Happy New Year! According to the Chinese calendar, 2009 is the year of the Ox. Well, after January 26th that is. In the meantime, we're seeing the tail end of the Rat in 2008. Yes, the pun was intended... apologies.
As I mentioned in my previous update, Phillip and I spent the holidays at home this year. It was a first for us: no plane tickets to buy, no car to rent, no packing, no travel. That part was nice. Less nice was not being able to see everyone, but now that we have our Green Cards, the hope is that we will be able to visit with much less fuss anytime we have a free week or so to do so.
I also mentioned that we were mostly just gifting each other this year. Phillip's “big surprise” was a wetsuit and surfing lessons with a buddy of mine and my “big surprise” was a pattern copied from my favourite skirt. I can now take it in to the designer, choose new fabrics and have as many versions of that skirt as I want. We were both rather pleased with the gifts and with ourselves. Christmas morning we had a delightful brunch with mimosas and even the pets got treats. It was a very nice and relaxing day.
The big news for January is that Joan and Paul are visiting us in what has become an annual tradition. The weather seems to be cooperating wonderfully for their holiday; it has been sunny and warm almost every single day, allowing long daily walks with Maverick (boy is he going to miss those) and enjoyable excursions to the local attractions.
Yesterday's outing was to the zoo. We were disappointed that the new Elephant Odyssey was not yet finished, but were soon cheered by the new “monkey trails” forest and the polar bears up to their usual rambunctious antics. I think we could drop Joan off at the zoo on any given morning when it opens and pick her up at closing and she would be perfectly happy! She and Paul were smart to purchase memberships this year, which will benefit Nick and Colleen and family as well. They are planning to visit San Diego in a couple of week, though thankfully, they'll be at a local hotel. I don't think they'd enjoy sharing a bed with Maverick in one of the rare empty corners of the condo.
Tomorrow I meet with Lotus Theatre Collective to discuss our upcoming production, and I may also soon be busy with weekly improvisation sketches. A buddy came into the store on Thursday and said her group was looking for another female for the group. Since there is not a lot going on the acting side of things for me right now, I accepted. It will be good to stretch those muscles again, especially since I'm planning to teach a mask workshop this year.
Quick note about my store; we're still open. At least for this month. I'm starting to hope it will stay that way since, out of the six-hundred stores in the U.S.A. that were scheduled to close since July, we are one of the last two still operating. The final deadline is March. The owners of the retail spaces around us are lobbying hard to get Starbucks to stay permanently of course, since it's good foot traffic for them, but Starbucks will only stay if there is good businesses around them. It's a circle of life, so to speak.
Hope the weather warms up a bit for you folks. In the meantime, stay cozy and safe.
K & P
As I mentioned in my previous update, Phillip and I spent the holidays at home this year. It was a first for us: no plane tickets to buy, no car to rent, no packing, no travel. That part was nice. Less nice was not being able to see everyone, but now that we have our Green Cards, the hope is that we will be able to visit with much less fuss anytime we have a free week or so to do so.
I also mentioned that we were mostly just gifting each other this year. Phillip's “big surprise” was a wetsuit and surfing lessons with a buddy of mine and my “big surprise” was a pattern copied from my favourite skirt. I can now take it in to the designer, choose new fabrics and have as many versions of that skirt as I want. We were both rather pleased with the gifts and with ourselves. Christmas morning we had a delightful brunch with mimosas and even the pets got treats. It was a very nice and relaxing day.
The big news for January is that Joan and Paul are visiting us in what has become an annual tradition. The weather seems to be cooperating wonderfully for their holiday; it has been sunny and warm almost every single day, allowing long daily walks with Maverick (boy is he going to miss those) and enjoyable excursions to the local attractions.
Yesterday's outing was to the zoo. We were disappointed that the new Elephant Odyssey was not yet finished, but were soon cheered by the new “monkey trails” forest and the polar bears up to their usual rambunctious antics. I think we could drop Joan off at the zoo on any given morning when it opens and pick her up at closing and she would be perfectly happy! She and Paul were smart to purchase memberships this year, which will benefit Nick and Colleen and family as well. They are planning to visit San Diego in a couple of week, though thankfully, they'll be at a local hotel. I don't think they'd enjoy sharing a bed with Maverick in one of the rare empty corners of the condo.
Tomorrow I meet with Lotus Theatre Collective to discuss our upcoming production, and I may also soon be busy with weekly improvisation sketches. A buddy came into the store on Thursday and said her group was looking for another female for the group. Since there is not a lot going on the acting side of things for me right now, I accepted. It will be good to stretch those muscles again, especially since I'm planning to teach a mask workshop this year.
Quick note about my store; we're still open. At least for this month. I'm starting to hope it will stay that way since, out of the six-hundred stores in the U.S.A. that were scheduled to close since July, we are one of the last two still operating. The final deadline is March. The owners of the retail spaces around us are lobbying hard to get Starbucks to stay permanently of course, since it's good foot traffic for them, but Starbucks will only stay if there is good businesses around them. It's a circle of life, so to speak.
Hope the weather warms up a bit for you folks. In the meantime, stay cozy and safe.
K & P
