Apr 12, 2006

Happiness is a Warm Spring Morning

Ah, spring. Thanks to the warm weather, the sporadic rain showers cleaning the streets, and the birds chirping every morning while I mop the floors at the group home, this has been one happy, energetic girl the past couple weeks. Even though we had an extremely mild winter, in Saskatchewan terms, it still seemed too long, too gray, and way too ho-hum.

I’m finding it very hard to stay inside. I want to be out walking around the lake, sitting with the dog and cat in the backyard, chain-smoking and reading (me, not the animals….they just eat grass and sniff each others bums), and drinking pints on the patio (which I am assured will be up and running ASAP!) at The Pub with all the wonderful summertime crew. Springtime makes me happy, thirsty, and lazy (when it comes to household chores, and other boring wintertime activities), which isn’t so bad, I keep telling myself. Unfortunately however, I work nights, and need to sleep during the day…..which is becoming increasingly difficult, what with the sunshine pouring in through the blinds, and the glorious summertime noise of leaves being raked, skateboards grinding down the sidewalk, and kids laughing on the way to the ice cream parlor up the street. If I keep this up, by autumn, I’ll be loony-tune. I guess sleep deprivation is just one minor obstacle I will have to overcome, in order to enjoy the glorious months of good weather ahead of me.

So far, I’ve been doing alright. Basically living off 4 hours sleep a day, I have had the time to go for walks, become more of a regular at The Pub than ever before,(which isn't necessarily a good thing, but it's a good excuse to walk downtown to be a social butterfly, and catch up with everyone), BBQ almost everyday, join in on a few impromptu games of Frisbee with Frisbee-Boy, (who I hope will continue popping up out of nowhere for the rest of the summer, as he forces exercise on me, which I am quite grateful for), and just wander aimlessly around downtown, looking for adventure, conversation and whatever else the weather throws at me.

I kicked off the season with a heck of a bang this past weekend, with what I continuously repeated was "The Bestest Weekend Ever!!". On the Friday, I went for after work drinks with the girls in the afternoon, which turned into getting locked in The Pub with The Unknown Poet, and stumbling out at around 4 or 5 am, using what little good judgment I had left, to just go home, and not go to the house party I so wanted to attend. The Unknown Poet did not have such good judgment, and attended the party. After learning that, I wished I had the energy to go along with him. But it is a good thing I didn’t, because I awoke Saturday, with surprisingly not a lick of a hangover, BBQ’d some smokies for breakfast, relaxed in the yard, started my soon to be ever-present sunburn, and just enjoyed a day with no plans and no expectations. That evening was already planned for me, so I milked the schedule-free afternoon for all it was worth. However, the evening did turn out to be a right hoot, beginning with a meet and greet and appetizers at my friend Jonny’s, then heading to a Hawksley Workman show, and capping off the night with dancing and drinking too many iced teas. ( make note---I DID NOT DRINK ). Sunday started off in a hurry, with a phone call from B-Rock inviting me to brunch with Red and GQ, so I threw myself together, and was off to get coffee and a buffet full of greasy goodness in my stomach. After eating, we noticed that Hawksley and Mr. Lonely were also enjoying some brunch, and although I didn’t bother talking to them, as they were eating, and I didn’t want to be a jerk, I did get a nice boost of energy from their presence, and their strange looks, as I read from the Taste of Spring liquor guide, and sang clips of 'Girl From Ipanema' and 'Bombs Over Baghdad', which I’m sure was quite annoying to my table of friends, as well as the other patrons, but good golly, I just didn't care. Shortly after B-Rock and I left the restaurant, I made up my mind to not go home that day, and just enjoy the misty grayness, and the non-existent prairie wind, and ignore the dirty kitchen and piles of laundry at home that were calling my name. We went to Value Village, where I found a Ouija board (2 bucks!), and a National Geographic from 1988, that I have been searching for since about 1997. I was so pumped from my purchases, I just had to go to The Pub and show Red and GQ, and then spent the rest of the day socializing with friends and bartenders and strangers, and finally hauling my tired ass to work at midnight. See? Bestest weekend ever.

The week is now half-over, and I have been staying home and relaxing a bit, due to the rain, and the fact that I am addicted to the Outdoor Life Network on Monday's and Tuesday's (it’s Ewan MacGregor's fault). Plus, I finally bought a car on Monday, and am a bit tapped in the finance department, which makes it easier to stay home. Tomorrow however, is a busy, busy day, with meetings, sewing to get done, and a much anticipated visit with Bink and Ryan, who are visiting from New Zealand. Because they are here from so far away, I was able to beg and plead my way out of working tomorrow night as well, so now I don’t have to worry about time constraints, or having a glass of wine or two. Oh happy day.

Well, it's now 4am, the birds are starting to chirp and sing, and the clouds are parting and moving away from the full moon, so I guess that means it's time for me to actually do some work around here. Apparently that's what they pay me for.

Keep on, keepin' on.