Ultrasound

I had my first ultrasound this afternoon.... Unfortunately, the baby wasn't really cooperating and didn't reveal whether they're a boy or girl! I am determined to find out! lol I have to go back, fortunately, b/c my due date appears to be off by less than a week... so some parts are too small to see and measure. I thought I was 18 wks, but I'm a few days shy of that. I guess there's lots of developments taking place in a short span of time right now... The picture we got to take home for a meer $15 (sarcasm noted), turned out pretty good. We got a good profile of the baby's head and body! Everything seems to be developing normally. Our scanner software isn't hooked up, so I just took an old fashioned digital pic of the print! :)

Another Whyte Night

I'm posting this a few days after the event....

It's almost 2 am, and I just got home. Yes, can you believe it?! I actually went out tonight, and felt like a young woman again... (but the next morning, I certainly felt my age!)

Erin phoned me this afternoon, to ask if I wanted to meet up with her and Alex on Whyte for drinks... Of course, non-alcoholic for me ;) Just a subtle reminder, Alex is performing in the Fringe, and is a friend of Erin's from Toronto. I was going to a Stampin' Up workshop tonight, but was up for meeting them after it was finished, around 9:30pm. It was pure madness trying to find a parking spot, as people were still in the streets, exiting/entering shows and making their way to the bars. I finally got a spot 2 blocks from the bar, The Next Act. I was happy that the sun wasn't all the way gone, as it can be a bit freaky walking alone in this area- even with so much people.

When I arrived at the bar/pub... I prefer pub, b/c it's not really the meat-markety place I envision when using the word "bar"... Alex and Erin were sitting at a table with 2 young guys (sooo sorry I don't remember your names) and a girl. I never did get formally introduced! Alex was sporting a teal cowboy hat. Afterall, this is the Wild West, and the Fringe's slogan was "Hi Yo Fringe Away!"... Quite cheesy, if you ask me. Alex wore the hat well... it didn't suit Erin or myself. Anyway, I do remember one of the guys were from LA (but has lived many places around the world, as his parents were in the Peace Corps), and the other was a Pixies fan (I remember the important things!) and currently writing for SEE magazine, here in Edmonton. Both were very interesting to talk with. Some of the Fringe thespians and poets popped in and out of the bar, and said their hellos to Alex. I just listened. Apparently, one of the men who stopped, a Scottish guy, is a very well known poet. I'll be damned if I can't remember his name! Erin knows... He rolled some drum cigarettes for everyone (except me), and was gone as quickly as he arrived... The conversation almost always diverted back to sex, sexuality or some other form of provocative conversation... It wasn't so hard to just sit and listen, or participate! lol

From there, we went to Shoppers Drug Mart to get cigarettes (once again, NOT for me)! :) We ran into a drunk moron who, as Alex so clearly pointed out, could not speak english! Now, Alex has a very proper sounding English accent. She is from Middlesex, afterall. It's not quite like the Queen's accent, but still proper sounding to the likes of me!

Nexs stop was The Elephant and Castle. This seems to be the place to be during the Fringe. All the actors and performers hang out here after their shows, if they aren't at the beer tents. It was a fun atmosphere. What a unique and mystical sub-culture. All these people are from all over the world, really. They don't see each other, other than when they come together to the Fringe. Everyone's busy catching up, gossiping, sharing stories, congratulating one another on sold out shows (way to go Alex!). I was able to get an uncut, unscensored glimpse into this underworld, dare I say! Lots of flings happen here, and it seems to be norm. There's no expectation of a long term relationship. It feels safe, I'm sure, to have this kind of encounter... all during a time where emotions and drama run high! Well, I won the raffle for a free prize at the pub! I got some fancy lager glasses, a super-duper mini shirt, and some other beer paraphanelia. Yeah, me! I don't win things often.

After a few hours of gabbing on here, we decided it was late enough (almost 1:30am)!! Erin and I both had kids to take care of in the morning! I'm really not as young as I once was, and tonight was a blunt reminder of that. Even though, many of the Fringers were around my age- I still felt years older. Perhaps, b/c I have 2 children and one on the way... I don't know. Being pregnant certainly doesn't help me recover from late nights, either! lol One small blessing, was not having to smell and inhale second-hand smoke all night long! There's no smoking allowed in any public establishments... EVEN bars! Ahhh.... I wish they'd ban smoking everywhere, to be honest! But, that's a whole other rant!

Good night.

Great show!

As I mentioned in my previous post, I went to see "Drama Queen" at the Fringe last night. Erin, Dana and I, all met at the theatre. It was an awesome show. Alex Dallas is the only performer, and was hilarious. The stage is set with a vintage chair, and a sidetable, stocked with chocolate boxes and margarita glass. Everything she says in her monologue, is completely true and has happened in her life. That's what all her material is- her life experiences! This woman never lives a dull moment, I'm sure of it! We met up with Alex after the show, and went to the beer tents to chat. Her show was almost a sell-out, which she was very happy with, considering it was the Fringe's opening night, and tons of free events were taking place at the same time.

We had a great time, her, Erin and I. It was so nice getting out and being with women- socializing- and not about our kids (for the most part)! Alex has a 13 yr old daughter, Ruby, so we were listening intently on how to raise a self-confident girl in this crazy society! lol Ruby Dallas... can you imagine having such a striking name as that? Anyway, it was really great getting to talk with Alex. She's such a sweet woman- and I don't mean sweet, like an old lady. She is just sincere and honest... and funny as hell.

After parting with Alex on Whyte Ave, we went to Death By Chocolate! I got the Devil in Disguise dessert! Erin and I haven't really ever been out on Whyte Ave at night before. We were constantly annoyed/amused by drunk boys banging on the windows while we ate our desserts. We were even mooned by one of them! He could do with a butt-wax! lol

We were home by midnight. It was a nice night out with the girls.

Fringe Festival

I'm off to the Fringe tonight. For those of you who are unaware, it's a huge arts performace festival. Nothing stuffy. It's quite liberal, and even controversial in content ;) Edmonton's is the 2nd largest host to the festival in the world. Edinburgh is the biggest. It tours around the world and Canada, of course. The last Fringe I attended was in Toronto, back when I was pregnant with Fiona. I'm going to see the same woman I saw then. Her name is Alex Dallas, and this year's performance piece is called "Drama Queen". The last performance I saw was called "Nymphomania" Alex is a friend of Erin's ... It was quite funny! Anyway... off I go to get ready. Kieran's up now, too...

Memoirs of a Geisha

I read the book! Finally finished it last night. It was like eating european chocolate- I couldn't stop myself from reading it! I really do enjoy historical novels and/or biographies. I hadn't read anything about Japan before. I usually gravitate towards Chinese history.

I ran out and rented the movie right away, as I've been dying to see it since the previews came out! What a let down!!!!! As usual, the book was MUCH better than the movie. The movie had great costumes, sets and cinematography... but it cheated viewers of the whole story. So many things were left out, added (that never happened in the book), and occured out of sequence. I know it's hard to squeeze it all into a 2 hr flick... but, it shouldn't have been done unless it could have done the book full justice!

For those of you who have seen the movie, here are some things that were different...

Chiyo/Sayuiri's father didn't just immediately give the girls up after Mr. Tanaka asked for them. Nor were they taken from their home like that. In the book, they met w/ Mr Tanaka first, went home and were sent for by him later. Chiyo was excited to leave, as she thought she was being adopted by his family... not being shipped away to an okiya to become a Geisha. THe movie made her father out to be heartless.

Of course they shortened all the toturous things that Hatsumomo did to Chiyo, prior to and during her time as a geisha. The book make Hatsumomo out to be much more of an intelligent villain- who relished in the pain and suffering of others. The movie made her out to be a bitch, but nowhere near as elaborate as the book.... Plus, the okiya did not burn... nor did Hatsumomo set fire to it while fighting with Sayuri about being demoted to the smaller room. What happened in the book, was, Hatsumomo read Sayuri's diary, and refused to give it back, threatening to tell Mother what was in there. When she took it back to her room, drunk.. she stepped on glass in the corridor, leaving blood all over the floors and tatami mats. Sayuri went into her room to get the diary, hoping to outsmart Hatsumomo, since she was drunk... and noticed a brooch which Hatsumomo had blamed Sayuri for stealing (which was left out of the movie as well)... Sayuri got her diary back, and turned the brooch in to Mother... That's when Hatsumomo was kicked out of the okiya. No one was present but Hatsumomo and Mother. In the movie, it was a huge spectacle in front of Pumpkin and Mameha. That event was the turning point, when Sayuri reclaimed her freedom from Hatsumomo's wrath. Since Sayuri was now the head geisha, Hatsumomo was nothing.

Don't even get me started on Nobu and the Chairman! Nobu and Sayuri's relationship was far more intense and respectful than the movie portrayed. Sayuri did care for Nobu, and didn't want to betray him... but was so in love with the Chairman, that she was willing to hurt Nobu. In the novel, the Chairman showed NO interest in Sayuri whatsoever. The movie showed him eyeing her, and the viewer got the impression that he did have feelings for Sayuri- which weren't illustrated in the book. Plus, the book stated that Nobu was missing an arm! In the movie, he had both. Plus, his face was not nearly as disfigured as the author made it out to be.

There were many other small things, that I won't bore you with. The book was great, and I recommend it for reading. The movie was good, if you don't plan to read the book... but if I had to choose between them, the book wins hands down!!!!

Whyte Ave

Ah.... just got in from an entire morning of hanging out by myself, on Whyte Avenue! It was great- even the terrential rain that got in the end, while waiting for my bus! I had to dodge mad puddles across the road, on my way home!

Jason took the kids out geocaching, so took to the bus and went to the market! It's called the Old Strathcona Market, and it is full of crafts, food, furniture... anything! One thing that I really enjoyed about the Fredericton market, was the food vendors. They aren't as plentiful here- nor as ethnically diverse, surprisingly enough! Anyway, my first order of business was to get a coffee. I strolled down the rows looking at stuff, but didn't really find anything that caught my eye... or that I needed. It's so much easier to go to the market w/o the stroller! :)

After the market, I went to Bugs and Berries... a children's and maternity store. I'm sure you all are interested to know, I got a nursing bra... Bravado, of course! lol I had to stop at a Greek restaurant before getting back on Whyte, as I've been in dire need of some tzatziki (that's pronounced tad-zee-key, kind of) ! I tried a few at the market... UGH! How I miss Dimitri's in Fredericton! One of the tzatzikis tasted WAAAAY too goaty! Tzatziki is a Greek dip, made of yogourt, garlic and cucumber. No two recipes are alike in taste or texture!!

It was much warmer out than I had anticipated... I wore a black knit sweater and jeans! But I was greatful, after getting dumped on by the rain! The weather was great for a walk.

I went down to Lush and got Fiona a new bathbomb. It's green with sparkles. I'm sure she'll be happy with that. I also got some shower gel for Jason and I... Next door was Cargo & James Tea Co., and I had a gift cert. for them... so I got a nice big glass of fresh brewed iced tea! Yum!!! I got to read a good chunk of my book Memoirs of a Geisha... I'm half way through now! After a long break in the tea shop, I walked east on Whyte, and checked out Megatunes. I wish I had lots of money to blow on cds, as they had a great selection of stuff.

The Edmonton Folk Festival is on right now, and the Fringe will be starting up this week as well... Edmonton in the summer has tons of things to do, that's for sure! We just wrapped up Taste of Edmonton and Heritage Festival.

So that was my day, so far! I just got a call from Jason. He's on his way home with the kids, so I'm off to make lunch! Ciao!

In order to avoid doing some dishes, now that Kieran's in bed, I'm going to update my blog instead! I hope you all appreciate my sacrafice! :)

Fiona and Jason are out geocaching, I think... well, I'm pretty certain. Even the damp, cold weather doesn't stop those two from finding tupperware in the woods! This past weekend, Jason took the family for a geocache in what I refer to as "wild Alberta"! We drove to the west end, and went through this hella schwanky neighbourhood. Jason usually doesn't have an exact idea of where we are going to park, as to be closer to the cache... so he was winging it, once again! lol We kept driving, until we found some new subdivisions being built (the kind for old golf-playing couples who clearly need 5 bedrooms)! There was a path, that went down what I'll call a mild escarpment. There were lines, as if trucks had driven this way many times. It was about 2kms DOWNHILL. All I could think was... My God... I'm gonna have to walk back up this crazy thing!!! Did I mention the heat???? It was at least 30C (that's 86F for you Americans)! I'll just remind you all that I'm almost 4 mos. pregnant, too. Are you feeling really sorry for me, now?! lol Good! We had to hike through some prickers (wild rose bushes) and brush to get around a massive mud puddle, and then followed the trail to a huge open field. Yes, this was where the buffalo once roamed, I'm sure of it!! It was a massive field, with grass (or whatever it was) up to my hips. That was fun, wading through that. Those rods wrapped around my ankles and gave me a few burn marks. This wasn't where the torture began... We headed for a treed area to the left, and had to bush-wack through there... I think we must have gone about 100m into that wooded area, before giving up and heading back. I was so fed up, and ready to swear off geocaching for life!! Fiona was very tired, and hot by this time... as were the rest of us. We had also forgotten our water in the van! Smart! We took a short-cut back, which involved climbing up a super steep cliff/hill in order to bypass much of the path (including the mud)! That was crazy. Jason got some cuts, as the cliff was laden with thistle bushes. Not that I ever thought I could have before, but I am now CERTAIN that I could never do Survivor... unless I was a size 2, and wore a super-hot bikini to make all the dumb guys want to keep me around! ;)

I think fall has officially arrived. It really is true that we only have 2 seasons up here in Canada: Winter and July. It's like as soon as August hit, we were pulling out the pants and long sleeves. I love autumn. I love the cool nights, warm sweaters, hot drinks, and comfortable walks w/o insane heat... However, the inevitable follows... that being the dreaded winter!! I don't mind snow, and the cold... but I am not a fan of 6 months of such conditions!

We're still trying to figure out what we're going to do regarding housing and where we're living. Somedays, I just want to pack up and move somewhere less expensive, so we can actually buy a house that fits our needs, rather than our pocket book. It's not just about wanting to start out big, rather than having something to work up from. It's about fairness. The market in Edmonton is getting out of control. I guess all the big cities in Canada are facing the same problem. It's no big deal to see a house sell for $500,000 around here. The average family home in Edmonton (2-3 bedrooms, most likely a bungalow), sells for $300,000! People are offering more than the asking price to secure the bid, and even forgoing home inspections! My brother is selling his 2 bdrm condo in Calgary for $369,000! A CONDO! That's an apartment. What is this world coming to, anyway? When is this bubble going to burst? I'd gladly be the one with the pin to bring it down! I keep looking at other cities, like Fredericton or even Winnipeg, and I should just stop. It's aggrivating to see what $150,000 will get you there, when it barely gets you a 3 bedroom townhouse here. The other side is, that I sooo don't want to move again... and certainly not out of province. I'm getting used to Edmonton, and Alberta. I like this city. I just wish we could afford to provide adequate housing for our family. *sigh* Enough of that. We're still weighing options, but will have to decide soon, b/c this market is climbing by the day.

Before I close, I wanted to post a link to a video of Ani Difranco performing on the Henry Rollins show, on the IFC (Independant Film Channel)... I'm off to do those dishes, and maybe play a cd or something... All I can hear is some strange music, in some European language (Romanian most likely), as our neighbours downstairs must be listening to it while they make supper!

Good night.

Reprive Released

Today was the release date of the new Ani Difranco album, Reprieve. I phoned a few places to make sure they had it, b/c as famous as Ani is... there are still tons of people who need the name repeated and spelled several times (like the media guy at Best Buy)! I even called HMV at the mall beside our house. He checked his computer, and told me 3 copies were on order, but not in yet. Well, I didn't trust him or his computer, and I decided to check the actual shelf. Success! One copy of the new CD was on the shelf. Perhaps a few steps to the folk section wouldn't have been so difficult?

Anyway... I have this hot little cd in my hands right now and I'm going to give it a listen before I turn in for the night. From what I've heard so far, it's back to the basic acoustic sounds. It's more polished than "Educated Guess", which was really rough on the editing. Here's a link to the Righteous Babe Records site, featuring the Reprieve album. I really reccommend reading the lyrics- I always do before listening- and checking out a few of the songs that are there... Enjoy!

"i mean to split yourself in two is just the most radical thing you can do       
goddess forbid that little adam should grow so jealous of eve                   
and in the face of the great farce of the nuclear age                           
feminism ain't about equality, it's about reprieve"      

-Ani Difranco
from "Reprieve"

A new post, and new pictures! Finally!

Here are some recent pictures of the kids... Fiona went to the museum with Grandma & Grandpa while they were here, and had great fun assembling bones in her explorer hat! The other picture, is her posing with her new dress from Grammie and Grampie!











The pictures of Kieran were taken tonight. He enjoyed hamming it up for the camera, in his new baseball cap! Pardon the drool...

June's Wedding Day

We drove to Airdrie to attend June and Barry's wedding this past weekend. The weather was beautiful, but too hot for my liking! June went to Honduras with Jason way back in the day, with Canada World Youth. She's in a suburb of Calgary, called Airdrie. It's about 3 hrs to drive there from Edmonton, so it made for a long day for us and the kids. We didn't attend the reception, unfortunately, as it would have been too hard on the kids since it didn't start until 7pm. We really couldn't afford a hotel and eating out, so we opted to attend the wedding and support the bride and groom.








Fiona and Jason even managed to geocache on our way back from Calgary... a dress and fancy shoes didn't stop Fiona as you will see.... She found it before Jason made it into the wooded area! Smart girl, that Fiona!!!

More Lyrics

Here's a song by Ani Difranco (surprise, surprise!)... it's called Animal, and I really like what it has to say...

animal

more and more there is this animal
looking out through my eyes
at all the traffic on the road to nowhere
at all the shiny stuff around to buy
at all the wires in the air
at all the people shopping
for the same blank stare
at america the drastic
that isolated geographic
that's become infested with millionaires

when you grow up surrounded
by willful ignorance
you have to believe
mercy has its own country
and that it's round and borderless
and then you have to grow wings
and rise above it all
like there
where that hawk is circling
above that strip mall

more and more there is this animal
looking out through my eyes
seeing that animals only take from this world
what they need to survive
but she is prowling through all the religions of men
seeing that time and time and time again
their gods have made them
special and above
nature's law
and the respect thereof

and i think when you grow up surrounded
by willful ignorance
you have to believe that mercy has its own country
and that it's round and borderless
and then you just grow wings
and rise above it all
like there where that hawk is circling
above that strip mall

ask any eco-system
harm here is harm there
and there and there
and aggression begets aggression
it's a very simple lesson
that long preceded any king of heaven
and there's this brutal imperial power
that my passport says i represent
but it will never represent where my heart lives
only vaguely where it went

cuz i know when you grow up surrounded
by willful ignorance
you learn that mercy has its own country
and that it's round and borderless
and then you just grow wings
and rise above it all
like there
where that hawk is circling
above that strip mall

ANI ROCKED!!!!

I just got home from seeing Ani Difranco... Man, it was awesome! She had 2 other musicians there with her- one playing bass fiddle, and the other playing xylophone/percussion. Just the way I like it... simple and very acoustic! She did a few of her old songs like Napoleon & Shameless, and a bunch off her new album, Reprieve, which isn't available until August 8 :( I was hoping she would be selling copies at the show, but no such luck! It's really interesting to see how much she's changed and grown up, really, over the past 16 years... No dreads. No green or purple hair. No big crazy boots or mis-matched clothes. Just a girl wearing cargo pants and a army green polo shirt....

I did buy a few bootleg cds she had released, as they were only $13 a piece! I was really disappointed with the t-shirt selection...moreso with the sizing! The "girlie" t-shirt was CRAZY ASS small, and looked like it would fit Fiona in the next year or two! I don't get it... Isn't Ani an anti-media mold girl, who supports women being natural and normal, rather than anorexic fashionistas??! *sigh* Needless to say, I am not a girls size 6x and didn't get a t-shirt. I did get 2 bumper stickers for my new van :) Mum's new van, that is! lol The picture at the top is one of them...

I must give thanks to Ken and Lisa who watched the kids for us tonight, so we could have an adult evening out!! Thanks so much! It was greatly appreciated....

We got a van!

We have reached the epitome of family life! We hadn't actually planned on getting a minivan until after buying a house sometime this fall, as it would have been a big financial burden on top of trying to get approved for a mortgage. So, we put it aside. Darren called us the other night, telling us about a van he looked at near his Dad's house, which was for sale. He thought it was in great shape, and since it had a new transmission, it would last a while yet. The mileage is high at 195,000 kms, but we wouldn't have given it a second thought if it didn't have the new transmission. The asking price was $1900, but we got it for $1800... not much of a drop, but a fair price, we thought. Only one family has owned this van, and it seems to have been well maintained. Anyways, I'm just happy to have a van since 3 kids will necessitate this vehicle... not to mention having a vehicle through the day while Jason's at work! We'll be keeping both cars on the road, since we don't have huge payments to make, and the insurance was a good rate.

Galaxy Land & Hotel Stay w/ Grandma and Grandpa!

Fiona has a blast this past week, as Bert & Bobbie (Jason's parents) were visiting from Manitoba! Fiona had it all planned out what she wanted to do while they were here! Of course, Galaxy Land was on her list!!! She was also very excited to spend 2 nights in a hotel w/ Grandma and Grandpa! This hotel had TWO very cool waterslides... no pictures of that, as everyone was swimming and in the water! Here are a bunch of pictures from those events of the visit... Another post will include pictures from the Royal Alberta Museum and around our house...








Kieran even got to ride on a few things this time around! He really enjoyed the helicopter as it had a steering wheel he could have his way with!! He also spotted a cool purple tank (which was coin operated), but Grandpa used his muscles to make it work w/o money!!! ;) Kieran went on a train ride through the amusement park and enjoyed a nice trip on the balloons!




Fiona wasn't too fond of the bumper cars, as she's not quite mastered how to manuevre the steering. She did well for the first bit, but decided to sit and park until the ride was done! That was her last ride for the day, so she wasn't too happy when the fun had to end ;(







In the hotel, Fiona played hide-and-seek for what seemed like an eternity, in the cupboard doors!

Daily Antics

This was the scene at our house this evening, once Jason got home from work... Yes, my kids are crazy and have lots of energy... but I wonder where they get it from?? LOL

Four caches tonight!!

Another Geocache Adventure for Jason & Fiona!

Fiona and Jason hit the road tonight, in search of more geocaches! Fiona loves getting out geocaching with Dad, and was proud to have found 2 of them all by herself! Her first cache was a dinosaur, and the last one (which was a huge ammo can), had a Dinosaur Hunter! A weird way of coming full circle perhaps? He's actually a travel bug, and looks like a 90's action figure. He does actually have the Jurrasic Park logo on his hat!

They went to Sherwood Park, which is just outside of Edmonton to the east. According to them, the mosquitoes were insane!! Jason said they were bouncing into eachother and hitting against their backs, the swarm was so thick! ICK! Glad I passed on this trek, and stayed home! Below, are the links to the caches that they found tonight. Jason got an unopened box of 3 Dukes of Hazard die-cast cars, which he may pass on to his little brother, Clint. Fiona got her dinosaur, & a yo-yo. All in all, a very production evening! Jason said that Fiona was great, and walked about 5 kms throughout the adventure. She found a nice little bridge area, and pretended it was her house for a while. After the last cache, she requested they go back there again... even though it meant doubling the trip back to the vehicle!!

SPNA #5 , Old Edmonton Trail, SPNA #3, Plmy's Cache

Little Update

Not much new for posting.. but thought I should add something on here! Kieran's restless and fighting his nap... Fiona's watching Bob the Builder... so I have a few mins to post! I'm going to add some random pictures at the end of my post just so there's something colourful on here! :)

We're anxiously awaiting Jason's parents, as they are coming from Manitoba to visit this weekend. They'll be here til the 27th. So far, it's in the plan to have a hotel with waterslides so Fiona can enjoy some waterplay. On Monday, the plan is to go to Drumheller to check out all the cool dinosaur bones and unique landscape. Fiona's still really into dinosaurs, and would love to go where they were proved to have roamed!! Kieran and I will stay home, as I don't think he'll get much out of the trip at his age... It's about 2 hours from Edmonton. I know Fiona's also got a trip to West Edmonton Mall's Galaxy Land amusement park while they're here, too! Poor girl's been excited for what seems like forever!!

We did get a double stroller a few weeks ago... It's great for getting out with both kids, but Fiona does have a habit of wanting in and out of it! It will be handy when we go on long walks or to parks far away, and get caught in the rain (like we have had happen 2 times prior to the purchase)! Toys R Us had one that actually matched our infant carrier, but wasn't in any of the stores I went to... figured they must have discontinued that or something... So I got this blue one at Sears. Yesterday, I was at TRU in the west end, and low and behold! The brown and black stroller was there! Ugh.. had to walk away! lol

I'm 12 weeks along now, and seem to be past most of the nauseous feelings. However, headaches seem to be what ails me now. I just feel tired all the time, and all I want to do is crawl under the sheets and slip into a coma!! My pants are feeling a little snug, but it's more the discomfort from the tightness that's bothersome! I don't think I felt this sore from ligment pain last time around, but I'm pretty sure that's what the aches are! I'll have to ask my Dr, b/c I don't think I should be feeling it ALL the time.. only when I get up or sit down... Weird.

Well, enough of that... Here are a few pics.


<--Fiona with her "Rainbow Travel Bug"



------>
Fiona fast asleep during her independant time....



<----Travel Bug skull

Glass House

GLASS HOUSE
from "Little Plastic Castle"

sitting in my glass house
while your ghost is sleeping down the hall
watching the little birds fly
kamikaze missions into the walls
think i'm going to stay in today
sit on the couch and watch them fall
life keeps getting harder
and it just keeps getting harder to hide
the darker it is around me
the easier it is to see inside
outside the glass
the whole world is magnified
and it's half an inch
from here to the other side
i guess that push has come to this
so i guess this must be shove
but before you throw those stones at me
tell me, what is your house made of?
and if you think you know what i'm doing wrong
you're gonna have to get in line
but for the purposes of this song
let's just say i'm doing fine
i guess i'm doing fine
trapped in my glass house
a crowd has been gathering outside since dawn
i make a pot of coffee
while catastrophe awaits me out on the lawn
think i'm going to stay in today
and pretend like i don't know what's going on
yeah, i guess that push has come to this
so i guess this must be shove
but before you throw those stones at me
tell me, what is your house made of?
and if you think you know what i'm doing wrong
you're gonna half to get in line
but for the purposes of this song
let's just say i'm doing fine
i think i'm doing fine

Subdivision

SUBDIVSION
from "Reckoning" 2001


White people are so scared of black people.
They bulldoze out to the country, and put up houses on little loop-d-loop streets.
And while America gets its heart cut right out of its chest
The Berlin wall still runs down main street separating east side from west.

And nothing is stirring, not even a mouse, in the boarded up stores and the broken down houses
So they hang colorful banners off all the street lamps
Just to prove they got no manners, no mercy, and no sense.
And I wonder then what it will take for my city to rise.
First we admit our mistakes and then we open our eyes.
The ghost of old buildings are haunting parking lots in the city of good neighbors that history forgot.

I remember the first time I saw someone lying on the cold street
I thought, "I can't just walk past you, this can't just be true."
But I learned by example to just keep moving my feet.
It's amazing the things that we all learn to do.

So we're led by denial like lambs to the slaughter
Serving empires of style and carbonated sugar water and the old farmroad's a four-lane
That leads to the mall and my dreams are all guillotines waiting to fall

And I wonder then what it will take for my country to rise.
First we admit our mistakes and then we open our eyes.
'til nation's last taker succumbs to one last dumb decision
And America the beautiful is just one big subdivision.

--Ani Difranco

Political Poem

This is a prose peom that Ani Difranco wrote after the World Trade Centre bombing. It's very political, as you'll read... and I'm sure some may find it offensive, but I find a lot of truth in it. So, here it is...

self evident

(inspired by the WTC disaster)

yes,
us people are just poems
we're 90% metaphor
with a leanness of meaning
approaching hyper-distillation
and once upon a time
we were moonshine
rushing down the throat of a giraffe
yes, rushing down the long hallway
despite what the p.a. announcement says
yes, rushing down the long stairs
with the whiskey of eternity
fermented and distilled
to eighteen minutes
burning down our throats
down the hall
down the stairs
in a building so tall
that it will always be there
yes, it's part of a pair
there on the bow of noah's ark
the most prestigious couple
just kickin back parked
against a perfectly blue sky
on a morning beatific
in its indian summer breeze
on the day that america
fell to its knees
after strutting around for a century
without saying thank you
or please

and the shock was subsonic
and the smoke was deafening
between the setup and the punch line
cuz we were all on time for work that day
we all boarded that plane for to fly
and then while the fires were raging
we all climbed up on the windowsill
and then we all held hands
and jumped into the sky

and every borough looked up when it heard the first blast
and then every dumb action movie was summarily surpassed
and the exodus uptown by foot and motorcar
looked more like war than anything i've seen so far
so far
so far
so fierce and ingenious
a poetic specter so far gone
that every jackass newscaster was struck dumb and stumbling
over 'oh my god' and 'this is unbelievable' and on and on
and i'll tell you what, while we're at it
you can keep the pentagon
keep the propaganda
keep each and every tv
that's been trying to convince me
to participate
in some prep school punk's plan to perpetuate retribution
perpetuate retribution
even as the blue toxic smoke of our lesson in retribution
is still hanging in the air
and there's ash on our shoes
and there's ash in our hair
and there's a fine silt on every mantle
from hell's kitchen to brooklyn
and the streets are full of stories
sudden twists and near misses
and soon every open bar is crammed to the rafters
with tales of narrowly averted disasters
and the whiskey is flowin
like never before
as all over the country
folks just shake their heads
and pour

so here's a toast to all the folks who live in palestine
afghanistan
iraq

el salvador

here's a toast to the folks living on the pine ridge reservation
under the stone cold gaze of mt. rushmore

here's a toast to all those nurses and doctors
who daily provide women with a choice
who stand down a threat the size of oklahoma city
just to listen to a young woman's voice

here's a toast to all the folks on death row right now
awaiting the executioner's guillotine
who are shackled there with dread and can only escape into their heads
to find peace in the form of a dream

cuz take away our playstations
and we are a third world nation
under the thumb of some blue blood royal son
who stole the oval office and that phony election
i mean
it don't take a weatherman
to look around and see the weather
jeb said he'd deliver florida, folks
and boy did he ever

and we hold these truths to be self evident:
#1 george w. bush is not president
#2 america is not a true democracy
#3 the media is not fooling me
cuz i am a poem heeding hyper-distillation
i've got no room for a lie so verbose
i'm looking out over my whole human family
and i'm raising my glass in a toast

here's to our last drink of fossil fuels
let us vow to get off of this sauce
shoo away the swarms of commuter planes
and find that train ticket we lost
cuz once upon a time the line followed the river
and peeked into all the backyards
and the laundry was waving
the graffiti was teasing us
from brick walls and bridges
we were rolling over ridges
through valleys
under stars
i dream of touring like duke ellington
in my own railroad car
i dream of waiting on the tall blonde wooden benches
in a grand station aglow with grace
and then standing out on the platform
and feeling the air on my face

give back the night its distant whistle
give the darkness back its soul
give the big oil companies the finger finally
and relearn how to rock-n-roll
yes, the lessons are all around us and a change is waiting there
so it's time to pick through the rubble, clean the streets
and clear the air
get our government to pull its big dick out of the sand
of someone else's desert
put it back in its pants
and quit the hypocritical chants of
freedom forever

cuz when one lone phone rang
in two thousand and one
at ten after nine
on nine one one
which is the number we all called
when that lone phone rang right off the wall
right off our desk and down the long hall
down the long stairs
in a building so tall
that the whole world turned
just to watch it fall



and while we're at it
remember the first time around?
the bomb?
the ryder truck?
the parking garage?
the princess that didn't even feel the pea?
remember joking around in our apartment on avenue D?

can you imagine how many paper coffee cups would have to change their design
following a fantastical reversal of the new york skyline?!

it was a joke, of course
it was a joke
at the time
and that was just a few years ago
so let the record show
that the FBI was all over that case
that the plot was obvious and in everybody's face
and scoping that scene
religiously
the CIA
or is it KGB?
committing countless crimes against humanity
with this kind of eventuality
as its excuse
for abuse after expensive abuse
and it didn't have a clue
look, another window to see through
way up here
on the 104th floor
look
another key
another door
10% literal
90% metaphor
3000 some poems disguised as people
on an almost too perfect day
should be more than pawns
in some asshole's passion play
so now it's your job
and it's my job
to make it that way
to make sure they didn't die in vain
sshhhhhh....
baby listen
hear the train?

--Ani Difranco