Hearts growing fonder.

I miss these people. Though...I do like having distance between us. We appreciate each other more. I somehow forget that I used to want to punch my brother in the face when I watched him do innocent things like eat cereal. And how I have left permanent scars on my sister because of hairbrush fights. Nope, I just remember secret languages, dumb-kid inside jokes, fort-making, late-night bonding over wedding speeches, bunk beds, conspiracies against adults, and hysterical laughing at inappropriate times.

Now I wish we had no distance. Except 3 feet of my parents' kitchen table. I wish it was Christmas morning and we're bickering over who's going to make coffee and we're having Bailey's before noon and we're eating Pot of Gold chocolate for breakfast. I wish we were laughing at Dad (not with him). I won't take these little things for granted anymore. Promise.

My brother is in Japan (although en route "home" in 2 days) and my sister is in Costa Rica (vowing to "stay forever"). *sigh* Is it the heat? Or my age? Hormones? Isn't funny how the people who can annoy and infuriate you the most can also leave a big dumb empty hole in that inner place where you keep your best-things-of-life? 

(p.s. Happy Birthday Jill-wee!)

Camping (& Bootcamping)

 [ it *looks* artistic, but really it's just me swatting mosquitoes ]

CAMPING IS HAPPENING!!!

Alex's contract at the Toronto Public Library is up today, and the first wife (Sweet Thing) has nothing on the calendar for next week, so.... we are OFF! This ain't no car camping, babes. This is the real deal: canoeing 2 hours into the wild to our own private island in the middle of Algonquin Park. Ahhh. No traffic, cel phones (eeeep!), blogs (omg.), people (except my favourite of all people), or to-do lists.

Obviously, I'll have a fabulous bikini body for this trip after all of the bootcamping. Oh wait. It doesn't work that fast? I'm all pain, no gain. Payoff should happen soon, hopefully.

Stayed tuned for my post, which should hit BlogTO by Monday/Tuesday. Of course, I'm an oversharer and shameless self-promoter, so you'll hear about it.

Yesterday, while still in full-body-muscle-pain-hell, I attended another Bootcamp class (Urban Playground Fitness) where one of the other lovely students provided a little friendly competition. We had a wall-sit standoff and I lasted 2 whole minutes (best. time. ever.)

Does this mean that I'm actually remotely in shape? I'm sticking it out with Fit Chicks for the rest of the month. I'll post my progress at the end of the session (we did a weigh-in at the first class. eep.) Small worldness: The instructor and I both grew up in Orleans (east-suburban Ottawa).

Fun as it all was (despite the aches and pains and pinched nerves), I am glad to abandon bootcamping for REAL camping for a few days. Maybe all of the chin-ups and tricep dips will help my canoe stroke?

When I grow up.

Meredith, of legit blogness, says that my blogs are like carefully written essays. OK, it's a bit true. I'm going to try to be random and haphazard and throw grammar to the wind this time (P.S. There were a minimum of 5 typos/grammatical atrocities in The Metro today. As usual.) 

I only have a few minutes anyway. I promised Alex "10 more minutes" and I'd be in bed, too. He has to get up at 4AM to do grueling PA work on the set of a Dunkin' Donuts commercial. I can't be interuptin' his beauty (beast) sleep. 

This is the REAL life of a stuggling Canadian musician (I just committed a typo in "struggling"  but I'm LEAVING it. So there).

*** 

Finally got around to stopping the madness. The madness: too many digital photos on our desktop. These are some of the best-est from my weekend in Ottawa. Damn, I love these people:

[ Outrage over spending NINE dollars to get into the Lonestar. The things we do for love (and not getting yelled at by Leah :) ]

*** 

(if I use these little stars, does it seem less like an essay???)

Back from 4 days at the cottage. So it's not really "the" cottage - that would imply that it's mine somehow. It belongs to a brand new friend, Steph. I can't nurture this new-found friendship in the conventional way (Facebook, of course), so I'm really not sure where I go from here. We know way too much about each other for it to end here. That's what cottages are about. (Aside: I wrote the word "hymen" in the cottage journal but she made me scratch it out. Her 9-year-old cousin and religious grandmother read it, apparently.)

Photos imminent.

***

Realness: I need a job. Applied to two today that I ACTUALLY wanted. That's a pretty smart tactic, I think. I jazzed up my LinkedIn page again; maybe it's my new Facebook? It should be. Facebook isn't getting me a job anytime soon. (Crap, this is starting to look like a 5 paragraph essay again. At least I'm not forming complete sentences. I should stop.)

or

or

or

Just start a new paragraph way down here. Complete subject change: Sweet Thing. First cut of the C.O.S video should be done tomorrow. I get to see it but you don't. NAH-NAH NAH-NAH NAH-NAH. Oh, and three more radio stations picked up the song - CHUM in Toronto (geez, finally), and two in NB. East coast! What, what.

This is the album cover for the forthcoming full length (I already knew this, of course) but now I can share:

Better, Mere? maybe I can be a real blogster like you when I grow up! ;) Haha!

(p.s. this actually took me 33 minutes, so I lied, and will now have to wake the bear.)

Drive-by Nostalgia

I've neglected Your Yoko this week. For good reason: I was living the road life rather than talking about it! This is me resting in Calgary, after reuniting with my hubby on his X-Canada tour - he's thankful for this rare peaceful moment (and I think I might be prettier than his previous hotel roommate. Sorry Nick).

I'm back now and have lots to share, but other pressing activities must take priority. Like investigating the hamster smell in my house. And doing homework. And unpacking a whole lot of clothes that I didn't wear during my trip.

Hell, I'm sure I have time to say a few words, right? Despite unseasonable weather and missing my pooches, my mini-Prairie road trip had many highs:

• Prairie skies
• Sweet Thing stage presence awesomeness ("Owen is the next Mick Jagger." - Christine)
  
• Coffee(s) with Liz in random cities. It's our thing.
• Cruise control
• Prairie dogs & red-winged blackbirds
• Top-of-lungs sing-alongs to Lady Gaga
• Elementary school reunions
• Satellite radio... 90's on 9!  Toad The Wet Sprocket and Venga Boys? Please, this is clearly perfect road trip music.
• Guitar-solo-stage-kiss!
• "I'm a high-tech redneck!"  
• Drive-by hometown nostalgia
• More catch-up kissing :)

A full review will follow. Until then, my pets, enjoy some eye candy via my new SLR (yay!):

 [ big sky on the Saskatchewan plains ]

  [ pre-show dinner at Amigo's, Saskatoon ]

  [ Morgan belts it in Winnipeg ]

  [ somewhere outside Moose Jaw ]

  [ Art in Winnipeg? ]

  [ part-time replacement dog. MERMAN! ]

 [ yeah, uh-huh, that's my hubby ]

  [ making eyes with pretty girls ]

  [ Vicarious baby-love via Liz's sweet Annelie, Medicine Hat, AB ]

  [ Alex crunching numbers in Calgary. Who knew rock-stardom would involve so much math?! ]

  [ Winnipeg loves Sweet Thing ]

  [ prairie funnel clouds ]

The Departed: Sweet Thing X-Canada Tour, Part 1

[ Day 1: Toronto to Iron Bridge ]

After more than 24 hours of pure panic, the boys were on their way. While they intended to leave in the wee hours yesterday to begin their trip across Canada, one blow after another meant that departure was delayed until late yesterday afternoon.

  [ Tyler drives a whopping 570 km in their first day ]

Everything was ready. Or so it seemed until the trailer that they intended to borrow from another band fell through. The boys drove all over the city and Alex held down command central calling every truck rental joint within driving distance. I scoured craigslist and kijiji hoping to find a used trailer as a back-up. Finally, the lovely boys of Arkells saved the day, offering to lend theirs. Honestly, so lovely. 

Thinking that the problem was solved, they then realized that their van's brake light cable connections were not straightforward and appeared to need fixing. Nick and Tyler crisscrossed the city, hitting two Canadian Tires and a GMC dealership. The second Canadian Tire location seemed optimistic, but their electrical guy was backed up all afternoon. So, they could only wait. Meanwhile, Alex hit the phones again, trying to secure a plan B, should the electrical problem not be fixable. No one had any large vans, or they closed early. Long weekend. Of course. FINALLY by 4pm yesterday, "Mike the Mechanic" at Canadian Tire was able to resolve the issue. YAY!

Was all of this a bad omen? Nah.

By this time, I was out with Leah and Oliveah, my weekend guests from Ottawa (at the Woodbine race track, of all places), and didn't get a true goodbye kiss. Better that way. I might have caused a mushy runny-mascara scene.

Last night, to take my mind off of my missing husband, the girls and I went rollerskating at Scooters in Mississauga. Best...fun...ever. A smidgen ghetto, OK, but way, way amazing! I might have mused about becoming a roller derby star after seeing Whip It, but after last night, I could be seriously considering a new career... not really.

Sorry, tangent. While at the "roller palace", I received a text from Alex saying that they had made it just past Sudbury (almost running out of gas on the way) and were staying at the Red Top Motor Inn in Iron Bridge overnight. They apparently saw two bears and a road-kill moose along the way. Yikes! I 'm totally glad that I opted to FLY to Winnipeg rather than drive it alone. I'm a white-knuckle driver in those parts - hitting wildlife is my worst nightmare. *shudder*

This morning, they were in the Sault by 9:30am and are hoping to make it to Dryden today (a 15-hour drive). I haven't had a chance to really miss my Mister just yet - I've been surrounded by great company, and of course the dogs help fill Alex's spot in the bed.

I'll be tracking their journey across Canada all week...stay tuned!

p.s. One week until I fly out west! I've booked my tickets and my car, so it's real now!

Random.

 [ this photo came up when i typed "random" into Google Image Search. "Animal Humiliation" would be a better description. ]

I'm not a great blogger. Mostly because I don't know how to just type off the cuff. I edit, re-read, copy, cut and paste. I am aware that I still think in terms of the "hamburger paragraph".

Gah.

I tried poems for a while. I think I might not have sucked. It was a good exercise in getting me away from complete sentences and proper punctuation.

(So far I have not gone back to re-read this)

I guess blogs don't have rules, or at least that's what Miss. S tells me. She has a real blog. Or, so I think. Mine is like a collection of carefully prepared essays. Stop it. But maybe that's just my blog style. I get it from my dad. Mr. Fact-Checker-Proof-Reader. He won't even allow verbal pauses, which actually results in awkward silence. My friend Keith told me he was disappointed to see a typo in my email yesterday. I used to proofread and edit his homework in College. He admires my anal nature. Apparently.

I try though. One word "sentences", for example. Yes. Really. 

(OK, I've re-read it twice already. It's a sickness.)

--

Totally random subject change: I don't have anything specific to write about, I just needed to write something personal as a break from my contract editing/copy writing work. I'm good at taking breaks. But, I am trying to get a significant chunk completed this week, and the majority of it by the end of next. Then, it's April. I go on EI (it stings, it burns) and figure out my life.

I Skyped with my bestie yesterday. In the middle of the day! Another perk of unemployment. I am catching up with all of my new mommy friends. She says I should "go for it", as in taking this opportunity to finally open my own business. When else will I have such a huge chunk of time, she asks? She's right. But, I don't feel ready. I am looking into a government program that helps unemployed adults to become self-employed, and I am registering in another class as part of the small business development program at George Brown. I worked on my logo too. Baby steps. But if NOW is the time, I need to be taking leaps, not steps. *shiver*

[ i heart video chats ]

--

I told Alex this morning that I'd move anywhere with him if he had to go. I would miss friends and family, but other than that I'm not particularly attached to Toronto anymore. When did this happen? Then he said, "OK, we're moving to Afghanistan." Uh...um... back-pedaling. But yeah, if he had to be in a war-torn country, then I would too. Apparently the band has casually discussed moving to NYC. Of course, this would only happen once they're bringing in a good chunk of income. If. I'd be open to New York, but I'm at that point in my life where Brooklyn is much more appealing. Or Staten Island. Tabor scoffed at the suggestion that I would want to live on Staten Island. What? It's a free ferry ride away from down town Manhattan. And it feels like a small town. Best of both worlds. She would disown me, maybe. But she did promise to help me open shop in NYC, if it ever came to that. 

[ the ferry, and the Staten Island zoo. See, I could be happy here ]

[ this gorgeous Staten Island home could be ours for only $425K! ]

I guess I have a travel bug. Maybe that's where that conversation came from. Clearly vacation is out of the question. Survival is the priority. Unfortunately nothing fun falls under that heading. I am, however, going for lunch with Miss. K this aft. New Gen on Bloor has a 5.99 sushi lunch. Our bill came to $13 and change last time. That's a date I can afford. It was really filling, too. Wednesday, I grabbed drinks at Hey Lucy (new in our 'hood, in the old Mel's Deli location) with Dawn and Court - martinis are 3.99 on Wednesday. Another affordable date!

--

The Jehovah's Witness came to my door just now. Kindly elderly ladies. Is this a new tactic? No one can shoo away little old ladies, right? I took their pamphlet. I recycled it. 

--

Off to walk the dogs in what has become winter once more. Ack. I regret putting away my wool coat. But I won't go back. I just won't! Layers are my friend until Ms.Nature can figure out this weather business.

 [ i am missing sunny summer dog walking ]

[as much as I love this hat, it has to GO ]

--

Nothing new on the Sweet Thing front, except that the radio release date has been pushed back AGAIN (see, nothing new). The boys have a couple of campus shows coming up in April. I'll be playing merch girl, but other than that, they're students-only shows.

I'm quasi-working with Morgan on some designs for album art. I am excited to be involved again, as we worked together on the EP art. I think we're a good team. He's riskier than me and has great concepts, but I can lend a design eye and refine the whole thing. He's put together a few concepts that I will be playing with this weekend, and I'm going to tackle polishing the great logo that he designed. It's unpaid and somewhat "thankless" but it's more great schtuff for the portfolio. Oooh, look at me, using non-words. :)

 [ one of my many pro-bono design jobs for the boys ]

--

Was that more blog-like, maybe? A tad more frenetic and random? It matches my all-over-the-place brain pattern, at least. Still too long though, right?

--

"Draw a window on the wall to remind you of the sun." - Yoko Ono (via Twitter)

Business Travel.

I think I have finally recuperated from life on the road: 14 hours and 1400 km of driving in 4 days. Peanuts, I know. I would not be cut out for this life. But, enduring occasional road-exhaustion falls under bandwife duties and responsibilities. I take my job seriously.

 [ just water, please. this is show #3. good girl. ]

The boys, in fact, had two extra days and many miles of road on me (I didn't bother with their first two shows). Alex has actually not managed to recuperate; he's been holding onto a nasty cough since the start of the tour. Soon, the guys will be embarking on a cross-Canada trip, playing in at least three times the number of cities. I'm not sure the old man will make it. But, maybe it only gets easier. For his sake, I hope that's true.

 [ I'd like to think that I keep him going. ]

A recap...

Thursday, March 11th - Montreal, QC - La Sala Rosa

 [ forgot my camera in Ottawa, so I can't take credit. Photo by: Olivier Leger ]

The boys opened for Electric Six for the entire tour. They are a "garage rock" band out of Detroit. While their music is not something I would typically go for, their live show is fantastic. I had my first dose in Montreal, where the stage banter and odd (but good-odd) antics of the front man had me captivated. Check out "Synthesizer" and "Gay Bar" - genuinely good tunes. But maybe only live...

 [ Electric Six's offbeat front-dude, "Dick Valentine" ]

Sweet Thing put on an amazing show (as usual) and much of the crowd appeared to actually be their draw. A mosh-like formation developed briefly, during a hearty performance of Dance Mother. Apres-show, we had late-night vegan burritos and beers across the street with my local friends, while the boys flew off on a poutine quest. 

 --

Friday, March 12th  - Ottawa, ON - Mavericks

Another great night, with three bands this time. We were looking forward to this show, knowing we'd have a hometown draw.  Both Alex and I, as well as Owen, grew up in Ottawa. Unfortunately/fortunately, the show was sold out. Not for me, of course (I have rights!). My mother even squeezed in on the guest list, luckily. Band-mom-in-law perks. Some clever folks bought tickets in advance. Many of our friends missed out, though. 

I mistakenly sported my brand new paprika cut-out booties without the obligatory wearing-in exercise. Although I am typically helpful during load-out, I ended up sulky and blistered by 2 am, dreading another long day of driving and music at a hellish decibel. I was a disgrace to the bandwife title.

 [ respite in the Mavericks Green Room ]

--

Saturday, March 13th - Toronto, ON - Lee's Palace

Final night of the tour, and also sold out! Again, our surprised friends missed out. Did I mention it was CMW? Getting tix to any show that week was a challenge, and 5 bands were on the bill at Lee's that night. I slipped in my usual Plus 1 at the 11th hour. Whew. Having a dancing partner means I am not relegated to the merch table. I broke in my David Dixon boots (I don't learn lessons. ever.) on the dance floor. The insanely packed dance floor, I might add. The place was jammed with an edgier-than-usual crowd for a Sweet Thing gig (Electric 6 has a surprisingly goth-esque fan base), but the energy was just as high. Great reviews followed here and here.

We capped off the night with a Post-Tour/Bye-Bye-Bunker Party in the basement of Tyler's building. The boys were saying goodbye to their unofficial back-up rehearsal space, as their way-nice superintendent friends moved on to bigger and better things. Before no-nonsense new management moved in, a proper bunker send-off was in order. 

Alex and I managed to stay up until 4am which might just be a record for my sleep-loving husband. I practiced my roundhouse kicks, and "played" the drums and felt (very, very briefly) a touch of divey-college-party nostalgia. 

 [ Morgan. Chick Magnet. Obvs. ]

Sunday, March 14th - Bed.

zzzzzzzzzzzzzz.