Saturday 18 January 2014
MAGIC! - Rude
Heard this song on the radio today driving into work. The old ear worm did her magic and I have been humming it ever since. Sort of reminds me of that old 80's band Police.
Work life
Some people make life a little brighter ...some by their presence and some by their absence. Suffice to say the last two nights at work have been wunderbar!
Diet and Work Out progress
So as mentioned in a previous post, Mr. C. and I have added to our home gym and have been religiously working out since the New Year (well, since my birthday would be a more accurate date for me). I've also signed up for the 6 week challenge at diet.com to give me a little more motivation. One thing I have done is break down the 6 week challenge into mini goals. They aren't even weight related goals. For example my first goal was to workout for a week. Whether it was treadmill, weights or a combination of both. I achieved this goal - and my reward was to go for a massage. Bliss! Next week's goal for keeping physically active will be to treat myself to a new piece of workout clothing. A t-shirt or pair of socks etc., nothing horrendously expensive. My official "weigh in" day is every Monday, although I do tend to hop on the scale every morning just to check my progress. At the moment I am down 6lbs over the last two weeks. Not bad. Slow and steady wins the race as they say!
Mammogram Round 2
So a week ago I had a second appointment with my local radiology lab. My initial mammogram came back with results that needed further investigation, so I was scheduled for an ultra-sound. The whole process can be very unnerving to say the least, and the technician - although very nice - made me feel very nervous by telling me that she had to show the radiologist the results, as he may want to come and perform the ultra-sound again himself. My initial thought was why on earth isn't the radiologist doing the initial examination himself, instead of this technician.
After the ultra-sound the technician trotted away with the results of my scan and left me sitting in my paper gown for what felt like an eternity. When she came back she said that he wanted to see another mammogram. A few minutes later I am back sitting in the change room, waiting to be called by another technician, for another mammogram. I was starting to feel a little panicked. I sat in my pale blue paper gown texting Mr. C., and bless him, he was ready to drop everything at work and come to the lab if I needed him.
The second mammogram was only required on one breast, using a different plate that would compress the tissue even further. The technician warned me that it would hurt, and she wasn't lying. That moment when they take the picture the instruction is to hold your breath. With the excruciating pain I was experiencing my breath was taken away, so "holding my breath" was easy peasy - I couldn't breathe even if I wanted to.
Back in the change room, still in my now creased and bedraggled looking baby blue paper gown, I was instructed to wait whilst this new technician took the results back to the radiologist to review. This radiologist was quickly becoming the "Almighty Oz" in my mind. Hidden away somewhere in the deep reaches of the radiology lab, no doubt behind a curtain. I never did meet him thankfully. After another wait and numerous text messages with Mr. C. technician #2 popped her head into the change room and informed me that I could get dressed. The results would be with my doctor Monday morning.
It was the longest weekend ever. Monday dawned and I must've checked my phone every few minutes, jumping out of my skin at every beep, notification or vibration. I distracted myself with a visit with a girlfriend for coffee, donuts and a much needed chat. The relief of "no news is good news". No phone call. Ditto for Tuesday (which I had mentally prepared myself for, just in case...). So here we are a week later, still no phone call, and I'm finally allowing myself to breathe again.
After the ultra-sound the technician trotted away with the results of my scan and left me sitting in my paper gown for what felt like an eternity. When she came back she said that he wanted to see another mammogram. A few minutes later I am back sitting in the change room, waiting to be called by another technician, for another mammogram. I was starting to feel a little panicked. I sat in my pale blue paper gown texting Mr. C., and bless him, he was ready to drop everything at work and come to the lab if I needed him.
The second mammogram was only required on one breast, using a different plate that would compress the tissue even further. The technician warned me that it would hurt, and she wasn't lying. That moment when they take the picture the instruction is to hold your breath. With the excruciating pain I was experiencing my breath was taken away, so "holding my breath" was easy peasy - I couldn't breathe even if I wanted to.
Back in the change room, still in my now creased and bedraggled looking baby blue paper gown, I was instructed to wait whilst this new technician took the results back to the radiologist to review. This radiologist was quickly becoming the "Almighty Oz" in my mind. Hidden away somewhere in the deep reaches of the radiology lab, no doubt behind a curtain. I never did meet him thankfully. After another wait and numerous text messages with Mr. C. technician #2 popped her head into the change room and informed me that I could get dressed. The results would be with my doctor Monday morning.
It was the longest weekend ever. Monday dawned and I must've checked my phone every few minutes, jumping out of my skin at every beep, notification or vibration. I distracted myself with a visit with a girlfriend for coffee, donuts and a much needed chat. The relief of "no news is good news". No phone call. Ditto for Tuesday (which I had mentally prepared myself for, just in case...). So here we are a week later, still no phone call, and I'm finally allowing myself to breathe again.
Monday 13 January 2014
High Temperature/No Temperature Roast Beef Dinner
I've been waiting since before Christmas to try this roast beef recipe, and this evening was the perfect time to try it. Admittedly Monday night is not the traditional night for a roast beef and Yorkshire Pudding dinner, but when you are a shift worker, you grab the opportunities wherever they may be found.
The reason this recipe struck me as different from the traditional methods of roasting beef is the fact that for the 2 hours plus that the roast is in the oven...the oven isn't actually on!
Roast Beef recipe
The beef came out beautifully - fully cooked and delicious. Coupled with Yorkshire Pudding, vegetables, gravy and horseradish sauce - it was a definite recipe I will "do again".
The reason this recipe struck me as different from the traditional methods of roasting beef is the fact that for the 2 hours plus that the roast is in the oven...the oven isn't actually on!
Roast Beef recipe
The beef came out beautifully - fully cooked and delicious. Coupled with Yorkshire Pudding, vegetables, gravy and horseradish sauce - it was a definite recipe I will "do again".
The gift of fragrance
Ever since I was a little girl I have loved perfume. I recall trying all the perfume testers at the local drug store on my wrists, when out shopping with my mum and grandma. Grandma would wrinkle her nose and tell me that it smelled like "cat" by the time I had finished. No doubt referring to the pungent scent of cat urine. That didn't stop me however from having a quick spritz of whatever was on the counter in the cosmetics department, as I walked by. Even today, if I'm in a department store, I can't resist, but nowadays I limit myself to one fragrance, not twenty!
So imagine my delight, when for Christmas Mr. C. bought me the ideal gift for the perfume tester addict!
This is the fragrance sampler! Inside there are ten tester vials of some of the most currently popular perfumes, and a certificate which I can redeem for a full sized bottle of perfume, once I have picked my favourite.
Every day I have tried a new perfume, noted my own responses, and those of Mr. C. I have been surprised by some of the results - we haven't always agreed. Considering Mr. C. is sensitive to some fragrances, I want to be considerate when choosing a perfume that I will be wearing around him.
We have gone through all the fragrances once, and I will repeat our favourites until we narrow down the final choice. Some women look at their make-up bag of goodies as their chance to "play" - and these ten vials have been my playtime. I have certainly gotten more enjoyment out of this gift, as I hunt for my new perfume, than if I had just unwrapped a bottle of my regular perfume on Christmas Day.
Bearing in mind that every perfume smells different on everyone, taking into account your own personal body scent, body temperature, chemistry etc.; and that not everyone likes the same fragrance. Some women love vanilla, I personally don't want to smell like a batch of cookies. Below I have listed the ten fragrances and our observations so far.
Honey by Marc Jacobs
Quite nice. Light. Hint of "old fashioned" to it. Mr. C. like this too and it was very nice over the course of the day as it warmed to my body.
Eau de LaCoste by LaCoste
Nice, light, sporty. Mr. C. liked it too. Think I might like this better than Honey so far, but will need a repeat day to be sure.
Very Irrestsistible by Givenchy
Light, floral, pleasant. Mr. C. didn't care for it. He said it made him want to sneeze. Sorry Givency, this one is off the list!
Be Jeweled by Vera Wang
Very sharp and citrussy. I didn't care for it from the initial application and Mr. C. disliked it immediately. Sorry Ms. Wang, love your wedding dresses, but not this perfume.
Viva La Juicy by Juicy Couture
Light, nice, earthy finish. It was "OK" but nothing special. Mr. C. felt the same way.
Untold by Elizabeth Arden
Very pretty, light, lovely fragrance. Mr. C. really liked it too, the only downside was that it wasn't very long lasting and after an hour I could barely smell it.
Down Town by Calvin Klein
Soft, pleasant. A lovely "every day" fragrance, but not a stand out "wow" special occasion scent. Mr. C. liked it, and agrees with my overall impression.
Big Pony #2 by Ralph Lauren
I found this perfume very sweet and cloying - I didn't like it immediately. Mr. C. on the other hand liked it. It was very long lasting however, I didn't need a second spritz later in the day and could still smell it on my skin late at night. Typical for a perfume that I didn't like!
Candy by Prada
I liked this perfume immediately. Soft, light and reminded me of powdery softness and was reminiscent of a fragrance my mother used to wear (which may be why I liked it). It was quite long lasting however Mr. C.'s immediately reaction was a firm "No". He said the perfume made his nose start to tingle the moment he smelled it.
Euphoria by Calvin Klein
A second perfume by Calvin. I have worn this particular fragrance previously and have quite liked it. The whole point of this exercise however was to find a new perfume, although this would be a good fall back if I can't find something that I really like to use my gift certificate for.
Another week and I should have a final decision!
So imagine my delight, when for Christmas Mr. C. bought me the ideal gift for the perfume tester addict!
This is the fragrance sampler! Inside there are ten tester vials of some of the most currently popular perfumes, and a certificate which I can redeem for a full sized bottle of perfume, once I have picked my favourite.
Every day I have tried a new perfume, noted my own responses, and those of Mr. C. I have been surprised by some of the results - we haven't always agreed. Considering Mr. C. is sensitive to some fragrances, I want to be considerate when choosing a perfume that I will be wearing around him.
We have gone through all the fragrances once, and I will repeat our favourites until we narrow down the final choice. Some women look at their make-up bag of goodies as their chance to "play" - and these ten vials have been my playtime. I have certainly gotten more enjoyment out of this gift, as I hunt for my new perfume, than if I had just unwrapped a bottle of my regular perfume on Christmas Day.
Bearing in mind that every perfume smells different on everyone, taking into account your own personal body scent, body temperature, chemistry etc.; and that not everyone likes the same fragrance. Some women love vanilla, I personally don't want to smell like a batch of cookies. Below I have listed the ten fragrances and our observations so far.
Honey by Marc Jacobs
Quite nice. Light. Hint of "old fashioned" to it. Mr. C. like this too and it was very nice over the course of the day as it warmed to my body.
Eau de LaCoste by LaCoste
Nice, light, sporty. Mr. C. liked it too. Think I might like this better than Honey so far, but will need a repeat day to be sure.
Very Irrestsistible by Givenchy
Light, floral, pleasant. Mr. C. didn't care for it. He said it made him want to sneeze. Sorry Givency, this one is off the list!
Be Jeweled by Vera Wang
Very sharp and citrussy. I didn't care for it from the initial application and Mr. C. disliked it immediately. Sorry Ms. Wang, love your wedding dresses, but not this perfume.
Viva La Juicy by Juicy Couture
Light, nice, earthy finish. It was "OK" but nothing special. Mr. C. felt the same way.
Untold by Elizabeth Arden
Very pretty, light, lovely fragrance. Mr. C. really liked it too, the only downside was that it wasn't very long lasting and after an hour I could barely smell it.
Down Town by Calvin Klein
Soft, pleasant. A lovely "every day" fragrance, but not a stand out "wow" special occasion scent. Mr. C. liked it, and agrees with my overall impression.
Big Pony #2 by Ralph Lauren
I found this perfume very sweet and cloying - I didn't like it immediately. Mr. C. on the other hand liked it. It was very long lasting however, I didn't need a second spritz later in the day and could still smell it on my skin late at night. Typical for a perfume that I didn't like!
Candy by Prada
I liked this perfume immediately. Soft, light and reminded me of powdery softness and was reminiscent of a fragrance my mother used to wear (which may be why I liked it). It was quite long lasting however Mr. C.'s immediately reaction was a firm "No". He said the perfume made his nose start to tingle the moment he smelled it.
Euphoria by Calvin Klein
A second perfume by Calvin. I have worn this particular fragrance previously and have quite liked it. The whole point of this exercise however was to find a new perfume, although this would be a good fall back if I can't find something that I really like to use my gift certificate for.
Another week and I should have a final decision!
Thursday 9 January 2014
Opinion: For Ian’s sake — change
This article, written anonymously and printed in The Hamilton Spectator is true not just of policing, but of all emergency service responders. Police, Ambulance and Fire.
Opinion: For Ian’s sake — change
Opinion: For Ian’s sake — change
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