Family Day Long Weekend - Pt 5: Last Day

Great long weekends always feel short.  They just have to end.  Boo.

I started my "last day" staring at this around 10 am in the morning.

Sleepy boys

Can we say, lookalikes?!   Poor Roshi though.  He probably didn't have that much fun this weekend.  I barely mentioned him in any of the earlier parts because we were mostly out and he was trapped in his crate.  However, I know his tummy enjoyed his weekend in Calgary.  The grandparents kept feeding him treats.

B dropped me off to see Joni and  Hannah later in the morning.  They made pizza for me, and they were good.  Massive too.  Really, I don't know why and how they think I can eat that much?!   Yeah, I get hungry, and I eat.  Normal.  However, I don't think that's how they see me.

After the pizza, we had a tabletop campfire (made by Ms. Handy Hannah) and roasted marshmallows and made smores.  As ridiculous as it looks, it's a pretty cool idea.  Most of all, it works!  I think I will need to make one myself!  Haha.

Tabletop campfire

It was great to catch up.  I miss travelling with these girls.  Such great times.  Gotta do it again sometime (catching up and travelling together).

Family Day Long Weekend - Pt 4: Family Dinner

On Sunday, I spent a good afternoon with my mom shopping at Chinook.  Surprisingly, I wasn't too into it, but I did enjoy walking around with my mom.  I did however found a sparkly sweater at Banana Republic for $6.28 after taxes.  It was originally $95.  If they're still profiting at $6, the mark up is nuts. Hence, DON'T BUY ANYTHING AT REGULAR PRICE.  I really don't think the majority of the population cares if one is wearing something a few years old.  I don't.  Plus, most of the stuff I get are 'classics'.  They never go out of style!

So to make up for the Chinese New Year dinner, we went out to eat.  Tired of the usual south end Asian restaurants, I looked up a new place:  Li Ao Sushi in Bridlewood.  Look at this massiveness!!!!

Look at those salmon and tuna pieces!!!

I ordered one for each of us, and luckily for me, B doesn't like large pieces of sushi like this.  More for me.  They also had some special rolls and they tasted very good as well.

Lobster Shrimp Roll

Salmon Mango Roll

Caterpillar Roll (I think)

We had two other rolls too, but these were the pretty ones.  A big sushi meal for just $90 bucks.  Not bad at all.  Again, the massive fish.  So good.  I will be back for sure!!!

Family Day Long Weekend - Pt 3: New Look

The one thing I didn't do when I was back in Calgary before Christmas was get a haircut.  I totally forgot about Xmas parties, and my hair was just a mess.  I only noticed it when I was in a mirror on a column in the mall when I was shopping for my 4" pumps.  I was like, OMG, I need to do something about this before the party tomorrow!  So thinking a well decorated salon inside the mall couldn't be too bad, I went for a try.  BAD idea.  I asked for a bob, and well, she cut it like a bob... for a person with straight hair!  Sigh.  Although it was bad, some of the hair did shed off and so it did get somewhat cleaned up.  Overall, it was a bad and expensive haircut.  Blah.

Because of this, I had to get another haircut again.  It's sad I have to drive 300+km, 3+hours, to get a decent haircut, but I only trust this guy with my hair.  He's slow and the wait is long, but well worth it.  While I was waiting, I was flipping through some magazines and noted some latest fashion trends.  All I have to say is ... what is wrong with this world?

"Lovely".  How can this be lovely?

I'm no fashion expert, but these layers are UGLY.  But apparently the trend is crop sweater on top of a tunic, and skinny pants.  I don't see pretty in this.

After a few more flips, I saw this picture:
 

Barf.

Oh fashion, I just don't get you.  Or maybe it's my engineering mind.

Anyways, I got my hair cut.  It's short.  I love it (B doesn't).  I counted, it's been over 10 years since I had really short hair (2010 bob hair doesn't count, since the shortness didn't last too long because of the wedding).  I think I'll keep it short for a while.

After the haircut, I walked into a glasses store in Chinatown.  Ok, I haven't done that for 10 years too.  Most of the glasses in Chinatown are similar to Lenscrafter, Pearle Vision, etc.: boring.  Yeah, they carry the big brands: Gucci, Prada, Burberry, etc., but there is nothing different about them.  My last three pairs of glasses were different:

1. Red metal frames with the lenses 'floating' within (held by clear wires) - love them and my favorite.  Too bad the paint has chipped off the frames.  Otherwise, I would still wear them... more often.
2. Interchangeable half frames - the bottom half of the frames could be switched out with different coloured frames.  Great to match clothes in.  Still wear them.
3. Black metal/plastic hybrid frames - I just fell in love with them when I first saw them.  They're so black too.  Too bad the lenses are so scratched up.  Reason why I was looking for new glasses.  

I first saw wood textured frames in Edmonton too at this 'trendy' glasses store.  Love them, but not the price.  I was surprised I found similar frames in Chinatown. The ones in Chinatown weren't bad in pricing, looked great, and were on sale.  Best of all, my lenses were available, and they could get it done within 24 hrs.  Sold.

So in one day, new hair and new glasses.

2013 Casie's new look

Family Day Long Weekend - Pt 2: Family Lunch

So I've been doing restaurant searches in Calgary too.  I like to try good food, especially holes in the wall.  So one of the popular ones I found was Olive Chicken, a little corner store that sold Korean fried chicken.

Half and Half (2 pieces of hot and sweet chicken,  and 3 pieces of crispy chicken)

Before it was just going to be B and I, but it became a family outing   My parents wanted to hang out with us more, so despite the fact they don't like fried food, they also gave it a try.  By the expression of my dad, I don't think they will come back again:

Dad: Mmm, it's ok. Not.

However, B's expression is always the same - good, bad, ugly, pretty.  However, he said he will definitely eat it again.  Who doesn't like fried chicken?

"I like."

I just had the crispy chicken, but had a bite of B's hot and sweet chicken.  I liked that more.  The crispy one just tasted too dry after the saucy one.  Besides it tasting less fatty and less salty than the 'franchise' fried chicken, it's still fried chicken.  And like my parents, I'm not a big fan of fried foods, so I won't volunteer to come back again.  However, if B wants to, I'll eat it with him, of course.

Welcome 2013.

Happy New Year!

I missed the coming of the new year last night.  I fell dead asleep on my living room floor before midnight - not because I passed out due to intoxication, but instead of reading about lien legislation and listening to Prometheus on tv.  Ok, I just read what I did last night and I sound like a boring homebody.  Instead of partying or joining in the celebrations, I was studying and sleeping.  Oh well, I'm no party-er anyways.

New Year Resolution: my last new year resolution was to not make anymore new year resolutions. I've been good at it too.  However, this year I will make one.  Maybe I shouldn't call it a resolution (so that I could keep my last resolution), but more like I need to do something to change my lifestyle,

"To make everyday count"

Looking back (not just 2012, but also the past years since I graduated from grad school and started working), what have I done or accomplish?  Yes, there were some life changing events: got laid off, moved out, live in another city alone, bought a home, raised a puppy, got married, new job, new car, etc., but how about the in betweens, the insignificant times?  How were those times spent?  One word can summarize it: wasted.

Everyday is the same old same old.  Go to work, come home, eat dinner, watch tv, bedtime, and repeat the next day.  I think it's the 'watch tv' that gets me.  It is seriously a waste of time.  However, can I not watch tv? Probably not, since I have a few shows that I watch religiously.  Even if I record them on the PVR, I still need the time to plant my butt down and watch them.

On the weekends and holidays, the day doesn't quite begin until 2 pm, but that's partially B's fault since he sleeps in past noon.  I sometimes can sleep until 11, but that depends on when I slept the night before.  Sleeping in is nice, especially I'm no morning person.  However, sleeping in all morning also gets to me.  I wake up miserable because half the day is gone!  

I think this whole 'waste of time' is getting to me as I'm getting older.  Now that I'm no longer in my 20s, I'm starting to feel the downhill side of life.  I'm not saying I need to use my 'tv time' or lazy mornings to go change the world, but how can I use those few hours to do something more productive - even if it's as simple as keeping the house clean! 

So to get this 'make it count' started, here's a list of things I want to get done, try, get better at, etc.:

• Finish my course; I signed up for a distance learning course for work and it ends in April/May.  This is priority and a good short term goal to accomplish.
• Facetime and visit parents more; after moving out, it became more apparent to me that they are getting old.  The thought of them being old, and them one day becoming dependent on me scares me, since I still feel like a dependent.  I don't know what I would do or become when they leave me.  Must cherish their presence as much as possible - even if it means driving to Calgary on a 'normal' weekend just to hang out with them. 
• Find a church and attend regularly; I have left the church for so long (another issue that I won't discuss here) and I miss it..  However, it is difficult for me to wake up before 9 on Sundays.  Perhaps instead of watching tv on Saturday nights, I can find an evening service somewhere.
• Finish my European scrapbooks; notice the plural? I still have some pages left to do for the first Europe trip.  Seriously, instead of planting my butt on the sofa and watch tv, I should work on that.
• Update my 'everyday' scrapbook; so many pictures, so little time.  Enough said.
• Be more neat and tidy (at home and at work); I should really put away my things and dust a bit more regularly.  Do a little bit of cleaning everyday (or once in a while), less to do later!  
• Exercise more regularly; I am lazy on the weekdays, no doubt, but I should at least go for a short walk with Roshi, unless it's -20C out (I don't think he wants to go out then neither).  And on my early Friday afternoon off, gym.  However, this might need to be put on hold due to the tendonitis in my leg right now.  Sigh.  It's making me quite miserable.  
• Wall climbing; love the sport.  B even said he will try it, despite the fact he's scared of heights.  Again, this will be on hold due to my tendonitis issue.  Sigh.
• Blog regularly; don't know who reads this, but it's good to write down some thoughts and document some life events to look back on.  
• Make a friend or two; been here fore 3.5 years and I can only say I have 1 friend in Edmonton.  How sad is that?!  Really need to go out more and meet new people.  I wish B wants this too, so I don't have to put too much effort into this.  

So this is my list for the time being.  I will continuing adding onto this list as things come up.  This list will be added onto the many lists listed on the side of this blog.

It's June already?!

Wow, it has been four months since I'd last posted, and so much had happened!  Even the layout of Blogger changed!!!  I guess I did had time to post something, but I got lazy.

So in April, I hit the big 3-0.  Do I feel 30?  No.  Do I look 30?  I got my ID checked not too long ago.  So guess not!  Although I'm nothing like 30, being at that number does scare me a bit.  Me being older also means my parents are getting older as well.  The biggest fear in my life is not my own death, but my parents'. Since I'm the only child, their passing means I will be the only one left.  To me, that is very scary.

However, since May 2, I got married.  However, to me, a husband is not the same as parents.  Husbands can come and go (although I shun upon that idea), but parents are blood.  With them physically gone, it's like a part of me will go missing.

But let's forget that depressing topic and back to my wedding!  We had a small little wedding ceremony and dinner in beautiful Hawaii.  I love Hawaii.  It's one of those places I could always go to.  After the wedding, B and I ditched our friends and family (kind of, they also left pretty much soon after the whole wedding was over) and hopped on a cruise and sail around the islands.  Because of this cruise, I will HAVE TO return to Hawaii to see it some more. Did I mention I love Hawaii?!

After being back to Alberta, we had a dinner reception in Calgary to celebrate some more.  Our friends did an awesome job MC-ing the reception.  From the feedbacks I got, everyone had a great time.  My "little" photobooth set up was also a hit.  Great photos!

Just last week, I had my first trip to Grande Prairie.  If I was an engineer in the O&G sector, Grande Prairie would likely be a town I would go often.  Since I'm not, it was my first.  Surprisingly, I didn't mind it.  However, their best sushi restaurant was the worse I ever tasted.  Sad.

And now June is here.  Nothing big planned, but I might have another trip to Compeer, Alberta.  I didn't even know this place existed.  It's going to be a long drive and long day.  Oh well, that's work!

Calgary Staycation

I just got back into Edmonton after a 10 day staycation in Calgary. Boo.

The staycation was nice. I met up with friends, scrapbooked, karaoke (at home), played video games, watched movies, ate out, shopping, and cooked some awesome dinners. Since I was at my parents home, I didn't even have to clean (except for Roshi's mess). I loved it. It was relaxing and not too expensive. Sometimes vacations are harder on the body than work! Therefore, this short little week off, which I desperately needed (I haven't had one week off of work since last X-mas and was seriously losing concentration at work), was perfect and excellent.

It's 10:54 pm now. I'm in bed blogging and ready to sleep to restart routine. Sigh. Last week, I was playing Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood until late night.

I don't want it to end. I wouldn't mind another week off. Not at all. Sigh.

Wedding Dress - Check

Last week, I took some time off to hang out with my little cousin (yes, he may be 17 now and taller than me, but he'll always be my little cousin) during his visit to Alberta. We were in Calgary for the week. I found some time for myself. With no expectations (not even a budget) and a totally open mind, I used this time to do some dress shopping!

I guess I had some ideas what I wanted:

1. Simple yet elegant - I don't like overly bling. So excessive beading is out of the question! However, it has to have enough bling for a night event (i.e. the reception).
2. Light - since it might be a destination wedding, I don't want my dress to be the luggage weight limit!
3. Minimum train - trains are nice for pictures, but not fun to drag around. Being a maid of honor once, I also know it's hard for the bride and the "slave" to carry that thing around.
4. Under $1000 - I didn't have a budget, but I don't think a "one time dress" should cost anything more than $1000 with alterations. However, I was willing to budge a little if it was that dreamy of a dress.
5. Dress shape - I know I DON'T want ball gowns and mermaids.

Dress shopping took place on Tuesday (August 23) afternoon and Wednesday (August 24) morning. The first store I went into had no dresses I wanted. I left after 15 minutes of browsing. The second store I went to was Blissful Bridal. I told the lady that I was open minded to anything, but there were a few things I knew I didn't want. She showed me a few dresses, but there was one dress that caught my eye: A-line, lace covered, a hint of bling, a simple bow in the back, no train, and $650. Despite the 3 or 4 other dresses in the dressing room, I tried on this one first. It was perfect. I'm surprised with the lace (I'm not a lace girl) and how awesome it was on me. To keep an open mind, I tried on the other dresses. They were pretty, but not me. Since this was my first day of dress shopping, I just got the info of that dress and walked out.

Wednesday, I went to three other stores (can't even remember the names). I kept looking at dresses that were similar to that first dress. They all came out pretty, but my mind kept wandering back on that one. So I guess the first dress that I tried on was the dress.

Thursday night I took my mom to see the dress. She thought it was me. Even though she thought having a train would be nice in pictures, she couldn't really see me dragging fabric around. Haha, mom sure knows her daughter's style.

So, it's set. I found the dress. Deposit paid and dress on order. No pictures... you will all have to wait (except those lucky bunch that I sent an email to).

Haircut!

So after years of long hair, it's time to say goodbye. Out of nowhere, I just thought it was time for another drastic change. Another reason I got it done now was because I'll be on vacation in less than two weeks. Just wanted something easy to maintain. I also thought a short hair cut might make me look more grown up (if you haven't noticed, a lot of moms have short hair...) and therefore, I would stop getting mistaken as a student at work. Unfortunately, my new full bangs make me look like a 12 year old! Sigh. I will never win.

I don't know what happened, but my chin has never been this pointy...

Crazie Adventure

This year's Alberta's summer weather is a little crazie, and my drive back to Edmonton from Calgary joined in the craziness! Just past Red Deer, it began to hail like there's no tomorrow. Thank goodness the hail was not the size of golf balls, like the ones in Calgary. A lot of cars pulled to the side to wait for it to pass. There were at least 10 cars, blocking all three lanes, right under the overpass. I was not one of those cars... poor Luigi. After 10 minutes of being pelted by hail, it was just heavy rain and the drive continued. Further north, there were major lightning happening to the right of me. Since I LOVE watching Mother Nature's zaps, I thought I will do some of my own filming with my 'awesome' phone camera. So holding the wheel with my right hand, and my camera with my left hand against the side window, I hope I was able to film some good zaps. All of a sudden, I saw this bright bolt right beside my side mirror, and shortly afterwards a loud buzz against my car. It took me a few seconds to register... I think I got struck by lightning... or at least my car did! Maybe I didn't get directly hit, but it was definitely very close to me. Enough for me to actually see the bolt and hear some loud buzz noise against/on/from my car. Seriously... I definitely need to buy a lottery ticket!

Crazy People

Today I made a last minute decision and drove home (Calgary) for the weekend. Since I haven't really had a chat with my mom for a bit, it's great to catch up on some gossip - especially about crazy people.

There are a lot of crazy people out there with the oddest mentality. I personally know two who think I'm a major bad person because my manners don't have a score of 100%. Even without contact or doing anything to or with them, they think I am a horrible person and that I am out to get them.

Then with my mom's updated gossip, she knew someone who could interpret harmless words into something totally offensive and wanted to sue the person! I have no idea what this person could sue for, since s/he did not lose anything (i.e. money, property, reputation, etc.). It will probably end up a waste of court time and lawyer fees.

The funny thing is I can actually see some similarity between the crazy people I know and this person my mom knows:

1. Both are mid-age/pre-seniors having way too much time with their brains. Maybe they should do some daily sudoku instead. Thinking way too much about silly stuff can hurt yourself and your relationships with people (which happened).
2. Lack of drama in their lives. Children had grown up and moved away, and all the fun had disappeared. If you want drama, then make drama by yourself and not include other people. It's almost like that explosion in Edmonton. If you want to kill yourself after murdering your girlfriend, swallow a bullet! Not blowing up your house and affecting the rest of your neighbourhood!

Am I sounding mean? Maybe. But yes, when I hear things like these, especially with mid-age/pre-seniors, it just really bothers me. There's already not a lot of time left. Enjoy it while it lasts. Why piss yourself off and screwing up other people's lives?

Oh, How I Miss Calgary

This past weekend was a long weekend. Hence, I drove home back to Cowtown. The air sure smells better when back home. However, it did somewhat feel strange to be back after a month. The sad thing was entering my old room. It's so empty. My shelves and my desk had nothing on them. Oh, how I miss my PS3. I played a good 2-3 hours today before I left for E-Town. I know I can bring it up to E-Town, but nah. I still want my Calgary home to have some 'me' in it.
On my drive back, I saw a raging fire on a farm just outside Gasoline Alley in Red Deer. I have to say it was pretty cool. Sad for the farmer, but glorious for the drive bys. A few cars pulled over and started filming it! And one more thing for frequent Hwy 2 drivers: Hwy 2 is definitely not a road to speed on. I think I saw at least eight pullovers (SUCKERS) and another one was waiting to pull someone over. Not me though. I like to set my cruise at about 112-115 km/hr. Me safe!

Ribbon Storage

After looking through many message boards, I was determined to organize my ribbons. I'm so jealous of those with a scraproom in their own home. My scraproom = my bedroom. Therefore, I have limited space. This is the only reason I don't go out to buy more. My restraint = limited space available to put my stuff!

Like all scrapbooking stuff, ribbon boxes can be expensive, and they can only hold so many ribbons. I considered poking holes into a sturdy box, but that requires using a power tool (I am scared of them!). Therefore, after a few nights of research and driving and some "engineering" skills, I came up with this:

It is assembled by a $2 curtain rod (came with end fixing and brackets) from Ikea, and two 2" c-clamps that also costed $2 each. Therefore, this whole assembly costed $6 with no use of power tools! I love it. The only thing is the physical appeal. Having two c-clamps look funny. It really makes my bedroom look like some kind of workshop! Haha... it's ok. I'm an engineer. I guess it makes my room ... me.

Goodbye, Grandma

In loving memory, my grandma, KFCY

Last week was a sad week. My grandma passed away last Monday, January 12, 2009. In a way, it was expected, because she was already 94. However, it's still very sad and I do miss her.

We received a call on Sunday evening from the nursing home, saying she's having complications in breathing. We all rushed to her bedside, but it didn't appear too bad. However, she did lose more weight due to her loss appetite during the week. She even waved goodbye when we were leaving. With hopes in our hearts, we thought it wasn't a forever goodbye.

Monday at 7:30 am, when I was about to head to work, the nursing home called saying she was gone at 7:15 am. After a week of preparation, her short funeral was held on Friday evening.

Most of my childhood memories are filled with her. Although she flew back and forth from Hong Kong and here, all the times she was here with me in Canada, they were fun and joyous. My favorite times with her are those evenings after supper. We will always hide in her blanket, and she will sing me songs and tell me odd stories. Right now, I sleep in the same room where she used to sleep (before she moved out to a seniors' apartment). I don't sleep in her old bed, but ironically, I am sleeping in the same spot where I always laid beside her.

I didn't see much of her in the past few years when she was residing in her nursing home, but every holiday or free weekend, my family will say "Let's go see Grandma!" There will be no more of that. I miss you, Ma Ma.

I Suck

So I'm on this mission to save money, but damn it, it's not working!

So Michael's is having this AMAZING Cricut sale. Cartridges for $39.99. OMG... they usually sell for $119.99 (well, at some other places, like Scrap Hut, $69.99). Good thing there's only a few I want and not like 10. With a deal like that, I would so buy 10. So I wanted:

• Doodlecharms
• Walk in My Garden
• Stretch Your Imagination

Unfortunately, the Michael's across my work (yes, it calls out to me everyday to spend spend spend), sold out of SYI. So I'm like, maybe just 2 then. Then stupid me, kept looking and grabbed Paper Pups. I don't even own a frickin' dog! Well, maybe another Michael's will have SYI, and I'll just exchange it.

So after work, I called around and all the Michael's in Calgary are sold out of SYI. After some long thoughts, I decided to return the Paper Pups. But of course, I checked out what people do with the Paper Pups cart on the Cricut Messageboard. Everything is SO SO cute.

So yes, just like the title, I SUCK. I'm keeping it. I"m not sure what I'm going to do with it yet, but I will figure it out somehow. Sigh...

Blogging again

So, I decided to blog again. Hopefully this time I will actually stick with it, but that's what I always say. My last blog was in Windows Live Spaces. I have to say I did pretty well there, since it lasted almost 2.5 years (Aug 2005-Dec 2007) on an off and on basis.

I'm not sure what I want to put on this blog yet. For sure, I want to put my creations on. From my scrapbook pages to card ideas to my finish knit products. While those in progress, maybe I'll add a few posts about my "crazie" life.

Cheers.