Sunny Days...Oh, Sunny, Sunny, Sunny Days...

Just a quick post before I head outside and enjoy this perfect weather.

It is 21°C, feels like 26°C, and with a light breeze it is perfect for bike riding. Can't wait to get out there. This past week it's been upwards of 30°C, feels like 37°C, and even though I went for some rides, the heat adds an extra challenge to staying out too long. The farthest I've gone this summer is 9km, so I'm planning on a longer ride today.

It is also perfect weather for going to the Drive-In. Tonight is "carload" night, which is two movies for only $8 per car. Super movie deal! Tonight's features are World War Z and This Is The End. I have little to no expectations for World War Z, other than I think Brad Pitt is the best and I hope the zombies aren't too scary. I am really looking forward to This Is The End, as it has most of the funny people I like and has a cameo by Emma Watson. Hope it's as fun as I want it to be!

World War Z Trailer:


This Is The End Trailer:


Whatever you are doing on this sunny day, I hope you are having a good one!

Going Into Darkness

In just a few short hours Mom, Bro-in-law, and I will be checking out the new Star Trek movie! A continued Mother's Day treat for Mom, who is really excited to see it. She texted me last night to say she was watching the first one to get ready.

We are going to see it in 2D, as none of us are really swayed by the allure of 3D. I'm pretty sure it is going to be great either way. I'm super excited for Benedict Cumberbatch as I absolutely love him in BBC's Sherlock.

Are you planning on seeing Star Trek Into Darkness? Do you like 2D or 3D?

After the movie we are heading to Applebees for early bird specials! So excited!

Happy Friday everyone!

March Break Recap

I spent most of March Break in Barrie house/cat-sitting for my brother who spent the week in the much more exciting Montreal. My Bro's cat is an interesting dude who wants to be alone but doesn't like being left alone. It is a subtle difference and my presence was required to keep him company so he didn't pee on things he shouldn't. I also kept him fed and watered, gave him attention when requested, and removed a large quantity of cat barf from the carpet. I am a hero.

Pippen - my Barrie cat buddy

Since I normally live in the country, I was excited for my cat-sitting trip to Barrie so I could do city things. When I think of city things, I think of walking and ending up somewhere interesting, quickly traveling to multiple places, and the freedom of getting treats late at night if so desired. I enjoy my country life of trees and nature, but I miss destinations on my walks (like coffee shops) and I long for sidewalks and 50km/hr roads. While in Barrie, I wanted to walk around and see things!

So I made a plan. I wasn't just cat-sitting, I was going on an adventure. I mapped out stores downtown that I would walk to, explore, possibly buy things, and probably get some take out sushi to walk home with. I also mapped out places in the south end that I could drive to and walk around and explore. I'm not necessarily interested in buying things but I l love walking around and looking at stuff.

But you know what they say about best laid plans...

The weather didn't cooperate. Last week it was nearing spring like temperatures and I forgot that it is still winter in Canada. So it was cold and rainy and then it was cold and snowy. The sunny afternoon walkabout I dreamed of is probably still a month away. Stupid winter!

Also, my body refused to sleep properly. I'm often a bad sleeper when I sleep somewhere else, and this time was no different. My motivation to walk around and do cool stuff during the day was thwarted by my lack of sleep.

But I didn't let it get me down. I'm in a new phase of my life where I'm trying to accept things as they are and not as I expect them to be.

So I pretty much just hung out with the cat. And watched tv shows and movies. And ate ridiculous foods. I have stuck pretty well to my meal plan over the past few months, so I let March break be an excuse to eat whatever I wanted. Basically I just didn't eat vegetables for a number of days in a row. It was fun and super tasty, but I am happy to be back on my meal plan.

Sidekicks and curly fries for dinner - almost 100% vegetable free!

I'm back in the country now, eating vegetables and thinking about going on a walk to nowhere. I'm also back with my own pretty kitty, who always gives me the best cuddles and love when I've been away.

How did you spend your March Break? I hope you had a good one! :)

Questions and Answers

There is something in the blogging community called Liebster Awards, and in the past few weeks I have been nominated for two! There are designed to promote socializing on blogs which I am often neglectful of. 

Here are the rules of recieving an award:

“The Liebster Award is for bloggers with under 300 twitter followers and the rules of the award are that the nominee must link back to whoever awarded them, write 11 random facts about themselves, answer the 11 questions from the award giver, and then nominate another 11 bloggers and make up 11 questions for them to answer. It’s a great way for new and undiscovered bloggers to meet new people, get more followers and find some blogs that they want to follow.”

Because I recieved two awards and because I am bad at socializing, I am abandoning the rules and just going to answer the questions my fellow bloggers put forth to me. Always a rebel.

Here are the questions from Just a Mum?, followed by my answers.

1. If you could learn any one skill overnight, what would it be and why? I would love to just know how to play guitar. I have tried to learn a few times, but am too impatient and have a really hard time moving my fingers to change chords. I am even bad at it while playing Rock Band.

2. What music do you listen to when you're feeling down? Sad music for sure. The words are clearer and more meaningful, the notes are felt more deeply, I get my sad out.  My favourties for those types of days are Alanis Morrisette, David Gray, and Ben Folds.

3. When's the last time you were stupid happy? Probably the last time I had Spicy Tuna Rolls - so New Year's Day.

4. If I gave you a t-shirt with a picture of bacon on it, would you wear it? Yes I would.  I like both free stuff and bacon.

5. In your opinion, what is the perfect food? In general it is tacos. On special occasions it is sushi.

6. Go to a party, or stay home with a book? I would probably go to the party, but if I was halfway through an exciting book, I might keep reading when I got home (even if it was super late).

7. Who would you most like to be trapped in an elevator with? Because I am currently watching Justified, I would have to say U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens.

8. Do you watch the news? Why, or why not?  No, I actually hate the news. When really bad events happen I don't even go to Facebook because my newsfeed is full of real news.  The news is generally negative and promotes a lot of fear.  I don't need that in my life.

9. Servers start singing Happy Birthday to you at a restaurant: Do you cringe and endure, or sing along? I probably do a little 'sitting a the table' dance. And turn bright red.

10. Name a singer/song that you're embarrassed to admit you love. I'm trying to think of one but I'm pretty proud of all my music choices.  Even the bad stuff, I'd happily admit to loving.

11. If you could be doing anything right now, what would it be? Watching more Justified while eating a double order of Spicy Tuna Rolls.


Here are the questions from Awesomesauce & Other Experiments, followed by my answers.

1. Vanilla ice cream: a cop out instead of getting real ice cream flavours or truly fantastic on its own? Truly fantastic on its own (reminds me of my Nanny), though I would never pick it first.

2.  Are you one of those people who can only wear black socks, or do your feet get to have some fun colours and patterns? I generally wear grey socks, but there was a time in my life I had a cool sock source and wore a lot of fun colours, patterns, and lengths (even knee highs!).

3. What is your preferred method of caffeination? Coffee in the morning. Tea in the afternoon.

4. If you had to choose a domesticated animal as a house pet and could not choose a dog or a cat, what would you pick?  Bunny rabbit.

5. What do you want science to create in an easily commercially available way first: teleportation a la Star Trek or hover skateboards a la Back to the Future? Teleportation is a must!

6.  Unicorns or centaurs? Unicorns!

7.  Favourite food that tastes like purple? Blueberry muffins from a mix, where there is no real blueberry at all.  I love that flavour.

8.  Which do you believe is the better movie trilogy: original Star Wars (pre-Lucas mucking things about) or Lord of the Rings? Lord of the Rings (extended even!), but I do have a fondness for Star Wars as well.

9.  What is your favourite childhood song (eg. Down by the Bay, The Cat Came Back, etc)? Down by the Bay is pretty classic.

10.  What do you usually have for breakfast? Steel cut oats mixed with cinnamon, 1 tbs dried cranberries, and 2 tbs chopped walnuts.

11.  Pancakes or French toast? Pancakes. I have always viewed french toast as a waste of milk and eggs.

I Must Have The Look

It is Elmvale Fair weekend in these parts, and though I wasn't attending the fair, I was in Elmvale yesterday to pick up some Library goodies.

As I exited my car, I had the following exchange with a young father, who was with his 3-year-old-ish son.

"Hey Kidless!" He jokingly called to me.  "You want a kid? Maybe you could take him to the fair?"

"Uh...I'm okay" I said politely. "Thanks anyways!" 

And we both laughed.

Fish On Friday

After an amazing afternoon at the beach, we went to our local Chip Wagon so I could let my Bro experience all the joy that is Perky's Fish and Chips. Every time we go there it is the best fish and chips we have ever had. And after a good long swim, it was even more perfect!! Super Yum!!!

Haddock + Chips + Coleslaw

Snag it, Bag it, and Tag it - Part I

Tag! I'm it.  Skwishee over at Just a Mum? tagged me in a random questions/random facts game.  I have been bad at answering the call of being tagged (I completely missed Awards Season this year!), so I am jumping on this opportunity before too much time goes by.  TashaB over at Awesomesauce & Other Experiments already responded with her answers and facts and now it's my turn! 

Ten Questions from Skwishee at Just a Mum?

1. Name a book that somehow changed you. How?

I guess it would be Lightning by Dean Koontz because it was the first adult book I remember reading. It had time travel, a female lead, and a character who met Paul McCartney.  It had everything my tween heart would love and it got me interested in reading books. 

2. If someone were to cook you the perfect meal, what would it be?

It would be the Ultimate Feast from Red Lobster, so I would need a chef from Red Lobster to come to my house please! 

3. Who do you want to be when you grow up?

This girl *points at self*, but older.
 

4. You find a wallet containing $20,000 on the ground, containing no identification. What do you do?

I would have to do as TashaB described and turn it in to the police.  If it was $20, however, I would be eating take out for dinner.

5. Name one completely irrational fear that you've got.

Just one? But I experience at least ten a day! I'll go with Monsters murdering me in the night.

6. Give me three songs that you're embarrassed to admit you like.

Banjo - Rascal Flatts
Call Me Maybe - Carly Rae Jepsen
I'd Really Love To See You Tonight - England Dan and John Ford Coley 

7. What is one thing you absolutely love about yourself?

I love that I don't give a shit what I wear around the house/in the backyard.  The teen boys that live next store are getting a real life glimpse about what thirty-something girls are like! The colours never match, there are socks AND sandals, and of course oodles of track pants.  I told John yesterday that I am glad I am not a celebrity, because every week I would appear on the "Trash Your Stylist" list!

8. If you could be doing ANYTHING right now, what would it be?

Except for writing on my blog at the moment, I would love to be catching up on episodes of the BBC's Sherlock.  I think Martin Freeman is dreamy and funny.

9. What's the best thing that happened to you this week?

I went on an 11km bike ride today and it was amazing!

10. If you could perfect one skill overnight, what would it be?

I would really love to play guitar.  I have tried to learn a few times but I have gotten frustrated because I can't move my fingers fast enough to make chords.  I even suck at Rock Band guitar.  If I could learn overnight, that would be great! 

11. Tea or coffee?

I have to go with Coffee because I will always have a strong love for a Timmy's double double. I gave up drinking coffee in January and switched to Green tea, which I also love, but I could never forget my first love.  Coffee is now a treat, and incidentally a treat I have been indulging in all week!


Part two of the game is listing 11 random facts about myself, but I can't get it together to do that at the moment.  I will save the list for another day!  Stay tuned! :)

On A Lego Kick

I just bought my fourth Lego based video game (thanks Amazon.ca!).  In 5-7 business days I will be the proud owner of Lego Harry Potter: Years 1-4.  The second game in the series is being released in November, so I was able to score the old one for $19.99.  Seriously, I will buy almost any video game if it is under $20, but especially if it is Lego themed.   

I bought my Nintendo Wii in August and almost immediately got addicted to the Lego games.  It stated with Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga (I'm about 25% finished), then I got thoroughly obsessed with Lego Batman (and still am - I'm over 90% finished and have over 3 billion studs!).  I haven't really gotten into Lego Indiana Jones yet (I need more vacation time!), and I just saw the deal Lego Harry Potter today, so I will be getting obsessed with that in the near future.  It is also already decided that whenever Lego Pirates of the Caribbean falls to the $19.99 mark, it will be added to the collection as well.

And because I am so into Lego right now, I google searched for this awesome website that lets you create your own Lego character.  So this is me if I was in a Lego game - my accessories are a lightsaber and a coffee!! Not sure what my ability would be, but I'm sure I'm super fun!

The Lingering Smell of Bacon

Last night for a Friday night treat, we sprung for Really Good Bacon.  It was thick cut, peppercorn crusted, and hickory smoked.  It was almost $6 for a pound, but upon consumption, it was completely worth it.  Not to mention that I ate my slices atop of a beautifully cooked prime rib hamburger, sharing space with crumbled feta and jalapenos.  The whole meal could be classified as "too good".  And the added bonus?  When I awoke this morning the kitchen still smelled of glorious bacon.  Looks like I'll be going for round two today! :)

#Winning

I have joined to ranks of my friends Tasha and Joanne and won the Canadian Living Craft Blog Weekly Giveaway!  The prize is perfect for me -  an adorable knitting pattern book to knit farm toys!  Having grown up on a farm, and as the aunt of two young and adorable farmers, I will definitely be making all of these projects.  There is even a pattern to make a barn!  I am so excited!

Too cute!!

If you have never entered the Canadian Living Craft Blog giveaway contest, here is my overwhelming endorsement that you should.  There is normally a new giveaway announced every Monday, and prizes vary from books to supplies for many types of crafts.  For your chance to win, all you have to do is comment on the "Weekly Giveaway" blog post.  They usually pose some sort of question for you to answer, so it's pretty easy to think of something to say. The winners are chosen randomly, and I love that you don't have to sign up for anything to leave your comment.  Also, I think the odds of winning are pretty good, as I've never seen more than 180 comments on a giveaway post, and most times the number of comments is far lower than that.  The contest I won had only 30 comments and they had two copies of the book to giveaway, so I had a 1 in 15 chance to win...and I won!!  Also, there is no moratorium on entering the contest after you've won, so if win and you like the following week's giveaway, go ahead and enter that one too!

Here is the link to the current giveaway: Giveaway for the week of April 25, and as of now (9:30pm on Monday night), there are only 10 comments!  Readers have until 11:59pm on Sunday May 1st to write a comment.  Be sure to read all the guidelines on how to comment (you can only comment once) to ensure your entry is part of the draw.

Good luck!  I hope you win a cool book too!! :)

Spring (Car) Cleaning

Like many cars following a Canadian winter, my car was very, very dirty.  Any attempt to clean it throughout the winter was negated by any use of the car, as it would instantly return it to its previous state of filth.

But thankfully (for a million reasons) it is now Spring.  The birds are chirping, the sun is shining, and the weather is warm enough to get outside and clean the car.  I'm a bucket of soapy water kind of car washer, and I've never really gotten into automatic car washes.  I just prefer to thoroughly clean it myself.  It is a little more time consuming, but on a nice Spring day I actually find it enjoyable.

The car is now clean (inside and out!) and I have a Before and After shot to prove it.

BEFORE

AFTER

I also had my all season tires put back on this morning and I've stored the snow tires for the summer.  That dreaded time called winter is now officially done.  Bring on summer!!

A Change Will Do You Good

Holy Crap March!!  You were a menace full of too much news.  I feel like I am finally finding my feet after a whirlwind of good news, bad news, and having to wear dress pants far more than I normally care to.

I'm leaving the bad news in the past, but the good news is that I am starting a new job on Wednesday.  For the job I will have to continue to wear dress pants far more than I generally care too, but I'm going to take it as a learning experience and possibly something that is a necessity now that I am over thirty.

I have never had a job with a dress code before, so I know this 'business casual' thing will take some getting used to.  Especially since my default outfit is jeans and a t-shirt/hoodie, and my preferred clothes are "comfy." I think I have more PJs than regular clothes, but I will soon have to start balancing out my wardrobe.

Yesterday I began my search for some business casual clothes, but I didn't really know what I was looking for and I am never in the mood to buy clothes.  Grocery shopping? I could do that all day.  Clothes shopping?  It's like pulling teeth.  So I didn't add any business casual clothes to my collection yesterday, but I did find a pair of track pants for only $10 that I have been wearing pretty steadily since I bought them.  I am sure I will buy a few more pairs (there are assorted colours, and they are only $10!), but they are doing nothing to solve my business casual problem.  I'm not worried yet, as I'm sure I can piece together three or four passable outfits, I just have to pick up a few more over the next little while.  And a steamer - I absolutely refuse to incorporate ironing into my day.  Wish me luck!

What is your dress code at work?  Have you ever had to train yourself to wear clothes out of your comfort zone?

Some Sunshine in February

Inspired by Just A Mum...?, the following is a list of 25 things that make me happy (in no particular
order and definitely not exhaustive).  As we have a few weeks left of this too-much-snow winter, it is nice to be reminded of happy things.


1. The smell and taste of the first sip of fresh brewed coffee.

2. The sound Gary makes when she knows she is about to get treats.

3. Food - especially tacos and all types of snackies.

4. Good Talks.

5. Deals, coupons, grocery flyers...purchasing anything for less than regular price.

6. Getting obsessed with a song and realizing I've already heard it 40 times on repeat.

7. Sending and receiving mail; choosing or creating an amazing greeting card. 

8. Clementines and pomegranates.

9. Waking up to find a cat somewhere on the bed.

10. Finishing a project (knitted, scrapbooked, etc.) and obsessively looking at it over and over.

11. Helping older people at the grocery store retrieve things from the top shelf (I'm at a height advantage).

12. A walk on a sunny day with the iPod.

13. Sleepovers at the family apartment complex.

14. Relaxing after cleaning the whole house (including all the laundry!)

15. Photos.  I love photos, albums, frames, scrapbooks - the whole package.

16. When John surprises me with warm jammies from the dryer.

17. Home alone dance party.

18.  Marathoning TV on DVD.

19. Spending the whole day in comfy clothes.

20. Compliments from strangers about the sweater my Grandma made.

21. Sleeping like a rock in clean sheets.

22. When the due date for library books lines up perfectly with a requested book coming off hold.

23. The smell of spring.

24. The internet.  I have a healthy addiction to that shit!

25. Getting re-obsessed with a band I haven't listened to in years.

To Enjoy The Whole Year Through

I reluctantly took down my Christmas cards yesterday.  I know, it is the middle of February, but I love greeting cards and love having the "cheer" hanging around.

Look how festive and happy these are!

As I was taking them down, I got the bright idea to leave the string up and display whatever random greeting cards I'll receive throughout the year.  Previously, greeting cards would sit on my desk, but due to limited space they were easily knocked over and didn't get the attention they properly deserved.  Now with them hanging up, I will be cheered the whole year through!

Look how festive and happy these are too!!

What do you do with your greeting cards?  I have a giant box of them from over the years. Every time I move, I look through my giant pile and clear out any that I'm not attached to anymore.  I also have a plan to make a scrapbook that showcases the greeting cards that I'm really sentimental about...but that will be a BIG project, so it hasn't moved past the planning stages.  So what do you do with your greeting cards?  Do you display them, store them, or toss them?

Scrapbooking Open House

There is an Open House at The Cottage Scrapbook here in Midland today from 2pm - 4pm, and also on Saturday from 2pm - 4pm.  They are doing a "Make and Take" which means you'll learn a scrapbooking technique and make something in-store and take it home with you (all for free).  I'll be checking it out today and will post my Make and Take later this evening.

Shameless self promotion wise, this could be a great opportunity for you to go to the scrapbook store and vote for my layout!! (My layout is the one pictured, right). I'm just saying...

Find The Cottage Scrapbook store hours and location here.

UPDATE: I'm back from the open house and the Make and Take was awesome!  We made TWO Valentines Day cards (for free) and learned how to use scrapbooking watercolour paints (I had no idea there was such a thing!).  The open house is on again tomorrow (Sat Jan 29) from 2pm-4pm, so if you want to do something crafty this is a free and fun way to do it!

Here are the cards I made at the open house.  Not bad, eh?

Happy Trails To You

I wonderfully live in an area that has many amazing trails.  I have access to both forest trails, which are great for walking and picking berries, and also the rail trail, which is great for cycling.  There has been talk lately of improving the trail system, and there have been calls for community input on the best way to do this.

Late last year I participated in a number of web questionnaires put online by Tiny Township.  The questionnaires asked about current trail usage, experiences on the trails, and asked for my opinion on some suggested improvements to the trail system.  Some of the suggested improvements include:

• Pave the trail (currently most of the rail trail is covered in gravel)
• Connect the trail conveniently to public beaches
• Connect the trail conveniently to neighbouring communities
• Install public washroom facilities along routes
• Increase amount of parking space near entrances to trail
• Add more signage along trail, including trail maps, historical information, etc.
• Install bike lock-up areas at destination points (beach, etc.)

The questionnaires are still online, so if you have an interest in the trail system, you could fill them out too if you wanted (surveys are fun!).  You don't have to be from Tiny Township to fill out the survey, but the first question asks you to list where you are from.  (*Note: I'm not sure if data is still being collected from these surveys.)

The County of Simcoe also wants to improve the trails, and there are a number of Public Open Houses regarding the development of something called The Simcoe County Trails Strategy.  If you are in the area and have input about the future of the trails, think about checking out one of these events to get your voice heard (the first one is tonight!).  From the flyer that appeared in this weeks paper:

Click to Embiggen

As a regular summer user of the trails, I am glad they are something we are putting money into.  I find the trail a safe place to walk/cycle/explore without having to worry about getting hit by a car.  Many country roads don't have sidewalks, so it is good to know we are investing in safer places to enjoy the outdoors that aren't directly on the roadway.

Your Call Cannot Be Completed As Dialed

We are getting ten digit dialing in the 705 region starting tomorrow, and like every other region that has ever gotten it, no one knew it was coming!

Homer: What really burns me up is they didn't give us one word of warning.
Carl: What do you mean? They ran those TV commercials about it, and that big radio campaign.
Lenny: Don't forget the leaflets they dropped from the Space Shuttle, and the two weeks we all spent at area code camp.

Homer: Not a single word of warning.

From The Simpsons: "A Tale of Two Springfields"

If you have a 705 number and don't want the recorded operator yelling at you repeatedly, then get used to adding the three extra digits, even if you are calling right next door.

As with most things, ten-digit-dialing has been in the works for a while now, but no one cared about it until it was SUDDENLY HAPPENING this weekend.  I found the CRTC decision for 705 to adopt ten-digit-dialing, and it was decided all the way back in October 2009.  For the people I know who are just hearing about it now, I chalk it up to none of us watching local news or listening to the radio.  Plus they are phasing in the new system, so up until March, if you still only dial seven digits, you will hear a reminder to dial ten digits, but your call will still go through.  After March, if you only dial seven digits, your call will not be completed at dialed!  Phasing in the system over a few months is a good way to get everyone to know about it, but I'm with Homer, why didn't anyone tell us! :)

For Better or Worse: Vote!

Monday is municipal election day in Ontario and I hope you get out there and vote!

I live in Tiny Township, and this year voting was done through Vote By Mail ballots.  I found that out on Friday.  I have never voted in a municipal election in Tiny, so I was not on the voter list and did not receive a Voter Information Package.  I called the Tiny Township office on Friday to ask where the polls were going to be held on Monday and I was simply told that it was Vote By Mail this year.  I said that it was obviously too late for me to vote by mail (because there is a reason they call it snail mail), so I asked what to do instead.  I was told that on election day (Monday), I can get a ballot at the Tiny Township office and put it in their ballot box.  So the Tiny Township office is the one and only polling station then?  That doesn't sound good.

Maybe it is because I am used to casting my vote in Toronto, but it seems like a really bad idea to only have one venue for voting.  Tiny Township has over 18,000 residents who are eligible to vote.  Is there enough space for everyone who will be coming to vote?  Does the township office have a room to vote in?  Is there enough staff to assist people?  I imagine they are assuming that most people mailed in their ballots and that people casting their vote at the office will just be those who aren't on the voters list.  Unfortunately, if the people I know are an example of Tiny voters, I think there are going to be plenty of confused people at the township office on Monday.

Two people I know who are on the voter list and got a Voting Information Package in the mail, didn't even open the envelope.  They both assumed they didn't have to care about it until election day.  That seems fair to me.  People are really apathetic about voting in general (voter turnout is less than 50%), so I don't think it is too much of a stretch to think that people wouldn't give a shit about their Voting Information Package until the day they thought they had to (election day!).  I didn't even care about asking where to vote until the Friday before the Monday election, and I think voting is really important!  Who knows how many people just left their ballots in a pile of mail on their kitchen table, only to open them sometime this weekend and not understand what to do?

Another person I know received their voting package and opened it, but thought the information about voting by mail was just that - information.  They assumed they could take their ballot to the polling station on election day.  I looked over the package.  It does have instructions on how to vote by mail, but it never tells you why you should.  Nowhere does it say: "Hey Look! There is NO POLLING STATION in your area! We want you to vote by mail this year! Please mail this back to vote!!"  A lot of people just expect to do what they did last time (go to a polling station) so unless it is specifically spelled out, I imagine some people just ignored the vote by mail option and assumed there was a polling station somewhere.  I know I thought there was.  Isn't there always a polling station somewhere?

Oh yeah, there is...  The Tiny Township office.  I wonder how full and crazy it is going to be when I get there on Monday?

Even if there are long lines, make sure you get out there and vote!  It is worth it to make sure your voice is heard.

UPDATE:  The township office wasn't all that busy when I went to vote.  There was a steady flow of people dropping off their ballots in person, as well as a few I overheard saying "I just opened it this morning..."  The woman I was behind in line said her parents opened theirs that morning, and if they had known, they would have mailed it last month.  I asked the election clerk how many ballots they got back through the mail and she said it was over 6000.  About 9000 people vote, so that left about a third of voters dropping off their ballots/having to vote at the office.

Oro World's Fair Bound

I'm heading out shortly to pick up Mom and then we are off to the Oro World's Fair, happening this weekend, September 17 + 18, 2010 (Click her for a map of the Fairgrounds).  Mom and I get to spend the day with my niece (2) and nephew (5) and see what kind of trouble we can get into.  Also, my eating goal today includes candy floss or fudge.

If you are in the area, come check out the fun!

A tractor in the fair parade.

Weekend Getaway

The Bros and I are heading to Guelph, Ontario this weekend for some fun and formal activities.  On Saturday I'm attending my friend Sarah's nuptials and catching up with my buddies from University.  Then on Sunday the Bros and I are driving around the area (Guelph, St. Jacobs, Elora) to see what we can see.  Apparently there are two covered bridges within 25 minutes of each other.  Looking forward to getting some awesome photos!!  Have a great weekend everybody!

Covered Bridge!