Kelly

Kelly
Originally uploaded by With A Twist.

This very special woman married my son last year. It was a whirlwind romance that everyone dreams of. It turns out that my son is a romantic and even asked her parents for permission to marry. The wedding was in Feb 2006 and all has been wonderful since then. They purchased a house in January that is currently being built with a move in date scheduled for the end of Sept 2007.

She being a very organized and 'list making' kind of girl was ready to move onto the next item on their list. A baby! Now here is where mother nature over rules the list makers. When my daughter-in-law went for a check up prior to putting the check mark against the list, she was told that the tests had detected abnormal cells and will require surgery. All the logical reasoning and reassurances and success stories for this type of thing just don't rule out the fear that we all are feeling. For her and my son, both with their biological clocks ticking, it is a hugely emotional and spiritual challenge for them.

If it is possible for them to be closer to each other, or stronger in their relationship, I don't know. All I do know is that things are in God's hands tomorrow and he will be guiding the surgeon to make sure that there are babies in our future.

Dave, Max and Whitney

Dave, Max and Whitney
Originally uploaded by With A Twist.

These three make up my life. Each provides me with love and support in their own special ways. Wet noses, wagging tails, hugs and kisses. I'll let you figure out who gives what.

And this trio is rounded out by my daughter and my grandchildren, my two sons, my daughter-in-law, my sister and brother-in-law, and my mother and father.

And if that is not enough, all of my wonderful, loyal friends.

Such a HAM

Such a HAM
Originally uploaded by With A Twist.

When I first got my digital camera Whitney used to run and hide. It made beeping noises that really upset her. Even after I turned the sounds off, she didn't like the sound of the lens auto focusing. She would run and hide under the table.

However, she seems to have overcome her fears. In fact, as I have been spending a lot of time practising with my camera for my new vocation, she follows me around until I will take her picture.

Too cute.

Tools

Tools
Originally uploaded by With A Twist.

There was a time when a collection of pens and pencils on ones desk was critical. Various colours for various jobs. Different styles of inks. Different pencil leads. Now I can go all day and never actually write a thing. I guess the only exception would be my daily crossword and sudoku.

I use my keyboards almost exclusively now. Laptop goes with me to the other rooms of the house. Desktop is the work horse in my office. I love the efficiency and speed of my keyboard skills however I do miss writing.

I think it may be a 'girl' thing. I remember each new school year how wonderful it felt to open up a fresh notebook. I would start the page by neatly writing the date at the top. I hated if I made an error or if my handwriting was a little shaky. I would even decide at the beginning of the year what style of handwriting I would use. Standard cursive slant or straight up and down, or even a reverse slant.

On the topic of handwriting I have noticed that all the women in my family, including my birth daughter whom I did not raise, have very similar hand. My mother, sister, daughter and myself. Kind of eerie I think.

Behind in my reading

Behind in my reading
Originally uploaded by With A Twist.

One would think that with my recent transition to unemployment that I would have had more time to read. I am spending much of my time learning the day trading thing as mentioned in a previous post. I'm not doing very well at that. Additionally, I spend much time scouring sites for jobs and submitting my resume on-line. Thank goodness for technology as I only have to leave the house in this cold when I actually get a face to face interview. Remember the old days when you had to travel to each company and submit your paper resume in person?

The rest of the time I play around with my camera a little, and check out what my Flickr friends have posted and then hit the kitchen for our evening meal. This of course only leaves the evenings to read. I don't watch much TV other than hockey and 24 so there should be plenty of time. However, unless the book is particularly gripping, tiredness takes over and I head to bed.

Tonight is bookclub night when we will review that last monster of 832 pages. I'm willing to bet that I am one of the few who actually read the entire book. It is my turn to select our next book so I am considering The Good Earth by Pearl S. Book. I understand it is a classic but I myself have never read it. I will take a few days to get into it before I decide if it is appropriate for our members. And if it is not...... I'll have lots to choose from after my shopping accident at Indigo!

Foreboding Sky

Playing around
Originally uploaded by With A Twist.

I touched this up a little but I think it reflects how I feel. I am still feely rather fragile and vulnerable after last Friday's fiasco day trading. It was a very expensive day and I can't quite put it behind me yet. I worked long and hard for that money and to have it just go out the window because of a software fairlure really hurts. I'll take the rest of the week off and try and restart next week with some level of confidence. Wish me luck.

Struggling today

I think I have reached a point of boredom. In some ways I enjoy not working but in other ways I am really missing it. I think if I had decided to, and financially could, retire then I would be easily able to find things to stimulate and entertain. I could take courses, I could join clubs, I could volunteer. However, because I still need to find a way to create an income I feel guilty filling the downtime. So, instead, I sit here staring at my computer, surfing through useless job postings. Or I concentrate on learning more about day trading and swing trading. But that too can be boring.

At times I feel the urge to write. If only I knew about what and for whom. Is this blog itself just for me? Or am I expecting that it someday may be read by many or even a few. I don't know.

I feel lost.

832 Pages

832 Pages
Originally uploaded by With A Twist.

Go ahead and argue the point. I found this book to be painfully slow in grabbing my attention. In fact it took about 150 pages before I felt that I wasn't forcing myself to read on. Once in though, it was very interesting and enjoyable. Unfortunately it again lost my interest towards the end.

I did forge on however as this is our current book club choice but I am glad that I can now move onto one of the many other books on my shelf waiting to entertain me.

Buzzed

I am finding myself in a funk today. Feeling pretty down and perhaps I am fighting some sort of flu. I am really having trouble trying to learn to be a trader. I spend hours studying stock charts and patterns only to have them react in the absolute opposite direction to what I would have bet on. Not a good sign. I believe that it can be done but I'm not sure I am the one to do it. I am becoming fore convinced that I need to find a good old fashioned job.

So far I'm not seeing any opportunities that would work for me. I will need to be generating an income by spring for sure.

Pretty Colours

Pretty Colours
Originally uploaded by With A Twist.

And how do the colour blind trade?

Learning

Learning
Originally uploaded by With A Twist.

Is it possible for me to make a living at this? It certainly is posing a significant challenge. So much to learn. I'm not sure I have the right personality type for this but I'll give it a try. It really does take a lot of concentration, multi-tasking, and discipline. I think I have 1 out of 3.

New Year

New Year,
originally uploaded by With A Twist.

As the start of 2007 finds me, I am unemployed, 55 yrs old, depressed and financially strapped. Gee, I hope there is a bright side to all this.

As I look up through a window in my office I see a beautiful white full moon.

Perhaps I'll go and try to capture it with my camera. Photography seems to be one of the few things that entertains me at the moment.

If only I was good enough to make a living at it!

Approaching their new life

Approaching their new life,
originally uploaded by With A Twist.

In November we convinced my parents that they needed to move from their remote country home on the lake to a condo closer to my sister. Dad has had heart problems and they both need to have better access to hospitals and living conveniences. This picture was taken on moving day, from the balcony of their new condo.

They have moved in and mostly are unpacked and adjusting very well to their new life. Because of the uneven ground and ankle injuries Mum has had her mobility at the old house was extremely limited. Now that they are living in a little town with good sidewalks she is able to get out more and exercise. They seem to try and get out every day if the weather cooperates and they go and explore something new each time. It makes me sad to think how long they stayed at the old house just because of habit. With a little push from us here they are, starting a new life at almost 80 !

I love them very much and hope I can be as positive about life when I reach their age.

Celebration of Lights

Celebration of Lights,
originally uploaded by With A Twist.

Merry Christmas and Happy Chanuka.

Ice

Ice,
originally uploaded by With A Twist.

Our first taste of winter arrived yesterday with an icy blast and a 4 hour power outage. It is strange to wander around the house lighting candles and trying to determine how you are going to entertain yourself until the power is restored. We chose Candlight Scrabble.

Erin, Lisa, Craig

Erin, Lisa, Craig,
originally uploaded by With A Twist.

If you have read one of my posts on the topic of adoption disclosure, here is my reason why. Lisa was born December 20, 1969. I never saw her. I turned her over to the Children's Aid Society immediately. She was adopted by strangers when she was one month old. I spent the next 22 years of my life thinking of her every day. The cirle is closed now. I found her on her birthday in 1991. I am truly blessed.

Engaging

My older son and his girlfriend are now engaged. I am so happy and excited about the future for them. It is interesting because I feared that as my marriage fell apart 10 years ago, that the boys would not value or respect the institution of marriage. Instead it seems to have strengthened his values. He has done everything in such a romantic and traditional way, including asking her parents for their permission, and surprising her with a gorgeous engagement ring.

I am thrilled to bits.

Road Warrior

Road Warrior, originally uploaded by With A Twist.

I would rather be in my home office with my dogs lying at my feet but this is the life of the business road warrior.

empty nest

As we are still in the first week of 2006 I thought it might be appropriate to update on our current nesting situation. Well, surprise! It is empty, leaving just us love birds for now. Certainly my side of the nest is empty with Craig having moved out in November. Erin has been gone since last spring if I recall. It is a strange sensation and not at all traumatic as most people seem to think. I had several friends and relatives call me up and ask in very hushed tones, "how are you handling it?". What is to handle? Peace and quiet when we want it. Noisy when WE want it to be. D is particularly thrilled that he can grind coffee in the morning with alacrity! Whereas previously he was always concerned about waking Craig too early or on his day off. So now there are no restrictions. We have our privacy and don't have to worry about making anyone blush!

The only exception to our current empty nest is that D's girls come to visit every second weekend or so. It works out to be a welcome reminder so that we don't start taking our solitude for granted.

And with the solitude comes a little more time to reflect on life and I intend to attempt to do a better job with this journal. I have a new digital slr so my hope is to do a lot more in the way of photography, as soon as I figure out how to work all the settings of course.

And so the year begins.

Toronto vs. Ottawa

There is a very funny story here. Well, funny to me at least. The week before Christmas my sister and her husband, who are avid fans of the Toronto Maple Leaf hockey team came to visit. Coincidentally, our team, The Ottawa Senators, were scheduled to play against Toronto that night. In the afternoon when we realized that the game was on T.V. I suggested that we should all just take a deep breath and agree to be good sports no matter what happened during the game.

As dinner ended I told everyone to go get ready to watch the game while we cleared the table. After a few minutes there was great commotion down the hall. When I turned to look, here were my two dogs dressed in maple leaf scarves, and my sister and brother-in-law decked out with maple leaf flags. We laughed long and hard over that.

A couple of weeks later when I cleaned up I put two of the flags/towels in my office on a shelf in my bookcase while I tried to decide how I could get revenge. It seems that Max and Whitney had other things in mind. When I wasn't looking Max stole these from my office and then ran around the house daring me to take them back. I'm not sure if that means he has dropped his loyalty to the Sens or what!

Whitney helping to guard, originally uploaded by With A Twist.