mythteller: (grumble)
This $300 vet bill has produced a clean bill of health for Newton. No thyroid problems, no diabetes, no nothing. Aside from being a bit underweight, he's physically fine. The vet is going to give me some medication to calm him down when we have guests over, but aside from that, there's not much I can do.

I almost wished SOMETHING would've been found, something to explain the sudden behavior from a normally sociable and loving kitty. I'll just have to keep a closer eye on him when other people are around.

My friend is recovering and our friendship has been salvaged, for which I am grateful. Hellava week.
mythteller: (OMG! Oh Noes!)
Yesterday, I had a friend visit me in the afternoon for tea. My cat Newton was padding around, hopping up for affection, and just being his affectionate self. Then my friend announced she was going to the bathroom, so she stood up and walked off and Newton bounded after her. "She's not going to feed you, dumbass!" I called after him.

Then I heard that horrible, deep-throated growl that cats make, followed by a shriek from my friend. I rushed to the bathroom and found that Newton had cornered my friend and was making a lunge for her leg. I chased him out and into the bedroom and closed the door. My friend then made a hasty exit. She later confirmed that she had two bloody gashes in her leg, but I haven't heard anything since.

I took Newton to the vet today and they are running some blood tests to check the thyroid and everything else. He's been losing alot of weight lately and there was some vomiting a couple of months ago, but since we switch to soft food only, he's been putting weight back on.

The behaviour is very weird for Newton though. He's usually very affectionate and likes attention from people. If he gets annoyed, he usually gives lots of warning before becoming aggressive. But in the last few months, the random attacks have been increasing and yesterday's out-of-the-blue attack is cementing a pattern. Other times we figured it was that he was being startled by a loud noise, but with this last incident, there was no loud noise, no provocation, and no warning.

I feel awful and sick to my stomach, both for my friend and for my cat. If the tests don't come up with something, we may have to consider putting him down, the thought of which tears me apart. But I can't have my guests fearing for their well-being because I have a cat in the house. Although he's never attacked me, he has attacked [livejournal.com profile] sarahcarotte once. This cannot stand.

I can only hope my friend can forgive me for my cat's misbehavior. And I really hope we find a solution for the cat because I don't know how I'm going to deal with watching another of pets die by my decision.
mythteller: (mprc)
This past weekend, the MPRC and Melange Magique joined forces and put together the Yule Fair, which took place December 5th and 6th. There were vendors, speakers, and many, many visitors. The Yule Fair is one of those community traditions when we get to reconnect with old friends and enjoy each others company for a couple of days.

Before I get sentimental, a big shout out to Lena, Vanessa, and Kevin from the MPRC who were really helpful in playing timekeepers, gophers, and keeping the MPRC open during the Fair. You folks seriously rock! We even got a few people to fill-out volunteer forms!

Highlights from the weekend included hanging out with Dr. Brendan Myers and his lady-love Juniper, joshing around with the vendors, and leading the Yule ritual on Sunday night. I spoke in a panel discussion and told Winter tales on Sunday afternoon (you can hear one of the stories here).

The Yule Ritual went off so well: the effect I was hoping for not only happened, but it surpassed my expectations. Since it was a Winter Solstice ritual, part of the ritual was done in darkness. The only light was from the quarter candles, which produced silhouettes of the people. My thanks to Mark (for the grounding) and Juniper, Tam, Francis, and Rick for calling the quarters in their own unique ways.

Each person was asked to bring a candle, and after I spoke about the darkness and how it can fool you into thinking you are alone, I lit a candle and shared my light with another person. Then that person shared her light with another person, and so on and so forth until the room was filled with candlelight. I couldn't hear what everyone was saying to each other, but what I did hear seemed heartfelt and genuine, even when it was between strangers. It was beautiful.

There was a moment that I now wish I could have spent more time on, but I'm reassured that Brendan and Juniper took care of. There was a girl there who, for personal reasons, was worried that she would not be welcome in that space. When she revealed that reason to me, I assured her that she would always be welcome here, and that statement seemed to lift an incredible weight from her shoulders. I hope this girl comes back so we can continue to prove that to her.

Thank you for sharing your light with me this past year. Namaste.
mythteller: (dave_smirk)
A few people have been expressing consternation over the gift-giving season and me. I admit, I'm probably difficult to shop for, but the truth of the matter is that I really have everything I want. Everything else is just gravy and no one should feel obligated. Spending quality time with good friends is the best gift.

Okay... I would love to have a plethora of people interested in having me write biographies for them. That'll come with time. Must. be. patient.

In the meantime, here's a list of stuff that I've been vying for lately. I have a policy that after mid-November, I don't buy anything for me for fear of someone else getting it for me.

I'm feeling a bit guilty about this list, but I've had a couple of people mention the need for it, so here it is:

DVD Box sets
Batman: the animated series (any season)
Superman: the animated series (any season)
Justice League: any season
Justice League Unlimited: any season
Teen Titans: any season
M*A*S*H: any season except #5 (already have it)

Note: oddly, I don't want the Avatar DVDs because I'm waiting
for the series to be done before getting
the entire series.

Music
The new Tom Petty album (Highway Companion)
Bruce Springstein's tribute to Pete Seeger
Waterboys: Karma to Burn
Waterboys: Fisherman's Blues (2-disc re-issue)
Garrison Keillor: Lake Wobegon Loyalty Days
Garrison Keillor: Now It Is Christmas Again
U2: 18 Singles
Beau Kavanaugh and the Broken Hearted: the first album
mythteller: (hat)
It's been a rough-and-tumble weekend, filled with laughter and tears and birthday wishes all around. I spent Friday preparing, shoppping, and cooking for nine people that night. I'm not a bad cook, but the hard part for me is the timing of everything.

To be able to cook the stuff in such a way that the noodles, the chicken, the salad, and the sauce are all ready at the same time, it's such a mystery. Forunately, it was only the rice noodles that did not go according to plan, and anyways, I made too much of the stuff.

Fortunately, the meal seemed to go over well, so it was a red-letter day.

On Saturday, I was called in to do some shift work at Melange. It was fun to go back behind the counter and the day rolled by relatively without incident. On Saturday night, we went to see our friends in a choir concert, followed by a delectable meat feast at the Keg.

On Sunday, we had the Pagan Sunday Brunch at Chez Dustys. It was an unusually low-turn out (6 people), so I think I need to push the event a bit more on the elists and maybe at the Yule Fair next Saturday.

Sunday afternoon, after helping Dave renovated the MPRC, a group of us rehearsed the ritual that we'll be putting on at the Yule Fair. We'll be re-enacting the battle between the Holly King and the Oak King, and the two guys who are involved in the battle will be doing it in French! So cool.

After that, I grabbed a couple of folks (Karyn and John) and headed to Hurley's to meet with [livejournal.com profile] sarahcarotte for storytelling. We were supposed to meet [livejournal.com profile] grrscary there, but she never showed. What happened?

So the birthday weekend is behind us. Happy birthday Ms. Carotte!
mythteller: (cowbell)
If you have a moment tonight or over the weekend, please give [livejournal.com profile] sarahcarotte a call (for security reasons, I'll assume you have the number) to wish her a happy birthday. She'd really appreciate it.
mythteller: (Heroics)
Before I write about the weekend, I wish to send out kudos to [livejournal.com profile] grrscary who bared her head for a good cause. She had her head shaved this morning on Mix 96 after raising over $2000 for Breast Cancer research. Amazing! We went out to meet her for breakfast after the shaving, so here's what she looked like before (although the picture is a bit old) and what she looks like now:



Way to go Roo! We are all very proud of you! If you decide to do this next year, I may join you in your endeavour. I am a bit disturbed at how a man's contribution and sacrifice for this cause is regarded as less impressive than a woman's participation, but more on that later.

Like many of us, we spent the weekend at various Halloween parties. On Friday, we went to [livejournal.com profile] grrscary's birthday/housewarming/halloween party. We were encouraged to wear clothing that we do not usually wear, so I sported by blue kilt, a red Lobster t-shirt, and a blue hawaiian shirt. It was a Do Not Adjust your TV Set moment.

On Saturday night, we attended [livejournal.com profile] twilightbunny's annual Halloween bash. We went as the iconic Death [livejournal.com profile] sarahcarotte and Taxes (me). Ms. Carotte's cloak was kickass and the favorite part of my costume was my ID badge (the contracted form of my name which was Ulster Owen Memonie). Pictures will surface eventually, so be patient.

Pumpkins!

Oct. 25th, 2006 09:22 am
mythteller: (karnack)
Last night, we had an impromptu pumpkin-carving party. We wanted to plan this event, but forgot about it and then just hastily called a few people together. I love carving pumpkins to the point of wondering if I would enjoy sculpture as an artform... Time will tell.

So here's what our pumpkins looked like in the end. I'm not in this shot (I'm taking the picture), but my pumpkin is the one to the far right. If you don't recognize it, I based it's design on a Warcraft Troll. A bit ambitious, I'll admit, but the result is not too shabby!



If you click on the picture and then click on "up gallery", you'll see the pumpkins we carved last year. Mine is the Evil Flanders.
mythteller: (question)
IF YOU'RE ON MY FRIENDS LIST,
I want to know things about you. I don't care if we've never talked, never liked each other, or if we already know everything about each other. I really don't. You are obviously on my list, so let me know with whom I am friends! JUST HIT REPLY.

1. Your Middle Name:
2. Age:
3. Single or Taken:
4. Favorite Movie:
5. Favorite Song:
6. Favorite Band/Artist:
7. Dirty or Clean:
8. Tattoos and/or Piercings:



HERE COMES THE FUN ... ... ...

1. Do we know each other outside of Live Journal?
2. Whats your philosophy on life?
3. Would you have my back in a fight?
4. Would you keep a secret from me if you thought it was in my best interest?
5. What is your favorite memory of us?
6. Would you give me a kidney?
7. Tell me one odd/interesting fact about you:
8. Would you take care of me when I'm sick?
9. Can we get together and make a cake?
10. Have you heard any rumors of me lately?
11. Do you/have you talk(ed) crap about me?
12. Do you think I'm a good person?
13. Would you drive across country with me?
14. Do you think I'm attractive?
15. If you could change anything about me, would you?
16. What do you wear to sleep?
17. Would you come over for no reason just to hang out?
18. Would you go on a date with me if i asked you?
19. If I only had one day to live, what would we do together?
20. Will you post this so I can fill it out for you?
mythteller: (guinness)
The 2nd Annual Scotch Tasting party that we held last night was a resounding success. Thanks need to go to the lovely and talented [livejournal.com profile] sarahcarotte who prepare a delicious spread to accompany the multitude and variety of Scotch we had. Also, a heartfelt shoutout to [livejournal.com profile] knotty_mark who held me move some extraneous stuff into the basement.

After everyone showed up (there were about 20+ people in the end), our Scotch table consisted of the following Scotches and some not so Scotch:

Jameson 12 year
Scapa
Glenmorangie
Highlander Park 25 year
Laphroaig
Lagavulin 16 year
Ballantyne
Sortilege (Canadian whisky mixed with Maple Syrup)
Jura Superstition
Talisker

At the end of the evening, we had a vote and the Scapa won as the best Scotch of the evening. My thanks to the Gryphon Cafe for the pound of shortbread they donated for the event which we award to Jim and Laurie for their Scotch contribution (the Scapa).

There were also a few bottles of fine red wine and Porto floating about as well. Mr. Wheeler arrived with some cigars which were consumed on the balcony (I didn't participtate). Also, Ms. DragonMoone showed up with my newly adjusted kilt, which I wore immediately and wowed the party-goers.

Everyone was dressed-up in full regalia, especially the Franco bros. who looked exceptionally snazzy. I was pleased to see my friends [livejournal.com profile] bastdanica and [livejournal.com profile] moniqueg, as well as Jim, Laurie, and Dave who trekked in from the Ottawa area to join us. My apologies to [livejournal.com profile] photogeek_mtl because some of their party-goers stayed later at my party before going to his. We really need to stop competing like this...

All in all, it was a tremendous success. I'm defnitely making this an annual event. I really needed this evening after the horrible week I had just gone through.
mythteller: (Oooooh)
It is with great sadness that I must report that Kirk MacGeachy (the lead singer of Montreal's Orealis) passed away on the weekend of a heart attack. Hurley's is hosting a wake on Friday after his funeral. You can read more about him in today's Gazette (section D).



I'll miss Kirk. He and I weren't close friends, but we always caught up on our news each time we crossed paths in the various Montreal pubs and festivals. He was charming, funny, soft-spoken, and a true gentleman musician. It was always a pleasure to see him and hoist a pint together.

Alignment

Jul. 20th, 2006 12:55 pm
mythteller: (karnack)
Anyone who has played some kind of Table Top game is familiar with the term Alignment. For those of you who have not thrown a 20-sided die in their lives, Alignment describes your personality and moral judgemnent in a general way. You are then given some freedom in how your alignment is expressed when you role-play.

With the myriad of RPGs out there, there are more than a few variations on Alignment, but the basic ones are as follows:

Lawful Good/Neutral Good/Chaotic Good
Lawful Neutral/True Neutral/Chaotic Neutral
Lawful Evil/Neutral Evil/Chaotic Evil

You can read more about what each one means by visiting this Wikipedia Entry on Alignment.

[livejournal.com profile] sarahcarotte and I were discussing the alignment of various super-heroes (geeks that we are). She felt that Batman was Lawful Good, while I felt that he was Neutral Good. My argument was that, although Batman is definitely Good, he wouldn't be above beating a suspect to a bloody pulp before getting the answers he needed. She also felt that Superman was Neutral Good, while I felt he was Lawful Good. We both agreed that Spider-Man was Lawful Good.

On the other side of the tracks, I would characterize the Joker as Chaotic Evil and Lex Luthor as Lawful Evil.

So in Memish fasion, here's my task to you: take 5 random LJ friends that you know fairly well (or think you do) and assign an alignment to them that you think represents their moral fibre. If you want, include a short description on why. You might want to mention that you've done this by leaving them a comment about it.

Also, assign an alignment to yourself. If anyone disagrees with you, post their take on your alignment in your Journal.

So here's mine (okay, so I did more than 5. I have lots of opinions!):

[livejournal.com profile] jdhobbes: Neutral Good

[livejournal.com profile] ashforestwalker: Lawful Good
[livejournal.com profile] baronscartop: Chaotic Neutral
[livejournal.com profile] bastdanica: Chaotic Good
[livejournal.com profile] beautifulstars: Chaotic Good
[livejournal.com profile] concordantnexus: True Neutral
[livejournal.com profile] grrscary: True Neutral
[livejournal.com profile] kideternity: Chaotic Good
[livejournal.com profile] kino_kid: Lawful Good
[livejournal.com profile] kittyfinn: Neutral Good
[livejournal.com profile] knotty_mark: Chaotic Good
[livejournal.com profile] moniqueg: True Neutral
[livejournal.com profile] mousme: Chaotic Neutral
[livejournal.com profile] raynedaze: Chaotic Good
[livejournal.com profile] rbowspryte: Neutral Good
[livejournal.com profile] sandman7: Lawful Good
[livejournal.com profile] sarahcarotte: Lawful Good
[livejournal.com profile] satyrdance: True Neutral
[livejournal.com profile] scarletcougar: Lawful Good
[livejournal.com profile] serendipity8791: Chaotic Good
[livejournal.com profile] shakura: Lawful Good
[livejournal.com profile] silly_imp: Chaotic Neutral
[livejournal.com profile] taigathyme: True Neutral
[livejournal.com profile] talyesin: Lawful Good
[livejournal.com profile] tocityguy: Neutral Good
[livejournal.com profile] toughlovemuse: Lawful Good
[livejournal.com profile] twilightbunny: NeutralGood
[livejournal.com profile] ulfhildr: Lawful Good
[livejournal.com profile] will279802: Neutral Good
[livejournal.com profile] yukonflower: Lawful Good
[livejournal.com profile] zeuberwench: Chaotic Good
mythteller: (Oooooh)
Last night, we paid a visit to our local Casino. I'm not much of a gambling man, but nothing beats the Casino for people watching. From the croupiers to the security guards, from the slotmachine cowboys to the black jack tappers, everyone has a different story in their faces.

The slotters are just sad though. I try not to watch them too much because you can taste their desperation as the yank the levers and mash the buttons. Always waiting for that siren to ring, just one more looney and it'll all be mine. It's not pretty.

I approached one of the slot machines, trying to read its gimmicks when I noticed a woman sitting two seats away. I gave her a smile, but she just glared at me. There was that familiar wild-eyed look laced with fear that I was here to steal her money.

I took another step toward the slot machine when the woman translated her glare into a roar of rage. "That is MY machine! Are you too stupid to see it's got money in it? Back off asshole!"

I put my hands up and backed away saying "Lady... Calm down! I'm just looking!"

"Go look somewhere else you jerk, before I-I..." she balled up her fist and mashed one of the pads. The machine spun and then sat silent as ever. The woman turned her back on me fuming, so I left her to her thoughts.

I joined my friends at the blackjack table, bought my chips, and started to play. Four hands later, I was broke. Obviously, blackjack ain't my bag, baby.

The last time I played blackjack at the Casino, I played for an hour and I walked away with the original money I laid down. It cost me nothing and I had a good time, so I considered it to be a success. But an odd sensation came over me: I spent the next two weeks yearning to go back, wanting to win more money. I didn't give in to it, but it was strong temptation and it surprised me.

I think I'll just stick to playing poker with friends, enjoying the trash talk, not caring if I walk away with my $5 or not.
mythteller: (adorable)
[livejournal.com profile] will279802 came home from Midgard to find his kitty had fallen out of a window and broken his leg. As many pet owners know, medical bills for a pet can be astronomical, so many pet owners face tough choices when dealing with an ailing pet.

Some people's first reaction is "Put the pet down!" rather than pay the medical bills. I'm ashamed to say that was my first instinctive reaction to [livejournal.com profile] will279802's predicament, but I knew immediately that I could not do the same to my cat.

So it led me to look something up. I wondered if you could get medical insurance for your pet, and it turns out you can!

http://www.vetinsurance.com/

http://www.petplan.com/

I'll be looking into this in the coming weeks. I've had my cat Newton since September 1999 (coming up onto his 7th birthday!) and I intend to keep him as long as he lives (which is probably another 7 years or so).

Anyone else have medical insurance for their pets?
mythteller: (karnack)
Congrats to t! who is now t!+ when he got hitched on the weekend to the lovely [livejournal.com profile] ai731. It was a fantastic and memorable celebration and I was proud to be in attendance.

At the reception part, I got to catch up with a couple of old friends, including Mr. Mann with whom I used to do radio plays. I would love the chance to do those again, so it was fun to talk about those old productions with him (and he bought a copy of my book!).

The rest of the evening was spent singing and dancing, both to live music and recorded music. Guys may dance like dorks, but no one said it isn't FUN to dance like dorks.

We stayed up much later than expected, so Ms. Carotte and I suffered the next day when we headed out to St. Jerome to check out the new LARPing land. It's a beautiful piece of land, but very hilly and there are no open spaces. Consequently, any battles that take place will be small skirmishes rather than open battles.

I'm also expecting a bunch of twisted ankles.
mythteller: (hat)
37 years old today. I think I'm going to start referring to it as 30 years with 7 years of experience.

So far, I've gotten a few ecards, some yummy tea (thanks [livejournal.com profile] sarahcarotte, and a few phone calls.

I know two other people who celebrate this day. There's [livejournal.com profile] kideternity and my long-time friend Patsy. Tonight, I'll be joining Patsy at the ComedyWorks for some yukyuks. On the weekend, Ms. Carotte has something planned, but I have no idea what.

May the 4th be with you!
mythteller: (mellow)
I really really really missed a good show. Invisible put on a show last week and I heard it was great, but now I have an inkling to how good it actually was because Scott has MP3s from the show on his site. Go have a listen.

If you don't know the Invisible story, it's a bunch of guys who got together a little over 1.5 years ago and said "We should form a band", although none of them could play instruments. Despite that, they each picked an instrument, taught themselves how to play, and rehearsed, rehearsed, rehearsed.

I saw them for the first time about 6 months ago. It was a raw, primal performance, but quite impressive when you considered how and when they got started. The biggest problem was cohesiveness: it sounded more like a bunch of guys playing instruments than a band playing together

From what I can hear now, they've fixed that lack-of-cohesiveness; the band has pulled together and produced a single sound. And it rocks.
mythteller: (crazy)
I was at a birthday party a couple of weekends ago and I was chatting with a girl I hadn't seen for awhile, catching up on our news.

As the birthday boy passed, he made a comment that caused her to reply "I smoke pot and work with clay everyday. I'm so Zen, you would not believe it."

To which I burst out laughing. "Smoking pot does not make you Zen. Achieving a Zen state is about conditionning your mind and body to achieve a higher state of being, giving you access to your higher self and the enlightenment and peace that comes with that. Getting stoned and saying that it's a true Zen state is like eating a bagel and saying you're Jewish!"

She promptly shut me down and said that I was not allowed to contradict her for the rest of the night. Seeing how this was supposed to be a joyous occasion, I did not challenge her further, but it kinda killed the conversation.

And she wonders why I don't keep in touch much anymore.
mythteller: (claws)
Ms. Carotte and I attended an awards party for our LARPing game (Ms. Carotte won in the two categories she was nominated in!) that took place in a resto on Prince-Arthur. As you can imagine, the streets were packed solid. After a futile hunt for a spot, I settled for parking in a lot. I paid the price ($15), left my keys, and went off to the party.

Four hours later, I headed back to the lot to get the car. To my annoyance, I found two of the attendants leaning on the car having a conversation. I decided to let this slide, but I was annoyed. I unlocked the front door and when I got in, I saw it.

An old coffee cup (half-empty) that had been sitting in the deep coffee cup holder was now lying on its side in the passenger seat, cold coffee spilled all over it.

I jumped out of the car and started swearing like a sailor, outraged. "You @#$@! I paid $15 for this?!?! What the @#@#$@#!?!?"

The attendants came over, asking what was wrong. When I tried to tell them that I found coffee on my passenger seat, they tried to tell me that I must've done it. "What?!? Why would I have done this? When I left, this seat was dry!"

"Sir... Explain to me what happened," said one of the attendants.

By this time, I had the coffee cup in my hand and it still had a bit of coffee in it. "This cup was in my cup holder when I left you the car. When I came to get my car, it was all over the passenger seat. One your guys must've dropped it in there!"

"No sir," he shook his head. "My boys wouldn't do that. You have no proof that you didn't just spill that now."

"Proof? You want proof! Here's your proof!" I hurled the cup at the attendant's booth, causing it to explode and rain coffee all over the window.

At that moment, I knew I had gone too far. I must've looked like a raving lunatic, so I decided to try to make it funny. In a moment of ultimate cheese, I pointed to the crumpled Tim Horton's cup and roared "Roll up THAT rim!"

After more ranting, one of the attendants offered me some paper towel and a plastic bag to cover the seat. Still fuming, I got in the car and went off to pick up my folks. Very wisely, my passengers talked me out of returning to the scene of the crime to get a refund (where I probably would've been the recipient of the wrong end of a few fists).

Somewhere in the middle of all of that, Evil Gab called me to find out what was keeping me. He would hear me ranting and raving, but didn't have a clear idea of what was happening when I hung up. My friends were relieved to see me in one piece when I turned up finally, but I was still too fuming to notice.

At some level, I believe that the world is out to get me, to walk all over me. So when I'm the victim of an injustice, I explode in righteous indignation. This can be a good or bad thing, but one of these days it's gonna be the reason behind a black eye, missing teeth, and good rattling to my brainpan.

So now you're all caught up on my Saturday night adventure. And the coffee came out fine in the end, except the car still smells like Tim Horton's capuccino.
mythteller: (vocal_outrage)
Something happened tonight that, in the grand scheme of things shouldn't have been such a big deal, but at the time it got my blood boiling. When I calm down about it, maybe I'll update this post with it. The long and the short of it is that I was the victim of an injustice and I did alot of stomping and shouting about it to parking attendents in a parking lot in town.

But I just want to apologize to my friends who were waiting for me to show up. All they knew was that I was angry and shouting at people, but didn't know why and what had become of it. When I finally turned up, they were relieved that I was safe, but I was too riled up at that point to notice.

So to those friends, sorry for being such a loudmouth, sorry if I ended the evening on a sour note, and sorry for worrying you.

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