another pet peeve.

I feel like I've been using this blog to rant a lot lately. I guess that's what it's for though, right?

It really bothers me when people talk about "finding a cure for cancer".

Let's get this out of the way first:

That is never. Going. To. Happen.

"Cancer" is an umbrella term that describes a group of diseases in which cells uncontrollably divide, and in some cases spread to different parts of the body. There are cancers that you can live with for 15 years and not be affected by. Then there are cancers that move so fast and are so invasive that you are dead within weeks. There are lots of different causes and triggers for this process to occur, which means that there are going to be lots of ways to approach the healing process. There will be treatments available that will work for one type of cancer and not another. This is why, when hearing that someone has cancer, I try reserving my reaction until after I hear what kind it is, and what stage it's at. Stage 1 prostate cancer? Is the most common type of cancer in Canadian men. It often grows slowly and can be treated successfully. Stage 4 stomach cancer is a different story.

There are lots of things you can do to prevent cancer from forming, although doing these things will not guarantee that you don't get it. Eat lots of fruits and vegetables. Drink lots of water. Limit your alcohol intake. Exercise regularly. Don't smoke. Stay at a healthy weight.

Moral of the story: there will never, ever be one pill or one injection that will cure all cancers. That's why we need to spread our resources and support various organizations that are raising money for cancer research, in all its various forms.

reality check.

Yesterday morning, an apartment building down the road from me went up in flames, and damaged three restaurants attached to the building as well. More than 23 people lost their apartments and belongings.

Yesterday, a magnitude 7 earthquake hit Haiti, leaving tens of thousands of people homeless and officials fearing more than 100,000 dead.

Today, I am grumpy because my boyfriend is 300km away, and I may not have a job in April.

...doesn't seem like much of a comparison, does it?

nirvana.

Heaven = carbs and citrus.

On another note, this is the 3rd night in a row I've gone to yoga. Tomorrow night is inversions! Cross your fingers I don't fall on my head...

*Edit: I didn't fall on my head. I didn't even go. I stayed home and ate chocolate. Oops..*

yoga.. for free!

I've had an on-again off-again relationship with yoga for the last 3 or 4 years, and when I practice regularly I find a big difference in my stress level, as well as flexibility. Having had numerous instructors over the years, I've discovered what works for me as well in a teacher. I like someone who isn't afraid to adjust a pose by sticking a knee in my back or pulling my shoulders down, and I appreciated when they do it without ruining the flow of the class (quiet voice, or not talking at all). I don't like it when a teacher jokes around during the class or uses a sharp voice (I'm not explaining that very well.. what I'm trying to say is I'm there to do yoga, not become best friends with you, or to be barked at like I'm in the army).

Additionally, yoga is EXPENSIVE. The going rate for an hour class seems to be around $15, although if you join a session or get an "unlimited monthly" and actually use it, it drops. However, I have managed to locate enough cheap or free classes around the city that I barely pay for classes anymore. The downside to doing this is that the instructors are rarely the same, so if you're looking for continuity, you're not going to find it this way. However, you never get bored in your practice - because every class is different!

Here's what I've managed to find so far:

Lululemon: Sunday at 10:30am, and occasionally weeknights at 7:30pm; check the weekly schedule for updates
108 Yoga: Karma class Saturday mornings at 9:38am (donation); also, every 3rd Saturday of the month there is a 2 hour intro class for beginners that is free!
Moksha Yoga: Karma class Friday nights 8:30pm (donation, $5 min)
The Yoga Loft: free classes January 23 and 24th

..and I currently have a free pass for one class at Therapeutic Approach Yoga Studio.

There are also some classes at a few local churches:

St. Andrew's United Church: Friday nights 6:30pm (donation)
Fort Massey United Church: Wednesday nights 6:30pm ($5)

The moral of the story, is you don't have to spend a lot of money to be involved in a regular yoga practice. This week I could go to class 6 out of 7 days with all of the classes I've found (for $10! wow!).

Namaste!

peeevish.

My #1 pet peeve about women is panty lines.

Now, I'm trying to not get all self righteous here, because heavens knows I leave the house in some atrocious outfits. However, even if I leave the house in boots, sweatpants, and a puffy jacket, you can be assured that I will NEVER have a panty line.

Ladies, thongs were invented for a reason. Let's be honest, no one's butt actually looks good in just a thong, unless you have a butt like this (skip ahead to 1:05.. Karl likes her behind so much he replays the exact same clip at 3:49 and 3:55.. don't ask me how I noticed this). They were invented so the public is never subjected to the atrocity that is squishy 4 cheeks.

I bought my first thong when I was 13, a boring grey thing from Zellers (sexy, I know). I was sweating, alone, in the line up, trying not to look the girl cashier in the eye (heaven FORBID if it has been a guy.. I would have hurriedly swapped it for a chocolate bar at the last second), mortified that someone I knew would come swooping through, "HI RACHAEL! How are you? What are you... aaah.. oh!" and the heat from my face would fry us all.

There are even headbands for your cooch so you can avoid the possibility of ever showing lines over your hips.. this beauty is called a "C string", and when bystanders were polled, more than a few of them I'm sure actually put this thing on their heads thinking that's what it was for.

MY POINT IS God made Spanx for a reason. Get some. Or get looser pants. Wear a headband on your crotch. Go commando. Just, for everyone else's sake, fix it.

ice cream and bikinis.

Today I joined a gym.

And it wasn't because it is January 4th and I made a New Year's Resolution to "get fit" and "be more active" ... it was because I finally figured out that I can get a corporate rate through work and pay like, 30% of the cost of a membership.

Also, the chlorine level in my blood has been negative for a good long, I don't know, nine or ten months now, and when I caught a whiff of the pool air I was like an alcoholic after a sober period.. nothing else mattered, just me and the smell.. the feeling of the chlorinated water rushing over me as I gracefully pushed off the wall and took my first few strokes, remembering the freedom of the endorphin rush and the powerful feeling of my kick propelling me through the water...

..and then after the first few lengths, the crushing realization that I am fat.

Rawr.

Not fat as in, I-just-ate-an-entire-bucket-of-ice-cream-fat, or I-can't-fit-in-these-jeans-because-my-blubber-is-pooching-out-the-sides-fat, the fat feeling one gets after not exercising for an extended period and then blasting out an over-excited endorphin-driven few lengths. And I mean few. I only swam the equivalent of what, this time a year ago, I would have been doing for warm up in swim practice (!!), but for today, it was enough. In any case, it was more than I did yesterday!

hello 2010!

I've decided, since I'm not very good (so far) at attaining the goals I set on this blog (remember this post? ..yeah, oops), that I'm going to tell you about things AFTER I do them. Then it will be like, "Oh, that was a great idea! Look at what she did!", instead of like, "This girl is such a slacker and she is never going anywhere.."

So here's what today looked like:

I SHOVELED!

Emphatically, apparently, judging by the snow stuck to the side of the house..

Trust me, this is a big deal. I've been spoiled rotten my 23 years and only once ever shoveled a driveway (and that one time wasn't even the whole thing, just a car sized chunk!!). So here is proof that princesses can shovel too.

(And yes, I did blank out the licence plate, because although I am aware that approximately 4 people read this blog, I have high hopes that someday I will become a famous blogger and I am attempting to prevent stalkers from creeping me by combing through my old, naive archives).

I would never have been able to do that without this key element, which I have affectionately named "Tonka". I never thought I would have to use it... but who's laughing now!! My mom, that's who.

I also attempted a lasagna for the first time, in my brand new slow cooker :)


I haven't actually tried it yet, but it smells delicious!!

And last but not least, the Travel Jar!!



I've been wanting to go backpacking through South East Asia for years, and while I know it won't be possible for at least another year and a half, I thought I'd get a kick start on saving.. and by saving, I mean my pennies. Every bit counts, right??