The corporation of me

••Update••

2006-12-31T16:31:00.000-07:00

So heres an update on my life thus far. After my last post I went to the IKEA Christmas Party. It was great we ate we dance we had a merry old time. My boss Kevin one this leather recliner hes been having his eye on for a while. There I danced with many of the lovely girls of IKEA, which very much good. My dancing surprised a lot of people and those of you who have seen me dance know why.

On the 18th I had my Birthday parties ... thats right I used the plural sence. At work I had one party and I must say that It was pretty good. Not only was the party good itself ( I loved the attention) the party had the most anticipation any of my parties had. After work I had dinner at the Keg with the folks. A few days later I had the party with my friends, going in I expected a bigger turnout, but I appreciate the people who did come I enjoyed myself.

Christmas was okay, I really missed having my sister and brother-in-law there but it was okay I had on okay time and I had Christmas pt. 2 when the arrived a few days ago. Also my mom as usual pulled together a fantastic spread - awesome food.

Also one last thing, I think I may have villianized the girls in my last post, which wasnt my intent. As you know Im somewhat of a weird and wacky guy and I think they needed some time to warm up to me which I think they have in the last month. So that front is all good now

Tasting Tears not tasted in Years

2006-12-01T18:29:00.000-07:00

There was this after work party today. I wasn’t going to go because I wasn’t really invited. One of the staff however convinced me to go. So when I got there I realized that everyone was dressed nicely, because they knew about it yesterday and I didn’t know until this morning. So I sat down I was at the end of the table and pulled up a chair dressed in my work scrubs.

The party was a belated birthday celebration for one of the girls in Comm-In. Everyone else there was talking except me, and I came to realize something. You see whenever that girl and her friends are around I regress back into my high-school self. That was the most painful and miserable time in my life and -lucky me- I got to experience it again.

You see Its not anything specific these girls do Its just a lot of little things. They rarely talk to me, greet me or in any way acknowledge my existence unless they want something from me. There is one big thing however, it s the way they treat my boss. You see in many ways I see him as a lot like me we share many interests and have a similar personalities. So here’s “the rub” These girls are like half in love with him, they hang on his every word give him affectionate nicknames and whatever he does he seems golden in their eyes. This is absolutely fuckin’ infuriating considering I’m almost always working at his side and I’m the frustratedly single one of the two.

As the party progressed this feeling came became more and more intense and If I didn’t get out of there when I did I would have just exploded. As soon as I got home SONIC played “Hurt” by Johny Cash. Being in such a raw and vulnerable place I just sat in my car and cried.

Man I could’ve really used a hug.

All Hallows Eve

2006-11-05T00:43:00.000-07:00

So Halloween has come and gone and I'm pretty proud of costume, I went as Ash from Army of Darkness and if you don't understand the reference then well ... I feel sorry for you. No seriously the costume went over big, or at least to those who understood it. Most people noticed that I shaved my beard for the costume.

The Chorus party was nice, Although I lost a saw tooth to a Toothpaste Pirate. I got there shortly before they got the dance underway, They brought out Thriller much earlier than I expected and as soon as it started all eyes turned to me. You see I can dance. Unfortunately I wasn't feeling the magic and I fell my performance suffered accordingly.

That Tuesday was the Staff "Party" we had a lot of people dressed up, 43 actually. I was the only one in Comm-in that dressed up which is a little weird. I didn't win though which I was a little disappointed by, but then again I didn't get it to the level of completion that I really wanted. I will be posting a picture of my costume once I get a copy.

Radio Sonic

2006-10-21T23:22:00.000-06:00

So a coworker of mine "Chris from IKEA" had 102.9 Sonic FM over at his place this thursday for the "Home Edition" where they choose a applicant from those who had submitted submission form, I was looking forward to being there except for the fact that I had to be up at 4:30pm, but I wasnt alone pretty much the entire Comm-in department was there.

I carpooled there with Kevin and we got there shortly before 6, which is when the show started. The radio people said that his was the best turnout they have had before 6am. This was the first time I saw a radio broadcast and it quite the experience. Chris was totally in his element on the radio, and pulled in a pretty good haul in prizes at the very end.

They served breakfast there but I was pretty disappointed they served scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage and fruit. I guess I was expecting a little more variety at the end Lynda Steele from Global showed up and played the "IKEA or North Korea" game where she had to Identify whether the given term was an IKEA product or something involving North Korea. She failed miserably.

At the end I made my way to work with the Comm-In girls. Since we went I had to make up the time which was an hour and a half so it wasn't to bad

Last Weekend

2006-10-20T07:23:00.000-06:00

So I had another busy weekend last weekend last weekend. On Friday I had to stop by Sherwood Park so I could get my tires and oil changed and bum a free meal at my folk place. I couldn't stay long there though because son I had to make my way out to Capilano for Grants Birthday. This was the second time I was over to my place and I managed to find it with only minor assistance. the party was held all in the basement of his place which was cool because I never really got a look at it when I was over for his housewarming party. The crowd was like 90% chorus community, which was good because I knew all those people and I that made me feel a little more comfortable.

Later on Grant and gis friend Ryan retreated to Grants studio to do some jamming, I stopped in there for a while and it was a cool I never been in that setting. For the most part it was just Ryan doing some improvizational musical ramblings, which he has a great talent for. After that Sarah B. dragged us out to play "sociables." It was a interesting game kind of a mix of 52 pickup and Truth or dare. I didn't participate because I don't drink but I did watch as a social experiment, It had nothing to do that many of the women ended up in their underwear (It had nothing to do with that). I also found out later that it was also Pearls Birthday so I gave her birthday greetings before I left. As I was heading out the door I ran into Mike G. And he was like "your taking off already?" I came back with "Yeah I have Chorus in the morning..." I realized right after I said it that everyone else there had the same thing in the morning. I don't know why I used that excuse I had much more legitimate excuses in my bag. Ah well Cest la vie.

Saturday the Bass sectional was pretty dead, I think a lot of people were recuperating from the party last night. So the sectional was pretty uneventful, There was a small discussion of Disney sequels which was topped by Kaleb ending it with an Awesome Joke " Pocahontas 5: She's Finally legal." Later that evening it was the UAMC Pigless Roast. It was fun, Candice was there which was good, I enjoyed seeing her again. We played a few games before e dinner. There was regular catch as well as "Leaf catch". Leaf catch is where you throw a ball into a fall tree and try to catch leaves as they fall out of the tree but before they hit the ground. There was also some Frisbee there. I don't now why but no matter what I try I always veer to the left. Anyway I had to cut the pigless roast short, because I had D&D. That was also funny somehow me and the DM ended up reciting lyrics from "Jump around" from house of Pain. Which happened again the following Wednesday with Grant.

Sunday I didn't end up going to church because I had a long weekend and I had Dodgeball in the afternoon. Later on I left for the venue which after much exhaustive searching I never found. DAMN was I pissed, I didn't go last time making me want to go the more this time. There was also this really cute girl on the team and I thought this could be an excellent opportunity to get to know her outside of work.

Accountability

2006-10-05T18:59:00.000-06:00

So I am again waiting for people to get back to me on various projects(at work), 2 individuals in particular. I have been after them for weeks to meet up with me and on several occasions they said they'd meet up with me and everytime they flaked leaving me to have to get after them again.

Now I can understand it if theyre busy and cant meet, but I think I'm not asking much that they either set a time they can actually commit to, or just tell me that theyre not coming.

Goodbye Lyndon

2006-09-22T22:05:00.000-06:00

So today as the big send off for Lyndon we had this pot luck thing and for the most part. We gave the send off gift which was a 1.5 meter Vietnamese tribal mask. A lot of the party was socializing it was great to spend some time with smiles, chuckes and fuckles out of the work environment.

As the party wound down alot of the crowd went to Overtime downtown, when I said I wasnt going too Ron, Barb's (the boss) husband went into this huge tie raid on how a guy my age should be out at the bar getting drunk and the like, at the time I just laughed it off trying to be a good guest. But on the way back it really ate at ne how much his remarks bothered me.

I mean I dont really drink, and thats a lifestyle choice, I mean its not for any big reason its just that alcohol never really had any appeal for me. And if I did go to the bar I would just end up sitting around awkwardly discouraging offers for drinks and straing to hear any and all conversation.

This week

2006-09-21T21:06:00.000-06:00

Damn this is one hell of a week, on Tuesday i went back to my folks place and spent some time with the family for a while. When we got back we discovered there was a dead duck to the side of the garage. Mom and I were a little creeped out and manda just laughed. Being the token man there it was expected of me to dispose of the departed fowl. Which I did with much uncomfortable shivers going up and down my spine.

Wednesday was rehearsal. We all had our new Assistant conductor Adam Robertson. Dude is hilarious, and I curious as to see what his wit will bring in the coming year. Also "Ninja" Stan made an appearance wich was awesome, I got to speak breifly with him and I also asked him to give a kick in the ass to my friend Rob and get him to make contact with the outside world again. Kareoke was good I did "sweet child of mine" by G'n'R dont mean to sound arrogant but I think I rocked it.

Today was busyIve been waiting to hear back from people on various projects and they all chose to get back to me this afternoon leaving me swamped with work. After work I had dinner with pastor at BP's where we had a good conversation about stuff going on in our lives.

Tommorow I have the farewell BBQ for our Visual Merchandiser Lyndon, who is now gonna be the Visual Merchandiser for all of Canada.

Saturday I have my first sectional Rehearsal of the year. after which I have a D&D session

A new post

2006-09-17T22:09:00.000-06:00

So its been a while since my last post, but this should remedy that. So the biggest thing thats happened lately is that Tours back so YAY! I'm attendace captain for the Basses/ Bari's this year so its my job to keep track of whose there and who isnt. Speaking of which my friend Candice wont be back in chorus this year (at least I think she isnt) which saddens me. I know shes wrestling with some stuff and I hope she makes whatever the right descusion is for her.

I had some people over at my place this weekend, I had my work housewarming party, of which only my boss and his girlfriend showed up. It was cool spending time with him outside the work environment. Earlier today after church I had my sister over. We had some lunch together as well as watching some cool stuff on the internet.

I just finished having a conversation with grant and he told me the new chorus members area was up again. So Its gonna be awesome when that gets bussling with activity again.

Kowabunga

2006-08-28T19:01:00.000-06:00

So for the past week has quite literally been right across the street, which was cool. Apocalypse Kow was amazing and since they're a 10 minute walk away I was able to take in about a third of their shows. I loved it I was especially fond of the Spiderman theme, 60 minute Stan and "The woman who loved Johnny Cash" I enjoyed these shows so much I spent more than one occasion trying to convince my boss to take in a show to no avail.

Also I took in this other show with Carla called "Jem Rolls: off the tongue" originally we thought the show was more of a comedy, but it turned out to be more of a poetry reading. Afterwards the evening was brought back up with some Kareoke at the Gas Pump.

Radio

2006-08-18T14:21:00.000-06:00

So pretty cool drive into work this morning. It turns out "Chris from IKEA" was on Sonic this morning doing a review for "snakes on a Plane". I was so excited that I knew a semi-famous radio personality personally.

Fringe Benefits

2006-08-17T16:34:00.000-06:00

So the fringe is upon us once again, and I couldn't be happier. In past years I really didn't go to the fringe because it used to be farther away. But know that I literally live on the event grounds and can walk to any given event I plan on taking in much more than I have.

Also it is my understanding that Apocalypse Kow will be performing there as well. Which is good I've been hoping to see them perform again.

The skipping stone

2006-08-15T17:01:00.000-06:00

So Ive been at my new place for about a week and a-half and everything is good so far. Its nice and cool in these warm summer days. Most days are okay except this Saturday. You see while I have my phone I dont have an internet connection until this Saturday. It became really obvious that without Internet I am severely cut off from alot of the wonderful people in my life, and you know who you are. Alot of you have taken the time to comment on my blog.

Also Im gonna try to get some work done on some of my more time sensitive projects such as my Halloween costume (Heres a very vague hint "Groovy!") Also there is at least one birthday gift I want to get together.

Accommodation

2006-08-08T12:30:00.000-06:00

So I'm completely moved in now, my parents and my brother-in law spent a large part of Saturday hauling stuff over to my new place and getting it all set-up. Once we got everything in, everyone went into a "zone". Me and Keith (my brother in law) got everything set up in the Living room. We assembled my desk (I was really shocked of how well it fit into the space.) afterwards we moved the bookcases, chairs, TV and computer into place.

Mom took it upon herself to unpack and organize the Kitchen, which I couldn't be happier about. She's pretty much the master of all thing confectionery. Dad helped by finishing assembling the new bed frame. The set-up (with all of us working) didn't take hardly any time at all.

After everything was moved we all went out for dinner at Boston Pizza. It was nice, food was good as always and I was especially happy I could spend all this time with Keith before he heads back to Hamilton.

Now if only I could get my phone/Internet set-up done.

Loaves and Lunches

2006-07-31T19:21:00.000-06:00

So I was coming into work one day and I was putting my lunch and coat into my locker and Barry a coworker who always tries to be comical made this remark. "So did you bring enough for everyone?" referring to my lunch

"Uhh ... no this wont feed 300 people" I said in confusion. "I thought you were a man of god"

Now I don't quite understand where the thought process was but he set me up for an awesome joke so I took it. "I am a man of god, but I am not the son of god, I cannot turn my lunch into 12 loaves and fishes."

The Games we play

2006-07-30T21:25:00.000-06:00

So I had another eventful weekend, it seemed to just evolve and upon itself like a lot of the best weekends do. So I first had to borrow dads truck to pick up something I bought at IKEA the other day, Now I haven't driven the truck a lot so this was a unique experience for me. I got there and back without incident, it was a task however trying to fit the huge truck into a standard parking stall, but I did.

After I got back I had a little time before I met Jordan (chorus) at his place and then after that him, his brother Brennan and two other friends of his and I went to yet another friends of his (Anton) to play this strategy game "Machiavelli" This was one of the most complicated board games I've ever played. Basically its a Risk-like game where you control competing armies in an attempt to conquer Italy. Later on Blaine and Men-Yi joined the game. The game lasted roughly 7 hours. I know, WOW!

After the game ended Jordan, Men-Yi, Blaine and I decided to stop in on Sarah (chorus)'s Birthday party at the FRAT. We were there for a little while socializing and what-not. Men-Yi decided to stay for a while, whereas the rest of us when BACK to Antons to play this RPG Card Game called "Munchkin" Unfortunately we had to cut the game short because of lets just say an "un-ignorable occurrence" happened.

The New Cave

2006-07-27T19:36:00.000-06:00

Excellent News as many of you know I've been looking for a new place for a while now, I saw this nice basement suite a few weeks ago so I filled out an application. I gotta call from the landlord and I got it.

So the place is just north of Whyte by King Edward School on 101st street. The place is nice bedroom, bathroom, Kitchen, and Living room all with my own private entrance ... and its all MINE. The rent is also really good (but I wont be telling you how much though) and it includes utlilties and Cable TV which means YAY!

So I'm meeting the landlord this Sunday to sign the lease and I'll be moving in on August. I spoke with my sister a few hours ago, on this subject and she promptly enlisted her husband to help with the move. Also when she comes home this fall were probably gonna spend a few days together so she doesn't have to spend the entire time with our parents.

So I just wanted to share this wonderful news with all you guys.

Another day

2006-07-27T07:08:00.000-06:00

So yesterday I found out that someone at work will be leaving the store for a much more prestigious position. I must say I'm gonna miss him, but I am proud of him this is a great opportunity for him. I am withholding the details until the announcement is made public.

Also on my home yesterday one of those liquid tanker trucks passed me. On the back of truck was the company name it read "Brandon Lubricants" that made my day.

Gelatin and the Globe trotters

2006-07-25T21:55:00.000-06:00

So we went for Desert at the Mark and Twyla's House (a couple from church) this evening. This was first time at their place but from what I was told I was sure to enjoy it and I certainly was. They have artifacts from all over the world. Most of the pieces were either East-Indian, Japanese or Haida Indian. I was in heaven, I was content to just wander the space in awe of all the pieces in some ways the place was a museum.

I Was looking forward to seeing their tribal masks having a collection of my own. There was one mask they had in the main entry way it was very nice, I was enjoying viewing it until Mark told me what it was, a African circumcision mask.

The desert was awesome, Mom brought this Raspberry desert that consists of a layer of graham Crust, Raspberries in Jello and a meringue topping. Its one of my favorites

The Leavings

2006-07-23T16:11:00.000-06:00

So we have one less person living here, Katherines best friend Candace left to return home for Winnipeg early this morning. Unfortunately I didn't get much time to get to know her between the fact that I work everyday and the fact that Katherine took her all out and about Edmonton pretty much everyday. I have enjoyed getting to know her as much as I have and I hope I get another chance to spend some more time with her.

Also this morning my Dad left for yet another business thing, but I cant say that I'm too upset about that. Now, don't get me wrong my Dads a great man and I love him, but he can get under my skin like no other person can. So I'm enjoying this temporary reprieve.

The week of Tohla-nah

2006-07-21T19:07:00.001-06:00

So its been a week since my last post but its been a eventful week.

On Saturday I took in the Street Performers Festival with Katherine, Our first act we saw was this comedian from Toronto. He was okay but nothing too special. His finale piece was somewhat entertaining. It was where he catapulted a cabbage into the air onto a spiked helmet that he wore.

It was pretty warm that day, so we ducked into the Edmonton art gallery. There was two main exhibits there the one on the upper level was a collection from Britain called "the body" (I think) there was also was another collection downstairs that were from the "Band of seven's" trip to northern Canada like 100 years ago. the and of Seven was a group of Canadian painters who brought the concept of Abstract and Impressionist painting to Canada. There were various sketches painting and Artifacts from the expedition.

After we left the gallery and took in a bit more of the festival. After that Katherine was good enough to indulge me in accompanying me to my favorite comics place which is on Jasper Ave. Got a few pieces and then we made our way back to Winston Churchill Square via Eaton Center.

Later that evening Andrew Richardson invited me to a Barbeque at his new place. It was nice seeing him again, his place was nice and as always he’s a great griller. He did have this cool item, which was this rubber medieval mace, which was quite the interesting item. After which I had to head downtown for a D&D session. We played at one of the guys work. This was the first RPG game I played on the 16th floor of the ING building,

Tuesday we nearly doubled the people who live here. Not only did my Aunt Betty and cousin Kelly come here for a few weeks. But Katherine’s friend Candace came in from Winnipeg and for some reason she had to stay here. Now I don’t mind her staying here I’m just curious as to why.

Also Katherine Candace and I settled into this ritual of watching a few episodes of Lois and Clark ssn3. I haven’t seen any of these episodes since they originally aired in the mid-90's. I never noticed the first time 'round but Lois Lane had had some horrific outfits and she changed them at an unusually large frequency.

Thursday was my Churches annual Rachuchen and Watermelon supper. Its always great and as usual my moms Rachuchen was the best.

Today my parents, along with my Aunt and cousin came into work to check out what I do all day, it was nice and my colleagues were very hospitable and were really intrigued in the whole Graphics whoop-de-doo. After work I did a bit of shopping and banking before I went home. When I got home I found out that I got another person commenting bringing the total to two, now while that’s not a lot too most its a lot to me. So I’d like to take this opportunity to thank the lovely Men-Yi and the charming Candice for their contributions. Its good to know I’m not alone in Cyberspace

Child like Innocence

2006-07-14T22:09:00.000-06:00

So funny story. Me and Kevin were making our way back to the office early this morning. On or ride up the elevator we were joined with a young lady and her two sons (about 4 years or so) that were riding in the cart. They were both playing with small toy trucks. One of the kids at one point saying with contentment and exuberation "Fuck!" The mother turns to us and explains that he was trying to say "truck"

Kevin with the utmost grace said that he has a nephew that does the same thing, putting the mothers apprehension at rest. The mother then turns to us and says. "You should hear him say Dump Truck."

This was an amusing anecdote I wanted to share.

The past-old west

2006-07-13T17:08:00.000-06:00

So Ive been deloping this charachter for the past few days, His name is Jerimiah Lazurus ( and for those who know your biblic Charachters will appreciate the allusion0 basically hes a Wild West necromancer. Ive been developing him story and personality because I nailed his design early on. His more uniqu features is that he wears and bowler hat and sport two (faternal) twin six-shooters, he named them "Letum*" and and "Aevum**". If you know latin you know what those mena inf not stay tuned. Letum is a customized dillenger and Aevum is a unique item composed of bone and stretched cartilege.

In terms of IKEA things are okay, Kevin returns from his vacation tommorow. I would have liked to gotten more done before he returned but wehat are you gonna do.

* - Letum: Latin for Death
** - Aevum: Latin for life

This Sunday, SUNDAY, sunday

2006-07-10T19:00:00.000-06:00

So Sunday. Today I went to church like any other Sunday. I spoke briefly with Mr. Buhr as to when and where our next D&D session would be. I also spoke with Matt and Laura Pauls (no relation) about the basement suite they will be leaving soon, I went to see it on Friday after work. The place was freaking sweet :the rents good and I pretty much have a space all to myself. My own Bathroom, Bedroom, Living Room and Kitchen. I SO want this place. One thing I love almost above all else is that I am pretty close to the University so I'm close to UAMC and alot of my Chorus people . So I'm gonna try to finish and submit the form by the end of the week.

So during lunch Katherine invited me out to see Pirates OTC 2. It was awesome the two ladies in the film were insanely hot. I was actually "spoke" with Grant about it who was just as impressed with the pirate girls. Also the rest of the cast put forth a great performance Johny Depp was as fantastic as he always is. I was a bit taken aback when they ended on such a HUGE cliffhanger.

Anyway after we got back and a little bit after Katherine wanted to watch another movie together, I get the impression that she might be into me, but Im really not sure what to do in that respect.

An Anime-zing weekend

2006-07-08T22:08:00.000-06:00

So Animethon 13 (Grant MacEwan City Center Campus). I was looking forward to it initially. Unfortunately I didn't have enough time to pull together a cosplay costume which bumms me out a little. I wanted a costume that wasn't too bulky or intricate with a lot of pieces to keep track of; I was thinking either Sanji from One Piece or Cid Highwind from FF VII. When I got there however I was really self conscious. I was in unfamiliar territory and I didn't know a soul there ... well kinda. PJ was there but I didn't expect her to be any source of emotional support. The one activity I was most interested in attending petered out however. The main reason I was there was there was to check out the Marketplace (Which was held in the Parkade under the building). However the line to get in looped around the parking lot, up the stairs and out the door. I didn't feel like spending 5 hours in line just to feel rushed once I got in.

Once I got home I just enjoyed some down time I just finished watching Corpse bride and Wedding Crashers with Katherine (Summer Student Pastor). Now before reading the next sentence remember the montage of the two protagonists crashing various weddings with that in mind read on. It was a very awkward experience seeing softcore porn with a ministerial worker.

This weekend has seemed to have the greatest absence of the UAMC Community because most of those people I talk mostly with are away on the Annual UAMC Exec retreat. I'm kind of curious as to what they do on these retreats but I guess I can always ask them when they get back.

Thai one on

2006-07-06T22:00:00.000-06:00

So I went out with Blaine and Men-Yi this evening, we ate at Padthai restaurant. This was my first exposure to Thailand cuisine and I didn't know what to expect. When I first entered the restaurant I was overcome by the nice aroma, It smelled kinda like those Itcho-ban noodles. It wasn't long before Blaine and Men-Yi showed up so there want too much waiting-around time.

The food was okay. We started out with these Chicken skewers with this peanut sauce. Then deep fried Calamari (Which I think was Men-Yi's but we shared) was nice. Mine was some a of beef dish with peppers and carrots. I'm glad I tried it but I wasn't a huge fan. I did like the calamari thing better than my beef dish and even though they're both technically meat I feel like a bad carnivore saying that. Also I find that food difficult to maintain a brisk eating pace with this kinda food.

The conversation we talked about what's going with each of us; what's going on in their professional life (which was good because I didn't know specifically what they did professionally) what we've been doing over the summer (which was for all of us was work pretty much), and a lot of other topics which allude me at the moment. So I got to know both of them better and I think they enjoyed knowing more of me. I learned that Men Yi has a little design training. We also discussed how we could redesign Blaines place which was interesting I love being able to flex me creative muscles.

We concluded the meal with this deep fried Banana thing which was good, It was nice having something cool and sweet to contrast the main course. We ended the evening with some light conversation sitting on the railing on the porch. Turns out Men-Yi's Birthday is coming up so I'm looking forward to what that will result in.

Nature of Friendship

2006-07-06T12:27:00.000-06:00

So I was talking to a friend of mine this morning on messenger during my coffee break. Later on two of the guys from the carpentry department came in and we started talking in real space while I spoke with my friend in cyber space. After some time of talking they asked me what I was doing. I told them I was speaking to a friend of mine. As soon as they found out it was a "her" they started asking me if we were dating. I said we weren't. The atmosphere soon took on that of the boys locker room and they were kind of encouraging that I should make her my girlfriend even though she's dating someone I like and respect.

Now I'm not saying that having her as a girlfriend wouldn't be great. She's a lovely lady and I should be so lucky to have someone like her at my side like that. But were friends and I love that we are and I have no motivation to make anything different.

This got me to thinking of how often this kind of thing has happened. Often when I speak with someone (especially my parents) and one of my female friends comes up in the conversation I see that look in their eye, and I know they're thinking "Is this someone he's sweet on?"

It just annoys me somewhat that for some reason people refuse to initially accept that a man and woman can be platonic friends.

A snapshot of work life

2006-07-04T20:54:00.000-06:00

So for all of you that may be wondering about my work life Id thought Id let you know what I do all day.

I work at IKEA as a Graphics Co-worker. Graphics is a sub-section of the Comm-In (Communications & Interiors) department. The other departments Interiors, Markethall and Activities which all handle the organization and design of the room settings and Displays, There is also Carpentry that cut and paint the graphic display boards, flooring and walls. Along with my boss Kevin (Carlson) we Design, Print and install. Visual materials throughout and outside the store. Some of the things we do is the Vinyl signage, Store Calendars, Banners Parking lot billboards etc. etc...

Works going well Were working on a bunch of things right now everyone’s gearing up for K-drop (catalogue drop) which is like one of the most important events in Comm-In Calendar. We have a lot of work to do all over the store. We are putting up a new mega-billboard (the one on the side of the store). We are also replacing a lot of the Billboards in the parking lot. Also we are doing a lot of work in the launch area*. We are also changing all the graphics that have our "new" and "New lower price" graphics.

Launch areas are the product displays in the very beginning of the store and at the top of the escalator

Annual Report.

2006-07-04T18:25:00.000-06:00

So its been l-hong time since I’ve posted, So I decided to remedy the situation.

Well for all those who remember I left off just before tour. I must say it was awesome ... I got to know a lot of new chorusters and the people I already knew I got to know better. The "mystery gift I had mentioned before was the portrait I did for Candice for her birthday, which was on tour. The gift went over big which is what I was going for. She loved it so much that a few weeks later she mentioned that shed love to understand my art/design process better.

I also got to spent some time with my friend Kevin, we talked about some personal stuff, which was a great comfort to me knowing that someone has had similar experiences with ladies as I have. Also at Chilliwack I "gained a mentor' You see I have thought of myself as a pretty good Masseuse but when compared to Cameron I am a complete maroon. I was hanging out with a group of people and I saw him work on Candice, and get this he was at it for 3 hors straight. I spent a lot of that time watching and learning. The next day was full of activity, We stopped at this little industrial town and since there was really nothing to go me and Kevin went and explored the area. We made our way down this trail half-way down this steep slope. Near the end of the trail we discovered that there was little we could do. So on a whim (or so it seemed) Kevin scaled the cliff back up to the top. Later on that day me and a couple of the chorusters and a good section of the Bell corps scaled what i dubbed "Mount Hill" It was a nice hike but it made me realize that I am out of shape. When I got back to the performance venue I was so winded I could barely walk, but being as stubborn as I am I powered through the first act. I didn’t feel much better at intermission so I drafted Cameron to give me the once-over. It helped immensely.

A few days later I started feeling a little flu-ish which was with me off-and-on for the rest of tour. On one of the group sleeps I got to splendid some time with Men-Yi and Blaine. Among other thing Blaine re-learned the fact that I was Keith Morris' brother-in-law. Also that night I did some work (massaging) on Men-Yi and Candice and from what I heard back from them and Cameron I really beefed up my game.

The last night was pretty fun because partly it was skit night. I was still fighting off the flu so I couldn’t do my skit in addition to the other 2 skits I promised to help out with. The first Skit was the Keith Morris Memorial skit*, it was an honor to participate because of the great amount of Esteem the Morris name carries. The second one was a favor I did for my friend Ken and his lady friend Grace. This skit was one where they Illustrated all the bus problems we had. One of the major plot points was that the men lost their suits and so the men had to wear dresses. I wish I could say this was the first time I wore a dress but its not. And I’m not telling you of the first instance. The Skit night program ended up going to 4:30 am and we all had to be up a few hours later at 8am.

The tour on a whole was fun, but of course left me with Chorus withdrawal. I do speak with some of my chorus peeps from time to time but it’s a poor substitute for the Tour experience. Needless to say I’m looking forward to seeing everyone again in September.

Happy Chris Benoit Day!

2006-04-18T20:30:00.000-06:00

So the morning was pretty efficient. This was the first day that there were three people working the department (The Student - Miranda) was sick Yesterday, We redid some floor graphics in front of the cash lanes its amazing how fast the work goes with a 50% increase in labor. At noon Miranda decided she still wasn’t feeling entirely good so she went home. That afternoon we finally got the go-ahead to start the last stage of the As-is remodel. So Tomorrow were gonna go up in the lift to install them.

The Past few days

2006-04-17T19:13:00.000-06:00

So on Saturday Dad invited me to breakfast at Denny’s. This was my first time at this particular franchise, and I didn’t know what to expect, There wasn’t too much to be said, the food was okay but nothing that really blew my skirt up. The conversation was reasonable though I had to veer his focus away from a few areas of discussion but other than that he behaved.

Sunday was nice my mom got me a few little things, which was greatly appreciated. She got my this book on knots. That was weird I’m not sure why she gave me that but she did. At church I saw some people I haven’t seen in a while, and found out some people are leaving the congregation. Rob Heinricks and his wife are going to be spending some time in the middle east (doing missionary work I’m assuming) after which they’ll be moving to BC. Also later that afternoon I found that Tim and Karlyn Wedler are going to move to Ontario.

That afternoon I worked on my “secret” project for tour, some know what it is but some don’t. But all will know come the end of tour. The work I did was encouraging, I can see the final product coming into focus now.

Monday was good; Kevin’s back so that takes a lot of weight off my back. He came back with all things Japanese. He came bearing gifts, which included one for me. He got me a mini *Oni mask (pictured above). I love it; it makes a lovely addition to my collection that now stands at 8. But sadly I cut my finger in the morning with an OLFA knife, which soured the rest of the day somewhat. The Injury is on the nail so I’m gonna have to be careful I don’t hook the nail before it grows out. Also the injury is on my “crap” finger so I guess that’s better than damaging the good ones.

* The masks depicts that of Hannya further information below

The hannya mask is the vengeful and jealous woman turned demon. Pointed horns, metallic eyes and teeth, and the expression all exhibit the full wrath, anger and resentment of her nature. The origins of hannya masks may have come from early snake masks but most likely the image was taken from painted hand scrolls of stories and legends of the Muromachi period. In fact one of the oldest hannya masks is dated 1558. Of course the most prominent feature is the horns. Even to this day a hand gesture of two index fingers sticking up from a man's forehead is an indication that his wife is mad at him or jealous. There are many variations of hannya masks. The coloring of the face also signifies the degree of passion in the demon's anger. For example, a more reddish color indicates strong resentment and anger and is used in such plays as Dodoji and Kurozuka, whereas a paler color would be more appropriate for Aoi-no-ue. Dodoji is the story of unrequited love between a woman and a priest of Dodoji (temple). She turns into a demonic serpent who wraps her body around the temple bell consuming it and the priest in the process.

ref: http://www.yoshinoantiques.com/masks.html

Week in Review

2006-04-14T09:49:00.000-06:00

Monday – On Monday we go our Grant MacEwan students in, at this point they didn’t have too much of an influence on my job. The students spent the day with *Lyndon and **Barb getting acclimated to the IKEA culture and methodology, an exercise that would consume the rest of the week.

* Our Visual Merchandiser
** The Comm-In manager

Tuesday – Today was a day like any other day except for the fact that there were many projects that were reaching maturity. At this point I was REALLY starting to miss *Kevin. Doing all this on my own was proving to be exceedingly stressful. I am doing this big AS-IS remodel as well as working on all this promotional material for the Easter weekend and as of Tuesday afternoon I have to train my Grant MacEwan Student.

( My Student Intern didn’t stay with the Barb and Lyndon as long because the Graphics department has different responsibilities than the rest of the **Comm-In team)

* Kevin is my boss and the other person who worls in my particular department.
**Comm-In is the IKEA department that handles all the visual design within the store

Wednesday – Again stressful day at work, but that’s enough about that. It was Wednesday, which means only one thing to me: UAMC rehearsal. Usually I’m really excited about that but that day was something of a bittersweet experience. This was the last rehearsal before Tour on the 29th. Given the special-ness of the occasion I brought some of my moms Paska (Easter Bread) As usual it went over big. That evening was the Final night of RATT for the year. That evening the place was packed. That situation is often good for socializing but at the same time you don’t get to sing as often. The song I ended up choosing for my solo performance was “Over my head” by Lit.

Thursday – The last work day of the week … YAY! I still haven’t finished the AS-IS remodel but I managed to finish the Easter Campaign so that is good. Fortunately Kevin is due back on Monday from Japan. However I don’t know how much help he’s going to be when he gets back, He’s prob’ly gonna have one monster case of Jet lag.

That night my friend Andrew (Shaeffer) was in town so I got to spend a little time with him in the evening.