Equal parts fun, relaxation, and productivity

My brain is still pretty much elsewhere these days… Mostly in and around Hogwarts. (Book 3 – The Prisoner of Azkaban – is my favourite so far. I’m currently 200 pages into book 4, The Goblet of Fire)

In other news, wanna hear about my weekend?

On Friday night, we went out to dinner for a friend’s birthday at an Italian restaurant where the food was, we were told by another friend, “as good as the best restaurant I’ve ever been to.” So of course, all night we were adapting that quote. “Wow, this is as good as the best wine I’ve ever tasted.” “That’s as pretty as the prettiest picture I’ve ever seen.” “This is as warm as the warmest coat I’ve ever worn.” Etc.
(I had a pretty incredible steak with brandy cream and peppercorns. But it may not have been as good as the best steak I’ve ever had – because the best steak I ever had was cooked by my dad, and nothing rivals his skill with a grill!)

Saturday morning I set off in search of a few necessary items including bras because I’ve lost weight and the ol’ girls have shrunk a bit (Too Much Info? Sorry.) and also a new pair of jeans because I don’t have any nice ones – aka ones you can wear out with heels.
I didn’t find what I wanted in the undergarment department (rhyming a lot today, eh? Ha!) but I did find jeans AND a new pair of black trousers for work. Score! That’s no small feat – finding pants that fit me and my short but muscular legs. So I wasn’t too disappointed.

That evening, Ush and I were late meeting up with friends for another friend’s birthday because we couldn’t decide what to wear. We spent a good 20 minutes stomping around the bedroom, trying things on, shoving the other away from the mirror, discarding unsatisfactory items, lather rinse repeat. It’s funny, in retrospect, but we were pretty crabby and snappy.

But we got there in the end. Went to a pub for food and drinks (and great conversation with a friend we don’t see often enough), then onto the club in Leicester Square for the party.

This morning we spent a good half hour just sitting out on the deck in the sun. It was so so lovely. The last three weekends have been fantastic weather-wise. I’m beyond grateful.

We took the dogs to the park this afternoon, and, after consulting ehow.com, I did a deep clean of the carpet in the living room to get the doggy smells out. (Has it worked? The jury is still deliberating.. aka its not dry yet.)

I’ve also done 3 loads of laundry, changed the bed linen, bought a new dog bed for Sadie (identical to Toby’s, with raised sides), and hung 3 pictures in the hallway. Ush is down in Ashford visiting Ali, our friend and osteopath.

Notice how I haven’t read any HP yet today?!? Where are my priorities?! Shocking that is. So now I’m off to put on my jim jams, make some tea, and find out what this Triwizard Tournament is all about!

HP Fever

Please forgive the infrequent posting… I’m pretty much spending most of my free time reading book 3 in the Harry Potter series. About 100 pages left, then straight on to book 4!

I wasn’t interested in the series back when everyone else was (probably BECAUSE everyone else was), but Ush really wanted me to read the books before the final film so that we could see it together. Finally I relented and now, as expected, I’m hooked!

I dream about magic every night, and my free thoughts are pretty much always consumed with wondering what’s going to happen next.

I even found myself wishing I wasn’t a Muggle, before realising that we’re ALL Muggles.

I loves it.

Silence! I keeeell you!

Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
Me! I kill you!

If you liked Jeff and Achmed, I suggest you also check out Walter (“Welcome to Wal-mart. Git yer shit and git out!”) and Peanut (“Je-fuh-fuh!… DunHAAAAAM!.. dot commmm!”).

How Googlers found me. Again.

I just had to post some again, cuz they keep getting weirder..

“carla van ray” + australia + address

Eh?! Pretty sure the only word I’ve used on this site is address.  MAYBE ray.  How weird.

is sandra bullok sexy when she dances?

Hope you found your answer to that very important question, cuz it sure as hell won’t be found here.

“so itchy” scratch me feels so good

Mm hmmm.

How Googlers found me

Someone came to my blog by typing in to Google: “how do you pronounce pai?”

Let me clear that up for you. Common mistake.

“puh” + “eye”
Piiiiiii.
Pie.

Not pay. Pai.

Alright? Thanks

I couldn’t agree more

I’ll admit, I don’t always regularly read ALL of the blogs on my blogroll, but one I do read regularly and always enjoy is Secret Agent Josephine.

She’s been taking a break from blogging and has had guest posters for the past couple weeks (but she’s back on Monday and I’m excited!).

One post I read today, written by Teacher Meets World, really struck me and I wanted to share it here, because she is saying exactly what I feel and describing a huge part of why I love living here – travel.

“A lot of people are worried about money right now. The economy of North America is shaking in its leaky rubber boots. But I am going to continue to say, “Let’s go to Florence!” Or the Grand Canyon, or the Galapagos Islands off the coast of Ecuador. Even in uncertain times, travel is still worth the money. Here’s why:

1. The world is such a vast place.
(See also, My country is not, in fact, the centre of the universe.)

Many of us live most of our lives in the relatively small world that exists between home, school, work, family and the grocery store. Travel allows us to develop a better understanding of the vastness of the planet and the complexity of the cultures that call it home. I have lived in both Colombia and Mexico but it was not until I moved to Barcelona, Spain (the motherland), that I began to really understand Latin American culture—including the enormous fondness for blowing things up (at close range) at festivals and the culture’s reverence for the Virgin Mary. As a Canadian with Scotch-Irish roots who had not visited Great Britain until this year, I was amazed to see so many Dubliners and Londoners who looked just like me, with those same blue eyes and ruddy cheeks. Travel has helped me understand where I come from and where I fit in as a Canadian living in Europe.

2. Travel helps you get over yourself.

Usually I’m pretty good with directions, but drop me into the metro system in Paris and I want to cry like a baby. I’m accustomed to feeling and being competent. Some of the obstacles I encounter while traveling make me uncomfortable and remind me just how many skills I still need to develop. Necessity is, however, a master teacher. When I decipher the metro map, buy my ticket in creaky high-school French, and finally, emerge in front of the Louvre under my own steam, I feel so proud of my small accomplishment. Plus, the Mona Lisa is inside and I could look at that painting forever. (Yes, I know. It’s smaller than I expected. I like it anyway!) Travel locks us out of our comfort zone, throws out the key, and forces us to adapt. Now!

3. Travel is filled with amazing highs—and many of them are free!

Do you remember how you felt on Christmas morning when you were five years old? You crept down the hallway to the tree and, just as your parents had promised, Santa had been to your house while you were sleeping that deep sleep that only small children seem capable of. Your stocking, hung carefully the night before, was bulging with good stuff and you could hardly breathe you were so excited.

You can experience that magical childhood moment again and again when you travel! For you, it might be the first time you see Michelangelo’s David at the Accademia in Florence or the Pyramid at Chichen Itza in Mexico. Or it could be at the Great Wall of China. Pablo Neruda’s home in Valparaiso, Chile. The Eiffel Tower. The Rocky Mountains. The Mediterranean Sea. Jim Morrison’s grave in Paris. Ayers Rock in Australia. Vegas, baby! The “happy places” are different for each of us but I promise that visiting yours will make you giddy with excitement and grateful to be alive.

4. Your travels don’t end just because your vacation does.

I feel terribly sad when a trip ends; a little grey cloud descends over me as I resume “regular” life. But after a few days, if I don’t dwell too much on my sorry state, I find myself rebounding. I’ll order a cup of café au lait like those I enjoyed during our trip to France, or prepare to make mole for the first time after traveling in Mexico. Maybe I’ll visit the library and come home with a history of the settlement of the American West. We bring the music and food and smells home with us; life spills over into life.

Being home also allows you to share your adventures with others. When we lived in Mexico, friends invited us to a post-vacation party and each person was asked to bring his or her favourite travel photos on a pen drive or computer. We ate potluck, drank good Chilean wine and Corona and Sol with lime, and watched the travel slide show of a lifetime. You should definitely try this one at home!

5. You realize that that people everywhere have a great deal in common.

It can seem, when you are traveling, like you have just landed on Mars. I remember visiting Budapest, Hungary, and being undone by the language. Hungarian is a Uralic language and is unrelated to most other languages in Europe. We had learned a few basic phrases but we couldn’t read the street signs. Then we took a train from Budapest to Prague and sat with a young Hungarian woman who was going to visit her boyfriend in Italy. She talked with us about university and relationships and the future and we exchanged e-mail addresses when she got off the train. The world had suddenly become so small. This young woman was struggling with the same types of issues that my younger sister is dealing with, just halfway around the world and in Hungarian. If we permit it, travel transforms us into more compassionate creatures; travel can bring home just how much the people of the world have in common.

‘Let’s go to Florence!’ I say.”

Sadie’s a mama!! Or, at least she thinks she is

When Sadie went into season, we spoke to a behaviourist to find out how this would effect her relationship with Toby and this woman taught us A LOT. She also recommended her book, which we ordered straight away. We marked our calendar with various dates of how long this will last, and when to look out for that, and when this can be done, etc.

One concept we learned about – and are now currently observing! – is the phantom pregnancy.

Basically, around 9 weeks after their season ends, female dogs can quite commonly experience this false pregnancy because their hormones lead them to believe they’re pregnant – regardless of whether or not they got any action!

One typical sign that a dog is experiencing a phantom pregnancy is known as nesting – taking toys/shoes/etc and putting them in her bed. Worst case is the female can become very protective or even aggressive over her ‘puppies’. In extreme instances, she can even actually produce milk!

The book says to just ride out the stage, making allowances for odd/undesirable behaviour. If she does become aggressive, then when she’s not around, take the toys away and carry on as if nothing is different.

Luckily for us (touch wood!) Sadie is only ever so slightly nesting. Her ‘baby’ is a squeaky toy in the shape of some sort of meat product – perhaps a turkey leg?

At first we didn’t think anything of it, as its a toy that neither she nor Toby plays with all that much. Then we noticed it had been on our bed for the past couple nights, and she was rather intent on either sleeping next to it at night or making sure it was still present and in tact.

Yesterday morning, as an experiment to either confirm or dispel this question, as she lay curled up at the head of the bed with the toy right next to her, I silently picked it up, and set it down on the end of the bed. I turned away from her but watched in the mirror.

She watched me move it, looked at the toy, paused, then got up, picked it up gingerly, carried it back to where she was and curled up again with it next to her.

She seems quite happy to leave it in there, and doesn’t need to stay in there with it, which is good.

Although at some point later that evening, it was out of the bedroom (maybe Toby brought it out? Hey! Look what I found!) and I saw Sadie carrying it gently back to the bedroom. When she came out again, I had a peek and sure enough she had put it back on the bed, up against the pillows.

She even went back in a few minutes later to check on it.

It’s really very cute. I figure if this is the extent of her ‘odd behaviour’ then I’m quite happy to let her have her turkey leg baby until this little phase passes.

And then, come end of October, the vet will be relieving our little dear of her ovaries and uterus so that we can put this craziness behind us!

London-iversary

It feels so much longer than just 3 years!

I wrote about it last year and planned to say pretty much the same thing today, except to add that I love my life here and I’m so happy.

I adore them so much it hurts

I think this photo is scary, but Ush finds it cute.

Ush covered in dog and loving it – don’t be fooled by the “help me” look on his face.

I’m not entirely sure who joined who here.  She’s not supposed to be in his bed, but has been discovered curled up in it a few times recently.  I’m glad he doesn’t mind sharing, but it won’t be encouraged.   We all need our own space.

Sun seekers…

…but also prepared for our impending winter!
(Sidenote: Don’t worry.  We’re not actually THOSE PEOPLE who dress up their dogs. We found these hat+scarf combos in a £1 shop and couldn’t resist.  A similar photo may or may not feature in our Christmas card this year, but that’ll be the extent of it.)

Behold, our new decking complete with table/chairs and lounger!  I loves it.  To the right, just out of shot, some a new stone/tile/paving has just been put down and there’s a park bench and space for a little bbq grill!

I brought my houseplants outside to soak up the rays on a rare warm day.  They loved it.  (I still need some neat pots for 3 of them.)

A day out at Richmond Park.  Sadie looking gormless as usual, and Toby looking like he wants to be elsewhere (not so usual).

They’re my babies, and quite possibly the only babies I’ll ever need.  (Just so you know. coughMomDadandGrandmacough.) 

Not so sure the Oxford English would agree

Stephanie Pai –

[adjective]: Sexually stunning

‘How will you be defined in the dictionary?’ at QuizGalaxy.com