…but I just submitted it on Friday night…

*gasp* *sputter* *swoon*

I got paper #1 in my Experimental Psych class back this morning. As you can imagine this speedy return was completely unexpected since I’m used to a 2 week turnaround (at minimum) on grades/feedback at RMC. Then again, I’m taking this class elsewhere since RMC isn’t offering it, so they may have different norms surrounding marking that I’m not aware of. Whatever the case may be I certainly wasn’t expecting to log into my course site this morning and find a graded paper. The sun didn’t shine on my parade very long.  Not only wasn’t I expecting the paper back this soon, I also wasn’t expecting a B. Yep. Loxley can return to her days of heckling me and peppering my desk with B shaped objects. I have finally managed to slide lower than an A- on a course.

Actually, I think I’d received a B on my first paper history paper a few semesters ago.  It ended relatively well since I did manage to squeak through with an A- as a final grade in that course.  I’ll have to go digging in my records to check.  Someday.

There is hope.  The first paper is only worth 10% so if I pay attention to the feedback I’m sure I can improve the grade over the next few papers.  Or so I’m going to keep telling myself.

Friday night at Karaoke was interesting.  We had both dare rounds and pick a song from a hat rounds.  People put songs they would normally sing into a hat and others had to sing them. I didn’t fare too badly – Alanis Morrisette’s Head Over Feet was my hat song. Loxley ended up with Alabama’s I’m in a Hurry (And Don’t Know Why) while L sang Nirvana’s Smells Like Teen Spirit.  Highlight of the singing was L’s interpretation of the ending. In Denial. In Denial. Etc. Etc. I guess you had to be there. The dare round was, as always, evil.  Loxley submitted Iron Maiden’s Butterfly’s In A Gadda Da Vida for me to sing. After that I had no guilt about having thrown her name into the hat to sing Nena’s 99 Red Balloons.  I did go easy on her though and chose the English version. ‘Twas an interesting night.

Last night we went out to celebrate Boo’s “Big Night Out/Not Birthday Party”. Her friend C made her two amazing cheese cakes that tasted like mini slices of heaven. We learned that her friend A lives just up the street from me and seems to know everyone who works on Whyte Ave.

Now Sunday is here it’s time to finish off yet another assignment for MilPsych and modify a course site for work. So much for hibernating for the day and recovering.  Drew should be calling tonight which will make my day complete.

UPPERDATE: School work is taking longer than expected so I’ve decided NOT to work OT to finish up the work related work this afternoon. 8am Monday morning is soon enough!

Hole that never heals. Oh. Wait. Wrong toast. Here’s to the boys of St. James Gate.

If I were to hazard a guess I’d say a fabulous time was had by all. I had the camcorder with me and recorded a big chunk of the show. The boys didnt seem to mind since they new where the recording would be heading.

Besides, I’m not known for having a steady hand those sections of the show where the tape isn’t wobbling like crazy? They’re likely taped by Loxley or Dr. D. The wobbly bits are all me baby. I forgot that tapping my foot along to the pipers would make the arm holding the camera shake. I blame it on the blond roots. Artificial intelligence gained from dying my hair appears to be receeding.

The boys dedicated “The last Saskatchewan pirate” to Drew. I may have missed recording the dedication. I won’t know until I convert the comcorder’s DVD recording to a format viewable on computer. I did manage to get the whole song – along with dancing (highland and otherwise) and many other songs – to send to Drew.

Klingon T won a flag of Ireland and in true cheap Scots fashion we decided to make due and not rush out to buy a Canadian one. Friends signed messages to Drew on the Irish flag. Seems fittting since I’m one quarter Irish. I keep forgetting my gran on my mum’s side was from the island.  Guess we can’t all be perfect and be 100% Scots…

At one point in the evening I may or may not have tried to talk Dr. D into a fight club type deal. First rule. We don’t talk about the ceilidh. I lost. So we agreed to blog about having a good time. I didn’t dance to St. James Gate. There’s no video or photographic proof. These are not the droids you’re looking for. Move along.

Just be thankful I lost or you wouldn’t be reading this post.

On the bright side I haven’t completely lost out. I do have a video clip I’ve been threatening to post to YouTube. How much is your disaffected teenage cool worth to you little A?

I still lay claim to my hollow gut award from Havencon ’97. Far more sober than the 1st annual Celt-X Robbie Burns party at the end of tonight. Good thing since I need to write and finish the work I’m doing on a course (work related) tomorrow.

Loxley. mcpyper, Dr. D. The gang was mostly here. And it was worth it.

If you missed it this year you really should make an effort to go next year. Perhaps Drew will even manage to make an appearance. Granted, I don’t know what we’d do if he did make the Robbie Burns ceilidh. He’s always been out of town in the past.

Thanks to Loxley for picking me up and getting me to the party and to Klingon T for making sure I got home safely. I checked my pockets. I still had cab fare. Must have had something to do with losing all the silent auction draws I was bidding on. Thanks to Dr. D for sharing his Trap and Gill prize. Now all I need is a date for lobster, clam chowder and Alpine beer.

Which reminds me. Must look up date and cost for tickets to the Irish Decendants. Sorry Drew. They’re in town on “Tuesday”. Me thinks I’m going to see them with Dr. D and B.

I’d feel bad but you’re supposedly seeing Ron James while you’re away. Yeah. James. Not Jeremy. As fun as that show might have been, Drew admits to having confused the names of the stars.

Ok. Bed time. Or at least time to let the dogs out…

I’m sending this from my iPhone at 2am so I can’t add links to the St. James Gate website at the moment. Will add it tomorrow for those too lazy to use Google.

UPPERDATE: Links added.  I rock.  Well, more acurately, St. James Gate rocks. And no Irish Decendants tickets for me. They’ll be in town on Boo’s birthday party and I’m already committed to spending the evening with her and the rest of the gang.  Dr. D and B will need to let me know how the show was…

Boo, Loxley and I went out to see STOMP! last night.  Loxley and Boo went last year and had a great time.  Apparently they also had front row seats and ringing in the ears for a few days… Our seats weren’t that good – but they were still pretty fabulous. I’d never seen STOMP! live before so I really enjoyed the visual and auditory feast. The audience participation in clapping exercises proves an interesting case study in social pressure to conform and operant conditioning. Oh, and it was fun too.  Although my hands hurt A LOT after the near 2 hour show. I can’t imagine how the cast members spend multiple hours a day (multiple shows a week), banging, slapping and clapping away with their hands. The callouses must be deep.

This year, Loxley bought my ticket as a Christmas present. We shared the cost for Boo’s despite her recent track record of being sick nearly every time we’ve tried to get together over the last 5 months. We were brimming with optimism and all that.  Besides, who’s going to turn down a Christmas present ticket to see the cute bald guy in the black wife beater clapping and jumping around stage while banging on things?  Yummy!

Poor Loxley and Boo had to listen to me babble  “you know, that’s what Drew looked like when he was in the Army.  Before the re-muster to the Air Force. Same build.” a bazillion times at the end of the show.  It would have been a bazillion and one but Loxley had lost her cell phone and I was busy calling Boston Pizza (where Boo treated us to dinner earlier in the evening) trying to track it down. Very cool how you can surf the Internet in order to look up a phone number, click the link the iPhone generates, and be talking to someone at that number in a manner of seconds.

A good time was had by all and we ended the evening with our usual promises to make our gatherings a monthly event. Pending Boo’s health, my school work, and Loxley’s access to a running vehicle of course.

‘Twas a very long day at work today.  More accurately, it’s been a long week at work. I’ve got to stop working OT for free.  Each year I tell myself this and yet I still find myself sitting at a desk in the office trying to get one more thing accomplished before I go home. You’d think going to school part-time would have cured me of this.  I know I certainly thought it would.  I really need to learn how to walk away at the end of a work day since I’ve started putting other students learning ahead of my own.

So once again I am three hours late getting home, no desire to do my readings for class, no interest in making anything to eat, and will be back at work first thing tomorrow morning trying to get someone else’s class fixed up and online.

Perhaps, instead of taking Psych classes, I should be seeing a shrink!  I have lots of work related and guilt issues that need to be worked through.

Today in my spam filter there was a comment advising me that I needed a new wordpress theme and to go to their dull generic site and buy/download one of theirs.  Now, why would I do that when I have a series of 6 different custom made themes for my blog to choose from.  Perhaps the commenter has a point.  I have been bright and shiny blue for a few weeks now – mostly because it’s my winter theme – and it has been a while since you’ve seen my locked in the basement theme.  You know.  The one that’s been frequently appearing on my blog as I desperately try to catch up on my homework for classes.  So, out with the blue and in with the black.  Thanks for the inspiration annoying spam/commenter guy!

Last time I blogged about food Drew complained that it wasn’t fair for me to talk about food. Tonight I feel no guilt. A bunch of my co-workers and I went out for all you can eat sushi tonight. Since Drew isn’t a fan of sushi and sashimi will never pass through his lips I know he won’t complain about missing out this time.

It was interesting for all of us to get together with our spouses and significant others – I was the only one there without a partner in attendance – and not talk about work. It seems an unwritten rule that weekend gatherings are work-free zones.

Many of us have worked outside of the country. Dr D had a stint in Australia. M lived and worked in Dubai. C worked in Korea and frequently vacationed in his wife’s homeland, the Phillipines. And of course, I worked in India and the Phillipines. It’s interesting hearing everyone’s stories of their temporary foreign homes.

The best part of the evening was meeting R’s husband WD40. We talk spouses in the office all the time so it’s nice to put a face to all the stories. And WD40 is a hoot! It’s a relief knowing that 1) the stories are likely ALL true and 2) the object of the stories lives up to their reputation.

R makes a great designated driver – although I apparently need to work on refining my driving direction skills. Oh, and I suppose it would help if I turned on my cell phone when I’m expecting a ride in case the driver gets lost due to my poor directions. All worked out in the end.

Had a blast this evening. Now, back to reading articles for my classes and prepping my assignment answers.

Sometimes even the best need help. If, after you’ve donated to Damian’s Afghanistan fund, you can spare the time and a bit of change please consider donating to Sonny Rhodes’ health and expenses fund.

Sonny’s Bio:

Clarence Edward Smith was nicknamed Sonny Rhodes as a child and it stuck, bringing him recognition on his journey from Smithfield, Texas to the world stage as one of the most acclaimed Texas bluesmen and legendary status for his proficiency on lap steel guitar. Nominated numerous times for a W. C. Handy Award, Rhodes was honored for his cultural contribution to the arts by the Smithsonian Institute in 1976. Rhodes cut his teeth in the blues alongside Johnny Clyde Copeland and Albert Collins in Texas clubs as a teenager.

Sonny was born Clarence Smith in Smithfield, Texas in 1940. His early musical influences include T-Bone Walker, Mance Lipscomb, and Sister Rosetta Tharpe. In the late fifties and early sixties Sonny played bass behind Freddie King and Albert Collins, and became based in California around this time. He went to Europe for the first time in 1976 and has been back each year since. Sonny enjoys touring in Europe saying that the BLUES are revered over there, and the financial rewards are good too.

Sonny has recorded several albums over the years. Sonny also recorded the theme song for the Fox TV series “Firefly”, a Sci-Fi -Western set 300 years in the future, which is probably a good omen for the long-term prospects of the BLUES!

You can help by clicking the Donate button at Sonny’s MySpace Music page.  Sonny’s health update is available here.

c/p: Dust My Broom, home of the Friday Night Blues and Beer