Our time in Edmonton is drawing to a close, and in just over 3 hours we’ll be heading to the airport to turn in our rental car and sit in the futuristic wonder that is Edmonton International Airport until our 6pm flight back home. I am looking forward to Vancouver – I plan to go home, take off my pants, cover myself in cats, and play video games until the wee hours of Wednesday morning, when I have to go back to work.

If someone asks me what I did on our vacation, I wouldn’t have very much of an answer. My ultimate goal in Edmonton was to relax, and I am just about all full up of relaxing – we did little else but sleep and eat the entire time we were here. I don’t know what it is about being away from home, but we slept for many, many, many hours. I am sick of sleep and also of snow. Ed’s mom asked if we normally sleep this long at home, and we honestly don’t – there’s something about the air here that makes me not want to get out of bed. It’s the no cats + no neighbours + no schedule + bitterly cold air + sinfully warm bed equation that all adds up to 12+ hours of sleep a night. I would normally feel bad for wasting that much time in bed, but honestly – there’s nothing else to do. I finished Bowser’s Inside Story and I’m 6 hours into Kingdom Hearts 3.14 – I’ve caught up on all my websites – I even checked in at work and did some remote testing because I am such a Team Player – and I’m out of ideas.

We’ve had a really good visit, though. There’s been Quality Time with the parents and assorted other relatives, and last night we had dinner with Christian and his shiny new fiancee, and his sister. It was our first time meeting the fiancee, and she was cool so that was good. We had dinner at Red Lobster – shut up, there aren’t any in Vancouver and I love those damn biscuits – and it was fun.

Thanksgiving was spent at Wizard Lake (which had NO WIZARDS), which is somewhere in the middle of nowhere:

the wizard is a lie; he was not there

So as you can see, we were very far away from everything except a lot of food and some cousins. It was nice – Ed and I went for a walk by the lake and found ourselves four puppies. The puppies upset me actually; they were adorable and friendly and SO VERY COLD. No one came out looking for them – who loses four puppies and doesn’t notice?! We walked around looking for their home and eventually had to give them to another woman who would take them to her house and feed them (they were hungry and freezing) until someone decided to step up as a pet owner and claim them. I wish I could say I knew what happened to the puppies after we said goodbye, but I have to trust that they were fine and a very distraught person came to claim them and love them and keep them safe or I won’t be able to sleep at night.

I had my camera with me the entire time we were here, and I tried very hard to take pictures of interesting things – but Edmonton in the dead of fall when it’s grey and gloomy out is not an attractive place. It’s beautiful in the spring and summer and even the h0rrible winter when the sun is out, but we saw very little sunshine during our time here. Naturally, the day we leave it’s going to shoot up 15 degrees or so and be gorgeous while we go home to a nine days of rain, but them’s the breaks.

I had a nice lazy visit, but now I am ready to go home.

Here is a puppy:

lost puppy

It’s snowing outside! What do I do when it’s snowing? It’s been so long, but I’m pretty sure my standard MO is to go back to bed and wait until spring. It’s wicked cold here in Edmonton; even the people who live here are disgusted with the weather. The day before we arrived it was 14C and sunny. Could it be us? Is this punishment? I brought every warm sweater I own, and it’s still not enough (and is also itchy – damn wool). Oh, my poor sad and frozen toes!

I was momentarily sad to be missing our annual Hipster Potluck Thanksgiving (hashtag #hipstermeat), until I learned it was actually canceled – Miranda and Reilly are ALSO in Edmonton, doing the visiting thing. I should find out where they are and track them down – it would be amusing to hang out in another city. I’m trying to mentally schedule in a post-holiday potluck party, but I honestly don’t know if it’ll happen before December – October is booked solid, and November is moving month for everyone except Ed and I (who are likely doomed to live in the Ghetto of North Vancouver for ever) so I don’t think anyone will be up for large messy parties. December will be a merry month of festivities and housewarming parties (and sad jealous Kimli sitting in the corner), so we can do #hipstermeat at that time – I just hate waiting, and sorely love a Good Time.

Yesterday Ed and I slept for a million years (seriously, we got up at 1:30) and spent a quiet day hanging out with the parents. They made us an awesome steak dinner (with special guest star Shan’s spinach salad), and the evening was the very definition of “low-key”: Ed tinkered on the internets doing boring sports things, and I had a wild crazy solo party doing iPhone crossword puzzles. I do not mind because this is a rare occurrence, but if this was our life all the time I would probably go insane.

Also, there was Journey.

Today I am going to wear three pairs of jeans and four sweaters and we are going to go Outside. I’d like to see Edmonton in the daylight to see what’s changed since I was here last, and yes – make the inevitable trip to the Big Mall (there’s no PST here, and I need some new dainties). I brought my camera with me in the hopes that something would speak to me that I could take pictures of, but everything is kind of gray and cold – maybe I’ll just shoot in black and white and call it art.

I am going to teach Ed’s mom how to shop online now.

.. but no one else’s:

(click to embiggen)

I’m not entirely sure why Google Street View’d the alley behind our apartment building, but they managed to capture most of our bikes in a lovely snapshot. They also graciously blurred out Oscar’s license plate – I am a very private person you see – but they kept Drunk Bettie’s plate totally visible. Hah!

Back to testing.

go on, check my resources

I’m doing more CRM testing, and it is truly fascinating. Seriously, you should totally envy me right now. This shit is bananas.

All sarcasm aside, I am highly amused that choosing “Non Profit” in one system shows up as “Government” in the other. System bug, or social commentary? You be the judge!

This is why I keep a pen and paper in my scooter (I also keep condoms, but they didn’t apply here):

goddamn suvs

I’m aware that this is a repeat of a Twitter update I made, but seriously – how badly do you want to hear about my adventures in CRM testing?

Anything can be boring if you let it, so I try to make my own fun:

even sales leads can be awesome

I’m a technical writer specializing in documentation for the computer illiterate – it doesn’t matter if they don’t get my references; *I* get them and that is all that matters.

In a bizarre twist of fate, today is the birthday of both my boss and my boss boss. How big a cake do you need to get in order to suck up to a Director and a Vice President at the same time? I am thinking it has to be pretty massive.

Last night I started packing for Edmonton. I’m a little apprehensive about this trip, not in the least because we appear to be going during a cold snap. The forecasted HIGH for the entire time we’re there is 0C – what the hell! I burned all my winter coats when I left Calgary; I don’t OWN things meant to insulate me in freezing temperatures. I hate traveling with warm clothing – it takes up so much room in my bag; precious room that could be used for electronics. I will have to repack tonight –  I think I foolishly put a short-sleeved shirt or two in my suitcase instead of sexy polar fleece long johns and wool turtlenecks.

It won’t be all bad, though. We’re going to Edmonton for Visiting, not Fun Events – I can probably get away with not wearing pants during Visiting, and maybe there will be a fire. I could really get behind a couple days of no pants and my DS and a fire. Plus, both my in-laws are amazing cooks. Also, there’s no PST and the only good donairs in Western Canada. Okay, I’m looking forward to this again.

I probably shouldn’t say anything further about the unpleasantness of last week, but I can’t pass up the chance to say this: forced apologies are lol.

I’m on steroids. Where’s my scandal?

Every year around this time I’m shocked and horrified at how itchy everything is. I have scaly patches and anything that touches me makes my skin unhappy and uncomfortable. I should be used to this, but I’m surprised every time – why is this happening to me? Where did this rash come from? Is my skin normally this bad? When did I become allergic to the bed?

I still have a large tube of steroid goo from last year, when I was again surprised by my reaction to fall. I don’t know if it’s still potent, but I slathered some of my more alligator-like patches with lovely cream in the hopes that things will go back to normal. I’m already so full of anti-histamines I squeak when I walk; the last thing I need is to experience roid rage when I’m itchy and jumping at everything that brushes against my overworked skin.

Yesterday afternoon was spectacular – maybe I shouldn’t leave the North Shore after all.

time for a nap

giant trumpet makes for giant noise

lonsdale quay is like granville island, only less crowded and therefore more awesome

oh if only those condos weren't upwards of a million dollars each

After my insane week at work, I was very much looking forward to a great deal of nothing this weekend. We had a couple plans, but nothing major – no Events or Adventures or even anything Terribly Exciting. For once, I wasn’t about to complain about how boring my life was – I needed boring.

On Friday night, Josh Ed and I went to Raglan’s for a late dinner. We’d been there for breakfast before, but had never tried their regular menu although everyone else had. I was a little hesitant – the breakfast I had there was wrought with catastrophe and undercooked eggs – but the dinner we had more than made up for my squeamishness. I had their 900 burger, which came with cheese (held), bacon and mushrooms – all standard fare, but it was the burger itself that impressed me the most. It wasn’t just a slab of meat; it was seasoned and full of tasty things and a damn burger all ’round. It actually reminded me of the sublime Built Burgers that Doug and Ali introduced us to. It was awesome.

While Josh enjoyed his manly behemoth of a mojito, I opted for a small-sized rum drink. This marked the second time in one week I was drinking the alcohols; surely the intervention can’t be far behind. Even though I didn’t finish my drink, it got me surprisingly drunk – there was stumbling and slurring and I think I even got sloppy-angry-drunk at the TV but it totally shouldn’t have looked at me like that.

The rest of the weekend was more of the same. I had made a list of properties we were tentatively interested in, and two of them were having open houses this weekend. The first place we saw was in Upper Lynn Valley – a little far from downtown, but very close to all amenities in the area. The place was otherwise perfect – good price, beautiful insides, right across the street from a bus stop, pets allowed, rear-facing so there was little traffic noise and a little creek in the back yard. Unfortunately, we don’t have our finances solidly figured out yet and by the time we scrape together a down payment, the place will probably be gone. Yesterday that would have filled me with woe – I really loved the unit – but I am feeling more upbeat about it all. When we’re ready to go forward, we’ll find something awesome. I choose to be sure of this.

After breakfast with the Gang at Deacon’s Corner this morning, Ed and I saw a place just off Commercial Drive. We were curious as to why something in so prime a location would be in our price range, and it looked perfect on paper – a two-storey townhome with two bedrooms and an open floor plan and several patios. It was a little small, but worth checking out – so we did. It was quickly obvious why the place was priced so low, though – the hot water tank in the unit above had exploded and a great deal of water had seeped into the unit for sale. There was water damage almost everywhere that was being fixed, but would take a great deal extra to make perfect – hence the low price. Also, it was small. I’m glad we saw it so I won’t be filled with “what-if” angst, but the location was so awesome that it’s making me waiver on my pact to stay on the North Shore (much to Shan’s dismay).

We are just beginning this whole “let’s attempt to be grown-ups for a second and see what happens” adventure. The next few months are going to be interesting, assuming I survive the rollout at work.

Does anyone know why I have a rash on my neck?

My alarm woke me up to the Barenaked Ladies’ cover of “Fight the Power” this morning, so clearly this means I will have a great day.

There was some extreme unpleasantness at work on Wednesday. The tears shed below weren’t ones of frustration so much as they were tears of utter humiliation – without going into too many details, I was ripped a fresh and shiny hole by a fellow manager via conference call, in front of a large room of people .. for two hours straight.

When everything was said and done, I steamed and stewed and yeah, I cried in a bathroom stall. I’m at the tail end of a huge project and I’m just as stressed as the next person – look at my calendar below; that one is fake but my real calendar is actually worse and not coloured like a pinata – but this was a verbal lashing the likes of which I hadn’t received in a very long time. Hindsight has shown me several ways I could have better dealt with the situation other than my chosen method of “utterly freeze and lose my focus”, but now I know what to expect and you know what it is they say about knowing: it is half the battle.

I’d feel better if I were armed with red or blue lasers, though.

After my tears had dried and my nose stopped glowing, I paced around the Lab for a bit. I was fine with keeping everything to myself until I walked through one of the departments that had been witness to the brutality of the verbal lashing – people were asking me if I was okay, and what was the deal with that, and boy he sure was angry, and and and –

It made me realize that I didn’t care (much, after I cried it out) that he had yelled at me over things I can’t control (seriously; I have NO SAY in whether or not a Microsoft product will work in Firefox and no amount of screaming is going to change my lack of power over Bill Gates) but rather that he had done so in front of SO MANY PEOPLE – 5 departments I work closely with were all represented in that room by multiple co-workers, in addition to the new girl I was training that had started that morning. Yell at me privately if you’re upset that I can’t strip a mandatory field out of the software, but don’t humiliate me like that in front of my minions. It is Not Cool.

So, I went to my boss. I had previously gone to him and offered him a puppy if I never had to work with the Nasty Man again, to which he laughed – he had heard it was a rough session, but that was it. When I went back a second time, I expressed my extreme displeasure that Nasty Man had done this in front of so many others and shared a few things that were said. He was disgusted, and suggested we immediately go see Vice President and let him know – so we did. VP was even MORE displeased, and apologized for Nasty Man’s behaviour, assured me that I was doing a great job, and said he would be dealing with it the next day.

As soon as I got to work yesterday, HR came to see me. VP had gone to her right after our conversation and relayed the situation, and she wanted to let me know something that floored me:

They had my back.

My back hasn’t been had in a very, very long time. Through all my years at Space Stations 1 and 2 I sometimes had a person going to bat for me, but ultimately my choices were to take the abuse or leave. Illegal practices? Name calling? Telling me that customers complained about my work because you needed something to reprimand me for? Lying to my face about my job? Taking credit for my work? Too bad, so sad. I was a contractor, a commodity, a replaceable (except not) drone – if you don’t like being treated like garbage, you’re in the wrong industry (said industry being any industry). If you complain, we’ll get rid of you.

Maybe this is completely standard, but to me it’s like winning a fabulous prize. Someone did something really, really nasty and I rightfully brought it up to my boss – and now there are consequences. Not for me, even, but for the Nasty Man. This is nothing short of incredible to me – you mean people are held responsible for their actions? You don’t condone abuse or humiliation as a tactic? Someone cares that I was upset and they’re doing something about it?!

Colour me completely floored, and very grateful. The word had gotten out – the people in the room told their managers – and my co-workers are coming around to say they’re sorry for what happened and they think I’m super. This, too, is great – as of Wednesday afternoon, I had pretty much lost any confidence I had that I knew what I was doing and was at all good at my job. That confidence is starting to come back though, and I’m fairly certain I’ll be back to my unorthodox methods in no time – like today, when I have to break the news of a process change to the team but I am plying them with a pizza lunch first.

It feels good to have my back be had.