Our web diary

Halloween

Happy (belated) Halloween!
I made this cake for an office thing yesterday. I was hoping to make it spookier, but I couldn't find the things I had in mind during my last minute run to the store. With the marshmallow ghosts, it's just "adorable"
Tasted great though.

Vancouver/Seattle Pics

Sean and I stopped in Seattle for a day -- yes a day in the rain -- before heading up to Vancouver for Christmas. We just managed to post them this week.

Christmas at the Sperlings' was as bustling and loud as ever -- always new people at the Christmas table.
This year was our first Christmas with little Dexter, the son of Theo and Tara, born last August.

As you can see from the pictures in our gallery, he tends to be the center of attention.

New Year's resolutions include posting on the website more often. Maybe we'll get around to changing it up a bit too ... maybe even before 2008 rolls around.

Christmas Pictures are posted in the "New Gallery", link here. This is one of my favourite pics of me and mom, even though it's not very clear because I didn't bring an external flash.

Tante Tilly

There's a new addition to the family.

My sister-in-law Tara gave birth to a baby boy! The first Sperling grandchild
Dexter Sperling B-day: Aug 11, 2006
My parents are ecstatic. Proud Papa Theo can barely contain himself.
I think Tara is still feeling pretty tired.

Apparently the new parents are too busy changing diapers to download digital photos but I got this one forwarded to me by the other aunt in the family "Tante Tilly", who is showing off either the baby, or her handy knittware, I'm not so sure.

Can't wait to get Sean out there with the real camera at Christmas.

Busy, busy, busy ...

Sean and I have been so wrapped up in things lately, we haven't spent much time on this website.

In May we spent a Saturday in Blowing Rock for the Art In the Park day. Sean showcased new Black & White Photography taken with some antique and old-style cameras. It was really cool.

We did some food photography for a presentation. That was actually kind of fun. The most challenging part for me was making some devilled eggs that look as good as they taste.

We spent Memorial Day weekend at Grandma's in Roanoke. We did some work in Grandma's garden. It felt good to be able to do something nice for her. We enjoyed breakfasts on her porch, and dinner at the Fuji Palace. Much fun.

June started with a visit from my pal Arghi. I haven't seen her since our wedding in September of 2003. Too long!! It was like we hadn't spent any time apart. So much fun to finish a bottle of red wine with my best pal and talk and talk and talk while Sean took cover.

Last weekend we photographed a wedding in Shelby, NC. Sean did a great job with the formals, and I had fun getting to help with the candid shots.
I was surprised looking through the proofs when I complemented a few shots that a couple of them were mine. See how good a job you can do when your photographer-husband checks the settings on your camera, gives you a good lense and a fancy flash thing and lets you have at it????

The summer moves on at a brisk pace, we have another wedding coming up soon, an arts festival in Waynesville, NC, more Blowing Rock shows, Sean is going to teach a couple of photography classes later this summer, and the list goes on and on.

Hope you are enjoying your summer too!! We've started to put some pictures in the gallery -- check here.

Salem

We spent a lovely Easter with the Vanns in Winston-Salem. It was an amazing spread as usual, and a nice afternoon. We decided to head to Old Salem in the morning and wander through the old village.
We were blessed with a beautiful spring day; the earth blooming in flowers.
Sean opted to take black & white photos.
Sometimes things like that just make me smile.
Marlene's photos in the gallery -- Sean's to make it to the photography site soon.

Christmas Photos

Sean and I spent the evening working on our Christmas card.
Last year we took a photo of a poinsettia that turned out beautifully, but it's been a bit harder to come up with a new idea for this year's card.
We played with some of my decorations and came up with something we both agreed on. Actually there were a couple of good pics but we decided on something I took -- hee hee (of course my photographer husband helped with all the camera settings).
Anyways one of the things we played with was a silver reindeer that reflects EVERYTHING. We gave up on that idea but I decided to "posterize" it. Sean is not a big fan of this effect, but I happen to love it. What do you think?

Holidays

It's all Sean and I can do to put a couple of pics up on the website -- so you know who has been making some effort and this case it ain't me.
Tsk Tsk Marlena

The holidays approach ... we just spent a wonderful thanksgiving with Sean's relatives in Winston-Salem. I truly adore these people -- so warm, so funny, my kind of crowd.
I brought a few dishes including sweet-potato casserole. The recipe from Jenny just slightly modified to add a little more cream and some ginger. I am now considered a southern convert :-)

Have started putting up Christmas decorations. I just knew this year it would be hard to get into the swing of things, having decided we would postpone the Canada trip for a few months. Oh -- I will be crying on Christmas Eve but hopefully not moping. So I decided to have a little afternoon open house next week, inviting some of the girls from the office.
I've hung a wreath and some garland, got out my Santa Claus guy, all my snowmen and my Christmas CDs.
If you like jazz, my standby favourite is Tony Bennet's Christmas Album "Snowfall". Martha's got out a few compilations as well and her jazz Christmas is kind of fun too.
The question of the day is do I have the motivation to start baking yet? Oh dear I do not know, I do not know........ Christmas cookies, so much mess to clean up later. What is happening to me -- the lady who made everything from scratch actually bought a frozen pie crust for pumpkin pie... and is considering buying Pillsbury ready-made slice and bake cookies........ say it isn't so!!!!!!!

Hope you all are starting to feel the joy of the season -- take some time to do the things that matter -- enjoying those around you, take in a Holiday show or what have you and humm a bar or two of "Deck the Halls".

For the record -- it's still too EARLY to put up a tree -- because if it's a REAL tree it will be brown by Christmas and the other kind doesn't count.

Happy Birthday

It's Mr. Sean's birthday today.

Happy Birthday to my favourite coffee-maker!!!!

Love you,
Marlene

Another Overdue Update

It's sad to say the entire month of May went by without a post from either of us. We had our first real art show in Blowing Rock, NC on May 14th and it did not go very well.
We were up ugly-early for the long drive, which was made worse by a long-slow creep through thick mountain fog to arrive "late" at 2 1/2 hours before the 10am start of the show. Almost everyone else had already arrived; had their canopies up and seemed to be doing nothing more than tweaking their displays. Aggh. The set-up was therefore more tense than what I had already expected on our first go-round with the EZ-up canopy (not so EZ is what I say), the hanging bars, mesh panels, and display bits. After the initial rush to set up, the day was slow with a moderate traffic and not many sales. It's really hard to not let the excitement of heady compliments and then the disappointment of a non-existant sale not affect you. And just after we made a real sale with the 24"x34" framed print of "Study In Color I" the skies opened up, and thunder and lightning dispersed any remaining customes. We packed up (actually threw everything back into the van) early and drove home feeling ill knowing we had lost inventory to water damage.

Anyways since then we have lacked a certain joie de vivre.... umm our mojo maybe? We spent a recent weekend cleaning up the mess; re-matting and re-framing stuff. It was disheartening.

We just did our second (of six) shows last Saturday and although it rained all morning it went so much better. We got there earlier, our expectations were more reasonable, we had steady, if not terribly significant sales, and the usual happy interest. I am going to get one of those crowd counter thingies just to count the number of people who stop, exclaim "Pancakes!" and laugh when the see Sean's 24x30 poster sized pancake print in our display. Sean has sold quite a few pancake prints, both matted and as cards, and I feel there must be some kind of prize to reward the first purchaser of the framed print.

Blowing Rock episode III is July 14th. We think the summer shows will have more tourists, more people and better sales.

Sean has been subjecting me to Star Wars the series. We just watched episode IV last night (which was really the first Star Wars movie made. I know, I know it confuses me too). I can't keep straight half of what we've already seen so he will probably make me watch them all all over again.

We have finally got our interview with INS for my conditional residency permit (a few weeks shy of the deadline for submitting my application for permanent resident status).

Not too much else going on. Work has been extremely busy for both us. I am working on a project to expedite an entire cooling tower to Venezuela, which like some kind of Lego (TM) kit comes in thousands of pieces purchased from manufacturer's from Bellingham to Florida. Let's just say consolidating, documenting and getting this stuff inspected has been taxing. I get no sympathy from Ms. Arghi but I've actually had to work Friday afternoons lately.
Sean's days at TCW have also been more challenging than usual. He is in such desperate need of vacation time to decompress he's told me he just wants time on his own. Since I can't take time off until October and he can't wait that long, I've decided to let him spend the week studio-hunting, playing video games and making his wife supper. Aren't I sweet?

Yes studio-hunting. Sean is looking for space to do portraits. He's been practicing on me. If anyone out there will volunteer to sit for him please please please let me know. (I hate having my picture taken unless I get to goof around). The portraits of me are in the gallery.

Okay until next month, this one's a wrap.

Online Shopping

This is a link for Tilly to some bedding I think she will like. I can't afford it. It's Tilly's birthday coming up, maybe someone else can afford it. Tilly here is your link to funky bedding

More online shopping -- I finally found waffle towels I can afford, but I have to see if I can find some at the Target store to see if I really like them. Waffle towels click here. I found them in the O (oprah) magazine so they'll probably sell out before I get a chance to get to the store.

Gardening

I finally got around to planting some of the plants I've picked up at various nurseries the last few weeks.
This is my second summer here and I had a better idea of what will do well, or at least what died in my last attempt.
I posted some photos in the gallery. Mostly for Tilly to look at, I know the rest of you don't care so much.
The rose bush we bought last summer survived the winter as did an ivy plant and what I think might be a chrysanthemum from last October. I replanted the rose into a larger container, hoping it will make it another year when we can plant in our own yard.
One of the few plants that flourished in a container last summer was the coleus, a bright red and green leafy thing that doesn't bloom but is very colourful. I decided to plant about a dozen of these plants, some red, some yellow outside our fence, hoping they will liven up what is really a drab area. The plants are small now, but I'm hoping to post some "after" shots in a month or two where these same plants will be big, bushy and lush.
Sometimes it's just fun to experiment. We really need a bench or some garden furniture to sit with a glass of wine and enjoy the hot humid evenings here in the south. Okay, well maybe we'll get one or two nice mornings to enjoy a cup of coffee. The photos in the gallery are linked here.
These are my tres amateur photos, so no comments please.

Visiting with Grandma

We spent this last weekend visiting with Grandma. It was good to spend some time together especially since the summer will get very busy.
We drove up Friday afternoon and hit some miserable weather just shy of Fancy Gap, Virginia -- a downpour in foggy conditions, unpleasant to say the least.
On Saturday morning the three of us went to a local nursery to pick out some plants for Grandma's baskets and front yard. I think I ended up with a few more than she did. Between the 2 of us we bought pots of cascading geraniums, mint, lavender, osteopernums, a pansy, and some greenery with funny latin names. In the afternoon Grandma and I tried to work on a crossword puzzle -- I have never been good at those.
My offer to cook dinner on Saturday evening was flatly refused, but when Sean suggested he would pan-fry a steak that was a fine idea.
On Sunday we had a pancake breakfast before Sean and I headed back to Charlotte to work on our prep for the Blowing Rock Art in the Park Festival.
It's hard to believe April is coming to an end and our first show is just 3 weeks away.

A couple of birthday notes: Susan Rivinus celebrates her birthday today April 26th and Arghi Yaqeen's birthday is this Thursday. I'm not sure how Susan feels about birthdays but I know Arghi will need someone to fix her a G&T to get through hers.

Update from Marlene

I've been meaning to update the weblog with some news or a letter, but inspiration or motivation seems difficult to muster these days. I found an email I sent to Tilly after Easter and decided to use it as a letter to all -- with some modifications.

Easter --
We spent Easter in Winston-Salem with the Vanns. We celebrated Easter and Grandma's birthday. On Saturday morning we got up rather early, much to Sean's despair I think, to get going on this trip. I knew I would be in the driver's seat and I just wanted to get going before it got too busy. So at just after 8am, the car packed up with goodies, we stopped first for some flowers at the grocery store, than for some gas, and then we were on the road. Butterflies under strict control I merged without any difficulty -- onto a thankfully un-brutal interstate -- and off we were. I did just fine, even managing to exit Hwy 77 and switch to Hwy 40 -- another merge without panicking.

We ended up having a really really nice time. Visited with Grandma et all, than I went to Target with Jenny, Diane and Ellen (Sean's aunties), a nice diversion, while Sean went for a spin and to check on the truck he has up there (TCW work stuff). Dinner was good: Cream-cheese stuffed celery, olives, roast lamb, barbequed pork, mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole, warm rolls etc. Dessert however was tres beau. Sean is still rhapsodizing about the cheesecake I made. It was good but personally I think next time I will try and find a substitute for the graham cracker crust and there is something about Tante Hulda's cheesecake that is just different but better -- more baked or something. I wish I could find that recipe. I had pureed strawberries to serve with it and covered the dents made by the tin-foil with some fancy fanned-out slice of strawberries. Clara, Sean's cousin, had brought a lemon meringue pie, chocolate chess pie (kind of like a baked chocolate custard) and a coconut topped cake (sort of a banana cake like version). I had a slice of cheesecake and the coconut cake which was very very yummy. I did not have room to try the pies.

Afterwards Grandma opened gifts -- candles had been put on the coconut cake and we sang happy birthday to a quietly-delighted lady. She kept handing her cards to people "Read this, whose it from?" while I quietly giggled to myself.
Sunday morning we stopped by for breakfast. Jenny had put the cinnamon rolls I baked into the oven to warm and they were pretty darn yummy dripping with buttercream icing brought to schmeer on them. A good visit overall -- it was nice to spend a holiday with noisy family people. Almost like home. And lastly, even though it was cloudy, I drove us home. We figured if it started to rain I could pull into a rest area and Sean could take over. Again the highways, especially the first one, were very quiet and I drove us from Jenny's door to our parking lot without stopping. The drive was just under 2 hours and most of it was at the posted speed limit of 70mph -- that's about 110 km per hour. I "plan" to go get that driver's license thingy before the onset of summer.

After the Easter weekend it's been back to the Farmer's market. So far so good. The market itself has still been fairly quiet, but we only need a couple of sales to make our day.

We are planning to make it up to Roanoke for a quick weekend trip next week and then May -- and the first of the Blowing Rock Art shows -- is around the corner. It looks like the summer is going to be very busy. I am already planning a spa day in October after the last show as a reward to myself (from Sean) for my good-wifely-support.
I'm sure Sean will be writing soon about the studio-lighting course he is taking. It's like a kid let loose in a toy store......
Just in case you missed it earlier the photographs from Easter are on the website.

Spring?

Well we're just shy of Easter and the signs of spring are finally starting to make their appearances. We had some early blooms in February, but then it got cold and the poor pansies planted by enterprising landscapers froze.
The trees are blooming, the daffodils are coming up in bunches and those we know with allergies are starting to suffer.

Sean and I spent the weekend starting the prep for the market-season. We wanted to get a few new photos into the inventory. It's kind of fun trying to find everyday objects to take photos of to show them in a different perspective. I made up some bubbles for my rubber duckie for some new kid-friendly greeting cards. We set a piece of plexiglass over a cardboard box and lit it from the underside to get some translucent photos of orange slices (didn't turn out to well) and of an old-fashioned lollipop (turned out rather niftily).

We plan to be out at the Charlotte Farmer's Market the first Saturday in April -- April 2nd.
Sean has also re-tooled the photography site and I think it's fantastic. It's fully e-commerce enabled and we are more than happy to ship to both the US and Canada (I know some of you might be concerned about that ... :-) )
The newer pics will be up soon.

We are planning to be up in Winston-Salem celebrating Easter with Sean's aunts, cousins and Grandmother, so I promise to get our personal gallery updated with some photos from that expedition as well.

Dinner Party

Somehow Sean and I hardly ever entertain. The friends we have in Charlotte generally have children so they prefer to have us visit them.
Relatives are all yonder and far so we generally plan visits to them.
So yesterday it was a wonderful novelty to get out the wedding china and glasses for dinner with Sean's aunt Jenny and uncle Luther.
Luther and Jenny live in Winston Salem and sort of invited themselves, although I quickly seized on Jenny's casual mention of wanting to come visit.

I meant to ask Sean, but forgot, to take a picture of the table before dinner because it really did look lovely. After dinner it didn't look so lovely anymore. Dinner was tasty and that tends to leave crumbs...

There's not much else newswise going on in these parts. The weather's turned and this weekend has been sunny and warm as opposed to last weekend's snowfall (it didn't last long) and predictions of dire icey winterey conditions.

We went to another gallery crawl on Friday night to "man Sean's area". Although there were a few more people out than the last event 2 weeks ago it was still relatively slow. Those photos look so incredible in the black gallery frames with wide white mats. I have to convince Sean to put up a few in our own home since somehow the larger the print size is the more impressive. Mr. Sean would prefer to sell a few of the gallery prints before donating some to his wife's collection, however.

Home in Vancouver news: my sister Tilly is working far too much overtime now that she feels the sting of a mortgage. Tsk tsk Tilly there are years left to pay this thing off.
My mom just celebrated her 71st birthday and is still looking fabulous. My mom has her flower calendar set up really well. Birthday in January, her daffodils come up in February, she gets flowers at Easter in March/April, then mother's day in May and shortly afterwards her own garden's blooms are up. Somehow Mom manages flowers year-round.

My Dad's hip surgery date has been set for Feb 17th. This is good news since he was going to have to wait another 5 months initially. I'm sure it will all go smoothly and we'll keep him in our thoughts and prayers.

Hulda and Ernst Kischnick have made it to South America for their 3-month stay and have been safely delivered into the hands of relatives according to the latest report.

And that's pretty much it for news -- if you've got any let us know so I can as Pops would say "vvrite dat down".

M.

ART MUSEUM TRIP

On Saturday we drove up to Raleigh, NC for a weekend visit. The express purpose of our trip was to go to the NC Museum of Art to see the Matisse exhibit. because it featured "Purple Robe and Anemones". I saw a poster of this painting years ago in a book store window and I have never forgotten it. When I heard about this exhibit I knew I wanted to go. We made it for the last weekend of the exhibit and it was a good thing I spent the extra dollars to reserve tickets with Ticketmaster as it had sold out. The museum was actually open for the last 32 hours of the weekend as we hear someone being offered available tickets for 3am or 5:30am. Despite how busy it was we were able to get close enough to view the paintings we wanted to see, and the exhibit lived up to its appeal.
I even found a poster to take home as a souvenir !!
We spent Saturday night at the Hilton hotel, went out for a nice dinner and then Sunday we did a little shopping before leisurely heading home. A nice romantic weekend on the 3rd anniversary of our first date. A few pictures will be in the gallery soon.

Art imitates life

This one was so true I had to laugh out loud, so I thought I would share today's Bob the Squirrel with you too.

Post script 12/06: I fixed the link on this to point to the comic I was actually referring to.

December 1st

Today is December 1, 2004. I just wanted to confirm it is now acceptable to string lights on the house, hang wreaths on the door and start baking your christmas cookies.
Up until now it has been TOO EARLY!!
Please note however that in all good conscience live Christmas trees should not actually be up and in your living rooms for another 2 weeks.
Fake trees are just that, fake and I will reserve further comments.

Enjoy the season, and if that means spiking the hot chocolate to stay in a good mood I'm all for it.

Over the river and through the woods...

to Grandmother's house we go.
We spent a wonderful thanksgiving weekend with Grandma and some of the Rivinus clan. There were 9 of us at the dinner table including Sean's Aunt Diane, Aunt Jenny, Uncle Luther and 3 cousins. Grandma made the turkey, green beans, and mashed potatoes. She and Diane had already done a lot of the preperations the day before. Aunt Jenny brought sweet-potato casserole, rolls and pumpkin pie. In case there wasn't going to be enough to eat I had brought a red velvet cake. It was also Jenny's birthday so we celebrated that as well.
Sean's Grandmother is one of those people everyone adores and is happy to spend time with so it was a wonderful day. Sean and I drove up Wednesday night and stayed until today.

My second "American" thanksgiving and the only part I still find strange is the rush to begin Christmas before Thanksgiving is really over. It's too early to set up a Christmas tree people!!! The morning after Thanksgiving and the shoppers were lined up at Target and best-buy, the Today show had started their "Countdown to Christmas" and on our ride home today we saw at least a half-dozen live trees tied to people's roof racks on the way home. Oh well 'tis the season and it's too early for bah humbug stuff as well.

On a side note Mrs. Tara Sperling is being surprised today with a 30th birthday party. I am sure there will be a story or two told tomorrow. Someone send me photos (hee hee ha ha). Happy Birthday Tara!

Photographer's Wife

Just a quick bit of news, I sold my first signed limited edition print at the Farmer's market on Saturday.

Sean got me a Canon Rebel for my birthday and I have been practising. I liked the concept of a picture of teacups I'd taken but not the overall look. On a lark I played around with it in photoshop and came up with something sort of Andy Warhol like (to quote Tilly). I just thought it looked funky.

I put it on display at the market and it was the first picture someone looked at and about the third to sell. Pretty nifty n'est-ce-pas? Sometimes creativity pays, not necessarily well, but it can still pay.

It's a bird, it's a plane...

Sorry Carlos, I just couldn't resist posting this. Who says Halloween is kid's stuff?

Happy Birthday .... to me!!!

I am having a great day. Sean took me out for a lovely dinner last night at Monticello's -- a small slightly upscale restaurant in Uptown Charlotte. It was wonderful to spend a night on the town. This morning he made me breakfast, and mixed up some creme brulee for later this evening. And to go completely overboard there's birthday cake as well. Many of you have called or written this last week and I appreciate it more than you know. Tomorrow I'll reflect on how old I am now, but for today I'm just reflecting on chocolate cake.

A new toy ... for Marlena

Ooooh another early birthday present from my beloved Sean. On the agenda this weekend was a trip to the Renaissance Festival with the Charlotte Camera Club. When I expressed an interest in being able to take real pictures too --Sean happily(?) bought me a digital SLR camera so I could "play" as well.
It's somewhat intimidating and yet very exciting to try something new.

This morning we went to the Festival. What a beautiful day it's been. Although it started out somewhat chilly (43F aprox 5C), the sun was out and warmed us up quickly. We had access to the Festival a little earlier than opening so we could take pictures of the fair ground, and the unique people who work there.

We'll get some pictures up in the gallery soon, but this picture of Sean turned out rather well I thought.

Paris collage

This was an interesting thing I'd thought I'd share. Sean and I collaborated on a gift for Tilly's birthday. I put together a group of photos and memorabillia from trips to Paris Tilly and I had made together and laid them out on a map of the city. Sean then took a photo of the collage and we printed it out as a poster.
It got stuck in the mail and Tilly just got this on Friday. We've put off posting this because we didn't want to ruin the surprise. I think this is pretty damn cool, if I do say so myself.

Sean's Birthday Cake

Today is Sean's birthday.
I got him a gift card from B&H photo so he can pick something out of his favourite catalog and attempted to make a "pudding cake" a la Momma Sperling. Turned out pretty tasty, but not as good as Mom's. Although Mom's made at least 100 of those cakes over the years so she has had more practice ...
Trust me, this tastes much better than it looks.
Happy Birthday Sean!

Oh Lordy -- Tilly's 40!!!

My dearest friend, and sister, Tilly is turning 40 tomorrow. It's Ok Tilly, 40 is the new 30 so you will be younger tomorrow than you are today.

These pictures were taken by my cousin Stefan at my parents' house on Saturday. The Sperlings and the Kischnicks celebrated Father's Day and both Tilly and Hulda's birthdays.
The cake looks pretty yummy, but be sure to chew carefully.......
Happy Birthday Tilly!!!

The War on Dirt

It's funny that while scrubbing the kitchen floor one can start to get a little philosophical. With all that's in the news we wonder why we fight wars we may never win, where even winning is not really winning. I know it doesn't quite compare, but this is how I feel about dirt. You see you can fight dirt with all the cleansers, sponges, sprays and mops in the world but you will NOT win. Dirt comes back. Dirt may let you win the battle, but it will never let you win the war. This is why having scrubbed the kitchen floor until it shines you have to leave the house just so it might just stay that way a little longer. Stick around and that kitchen floor will be mocking you in no time. I have found this to be a condition even more true since living with Sean. I clean, and he reverses my efforts. It's inevitable.
Then you have laundry - and with laundry there is no finish line. There is no such thing as not having laundry to do. You can wash every article of clothing, every sheet and towel in the house, but unless you plan to take up nudism, the clothes you are wearing will become "laundry" just as soon as you take them off.
And there are no solutions to this dilemma. Turn on the TV and you are inundated with ads for the latest in cleaning products, but no one has yet to come up with anything that will keep the dirt away. There are "no-iron" shirts (ha ha what a laugh), but there aren't any "no-wash" items on the market (unless you count "dry-clean only"). There is no spray that will repel spills from marring your just-cleaned counter top. Sure there are these new teflon sprays out there, but even if the dirt slides off it still has to go somewhere -- and now you're just back to wiping the floors again.
So the question is why bother?
All I can come up with is that there is a certain je ne sais pas about a shiny-sparkly neat and tidy house, no matter how fleeting the moment is, that is ever so enjoyable to behold while enjoying a good cup of coffee. Of course once the coffee is finished, you have dishes to deal with, but by now you know where I am going with this. That's right, exactly nowhere.

Lastly I feel the need to make a statement regarding Sean's last entry. I want to clarify that I do not campaign for birthday gifts a year in advance. I give my beloved friends and family about six weeks notice so that they will remember to call or send a card and IF they should feel inclined to send a pretty package tied up with string. I have yet to make out a wish list. I just felt the need to make this clarification, although I know most of you are just laughing now anyways.

"The Cross-stitch"

Well it's done. I have been working on this cross-stitch since January and finished it a two weeks ago. Today I ironed it and mounted it to foam board so it's ready for framing. When I first pulled the instructions out of the kit and sorted through all the thread colours I thought I would never finish this thing, or go crazy trying. There were times I wanted to give up, yet with persistence, patience and sometimes a lot of do-overs anything is possible. Working on this kept me busy for hours at a time while I was at home without my employment authorization. Now that I am working again, I am not sure that I would ever again attempt such a large project, but I have been tempted while wandering through Michael's lately

Employed

More of a headline for now, because I haven't too much to say yet, but I finally found a job. I've been searching since I got my employment authorization about 2 months ago. It's easy to imagine that resumes end up in big black holes somewhere as some kind of cosmic joke.
And yet what did come up, looks to be a job that will utilize my skills & experience in the international transportation field and even teach me some stuff -- sounds encouraging n'est-ce pas? (that's french for eh?)
The position is as an Expediter/Traffic Coordinator in the purchasing dept of Midrex Technologies. Midrex is involved in steelmaking and has diversified into selling their technology. I will be involved in moving spare parts to 2 existing plants in Venezuela as part of an ongoing maintenance contract.
I start Monday and am not too sure about what to expect, other than that things will change here in the Rivinus household.
Stay tuned....

Found something funny in the Funnies

This last Sunday's comics had a couple of good laughs. Sean is especially fond of a new strip called "Get Fuzzy". There are quite a few comic strips that have been around so long they have lost a lot of their appeal and humor, yet every once in a while one of these "oldies" will still surprise you.
This was the case with yesterday's "Cathy". I found a copy posted in Yahoo to share here.
I was reminded of it today after reading Jason Clark's weblog. Jason asks where you look up words to check their correct spelling. Umm the dictionary actually. Ok I may use the spell check on MS Word but I still tend to grab my dictionary to check if I've used a word in the correct context more often then I need to check its spelling.
This is where I determined that an Oedipus complex is "A strong, typically unconscious attachment of a child to the parent of the opposite sex, especially of a son to his mother, with antagonism toward the other parent." This is likely not what Jason meant when he described my husband Sean as "Oedipal". When it comes to describing Sean words often fail me so I have to applaud the effort even if I don't quite agree with this description.

Postscript:
OOPS! I misunderstood Jason's blog, he was not referring to Sean but Sean's concept of Dial-up over VOIP. He sent me the following note and I thought it was only fair to add the clarification:
"Got a chuckle when I read your weblog post today....I was refering to the idea of dial-up internet over Voice-Over-IP as being Oedipal, not Sean. Since dial-up internet is internet service over a phone line, and voice-over-IP is just phone service over the internet, well, I thought the idea sounded like a bad
joke about West Virginia. ;-). After I re-read it, I added a clarification to my original post."

On the road again...

My husband Sean is a Sunday driver. There are few things he enjoys more than getting up early Sunday morning to hit the road and be able to travel quickly on roads usually congested with traffic at speeds somewhat above the posted limits especially on the winding roads of Charlotte.
As many of you know I, however, have avoided driving all of my life. I've had a learner's permit twice without ever actually getting behind the wheel of a car. Recently I've run out of excuses and have had had to actually use my learner's permit and start driving practice. Those who know Sean know that he does not count patience as one of his virtues but I have to say I could not do this without him.
Weeks ago we started with navigating the turns of a large oval church parking lot, he then convinced me to take to the small residential roads outside of the parking lot. Last week Sean found a small residential area and printed a map from mapquest so we could navigate the area and avoid the larger roads nearby. This meant I could practice right/left turns, the 4-way stop-signed intersections etc. etc. But we both knew it was time to get on the road, at a speed over 25mph and with more than one lane of traffic. This morning after Sean had his fun in the VW bug he came back to wake me for a morning drive in the Honda. As I made the left out of our apartment complex and the right onto Providence Rd. I thought "oh Lord!, here we go, please help!". I would like to tell you my drive through Charlotte at 8:30am was uneventful but it had its moments. Sean is prepping me for the next adventure of merging onto the interstate -- although I think he may want to invest in some rosary beads or something else to hang onto while praying for a positive outcome before I attempt it. If we live to tell about it I'll be sure to let you know how it went.

Picture of Marlene

A Picture of Marlene at the Queenscup

Nothing New?

The last entry has been up for over a week so it's about time we post something. Sean is suffering from too-damn-busy-at-work syndrome and I am just suffering from a writer's block. Well that's my excuse and I am going with it.
So because it seems there is nothing going on around here I have decided to write about other people.

My good friend Arghi has made a momentous leap lately. She has finally made the move out on her own and further compounded this by moving from Toronto to Montreal. It's a big thing to be on your own in a new city but I know she will flourish. Montreal is an amazing city with so much to do and see --great nightlife, cool culture, and some of the best restaurants in the world.
Most importantly it has great shopping.
My friend Kim in Vancouver went back to university a few years ago to pursue a bachelor's degree in Education and is nearing the finish line. She is doing another practicum and I am sure the kids adore her.
My Dad who fell in January and has been incarcerated in a metal neck brace for the last six weeks was released last week and is now in a soft collar. Whew.
My sister Tilly's life has become consumed by my parents. Chauffering them to doctor's appointments and weekly shopping trips and playing nurse with my Dad who is a great patient with everyone except his daughters.
And speaking of my parents they are celebrating their 45th wedding anniversary on Easter Sunday. Can you imagine?!
I have a hard time envisioning myself as a grey-haired Oma in the year 2048 with Sean at my side talking about the good ole days...
Well and that's how it goes I guess one day at a time and the next thing you know things have actually happened in your life and it hasn't been so dull after all. Hard to believe on a quiet Saturday afternoon.

Painting

I have started painting our apartment townhouse. I have been thinking/talking about doing this since October but there were obstacles in my path.
First -- what colour? and is it worth it (this is a rental after all and I do not want to have to paint everything back to white before we leave.
Next I had to consider Sean's painting skills. While I dithered over what colour to paint the rest of the townhouse, Sean picked a strong marine blue for his computer room and wasted no time. He painted two of the four walls and let me just say the blue on the walls looks great, but on the trim, the closet doors and on the carpet it's not so wonderful.
Lastly, I was sort of waiting until I knew we were hanging around here for a while. So when we renewed our lease in Febuary I knew it was "now or never". Last weekend I bought my supplies and today I finished the downstairs area.
I have now painted the same living/dining area the same colour that we already had (soft white) except it's a satin finish versus a flat finish. Trust me it makes a difference. Sean thinks I have lost my mind.

I also tried out a colour blocking technique in a slightly darker colour "Sand Fossil" on one of the walls and went wild with beige ("Antique white") in one of the living room corners.

I have run out of paint and still have the upstairs to do. Perhaps I'll get a little more daring up there. A nice mauve maybe, don't you think Sean would love that?!?

Ain't it Grand?

Yesterday I ventured on my own to South Park Mall to check out the new Nordstrom's at their grand opening. I don't think there were that many people at the mall even at Christmas. It's one of those human nature things that makes me laugh, we know it's going to be around for a while so why exactly do we feel the need to be there on the very first day?
It was actually kind of fun, and I didn't stay long before I made my way to the Starbucks for a much needed cappucino before heading home.

In other news, the online immigration site indicates my work permit has been approved and will be mailed out. Since my fingerprinting appointment was on Tuesday and it was approved the same week, how grand is that?!

Fingerprinting, eh?

Just as information for any of our new readers, Sean and I are in a mixed marriage. He's an American from the South, and I'm a Canadian from the west coast. So unlike most couples we have the added dimension of dealing with the INS as well as a couple of cultural differences.
I crossed the border on a fiancee visa and we got legally married here in Charlotte. In November we sent in the paperwork for my conditional resident status, work permit and a travel document. At the end of December I got my receipts back including a letter requesting an additional $50 for the fingerprinting fee. Sent in the check and in January I got back a letter with a phone number I was to call to make an appointment.
Today was Fingerprinting and Biometrics day. I called in about 6 weeks ago to get this appointment (the first available) at 8am this morning. 45 minutes later I had filled in a form which included questions about my height, weight, eye colour and hair colour (aka "biometrics"), did the digital finger-printing thing and had my photo taken. In an effort to make conversation with the guy holding my hand I said, "No more ink pads, huh?". He told me they still have those for the bad people. "I'm not Martha Stewart," I quickly replied. It got a laugh. I know I know everyone's a comedian.
It may be similar to my experience at the DMV last week where if you get in early the process is quick whereas if you get there mid-day you are there for hours just waiting, but it was for me the same frustration I've had with this whole process. Once you get to the next step the immigration officers are usually pleasant, courteous and even efficient, but getting an appointment for that next step takes forever. Hopefully the employment authorization is just around the corner and not yet another 6 weeks away.
I am sure it makes no difference but they give you a comment card to fill out before you leave and well if you know Marlene, you should know if you ask for comments you'll get comments.

Driving Ms. Marlene

It's a tough thing to admit, but at the age of 33 I have never actually driven a car. I can come up with all sorts of reasons (excuses) for this lapse, but I have managed in the past to get around the big cities I've lived in with their well established public transit systems and have not thereby really needed, or been able to afford a vehicle. This will not work here in Charlotte, NC.
On Weds of last week I got my learner's permit, and although I've had one of those before this time I have a husband who is going to make sure I use it.
Yesterday was day one of driving lessons.
We started at the gas station with lesson number one -- put gas in the car, check the tire pressure, and the oil.
Lesson number 2 took place in a vacant church parking lot. Oh Lord I could feel the anxiety just sitting in the driver's seat, but Sean talked me through it and after a few laps I could feel myself relaxing. I decided to end the lesson when another car pulled in and parked. I didn't really feel like I would have hit it but I didn't want to take any other chances.
Hopefully our marriage will survive this trial by fire. My sister has reassured me that our love may not be tested but patience might be.

Dad

Yesterday was my father's 74th birthday. He has postponed celebrations until after he is released from the neck brace he's been in since falling in January.
Dad is in good spirits though and was teasing me about planting rubber trees in our neighbourhood now that I have my learner's licence and am impelled to take up driving when I called to wish him well yesterday.
My parents have taught me much over the years and continue to be an inspiration to me in the art of survival. Apparently being a little crazy doesn't hurt. Happy birthday Papi!
This picture of my Dad and I was taken in September 2003.

An Outlet for Addicts

It was a sunny Sunday afternoon here in Charlotte, the remains of a winter storm melting in the sunshine, when my husband asked "What would you like to do today?". Well let's see hmm I know let's go to the outlet mall in Gaffney, SC. Sean had finally gotten around to going through his closet on one of our recent snow days and been persuaded to discard a few of his older (read dated) items of clothing, and I thought perhaps we could look for a couple of inexpensive replacements for him out there since his comparison pricing is always done against Wal-mart items. Ok, those of you who know the wife in this story also know she is thinking "and maybe I might look for a pair of shoes". I am an addict. I don't remember when I became an addict but somewhere along the line my predilection for red shoes, which began as early as I could point, became a desire for shoes of varying colours and styles. These days they don't need to be red per se but I still find myself strangely drawn to them.
We got Sean's shopping out of the way, I wandered breezily through many a shoe store just looking for a new pair of loafers and then just about ready to leave I said to Sean "oh just one last store, they may have some loafers here". After surveying the men's side of the store Sean found me where I started in Ladies shoes with one caramel and one charcoal loafer on either foot. "Whatcha doin'?", he asked. "Trying to decide which colour I like more," I answered. "Well they are buy one get 1/2 off the second pair so why don't you get both?," he asked. Well what he didn't realize of course is that I had already scoped out a pair of red shoes I wanted and was now trying to decide on the second pair. I decided on the creamy caramel loafers and the red mules and made my way to the register still yearning for the charcoal loafers I'd left behind. Of course the cashier tells me the red mules are not elligible for the half-price offer. When asked why she tells me it's because they are already discounted to 15.99. "What?!" I made her repeat that twice because I really couldn't believe what I heard. For 15.99 these ones were practically free already so that solved my other dilemma, I quickly retrieved the charcoal loafers and bought 3 pairs of shoes for 72 dollars. Yes the grin on my face lasted all the way home.
An outlet for addicts is what I call those malls, they are dangerous places for people like me, but you have to admit my new shoes sure are purdy.
Sean used them as a subject for some photography and here is a picture. Have I mentioned I love my husband? :)

Milestones

I can't decide if I should leave this website's monologues to Sean since the website has always sort of been his thing and remains so. No point in mentioning the first version since who can really remember it anyways, but in essence it has always been a place to post pictures and the occasional Rivinus update. If you understood the last entry aboout the aggregator blog RSS feed etc etc you are one of those who belong to the same class as Sean, otherwise you, like me, could be reading japanese and it would be about as clear. In my world technical talk involves how to time a souffle perfectly so you can eat it right after dinner and before it deflates.
We spent our first Valentine's day together this year, another milestone in our life together, marked by my first attempt at chocolate souffle. Ok, they fell but they were still absolutely yummy. Not bad for breakfast either, I might add. In Sean's search for interesting photoblogs he came across one where people contribute pictures of their airline meals. Perhaps as a sideline I'll add 365 days of "what's for dinner", unfortunately today's highlight is leftovers. Ok so that's enough from me, back to the blogs.....

Straight Eye for the Queer Guy

Marlene made a great joke tonight after I made a comment about an article on Entertainment Tonight. There were some people complaining about a girl wearing flats with her dress. Now I think that makes sense because she will be standing most of the night. Let's face it, most real guys don't see shoes. Marlene made the comment that there should be a show 'Straight eye for the queer guy" I died laughing. Can you imagine one of those guys from the show, kicking back in a plaid recliner, downing cheap beer, eating 2 for a dollar tortilla chips, with a Redskins jersey, in puppy dog pajamas, watching WWE wrestling....

Sundays

The year on the calendar has changed but some things remain the same. I have mastered Sunday mornings and I like them just the way they are. As with every other morning of the week they start with coffee but that's where similarities end. Bacon is a sunday breakfast staple. Do not worry if you are counting calorie bacon on Sundays does not count. To the bacon add a complementary food group. Perhaps eggs (made into a nice omelette with mushrooms and cheese), pancakes, or french toast. Add plenty of maple syrup, orange juice if it's on hand and a fresh pot of coffee and breakfast soon becomes brunch.


Then open the Sunday paper. This part of the ritual has been greatly improved by acquiring a husband whose weekly chore it is to go fetch said paper. Linger over coffee with newspaper in hand. Read critiques of movies you never get around to seeing, plan trips outlined in the travel section for "one day" clip a few coupons, and attempt to find at least one slightly comical comic. If you are fairly ambitious you can choose to puzzle out the Sunday crossword not my idea of fun, I prefer to puzzle over the fashion in the "Style" section. Then sometime around noon when you are completely mellow,and the coffee pot is empty get on with the rest of the day doing nothing in particular.


Ah I do love Sundays.

Christmas tree

Sean and I picked up a live christmas tree yesterday. It's a 6ft tall Fraser Fir. The tree itself is quite broad and full. I think it is beautiful. I didn't manage to get a tree during the last 4 years living in Toronto so this one is all the more special. It's decorated with some of my treasured ornaments and some new ones I bought just this year. Presents are wrapped and under the tree and Mr.Instant-Gratification Rivinus is finding it hard to wait the 10 more days to Christmas Eve to see them opened. It's funny because I think he finds it harder to wait to see me open the gifts he has chosen for me than he is waiting until he is allowed to open his own.


As a kid I could barely wait to open my gift -- I'll admit to having done a little shaking. As an adult I find myself wrapping small gifts for myself -- a new book to read, a new sweater, a small box of chocolates -- just so I can "surprise" myself at Christmas with gifts I really wanted. (I grew up with 3 well-meaning brothers and some years the thought was all that really counted.) Often the best gifts we receive are the ones we give ourselves. This year I think I will sit back and enjoy our first Christmas together and give myself the gift of peaceful enjoyment of our first Christmas together and not allow myself to worry too much about the details.

Christmas cookies

I have just taken another batch of christmas cookies out of the oven. So far I've made some sugar cookies, some 'honig kuchen' (my mom's honey-cookie version of gingerbread), a few plain and some with jam, and some Pffefernusse (i don't think these 'pepper' cookies have an english name). I think I will mix up a batch of jam thumbprints with coconut and call it a day. Oh but I have a really good recipe for chocolate cookies too....hmmm


I love christmas baking but I have been too busy the last few years to do much of it. My apartment-sized oven and galley kitchen in Toronto were not designed for baking anything but frozen pizza.


One of the things we invested in as a wedding gift was two Silpat baking sheets. At $20 each they are quite expensive but if you bake they are well worth every cent. Skip parchment paper and greasing and flouring and buttering cookie sheets, this is the answer. Nothing sticks -- I haven't had a broken one yet.


A few fortunate friends and relatives will be the beneficiary of homemade cookies this christmas, that is if there are any left by then. Here's wishing you a season's good eating.

Christmas Time is Here

Well it's official, at least for me anyways, the holiday season has begun because I have just watched "A Charlie Brown Christmas". I love that cartoon, have been watching it every year since i was an infant. It's just a classic. When Linus quotes the passage in Luke about the birth of Jesus and says "that's what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown" I shed a little tear.


Although of course my favourite line belongs to Lucy "You know ho ho ho and mistletoe and presents for pretty girls".


Speaking of pretty girls and presents I have started wrapping ours, and they look very beautiful. My sister Tilly sent me 24 small presents to last the entire advent. Today's surprise was 2 chocolates. I ate both of them before I stopped to think maybe one was for Sean. Oops. Sorry honey.


Well I hope you are starting to get into the spirit of the season. Remember it's the thought that counts, but I always say a little bit of extra ribbon goes a long way.

Halloween Wedding

Another wedding?


As most of our friends and family know, all of whom regret ever asking, this visa thing I came down to the US on is complicated. We had what looked and felt like a wedding in Vancouver except it was not legally binding as my visa is actually a fiancee visa requiring that we marry in the US.


Last week we picked up our marriage licence at the Charlotte-Mecklenburg county registry and this Friday we are getting married in the courthouse. I think the proceding will take all of 10 minutes -- we will show up and wait for the first available appointment between 2 and 4pm. Sean's aunt and uncle, Jenny and Luther Vann have graciously agreed to come down from Winston-Salem and our friends Dan and Debbie Hemmingsen are also going to be able to be there.


My sister Tilly thought I was kidding when I told her we were getting married on Halloween, but we've been trying to organize this for about a month with both Sean's schedule and that of our mandatory witnesses, and waiting another week just seemed sillier than worrying about the date. No, we are not wearing costumes, and yes we are going to celebrate September 14th as our wedding anniversary.


Speaking of costumes last weekend as part of my birthday present from Sean we went to the Renaissance Festival in Concord, NC. You should check out the pictures and Sean's write-up. It was a lot of fun. Sean is still trying to convince me to go in costume next year.


Well that's our news, hope all is well with you and yours. We love to see comments on our guestbook.

Birthday

A poem written by my brother Carlos E. Sperling in honour of my birthday:


I checked my calendar and what do you know?


Tomorrow's the day to inspect our toes.


There's something else I think I'm forgetting,


Something I'm sure I would end up regretting.


Something about the 24th of October,


Something about... Oh! Now I remember!


It's a day to evoke my imagination --


Send a poem in honor* of your celebration.


I wanted it witty, smart, and funny.


I didn't want anyone's eyes getting runny.


But, this line right here almost made me insane-(Uh),


I needed a rhyme for "Happy Birthday Marlene"


*Since you moved to Charlotte, there's no "u" in honor -- Appropriate since now there's no "you " here to honour!


Clarifications 1. the rhyme on the last line works with the german pronunciation of my name which is mar-lay-nuh and 2. the Canadian spelling of honor is honour


Carlos and Anne

Update on Status

Well we are starting to add a few "after the wedding pictures" to the website, including a few pictures of some of the lovely gifts we've received from friends and family. We want to thank you for your thoughtfulness.


Canadians are celebrating Thanksgiving this Monday while our American counterparts celebrate Columbus Day. I really don't know why Canadians celebrate Thanksgiving earlier than Americans, perhaps because there is very little of the harvest left at the end of November in most parts of our northern climate. I have decided to roast a chicken and make mashed potatoes and stuffing, even if just for Sean and I. You know, any excuse to get out my Gourmet magazines...


My personal effects are arriving from Toronto this Weds. I am sure Sean will be taking pictures of the stacks and stacks of boxes. I am so excited about seeing my red velvet loveseat sofa as well as some of my other most treasured possessions. Where we will put all of our combined stuff is another question.


In other news I have now received a Social Security number, and we can now go about getting a marriage license here in the US, a drivers' licence (and yes lessons!), a bank account etc. etc. I guess then I will then start to feel like more of an actual resident. Hope all is well with you and your loved ones, Marlene

Wedding

Sean is working on the photos. I promise. Let me tell you a little about the event of the century.


The night before the wedding my aunt Hulda hosted a dinner for the two families and some of our out-of-town guests. Grilled steaks, fresh salads (tomatoes from the garden --yum!), Hulda's cheesecake, and Dad's homemade wine.


Sunday morning we awoke to a rainy cloudy day. Although we had a back-up plan for rain, there was a huge sigh of relief when the sun came out.


Sean's stepmother Susan hosted a brunch for the girls Sunday morning at Vandusen Garden. Starting the day with Champagne Kisses (champagne and cranberry juice) was a really good idea.


The ceremony started at 5:30pm in the garden. Flute music played in the background, the fountains splashed in the nearby ponds, the planes circled overhead (oh well).


The open-mike at the reception proved to be 'interesting'. Who knew the Sperling siblings would remember so much of the bride's childhood?


We honeymooned on Vancouver Island out at Sooke Harbour, in our own little cabin in the woods at a place called Point-no-point. We loved it. Quiet, secluded, and amazing scenery. After months of not being able to see each other and after the hectic activity of the wedding, it was nice to just sit and enjoy each other's company.

Wedding II

Last Sunday - Sept 14th - Sean and I exchanged vows in front of friends and family in Vancouver, Canada. Although we woke up to clouds and drizzling rain that morning, by the afternoon the sun came out. It was a beautiful day filled with special moments, the memories of which we will treasure always.


Today our visa was approved so I will be moving to Charlotte this Friday.


We will get hitched in front of a judge and a couple of witnesses as we are required to get legally married in the US. Pictures are coming soon, but here is one quick preview:


Oct 22, 2003 The pictures in the weblog have been removed. They can now be seen in our Pictures section on the website.

Long overdue Update

A long overdue update:


Our application for the fiancee visa was approved on June 3, 2003. Yeah!!!


We are know at stage two awaiting paperwork from the National Visa Center (more forms to complete and send in) and then Marlene's interview with the US Embassy here in Canada. Let's all hope for the best. Fingers crossed we hope that the final approval will come in by the end of summer.


In the meantime I am planning a reception in Vancouver in September to celebrate with family and friends here before we get married in Charlotte later this year.


The Vancouver celebration is planned for Sept 14, 2003 and we hope to exchange vows but save the legal stuff for the US.


Yes, this romance is as complicated as ever. :) The good news is it hasn't deterred us.

Update

Sean and I have had a busy few weeks and have been remiss in keeping up the website. It's a long story but we both had our last days at Maersk on the 28th. I flew down to Charlotte that afternoon and we drove directly to Roanoke, Virginia that night so that we could spend Saturday with Sean's family. His Grandma turned 90 and we wanted to help her celebrate. We left Sunday for Nashville for 4 days. While Sean spent the week getting acquainted with his new job I toured the city and toured some of the nearby plantations.


We then went home to Charlotte. Together we bought some new furniture and painted Sean's old coffee table and I managed to organize some of the cupboards and closets to make room for my things when we move them down.


I'm back in Toronto now and preparing to move my stuff into storage. I plan to spend the summer in Vancouver with my family and enjoy a sabatical until the visa stuff comes together and I can move to Charlotte. Hope all is well with you and Happy Easter! Marlene


Note from Sean. Here is the link to the pictures from that trip


Marlene's Visit

Winter Blues

Winter Blues


It has been a cold winter up north. The days are starting to get brighter and the sun shines longer but mensch, with temperatures still below freezing, it has just been too cold to spend any extended time outside. Another reason to look forward to moving to Charlotte. Still no news on the Canadian moving south, but we haven't given up all hope yet.


What amuses me is how many people in Toronto are looking forward to my moving. It seems a day doesn't go by that someone doesn't ask me "when are you going?".


If we ask Sean he will say "soon, dear".

Dad's birthday

Speaking of birthday's it's my dad's 73rd birthday today. The big family barbeque is planned for next Saturday. Wish I could be there. Happy birthday Papi!

Marlene's Quote of the Month

Marlene's Quote of the Month


This quote was on one of those amusing quotes of the day calendars.


It speaks volumes about me.


My mother always told me I wouldn't amount to anything because I procrastinate.


I said, "Just wait."


-Judy Tenuta