31 March 2006

Greetings from Tita Baby

Dear Ed and Liezel:
How time flies, three years have gone by, and I hope you are as happy as can be. My best wishes on your 3rd wedding anniversary:

A LASTING MARRIAGE IS BASED ON MANY THINGS
A close relationship is based on friendship.
A caring relationship is based on sharing and understanding.
A romantic relationship is based on giving freely and on the ability to receive gratefully and graciously.
An intimate relationship is based on openness and honesty.
An affectionate relationship is based on patience and acceptance.
A secure relationship is based not on promises, but rather on trust, respect, faithfulness, and the ability to forgive.
A lasting marriage is based on all of these, bound together by love.

With love,
Tita Baby

29 March 2006

3rd year and counting

Cherry blossoms remind me of our wedding day. March 29, 2003, was a chilly, gray day but the pink and white cherry blossoms around Robson Manor, where we got married, livened up the atmosphere.

I was walking this morning by Burrard station and all the cherry blossoms there are in bloom right now. It was so pretty! And it brought back very fond memories of one of the best days of my life. Hard to believe that day was three years ago now.

I have to say that it has gotten easier - being married, I mean. I think Ed and I are doing a good job figuring out a rhythm for our relationship. It’s not perfect, by any means, but we do have a good foundation to work with. And I am getting more accustomed to being married. It is taking me a while but I am making progress. I was on my own for so long and shifting from “me, me, me” to “us”, well, has its challenges. For me, anyway.

An anniversary is about celebration. Celebrate the ups and the downs, the happiness and the worries. Celebrate what we’ve learned about each other since getting married. Celebrate the fact that we made it to this milestone. With the day to day grind and annoyances, it is easy to forget and lose sight of this.

Happy anniversary, Edmund! Thank you for being so good to me. I’m looking forward to celebrating many more anniversaries with you.

22 March 2006

My new boss

My new boss started yesterday. He’s our new President and CEO, Patrick Rooney. It’s kind of weird because Bill’s been my boss for over 5 years. Learning the nuances of someone new will be change. But I am looking forward to working with Patrick. I sense a different focus - more on numbers and revenue - and I’m not sure yet how that will affect me day-to-day.

18 March 2006

Whistler!!!

I went to Whistler today for a day of skiing. It was awesome!!! I am tired and sore but I had a great time. Who else went? Ed, Yvette, Andy, Jeremy, and Tomo. Others were supposed to come but the CW deadline meant that Kevin, Rico, and Shaun couldn’t come with us. Nevertheless, we all had a fun time on the slopes.

It was a little cloudy in the morning but it cleared up by noon and we had spectacular weather the rest of the day. We were at Blackcomb mountain the whole time. 7th Heaven, Horstman bowl, Jersey Cream, etc. It was all great.

I was initially stiff and pushing at my edges pretty hard to slow myself down. I’m sure if I see a video of myself, I will realize that I am not going fast at all. But it feels fast and I get freaked out so I dig in my edges and totally tire out my legs. I really should relax more when I ski. As the day wore on, though, and the more runs we did, I felt I was skiing better and more relaxed. My “S curves” were smoother and more consistent. After lunch, I was relaxed enough to just let my skis go a bit more. I probably was going faster but it felt okay and I was not freaking out.

One of the last runs we did, we rode the Glacier Express chair and when we got off, we veered left. I didn’t realize until it was too late that all the groomed runs were to the right. Going left meant lots of moguls and loose snow. I found myself in an area that was pretty steep and with some rocks jutting out. I’m sure there was a sign somewhere that marked this as a black run and if I had seen that sign, I definitely would not have come down this way. I looked around and saw Yvette, Andy, and Ed on the “road” below, watching me and cheering me on. They had gone down the part that was packed with moguls, the part I thought was too difficult for me. But now, I found myself in an area just as difficult. I picked the path I would take - the one I thought was the least steep and far from the rocks. I made my way down my chosen path. Then there was no going around it anymore, I had to go down the steep face in order to reach the road they were on. I took a deep breath, encouraged myself to relax, keep my weight forward (i.e. do the pumpkin), and take it one turn at a time. I will eventually get to the bottom. And I did. But, boy, my thighs were burning! And we were at the top of the mountain! The last runs as we made our way all the way down to the base were definitely painful.

But inspite of the pain, I really enjoy skiing - being out there on the mountain, pushing the speed I’m comfortable with, and getting better as I go along. It’s a fantastic way to spend the day!

10 March 2006

Lizard Bang

I had suggested to our dragon boat coach, Wayne, that the members of the team keep a fitness journal throughout the season. I think it’s a good way to see one’s progress and to monitor how much one is working out (or not). Another thing to include could be a diet journal as well. A couple of years ago, in an effort to improve my eating habits, I started a diet diary where I wrote down everything I ate. Everything - from the one bar of chocolate to the one bag of potato chips to the bagel for breakfast to the big meal for dinner. I am a junk food junkie and I figured if i have to write it down on paper that I was eating chips almost everyday (after my work out usually), it will make me think twice about putting it in my mouth.

It worked, to my surprise. I think what it did was make me take notice when I was eating junk and therefore, question its part in my routine.

I started the diet diary again this year (part of my 2006 challenges) but I was finding it difficult to maintain. So I decided to make it a blog since I seem to be having a bit of success keeping this blog up. Plus I am a faster typist than hand writer so I can fit in more info into the blog in the same amount of time. So a week ago, I created my Paddling and Fitness blog (http://lizardbang.blogspot.com/). Just to put pressure on myself to keep writing in it, I emailed the url to Wayne. He better read it!

More about the name Lizard Bang next time...


7 March 2006

One year in our townhouse

Wow, that was a year??? But our hallway closet still doesn’t have a door!

I guess we have accomplished a lot, mainly, installing the hard wood floor on the ground floor. But we still have so much fixing up to do. Sigh...

It has been a good first year in our home. It certainly does feel like our home more and more. And since I started running, I have discovered more of the neighbourhood. There are tons of parks and greenery. There is a trail system that meanders through townhouse complexes close to the community centre. There is a trail around the golf course across the street.

I have found myself becoming more and more of a homebody since moving here. It could be that I’m getting older and lazier. Or it could be that I just enjoying hanging out in our home.