Namesake

It's interesting to me to learn how people were given their names; I know people who are named after their grandparents, or have received a recurring family name, or got to choose their own name, or are named after inspirational historical people, or named after family friends, or have a name their parents just made up.

This is my namesake:




Good grief!

What kind of mother watches a film like this and thinks, "Hmmm, I'll name my angelic, sweet, darling daughter that"? lol!

So, there's me... how about you?

Mercerilocks and the Three Bears. Captioned!

Last week, I watched a wonderful video on Rick Mercer's YouTube channel. For those without access to Canadian teevee, Rick Mercer is a fairly funny bloke who pokes fun at politicians, celebrities and also explores various aspects of Canadiana.

I liked this one particular video a lot as I have a thing for bears. I decided to caption it so that all D/deaf and hard of hearing peeps could enjoy it too. This was a bit of a stupid decision on my part since I'm hard of hearing myself! D'oh!

I did this via Overstream which is a web-based editor that lets you create and synchronize words to any online video; use it for adding captions, making video greetings, etc. Brilliant stuff!

Instead of embedding the original video, I'm forcing all of you, hearing peeps and otherwise, to watch the captioned version cos it took me friggin' forever to do this! haha! Actually, it was fun and I think the video is just great.

I hope you enjoy it!




To see a bigger version of the video go here. The big version didn't fit on my blog.

Feedback about the captions would be appreciated!

For my British friends...

For homophobic follicles:



I don't use this stuff but I do giggle whenever I see it on the shelves here in Canada. Not my photo; swiped it from here.

Blog awards.

I have received two blog awards. One a few weeks ago and one just last week.

I feel a bit conflicted by this. Awards are just not my thing. Even when I won the Playmate of Year award last December, I decided to turn it down.

But I do appreciate that other bloggers like aspects of my blog and that's very cool. And I do like the two bloggers who passed on the awards to me... which makes not accepting the awards feel awkward. But if I accept one award and then not another, then that gets even more conflicting and I've seen some awards out there that set off some serious cringing! I would be eternally mortified! Not that the awards that I was offered are cringe-worthy but accepting them sets a precedent. Make sense?

So I think a 'no awards but thanks' policy is the best policy for my blog.

What do you think about blog awards?



*** If an award comes along with some serious hard, cold cash attached to it, consider the above null and void, lol! ***

Father's Day

My Dad loved music. One of his favourite groups was The Ink Spots. Whenever he would put on one of their records or hear a song of theirs on the radio his whole face would light up and he'd be singing away. Once in a while he'd get up and dance as well. This was like watching a gorilla have a go at tap dancing and I always ended up in stitches.

This song, Java Jive, was one of his favs and I can't hear it without thinking of him. The video is nothing, I've put it here for the song.




Java Jive

I love coffee, I love tea
I love the Java Jive and it loves me
Coffee and tea and the java and me
A cup, a cup, a cup, a cup, a cup (Boy!)

I love java, sweet and hot
Whoops Mr. Moto, I'm a coffee pot
Shoot the pot and I'll pour me a shot
A cup, a cup, a cup, a cup, a cup

Oh slip me a slug from the wonderful mug
And I'll cut a rug just snug in a jug
A sliced up onion and a raw one
Draw one -
Waiter, waiter, percolator

I love coffee, I love tea
I love the Java Jive and it loves me
Coffee and tea and the java and me
A cup, a cup, a cup, a cup, a cup

Boston bean (soy beans)
Green bean (cabbage and greens)
I'm not keen about a bean
Unless it is a chili chili bean (boy!)

I love coffee, I love tea
I love the Java Jive and it loves me
Coffee and tea and the java and me
A cup, a cup, a cup, a cup, a cup

I love java sweet and hot
Whoops Mr. Moto I'm a coffee pot (yeah)
Shoot me the pot and I'll pour me a shot
A cup, a cup, a cup (yeah)

Slip me a slug of the wonderful mug
'An I'll cut a rug just as snug in a jug
Drop a nickel in the pot Joe
Takin' it slow
Waiter, waiter, percolator

I love coffee, I love tea
I love the Java Jive and it loves me
Coffee and tea and the java and me
A cup, a cup, a cup, a cup, boy!

--- Milton Drake and Ben Oakland

Ms Toast Burner 101

When I lived in England, I lived in a small town. While living there, an apparently well known astrologer moved in and she offered cut-rate readings for locals.

Well, curiosity and urging from a friend who had had a reading done, hooked me into having my starchart made and interpreted. I don't believe in astrology and horoscopes, etc but it was very interesting all the same. I received the whole ninety minute chat on a CD (which I've never listened to) and I got to see the inside of her house. ;-)

Obviously, I came away from the experience enlightened about who I am as a person, my goals in life and my purpose on this planet. You can clearly see all of this for yourselves in this trippy little doodle...

mug shot

The other night I found an old student ID card. I think I was about 20 years old. Looks like I just got caught for stealing a car, lol.

Ms Toast Burner --> Ms Muffin Top

So, earlier today I was buying groceries and I was at the seafood counter wanting to get a nice fillet of salmon, mmmmm. Others were ahead of me so I waited.

Trying not to look at the poor lobsters in their watery death row tanks, my eyes fell onto a reflective bit behind the counter. In it, I saw the back of seafood counter woman and the fronts of a very nice looking couple making their order; all summery, fit and healthy there were.

Then my gaze shifted to the left and I thought, 'Who the fuck is that porky-dorky blonde?'...

Fucking hell!!!

Rationally, I've known.

Intellectually, I've known.

Squeezingintosummerclothingly, I've known.

But today, the seafood counter mirror of reality kicked me in the ass!

So, I am posting this as a further kick, for the positive.

I'm embarrassed but I do have compassion for myself; I need the kick of reality but I'm not into beating myself up for my life hitting the shit-fan. There's a balance going on here.

I'm embarrassed because, though never skinny, I was quite fit and I have a lot of knowledge about fitness and nutrition. I do know better.

But understand why this has happened, given that my response to the last year and a half: a move, losing a friendship, my father's death, family stress, being dumped and making a huge fucking mistake... has been too much wine and then diving under my duvet and curling up into the fetal position for nine months. Perhaps other, healthier options would have been better but for whatever reason, I chose hibernation and inebriation.

Shit happens.

And I'm not choosing those things anymore.

But now it's time to shed some of this muffin top; address the side effects of that year for real, seafood counter real.

Making this public will help me get back to myself.

(I'm finding it hard to press 'publish post'...)

For Neil

Chinese Cemetery

This is one of my most favourite places; it's quiet, it's a cemetery and the view is pretty nice. A wonderful place to simply chill out.




The history of Chinese immigration to Canada, well the west coast of Canada, is pretty much as long as the history of European immigration to this area (actually probably much, much longer according to how one looks at history and categories but that's another story). This is a brief snippet about the Chinese Cemetery at Harling Point.



It's said that a traditional Chinese belief is that the soul of a person who dies in a foreign land wanders aimlessly until their bones are returned to their homeland. The early Chinese pioneers who came to work and live in Victoria and on the mainland, came mainly for the gold rush and to supply labour for the western portion of the Canadian Pacific Railway. The remains of those who died locally and elsewhere in Canada were buried in Victoria until their bones could be exhumed and sent back to China.




In 1903, the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association, bought land to create a cemetery, for previously, Chinese people had been buried in a section of Ross Bay Cemetery (just down the road) that was prone to washouts by ocean waves. Victoria's Chinese Cemetery at Harling Point became the temporary resting place, until 1933 when the practice of sending bones back to China ended.

People are no longer buried here and it is now a National Historic Site of Canada but people still come to the site to worship their ancestors and/or pay their respects, cultural background depending and all that.

The graves are very modest and some have been given a lick of paint.




This is the ceremonial altar, used for burning incense and leaving offerings.




Here, someone has left a martial arts suit of some kind and a basket of spirit money and oranges.




The cemetery overlooks the straight and the Olympic Mountains (there aren't usually that many boats; a race was going on) and it's not too shabby a place to spend an hour or two or a day or for all of eternity for that matter! ;-)





See more Scenic Sundays here.

Skywatch Friday... UFO?

What's this mysterious, saucer-shaped, silhouetted orb? Has the mothership finally come to collect me? Are Greys about to beam down? Or is Captain Kirk of the USS Enterprise on the loose? Either way, I need to run and hide! And where's my tinfoil hat?!




Oh, whew! Tis all ok. It's just a 20 foot tall watering can; situation normal then.




Now let's see what the red pill does...


Enjoy other skies on other Skywatch Friday sites.

For my British friends...

From when I lived in Calgary. Winter, obviously.

Watery Wednesday - Closed

Just when I wanted to end it all by walking out into the icy depths of the Pacific, the ocean's closed. Bugger!




Seriously though, I've no idea why these stairs are here. The water is not warm enough swim in (it's freaking cold), there's a more traditional beach just twenty feet over if one wanted to launch a kayak or walk in the shallows. Who thought, 'hey I know, let's put some stairs here' and why did they think that?




Anyways, rebel that I am, I sat myself on the stairs and stared.




Truthfully, these stairs have been closed for many, many years and I have used these stairs for many, many years as a place to contemplate why there are stairs here and other of life's little questions.




For more Watery Wednesday photos click the pic!

Seagull Envy

This was the scene Monday evening at Clover Point in Victoria, BC... when the wind it right, there can be as many as six gliders swooshing back and forth along the cliffs. The below is a tandem flight... likely a very experienced glider and a student or someone just keen on the experience of gliding.

First, much buckling and harnessing and rope testing...




And then the two flying dudes lurch forward to lift the glider enough to get it into the wind that's coming in off the water.




And up goes the glider and two other 'land' dudes hold the flying dudes still.




Then the land dudes walk the paraglider dudes towards the cliff...




And then proceed to chuck them off it and hope for the best... ;-)




And away they go... and they glide back and forth along the cliff just as the seagulls do (without shitting on everyone).




I might as well give Vancouver Island Paragliding a plug as it's always fun to watch them.



For more 'That's My World Tuesdays' - click the pic:

Anyone need cheering up?

I was just reading some news on the BBC website about the BNP winning two seats in the recent EU elections. Fortunately, I soon became distracted by a story about Snowball the dancing Cockatoo. It's good to balance badness with goodness.



Still... two fucking seats?! Ugh! I think a whole damn dancing flock is in order...

Mean streets of Victoria

For Lady

Today, when I was out and about, this caught my eye...




For accuracy's sake, the snowman's head was bobbing side to side and yes, it's June 5th. Though I'm not looking for a place to live, I thought, 'This would either be an excellent place to live or down right frightening.'

Skywatch Fry Day

You can enjoy other skies on other Skywatch Friday sites. Me? I'm going to go do a rain dance.

Another poppy.

I'm not the only one who likes these poppies. :-)

Weird Dream...

Some context. My friend Mog wrote a hilarious post on her blog about her sleep habits. Especially funny was her recounting how, while sleep walking, she awoke and asked her then man if he had polished the spots on the horses yet... lol! I giggled about that all yesterday.

Ok, my dream. Last night I dreamed that I was trying to get on an elevator, a lift. Not a regular kind, but a paternoster kind. If you've not encountered one of these beasts - watch this:



Anyways... so I'm standing there and the paternoster lift is going very fast and I feel like a little kid trying to 'jump-in' when kids are skipping rope. In amazement, I'm watching people step on and off with ease. So, I decide, 'Oh fuck it, Marnie! Just walk towards the damn lift and hop on!' and so I did.

And just my luck!

As I'm stepping into the lift, the lift morphs into a paternoster that's used for documents and not people! The compartments are now only a foot tall... but I've gone too far! I'm beyond the point of no return! FFS! So I kick my legs up like I'm doing some Kung Fu move through the air and slide myself, feet first into a 'file slot'.

And there I am, sandwiched into the paternoster lift, around and around she goes... and guess who I see laughing?

Anyone else have any weird dreams lately?

Just Poppies...

Yesterday, I spent much of the late afternoon and early evening up the road in the gardens at Government House. It's flippin' hot here lately, and it's a nice place to be in the shade and in the cool breezes off the ocean.




I'm getting obsessed with these California Poppies; I just love them. My efforts in trying to photograph them have made me realise that I have so much to learn as I'm not quite getting the images that I see in my head.




I suspect I'll be up there again later today as the temps are already climbing. I might even take my 'how to' photography book.




Watch this space... maybe! ;-)

A favourite building.

Peekaboo...




This is Gonzales Observatory, atop Gonzales Hill in Gonzales Hill Park over looking Gonzales Bay. There's a Gonzales Beach down there as well and the residential area adjacent to Gonzales Beach is called Gonzales.

It's just occured to me that I have no idea who Gonzales was...





According to this website, the observatory is used by School of Earth and Ocean Sciences (SEOS) Biogeochemistry Facility at the University of Victoria and they conduct research in atmospheric trace gases using remote sensing techniques. In particular, they pursue the development of Tunable Diode Laser Absorption Spectroscopy.

{eyes glaze over}

I just like the building cos I think it's nifty looking.





I like the view too. It's a good place to go and think, or not think, as it's one of those places that not too many people know about or tend to visit. So, it's nice and peaceful although some days I feel like taking a chainsaw to that tree right in front there...
;-)