Simply Beautiful!

Susan Boyle

There was a time when men were kind
When their voices were soft
And their words inviting
There was a time when love was blind
And the world was a song
And the song was exciting
There was a time
Then it all went wrong

I dreamed a dream in time gone by
When hope was high
And life worth living
I dreamed that love would never die
I dreamed that God would be forgiving
Then I was young and unafraid
And dreams were made and used and wasted
There was no ransom to be paid
No song unsung, no wine untasted

But the tigers come at night
With their voices soft as thunder
As they tear your hope apart
And they turn your dream to shame

He slept a summer by my side
He filled my days with endless wonder
He took my childhood in his stride
But he was gone when autumn came

And still I dream he'll come to me
That we will live the years together
But there are dreams that cannot be
And there are storms we cannot weather

I had a dream my life would be
So different from this hell I'm living
So different now from what it seemed

Words

Ok Tuesday night I posted a status on Facebook that quite obviously started a HUGE uproar and subsequent discussion. Well here are some thoughts on the subject in a more suitable place for such thoughts...my blog. First off I'd like to thank 3 special people for backing me up, especially in light of the fact that in one of the first responses to said status, I was called trash (in fancy, pseudo-intellectual language, typical of idealistic college students who think they are wise but really aren't. I am an intelligent person and can decifer such language). Anyhow....the word retard.

re⋅tard
   /rɪˈtɑrd, for 1–3, 5; ˈritɑrd for 4/ Show Spelled Pronunciation [ri-tahrd, for 1–3, 5; ree-tahrd for 4] Show IPA
–verb (used with object)
1. to make slow; delay the development or progress of (an action, process, etc.); hinder or impede.
–verb (used without object)
2. to be delayed.
–noun
3. a slowing down, diminution, or hindrance, as in a machine.
4. Slang: Disparaging.
a. a mentally retarded person.
b. a person who is stupid, obtuse, or ineffective in some way: a hopeless social retard.
5. Automotive, Machinery. an adjustment made in the setting of the distributor of an internal-combustion engine so that the spark for ignition in each cylinder is generated later in the cycle.

There is the literal definition for you. Now, having given you that definition I now say it has become just another slang word in the English language. I, in no way, shape or form use it to describe anyone of diminished capacity. To me it is no different than calling someone an a-hole, stupid, f-face or any other demeaning name you can think of. Now calling people names is not nice admittedly but before you go freaking out all over me, make sure you have NEVER said anything negative to someone else in that fashion (I bet you can't say that honestly). Why the fixation on the word "retard"? Do you think using the word "special" is any better? As long as there are physically/mentally handicapped people in the world there are going to be new derogatory words that ignorant people use to describe them. I go back to what I said earlier...I don't use such language in reference to those who fall into that category. Words are words, apparently now waitress is a bad word...WTF, when did that happen? It's a JOB, a male in that job is a waiter. So freakin what? So do you propose that I shouldn't be called a woman anymore because that is somehow demeaning? We are becoming so freaked out to say anything anymore...God help us if we offend someone. I say we stop walking on eggshells. Instead of eliminating words or changing them all the time to appease people, we start instilling confidence in our children. I don't give a crap if someone calls me names, hmm scratch that, I don't get sad, I get angry. I'd rather have my kids have the confidence to get angry at name calling than get all depressed about it. Now I'm not saying get angry to the point of violence or retaliation. We as a society want to coddle everyone and as such have turned our kids into a bunch of whiney, spoiled, depressed candy asses that are afraid to speak their mind. I've gone on a bit of a tangent here but jeez, this whole issue is driving me nuts.

The Big Game

So because Paul and I had to delay our vacation to the Okanagan, I decided I wanted to do something really special for Valentines Day. I went online and managed to get tickets to the last regular season game between Vancouver and Calgary (well, ok the last one that was played here in Calgary, I know they meet again in April in Vancouver). We have (and by we, I mean mostly me, lol, but Paul somewhat) have become kinda big hockey fanatics this year. And I refuse to cheer for the Flames:
a) I genuinely hate that team and
b) I'm a BC girl...GO CANUCKS!
Anyhow, getting back to the topic on hand, the game happened to be just 3 days after Valentines, perfect timing. Last night we donned all the Canucks wear that we own (me in 'Nucks shirt, hoodie, socks and hat!) and off to the game we went. We didn't have great seats but for both of us it was our very first NHL game so we were excited to just be there. And what an exciting game it was! Not only the fact that we won but just the intensity of the crowd (and there were quite a few Canucks fans there, to my delight). On our way in some dumb yahoo was screaming "Canucks suck", so I defiantly told him his stupid team was going down! And I was amongst the loudest Canucks fans there earning me some very dirty, dangerous looks from the Flames fan sitting to my right...he smelled good, too bad he likes the Flames. After the game, on the train Paul and I were discussing how we could go to as many games as possible next year and (hopefully) catch another one before the end of the regular season this year. I'd love to see a Calgary/Edmonton game...I love Stortini...he's a crazy man! The MOST money I've ever spent on one night out but oh, so worth it!




Getting ready to leave.




Canucks warming up.





One of many faceoffs.

No More Babies...Happy Birthday Ryan

I officially have (and can't even pretend) no more babies in the house. Mr. Ryan turns 2 today. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LITTLE MAN! It's going to be a very interesting year I think.

Coming to a Close

As we wind down another year, I am a little saddened to see it end on another tragic story (the 8 dead snowmobilers from Sparwood). I'm sure it's not the only major (good or bad) event happening these last few days but of course, the media does not want to report anything uplifting and happy. I find that sad.
It has been an interesting year (but really, aren't they all?). Started 2008 standing in line at Wal-Mart in Kelowna discovering (from a magazine cover) that Heath Ledger had died. Don't know why but I was a little devestated by this. Funny how a person can care about the death of someone that they don't even know. Anyhow here are some more things that stick out in my mind about this year:
-the massive earthquake that hit China and the following aftermath of death and destruction
-how China pulled off a very impressive Olympics months after
-the first black president (and by a landslide)
-our (Canada's) political fiasco
-the global financial meltdown
-Rosie's first day of preschool
-Paul kicking ass at work and getting promoted to senior assistant manager
-the uncertainty in Louisiana during hurricane Gustav (I think it was that hurricane)

There are so many events that are noteworthy but those are the few that really stick out in my mind. I hope 2009 brings a whole lot of change (for the positive). Happy New Years everyone.

Four Years Gone...Wow

HAPPY 4TH BIRTHDAY TO MY PRINCESS, ROSIE! I can't believe all this time has gone by already.

My Take on This Latest Political Crises

First off I was all for a coalition BEFORE the election, ideally without the QB, who don't seem to fit into any political views of the other parties. Many other Canadians expressed the same opinion, if only for the sole reason of getting rid of Harper and the Conservatives from power. That being said, NOT all Canadians who voted Liberal, NDP or BQ had the same view. So this is my first point: it is very undemocratic of these leaders to do this AFTER the election is over. Who is to say that if they had done this before the election that enough Canadadians supporting one of these 3 parties would have opted instead for a stable one party gov't (conservatives), thereby giving Harper the majority (he was awefully close this time around). Second point, given the way they brought this about, trying to just overthrow the current PM without the voice of the people makes me lose all respect for them. It makes me wonder just how well said coalition would actually work. Would things be all fine and dandy until one party decided that it did not want to vote in favour of one issue or another along with the other two parties? I can see utter chaos in the future, with nothing getting done, as usual.
*side note* Just saw on the news that Harper has suspending Parliament...interesting.
Ok back to my views. How dare you fellows say that I and millions of Canadians do not get a voice in this. Screw you, this isn't a communist country (yet, getting close with these antics). However before we go back to the polls let's set out some new rules.
1.)Fine anyone who is eligible to vote and doesn't. This would not be hard to implement...hell I would volunteer to help start this. They could do this through our taxes and social insurance numbers. Screw this whole "right" to vote crap. Who are the first people to complain about newly elected governments...NON-VOTERS, that's who.
2)Eliminate all but 2-3 parties. Why the hell do the votes need to be split 5 different ways (and those are just the "major" parties, the ones who get press and whatnot)! No freakin wonder we get one minority gov't after another.
3)I am ALL for eliminating all this crazy free for all spending for campaigns. Give me a break here, most of us regular joes are busting our humps just to make ends meet and you guys are out there spending money like it's going out of style! You want to run, you find a way to pay for it yourself. Most of these leaders have successful businesses of their own and have more money than most Canadians.

I am losing all hope for the future of Canada, drunk, retarded monkees could do a better job than these spoiled brats in parliament. Honestly, I do not like most of the Conservative platform but Harper is the ONLY one in this stupidity who has not lost any respect from me...in fact I hate to say it, if it goes to an election he is getting my vote. And I hope he wins a majority and we're stuck with him for a full term. Maybe then we'll see some big changes within the Liberals and NDP (namely their leaders, let's get some intelligent leaders for these opposition parties, not spoiled children). Shame on all of you for making our beautiful country look so stupid.