The Legoland Convention

Well, I'm back from Seattle.

Seattle is a nice town. It's an interesting place. Americans love them some football. That's for durn sure.

One thing I definitely noticed, American girls in general are just not as cute as Canadian girls. They all just seemed so plain to me.

Interesting indeed.

It's true that America is the fattest country too. Painfully and obviously true.

Avast me hearties, t'day be here. Me's a hoping you didn't forget. Arrr! Yo ho ho and I'll be seeing you later, t'splice the mainbrace or ye be a scallywag.

"they are so gay! i can't believe he was flirting with you and not me!!" -one of my male co-workers to me (gay or not, that guy was totally flirting with ME).
"i ordered the extreme whopper at burger king and my boyfriend freaked out about me ordering the most expensive thing on the menu. i think i have to talk to him and let him know i think he needs to treat me better." -another of my male co-workers to me.

i also was called "sweetie" more times monday (and yesterday) than the rest of my life combined.

work was lots of fun. i'm going to like it there. it's funny how much of a difference it is to work in the same company in chilliwack and then yaletown. not unexpected, just funny.

i also love getting off work and being in vancouver. i just wandered around yesterday and had such a good time. i found myself at virgin records and bought the garden state soundtrack (so good, and only $13.99), i then stumbled across a used cd store on granville, and bought the cardigans cd i was half looking for, because it was only $8.99 and then 25% off; how could i resist?

i had such a good day, that on the way home i was smiley, happy, confident moey. i missed a bus that i was exchanging to, but that couldn't dampen my spirits, even though it was after 9 and dark and the next bus wasn't coming for almost an hour. so i wandered over to the nearby shell station, so i wouldn't be sitting in a dark place by myself, and looked around in there a bit, bought an orange juice, and then went outside and sat on the bench right outside the door, where the workers could see and it was well lit.
flash forward about 5 minutes. i'm sitting there on the bench, listening to my new cd's on my discman, drinking oj. i kind of caught from the corner of my eye that someone was walking by, so i looked up (not an unreasonable thing to do), it was this fairly good looking guy, he smiled and i probably smiled back, being happy, confident moey, and then he winked at me. oh dear. and then he came over to me. he asked me what i was doing, i said i was waiting for my ride home, he said he would give me a ride home, i refused. he then continued on his way into the gas station. phew. when he came back out he went straight to his vehicle, a pimped out explorer- lowered, tinted windows etc-leaned in, and then two of his buddies got out. they came over to where i was sitting. then they all started talking at once, asking me where i was going, saying they could give me a ride, offering me beer, offering me a smoke, and on and on. i was feeling swarmed and freaked out and was refusing them and trying to make them go away. i had just had the brilliant idea to get the hell away from there, when creepy guy #1 said "you're so cute", and TOUCHED MY FACE!!!!!! not just a little, with both hands, all over my face. he very nearly go punched by me. instead, i stood up, became angry eyes moey, and told him not to do that. i then bee lined it away from there, as fast as i could, to safety.

do i look like a target? i don't feel like i come off as a victim, someone who would be easy or something....and i don't know what the lesson is here...don't transfer buses in ladner? don't smile at guys? don't be alone ever? don't go out at night? i got swarmed and panicked and didn't react immediately when they all came over. the lesson is probably there? maybe i should have done something more severe...i don't know....

anyway, i've had chance to regroup. three stupid creepy guys can't ruin my day, my week, and certainly not living here. i'm loving it here.

living in the city is the right place for me right now. i'm coming alive, i'm becoming me. i'm going to enjoy this, and i think you will too.

There are a few observations that I have made about Taxi drivers in Abbotsford. Every driver with the exception of one has been brown. Also, all have been friendly or at least congenial and they all call me dear. Therefore I have come to the conclusion that all taxi drivers are brown (except for one), friendly or congenial and call me dear. There are a few in particular that I would like to blog about.

Talky Mctalkerson - Has a serious aversion to fat smelly people. Possibly slightly obsessed with avoiding those customers. Complains about smell alot and refuses to pick up the smelliest ones because later clients complain about his smelly van. Believes if he were very fat he would run everywhere instead of taking a taxi - especially if it was to McDonalds. Will spray Fabreeze with compulsive dilligence to avoid bad smells.

Three Thumbed Ravi - Actually has three thumbs (and if I remember correctly his name is Ravinder). Two thumbs are located on his right hand directly beside each other, both perfectly formed. From what I have learned being born with 2 thumbs on one hand is considered good luck in Indian culture. From the long shifts the poor guy works (as well as a second job) I may disagree. However, he is one of the happiest people I have met. Very fatherly and talks about everything. Cannot believe how white I am, though glad I don't look rediculous like those overly tanned leathery white girls who think alligator skin is attractive. Yes he said that. Also thinks I am such a "nice girl". Talks about his children and wife with exceptional affection

The Godfather - This guy sounds and looks like an Indian Marlon Brando. I can't believe that the guys on the radio understand him. I think they might just here noise and recognize it as him being free to pick up a new client. Also talks on the cell phone almost every time I get in the car. I think he must have a buisness on the side possibly part of the Indian moffia using taxi driving as a cover. Bad joke, too predictable.

The Accupuncturist - He works 5 days a week driving a taxi and then 2 performing accupunctures. Apparently there is not much money in Accupuncture

when i was little, right around the time my dad died, i had two imaginary friends, Cheenie and Keenie (i don't know for sure that i show you would spell their names, we never discussed it, but i sounded it out and that is what i have arrived at). they were very small, just smaller than my hand at that age, and they lived on a very small island that was approximately 45 km from my house, on the way to my grandparents house. they came to visit me everyday, and we would just play together. i still clearly remember the last day i "saw" them. they sailed away on a twig of a boat down the creek that was by my house, out into Francois Lake. i knew as they were leaving that i wouldn't see them again. and yet, two years later, or so, my grandparents convinced me into a boat (quite a feat) to go fishing, and i convinced them to stop at the very small island to see if we could find Cheenie and Keenie's house. we couldn't; they must have moved.


i was thinking about this the other day. and before you all write me off as being a little crazy, i have a couple of things to add. why did i have imaginary friends? i'm sure that an argument could be made about how, with my father having recently died, it was a coping mechanism, something created by me to fill a void in my life. i wouldn't argue against that. but i would be willing to point out similarities that we all, i believe, have, even now, to me as a 6 year old child playing with her imaginary friends. i think we all have people that we attribute imaginary qualities to, so we can "play" with them in our heads. we can have grand discussions or flirty encounters with these people we don't even know because we have this ability to give them qualities that we don't have any idea if they actually have. i think we also sometimes do this with our friends. we want so badly for them to be able to fill a spot in our lives that we allow them, in our heads, to be someone they aren't entirely. i'm not saying this is right, i'm just saying i think it happens.

and if i were to take it a step further i would say that we, or at least i, have done this with Jesus. i'm willing to admit plenty of times that i have given him attributes that are not his. there are times that i have an "imaginary saviour." and, whereas with people it is generally me trying to think the better of them, i usually try to think the worse of my Lord. i convince myself that he takes joy when i am disappointed, for example, and hardly let him be who he is. and while i see the danger in that, i sometimes forget the danger of deciding the cute guy i just met is also sweet and intelligent and, gasp, single, when i really have no idea about any of those things. or the danger planning a conversation with one of your friends too much before giving them the chance to have any input.

i think that quite often i am the object of people's misjudgment or projected ideas of who i am. it almost makes me feel like a victim sometimes. i can't live up to who many people believe me to be. i've had to realize who i am, from my perspective, from the Lord's perspective, then through my friends' perspectives, and not consider who my acquaintances think i am. it's been part of a recent "healthening" of me.

and if that all doesn't convince you i'm not crazy for having imaginary friends, i will pull out this card: i am a creative person who has always loved the arts. the fact that i had imaginary friends is proof positive that i have an active imagination. not crazy, creative.