Josh Groban, Guitars, Cameras, Tomko, Whine, Whine, Whine (Wine?)

Oooooh I'm going to see Josh Groban tomorrow. I'm not as excited as I expected I would be, but I'm sure the excitement will come in the form of wetting my pants as soon as he starts to sing. My goodness he has a lovely voice. The ride there should be fun, as Brea and John are fun people, and we're meeting up with Holly's cousin Dane, who is buying Kiri's ticket off us (Kiri is in Edmonton having a well-deserved break from her family :p). We are up in the nosebleed of all nosebleeds, but WHO CARES? It's like in Ella Enchanted when the teenybopper girls are shrieking "WE'RE BREATHING THE SAME AIR AS THE PRINCE!!!" Except I am no teenybopper. There will be shrieking, though. Mwuahahaha. Talent deserves a good shriek. I think I'll use my patented "Stabilo Shriek". Oh dear.

I want a new guitar. Howie (this is my guitar's name) has been faithful, but he just SUCKS when it comes to bar chords. And I know that I am not the best at playing them, but they sound way better on other guitars, so the problem cannot lie entirely with me. Unless it's because I've been mistreating Howie. In which case I deserve no new guitar at all.

I love our digital camera - I've been playing around and poking through the manual and I'm starting to figure out how to use all of its fanciness. I am excited about the prospects. Rafe (this is my camera's name) does a great job for a little automatic, but he can't do what this camera can do. I feel as though this one needs a majestic name, but I can't think of anything. PLUS, I wonder if maybe I'm getting a little too old to be naming things that are special to me. I'll have to think on it for a while.

The most thrilling part of today was when work was over and I realized that there are only three more work days left until I go back to school. I really need a break from Tomko. I understand that eventually I will be working all year round and there will be no school to go back to. I feel, however, that this is not a CAREER, and so it's ok to want to escape from it. I pray that I will love the job that I end up with for an extended period of time so that I won't WANT to escape very often.

I don't really have very much to say, but I wanted to write SOMETHING so that I feel like I've accomplished a great task today. Meh. Who am I kidding?

Rant.

I have been thinking about a few things recently that I need to get out of my system.

I am annoyed with rich people. I know that statement makes me sound like I'm prejudice, so please understand that I don't mean ALL rich people. What I don't understand is why some rich people feel that they're better and more important because they have money. And what I understand even LESS is how people do in fact treat them as though they are more important. This weekend I had the privilege of staying in our Whistler home for the first time. The place is palatial and I adored it. It is, however, extravagant, and I'm pretty sure that I would not buy a place like that even if I had the means. I won't say "definitely" because then I might just go and prove myself a liar. Anyway. There is a staff of people there who are basically paid to do what the homeowners want. This includes fetching things for them from the market, adding chlorine to their personal hot tubs, making sure they don't run out of towels, and taking them all over the place in the state-of-the-art SUVs. Don't get me wrong. I'm sure they get paid well. What bothers me is how edgy they seem.... so worried that they're going to displease me and my family and get fired or something. I went to the pool one evening to take a look around and the guy putting the cover on immediately stopped what he was doing, asked if something was wrong and if he could do anything for me. He looked kind of scared, and that just isn't right. Ashlee and I took advantage of having one of the employees, Mick, driving us down to the village because we were scared we would get lost (yes, Ashlee is about as bad with directions as I am). She will vouch for me when I write that his attitude towards me changed noticeably after I told him that we had won our chapter. It was like... we could all talk like real people again.

I guess the problem is that money = power in our society. This is something that I have learned at Tomko, especially over this summer, as I become more involved with sales and customer service. If there is someone with enough money, we will bend over backwards to accomodate their desires and crappy moods. How often has one of us been yelled at by a moody rich jerk who thinks he / she can harrass us just because they were born with a silver spoon in their mouth? or because they've been successful in business? Rich doesn't mean that you have license to be a jerk. What REALLY burns me up is when people find out that I'm the daughter of the guy who owns the company. Suddenly it goes from "come hither, slave" to "have a great day, Ian's daughter." Please. Give me a break. I don't want someone's respect by association. How about we give Sara respect because she's a decent human being? Well... kind of decent ;). Grr.

Here's a story. There is a guy called Charlwood or something like that (don't know his first name, he's just "Mr. Charlwood"). Apparently he owns Uniglobe Travel and a bunch of other crap. He has his OWN STREET in the nicest part of West Van (the street is called Camelot... how fitting!). He has private jets and stuff like that, so he's one of the richest guys in Canada. He buys a trampoline from us through one of our customers, as a gift for his eight year old daughter's birthday. We get a call from a man claiming that there is a part missing for his trampoline. We do the usual, explaining that we'll have the part in the mail that day. Nono, that's not good enough. Line 2 starts ringing, and Jim (he's the customer who resold the trampoline) is freaking out, saying that Charlwood is on the phone yelling at him because there is a piece missing from his trampoline. Turns out, the guy on Line 1 is the gardner for Charlwood and Charlwood is calling from a plane that's about to land in Greece and everyone is freaking out. His daughter is having 150 people at her birthday party and he has the gardner, the maid, the butler, and the chauffeur (I'm not kidding) out in the woods of his property putting this trampoline together in secret for the big event and if the piece isn't there he is going to return the whole thing and not pay for it or the other work that Jim had been doing. Not only that but the rest of his "staff" will surely suffer. I don't know. I much prefer doing things for people who are nice. I would have liked to meet this Charlwood character. But truth be told, I'd probably be a bit intimidated by him. Why??????!!!

And why do you need your own street? I think there are too many people who are so concerned with material things that it is getting a bit ridiculous. I like things. I like my stereo and my laptop and I like having more than one pair of shoes. I also like Tim Horton's and buying cds and concert tickets. But I was watching "The Fabulous Life of..." and I was shocked to see how some of these people are living. Missy Elliot spends like ten thousand dollars a day on her appearance. A DAY. She has a makeup artist who puts on her makeup while she is asleep and gets diamond manicures almost every day. She never wears a pair of sneakers twice, and from the looks of it, she keeps them all. Maybe she's an amazing person. Maybe she donates tonnes of money / sneakers to the needy. But really. A personalized "MISSY" water fountain in your apartment? A bit much I think. If Justin Timberlake could part with one of his 75 watches (each worth thousands and thousands of dollars), he could probably change some lives. I'm not saying that everyone has to fundraise and work their butts off to go to Namibia and work in an orphanage with children who are the victims of AIDS (though that is AMAAAAAZING). But the fact of the matter is that we are concerned with finding some extra change for the Grande instead of the Tall while so many kids are helpless over there... and over here.

I can't seem to get off this soapbox tonight. Why isn't health of fellow human beings the most important thing? Does the pandemic have to reach us here in North America before the people who really have power (money?) will take notice? If everyone chipped in a few bucks, that's a lot of bucks. But I'm prattling and getting off topic. We live in a culture that tells us that Missy Elliot and Justin Timberlake live lives that are "fabulous" and we should be awestruck by their splendor. If we work hard enough, maybe we can be the next Missy or Justin. Well of course not, because we aren't as fabulous. But why is this the ideal? I am really no happier now that I have a PalmPilot? Sure my dad's truck is cool, but my car works just fine. We have SO MUCH stuff. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, until you look at how little other people have. Is their perspective the same as ours? Do they consider themselves to be failures because they don't have as much crap as North America? I hope not. We could and should probably learn from countries where, after survival, there are more important things than material goods. I got a cheesy email today that really hit home, especially with all these thoughts churning in my head. We need to stop buying things and take the time to say "I love you". There are things in this life that are passing us by because we don't see how precious they are.

An example of how things should be involves a car ride that I took with a friend recently. She was upset, so she sat in my passenger seat as we went out to the mall to get my cousin's wedding present. After talking things through for a while, she turned to me and said, "do you know how thankful I am to have you?". OK, it might sound like I'm trying to toot my own horn here, but just hear this out. I can honestly say that hearing that from her is so much cooler than my PalmPilot and my laptop and my stereo and my dad's truck (yes, even my dad's truck!!!!). It brings me so much happiness and it made my day. My week. I wish that I could keep that frame of mind every day, and remember how it's THOSE THINGS that are most important instead of trying to see if I can round up enough money to get a digital camera. My family has one, but no. I want my own. Do I really? Or is North America telling me? Is it materialistic Sara? I am hoping that with time, we can tone down materialistic Sara, so that she is a smaller part of me. Stuff is cool. Things can be good. But I have proven to myself and I have seen that it does NOT bring true happiness. True happiness for me so far in my life has come from relationships and the love that I have given and received. Happiness can't be bought with money.

I urge people to smile and to laugh and to enjoy the company of others. You can absolutely make someone's day in the simplest of ways. I have believed this for a long time, and it was proven to me recently. Maybe I'm idealistic, but that must be expected. I'm not stupid or foolish, I'm young and passionate. Someday I hope to be old and passionate.

I hope that rich jerks will take an ego-break and realize that they are not the cat's meow. I hope that instead of looking down their nose at the people working on their behalf, they will look them in the eye and treat them as they would an equal. Money doesn't make someone superior - it should make them the same person that they were before they had the money.

I'm not making sense anymore. There is so much that I want to say... so much that is just streaking through my head and making me frustrated with the English language (or at least my ability to use it to get what I'm thinking out in words). Blast it. I'm going to sleep.

:).

Word of the Day: Lust

Queen Roxy enjoying the pillow over which she had "lust"
Originally uploaded by fizz_bubbles.

I think "Lust" sounds nice. Regardless of what it means, there are some words that just sound good when they are spoken, at least in my opinion. Similar words are slice and docile, among others. For the sake of knowledge, here is what lust means: 1 - an overwhelming desire or craving; 2 - intense eagerness or enthusiasm. So would it be correct to say that my dog is lusting after the pillow in front of the fireplace? I think so.

Livin' it up in Ski Town

I'll admit that title is lame, but DEAL WITH IT. :). I'm just sitting here in the "media room" at my family's new place in Whistler. It's kind of incredible. I am aware that we won this home and that it is ours, but I don't think it has really sunken in. For example... I just got out of the hot tub in our front yard... and I just finished drinking coke from a martini glass (ok that has nothing to do with the house but the glasses were there and I figured I'd take advantage). I'll take you for a quick verbal tour... the media room has a big couch in it that folds out into a queen size hide a bed. There is a computer with a flat screen monitor, surround sound, printer, fax, scanner, photocopier. The flat-screen tv has digital cable of course, as well as a dvd player, vcr, PlayStation 2 and an X Box. This is the room that I "have" to stay in because my parents have the master bedroom, my aunt and uncle have the "guest bedroom" (which, to be honest, is the same size as the master bedroom) and my sister and my cousin have the kid's bedroom... more to come later... the view is incredible. We are on the top of everything. You get onto Nordic Drive and just drive up and up and up and up until you can't get any higher. Kell took me to show me around the owner's lodge last night and the guy working at the pool jumped out and immediately asked if he could get us something. Like he would get fired if he didn't. I'm kind of interested to see what kind of people can afford to buy a place like this. I have a feeling that we are going to be the bumpkins on the street... a little redneck White Rock if you will hehe. Anyway... sleep beckons after a long day at Tomko, but there will be more later.... this place is amazing.

FYI to those who have been following the Namibia team, they are home safe and sound (though probably a little bit tired). Woot.

Love and Marriage

My cousin is officially Mrs. Bryan Rodier. And she has officially been released from the hospital after suffering severe heat stroke. Whoops. These last few days have been crazy busy and I'm so exhausted I don't even want to think about how Shelice must be feeling right now. Actually, with any luck she is in Hawaii now, after missing her first flight due to throwing up all night. Let's not even think about things like that though.

We had lots of fun at the spa, being girlie and spending money that none of us has I'm sure. But how often does one get to be a bridesmaid or a bride? Yeah, not very often. I thoroughly enjoyed myself. Especially the massage chair. I think the videographer will have about three hours of me ranting about that chair. Thank goodness for editing capabilities. Getting ready was a blast, and we arrived just over fifteen minutes late, which really isn't bad considering the spa was an hour and a half late in getting us all going. Shelice was stressing a bit, but they did everything they could to accomodate her and get us out of there on time.

The day was perfect. Slightly overcast, with sun peaking through and a light breeze... a light breeze that blew the smell of manure our way for a bit, but it kept things relatively cool at least. Except for Shelice, wearing her $4000 French silk dress. The best part of that dress by far: she got it for free. Woot. But it was H-O-T I bet. She took it like a trooper, and she didn't look for a second like she was uncomfortable at the reception.

The J-P was crazy and we are all pretty sure that she had been drinking, judging from the alcohol on her breath, but she made it through the ceremony for the most part.

I didn't mess up my song, except for the fact that the dj didn't have a sound system, but rather a boom box that he sat beside, in the bushes. It was very... interesting. Oh... yeah and it went well except for one other little bit, where I FORGOT the first half of the first verse. Thank goodness no one noticed... I've never really prayed that hard during the middle of a song, but God came through and provided me with the words, and as far as everyone was concerned, there was no mess up at all.

They both did a great job on their vows, and none of us bridesmaids cried until afterwards, which is surprising, but probably a good thing. The best part was when the JP asked if anyone objected to their union and the cow across the street started mooing. If I ever get married, I want a cow to moo at that point during the ceremony. It broke the ice and I really hope that you can hear it on the video mwuahahahahahahah. If they want it in there I suppose. It's not my wedding, afterall.

My Uncle Rolf was the photographer and we all went to Peace Arch Park to do the wedding pictures. I went with the guy who walked me down the aisle, Bryan's brother Tim, who is the lead singer for a Victoria band called Moneyshot... so we discussed music (he knows / likes Stabilo... which makes him cool by default), so that was fun. His daugher Ava is SO PRECIOUS (she's about 6 weeks old I think). The photos should be quite nice, as the park is in its prime right now. And my uncle is very good at what he does. Thank goodness he doesn't have to do forensic photography like when he was a detective. Somehow weddings seem like more fun. Shelice started to feel really faint during the photos, so we had to get her Jolly Ranchers and a Coke. I suggested taking a bunch of pictures of her with her Coke... they could have sold those pictures to Coke for money dammit! Haha.

I like Bryan. I'm glad she married him. I like his family as well. And it's all about me and the things / people that I approve of, of course ;).

At the reception we were informed of some more exciting news - my cousin Brandon, Shelice's brother, has proposed and become engaged to his girlfriend Kasha. I like her too, so that makes me happy.

I enjoyed the reception, though my shoes were evil... but what can ya do?

Seems kind of like a big blurb and not really very coherent, but I think that's kind of what weddings are... a big ball of excitement. Maybe it will become clearer to me as the week progresses.

Tasks of tomorrow - getting my hair cut and having a wisdom tooth taken out. Woo to the former and boo to the latter.

Quickly - The Namibia team is on the road now, traveling to a safari park for their debriefing. Check out the site for some amazing photos and some amazing stories and keep them in your thoughts if you would be so kind.

Sara... the Mexican??

I just got one of those fake airbrush tans.... hahahahahahah!!! Too bad for all of you I REFUSE to post pictures... I look like I've been painted to look like someone from Spain or Mexico. Not the normal Albino-ness that people are used to seeing for sure. Apparently it will look a bit calmer once I've showered, but basically I'm covered in body paint. It's amazing what people will do for vanity. My mom explained to me that I looked unhealthily pale, despite the hours that I spend working outside in the sun, and that I needed to have the airbrush tan done for my cousin's wedding so that I don't... well... glow. She's paying for it, so I don't care! I'll go for it. We did a "test run" a few weeks ago, and it worked out quite well. It makes my teeth look whiter too. Bonus! Aww! My Opa and his wife Dorle came over this evening for a visit tonight and it was lovely. I couldn't hug them because the PAINT was still drying, but it was good times nonetheless. MY COUSIN IS GETTING MARRIED IN THREE DAYS. I absolutely cannot believe it. I remember her asking me to be in her wedding party over a year ago, thinking that it was so far away and that the day would never come, and now it's so close to coming I am getting all excited. There are a couple parts that I'm really looking forward to... having my hair done, and the flowers. Of course I'm excited about her getting married and about the occasion as a whole, but as for being a bridesmaid... the perks are definitely hair and flowers. I LOVE it when people touch my hair. Well, most of the time. It feels nice. Maybe I'll get a scalp massage out of it. I wonder if you can pay people to massage your scalp? I would absolutely do that. As for the flowers, well, they're going to be so stupendously beautiful. I got to be there and help to pick them out and I can't wait to hold them and smell them and take them home with me and just enjoy their beauty. Many of you are aware of my fear of DEAD FLOWERS *shudder shudder*, but while they're living... man, flowers are so beautiful.

In other news, I'm getting a tooth yanked on Tuesday. That should be painful! Right on!

Things are going well for the PPAC team down in Namibia. I am so incredibly proud of them, and I just can't stop thinking about them. It's funny because I had wanted to go, but couldn't because of Shelice's wedding, and I remember being a bit disappointed, but I knew in my heart that I wasn't supposed to go on this trip... I felt like I was supposed to be here, praying for them. And God has absolutely re-affirmed this decision, as He's been reminding me to pray... and so has my watch. Hahahahahahaha! It's an ugly watch, but it does beautiful things. I haven't had a nice watch since my mom bit mine and broke the glass. Yes. She bit my watch to the point of brokenness.

Song in my head right now: The Corrs - Summer Sunshine

Songs that I expect will be in my head sometime in the near future:
Howie Day - This Time Around
Jay Duncan - Longing for the Moon (ummm whoa you gotta check this cd out!!!!)
Maroon 5 - Harder to Breathe

Unfortunately for everyone involved, "Kiss Me" by Sixpence None the Richer is NOT in my head. I think I should probably think about working on that one a bit, seeing as I'm going to be singing it for 350 people in a few days. Way to ruin EVERYTHING, Sara. Mwuahahahahahahahaha!!!

I am a foul-mouthed tyrant!

I seem to be having issues with the expletives that have been coming out of my mouth recently and it's getting on my nerves. I am the sort of person who adapts to the local dialect of an area, I guess is how to put it. For example, if someone uses the term "right on" around me, I will start to say it before long. Similarly, if someone is swearing like a truck-driver, then those dirty, dirty words, start to fall out of my mouth as well... not to the same extent because I TRY to stop them... but still. I don't like it. It's not really who I am. But what to do? Cut off my own tongue? That would certainly stop the swearing. I have a feeling *and I think of Tony as I type this*, however, that the problem will somewhat lessen (if not completely disappear) at the end of the summer. We shall see.

You are beautiful to me

You are beautiful to me... those are the lyrics running through my head right now. Where is that from, you ask? Why those would be the words of the ever-talented Jay Duncan, voiced by the fabulous Sarah Latheron. Makes me smile. Word of the day: CHUCKLESOME. Meaning: funny. Why it's the word of the day: because really, WHO SAYS THAT?

My dog is anti-dirty!

Yes, the dog had her bath today.

We had our company barbeque today and I must say... it was mostly quite fun. I had been looking forward to it for quite a while, and we'd been making our beer list and our food list, etc. A few days ago, I started to get this feeling that I should not be drinking at all at this event. I am a Christian. I also enjoy having a drink once in a while. I don't think that the two are mutually exclusive, so I was a bit puzzled as to why I might be feeling this way. I prayed about it, and I kept getting the response that I didn't want to be getting, which was that I should not, in fact, consume any alcohol at the party. I was really displeased, but I decided to go along with it, much to the shagrim (shagrin? I don't know!) of myself, among others. Now. The thing that bothers me is that this was MY decision, and yet I felt sorry for myself for a little while, and I felt as though I'd been ripped off. Why is it that I felt that I had to make this choice? And why is it that even though I was incredibly disappointed, I feel as though it was the RIGHT decision? It doesn't make any sense to me. I hope that I wasn't being a stick in the mud. It made me feel like a mom... except Ashlee's mom DID have some wine, and that's the difference hehehe. She's cool. But that's off topic. I guess there are some decisions that we have to make in life that are the right decisions, even if they aren't the ones that we want to be making. I was so frustrated after coming home. I walked it off with Roxy though, which made me feel a lot better. She's good at walking, so it worked out well hehe. I'm still praying for those crazy Namibian missionaries, and I hope that things are going well over there. I'm also having a blast with the family's new digital camera. The best part is that I will be the one using it the most, but I didn't have to pay for it. Mwuahahahahaha. OK, sleep time. I wonder if anyone at work will remember what happened tonight. It might be interesting!

Fireworks are cute

Went and saw the fireworks with a group of friends from the church... they were rather spectacular. As promised, word of the day is "knob". Knob: a Sara-like object that does and says geeky things.

Cheers.

Oh. I've said it before and I'll say it again. Go to www.wiredmeier.com/namibia and see the coolness.

Word of the Day!

Well, I miss Stef, so I'm going to distract myself by having TWO words of the day. Coagulate and amalgamate. I think I have probably spelled both incorrectly, but that's ok!!! Coagulate: clumping, like blood!!!! Amalgamate: clumping, like making five folders into one. At least this is what Nicki says, and she's smart. And if Nicki told me to jump off a bridge.... well... at least I think she's right about this. I'll have to double check sometime soon, when I care. I'm watching Starsky and Hutch and it's making me happy.

Songs that I currently think are very good:
Lifehouse - Take Me Away
Frampton (Frampy!) - Baby I Love Your Way
The Verve - Lucky Man

I am a knob. Word of tomorrow? "Knob"

Five Years Totally Worth The Wait

I just got home from the Corrs concert. I'm still kind of in shock. After 5 long years of waiting to see them live, I was fearful that the anticipation and the expectation that has built up would leave me feeling disappointed and as if I'd been left high and dry. As a newbie "sound snob", said expectations have grown a lot recently. This is without a doubt one of the best, if not THE best concert that I have ever been to. Ever.

They started off by playing one of two songs by them that I don't like (two of like... sixty isn't bad!), so I knew that it could only get better, and it actually sounded really great live. The energy on stage was magical and Andrea was like a little faery flitting around stage barefoot while Sharon played violin in her stunning dress and these really cool shoes. It's hard to believe that they're sisters. Then again, Sharon can be playful and Andrea can be sophisticated. Ha! I feel as though I know them or something. Caroline wasn't there because she is too pregnant to fly, but the fill-in drummer was great. Sometimes drummers just aren't that good. I appreciate a good dummer. He was a good drummer. The usual bass and guitar players were there, as well as a synth player. Of course the ever-sparkly male Corr, Jim was there. Man can he ever play the piano well! It's very attractive. And I'm not attracted to him at all. Go figure!

Anyway, they played all their hits as well as some of the songs off their new album, Borrowed Heaven. I LOVE them as recording artist, and have listened to all of their cds too many times to count, but somehow seeing them live just blew me away. It was so beyond what I expected, even after seeing so many live shows on video. Being part of it... was amazing. I'm so thankful that my mom bought me my ticket, because it was EXPENSIVE. Though, to be honest, I would have paid that anyway. It was worth it in my opinion. Andrea is such a little thing and she can produce such a powerful sound. And then there's Sharon, whose violin is clear and the tone is just right.

Sharon and Caroline have a duet that they do once in a while on stage together called "No Frontiers", but of course, with Caroline not being there I wasn't expecting them to do it. Then Sharon came onstage alone and did it. It was so beautiful. Yes, I did tear up a bit. But I tear up a lot when good music is involved. I wonder why it is that music has the power to move me so much... does it work that way for everyone? Or only people who love and adore music? It's an interesting thought, though I think I know the answer. We've all been wired differently, so it makes sense that we would react to stimulations differently. It doesn't matter right now. What matters now is that I got to see The Corrs after so long, and I'm absolutely thrilled to have had the chance. They were amazing and I really hope that they come back. The only bad thing is that I won't be able to listen to any of their cds for the next week so as not to ruin the memories that I have playing in my head right now.

We're kidnapping Stef tomorrow at 6 15 to take her to IHOP for her goodbye breakfast... I should be in bed. Well I AM on my bed, but I'm not sleeping. Sara is such a bad girl.

In flight... The Corrs... Jay Duncan

Well I don't actually know if they're technically in the air at the moment, but in the next day or so, there is going to be a lot of flying for the Namibia team. It's exciting and scary. Apparently flights to Africa are somewhat less than comfortable at times. I hope they find themselves in a good position to get some rest. Somehow I don't think they'll find much once they arrive in Namibia. I'm glad that I can't get them out of my mind. As long as I don't turn into a crazy worrier as a result. Right now it's fine though.

Tonight I am going to see the Corrs with my mom and Ashlee. Back in the "day" (ie, when I was about 14-17) they were my favorite band in the world and my mom promised me that if they ever came, she would take me. Well.... mwuahahahaha. Guess who's mom bought her a ticket and is taking her this very evening? Why yes, that would be me! I really hope that they don't suck. That would be incredibly anti-climactic (that's the word of the day... I always thought it was anti-climatic. Apparently Nicki, with her MA in English Lit, disagrees. She is my boss, and is therefore, for all intents and purpose, always right. Hehe), and I would be shattered!!!! Well no, but it would be very disappointing. I think I'm going to torture the people at work today with a LOT of Corrs. Poor Meghan. Ashlee will be fine with it, because she's coming, but not so much Meghan. I'll have to buy her a McFlurry or an Ice Cap or something. Hmmm... I should ask Nicki if it's ICE Cap or ICED Cap. Somehow I think it's the latter.

Do you like music? Do you appreciate talent? If you answered yes to those questions, I really highly suggest that you check out Jay Duncan's CD called "Lazarus Church." I've had it on a lot in the last few days and I can't get his songs out of my head. He is an incredibly talented local songwriter, guitarist, and vocalist, and the songs that he and his bandmates have created are just... stunning. The disc itself is great because there are a few different singers, and even more of a variety in style. The production is pretty awesome, and doing sound at the church is turning me into a very picky listener, so that's saying something (though ask me again in six months when I'm a bit more trained and I may have a million suggestions on how to make it better :P). He's having a cd release party sometime in the next month or two, and I'll post it here. Because the music is great. Great great great.

Word of the Day

I forgot my word of the day!!!!!! Actually, it was the word of Friday, but I left the definition at work! Boo. OK! So here it is: megalomaniac -- 1. A psychopathalogical condition characterized by delusional fantasies of wealth, power, or omnipotence -- 2. An obsession with grandiose or extravagant things or actions -- 3. A good song by Incubus

The third definition was my own, the rest came from www.dictionary.com.

They're Going to Bless the Rains Down in Africa!

Oh REALLY?!!!!! There's a team from my church leaving for Africa this afternoon, Namibia to be exact. To be honest, I'd never heard of the country before they were going to go there, but they will be spending about two weeks in the country which gained its independence from South Africa in 1991 I think. They're going to be working in the AIDS-inflicted nation, staying in an orphanage, helping out around there to build things, visiting with victims of the disease, educating the youth about abstinence, etc. It's a really great opportunity for people to actually make a difference, and I'm so glad that my friends and acquaintances are realizing that people actually can make a difference. Wow. I sound really corny, especially with that last comment. But I'm serious. This is a beautiful opportunity to use what we've been given over here in North America and bless other people with it. And if you're not religious, don't think of it as a blessing, but rather an opportunity to not be so darned selfish. I will post my thoughts on this Namibia trip as they materialize into words. I just think it's amazing what these people are doing and I'm so proud of them. I had hoped that I would be able to go over there with them, but there is a time and a place for everything, and my place is at home this summer. If this interests you and you want to be kept up-to-date on the happenings over in Africa, visit www.wiredmeier.com/namibia and visit the site that they've set up to keep everyone informed. How precious!

Psychological Issues

So I just got home from John's house, where Stef, John and I (along with the advice and musical ear of the lovely Breanne) were trying to record a few songs that we had been working on before Stef leaves us. I must say that I am CRAZY. There is something wrong with me. For some reason, as hard as I try, I can only sing for a certain length of time in front of people before I go all crazy and can't do it anymore. I must have leprosy. When in doubt, blame leprosy. The sound of my own voice on a recording still freaks me / creeps me out, but I HAVE to get used to it because I LOOOOOVE singing and I basically don't think that I'm going to stop. And darnit, my parents have spent QUITE enough money on all my years of choir and voice lessons. I should give something back to the community that is the Macdonald house. The crazy Macdonald house. My family is crazy. Must be where I get the crazy from. I miss Stef already. Hopefully her guitar tracks worked out well enough that I can fix my vocals when I get the guts again. And I will. I hope.

Stef is leaving us!!!!

Alack, alas, etc. I've just today found out that Stef is being shipped off to work on some farm in Saskatchewan for the summer and from there she will be attending the University of Saskatchewan (or as she calls it, "Sascratchmeone" -- I like it). Here's the killer: she's going to be flying out on Friday. This upsets me greatly. If she is going to Saskatchewan and her parents are moving to Texas for her father's work, then how often is she going to come and visit us? I think that the answer goes without saying. And I'd rather not say it anyway, in order to remain blissfully ignorant to the situation. We're getting together tonight... but how do you say goodbye to the first friend you made in high school? It kind of makes me (and by "kind of" I mean it "really") regret not realizing earlier on, like in grade 10 when we kind of drifted, that we were supposed to stay good friends and play music together and be crazy and whatnot. I guess Saskatchewan isn't that far away. But who wants to go to Saskatchewan? No offense to fans of the province, but I DON'T want to go there unless provoked. I'm NOT a fan. At least not now that it's taking one of my best friends away. I don't like it one bit. I think that her parents are being unreasonable. If she was gung-ho, then maybe, but she seems gung-indifferent. And it's a big move to make if you're not enthusiastic. I just hope that things go well for her over there and that we get to see her as often as life permits. Maybe she can come back to go to med school at UBC. I shall cling to that for the next four or so years hehe.

Word of the day: Ameliorative. It means the opposite of detrimental. Let's try to use it in a sentence: If Stef stays in BC, it will be ameliorative to Sara's happiness.

The First Post!

Woo. So I have decided to jump on the bandwagon and get myself one of these blogs. And no, it's not because I'm envious of all my dear friends and acquaintances who needed one because they are *ahem* going to Namibia to work with AIDS orphans... or because my friend Rick is taking off to go on a month-long roadtrip that includes seeing Phish in their last tour ever. No no. It's because I want to keep you, the public, informed with regards to my life. Because it's just soooooooo "interesting." And I am a ball of sarcasm!!! Actually, there are some pretty cool things that are going to be happening that are the result of my cousin Shelice getting married to the love her her life, Mr. Bryan Rodier, in less than two weeks! As a bridesmaid, I've been doing the whole wedding shower thing, so it's been pretty busy. I'm getting excited though, and I hope that everything works out well, especially when I sing during the signing of the wedding stuff. I have quite an opportunity to ruin the atmosphere if I don't start really cracking down on the practicing! If I can be so nept (I have decided that this is the opposite of "inept" for the time being) I'm going to try to upload a picture of what the bridesmaid dresses will look like, except with straps. The website won't let me thieve a photo, but maybe one of my computer-savvy friends can give me a hand. Because when it really comes down to it, I AM inept.