Happy Doggiversary

One year ago today... Santa Claus delivered to me the most fantastically amazing gift I've ever received. None other shall surpass this gift... as none can.

TO really understand and feel 100% unconditional love, all you need to do is have a dog in your life. I am so blessed, with Santiago de Montréal.

This past year has been more of a roller coaster than I would have ever preferred, but I can tell you this, through it all there was one unfailing, infallible constant... and that is the love I receive EACH DAY from my guardian angel...

Today is his day.

And tonight it's a special dinner with a special guest; Mr Pinky, and a special movie (Beverly Hills Chihuahua naturally) And tomorrow for the first time he will meet his Grand Parents, and in two days he invites his best friends in the world Chachi and Flea for a Christmas 8 day Doggie Camp...

It's all about Senor Santiago... it has been this way for 365 days.

Santiago and I, Dec 20 2008



Santiago and I, Dec 19 2009

Where it's snowing all Winter through, that's where I want to be.

Well, we're getting not only the first real amount of snow this Winter here in Montréal, but a proper amount is expected 20-25 cms...

What better way to celebrate than with Bing Crosby, Rosemary Clooney, Danny Kaye and Vera-Ellen ...



♪ ♫ Snow
It won't be long before we'll all be there with snow
Snow
want to wash my hands, my face and hair with snow

Snow
I long to clear a path and lift a spade of snow
Snow
Oh, to see a great big man entirely made of snow

Where it's snowing
All winter through
That's where I want to be
Snowball throwing
That's what I'll do
How I'm longing to ski
Through the snow-oh-oh-oh-oh

Those glist'ning houses that seem to be built of snow
Snow
Oh, to see a mountain covered with a quilt of snow

What is Christmas with no snow
No white Christmas with no snow
Snow

I'll soon be there with snow
I'll wash my hair with snow
And with a spade of snow
I'll build a man that's made of snow
I'd love to stay up with you but I recommend a little shuteye
Go to sleep
And dream
Of snow ♫ ♪

Happy Hump Day

Santi Meets Santa...

It was back on December 6th of last year that I visited Santa (As I do every year) and as per usual when Santa asked what I'd like I sad "a Dog" That year, as opposed to most he said he's see what he could to...

On December 15th I met a dog at the SPCA... a dog that would become mine not 4 days after...

Santa had followed through, and ahead of schedule.

This year I visited Santa on November 28th and gave him a Christmas card, thanking him for giving me Santiago, and including a pic of me and the wee beast. Santa asked why I didn't bring the dog along and I replied I didn't think I could bring a dog into the Bay, let alone up to the 7th floor. He said, well, Santa says you can...

So... one week later Santiago and I made the trip downtown on the metro, up up up the elevator to the 7th floor and directly to Santa.

I was greeted with "Hello Shawn. This must be Santiago..."

I'm telling you this is THE Santa...

We sat for a few pics, unfortunately, Santi took, like most two yead olds right hissy fit!

Santa was happy to met Santi nonetheless and Santi made a wish and asked for a huge bag of Puperoni and a new duckie...



And the fun had ONLY just begun...

You're tansaction, like you, has been rejected

So I didn’t ‘re-fill’ my Metro OpusCard on the 30th or the 1st because the lines were a little “Waiting for Santa” if you know what I mean.

What do I mean by ‘re-fill’ my OpusCard? Here in Montréal they got away from the disposable monthly passes for Bus and Subway and now we have permanent cards that you ‘re-fill’ or charge.



You go to little Posts in any of the Metro Stations and re-charge your card, either 6, 10 or 20 individual ‘tickets’ or a Month. It’s a rather painless system where you first insert your pass and then select what you’d like to get applied to the card and then pay.

True; it’s a simple process… perhaps TOO simple because what should only take 45 seconds to a minute per person sometimes ends up being a couple minutes or as was the case for me this morning (there was only 2 people in line so I thought this was the time… oh how wrong was I)

Person #1 was in and out in the pre-described 45 seconds. (yay)

Person #2… you stupid, STUPID girl! There are 3 modes of payment:
- Credit Card
- Debit Card
- Ca$h

… Ca$h… as in those lame-ass bill feed interfaces that will only accept a Bill, freshly printed and cut, less than 5 minutes from the Mint… Have those things EVER worked for ANYTHING?!?!?! Vending Machines? Change Machines? Parking Meters?!?! No. No they have not!

And it’s not like Dumbazz was a technophobe old biddy. No. She was a young wee thing. A young spirited 20 something with firm taunt skin on her face (bitch) Did she really thing she could enter in 4 $20 recently received from an ATM to be accepted in the payment slot for her Metro pass. And WHY THE HELL?! Didn’t she just opt to pay for the card WITH her debit card. Saving that $1.00 service fee just cost you AND me what was it? 7 minutes. YES! SEVEN MINUTES!

But here’s where Karma shows her true colours (seems she doesn’t like to wait in lines either) After the eternity of bills rejected, bills re-flattened, bills finally accepted, the system went down and her transaction failed. The Teller box does not spit back out her 4 x $20… nay-nay… what it proceeded to do was spit out 40 $2 coins.

To say I was over-joyed is an understatement. As she collected her rejected life’s savings I couldn’t help but snicker. She turned and gave me a look, to which I replied. “Well maybe next time you’ll just pay with Debit or Credit and save us all time. Oh… and Merry Christmas ” (Time to take the off-ramp)

Happy Hump Day

World Aids Day 2009

Global HIV/AIDS estimates (end of 2008)

The latest statistics of the global HIV and AIDS were published by UNAIDS in November 2009, and refer to the end of 2008.

People living with HIV/AIDS in 2008 33.4 million

Adults living with HIV/AIDS in 2008 31.3 million

Women living with HIV/AIDS in 2008 15.7 million

Children living with HIV/AIDS in 2008 2.1 million

People newly infected with HIV in 2008 2.7 million

Children newly infected with HIV in 2008 0.43 million


AIDS deaths in 2008 2.0 million

Child AIDS deaths in 2008 0.28 million


More than 25 million people have died of AIDS since 1981.


Africa has over 14 million AIDS orphans.


At the end of 2008, women accounted for 50% of all adults living with HIV worldwide.

In developing and transitional countries, 9.5 million people are in immediate need of life-saving AIDS drugs; of these, only 4 million (42%) are receiving the drugs.

The number of people living with HIV has risen from around 8 million in 1990 to 33 million today, and is still growing. Around 67% of people living with HIV are in sub-Saharan Africa.

During 2008 more than two and a half million adults and children became infected with HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus), the virus that causes AIDS. By the end of the year, an estimated 33.4 million people worldwide were living with HIV/AIDS. The year also saw two million deaths from AIDS, despite recent improvements in access to antiretroviral treatment.


(Statistics from AVERT.ORG)

White Rabbits

White Rabbits!
White Rabbits!
White Rabbits!