Dream about tubs of fries in the forest / Teunis calling / Family Drama

I had a weird dream about being on a school bus and going to a Krispy Kreme / fast-food outlet in the middle of the forest. A bunch of us had been there about ten years before, so we were trying to remember all the funny jokes we'd told for everyone else's benefit. My dad was just trying to get Auntie Catherine and a bunch of other aunties to help me with money issues, but then I'd have to get up early in the morning to go to their houses! Sam and Jeremy didn't mind if I sat between them or fell asleep on their shoulders; Justin and Clement were trying to figure out how to get to the States / Burnaby from the snowy road (green road signs!); and Nathan remembered the green swamp in the middle of the road, which was now iced over. We saw a HUGE group of kids and adults who apparently wanted to buy an unhealthy amount of fries and such from the local fast-food outlet (dark blue and red background with BOLD WHITE TEXT) - we saw dozens of huge tubs with fries in them, and reflexively said "EWWWWWWW!" No idea why I had that dream, haha! About half an hour after I got up, Teunis called to wish me a Merry Christmas, which was very nice! (I knew it was him because of my subtle Caller ID, haha) Poor guy had to try keeping it brief a few times since Skype / the network wasn't working very well - I could mainly hear static, heh. As long as he keeps me posted about the other thing,life should be fine in that area!

You Will Probably Avoid All Holiday Drama

It's not that your family is any less drama-prone than the average family - you just know how to deflect drama. You remain upbeat and optimistic, even when you're surrounded by stressed-out, bickering people. You avoid being stressed out by taking a break from the holidays whenever you need to. You remain cool, calm, and collected - even when you're thrown into very challenging situations.

Are You Headed for Holiday Drama?

Blogthings: Free Quizzes for Everyone

Wearing KILTS in relationships! / Chinese Eric was SICK!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Eric came over for about five minutes while I got ready, since I thought he was calling me from the house at 6:30 - whoops. After giving me a Christmas present (which turned out to be a Canucks mug with Apples and Cotlets candies), he correctly assumed that Teunis had moved the bookshelf with all the books - if you think I did that myself, you'd be WRONG! We were on our way within a few minutes, and spent the ride discussing the usual subjects: his speaking in French, Homestar Runner things, "blue liquid" (which sprung from his joke that I was drunk - WRONG TIME FOR THAT... GET BACK TO ME NEXT WEEK!), doing sound, our weeks, WOW references, driving in the rain NOT being fun (but imagine if it were snow!), and more. When we got to church, he asked whether he should give Steph's gift to me, Jon, or Harmony - and whether he should just keep everything for them and Christon in the car. I advised him to give the gift to Harmony, and just take everything with him unless it was too bulky - that's what he ended up doing! In the sanctuary, Calla was telling Nathan about her wedding - Stanford hadn't wanted to get an umbrella, but the weather forecast was iffy that weekend in October, and it ended up POURING! Her brother Acer wants to get him a kilt for Christmas, symbolizing their wearing shorts / skirts / no real pants in the relationship! Jon came up in the middle of THIS conversation, and wondered what we were talking about, hahaha!

Nathan also wondered what had happened to Chinese Eric on Wednesday (he'd seemed excited about brunch...), since everyone just ended up staying home. I said that Jon and I figured that maybe his mom wouldn't let him out of the house because of the sunlight outside, which COULD happen! Harmony was giving us an inquiring look, so Nate said that it was a Chinese Eric "thing" to bail without explanation sometimes, and added that he had a Chinese friend named Eric for Calla's benefit. "If you want a white Christmas, look over there at the piano where white Eric is, hahaha!" (I talked to Chinese Eric on MSN when I got home, and he said he'd been SICK! He was sleeping and resting - he hates being sick, which is apparently happening to him more often now - yikes! I'll have to remember to tell Nate that tomorrow - I'm only in for Xmas dinner because he's coming, and I can get a ride from Jon and Harmony... haha)

I managed to give Christmas cards to Dianne, Wesley, Lincoln, Cordia (before she had to go to the bathroom), and Phil for his mom. Said hi to Kevin, heard about Randal's new job (not my place to congratulate him), and talked to Isabel and Nathan about her plans to go to Europe for two years later on. Nathan tried telling her in a funny way about Ciel and Singapore, but she didn't get it! The candlelight service itself was good, especially since certain people didn't show up! However, the candles on the Advent display were finicky when we had to ignite tealight candles for our symbolic Christ action, haha! Good thing my row was among the first to do that! (although I ended up going in the wrong row - Nate said he'd done that, too)

Later, I said hi to William / Emily Lam (Sam came back last Friday) / Christon (who gave me a card) / Jon (who gave me Karen and Lincoln's card) / Karen, Lincoln, and Vivian / Dianne (she's in charge of the turkey dinner) / Hannah and Natalie / Priscilla (she's a Christmas Eve baby, so I made sure to wish her a Happy Birthday instead of Merry Christmas) / Cordia (she laughed when she saw the "Santa Makes A Tragic Wrong Turn Over Tokyo" card - I knew she'd like it!) / Dawn and Eni / Andrew L. (figure skating!) / Adam L. / Lanie / more people. By the time that was finished, I was definitely ready to go! I gave Eric a LOOK when I asked if he were leaving soon (he was talking to Christon about phone interviews and such - said he was ready if I was - OH YES!), and then Dianne wanted to know if we were going anywhere afterwards. Chris was playing with my Santa hat - good thing I saw him since he leaves tomorrow! His brother Wesley wanted to go out with Jon and other people later, so Eric and I referred them to Dianne - her parents have been away in China since the 2nd, and Cindy went to Fraserlands tonight instead of OUR church! On the way home between Christmas songs / DARKWING DUCK, Eric tried telling me to befriend certain people: NOT HAPPENING WITH ICKY FEELINGS! Yes, my abbreviation for Bible Study is BS - what of it?! He also hopes my mom doesn't poison me with the turkey tomorrow, haha. Got home and emailed Karmie to wish her and the family a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, too.


Trivia fact for Saturday, Dec. 25: What did Germans use to make artificial Christmas trees when they were banned from cutting down fir trees in the 19th century? Goose feathers that were dyed green, wound around small sticks to resemble branches, and then inserted into a bigger stick that served as a tree trunk. They were made as tabletop ornaments after forest preservation laws were passed to stop the decapitation of fir trees.

7-3 wins, wish blitzes, creativity, snow globes, and a RICH Santa Claus!

The Canucks won 7-3 against the Blue Jackets last night, which is an excellent thing after that overtime loss! I also completed my annual FB Christmas wish blitz within two hours, which is pretty good. Got up today to plenty of wall posts and comments; I was definitely expecting those, haha! Checked my mail to find a Christmas card from Kelli (neonrose5) - Eric also called to ask if I were going to the candlelight service tonight; maybe if I feel less like dying! To figuratively sweeten the pot, he said that he had a gift for me - fine, I guess I'll go since I also have cards to give out to people whom I haven't seen in the past couple of weeks, haha. I asked if his parents were going, but they aren't. He has to be there early, so I guess I can only be lazy till 6:30. BLAH!

You Are Creative

You see the world in interesting and unique ways. You are definitely a visionary. You are constantly being inspired to create something new. You are a natural artist. You see beauty in almost everything. You can appreciate people for who they truly are. You are authentic and honest. You may be a bit quirky, but you never hide the real you.

The Christmas Snow Globe Test

Blogthings: We're Not Shrinks, But We Play Them On the Internet

Trivia fact for Friday, Dec. 24: Who did Forbes magazine list as America's richest fictional character, with an infinite estimated net worth represented by a dollar sign and the infinity symbol? ($∞) Santa Claus - in 2005.

Yay for a new fuzzy red pair of socks! / Holiday cards

Had a nap just now, which must be MDSE. Then I finally got around to checking my mail - YAY FOR A NEW FUZZY RED PAIR OF SOCKS FROM KARINE! (plus fish stickers and a postcard featuring the Alberta Northern Lights) Called my sister to tell her some sisterly things, and some stuff from Nathan: apparently, her friend wanted to leave if I were my mom, hahaha!

You Are Peaceful

You love the holidays, and you don't get too hung up on how they should or shouldn't be. You go with the flow, and you try to appreciate every nice little thing that happens. You are open to new holiday experiences. You like traditions, but they certainly aren't set in stone. Unlike most people, you rarely feel lonely during the holidays. You can always stay occupied with something!

The Holiday Card Test

Blogthings: A Fine Line Between Insight and Stupidity

You know you have to do laundry when you're out of underwear! / Psi trailing

As I thought, Chinese Eric didn't call - I let Jon know before I did my laundry since I was out of underwear. I don't really want to battle the last-minute Xmas shoppers just because I want to buy stuff on a whim, so it'll have to wait till January since I'm not a big fan of walking around in the cold, either. Chrissy let me know that she got my card, and Billie says that her birthday will involve walking fifteen to twenty minutes from a nearby Korean restaurant to her house - straight and downhill should be doable! The Canucks lost 5-4 to Detroit in OT, too... yikes, haha. Redrum has also shown up, ugh!

Trivia fact for Thursday, Dec. 23: When it comes to pets, what is psi trailing? The uncanny ability of a cat, dog, or other pet to find its owner(s) in an unknown distant location or from an unfamiliar place. Psi stands for psychic.

Dream of Superstore being flooded with a sinkhole! / Where is Chinese Eric? / Mazes

As I expected, a phone call woke me up. (I was in the middle of a dream about Superstore being absolutely flooded with a huge sinkhole and puddles galore, but having to walk back to William Bridge in the rain anyhow) It was Jon, wanting to know whether I'd heard from Chinese Eric - I haven't heard from him since Sunday, when he said that he'd pick me up at 11 or 11:30 for brunch today! Nathan had told Jon that Eric might not go downtown, so Jon asked me whether Eric was scared of downtown! I told him that his mom had said something about how sunlight would aggravate his condition, and it was kinda sunny-ish when I looked out the window just then! Of course, I assumed that they'd be having brunch at the place Jon suggested, heh. Since Jon was watching a lot of documentaries, I called Eric's number, only to get the machine / voicemail. Jon figured that I was staying home if I didn't hear from him, which is true enough!

You Are Structured

You are organized, logical, and practical. Whenever possible, you try to plan carefully. You take a lot of time to enjoy yourself and live life to the fullest. You don't mind being in the slow lane. You find that most tasks are more difficult than you anticipated. And you don't give up until the job is done. You work hard for the feeling of satisfaction it gives you. Any money you get is secondary.

The Labyrinth Test

Blogthings: We're Not Shrinks, But We Play Them On the Internet

DONE with posts! / Sleep before Chinese Eric wakes me up / Word Association Survey / Mistresses

I am finally DONE with all the entertainment posts! :D

At this moment, my priority is getting some sleep before brunch tomorrow. I fully expect Chinese Eric's phone call to wake me up, after all...


Word Association Survey from Quizopolis.com

What word comes to your mind if I say life? - Death.
Spirit? - Ghost.
Drugs? - Heroin.
Reality? - Fake.
Perfect? - Content.
Sad? - Blah.
Laugh? - Cackling.
Whisper? - Quiet.
Breast? - Nipples.
Bubbles? - Blowing.
Birthday? - Celebration.
Magic? - Tricks.
Pretend? - Imagining.
Games? - Sports.
Hero? - Shakespeare.


Trivia fact for Wednesday, Dec. 22: What famous American political figure wrote and published a "letter of advice" on the subject of choosing a mistress? Benjamin Franklin, in 1745.

Holiday greetings and SPEED

I got a Christmas card today from Jillian (priestessdiary), which is nice. Jon also emailed us with many links to brunch places, and says he can only hang out for 90 minutes tops as he has a lot of movies to watch tomorrow! Hahaha, nice - as long as he remembers my card from Karen and Lincoln, this should be fine.

You Are Merry Christmas

You are a traditionalist when it comes to the holidays, and you aren't going to be politically correct about it. You celebrate Christmas, and you don't think there's any reason to hide it. Most other people celebrate it, too. You are content to wish everyone a "Merry Christmas." It doesn't have to be a religious thing. "Happy Holidays" is just too generic for your taste. You aren't going to tone down your greeting for anyone.

What Holiday Greeting Are You?

Blogthings: We're Not Shrinks, But We Play Them On the Internet

Trivia fact for Tuesday, Dec. 21: In the 1994 Hollywood thriller Speed, what speed must a Los Angeles bus remain above to avoid detonating a bomb planted by a terrorist? 50 mph.

2010 Bolding Survey: Surfing in California, and swimming with dolphins!

This year, I have...

Graduated High School.
Smoked cigarettes.
Got so drunk I passed out.
Been on every ride at an amusement park.
Collected something really stupid.
Gone to a rock concert. (free Olympics concerts!)
Helped someone.
Gone fishing.
Watched four movies in one night.
Gone long periods of time without sleep.
Lied to someone.
Snorted cocaine.
Failed a class.
Smoked weed.
Dealt drugs.
Taken a college-level course.
Been in a car accident.
Been in a tornado.
Done hard drugs (i.e. ecstasy, heroin, crack, meth, acid).
Watched someone die.
Been to a funeral.
Burned myself.
Ran a marathon.
Seen my parents get divorced.
Cried myself to sleep.
Spent over $200 in one day.
Flown on a plane.
Cheated on someone.
Been cheated on.
Written a 10-page letter.
Gone skiing.
Been sailing.
Cut myself.
Had a best friend.
Lost someone I loved.
Shoplifted something.
Been to jail.
Had detention.
Skipped school.
Got in trouble for something I didn't do.
Stolen books from the library.
Gone to a different country.
Dropped out of school.
Been in a mental hospital.
Watched the Harry Potter movies.
Had an online diary.
Fired a gun.
Gambled in a casino.
Had a yard sale.
And a lemonade stand.
Actually made money at the lemonade stand.
Been in a school play.
Been fired from a job.
Taken a lie detector test.
Swam with dolphins.
Gone to Sea World.
Attempted suicide.
Voted for American Idol / Australian Idol / X Factor.
Written poetry.
Read more than 20 books a year.
Gone to Europe.
Loved someone I couldn't have.
Wondered about my sexuality.
Used a coloring book when I was over age 12.
Had surgery.
Had stitches.
Taken a taxi.
Seen the Washington Monument.
Had more than 5 IMs / online conversations going at once.
Overdosed.
Had a drug or alcohol problem.
Been in a fist fight.
Suffered any form of abuse.
Had a hamster.
Petted a wild animal.
Used a credit card.
Gone surfing in California.
Did "spirit day" at school.
Dyed your hair.
Gotten a tattoo.
Had something pierced.
Received straight A's.
Been on the Honor Roll.
Known someone with HIV or AIDS.
Taken pictures with a webcam.
Started a fire.
Had a party while your parents weren't home.
Gotten caught having a party while they were gone.

Editing, Marie, Kaitlin, gingerbread, and my attachment style

Earlier, I had to do a lot of editing on entries, but it's done now! I got a great Christmas card from Marie (Reebee) featuring a gingerbread man that turned into a snowman - yay for scratchy things, heh. Also got an awesome Christmas card from Kaitlin (deformed_foetus) featuring gingerbread people making snow angels - she also included a Canada flag which she colored herself. Yay for being addicted to coloring way past childhood! :D

Your Attachment Style is Preoccupied

You expect others to love and respect you, but you're still working on loving and respecting yourself. You crave intimacy, and sometimes you try to get too close to people too quickly. You are afraid of being rejected, and you feel ashamed if someone else doesn't share your feelings. You tend to alternately push people away and overwhelm them. It's hard for you to find a happy medium.

What's Your Attachment Style?

Blogthings: Cheaper Than a Therapist

AIRPLANE and SPY HARD!!!!! / Horse feathers

Steph called me at 5:10 to see if I needed a ride; she slept in, so wasn't at church to hear Jon's sermon, either. She was concerned when I told her about white Eric's scratching his eye! Chinese Eric called ten minutes later, so we were off to the Leslie Nielsen CELEBRATION OF LIFE movie night soon afterward! He had some news for me which definitely made me think that it was time for him to really think about what Nate and I were telling him last night! We also talked briefly about Des while I gave him directions from the gas station to the townhouse. I should have told him to pick me up an hour later because Jon, Harmony, Jeremy, and Nathan didn't get there till almost 7! (but we passed the time by watching the news and declining my mom's offers of chocolate and food - SNOWSTORM IN CALIFORNIA?!) Mom told me to call white Eric; when I did, his dad said that he was about to leave in the car! Yes, of course he was coming... his eye is recovered NOW, but it wasn't in fine shape this morning! Of course Mom was (rightly?) concerned, and offered him some eyedrops when he did get to the townhouse, haha!

AIRPLANE and SPY HARD were pretty funny - luckily, the movies had plenty of visual humor, so even Grandma could get some amusement out of them before she went upstairs to watch Chinese TV! We could definitely understand the innuendo and such that just went over our heads as kids when we watched AIRPLANE years ago, and the lines were pretty funny! "A hospital? What's that?" "A big building with patients." Hahaha, so deadpan! "Stop calling me Shirley." Jeremy was telling us that Weird Al did the intro for SPY HARD (a James Bond parody with JURASSIC PARK / HOT SHOTS parodies), and of course it was true - that was funny enough in itself, oh my!

Steph gave me Ripley's Believe It or Not! Enter If You Dare! (Believe It Or Not! Ripley's) and some spicy green tomatillo salsa from Granville Island, and Mom gave me Guinness World Records 2011 (Guinness Publishing) / two packages of seaweed / Old Dutch jalapeno cheddar chips (which I actually haven't had in some time) / some sweaters and vests / a pair of pants. Haven't decided what to keep yet, haha. I noticed some info about Barbara's memorial service, and figured that Mom would go there - I won't, because I didn't know her very well AND because I never really lived in the complex! It's awful what happened to her, though... :(

After the movies, we talked about SURVIVOR (white Eric's parents watch it) / some two-year-old homebrew of Jeremy's basically tasting like fizzy water now / Nathan's pictures of the Philippines and London (Guy Fawkes bonfire!) / Harmony going home with Steph. While my parents were busy with something else in the kitchen, Chinese Eric asked us to hang out with him at brunch on Wednesday - Nathan is probably going to join me and Eric (he'll drive me - he's a giving guy), and Jon / white Eric have no idea as yet. Good times with my close friends, anyway! Jeremy definitely remembered his jacket this time because it's cold enough to notice: last time we came over in September, he got all the way to his front door after Steph dropped him off when he noticed he didn't have his keys! The poor guy had to take the Canada Line back to Richmond so he could meet my dad and get his jacket, AND he had to work early the next morning! Oh dear... on the way home, Chinese Eric and I just talked about personal stuff. Of course it was fine if he just dropped me off without walking me to the door - I don't expect that treatment all the time, haha. It's true that now he's back in town, we can hang out more often! At home, I received the welcome news that Billie has indeed gotten my Christmas / birthday cards - YAY! Now I'm just catching up with Corey, who's back from Taiwan for the holidays - he gets to see his new nephew for the first time tomorrow! He also did get my card; well, it was here waiting for him today anyhow. Says he'll check it out tomorrow, haha.


Trivia fact for Monday, Dec. 20: Where on a horse would you find its feathers? In heavier horse and pony breeds, on the lower legs. The feathers are the long hairs that cover the lower fetlock (ankle joint) and hoof area. Clydesdale horses have the thickest feathers.

Scratched eye = circumstances beyond my control, man! / Gingerbread Cookies

High-scoring words of the afternoon:

BOVIDS (277 points) - against Yvonne S. [3W, two 2W, 3L on B used twice, hook off AS to make BAS]
URTEXT (120 points) - against Teresa J. [4W, 2W] {a good deficit-erasing word!}


Eric called me this morning at 8:45, ten minutes after I finally got out of bed since I didn't want to leave the warmth. He said he'd scratched his eye somehow (how did THAT happen?!), so I assumed he'd stay home, and he added that I still had time to maybe call Ivan. With my crap night of sleep, that wasn't happening - thank goodness I hadn't nuked my Crustini yet! Put that in the fridge after figuring that the freezer would crack the plate after I put it in the microwave, then went back to bed. Got up again at 1:30, which was a much more reasonable time, haha.

You Are Steady and Stable

You're the type of person who doesn't change from year to year. You can be counted on to be you. You are well-grounded and reasonable. You can look at things calmly, even when emotions are involved. For you, the holidays are about family and tradition. You prefer to do things mostly the same way year after year. If anything, you are likely to add someone or something to your celebration without taking anything away. You like your holiday traditions to grow over time.

The Gingerbread Cookie Test

The First Rule of Blogthings Is: You Don't Talk About Blogthings

Insight, 4-1 wins against the Leafs, Domino's pizza, and BILLY BUDD as an opera

Chinese Eric came by at about 3:30 as he said, and came in to look at the computer. For some reason, he made it work where I could not - thank goodness I don't have to lug that tomorrow to the parents' place, otherwise my mom would have something to say about it! (probably much the same as HIS mother: "why are you buying a computer for this girl?!") He and I both know that we cherish our friendship, and he's naturally a giving guy anyway. He had a bit of water before we left - talked about a LOT of stuff tonight, especially when Nathan showed up! Most of the conversation is off the record (as it should be), but we did talk about messed-up exes / insight into death threat messages and red flags / Des / drawings / my being a guinea pig for Nathan's prompt cards / Ryan Kessel's "long stick wrapping around a player" (thanks, Nate...) / Nathan's research into being Chinese / Domino's pizza / clips of the Rape of Nanking and my reactions / girlfriends / psychoanalysis / the past / chocolates / salsa / chips / Lays / "guy thoughts" (I walked in on the wrong part of the conversation about bikinis and February!) / family opposition and such / major life changes / Steph and Lisa (and THOSE reactions!) / Jon / Christon / New Year's Eve / tomorrow's movie night. Erica said bye to Nathan later on before she went out, too. The Canucks won 4-1 against the Leafs, and Minnesota beat Chicago 3-1. Nathan drove me home when Eric couldn't find his car keys - when we exited the house, there was a good reason why. His dad had taken the car!


Trivia fact for Sunday, Dec. 19: What famous composer turned Herman Melville's novella Billy Budd into an opera? Benjamin Britten. The libretto was written by E.M. Forster and Eric Crozier.