Book: Jane Eyre

by Charlotte Bronte

Being in a book group, I feel it's necessary to read books I normally would not choose for myself. Before I started reading this one, I was sure I wouldn't enjoy it. I have never been one for gushy love stories in movies...but I realized after this book, that a book can be so much more than a movie can ever be. It allows for unlimited imaginative possibilities.

I actually enjoyed this book from start to finish. I did find however, that the story dragged on a little, and then, just as I was tired of it, the story would perk up. The imagery in the book is interesting and the characters are enjoyable. I may read the book again in a year or so.

Book: French Women Don't Gat Fat

by Mireille Guiliano

This book was pretty good. Basically, each chapter talks about different things that work together to keep French women skinny. It's not a drastic diet book. It's more like a gradual eating healthy grouping of suggestions. I found quite a few very easy to implement.

When mentioning certain topics like chocolate, water and exercise, she explains why these things work. For example; Instead of just stating "you need to drink more water to lose weight", she gives details about how our bodies lose water and how drinking more water has more to do with replenishing the body and cleaning out the toxins than anything.

There are many other things she talks about. Most are common sense. But she talks about combining all these small changes and how they will add up, helping you to meet your weight loss goals and maintain a healthy lifestyle.

She has inserted quite a few recipes to aid you in your quest for good health. Most I wouldn't try. But some sound like something I could enjoy.

Great book.

Book: Me Talk Pretty One Day

by David Sedaris
I have read many books by this author in the past. In fact, I own some.:
- When You're Engulfed In Flames
- Holidays On Ice
- Barrel Fever
- Me Talk Pretty One Day

When our monthly Book Group decided to read this book, I was excited. I had read it before and remembered enjoying it. David Sedaris' books are collections of short essays. Everything he writes about, stems from some experience he's had. For instance, he writes a lot about his family and the ways in which they annoy him. Which I find hilarious. Like the last chapter in this particular book, where he tells about his father's messy eating habits.

But, when I began to read it again, I was mildly amused, but it wasn't the funny book that I remembered. The first 4 chapters were quite hard to get through. It got a bit better as I read more, but I guess over the past couple years, my taste in books has changed. If you are looking to read some of his stuff, don't start with "Me Talk Pretty One Day". I recommend the first one on the list above, because it is the one that got me interested in his books. Then you can decide if you're up for more Sedaris or not.

Downhill Skiing...Quick Learner

A couple weeks ago, my cousin Brittany was visiting Winnipeg. So I decided to join a bunch of my family members at Holiday Mountain for a few hours of downhill skiing.

Our two car loads left just before lunch time that Sunday afternoon. Lori driving one and Me driving the other. Naturally I made a few fun car CDs for the 90 minute drive. As we sang along to songs like "My Humps" and "Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny" it occurred to me. This would be my first time downhill skiing. I got a little nervous.

Once we arrived, I got a little more nervous. Not so much that I was going to be ill, just enough to let me know that my body was opposing the fact that I was about to throw myself down a slippery hill strapped to a couple of waxed sticks. We walked in, paid and grabbed our gear. Out of the 12 of us, 4 got snow boards and the rest got skiis. I was nervous enough about skiing...I wasn't about to try snowboarding.

So, after I got to the top of the bunny hill conveyor belt (yes, the bunny hill), I stood there...looking down...wondering if I was going to break a leg on my way down. I decided that I was just going to go and figure it out on my way down. So, there I went. Down. Straight down the hill. Screaming, I picked up speed too fast and freaked myself out. I saw the lodge coming closer and closer so I panicked and decided to use my ass as a break. It worked...but in the process, I lost one of my skii poles. While I waited for someone to bring it to me, I thought "I should just go inside and wait for everyone to be done."

Then, I saw this little girl having the time of her life. She looked to be about 6 years old. At that point I told myself I'd go down 2 more times, and then decide if I would go sit down and wait for everyone else to be done. After all, if a 6 year old isn't scared of this, why should I be?!

The second time down, I learned how to control myself so I didn't fall. I skiied past the lodge, and when I made my way back into the line. Lori asked "where did you go? One minute you were going down, the next, you were gone."And the third time, I figured out how to slow down and stop.

After my group had handed in their gear, I was still skiing. This ended up being something that I love. Maybe next time I'll try something other than the bunny hill.

Camping Season is Near!

I know it's early, but I love camping so much, that I am already anticipating summer 2010 and all the camping trips that will be had once the weather turns around. This reminds me of what last summer was and the trips that happened during July and August. The best one, was at Riding Mountain National Park.

Joelle and I had a great 3 hour drive to the park together (awesome sister time). The one thing I didn't realize, was that we had to pay per person, per day when we arrived at the park. Our campground was inside it so we payed $36. I was surprised and kind of annoyed considering an unserviced site at Wasagaming Campground was $31/night. So to be in the park and camp for two nights, we payed $98. And that didn't include Rachel, Jessica and Sandra who were coming in a separate vehicle, our food or gas.

Once Joelle and I arrived at our site, we set up the tarps and the tent. Once the other girls arrived, we grabbed a snack and took a drive to purchase firewood. Once we got back, we realized our fire pit was on a pole about two feet off the ground. It was difficult to get our fire going, but we managed. By walking through paths we found the town of Wasagaming. Checked out the tourism building and pocketed paper for our fire (paper was the one thing we had forgotten). There always seems to be something. :)

We decided we'd go on the Gorge Creek guided hike. A 2 hour hike on the Manitoba escarpment (yes, Manitoba has one). It rained all night, so we decided against it. We went on a hike that was more difficult than we thought, but when we arrived at a clearing, we could hear loons and were in awe of the beauty that surrounded us. We had a good laugh when the loons responded to our turkey calls. For the rest of the afternoon, we sat at our site and played "The Game Of Things" for hours. We laughed so hard at times that my stomach ached (this is how i gauge my level of fun - stomach pain). That evening we went to the Bison Enclosure. Once we got there, it was dusk. We saw no Bison at first, but the silence was amazing! Only crickets and frogs could be heard...until one of saw a bat and freaked out. As we left, we spotted a lynx. Then, in the darkness, we saw a huge bison walking slowly down a dirt road. We stopped and drove alongside it. It was taller than the car. We tried to take photos, I gave my camera to Sandra but she was so scared of it, the photo you see to the left is all she got. It gives me a good laugh every time. She got everything except it's genitals...which were very large. Ha ah ha.

One thing I adore about camping is the food. I don't like to take a camp stove, so we cook everything over the open fire. I figure, you have it going already, why not use it for more than roasting marshmallows?! Over the last couple years we have perfected our recipes. Potatoes, cooked with onions, butter, garlic, seasoning salt and farmer sausage is our favorite. And it's so easy, considering I do all the prep work at home. We just dump everything into a foil pan and cover. But our newest favorite, is biscuit on a stick.

The wildlife that we spotted during our stay in Riding Mountain were a bison, a lynx, a baby grizzly bear (we knew by the white mane), bats (ha ha) and an elk. Amazing! We were awe struck by the scenery and the wildlife. And even though it rained a lot, we had a great time. Even knowing that it's quite a bit more expensive than we thought it was to begin with, it was well worth it! I will be there again this summer for sure.

If you are planning a camping trip to Wasagaming, here are a couple tips:
1. Be ready for the daily park fee. There is a campground outside of the park, but odds are, that you'll want to take advantage of all that the park has to offer. Have more than 2 people/car, this way you can pay the family rate ($19/car load)
2. Bring some sort of fire starter or pick one up at the store in Onanole. They sell a little paper cup filled with wood chips and wax that was a lifesaver for us. The firewood isn't the best quality, you will need something to keep it going.
3. Ask about the fire pit on the site you want. The pits that are above the ground catch too much of a breeze and are harder to keep going than the ones on the ground.
4. Visit the bison enclosure during the evening, before sun down. The edge of the road meets with a heavily treed area. Wildlife could jump out at anytime.
5. Bring extra cash so you can make use of the kayaks, paddle boats or boat cruises they offer in the town of Wasagaming (on Clear Lake).
6. Visit the tourism office in Wasagaming. They have a lot of hikes to choose from, and the staff can tell you if they are easy, moderate or difficult.
7. Don't bother with the viewing towers. They were built a long time ago, and you really can't see the beautiful scenery over the trees anymore.
8. Have your camera ready.
9. Don't be scared away by the bear warnings. They monitor the grounds really well. If a bear has been anywhere near the site you have, they will move you if they feel it's necessary. If you follow their directions and keep your garbage bag in the trunk of your car, don't leave food outside or inside your tent, you will be fine.

Book: Say You're One Of Them

This book is a little difficult to read. Here's why:

1. The story is written normally, but then in a strange way, breaks into characters speaking. - This just feels like an interruption every time
2. The characters who speak, speak VERY broken English. What I like to call engrish. - If you're going to write a story...use either or...not both English and engrish
3. There are bits of french mixed in with the engrish. - I hate French...so this angered me.

I wont be finishing this book. Got through roughly 100 pages, because I wanted to at least give it a chance. But it's not for me. Just another binding of kindling for the 2010 camping season.

For The Love Of Siblings

I was clicking through Facebook pages and photos when I came across a photo of three people I know. They were piled on top of each other and looking at it, you could feel the love and laughter these three were enjoying the day it was snapped. I scrolled down to see a couple comments from others, one, caught my eye. "I wish I had a sister." I thought, "wow", I really haven't thought about how lucky I am to not only have one but two sisters and a brother. Just another example of how we take life for granted.

Things haven't always been great between my siblings and I. But they blossomed over the years into what we have now.

I am so thankful that I can laugh about things with my sister Lori. Over the last few years, Lori and I have been able to leave our sisterly aggressions in the past and enjoy each others company today. Our relationship wasn't always a happy one...but time and maturity have taught us both a lot.

Joelle and I have a bit of a different relationship, but it's equally as important. She's artsy and willing to do anything for a laugh. I love that about her.

I am 10 years older than Chad. I can remember when he was oh so small, and now...he's massive. I'm not talking overweight. He towers over me and when he gets in my way, there's nothing I can do to make him budge...except tickle him.

The best things about having siblings are the fun times where we laugh till our stomachs hurt and knowing that when I have kids, they will be more than I could hope for as aunties and uncles. That's so important to me.

Even though some people are not blessed with siblings, some friends can be just as special and important. After all, they are the family we choose. I just lucked out with the family I was given.