she has made most of the wedding finery out of gear, and flowers (silk) that she already had...and just repurposed them into something amazing. Give the girl a hundred bucks and say make something beautiful, and she'll blow your mind and give you $85 back.

The interesting thing about working at Starbucks is that every week you get a 'Markout'...a free pound of coffee per week. Which we are stockpiling to give out as gifts at the wedding. 2 Pounds per week (hers and mine) with about 60 weeks to go, and a shipment sent to my parent's place in B.C. already consisting of approximately 40 bags. We are planning on portioning 1/2 pound bags for our guests.

We also went to a bridal fair, and wound up going to a couple of places to get registered. The issue is, is that living on my own and her living on her own, before we got together, means that we have more stuff than we really know what to do with (garage sale this summer...proceeds go to the wedding). So, a registry is an option, but we're planning on asking that, instead of a gift, we would prefer a donation for our new lives together, hoping to help offset the cost of the wedding, or, maybe even, put together enough for a down-payment on a house.,Ambitious, no?

That said, we ARE registered at a couple of places, The Bay here in Canada, and at Home Outfitters---just mainly little stuff for around the house. We both agreed though that we were doing it only for the people who didn't feel comfortable sending/giving us money.

So, yeah, in a nutshell, that is where we're at. Planning, working, sleeping (when possible) working, creating, working, packaging, working...and occasionally, when there is a day off...working--around the house.

S

ps. Starbucks also allows the 'partners' that are on shift free beverages...which is great, unless your shift ends at 11pm, and you're buzzed on a few Caramel Macchiato's...I usually drink water.

....uh....hi...

09:14, 2008-Apr-8 .. 6 comments .. Link

Yes, I am still around, quietly pottering about on my tiny little plot of teh intertubez.

I haven't had much time for blogging, or indeed keeping up with the goings on with everyone else. I feel i have slipped, somehow, on the internet. Slipped in a way that can only be described by a poet...or even a geologist...I guess.
Tectonically might me used to describe it.

In a way I feel as though I have let everyone down, by becoming less connected to their thoughts and happenings. That isn't to say that I don't think about everyone here, and there, or even over there....waaaaay over there too.

Part of it is, is that I haven't much time for it anymore. Especially now, carrying 2 jobs and getting ready for a wedding. R, my fiancee, is also holding down 2 jobs, though one is currently trying to eject her from the drivers seat. It is emotionally, physically and mentally exhausting...not to mention kinda tiring too.

I find that for the past while I have become somewhat more exhausted...I tend to fall asleep at inopportune moments...not while driving or anything, just tend to mentally disconnect or doze during the day. Part of it, I think, is that I need a vacation. Something where I can go somewhere and not do anything. Recharge. I digress.

It's weird, typing this, I feel something like a charlatan...or perhaps it is better put like finding a favorite garment that I used to love and wear daily, only to pick it up now and find it no longer really fits me. It's lumpy here and tight there, and just doesn't feel good. Yeah.

I don't know what I am trying to say anymore.

S

Little thing I should probably mention...

09:19, 2007-Dec-28 .. 8 comments .. Link

Hi!

Merry Christmas...slightly belated...

I have been avoiding blogging of late, trying my very best to be secretive.

The reason?

Well...I made a big step in my life over Christmas, a big step indeed. I have been working for some time with the logistics of what I was trying to do, and getting permissions and all the fiddly preparations for it. So much so that I felt if I blogged about what I was doing, I would let the secret out and wind up having a lame-sauce Christmas.

So what was the big secret??

I asked R to marry me.

I did.

I did.

The surprise and shock on her face, and her response made the secrecy worth it.

She said yes...otherwise I wouldn't be in such a fantastic mood.

Here's how it all shook out.

We had been talking for quite a while about getting married, and I brought up the topic about rings...(being that I was already thinking about asking her to make this step with me) I made her sit down with me and we went through ring after ring on various websites online until we found this one ring (not THE one ring...that would be...fail...besides...it melted.)

Anyway, we landed on one site www.titaniumera.com and the 1st ring that we saw, made R gasp. (win!)

We looked a little more and found nothing that appealed to her more than the ring that we found at the Titanium website.

So...I ordered it. Without her knowledge of course.

I asked my parents permission on it "Yes, oh, God yes! That would be wonderful!"...to quote my Mom.

I asked her parents..."Awww we would LOVE to have you as part of our family" lots of happy tears on her Mom's part.

The last thing was to ask R.

I took the ring with me to B.C.....to my parent's house. I wrapped the ring box, the box the ring box came in, and ribbon and shiny stuff all over....but no ring inside.

I made her unwrap it all and when she found the empty ring box, I waited a second and said "Well...you don't get the ring unless you say 'yes!'....R, would you marry me?"

Tears, and beaming smiles and "Yes!"

My mom cried, my dad smiled, I was elated and R was ecstatic.

And eventually, things calmed down...but there is this sense of relief and relaxation.

I am so happy right now.

S

ps. I can still get her to tear a little when I whisper the word fiancee...

Der Foamage unt Win!

09:34, 2007-Nov-27 .. 0 comments .. Link

Discontent

08:43, 2007-Nov-22 .. 3 comments .. Link

I usually start all of my posts with an adjoinder like "So,...blah blah blah" implying that you and I have never actually stopped talking...but really it is more of a way for me to put down the thoughts in my own head. I seldom stop thinking and it is usually where I start a thought process...

Anyway, I digress.

Things have been a little stressful of late, both at home and at work.

Work is manageable, though frustrating at the moment. I am flying now without the SIC safety net...or at least less of a safety net, and I am finding myself in some real doozy repair situations. The kind of nightmare repair that just as you think you're all done and things are going to be ok, the machine barfs out it's own asshole and you are stuck trying to figure out why.

It really isn't anything new for me, I ran into this shit all the time when I was working on cars....but cars have better manners and will tell you what is wrong with them. These machines...not so much.

It has also been extra busy at the shop lately, people getting all excited about Chri--... *sigh*...the 'Holidays'. Our customers like to wait until the last minute then freak out--: "Omigodomigodomigod....need the machine fixed, I have 9-trillion units to put out tomorrow....aiiiiiiiieeeeeeeeeeee!!!"

So...you know...when it was dead all summer, and we were looking for things to do, and you were sipping Mai-Tai's without a care in the world...whatever.

Things at home however are a little different.

R has been working at this great place where they make play-stations for kids. These stations are just little modules, where the kids are challenged with little puzzles and games, that help the parents cool off for a little bit, and everyone is happy. The malls around here have them in kids play areas and there are a pile of the modules in the local children's hospital.

Cool right??

Well, no, not really. The guy who is running the show is apparently running into financial issues...and the money matters just don't add up. So much so, that he is looking at moving the whole operation down into Mexico, leaving just a distribution center here in Canada. They have asked R to stay on, promising a management position. But that position really means that she is going to be the head of the shipping department.

Here's the way it shakes out:

The production side of the company moves south, taking several key employees with it. The logistics have not been sorted out....Visa's, Passports, locations...or even where they will be getting the supplies that they need from....let alone the capital required to do so.

The Boss has been firing people left and right, seemingly on a whim. People who he sees as a liability, people who he figures he is paying to much...he also has been fighting with his wife, there is a cot set up in the shop for him to sleep on...and he has taken out a personal loan against his home equity to help pay for materials in the fabrication area.

The shop here in town, becomes a Distribution Center, with accounting, and upper management types. There will be approximately 5 people that work there...The Boss, the Boss' assistant. The Vice Boss. The accountant. And my R.

So they say.

They haven't really come out and said what her duties would be...but doing the math says that she would be single-handedly doing all of the shipping/receiving and product assembly.

The keep shuffling her around to various departments in the meantime and she winds up coming home upset and unhappy.

This past weekend, we had some friends over...one of the guys who was fired and his family.

He told R about a job opening at a kitchen cabinet place...she applied and got the job, but she is still feeling morally obligated to the first place, because she hasd made some good friends there and learned a lot. She is fiercely loyal, but sometimes she just needs to let go...

The new place sounds pretty promising, but, it is also a new company...and there are some issues that go along with that...I guess we will see how it goes. The other side of it is, is that, if it DOESN'T work out, there are so many jobs open in this town, that she wouldn't have an issue finding new work.

SO, yeah, there is a lot of unrest at home, I come home frustrated, and annoyed, she comes home upset, and feeling insecure about work, and man, we are just the happiest couple.

We try not to let our work lives interfere with home life. It is hards some days when you walk in the door with a black cloud over your head...but we are both trying to let it all go.

I don't think I am doing a very good job of letting go though...I am starting to lose sleep, and my boss has noticed. The lack of sleep is affecting my work too...I had to drive just a short distance yesterday...about 75 miles...and caught myself almost falling asleep at the wheel about 4 times.

Thats just scary.

S

Neat!!!

05:08, 2007-Nov-15 .. 4 comments .. Link

Should I be offended?? My Canadian Nature, says no....but I kind of am anyway..

10:46, 2007-Nov-5 .. 12 comments .. Link

Caught this little gem on the tubes...enjoy...then discuss.

Eulogy for a Noble Heart...

09:15, 2007-Oct-23 .. 6 comments .. Link

My dog Walter passed away today.

He was a big boy with an even bigger heart. He was put together all wrong, but he was all about the love.

Walter was a Bernese Mountain Dog mixed with a Retriever. He had all the markings of the Bernese Mountain dog, but not the curly hair. Something like the Swiss Mountain Dog.

His favorite thing to do was to dive for rocks in the pond, lay in the sun and to carry his 'fish'.

He once mistook the word "Fish" for "Leash"...and ever since..Fish=Leash.

He would greet you at the door, but wagging his immense tail, and then promptly sit on your foot and look up at you and smile, just wanting you to pat him.

He was a wonderful dog, who was amazing with little kids--one of my fondest stories about Walter was with my cousin Iain. Iain was about 18 months old at the time and found Walter made a wonderful drum. I have pictures of Iain POUNDING on Walters side, and Walter just laid there smiling and wagging his tail.

Walter had a noble heart, a gentle soul and today he's gone.

You were my guardian, my buddy, I will miss you. Always.

S

[EDIT:] As a side note, we are planting a tree where we buried Walter, we have placed Bailey's ashes in the same spot. I will be making a memorial stone for that spot that says "Walter and Bailey's tree. A noble heart and an indomitable spirit."

Murder!! Murder most foul!!

03:17, 2007-Oct-15 .. 2 comments .. Link

Yeah, not really...but we are getting close to Hallowe'en (or Hollow Sausage)...

Anyway, the trade show was this passed weekend, and we (being SIC and I) had to work in the booth that we set up for the show. The setup went great when Bossman wasn't there...meaning,...well...you know what I mean. At any rate, setup started on Wednesday of last week and the show was Friday and Saturday. Wasn't really a whole lot of fun for us, but I did get to meet some interesting people.

Anyway, trade show = fail, but going home to my R = win!

R went out on Saturday while I was at the show, she did some shopping and went to the local wicked-awesome fish store Pisces Pet Emporium. They have everything there, from Goldfish to Eels to Lobsters to Marmosets.

Yeah, I said it, they have Marmosets.

Say it.

Maaarrrrrmooosettt.

Anyway, R and I have this new little aquarium that we have been loading up with little fish, and she wanted to get some Cardinal Tetra fish.

They are like Neon Tetras, but with more silvery-blue reflective awesome.

She got six of them and when I got home Saturday evening there they were, in a little school at the back of the tank.

Nice.

Then one died.

.
..
...
....
.....
......
.......
........
.........
..........

and another died...

Now we had 2 little corpses drifting about in our tank. School is tough, but this am ridikaling.

R was very sad, she was so excited to get the fish for me, and she had been waiting for Pisces to get the little buggers in so she could grab some.

So, we remove the little bodies...and inspected them...

The eyes were missing.

This is not terrible uncommon to have happen in an aquarium. Little fishies often get to play the role of buffet before fully expiring...gross but true.

So we collected the little bodies and a sample of water, so that we could return the fish to Pisces the next day.

Through the night, 2 more died.

R was quite upset now, and she started blaming herself for all the injustices facing these tiny little fish.

We collected these little eyeless bodies, and headed off to the pet store.

Pisces has a fish guarantee that, if a fishy dies, you need to bring a receipt, a corpse (preferably the fish) and a sample of the aquarium water. If the fish are dead because you had them swimming in a tank of ammonia or acid, no refund.

So, it is a little like taking a test that you *might* have to pay for.

Anyway, our water is great, and everything looked fine, despite having a bag-o'-corpses...and we got a refund. But they were all out of Cardinal Tetras.

The issue was that the Tetras were being sold before they were accustomed to the new environment, and were in a state of shock, and then while still shock-y they were shipped again into another new environment. Basically ensureing that the fish would die.

R = sad.

So we traded up and got a Gold Ram, to keep our 2 remaining Tetras company...

And another tetra died this morning...

I think it was the last Tetra, in the aquarium...WITH THE FAKE PLANT!!!

S

Shitty Attutudes and people who suck

08:49, 2007-Oct-5 .. 5 comments .. Link

So heres the deal.

Had a bit of a rough day yesterday, and there's a million reasons why, so I am just going to vent a little bit here and be done with it. please try to be patient with me, I am just a tad frustrated and annoyed.

SIC and I work together...this is not news; just a fun fact. We get along well and this post is absolutely not about him or his ilk.

We are both, however, subject to the whim of our boss.

Bossman is who I am blogging about.

Next weekend we have a trade show to do. Subsequently, there is a lot of preparation that is required. No brainer.

We work for (what our trainer in Denver calls) a Robotics/textile company. So there is even more preparation, to make sure the machines run correctly, and to produce some samples to display at the show. SIC and I have also designed the booth that we are going to use at the show, and have been working like dogs to make sure it all goes as smoothly as possible. We have been trying to get things done well in advance, as I am taking this coming Tuesday off (it will be Thanksgiving Day weekend here for we Canuckers-plus 1 day for me). So SIC and I have been working EXTRA extra hard, to make it easier for one another, so that when Wednesday rolls around, we can both be zombies and still be quite productive.

Enter Bossman.

He is a controller and something of an egomaniac. Yesterday, he took it upon himself to 'help' us. By which I mean 'hinder'. Nothing was right and he was always in the way thinking that he was helping. When things DID go wrong, he would let fly with insults and jibes that would get SIC and I flustered, especially since we are running on a schedule that is a little insane at the moment.

Let me just say that SIC and I have been working like this for days now, and Bossman has been 'in meetings' or 'swamped' by reading catalogs for hardware stores...until yesterday.

[edit:]As I wrote that last paragraph, Bossman yelled from his office to me: "What about those other machines, what is the game plan for getting those fixed?"

I responded, "Don't know Bossman, we've been a little more concerned about getting the Trade Show organized than about used equipment." [edit]

Included in the mayhem yesterday, is a gentleman from a third party that Bossman refers to as "The Irish Asshole", now, TIA is a nice enough fellow, and I have no real issue with him at all. TIA was here to fix a couple of off-brand machines (that we are not familiar with) so that they can be sold as used/trade-in equipment. However, yesterday, Bossman decided that it would be good for morale to insult SIC and I in front of TIA, basically calling us stupid and forgetful.

I should also mention, that Bossman takes great pride in belittling all of his staff in front of customers and clients. We had a couple come in to see us from the Northwest Territories, an 18 hour drive; Bossman takes them out for lunch, and not 3 minutes after they left (in his car) he calls back to the shop, yells at our receptionist/accountant to tell "that Irish Asshole to do a good job on those machines." He will swear and curse at our suppliers and customers, because he feels that it is somehow his right and that he is funny. I don't even want to get started on his penchant of unabashed racism.

Like it is somehow necessary to establish his authority and impress (prospective) clients with this behaviour.

The other day, I was headed to the warehouse/shop, and I noticed that SIC had been pulled into Bossman's office, and they were...well no..Bossman was being surreptitious about a small package, and SIC appeared to be humoring him. Apparently, Bossman thought it would be funny to instate a 'Bonehead Award' and had asked SIC to watch me, in case I did something dumb. I will be the first to admit that I make mistakes, but I think something like this is in poor taste especially when SIC and I are working our asses off so he can read magazines.

At any rate I am rambling, just because I needed to vent.

Bleah.

S

Hey hey!! ETDS!!!! no more!!

11:37, 2007-Sep-23 .. 1 comments .. Link

So, due to some delectable, and here-to-for unseen circumstance, I can no longer log into, nor access endthedryspell.efx2blogs.com.

Which is ok.

Since the dry spell is over...

Anyway, needed a place to put down ideas and thoughts that come to me, so lovebonezzz will have to do for a while....at least until I come up with a new, cool name for a little blog.

Had something of a kooky-for-cocoapuffs weekend...

Went out for breakfast on Saturday, and wound up spending the remainder of the day garage sale-ing with R. Found some cool stuff, like a pile of books for R's voracious reader/niece. A whack of K'Nex, a building toy that I used the excuse of R's 2 nephews to get...basically about $150 worth of the stuff, for like $10.

But the sweetest deal of all, an aquarium....it is a 8gallon unit, it came with an air pump, under-rock filtration system, heater, thermometer, rocks, hose and hood.

FOR THREE DOLLARS!!! WIN!!!

All it needed was a good cleaning, and new bulbs in the hood. Sweet.

So we got that all set up, and now Fluffy, our Siamese fighting fish, is happily checking out his new digs.

Today, we slept in a little, and R got up before me and went and made 2 full trays of cinnamon buns.

Again, win. I love me some cinnamon buns.

We had a nice breakfast, and a relaxing start to the morning, and got to painting.

Yup, painting.

We rent, of course, but we spoke to the landlord and asked if there was a chance that we could paint a couple of walls in the living room. He said that it wasn't a problem, as long as we did a nice job. He said that if it was an issue, he would be the one repainting it after we left anyway. So, according to him, non-issue.

So we painted the south and west walls of out living room from Cream White to a neat color called Toasted Walnut. It looks sweet and warms up the room nicely.

This is all in preparation for our 1st big purchase as a couple. A new sectional sofa. It is upholstered in microfibre fabric, the color is called "Mushroom" which will look awesome against the newly painted walls. We are pretty excited about the whole deal.

Anyhow, let's call this a little update, and I will be writing more soon.

S

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