Stuck in a Furrow

Carmen and I are going to Vegas!

MGM Grand and 4 nights (and days) of pure sinful pleasure. Ok...maybe not sinful but fun nonetheless.

Remember when I went to Edmonton with Nik for a weekend of debauchery? This will be my 4 days of debauchery and it may even include a show or two!

And it is cheap. So very, very cheap.

I can't wait for June.

Did you hear about this? It is hardly in the news...why??


Mozambique floods turning 2,000 a day into refugees

View the article here

POSTED: 1517 GMT (2317 HKT), February 26, 2007
Story Highlights• Food supplies stretched as refugees stream into camps
• Fears of disease rise as sanitary conditions in camps deteriorate
• Infrastructure damaged by years of civil war
• Situation could worsen as March is one of nation's wettest months

CAIA, Mozambique (Reuters) -- Thousands of flood victims are pouring into crowded refugee camps in central Mozambique, straining relief efforts and prompting fears of a food crisis, authorities said on Monday.

Weeks of heavy rains have triggered flash floods along the mighty Zambezi river and its tributaries, washing away homes, bridges, livestock and crops in four central provinces in the low-lying southern African nation.

About 170,000 people have been displaced and at least 45 have died as a result of the flooding, the worst to hit the former Portuguese colony since the 2000-2001 floods that killed 700 people and drove another half a million from their homes.

Aid workers were battling on Monday to supply food and fresh water to a ballooning refugee population, with an estimated 2,000 people each day streaming into temporary accommodation centers set up by the Red Cross and other agencies. (Watch how UNICEF is trying to help kids in Mozambique )

"We still have some food, but it's not enough," said Joao Ribeiro, deputy director of Mozambique's National Institute for Disaster Management (INGC).

Ribeiro said sanitary conditions in the shelters were worsening because of a lack of toilets and poor hygiene, raising fears of outbreaks of cholera and dysentery among the estimated 50,000 people living in the makeshift camps.

Mozambican President Armando Guebuza, however, said the relief effort was proceeding smoothly and there was no need for the government to issue a broad appeal for help.

"It's not a declaration on the international front that can help to change the situation. I think we are going in the right direction," Guebuza told reporters in Caia, a central Mozambican town that has become a command center for the relief effort.

Earlier on Monday the Mozambican leader flew over parts of the Zambezi valley that were hard hit by the flooding.

The U.N. World Food Program (WFP) is distributing food to refugees in the affected provinces. Neighboring South Africa and the European Union also have pledged more help for the relief effort.

South Africa will send two helicopters and a mobile water purification plant to its northeastern neighbor this week and could add a field hospital and water and wind-resistant tents to its contribution, the SAPA news agency reported on Monday.

But aid workers say the effort to feed and shelter refugees has been complicated by poor roads in Mozambique, which is still rebuilding after a 16-year civil war that ended in 1991.

The struggle to get food and water to flood victims could become more difficult in the coming weeks as more rain falls on the country. March traditionally is one of the wettest periods in Mozambique's rainy season.

"A lot of areas are still very difficult to get through and there are new pockets of disaster areas forming," said Peter Rodrigues, emergency relief coordinator for the WFP in Caia.

"The challenge is that these people are spread out, making it difficult to reach them."

In southern Mozambique, which is home to the bulk of the country's economically important tourist resorts, authorities were assessing the damage from Cyclone Favio, which came ashore on Thursday with winds of up to 169 mph.

The cyclone slammed into the coast, knocking down buildings, uprooting trees and killing five people near Vilanculos. Mozambique's military on Monday was attempting to restore water and electricity in the resort city.

I have determined that dating is not condusive to losing weight. When I was with B, I gained weight from all the eating out and minimal activity, like watching movies. I lost it and more after we broke up. I wasn't very healthy and I tended to just not eat. In the months and turmoil after that, I gained it all back and then some! Call it comfort eating, call it enjoying life but I was probably the heaviest I have been in, well, ever. So then I went to Africa. And came back from there with my pants baggier and the need to create another hole in my belt. I then gained it all back. Maybe the sedentary job that I had didn't help and the fact that I now lived on my own and could eat just chips for supper. I have slowly been losing it again. Maybe in not the healthiest of ways. However, in the last few weeks (I'd say about 6 but whose counting!), I have regained what took me months to lose. Bummer. Maybe I will actually have to get off my butt and head to the gym.

I'm off for lunch. I won't tell you what unhealthy conconction I get to enjoy today! Maybe I should have given up food for lent.

I was reminded this morning that the season of lent is upon us. It apparently starts tomorrow! I had great aspirations of giving up internet for the next 30 days. Last year I gave up TV and this wasn't really all that difficult. I didn't have a TV. I am not sure if I can actually make it without internet but I am going to try. It is only a month, right? I spend a lot of time reading blogs and checking my email and surfing the net and that is time that I could use for other things....So, I'm going to not use it. Or try not to at least. I decided to not use the internet at home aside from work (typing) and to only use it on my lunch break at SP. That way I can still post blogs and do my banking. This could be tricky. Maybe I'll get more done. Or maybe I'll go crazy without internet. Only time will tell....

If you know me, you know that I'm not a huge fan of Valentine's Day. And no, it is not because I have never been shown love and respect with a pretty bunch of flowers or a sweet card. I have and I enjoy that. I tend to be attracted to the romantic types. I'm just not a fan of the pink and red cheesy hearts and obligation of the day. It has been awhile since I had a Valentine's day where I could celebrate it with the intention of the holiday. My bro's birthday is on V-day, which is actually a blessing in disguise because if we don't have plans, we can make plans as a family to celebrate his birthday and pretend that we aren't dorks. Last year we spent the evening apartment shopping for me and then we went to see Nanny McPhee with Mom. Dad was out of town so even she was dateless.

This year I actually had a date. Shocking, I know! And it was a good evening. I got presents, which I'd post pictures of but can't since someone (I won't name names Carmen F) has my camera. They were unexpected and much appreciated. We went for supper first at Red Lobster. (or that is where I'll pretend we went. We had good intentions of going there but apparenlty we weren't the only ones with that genius idea. Who knew that so many would go out for supper on the 1 holiday where women aren't expected to cook!) Then, we headed to the Jubilee for the Chantal /Raine concert. It was so good! We were 4th row and centre. As much as I love Raine and may have a slight crush on him, he isn't as good solo as he is with OLP. He is still awesome though. Chantal was glorious! She did a mix of old with the new and was very interactive with the crowd. And...she kept it very politically neutral, which is a far cry from her concert at the Jack Singer a few years back. For her encore, she came out with just her guitar and did an acoustic song on the edge of the stage. I am so glad that we sprung for the extra $10.00 a ticket and didn't sit at the back of the auditorium. THat must have sucked to not hear a thing!

So, that was my Valentine's day. See Craig's post for more details.

I knew what song it was the moment she started to play it. One chord in and I knew. My heartbeat quickened and my palms grew damp. I leaned in closer to him, hoping that this would be one of the few times that I didn't cry during the song. It can make me smile or make me cry. It is one of the few songs that I can have on repeat and I often find myself getting introspective, curious as to what my life would be like if I had walked a different path.


Somethin' in your eyes, makes me wanna lose myself
Makes me wanna lose myself, in your arms
There's somethin' in your voice, makes my heart beat fast
Hope this feeling lasts, the rest of my life

If you knew how lonely my life has been
And how long I've been so alone
And if you knew how I wanted someone to come along
And change my life the way you've done

It feels like home to me, it feels like home to me
It feels like I'm all the way back where I come from
It feels like home to me, it feels like home to me
It feels like I'm all the way back where I belong

There are some strong memories attached to this song. They threaten to cloud my mind but I know they have left my heart.

A window breaks, down a long, dark street
And a siren wails in the night
But I'm alright, 'cause I have you here with me
And I can almost see, through the dark there is light

Well, if you knew how much this moment means to me
And how long I've waited for your touch
And if you knew how happy you are making me
I never thought that I'd love anyone so much

Dolly...Good!
Collective Soul...Good!
Dolly singing Collective Soul? Awesome!

About 5 years ago, right around this time of year, I slipped on some ice. I was on my way to small group at the ungodly hour of 10am on a Saturday and had stopped to pick up the Tim's donoughts that were a necessity for our early morning meetings. I was wearing my brown clogs. The same ones I happen to be wearing today. Anyhoo, I got out of my car that morning, crossed the street and as I was about to step onto the sidewalk, my foot slipped and I came down...hard. Luckily, being the smart girl that I am, I put my hands behind me to break my fall. (at least they weren't in my pockets. I learned that lesson the hard way too) I ended up tossing the box of donoughts down the street and the tears soon welled up in the corners of my eyes. I picked myself up, holding my wrist and stumbled, empty handed, into Chelsea's house. I was in shock apparenlty, white as a ghost and as soon as they asked what happened, I burst into tears. How embarrasing! The paramedic that lived in her basement didn't think I broke up but it was just a sprain. I iced it, wrapped it and sat through the entire morning study in pain. Then I drove myself home. My parents didn't believe that I broke it and even sent me off to the walk in clinic by myself. After numerous x-rays and a stupid doctor who thought that pushing on the tiny blue line that had formed on my wrist was a good idea, it was determined that indeed I had fractured my wrist. Off I go home and my parents reluctantly agreed to drive me to 8th and 8th for another 4 hour wait and a pretty black cast. The coolest part was when they had to drug me up on morphine so a nurse could pull on my wrist and reverse the compounded fracture so that I wouldn't have one arm shorter than the other. I think I giggled the entire time.

This morning, it was not donoughts that went a-flying but my steeped tea and a bagel.

I'm sure I bruised more than just my ego.

Stupid U2. I actually like this video and song.

And, since there is a new single, I expect Bono to be on his soapbox in no time!

Mark your calenders/daytimes/blackberries people...

Where will I be on July 21st?

Waiting in line at my local Chapters for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

Looks like the rest of the weekend (or Saturday at least) is a write-off.