A piece of the past.....

I was out on the other job and ended up driving past my old skating arena, or what should have been the old skating arena.  It is now a flat, grated lot with a view right to the back of the row of houses that looked down on it.

I was shocked to see that it had been gone, that I don't remember reading anywhere in the paper that it was going to be gone and how fast it was taken down.

The reason that it hits so close to home is that this is where I learned how to skate all through public school right into high school.  When you couldn't find me at home I was at the arena either working on patch pattern, learning a waltz or was in a skating carnival with my little brother.  Mind you, my brother only survived one year but I was bitten by the bug.

Things that I will always remember about that place is:
-picked up sharpened skates with masking tape on the blades so we wouldn't cut ourselves
-the popcorn vending machine that had the stale, orange popcorn in it.  It was a treat after skating if we were there over the dinner hour.
-watching my brother being a terrorist in our version of Back to the Future skating carnival
-being able to sit after our skating lesson and watch the next level up power skate to warm up.  Once I made it to this level I used to wave at the on lookers just like someone did to me.
-and who could forget warming up to Donald Duck and the gang!

As the DH said "nothing is static and things change"  I guess the rink was supposed to be there forever.

This is my golden playing in the snow that was left by the Zamboni that had emptied its hold during the summer at a charity walk behind the arena.

Wow what whirl wind!

Orientation went well in my mind.  I took the DH as my +1 and we had to pay for parking downtown that worked out to the tune of $24.  I would have taken the subway but the levelled parking at the mall was under construction so I told the DH to drive straight down.

We got there early and I got into line to register and I could hear setting up the chairs for the seminar.  The DH and I grabbed the near to last row and on an end since I had Nikki and settled into the “plus sized” chairs and waited.

We had a nurse give us the orientation and pretty much verified everything that was in the booklet that I got from Tim at the support group.  What I took away from the session (besides a file folder of papers that I have to fill out) was the reasoning behind the yeasty bread products not being allowed and also that Guelph isn’t an option for my surgery.  If I was to take the orientation at Guelph, I would be having my surgery at Guelph. So since my orientation was at TWH, I will be at one of the three that is included in their group of hospitals.  As I left they had my next 2 appointments set up so I have the social worker on March the 20^th and the nurse in May.  I thought that I could skip the social worker since I am seeing Susanne, but since all the people that I see through this all get together and decide if I can handle the surgery.  So there is no fast tracking and I guess I just have to be patient and wait it all out.

Group was fun this month.  It was at the usual hang out but we had new face that just had surgery 6 weeks ago.  She was actually the same date as Marvin and she was there because he told her about the group.  It is amazing how something as simple as side effects from surgery could bring out such candid chatter.  The room was still full of ladies and there were topics that I never thought might be linked to the surgery.  Well that all ceased to exist as soon as Marvin arrived but that is okay since he took the conversation in a whole new direction.   I think I am going to have to set an alarm for next time since no one has a sense of time when start chatting and there isn’t a clock in the area we sit.  I am sure that if the DH didn’t text me ask if I was taking Mel out we still would be sitting there.

The house is painted from top to bottom, the repairs are all fixed up and we have had enough trips to the storage locker the house sounds empty.  Now the only thing left is to steam clean the carpets and have the pictures taken so that we can have the agent put it on the market.  I have had a nanosecond of a thought about staying and then I think about this summer and I don’t think it is fair to the girls not to have any grass to roll in or the fact I would love to sit outside to read and not deal with onlookers trying to park or the trains. 

We have an appraiser coming in to see if the house is really worth the new mortgage that we have to temporarily need to hold us over to the new house.  According to the DH she is a bit of flake so I am hoping that she doesn’t undercut the value.  At least in my mind this will let me know that all the painting and stuff will be worth it and it translated into a dollar amount.  So I am hoping that we can have the house up on the market in a few weeks so that I can plan my first bbq J

 

Keeping Busy

Well the parties are over and now it is time to get back to getting the house in order.  We are moving in the next little while so we have been packing and purging.  There has been a few things packed up that need to go to the charity shop and I think I will do that on Friday.

We have a home stager coming in tomorrow night to tell us to put the couch here, this picture there and paint that wall this colour.  Then hopefully we will be able to get it all done and the little sign on the front of the house.  There was a house further down the block that was on the market for roughly two weeks so there is hope for ours.

I have begun packing up my closet and I am sorting them as to that fits now, and what will fit after surgery is in the tub for storage.  There are a few items in the tub that are older, but they are things like jean shorts and dressy tops.  Don't worry the tops aren't old enough to have shoulder pads in them LOL.

My orientation is a week away and I am getting the tummy flutters when I think about it.  Not the kind when you dread going to the dentist, but the kind of excitement I get when I know the DH is going to call me.  I know I will be nervous but the DH is going as my +1 so he will know what we are in for in regards to recovery.

I have been going to BWLSSG (bariatric support group) and there is a wealth of knowledge there to be had.  Some folks are 2+ years post surgery right up to 2 weeks ago.  I love to hear the stories of how vast their recovery is and where they are now.  Some that are years out are still enjoying the journey of weight loss and love to mentor the new pre & post-ops.

Nikki starts her reading group sessions on Friday.  I think that she will be great at curling up to enjoy the little kids reading to her.  She is at that age now, the less she has to do the better.  She has been getting one day off a week and staying home with the DH.  I tried mid week but for some reason she will have a whole day off and the next day all her manners are out the window!  So we decided that her day off will be my last day of my work week. 

Mel has been shaping up nicely here at the office.  She hasn't been going on her own little walkabouts to find the big picture windows at the office. She has discovered that any table (include the conference table) she needs to go under.  I guess if we get a good sized dining table at the new house she will be under that one too LOL

I haven't been doing much with the ladies at the office, but I am happy to say the DoxyLover was able to get a job with the town!  So that is the reason for the next get together next week ;)

So I guess the next time I post I will have had dinner with the girls, had orientation and perhaps made it through Valentine's Day.

Turning four-tay over four days

Well what a birthday it was! It was supposed to be a big dinner on Friday but instead it ended up with various get togethers to work around schedules.

It started off on Thursday with supper at Swiss Chalet with my gang from work (past and present) that had DoxyLover, the Edge, ChiChi K, ChiChi L and GiGi. We had a good chin wag about what is going on at the office and was able to catch up on life.  I had their new honey grilled chicken and wasn’t that impressed with what was on my plate.  I ended up leaving the skin behind (the shock & horror I know) had a single bite of the bread, and only ate about half of the fries.  I accidentally worked it out that I got 2 desserts, so I ate a good portion of one and took the cheesecake home.  Had buckets to drink so I ended up sloshing out of the restaurant.

Friday was a double doozy day.  Since I have Fridays off for 4 weeks straight at the office job and since no one could make the Chinese buffet I made plans to have lunch with Maine and then head to Guelph to have supper with Curl at TurtleJack’s.  Well Maine and I originally had the plans for a light lunch then a movie until I was corrected by Maine and we just had a later lunch at another restaurant.  Well my main wasn’t that good so I sent it back and just ate the salad and the corn bread.  Then I ordered the fried cheesecake.  I told them right away when I ordered it to bring a container so I can put half of it away to take home.

For those of you keeping track, that is now 2 desserts in the fridge J

On my way back from the 2 hours lunch with Maine, I got a text from NavyWife saying that she and Mr. NavyWife can go for Chinese.  So I frantically texted Curl and we all headed out there.  Well we got there and I was still full from lunch that I took my time at the buffet.  We all sat and chatted until almost 9 and then Curl headed home and I headed to NavyWife’s place.  We then chatted some more and met their furkid that gives Mel run for the money on energy.

Saturday I was happy to be home to sleep and not eat a darn thing! I shared my fried cheesecake with the DH since I was looking forward to the quiet dinner that we were going to have.  I drive past a nice little restaurant that is on the corner of our street for years and never have gone in.  I thought that this was a great chance to try it out and see.  Boy I was not disappointed!  The food was great; the atmosphere was nice and quiet since there are only 10 tables in the whole place so the DH and I were able to have a good chat.  The food was worth the money that we spent but it won’t be a regular Saturday night thing.

Sunday was yet another fun day too with Nash and we headed for a lunch and a matinee movie.  I informed her of the news of the gastric and she was really interested.  We chatted so much that I didn’t notice the time and I had to take my complimentary dessert home.  I did splurge and grabbed some popcorn for a horror movie that was more horrible than a horror but I still think the first one was the best.  Nash has seen all the other for so she was happy to see that one with me.

I got back home to drop off Nik and thought that since others had cake on their birthday at the other job that there might have been one there for me.  Well it was a letdown when there wasn’t but I guess that just fuels the suspicion of people being secluded by others at the other job.  So I took it upon myself and got some DQ for me and no one else J

So after all that I wasn’t surprised to find that there wasn’t a card on my desk from the office since the DoO has cut back on office supplies to liquid correction fluid instead of the wheel of tape for budget reasons.  So why should I think that there will be a $3 on my desk?

Had a blast turning 40 and I am looking forward to a 40-ish/house warming party this summer too!

Good News.....

We are in the New Year so camping is coming back soon! LOL

With the stress that is happening here at the office I have to admit that I am not a stress eater.  I am a stress drinker (of water LOL)  Things get loud and over whelming I am finding that I will put my ear bud in and grab a drink of water from my water bottle.  Next thing I know I have downed a full litre of water!  Time is flying by during the day and I feel an honest hungry rather than a bored hungry.  I am also finding that I am not wanting all my food that I bring so I just take it back home.  All of this has made it good news in my book!

I have been carpooling with a girl I will call Monty since we are on the same team and I end up going right past her place to get to the office.  We have been able to chat about the office and how things are/are not shaping up with this implementation.  I am not sure if it is going to fly but Edge, the NavyWife and I are just going to sit back and see. At least until June.  Those 2 ladies have the chance to be on the same team and with Ohio but I am across the office in the corner with Nikki.  The square footage rocks for her and I but I don't have the same view as before.  No biggy since they are on Skype and have a chance to chat that way.

I have been hanging with DoxyLover recently too.  We have been able to keep up on all the gossip that is flying around with everyone that is or has been at the office.  Pretty soon we will run out of office talk LOL.

So  here is that we can all cope before we go postal!

Last one for 2013

Don’t worry I won’t get to soppy with the “Year in Review” but I do admit it was an interesting with the trip to Texas, the DH finishing his command as CS, getting Mel to the first of 2 stages of her training and a huge turnover at the day job.

The DH has some more free time in 2014 so I am hoping that we will be able to do more spontaneous stuff.  My new work schedule has me with Fridays off so I am hoping that I can use these to my advantage to do stuff with the DH like hitting Wonderland or even hitting the campsite a bit earlier.

On Christmas Eve I stopped in at the out-laws to drop off the presents and I guess there was some crossed wires from someone that reads my blog.  The SOL asked me if I was having heart issues since someone has told her I was having bypass surgery……That kind of made me giggle when I got to the car and thought that my heart is the only thing Dr. Sarah says I have on me that is textbook LOL  I corrected her and that started with a friend that is has been approved.

We have started packing for the move and I am finding that I am getting rid of some stuff. If I can’t remember who gave it to me and I haven’t used it, out it goes. We will definitely need a storage unit for a few month to make the house look “minimal” for people coming in.

So that is it for now, enjoy the last few hours of 2013 and have a healthy 2014

Bullet Points for a Post

·         I know it has been a while

·         I have been accepted for RNY surgery much to Dr Sarah’s surprise she didn't think I had enough check to qualify.  I have a 2-3 hours orientation meeting about it all in TO on Feb 12^th. I can’t reschedule since they are like the golden ticket to see Willy Wonka.

·         Been keeping in touch with some of the gals that are no longer at work and I am glad that I am making the effort.

·         Feeling the love at work with the NavyWife and we are just going to ride it all out.

·         Nik & I were at the Santa Claus Parade with SJTD and we had a blast.  Mind you Nik was getting tired near the end was getting grumpy at the other dogs.  I don’t blame a 12 y/o puppy.

·         Went to the Hadfield Christmas Party on the weekend and didn’t really eat that much.  It was mentioned that I was eating like a bird which was good enough for me.  To me it was a validation that I was overeating/bingeing.

·         We had the work party and I had to leave early with NavyWife since my disassociation was really bad.  Nik wouldn’t settle and there were a few times she was in my lap.  After looking back I should have sat with my back to the window so that the blinking Christmas lights wouldn’t have been in my view all night.

·         Headed to the mall on the weekend too.  I am glad that I had the DH there to get me out because after an hour in the food court I couldn’t figure out how to get out of the mall.  I told him that next year we should just buy everything online.

·         The holidays are going to have mixed feelings.  I am going to enjoy going to Mom’s and the BIL’s in Ottawa, but since we need to start renovating the house I feel like I don’t have a proper place for the wrapped gifts since I decided that we weren’t putting up the tree.  I honestly haven’t even started decorating my desk for the contest that is this Thursday.  I guess the 3 nights at week at the other job are finally taking a toll.

·         In a few weeks we go to 4 – 10hr days in a week with a Friday off.  I know I will save on gas, but I am losing 2 of my 3 shifts.  I guess we will see how that all goes.

There will be more posts in the future and definitely before the New Year ;)