I was just thinking about cleaning out my jewellry box

You wouldn't believe the junk I have in that thing. Honestly any real gold or diamonds I have I wear on a daily basis and the things I don't (fancy stuff that came from my mum that I wear to the odd "event") can fit in my fist.

So this nice dark wooden box with shiny metal details and blue velvet insides currently holds my fanciest plastic "jewellry", assorted homeless keys, my favourite Silly Bandz and about 72 gross baby teeth. I tried to keep them apart but I don't even know whose are whose anymore. What am I going to do with these flipping teeth?

I've talked about them here and here but the time has finally come. I'm finally ready to throw them away. But there's a small part of me that wants to put them in a little baggie and toss it in with the donations I regularly send to the Salvation Army. I giggle every time I imagine their stricken faces when they see it.

kxx

I'm one of *those*

Audrey and I went to the first showing of The Hunger Games on Friday at midnight. I want to throw my daughter under the bus here and blame her for this idiocy but she reminds me that it was my idea and I was the one who recommended that she read the book in the first place. Ingrate.

So I know you must be sick and tired of hearing about it already so I won't mention it except to say if you adored the book you'll like the movie, if you only liked the book then wait for the video but if you haven't read the book at all, you'll love it.

I so enjoy the movies. Once I went to one movie a week for an entire year. That was awesome and not only because it was before I had kids. Nowadays I don't get to the theatre as much as I'd like and I forget how much I love that little frisson of excitement once the lights go down. In fact, when it happened at The Hunger Games I was so excited and wired (keep in mind it was midnight and I wasn't even in bed) that I actually applauded. Which made the equally wired crowd clap as well until we all realized that it wasn't the movie starting but the 30 minutes of ads and trailers. At a flipping midnight showing. What a let-down. Moving on...

The other day Audrey asked what my favourite movie was. I hate that question and if you check back over the years of this blog, I may have different answers depending on my mood, the time of year or the current barometric pressure. There are movies I like to watch over and over like Deep Blue Sea or Ferris Bueller's Day Off but they're certainly not my favourites. Today. I love Sliding Doors but my favourite? Definitely top 10 but not my favourite favourite. Whatever. Why do I have to have a favourite movie anyway? Ask me about my favourite dish instead.

Um, wait... dessert or dinner? Soup or sandwich? Oh forget it.

kxx (Hang on... it's this. Almost always this. Usually.)

Yawn.

It's 7am on Sunday morning and I can't get back to sleep. Doesn't that suck? My alarm clock went at 6:30 and while that by itself wouldn't keep me awake, a loud report from Scott's ummmm... sub-commander juuuuust as I was falling back asleep put the nail in it. The fact that the birds are loudly singing, there's light in the sky, it's an hour past my normal weekday wake up time and I started to mentally write this blog were the cherries, nuts and gooey toppings on my insomniac sundae. Ooh... wouldn't that make a cool band name? "Ladies and gentlemen would you welcome to the stage.... The Insomniac Sundaes!!!"  (*wild screaming applause*)

The house is super quiet right now (Except for those damned birds, my purring cat and the computer keys clicking. Why does the backspace key make a different sound than the letter keys? I'm just curious...) and I'm debating watching tv after I'm done here. That or clean up the kitchen. Well that was decided even before I finished typing up the sentence. As I used to say when I was 8... like as if.

Talking about tv, remember when stations used to go off the air? They'd play the national anthem at some time after midnight then run that horrible, obnoxious squeal with the graphic of the Indian (Native Canadian?) when channels were black and white and the colour bars when they went colour? Good times. Now when I turn that tv on I'll get some great old cartoon like Looney Tunes on the retro cartoon channel or a new(ish) episode of The Bachelor on the channel out of Israel. Better times.

The above statement makes me want to go channel surfing now before the kids wake up wanting to watch Yu-Gi-Oh or some such nonsense. I'm going to brush my teeth, make a tea and enjoy this quiet house for one more hour before they come bug me. Looks like being up this early can have a few advantages as well.

This is Karen Kaye signing off...

kxx

I LOVE this weather!

It's not so much the temperature, it's the promise of even warmer temperatures. The snow is nearly gone and there's that poop smell in the air. Even I was lured outside by the unseasonable warmth and plotted my route to work by bike. It takes 30 minutes and it puts me in a quandary. Here's a math problem for you on this gorgeous day: If I run 5 times a week and paddle twice a week, will I waste away if I also bike an hour a day? (5x2x1x0=0 or something). Hang on, hang on... did I actually say waste away? Have you seen me lately? The only way I could waste away is if I actually watched what I ate while doing the above exercise. And frankly, there is little to no chance of that.

So it looks like "Operation Oh My Back" is a go. Or as most of you call it... "summer".

Enjoy!

kxx

The A to Z of me (or "med" if you want to be Canadian about it)

A. Age: 

44 

B. Bed size: 

Queen

C. Chore that you hate: 

All of them.

D. Dogs: 

Okay to look at, terrifying to own.

E. Essential start to your day: 

A run. Or sleeping in.

F. Favorite colour(s): 

Orange to look at, fuchsia to wear and blue to decorate with

G. Gold or Silver: 

Gold

H. Height: 

5'3  

I. Instruments you play: 
Is the remote an instrument?
J. Job title: 
Preschool teacher, dragonboat paddler, blogger extraordinaire 
K. Kids: 
Elliott, Audrey and Henry
L. Live: 
Ottawa
M. Mother’s name: 
Mabel. I just realized that her name dates me
N. Nicknames: 
Scott calls me "Poopie" and "Bunty"... the kids calls me mum. Karen doesn't lend itself to nicknames. My Jewish co-workers have promised to find me a Hebrew name but I'm still waiting, ladies...
O. Overnight hospital stays: 
Let's see... 3 kids (3 c-sections), my boob job and I had a  hernia removed when I was little
P. Pet peeves: 
In this house: not cleaning up after yourself; driving: not waving thanks when I let you in; work: boogers
Q. Quote from a movie: 
Khaaaaaannnnnnn!!! Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan. 

R. Right or left handed: 
Right handed but I paddle left.
S. Siblings: 
Mikey. Actually his name is Errol. He's my baby brother. He hates then I call him that because he's 42.
T. Time you wake up:
Many answers here. When I run and take the bus 5:15am. When I run but drive 6:15. When I don't run and take the bus, also 6:15. When I don't run and drive, 7:15. Weekends, about 9:30. Whew.
U. Underwear:
Cotton boy shorts 
V. Vegetable you hate: 
I'm okay with all veggies. Not crazy about tomatoes, though
W. What makes you run late: 
Underestimating traffic or having to brush off the car.
X. X-Rays you’ve had: 
Besides the dentist? None.
Y. Yummy food that you make: 
Ooh, definitely my baked goods.
Z. Zoo animal:
Elephants and hippos. They're my shape peeps LOL!

As I was writing this I realized that most of you know this stuff about me already. But I saw this on another blog and I couldn't resist. I love answering questions, once even asking the census taker who came to my door offering the short form for the long version. You should have seen him. So surprised and grateful. 

Have a terrific weekend and see you soon,

kxx

My most treasured possession

I'm not going to say my family because I don't own them, or my cat because... well, have you ever had a cat? While I love him to bits, we have more of an employer/employee relationship. No, my most treasured possession has to be my earrings.

My mum died of cancer in the summer of 1995. She had always wanted some "real" jewellry but she and my dad could never afford anything when they were young and as they got older it just wasn't a priority. All she had was her wedding ring and a box full of plastic stuff (we'd just left the 80s, after all) and costume jewellry. For her final birthday that March, my brother and his girlfriend, and Scott and I pooled our money together and finally bought her something special. They were everyday studs with little pearls and sapphires. I'll never forget her face when she opened the tiny velvet box.

When she died a few months later, her will was pretty standard and she left me that jewellry box full of old plastic bangles and junky stuff. But along with it, she had added a note saying that I was to "enjoy the pearl earrings... I know they were your idea".

I love those earrings more than anything I own. Their simplicity means I can wear them to preschool and they go with everything. I love not needing an "occasion" to put them on because if I did I know I'd never wear them. In fact, I wore them to work today. They aren't extravagant so when I get a compliment on them (which happens more often than I expect) I feel like she's winking or smiling at me. I always tell the person, who has unknowingly made my day, that they were my mum's and thank them.

So tell me... what's your most treasured possession?

kxx