The Bermuda Triangle
Jay: Well, this is fate! She’s divorced, we don’t want to redo the cabinets, and you need a wife. What do they call it when everything intersects?
Sam Baldwin: The Bermuda Triangle.

Yesterday was a strange day for coincidences. I was reading on edmontonjournal.com about the former Edmonton Chief of Police plotting to set up an Edmonton Sun writer. And while I’m reading this story, I’m thinking, that’s entrapment. Then that afternoon I was watching Ed (because I had taped it) and the woman Ed was defending in court was being accused of entrapment. I thought that was weird. Later in the evening, I was watching The Factor, and Bill’s guest was talking about Churchill (you can’t turn to any station without hearing about Churchill) and how Churchill said that smallpox was given to the Native Americans by blankets from the government. That they intentionally infected these people. It’s being disputed by some, and I don’t really know anything about that to say it’s truth or fiction. Wouldn’t it be hard to prove? But last night, in reading my Canadian History For Dummies, Will Ferguson said the British may have done that exact thing to the Natives in Canada (in 1763).

I just thought it was a strange set of coincidences.

As I said, every channel is talking about Churchill. I’m getting really tired of it. I just want it to stop. This morning, Gov. Owens (whom I generally like) said something that set Geoff off into “scream at the tv” mode. He (Owens) said he didn’t want to pay Churchill’s salary, that he signs his paycheck. The truth is that the state barely gives anything to the University. It contributes like nil to the post secondary institutions, and is always cutting what little funds it gives. Mary says the UC schools also get the least amount of money from their alumni in the whole U.S. They just don’t breed loyalty. I think it would be best for the Gov. to just stop talking, and let Churchill just keep talking the noose around his neck. We’ll see what happens.

Mary stopped by this morning to take me to lunch. It was quite a nice surprise. We went to Gunther Toody’s which is a neat little diner. A lot like Ruby’s (for those who’ve been to Ruby’s), or Johnny Rockets. The menu offered quite a bit, and the prices were reasonable. Our waitress was Rizzo, and she almost had enough flair on to rival Brian.

Well, nothing else is going on. I wanted to point out I have been adding to the list of blogs I read, some new ones have appeared, and I organized them by gender. No real reason for that, just it was looking odd to me. Feel free to peruse them at your leisure. I’m going to close with a quote from Mulan.

Mushu: OK, let’s see what you got. “From General Li. Dear Son, We’re waiting for the Huns at the pass, it would mean a lot you if come to back us up.” Hmm, that’s great, except that you forgot “and since we’re out of potpurrori, perhaps you wouldn’t mind bringing up some.” HELLO. This is the army. Make it sound more urgent please. You know what I’m talking about?

The Railroad?

Thanks to Roland for posting this quiz, though I thought I’d be more exciting. 🙂

The Disneyland Railroad: A real steam powered
train, like the old mighty Santa Fe, on a
picturesk route like no other! You take people
from the turn of the century to Frontier-era
New Orleans, to the bonifide hometown of Mickey
Mouse, and into then into the world of the
Future, passing through the Grand Canyon,
Jungles, Forrests, Fantasyland, and the ancient
world of the Dinosaurs along the way. Always
on time, you are steady, reliable, orderly, and
a practical form of transportation for your
passengers in the park. You greet visitors as
they enter and say goodbye to them as they
leave tonight. You have an eye for old world
detail and craftsmenship, even as you represent
the industrial age and the spirit of American
ingenuity. An old icon of progress, you may
not be the fastest ride or as sleek as your
Monorail cousin, but you can rest assured that
you are just the kind of magical experience
that Walt Disney himself liked best.

What Disneyland attraction are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

Down From The Mountain

We’re back from our weekend in the mountains. We left Saturday about 9:45, and Geoff was on the slopes by noon. While he spent the afternoon skiing, I spent my time riding around on shuttles trying to get where I wanted to be. I got us checked into the FoxPine Inn, which was right off the slopes in East Village, then met Geoff for lunch at Jack’s in Center Village. Once Geoff went back out skiing, I did some browsing in the shops before heading to the Athletic Club to go swimming. After my swim, I headed back to the room, and Geoff was already soaking in the hot tub. I went out to visit with him, but could not enjoy the hot tub because it’s a no-no when you are pregnant. We took the shuttle back out to Center Village to look around, as Geoff never gets to see what’s there, he’s usually on the mountain. We decided our best bet for dinner would be JJ’s which is in the East Village. We enjoyed a tasty dinner, then retired to our room. Watched a little tv before we fell asleep. We woke the next day, grabbed some cinnamon rolls for breakfast, and parted ways. Geoff was back out skiing, and I went to check us out of the room (check out is at 10am), and go back to the pool. After leaving the pool I went back to Center Village to check out the shops I missed the previous day. When Geoff called me to meet up for hot chocolate, I was just a few shops away from him. We waited outside Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory for five minutes until it opened, then ordered two dark chocolate hot chocolates. We found a bench in the sun and enjoyed the mountain air. Over our drinks, we decided to grab some lunch to go and head home. The skiing wasn’t as nice as the day before, and Geoff felt he was okay leaving. I talked him into going to Grand Hall Market for lunch, as there were signs everywhere saying they had lunch specials for $3.99. GHM is located in East Village above JJ’s. It turned out to be a great deal, and Geoff says he’ll go back there everytime. Once inside the building, the food smelled so good, we decided to stay and eat. We were on the road by 12:30 and home just about 2pm. Copper Mountain does offer a lot to do if you don’t want to ski. I was pretty impressed. Being pregnant, I couldn’t take part in those activites (tubing, skating, and curling), but I found I had plenty to see to keep me busy. It’s pretty family friendly, it’s affordable, and I would totally recommend it. I only took four photos while we were there, but I posted them for you to see.

We watched “The Big Game” yesterday, and I was so happy to see the Eagles give the Pats a game. I was rooting for the Eagles, as I don’t really like Tom Brady (but his portrayal on The Simpsons following the game was bang on), and the Patriots have already won enough times, I wanted someone else to win. (*NOTE: This idea of “having won enough times” does not apply to USC). My favorite commercial was FedEx Kinkos, even though I dislike FedEx, followed by NFL players singing Tomorrow (from Annie). As I sort of mentioned, we did tune into The Simpsons, something we haven’t done in a while. We feel like it’s not what it used to be. But the episode wasn’t so much funny as it was true. At least that’s how I viewed it.

Colin Update: He’s doing okay. They had to sew his cartilage together, his bone was stuck in it. He’s in a full leg cast (one of those blue things) from his thigh to his ankle. He’s on crutches, and off work for several weeks, if not months. He’s annoyed because he can’t do anything, and more than anything just wants a new knee. I may give him a call today. I feel bad for him, because when he was out with his arm injury, he could still go out and get around. Please pray for a speedy recovery, and for him to have the patience to let himself heal.

Well, that’s all I know. This week I have a doctor’s appointment, and our first baby shower is on Saturday. It’s going to be an “unshower”, meaning no baby games, and there will be beer. It should be interesting. I’ll close with a quote from Intolerable Cruelty, which was on tv yesterday.

Miles Massey: “Dismiss your vows, your feigned tears, your flattery, for where a heart is hard, they make no battery…” Mrs. Rexroth, do you know those lines?

Freddy Bender: Objection, your honor.

Judge Marva Munson: Grounds?

Freddy Bender: Uh… poetry recitation.

Not Again!



Colin was in the hospital today having surgery. Again. This is his 3rd surgery in the last 18 months. This time it’s on his knee. I will have more details later. Here’s what I know now:

(from Dawn:) On Monday his knee locked and he has not been able to walk on it or extend it since.  He is in the OR right now…they figured he tore cartilage and now the bone is stuck in the cartilage.  They couldn’t tell us much more until they sent a scope in to look at it.  We don’t know about recovery time or anything as the doctor can’t really see what is going on until he goes in with the camera. (end)

He’s only 26. I just don’t know what the deal is with his body. Or maybe he just wants some attention.

Sometimes I Make My Life More Stressed…

And sometimes others do it for me.

I can be such a hypocrite at times, it’s so disappointing. I have been procrastinating sending an email for well over a year, and I finally got around to typing it. I still haven’t sent it, I am in the process of forcing people I love to proofread it first. So while I am not sending off an email telling someone how I really feel, I get worked up over someone not communicating to me followed by them lashing out at me. Now one of these situations has been resolved (at least I think so) so I don’t have that stress. But I still have this drafted email to send. I often go on about the beauty of not living near family, and in this situation it is a blessing. It allows me to tell this person how I feel without having to do it to their face. I know, “Confrontational Melissa” doesn’t tell someone what she thinks to their face? But it’s true. What can I say, relationships are complicated. But the other situation could have been avoided had we live near family. At least I hope that would be the case.

I don’t want to go into that anymore. Let’s talk about something else. Lisa, Brooke & Laurel were on The Big Breakfast Wednesday morning, showing off their bowling (and coaching) skills. Lisa is offering to throw me a baby shower when I get to Edmonton this spring, which would be a hoot. I sure miss having Lisa around. Thank goodness for AIM and phone calls!

We asked Paula & Simon to feed Honey on Saturday while we jaunt off to the mountains. Simon is having surgery today, so he wasn’t able to go to Vegas, as he had planned. Geoff was hoping to get Simon to bet on the Pats for him. They set a date for their wedding (November 5), and we have offered to watch the cats while they are gone. They are getting married in Cabo, with family & friends traveling there to witness it. They said they’ll likely honeymoon there too. We’re more than happy to look in on Gary, Monkey, and O.J., since they’ve been nice enough to watch Honey. Plus, I don’t anticipate doing any traveling at that time. I want to get all our trips done this spring & summer.

I just have some chores on my plate today, laundry, dishes, making a list of what to bring this weekend. I may try to talk Geoff into a trip to Harry & David to get some Moose Munch for the drive home from Copper. Yeah, twist his rubber arm. For those who haven’t tasted the goodness that is Moose Munch, it’s caramel popcorn with almonds and cashews. You can get it with milk chocolate or dark chocolate (either partially covered or totally covered), or with white chocolate and macadamia nuts. You can even get it sugar free, or peanut butter flavored. For Fall/Thanksgiving they had maple/walnut flavor (which sold out really fast) and at Christmas it came peppermint flavored (yummy). They even offer Moose Munch flavored coffee. Glen is addicted to the Moose Munch Bar, “caramel popcorn confection, folded into our smooth chocolate truffle fondant with whole almonds, cashews and toffee bits – then drenched in sweet milk chocolate or elegant dark chocolate.” I must say, I love that I’m considered “laid off”, it means I still get a staff discount. 🙂

Well, that’s all from me. Have a good weekend. I’ll close with a quote from The Simpsons.

Groundskeeper Willie: It won’t last. Brothers and sisters are natural enemies. Like Englishmen and Scots! Or Welshmen and Scots! Or Japanese and Scots! Or Scots and other Scots! Damn Scots! They ruined Scotland!

My Home & Native Land

“Yes, Canada. It was a frozen, hostile wasteland. And there was much work to be done if we were to survive the elements. After boring a hole through the ice to find food, my good friend Nantook and I would build an igloo to protect ourselves from polar bears. . .and flying hockey pucks. Then we would drink a lot of beer. Then when Nantook was ready, he would tell me the story of the Great Moose. . .who would say to the little squirrel, ‘Hey, Rocky! Watch me pull a rabbit out of my hat.” -Jim Carrey

I just felt like posting that. I like to perpetuate the myths about Canada. 🙂

Regents Won’t Fire Him

From the Denver Post today:

Churchill said he is not worried for his job because he is protected by CU’s guarantee of academic freedom. If he does lose his job over this controversy, he’ll sue, he said.

“My problem would be fighting off the number of lawyers that would want to be involved,” he said. “This is exactly what I’m protected from – an attempt to take my job on the basis of a difference of opinion on a burning issue.”

You’re Wrong Phil

I really thought Phil was going to call an early spring. I still think there will be an early spring, at least here in Denver. Maybe not for Pennsylvania though.

Copper Mountain High



We’re going to Copper Mountain this weekend! Whoo-hoo! Geoff will spend Saturday skiing, we’ll have dinner there and then spend the night, coming home Sunday. This will be my first trip to any mountain here in Colorado, and while obviously I can’t go skiing, I will hang out by a fireplace with my book, or go for a swim in the athletic center there. What’s the occasion you ask? Well, Geoff needs to make use of his ski pass, and we are celebrating 8 years of wedded bliss this month (Feb. 15).

Went to Peet’s today and had a pot of Golden Monkey. Doesn’t that sound like something that would make Bucky Katt go nuts? It was excellent, but I would never buy a tin of it. It’s a rare tea, so it’s very expensive. But I was able to enjoy a pot of it for $3 (plus tax).

I don’t think I want to write about the whole gay-marriage issue going on in Canada, but I’m reading about it on CBC.ca. Chris wrote about it on his blog though. I also don’t really want to write about Ward Churchill. It may not be big news where you are, but here it’s huge! Here’s the story, a professor at CU Boulder made some comments in a book he wrote (and also in an essay I think) where he likened the victims of 9/11 to Nazis. He also said that America was asking for the attack by the way they conduct themselves. I think that’s the jist of the story. I am very curious to see what the Regents will decide tomorrow about him. The thing Geoff and I were wondering is whether or not he is imposing his views on his students. If yes, then he should be fired. But if he isn’t, then do they really have grounds? I read a statement he published, and he still comes across negatively. The governor has called the university to can him, which Geoff finds a little funny as the state hardly gives any money to post secondary institutions. I’m so tired of people screaming about free speech. It’s enough to make me not pay attention to the news anymore. Sigh.

Alright, I’m closing with a quote from Ed, which I am so hooked on.

Judge: Mr. Stevens, where’s your attorney?

Ed Stevens: Actually, Your Honor, I’m representing myself in this matter.

Judge: Haven’t you heard the saying, “He who represents himself has a fool for a client?”

Ed Stevens: Yes sir, I have, and I tried my best to convince me not to hire me to represent myself, but I simply refused to listen to me.

Which Angel Character Are You?

You’re Doyle! You’re on a mission to help out as many people as you can, provided it’s not actually you doing the helping, of course. However, you know there’ s a hero inside you.