I've been suffering from a tummy flu these past two days. It seems to be mostly cleared up now, but my abdominal muscles are really tight. After spending most of yesterday in a horizontal/fetal position, I managed to get over to Nicole's to help her paint. In that I couldn't straighten up completely, thanks to the muscle pain, I did the baseboard edging while she did the rollering and mostly it was alright. She also made sure to pack me full of cheese and crackers in order to stopper me. *laugh* Her place is really nice. She's got a large, airy, bright loft in the same complex she's already been living in (the one I eventually want to move into...). She's paying a ridiculously small amount of rent considering the size of the place. Honestly, she has as much living space as Stew and I and she's paying over two hundred dollars less than us. Inclusive. Wow.
Okay, so you're probably wondering, did I get the job? YES, I got the job ! The one I wanted, even, not the short-term contract. I heard the news on Tuesday and I bounced around the office. I think Richard's a bit disappointed that I'll be leaving Membership, especially right before a big exhibition and March Break, but how can he argue with higher pay and longer shifts? I'm a little sorry to leave Membership, but I've been with the department since November 1998, which is a really long time to hold a job with little room to move. Anyway, I'll be writing my official letters of resignation tonight and bringing them a bouquet of flowers next week.
Anyway, there is no doubt now that I've moved beyond where I was. These are, I believe, very positive changes. While the move to Visitor Services is something of a lateral move within the museum, it puts me in a new place, changes my routine and offers me a fresh perspective. Even moreso, the contract in Education adds a level of excitement and brings a new challenge for me to overcome. I'm working under the impression that I will be back at school in the fall, another positive change, and my mother is starting to call this the "Year of Maya". I hope she's right. If anything, my recent experiences with a certain someone and my betrayal at his hands has changed my view, has thrown me into action. I am taking control of my life and have taken a new fork in the path. I don't know where it's going to lead me, only that it will offer scenery I've never seen before, and possibly a very cool destination. I've got a map to help me along the way, but parts have been left uncharted and I'll be filling them in as I go.
Good thing I like Orienteering.
Monday, February 23, 2004
I am such a mush, it's unreal. Last night, after work, I got home to find Stew watching television. Since we only get three or four channels at any given time he had the Sunday Disney movie on. Tarzan. So, I turned it on, too, but I didn't really start watching until about the half-way point. Within minutes of sitting down in front of the TV I was already crying. I kid you not, the damn movie had me crying. Actually, I really enjoyed it. It came out during the period when I'd gotten really tired of Disney, following The Hunchback of Notre Dame. I probably should have gone to see this one, though. Also, something that I already knew was reaffirmed for me, love it or hate it, Disney wrote the book on facial expressions and they renew their copyright every damn year. Disney is the master of animated characterisations.
Friday night was Cheryl's birthday and Rick and I met everyone at Marlowe on College Street. It was right around the corner from my old place, but when I lived there, there were other restaurants I went to and so I never tried it. It was good, a bit pricey, but the flavours were excellent and I had a dark beer that, while not as good as Barbar Winter Bok, was still very tasty - Leffe Brune. Tons of people showed up including a whole bunch of ex-ROM employees, some of whom I had not seen in a couple of years. Much merriment took place and it seems Rick is a hit with the ROM girls. He got a lecture from Maria about how being called 'cute' isn't a bad thing and Lia told me I had to bring him out lots more because he's fun. It seems that waiting nearly four years to show him off to the girls was a good move. And also, his short hair is a HUGE hit. They dig him. Me too.
This is a crazy week for me. I worked on Saturday and Sunday, today I'm at the membership desk, tomorrow I'm upstairs in the office, Wednesday I'm at training, Thursday I'm on the desk and at training, Friday is the membership preview, and Saturday I'm here again for the public opening of the big Egypt show. *sweats* Plus, I have to finish a proposal I'm working on for a web design contract. Only a few weeks ago, I was complaining that I did not have enough to keep me busy. It doesn't rain, but it pours, as they say. Also, on Saturday, I'm going to try to get out to the Petes for Ryan's nomination (hopefully) as Conservative candidate in Peterborough. My own politics aside, the other two men he's up against make him look like a moderate. I don't know how I'll manage it, since I'm working until two on Saturday, but maybe I can score a ride with A&C, or I'll hop on the bus. I'd like to be there for him, regardless of whether he wins or loses.
Finally, I hope to hear today if I got the VS job. I didn't hear on Friday, obviously, so cross your fingers.
C'est tout.
Friday night was Cheryl's birthday and Rick and I met everyone at Marlowe on College Street. It was right around the corner from my old place, but when I lived there, there were other restaurants I went to and so I never tried it. It was good, a bit pricey, but the flavours were excellent and I had a dark beer that, while not as good as Barbar Winter Bok, was still very tasty - Leffe Brune. Tons of people showed up including a whole bunch of ex-ROM employees, some of whom I had not seen in a couple of years. Much merriment took place and it seems Rick is a hit with the ROM girls. He got a lecture from Maria about how being called 'cute' isn't a bad thing and Lia told me I had to bring him out lots more because he's fun. It seems that waiting nearly four years to show him off to the girls was a good move. And also, his short hair is a HUGE hit. They dig him. Me too.
This is a crazy week for me. I worked on Saturday and Sunday, today I'm at the membership desk, tomorrow I'm upstairs in the office, Wednesday I'm at training, Thursday I'm on the desk and at training, Friday is the membership preview, and Saturday I'm here again for the public opening of the big Egypt show. *sweats* Plus, I have to finish a proposal I'm working on for a web design contract. Only a few weeks ago, I was complaining that I did not have enough to keep me busy. It doesn't rain, but it pours, as they say. Also, on Saturday, I'm going to try to get out to the Petes for Ryan's nomination (hopefully) as Conservative candidate in Peterborough. My own politics aside, the other two men he's up against make him look like a moderate. I don't know how I'll manage it, since I'm working until two on Saturday, but maybe I can score a ride with A&C, or I'll hop on the bus. I'd like to be there for him, regardless of whether he wins or loses.
Finally, I hope to hear today if I got the VS job. I didn't hear on Friday, obviously, so cross your fingers.
C'est tout.
Wednesday, February 18, 2004
Home sick, today, with what I suppose is a cold, I have spent most of the day in bed. There's a vague thought that I might like to make myself some soup, but that requires effort, even if it's only to open a can, pour out the contents and add an equal part of water. I woke up this morning with my right eye glued shut and puffy with infection and I can't turn my head to the right. Peter, from the ROM, called to see how I was doing - it's a crunch week and I am loathe to miss work, but there is nothing I can do about this. Hopefully, I'll be fine tomorrow, but if I feel like I do right now, I suspect I'll be out again. More than likely, this is partially my body's response to my extreme nervousness about the interview and everything related to it. Stress and adrenaline held me together through the last two days, and today the seams split.
Anyway, about the interview: It went on longer than at least two I heard about, lasting a little over half an hour. It still remains one of the shortest interviews I've ever had, not including the French portion that was held afterward. I had prepared quite extensively for the interview and therefore managed to give consise answers and appropriate examples. As well, I stressed my years of experience at the ROM and in customer service. I also talked about my love of the ROM and all the time I've spent in it, excluding work time. My fears of dealing with Keenan were unnecessary as he sat back and took notes, not asking any of the questions. I was able to ignore him almost the whole time. I was very professional, shaking hands with the interviewers at the start and acting as if we did not have a history together at the museum. At the end, I thanked them all for the opportunity to interview and shook their hands once again.
The French portion of the interview was held down in the Visitor Services section with Estrella, one of my favourite people at the ROM. She speaks beautiful French (as well as several other languages) and she is very easy to speak with. That isn't to say that speaking French was easy. I was still riding a wave of anxiety and my French was all over the place. One sentence would come out nicely, the next would fall flat and I'd find myself stammering, unable to recall the word I wanted to use. We spoke for about eight minutes, which for me is an eternity, and I think I managed to make myself understood. I used some words that I swear I haven't used since I was in French Immersion, back in elementary school. I also said I would be more than happy to take a class to raise my speaking ability since my comprehension is great.
Now I have to wait. I was supposed to bring in my referrences today, but they'll have to wait until tomorrow. *sigh* Anyway, if all goes well, I'll know where I stand either Friday or Monday. I really, really hope I get the job. I want it badly. It's more money, better hours, and, not to say I don't like my colleagues in Membership, because that simply isn't true, but I have a broader social circle in Visitor Services. So, please cross your bits and hope for the best.
On a different note, I fired my second adorably nauseating dragon last night. I did not wait long enough for the model to cool and picked it up while it was still hot and soft, snapping its tail and one horn. I had to do emergency repairs on it and hopefully it will be alright. I will start painting it when I'm feeling up to it. There's more challenge to modelling these little figures than I'd imagined, though, because my cat likes to stick her claws into the soft, pliable clay. I have to be careful of her when she's sitting by me because if I don't pay close attention, she'll pull the clay right off my work surface. The last thing I want is her EATING my art, or the polymer clay, for that matter. Cats are so weird.
Anyway, about the interview: It went on longer than at least two I heard about, lasting a little over half an hour. It still remains one of the shortest interviews I've ever had, not including the French portion that was held afterward. I had prepared quite extensively for the interview and therefore managed to give consise answers and appropriate examples. As well, I stressed my years of experience at the ROM and in customer service. I also talked about my love of the ROM and all the time I've spent in it, excluding work time. My fears of dealing with Keenan were unnecessary as he sat back and took notes, not asking any of the questions. I was able to ignore him almost the whole time. I was very professional, shaking hands with the interviewers at the start and acting as if we did not have a history together at the museum. At the end, I thanked them all for the opportunity to interview and shook their hands once again.
The French portion of the interview was held down in the Visitor Services section with Estrella, one of my favourite people at the ROM. She speaks beautiful French (as well as several other languages) and she is very easy to speak with. That isn't to say that speaking French was easy. I was still riding a wave of anxiety and my French was all over the place. One sentence would come out nicely, the next would fall flat and I'd find myself stammering, unable to recall the word I wanted to use. We spoke for about eight minutes, which for me is an eternity, and I think I managed to make myself understood. I used some words that I swear I haven't used since I was in French Immersion, back in elementary school. I also said I would be more than happy to take a class to raise my speaking ability since my comprehension is great.
Now I have to wait. I was supposed to bring in my referrences today, but they'll have to wait until tomorrow. *sigh* Anyway, if all goes well, I'll know where I stand either Friday or Monday. I really, really hope I get the job. I want it badly. It's more money, better hours, and, not to say I don't like my colleagues in Membership, because that simply isn't true, but I have a broader social circle in Visitor Services. So, please cross your bits and hope for the best.
On a different note, I fired my second adorably nauseating dragon last night. I did not wait long enough for the model to cool and picked it up while it was still hot and soft, snapping its tail and one horn. I had to do emergency repairs on it and hopefully it will be alright. I will start painting it when I'm feeling up to it. There's more challenge to modelling these little figures than I'd imagined, though, because my cat likes to stick her claws into the soft, pliable clay. I have to be careful of her when she's sitting by me because if I don't pay close attention, she'll pull the clay right off my work surface. The last thing I want is her EATING my art, or the polymer clay, for that matter. Cats are so weird.
Tuesday, February 17, 2004
Today is my interview for the Visitor Services job. I am really nervous. As a rule, I don't get particularly anxious before an interview, but I really want this job and I have a lot of excellent competition. I am also a little nervous about the interviewers, especially Keenan, who is known for his difficult questions and unfriendly manner. I've interviewed with him before, so at least I won't be surprised, and I spent a lot of time preparing myself last night. I wrote out questions and answers, situational examples, talked briefly to my mother about it and I guess I'm ready. But it doesn't take the butterflies away.
I spoke to my supervisor, Richard, about using him as a referrence for the VS job and he said yes, of course, but he's disappointed that I am hoping to get into that department. I'm not the only one from Membership who is hoping to make the move, either. It's really hard to argue with my rationale, though, since the pay is quite a bit higher and the shifts are twice as long. I promised him that if I get the job I will make sure to give my full two weeks so as not to leave him in the lurch. I also spoke to Peter, my in-office supervisor (data entry), and told him that one way or the other, I was going to have to give up that job for Education. There are two options: 1. that I give him my letter of resignation and two weeks or, 2. he simply not schedule me for the duration of my contract leaving me free to return when it ends. I'm hoping he'll go for option 2, but I'm not holding my breath.
I had a long conversation with Tracy last night. It was weird to talk almost the whole time about 'grown-up' issues. She recently passed her board exams and now has only about two more months until she's officially Dr. Waugh. We discussed her home-buying plans with Paul, her fiance, and how the bank doesn't want to give her a loan (not surprisingly, since she's not currently employed or contracted). I'm not bothered by her being engaged, it was a long time coming, but this house-purchasing business is just... well, it's so grown-up. I'm still fantasing about the loft I'll have one day and she's about to BUY a home with her husband-to-be. It kind of makes my head swim.
Generally, I try to avoid thinking about things like that because more often than not I begin to feel like an underachiever. Then I have to remind myself that while Tracy is on the brink of becoming a vet, she's had to sacrifice a lot of life experience. When I stand on the life-spiral and look down, I'm not in the same place I was, even if it sometimes feels like I am. There are a lot of challenges and obstacles that I have overcome and I have done more things than many other people my age. So, while I'm not ready to buy a house and start my career, I am well on the way to becoming a truly fascinating person. Go me.
I spoke to my supervisor, Richard, about using him as a referrence for the VS job and he said yes, of course, but he's disappointed that I am hoping to get into that department. I'm not the only one from Membership who is hoping to make the move, either. It's really hard to argue with my rationale, though, since the pay is quite a bit higher and the shifts are twice as long. I promised him that if I get the job I will make sure to give my full two weeks so as not to leave him in the lurch. I also spoke to Peter, my in-office supervisor (data entry), and told him that one way or the other, I was going to have to give up that job for Education. There are two options: 1. that I give him my letter of resignation and two weeks or, 2. he simply not schedule me for the duration of my contract leaving me free to return when it ends. I'm hoping he'll go for option 2, but I'm not holding my breath.
I had a long conversation with Tracy last night. It was weird to talk almost the whole time about 'grown-up' issues. She recently passed her board exams and now has only about two more months until she's officially Dr. Waugh. We discussed her home-buying plans with Paul, her fiance, and how the bank doesn't want to give her a loan (not surprisingly, since she's not currently employed or contracted). I'm not bothered by her being engaged, it was a long time coming, but this house-purchasing business is just... well, it's so grown-up. I'm still fantasing about the loft I'll have one day and she's about to BUY a home with her husband-to-be. It kind of makes my head swim.
Generally, I try to avoid thinking about things like that because more often than not I begin to feel like an underachiever. Then I have to remind myself that while Tracy is on the brink of becoming a vet, she's had to sacrifice a lot of life experience. When I stand on the life-spiral and look down, I'm not in the same place I was, even if it sometimes feels like I am. There are a lot of challenges and obstacles that I have overcome and I have done more things than many other people my age. So, while I'm not ready to buy a house and start my career, I am well on the way to becoming a truly fascinating person. Go me.
Friday, February 13, 2004
Tonight I am going to write something substantive. An entry of substance. Of weight. Or, at the very least, an entry of several hundred words.
I am in Peterborough visiting my mother, only briefly, but with enjoyment nonetheless. The point was to come out for last night in order to catch Lorne Elliot who was playing at Showplace. If you're not familiar with him, he is the host of the CBC's "Madly Off in All Directions" heard every Sunday on CBC One. He's taken a leave in order to take a show on the road, and my God, is that man ever funny. I thought he was fun on the radio. Now that I've SEEN him, I know how much I was missing. Not only does he do a marvelous job of playing with, and sometimes abusing, the English language (especially those colloquialisms common to various regions of Canada), but he's physically a riot. He moves like he's made of rubber. And he plays a mean guitar. It was the best stand-up I've ever seen.
The plan had been to come out the night before last, which would have been Wednesday, but I got scheduled for training on Thursday. This would be the education job. I am so excited about this job, it's not even a question as to whether it would be worth it for the number of hours, it is worth it to ME. I'm going to be something half-way between a teacher and a tour-guide, taking students through the Eternal Egypt exhibit that will be opening at the end of the month. I have a binder to study, full of information about the exhibition as well as the curriculum requirements for the three principal grade-levels that I'll be dealing with. Grade fives, nines, and elevens. It seems that those are the 'bread and butter' grades for the museum, at least when it comes to cultures, art, and world religion.
Anyway, I had my first training session on Thursday where I met my fellow educator/facilitators. Most of them have a history with the ROM from past exhibits and/or children's programming. There are only a handful of people who are new to the ROM, one coming from the Science Centre, a few out of related subjects in university, and one woman who was actually a cultural site interpreter in Egypt. There's one woman who is a forensic anthropologist, so as she said, "I'm going out on a limb a bit here, but if there are any murders in the show, I'm so there !" Mostly we're all between the ages of twenty and thirty, with only a very few exceptions. I'm completely excited about it, keyed up, thrilled, and I only have momentary pangs when I think, "Oh my God, I'm going to be dealing with KIDS." Probably, I'll be too busy for it to actually register.
There are twenty artifacts that I must know like the back of my hand, each representative of a particular period in the three thousand years of ancient Egyptian history. There are actually one hundred and forty-four pieces, but with twenty memorised, I shouldn't be at a loss for words at any point. Of course, I will learn much more than that, but these are a jumping off point. We have two training sessions this week, of which I'll have to finagle some time off because they both conflict with my very busy week in the membership office. Then there are two sessions in the exhibit itself, which will hopefully be enough. The three colossal pieces that are set up outside the entrance to the hall are visible through the plastic and every time I look at them I get excited. They're outside the gallery space because of load-bearing issues inside. It seems they're just too damn heavy and they might go through the floor. We wouldn't want that.
Well, other than that, there isn't too much to talk about that is new in my life. I went shopping with Mom today - a great adventure and much fun. We picked up a new blind for my bedroom and my mother is banging and clopping right now as I type, putting it up. So far, no cursing, but I'm sure that will come. Cursing is part of any midnight project. We also bought me a gorgeous soft, warm shawl/wrap thing for me that I can wear out as well as a sexy new camissol top. At Lewiscraft, spurred on by Snerk, my mother convinced me to purchase many things to make more adorable, sellable, artworks that people will actually buy. It's not so much that I'm selling out, but that I really want people to buy my stuff. Maybe if people like my cute, commercial stuff, they'll take another look at my serious work. Anyway, expect more cute dragons in the future. *sigh* Mom placed an order for a greenhouse shelf-thing that she is buying herself for her birthday, and we went to Staples to examine the possibilities for new computer desks. My bedroom will require redesigning in order to accomodate Natasha and her accessories and my current desk in Toronto won't work and is starting to its age.
Tomorrow I am getting my head pruned, at long last, and I will pick up a new box of Sculpey for further artistic pursuits. Then I'm off to Toronto with Bill and Richie for Dungeons & Dragons at A&C's. So, happy St. Valentine's Day, if you're into that sort of thing, otherwise let me wish you a terrific Emperor Norton Day and hope you celebrate in good health.
I am in Peterborough visiting my mother, only briefly, but with enjoyment nonetheless. The point was to come out for last night in order to catch Lorne Elliot who was playing at Showplace. If you're not familiar with him, he is the host of the CBC's "Madly Off in All Directions" heard every Sunday on CBC One. He's taken a leave in order to take a show on the road, and my God, is that man ever funny. I thought he was fun on the radio. Now that I've SEEN him, I know how much I was missing. Not only does he do a marvelous job of playing with, and sometimes abusing, the English language (especially those colloquialisms common to various regions of Canada), but he's physically a riot. He moves like he's made of rubber. And he plays a mean guitar. It was the best stand-up I've ever seen.
The plan had been to come out the night before last, which would have been Wednesday, but I got scheduled for training on Thursday. This would be the education job. I am so excited about this job, it's not even a question as to whether it would be worth it for the number of hours, it is worth it to ME. I'm going to be something half-way between a teacher and a tour-guide, taking students through the Eternal Egypt exhibit that will be opening at the end of the month. I have a binder to study, full of information about the exhibition as well as the curriculum requirements for the three principal grade-levels that I'll be dealing with. Grade fives, nines, and elevens. It seems that those are the 'bread and butter' grades for the museum, at least when it comes to cultures, art, and world religion.
Anyway, I had my first training session on Thursday where I met my fellow educator/facilitators. Most of them have a history with the ROM from past exhibits and/or children's programming. There are only a handful of people who are new to the ROM, one coming from the Science Centre, a few out of related subjects in university, and one woman who was actually a cultural site interpreter in Egypt. There's one woman who is a forensic anthropologist, so as she said, "I'm going out on a limb a bit here, but if there are any murders in the show, I'm so there !" Mostly we're all between the ages of twenty and thirty, with only a very few exceptions. I'm completely excited about it, keyed up, thrilled, and I only have momentary pangs when I think, "Oh my God, I'm going to be dealing with KIDS." Probably, I'll be too busy for it to actually register.
There are twenty artifacts that I must know like the back of my hand, each representative of a particular period in the three thousand years of ancient Egyptian history. There are actually one hundred and forty-four pieces, but with twenty memorised, I shouldn't be at a loss for words at any point. Of course, I will learn much more than that, but these are a jumping off point. We have two training sessions this week, of which I'll have to finagle some time off because they both conflict with my very busy week in the membership office. Then there are two sessions in the exhibit itself, which will hopefully be enough. The three colossal pieces that are set up outside the entrance to the hall are visible through the plastic and every time I look at them I get excited. They're outside the gallery space because of load-bearing issues inside. It seems they're just too damn heavy and they might go through the floor. We wouldn't want that.
Well, other than that, there isn't too much to talk about that is new in my life. I went shopping with Mom today - a great adventure and much fun. We picked up a new blind for my bedroom and my mother is banging and clopping right now as I type, putting it up. So far, no cursing, but I'm sure that will come. Cursing is part of any midnight project. We also bought me a gorgeous soft, warm shawl/wrap thing for me that I can wear out as well as a sexy new camissol top. At Lewiscraft, spurred on by Snerk, my mother convinced me to purchase many things to make more adorable, sellable, artworks that people will actually buy. It's not so much that I'm selling out, but that I really want people to buy my stuff. Maybe if people like my cute, commercial stuff, they'll take another look at my serious work. Anyway, expect more cute dragons in the future. *sigh* Mom placed an order for a greenhouse shelf-thing that she is buying herself for her birthday, and we went to Staples to examine the possibilities for new computer desks. My bedroom will require redesigning in order to accomodate Natasha and her accessories and my current desk in Toronto won't work and is starting to its age.
Tomorrow I am getting my head pruned, at long last, and I will pick up a new box of Sculpey for further artistic pursuits. Then I'm off to Toronto with Bill and Richie for Dungeons & Dragons at A&C's. So, happy St. Valentine's Day, if you're into that sort of thing, otherwise let me wish you a terrific Emperor Norton Day and hope you celebrate in good health.
Tuesday, February 10, 2004
I am going to post some serious irreverance here, now, so be warned - it's funny, tasty, disturbing, and really WELL done. It speaks to my inner slash-fiction writer, who's muscles have not been flexed in four years or so. And without further ado - TWO PIRATES KISSING ! Big thanks to Stew who posted it in his livejournal.
Anyway, the router did exciting things that resulted in a two day lack of Internet, but all has been repaired and I'm back online. Stuff happened today but I don't really want to talk about it right now. I have to go and think about how I 'can improve my sales statistics', which ought to give you some idea as to why I'm irritated.
Anyway, the router did exciting things that resulted in a two day lack of Internet, but all has been repaired and I'm back online. Stuff happened today but I don't really want to talk about it right now. I have to go and think about how I 'can improve my sales statistics', which ought to give you some idea as to why I'm irritated.
Friday, February 06, 2004
One thing I'm a little tired of is making plans only to have them fall through because of a migraine headache. It doesn't happen all that often anymore as most of my migraines are fairly tolerable, except today my date with Rick got the boot because this one is just a little too strong. We'd planned to go see The Return of the King again, but there is no way I could have sat through three-plus hours of movie magic with my eyes as sensitive as they were. Are. I've had to turn down the brightness on my computer in order to get some work done. Mostly I have done a lot of nothing today, so tonight, as soon as my eyes and head would allow it, I sat down at Natasha to work on a mock-up webpage. I'm playing around and trying new things, for instance, though I tend not to like them, frames. I will probably lose the frames before long, but it does allow for a new way of thinking about webpages if frames aren't your typical thing. Anyway, with this work underway, Mom cannot get upset that I'm leaving things until the last minute.
So, the good news is, I got the education job, and for the time being I have agreed to attend the training session though it totally facks up my plans to head back to Peterborough. I'm fairly certain that I'll be able to swing attending only part of the session, afterall, Mom and I have tickets for Cabin Fever in the Petes. It will be tight, but there's a rush-hour bus that should get me there in time. I must find out exactly the kind of hours I can expect to get from this job in order to make sure I can really afford to accept it. It does mean I'll have to leave one of my jobs in Membership if I take it. You see, I've also applied, and will likely get an interview, for another job in the Visitor Services Dept. It will take me out of the selling aspect of Membership and raise my wage and hours enough to make a significant difference to my standard of living. I guess I must do some thinking and talking to my mother about it. How is it that my mother knows how to deal with (nearly) everything?
The house desperately needs to be cleaned. My room is a mess, there's washing that needs to be done... Now that I have all this free time, you would think I'd get on it, right? Wrong. Maybe I'll work on the bathroom tonight. I had a bizarre migraine dream about living in a house with a whole bunch of people, most of whom I like, only there was this wacky disaster (a weather event, or something) and the house needed immediate and serious attention. In this dream I was the chief Swifferer. It was quite disgusting the muck we were Swiffering up, but I guess there was a little of my conscious thought seeping into my dreamtime. Anyway, my house is not full of muck, or lots of people, but two cats, one of whom sheds like she's got a disease, make a house pretty hairy, as does a pair of long-haired humans. And as for the laundry, I really am putting off the walk to the laundromat. It's a walk just long enough to make me dread it, especially with icy sidewalks. I know, I'm a wimp. I guess I've got no choice but to buck up and go clean my clothes on Sunday. Tomorrow, I'll pick up my drycleaned pants. It's a start. We're talking baby-steps, here, but a start nonetheless.
You are a faerie of the flame. You tend to lose
your temper at the littlest thing, hot-headed.
You're a loyal friend to those who can
understand your raging moods. You're social
though claim not to be. You are no one else but
yourself and sometimes you try to hard to be
just that. You're a passionate friend, and
would do almost anything for those you care
for.
What's your inner Faerie?
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In case it was wrong, I thought I'd try another one... Guess there's no denying it.
You are the Fire Faerie!
Sorting Faerie
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So, the good news is, I got the education job, and for the time being I have agreed to attend the training session though it totally facks up my plans to head back to Peterborough. I'm fairly certain that I'll be able to swing attending only part of the session, afterall, Mom and I have tickets for Cabin Fever in the Petes. It will be tight, but there's a rush-hour bus that should get me there in time. I must find out exactly the kind of hours I can expect to get from this job in order to make sure I can really afford to accept it. It does mean I'll have to leave one of my jobs in Membership if I take it. You see, I've also applied, and will likely get an interview, for another job in the Visitor Services Dept. It will take me out of the selling aspect of Membership and raise my wage and hours enough to make a significant difference to my standard of living. I guess I must do some thinking and talking to my mother about it. How is it that my mother knows how to deal with (nearly) everything?
The house desperately needs to be cleaned. My room is a mess, there's washing that needs to be done... Now that I have all this free time, you would think I'd get on it, right? Wrong. Maybe I'll work on the bathroom tonight. I had a bizarre migraine dream about living in a house with a whole bunch of people, most of whom I like, only there was this wacky disaster (a weather event, or something) and the house needed immediate and serious attention. In this dream I was the chief Swifferer. It was quite disgusting the muck we were Swiffering up, but I guess there was a little of my conscious thought seeping into my dreamtime. Anyway, my house is not full of muck, or lots of people, but two cats, one of whom sheds like she's got a disease, make a house pretty hairy, as does a pair of long-haired humans. And as for the laundry, I really am putting off the walk to the laundromat. It's a walk just long enough to make me dread it, especially with icy sidewalks. I know, I'm a wimp. I guess I've got no choice but to buck up and go clean my clothes on Sunday. Tomorrow, I'll pick up my drycleaned pants. It's a start. We're talking baby-steps, here, but a start nonetheless.
You are a faerie of the flame. You tend to lose
your temper at the littlest thing, hot-headed.
You're a loyal friend to those who can
understand your raging moods. You're social
though claim not to be. You are no one else but
yourself and sometimes you try to hard to be
just that. You're a passionate friend, and
would do almost anything for those you care
for.
What's your inner Faerie?
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In case it was wrong, I thought I'd try another one... Guess there's no denying it.
You are the Fire Faerie!
Sorting Faerie
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Tuesday, February 03, 2004
The impatience continues. You know, once one makes a life-choice one wants to move forward with it. There is certainly a feeling of stasis. I got my letter from Fleming College saying my application was received and now the waiting continues. I want to know for sure if I'll be going. I want to know for sure if I'll be moving home. I want both these things to happen -now- and nothing I can do will change the fact that I just have to be patient. I am still in relief from contract work, and while there is a nice feeling of 'what to do now' I cannot shake the need to be busy. It seems I got rather used to it. I never would have dreamed it possible, but I do not enjoy the vacant period of time each day that I spend wondering how to fill it. To compound this problem, I seem to be suffering from Artist Block. I want to draw, but I just end up drawing dumb stuff not worth finishing. So I think about the projects I want to do and then can't start them. Frustrating. I can't seem to write, either. I have been dingling about with my webpages, but it's not exactly stimulating dingling. Last night, while watching a special West Wing that did not suck and a CSI: Miami that sucked less than usual, I managed to sculpt a little dragon out of Sculpey clay. Unfortunately, it's the kind of cute, fat dragon that makes me want to puke. But, once painted, I'll probably be able to sell it, so I guess I shouldn't complain too much. And, it was an exercise in creativity, so that was a change.
There is the possibility of further, future creativity as I screen-captured a bunch of good images featuring Moaning Myrtle from Chamber of Secrets. This, of course, is a long-running costume design that I have had. I have not the sewing skills, however; to pull it off. Nicole, on the other hand, does. Nicole is also moving into a new loft and I will be helping her paint it. This means a possibility of barter. Also, I plan to help as much as I can as sewing is a useful skill that I could only benefit in having. Anyway, that should be fun. Hopefully I'll be able to get it together for Ad-Astra, a good place to try out new costumes. Actually, I've never worn a real costume there, or at any convention, only sort of dressed up vaguely along a thematic line. I will also be exhibiting artwork at the show as before. Hopefully, fat, cute, cheesy dragons will sell well. I hate that I just said that. Gah. I'll be showing some of the older works and a few of the LotR works I exhibited at The Gathering of the Fellowship back in December.
The cats are getting along nicely, with the occasional ambush; Willi's settled in again and no longer mopes about. In fact, every morning she plays on my bed thus waking me up. It's very cute, if a bit irritating, and demonstrates her good humour. The game only improves if I happen to decide to play along. Today, since I didn't have to go to work, I got woken up around nine o'clock by her jovial bouncing, and when she settled down I went back to sleep. This meant that she got to do it all over again when I woke up three hours later or so. Cute, cute, cute. Also, I should mention that Tobe is now allowed to share the bed with Stinky, which makes me very hot at night.
Anyway, enough rambling about nothing, Rick is here and he is clearly impatient to be going for sushi because he's making dumb comments and staring at me with meaning.
There is the possibility of further, future creativity as I screen-captured a bunch of good images featuring Moaning Myrtle from Chamber of Secrets. This, of course, is a long-running costume design that I have had. I have not the sewing skills, however; to pull it off. Nicole, on the other hand, does. Nicole is also moving into a new loft and I will be helping her paint it. This means a possibility of barter. Also, I plan to help as much as I can as sewing is a useful skill that I could only benefit in having. Anyway, that should be fun. Hopefully I'll be able to get it together for Ad-Astra, a good place to try out new costumes. Actually, I've never worn a real costume there, or at any convention, only sort of dressed up vaguely along a thematic line. I will also be exhibiting artwork at the show as before. Hopefully, fat, cute, cheesy dragons will sell well. I hate that I just said that. Gah. I'll be showing some of the older works and a few of the LotR works I exhibited at The Gathering of the Fellowship back in December.
The cats are getting along nicely, with the occasional ambush; Willi's settled in again and no longer mopes about. In fact, every morning she plays on my bed thus waking me up. It's very cute, if a bit irritating, and demonstrates her good humour. The game only improves if I happen to decide to play along. Today, since I didn't have to go to work, I got woken up around nine o'clock by her jovial bouncing, and when she settled down I went back to sleep. This meant that she got to do it all over again when I woke up three hours later or so. Cute, cute, cute. Also, I should mention that Tobe is now allowed to share the bed with Stinky, which makes me very hot at night.
Anyway, enough rambling about nothing, Rick is here and he is clearly impatient to be going for sushi because he's making dumb comments and staring at me with meaning.
Sunday, February 01, 2004
Welcome to the mid-winter. Today was amazing. The birds were singing in the bright, warm winter sun. There was a bit of snow-melt, but only because of the heat of the sun; the temperature did not rise above -5C. At the ROM, people were in good spirits, and there was a really nice concert of traditional Erhu (or Chinese violin). The violinist was George Gao and he was accompanied by a small chamber string orchestra as well as a pianist. The music was very interesting, combining western influence with folk tradition of China and Gao himself was delightful. I sat in on the performance when my shift ended and found it enjoyable and restful.
Last night was the Yay-I-Quit party for Erin my friend from the ROM (and my old gym buddy). She'd been pigeon-holed and held back from advancing in her department long enough and she was through with it. It was a very good turn-out and I had a lot of fun. Held down at Fionn McCool's on King St. W., it was a pleasant pub and the food was excellent. I had a goat-cheese salad, old-fashioned steak and mushroom (you just don't find kidney around these parts) in a crock, and finished off my night with a sumptuous dessert called The Tinker's Tower that was so rich and huge it required help from others to finish. Rick came, too, which was nice because I got to show him off to all the ROM girls and now that he's not a stinky, long-haired smoker, he's forced to mingle like a real person, not behind the shields of hair and cigarette. I think he had a good time, and he certainly had a good dinner. There was much toasting and laughing, gossiping and story-telling. It was like a good day at work, only with much more alcohol and no fears of a supervisor catching you goofing off.
I've just had a completely satisfying dinner of fried ham and eggs with peach juice to take me through the night. There's not much in the way of veggies in the house, unless you count the tins in the cupboard, but I'll survive today without them. I would like to thank my mother who has helped me out with rent this month, which saves me from having my phoneline cut. Tomorrow is for paying Bell and then, for the most part, all my bills are caught up. The next pay cheque should be more substantive so that I'll be able to pay off what I owe to Arthur and hopefully half of the following month's rent. Whee ! I'm starting to look forward to going home for school. It will be a relief in so many ways, not the least for my wallet. I'm a bit impatient, now that I've figured out what I want to do with my life, for it to get a move on. I'm now in a kind of limbo between current annoying issues and future excitement. This is a much better limbo between crap and more crap, by the way, so this, too, is a great relief.
Last night was the Yay-I-Quit party for Erin my friend from the ROM (and my old gym buddy). She'd been pigeon-holed and held back from advancing in her department long enough and she was through with it. It was a very good turn-out and I had a lot of fun. Held down at Fionn McCool's on King St. W., it was a pleasant pub and the food was excellent. I had a goat-cheese salad, old-fashioned steak and mushroom (you just don't find kidney around these parts) in a crock, and finished off my night with a sumptuous dessert called The Tinker's Tower that was so rich and huge it required help from others to finish. Rick came, too, which was nice because I got to show him off to all the ROM girls and now that he's not a stinky, long-haired smoker, he's forced to mingle like a real person, not behind the shields of hair and cigarette. I think he had a good time, and he certainly had a good dinner. There was much toasting and laughing, gossiping and story-telling. It was like a good day at work, only with much more alcohol and no fears of a supervisor catching you goofing off.
I've just had a completely satisfying dinner of fried ham and eggs with peach juice to take me through the night. There's not much in the way of veggies in the house, unless you count the tins in the cupboard, but I'll survive today without them. I would like to thank my mother who has helped me out with rent this month, which saves me from having my phoneline cut. Tomorrow is for paying Bell and then, for the most part, all my bills are caught up. The next pay cheque should be more substantive so that I'll be able to pay off what I owe to Arthur and hopefully half of the following month's rent. Whee ! I'm starting to look forward to going home for school. It will be a relief in so many ways, not the least for my wallet. I'm a bit impatient, now that I've figured out what I want to do with my life, for it to get a move on. I'm now in a kind of limbo between current annoying issues and future excitement. This is a much better limbo between crap and more crap, by the way, so this, too, is a great relief.
Thursday, January 29, 2004
Time passes - sometimes slowly, sometimes quickly - and inevitably, when you least expect it, it will pass in the manner most irritating to you. Today, it was in the form of the bus. Yes, the Dufferin bus. My nemesis. Yesterday, it was snowing and the traffic was terrible, but I somehow made it to work in under twenty minutes from my arrival at the bus stop to the ROM staff entrance. Today, beautiful and sunny as it is, the roads cleared of snow, traffic moving swiftly, I waited for half an hour. At this point, with no bus in view, I put my hand in the air and hailed a cab. A cab that would cost me most of my first hour's wage. Bloody hell.
I actually began my day after too little sleep, again, and at just past nine in the morning I phoned a certain so-and-so who owes me money. I wanted to make sure that he had received my letter. Unfortunately, either no one was in the office, or they were at meetings, or (and why do I get the feeling this is the likeliest possibility?) they saw my number on call display and sat there saying, "I don't want to get it, you get it..." Anyway, I left a message that will undoubtedly, like all the others, go unanswered.
There are several positions that have opened up in the Visitors Services Dept., both permenant full- and part-time. After all this time, I have finally been convinced that I should apply. My French skills are probably a little below where they ought to be, but not truly terrible, so with some upgrading, or even more practice, things should improve. It's would be very helpful to my finances and a great way to end up before going back to school in the fall. Full time work is my choice, five days a week - it would be with people I know and like - only until the end of the end of the Egyptian exhibit. It would be perfect. And what of the interview I had last week? I don't expect to hear anything about that until tomorrow or Monday, but I just don't think it would give me enough hours. If things remain as they are currently, I'll make more money working the two jobs in Membership than I would working the one plus the education job. While it would be a fun position to have and I think I'd do it well, I'm just not in a place where I have a lot of choice open to me.
Finally, if you ever have to discuss your Bell Telephone account with a customer service representative and the person on the other end identifies themself as "Mrs. Phillips" ask for a different rep. You see, as far as Mrs. Phillips is concerned, you can't just pay some of a bill outstanding, you have to pay all of it. So, since she refused to actually look after me, the customer, instead reminding me that the phone would get cut tomorrow if I didn't pay the entire amount, she told me I had no choice. Hello? I've done this before. There is always choice. That's part of customer service. I asked to speak to her supervisor and she said, "I am Mrs. Phillips. I am a supervisor."
So, I said, "Fine. Presumably, you have a supervisor, too."
"I am a supervisor."
"Perhaps you didn't understand me, I would like to speak to -your- supervisor."
"I am telling you how to procede."
"Look, I don't want to talk to you. Please put me through."
"It's a call-back." Her voice is becoming increasingly acid as we talk.
"Fine have your supervisor call me back. I'm sure I or my roommate will be happy to hear from them."
"What number should they phone?"
"At home."
"Your main line? You aren't calling from there now."
"This is true. I am using a colleague's extension at work because I do not have my own. Call me at home."
"You won't be there."
"It will be fine. This has to be sorted out and you are unwilling to do so."
"Fine. Is there anything else I can do for you?" Sarcasm, now.
"No, you are one of the most rude and least helpful customer service rep I have spoken to."
"I'm sorry, but I'm not rude."
At this point I lost all remaining patience and said, "Whatever you say, Mrs. Phillips, I hope this call was being monitored." Then I hung up.
So, while it's true I won't be home to receive the call, there is not only voicemail where the supervisor can leave his/her name and extension, but there is also Stew, with whom they can leave the same information. It's NOT that hard to be nice and to -try- to be helpful. It really isn't. I know, because I do customer service every day I'm at the ROM. The minute someone wants to escalate to the next level up, I say, "I'm sorry you don't feel I can be of help, but this is how you can reach my supervisor." The end. Out of my hands. Don't argue, honestly.
It seems I am doomed to have 'one of those days'.
I actually began my day after too little sleep, again, and at just past nine in the morning I phoned a certain so-and-so who owes me money. I wanted to make sure that he had received my letter. Unfortunately, either no one was in the office, or they were at meetings, or (and why do I get the feeling this is the likeliest possibility?) they saw my number on call display and sat there saying, "I don't want to get it, you get it..." Anyway, I left a message that will undoubtedly, like all the others, go unanswered.
There are several positions that have opened up in the Visitors Services Dept., both permenant full- and part-time. After all this time, I have finally been convinced that I should apply. My French skills are probably a little below where they ought to be, but not truly terrible, so with some upgrading, or even more practice, things should improve. It's would be very helpful to my finances and a great way to end up before going back to school in the fall. Full time work is my choice, five days a week - it would be with people I know and like - only until the end of the end of the Egyptian exhibit. It would be perfect. And what of the interview I had last week? I don't expect to hear anything about that until tomorrow or Monday, but I just don't think it would give me enough hours. If things remain as they are currently, I'll make more money working the two jobs in Membership than I would working the one plus the education job. While it would be a fun position to have and I think I'd do it well, I'm just not in a place where I have a lot of choice open to me.
Finally, if you ever have to discuss your Bell Telephone account with a customer service representative and the person on the other end identifies themself as "Mrs. Phillips" ask for a different rep. You see, as far as Mrs. Phillips is concerned, you can't just pay some of a bill outstanding, you have to pay all of it. So, since she refused to actually look after me, the customer, instead reminding me that the phone would get cut tomorrow if I didn't pay the entire amount, she told me I had no choice. Hello? I've done this before. There is always choice. That's part of customer service. I asked to speak to her supervisor and she said, "I am Mrs. Phillips. I am a supervisor."
So, I said, "Fine. Presumably, you have a supervisor, too."
"I am a supervisor."
"Perhaps you didn't understand me, I would like to speak to -your- supervisor."
"I am telling you how to procede."
"Look, I don't want to talk to you. Please put me through."
"It's a call-back." Her voice is becoming increasingly acid as we talk.
"Fine have your supervisor call me back. I'm sure I or my roommate will be happy to hear from them."
"What number should they phone?"
"At home."
"Your main line? You aren't calling from there now."
"This is true. I am using a colleague's extension at work because I do not have my own. Call me at home."
"You won't be there."
"It will be fine. This has to be sorted out and you are unwilling to do so."
"Fine. Is there anything else I can do for you?" Sarcasm, now.
"No, you are one of the most rude and least helpful customer service rep I have spoken to."
"I'm sorry, but I'm not rude."
At this point I lost all remaining patience and said, "Whatever you say, Mrs. Phillips, I hope this call was being monitored." Then I hung up.
So, while it's true I won't be home to receive the call, there is not only voicemail where the supervisor can leave his/her name and extension, but there is also Stew, with whom they can leave the same information. It's NOT that hard to be nice and to -try- to be helpful. It really isn't. I know, because I do customer service every day I'm at the ROM. The minute someone wants to escalate to the next level up, I say, "I'm sorry you don't feel I can be of help, but this is how you can reach my supervisor." The end. Out of my hands. Don't argue, honestly.
It seems I am doomed to have 'one of those days'.
Sunday, January 25, 2004
Is it Sunday already? Somehow it feels like it should still be the middle of the week. I don't quite know why, but I feel startled to discover that for the majority of people who work regular weeks, it's back-to-work-day only tomorrow. For me it doesn't matter so much, but I am sort of amazed that January is almost over and the milk in my fridge is set to go off in only a matter of a couple of days. On the 28th, the house will turn over to the new owners with whom Stew and I have had fewer than twenty words. They (the future owners, who live below us now) accidentally locked their little kitten out in the foyer (a common problem for the people who used to live below). The kitten is adorable ! It is still tiny, and very fluffy, and at that stage where it really only mews and purrs. I knocked on the neighbours' door and when they opened it I presented them with their kitty. I got more words out of them than ever before: "Thank you, oh thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you !" I smiled and went back upstairs.
Last night, having no plans whatsoever and nothing that needed doing, I rekindled my friendship with Becca, whom I had not spoken to in several months. She's doing well and we had a long, fun conversation. I told her about Scarlette's demise and she reminded me that " all Subarus go to heaven". I envisioned a place full of muddy tracks and dirt roads and snowbanks where hundreds of multi-coloured Subaru four-wheel-drive wagons were low gearing over and through the obstacles... in driverless bliss. I like the image. I can see Scarlette grinding along pitted country roads and having the time of her unlife.
I also watched, finally, Depeche Mode: One Night in Paris, the DVD that Tracy gave me over a year ago. It took this long to watch it because I haven't really had the time or something, but I used Stew's laptop and curled up in my bed. There were some technical difficulties, the dvd drive either having spasms or overheating, or something, and I had to pause the playback every other song. This allowed me to do a lot of talking on the phone, so it was okay and happily, the last six songs played through very smoothly and I was removed to another time, in the company of Tracy, where we saw the same concert here in Toronto. It was lovely. And sexy. I've said it before, I'll say it again, but there is no man on Earth sexier than Dave Gahan. In fact, my biggest complaint was that there wasn't enough of his dancy goodness. Anyway, I went to a very happy place. So, belatedly, thank you, Tracy, your gift is fantastic.
Last night, having no plans whatsoever and nothing that needed doing, I rekindled my friendship with Becca, whom I had not spoken to in several months. She's doing well and we had a long, fun conversation. I told her about Scarlette's demise and she reminded me that " all Subarus go to heaven". I envisioned a place full of muddy tracks and dirt roads and snowbanks where hundreds of multi-coloured Subaru four-wheel-drive wagons were low gearing over and through the obstacles... in driverless bliss. I like the image. I can see Scarlette grinding along pitted country roads and having the time of her unlife.
I also watched, finally, Depeche Mode: One Night in Paris, the DVD that Tracy gave me over a year ago. It took this long to watch it because I haven't really had the time or something, but I used Stew's laptop and curled up in my bed. There were some technical difficulties, the dvd drive either having spasms or overheating, or something, and I had to pause the playback every other song. This allowed me to do a lot of talking on the phone, so it was okay and happily, the last six songs played through very smoothly and I was removed to another time, in the company of Tracy, where we saw the same concert here in Toronto. It was lovely. And sexy. I've said it before, I'll say it again, but there is no man on Earth sexier than Dave Gahan. In fact, my biggest complaint was that there wasn't enough of his dancy goodness. Anyway, I went to a very happy place. So, belatedly, thank you, Tracy, your gift is fantastic.
My inner child is ten years old!
The adult world is pretty irrelevant to me. Whether
I'm off on my bicycle (or pony) exploring, lost
in a good book, or giggling with my best
friend, I live in a world apart, one full of
adventure and wonder and other stuff adults
don't understand.
How Old is Your Inner Child?
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Friday, January 23, 2004
Time for bed. I've had an enormously productive night. In a recent email I waxed about how strange it was, and yet also pleasurable, to have free time. I am currently without contracts, and frankly, this is not necessarily a bad thing. Anyway, I have all this time to putter around, read, play with the cats, snooze (not for a lack of it, but when other ideas fail), draw, write, etc. It feels quite alien to me after all those intense months leading up to the New Year. Extraordinary. Refreshing. Nice.
Tonight, aside from prepping for tom- er, today's interview, which was less practicing questions and more simply thinking about the stuff I'd like to say, I spent a lot of time overhauling parts of my site. I'm having a lot of trouble matching all the pages, as in the old format to the one I adopted last year - it requires a LOT of patience. In the meantime, I do other updating, for instance, my Prints and Commissions page, which I made way less confusing. All the updates can be found in my Portfolio. Ya, I do need to update the old stuff, but while I might have free time, I don't have THAT much of it.
Anyway, go have a look. I think things look much better now that I've fleshed out the graphic design pages. I added some other pieces and now, if I could just get around to scanning the government brochures I did, oh so long ago... Then it would be even better.
Tonight, aside from prepping for tom- er, today's interview, which was less practicing questions and more simply thinking about the stuff I'd like to say, I spent a lot of time overhauling parts of my site. I'm having a lot of trouble matching all the pages, as in the old format to the one I adopted last year - it requires a LOT of patience. In the meantime, I do other updating, for instance, my Prints and Commissions page, which I made way less confusing. All the updates can be found in my Portfolio. Ya, I do need to update the old stuff, but while I might have free time, I don't have THAT much of it.
Anyway, go have a look. I think things look much better now that I've fleshed out the graphic design pages. I added some other pieces and now, if I could just get around to scanning the government brochures I did, oh so long ago... Then it would be even better.
Thursday, January 22, 2004
I was sitting - yes, I managed to get a seat - on the bus this morning and couldn't help but stare at this one particular advert. It's for Much Music's Big Shiny Tunes 8 and it has the CD sort of resting against the stockinged legs of someone wearing a leather miniskirt. This is all we see. But finally, I realised why the ad bothered me. Bothered isn't the right word, but what was -wrong- with the ad; the thigh in the fishnet stockings is very male. Now I know why each time I glimpse that ad I think of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. And, speaking of stockings, why is it that though the waistband sits just fine, the crotch always heads for the knees? I mean, good grief, the crotch of my pantyhose is nearly as low as the hem of my skirt. No, I'm not cold, by the way, as I'm wearing my trusty leg warmers that are nearly as old as I am. Sure, they don't quite match, but they're toastier than pants, at least when combined with my long coat.
It was very nice to wake up and look outside to see lots of snow flying around. I don't really get tired of fresh snow falling, at least not until mid-March. The effect of lovely quietude and snowy brightness was lessened, however; due to the City trucks that were making a mess of the street outside my house. I enjoyed a slow rise from bed because it's just so snuggly to wake up with Willi pressed up against me. Also, I have put my new Christmas-present bedspread on my bed and it's warm and fleecy. So warm, in fact, that I've taken my old bedspread right off along with the other quilt I used underneath. A sheet, a flannel, and this cover are more than enough, especially with my space heater working. I might not need the space heater anymore, now, though, because I managed to wrestled the outer door of the sliding doors closed. I haven't been able to get it closed before, but I guess the extreme cold caused it to contract enough to un-snag itself. Hurray for fewer draughts.
So, currently, I'm at the ROM being re-trained for the processing of electronic sales and everything was going fine, but now it isn't and none of us can figure out why. I've decided that the system does not love me anymore. There's a joke in there somewhere, "how many staff does it take to trouble shoot one tiny problem?" At least three. Possibly four. Hey, I never said it would be a funny joke. It's like the computer just decided that nothing would be filed where it ought to be, flipped us the bird, and left for lunch. Now that we think we've fixed the problem, it's taking so long to merge the data and export it that I could take my own lunch and still have to wait. So far, I've been waiting over fifteen minutes for this thing to work. This might mean rebooting. I should have gone for lunch. Oh well.
In other news, I have an interview tomorrow for a short-term contract position that will be running for the duration of the Eternal Egypt exhibit that begins at the end of next month. It would be a fun job, I think, doing educational exhibition interpretation for school groups. It might also be for adult tours, as well, I don't recall. Anyway, I think I would really enjoy waxing educational about Egypt. It's been a long-time interest for me. My only concern, since I'd probably have to give up my data entry work, is that there be enough hours to allow me to live off the income. Other than that, I believe it will be a lot of fun. I'm going to prep for the interview tonight and get up at a reasonable time tomorrow morning to allow me lots of space beforehand in which to make a decent breakfast, putter around the house, etc.
It was very nice to wake up and look outside to see lots of snow flying around. I don't really get tired of fresh snow falling, at least not until mid-March. The effect of lovely quietude and snowy brightness was lessened, however; due to the City trucks that were making a mess of the street outside my house. I enjoyed a slow rise from bed because it's just so snuggly to wake up with Willi pressed up against me. Also, I have put my new Christmas-present bedspread on my bed and it's warm and fleecy. So warm, in fact, that I've taken my old bedspread right off along with the other quilt I used underneath. A sheet, a flannel, and this cover are more than enough, especially with my space heater working. I might not need the space heater anymore, now, though, because I managed to wrestled the outer door of the sliding doors closed. I haven't been able to get it closed before, but I guess the extreme cold caused it to contract enough to un-snag itself. Hurray for fewer draughts.
So, currently, I'm at the ROM being re-trained for the processing of electronic sales and everything was going fine, but now it isn't and none of us can figure out why. I've decided that the system does not love me anymore. There's a joke in there somewhere, "how many staff does it take to trouble shoot one tiny problem?" At least three. Possibly four. Hey, I never said it would be a funny joke. It's like the computer just decided that nothing would be filed where it ought to be, flipped us the bird, and left for lunch. Now that we think we've fixed the problem, it's taking so long to merge the data and export it that I could take my own lunch and still have to wait. So far, I've been waiting over fifteen minutes for this thing to work. This might mean rebooting. I should have gone for lunch. Oh well.
In other news, I have an interview tomorrow for a short-term contract position that will be running for the duration of the Eternal Egypt exhibit that begins at the end of next month. It would be a fun job, I think, doing educational exhibition interpretation for school groups. It might also be for adult tours, as well, I don't recall. Anyway, I think I would really enjoy waxing educational about Egypt. It's been a long-time interest for me. My only concern, since I'd probably have to give up my data entry work, is that there be enough hours to allow me to live off the income. Other than that, I believe it will be a lot of fun. I'm going to prep for the interview tonight and get up at a reasonable time tomorrow morning to allow me lots of space beforehand in which to make a decent breakfast, putter around the house, etc.
Wednesday, January 21, 2004
I just typed a beautiful entry and with one well placed paw, Willi has destroyed it.
THANKS, Cat.
Let me begin again.
Well, I have done it, I have submitted my application and $65 processing fee (non-refundable) to OCAS so that in September I will hopefully be attending Sir Sanford Fleming's Museum Management and Curator programme. It will take one year of my life and is comprised of a large internship-placement and I probably should have done this a long time ago. I know my mother likes to remind me that she has been suggesting it since before I finished university. Now, for those who remember the early days of my weblog, when I was attending Seneca for computer animation, you'll remember that I did love it there. It was the only schooling experience that I ever enjoyed. Unfortunately, it cost a lot and did not deliver the goods (employment). In fact, with the exception of my enjoyment and the excitement I had during the course, it was pretty much a frivolity I should have avoided. At half the cost and three times the duration, the Fleming programme makes way more sense, not the least for my career path.
There is a down-side, of course, and in attending said programme, I would have to move to Peterborough. I don't think this would be as horrible as I once perceived it to be. For one, I would be able to pursue my hobbies: arts, horseback riding (I hear there's a horse of substantial size just crying out for my attention), nature, etc. Willi would be pleased with the arrangement, too, I think since she so enjoys it at my mother's. And of course, with my mother is where I would live. This is very good - I know lots of people who loathe the idea of going home again - but I do not. I love it at Mom's. And living rent-free is nice, too. Unfortunately, this will mean putting stuff into storage, yet again, and renting a truck, again, but it's all part of the experience, right? My plan would be to continue working part-time on the weekends at the ROM and then stay at Rick's or with A&C, if they'll have me. And, happily, people would also have the opportunity to come out and visit me in the Petes, something everyone seems to enjoy.
Anyway, there was a great deal more to the original post, but it's now quite late and I lack the eloquence to carry on, or the energy for that matter. Suffice it to say, I feel very positive about this, with the exception of spending $65, and I think this marks a very healthy turn for the better.
THANKS, Cat.
Let me begin again.
Well, I have done it, I have submitted my application and $65 processing fee (non-refundable) to OCAS so that in September I will hopefully be attending Sir Sanford Fleming's Museum Management and Curator programme. It will take one year of my life and is comprised of a large internship-placement and I probably should have done this a long time ago. I know my mother likes to remind me that she has been suggesting it since before I finished university. Now, for those who remember the early days of my weblog, when I was attending Seneca for computer animation, you'll remember that I did love it there. It was the only schooling experience that I ever enjoyed. Unfortunately, it cost a lot and did not deliver the goods (employment). In fact, with the exception of my enjoyment and the excitement I had during the course, it was pretty much a frivolity I should have avoided. At half the cost and three times the duration, the Fleming programme makes way more sense, not the least for my career path.
There is a down-side, of course, and in attending said programme, I would have to move to Peterborough. I don't think this would be as horrible as I once perceived it to be. For one, I would be able to pursue my hobbies: arts, horseback riding (I hear there's a horse of substantial size just crying out for my attention), nature, etc. Willi would be pleased with the arrangement, too, I think since she so enjoys it at my mother's. And of course, with my mother is where I would live. This is very good - I know lots of people who loathe the idea of going home again - but I do not. I love it at Mom's. And living rent-free is nice, too. Unfortunately, this will mean putting stuff into storage, yet again, and renting a truck, again, but it's all part of the experience, right? My plan would be to continue working part-time on the weekends at the ROM and then stay at Rick's or with A&C, if they'll have me. And, happily, people would also have the opportunity to come out and visit me in the Petes, something everyone seems to enjoy.
Anyway, there was a great deal more to the original post, but it's now quite late and I lack the eloquence to carry on, or the energy for that matter. Suffice it to say, I feel very positive about this, with the exception of spending $65, and I think this marks a very healthy turn for the better.
Friday, January 16, 2004
Though many have heard me gripe and complain about the myriad of things that make me crazy at the ROM, there are at least as many things that keep me working here. Like tonight, for instance, Chinese New Year Celebration. This is probably my very favourite Friday night event and it happens every year. It's so popular that the media covers it. Every year. I don't get to see much of it, being at the front desk, but the Lion Dancers always start in the Rotunda and they're great. This year they are all kids, probably between twelve and fifteen years old and all of them a bunch of hams. They really perform for the audience, taking the Lions up to the spectators while they dance. In fact, this year, we discovered that the rear dancer in each lion controls the tail and they made them wag ! The kids doing the dancing were quite funny, milling around before it was time to perform. They were pulling marshal arts type poses at each other and one of them grabbed a streamered cymbal and put it on his head to add to the effect.
Whoo, here they come again, people are scurrying out of the way !!!
Awesome ! Man are those boys sweaty now. The girls with the cymbals are pretty flushed too. Now people are asking them questions. I just learned that those adorable wagging tails are actually quite heavy, whereas the heads that are lifted way into the air and -look- heavy aren't so much. They're drumming in the Currelly Gallery again, but the lions are just lying, unattended here in the Rotunda. People are posing with them, taking pictures with them, touching them... This is one of the many things that makes working at the ROM a wonderful experience.
In case you ever wondered why I would work here for five years.
Besides, where do you think I get all my amazing stupid-people stories?
Whoo, here they come again, people are scurrying out of the way !!!
Awesome ! Man are those boys sweaty now. The girls with the cymbals are pretty flushed too. Now people are asking them questions. I just learned that those adorable wagging tails are actually quite heavy, whereas the heads that are lifted way into the air and -look- heavy aren't so much. They're drumming in the Currelly Gallery again, but the lions are just lying, unattended here in the Rotunda. People are posing with them, taking pictures with them, touching them... This is one of the many things that makes working at the ROM a wonderful experience.
In case you ever wondered why I would work here for five years.
Besides, where do you think I get all my amazing stupid-people stories?
Thursday, January 15, 2004
If there was any doubt about it, which there isn't, let me assure you that winter is here. And, in the greatest tradition of seasoned bus riders in history, the weather fouled up any plans I might liked to have kept. What should have taken an hour and forty-five minutes, or so, ended up taking nearly four hours thanks to heavy snow and getting lost in Scarborough. I had a terrific bus buddy named Veronica who woke up as we were inching along Ellesmere and I explained that the bus had been unable to get back on the highway after dropping at Scarborough Town Centre. At one point the bus made a u-turn behind a factory in order to simply start moving again. I'm glad I had the foresight to have Rick meet me at the bus terminal rather than at the movie theatre as we'd initially planned, otherwise he'd have been holding two tickets and I would never have made the film. In the end, we crossed the street and enjoyed dinner at Red Lobster. It wasn't what we planned, but it did the job.
Despite having the flu while at Mom's I did make it to see The Heart of Me on Sunday. It is a British film about two sisters and how their lives entwine with that of a man (who is married to one and having an affair with the other). It takes place pre-war mid-1930s and also ten years later. Mom and I couldn't understand why the two women were brought to turmoil by the man as he was particularly bland and lacking in passion. It was a beautiful movie to look at, though, with gorgeous Art Deco clothing and room settings, etc., but overall, even the excellent acting couldn't make it a movie I'd actually recommend seeing.
We also watched, over a period of two nights, Human Cargo, the CBC-Showcase co-production that we'd taped the week before. It was an excellent mini-series of the sort you just don't normally see come out of North America. It was graphic and honest and completely riveting as the audience is introduced the desperation of the immigration and refugee situation in Canada and to what lengths people will go just to have a chance at freedom in Canada. It was very well written and extremely well acted, especially on the part of the women who were really fabulous, multi-layered characters. Kate Nelligan gave the best performance I think I've ever seen her give. This is not a show we mean to tape over, it is simply too good. I think I'll loan it to Rick, who only caught the last two episodes.
Nothing much else to report except that I'm awfully hungry so I'll go and get a snack from the cafeteria.
Despite having the flu while at Mom's I did make it to see The Heart of Me on Sunday. It is a British film about two sisters and how their lives entwine with that of a man (who is married to one and having an affair with the other). It takes place pre-war mid-1930s and also ten years later. Mom and I couldn't understand why the two women were brought to turmoil by the man as he was particularly bland and lacking in passion. It was a beautiful movie to look at, though, with gorgeous Art Deco clothing and room settings, etc., but overall, even the excellent acting couldn't make it a movie I'd actually recommend seeing.
We also watched, over a period of two nights, Human Cargo, the CBC-Showcase co-production that we'd taped the week before. It was an excellent mini-series of the sort you just don't normally see come out of North America. It was graphic and honest and completely riveting as the audience is introduced the desperation of the immigration and refugee situation in Canada and to what lengths people will go just to have a chance at freedom in Canada. It was very well written and extremely well acted, especially on the part of the women who were really fabulous, multi-layered characters. Kate Nelligan gave the best performance I think I've ever seen her give. This is not a show we mean to tape over, it is simply too good. I think I'll loan it to Rick, who only caught the last two episodes.
Nothing much else to report except that I'm awfully hungry so I'll go and get a snack from the cafeteria.
Friday, January 09, 2004
This morning, I drove into Toronto to work my shift at the ROM and it was such a lovely day, with the exception of my nosehairs freezing between the parking lot and the front entrance. There was an amazing bank of cloud hanging over Lake Ontario, with tendrils of cloud rising up. It must have been an effect of condensation, with fog rising off the water because the air was so much colder. Then all the water crystals just hung there, not really moving. It was like a great, white, fluffy escarpment. Ooooh, I love weather. Even when it's cold. Maybe especially when it is cold. So long as I'm dressed for it. The drive was really easy, the only traffic problems directly over city centre where some stalled cars were stuck in the right hand lanes. In fact, there were a number of stalled cars all the way down Avenue Road to the ROM. I think my final count was five, which made the traffic crawl. Brief entry. Nothing much to report.
Wednesday, January 07, 2004
Today I took no chances with the weather. I dug out my fuzzy hat, rather than my fedora or beer toque, bundled myself into my old, long wool coat, and quietly grumbled about still not having picked up my long scarf that I'd left at Nocturnalia. I'd go pick it up today, only it's so cold that I don't want to walk down to Queen and Spadina to pick it up. Of course, if I'm going to walk down to the Bus Terminal... We'll see. I might just balk and grab something to eat before taking the subway.
It's very quiet in the Membership office today. Almost everyone is at a meeting of some sort and the other two part-timers just left. There are only about three of us in here now. It's chilly, too. Just once, I would like the ROM to get the heating/cooling system right. We either freeze or bake, and it bears no relation to what it's like outside. The new system, or rather the updated system, we're now using in the office does not make things easier. In fact, it takes three times as long to enter a new member into the database than it did before. How is that more efficient? It is no surprise that in the time that we, the part-timers, were not upstairs that the whole office fell behind. Three times as long.
I don't know whether the kitten will still be at the appartment the next time I go back. She's been a pleasant addition to the household, even Tobe thinks so on occasion. It's terribly sweet how she curls up in bed and she lies in the sink (and still barely fills it). She's become kind of chatty, chirping and "merring" in her hoarse little voice. If she would stop trying to climb me instead of jumping, that would be an improvement, but even that is only slightly irritating. She's very gentle, though, which is good, not once swatting me with her claws extended. I do like kittens.
I ran into K----- of the campaign today at the Dufferin station. He's looking good. He's glad to be out of the basement where he used to work for the UofT Computer Store. It was a brief chat. He was between two meetings in the area and I was on my way to work. I'm glad things have worked out for him; he's one person that deserved getting a position after all the crap he was put through. Unfortunately, I feel kind of alienated from him because of all the shite that's gone on with me and the rest of the City Hall Crew. If I never speak to B----- again, so be it, I could care less. And as for He Who Shall Not Be Named, I left a message for him at the beginning of the week. Am I surprised that he hasn't returned the call? Not in the slightest. It's nice that he could afford to fly to Sudan but not to pay me. Anyway, this is a three-paycheque month for me, so that is a very good thing.
At some point, we have to take our Christmas tree down. Both the one at my place and the one at Mom's. I guess the one chez moi will have to wait a little while longer, since I'm not really around to deal with it. Mom and I will probably take ours down tomorrow. *sigh* There's no putting it off, the Epifany has passed, the Wise Men have brought their gifts... it's time to move on. So now we enter the lull of winter, when it's still dark for most of the day, without a break to keep us sane. The next long weekend is not until the 9th of April (Good Friday). There's no mid-term break for me, either, being out of school and all. Maybe we should bring back the Feast Days of old... The 20th is the Feast of Saint Sebastian (he'd be the one who got stuck with all the arrows). There was something to be said for Feast Days, you know? They don't even have to relate to Saints. Just Days of Feasting in General.
It's very quiet in the Membership office today. Almost everyone is at a meeting of some sort and the other two part-timers just left. There are only about three of us in here now. It's chilly, too. Just once, I would like the ROM to get the heating/cooling system right. We either freeze or bake, and it bears no relation to what it's like outside. The new system, or rather the updated system, we're now using in the office does not make things easier. In fact, it takes three times as long to enter a new member into the database than it did before. How is that more efficient? It is no surprise that in the time that we, the part-timers, were not upstairs that the whole office fell behind. Three times as long.
I don't know whether the kitten will still be at the appartment the next time I go back. She's been a pleasant addition to the household, even Tobe thinks so on occasion. It's terribly sweet how she curls up in bed and she lies in the sink (and still barely fills it). She's become kind of chatty, chirping and "merring" in her hoarse little voice. If she would stop trying to climb me instead of jumping, that would be an improvement, but even that is only slightly irritating. She's very gentle, though, which is good, not once swatting me with her claws extended. I do like kittens.
I ran into K----- of the campaign today at the Dufferin station. He's looking good. He's glad to be out of the basement where he used to work for the UofT Computer Store. It was a brief chat. He was between two meetings in the area and I was on my way to work. I'm glad things have worked out for him; he's one person that deserved getting a position after all the crap he was put through. Unfortunately, I feel kind of alienated from him because of all the shite that's gone on with me and the rest of the City Hall Crew. If I never speak to B----- again, so be it, I could care less. And as for He Who Shall Not Be Named, I left a message for him at the beginning of the week. Am I surprised that he hasn't returned the call? Not in the slightest. It's nice that he could afford to fly to Sudan but not to pay me. Anyway, this is a three-paycheque month for me, so that is a very good thing.
At some point, we have to take our Christmas tree down. Both the one at my place and the one at Mom's. I guess the one chez moi will have to wait a little while longer, since I'm not really around to deal with it. Mom and I will probably take ours down tomorrow. *sigh* There's no putting it off, the Epifany has passed, the Wise Men have brought their gifts... it's time to move on. So now we enter the lull of winter, when it's still dark for most of the day, without a break to keep us sane. The next long weekend is not until the 9th of April (Good Friday). There's no mid-term break for me, either, being out of school and all. Maybe we should bring back the Feast Days of old... The 20th is the Feast of Saint Sebastian (he'd be the one who got stuck with all the arrows). There was something to be said for Feast Days, you know? They don't even have to relate to Saints. Just Days of Feasting in General.
My God, is it ever cold out - I mean REALLY cold. Winter is here and it's made my toes numb. Tonight was one of those nights when I could have -really- used Scarlette, rather than wait half an hour in the frigid wind up at A&C's place for the bus. Actually, cold does not discribe what it is tonight. The windchill makes it -22C tonight, and that's a whole lot colder than the actual temperature of -12, which is pretty frigging cold. Now, I wouldn't be whiny about this, normally, because as most people who know me know that I like the winter, except I was not dressed for it tonight. I was dressed for it this afternoon, but by the time the full moon was over head, my sweater and jacket weren't cutting it.
I am so cold, that I cannot think of anything else to write about.
I am so cold, that I cannot think of anything else to write about.
Tuesday, January 06, 2004
It's nice and also weird to be back upstairs in the Membership office. I enjoy the ordered chaos - it's hard to explain. Stuff happens up here, and there is usually some fundamental organisation to it, but sometimes it's really hard to see. Someone should be brought in to come up and make this office efficient, but then again, that might result in jobs being lost, so nevermind. Anyway, I'm up here doing office clerkish stuff because the office manager is away on holiday. I don't mind doing phones and whatnot, it's laid back and, generally, it's sort of pleasant to be able to solve problems.
There's a kitten staying at my appartment this week. Ruby was a gift to Stew's goddaughter for Christmas. While she and her family are on holiday somewhere in South America, the kitten is with us. Willi, who is in the Petes needs never know, while Tobe is somewhere between totally jealous and utterly fascinated. Ruby is pretty well behaved, though she tends to think I'm here in order to be climbed. Happily, when she does climb me, she weighs almost nothing so it's not a big deal. Tobe, on the other hand, who used me to escape Ruby's attention, weighs WAY too much to be clinging to my chest and neck. Big ow. Big. The kitten is very sweet, though, and she curls up under my chin in bed, purring like a little motor.
Anyway, I tried to post yesterday, but Blogger seemed to suffer an internal error and my post disappeared. So, I'll try again.
2004 was rung in nicely for me when on the second of January, my best friend, Tracy made the unsurprising announcement that she was officially engaged and I am to be her Maid of Honour. It's exciting, even if this has been a long time coming, and I told her that I'd be more than happy to help her organise things. There is a lot of time between now and Sept/Oct. of 2005 to get things done, but for the heck of it, I took her down to Nocturnalia to speak with Nicole to create a concept for her wedding clothing. For A&C's wedding we went to Heretic, but Nicole is the specialist in period-style clothing and that's what Tracy wants. Even better is that I might be able to wear my gown from A&C's wedding again - the colours are nearly the same. I shall discuss it. Also, I informed Tracy that I would be doing her invitations, no ifs, ands or buts about it. She was okay with that.
I went out to Peterborough on Saturday night, following my last day of working the Art Deco exhibition here at the ROM. The last two weeks had been a terrible zoo; everyone that hadn't come to see the exhibit in the previous three and a half months (and that was a lot of people) all came between the 26th of December and the 4th of January. I am more than happy to not have to deal with peevish members and people who ask the same questions over and over again. It was very nice to be able to go home and vegetate for a few days.
Speaking of going home, I am seriously contemplating going back to school this autumn. Not back to university, mind you, the higher degree will wait a while longer, but to Sir Sanford Fleming College in Peterborough for their museum studies programme. It is apparently the only one of its kind at the college level in Canada, and it's one of the best in North America. Or so I have heard. I've left a message for the director of the programme, a man my mother has met through her work for the Peterborough Symphony Orchestra. I think it would be useful to have a word with him about whether this is really something I should do. Regardless, I'm going to send in an application to the programme - I can always change my mind. September is a long way off yet and nothing is carved in stone.
I wonder who thought that carving in stone gave something permanancy. The Egyptians were masters at defacing and recarving stone surfaces and others have done the same for centuries.
There's a kitten staying at my appartment this week. Ruby was a gift to Stew's goddaughter for Christmas. While she and her family are on holiday somewhere in South America, the kitten is with us. Willi, who is in the Petes needs never know, while Tobe is somewhere between totally jealous and utterly fascinated. Ruby is pretty well behaved, though she tends to think I'm here in order to be climbed. Happily, when she does climb me, she weighs almost nothing so it's not a big deal. Tobe, on the other hand, who used me to escape Ruby's attention, weighs WAY too much to be clinging to my chest and neck. Big ow. Big. The kitten is very sweet, though, and she curls up under my chin in bed, purring like a little motor.
Anyway, I tried to post yesterday, but Blogger seemed to suffer an internal error and my post disappeared. So, I'll try again.
2004 was rung in nicely for me when on the second of January, my best friend, Tracy made the unsurprising announcement that she was officially engaged and I am to be her Maid of Honour. It's exciting, even if this has been a long time coming, and I told her that I'd be more than happy to help her organise things. There is a lot of time between now and Sept/Oct. of 2005 to get things done, but for the heck of it, I took her down to Nocturnalia to speak with Nicole to create a concept for her wedding clothing. For A&C's wedding we went to Heretic, but Nicole is the specialist in period-style clothing and that's what Tracy wants. Even better is that I might be able to wear my gown from A&C's wedding again - the colours are nearly the same. I shall discuss it. Also, I informed Tracy that I would be doing her invitations, no ifs, ands or buts about it. She was okay with that.
I went out to Peterborough on Saturday night, following my last day of working the Art Deco exhibition here at the ROM. The last two weeks had been a terrible zoo; everyone that hadn't come to see the exhibit in the previous three and a half months (and that was a lot of people) all came between the 26th of December and the 4th of January. I am more than happy to not have to deal with peevish members and people who ask the same questions over and over again. It was very nice to be able to go home and vegetate for a few days.
Speaking of going home, I am seriously contemplating going back to school this autumn. Not back to university, mind you, the higher degree will wait a while longer, but to Sir Sanford Fleming College in Peterborough for their museum studies programme. It is apparently the only one of its kind at the college level in Canada, and it's one of the best in North America. Or so I have heard. I've left a message for the director of the programme, a man my mother has met through her work for the Peterborough Symphony Orchestra. I think it would be useful to have a word with him about whether this is really something I should do. Regardless, I'm going to send in an application to the programme - I can always change my mind. September is a long way off yet and nothing is carved in stone.
I wonder who thought that carving in stone gave something permanancy. The Egyptians were masters at defacing and recarving stone surfaces and others have done the same for centuries.