Pepsi Vanilla

Pepsi Vanilla... miniature! Super cute!

Naaaah, this is a lip balm. Not drinkable. Sent it to my old friend M for her ball jointed dolls. It seems to be the right size. (This photo is from last April.) Too bad she didn't seem to like it too much, and asked if she could sell it at a doll show. Oh well. It's hers and I don't care. All good.

New year's eve

Of course couldn't get up early when you go to bed that late. It was 2 when I was cooking oatmeal for lunch. Mom and aunt Y went to our family doctor to refill prescriptions. I was alone with dad, and the first thing I saw him do, was to take frozen sliced loaf of bread from the freezer and ate it without reheating. (T_T) Extreme pointless for me to stop him, because he never listens to me.

Then the ladies came back. Immediately mom prepared some freshly bought cheese buns for snack. Dad ate a whole one while mom shared one with aunt Y. (I didn't eat any because I just had oatmeal.) Then he kept on hunting for food and ate crackers, and then a persimmon, and something else. Mom got mad as usual. Then dad got mad as usual. There's no peace in this house-whole since long time ago. Sigh... (T_T) Dad just makes everyone grumpy and mad.

By the time I met up with A and S, it was 4:15. S didn't want to go to A's so he left. R and B invited A and I over for new year's eve dinner. We were there at around... 8? B's cooking was so awesome, I over ate. Met some new friends... already forgotten one of their names, though. But they had to leave around 10:30 for their kids' bed time. Then S's bed time. The rest of us watched a movie while waiting for the count down. There was nothing in town that was on TV. Nevertheless we found something on the same time zone and did the count down with Champagne. Finished off the movie, and I took A home. The lamb was so good, I'm gonna ask for the recipe. Thanks for the party! And happy new year!

House-sitting (3)

Got up at 12:30. Late again. But at least I was there already and didn't have to drive. The electric blanket I brought over yesterday and turning on the portable heater at 9PM helped a lot. I was able to sleep better.

Hope to meet up with A but I was just too slow. Brother came back today and I needed to pack up. By the time I was done eating, feeding the guinea pigs and the student downstairs, and cleaning up, it was 3. The sun was shinning but too late to go out. Had to cancel on A. Sorry...

Forgot to bring crimp beads, so all I could do was fixing jump rings, and it was all done. The piggies are such fuzzy eaters, they don't eat food that's been "contaminated" (stepped on). So I had to feed them small amounts every 2 or 3 hours. Brother's Mac is missing some plug-in for web radio. I could only listen to the news and traffic station. It wasn't the best choice, but there wasn't any other. At least they tell you it's -4 outside and how long the wait was at the border was. Then except for my own dinner, it was all surfing the web until brother's gang came back around 11:30.

Brother borrowed a friend's address down there to order a set of toilet railing for dad, and he brought it back this time. He also bought a new TV for mom to replace out really old, barely functional one. Besides that, it was the usual stuff. Clothing and food. Plus some greatly discount post-Christmas stuff. I hope he would help us set it up as I don't think I can do it.

Got home, and took advantage of the high dollar. Made some online purchases on Etsy. Before you know it, the sun was rising... Awwwwww... (T_T)

Dream

Another nightmare? I was with someone walking on the street, then came to an open construction site. A building was being demolished... hey it was my grade school! I was telling my friend (?) how it used to feel so much bigger...

Then it jumped to another part. I was with A, again walking on the street. It could be Japan or some Japanese area in other country. We went into a dingy convenient store. I tried to buy a tomato at the cashier. The young man brought out another one and said, 12 yen. I said, but I only want that first one. He then took the second one back, and said, 12 Japanese dollar. Hmm...

Then another jump. I was still walking with A, in some smaller side streets. The floor was wet. It could have rained. He had a shopping bag with some software he just bought. Then we parted. I was supposed to meet him back at a store or restaurant. I went back to my car and opened up the trunk. From it I took out a pair of leg protector (?) and put them on. They were as high has those over the knee boots, but made with magazine pages and packing tape. (Huh... what? Why?) They were bulky and heavy too. Something was pulling inside my left sock and my toes were cramping.

Somehow the scene switched and I was in an office trying to fix my left sock. I was trying to take the boots off and had one foot on a chair. A short balding Japanese (?) man was talking to me too. He wasn't pleased about this "bad manner". This guy... was my boss. (No, I don't know anyone like that in real life. It just was set up that way in the dream. Now that I think of it, he did look like one of my teachers but he's not Japanese...) A few moments passed. Not sure if I talked to other people or did anything else, but this "boss" came back and found me still trying to fix my sock. Then it repeated a 3rd time. This time he said, I'm fired. I was super shocked. I tried to explain the situation to him and yanked off the left "boot", and got shocked some more. I wasn't wearing any socks. My feet were wrapped in packing tape, and of course the left foot's wrapping was butched and my toes were all forced into a crocked position.

I couldn't change his mind. Very sad. Then I noticed the company was a publisher. I also recognized the cover of 2 of the magazines on display were Japanese web comics that I've been following. The people there seemed like I've known them long ago.

Tears came down. I was crying. Crying and crying. Yes, very say. But what about? Getting fired? Or loosing a dream job? I simply didn't like the situation. (Now that I've analyzed it, it could be that, A will never take me to Japan before my time runs out.)

Than I was woken up by A's phone call. It was noon. There were more to the dream but I can't remember.

House-sitting (3)

Chiropractor day. Tried to get up early, but with last night's ordeal, it was very tough. Nevertheless got out of bed around 10:30. No one was home. Dad went to daycare, mom and aunt Y went to our family doctor to get prescriptions. So I ate some congee that mom made for my canker sore, and left.

Needed to drop off the parcel. Then the dollar store across the street. Boss wanted some half-price snow-flake stickers. I would like some too. Didn't think I'd find any, but there were quite a few. They weren't with the Christmas stuff, but craft ales. That was lucky.

Arrived at brother's around 12:30. Immediately I opened the fridge to fetch food for the student. The date was labeled Dec 30 instead of Dec 29. Oh... I've made a mistake, thinking she doesn't have food today, but in fact she does. Phew.

On the other hand, the guinea pigs cleaned out everything. That was rare. I think washing the bowls helped. So I fed them, and had some congee myself. (Congee is not too filling.) Sat down and did some beading. Before you know it, it was 2:50 and I was late for chiropractor again. (T_T) Well, I guess within 15 minutes is not too bad. There were 4 people in front of me anyway. I notice whenever I'm horribly late, I get in sooner. Whenever I'm on time (which is rare) or a little bit late, I have to wait for a long time.

Got there just before 3:15 and finished just before 4:25. Was hoping to go to the west Van Michael's, but the radio reported massive traffic jam on the bridge. So, I decided not to go. Instead, I stopped by another dollar store and picked up more Christmas stuff like ribbons. A surprise find was those crystal beads. Got some too.

Went home afterward to pick up warmer clothing and an electric blanket. It was colder then comfortable the night before. I keep bringing stuff over. I wonder if the small suitcase will hold them all when I go back home tomorrow.

Mom tried to get me to stay for dinner, but I didn't want to be outside too late because tonight is gonna be -4 degree. Got back to brother's. The guinea pigs were wheeing like crazy. Yup they were hungry. Me too. But I had to feed them first. (Need to cut up carrots.) Made another long distant call. Some beading, shower, and some blogging. It's 3AM. The student seems to be running the washing machine downstairs. Oh well, none of my business.

Fallen and can't get up (2)

(Picture was taken last October and unrelated to subject.)
Within the hour, I fell sick. Not the "sick" sick, but "wrong". I can't lift heavy stuff thanks to old injuries. But I had no choice, right? How can I not help? All the muscles in my body were tense. I couldn't relax. Any position I put my body in felt wrong. So wrong... I couldn't sleep. Thought I might as well get up and write about it here, but I need to rest. I was so very tired, yet couldn't sleep.

If I lie on my side, fingers would tingle on that side. Really bad. Every single joint and muscle felt like they were emitting radio waves and wouldn't shut up. No pose lasted more than a minute before I need to move. I was just so extremely unwell and frustrated, tears wouldn't stop. Every time I need to get up early, I've been unable to sleep. Why? Why this? Why me? At one point I even thought, damn you, God. Damn you. (Bad...)

Not sure when, but I did eventually fall asleep. Got up around 10 and out of bed roughly 30 minutes later. Estimated sleep time, 3 hours. Not very functional.

Fallen and can't get up (1)

(Picture was taken last September and unrelated to subject.)
Just now, mom found dad on the floor. He seemed to have slide onto the floor and couldn't get up, yet didn't call for help. Sigh... he still think of himself as fully capable.

Mom came fetch me. Lucky I didn't return to brother's and have been processing blog post photos. Even with the 2 of us, we couldn't get dad back up on his feet. After numerous trials and maneuvers, we finally succeeded. It was the simplest way of grabbing his arm pit on each side. It was just that, he wasn't cooperative until he was absolutely exhausted.

Sigh...

How many more times this is gonna happen?

He stinks. I've grabbed onto him. And now I stink as I'm typing this. No kidding, I smell like poop. Luckily I have not changed into my pajamas yet. My only other set of winter pajamas is left at brother's.

The ordeal lasted about 45 minutes. I'm exhausted. My legs are weak. Plus I think I pulled something. Thank god it's chiropractor tomorrow. (T_T)

Truly cracker

Truly Garden Vegetable Entertainer Crackers. Back to my "dug-up" series, this was from last September. Looks good but tastes not that good. Does this mean it's healthy? (As healthy snacks often aren't that yummy.) It does say 0 trans-fat (which is not equal to none) and with real vegetable. Can I assume it's healthy? Either way, something doesn't feel right. No I don't think I'll buy more.

House-sitting (2)

Got up at 12:30. Fed the guinea pigs and myself, then brought food to the exchange student downstairs. By the time I met up with A, it was almost 3. Brought stamps at Shopper's, and noticed some US coins in my change purse. I've never received any US quarter in change before. Today, our dollar went slightly above the US dollar, and immediately this. Well, I don't think this rate will last long, though.

We then went to a CD store's sale on Main, then bead shop. Richmond afterward, to A's new favorite and my old favorite stores. Dollar Giant is having a half price off Christmas stuff sale. The gift tag stickers are good. Wow, a dollar store's half price sale! Quite something.

Dinner at Timmy's. Thanks A for giving me a hand on changing the guinea pigs. It helped a lot. I appreciate it. Sorry I've been a bitch. The 4 canker sores and my back have been killing me and rendered me non-functional. (T_T) I guess I don't sleep well on unfamiliar beds.

Drove A home, stayed for a bit, then I went home myself to wash my hair. Didn't want to do it at brother's because I'm not familiar with his setup. Packed up one pair of mittens with the cheap envelopes from the dollar store. Sent a few e-mail, and it was 1:30!!!! Awwwww! I still wanted to go back, but I'm afraid I might scare the exchange student. I'll try to get up early tomorrow.... AAAAAAAAARRRGGGHHH!!! The alarm clock is at brother's!!! (OK I do have a really old wind-up travel-size one.)

House-sitting (1)

Brother goes out of town for 3 days, so I'm there to house-sit again. Set alarm at noon, woke up, tried to stretch in bed, next time I opened my eyes, it was 2:45!!! Aaaaarrrrgh!!!!!

Got an e-mail from one of my blog friends that I must reply, and then plus one more. Had to cancel on A... sorry... (T_T) Might as well eat before going to brother's. Didn't pack too much stuff, and forgot things twice. First, my water bottle, second time, alarm clock and allergy pills. Little things added up and I only had less than 30 minutes at Michael's. Already missed their boxing day 25% off sale item coupon yesterday. Thought I could go there earlier today, but nooooo. Got to use one half price coupon for today, though. There's still one more for tomorrow.

It was about 9:30 when I arrived at brother's. The exchange student was still not back. (She ended up coming back after 1.) Fed the guinea pigs and had some food myself. The canker sores are very painful. There are 4 of them. (T_T) Then I started to take my payment for house-sitting: making long distant calls to my friends. (Brother's phone plan allows him to call one place long distant unlimited.) Talked to 2 old friends until... 4? Then I started to get ready to bed... not before feeding the guinea pigs one more time. In an unfamiliar environment, you can't do things as fast as you want. Ended up going to bed super later again. (T_T) Oh well...

Boxing day

Thank A for the morning call and got some stuff for me. Ended up shopping at 2 LDs but that was all. He felt unwell after lunch with S at Earls. We went to his place instead. They played Sing Star and we watched a bunch of shows. British humour seems to be not my cup of tea (but there are exceptions). S left early, and we watched half a movie and another documentary afterward. That canker sore on my tongue near my throat is killing me. (T_T) Had soup for both lunch and dinner. Looks like it's gonna be the same for the next 3 days, at least.
Caught dad drying the table towel on the chopsticks again. Grossssss... (T_T)

Christmas day

Uncle and aunt Y2 gave us a box of brandy chocolate as Christmas gift the other day. Aunt Y suggested that we should bring it over to (re-gift to) brother today. I didn't care, but mom hated the idea. Seems like she wanted to keep it but couldn't say so. Instead, she was saying the smaller size package has been recalled (because of missed ingredient on the list) and not available anymore. Why can't she just say she wants it? On the other hand, aunt Y did not seem to think she had done anything wrong. I did told her what I thought, though. No apology or comments as usual. She's like dad, and thinks she's always right. That's why they clash a lot.

Did this near-loosing-the-chocolate incident shook mom up so much, that she missed to check dad on our way out? She noticed dad wasn't wearing a coat when we were on our way to pick up aunt L. Since she's the biggest in size, aunt Y who always takes the front passenger seat was supposed to move to the back. While mom went inside aunt L's house, I suggested to aunt Y that it might be time for her to move. But she said it was too early. Turn out she wanted mom to sit in the middle, and blame it on mom. I think it's simply that she doesn't want to sit right next to dad. Can't blame her. Dad almost always smell like pee. But not this morning. Mom made sure he was clean. Anyway, aunt L came, and I'm not sure who brought it up first, but she was scolding mom for not keeping an eye on dad for not wearing a coat. Yes yes yes, when uncle L passed away, she had a very hard time. Perhaps she just wanted to show off her expertise. She used to be a nurse too. Poor mom. I couldn't say a thing back to defense her.

When we got to brother's house, they had dad sit at the dinning table which already had some finished dishes. He tried to take some food, was stopped, and then masked it by saying he was just taking chopsticks. Yeah, he then took 3 pairs. Sigh... (T_T) Where did he think he was? A restaurant??? I just couldn't deal with this, or anything he does in general. Mom went to sit with him at the table to keep an eye. The two aunts sat on the living room sofa and talk about dad. That's super weird. Me? Didn't want to sit with any of them. Nothing to help out in the kitchen either, so I sat on the piano bench to read a magazine and looked at the guinea pigs near by every-now-and-then.

Christmas lunch at brother's. It so happens that niece N was born on Christmas day, so it's also her birthday party. She has some classmates and friends over. Poor sis-in-law was so busy making tons of food. Way too much. She gave us some to take home.

Mom had been pressing to leave as soon as we finished eating, evening forgetting there was still the birthday cake. The kids just finished eating too and didn't want the cake so soon. So what happened was, the cake was cut first, we ate first, and the kids ate later. Sigh... mom is always like that. She's so good at ruining the fun.

It was late afternoon when we got home. The clouds and rain helped making it dark or the sun was actually setting. (We just had the winter solstice too.) Tried to clean up some blog stuff and kept dosing off all the way till dinner time. Was hoping to pay A a visit but didn't have enough energy to drive in the rain at night. No sleeping over, then. I hope A is not too disappointed. Hope tomorrow's boxing day shopping plan would work out.

Christmas eve

Christmas is Christmas. No seasons greeting, no happy holidays. Have a merry Christmas and a happy new year!

Eve's dinner

Cousin B called long distance. Uncle and aunt Y2 came visit. Went to pick up A late and of course late for the dinner at R & B. Traffic was as bad as regular rush hour. The rain made it difficult to drive. Can't see the lines too well.

Thanks for invitation. (And dinner and gifts!) S has grown so heavy, I could barely lift her!

Coke: Christmas bottle

Taking a break from the "dug-up series", this coke Christmas bottle is fresh from 2010. Coke is coke, same as always, but this bottle is not widely available. Limited, for sure. There's a second design with polar bear. But this one looks more festive. (I also acquired the other one later.)

Last minute shopping

Hooked on those half price coupons at Michael's again. Actually got some stuff that I need. Picked up aunt Y's Boost at LD and replenished some of the candies that's been given away. Timmy's for dinner at A's. Watched the owl movie. The lighting and rendering is superb. Their list of lighters are 3-4 times longer than animators. No wonder. However, no matter how nice the visuals are, the story isn't too memorable. I've already forgotten the names of the main characters. Nevertheless, I'd say, still worth the money.

No work today

(Photo was taken in June and unrelated to subject.)
Boss hasn't finished her Christmas shopping, so today's work is canceled. Oh well. Still need to take a Christmas Pinky picture for a card. Or should I draw one? Naaaaah...

Some of my blog friends finally replied. Busy replying. The stuff is definitely not gonna make it for Christmas. May not even for new year. Oh well...

Caught dad hanging unwashed laundry again... (T_T)

Gift wrap

My bad. Waited till the very last minute. Aunt Y being such an opportunist, asked me to wrap her stuff while I was wrapping mine. Of course couldn't refuse. Ended up not being able to mail YS's stuff. (T_T) Thanks A for meeting me at the station. It helped a lot.

Dinner with brother's gang at the Korean restaurant. Aunt Y is with us till after new year because cousin D is on vacation yet again. They ate out without taking aunt Y, and the fridge was empty. Need I say more? Sigh...

Anyway, dad's walker takes a whole seat. With aunt Y, it had to be ditched. However, today was the first time we used the wheel chair decal. It helped.

Thought I would have lots of time to do lots of things, but again, fell asleep at the desk. Evil... (T_T) Only managed to record my recent purchases. Why am I so slow? (T_T) Over-ate at the Korean restaurant too. My stomach feels like a piece of rock.

Winter Solstice Luna Eclipse

Is it winter solstice already? Summer solstice seems to be just a few weeks ago. Good, from now on, the day gets longer.

There's a total Luna eclipse tonight starting at 10 and peaks at 12. No, too cold and too lazy to go outside to see. It will be on the web later anyway.

Chiropractor today. Yup, badly needed. I think I've abused it this time and my right wrist feels off even with the tablet.

Took full advantage of the half price Michael's coupons. Got the Whole Food gift card. Picked up a bunch of candies for mom and aunt Y. It's their Christmas shopping.

Dropped off chocolate to C, S, F, H. Y's didn't make it to the post office day. N's will be even later. No chance for Christmas. Oh well... But I really want to give her the extra choice of accessories.

Sleep

Set alarm at 11, woke up, but the next time I open my eyes, it was 3. Yikes... At least I got enough sleep.

Somehow dad wouldn't stop taking apart his clothes. Mom was so mad she was beating him up.

And as usual, when I need to use the washroom, he's always there. He's sleeping sitting on the toilet. (T_T) (BTW he never closes the washroom door. He wasn't like this before. I can't even remember when it started.)

Urban Fair Chocolate

Urban Fair Rich Dark Chocolate. From September 2009, thanks A! It was very good. The size was right too. A bit expensive, though. I probably wouldn't have bought it myself. Thanks again! (^_^)

(Urban Fair is a high-end high-class super market.)

Chocolate Draw

Late start again... (T_T) When will I be able to return to normal?

More shopping with A. There was some kind of Ferraro Roche event at Metrotown. People lines up for some sort of lucky draw. Most of them got a free chocolate. By the time I decided to line up, here were only very few chocolate left, and of course, ran out several people in front of me. It would really suck if it was right in front of me.

Thanks for the stuff, A! Was it really the price to get 3 stars, hahaha? Watched a video after. It as OK.

Costco and wire cubes

Met A after he was off and took him shopping. Thanks for the chips! The malls have started Christmas hours and open till late. Works out fine.

Set up the wire cubes for A's closet. He prefers shorter one so I think we should go to Daiso.

Caught dad hanging rubber gloves on the laundry rack. The clear ones are those he stole from the daycare. (T_T) And of course, none of those need to be dried. Dad also tend to hang unwashed laundry too. (T_T)

Appoints and errands

Dad's been wetting his bed in the middle of the night. Sheets need to be changed. His clothes need to be changed. He needs to be washed. Don't know why, but he takes off his pants and diapers under his blanket and sleeps half naked. He... just finds all kinds of ways to make things difficult for us.

Mom decided dad should see the doctor for running nose (despite no sneezing or coughing or sore throat). I stayed up all night dealing with parcels and only got 2.5 hours of sleep. Having trouble falling asleep in bed. Strange, because I easily fall asleep at the desk. Is it because of lying down? Anyway, we were super late for our appointment. The doctor wasn't pleased. It was all my fault. (But mom didn't come wake me up either when I fell asleep trying to get up.)

After the appointment, just like last time, we ate at a nearby Hong Kong style cafe restaurant for their 1-hour parking refund. However, with the time at the doctor, we needed 2 hours.

Mom went to fill dad's prescription while I went to the post office to mail those parcels, leaving dad at the restaurant. Didn't like to leave him alone for he might wonder off to nowhere land. But it was the most logical choice. We took a chance. Which place do you think takes longer? The pharmacy or the post office? The answer is, the pharmacy.

Next stop was Eddie's to get A's closet stuff. There was a bit of wait thanks to 2 undecided ladies. Instead of making up their mind on what to get, they debated the matter at the cashier. Still, comparing to the post office, this was nothing.

It was about 3:45. I fully intended to take dad to the handicap parking decal office in person. I've been bad putting it off for almost 2 months now. Plus, I spent time that I didn't have this morning to look up the address. Didn't want that time to be wasted. So we headed for Burnaby... but the traffic was bad. It could be the path I took too.

Somehow I completely lost my sense of direction when we were almost there. It could be my lack of sleep reacting with the unfamiliar area. Mom kept saying let's go home. She was afraid of dad soiling his diaper. But isn't that what diapers are for? Maybe the only spare she brought was used right after lunch. It was true that dad had drank many glasses of liquid at lunch. Oh yes, dad stunk badly already and I would not be surprised that he was already leaking. But I had come this far, I'd for sure beat someone (usually myself) up if I had to give up. Luckily, after a few moments with the street map, we arrived at the office. It was about 4:25.

Mom immediately took dad to the washroom while I dealt with the application. By going there in person, you can get the decal right away. Otherwise it has to go through mail, and the awkward donation pledge. The process was smooth. Then the lady announced the phone shut-down at 4:30. That was their closing time! Awwwwww!!!! I didn't check online! OMG we just made it!!!! Thank God!

We were ready to leave, then we saw the handicap aid supply store across the street. Mom's friend is looking for a 4-legged cane so she and I went inside to take a look while dad wait in the car. There was a lone goose outside the front door. Kind of tame, too. Very strange.

So it was just before 5 when we actually left. Guess what... I got lost again. Despite checking the map first, I still took a wrong turn. We hit full rush hour traffic and it felt like time had stopped. Mom then decided to eat-out so we went to Mui's. She took the chance to pick up some groceries while I went to the bank. Good my 3 major errands were completed. And we went home. It was... geese, I can't even remember what time it was! I kept falling asleep at the desk again. Totally non-functional. Yet instead of going to bed, I'm writing blog entry now... (>_<;)

Work day

(Picture was from 2 days ago and unrelated to subject.)
Got 4 hours of sleep. Not enough, but must go to work. It always makes me so sad that, the amount of time and effort I must give in return to get this pitiful minimum wage... It always makes me so sad that I keep saying I need a better job but unable to put it into action...

Boss needed to sent out lots of Christmas mail, and make ornaments as gifts. It was an interesting change from the usual stuff. Still did a bunch of those, though.

Finally heard from one of me blog friends. Glad that I can proceed with her package. A bunch more need to be packed up. They are not gonna make it for Christmas...

Hunger and anger

Just another work day...

I realized my umbrella's gone missing. Tracing back my memory, it had to be at the school. So I went there after work to take a look. It was super weird to go in, check the umbrella bucket, and then leave. So I went to the classroom to see if P and J were there first. And they both were. P was working on his reel packing. Honestly, it needed a lot of attention. I couldn't help it but to show him a few things. Before you know it, an hour was gone! Awwww I was supposed to go home soon! It was eat-out day with brother's gang, but he was bringing take-out sushi over. After P, I went to see J, and yes, spent another half-hour with him. Then I check on P again. That was a total of almost 2 hours. That, was a session that I don't think I can claim, because P didn't request me to show up. And, S had given me a pay cheque yesterday. He didn't say anything. In fact, he didn't look too pleased. (But to be fair, he was very tired too.) So, that was it. It's over.

My umbrella wasn't at the front door either. It is now that I think it could be left in the classrooms too. Oh well... (T_T) That was an old and crappy umbrella designated to stay in the car, so if it's lost, it's fine. I still have a tiny one for trips, and a very nice one from A.

There was some left-over volume on highway 1 from an earlier accident. By the time I got home, it was after 9. Super hungry. As I was heating up a bowl of soup, dad came nosing around despite mom trying to get him to go downstairs to shower. He... was trying to take my food. OK it doesn't hurt to give him a piece of sushi, and mom was just so eager to move dad along, she served him everything, bring him a plate, putting the ebi sushi on the plate, even gave him soy source. While that was happening, dad did not even look at what was in front of him, but kept starring at my food. He still wanted more. Or, rather, he ignored what was given to him and considered us not giving him anything. It was 9:15 and I haven't eaten since lunch. I was super hungry. He, on the other hand, had a full dinner. Yet he still wanted my food as if he hasn't eaten. And he did not consider anything wrong with that. Or the possibility of him being wrong.

Where in the world do you find parents with full stomachs taking the only food away form their hungry children?

Dad has turn into this incredibly ugly ugly ugly blob of gluttony.

Low blood sugar must be it. I snapped and banged my hand on the counter really loud and screamed.

Fine, you can eat it all. I'll eat nothing. Happy now?

I went to my computer. Still waiting for a bunch of mail. Luckily, the books Y sent me arrived. I was reading them. I'm sure they smoothed my flame quite a bit. Otherwise I would probably be banging my hand some more. Or even my heard.

Meanwhile mom and aunt Y tried to get dad to apologize to me. Of course impossible. He'd rather die than to admit he's wrong. (He is not known to have apologized to anyone, ever.) However, he refused to eat my food. Mom got him downstairs to shower, and I finally got something to eat. As a Chinese saying goes, "the food went down the spine". I even had a slight stomach ache.

As I went about my business at the computer, dad finished showering and was nosing around near the front door, which is right in front of my room. He did his usual stuff of opening the door, looking outside, and then shut it again. When he was in front of my room, he did a series of farts! EEEEEEWWWWWWWWW!!!!!! How, how in the world can I not say he did it on purpose?????? If he did it to get back to me, he was very successful. I snapped again right away.

Why oh why why why why why oh why why why why oh why me... (T_T) sob sob sob sob sob sob sob sob sob sob sob sob...

No Name regular chips

From August 2009... No Name regular potato chips. Didn't write it down right away and can't remember much. Which means, it's not as good as Lay's. Or as salty as Lay's. Sorry!

Boss vanished

Went to work, but boss wasn't there. No one answered the buzz, no one answered the land line or cell phone. I went around the building trying to see if she was out in the backyard, but no, she wasn't there. No lights either.

She's pretty good at letting me know in advance if she can't make it. So this time felt highly unusual. (Just because she lives alone, getting sick means getting stranded at home, and it had happened before.)

Stayed till 10:25, then went to Park Royal to use my 50% off coupon. After choosing a big bunch of stuff, lined up at cashier, only to find out that they were not further reduced. Oh well, deal's over.

It was on the way so I stopped at the gem store and picked up a pack of earring nuts and bails. Super busy. Super long lineup. Looked like it was the lunch rush hour. Then I visited S at school to pick up a pay cheque. Totally didn't expect to see P there. Thought he's done a long time ago. Nope. I wanted to see how his stuff turn out so I sat down with him and it became a mini mentoring session. S had an unexpected visit from a potential student so he was busy giving a tour anyway. By the time I was done, it was 4.

Stopped by the North Van Michael's. Picked up a little more stuff. Then met up with A. He needed help with an office gift exchange event. So we first hit a Liquor store. Liquor was his first choice for the gift. Then we went to Metrotown's dollar store for gift-wrapping materials. He picked out a nice gift box. After that, Timmy's on Marine Way, then Michael's again. Woo... how often do I get to visit 3 Michael's in 1 day? I think it only happened once before. A ended up spending 30 bucks on embellishments on the gift! Way more than the gift itself and over budget.

Then I proceeded with the wrapping at his place. That, was the most expensive wrapping I've ever done.

Only had 2 hours sleep last night. Really tired. Still needed to fill up. Amazingly, that female beggar wasn't there! Could it be late (it was just after midnight)? Or has she been recognized by too many people who frequent that gas station? So her "stories" no longer work?

Burnaby

Wrote a bunch of Japanese mail last night and got up late today again. Met up with A and went to that nameless mall on Marine Way. Thanks for the stuff at Michael's and the dinner at the Cactus Club nearby. Surprisingly, the cutlery at Cactus Club was not clean. We were going to writhe it on a comment card but forgot.

Picked up 2 bottles of Oxy Clean at LD. A needed to use the washroom so we left.

Tired

Got up super late. (T_T) No energy. Could it be from the party? Was it so mentally draining? I didn't even do much!

I should have realized it sooner. Some of my blog friends have drifted away from FMA. But they are still friends. So I'd like to provide a choice for the accessories. Pretty much spent the day scanning and retouching images. It's already too late for Christmas. (T_T)

Chiropractor and party

Needed to send a parcel at the neighbourhood post office. Long lineup. Needed to deposit a pay cheque at the bank machine. Long line up. Needed to pick up a pot of flower for the party. Only one guy was in front of me, but the staff was arranging a huge bouquet for him and it took a long time. At the end, I was 1 hour 20 minutes late for chiropractor. Sigh...

Nevertheless they still took me, and I didn't need to reschedule. Thanks, I need the treatment. It couldn't be postponed any further. Great relieve. I must have been really numb. Couldn't feel much until right after the treatment. Then I felt... much better!

Traffic was bad. So I went to Michael's for a while. They have a 50% off coupon again. Plus, some stuff are further reduced. I loaded up. Now that I look at the stuff, some deals are not that great. Oh well!

Then S's party. It was for Christmas, and his school finished renovating. (Actually not 100%. There was at least one room that was unfinished.) Thinking it was at the school, I totally under-dressed. There were waaaay more people than expected. The place was packed. As far as I could see, only 3 other women didn't dress up. The rest were all-out formal. Guys were a bit more diverse, though. I should have worn a dress...

Basically I only know S and J. Ran into G who I haven't seen for years! He brought a lady and seems to be doing well. Sad to know that he's no longer living with his wife D. Thought I could meet some people, but everyone, e v e r y o n e, brought someone. And they were already established in groups. So... no, I didn't even get to talk to anyone.

S had a treasure hunt game that involved students. I think it was too difficult and complicated. I didn't participate, just watched and stuck around long enough to see who won. Then left, still hungry. All I had was 2 pieces of bit-size treats and 2 cans of juice. Didn't get to talk to S except saying hi. Didn't get my pay cheque either. But he wanted me to go there again next week to fix that. Doesn't look like he'd be giving me another student to mentor, thought.

Mail

Wrote Japanese e-mail all day. Sent out 8 since yesterday. Still too early to hear back from most of them. And for the one who replied, didn't not come with useful information. Still waiting... Either way, the stuff is not gonna make it before Christmas. (T_T)

Pocky Dessert: Mont Blanc

Dug-up series continues... This was from June 2009. Just like all other Pocky "Dessert", the chocolate is very thick. This one was milky yet you can taste the chestnut. Without betraying its name, this Pocky really eats like a dessert. However, I like the cookie-chocolate ratio in the original Pocky better.

Bed wetting

Dad had wet 8 pairs of pants. Thought mom had him changed, but on our way home from dinner, I could smell him stinking like pee. Maybe he wet more than his pants.

Mom wants dad to skip today's day care because she thinks dad might be dizzy from the increased drug dosage, and it might cause the day care staff trouble. It was 6 in the morning. And she was super confused. Dad was in bed wearing no pants again. (This is the 2nd time he was caught without any pants recently.) And of course, he also wet his bed. At least this time he helped changing the bed sheets.

Last night mom first discovered one of the towels in front of the washroom was moved to the stairs. (Those are for soaking up dad's pee as he drips his way to the washroom.) Then, dad was in bed with no pants. Evidence suggested that he must have wanted to pee while I was showering. So he went to the washroom downstairs, but couldn't make it and dumped all the pee onto the stairs. The towel was moved there to soak up the pee. Not sure if he ran out of pants or what, but he decided to go back to bed half naked, the lower half, that is.

Handydart starts taking calls at 8. So if I were to phone and cancel, I can't sleep for another 2 hours. Day care should be voice message so it doesn't matter. However, that's not the point. The day care staff are professionals and know how to deal with situations. Mom worries too much. The real problem is the drug dosage. We should consult the geriatric doctor, who only works on Wednesdays. So, since there is no way to phone in and see her on the same day, might as well let today be as scheduled.

Boxes and castings

Just another work day. Slightly heavier then yesterday. Sorting, counting, making mini Christmas gift boxes, lining furniture, and last but not least, casting. I've never done casting before so it was kind of interesting. Extremely messy, though. I was only doing supporting work and cleanup, though. Boss did the main parts.

Eat out day with brother's gang again. Mom chose the cafe close-by which I've already gotten so tired of. It was raining so I suppose it was only logical to chose that place.

Stomach hasn't been feeling well since after lunch.

Got home, started to do some surfing and immediately felt asleep at the desk. Bad... (T_T) I was completely useless for the rest of the night. Yet again, did not deal with the parcels... (T_T) Time is running out.

Sorry, A, I couldn't call you sooner because of the casting.

Back to work

(Photo was taken last summer and unrelated to subject.)
As expected, didn't get much sleep. But I'm still fine. Today's work wasn't too bad. Mostly packaging kits and a little bit of precision cutting. If it was a lot, it would have been bad. Finally got a pay cheque too. Since boss has been away for over a month and she didn't give me one before she left, I haven't been paid for over 2 months. Been surviving on my savings. (T_T) Anyway, it's fine now. But it's also Christmas and lots of unavoidable expenses.

Still haven't heard from S. I really don't want to mail stuff to my Japanese friends individually because it cost just under $9 for each. (T_T) (And I have a dozen of them...) What am I gonna do... (T_T)

It's Monday night, fill up night. I went to my favorite gas station just before 8. The price hasn't dropped to the lowest yet, but nevertheless lower than other stations in the area, so I went ahead with the fill up. And, that female beggar who's been harassing me for the last 4 weeks wasn't there! I suppose she probably only shows up when the gas price drops, which attracts costumers, who she'd harass.

Chairs and mittens

Ooooo it has to be the vampire. Alarm went off at noon. Tried to stretch and get out of bed. Next time I opened my eyes, it was 3! AAAARRRRGGGGHHH!!!!

Hopes of going out went down the drain. Still tried nevertheless. Not much time left. Took A to get the desk chair at Staples. Thanks to my defective window, it's extremely easy to break into my car, so I prefer to drop off the chair at A's place before going to the Bay for the red mittens. There's a 20% off store-wide even this weekend. (But the mittens were excluded... booooooo!)

Then grocery shop at Save-on. Thanks, A. I did start out feeling horrible. You did make me feel better. I really appreciate it.

Got home and tried to write some Japanese mail. Only get to finish one. Awwwww... why am I so show?????

Never seen such a completely moldy mandarin in my life before. It's so very completely and evenly moldy yet still holds together very well. (OK actually it was ever so slightly moist on the bottom.) It didn't spread either. It's from a case bought at Costco.