Dill Writes

E-Bay

2006-10-04T17:19:00.000-04:00

I'm in trouble.. I've discovered eBay. It rocks. I think, however, that I am addicted. I needed another Game Boy Colour for my girls because they were always fighting and Victor,
my-brother-in-law, said search eBay. He buys and sells things especially bike parts on it all the time. So I checked it out. Got another purple Game Boy and learned not to bid on two identical items at the same time because you might win the bid.. I also learned to read the description better since I am now the proud owner of an original NOT COLOURED Game Boy...Oh, well we all know I love antiques. I also got some games for the GB. for not a lot of money... watch for shipping and handling. I also learned that the further away you order something the faster it comes. Hong Kong 4 days. BC yes Canada... 2weeks.. I got a Bam Magera element watch for Sarah for 2 cents... Yes you read that right. S&H it came to $19. I told her, you realize it likely is a fake. She doesn't care. It's looks cool. I also ordered a violin for Alyssa. She is hoping to take violin in school so I am waiting and will let you know if it's okay... So far I am happy with what I have received but I am staying away from eBay for a while... It is so easy to go crazy.. Incidentally the girls still fight over which game they want to play with so my original dilemma remain. Oh, well, I can play with the original Game Boy. It came with Dr. Mario..Not in colour....

Scientology

2006-04-06T12:39:00.000-04:00

For years I've tried to find out what scientology teaches... I like to check out other religions and see what they are about.. It was easy to find out about Islam, Kabbalah, and others but Scientology eluded me... I heard a talk show-guess which station-[by the way they will be running the password contest again}] and they said that scientology teaches that evil aliens were put into a spaceship and torpedoed into one of earth's volcanoes and they exploded into millions of particles and that is where we come from.... Now I haven't confirmed this and thought they must be kidding. I need to find out more. It seems far-fetched even tho I have heard that we supposedly come from aliens. It certainly is different from the other religions I have checked out... If any one out there knows of a web site that describes Scientology I'd like to check it out... Just to see if what I heard is so. Apparently, Scientology is a litigious religion.
They sue if they don't like what you say. don't know....

Dom again

2006-02-03T14:56:00.000-05:00

Just trying to see why my pics didn't work on my first Dom blog. I think I've got it and you'll all be sorry. I looked in the mirror today and I saw Linda's face. I've got the Bogging fever!!!!

Sarah being silly. Check out the hair. Alyssa- monkey see, monkey do......

Sarah, the mini-bar, the beer-the soon-to-be dead teenager... Legal drinking age in Dominican is 18, I heard. But apparently, they don't care....Sarah wants to move there, thinks it's civilized...

But here's what happens when you are too too young to drink.

Meet Donkey Ho Ho Just loved him and the other entertainers.

Sarah's very popular hat!

Look at the sexy guy in the back......Oops nevermind!

More tomorrow. If you can stand it!

The Dom

2006-02-03T11:30:00.000-05:00

No! Not the Godfather. The Dominican Republic. As most of you know, we went in January to a tropical paradise in the winter for the first time. It was what everyone said it would be. WONDERFUL!!
We had to be at the airport at 3am so I put the kids to bed at 7pm and went to bed at 9. Carlos woke me up at 10 when he came bed so that was it for me. I realised that somehow during the chaos of the day, my wedding ring had come off. I spent the next hour, quietly, looking for it. It's not my real ring, that's in the safety deposit. It's a ring I bought when I was pregnant with Alyssa, but nontheless, I like it.
In the airplane, I determined to enjoy the flight and if we went down to thank God for our blessings and see you all later. But I realised, there are hundreds if not thousands of planes flying everywhere everyday. It's rather egotistical to think that MY plane will fall. So I enjoy the flight, the food and even the movie(the Dreamer). I even enjoyed how giddy the 20 yr olds in front of me got when they realised they could have a beer(or 10) at 7am. There were about 5 of them but they never got rowdy. We saw them later at the resort, I think they were actually staying at on of the sister resorts to Bachata( there are actually 3 resorts in one- ours was the 5 star) Guess what they had in their little hands? You're right! BEERS!!
We had a mini-bar in our rooms and they were stocked with beers, boozes, water and other unimportant beverages. Sarah the little sneak, actually drank a beer but it took her a hour to get the cap off. It was not screw on and she had never seen a cap remover, it was attached to the wall. About Sarah and drinks, Uncle Manny, I'll refer to Him as Manny and Gabby from now on, mixed a drink for Carlos one morning. As everyone know, Manny's drinks consist of 10 parts rum and I couldn't find the Coke. Anyhoooo, we were somewhere else, I don't remember where, and Sarah said, I'll have it. It had just enough of coke that Sarah didn't realise what effect it would have on her. Gabby said Are you sure it's okay?? Yeah it's fine Sarah said. Then shortly after she had a strawberry daquari, was very nauseous at lunch. I begged her to please go to the washroom as I didn't want her to hurl in the dining room and she was sitting right in front of me. She said she was okay, but slept all afternoon. She says booze are okay but not too much. Glad we could help.
While on the beach the first day, a young woman came by and offered to do our hair in braids and beads. Sarah went for it. It only cost $25 but when Sarah took off her hat, incidently this hat is a Castro Cuban type hat and everyone in the resort especially the workers loved, when the woman when she saw how much hair Sarah has well suffice to say I gave her another 5.
It came out really good and was so convenient.
I have to tell you that at first I wasn't sure if I was going to like this type of trip. We were sitting by the pool for a while and I get bored easily, am used to planning our meals, going shopping, fishing etc. and thought, OH OH what am I going to do here for a week? Once I leaned over to Gabby and said, tongue-in-cheek, What are we having for dinner? We have to go shopping and start cooking.... She laughed and Manny kept saying, It's a dog's life but somebody has to do it. I said I'm glad it's us!!!!
I got used to the leisure life... I hope to do it again. That's all for now. Will right more in the coming days....

Working Mom

2006-02-02T17:50:00.000-05:00

No I don't work anymore.... not in a secular way and I miss working terribly... It is rewarding in some ways to be a stay at home mom but it's really hard.
I get up every morning and feel that everything is dependent on me. How does the world turn on its axis without me telling it to?
I get the girls up and we come down for breakfast. That takes about 5 minutes of me telling them to stop whining this is gonna happen everyday of their lives if they're lucky. Then I spend half-an-hour begging them to eat.... even when its stuff they love... It gets so hectic that most mornings I don't finish my coffee (Faith usually does if I put it down; She's been kind of hyper lately). Yesterday I forgot where I put it and found it late afternoon it the washroom. I know I put it there because if Faith had it would not be half full. I'm tired alot.
I get the kids school after making sure, most mornings that they brush their teeth and wash their faces.. don't forget to wash their faces after brushing cause they get this really gross white stuff all over their faces.
Then its off to Curves to torture myself.. don't put makeup on cause you get this really gross beige stuff all over your tissue....
Then I crawl to the car and wonder why why why..... I haven't lost a pound and I crave bread.. I'm trying to eat no carb after breakfast.. I drink so much water that by the time I'm preparing dinner I desparately need a rum and diet coke. Then dinner doesn't taste so bad.... I spend all day thinking about what to make for lunch for the girls cause I eat something different and no matter how much they loved pizza last week they wanted mac and cheese or pb and j, or Clam Chowder or boiled eggs or..... whatever I cooked this time was not what they wanted and it gets really iffy when they both want different things. AHHHHH!!
Then I put the little one down for a nap.... finally MY TIME. I get to watch TV after I tidy up, wash the dishes, wash the clothes, clean the oven, put any grocieries away, check my e-mail, feed the fish, walk the dogs (okay, I don't walk them, just throw them out into the backyard) , fold the clothes I washed, etc. Then it's time to pick up Alyssa from school. So wake the sleeping child -amidst much grumbling. I help with the homework. Grade 2 homework it impossible. We once spent 3 hours doing homework(my brain hurt alot after that). I now know what a proper noun is and I don't care... Start dinner, referee the fights between the 4 and 8 yr old.. the 8 and 18 (Yes 18 yr old )and the most interesting the 4 and 18 yr old... beg them to eat what I cooked all healthy and as the 18 yr old cries,"Oh my god, is there nothing in this house that isn't organic". Then its time to Oh let's not forget they all want a snack or some elaborate dessert after eating... You just ate. Let me do the dishes, get your dad's lunch.What do you want for lunch Carlos- Chicken and salad, sardines and salad, eggs and salad? Whatever? I don't recall WHATEVER being an option... I do wonder does he eat my lunches or lets me think he does...
Then its time for bed. Another hour of grumbling and Why do I have to go at 9. Sarah stays up till late... Yeah and she gets up at noon if I make her.... Now my time . Take a bath and collapse into bed at 10. I can now watch TV. Can't keep my eyes open. So shut the TV. Snuggle into my clean sheets. Why am I now wide awake? Now I'm not sleepy...... Crap!

Happy News

2005-10-30T14:21:00.000-05:00

As I write this I am shaking like a leaf. Finally some good news...
Some of you out there(Ben) make fun of my obsession with CFRB...
(Helder, you are my only ally.). Well guess what?
I have won yes WON an all-inclusive trip ti Riu Buchata or something like that In the Dominican Republic......YEAHHHHHHHHHH..
I am the last winner in this contest and they called my name Sunday at 8am. I get up and make pancakes on Sat and Sun for the family and finally my insanity has paid off.
When I called them I was shaking and could barely speak which all who know me are thinking,
"yea right speechless HER!" well I was. I almost lost my voice.....
I still can't believe it...
Now all I have to do is lose about 1000lbs before I brave a beach....Oh boy this is something......

Stuff

2005-09-19T10:03:00.000-04:00

I too am decluttering. I have extra to do since my mother passed away this summer. She kept most of her personal things in her large room but it is amazing to see what she kept. She has wedding invitations from 20 years ago(Dee found yours), her elementary diploma(1953) her age of majority booklet(1957) her passports and even her letters from her lawyer during her divorce(very Eye-opening and decision reinforcing). Mom and Ben went through much of her stuff while she was home and I went through more while she was in the hospital. I knew it would be heart-breaking to do this after she was gone. One cannot imagine how heart-rending it is to go through your parent's things. You cry for hours( I think I scared my little neighbour the other day when she came to give some of her favourite shoes for my girls. My face was so swollen from crying and I could barely thank her. She is so sweet!)
Anyhow, while reducing my mom's memories I am reducing my JUNK. We have so much junk my husband says we'll never move. He'd rather burn the house down(JUST KIDDING. Some of our junk is precious). That's the hard part. Deciding what stays and what goes. I read about a woman who moved and she was puzzled as to why she brought old shampoos and cleaners with a centimeter of fluid to her new home. What is it about us that we can't bring ourselves to get rid of absolutely unecessary crap. Even Barbra Streisand I read once, rents an extra house for her stuff. For more about stuff see George Carlin. He has a whole routine about STUFF.
Slowly and since I am now a stay at home mom, I am cleaning up our home. (Don't think I watch TV all day. Talk about crap. I think the first thing I should throw out is the TV.) I find things to do all day and am amazed at what I don't need. I've asked family and friends who go on vacation not to bring me any chachkas or mugs or t-shirts or key-chains....... you get the picture. Bring me a bottle of rum or gin for my hubby. That a gift that is much appreciated....
Soon I'll go through my cookbooks and the novel collections I have collected thru the years............
Then I'll put them all back. Dusted and hugged. Can't part with them yet....
Oh well. Dill

fat kid sings

2005-08-22T23:52:00.000-04:00

On a lighter note, I love the fat dutch boy who sings at save martha.com. Whenever I need a pick me up I look him up. (I have him entered on my favourites) You should look him up. He is so uninhibited and seems so carefree. What a blessing it must be to be able to be so happy. Dill
Ps. I finally noticed that my blog time is wrong. believe me I do not get up at 5 to blog.........

Green Tea and cancer

2005-07-19T10:18:00.000-04:00

A while back I heard about a very cheap cure for cancer but the man (Kevin Trudeau) said he could not name it because it would lead to his arrest. The powers that be are just waiting for him to make a false step or false statement that would land him in jail. Well. We suspected that he was talking about green tea. Now I heard ON THE NEWS that reasearchers believe that green tea prevents the protein that triggers cancer to start. Wow. I wonder how expensive this cure will be...or how the pharmaceuticals will find a way to prevents us from getting it without a perscription. We have been drinking it occasionally and recently before this statement my husband started drinking it. It is now a part of our regular routine. The statement said to not think that you can drink or eat anything then drink a cup of tea and you won't get cancer. Green Tea is full of antioxidants as is many fruits and vegetables. of course some more than others. So If you want to do all you can to avoid getting sick, think about a healthy lifestyle and then no matter how hard it is to implement, at least try... It is worth it if only so you can say you tried ...... Love You all very much and want you all around as long as possible......Dill

What I Like

2005-07-19T10:06:00.000-04:00

Sunsets
Oceans
My husband's face when he catches the big fish.
My husband's face when he forgets the net to catch the big fish.
My babies when they are sleeping.
My dog when she is dreaming about chasing I don't know what.
When I announce dinner and they really love what's on the menu. Mexican night is popular.
My garden when I have finally turned over the soil, seeded or planted, weeded etc. and now I can sit back and enjoy till the next round of weeding.
Weeding. It can be very satisfying.
Reading anything.
Listening to my favourite songs.
Looking at old pictures of vacations, of loved ones long gone and loved ones soon leaving us.
A patch of well taken care of green grass.
My car when its not messy inside.
Johnny Depp. Yep!!!!!
A man holding his baby.
Purple.
A beautifully made piece of wooden furniture.
Kind words.

PET

2005-06-21T09:50:00.000-04:00

PET scans are one of the best diagnostic tools especially for cancer. It is not poisonous like CT scans and it is extremely accurate. However, Ontario won't pay for it. It is not included in OHIP. There was a gentleman who was told his cancer had returned, he had two lesions on his liver. He was given 3 options. Surgery, chemo or wait and die. He chose to pay (Can you say 2-tierred health care?) $2500 out of his own pocket and was told he doesn't have cancer. He saved the province thousands maybe hundreds of thousands of dollars. And what is frightening is there are apparently PET scans sitting idle because Ontario won't pay for it. What is wrong with this world? A machine, a process that involves injecting glucose(sugar) into the body that cancer searches for because cancer is fed by sugar, a process that leaves your body in 2 or 3 hours without causing irreparable damage and WORKS, is not available in Ontario. It is available in Quebec. What is going on??????? I really am bewildered. Well I'm off to the hospital to visit my mom, a woman who was not offered the options the man above was. Oh pardon me, she got the 3rd one. Dill

Blood

2005-05-02T10:15:00.000-04:00

Okay. I can't stay quiet about this any longer. As most of you know, I listen to CFRB. Today I shut it off. I can't listen to this topic.
It's about a 14 year old girl from BC who is one of Jehovah's Witnesses. She needs chemo for cancer and refuses a blood transfusion.
I am one of Jehovah's Witnesses and my mom is going thru chemo right now. Oh actually it is put on hold while her blood count recovers. She refused blood but accepted treatment which includes EPO. This is a treatment given to people who for one reason or another, religious or otherwise, cannot have a blood transfusion. It makes your own body work to produce blood. It is safe, extremely effective and approved because it works. However, it works better if you take iron supplements. In fact I was told that EPO without Iron is not very effective. So why in the world didn't my mom Dr tell us that. After taking EPO for 2-3 mths now she says oh oh you aren't taking Iron. My mom says did you prescribe it or even tell me..... my mom is the one who asked her about the Iron. Incidently, My mother-in-law also had EPO for her cancer and is in remission right now.
Back to the 14 yr old. She also refused Blood. However the court decided that she is not old enough to make that decision . So she is here in To. at Sick Kids. or rather she was. They told her to go back to BC. Apparently, she bolted and they don't really know where she is.
My problem is , she is not old enough to decide for herself what she wants to do for her body. They say she must be brainwashed or other nonsens. Why I ask myself is she deemed too young?
In Canada, 14 is the age of consent for sex, birth control without parental consent or even knowledge, she can have an abortion or the morning after pill. But she can't refuse a treatment while accepting other treatment. This makes me mad. We are not ignorant. We research so much and I know way more about cancer than I ever wanted to know.
For example, I know that thousands of Doctors world round have claimed to cure certain cancers. But the medical institutions won't even listen to their claims. The call all I mean ALL claims to cure cancer as fraud, hoaxes etc. You mean that in the 50, 80, 100 years of research there is NOT ONE CURE DISCOVERED?? I have searched the web for claims research and you know what the so-called medical societies say about all the claims "The are inconclusive, no proof, needs more study , not enough study done, ad nauseum. (I hope I spelled that right.)
Wht are they researching? why don't they research these claims? Who are researching these claims? Nobody. But any research being done is by the large pharmaceuticals. (Whew hard word)
I can't even begin to tell you how angry I am that no one has a cure. not one cure....
As you can see, I am quite passionate about this. I am mad...... for both my mom and this poor girl who has no right to govern her own body. I know I'm ranting but I can't shut up about this anymore. People only hear part of the story and make judgements. Find out the whole story before you pass judgement. My family is on both sides of this fence and it is lonely up here......
Luv Dill

usernames

2005-04-01T15:46:00.000-05:00

I hate usernames... every one that I want is being used. Ben helped me set this up and she has such a dirty mind. While she was yelling at me because I had nothing to write about. she was typing my username- Dillpickles- but instead she typed Dickpickles... Thank God I was paying the minimal amount of attention and managed to stop her before I was completely humiliated. However that did not stop me from going on to humiliate her... So now Whatever I was going to say about usernames will be shelved for the time being... Dill
P.S. As Ben pointed out this is a blog not an E-mail so I took out the Luv Dill and just Signed Dill