Takoyaki (octopus balls), Izumiya, Granville Island, and Kwong Chow

Vanessa got on MSN and complained about waking up early - trust me, I can definitely understand after this week! She picked me up at 10 AM, which was fine. We went to Lansdowne Mall briefly since she had to go to the bank, to Granville Island, to Kwong Chow restaurant for lunch (practically next door to Uncle Daniel's practice), and to Izumiya so I could maybe find some octopus balls or takoyaki... I did find them in the FROZEN section, so bought 50 of those along with some bananas. Discussed James / Texas, how Teunis needs to just COPE with things normally, Krista, Tess unfriending me on FB, bad drivers, annoying pedestrians at crosswalks (especially those who don't look before crossing OR who don't organize their kids!), family, Jon, Paul and BS, Steph, Mom, gay marriage, and Lisa. Mom does say things behind people's backs, and Jon needs to just shut up about people who CROSS LINES when they're virtual strangers! I got some peppery beef and shrimp noodles (with leftovers!), and the restaurant also forgot to charge Vanessa for her gai-lan.

Also talked about her brother, cold showers, hair and grass in her car smelling like mold, her dad, her annoying mother, Victoria, pastries, parking, how margarine is only a couple molecules away from plastic, butter, Wayne coming home soon, all-you-can-eat sushi, Pho, exploding spaghetti squash, the warmer temperature, a Domino's delivery driver in a Mercedes (WEIRD!), and more. While we were at Granville Island, I saw this funny "men aren't allowed to pee while standing up" bathroom sign from Edible Canada Bistro. Being me, I just HAD to buy it! Now it is proudly displayed on my fridge. *grin* We also went to the market, where I bought some green olive bread at the bakery; at the liquor store, I bought a small bottle of honey lager. Vanessa was looking for Mexican Coke with real sugar, but couldn't find any - we declined any fudge, heh.

When I got home in PLENTY OF TIME for my weekly tradition, I checked my email trash folder to see that the lards' South American cruise with Harmony's parents is confirmed in March... guess I'm Grandma-sitting! Barry called me by mistake; then I was looking for Mom, but Dad answered the phone to say she was working. He warned me about Grandma bugging me all the time, her not being able to use the microwave or communicate with Valerie (neighbor), her dangerous forgetting that the oven is on, Auntie Eva, respite, and more. He thinks I shouldn't be too lazy when it comes to helping out with Awana - hey, I couldn't get a ride out, and having free Saturdays has actually been a BOON since September! So basically, he has NO IDEA what he's talking about. :P