We went to a Canucks game a few weeks ago when they played Washington. We missed the first period and part of the second as I had physio that night. Too bad we missed seeing the only 2 goals the Canucks scored that night (except for the winner in the o/t shootout). It was my first time ever seeing an overtime game and the shootout.

My parents came over for my aunt's 65th b'day dinner a few weeks ago. That was at the beginning of my cold so I wasn't feeling well enough to go to the house for b'day cake :( Oh well, at least my mom had a good visit with her family.

Wow, it's hard to believe I walked 20 miles today. What a beautiful day for a walk for mid-November. Luckily the rain and wind stopped in time for me to walk this afternoon. The past month has been a struggle with marathon training. The weekend after the Victoria Half Marathon I had a bout of arthritis. This was when we had to turn the heat on for the first time in months. Along with the arthritis pain came fatigue so I wasn't able to do any training for a week. Once I felt better I walked again but then after only a week I came down with a cold and more fatigue. This time I wasn't able to train for a week and a half.

Last weekend I did my 3.5 mile Saturday walk on the treadmill and then did the long Sunday walk (18 miles) on Remembrance Day instead. I only did a 4.5 mile walk on Thursday and didn't do any other walks during the week until today. Hopefully this week I'll be able to do all the walks on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday. Only 14.5 miles to walk next Sunday. Yee ha, and then only 3.5 the following Sunday before the marathon. It's hard to believe the big day is only 3 weeks away!!! But after walking 20 miles today, another 6 miles is definitely doable.

After I checked out of the hotel I dropped the car off at the rental place. It didn't open until 7am so I dropped the keys in the box and left the car there. I walked across the street to the bus depot as I had emailed them a few weeks before then to check if they had lockers. When I got there the guy at the counter said that they don't have lockers. Hrrrmph, I just emailed the person from Pacific Coach Lines today to let them know they gave me the wrong information. At first I slightly panicked but then I thought I'd try and see if my stuff would be able to fit at the Gear Check tent. I recalled reading online that your stuff had to fit in a certain size bag. Worst case scenario is I would just ask the Arthritis Society's special event coordinator to hold onto my stuff. So, I walked a few more blocks to the Marathon area. There was lots of hub-bub going on there. I was able to check my bags there no problem. Whew!

I walked a few more blocks and found the hotel where the JIMers were staying. I was 10 minutes early. We were supposed to meet at 7am and then all go to the start line together. I was still in disbelief that I had been up so early and had so much time to spare. It was surreal. A few photos were taken of the group and then we headed to the start line. It took a few minutes to get moving and then when I had some space I set my cell phone countdown timer to 10 minutes as I would walk 10 minutes briskly and then 1 minute slower as I had done for all the long Sunday walks in training. One of the JIMers was running so we didn't see her that morning. She was from Victoria. It rained the whole time. I was still wondering why I wasn't tired at all with such lack of sleep but it was much appreciated.

The slower Marathoners had started at 6:30 am and the Half Marathoners at 7:30 am. Then the faster Marathoners (who could do it in less than 5 hours) started at 8:30 am. After I was walking for about an hour and a half or so some marathoners started to run past me. Quite a few men went by and then when the first woman ran by everyone cheered!!! It was quite a rush being amongst all these athletes. The route was nice, along the seawall and also through some residential areas. I wasn't used to walking in the middle of the road and some parts were at an angle unless you walked right in the middle. It was nice not to have to pay attention to traffic.

I had my race # bib pinned to my t-shirt, so whenever I saw a photographer I had to unzip my jacket and other top to flash my bib #. Unfortunately only one photo of my bib # was visible but I managed to find 2 other photos of myself in the Lost and Found section of the marathon website. At least for Honolulu I won't have a jacket over my bib so should be able to find all my photos and hopefully be in a lot more. Other JIMers had up to a dozen photos taken of them as they had their bib #'s on their jacket or singlet.

I thought I had taken a photo of the finish line but it turned out to be just the ground :( The announcer announced my name as I crossed the finish line. I had no idea what my time was. I had my timing chip removed from my shoe and got my finisher's medal. The Arthritis Society's Special Events coordinator was there and said that she was screaming out my name to take a photo but I didn't hear her. I was too engrossed trying to take a photo of the finish line and also to see one of the female marthoners cross. I ended up finishing in 3 hours and 46 minutes, over half an hour faster than I thought I would.

There was so much food at the finish line: cookies, doughnuts, oranges, liquid yogurt, powerbars etc. I only had a yogurt as I was snacking all the way through the race.

Afterwards at about 1:00 I met up with my high school friend who lives in Victoria now. I hadn't see her for quite a few years so it was great to be able to spend the rest of the day with her. There are 2 Rotties who live at her house upstairs. They are so friendly and I enjoyed playing with them. I sure got my Rotty fix this past weekend!!! I took the 7:00 Superferry home.

The past weekend was an extra long weekend for me as I had Friday off as well as the stat. Had early Thanksgiving dinner in Nanaimo on Friday and then rented a car on Saturday and drove down to Victoria after doing a quick 2 mile walk close to home. Checked into the hotel and then went to the Victoria Conference Centre to pick up my race package for the Royal Victoria Marathon's half marathon. Got a cool purplish long-sleeve New Balance Tempo shirt included with the registration. Walked around and checked out the booths at the expo and ended up buying a pair of Crocs sandals.

Met up with the Arthritis Society's acting special events coordinator and her family and we headed to the Empress which was attached to the conference centre. This was where the Carbo Gala Dinner was being held as well as the a New Balance Fashion/Hip-Hop Dance show. There were some interesting speeches and a motivational talk. We met up with the other JIMers (Joints in Motion team members) who were also doing the half marathon. The one from Victoria was running it but the other 3 (2 from Van and one from Cranbrook) were walkers.

I went to the car rental place and found out where to drop off the car and key as I would be there before they opened Sundy morning. Saw a sign on the counter about Airmiles. Hrrmph, I didn't know they were an Airmiles place. The guy said I could put my Airmiles number with the key when I dropped it off as he couldn't add Airmiles to the contract in the middle of it. He gave me a sticky to write the # on.

I drove around to check out where the half marathon would start. It was only a few blocks from the conference centre. Also the car rental place was across the street from the conference centre. I would need to drop it off before the race so I wouldn't have to find parking. Good planning if I must say so myself :) I topped up the gas in my car so I wouldn't have to do it in the morning. Hmm, after dinner it was raining out. Not a good sign I thought to myself :( Good thing I brought my water-resistant pants and jacket after all.

Back at the hotel I was using the computer in the lobby. Within a time span of about 10 minutes there was 1 phone call and 2 different people came in looking for a room. This was about 10:30 pm. I think all the accommodation in the whole city was booked up. I wonder if they ended up sleeping in their car? One woman was tall, lanky and lean. Looked like she could've been from Africa or somewhere as she was dark and spoke with an accent. Obviously a marathoner.

I called the front desk to ask what the light switch by my front door opened. I couldn't tell if that was a light fixture by the door and when I flipped it off and on nothing happened. Anyways the person didn't know as she said that not all the rooms have the same configuration and she wasn't sure. She said she had some spare light bulbs. I ended up using the bulb for one of the burnt-out light bulbs between the double beds. There were 2 tri-light lamps there but even with the new bulb only one lamp worked. My room didn't have much light as it was just that one lamp between the beds and one on the desk in the corne. Oh well, good thing I was only here one night. This hotel was an older one too.

When I booked online through Expedia they confirmed that I would have a kitchenette. Well, the front desk said that I should've called them directly to confirm as they didn't receive that request from Expedia. Plus she said that since they were booked full that she couldn't exchange my room either. Oh well, I didn't end up getting any yogurt since I didn't have a fridge. I put my baby carrots and soy milk in the ice container and filled it up with ice from the ice machine.

I didn't get much sleep Saturday night as I woke up about 2:45 am when nature called. I tossed and turned until 4:30 am and decided to get up since I couldn't fall back asleep. Considering I had less than 3 hours sleep I wondered how I would do in the half. I made my peanut butter, jam and banana sandwiches, rinsed off my pear, put my unsalted nuts, strawberries and other snacks together into my packsack. By the time I was about to leave it was 6am so I ate one of the sandwiches along with 2 deeelicious yummy Purdy's Hedgehogs and a soy milk. Note to self - eat this just before the full marathon too. I did my usual last look around the room to make sure I didn't forget anything. Good thing I did as I left my other jacket in the closet.

I went downstairs to check out. Another woman was checking out too. I was wearing my water-resistant pants, jacket and my cap. She had raccoon-like black stripes of make-up above her eyes. I told her it was raining. She looked at me in disbelief and said she had no idea. I guess some people don't look out the window. I was looking out the window a lot earlier hoping the rain would stop. Oh well I walked a long distance Sunday in the rain before so knew what it was like. She asked me if I knew where the start of the race was. Turns out she was doing the half too. I whipped out the map of the course I had printed out. I showed her where I parked the night before - as she was wondering where to park as well. Hmm, some people aren't very prepared as she had no idea where she was going. I told her I didn't need to worry about parking this morning and she assumed I was taking a cab. I told her I was dropping off my rental car just a few blocks from the start line. Heh heh heh.

Well, another 2 weeks has gone by. I was looking at my calendar to see what I've been up to. Besides the usual walking training I was shocked to see that I had 4 b'day dinners and 4 b'day lunches during the week surrounding my b'day. Of course none of the lunches were on the same day as the dinners as that would be just too much on a work day. Thanks everyone! During one lunch I celebrated our mutual birthdays with a new friend of a friend of mine. Not only is she born on the same day but the same year. She's older though as she was born in the morning!!!

Wow, it's been over a month since I've updated my blog. Let's see, to summarize the past month I've been to the PNE, some family functions, helped my friend celebrate his 50th b'day and spent time with the folks when they were in town. Ray and I usually go to Metropolis' U-Grill to eat on the weekend.

Other than that it's been pretty much: Tuesday and Saturday = 3.5 mile walk, Wed and Thurs 5 or 6 mile walks each day, Sunday long walks = 14.5 miles last Sunday, 12 the Sunday before and 10 the one before that. Started hill training last week in the pouring rain. Squishy runners. Strained my back trying to help an older man up after he slipped and fell. Luckily someone else came by who could help him. I had a physio appointment scheduled anyways for a few days later so didn't have to cancel it :(

Couldn't believe what a difference it was walking this past Sunday compared to the previous Sunday. Pissing rain, cold and wet in my water-resistant gear compared to sun, sunblock, tank top and shorts this past Sunday.

Anyways, next Sunday is 16 miles and then the following Sunday is scheduled for 12 miles but instead I'll be walking the Victoria Half Marathon. Will be good practice for the full marathon in Honolulu in December. Cool thing is there is a group of 4 from the Arthritis Society's Joints in Motion Team and the acting special events coordinator who will be there for the full marathon. The regular coordinator is on medical leave from the Vancouver office and the acting one works in Victoria. I'll meet up with them on the Saturday for the pasta party. I'm looking forward to meeting the coordinator as she was acting last year too when the regular one was seconded to another position.

Don't know how I'll handle the early 7:30 am walk as I usually walk later in the day. I guess I'll try and get up earlier this Sunday and see how it goes.

Haven't played badminton since I started training. Will play again in January. Don't know if my back is better from not playing badminton or all the walking I've been doing. Maybe both. But for sure badminton was bothering my sacroiliac joint before.

Was keeping up with Rockstar Supernova, got hooked on that. I like Dilanna better than Lukas. I enjoyed watching Tommy too.

I'm in the maintenance phase now with L.A. Weight Loss!!! :) I only have to go there once a week for the next 49 weeks. I don't know what I would've done without this program. I love it!

I walked over 3 miles on Thursday and again on Friday. At least walking doesn't bother my back although I can't do much walking when my back is bothering me. I went to physio on Friday. My Australian physios are excellent! There are 2 who work there that I see depending on who is there or on vacation etc. This time she worked on mobilizing my C2 cervical vertebrae joint which was really stiff against my skull as well as my lumbar vertebrae and my sacroiliac joints. Had the usual interferential on my back and neck traction. Felt a lot better afterwards.

Tonight we went and saw the movie Snakes on a Plane with Samuel L. Jackson. I really enjoyed SoaP. Ray thought it was far fetched as "snakes don't do that in real life". But I never even thought that. I yelled out loud, laughed out loud, and cheered out loud along with a lot of the audience. Not sure if any other actors could pull off this role. Maybe Tommy Lee Jones. If you liked Jackson in Pulp Fiction then you'll like this show. I saw Pulp Fiction twice when it was at the theatres and that's the only time I've ever gone to see a movie for a second time. If you're afraid of snakes, a feminist or don't like to see a lot of gore or are squeamish then I wouldn't recommend it. Definitely not a show to bring kids to.

Mom came over for the day to see the Phantom at QE last weekend. It was excellent of course with awesome singing and costumes. I want to get the CD from the one I saw in '91 with Michael Crawford. We were in the 8th row in the centre so had a great view. No need for binocs :) Before the show started we were told that recording devices of any kind were not allowed. I assumed this meant during the show. Little did I know that no photos of the stage at all were allowed even when the performance wasn't going on. Oh well, I still took a few photos!

We went out for dinner at Horizon's last week. Forgot how chilly it is up there - brrrr. Beautiful view though.

I started walking more last week. Did 3 miles on Tuesday, then 6 miles on Wednesday and 2 miles on Friday. Got a blister from the 6-miler. Went out and got double-layered socks and a 2nd skin dressing kit for blisters. Was going to walk again today but my back was bothering me. Will see how it goes on Monday. I can't wait to go to physio again on Friday. Too bad my regular physiotherapist is on vacation for another few weeks. She's been my best one so far.

Well, N came over for the Czech Republic fireworks. She and her mom came from Nanaimo and stayed with her bro. They went shopping in Seattle then her mom went home and N stayed at my place for a few nights. We watched the fireworks from T's place. Went out and got some food and brought it back to his place and ate on the balcony. T and N were quite entertaining as T played his guitar and sang. N also sang with him and as chorus. We had a good time. I stayed up until about 1:30 both nights N was here so was extremely tired that week.

We could see parts of the highest fireworks tonight. Oooh Ahhhh Ehhh Oh! We went to Pho Hoa to eat about 11pm. We were going to go to Gourmet Castle but after listening to the radio figured there would be too much traffic coming back home. When we were at Pho Hoa it got busy closer to midnight and Kingsway was really busy. I guess that was fireworks traffic.

Well, I'm glad our little heat wave is over. My hayfever became a lot better once the heat wave started last weekend. No more itchy eyes!!! Yee ha! Now it's just the odd stuffy and runny nose along with the odd sneeze. My nose still gets a bit itchy but that's not a big deal.

I've been to physio 3 times in the past week and a half. I had to get an SI (sacroiliac) belt to wear around my hips. Apparently my pelvis has rotated and that along with my back are unstable. It's been bothering me for a few months but was getting really bad. As a result one leg gets longer than the other so my physiotherapist does some stretching and manipulating and makes my legs the same length again. Playing badminton aggravates the SI joint so she recommended not playing for a week to see if my pelvis stabilizes. I asked her what would happen if my pelvis doesn't stabilize. She said it could cause disc damage. Oh, I thought to myself - that sounds serious. I guess I'd better take her advice and not play for a week.

I wasn't planning to play on Wednesday anyways as N is over on the Island now and will be coming to Van. She'll stay at my place a few nights and we'll go watch the fireworks on Wednesday night.

I went to L.A. Weight Loss twice this week as I'm in my 2nd of 6 weeks of stabilizing my weight loss. Can't wait until the 6 weeks are over and I'm in maintenance for a year as I will only need to go once a week.

Ray and I had dinner at a restaurant in New West where we hadn't been before. It was New Westminster Garden, a Chinese restaurant. The food wasn't bad but there was MSG as I was sooooo tired shortly after eating. Oh well, that will be the last time going there. Plus it was soooo hot and stuffy in there and I guess since it's a Mom and Pop type of restaurant their 2 kids play at the table by the bar and run around a bit making noise. We got there about 10pm. The whole time we were there no other customers came so we had the place to ourselves. The little boy brought out a take-out order but no one showed up to pick it up. The kid must've only been about 5 or 6 years old. Child labour.

It was so nice to sleep a lot today. I woke up around 11:30 am after getting 11 hours of sleep. I went to L.A. Weight Loss around 1pm, came home, had a snack and then lied down at 2pm. The next thing I knew it was 6pm when I woke up. Ahhh, 15 hours of sleep. I was only sleeping about 5 to 6 hours during the week so it's nice to feel well-rested.

Well, gonna go eat something and watch some more Y&R.

Whew! It's been so hot this weekend. We went and saw Pirates of the Caribbean # 2 yesterday. Neither Ray nor I thought it was any good. We were both very disappointed as the first one was so good.

We went for dinner at TGIF after the movie. Their air conditioning had broken down on Saturday so it was soooo hot in there. Speaking of air conditioning breaking down - IHOP's air conditioning broke down today. I guess it's too hot for these Burnaby air con units.

N should be driving out from Calgary this weekend some time but don't think I'll see her.

My Calgary trip

Tuesday, July 11/06

I had a great time in Calgary last week. Right after I arrived on Tuesday N and I went to the Deerfoot Outlet Mall which was close to the airport. I had checked online and if you show your out-of-town ID you get a free tote bag and coupons for mall discounts. There was a Payless Shoes 15% off, Dairy Queen/Orange Julius 10% off, a cosmetics one, perfume one and a souvenir one. I got a pair of lilac mule shoes at Payless. It was nice with the 15% off, no PST and only the new 6% GST.

N had S and A over for dinner and made yummy Callebaut chocolate fondue for dessert. We were all so full. Good thing we ate so much as we went dancing at the Whiskey Nightclub my first night there as we were given tickets for a corporate event at the last minute. We danced pretty much non-stop for 3 hours from 11pm to 2am. It was great music. All my favourites from the late 80’s/early 90’s like Strike it Up, Rhythm is a Dancer, Rumours in the Heart, Pump up the Jam, Madonna, Michael Jackson, as well as classic Thunderstruck and other songs. There were also country songs in between where some people were 2-stepping. A lot of people wore their cowboy attire – cowboy hats, jeans and boots. I learned after last time that it’s way too hot dancing with my cowboy hat on so I didn’t bring mine. Guys aren’t afraid to dance in Calgary. A few joined us and it’s no big deal guys dancing together – doesn’t mean anything.

Wednesday, July 12/06

We were supposed to go dancing again Wednesday at the Ranchman’s but decided not to go as we were too bagged from dancing the night before. N’s two other friends still were going as some of the Calgary Flames were supposed to be there as well as Wide Mouth Mason. We found out the next day that no Flames showed up - how disappointing for the fans. We ended up going to the Deerfoot Inn and Casino for dinner. We coincidentally bumped into N's friend C in the washroom and she invited us to the corporate function in another room. So we went and sat with her and her friends for a bit. Then I taught N how to play poker on the slot machines. We had dinner at the Mohave Grill which had really good food. I had my first Atlantic salmon baked on a cedar plank. It was really good. After dinner we went and watched the live country band where some people were dancing.

Thursday, July 13/06

We went to Stampede on Thursday. I did rides for awhile with N, S and A and then N and I went and watched the Superdogs. I went shopping and looked around while they continued on with more rides. N & A did the log jam ride 18 times. This was a record for N but a tied record for A. I pity the people who sat on the chairs after we got off the CTrain as N and A’s seats were soaked. S managed to lure them away from the log ride to go on a different roller coaster and apparently her plan worked as they were only able to do 18 log jam rides before it shut down at 1am!

Friday, July 14/06

I wore my cowboy hat and jeans on Friday. N and I went to Ranchman’s as C (who we had seen at the corporate event at the Deerfoot Inn and Casino on Wednesday) invited us to the Corporate Tent. We got in for free. We didn’t actually go inside the club as we would’ve had to pay but there was a live band playing in the tent. My friend, L met us there and we ate before N and I had leave for the Chuckwagon Race/Grandstand Show/Fireworks at Stampede. I was surprised that veggie burgers were on the small menu.

We saw one guy fall off the mechanical saddle in a matter of seconds before we had to leave.

By the time we left Ranchman’s and headed over towards Stampede it was getting close to 8pm which is when the Chuckwagon Races started. We had to go quite a ways away from the Stampede grounds to find parking as all the lots were full and there wasn’t any street parking to speak of. We finally found a cheap $2 parking lot at a school and started walking. I had been wearing my cowboy hat and jeans and it was quite a warm day. So it was quite cooling to wear my new lilac KoolLizzy Bandana that I bought at Stampede the day before at the Roundup Centre. It’s a scarf filled with water absorbing crystals which cool your body by evaporation.

Anyways, the entrance to Stampede was packed due to the Our Lady Peace concert to be held at the Coca Cola stage. We trekked around to the other side of the Stampede grounds to the Olympic entrance and by the time we got to our seats it was close to 9pm. I figured I could always watch another show another year but there were still 3 heats of Chuckwagon Races that hadn’t happened yet. So I got to see some races after all. 3 were enough. I don’t regret not seeing the other races as I could see it getting boring really quick. N's 2 cousins, her aunt, uncle and 4 of her friends also were there as N had booked all our tickets at once.

The Grandstand show and Transalta Lights up the Night fireworks were really good with a helicopter flying back and forth with a huge Canadian flag when the patriotic part was on. Here’s the blurb about it from the website:

http://cs.calgarystampede.com/chuckwagons/eveingshow.html

“The 2006 Grandstand Show brings over 100 years of Canadian history to the Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth. The magic of the Calgary Stampede, together with the spirit and passion of this great country, brings together a vivid and powerful entertainment experience in celebration of the unique multicultural spirit of Canada.

The Grandstand Show is packed with excitement that will connect Canadians and international visitors alike. This year's show features a cast of musicians, singers, dancers, comedians and entertainers from the screen and stage in a production that has earned an international reputation for quality and impact. International visitors frequently say that they have never seen anything like it, and Calgarians continually look upon the Stampede Grandstand Show as the place to show their guests what Calgary is all about.

The $6,000,000 TransAlta stage has been completely refitted for 2006 and will provide an incredible setting for our cast of nearly 500 members. This custom designed theatrical environment features sightline vista seating, panoramic video projections and surround sound, to offer visitors a heightened entertainment experience.

Internationally renowned singer Susan Aglukark will pay tribute to the millions of Canadians as guest stars from Cirque du Soleil and singers, dancers and musicians from across Canada join the Young Canadians of the Calgary Stampede in a spectacular commemoration of the spirit of Canadian unity.

The Stampede's commitment to youth and community is reinforced through the Young Canadians as they celebrate their 38th year. This scholarship-based training program is a vital part of the Calgary Stampede's initiative to connect with all Calgarians as we grow together into the 21st century.

The finale will feature a special musical tribute to Canada as TransAlta, our presenting sponsor and sponsor of the TransAlta Lights Up The Night Fireworks Finale, will light up the Calgary skyline with a spectacular fireworks presentation. Performers will join in a chorus of "This is our home" and "O Canada" as fireworks burst overhead and we salute Canada and the rest of the world.”

It was neat when the patriotic part was on as a helicopter flew by a few times with a giant Canadian flag hanging from it.

Saturday, July 15/06

Ugh, I had to get up early Saturday morning at 10am after only getting 5 or so hours of sleep. N had to go downtown to pay for her sushi class she and her friends were doing on Monday.

We met up with L at a restaurant she recommended called the Wildwood. The food was really good. We had a good visit and then went to my cousin S's place. We went with S, M and E along with their dog for a walk to get ice cream. After that we walked back to their house and visited for a while. In a span of only a few minutes of standing outside of their house I managed to get 5 damn mosquito bites – 1 on the front of each knee, 2 on the back of my right knee and 1 on the back of my left knee. I put Afterbite on them right away but they all swelled and were sooooooo itchy and inflamed. That night and the next few days I iced the bites as well.

I walked over the Cambie Street bridge last week. It's amazing how different the view is when on foot! I've been over the bridge so many times but have never walked over it. I walked on the east side and saw so many things I didn't realize were there. I.E. the police dog stables and obstacle course, all the police cars parked there, the barge for the Celebration of Lights Fireworks and the urban beach for v-ball. I'd heard about the beach but didn't know where it was.

I stopped in at the Edgewater Casino for a veggie burger and after my Dan-D Pak enlightenment before saw that they sell mini-paks of different nuts. What an experience! I coincidentally bumped into my friends and their son at the Plaza of Nations who were at Science World and wanted to find a quiet place to feed him so went for a walk. I ended up chatting to my friend for an hour and barely made it to Winners in time to get a refund on a pair of sandals I bought.

Am catching glimpses of the Calgary Stampede parade as it's on TV now. I think the parade was on Friday. Hopefully I'll be able to see it live some day as it looks really good.

Last night I picked up some wedding stuff I had loaned to Angela and Michel. It was great to have a visit since I hadn't seen Angela since their wedding which was in March. She noticed right away that I lost weight. Will have to get together with them again as our visit was too short.

I bought a pair of very comfy Brooks S257 shoes at the Foot Solutions store on W. Broadway a few months ago. None of the New Balance cushioning shoes fit me anymore. I had no idea Brooks made high-end runners. When I was there before I tried on some MBT shoes (Mosaic Barefoot Technology). I had seen a pamphlet about these shoes in my physio's office. If you have back problems these shoes relieve any type of back discomfort as I found out when I tried them on. They felt sooooo good. But the only thing was they cost over $300!!! The shoes didn't fit me properly but the sandals did. Man, I was dreaming about them for days! These shoes are also good to correct your posture and give you a bit of a workout too.

Anyways, I was on my way to the Foot Solutions store and had to stop at the Dan-D-Pak market. I had no idea a market with so much Dan-D-Pak stuff existed. I've seen a few items before in Save-On like their rice crackers. It was so cool walking around in there. I stocked up on unsalted almonds and peanuts :)

I wanted to buy another pair of the Brooks runners but they've already changed that model! I had to get the guy to stretch the current model before I bought the pair. Darn, I should've gone there earlier. This always happens to me as I find a pair of good shoes and then the next model gets changed and doesn't fit as well.

Just got back from lunch at U-Grill at Metropolis. Ray and I had our usual veggies and tofu on rice.

Went to L.A. Weight Loss today for my tri-weekly visit. Will start stabilization soon after Calgary since I'm not going to try and lose more weight. Went to the lab to get blood tests done for cholesterol, glucose, potassium etc. I think I get it done every few years. It was quite relaxing to have Ray sitting in the chair across from me. There was also a Hershey's Kiss stuffed doll smiling at me :)

Well, it only took 2 months to lose 15 pounds through L.A. Weight Loss. This is the weight that I gained after not being able to exercise for a while after the car accident last year. I thought I would try and lose 5 more pounds but it hasn't happened over the past month. I got down to 19 pounds last week but then came back to 15 pounds when I didn't exercise. I think I'll stick with 15 pounds off instead of 20 pounds for now. I'm sure once I'm walking and training for the marathon I will lose a few more pounds.

Check out the photos of me and my fat pants on the right side of my blog. I wore these jeans in March. I had so much flab that they fit then! I had to borrow a belt from a co-worker when I started to lose weight and my pants were falling off as I don't own a belt for jeans. Hard to believe I've lost over 10 inches of fat in my hips, thighs, chest and waist! L.A. Weight Loss doesn't measure my arms but they aren't as flabby either.

My hayfever has been really bad this week. This is the worst year ever for it!!! I've had to use Visine Allergy eye drops all week as I normally try not to use it unless I can't stand it. I've been so wiped out all week that I've been too fatigued to play badminton or go for any walks :(
My glands in my neck have been sore and I've had the itchiest eyes and nose ever! A few mornings when I woke up my nose started running right away. Sneezing and blowing my nose all day. Woe is me! WAHHH! Luckily I have some Dristan nasal spray as I was so plugged up the other night and couldn't sleep by breathing through my mouth. So far I've managed to survive without taking any antihistamines although I found a box of Reactine in the back of my cupboard that doesn't expire until Oct, 2007. I've never taken Reactine before. A few years ago I tried the Claritin non-drowsy pills but felt too jittery and shaky so haven't taken any other non-drowsy antihistimines since.

Actually today is the first day that it's not so intense, although I sneeezed 4 times in a row at work and it took a few minutes to recover from the exhaustion. I always have to rub the left side of my nose as it's irritated and makes a neat clicking noise when I lift my nose up for temporary relief.

Mom came over on Monday for the Il Divo concert. We planned to go out for dinner at the Edgewater Casino. Curtis and Eliza surprised her by coming to my place before we left. She thought she wouldn't be seeing them this trip. It sure was hot that day. Good thing GM Place was air-conditioned. Quite a difference from the sweltering temperature at the Madonna concert in L.A.

I felt so young at the concert. The majority of the audience were white-haired and elderly. We were in the 16th row on the floor in the centre so had great seats. Someone screamed at me to sit down when I stood up to take a photo. I guess that person thought I would remain standing as she didn't scream at me again for the rest of the concert even though I stood up numerous times. It was weird to be on the floor and not smell any pot.

These photos are from my cell phone so the quality isn't that great. But I must say there are some great shots of my finger in some of the photos!

We just got back from Boston Pizza after playing badminton first. Since I'm off Monday I could stay up later.

Ray and I ate at the U-Grill at the Metropolis Food Court on Saturday. We both had veggies and tofu on rice. Ray added noodles as well to his. I had brocolli, cauliflower, bean sprouts and water chestnuts. This is the 2nd weekend in a row we've gone there to eat and I've gone to Langley Farm Market. I love going to the Langley Farm Market in the mall as their strawberries are really good and are a very good price! Yum!

We went and saw Superman Returns last night. I really enjoyed it and thought the new Superman did a good job reprising the role Christopher Reeve made famous. He even got some of the mannerisms down. The red colour in the cape and costume were a deeper red than before. We saw the movie on screen # 1 which is the biggest one I think. It was well worth it going to the theatre to see this movie. It was 2 1/2 hours long. Good thing I went to the bathroom right before the movie.

I thought I would celebrate Canada Day by doing the HBC Run for Canada's 3km walk. It was to raise money for Canadian athletes for the Olympics. The 10km run started at 8am and the 3km walk started at 10am. I registered online last week for $20 and picked up the shirt and goodie bag at the Oakridge Bay on Thursday. I haven't learned, when my alarm went off and I snoozed it a few times I just ended up going back to sleep. Plus my back was bothering me. From past experience exercise on Saturday mornings doesn't work for me. Oh well, it was the thought that counts.

Thursday was a very sad day. It was the funeral for 3 year old Makoda Suen. You might've seen her story on the news or in various newpapers such as the Burnaby Now and the Vancouver Sun. Her parents adopted her a few years ago from China. Ray went to high school with Dave. In June of 2005 Mak was diagnosed with leukemia but went into remission last year. She had a rare type of leukemia and her parents were trying to find a bone marrow donor here as well as in China where she was from. Unfortunately it came back this year. Mak had her bone marrow bioposy and the leukemia was still present in 50 to 60% of her bone marrow. Complete remission would have been less than 5%. She wasn't given much time to live in this condition. She had underone chemo last year and this year. The make-a-wish foundation granted to Disneyworld in May and then she passed away on June 22.

There was a lot of media outside the funeral home with their cameras. I guess this was a high-profile story. There were a lot of touching videos of Mak as well as eulogies. I've never been to a funeral for someone who was not elderly so it was very sad. I've also never been to a cremation. After the funeral home service we went to the cemetary for the cremation. I had no idea what to expect. I asked another friend about it but he hadn't been to one before either. When we went inside the building it was just like the funeral home with rows of pews. They told us that if you didn't want to view the cremation you could wait here.

We were then led into another room that had a curtain drawn across a window. The door of this room said it was the witness room. My first thought was the witness room you see on TV when someone is watching someone on death row being executed. We passed by Mak's casket which was on a gurney and I placed my hand on it and said goodbye to her. After everyone was inside the room they closed the door and the curtain was opened. The parents, 2 other people and one employee were down below where there were 2 big metal machines. We couldn't hear what was being said but it looked like he was giving instructions on what to do. Mak's casket was wheeled into that room on the gurney and then pushed through the opening of the machine. I guess it was an oven. Dave and Joyce clutched each other for a while sobbing. It was so heart-breaking to watch their pain and sadness in saying good-bye to their little girl. I was crying so much that my tears were just dripping on the floor. Many people in the room were sobbing a lot too. Finally Dave pressed the button on the oven, I assume this must've started the fire going. It's hard to explain the emotions I was feeling then as my heart reached out to them in this very traumatic and heart-wrenching moment. They came back into the room as they composed themselves and Joyce managed to squeak out a few words that everyone was invited to the restaurant.

There were 4 tables at the restaurant. All of Ray's usual high school friends and their wives were at our table except for Simon and Ly who went back to Victoria after the funeral and another wife who had to go back to work. One couple came down from Salmon Arm.

I volunteered after work on Tuesday at the SPCA’s launch event for the Paws for a Cause Walk. There was a silent auction, hors d'oeuvres served, fruit, cheese, bread etc. There were some SPCA merchandise at a few tables. The M.C. was Randene O'Neil from one of the news broadcasts. The launch was for the SPCA's sponsors, VIP's and volunteers. Quite a few people worked at the humane society and the SPCA.

I was at a table giving out free Royal Canin Medi-Cal dog and cat food, Modern Dog magazine and TV Week magazine. Some people brought their dogs so that was neat. This year there will also be cat teams where people can raise money for the SPCA on behalf of their cats. Obviously the cats wouldn't come to the walk since they'd be surrounded by dogs so the guy suggested bringing a photo or something.

I really enjoyed volunteering and being around so many animal lovers.

We went to a badminton friend's wedding in Richmond last Saturday. Both the ceremony and wedding locations were places I hadn't been to before. The ceremony was at Minoru Chapel and the reception was at Kirin's. I went to the L.A. Weight Loss Center in Richmond that day for a quick weigh-in.

I was looking forward to going to Minoru Chapel as I knew it was a poplular wedding location. Another friend wanted her wedding there a few years ago but didn't book in time so didn't get it. The chapel was really nice and was air-conditioned!!! The grounds were beautiful and they had photos taken of everyone outside.

Went to Nanaimo on the Saturday before Father's Day. Yogi is still a baby under a year old. Went to dim sum on Sunday for Ray's dad's Father's Day get-together. Then went to Joe Fortes for Curtis and Eliza's engagement celebration dinner. There was a lot of eating out that weekend but I didn't gain any weight :)

Wow, I can't believe June is over already! Where did the month go? Let's see, here are some of the highlights from the past month.

I had a very successful fundraiser on June 10 at Revs, the Bowling and Entertainment Centre. I raised about $400 that day and about $300 in donations resulting from people who couldn't make it. Besides the bowling I sold some wallet size first aid kits and Arthritis Society bracelets there. Thanks for your support everyone and for helping me surpass my minimum fundraising requirement of $4500 for the Arthritis Society's Joints in Motion Training Team!!!

I just posted our cell phone photos from the Madonna Confessions Tour concert in L.A. It was the opening night of her world tour. The tickets said "No Cameras/Recorders" so I didn't bring our camera. They didn't check my bag though so security wasn't tight!!! Many fans brought their cameras as you can tell by all the photos taken on the floor on the www.madonnalicious.com website.

It was a beautiful and warm vacation in Palm Springs. The Madonna concert was EXCELLENT!!! Quite spectacular. L.A. was raining. I'll update my blog later on with more details and photos. For lots of Madonna details and photos from the concert I went to on May 21 check out http://www.madonnalicious.com/ The photos from the other concert dates are the same.

We left Burnaby at 9pm on the Friday of the May long weekend. No wait at the border, just one car in front of us. I had heard there was an hour wait at the border earlier. Washington and Oregon were pretty much raining all the way. California was dry though. It took us about 25 hours to get here. We got a Grand Prix. What an excellent driving car, it felt like floating on air. On the straight stretches of California for quite a few hours I was able to go about 85 to 90 miles per hour (150 km/hr). Once up to 95 miles per hour it got too windy. Good thing for our radar machine. I still ate the dust of a Honda, BMW and a Corvette even though I was going 90.

I went shopping in Cabazon at the outlet stores on Monday while Ray stayed inside and worked all day on his laptop. I got some great deals at Nike and Adidas – clothes for my marathon training. The 1 bedroom suite we stayed in was so big. It's bigger than our place at home. We had 2 bathrooms. One was so huge, it's as big as a bedroom with a big bathtub that can fit 2 people in it.

I went shopping in downtown Palm Springs on Tuesday. It was about 90 degrees or so. The Marquis Villas Resort where we stayed was just down the block from the Spa Casino Resort. All the souvenir shops were just 2 blocks away so I walked there. I was the only person carrying an umbrella. I.E. no other Asians around.

We left Palm Springs about 8:23 pm Tuesday night after going to the Wilsons Leather Outlet store at Cabazon. The store closed at 8pm but then we went to McDonald’s and I got an Asian chicken salad which was deeelicious! Both Ray and I got brown leather jackets – different styles of course. Ray needed a new one as the one he normally wears is the one I got in L.A. back in 1991 and the pockets are ripping.

We got back to Burnaby about 6:30 pm on Wednesday night so it only took us 22 hours to get home despite many long delays around Seattle sitting in traffic due to accidents in rush hour. Also, the freeway was closed in one section before Seattle so I had to follow the detour for about ½ hour along a country road. There were so many cows!!! Hundreds of them. Lots of calves too! One field had beautiful horses in it – brown ones, black ones, white ones and even a light brown one with a cream-coloured mane. We had to wait about 10 to 15 minutes at the border. We were way over our limit for the clothes we bought but they didn’t stop us to make us pay any duty :)
Since Cabazon is about 20 minutes north of Palm Springs I guess technically it took us about 22 ½ hours to get home. I think it was longer going there as I had to stop to go to the bathroom more.

As soon as we got home Ray went to play badminton as he’s registered for it and hardly ever misses it. He did most of the driving home. I only drove about 2 to 3 hours altogether compared to the trip down where I drove more. I picked up a salad at McDonald’s and just watched some Y&R. I unpacked a few things then went to bed about 11 or so. Not sure how Ray could play badminton on such little sleep and he hadn’t eaten for a while. I was so exhausted when we got back. I survived on Advil on the road. My back and neck needed it. At least I was able to sleep a few hours here and there while on the road.

I went to Nanaimo on the Friday night of the Mother's Day weekend. My mom and I did an Arthritis Society fundraiser at Woodgrove Mall on the Saturday. Thanks Mom! Then Curtis and Eliza came over and we all went out for dinner.

Yogi is so friendly. Just a baby still. I posted some photos of my Nanaimo trip.

Went out for dim sum on Sunday for Ray's mom's Mother's Day. Must've been the busiest day of the year at the restaurant. We had an hour and a half wait as we couldn't make reservations.

I've amazingly lost just over 10 pounds so far since the end of March. I'm going to an LA Weight Loss Center http://laweightloss.com

Well, it's been a hectic past few weeks as I've worked Saturdays and Sundays the past 3 weekends. Yesterday was a long day from 6:45 am to 9pm. Don't have to work on the weekend again until May 27 and then the shooting season wraps up in June. It doesn't start up again until September but I'll be training for the marathon then so won't work until maybe next year for them again.

Well, worked from 7:15 am to 3:45 pm today. Punched in at 7:16 so was only 1 minute late. Was almost 10 minutes late yesterday morning. There was only 19 teams today but the teams had double the amount of players. I didn't need to wear a jacket or a fleecy - what a beautiful day. All the kids were well-behaved at the shoot and only had to yell a few times to get kids to move out of the background area. Of course there was the usual fooling around and shoving that kids do, but that was only on a few teams.

Surprisingly I'm not that tired.

Didn't do much this past week as I had a sore throat and wasn't feeling that great. Luckily it passed and didn't turn into a cold or flu or anything.

I worked from 7am to 3pm today and just got home a short time ago. The field was wet and dewy and there was wind for a short time but then it was so nice and sunny for the rest of the day. We left the field about 12:30 and then did paperwork for a few hours. What a beautiful day. Glad I finished earlier than 2 weeks ago when I worked 12 hours from 7am to 7pm. I work again tomorrow morning at 7am and then all the weekends in May except for May 13 as I'll be doing a fundraiser for the Arthritis Society in a mall in Nanamo. Mom has foregone golf to sit with me!!! Actually she doesn't mind sitting there at the table while I go shopping!

Saw Yogi (actually his name is Yoda but I like to refer to him as Yogi and suggested my parents call him that but they refused) last week. He is huge! And only 9 months old, still a puppy. Here are some photos from my cell phone so they're blurry.

I signed up with LA Weight Loss Centre a few weeks ago and have lost 7 pounds already. For the first 8 weeks I have to go there 3x a week so that has been keeping me busy. I'm also working part time as a photographer's assistant on the weekends so no more time for volunteering for anything at the moment.

Well, it's been a few months since my last blog. The past few months have flown by. Some of the highlights include volunteering and weddings. Ray's friend and my friend got married on the same weekend in March. Luckily not on the same day.

I was the "best man" for my friend's wedding. Actually, back in January he asked me to be his witness. I guess I was more aptly called the best woman then. I was looking forward to wearing a tux but my friend just wore a suit so I didn't get a chance to live out that dream - haha. I helped out with their wedding planning, went with the bride to pick out her dress and shoes. Coincidentally she loves lilac too. The first store we went to and the first and only dress she tried on fit perfectly and looked great on her!!! Likewise with shoes!!! Do I know how to pick the stores, or what man! I did the "bridal shower" for "A" which consisted of just the 2 of us at the Secret Garden. M had a sore throat the night we were supposed to go out for his stag so the 3 of us just ended up going out for dinner instead which was fine. But, the prisoner's uniform and ball and chain I got weren't put to use :( Another time he said. We'll see, but it obviously won't be the same since he's married now. Both A and I had our hair and makeup done. We did a practice run the week before. I had an updo with roses in my hair and wore a light grey suit :)
The wedding was very simple, just 12 people in total including M&A. The ceremony was at a bed and breakfast and the reception at Kirin's. A's witness was her long-time friend from Shanghai who lives here now. The only family that was there were A's parents who live with them. A's sister lives in L.A. but is some kind of surgeon so couldn't take time off. M's siblings are in Montreal and he's not close to them. Both his parents are deceased and his best friend lives in China. Ray was the videographer and did a fantastic job for his first time with a camcorder.

I went to the recycling depot yesterday and got rid of months and months and months and...??years??? of accumulated plastic bags, wrappers, etc for the soft plastic bin. Brought a yogurt container of AA batteries. We use mostly rechargeable batteries but use the odd regular one too. The recycling depot also has 2 Salvation Army bins so I was able to unload a small bag of clothes. I used to go more regularly to the depot when I lived at the old place but the new place has recycling in the building so don't need to go as much now.

It was quite cleansing for me to bring the bags there, an uncommon feeling for a clutterer. Actually getting rid of stuff :)

Oh yeah, went out for dinner with a friend on Thursday night. We went to Anducci's in North Burnaby. The food was good and came in HUGE portions! Bonus it's in the ET book, too. I have no complaints about the food, it was good and the place was full. But the washroom was another story. First of all, for the women's there was only one toilet/sink in a room by itself. For the size of the restaurant there should've been at least 2 stalls. That in itself didn't bother me that much although someone tried the door when I was in there and there were 2 people waiting outside when I came out. What did bother me was the artwork on the door and on the walls of the washroom. The washroom door was a woman and her upper body parts in glory, but since it wasn't a real photo, I guess it was okay. But then on the inside wall by the door was a photo of a totally nude guy with his backside in full glory. On the other walls were also large posters of scantilly-clad men in various poses. All these photos were in black and white and were somewhat artistic I guess but when I was sitting on the can there was a one of a guy with no shirt on lying on his side. His face is angled so that he's staring at you as you take a leak. Not my idea of a relaxing lavatory visit.

Anyways, my friend said the guys' can had women on the walls although I can't remember to what degree of dress or undress he said. I couldn't believe these type of photos were in the washroom. They would be great in a nightclub where only adults go but...rant rant rant. Ahhh, I feel better now that I've ranted and raved a bit.

Hmm, I wonder when the new 5-star Italian restaurant opened at River Rock http://www.greatcanadiancasinos.com/riverrock/italian.html . I was at River Rock a few weeks ago and didn't see it. Must be new. Will have to try it out some time.

Ray and I went to the Great Canadian Restaurant at the Boulevard Casino in Coquitlam tonight. http://www.greatcanadiancasinos.com It was our "Valentine's Day" dinner that we postponed. The restaurant was difficult to find from within the casino as there weren't any signs so I had to ask an employee. The entrance from within the casino was through an unmarked door. Weird. Found out that the main entrance to the restaurant is from outside. I guess that's so families can come with kids. The food was good. Ray had steak and I had the vegetable stir-fry.

The casino is big, a different set-up than River Rock. Everything is just on one floor and the distance from one end of the casino to the other is not as long but isn't as narrow as River Rock.

We didnt' get a chance to play poker slots or black jack as Ray took his time (i.e. stalling) drinking tea after dinner and then we had to leave at 10 so he could go home and get his gear and then go to hockey on time. That's okay, one of my friend's wants to go some time and I know that M likes to play black jack :)

I've posted some new photos from Valentine's Day. Ray got me a cool bear!!! I haven't had a chance to rotate the photos yet as there's something wrong with Flickr.

Went to Nanaimo for my mom's b'day dinner. Since my parents aren't coming over for Curtis' b'day they decided to have a double b'day celebration. Curtis missed the 12:30 boat so ended up waiting for the 3:00 one which is the one Ray and I would be on. We ended up driving on as it was 2:49 when we got to Horseshoe Bay. There were a lot of logs in the water. I've never seen so many. Maybe they're from all the wind and rain storms from the past few weeks.

Wow, Yoda is huge now. And he's not even full grown yet. He's quite broad.

Played badminton tonight. Was getting used to the nice clear weather and now it's back to rain. Oh well, at least it's not snowing. Although it's supposed to get quite cold later in the week. It's been a nice mild winter :)

It was an awful day for the Sun Run walk clinic this morning. It was windy and raining. It was almost like being outside at the front of the BC Ferries at times. Speaking of ferries I heard they were cancelled this morning. Not sure about this afternoon. My shoes are drying off in front of the fireplace. The warm-up before the walk is inside in the gym but the actual walk is outside. We stretched and cooled down in the gym afterwards. Then when I went out to the car I had a chill and couldn't get warm. Even after I got home and peeled off my socks I was still chilled. I wore my goretex Taiga jacket and my wind and rain resistant Adidas pants. Went back to bed to take a nap and eventually warmed up when I got home.

The Lion's Gate Bridge was closed for a few hours this morning due to trees falling there. Also there were lots of blackouts around. But luckily not at our place although the wind was so loud.

Wow, where did this week go? Went out with some co-workers for CNY lunch Thursday at the Great Wall. There was hardly any talking going on as we were so focussed on eating. I didn't talk that much either. The food was so good, just kept on getting more. We were all wearing red tops so it looked neat as we were at a round table. Went out again for lunch Friday with Michel for his 40th b'day. This time it was at Milestone's.

Didn't get that much sleep Friday night as the wind woke me up about 5am. It was so loud and I could hear something inside the bedroom rattling. I couldn't sleep so went and slept on the sofabed in the living room. Ray didn't even stir at all. I woke up about 7:40 am and reset the alarm clock for what I thought was 8:00. Turns out I accidentally set it for 7:00! Miraculously I woke up on my own at 8:30 and was flabbergasted at what time it was. I usually need a lot of time in the morning to get moving but surprisingly made it to my Sun Run walk clinic in time to be put into the draw for getting there on time (by 9am). A guy had some running shoes and clothes on display and spoke about the different types of footwear and moisture-wicking clothes. Had a nice clear SUNNY day for a walk. But by 11:00 am after I was finished it rained again. It downpoured in the afternoon too and then cleared up after Curtis and I came back from dropping off the moving boxes he'd borrowed from Sharon.

I took a nap and then went to watch Ray play hockey for a bit. Michel and Angela came to pick me up and we left about 9:45 pm. It was Michel's 40th b'day so he wanted to go to RiverRock. I had a spend-$5-get-$5- free-coupon that I got in the mail so got cashed that in. Didn't have to spend $5, just got handed a crisp $5 bill. Angela signed up for the RiverRock card and got a free $5 crisp bill too. I lost the free $5 plus $5 of my own playing poker slots. Watched Michel and the guy beside him play blackjack for awhile. After the guy beside him left I sat down and played too. My first time playing a table game at a casino!!! I wasn't even nervous. I got $20 worth of chips. $5 was the minimum bet. There was also an extra bet if you wanted to bet to get various combos of 20 your first 2 cards. I ended up getting a sore back so had to stop. I had gone up and down with only 1 chip left, but ended up walking away with a $25 gain. Take into account the $5 I lost playing poker slots, I netted $20. Not bad :) Spent a couple bucks on OJ, H2O, chocolate ice cream and banana bread throughout the night so came out on top. Michel drove me home about 2:30 am.

Watched Mr. and Mrs. Smith this afternoon. It was a bit boring in the beginning but then picked up later. Not bad. Took a nap then went to Ray's parents' house for CNY dinner. I made brownies made from a Ghiardelli mix that Sharon gave me yesterday.

Let's see, played badminton Wednesday night, finished watching this week's Y&R Friday night. Woke up early - ugh at 7:45 am and went to my first week of the Sun Run walking clinic. Friday was such a dry sunny day but of course Saturday morning was raining. Spent the first hour registering and trying on a shirt, then walking around the gym with the rest of the group warming up. At 10:00 am the running group left first and then us, the walking group. We walked for 44 minutes doing interval walking of brisk and regular walking. There was a front leader, middle leader and rear leader. When there was a straggler in the back with the rear leader the whole group turned around and walked towards them and then when we reached them would turn around again to regroup. Went home and went back to bed for a few hours :)

Ray and I went to IHOP to eat around 4, then dropped off some dry cleaning and our queen comforter for them to wash. We've been using the down one for a few months now. There must've been MSG in the vegetable and beef soup I had. I know there wasn't any MSG in the harvest grain and nut pancakes. I was so tired so had to take a nap for another few hours and got up about 7:45. My mouth was so dry - a sure sign of MSG so I drank a lot of water.

Ray went to play hockey. I emptied the dishwasher and put all the dishes away and reloaded it with the dishes in the sink and counter. I did 3 loads of laundry from the past 2 weeks and cleaned out the fridge. Emptied and rinsed out all the recyclable containers of remaining yogurt, soy milk, jam, peanut butter, Thai noodle salad, tin of evaporated milk from years ago and a bottle of ground cumin from 5 years ago. Also have some plastic bags from the bread crusts and potstickers that I need to rinse out so they can be recycled. Hard to believe there's so much that can be recycled. When we were in Vegas I felt so guilty throwing out recyclables but grocery stores didn't take back beverage containers and the resort didn't recycle. It was quite painful throwing paper products away. I didn't get a chance to look for a recycling place as it was in North Vegas.

Ray came home around 11:30 and went back to working. At 1:00 am I did the Turbo Jam - 20 minute workout and then did the Turbo Sculpt about 1:45 am.

Can you believe this - I got up 2 mornings in a row and exercised before work!!! This is a record-breaking 3 times in the past week that I've done Turbo Jam - 20 Minute Workout before I go to work. Ray was flabergasted and so stunned. So am I! This has never happened in the past 15 years since I've been working full time!

To top it off I also did Turbo Sculpt last night which focusses more on tightening and toning muscles using weights. I'm a bit sore today but it's a good soreness! Didn't overdo it.

Turbo Jam has really been helping my neck and back. I carried 2 heavy bags of groceries today and it didn't pull my neck or back.

Hopefully I can keep it up.

Will start doing the Sun Run walking clinic this weekend. Ugh, it's so early on Saturday. That means only 1 day to sleep in. Woe is me. It's for my own good. I know the marathon will be in the morning so it's good that I start getting used to walking early in the day.

Went for dinner at Ray's parents' house on Sunday. As mon petit frere said, "The rainbow cake tradition continues!" Let me know if you want one and what colours!

Whew! Did my first Turbo Jam - Cardio Party! It' s 45 minutes and a very high-energy workout with a lot of punching, kicking and dancing. Less than half-way through I didn't think I was going to make it so lowered the intensity of the moves. Man, my cardio needs improvement. I managed to get a second wind and finish it.

Did the Turbo Jam - 20 Minute workout this afternoon. Then went and saw King Kong. What a great movie! Didn't even feel like 3 hours. Ray had popcorn during the movie and I had yummy chocolate yogurt. Had to go to the bathroom less than half-way through but managed to make it to the end. I thought the scenes on the island were excellent. Get the creeps just thinking about some of it. Good thing Ray was there to be my pillow during those scenes :)

Last Sunday I did the Turbo Jam - 20 Minute Workout in the afternoon. Played badminton that night. Hadn't played for a while so am glad I didn't have to go back to work until Wednesday. Have managed to keep doing Turbo Jam regularly since I started January 5/06. I've done Turbo Jam 8 out of the past 10 days. Hope to keep it up. Can't wait to try the other Turbo Jam workouts. Was logged into the Beachbody website and found out that Chalene Johnson who is the creator of Turbo Jam also has a blog on blogspot: http://www.chalenejohnson.blogspot.com/

Saturday, January 7, 2006

We checked out of the Desert Paradise Resort around 11:30 am on Saturday. We left our luggage there then went to Chinatown. Ray ate won ton noodle soup and I had green tea ice cream. I'd already had some bread earlier.

I dropped off Ray at the CES at the Sands Convention Centre and then went back to the Premium Outlet Mall. Spent a few hours in the Nike and Adidas store. Got some pants, a tank top and shorts :)

I went back to the resort to pick up the luggage. Then got Ray at the Hilton and went to the airport. The flight was on time, actually a few minutes early! I guess because Vegas was the initial starting point for the flight to Manilla via Vancouver. The flight was dead, only the outside rows had people in them. I guess more people would board in Vancouver. When we arrived at the airport, we whizzed through customs, saw our bags already on the carousel, the shuttlebus for the Park N Fly was already outside, and when we got to the Park N Fly our car was right outside the door! Yee ha, what a better experience coming home then arriving in Vegas. Except for the wet and yucky weather. But it was nice to have little quiet roads instead of the busy roads and highways in Vegas.

Sure miss the space and comfort of the king-sized bed. Maybe we'll have to get one some day...

Saturday, December 31, 2005

Our flight to Vegas was supposed to be at 2:15 via Philippine Airlines. It was coming in from Manilla. I checked the website and called when I got up. Online said the flight was delayed to 4:15 and the phoneline said 3:45.

We had a free week of Park and Fly with valet service so we didn’t even have to park our own car. Cool! It’s worth $69.95 for 1 week so we just have to pay for one day @ $13.95. The regular long term parking is $7.50 per day. I won the gift certificate at the Ronald McDonaldhouse Gala by looking under the table where I was sitting.

We checked in at the airport about 2:00 and then found out that the flight was further delayed until 5:00 pm!!! This was the time we were originally supposed to arrive in Vegas L We each received $12 food vouchers so we whooped it up at the sit-down restaurant beside the food court. $3.50 for OJ – what a rip-off! Watched some of the World Juniors Hockey game Canada against the US.

Once we arrived in Vegas it took forever to get to the rental car area. We had a reservation with Dollar. The signs for where to wait weren’t good so we ended up waiting at the wrong spot and watched a Dollar bus go by. We finally found the right bus stop and then another Dollar bus came by which was full! The 3rd bus came and picked us up. We rented a Chrysler Sebring. By the time we checked into Desert Paradise Resort it was 10:00!!! I called Sharon and she and Ross had already eaten. Sharon said it was too busy on the strip to go outside and too late for us to come down as there wouldn’t be any parking. Ray and I ate some instant soy rice bowls I brought from home then went out about 11:30 pm to find a spot to watch the fireworks. We ended up on the top of the 5th level parkade of the Palms and had an awesome view of all 10 hotels shooting off fireworks!!! Other people had the same idea too but it wasn’t too busy with a security truck driving around. The fireworks lasted about 10 minutes. They were all synchronized and the same design. Very spectacular.

We went to Chinatown and Ray had won ton noodle soup and I had Horlicks.

Sunday, January 1, 2006

Woke up about 3pm so had about 12 hours sleep. We were going to go to IHOP on Tropicana but when we drove there it was gone and another restaurant had taken over. We decided to go to the China Star Buffet on the strip by Polo Towers where we were last year. It took forever to get there as we were crawling on the strip. By the time we finished eating and got to Mandalay Bay to go to the Shark Reef it was about 8:00 pm. The Shark Reef was excellent. Crocodiles, fish, and lots of different types of sharks. The highlight was the 2 sea turtles. I was surprised that none of the sharks ate the turtles. Spent a few hours in the Shark Reef and a long time watching the turtles J It was so exciting seeing the turtles as it looked like they were flying by with wings. I had seen shark tunnels and exhibits in Houston and Oregon but never seen big sea turtles except when snorkeling in Hawaii.

We went to Albertson’s afterwards to get some groceries.

The weather has been cool and super windy with some rain. Wish I had brought my toque. I only brought one fleecy but it’s not my thick one. Luckily I brought my gloves.

Monday, January 2, 2006

Woke up about 1:30 and had a peanut butter and banana sandwich and soy milk. Had some OJ too. Ray had Cheerios and soy milk. Our suite is very spacious with a king size bed, tv and huge walk in closet in the bedroom. The bathroom is separated into different rooms. The sink and bathtub are in one room with a door to the bedroom and another door to the toilet. The toilet room has a door to the sink/bathtub room and another door to the laundry room with washer and dryer. The laundry room has a door to the toilet room and a door to the living room. Including these doors and all the other closets in the kitchen and living room there are 10 doors in this one bedroom place! The living room is big with a sofa bed, single sofa, coffee table, tv and vcr/dvd machine. The dining room has a round table and 4 chairs. There’s a breakfast nook and 2 tall chairs. There’s a full kitchen, with stove, microwave, dishwasher, dishes etc.

Ray took forever to get up so I ended up taking a nap on the couch. We went to Chinatown and Ray had shrimp fried rice and we shared tofu and spinach soup. Was very salty.

Went to Treasure Island to watch the new Sirens show outside. But it was too windy that day so it was cancelled. We played 5 cent poker slots for a while at TI. We went to a restaurant in TI called Kahunaville. I had veggie teriyaki stir-fry. Ray wasn’t hungry yet so just had a milkshake. The music was really loud in the restaurant and is a nightclub on the weekends. There was also an oxygen bar there.

Tuesday, January 3, 2006

My alarm went off around 6:15 am but I didn’t get up for about half an hour. Ray took a while to get up as he went to sleep later than I did. But the time we got on the road it was close to 9am – 2 hours behind schedule. The line up for the Ellen Show was to start at 11am. It took about 4 hours to get to Burbank so we got in line at 1:00pm. #188 and #189 in line. Up to # 157 was guaranteed to be in the studio audience and the rest in the Riff-Raff room unless some VIP’s didn’t show up then we had a chance. Ray was too tired and wasn’t very keen on staying so he left to take a nap. #187 in line was a woman named Pat. She was wearing a fushia top and we hung out for the rest of the day. She’s from Chatanooga Tennessee and was in town visiting her son. She had gone to the Rose Bowl Parade (had $60 tix) with her son the day before. It was pouring and everyone there got soaked but they stuck it out. There were a lot of stars in the parade such as Leanne Rhimes, Toni Braxton and Vegas magician Lance Burton to name a few. The line-up started moving about 1:45. We went through security and a metal detector. We waiting in the area outside the building. There were long benches with backs and tv’s showing the previous day’s taping of Ellen with Tom Selleck and a 6 year old boy who plays guitar. The seating area was covered with a tent and if necessary there were plastic curtains. But we were still outside and it wasn’t very warm once the sun wasn’t there. Luckily it was a sunny dry day unlike the day before. People were herded in groups to the wash room. There was also a concession where I bought a tuna sandwich on brown. I was pretty cold as I left my jacket in the car. We were told about some rules and the about 4:30 started going inside!!! Only up to # 160 got to go into the regular studio audience and the rest of us had to stay in the Riff-Raff room L where there were flat-screen tv’s and we could hear what was going on as the room was right behind the audience. Pat and I and the 4 women wearing (I danced with Ellen shirts) were all dancing. The others were just sitting there. They called a few at a time to the audience – singles. Then to our surprise the rest of us got called in !!! We were so excited we were screaming. They set up portable chairs for us in the back row!!! Yee ha! Melina Kanakaredes (CSI New York), Anthony Anderson and 16 year old singer Chris Brown were the guests that day. There was so much energy in the room. People in line had filled out surveys before we got there and they picked some of the audience to talk about their New Year’s resolutions. Also there were some who had hidden talents. During commercials we danced and clapped so much. My hands were sore. The show was on the next day. We got a bonus as Billy Crystal was in town and Ellen and Tony got changed for a show that was to air with Billy on Friday, January 6. Everyone in the audience got a free Chris Brown CD. The ones with New Year’s resolutions got IPODS. During commercials singers and dancers got t-shirts.

We finished about 6:30 and I walkie-talkied Ray who was waiting outside.

Wednesday, January 4, 2006

Got about 12 hours of sleep and got up at 2pm. I had a peanut butter and banana sandwich and OJ. Ray just had OJ. We went to Dennys where Ray had the Lumberjack Slam and I had chicken noodle soup and sausages.

We went to the Las Vegas Hilton so Ray could pick up his CES (Consumer Electronic Show) badge holder. They were charging a ridiculous price of $25 for parking so I just waited in the car outside the hotel for him. It was so busy there. So unlike the last time we were there.

We made it to the 7:00 show of the Sirens at Treasure Island. It is not a family oriented show anymore as the women were scantily clad in lingerie-type costumes and the men were topless.

Went to Ben and Jerry’s in TI where I had yummy Oreo ice cream!

Thursday, January 5, 2006

Got up about 1:30 and watched my taped Y&R. Have been keeping up to date! Not feeling very well today. Have some bad head aches and neck pain. Feverish. Was supposed to drop Ray off at the CES today and either go shopping or to see the Titanic Exhibit at Tropicana, but wasn’t feeling well enough to go anywhere. Ray went by himself. Ray got back about 7 and we ordered take out at about 7:30. It took about an hour to get here. I ordered angel hair pasta and meat sauce and Ray ordered a plain bacon cheeseburger. Then we watched tv for a while. Ray’s bad knee got sore from all his walking.

I did my first session of Turbo Jam. Week 1 Learn and Burn. Good workout. I was sweating and tired afterwards.

Friday, January 6, 2006

Did my 2nd session of Turbo Jam’s Learn and Burn about 11:45 am. Got another good workout and sweat. Had my last banana in a peanut butter sandwich. We went to the Sands Convention Centre and Ray went to the CES. The CES was there as well as Alexi Park, Las Vegas Hilton and the Las Vegas Convention Centre. I went shopping at the Las Vegas Premium Outlet mall. Bought 2 tops at the Levi’s Outlet and an Adidas tank top and shorts.

I picked up Ray at the Las Vegas Hilton Hotel at 6:30 pm. We went to Chinatown to the Shanghai Noon Restaurant. It was packed and we had to wait for a table. Most of the people there were other conventioneers. We went back the resort. Ray’s knee was sore so he wanted to rest.

The weather was warm today. Didn’t even need a jacket. Actually starting Tuesday it was sunny without any wind.