Somebody didn't want me to work on Friday, hee hee...

So, I didn't end up driving down to Wolseley to work. A winter storm was supposed to come through, dumping a ton of snow. I hardly slept Thursday night: I was too busy getting up every hour checking to see if the blizzard had rolled in. We didn't get any snow, but there was a really strong wind that just blew around all the snow that we had, and the highway down there was reported as having slippery/icy sections. I took that as a sign to stay home instead. Besides...I was worried that I would get there, the storm would hit, and then I'd be stuck down there. So, instead, I got some groceries, hit the liquor store for a bottle of wine, and planned to make dinner that night. I do miss having wine in the grocery store. In Canada, liquor stores are generally run by the government, and are their own separate stores. So, even if you want a bottle of wine, you can't just snag one when you pick up some last minute groceries. Oh well. Don't even get me started on the lack of selection.

In the afternoon, I got some stuff ready, and talked to my friend Ilaria for about an hour and a half. We mostly griped about ticked we were that no one bothered to phone us that the jewelry store was closing...that we had to find out on our own. Olivia and I had to run back to the grocery store later that afternoon, and ran into another friend from the jewelry store. But, for as much as we complained about the place, one good thing came out of it: I met some really neat people, whom I can call my friends.

So I have this theory...

Call is strange...call it some weird superstition that I have, but I have this idea that bad things happen in threes. After you've had your third bad thing happen, only good things can happen. Until, of course, a bad thing happens, then you have two more not-so-good things to look out for.

I have an alternate theory that goes with this. If your day starts out good...nothing but really good things can happen. I woke up really early this morning, so I've been able to get ready for work, and now I can sit here, drink my coffee, and listen to my new Norah Jones cd. So far, it's a great morning.

I am starting to see the end of my unpacking, and now, the phone just rang. Nobody calls me at 7 in the morning. Except, apparently, moving people who need to deliver some bookcases. I found two bookcases for a steal at Home Depot ($60 each, with 10% off that day), with shipping a whopping $10. I'd spend more than $10 on gas driving into the city to pick them up. I am so sick of looking at that stack of boxes up against the wall, it is not even funny.


Tomorrow, I'm off on a little adventure. One of the bank's branches needs a replacement worker for the day, so, off I drive to the little town of Wolseley. I've never been there, so I'm kind of looking forward to it.

It's good that I've been getting more hours at the bank. The jewelry store where I also work is closing down, which is sad, because it's a business that has the potential to do very well, but the owner's husband suffered a serious stroke several months ago, and since then, her heart just hasn't been in it. So, now I will make less money every month, but I will have more time with Olivia, so that is worth it.

They like me...they really like me...

My three month probationary date with the bank is coming up next week. It's one of the scary things that they told me when I got the job...I am given a three month test-run, and after that time, if things are not working out, they can let me go. No pressure. Since, with my other job, it's fizzled out to maybe one or two days a month. Yup, a month. You can really pay a lot of bills with hours like that. Oh well, at least I have the bank job. So, anyways, I was hired on as a casual teller, but I saw an employee listing sheet, and beside my name is Part Time Teller.

Not even there three months, and I've already gotten a promotion. I've also gotten a lot of extra hours added to the schedule, which is ok. I get between 15-25 hours a week. That's the beauty of living in a small place. The cost of living is so much less than the city. It's better for Olivia, too, because I'm not gone all the time.

Valentine's Day was incredible. When Donnie called me up, he said, "Be ready by 7:15, and wear something nice."

"As opposed to those crappy clothes that I normally wear?" I laughed.

"No, no....that's not what I mean...it's just...," he sputtered. We're both really sarcastic, and have pretty much the same sense of humour.

So, we went out for a late dinner at a very nice restaurant. I got twenty long-stemmed white, pink and red roses, and a diamond bracelet. It matches the diamond earrings I got for Christmas, and the diamond necklace I got for New Year's.

Yes, he spoils me.

Happy Valentine's Day

Perfect day...

I've had this song go through my head a lot lately. I've been happier lately than I thought that I could ever be. Work is going well, and every few days, more empty boxes hit the recycling bin. But, besides that fact that I have learned a lot about banking and I am slowly getting organized, there's a further reason to the smile that graces my face these days. I have found someone who shares my sense of humour, my values, my beliefs, and above all else, he respects me. He knows my flaws, my weaknesses, and my fears. We can talk for hours without running out of things to say, and it always feels like we haven't talked long enough.

It helps that we've been friends since we were fourteen years old.

We hung out together in high school in a very large group of friends, and then after we had all moved away to go to University, and we would all come home during summer break, we still all hung out together. We would sit on his back deck and half-listen to our friend Marla muse about things like when you are up in an airplane and look down at the ground, are the provinces the same colour as they are on the map? [In defense of Marla, this observation may have been made after several drinks.] And, we played on the worst slow-pitch team in the history of Killaly Sports Days.



I read a lot of Crazy Aunt Purl, and I love this post especially, with the line,

I just need a real warmth, some good laughing, and loving, someone who can adore me in the manner to which I would like to become accustomed.

It is truly amazing when you have someone who looks at you in such a way that it makes you feel like you are the only woman in the world. Someone who you really be yourself with, and not have to edit anything.

And that's what makes me smile.

Just don't get into writing greeting cards...

So, my mom mentioned one day to Olivia that my birthday is coming up. It's well over a month away, but for the amount of excitement building around it, you'd think it was next week. Every day, she wishes me a Happy Birthday, and oh, by the way, when are we making that cake?

The other night, while the two of us were having dinner, she was talking about it again. She was going on about how we were going to have a party, and a chocolate cake, and we had to put candles on top. So, I couldn't resist...I had to ask:

"Olivia...how many candles do you think we have to put on my cake?"

She looked down, with a very serious look on her face, and started silently counting on her fingers...first on one hand, then on the other. After a few moments, she looked up, and answered...

"Many."