tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36091545054771277522011-09-21T18:47:56.064-06:00noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.comBlogger431100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-78018419661041017852010-05-29T02:13:00.006-06:002010-05-29T08:36:08.871-06:00

From the Red Deer Advocate: "The City of Red Deer is warning residents to use caution around wildlife after several recent moose sightings. People should be especially wary of wildlife since it’s spring, when animals may be protecting their young. Some animals, including moose, might act aggressively if they’re harassed." Actually, this  is a Calgary moose. Red Deer moose are far less

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-91575253611400309862010-05-26T18:58:00.003-06:002010-05-27T07:17:14.115-06:00

Winter must be over. The ice cream truck made its rounds today on our block for the first time this year. I'm hoping it is a signal to RW that it is safe to take the snow tires off the car. And the fence is mostly done, or so I've been told.  These man things are hard to figure out with my small woman brain. They are doing something tonight that involves beer and concrete. When they are finished,

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-28644884692324360732010-05-14T22:52:00.004-06:002010-05-14T23:17:21.028-06:00

The fellas tore down one of the side yard fences, which revealed our neighbour's backyard. As I am 4'11" and the new fence is 6' tall, I will only have this amazing view for the next few days.   They did get a start on the fence itself. The first fence post took 110 pounds of concrete, a six pack+, and about three hours.  I am told the process will be faster now that they have learned the tricks

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-22604450013784552242010-05-11T00:40:00.009-06:002010-05-11T01:01:43.408-06:00

T.S. Eliot The Waste Land.  1922. I. THE BURIAL OF THE DEAD APRIL is the cruellest month, breeding    Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing    Memory and desire, stirring    Dull roots with spring rain.    Winter kept us warm, covering            Earth in forgetful snow, feeding    A little life with dried tubers. This is the backyard at The House of Noodles. It illustrates the effect of one too

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-73732837354354783412010-05-09T03:20:00.005-06:002010-05-09T04:48:42.984-06:00

I took the plunge and bought an eBook reader last week. I've been watching the technology (and the price) since pre-Kindle days, but didn't take the plunge until the Kobo reader was released in Canada last weekend. At $149 CAD it was definitely the right price and e-ink with ePub and PDF formats was the right technology. Unless you count the "easter egg" that lets you play video poker on it, the

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-17648334515668989342010-04-28T10:03:00.003-06:002010-04-28T23:09:18.419-06:00

I was half way out the door this morning when I realized I had no money. I walked the 15 meters to my bedroom (where the money can be found on top of RW's dresser), but ended up turning left instead of right and found myself in the washroom. I looked around. I was pretty sure I had taken a shower, brushed my teeth, and put on deodorant. I knew I didn't have to pee. So why was I there?

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-8150782387120574752010-04-20T06:32:00.000-06:002010-04-20T06:32:44.114-06:00

When I awoke at 3:30 this morning, I immediately realized that my life is not worth living--well, not for the next three days. It's a work thing. Life would be so much better if someone would just send me a big fat envelope stuffed with money on a regular basis. I would be grateful, very grateful. And I would use it wisely (well mostly). I would pay my mortgage, buy healthy food (well mostly),

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-81397587576370614092010-04-11T13:34:00.008-06:002010-04-13T09:34:22.946-06:00

A few days ago, I was struck by a paragraph in a blog post by Liz Spikol. It was  written by Jim Gutstein."You’ve lived through several successive Eras: Psychosocial Rehabilitation, Evidence Based Practices, Transformation, Recovery and now Recovery and Wellness but the only thing that actually changed was your medication. You’ve been referred to as a patient, a recipient, a client, a

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-48662909354856574952010-04-06T05:37:00.009-06:002010-04-06T12:57:49.863-06:00

Disclaimer: I have not purchased an Apple Product since 1983 when I bought an Apple IIe.I have been watching the iPad circus as if its success or failure mattered to me. It doesn't. I'm not in a position financially to buy a new digi-toy and my lifestyle doesn't seem like its a particularly good fit with it. I am not a gamer and I live and work with real-deal computers never more than a room away

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-92119516857047780212010-03-23T15:28:00.004-06:002010-03-23T15:40:05.058-06:00

Our cats never go outside. Never. At least not unless they are in a cat carrier. However, we do have visitors. They come several time a night and seem to especially enjoy making the motion sensitive light come on right outside our bedroom window.We've known there was something odd about those cats.This morning, as I was trudging through the snow (assuming one can trudge through about 1 cm of the

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-67377533416648311582010-03-18T15:22:00.006-06:002010-03-19T06:35:14.748-06:00

I think it's genetic. Nobody in my family seems to be able to keep track of their age. When my brother Jonathan started to obsess about turning 40, I thought he was just in for 13 months of fretting, but no, he thought his fortieth was next up. He even had his friends planning a big party for the event.At the time, I knew how old I was, and I knew how much younger he was, so I clued him into the

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-5391298214738354182010-03-16T01:32:00.004-06:002010-03-16T22:13:56.613-06:00

I live in a great smallish city. It's about twice as large as the city I grew up in, which, when I was a kidlet felt like it was the whole world, and is 95% smaller than the place I spent 30+ years of my adult life. It's officially a nuclear weapons free zone and there is a statue of a freedom loving pig that can't be beat.It's also a bit off the beaten track, unless you happen to be driving from

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-47895663056633208392010-03-08T15:25:00.006-07:002010-03-09T02:49:31.793-07:00

I started wearing glasses when I was about five. It was somewhat a badge of honour in our house to have lousy vision. I remember my dad saying he could hear better with his glasses on, which made no sense at all. At some point, when I was about ten, I realized that it was probably true. It wasn't an ear thing, but when your vision truly sucks the world is confusing on a whole lot of levels.For

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-22902960008420577592010-02-22T07:24:00.002-07:002010-02-22T08:06:26.073-07:00

I spent an hour or so this weekend trying to guilt my husband into installing a virtual machine on my computer so I could run some legacy software on my Windows 7 box. I failed.I'm thinking he was getting back at me. A few weeks ago, I did not update his phone when I updated my own. He lost data services and his calls out were mysteriously rerouted to Rogers' customer service where a very nice

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-67898304695932958262010-02-16T05:14:00.003-07:002010-02-16T06:01:59.655-07:00

I've always been somewhat lacking in social skills. I think it dates back to my childhood, when no one listened to me anyway, or if they did, I had to jump right in before they moved on. In any case, I developed a caustic wit and a reputation for being very direct (AKA rude).Then, about 15 years ago, I had an aha moment. I was riding in the car with a woman I've known my whole life. At the time,

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-8523592147909653042010-02-08T04:08:00.003-07:002010-02-08T09:09:55.588-07:00

I spend a fair amount of time every day reading on-line. I read things related to my work and things that catch my eye for no particular reason at all. I also read about new digital technology, mostly software, apps,--the kind of things I have always called toys.I'm finding the technology reading a bit daunting these days. Let me give an example.An hour or so ago I read that Swype, an application

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-4769601659229374372010-01-06T05:47:00.003-07:002010-01-06T13:04:05.383-07:00

It wasn't all that long ago that all the great unknowns in my life took place during the day. There were challenges at work, unexpected interactions with unusual people, heck, even a trip to the grocery store could be fraught with angst and excitement. Of course, night time had its own unknowns. Would there be sex? Would there be great sex? Was there a new episode of Law and Order on the teevee?

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-14576108379264747382010-01-05T06:41:00.003-07:002010-01-05T07:02:50.377-07:00

It's Consumer Electronics Show (CES) time in Las Vegas. Whilst some of my friends dream of getting married there, I find myself musing about wandering amongst the exhibits with my tongue hanging out and my disbelief in fully suspended mode.I've followed the CES news over the years, and because I am not a total idiot, I know the following to be true:A fair number of the gadgets announced will

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-76349098115088728632010-01-04T11:28:00.010-07:002010-01-04T14:31:03.277-07:00

I had some time off work for the holidays. I swore to have a productive vacation, and, in large part I succeeded. For example, I watched almost all five years of Corner Gas on Comedy Central. I took pictures of my cats. I even washed their nests (AKA cat beds) and I thought long and hard about cleaning my desk.I was not ready to return to work this morning. I was up early enough. Heck, I was up

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-65101766156850641382010-01-03T04:08:00.004-07:002010-01-03T05:39:47.191-07:00

My husband is a prairie guy. At this point, about nine and a half years into our marriage, he has absorbed a fair amount of Jewish culture. He understands me when I refer to his family as the mishpucheh. He knows why I don't put butter on meatloaf sandwiches. He loves my chicken soup.One of the truly wondrous things I discovered, shortly after moving to Canada, is that every single grocery store

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-78752039755183616912010-01-01T14:12:00.004-07:002010-01-01T17:56:39.132-07:00

I suppose it is noodlish for me to do this, but what's up with toilet paper these days? For years and years, I bought huge packs of Scott toilet paper at our local big box store and it simply did what it was supposed to do. All the TP in all the bathrooms I happened upon outside of my own home also seemed fine.By fine I meant that I had no sense of rubbing my bum with sandpaper and I never

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-88836413164686299442009-11-21T08:33:00.004-07:002009-11-22T07:40:57.703-07:00

Before my first day of nursery school, my parents made sure that I knew my phone number: 20588. There was an area code (had been for almost ten years), but there wasn't any reason to use it, well, not for a four year old. A few years later, we got an exchange, and our number became RAymond 20588.(As I write this I am somehow resisting the temptation to call the complete 10 digit number and

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-74619003255678357742009-10-15T07:22:00.002-06:002009-10-15T07:28:41.696-06:00

I have spent the last two days at home with a seriously bad cold. Going to work was out of the question.I spent a whole lot of my time off messing with technology and now have my phone tricked out with Layar and Flyscreen. Not that my old eyes can actually see much on that small screen, but I feel less out of the loop. My friend Howard is sendingme a wave invite, so I will get to hang with the

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-65433904235146595032009-09-08T05:53:00.004-06:002009-09-08T07:06:56.197-06:00

I just spent waaaay too much of a three day weekend rebuilding my computer. Over the past 3+ years, it had done what even the most meticulously maintained digi-friend does, becoming first creaky and then a bit unpredictable. The final straw was a bad reinstall of Internet Explorer 7, a program I need for a work thingee that will not run on FireFox. It also will not run on IE8, thus the attempt

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-60536763779586483652009-08-08T19:25:00.004-06:002009-08-08T19:35:16.170-06:00

Today is the one month anniversary of my quit.Your Quit Date is: 7/8/2009 6:00:00 AM, time smoke free - 31 days, 15 hours, 26 minutes and 32 seconds, Cigarettes NOT smoked: 1266, Lifetime Saved: 9 days, 16 hours, Money Saved: $248.00 .Ron did not quit, but he is only smoking about 1/2 a pack a day--a huge change. I assume he smells a whole lot better

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-61961621357390464162009-07-31T21:09:00.003-06:002009-07-31T21:17:20.062-06:00

We went to an afternoon showing of the new Harry Potter movie and then stopped at A&W and brought home burgers and fries. Even though we did it on the cheap (matinee rates, shared popcorn, no sodas), we blew through $50.No wonder teenagers find someplace to get buzzed and have sex on date night. What 16 year old can afford dinner and a show these days?

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-80184404396650520072009-07-27T13:27:00.008-06:002009-07-27T15:23:26.166-06:00

It felt like I had won the lottery when a friend from work recommended a hair salon walking distance from my house. It was not only convenient, but for the first time in years I was able to get a consistently good cut. It became my every six week splurge, and although it felt pricey for Red Deer, it also made me feel like a grown up to actually have a regular hairdresser again.A few days ago, I

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-47130702998366091902009-07-23T19:23:00.007-06:002009-07-24T05:27:55.850-06:00

Ron is a thoughtful man. On June 3, which is both my birthday and our anniversary, he brought home my favourite flowers, a pound of mighty good dark chocolate, and a bottle of champagne. The flowers lasted a full week. We savoured the chocolate for about three days. We never did get around to drinking the bubbly.Tonight we were having (frozen) chicken pot pie and broccoli for dinner. We looooove

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-26785059837360798582009-07-20T05:24:00.004-06:002009-07-20T10:13:45.667-06:00

I don't know for sure when it was that I last heard anyone call the Internet "the information superhighway". I suspect though that it was Harry Smith on the CBS morning news about fifteen years ago. Or mebbe it was the first time I heard it called that. I honestly don't remember, but I do know that when he said it, I thought that it was made up language designed to explain something that needed

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-15070560009871336782009-07-15T12:24:00.006-06:002009-07-15T13:01:47.532-06:00

I didn't sleep very well last night. I had run around a bit during the day, with a short shopping trip and some wandering around the grocery store. It felt so good to be able to breathe well enough to do this, for the first time in about six months, that I kinda sorta forgot that this kind of thing is not exactly easy on my ankle, and I paid the price in big time pain during the night.I fell in

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-92170755148517096232009-07-12T07:00:00.008-06:002009-07-13T17:55:36.708-06:00

Every time we go to our local farmer's market, Ron picks up a big bag of pea pods and our menu is rearranged to be pea-friendly. As we eat the peas, I inevitably say something like, "Sure makes you appreciate the Jolly Green Giant and Sprout. These peas don't taste very good." Still the ritual repeats itself--one part hope, one part nostalgia.As pathetic as that might be, our lives are still

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-88780803816306199182009-07-07T15:34:00.003-06:002009-07-07T19:45:37.599-06:00

And it seems to be related to wanting to breathe. I'm going to reserve judgment on it all for the next six weeks before reaching any tentative conclusions. I'm too old to jump and my brain is full of noodles.

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-63832712583054803372009-07-04T03:36:00.005-06:002009-07-04T10:12:49.745-06:00

I spent several hours yesterday installing something called SIP on my mobile phone. It wasn't horribly complicated, but it somehow took me awhile to get all the settings right. Now that I have it, I can make long distance calls on the cheap from my cell phone--for less than a penny a minute in Canada and about the same to the US. Now that it is set up, Ron can use it from his phone too.Chances

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-55384225183866044422009-07-02T13:04:00.004-06:002009-07-02T16:48:43.552-06:00

A good friend stopped by after dinner last night. He had ridden his bike for about 30 minutes to get to our house, and he carried with him a backpack containing his on-its-last-legs laptop. This time he didn't come for beer and casual conversation; he wanted his favourite wireheads to look at his machine and make some recommendations for a replacement.B is a great guy. He visits our house often

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-71127869545759726292009-07-01T06:49:00.010-06:002009-07-01T08:08:37.341-06:00

I'm off work for the next six weeks. I am making an effort not to think about work related things anymore than absolutely necessary. I am though wondering who will sit at my desk when I am gone, and what they will do to my computer.This is the first place I have ever worked where everyone has an administrator account and people move around the office like they are playing musical chairs. I'm

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-22043508585857432872009-06-28T15:43:00.006-06:002009-06-28T20:35:22.110-06:00

I'm from "down south". In Canadian-speak that means I am from the US. I (proudly) became a Canadian citizen a coupla years ago, so I am both us and them.There are things I love about Canada, when compared to the US, and vice verse. Mostly it's a wash, with two big exceptions (and no, I am not talking about health care--though I could go on and on about the pros and cons of both systems). Canada

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-75437557784499279302009-06-27T00:35:00.005-06:002009-06-27T01:55:47.920-06:00

My last cell phone actually belonged to my employer. So, when I got a new phone a few weeks ago, I also got a new number. Actually, I got some fellow's recycled number. I don't think he used the phone for (gasp) talking very much. He does though appear to have been a texting fool. And mebbe not a very nice person. The folks who continue to text him/me/us sure seem pissed/peeved/feisty.I reply

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-15772348416035141312009-06-26T05:37:00.010-06:002009-07-01T07:28:36.965-06:00

Yesterday afternoon, when I heard about the deaths of Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcett, the first thing that popped into my head was that it was propitious timing for Mark Sanford. Finally, the pundits of the broadcast journalists' 24 hour news cycle would move on.As I watched the news over the past few days, I was repulsed by the glee with which what should have been very personal pain was

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-74717607673300815732009-06-25T09:04:00.005-06:002009-06-27T01:55:27.390-06:00

The fellow with the scary hands is holding a 35,000 year old flute. That makes it the oldest instrument ever discovered. I find it comforting to think about some early human in the Ach Valley of southern Germany spending part of his or her day making music.I also am overwhelmed by the sense of how transitory my own time on earth is. I somehow doubt that a woman living in the future will see a

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-40314758250851377182009-06-24T06:18:00.004-06:002009-06-24T06:41:21.727-06:00

I'm taking an on-line class. It meets every other Wednesday night in a chat room and we have reading and written assignments associated with each chat. I'm finding it a good fit with my learning style. The course content isn't actually new to me, but going over the material in an organised way is helpful. It's easy to overlook the basics and the course is helping ground me (again).One of my

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-35453431532520475932009-06-23T08:26:00.000-06:002009-06-23T17:38:47.360-06:00

My agency is downtown. Most of what we do here involves trying to help people who are homeless or struggle with addiction or have garnered a psych diagnosis (or all three). The soup kitchen is next door to us.One of the signs of summer is that the city has decided to patrol our street corner more regularly. What that translates into is having two RCMP officers (both pseudonymously named "Jimmy")

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-17068465574040414512009-06-23T05:05:00.000-06:002009-06-23T08:49:01.531-06:00

I bought a new cell phone. It's an amazing piece of Android goodness made somewhat craptastic by the limitations built into all things digital by the Government of Canada. This does not matter as I have not given the phone number to anyone but my family and my boss and I am almost never more than a room away from a real computer. I could have bought one of those phones with big buttons and an

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3609154505477127752.post-71570363206173952142009-06-23T04:54:00.000-06:002009-06-23T04:59:31.054-06:00

Years ago, when I started my first blog, I was filled with a sense of purpose. Not this time. Nope. I'm just going to blog. I have so little to say these days, that I should probably twitter instead, but I am too old and my brain is full of noodles.

noodleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14451566594793355893noreply@blogger.com0