Happy New Year!

We’ll be eating way too much cheese and bread and drinking a little bubbly.  Not true champagne, but much more within our budget.

Bonne Année!

Wishing you a wonderful 2011!

Right, that’s Christmas out of the way,

let’s talk about books!

I’m reading the Canada Reads books again this year.  Last year was my first time in and I really enjoyed it.  Huge thank yous to monnibo for getting me involved.  You may recall that last year my favourite book ended up being Good to a Fault by Mariana Endicott.  Gorgeous book that taught me an awful lot about what charity really is and how it’s perceived from a Canadian standpoint.  It made me think a bit differently and notice things I’d not noticed before.

So, this year I again managed to acquire all five books for the 2011 edition of Canada Reads.  I’ve finished two of them and both have been very good.  The first one just funny and enjoyable and brilliantly Canadian, the second one very methodical and introverted and again, changed the way I think.

Best Laid Plans by Terry Fallis was my first of this year’s books.  Funny and very much poking the crazy that is Canadian politics.  I really enjoyed this book, in particular I really enjoyed how well created and diverse the characters were.  Also, I’m a sucker for a Scotsman.  most any Scotsman really. 

Today I finished Unless by Carol Shields.  This was Shield’s last book before her death in 2003 and it is really an amazing story.  It is seemingly simplistic story that at first feels very self indulgent and grindingly depressing.  But then, about half-way through the book I finally started to get a feel for what Shields was trying to impart.  Now, here’s the ridiculous self-centred bit, feel free to skip ahead and avoid.

I’m almost 42, I’m somewhat educated, I believe that my destiny is mine to control, and I’m female.  The female bit has never been a very important bit, just one bit.  I know that I can do anything I put my mind to.  This is the sort of annoying bull-headed human I’ve always been.  Of course it’s all total crap.  I can’t be an astronaut or the Commissioner of the RCMP or the leader of the UN.  Inside, I know this, but because I’ve never wanted to be any of those things it’s not mattered.  But I have always firmly believed that if someone, anyone, wanted to achieve something, they were more than halfway there.  It’s the wanting, that’s always been the key in my mind. You gotta wanna.

This story sort of showed me that although I may believe that, there are other forces at work in the world who do not agree with that.  Some of them for no reason other than I am of the female persuasion.  They may not even be actively trying to keep a woman down (sorry, couldn’t resist), but they just automatically/on default/without thought put those things done by women on a secondary list.  The primary list is male.  All male.  Be it authors, discoverers, inventors, scientists, whatever.  The male list will always be longer (or exclusively male), and the female list will always be an ‘also ran’.

Not sure I’m going to sleep all that well tonight with my new realization of the world.  I was so sure I had it right.  Snort.

What says Christmas Eve?

Exactly!  Getting to leave work at 12:00 and then a lunch of McNuggets.  Mmmmmmm.  So bad, but so good!

Might I strongly suggest you avoid the holiday cranberry dipping sauce though.  Blech!

The other best part of today?  A co-worker got a new pup two days ago and decided she’d bring him in to the office for the 1/2 day.  Boston Terrier, 5 months old, beyond placid, puppy breath, and such a cuddler.  So cute!  He spent a good part of the morning chewing his toy and sleeping on my desk.

Later, we may have played a bit of dress-up with him.

I’m not proud, but gosh he was cute!

This evening will be spent cuddled up with my dogs and knitting and books.  Just like the perfect Christmas Eve should be.  For some reason A Christmas Carol, (the Alastair Sim version), was on TV last night so we’re watching The Mummy.  Not really sure how that factors into festivus, but at least it’s an amusing movie.

Happy Christmas to all and I wish you a most excellent 2011! 

I’m almost ready!

For winter that is.    I cast on a hat yesterday from some fun Hello Yarn hand spun that I’ve had marinating in the stash for the last 2 years.  Chunky yarn, 6 mm needles, boom – a hat in a night.  How cool is that?

Next up?  A scarf using some other hand spun that I spun and dyed with kool aid.  Hmmm, it’s also about 2 years old.

I really have to start knitting more with my hand spun and not keeping it ‘for good’.

Recent crappy pictures taken with a cell phone

Some interesting graffiti

The new library is coming along nicely.

Potato roaster at the recent German Christmas market

Intense and very funny gentleman manning the potato roaster.

Almost full moon with the lit roof of the Hotel Vancouver from Robson Street

Ice skaters at Robson Square - ooooo, pretty colours!

More pretty colours!

So, anyone want a dog?

570 yards of Merino/cashmere blend.  Someone hold me.

I’m going to go drown my sorrows in wine and super dark fruitcake.  Sigh.