Monday, June 28, 2010

I fixed my car!

Shiffy wasn't running well, and then not running at all. I wasn't able to get it started, and was worried that I had an expensive repair on my hands.  I did some research, and found out it was likely a battery issue.

Today, I went to the auto parts store in Whistler, bought a battery, and installed it myself. I'm quite pleased, as I saved myself some money by not taking it to a mechanic. It was really easy to do as well.

After I completed the installation, the car started easily, with the confident engine growl telling me I had been successful. It was really satisfying to be able to do it myself and achieve a good result.

The battery was more expensive than it would have been at Canadian Tire in Squamish, but I was happy to get it right here in Whistler, saving myself the time and gas of going down there to get it.

Shiffy's back up and running! Happy days!

No goal!


Germany vs England, June 27.  Looks like the refs made the right call after all!

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Carmella sets up her paintings for the ArtWalk

Today Carmella set up her paintings for the ArtWalk, Whistler's annual showcase of local artists. Art is featured in various venues around Whistler, like restaurants, bike shops, banks, and hotel lobbies.

She's being featured at the North Shore Credit Union. She didn't have to hang her art, as there were existing shelves that she was supposed to use. The bank has an area that was probably put into their new renovation with the purpose of displaying art. The finished display has a small bio, and little placards stating each painting's name, dimensions, and price. Here she is in action.


I like the business cards she's made. She took one of her old paper paintings and cut it into business card sized sections. Then, she jotted on her information in handwriting.

It's been an eventful few days for Carmella. The job market is tough at the moment, and it's been discouraging for her. She accepted a job at the kids carnival that gets set up at the base of Blackcomb Mountain in the summer. She would be working at the bouncy castle, life-sized maze, space-age spinner, and other small attractions. She would be making a lower wage than she would have liked.

Training happened on Saturday. Carmella was not 100% excited about the job for a number of reasons, but knew that it was necessary to keep a roof over her head and food on her table. Halfway through the afternoon of training, she began to feel nauseous and started shaking and trembling. She was sweating, and had a feeling that she was about to black out. Her stomach suddenly became upset as well.

Carmella was experiencing a panic attack, and she decided that the job wasn't for her. Her mind was willing, but the body would not co-operate. She left the training day before it was finished, dragging herself home to bed. She spoke with the boss, and explained that the job wasn't for her.

However, she's now becoming a woman of business! She's decided to go after the kind of work she wants to do. She put an ad in the paper advertising childcare, and put the word out that she wanted to have more Conversational English students (Carmella and I currently tag-tutor a co-worker of mine for Korea, named Sunny).

Now, Carmella has secured herself almost five full days of work a week, all on her own. She has another English student, and another childcare gig. She's going to advertise English lessons in the paper next week, and will get a bunch of bites there too.

I think it's pretty great. Carmella's very satisfied because she will be able to do work she enjoys, and have variety in her week. Also, since she's not tied down to any of these jobs, she'll continue applying to positions relating to her psychology degree, and will keep working towards getting accepted into a post-degree counselling psychology program. She'll also likely be doing volunteer work for the area Woman's Shelter, doing both research and working with the women. Busy busy!

So it's pretty great, and she can teach me a thing or two about getting out there and making things happen.

Monday, June 14, 2010

The Vuvuzela


The Vuvuzela has gotten a lot of heat from World Cup players and fans over the past few days, with some people calling for its ban from games.  Players say that it makes communication hard, and armchair fans say that they prefer more traditional singing in the stands.

Here are some quotes from players, found in this Globe and Mail article.

"My kids have been on the phone [with me], and they want two.” – England defender Jamie Carragher


“It is impossible to communicate; it’s like being deaf.” – Argentina’s Lionel Messi

The problem is you just can’t communicate. You really have to use eye contact.” – Denmark goalkeeper Thomas Sorensen

This is our culture. This is how we create our national rhythm and dance.” – Lucas Radebe, captain of South Africa’s World Cup team in 1998 and 2002

Vuvuzelas are here to stay and will never be banned.” – Rich Mkhondo, a spokesman for the local World Cup organizing committee

To be exposed to this type of volume raises the risk of immediate inner-ear trauma.” – Christian Gelis, a professor of biophysics at the University of Montpellier

I don't mind them.  I'm more interested in the action on the field, although I wouldn't mind hearing the traditional football songs from other nations too.

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Carmella's Art

Carmella has set up a blog to show her art! You can find it here. Remember to bookmark it!

It's a pretty exciting month for Carmella. She's been accepted into Whistler's annual Art Walk, a showcase of Whistler's artists. Different artist's art is displayed at various Whistler businesses, and people take self-directed tours of all the various venues. The art will stay there for the summer.

Carmella's venue is at the North Shore Credit Union. She has official looking painting tags, and a good bio too. She had to order them ahead of time, and they're all printed out on official Art Walk paper.

It's very exciting! We'll post pictures of what they look like later.

Congratulations on the Art Walk!

My favourite blog post of Carmella's is this one. It's got an anteater in it.