Wee bit o' Irish in town

Just when I think life is a bit ho-hum, I need not look further than the local transporation system for amusement and reminder of St. Patrick's Day.

I almost forgot it about this holiday until I happened to be at St. Patrick's station. Actually, the station name wasn't what triggered the holiday. On the subway platform was a guy holding two placards and a plastic bag. One of the signs read 'Bad Cop, No Donuts'. "I thought that was kinda funny," he bragged a thick Irish accent akin to Brad Pitt's in Snatch. The elderly lady standing on the subway platform listened politely. The guy asked if she knew where the protest was being held. He went on about how he was badly mistreated by cops and wanted to join the protest. "They had a boot on the back of my head," he recalled. He muttered more details, but I couldn't quite understand him.

"I'm from Ireland and I thought I would stop by St. Patrick Station since it was St. Patrick's Day," he explained to the elderly woman. The woman, who happened to be visiting from out-of-town, apologetically said she didn't know where the rally was and suggested maybe she knew where it was (as I happened to be standing beside her at that point). I hemmed and hawed, not sure what to say. After the affable Irish guy figured he couldn't pump any useful information from us, he said "God bless, lassie," and headed up out of the subway station to search for the rally somewhere in Toronto.

surprise gift

Today, I got a gift delivered from a friend of a friend. It was inside a shoebox. And it was rather light. So when I finally opened the tightly taped box, inside, to my surprise, I found this ...



Funny thing is I remember telling my sister, who is also a good friend of this person who sent this gift to me, that I didn't really want to knit because it would reinforce the librarian stereotype!

I'm grateful for the gift and may try knitting again. Haven't picked up knitting needles since I was a kid. Should be interesting. Not sure what the first attempt/project will be. Perhaps a scarf would be a safe endeavour.

Happy Birthday Dad!

Thanks for being a great dad, in addition to ...

* patient driving instructor
* math tutor
* listening ear
* financial supporter
* fellow movie buff
* innovative problem solver

I love you!

Happy (early) Mother's Day

Tonight, the guest speaker at our church Moira Brown, spoke about "leaving a legacy." Brown actually went to school at Briercrest (Caronport, Sask.) and now works with 100 Huntley Street. She's an amazing speaker and an even nicer person. My friend Deb and I managed to work up the nerve to say hello to her. Brown's 14-year-old daughter performed a dance to a track from the CD Hungry. She apparently choreographed it herself! Very moving performance.

One thing stood out for me from Brown's message: It's now the performance that counts, but the perfume. What kind of fragrance are we sending out to the world? Are we quietly disrupting the world via our fragrance of Christ?

I've only been to this North Park Community Church in London twice now. The church has a HUGE congregation. It's kinda far to bus, but thankfully I have a friend who goes (and has a car). It's a bonus that she lives just across the street. :) It's been a looong time since I've been going to a church somewhat regularly. I've only got a summer left in London, but I still feel God wants me to get plugged in despite the short period of time remaining.

Happy Birthday Justine!

Just wanted to wish my little sister Justine a happy 30th birthday tomorrow :)

Wow. You're getting old ;)

happy chinese new year

it's all going to the dogs ... well, figurately speaking.

this year, according to the chinese zodiac, it's the year of the dog.

flip side of being in love

orchids
Originally uploaded by shutter_grl.

just caught a documentary on ctv tonight about how people deal with breakup.

at least five people interviewed about their breakup experiences and one medical doctor.

one girl's breakup caused her to feel guity because the guy killed himself she ended the relationship. she ended up starting a business selling handbags. another girl was looking to get her wedding dress altered so it wouldn't look like a wedding dress. her story was that fiance broke off the relationship a week or two before the wedding. ouch. but, she drew on her experiences and wrote a book ... i think it's called "there goes the bride." i might look it up out of curiosity.

on the guys side, they interviewed guys who were dumped. one was depressed and got his doctor to prescribe some anti-depressants. he was a musician and eventually found another girlfriend. another guy turned to his faith for support and consulation.

anyhow, it was interesting how the doctor described physical manifestations of being heartbroken ... not being able to concentrate, not being able to eat, etc. she also noted the difference in how men and women deal with breakups ... but she also remarked how amazingly resilent humans are ... "like watching a phoenix rise from the ashes," as she says.

on a side note, there's a cartoon character called "break-up girl". sounds interesting... essentially this woman (creator) found some humour (not demeaning or anything) about break-ups ... i guess a lot of stand-up comics base their material on break-ups too...

kinda refreshing to see a documentary about a "less popular" topic in a realistic, yet humanistic light.

valentine's eve

it’s feb. 13.

that means it’s the eve of ... feb. 14 ... valentine’s day.

technically, this holiday is just a marketing-driven event to suck more money from consumers. usually the men have the most pressure to purchase a magnificent gift or book a table at some amazing eating establishment. and the women are almost trained to expect something great. so men are scrambling now to get something organized or ordered in time for the big day.

lately, though i have noticed my female friends who are either married or in a commited relationship want to splurge or get something meaningful (whether it’s practical or for entertainment) for their significant others.

that’s encouraging to see because men and women should be able to show their appreciation of each other.

and who says valentine’s day is the only day love can be shown?

something to crow about

Happy Chinese New Year!
Or as the animal of the year would say, cock-a-doodle-doo!

Yes, it's the year of the rooster (or chicken).

Yes, my family ate chicken for dinner (amongst other yummy foodstuffs). We eat chicken most nights it seems. Anyhow, it was a nice dinner (although I ate later than the rest of the family).
Every dish has significance. Usually I can't remember their meanings. Suddenly, I feel very malnourished in terms of culture. Even though my parents and chinese school teachers taught me these rituals and festivals, it doesn't stick in my memory too well.

Christal, the elder of my two cousins, was saying she felt like she was having an identity crises in terms of her heritage. Was she Canadian? or Chinese? Most Canadian-born Chinese feel pulled by this dilemma of wanting to fit in with their Canadian friends, but also wanting to honour their parents and culture.

Meanwhile, my younger cousin, Jo (short for Johanna) is preparing a traditional fan dance for some talent night or something of that nature. And recently, she wrote a paper about chinese gangs. She was studying the norms and values of this particular group. It's encouraging to see the younger generation take such interest in their heritage.

the heart of the matter

this evening was small group and andrew and lisa's house.

we're studying "Waking the Dead" by John Eldredge. good book, so far.

this week, we studied the "heart of the matter." having passion, putting one's heart into life and work is an ideal. but is it realistic?

passion can come and go. however, i think, combined with commitment, putting heart into something is worth it -- especially working with like-minded people who share a common vision and values.

working in the newspaper biz was all about competition (against the local radio station) and heart. every day, you tackle whatever is out there ... whether it's a fuzzy feature about a kid who won some contest, or a hard news story about a sudden blaze that left dozens of people homeless.

the amazing thing, sometimes, is that the paper's role in communicating the need of a person or group can spark a response in the community. a red cross representative began asking her parent organization how she could help with these displaced residents.

having heart gives courage to face any type of situation.

where did all the heart go?