Gabriel Allon (Daniel Silva)

I'm dying for a new espionage movie and Jason Bourne-esque obsession.

Would some hot shot movie studio exec please contact Daniel Silva already?

The Allon Dossier

Prince of Fire

Full Name: 

Gabriel Allon

Height: 

Medium

Weight: 

Medium

Eyes: 

Green

Hair: 

Black with gray temples

Place of Birth: 

Jezreel Valley, Israel

Date of Birth: 

Unknown

Higher Education: 

Bezalel Academy of Art and Design, Jerusalem

Known Residences: 

Cornwall, Venice, Jerusalem

Current Residence: 

Thought to be living in Italy under Vatican protection

Employer: 

Office of Intelligence and Special Tasks, Israel

Status: 

Semi-retired

Area of Expertise: 

Intelligence collection, special investigations, kidnap and capture, interrogation, assassination

First Known Op:

Wrath of God, 1972-1975; personally liquidated six terrorists responsible for Munich Olympics massacre

Weapon of Choice:

Beretta

Known Aliases:

Mario Delvecchio, Alessio Vianelli, Heinrich Kiever, Johannes Klemp, Natan Golani, Ehud Landau, Gideon Argov

Cover:

Art Restorer

Area of Expertise:

Italian Old Master

Favorite Painters:

Titian, Bellini, Caravaggio

Favorite Opera:

La Bohème

Languages:

English, Hebrew, German, Italian, French

Last Known Op:

The Kharkov Affair, Moscow

Known Associates:

Ari Shamron, former chief of Israeli intelligence
Uzi Navot, chief of Israeli Special Ops
Eli Lavon, Office surveillance specialist
Chiara Zolli, Office field operative (also known as Chiara Allon)
Mikhail Abramov, Office assassin and field operative
Yossi Gavish, Office analyst and field operative
Dina Sarid, Office terrorism analyst and field operative
Yaakov Rossman, Shin Bet officer on loan to the Office
Rimona Stern, AMAN analyst on loan to the Office
Julian Isherwood, London art dealer
Francesco Tiepolo, prominent Venetian restorer
Adrian Carter, deputy director for operations, CIA
Sarah Bancroft, Counterterrorism Center operative, CIA
Graham Seymour, deputy director, MI5
Monsignor Luigi Donati, papal private secretary
Pietro Lucchesi, His Holiness Pope Paul VII

Family:

Parents deceased; first wife seriously wounded in 1991 bombing in Vienna; only son killed in same attack; rumored to have recently wed Office field operative Chiara Zolli.

Amateur Movie Reviews - 5 - Black Swan

Source:wallpapersmovie.com

Go see it now. Seriously.

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

There is a saying that a picture is worth a thousand words, but really I'm just being lazy.

So here is a montage of our Cuban Christmas:

Fam-O-Lee

Playa Pesquero

T & E

Langosta!

An Attempt at Perspective

Everyone knows we were ready for a Roman Holiday, but sadly Heathrow was not ready for us.

Source:bbc.co.uk

However, I also believe that things happen for a reason (today is cliche day!). Get this:

When we were in Cuba, there were several British tourists that we spoke to about the Heathrow airport shutdown. All of them had horror stories about the craziness they encountered on December 19 when we were supposed to fly from Toronto to London to catch our connecting flight to Rome.

Some were trapped on the runway inside a British Airways plane for 14 hours! Others had to wait for 4-5 days before they can get a flight out of Heathrow. Another person told me she had to drive from Heathrow to Gatwick, then stay for 2 days in a dingy motel before she was able to fly out.

The Brits we talked to in Cuba were generally enraged and embarrassed of their country. One couple even said that England is now a third world country (too funny, we know it's not but they were really passionate when they said it).

Lesson learned for us? Don't fly through London during winter.

Source:digitalgroup.info

When we returned home on December 26, my parents told us about the Swiss and Chilean Embassy bombings in Rome on December 23.

Both embassies were less than 30 minutes from our Piazza Di San Cosimato apartment rental.

Souce:myfitv.com

Are you familiar with the term "Causal Determinism"?

Determinism (specifically causal determinism) is the concept that events within a given paradigm are bound by causality in such a way that any state (of an object or event) is, to some large degree, determined by prior states.

Something to ponder, n'est pas?

Source:pretty-on-the-inside.tumblr.com

What a Difference a Day Makes

So... we were super prepared and very much looking forward to our Roman Holiday... for months now, right? I seem to recall geekily triangulating the grocery stores around the amazing apartment we were supposed to stay in...

But then Mother Nature decided she did not want us in Europe this time around, so she sent an angry snow storm towards UK and its environs and shut down Heathrow.

Source:ctv.ca

I got the cancellation notice from British Airways last night. I was heartbroken, furious, disappointed, and... did I say heartbroken already? I called itravel2000.com to see what our options are (there were none that worked for us), so feeling defeated (and annoyed) I finally decided to opt for the full refund.

Source:wannasmile.wordpress.com

Note to the rude and bitchy itravel2000.com Sales Rep who wasn't helpful at all: I'm sorry that you had to stay an extra 10 minutes past your skeleton shift to talk to me. Your manager and the Executives of itravel2000.com should expect a nice long letter from me next week.

Anyway, I just couldn't accept that our travel plans were 86d. I just couldn't. I'm not one to just give up. I spent the whole night looking for an alternative arrangement. I'm obsessive about this. I would have been more enraged if I just stayed put this week. I would have obsessed and obsessed over it and likely I would have driven Greggy and T and my parents bananas. B-A-N-A-N-A-S.


So for the same price as my airfare refund, I found a good deal to go on nice warm holiday on the beach from December 21 to December 26. Over the last few weeks I have been buying specific items for a European winter holiday, some of which I won't be able to use on this trip on account of the warm vs. cold destination and all. Oh well.

Source:hirsutehistory.com

I called itravel2000.com on Sunday morning to book it. Yes, this sounds a bit masochistic, but really since I booked my original flight with them and since I'm expecting the refund from them, it was going to be easier for me to track the credits / debits to / from my Visa. 

And you know what? I had a pleasant experience with a gentleman of a Sales Rep; his management should expect a letter from me too.

Very Excited!

How can I possibly focus when I am super excited about my 3 week vacation starting next week! And Rome, oh Rome...  so looking forward to meeting you.

Source:tostayornottostay.blogspot.com

Amateur Movie Reviews - 4 - Hereafter

T randomly asked me to go to the movies this past Sunday - totally unplanned, so I had to make adjustments to my somewhat-already-planned-ish alone time avec moi.

The only movie I was even remotely interested in watching was Hereafter.

Source:beyondhollywood.com

*SPOILER ALERT*

Here is the movie in a nutshell:

- Really awesome Tsunami opening scene.

- Devastatingly sad Marcus (twin brother to Jason, who died instantly after being struck by a car in the middle of London while running away from bullies on his way home from the "chemist" (pharmacist) after picking up his heroin-addicted uber alcoholic mom's prescription to block opiates and other nasty stuff from further entering into her bloodstream)

- Marie LeLay, the pretty, gap-toothed, hard news Host slash she was sleeping with the TV Producer and experienced "in between state of consciousness and nothingness" after being crushed by the Tsunami mentioned above, while buying gifts for her TV Producer lover's kids because he was too sleepy and hungry to do it. TV Producer was also apparently lazy as hell when he asked her to get the hotel to settle the bill and send some breakfast into their room WHILE SHE WAS ON HER WAY TO BUY GIFTS FOR HIS KIDS. I think the Tsunami was his setup, perhaps a way of getting rid of her without having to have that "we need to talk" talk.

- Blue-eyed Asian chick who replaced Marie LeLay as TV Host because Marie was going bananas and obsessing about her Flatliners-esque experience. And... you will be shocked by this... surprisingly, lazy questionable TV Producer was also sleeping with her!

- Psychic George, played by Matt Damon, who communicates with dead people, after he takes living people's hands to "make a connection". He can't have a normal life, let alone a relationship, especially when TMI reality check sets in three minutes after holding their hands.

Dear Matt: You had me at hello when you were Jason Bourne, really. When I obsess about me being Jason Bourne, I always picture you. But, dude, did you really have to take this part?  I know it's hard to say no to Clint Eastwood, but...seriously... there were way too many "George eating by himself in his tiny San Francisco kitchen" scenes. You're lonely. I get it. I totally clued in after the first kitchen scene. I liked it better when you were a lethal assassin.

- Dude from Jerry McGuire, Psychic George's chubby brother, constantly peer-pressured George to monetize his Dion Warwick abilities. I will always remember him as Bob Sugar.

- And finally, Bryce Dallas Howard (daughter of Ron Howard - gosh... I just found this out like two seconds ago (thanks IMDB!)), playing creepy, needy, close-talker girl Melanie.

And - OMG - I just totally clued in that she played the crazy redhead vampire chick in that horrible movie Eclipse!

In conclusion, Gran Torino is way better - go see that one instead.

Trastevere Supermercati (Planning, Obsessing)

Source:ketchupandsoup.blogspot.com

I'm obsessed with food.

Not in an eating disorder kind of way (although I did have a bout of that in the early 2000s).

Rather, I'm obsessed with food because I grew up being obsessed with food. When we celebrate with friends and family, or just need some quality time to catch up on things, or if we want to go out to an event or even to watch movies, etc etc, all plans revolve around food and answers to these questions:

- What are we going to eat

- When are we going to eat

- Where are we going to eat

Among other things, I show love and affection and caring and all that other great mushy, wifey, mommy kinda shtuff through food. 

My biggest panic attack is at the end of my very busy work day when I have not planned for dinner in advance. I keep our neighborhood restaurants in business as every week I cycle through the same places for take-out at least 4 times a week:

- Memories of Japan

- Congee Star

- Arkadia House

- Fiesta Filipino (Levi's Catering)

- And thanks to thefoodpursuit.com I totally just remembered Niji Restaurant

I spend about $350 a week on groceries, plus another $150 or so on take-out a week! For a family of 3, that is a lot!

But I justify this by telling myself that I work really hard so I can have the extra luxuries in life like good food and traveling twice a year. I probably spend majority of my disposable income on food and travel. And maybe the occasional shopping spree at Winners (the Leaside location is my favourite store in the whole wide world).

We own an affordable house, don't really go crazy on cars, T gets her stipend and vocal lessons, and my cat Mitzy Pepper Pie gets groomed every quarter.

I think part of my food obsession now is knowing that back in the day when I was a single mom at 19 years old, I didn't have enough money left over from my measly $22,000 per year salary in 1994 to feed myself. Rent got paid first, then T's baby food and formula, then her subsidized daycare, then T's other necessities, then well... nothing left for me.

But I digress, because this post is about how I have triangulated the grocery stores near the apartment that we will be staying at when we go to Rome in December! The area is called Trastevere and it is supposed to be a mecca for foodies.

Point A is our Apartment in Trastevere.

Point B is where Standa Supermercati is located. Standa is a large modern supermarket underneath the Oviesse department store on Viale Trastevere.

Points C and D show where Todis and Panella are. Todis is a German supermarket chain and Panella is a place where we can get baked goodies and one of the only places to buy Italian Pancetta prepared like bacon we know back here in good ol' North America.

Source:tripadvisor

Point E shows where di Per di is, vaguely described in guide books as a "modern supermarket".

To top this off our Apartment (Point A) is right across Piazza di San Cosimato (San Cosimato square) where there is a daily open air Farmer's Market offering all sorts of Italian produce, fresh seafood, fruits, meats, cheese. In short, everything that makes the food obsessed alter ego inside of me very very happy! Yippee! Fa la la la la, la la la la..........

Source:lonelyplanet.com/travelblogs

Amateur Movie Reviews - 3 - The Town

For our 4th Wedding Anniversary, Greggy and I went back to El Pulgarcito to have chicarron and queso pupusas, taco el pollo, and enchilladas con pollo y queso.

Source:newyork.seriouseats.com

Also, we watched The Town. Go see it. Kinda reminds me of Heat.

It won't change your life or anything, but you will be entertained (and Boston's Charlestown is reminiscent of Flemingdon Park).

Source:csmonitor.com

Vatican City in December (Planning, Scheduling)

Today I contacted the Vatican for 3 main reasons:

1) I want to see the excavations below St. Peter's Basilica (also known as the Vatican Scavi or Vatican Necropolis).

Source:fitforholiness.com

Instructions from the Vatican website:

Reservations

Reservations are only accepted in writing (by e-mail: scavi@fsp.va, by fax: (39-06) 6987-3017, or directly in the Excavations Office.)

With your request to visit the excavations, please provide the following information:

• The exact number of visitors
• Their names (in case of groups, the composition and provenance of the group is also needed [e.g. university, parish, etc.])
• Language desired for the visit
• The dates available during which the Office can arrange the visit (The precise time of the visit will be determined by the Excavations Office).
• Contact information (an e-mail address, fax number, or full postal address) so that the Excavations Office may advise you about your visit.

When a visit is possible, the Office will send a proposed date and time. If the proposed date and time are acceptable, the visitors must so inform the Excavations Office, which will then definitively confirm the visit.

When a visit is not possible:

Given the limited number of group possible, not all requests can be answered positively.

• On occasion, due to the vast number of requests received and the time needed to process them, it may not be possible for the Office to even respond to an application prior to one’s arrival in Rome. In such cases, the Excavation Office regrets that a visit will not be possible.

Office hours

The Excavations Office is open daily from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm, except Sundays and holidays.

• Orario Ufficio: dalle ore 9.00 alle 17.00: tutti i giorni escluso DOMENICA e FESTIVI vaticani
• Excavations Office Hours: 9:00 am – 5:00 pm, Closed Sunday and Holidays
• Bureau des fouilles: 9.00 - 17.00 (Ouverte tous les jours sauf le dimanche et les jours ferés)
• Geöffnet: Werktags von 9.00 Uhr bis 17.00 Uhr: Geschlossen: Sonntags und an Feiertagen
• Abierta desde las 9:00 a las 17:00: Cerrado los domingos y festivos

Usually the last tour each day begins at 3:30 pm

Tickets and Reaching the Excavations Office

The visitor must always confirm his reservation in the way and during the time period given by the Excavations Office in positive responses to requests.

Visitors ought to be at the Excavations Office [without large bags and backpacks] at least five minutes prior to the beginning of their tour.

The Excavations Office may be reached through the Holy Office Gate to the Vatican (through the colonnade to the left, on Via Paolo VI). The Swiss Guard will direct the visitors to the Office.

The visit to the necropolis ends back at the Excavations Office.

On occasion, the basilica and the excavations may be closed for unforeseen reasons. In such cases, the Scavi Office will attempt to reschedule those groups affected by the closing. When this is not possible, any reservation deposit will be refunded.

Excavations Office
Fabbrica di San Pietro
00120 Vatican City  

Tel. +39 06 6988.5318
Fax +39 06 6987.3017 - 6988.5518

E-Mail: scavi@fsp.va

 2) I also want to spend Christmas day or Christmas Eve at St. Peter's. I believe this is the epitome of Christmas. We are a spiritual family and we love Christmas, what better way to experience it?

Source:monachos.net

This time, the Vatican instructed us to complete a form and fax it to them.

Prefecture of the Papal Household

00120 Vatican City State

Fax +39 06 0698 85863

3) I've been doing a lot of research on the Vatican Museum, and most have recommended to get a guided tour. We're not really the guided tour types, but I think this one may be worth it.

Viator.com looks pretty good, I will book a couple of weeks before we leave Toronto. Thousands of positive reviews about this particular tour. Very exciting!

Source:bernini

I didn't like the book very much, I liked the movie even less, but the Angels & Demons tour looks pretty interesting... and we might just try it on December 26, since most of Romes sites, shops, etc, will be closed on that day. 

I wish I could get paid to do this stuff full-time.

I wish parenting was simple

I wish children stayed young forever, like my nieces.

And I wish children didn't want to grow up so fast, or become angry and inconsiderate, or self-destructive.

And I wish that I didn't care when my kid says hurtful things to me.

Not A Super Sweet 16 (Scheduling, Negotiation, Risk Management)

My daughter T is turning 16 this Sunday.

Last year, when she was turning 15, we were going to have a mini Quinceañera for her, with just our family and close family friends... but then she got in trouble in a BIG way, so I canceled her Quinces two days before the party.

Turning 16 years old is a big milestone for any adolescent. She's very excited about it, but she told me that she was also afraid of growing up.

Her biggest fear was Taxes.

I told my daughter that she doesn't have to worry too much about Taxes, because she can outsource it to a third party, like we do. --> Risk Management

Since we are going to Rome in December over the Christmas Holidays, and that will cost a lot of money, we decided as a family that we will just keep16th birthday celebration to a minimum, and have brunch with the clan instead.

As for her birthday wish list, T asked if she could get a Blackberry and a pair of Michael Jordans.

But I told her that she doesn't need a Blackberry, because she needs a job first to pay for it. However, the final trade-off was that I will get her a Blackberry, but not a data plan. So this means that she can continue with texting on the Blackberry, but she can't use Blackberry Messenger. If she wants to have a data plan, she needs to find a way to fund it.

Today, I ordered a "nearly new" Blackberry from Ebay, which should arrive in 10 business days. Yes, the gift will arrive past her birthday, but I felt this is a good trade-off, worthy of her anticipation. --> Negotiation, Scheduling

The rest of this post deals with Scheduling, Negotiation, and Risk Management

My other objective was to schedule Brunch for 11 people.

Since 60% of our family has relocated to Stoney Creek, Ontario, I figured that the best option was to find a restaurant that is as close to Stoney Creek as possible. The target locaton: Oakville, Ontario.

I've used OpenTable in the past, so I happily booked a table for 11 at Oliver & Bonacini Grill in Oakville.

Two days later, my mom emailed me and said maybe it's a better idea to have the Brunch in Toronto, rather than Oakville, because she and my dad will be in Toronto on that day to sing at Church.

Hmm.

So, based on mostly positive reviews, my next restaurant booking was for an all-you-can-eat Japanese buffet restaurant called Sushi on 7.

Two days later, my mom emailed me again, and said maybe we should stick to Oakville after all, cause my sister has been having contractions, and that she might have the baby any day now... maybe she might even go into labour on T's birthday, while we're having Brunch.

By this time I was getting really annoyed, because of all the Change Requests coming from my mom.

So I waited 5 hours, and emailed her back and said we will just stay with the Toronto plan, because majority will be here.

After 24 hours, I felt bad saying that, because it may mean Lulu and Olivia won't be able to come to T's 16th birthday brunch, and I really want to see them. Also, I'm trying to be a little less PMSy.

It is important to note that I kept the Oliver & Bonacini Oakville reservation, even though I had another reservation with Sushi on 7 in Markham. Why? Because I figured that something like this would happen, based on previous Lessons Learned from being a part of our wacky (but very much loved by us) extended family.

So to address logistical constraints, food preferences, the fact that my sister may pop out the baby any time now, I made reservations at an all-you-can-eat Japanese & Thai Buffet in Oakville, called Spoon & Fork.

I proceeded to cancel the O&B and Sushi on 7 reservations shortly thereafter.

I emailed my mom with the confirmation, and she exclaimed how good I am at project management.

Finally, direction (sort of)

A few posts ago, I wrote about not having direction for this blog.

I write (wrote) about topics that are of interest to me - I don't need to list those topics out again, because you can tell what interests me just by looking to the right of your screen - see over there ------> where it says "Labels", scroll to just below the ads delivered by Google AdSense.

But Penelope Trunk, who I respect greatly, says that Blogs Without Topics Are A Waste of Time.

Now, I don't know about you, but my time is very precious and I certainly don't want to waste people's time.

So I've decided that I will write about what I'm very good and successful at, which is Project Management.

But not just project management related to my professional work. I will write openly about my experiences in applying project management tools and techniques to my personal life as well.

I'm a big believer that project management can save your life, and maybe even the world, if you:

* Know what you're doing (if you don't know, you can assess and figure it out quickly),

* Are flexible and can adapt your tactics and strategy based on whatever situation you're in,

* Learn from your mistakes,

* Coach and mentor people, and be a catalyst for their success (after all, the success of any Project Manager is dependent on enabling others to be successful).

I'm not really sure where this will go, but having some direction is a start.

Don Draper is a Sociopath and Roger Sterling is Joan Harris' baby daddy!

The series finale of Mad Men is bananas!!!!

Source:nowtrends.co.cc

I love this show. I love mid-century modern. I need to go to sleep now, and I need to calm down.

Don Draper dumps Dr. something (the blond market research chick) and proposes to Megan during Disney World vacation trip with the kids. I am willing to bet that Dr. something will spill the beans about Don / Dick next season, because she was the only one who really new about Don but yet she still loved him. Don / Dick is so dead.

Source:anewsalerts.com

Joan Harris and Roger Sterling got all hot when they got mugged in some seedy part of New York (isn't all of New York seedy)? Anyway, she got pregnant, told Roger that she got rid of it (on account that she's married and all, to a wannabe doctor who was one of the lucky winners of an all-inclusive paid trip to Vietnam during the Vietnam War).

But yet, we see her talking on the phone with her Vietnam War doctor husband, speaking about her "condition" and I almost flipped! Really! (Greggy said I needed to calm down). The girl is so ballsy and I dig that about her!!!

Source:dvdverdict.com

I am NOT THE HAPPIEST PERSON RIGHT NOW because I HAVE TO WAIT FOR THE NEXT SEASON OF MAD MEN. Gah!!!!!!

Profile of a Sociopath
Source: Mcafee.cc

* Glibness and Superficial Charm

* Manipulative and Cunning

They never recognize the rights of others and see their self-serving behaviors as permissible. They appear to be charming, yet are covertly hostile and domineering, seeing their victim as merely an instrument to be used. They may dominate and humiliate their victims.

* Grandiose Sense of Self

Feels entitled to certain things as "their right."

* Pathological Lying

Has no problem lying coolly and easily and it is almost impossible for them to be truthful on a consistent basis. Can create, and get caught up in, a complex belief about their own powers and abilities. Extremely convincing and even able to pass lie detector tests.

* Lack of Remorse, Shame or Guilt

A deep seated rage, which is split off and repressed, is at their core. Does not see others around them as people, but only as targets and opportunities. Instead of friends, they have victims and accomplices who end up as victims. The end always justifies the means and they let nothing stand in their way.

* Shallow Emotions

When they show what seems to be warmth, joy, love and compassion it is more feigned than experienced and serves an ulterior motive. Outraged by insignificant matters, yet remaining unmoved and cold by what would upset a normal person. Since they are not genuine, neither are their promises.

* Incapacity for Love

* Need for Stimulation

Living on the edge. Verbal outbursts and physical punishments are normal. Promiscuity and gambling are common.

* Callousness/Lack of Empathy

Unable to empathize with the pain of their victims, having only contempt for others' feelings of distress and readily taking advantage of them.

* Poor Behavioral Controls/Impulsive Nature

Rage and abuse, alternating with small expressions of love and approval produce an addictive cycle for abuser and abused, as well as creating hopelessness in the victim. Believe they are all-powerful, all-knowing, entitled to every wish, no sense of personal boundaries, no concern for their impact on others.

* Early Behavior Problems/Juvenile Delinquency

Usually has a history of behavioral and academic difficulties, yet "gets by" by conning others. Problems in making and keeping friends; aberrant behaviors such as cruelty to people or animals, stealing, etc.

* Irresponsibility/Unreliability

Not concerned about wrecking others' lives and dreams. Oblivious or indifferent to the devastation they cause. Does not accept blame themselves, but blames others, even for acts they obviously committed.

* Promiscuous Sexual Behavior/Infidelity

Promiscuity, child sexual abuse, rape and sexual acting out of all sorts.

* Lack of Realistic Life Plan/Parasitic Lifestyle

Tends to move around a lot or makes all encompassing promises for the future, poor work ethic but exploits others effectively.

* Criminal or Entrepreneurial Versatility

Changes their image as needed to avoid prosecution. Changes life story readily.

Amateur Movie Reviews - 2 - Splice

Splice
This amazing film is shot in Hamilton, Ontario.

When I first saw the movie, I felt weird for weeks. Naturally, I saw it over and over again. Last time was this past weekend, with Greggy. Vincenzo Natali (who also directed Cube) is a genius.

Memento?

Source:Jazjaz.net

Today I was freaking out because my daughter T was not yet home by 7:30. Her curfew is 7:30 every day except Friday and Saturday when she gets to stay out until midnight.

For the most part T is very responsible soon to be 16-year-old. Since she knows that being on time is very important to me she always makes sure that she sends me a text or calls me if she's going to be late.

Well it was 7:46 and I couldn't reach her by phone and her dad said she left his house 45 minutes ago. Naturally I think the worst and short of having massive panic attack and calling police to issue an Amber Alert, I get a call back on my landline.

Me: Hello???

T: Hi Mom!

Me: Where the hell are you! You're late!!!

  

T: No, I'm not Mom. 

Me: Yes you are! It's 7:46! 

T: My curfew's at 8:00 on weekdays.

Me: No it's not! It's 7:30! 

T: No Mom, I have been coming home at 8:00 on weekdays since school started!! You are stressing me out! (Talking to Kendall her boyfriend) Kendall, haven't I been coming home at 8:00 this year? See mom? Did you hear that? 8:00, not 7:30!!!

Source:ogmiosproject.org

Me: (Pause. Ponder. Trying to recall last time we negotiated curfew).

T: Mom???

Me: Uhm.... yeah.... I guess it's 8:00? Okay... see you soon honey, love you!

Now, it's not the first time I've had some problems with short term memory. The strange thing is that I can remember a lot of things in vivid detail going back to when I was 2 or 3 years old.... I am also a bit of a human Wiki and I have no problems remembering a LOT of things stored in my head like Johnny Mnemonic.

source:the interwebs

But for some strange reason, trivial things I did 30 seconds or 5 minutes ago seem to vapourize just like that from my memory and I would literally have to ponder what the hell I just did and retrace my steps. This doesn't happen every time, just sometimes but often enough to make me feel weirder than usual.

Maybe it's the Matrix resetting itself?

Leonard Shelby (Memento) will understand.

Post-Football Retrospective

So we went to the Football Game. You can cut the testosterone filled air with a Hattori Hanzo sword.

Since I'm not into football, my favourite part of the evening was the drive to the stadium (Toronto is so pretty), dinner and drinks (Baton Rouge - meh), and being with my husband.

St. Lawrence Market

CN Tower

Greggy

Baton Rouge

I want to sleep

Am very tired and I want to sleep but instead I have a lot of meetings, a phone interview, and an Argos vs. Ticats football game to go to at the Rogers Centre tonight. I told my husband I will probably bring a book to the game because football is so boring (he was not amused), so I said: "ha ha, just joking" (I wasn't).

Conversations with T

Midnight. T is 16 this month.

Me: Uhm, why does your room smell like weed?

T: What? Weed?

Me: Yes.

T: Remember when I told you something smells funny in my room? I just sprayed with Fabreeze.

Me: It can't be this Fabreeze cause it's orange scented, and it doesn't smell like oranges in here.

T: Oh, I used the one from downstairs.

Me: It really smells like weed in here. Why is your window open?

T: Mom, now you're making me feel bad! You always told me not to do it!

Me: Why is there a lighter on your windowsill?

T: There's always been a lighter on my windowsill.

Me: Hm.

T: Maybe it's the neighbour!

T: Now you're going to think about this and it's making me feel bad! And you don't believe me!

Me: Parents will always think something. And sure I believe you. (Hug). Good night.

(I went downstairs and opened window in living room and inhaled. No weed smell emanating from neighbour's house.)

A Love Letter to Passport Canada

So I mentioned on a previous post that my daughter and I are renewing our passports for our upcoming Roman adventure.

Passport Canada offers a Simple Renewal Process Application Process which promises that you will get your renewed passport within 10 days, provided that you pass all the requisite criteria, of course.

I don't know about you, but I'm generally leary of government agencies and such, so in my heart I was *hoping* that they will keep the promise of said 10-day turn-around time... but with me being a Project Manager and all, I tend to question (verify) the validity and probability of meeting certain deliverables and timelines committed to me by anyone (this goes for work and non-work stuff).

That being said, I started feeling a bit panicky that Passport Canada is just pulling my chain (or is it leg?) as their deadline of sending me the brand spanking new passports is October 14 (I completed the application process on September 30). I even set a reminder calendar event for myself to check on the status this week.

Anyway, I initiated a Google search using "check passport status Canada", which redirected me to a site that points to the Request Status of Application section in the Passport Canada site.

Almost laughing to myself, I again doubted that I would get the information that I needed. I just want to get my new passports in the timeframe that was promised (10 days). I filled out all the mandatory fields anyway, and submitted the query (I did that at 9AM EST this morning / today). 

Then I forgot about it, until I got this in my inbox:

Your passport was sent to you by Xpresspost on October 6th, 2010.  The Canada Post item number is XXXXXXXXXXXX. You can track the delivery of your passport at www.canadapost.ca.

Wow!!! I was so shocked and happy!

BUT going one step further, I went to the Canada Post website and did a query using the tracking number I received, and got this:

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Tracking Number
XXXXXXXXXX

Please note that this is the most up-to-date information available in our system. Our telephone agents have access to the same information presented here.

Track Status

Date	Time	Location	Description	Retail Location	Signatory Name
2010/10/12	14:58	xxxxxxxxx	Item available for pickup at Post Office

Track History

Date	Time	Location	Description	Retail Location	Signatory Name
2010/10/12	14:58	xxxxxxxxx	Item available for pickup at Post Office
2010/10/12	10:17	xxxxxxxxx	Item being prepared for transfer to Post Office	xxxxxxxxx
2010/10/08	AM	xxxxxxxxx	Attempted delivery. Notice card left indicating where item can be picked up.
2010/10/08	08:45	xxxxxxxxx	Item out for delivery
2010/10/07	15:24	OTTAWA	Item arrived at postal facility

Shipping Options and Features for this Item

Signature Required

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I took it one more step further and called Canada Post @ 1-866-607-6301 to validate the status.

Much to my astonishment, a real 'live' human government agent confirmed the above. In addition, she gave me the Delivery Notice Card Number (because I didn't get the Notice Card on October 8 contrary to the status above) and you know what???

My passports are at the Post Office ready for pick-up. She even gave me the address of the P.O. and their HOO (Hours of Operation) and told me to bring valid ID.

Happy happy joy joy.

Thank you Passport Canada, for not reneging on your promise.

XOXOXO
EDM-R

I have no direction

Based on my fairly thorough online research during lunch hour, majority of Blogs out there focus on a single topic.

Here are some very excellent examples:

My First Dictionary
http://myfirstdictionary.blogspot.com/

Ross Horsely's blog is a dark take on a simple dictionary picture book that one buys for, or reads to children.

Ross, you made my day today so much better with your Hans Christian Andersen-esque on meth widrawal sense of humour. I was having a bad day because Security was being such a sh*t bag, but I can put that one behind me now! Thank you!

My favourite one so far is this:

Beta Dad
http://butterbeanandcobra.blogspot.com

I was a young mom at 19 yrs old and I can totally remember the rage and helplessness I felt during my daughter's first few years. Beta Dad takes us through the adventures of being a stay-at-home dad with twin baby girls. I really appreciate the candor and rage coursing through each post, because I think I would go postal too if I were in his shoes.

Big Girls, Small Kitchen
http://www.biggirlssmallkitchen.com/

Ok, so who doesn't have a kitchen fetish and food obsession? Exactly.

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So do you  see what I mean now? About me not having direction for this Blog? I can pretty much whittle my interests down to these main topics:

• family (8)
• food (9)
• Jason Bourne (1)
• low carb (6)
• movies (1)

"Travel" will be added once I start posting about my Road to Rome adventures...

But I think I really need to narrow it down to a single topic.

What to do what to do what to do.