The Peanut Butter Solution

Happy Thanksgiving

2007-10-09T20:29:00.000-07:00

My weekend was pretty awesome. My parents came up to visit for two days. We went for walks. ate lots of food, watched T.V., and played Bananagrams and Zombies. I'm always spoiled with the Thanksgiving meals because my mom usually makes them with help from my sisters if they are present.
My life at the moment is in limbo as CarbonMan and I wait patiently for better job opportunities that would take us to new places. There are some jobs waiting in the wind and I'm looking forward to the opportunity to leave this place we call home.

10 Years

2007-05-10T20:15:00.000-07:00

This year is my ten year high school reunion. I always thought I would be attending the "big event". But I've decided that I'm not going. One of the reasons is that it's down in the Lower Mainland and I'm not taking time off work to go- I'd rather go and do other things with my time off. The other reason is that I really don't care what other people have done or are up to these days. If people really wanted to talk to me, they would have found me somehow. My parents haven't moved or changed their phone number and I do stay in contact with a few people from high school. If it weren't for facebook then I wouldn't have even found out when and where the reunion was taking place. Honestly, I didn't enjoy high school all that much and I don't care to real live most of those memories.

On a brighter side of things, HAPPY MOTHERS DAY to all the mothers out there!

What Happened to the Lights?

2007-01-23T19:06:00.000-08:00

Today I got to home from work early. No, I wasn't sick or injured. The simple explanation was the power went out. It didn't just go out where I work but all of the city went black. It's a good thing that it was still daylight. As I was just finished helping my one and only customer and creating a receipt for her, the lights flickered. The computer rebooted so I decided to finish creating the receipt only to experience that the computer I switched to froze. I was a bit dumbfounded as what to do because we lost our network connection. I ended up writing out a receipt for my customer. After I finished with my customer, the lights went out. My co-workers and I closed up shop because we couldn't and didn't want to help anymore customers. So needless to say, we went home around 3pm. It was a glorious day considering CarbonMan and I were up at 4am (even though I went back to bed and slept until 7am when Gary started meowing outside the bedroom door) so that he could catch his flight for his business trip.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

2007-01-13T22:28:00.000-08:00

As it is tradition in my family to send out Christmas cards and Birthday cards late, I am keeping up with that tradition and wishing everyone a happy Christmas and New Year. My Christmas was quite enjoyable this year. CarbonMan and I went to my parents' house and the whole family was there. We had the usual Christmas traditions- opening presents Christmas Eve and stocking Christmas Day, oxtail soup (mmm good) for Christmas Eve dinner, eating yummy cookies (although there were no Spritz cookies), etc. I did ask my Dad to make pancakes and he graciously took up the offer. They were sooo yummy. The Christmas Day dinner was marvellous also.
I didn't ask for much this Christmas as I didn't have anything in particular that I wanted which was great because I didn't have any expectations. I got (from my family) a cookie press (for Spritz cookies), Rosette Tools (similar to these), money for kitchen curtains, a Casablanca poster (rented the movie this weekend because I've never seen it and I love classic movies), Ghirardelli Hot Chocolate Mix, Chapter's gift certificate, homemade pyjama pants (thanks Mom), a couple of CDs, and a t-shirt. I can't think of the rest at this moment. I also got some gifts from my in-law family: cross country skis, a Transformers t-shirt and a Zombies board game. CarbonMan and I got each other tickets to Mexico for an all-inclusive resort in a little town which its name is hard to pronounce. I'm looking forward to the trip because most of my trips have been throughout the States. I've been to Mexico once before and that was to Tijuana (El Florido to be exact) to help build a school.
My new year started off with a bang. I got my finger stuck in a car door on New Year's Day. That was fun. I screamed so loudly that I thought I was going to wake up the neighbours as it was around 10:30pm. I was taken to emergency to get it checked out because there was blood oozing from it. The doctor said that I may or may not loose my fingernail. It looks pretty nasty. At least I didn't break my finger.

Update: Gary is no longer nicknamed Radar. We took her cone off today and she was very happy. She spent a good while catching up on some dearly missed licking.

Pay Raise

2006-12-09T16:02:00.000-08:00

I'm finally moving up in the ranks at work. I've become Assistant Manager. I'm not really sure what the position is really about. My duties haven't changed all that much but I do get to boss co-workers around a little easier. I did get a pay raise and I don't have to work weekends anymore although I did pick up a Saturday shift the first weekend in January. I guess my griping about working weekends really did pay off.

One thing that I don't like about being Assistant Manager is that I feel like some people I work with look at me differently now. Before we were all pretty much equals doing our jobs and having our own responsibilities. Now that I've become AM, it feels like there is tension between me and a co-worker. She's become a little bit snottier and growlier to me. Maybe she thinks that she should have gotten the job. I have been there longer and I have been doing more of the managerial type duties than she. I almost dread going to work on the days we work together.

On a good side note, CarbonMan and I are going to my parents' place for Christmas. I haven't been there for Christmas in two years. I'm looking forward to the family time (my whole family will be there) and the yummy food (mainly Christmas dinner, oxtail soup and cookies). Maybe my Dad will make his delicious pancakes for us one morning. So if my family reads this, drop some hints, k?

Happy Halloween and All Saints Day

2006-10-30T23:18:00.000-08:00

CarbonMan and I had a wonderful weekend together. I had a busy work day on Friday and then we spent the rest of the night shopping for our Halloween costumes, eating pizza and playing Lego Star Wars II for the GameCube. We almost have that game wrapped up. I enjoy the game very much especially because the controls are nice and easy. When Saturday rolled around, we had to pick up some odds and ends for our costumes and then we finished making them. We drove to Quesnel for a party hosted by Alanna and Lazerslug. It was a fantastic party. The food and games were terrific. But the dry ice topped the cake for amusement even more so with dish soap. We watched Jeepers Creepers which isn't a very good movie. I still can't believe it got 40 something percent on Rotten Tomatoes. At least I don't have to watch that movie ever again. CarbonMan and I stayed the night in Quesnel. We are grateful for the hospitality that Alanna's family gave to us. We spent most of Sunday in Quesnel going to church, hanging, shopping and playing video games. Check out CarbonMan's blog for pictures of our costumes.

Stop That Man!!!

2006-09-21T22:55:00.000-07:00

Today was the first time ever that I have ever encountered a crime and it was right here in PG! I find that very odd because I've lived in the Lower Mainland most of my life. So here is how the whole thing went down (well really after it occurred because I didn't actually see the crime). Mr CarbonMan and I just walked out of Save-On Food and were walking towards our car when we hear the older lady yell, "Stop that man." My first thought was, "Yeah whatever it's just some old lady joking around with some guy." Not even a minute went by when she yells again, "He stole my purse. Stop him." I came back to reality to notice a Native man trying to get his balance on his bike with a lady's purse in his hand. He wasn't very far from so I could have stepped in his way but I was paralyzed from all the commotion and I thought someone else, even Mr. CarbonMan was going to help her but we all just stood there dumbfounded. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. One guy about our age started to run after the Native but didn't make it very far. Even a minivan drove after the robber. I don't think the van caught up to him because he went down the wrong way on a one-way entrance which led into the shopping centre. The poor old lady, while this whole thing was going down, kept yelling for her husband, Gary. I think he was pretty far away or deaf because she had to run to their vehicle before he figured out what was going on. There were other people getting out of their cars all wondering what about the commotion. I just couldn't believe that I saw that here in PG and never saw anything like this in Vancouver, Surrey, or even on the SkyTrain. All of which are known for purse snatching and other various crimes.

I just feel really bad for the old lady because I could have stopped the criminal but didn't. Well I hope I've learned to react to situations like this one before it's too late.

Bed to Meself!!!!

2006-09-12T22:06:00.000-07:00

Due to a recent last minute business trip for Mr. CarbonMan, I get the house to myself and of course I get to look after Gary. She is a wee bit psychotic although tonight she has been tame. She did, however, steal my seat in front of the computer so we had to share. One nice thing that Mr. CarbonMan did before he left town was clean the kitty litter. Gary is one stinky kitten. Oi!

This past weekend, Mr. CarbonMan and I were quite busy. We went to the drive-in and saw Pulse and Snakes on a Plane. Pulse isn't worth the money. Apparently the Asian Pulse is way better. Snakes on a Plane was pretty retarded too but it made me laugh because it was pretty stupid. The next day we played Sims 2 for a good portion of the day. That game is quite exciting. My lady, Gary SquarePants, had a misfortune of starving to death because she couldn't clean up after herself fast enough in order to make more food. We eventually broke down and bought the Night Life expansion pack. I now have a new lady, Sandy Squirrel. She is currently pursuing a job in the criminal field. Once we were finished with Sims 2, we went to PGARA. That was amazing! I'd go again but I'd dress warmer. It sure gets cold at night here.

Now we are just waiting for kitchen and bathroom fans to be installed in our house.

Birthday Part-eh!

2006-08-15T22:44:00.000-07:00

This past weekend, my three sisters and I treated our mother to a birthday party at Harrison Hot Springs Resort. We had a fabulous time sitting in the pools, especially the hot tub, eating loads of food (thanks to my sisters for buying all of it), and walking along the water's edge. We also experienced the Sand Sculpture World Championships. We climbed up on the park benches to look at the sculptures because we were too cheap to spend the $6 per person to see them up close. On the Sunday, we splurged and received spa treatments of our choice. I had a facial (my first one ever) and it was wonderful! I'd do it again. I think everyone enjoyed what she had chosen.
Also while I was down in the Lower Mainland, I had the opportunity to go shopping at some real stores, mainly Old Navy. One of my sisters, my mom, and I took the bus to Old Navy. Our first bus never came and that brought back memories of high school. So we reminisced about the horrors of taking mass transit to school. What a horrible experience but that is for another blog. So we finally made it to our destination. I was a little disappointed in the shopping because I thought that there would be a lot more of a selection. We got our father to come pick us up, after we went to the Pita Pit, and take us to one of my other sister's new house. It's cute house with a large yard. We had a plan of watching the meteor shower. Some of us saw one shooting star or meteor shoot across the sky but we mainly enjoyed each other's company.
The last day I was down there, I coaxed one of my sisters into going to T & T Supermarket which is like a good 30 minutes from my parents' house to buy some dessert buns. They are soo good. Too bad I haven't been able to find a place near by that sells them. I'm not sure what they are called either. All I know is that they taste good, have some sort of custard in them and some are made with pineapples. So if anyone is in the Lower Mainland, Edmonton or Calgary and is passing by my place, feel free to go to the market and buy me some dessert buns. I'll pay you back.
So in the end, I had a wonderful time with my family this past weekend. Although I am happy to be back here with Mr. CarbonMan, I am a little sad that the weekend went by soo quickly. Now it's back to the old grind of life...

Movie Review

2006-08-03T22:41:00.000-07:00

Last night CarbonMan and I sat down to watch the movie 16 Blocks. My first reactions to it were it better be good because I'm staying up past my bedtime to watch it and hopefully it's not just another shoot 'em up movie. It stars Bruce Willis and some other people. The box cover makes it look exciting but you can't always judge a movie by its cover. Some people can vouch on that. Can anyone say The Idiots? What an awful movie and it scored quite well on Rotten Tomatoes. I really don't know why. Ok back to 16 Blocks. It was quite action-packed and emotionally stimulating. I even sat on the edge of the couch and bit my finger nails- something that I haven't done in a long long time in regards to a movie. The movie is about a cop who has to take an eye witness from the jail house to the court house which is 16 blocks apart and of course there are cops who do not want this eye witness to testify at the hearing. I didn't know too much about the movie when we sat down to watch it so I don't want to say much more. I would recommend this movie to anyone who wants to see a good action packed movie with a really good story line.

The Age of My Brain

2006-08-03T22:29:00.000-07:00

I've been playing a Nintendo DS game lately called Brain Age. It's about the only game at which I am good. One of the annoying things about it is that when you check your age using the speaking setting, the word "blue" isn't always understood. So when I first played the game, my age was like 86. I was quite distraught about that and wondered how I could let my brain be that old. Well that sure changed when I discovered the can't speak setting. Boy did my brain age drop significantly. I got to being only 26! That was of course until today's brain age check. One of the tests, when using the can't speak option, is to memorize 30 words in 2 minutes, which memorizing isn't my thing. So I'm trying to write a word that I had memorized on the screen only to get frustrated with the game because it didn't understand my printing. The two results of this fiasco were me forgetting the words I had memorized and my brain age dropped to 31. I did however get a perfect score on the Head Count mini game!

Ahh the exciting life I lead. You need not get too too jealous!

Peanut Butter is the secret ingredient

2006-08-03T21:20:00.000-07:00

People suck. I had to deal with really annoying people today. Some were creepy, smelly and wouldn't take "no" for an answer.

Welcome to my world. The Peanut Butter Solution! BTW, the bestest movie 3\/4|2!