Where am I?

Edmonton is a very cosmopolitan city in many ways. Sometimes, it’s downright Hicksville. And it’s reverted to Hicksville this week now that the rodeo is in town.

At lunch, I went for a nice walk. Walking towards me, I saw a man in bright blue jeans, a big ol’ cowboy, carrying a lasso. I stared at him while we walked towards each other. There was the obligatory large belt buckle. There was a shearling vest. There was a plaid shirt. And there was a lasso. In downtown Edmonton. Among highrises and office towers. It was the most out-of-place item I could have come across at that time of day in that location. What was he roping? A lamp post? A mail box? A newspaper box? As we passed, I was still staring, so he gave me a nod of his hat and said hello. If he said “howdy”, I would have died laughing.

The rodeo also brings in a lot of oversized pick-up trucks. They are huge, loud and there are far too many fake scrotums hanging off the back ends.

The bright side of the rodeo in town is that we are allowed to wear jeans all week. It’s Rodeo Week, after all!

Howdy-dooingly Yours,
xoxoSallyS

Thank you, Sarah Palin!

I went to a media relations training course yesterday. And Sarah Palin deserves a round of applause. Her gaffes, missteps and poor behaviour on camera were used in pretty much every example of what NOT to do.

So hats off to you, Sarah P.! If you didn't hold a press conference in front of turkeys being slaughtered, or get lost in your own ideas, well, gosh darnit, I might make the same mistakes next time I talk to them pesky media folks!

Maverickly Yours,
xoxoSallyS

I'm Baaaack

Well, the move is over. Byron and I have moved back to Edmonton. I know, I didn't say much to anyone about it, for fears of jinxing. But here we are, in one piece, settling into our new place.

The move went swimmingly, until Tuesday afternoon when By got into an accident with his uncle's truck. He's fine, but the driver's door is worse for wear. And our phone was out for two days. Other than that, all is well.

I start work on Tuesday. The day we moved in here, I got the call that I got the job! Huzzah!

This move and transition has been smooth. Well, as smooth as a move can be. The loading of the truck went well, the drive over was good and we were ahead of schedule on things. There's been no major catastrophe with the new place (in suite laundry, a dishwasher, 2 bedrooms and a pantry?! I have arrived!). And the stress levels have been under control.

Byron knows that I hiss and snap when under stress, and I have tried very hard to keep the hissing to a minimum. Victory is mine! And then it hit me. The last few moves I made were under someone else's deadlines and needs. When I went to Victoria, I was given less than two weeks to end everything in Edmonton and haul ass over there. The move before that, I was in a desperate rush to get out of Yellowknife and took whatever I could get to get out. I did nothing but hiss and spit and snap during those moves. This time, it's totally different. Byron and I did this on our time table, on a schedule that suited us, and we didn't feel rushed into anything.

Go Team Stuike!

Since we've been back, things (like jobs) have fallen nicely into place. Heck - I even get my own office! Toodle-doo cubicle world!

God, I missed Edmonton.

Moving on uppingly Yours,
xoxoSallyS

Dear City of Edmonton

Quit pussing out on your jobs.

I have gotten this notice a few times already:

"We regret to inform you that we have cancelled this job opportunity or selected another candidate whose qualifications more closely align with our requirements for this position."

Well, which is it? Has the job been cancelled or do you not like my qualifications? If the job was cancelled, then I suggest you get your shit together before posting a job, since this is the third time I've applied for a job that mysteriously gets cancelled. If you don't like my resume, then say so. Seriously, I've had worse said by better.

I realize this blog posting may eliminate all chances of me ever getting a job with the City of Edmonton, but at this point, who cares. Three of those bullshit notices leads me to believe that maybe a job with the City might be bullshit, too.

Fed-Uppingly Yours,
xoxoSallyS

Too far?

I saw something bizarre in the liquor store this morning.

Mike's Hard Lemonade has their booze for breast cancer. There were cases with the pink ribbon on them, promoting breast cancer awareness. Huh? Isn't that like having Lay's Chips sponsor an anti-obesity campaign?

Stupid marketing.

And for clarification, we were in the liquor store this morning to get boxes for moving.

Marketingly Yours,
xoxoSallyS

In defense of Science Fiction

Many of you who know me know that I have little interest in the Science Fiction genre. Star Wars passed me by for 32 years. Star Trek has never been on my TV for more than a nanosecond and I click on by. Any book by Asimov or Adams had never held space on my book shelf. That is... until two years ago when I met Byron.

Byron loves Science Fiction. He loves Star Wars and reads Star Wars books voraciously and can talk for hours (it seems) about the characters and plots and developments. There is an Asimov book on my shelf now, because it's now our shelf, and Douglas Adams has a place in our home.

By and I have very different tastes when it comes to music, movies and books. I have (but am aiming for the past tense of have) a bad habit of brushing off and poo-pooing things I have never seen and declare that it is not worth my time. I caused my grief with this attitude when we were meshing our lives.

So we made a deal.

For every movie in his genre that we watch, he sees something I like. The result has been me liking Star Wars movies (the new ones, I don't care for the original ones. Luke Skywalker bothers me. He's a pussy.) and Byron liking The Sea Inside. We even did an experiement where I would read one of his favourite books, and he read one of mine. I like "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy". He hated David Adams Richards' "Nights Below Station Street".

But I digress.

In my limited experience with Science Fiction, I have come to admire the genre. The people who write Science Fiction are some of the most creative people out there. You have to be incredibly creative to think of universes, cultures, species that are beleiveable. You have to build a world that makes people suspend their disbelief for a moment and accept that this is reality. Which brings me to the Science Fiction fans. They are some of the most creative people, too. It's easy to read a book from a different historical era, or another country. It's a human experience that can be somewhat universal. But to read a book, or watch a movie and understand that while it's all fake, that world does exist for that moment is unique. And then to talk about the Horax like it's real is stunning to me.

So thanks to Byron for opening my mind to something new. Maybe I'll find a book of mine that you'll love one day, too. We're going to see Star Trek soon. Please, pick your jaws off the ground.

May the Force Be With You,
xoxoSallyS

What the...?

I think I was ogled the other night.

We ordered pizza (I was a lazy wife that day), and I think I was ogled by the pizza guy. I am not bragging, I am just stunned by it. It was blatant and it made me feel squicky.

I thought I heard a faint knock, so I looked out the peep hole to see this dumb-looking kid in his early 20's staring up at the ceiling, mouth agape. I opened the door wearing my at-home attire - a grubby over-sized t-shirt, sweat pants and fluffy slippers. The kid had this moony grin on his face and creeped me out. As he pulled the pizza out of his bag, he was blatantly staring at my chest. At first, I thought he was trying to figure out the worn out lettering on the front of my shirt, but no. He was ogling. Blech. A few years ago, I would have been slightly flattered, but that night, I felt gross.

A couple years back, I ordered Chinese food one night. The delivery guy thought it was time to tell jokes while I paid him, so he told me this gem.

Q: Why did the walrus go to the tupperware party?
A: He wanted a tight seal.

The door was quickly shut on Shecky.

The moral of this tale? Quit ordering delivery and make your own damn food.

Peversely Yours,
xoxoSallyS