New Years Eve

 Tonight, we are both exhausted and just lazing about.

We had tentative plans of having our friend Bill come over

 but his visit has been postponed.

We didn't discuss alternate plans if we'd go out or not, we are both homebodies. 

Spending time at home together is Heaven.

Although, I have always wanted to go to a New Years Eve gala like

the one in the movie When Harry Met Sally.

Wear an evening gown, have a multiple course meal in

a large banquet hall filled with twinkle lights. Dance to a Lawrence Welk-ish band.

Run out onto the balcony on the strike of midnight for the perfect kiss.

Very Disney actually, all that is missing is the tiara.

I do have my Prince and I will get the perfect midnight kiss

and the Happily Ever After.

As I sit here, with a Big Bang Theory DVD on, both Adam & Crockett are

laying down behind me falling in and out of sleep between

the live audience laughter.

Looking back over 2010, it wasn't a bad year but it also wasn't a great year.

It was up, down, happy, sad, stressful and what I will most likely

refer to when looking back as the  "Year of the Tension Headache".

I started this blog back in August for a few reasons.

 I felt as though I was losing my ability to write.
In my job, I primarily communicate via e-mail to my counterparts working
in factories in China.  My writing has had to become very basic,
clear, straightforward, and the fewer words the better.

Time seemed to be going by so fast & it started to feel like Groundhog Day. 
The same day over & over & over.  I needed somewhere
to write down what was happening so that I could review it when I wasn't so in it.

I live a very small life. By small I mean close to home.
When I'm not at work I am most likely within a 5km radius of where we live.
Since I no longer have a vehicle, I don't get out to
Mississauga to see my parents as much as I'd like.
Sure we talk on the phone everyday, but sometimes it just about what's
troubling us or the important news of the day.

I don't have a huge social circle.
I have a few very close friends that live far away and a few very close friends
that live nearby and I don't see either group as much as I should.

I wanted to find  a way to share my life with the people I care about
so they can see that, although times are tough, I am really lucky and blessed.
That I realize I am lucky and blessed and that I am grateful.
I have a husband who loves me, who makes me laugh, who I have fun with.
I have a dog that is adorable who gets me outside walking, breathing fresh air
and discovering the parks and green spaces in my neighbourhood.
I have a camera that has made me really stop and look at the details.

About that dog....he is now sprawled out on the middle of our bed
snoring, dreaming, feet twitching and completely relaxed.

The clock is about to strike twelve so I must shut off this computer
and go get that kiss from my Prince Charming.

Happy New Year to All!

Love,
Joanne

It's Getting Closer!

Tomorrow is December 1st.

The Christmas season officially begins.

Which radio station will be playing carols 24/7?

Tonight, one of my favorite Christmas traditions occurred;

How The Grinch Stole Christmas was on tv.

It doesn't matter how many times I've seen it, it is part of Christmas for me.

I was happy to hear that my almost 6 year old niece Abby watched it too.

Poor kids birthday is right after Christmas.

I don't know what is different about Christmas for me this year, there's just something.

We've had a tough year. A little stressful, well, alot stressful. A little scary at times.

It's been a roller coaster and I prefer the merry-go-round.

Right now, at this very moment I am happy.

Very happy. I think that's huge.

I'm consciously looking at the glass as half full vs. half empty.

I'm grateful that it's half full.

All of the people I love are alive and healthy.

I just wish we were all geographically closer.

It would be nice to drop in for a cup of coffee or tea and a chat.

I get to wake up everyday with my Adam at my side.

Crockett is always happy to see me when I walk through the door

and to top it off, Adam now makes my tea to perfection.

Lucky girl.

Life is like Coffee

Life is like Coffee Movie

This link was sent to me today and it is worth sharing.

I really love this.
Click on the above & enjoy.

Gratitude and Post Update Nov 5'10

Life can be difficult at times. 

Stress, fear, anxiousness, vulnerability and uncertainty on occasion
creep into my quiet mind.

 I have consciously made an effort to replace these negative thoughts with thoughts of

GRATITUDE.

If I made a list of negative vs. positive things in my life, positive wins by a land slide.

The tough part for me has been to focus on and recognize the positive.

I am a worrier, always have been, always will be, but I am getting better.

I'm not one who could keep a daily list of things I'm grateful for. 

It would make me think about it too much.

I need to learn to recognize these things organically as they happen.

There are the basics, Adam, love, health, family, dog, laughter, gainful employment...

Today, I am grateful for the roof over my head, the food in my pantry, the warm blanket,

perfect pillow, cozy jammies and bed I get to sleep in next to my husband.

I leave the house for work between 6:15-6:30am.

Twice last week and again this morning I came upon a lady

who has been sleeping in the bus shelter at my bus stop.

The City of Toronto over the last year has, with the beautification

of Yonge Street, replaced all the bus shelters.

It is almost as though they were designed specifically so that homeless people

would not choose them as a place of shelter.

The walls are 6 inches shy of the ground.

The wind hits your ankles and goes up your pant leg.

If you have to wait for more than 15 minutes in the cold, your toes freeze.

The seats are divided into 3 sections with a cold raised piece of steel.

You have to be a size 6 for it not to dig into your thigh.

Again, anything longer than a 15 minute wait and your leg would fall asleep.

The lady is about 5'4".

She wears a red winter jacket at a length just above her knees.

The fake fur trimmed hood is up, covering her face.

She wears a long jean skirt to her ankles and flat ballerina type slippers.

By the time I get to the bus stop, she seems to have been up for awhile.

As I walk by, she is putting belongings into a bag.

The seat is covered with boxes.

She's put them under and over the seat dividers to fashion a home made mattress.

She's placed other boxes up the side of the glass so she has a

barrier against the cold glass.



Red Coat Lady's boxes tucked behind the shelter.

 I walk past, she doesn't look up. By the way she moves and holds herself, I'd say she's in her 50's.

I sit on the other bench a few feet away waiting for my bus. We can't see each other because of the ad wall of the shelter. I'm happy for this as I feel I'm invading her

space and privacy in a way.

She takes about 4 trips from the bench to the garbage can, folds up her boxes and places them behind the bus shelter so that they will be there for her to reuse tonight.

I wonder what her story is. Are there people who worry about her? Wonder where she is? Wonder if she is alive? I fear for her saftey.

My bench at the corner by the bus stop.



Seeing homeless men is always sad, but seeing a homeless women hits me in a different way.

She seems so much more vulnerable, exposed.

I wonder why sleeping on the street is better than going to a shelter. I wonder if anyone has tried to help. I wonder what I can do. I am going to hurry up and finish knitting my red scarf so that I can offer it to her.

It seems so little, but if I put myself in her place, I

would hope that someone would do the same for me.

POST UPDATE Nov 5'10
I haven't seen the Red Coat Lady since Monday.
It has this last week cooled down fast, so I hope she's found
warmer and safer shelter.