Wilting, wading, and Waldo'ing

We've been in the midst of a heatwave that slowly built up over the last week.  The hottest day was a balmy 38 degrees celsius with a humidex of 48!  Needless to say, it was a little warm. 

I have mentioned before that I don't do well in the cold.  Unfortunately for me, I don't do well in the heat, either.  I know, I know.  It's annoying.  Just call me a human chihuahua.
This week has been trying, to say the least.  I've been doing my best to not complain, seeing as I hate winter more than any heatwave, so I've been doing my best to beat the heat.  Here's what I suggest:

1.  Invest in a good water bottle that keeps ice from melting quickly.
My friend, Bridget, got a water bottle from a little eco-store in our area called the Ninty-ninth Monkey.  It's from a company called ThinkSport and it's AMAZING.

 I can put ice and water in it first thing in the morning and still have icy water late at night.  Plus, there's bonus points from your nephrologist if you plunk it down on her desk with a loud, unintentional clang.  She couldn't miss it..  it's huge.  See?  I DO take care of my kidney :-P

2.  Get a 10 foot inflatable pool for your backyard.
I didn't think I'd like it at all since it's not heated, but 35+ temperatures took care of that.  It's a great way to cool off, even if my dad now feels sympathy for killer whales in theme park pools.

3.  Break down and finally swim in the giant lake that's on your doorstep.
This weekend I officially became the person I used to be flabbergasted by.  I used to go down to the Lake Ontario waterfront all the time, and think that the people who were swimming in it were crazy/insane/loco.  But this weekend I didn't care.  When the humidex is soaring in the 40s, all logic goes out the window.  And it was FUN.  I felt like a kid again.  (Even with the nuclear power plant being RIGHT BESIDE us)

Another thing we did this weekend was WHERE'S WALDO?  My friend, Jon, bought a Waldo suit, so we went around getting some WHERE'S WALDO? type of photos.  We got stopped in a grocery store due to "policy violations" but it didn't hamper our fun.  I won't post any of the photos since it's going to be a surprise.  It was funny to watch him marching around trying to find good shots, though.  Eric tailed him closely, much like the theme park costumed characters with their bodyguards.

Turn it off!!

I left the oven on the other day.  All night.  My husband then told me that I could've burned the apartment down, all the while putting on his best impression of my father.

My dad was very insistent on turning everything off while I was growing up.  He still is, but I don't hear him anymore since I no longer live with him.  He has a mantra that he practically chants on his way out the door:  "Make sure you turn off and unplug everything.  And turn down the heat.  Make sure the doors are locked.  Did you turn off the curling iron??"
We have to unplug everything because appliances will blow up.  Heat is expensive.  We will be home invaded, tied to chairs, tortured, and shot if the doors aren't locked.  As for the curling iron...  that is something we haven't done in maybe 10-15 years, so I don't know why it's on the list.

He does have a point in some cases.  There was a rash of violent home invasions in our general area several years ago.  Also, gas prices are soaring, so why not save on the heating bill?  He and my mother do insist that they've known people who's TV exploded.  I'm not sure if they remember their names or not, but it happened!

His fear of fire has probably been honed by my sister and the few days of torture that she put him through when we first moved into our new house 12 years ago.  My sister was not yet fully trusted with stove top elements or the big oven, so my dad compromised and bought a toaster oven.  Not much damage you can do with those things, right?  The day after he bought it, I was sitting on the couch when my dad started yelling in the kitchen.  Suddenly he ran by holding the toaster oven over his head, flames blazing out of it.  He somehow managed to get the back door open and flung it out onto the snow-covered deck.  We then watched it in silence as it finished burning the remnants of the taco shells my sister had been "browning".  He then ranted and raved a bit, before returning it to the store and telling them it was defective.
Fast-forward to the next day.  My sister must've had another craving for toasty taco shells because she was at it again.  And once again it was flung out into the snow in a dramatic fashion.  One more "defective" toaster oven was returned to the store, and my sister was at once banned from using it without his supervision.

oops

Poor dad.  The stresses involved with having kids.

For the record, I may have left the oven on overnight, but last week my husband left a giant candle burning overnight.  There was little left of it in the morning and somehow it didn't burn through the tabletop.  Which one's worse??

Zzz

I am tired today.  I worked almost 8 hours, came home and crashed.  I then had the strangest dream about working for a really old Romanian optometrist who didn't care if we had patients or not.  His wife was his receptionist, and if it was even possible, she was older than him.  She didn't even speak English.

The truth:  I do work for an optometrist.  But he's not old.  And I worked all day with a very chatty coworker from Romania.  Funny how your day spills over into your dreams.

Speaking of which, my hubby has developed a bad habit due to me.  I had a horrible sleep last night due to two factors.  The first being the two cups of coffee at 10pm.  Bad move on my part.  But the next....  I had a feeling it would eventually happen.  I have a problem with sleep-talking.  I used to sleep-walk a lot, so I figure sleep-talking is a lot safer and less embarrassing.  My husband has told me that I wake him up quite often with some tidbit of useless/incoherant knowledge that he just NEEDS to know at 4am.  How he is getting good marks at school is a miracle.
BUT, last night he was full-out sleep-talking.  Not once.  Not twice.  But many times.  Is sleep-talking 100% contagious over a long period of time?  I'm gonna say yes.

So much for him being a sound sleeper!  Oops!

Friday is here!

I'm tired today.  I've just worked my normal 5 days in a row and now I have to work tomorrow too.  Add that to the fact that I'm not used to exercise and I have a feeling that I just might sleep very well tonight. 

I got off work early and headed to the gym to sign up for a year.  I figure if I'm paying hard-earned money for this thing, I might just be motivated to go.  I then had time to kill before the Latin dance/cardio class so I decided to get on a bike and watch Judy Judy on the overhead TV.  I barely made it to 10 minutes..  on easy "flat terrain".  But at least it wasn't downhill or anything!  That would be embarrassing!  ;)

The dance class was the best class I've done so far.  As one older lady told me at the beginning, it doesn't matter if you get all the moves right, so long as you add in a lot of enthusiasm and energy.  So I gave it my best and almost passed out at the end.  Phew!

Then I cancelled out all my efforts by having wings and wedges for dinner with friends, with a nice, cold glass of Coke.  MMmm..  It was all worth it :)

We went skating tonight, as well, for a friend's birthday.  I use "we" loosely here, as I did no such thing.  I'm not crazy about winter sports, anymore.  I sat on the sidelines and played the role of "Hockey Mom":  tying people's skates, giving them coffee when they skated over, taking pictures.  In the process I drank my coffee and then my husband's..  so I might not sleep well tonight, after all..

It's Friday!  yay!

Sleigh bells ring

I'm not one for winter outdoor activities.  As I've mentioned before, I get cold extremely easily and find it impossible to warm up.  Despite that, almost my entire church assembly went up north a ways for a sleigh-ride and cookout.  We couldn't have asked for a better day.  The sun was splitting the trees, the snow was sparkling, and the farmer was jolly (this may have had something to do with his "hidden" flask). 
I really enjoyed myself, even though we had gotten lost about 2 minutes away from the farm and kept going back and forth on the back roads.

I've stolen these photos, but they're too good to not share :)

 I love horses :)

My husband petting his first mule/donkey

 

photos by bonjourstacy

Fixed - One Big Toe

So my husband lived, after all.  He was brave, but ended up being put under in the end.  So he woke up funny and nonsensical.  The troupe of nurses were all doting on him, which meant he had a lot of cookies to munch on, as well as tea made the way he likes it:  2 sugar, 1 cream..  not milk.  Spoiled, eh?

He's been hobbling around on crutches, generally making a nuisance of himself.  Suddenly I'M the one that's supposed to fetch things?!  Who's going to get me a glass of water when I've forgotten it and have already gotten comfy in bed??  Me.  That's who. 

I'm not used to having a husband who can't dote on me.  I think I'm the one who's been spoiled.  This whole thing has been an eye opener for me!  I have had it GOOD!  What a sweetie he is :)  Ok, I'm rambling..

With his new friend that he made while I was getting the car

The Dreaded Day

Tomorrow is the day to be dreaded as far as my husband is concerned.  We leave bright and early in the morning to go to the hospital for his surgery.  It's day surgery, but it's nerve-wracking all the same.  And I'm taking a wild guess that he's going to be in some serious pain tomorrow so I feel bad for him. 
He damaged the bone in his big toe a few years ago while playing soccer and it's been going downhill ever since.  So he finally manned up and decided to see a specialist, who sent him to another specialist, who then sent him to a very good surgeon.  Who then told him he may lose his toe.  Then he smiled and asked when would he like the surgery?  I take it that every surgeon looks forward to an interesting surgery.

I hope all goes well!  I'm bringing some books because I have a feeling it'll be a long day.

source

Hazzy's Photoshoot

Did you know...?

In Korea, I did a photoshoot of sorts right after I first arrived.  Some guys from the church went out for an evening with myself and a girl we all knew.  We were walking in the fashion/shopping district of Busan and there was a huge bus sitting in front of a clothing store called Hazzy's.  They invited us in for a free photoshoot..  so we said yes :)  Wouldn't you??

It was fun :)  And that's my husband in the middle back..  but I didn't know he'd be my husband at the time.  And I'm 100% positive he didn't either.. haha.

Horseback riding vs. ATV'ing

As a little girl, I had an obsession with horses.  I should rephrase that..  I think I still have that obsession.

I remember begging and begging my parents to be allowed to take riding lessons.  Unfortunately, due to a run-in with cancer as a toddler, my doctors had expressly forbade activities which could lead to major falls or blows.  Horseback riding in particular was on the list. 
I don't recall fully understanding the gravity of the situation.  So I'm sure I must have drove my parents crazy.  I remember many trips to petting zoos, as well as an extensive collection of My Little Ponys.  I'm sure now that they were trying to placate me.

As an adult, I finally understand why I'm to be careful...  but I still don't want to.  I want to take riding lessons!  And I want to learn a martial art!  I do have the sense, however, to realize that this is probably just a feeling of "the grass is greener on the other side" syndrome.

When I was in Korea, I got married.  And for our honeymoon we went to Jeju Island.  Our tour offered stops where we could choose out of a couple activities.  One of these choices was between ATV'ing and Horseback riding.  My husband immediately voted ATV'ing.  Now I love ATV'ing.  Having spent part of my childhood in Newfoundland, I had a bit of experience with that.  And my parents (being protective) rarely allowed me to drive.  So I wanted to vote for ATV'ing.  BUT..  why was it up against horseback riding??  My childhood dream vs. my need for speed.  I bugged my hubby enough that he finally asked the tour guide if we could do both..  and threw in that it was our honeymoon.  After a quick vote on the bus, everyone said we could take the extra time.  (yay!)

We went for the horses first.  It was a little bit of a letdown, to be quite honest.  The mares were saddled up and waiting, and they were as wide as they were long.  Considering they had foals following them around, I'd say they recently had babies, or were again pregnant.  I could barely coax a trot out of mine at first..  it didn't speak English, nor did it seem to care for more than a slow, meandering walk.  I finally got it to go a bit faster, whereas it started bolting in the other direction, leaving Eric to fend for himself. 

That over, we went over to go ATV'ing.  The man said that he'd go slow so we'd have no problems.  I told my husband to tell him that I wanted to go fast.  He was a little flabbergasted, but agreed.  My hubby looked a bit nervous because it was his first time, so I said he could go last out of us three.
The leader took off and I made sure to be right on his heels..  He glanced behind with a shocked expression and gave it the gas.  It was loads of fun!  Lots of hills and hairpin turns..  Apparently my husband almost flipped his over a couple times... till he learned to ease off the gas on the turns :)
We had a nice coating of dirt by the end of it, but it was fun.

Next time I'll vote for ATV'ing unless the horses aren't pregnant :)

Ah, the frustrations

I wish I could understand Korean.  It's getting frustrating.


One of my favourite Korean shows is getting really, really good and I can't even watch it!!  Instead I have to listen to my husband laughing at the latest episode while I have to make do with my subbed version of a 6-8 mth old episode.

So unfair :(

Ah, I love camping

Did you know...

Hammocks are not made for two ;)

photos courtesy of my sister - bonjourstacy

Fishing

Today was such a beautiful day that my husband and I decided to go fishing. It's early in the season so we didn't expect to catch much. But, on the second cast we pulled in a largemouth bass! Being out of season, we had to throw it back, but I really really wish I could've kept it. They're super tasty :)

Looking forward to many more days spent fishing :)

Jejudo - Honeymoon Central

If you have a weekend off and don't want to leave the country, then consider Jeju island as a place to visit.

Jejudo, "do" meaning "island", is a volcanic island located south of the mainland. It has a semi-tropical climate, so it's a lot warmer and more humid than the rest of Korea. At the centre of the island is Halla-san (mountain), a dormant volcano and also the highest peak in the entire country.

The Jeju people lived in relative isolation for many years, resulting in a unique culture and dialect. Even Koreans sometimes have a hard time understanding them! Women have traditionally been the heads of their families, passing on generations worth of knowledge to their daughters. The "sea women" of Jeju went diving in all seasons for the family's food and income, diving for abalone, shellfish, and various other sea life.

One thing you'll notice all over the island is the presence of "stone grandfathers". These carved men are dotted all over the island. Miniature grandfathers carved from volcanic rock can be purchased virtually anywhere for souveniers (I know.. I have several.. hehe) There are several theories as to the purpose of these statues, but no one knows their real origin. ooOOOoo.. I love a good mystery!

Jeju island is also famous for it's oranges. The jeju orange is a type of mandarin orange. They are very pricey, but make a nice gift for someone you wish to impress!

My husband and I went here for our honeymoon and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. We took a tour that let us experience many things such as horseback riding, ATV'ing, a submarine ride, visiting orange and ginseng farms, visiting a few Jeju island history museums, a botanical garden, and much more. It was a fairly inexpensive way to see the whole island in a few days.

I highly suggest it!