Sunday, December
9th, 2006. Yo, yo. Wat up, wat up wit' you, my favorite of all
my Readers?? Ooooh, you're lookin' hot today! Crazy hot! Have you been working
out? Just thinking about it, and look at the results, already?? Man,
the Power of Positive Thought, eh? Totally works! hahaha! So,
as usual, all sorts of interesting developments these days... this morning I
need to create a 'Singles Page' just to show some folks what I look like, now
that I'm single 'n all... funny! Whodda thunk that, hmmm? And yesterday we went
to this cool Indoor Yardsale at Tori Spelling's house, and Aidan (my little
7 year old, if youse new to the site) had a great long conversation with her
new husband, Dean McDermott (sp? I'll go check it in a minute...). Lovely guy,
and wouldn't you know it, he's Canadian, too. Cara was very, very excited about
seeing Tori Spelling, since she's a huuge fan of 90210. Cool house,
too. Nice area up in the Hills with tons of trees. Lots of fun!
So I had an opportunity to go on a walk-through of a house that is under construction
around the corner from my school. I'm lucky enough to be able to take my students
out into the community as part of their 'Real Life' training, so we've been
walking by this new home for a number of months, now. I'm amazed at how quickly
a large home can be built down here -- you save massive amounts of time (and
money) by skipping the basement.... I'm assuming they had a poured concrete
subfloor, but now that I think of it, it's entirely possible that they may have
had a 4 foot area excavated and just built a regualr wooden sub-floor... must
ask the next time I go over. I took a bunch of pictures, and they wanted me
to put them on here, so I'll need to make them a special page, too. Lots of
work to do!
Anyway, this new house under construction is about 3500 square feet, has a
30 foot Cathedral Ceiling across the whole stretch of the house, with a beautiful
open Loft Office... made me miss my
beautiful office from my old house that you've all seen... I'm
gonna go back and have a look at the house when it's completed. They were at
that bizarre stage when a non-builder comes in and wants to know when on earth
the house will be done, but any regualr builder knows you're at 95% completion,
and it'll only be another couple of whirlwind weeks. Those last two weeks are
always the craziest, because their is sooo much activity in the house.
Cara and I went to Comedy Central's Last Laugh 2006 with Lewis Black,
last Sunday,and it airs tonight on Comedy Central at 10:00 pm --
check yer local listings, as usual... sooo funny! The guy from King of Queen's
was hilarious, and the other big comedian (you'd think I'd go look up their
names, and I will, probably), was hysterical, too. Hope they leave
in all the bad bits! They're always the best. Look for Cara and I in the audience
-- two blondes sitting together, laughing!
Okay, I gots to go. Need to go make that page, 'All
About Me'... haha! Thanks for popping in for a wee visit! I hope you're
enjoying the whole Holiday Experience... oh, that reminds me... holidays aren't
fun and games for everyone -- you know there's always that obnoxious you-know-what
you have to deal with, so you might like to have a wee read at my article I
wrote all about how to deal with difficult people. I've left those
difficult folks behind, but wouldn't you bloody know there's always a
new one to take their place?? haha! Here it is, How
to Deal with Difficult People. See you soon, Baby! Love, Laughter,
& pleny of presents! Ailsa
Sunday, November
19th, 2006.Hello, My Pretties...
too reminiscent of a bunch of flying monkeys, you say?? haha! Okay, Hello,
Me Lovelies! Better? Only a couple of monkeys in that reference?
Man, oh, man, cannot believe how much time has flown by since I've been in here,
last. Lots of stuff has happened, but finding the time to write (you have to
sober up first, so that's time consuming in and of itself, as I'm sure you knows
fer yourself...)... I know, that's the same excuse I've used a gazillion
times, but you know how I loves me a little exageration -- makes every story
you make up all that much better!
Okay, so can't think of any actual Building
stuff I've done lately, except for discussing people's various Renovation
Projects (yessss, makes me all jealous 'n all...why can
I no' have a nice wee house to renovate,
hmmm? Because of the lack of permanency in my life and the insane real
estate prices in L.A.?? haha!), so on to the personal stuff... not toooo
personal, so if you're reading this and you actually know me and now you're
all worried about what I'ma gonna say, ree-laaaax. It'll be a while before I
say anything about that... hahaha!
So Cara and I went to see our favorite Comedian,
Jim Gaffigan, last night -- he
was playing at The Wiltern Theater in Los Angeles... such a beautiful theater!
Jim Gaffigan is sooooo
funny, we laughed ourselves silly through the whole show. If you ever hear he's
coming to your town, give yersel' a wee treat and go see him -- he's hilarious!
And sooo personable, too. Jim was in the Lobby of the Wiltern to sign
autographs and talk to his fans after the show, and he stayed to talk to every
single fan, which is really, really nice. Cara and I got to talk with Jim, and
he remembered me from my website (yep, the one youse reading right now... or
later, depending on the speed of youse brain), so that was fun, and then we
had our pictures taken with him, too. I'll post them asap. I'll try to do that
tomorrow... Anyway, it was a great night, and we both had a great time. And
only three small fights -- that ain't bad...!
We also went to see The
Craig Ferguson Show, because I loooove Craig (or used to, and possibly
might again, but I'm mad right now...) and we were invited especially as VIP
Guests (I'm guessing for our charm and short skirts...), so I hired a babysitter
and Cara and I headed to the CBS
Studio Lot on my only day off... To make a relatively long and somewhat dull
story shorter, we ended up not even getting into the Show! That totally suuuucks.
We was maaaad, except that we got to sit beside these unbelievably
good-looking Danish guys ('Great Danes', I think they wanted to be called...
of course, we were immediately compliant...seemed only reasonable, given the
circumstances-- they were truly fine specimens -- see the word 'mens'
is right in that word!). Anyhooo (yes, this is the short version! haha!), we
told them we were going over to The Grove at the Farmer's Market (at 3rd &
Fairfax in L.A.) to see Borat,
and would they like to join us, so we all ended up in the same theater to watch
my favorite Sacha
Baron Cohen in Borat. Hilarious!
We laughed ourselves silly, which we have been doing a lot of, lately, so that's
a good sign, ain't it??
I'm waiting for more peoples I know to go see
Borat so
I can make a whole lot more'High Five'jokes... more
than I currently make, and just laugh all by myself... and, yes, I am
still Single, but I'm not completely sure why you would bring that
up at this particular juncture in the conversation... hmmm. Actually, it's pretty
funny being Single, again. I never really thought of myself that way, since
I have the kids, and my life just seems more 'stream-lined', now, given that
I don't have to hassle with anyone over anything... oooh, that niiice.
(Plllleeease say that like Borat -- you know I am!
haha!) I think I've been out more with a nice variety of people (no,
not all dates... that's a whole other type of story, and, most likely, fictictious!
haha!), and have been to more places than in my entire marriage. Oh, I'm making
marriage sound as wonderful as it really is... how did Single ever get a bad
rap? I'm havin' a great time! Grrreat Success! I have
my own lightbulb an' everything.
Okay, so I have to get up ridiculously early, so gots to go... see you sooner
than usual, though, since really gonna put up those pictures from the Jim Gaffigan
Concert! Fer sures, eh! (See, still a Little Canadian...) Thanks for clicking
in to see me! You know how I feel about you. You're my favorite. See you soon,
Baby! Love, Laughter & Some Seriously Good Wine, Ailsa
Oh, and if you're in the States, Happy
Thanksgiving!!
<
>
Sunday, October
22nd, 2006. Hey, Baby!! Baaabbeeee. Come on, now. You
know I'm still talkin' to you... how close are we, now? This
close! We can tell each other pretty much everything, right? You want me to
go first? Well, okay... this relationship's gettin' a little one-sided, no?
So I went out to a Sushi Bar on Friday night, and guess who hates sushi?? That's
right -- it me. Me hate it. Yuck. Hope never to eat that, again. And I tried
a lot more of it than I planned to have -- almost one whole piece -- luckily,
most of it fell off my chopsticks -- and they say chopsticks ain't practical
(I'm sorry, that was me who said that...). Not completely sure if there
was some sort of date thing happening there, too... most likely not,
but that's a Bad Sign if you can't tell whether you're
on a date or not, right?? ha,ha,ha,ha! (You know I think that's really funny!
I'm laughin' here all by meself...) Thought it was gonna be some sort of group
thing, but turned out to be 2 guys, 2 girls (goils
at this time of year, what with Halloween
approaching, 'n all...). Hmmmm. Fun to write about, though. Not food to
eat (ick), but good food for my writing! ha,ha! (How many peoples
gonna be mad at me now that I'm single and don't get the whole date
thing?? ha,ha!)
I just colored my hair, this morning. In case you're wondering (and really,
who wouldn't?), I use L'Oreals U-R-43 Grey-Be-Gone... think
that's the right name. I know that's what I call it! ha,ha! My choices for natural
color, now, are grey with some black, or blonde, so blonde it is! No, no. I've
been a blonde by choice since I was 26, so how long is that? More than 10 years,
already?? Must have naturalized into the blonde personality, since I couldn't
do the math from 26 years old aaallllthe
way up to 43! ha,ha! Whatevah'. Who has time for math, hmmm?
So I've been crazy-busy, lately, what with being Single 'n all... no, I'm kidding.
Being Single gives me a surprising amount of Free Time -- time that I would
have had to spend cleaning and cooking... and now I can do that when I feel
like it, not according to anyone else's plan. It's great. Freedom is not over-rated!
I went to this Youth Football Game a couple of weeks, ago. Hilarious to watch
these tiny little guys in their Football Uniforms! My little guy, Aidan, who
turned 7 in September, won't be big enough until next year to play football,
but I really loved these teams, so now, of course, I want to help them to raise
some money. Everyone else is in the stands watching the game, and I'm in the
stands asking questions about how much money they have to support their teams...
that's just me. Can't help it. Got a Good Cause? Tell me all about it, I'll
see what I can do to help...
Anyway, to make a relatively long story short, I volunteered to re-do their
website and to raise some money for them, so I'm hoping my wonderful, extremely
generous (that's what I'm telling everybody you're like...!) Readers will
pass along my little
Fundraising Letter to any Big Company or Corporation you think might like
to make a Tax-Deductible Donation to this Youth Football Association. I think
what I'll do is create a Thank You page on my site (www.buildyourownhouse.ca),
and make a nice Sponors page on the new site for the Youth Football Association.
Might as well use all the great connections I've made over the years with my
site to help out a nice bunch of kids.
Just so's you know, the kids are between 5 and 14, and the Girls' Cheerleading
starts at 5 years old (yes, incredibly sweet with their little tiny cheerleading
outfits on), and the boys start playing football at 7 -- so cute in their Football
Uniforms! The kids work really hard, and the Coaches and Support People are
all volunteers from the Community. They put in lots of time -- now they just
need more money, so if you know anyone who might like to give a little something,
please pass along
my Fundraising Letter. Thank you! You know you're my favorite! (Oh, and
if you would like to make a Personal Donation, every dollar counts and adds
up quickly, so any amount is a great amount! Remember what happened with Oprah's
Angel Network? That started with coins, so imagine what we could do with dollars??
ha,ha! The kids'll have new Helmets in no time!)
Okay, so I gots ta' bounce, Baby. Think we're going to see
if this thing at The Grove by the Farmer's Market in L.A. is
a band or a puppet group... could go either way, since they are called, 'Scott
Land Marionettes'. Who can resist a name like that, especially if you
happen to have a huuuge connection with Scotland,
like meself?? Aaaand, Cara and I really like the Preztel-Weiner-on-a-stick
fancy lunch that they have, too... nuthin' but the best for us now that we can
eat Carny Food and no one's gonna hassle us about it! ha,ha,ha!
Thanks for swingin' by for a wee visit! See you soon! Are you bringing the
beer next time, 'cause I'm down to my last twenty cases... :) Love,
Laughter & Weiners-on-a-stick, Ailsa<
>
Saturday, October
7th, 2006. Hi, Honey! You're Home, again, and I'm glad to see you, as
always. I'm wondering why your hands are all covered in chocolate? I know, it
can be time consuming to lick them all off before you sit down to the computer...
maybe just do your two typing fingers, and leave it at that. Only a matter of
minutes (seconds?? ha,ha!) before they're all covered in chocolate, again, anyway...
not to worry. Hey, is that wine on yer chin? Forget about it. You already have?
Good. Let's move on...
So I finally got my California Driver's License...
man, thought that was never gonna happen. For some bizarre reason, when I went
to take my Driving Test the last time, I pulled my car forward to the testing
area, turned on my Right turning indicator, and the damn thing started blinking
like mad. The girl at the DMV wouldn't let me take the test, even though I think
I might have begged... ah, well. Maybe the Universe was on my side, secretly
(as always!) because when I went in to do the Driver's test last week, I got
my licence and met someone really good looking... hmmm. Oh, California's a lot
of fun! ha,ha,ha! It's like Good Looking People (I think that term is Capitalized,
ain't it??) seem to be everywhere. Maybe the good-looking folks in Canada were
just all covered up with their Sheepskins! ha,ha!
Do I sound cheery? Yes, totally
thrilled to be almost done with the DMV... but got home on Friday to find yet
another document from them about some issues with having a Canadian Car. Right.
Maybe because I'm from CANADA... whatevah'. I'm trying to look at these
little complications as trials to overcome to live the way I really want to...
plus, the Strawberry Daiquiris are sooo cheap here, they can
really smooth out a few of the particularly rough moments. I can't stop buying
these little 4-packs of these tasty wee treats, so now my whole cupboard is
full of them. Enough for a Christmas Party,
which I think I'll have even though we are now in a teensy space, compared to
our last giant house... might
see if a couple of our neighbours want to do an 'Apartment Crawl Christmas Party'...
sounds festive, don't it? ha,ha!
It seems that almost everyone I meet is working on their house in some way
or another. You know I love a Renovation
Story! It's bizarre for me to be renting... I look forward to having some confirmation
on my U.S. Work Visa being extended for another two years so I can go ahead
and buy something. Not a big fan of the Renting thing. I love it, here,though.
We were down at the Pool & hot tub, tonight... gorgeous! The Full Moon over
the Palm Trees is magnificant. Last night, Cara, Aidan and I were down at the
pool (yes, we go every day... what Canadian can resist a swimming pool, regardless
of the temperature?), and the craziest thing happened. My bathing suit literally
started to unravel, if you will, right there in the Hot Tub. I am particularly
fond of the really heavy jets, and I think I might have caused the disintegration
of my favorite black bathing suit... Cara
was calling me 'Elephantina' for a laugh, since the
whole thing dissolved into a pile of wrinkles! (Hope that doesn't actually happen
to myself! ha,ha! That's why Lubriderm is tied around
my neck...)
Oh, and we went to a taping of The Late
Late Show with Craig Ferguson. Man, looove him. Yum. Sooo good
looking. Hilarious, too (as if that's secondary! ha,ha,ha!). We laughed
ourselves silly, and The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson
tapes on the CBS Lot, which is right beside The Farmer's Market at
3rd & Fairfax in Los Angeles, so Cara and I scored a fun lunch in there,
first. We didn't see any Celebrities, this time (outside of
the Show -- Kirsten Bell & Amos Lee were on when we were there), but we
saw Calista Flockhart and Harrison Ford when we were at The
Grove (gorgeous part inside the Farmer's Market) a couple of weeks
ago. Always fun to see Celebrities! Oh, L.A., we love ya'!
Now that I have to get up really early and then actually leave the house, I
can't stay up late enough for The Late Late
Show with Craig Ferguson, so we have it taped to DVR
so I can watch him whenever an opportunity might arise... anyhooo,
I think a great phrase for Craig Ferguson to use on his show
would be,"DVR Me, Baby", in his lovely Scottish Accent!
All the women across North America'll be checkin' him out! ha,ha! Loooove the
DVR -- it's the coolest invention, ever. Right up there with our cool new toaster
with the 'Egg Maker Option' that kinda works, but looks great... sounds
like some people I know! ha,ha!
I've gotta get my camera all set, again (can't find the wires to connect it
to the computer...), so I can show you some cool Before & After photos of
some of the properties I've seen lately. Hey, we could add that feature to my
site -- if you have some great Before & After pictures,
send them along. I'm working to see if I can get that Side Navigation Bar on
my site (the same thing I've been trying to do since 'Site-Conception', so-to-speak!),
to make Site Navigation a lot easier. I'm crazy-busy these days, but if you
have any interesting (as opposed to hideously dull...) ideas for my site, by
all means send them along to me.
Almost forgot... someone wrote to me not all that long ago (within the last
month) to ask me if I really did lose that weight with my Apple
Crumble Diet, and do I really do the 'Anti-Cellulite
Exercises'? The answer is yes on both counts, and we have have a great gym
here at our Apartment Complex, so I do the Cellulite Exercises whenever I go
to the gym. I'm back up to a 35 pound Free Weight that I lift with my feet (oooh,
sounds glamourous, me knows!), but it is the most effective excercise I've ever
come across to get rid of any
cellulite that happens to be floating around back there... pop into my Exercise
pages if you want to see how to add some simple exercises to your life that
will make a big difference in shaping your body. (Round into not-so-round...
that be my goal! ha,ha,ha!)
Okay, I gots to go. We good?? Good. You know how I feel about you. Shhhh.
Don't tell the others. That infighting is annoying, not to mention the noise.
Go finish yer chocolate. I won't look, if you are using both hands, now. :)
See you soon, Baby! Love, Laughter & Plenty 'o Chocolate, Ailsa
xox (surely we know each other well enough for that, now, don't
we?? ha,ha,ha!)
Oh, hey. I bought a new Hallowe'en Costume, this year. I was gonna go as a
Freudian Slip, since I think that's really funny
(Black sexy slip with Freud written across it... fun and
funny, much like meself! ha,ha,ha!). I happened upon a Wonder Woman
Costume, and really, that's perfect for me, what wit' da Thigh
High Boots, 'n all... maybe I can get a picture of that to put on the site...
wish me luck finding the right wires, which you know I struggle with!
Friday, September
15th, 2006. Hey, Baby! What up wit' yer bad self, hmmm? What's that?
You don't understand why I would say you are 'bad', when you only went down
that slippery slope of seemingly appropriate behaviour a few times, yesterday,
and how did I even know about that? Well, that's a lot of questions, and let
me just say that I am happily assuming you gots yerself a 'bad self',
and perhaps that's how you found me in the first place -- am I right??
ha,ha!
Man, I am sooo sorry it has taken me so long to get back in here for
my updates... I've been a little busy restructuring my life -- sounds like 're-stucco-ing',
if that's a real word... it's late and mostly I'm thinking about Survivor!
You know how much I love Survivor
(and now, not just so I can look at a beach when it's minus 30 outside -- now
I live 10 minutes from the actual ocean, and I'ma totally loving that!
Yippee!!). Love it. Big, giant Social Experiments like the one that's going
on with Survivor, right now, appeal to me, plus, I
happen to enjoy checking out the buff bodies ... who knew I could work 'Buff'
into that sentence?? ha,ha! Love those Survivor
Buffs! Anyhooo, what's your take on the whole 'division by race'
thing? Bit disconcerting, don't you think? Hope there are no negative ramifications
to that. Definitely interesting to watch. I hope to God that we are all far
enough evolved to see that people divide up according to personality, male/female,
personal interests, age... all sorts of things that bring people together and
tear folks apart. Gonna be an interesting ride...
Okay, so I am now completely settled into living in L.A., and man, do I love
it! Aaaaah, I feel right at home here... ever had a place where you
are just drawn to it, and feel completely relaxed and happy when you get there?
That's how I feel about Los Angeles. I have a fantastic apartment, which I have
decorated beautifully (really happy with all the new furniture and artwork),
and the bestest teaching job, ever -- Special Ed. C.B.I. (Community
Based Instruction). My students are great, and I have the best Assistants ever,
so I feel incredibly blessed. Plus, my job is very close to my new place, so
I get to live in L.A. and take surface streets to get to work -- not one bit
of Highway Driving!! Yahoo! How lucky is that?? If you've ever lived
in a giant city, you'll be nodding right now, and if you happen to be sitting
at your 'puter with a drink in your hand, perhaps you already started nodding
before I even got to that part... yuff, yuff!
Better get to bed -- early mornings, these days! I hope you're having a great
time in your life, too, and if you are struggling with something, think of what
you really want and go for it, Baby! That's what I did, and here I am, all happy
'n stuff!
Oh, and I'm listening to the new Justin
Timberlake CD,, Futuresex/Lovesounds
and it's really, really good. I'm on Track 8 (Damn Girl),
and so far, every song is better than the last... not very often that the whole
album (do people still say that, or I am living in the past?? ha,ha!) is great!
Amazon - <Futuresex/Lovesounds
>
Thanks for popping in for a wee visit! You know I love to see you! Next time
won't be nearly so far away, I promise! Hugs! Ailsa
<
>
You can use this link to go straight into the Barnes & Noble site -- I
buy most of my books and music through Barnes & Noble, because their prices
are great and they actually ship to Canada -- I'm lovon' being able to buy stuff
online that will be shipped without question now that I'm in the States! One
of the many benefits!! Check the prices at Barnes & Noble for their
CDs -- they always have the best deals!
Saturday, August
12th, 2006. Okay, so I'm in California. Like, totally in L.A.,
man. (Yep, I think that's the
right way to say that... so tricky learning a new language, 'n all...) I can't
tell you how exciting this whole thing is -- new Apartment, New Job, New Life...
so much fun! Little trepidatious about some things, but that's easy to get past
just because of the sheer volume of things I have to do to get all settled in
down here. I'm lovin' L.A., though! Saw the ocean for the first time since we
arrived a couple of weeks ago, and it was stunningly gorgeous -- worth all the
work to get here! (Do I sound happy?? I am, and it feels good to be
this happy... gleeful, if you will!)
Man, almost forgot to ask how you are doing,
today. 'A-day... as in "How you doin', ah-day?" Oh, Slang.
It's my favorite thing to imitate, but with my own special spin to amuse myself
even more... and speaking of amusing myself even more, I gotta say that Alcohol
is incredibly cheap here in the U.S., and readily available at the Grocery Store,
so you can pick up the milk (if you can remember that), and all the Corona and
Jugs-o-Wine that you can squeeze into yo' cart. (Guess how I know that?) And,
no, for the record, I didn't buy the Meglo-Wine...but cheap Cororna? Who can
resist that??
So we've been busy buying Furniture,
Bedding, Dishes,
Towels... I'd forgotten
how much stuff you need to get just to set up a small home. I stumbled (no,
this is not related to the above-mentioned cheap alcohol...) across
this fantastic little Furniture Store when we were slightly lost on
Overland Ave. in Culver City last Saturday morning. It's called Caprice
Furniture, and it was like one-stop shopping for me, since I walked into
their store and saw every piece of furniture I wanted for our new Apartment,
which is fantastic, by the way... more on that, later. Anyway, I got everything
in that beautiful deep Cappacino (that can't possibly be the right spelling,
but it's, like, waaay past midnight, and the spelling part of me brain
has already nodded off, and here I am still typing...)(Did you see how I was
attempting to assimilate into the local culture with the extra 'likes'? Hmm?
Good? ha,ha,ha!) Capecino. Forget it. Looks like a good portion of
my brain has completely fallen asleep, and I think the rest of me wants to follow...
these are exhausting days by the pool... yuff, yuff...
Okay, so I'll take some pictures of the new place and how we're decorating
it as soon as I find my cameras -- surely they must be around here, somewhere...
and then I just need to find the wires to force the pictures out of the camera
and into my 'puter, and we're all set. Should take me less than a month,
or so, depending on how many times I go to the store for milk, I suppose...
har, har!
Oh, and I have never seen so many good looking people in such a small area
in all my life -- and not all actors, neither! Not that being surrounded by
Actors would be bad, since it's sooo much fun to meet all these Hollywood types...
Uh-Kaay, gots to go... (you have to relax your mouth to really say
that Valley Girl "Uh-Kay" thing, but believe me, it's well worth the
effort, then you can say that in every Meeting you go to next week. Oh, your
Boss is gonna looove that, and I see a Promotion in your Near
Future ... I'm pretty sure.) Hey, thanks for swingin' by for a wee visit! See
you soon, Bay-Beeee!
Tuesday, July
25th, 2006. Hey, there, Sweet Thaaang... That's Californian
for "Why Hello There, How Ya' Doin'" in other parts of the Land...
I gots to learn the Californian
Lingo, 'cause I'm on my way down there to find a New Life! Yahoo!! (Too
Coyboyish, with the Yahoo 'n all? That's okay, I'm still in Calgary,
Alberta, but not for much longer, now...) I've been sooo coy with my hopeful
little plans to create a new life for myself and my kids, and now I can finally
let you in on a bit more of it... I'm going down to Los Angeles, California
to look for a great Teaching Position in Special Education, my favorite, favorite
Students to teach. Not that I didn't love all my other Students, 'cause
I did, but Special Needs Students hold a special place in my heart (are you
weeping, yet? No, just me?), so I can hardly wait to meet my new Students!
Anyway, in case you're a long-time Reader,
and if you are (is??), Thank Youse. And if you're new, Welcome, welcome.
All the New Readers have to bring the Wine -- I didn't make that Rule, but it
does seem about right, dontcha think? So anyhooo, you might be wondering
what my Marital Status will be, and yes, it's gonna change to Single Status.
Maybe not right away, but in time (two weeks or so... is that the Norm??
ha,ha!). It's gonna be a different kind of Update, now. More about Renting and
not-so-much about Building, on account of the insane prices of Land in Los Angeles...
but who knows? Maybe I'll get lucky and find a nice little Lot in L.A. with
a house I can either tear down or do a big Renovation Job on... we'll see!
In the mean-time, I'm going to look at some
amazing Rental Properties
('cause I figure if I have to Rent, it oughtta be good, since I hate to throw
my money away like that... you know how I love a Real Estate Investment!), so
I'll let you know as soon as we secure somehting great. I'm looking in the West
Los Angeles Area, since my beautiful Daughter, Cara,
will be spending her days trying to break into the Entertainment Industry they
call 'Hollywood' while we're there... all very exciting!
We're gonna go to lots of Shows, and hang out at The Farmer's Market, which
we love, love, looove!
Dwight is going to stay in 'The Transition
House' (so named because I wasn't completely sure how long we would stay here
in Calgary), but this is a great house... we put up some beautiful Sconces from
Linens-N-Things, and I
draped some lovely Window Scarfs through the Sconces, and the Windows look fantastic.
Very happy with that. Now I'll have to get all new stuff for our new home, since
I'm only bringing a few essentials (yes, Artwork, if it'll fit in the car! ha,ha!
Oh, and a few of my very favorite Silk Plants, which sounds a bit crazy given
the limited space, but I'm really, really fond of those plants...).
So crazy-busy time for us... I'll write when
I can to let you know where we are, and how things are going. Oh, hey. Have
you been watching Big Brother All Stars? Man, that's a funny
wee Show. I looove the whole Kaysar as 'The Iraqi Peach', which
is oh-so-true, since he is deeeelicious (is that a Single
thought, me wonders?? ha,ha,ha!). I'm hoping Jace goes next, since he just annoys
me, what with all the hair care and throwing things, which are not very good
signs... Will is hard to figure out, in his declaration that he hates everyone
in the house...who can be bothered with that, even if he does look
good... I still love Janelle, Howie, Kaysar & Marcelas (spelling??).
James, not so much. I like it best when all the in-fighting starts, and the
love affairs start to sizzle -- now that's good Summer TV! ha,ha,ha!
Almost forgot about Last Comic Standing -- my two faves are
Josh Blue and Ty Barnett -- sooo funny! And I still get a kick
out of seeing Tim Meadows whenever he's on the Show as one
of the Judges, since the day I met him at the Farmer's Market in L.A.! A Chance
Meeting I hope to repeat! (Wink, wink!)
Well, I better go pack my stuff... I'm hoping you have some fabulous plans
of your own for this Summer... thanks for swinging by for a wee visit! See you
soon, Baby!!
<
>SuperPass will once again have live video feeds from the Big
Brother house for users to view 24/7. Some of the features include:
NEW! Interact with other Big Brother fans in chat, message
boards, and blogs
Get the first peek with 24-hour live video feeds from the house
Don't miss a thing! Watch 4 in-house cameras at once
Friday, July 14th, 2006.
Hello, Gorgeous! Gooooiirgeous... how's your summer going, so far, hmmm? I hope you're
having a fantastic time, and some of it doing things you might not have thought
you would do... sometimes those are the best moments, right? Hey, you know what
I was just watching when I am supposed to be writing this? Only You,
an old movie (oldish, since 1994 doesn't seem that long ago, to me...),
but it starred Bonnie Hunt, Marisa Tomei and Robert Downey, Jr.,
and what a cute little movie. A lucky find, no doubt. Not sure how I missed
this film when it came out, but sweet little story about Destiny, which I'm
all about, and magnificent scenes of Venice
and Italy. Now I have to go! Anyway, if you're looking for a nice Summer
Film to rent, look for Only You -- too early for wine for
me, today, (can you believe that I think there is a time when it's toooo
early for a drink? Yep, because of a recent hangover, but I'm over that
now... still a lingering memory, though, which leads me to believe that occasionally,
some times are just too early for libational treats...!) but I'm thinking this
movie would have been excellent with a nice Red Wine...ha,ha,ha!
So we've been in our new 'Transitional House' for two weeks, now, and it's
really coming along. I'm amazed at the amount of free-time you have when you
don't live on an Acreage. Only takes a few hours to take care of absolutely
everything on a City Lot, including mowing the lawn -- who knew city life could
be so easy?? Plus, we moved into a Lake Community (in Calgary, Alberta, we have
'man-made lakes', on account 'a not having any real lakes, but I'll
take any body of water... so it's been a lot of fun to go to the beach,
and Cara & I took out a paddleboat, which was hilarious! Much better than
the constant work at the Giant House, I have to say.
It's Stampede Week here in Calgary,
so all very busy and Cowboyish for the duration of the Stampede. They
have Stampede Breakfasts every day all over the city, then the giant Carnival
and Rodeo stuff down at the Stampede Grounds -- all very exciting. Personally,
though, I only go to the Stampede for the deeelicious little donuts... I have
no idea what kind of 'carny' secrets they have for making these incredible little
donuts, but they're worth the price of Admission alone -- now is that a good
or bad story? ha,ha,ha! Who cares, they're great! All cinnamony 'n everything!
Yum. Now I have to go there, too...
I've been really busy fixing up the house to make it all high-end, with some
gorgeous drapes and window hardware from
Linens 'n Things, my favorite store for Decorating.
I put up some really elegant Sconces, which added a nice architectural feature
to the house. I put them (well, I chose them, and then
Dwight put them up...) in the Living Room, Picture window in the Kitchen,
and in the Master Bedroom and Master Bath. Beautiful. I'm really happy with
the look. I just pulled the Drapes through the Sconces, and let them drape (makes
sense, no??) over the Roman Blinds the previous Owner left here. Might as well
work with what you already have, right? I still have to do all the rest of the
windows -- maybe later.
Also, I bought another vehicle this week -- a White Rendezvous, which I love,
so now I have to sell my White Van. I discovered a great product that really
freshens up a new-to-you car, too. Let me run downstairs to get the
name of it -- be right back!
Okay, here I am... and the product is a tiny spray tin called OZIUM.
I'll write to the company to see if I can get some more info, but this stuff
is amazing. Apparently, it can freshen up any room or area that you want to
smell nice, or in my case, have no scent at all... I'm thinking this would be
a great product if you have rented or purchased a home or apartment that has
been smoked in, or if they had any pets you can still smell (yuck), but if this
product can take care of that, isn't that a lucky find? That's two
luckies in one day -- Yahoo!! (I say that in honor of The Stampede!
ha,ha!)
And now for the personal stuff -- I'm still working away in the background
to get things moving in a 'southern direction', and hoping beyond hope that
things will all work out. I don't like to be sooo evasive, but I'll
let you know as soon as things firm up what else is happening in my life. Let's
just say I am studying for yet another test for Teachers, called the CSET. It's
for California Teachers, and, frankly, I had no idea there was so much I didn't
know... little daunting. All sorts of Californian History, which I haven't studied
before, and World History I'd completely forgotten... good thing I picked up
the Study Guide when we were in the Biggest and Bestest (think that's
right -- hope that's not on the test! ha,ha,ha!) book store, ever,
the Barnes & Noble in The
Farmer's Market at Fairfax & 3rd in Los Angeles. (Yes, right beside
the CBS Lot, and yes, I DO hope to spend a whole lot more time there...!). Sadly
enough, I haven't even gotten to the Math & Science part of the
Study Guide, so wish me luck with that exam!
Okay, so better go finish my actual work I have to do, today... see you soon,
Baby! You know you're my Favorite (shhhh, don't tell the others...!) Go have
some Good Fun (and a wee bit of bad fun, too...), today!!
<
> You can use this little 'button link to go straight into Barnes
& Noble -- I buy most of my books through Barnes & Noble, because
their prices are great and they actually ship to Canada -- a big deal around
here! ha,ha!
Saturday, July 1st, 2006. Hey,
Baby! How's your weekend, so far? Fantastic, me hopes! We've had an insanely
busy two weeks -- last week was the craziest, fer sures... moved out of the
Giant House and into the normal sized-house (5400 sq.' down to 1500 sq.'), so
a huge adjustment. Squished our enormous funiture into this new house, so looks
a bit over-done. Must sell the Big Stuff and replace with normal things... Dwight
heard about a place where you can put some high-end furniture out for consignment,
so maybe we'll try that...
The New Neighborhood is fantastic, though -- it's a Lake Community, so we have
Lake Access, a clubhouse sort of thing, and lots of parks. Oh, and real live
human beings, some of themm the actual sze of Aidan,
so he's very excited at the prospect of having children his own age to play
with right in his own area... mostly retirees in our old Estate Area... and
Tia has a Fenced in yard, here,
so I don't have to worry about her being carried off by roaming coyotes, anymore...
ah, the upsides of living in a City!! ha,ha!
Big storm, right now, so should probably turn off the computer... not clear
on that whole 'Power Surge' thing, but better not to risk it... pop in and check
out my new Blog on Myspace.com.
I just copied this directly from my new Myspace Blog...
Hey, I'm finally on a Blog... or in a Blog. Whatevah'.
A whole year I've been trying to figure out how to get that on my website, www.buildyourownhouse.ca,
so now my Readers frm my Site can pop in and see me (man, I hope they bring
some Gin -- Lemon Gin, in particular...) any time they want... yippee!! I'ma
Bloggin'!
So we moved out of the Giant House (the 5400 square foot home I built in 2002
that's featured on my site) into a normal house in Town (Calgary, Alberta).
Nice to be out of the Country and back in the City. And good to get my computer
set up, albeit in a bizarre location... right in the Master Bedroom, and wouldn't
you know it, 'The Master' (now why does he insist on being called that... sooo
crazy! ha,ha!) hates the computer more than life itself. A perfect match for
me, no?? ha,ha,ha!
Speaking of that, working hard to re-establish myself in my 'Old Life', so more
on that as it progresses. I just posted my favourite July
Horoscopes on my site, so pop back over to check those out. The
Free Monthly Horoscopes from Rose Marcus -- just had a Reading from Rose
over the phone -- very cool. Looove that sort of thing!
Oh, and my daughter, Cara, just graduated from High School on Friday, so I'll
post her pics on my site asap -- have to find the cords to connect to the camera
& computer -- who knows what boxes they're in...! Really, must unpack some
time soon!
Better get going, as just trying this out!
Check it, Baby! (Yes, think Ali
G...!) I just created a profile in myspace.com, so come in and see
me. Maybe this is how I will actually be able to do a Blog, since I never did
figure that out on my Site! http://www.myspace.com/89837190
Happy Canada Day to all
my wonderful Canadian Readers, eh!! And a Fantastic
4th of July Holiday to all my Free & Fabulous American Readers!!
(Hello to everyone else, too!) Have a great Weekend, and enjoy all those Fireworks
& Barbeques!
Thursday, June
22nd, 2006. Howdy, Folks! I say that now because I only have a few more
days of Country livin' -- yahoo!! Back to bein' a City Girl!! Yippee! I
find when I drive home, now, I keep thinking as I drive further and further
into the country (we're 15 minutes outside of the city, so bear in my my need
for embellishment when you read that...
ha,ha,ha!) that if I lived in the City, I'd be home right now... if you live
in a large city, already, you'll be very familiar with those annoying giant
banners to remind you of where you don't live! Anyway,
it'll be great to be so close to everything, and our new house has a giant field
behind it, and eventually a mountain view, so it'll be easier to get used to
the 'New View'.
So we had a major fiasco trying to get into
the new house, and by 'into', I mean 'take possession of' ... there was a big
screw-up with the Funding, where the Mortgage
Company didn't bother their, uh, shirt, to fax
over the funding papers for the Bridge Financing for this new place. (Bridge
Financing is the money you borrow while you're waiting for the money from your
current home, if you have different Possession Dates... it's literally a bridge
between two houses... well, not literally (although I would like to
see that...) but you get the idea. I have a couple of ideas for the Mortgage
Company -- one is not nice enough to print (?! ha,ha!), and the other is to
buy another FAX Machine, and hire as many people as you need to in order to
actually fax over documents that are critical to other people's lives... how's
about that, little Mortgage Company, eh?? (Yes, I'm still in Canada,
too, so trying to use all the folksy language while I still can!)
The most annoying part of the wait (well, one
of the annoying parts...) was that I lost two full days of possible moving time,
so my old Moving Plan is all shot
to hell... ah, well. I had everything all carefully planned out of what I was
going to move with my van, on my own (you know, all the personal items), but
now I'm looking at stuff in this house to see what else the Movers can take.
Mostly, I wanted them to focus on moving the Big Furniture, and I thought I'd
do most of the rest myself -- I now see what a terrible idea that was, since,
as it turns out, we have a massive amount of crap that I have somehow accumulated
over the past 4 years... hmmmm. Wonder if my need for Things contributed to
this little problem? ha,ha,ha!
I did take over my favorite new spirally wrought
iron candle holding thing I insisted on buying at the Descanso Gardens when
we were down in California
on holiday in April. It's about 5 feet high, and about 18 inches across.. and
completely necessary, so I'm not sure why you ask that... Luckily, there was
a hook above the Kitchen Sink, so I hung it up on that, and frankly, it looks
lovely! It's a little shocking how much smaller the new house is compared to
this one (5400 square feet in this
house down to 1500 square feet in the next one), especially since I kept
thinking that our stuff would somehow magically fit into the new place. I'm
still hopeful... what's that you say? Deluded? Hmmm.
I suppose I'm a wee bit delusional, but that's always worked for me in the past,
so I'm stickin' with it! ha,ha!
Oh, how was your Father's Day?? Mine was much
better than I thought it would be, on account of Cara,
who has just turned 18 so she orders Drinks with every meal (or any other possible
occasion where it might appear there could be a drink involved -- where did
she learn that from, me wonders? ha,ha!). Anyhooo, my point is that Cara orderd
a Long Island Ice Tea, and I ordered my usual Strawberry Dacquiri (spelling?
I've already packed my dictionarrry), so to make a long drunken story shorter,
Cara didn't like the Long Island Ice Tea, so I inherited it... yippee!! Then
I was loaded, but had a much better time. So I think the Message there
is that if you have some crappy thing to deal with, try it with booze, and loads
of it... or, no, wait. Read The
Four Agreements, so you know it's not about you, then have
some drinks! ha,ha,ha! (Yes, that is for my own amusement!)
Okay, so that's probably enough time away from
packing and moving. Oh, quick Moving Tip: When you are moving
Pictures and mirrors, stand them up on their sides, for one, but the most important
thing is to wrap them (no, not like a gift -- haphazardly is faster...)
in your towels, that way you can transport your towels and mirros & pictures
in one go. I'm definitely doing those on my own, because I don't want anything
broken. I'm very attached to my Art...
Better go, before Dwight
calls and finds out I'm on the computer (still hates that... whatevah'!)...
can't wait to get back onto High Speed Internet, since it didn't come this far
out in the Country (it's one Estate Area over from us, so no doubt it'll be
here shortly after we leave...). See
ya, Dial up!! ha,ha! Okay, I could go on and on, as I'm sure you know (!),
so let me say good-bye for now, and I'll see you at the next place. I'll try
to take some pictures to show you the changes I want to make right away. New
Lighting, New Door, New Door Locks... Dwight is over there, right now, drywalling
the Garage, because it's important to get your priorities straight, and a Drywalled
Garage is right at the top of the list for Dwight, apparently... meanwhile,
I'm actually going to move us into the house, to make it into a new wee Home!
Thanks for swinging by for a little visit!
Did I tell you how fantastic your nails look, today? Yes. Gorgeous!
Been to the Salon?? Freshly clipped, are they? Mine are freshly chipped,
but no matter. Chances are high no one is even glancing at my fingers! ha,ha!
Talk to you later, Baby! Love, Laughter & Lots of Change,
Ailsa
Thursday, June 15th, 2006.
Hello there, my unbelievably brilliant Friend, you! And Good Looking
-- man... lucky you get through the day without being totally mobbed...
okay, that's enough about you, now let's get back to Meeee!
(Remember how John Lithgow used to say that on Third Rock from the Sun all the
time -- very funny! And only a tiny bit narcissistic...! Agh, I've already packed
my giant Oxford Dictionary, and God Knows I never use spellcheck, because it
is forever correcting every apostrophe and the vast amount of words I choose
to misspell... just go with it, and after the move, I'll be sure to have better
(gooder??) spellin', and that's fer sure.
Anyway, I really have been packing like crazy, because the move is
coming up in a little over a week. We've been able to sell a few big items,
so that's good, and we've given away a ton of stuff, so that lightens the load
a wee bit... I'm trying to separate things out into all these different groups
-- what's definitely going to the new place in Calgary, what's possibly 'moving
on' to a sunnier place, and what has to just go...
and stuff that my lovely Daughter, Cara, might want for her own place, should
that happen (after 18,you really have to be open to anything happening... so
her favorite Shot Glasses and Martini Glasses are packed in their own special
boxes...)
Oh, quick Packing Tip: Go to the Liquor Store (you might already
have that planned for later, today, anyway... ha,ha,ha!) and get those Wine
Boxes with the cardboard partitions for the Wine Bottles, and use those boxes
for you Wine Glasses, and perhaps for all the booze in yo' house that needs
to be moved!
One more Quick Moving Tip: The Moving Guy from the Moving
Company gave me this tip, and I'd never heard it before, so here it is... When
you are moving your Washing Machine, run the Spin Cycle Twice before moving
it, and shove an old towel between the 'drum' and the inside Rim of the Washing
Machine. Apparently, it prevents any damage from the drum rocking around during
the move. Good to know. I think I've always just left the Washer & Dryer
with every move, but this time they're coming with us, so that's valuable information
for me, and perhaps you!
Man, I've run out of time, yet, again. I hope everyone has a Fantastic Father's
Day, and that you have at least one Dad you love enough to admire and do nice
things for on Father's
Day... my Dad is Wonderful, so that's lucky!! I always get him an assortment
of Wood Working Tools, or other kinds of Tools, and some sort of Sweeties...
as far as I understand it, that's what Dads really like! ha,ha!
Have a Great Weekend, and try to sneak in some Cake!! Love,
Laughter & Cake, Ailsa
Hey, The Apprentice Finale is tonight, and then I'm waiting for the follow-up
Wedding with the English guy who is in looove with that girl wit' the brown
hair that he can't stop gazing at... hilarious!
Monday, June 5th, 2006.Hey,
Baby! What's up wit' you? You are lookin' fi-i-i-ine... and
I don't mean that in the "Oh, you like fine", which is no compliment
at all -- that's just annoyink... like when some idiot (let's say it's
your spouse...) says, "You think that top'll streeetch to fit
you??" Hmmm. Now that's not good for a relationship, is it? That's why
I say you, my lovely friend, are looking fabulous...
and I'm sure your top will easily stretch to fit you
perfectly...
So that finally brings me to our delightful Trip down to California.
Actually, it really was delightful for me, and the kids had a great time, too,
but Dwight... not so much. I had a lot of stuff to do while I was there,
so I wasn't available every second to be at his beck and call, much to his complete
distress. Whatevah'... (I learned me that word in Califoneeeeah). I
did get a lot accomplished, though, in preparation for, hopefully, the next
Phase of my Life. More on that as it 'firms up', which brings me back to the
'stretching top' scenario... happened when we were all down at Venice
Beach on the Coast of Los Angeles, a beach I used to spend a tremendous
amount of time on, oddly enough, wearing a thong, which now would maybe fit
over one knee, but I digress ( but only a little)...
Cara and I had been shopping
for clothes we are most likely not going to find in Calgary, so we emerged from
the oceanside shops with a USA Bikini for Cara (who just turned 18, so now I
have an adult for a child -- who knew that would happen so soon??), and a large
variety of tiny outfits. In an attempt to interest Dwight in something we were
doing, I showed him the tops I had just purchased, and that's what prompted
the "think that top'll stretch" comments. Oh, so kind. Words not to
say to yo' wife, lest she change that title... and for the record, I'm not bitter,
just more determined than ever...
We did some very cool things when we were down in L.A. that you might like
to try the next time you go (maybe it'll be your first trip to L.A. -- but you
know what they say, "Once you go L.A., you'll be back to stay". Oh,
wait. That's just me who said that, but I mean it...!
It's fantastic down there! Anyhooo, I was able to get
some tickets for some TV Shows that I love, so Cara and I went to see The
Late, Late Show with Craig Ferguson on the Monday, and that was a lot of
fun. After the taping, I took Cara over to The Farmer's Market
at 3rd & Fairfax, right beside the CBS Lot, and we had a great time over
there. I even met Tim Meadows,
who was having dinner down from where we were sitting. What a lovely man! And
now he's on the new 'Gameshow Marathon', so every time I see
that, I say to everyone in the room, "Hey, he just shook my hand!"
Ooooh, all very exciting! ha,ha!
The Farmer's Market used to be this one building sort of thing when Cara and
I lived there when she was little, and we would swing by on a Sunday, but now
it's unbelievable... just gorgeous. They've added this entire enclosed street
right behind where the original Farmer's Market was (still is..), and it's all
lit up at night, with a lovely Fountain, fantastic Restaurants, and the biggest
Barnes & Noble Book Store
we've ever been in -- stunning!
Cara and I scored a couple of tickets to The
Tonight Show with Jay Leno, too, so we went there on the Wednesday, and
had a fantastic time -- we were both struck by how incredibly personable Jay
Leno is... what a lovely person. So relaxed and comfortable in his own skin,
and very kind to his audience. I'm thinking that a massive salary, and complete
contentment must bring that on, along with his own hilarious personality.
After the Show, Cara and I got a little bit lost trying to find the Freeway
back to the hotel (great Hotel, by the way), so we accidentally came across
this Psychic House-thing, so we, of course, screeched to a halt, seeing this
as a Clear Sign... the Readings were okay, but the best part was this Restaurant
that was right beside the Psychic's, called Sebastion's, right
on Riverside Drive in Toluca Lake, down from the NBC Studio. Sooo
cool. The Owner, Sebastion, (surprise!) came out to
talk to me while I was waiting for Cara -- what a great guy. So many nice people.
Half the restaurant was outdoors, with a fountain and couches for lounging (did
I already say,"Soo coool"??), and the best French Fry collection
I've seen in a while... Oh, I gots to go back!
Dwight & I went to see Craig
Ferguson, again, on the Thursday, and that was a lot of fun. I
brought my copy of Craig Ferguson's
new book, Between the Bridge & the River, in hopes that it would be
signed (there were only two of us in the Audience with a copy of his book),
but it didn't happen. Little surprised by that, since this was before it was
really big, and they could've at least had some sort of wee stamp with Craig's
name on it, or something... but the whole experience of being that close to
someone you watch every night was very cool. And he's still one of my favorite
Comedians... and Tim Meadows does a Bit on his show, too, so it's all good!
Okay, I've gotta get back to packing -- the first Big Move is in a couple of
weeks, so crazy-busy around here! Ride the Big Wave, Baby!! Love &
Laughter, Ailsa
Hey, you can help spread the word about my Site
-- here's a new 'Tell A Friend' that my friend James made for me.
He's been working away to teach me some new things for my website that I desperately
need to learn to make the improvements I really want. Oh, and don't feel restricted
by the whole 'Tell a Friend' thing. You don't even have to really
like someone to tell them about www.buildyourownhouse.ca!
What do I care? I'm just interested in loads and loads of people coming in for
a visit -- maybe even buying something through the Site! And who knows??? Maybe
they'll quit borrowing money from you by learning how to Manage
their own money after reading my Articles!
ha,ha! So here it is, and it's easy schmeasy to use!<
> Thank You!! Soon we'll be enormous!
(And I don't mean just because of all the Caramel Apples, neither! ha,ha,ha!)
Uh, oh... I see there's no apostrophe in the Friends Name Box --
must tell James! Rest assured ( I don't want you to lose sleep over this!),
I do know it needs and 's... we'll fix it for you! See ya'! Ailsa
><
