Hey it's Trisha. Haven't been here in awhile. Been kinda swamped, kinda not wanting to blog. Also bloggin on blogger, where I started a weight loss journal. I've lost 25 lbs with the Dr Bernstein diet. I have 75 more to go, but very very pleased so far (6 weeks.)

1. Go to the Wikipedia home page and click Random Article (on the side menu). That is your band's name.
2. Click random article again; that is your album name.
3. Click random article 15 more times; those are the tracks on your album.

My bitchin band: 1948 in South Africa
Our sophomore album: Abbas Alizadeh

Track listing for this modern masterwork:

1. Random element
2. Royal Marines Police
3. Jasim bin Jabir
4. Lordship of Ireland
5. The Secret of the Unicorn
6. Times Community Newspapers
7. Félix Gatineau
8. .380 ACP
9. Third Fleet
10. Amory Lock
11. Fiocchi Munizioni
12. Coat of arms of the Comoros
13. Muthappan temple
14. Blue Street (Five Guitars)
15. Hochleithen

There's kind of an ammunition/warrior theme going on here...

I had the nightmare of all nightmares last night. This, I should note, is very odd for me. I know that I dream but I might remember 10% or less of my dreams after I get up out of bed.

Last night I watched a very unfortunate documentary about Cleveland, Ohio (http://www.makingsenseofplace.org/cleveland/about/description.asp). The doc detailed the decline of an urban metropolis to the point where millions of square feet of office space are unused, unoccupied houses are falling into disrepair, and the city's schools do not receive the money they need to keep the roofs from falling in due to the lack of property taxes. Scary stuff, and other American cities are not far behind. As people keep searching for more, bigger, better, newer, the sprawl continues. People are leaving for the ever-safer, more expansive, 'cleaner' suburbs.

I went to bed and did a little reading and then snapped off the light. I awoke a couple of times through the night, at least once for the dogs and at least once if not more, to make sure what I was dreaming was not true.

Are you ready for this?

I dreamt that in our lifetime, the force of God decided to make it known that he was an angry God and that we had abused his precious earth for the last time. There was a lot of press and fear-mongering about how, at a certain time on a certain day, there would be a force that nobody would be able to question. There would be no question about the existence of God or his power. Sure enough, one afternoon, people in North America began to prepare for the 'tornado'. I was in a public place, like an office building's mezzanine on the third floor, wide open, with lots of glass windows and marble flooring. The sky went black, and the earth began to rumble, just as though a massive earthquake was taking place on every continent. It was all I could do to hold onto the table legs where I was seated. This was so real to me that I remember trying to wake myself up, in case it was a dream. The real me forced myself to surface into light sleep, check the clock, which was 3:33, desperate to know if it was true. Did this happen? Am I okay? And then was back asleep in the turmoil again. When I arrived back in my dreamland doomsday, half the world's population was wiped out, all green things were dead, and a booming voice was stating that every action we made was going to need to be recorded, like some kind of video game almost "SIMS"-style into a little yellow handheld device so that our lives could be monitored and recorded for our worthiness to live. Each person got one of these devices kind of like a mobile phone, and I was having a hard time figuring out how to work it. I was worried that I was not entering my movements properly, and then I think I woke again, because when I hit the doomsday world again, I had LOST my yellow device.

I have been bothered all day by this nightmare. It reminded me of 12 Monkeys, The Matrix or The Island. I hardly ever have disturbing dreams of this nature, so you can see why I am so affected by it. Creepsville, non?

I woke up hung over after drinking an entire bottle of wine by myself in front of the TV.

Had a date with my breeder to take a bunch of her dogs and my 2 to the park. It was cold but nice. I ended up taking Clancy home again, a puppy she's been trying to sell. He stays here sometimes to expose him to the world and get him out of the kennel. I wish 3 dogs wasn't so crazy because he is such an amazing little pup. If you know anyone who wants a loving, easy, beautiful dark red NSDTR, please let me know. $1400.

Just finished my Greek takeout leftovers, and doing a little work on the bookkeeping. Feet are cold. Might make a coffee.

Today was finally above freezing for the first time in weeks, so I went out to the shed and grabbed the Xmas bin, and put the wading pool and patio furniture cushions in there, after shaking the snow off everything. Winter really came in with a bang this year- many years we don't get snow until after Christmas.

Christmas is going to be very different this year- packing up the dogs and driving hundreds of kilometers west to spend it with my step-sister and her mom and 2 daughters in Victoria. Looking forward to taking the dogs to the beach, even if it is winter. Topaz has never seen the ocean.

I wonder if I'll ever meet a man and have a "normal couple" Christmas?

8:11 woke up and let dogs out
8:16 back to bed
10:11 out of bed, dogs out again
10:17 dogs' breakfast, cats' breakfast
11:47 finished watching Roman Holiday, put on Thank You for Smoking
1:26 ate steamed broccoli, tuna with mayonnaise, and wild rice mix
1:56 began decluttering the medicine cabinet
2:16 put on spearmint and teatree facial mask
2:48 walking down path at Riverdale Park with Splash and Topaz
3:19 put dogs back in truck on way to Christmas shopping expedition

Receipts:
3:51 Le Chateau- gift card for 17 yr old step-niece
4:04 La Senza Girl- gift card, bubble gum body lotion and peppermint lip gloss for 10-year old step-niece and 8 year old step-niece in italy
4:22 Roots sweatshirts for sister, sister's husband and nephew in italy

4:38 arrive at second dog park for second outing with Splash and Topaz

5:09 liquor store
5:14 greek takeout

6:24 typing this online, dogs chewing bones, watching Nancy Grace

just in case you were wondering :)

Does anyone have a favorite website they want to share with me? What sites do you go to daily?

Does anyone know the latest on travelling throughout the UK and Europe with a laptop? I've googled and searched the BAA (British Airport Authority) but do you think I can find anything since Aug 2006?

Tonight I am cleaning, puttering, updating work stuff, and watching the Emmies. Which is funny, because I don't watch very many of the programs they are talking about... mostly I am now watching HGTV and all the British property shows.

I thought the Sopranos ended?

I'm leaving in 10 days :) London and Northern Italy here I come.

decide between suitcase and backpack
buy mini caribeeners for zips
research temperatures for northern italy in late Sept-mid Oct to know what to pack-high of 22, low of 11 celcius
finalize pet sitters/boarding arrangements for cats & last week boarding for dogs
buy food and treats for cats and dogs -done
clean/organize office to the point where it would not be embarassing to have someone in there using the computer
arrange to have deposits made by Shannon while away
see about out of office response on gmail
pack Italian cell phone & charger
buy euros

Good morning friends.
I know I've been MIA. I don't even know if anyone will be reading this, but that's ok. It's as much for me as it is for the reader.
It's Sunday of the Labour Day weekend, I got a lot of cleaning and some errands done yesterday.
There are 2 cats on my desk, sitting between me and the monitor at the moment. One dog is on her blanket a few feet from my feet and the other dog has gone back to bed in my room.
MY neck hurts from sleeping 2 nights ago and does not seem to be getting better. I even dreading sneezing a few minutes ago because of the pain. This too shall pass, I know kinks do come unkinked. But at the moment it's driving me batty and making me not want to do anything.
For example, taking the dogs for a walk. How perfect it would be to get them out early today, taking care of their needs before they have to come and ask me to walk them. They need a sincere walk for about an hour every day, 7 days a week, 52 weeks a year. I get a little burned out to be honest, as there is no one else to walk them but me, and I do it 5 days a week for a living. How deeply they rely on me. How guilty I sometimes feel when I don't have the desire or energy to give them that 1 hour out of 24, to smell things and run around and dispense of their spare energy. How I love them, feel like they are my heart and soul. Don't get me wrong. Some days I don't give them the whole hour. There have even been a few days where all they get is stints in the yard and don't go anywhere. But man is there ever a difference in them when they've had a proper walk with retrieving or swimming or the other dogs in our Monday-Friday packs.
I had no intention of sitting down and typing about my dogs. Guess I just had to get it off my chest.

There are so many things I want to do, to be better at, and to accomplish. I want to clean every room in the house and declutter, and keep clean every room in the house. I want to stay on top of my laundry. I want to have good groceries to choose healthy meals and snacks from. I want to get over my strange eating disorder. I want to lose 50 lbs. I want to stop drinking a whole bottle of wine by myself out of loneliness. I want to remember how to spell loneliness without relying on spellchecker. I want to improve the curb appeal of my house, painting the steps and the front door and the trim but I don't know how. I want to attract more clients for my business but am afraid it will mean I will have to work harder to serve them all. I want to attract more dog training clients, but inside I have a nagging feeling that since the people themselves are usually to blame for the ill behaviour in their dogs, that after I leave, they really won't change and then they think that I am ineffective. I want to keep my truck clean and take care of the scrapes and dents on the outside of it. I want to pay off my last 2 credit cards in a hurry. I want Andrew to call me back so I can offer my apology for over reacting when we had a heart to heart last weekend and tell me everything is going to be ok and that there is a chance for a future together. I want someone else to clean the litterboxes for me. I want my hoya plant to get back it's originial lustre. I want a dining room so that I can entertain and serve coffee with liqueur after dinner and break out the board games. I want to take better care of my teeth. I want to finally be rid of foot pain which I feel holds me back. I want to make my vision board instead of staring at a blank poster board every day. I want to be a better coaching client for Jean and actually do my homework. I want to watch less TV. I want to get out of my second cell phone contract. I want fewer calls from telemarketers. I want to have a great time in Italy this fall. I want to do yoga again. I want to be motivated.

Hey it's August 13th.
I leave Aug 15th for 5 nights in Halifax- if you are there and want to hook up, message me.
I leave Aug 30 for Vancouver and Victoria until Sept 3. If you are there and want to see me, that would be great.
I leave Sept 26 for London and Italy. If you are there and want to see me, you have until Oct 17.

I definitely want to see you!!

Does anybody shop at dick blick who would be willing to get me a couple of paw stamps?

organize my bedroom... including all 3 boxes of papers that seem to ALWAYS be somewhere...

finish all laundry

record a DVD for nephew in Italy. He loves Canadian TV, and I spoke to him on the phone last night fir the first time, where he actually talked as well. It was late, and I'd been drinking wine so I don't remember what he said, but that's ok. He spoke!

buy 2 new pairs of jeans

sit down with new employee Shannon (SO THRILLED TO HAVE HER!!! She is awesome!) and go over expectations, compensation, tools, etc.

put $1000 on Mastercard.

bring in recycling.

by the way, I have a new frozen dog treat called Pet Sorbet. I am starting to get them into stores, yo! It's all very exciting. I have turned into quite the entrepreneur!

I am so lonely. Another Friday night of takeout, blockbuster movies and red wine with my dogs. Alone.

Yesterday I was working on my computer when my handsome little puppy




Came in to have a rest. He laid down, adjusted himself not on either the red or the blue dog beds, but on the floor (not that uncommon), and promptly stuck his nose into my (well-worn) slipper (not that common.)




Laughing hysterically and worried it wouldn't last, I had to frantically snap a picture with my razor phone. Minutes later, he stirred. I figured he'd realized the error of his ways and would not put his snout back into the slipper.




But he did. Right back into it, and even moved it so he was more comfortable. Show me how this is not total love and devotion to his master!

What kind of vegetable this is? My brother bought 4 of them at the discount veggie store, and thought they were squash. The skin is soft and dents witha fingernail, so I am thinking not squash. We cut one open and it looked suspiciously like a *shudder* eggplant. blech Any ideas?

I just followed a link on google ads to this article in fodor's about the teeny-tiny hotel room we used to giggle about japanese businessmen sleeping in. Apparently, they are really starting to catch on.




and this is my brand-spanking new logo and wordmark!! Our company colors also include dark red, chocolate brown, beige and a medium dark yellow-green.

grrrrrrrrr

I am so glad she is leaving; she has been too much stress and energy for months now, but as long as she did what I asked of her, and I didn't ask anything more of her, things were fine.

Yesterday was her last day walking dogs for The Critter Sitter. She is taking an out-of-town dog training course and then starting up her own thing, to which I wish her the BEST of luck, because she has a lot to learn about running a business.

Anyhow, I told her her final cheque would be ready when I got the envelope she said she mailed (from a neighbourhood 15 mins from here) sometime between Feb 19-24. She replied that she actually still had the envelope in her car (3 weeks later, and I had even provided her with self-addressed, stamped envelopes to mail them in) which contains $550 in cheques from clients, and why was I being so hostile?

This was my response to her:

I am just very let down about the cheques and invoices. I have asked repeatedly for you to create 2006 invoices based on your timehseets and can't believe you still have the clients' cheques weeks after they were collected. You stated the following in an email to me on Feb 27:

On 2/27/07, JG < xxx_xxx@hotmail.com> wrote:

Hi Trisha,

I mailed you some client cheques that should probably be there by now (Murphy and Shelby).

I should have time to do invoices before I leave.

It does not seem you understand the importance of the funds the cheques represent. They represent money that the company needs, and uses to pay your invoices among other things.

I have asked very little of you apart from the actual contract work. Mailing the cheques should have been easy and prompt. I have always sent payments promptly to you. Still having these cheques in your possession is very unprofessional, not to mention disappointing. The clients expect them to be cashed in a timely manner so that they aren't inconvenienced by waiting for the money to leave their accounts. Both are already on to new cards, which they have paid for but the finished ones have not been paid for yet.

Your final cheque is ready, but will be post-dated to March 16 to give me a chance to deposit these delinquent funds in our account and for them to clear. We just don't have the money to pay you without your client's funds, though I have been finding a way to do so for 2 invoices now, because I did not want to let you down.

Still no mention of your 2006 invoices. I have gone through my records and calculated an amount based on what I had for your T5018 for your 2006 Critter Sitter income in lieu of a calculation based on invoices from you. It was mailed yesterday.

I will be home from now until about 8pm, and would appreciate it if you came here.

Thank you,

Trisha

I want to post some pix of the new toy- ota, but the batteries in the digital were dead, and I am too busy to even find my charger. You know you gotta fix something when you are too busy to charge batteries.

Besides that, it has been gray and snowy for days now and I want to take the pix in the light of the sun.

I am however in love with my new truck, it smells like toxic carpet fibres and plastic chemical residue (new car smell) and drives like a chariot!~

I bought the truck- will post some pix later which I will take on this afternoon's outing with the dogs!

Can you recommend some good fiction to me?