I think I might be dying....but not of cholera.....or polio.

Calories+training= energy. Calories+off season= muffin top!

So recently I learned the term muffin top: "...a generally pejorative, slang term used for a person, usually female, whose flabby midsection spills over the waistline of his or her pants in a manner that resembles the top of a muffin spilling over its paper casing. This generally occurs when an individual wears low-rise, hip-hugger pants, or midriff-baring tops that are too small. " Thank you wikipedia, always so informative! The reason I bring it up is because, with all the holiday treats lately {and a seemingly unending supply of toblerones in our office}, I think I may be developing a mild case of this disorder!!! Not as severe as the specimen above, but I'm definitely getting a little muffiny! Thankfully the holidays are almost over and I have a few weeks to get back into the pool before I leave.

More people called about my car today!! A guy is test-driving it tomorrow so hopefully he'll buy it and it'll be one less thing to worry about. Tonight I was at the mint with Tegan, Cheryl, Dave, Nicky and Cheryl's co-worker, Rob, for some appys, and sour apple martinis. I always like it there, but for some reason, always forget about it when picking restaurants. Maybe because it's underground.

So, Tegan asked to be featured in my blog. I think she was joking, but I think she's definitely worth featuring! We've been friends since we were ten, so we have a lot of history- from eating beef jerky on the lift at Mt. Washington (and losing my retainer in the snow!) to being partners for a hypercard presentation in gr 8 on 'Footwear through the ages'...I will definitely miss her when I move. Hmm what else? Well.... she still uses an ewok (sp?) keychain I bought for her on a school trip to Japan at Tokyo Disney in Gr. 9, and has amazing blonde hair that looks great straight or wavy! Tegan has many talents, but some of the most remarkable are her amazing skills as a photographer, her stunt driving and her sik moves on her snowboard.

Okay, time to get my muffiny self to bed. Lots to do tomorrow (and the next day, and the day after that!).

Maybe the egyptian embassy wants to buy my car......

So today I had two voicemails when I got home- one from a woman at the Egyptian embassy who wants to "discuss" my visa application, and one from a woman called Jane who is interested in my car. I am a little concerned about what the embassy might want to talk to me about, and even more concerned that I might say something that causes my application to be denied! I think I'll call the lawyer first for some advice.....

I am actually quite surprised at the response re: the car- besides Jane, I've had 3 friends say that they have friends or family members interested in it. When I listed it yesterday on craig's list and usedvictoria.com I wasn't actually expecting anyone to call for a while, if at all. I figured with the holidays just wrapping up (ha ha), people might not be thinking about spending money so soon.....but I guess it is "boxing week", one of the best shopping periods of the year! Who knows, maybe someone would like to pick up a shiny 2004 matrix to go along with their new ipod! Actually, I can't think of a better accessory myself!

So keep your fingers crossed for me in the next few days, for the car and the visa!

Anyone have a time machine I can borrow?

When I signed the contract for this new job in early November, it seemed like mid-January was a long way off....suddenly it's less than 3 weeks and I'm not even close to being ready!!!! It would be great to go back in time about a month and check a few things off the list.... I still haven't got my passport back, which is a little concerning, but I guess a delay is to be expected being christmas and all...I just hope it comes soon so I can book my ticket.

So, I hope everyone had a great Christmas! Mine was really nice- it was the perfect mix of chaos and downtime, and of family and friends. Santa was very good to me and brought lots of things that will be useful to me when I move like money, travel books and a leatherman knife (or leatherPERSON as Meera would say!). One of my favourite gifts was from Michael- he burned all 10 seasons of FRIENDS on DVD for me (hmmm I hope no copyright law enforcement people are reading this...) so that I can watch them in cairo when I get homesick, or bored!

Today I met Michelle, Sheena, Kate, Jen and Erika for lunch at Canoe-- it took us about 20 minutes before we noticed the gigantic diamond on Michelle's finger! After 9 years of dating, Sean proposed...on Christmas morning in front of the Mums and the rest of the family. Congratulations guys!!!!!!! Tonight was our secret santa exchange...I got Nicky and gave her..........A MARMOT!!!! I know, I know, it's turning into a bit of an obsession, but it's a good cause and I thought she could use it as an educational tool for her grade fours. My santa (moosey!!!) gave me an awesome pair of pearl izumi running/cycling socks. I love them!

Merry Christmas Everyone!!!

Wishing everyone a wonderful Christmas filled with love, laughter and joy! Santa was very good to me this year (as usual); I hope he visited your house as well! Okay, off to eat more, but here are a couple of Christmas morning pics of some people who are important to me (yes, that's a stuffed marmot...I couldn't resist...the $ from the sale of those little guys goes toward helping save the real thing!!).

No more food!!!

I think I've eaten more this week than I have the previous two months. Seriously.
But yesterday, at practice John, my fabulous swim coach, asked me if I'd been running a lot lately, because I was looking so muscular!!! I said "um no...I think it's fat actually" but he said that I was looking stronger in the pool. I also got asked for ID today (two pieces!!!!) at a restaurant, so maybe this new "exercise plan" is working! ha ha, bring on the crab dip!

Despite being forced to eat so much, and sometimes trying to fit in two events in one night, this week has been great- a lot of friends are here from out of town so it's been really fun catching up with them, especially since it'll be a while before I see many of them again (due to the whole cairo thing). It was particularly nice to reconnect with Chelsea and Bri, who I haven't seen in a few years, as well as all the ACGs at Erika's baby shower :)

Besides eating, I'm trying to get my life in order before I go. Apparently my passport was sent from Milwaukee to the embassy in Ottawa on Tuesday (T2) so I'm hoping it'll be arriving in Victoria tomorrow- WITH a visa inside it. Once I get that, I can book my flight. I also need to sell my car, go to the doctor for shots and the dentist for a check-up , meet with my financial advisor, get a hard case for my bike and maybe buy a windtrainer, move, pack...barely anything really :| I'm also trying to figure out how I can be at a fitness level where I can compete (and do relatively well) in an olympic distance tri when/if I come back in the summer, so am looking into various programs- it's hard since I'm not sure what resources I'll have access to, but I want to have a rough idea before I go so I can stay on track.

an interview with my "boyfriend" Simon Whitfield :)

http://www.slowtwitch.com/Interview/Slowtwitch_interviews_Simon_Whitfield_160.html