Sleep Well

I enjoyed a quiet moment tonight, just watching both of my boys surrendered to sleep. They are so beautiful and I feel very blessed to have them both in my life.

Who's Googling Me?

I enjoy having Site Meter linked to my blogs. It gives me a good idea of who's reading and when and why. I looked up some of the referrals for this one today. Some of the googles didn't surprise me, things like "Paul McCartney Halifax", "Starblazers" (I get that one a lot), "Corb Lund" - all things I've written about. Then there was one google that stood out, "Kristen's Contemplations"...you mean someone actually googled my actual blog site? Who? Why? Friend? Just for interests sake, if you've ended up on my site today, leave a comment to tell me how you got here and why. Thanks!

At the movies

There are movies I love and adore and know by heart. And then there are movies I've seen a lot, not because I've picked them, but because my children have. Jeremy is currently watching 'Cars', again. It's a great movie granted, but it loses something when you've seen it 147 times - I don't think I'm exaggerating with that number either, this is the 3rd time we've had it on this week. Here's a little trip down kid movie lane that my children adore:

Paul McCartney

For my friends who have been reading my facebook updates, I promise this is the last I'll do on the Paul McCartney concert (unless you ask me about it of course!). So, I saw Paul McCartney play Halifax this past weekend. It was incredible!
I really couldn't believe that he'd play this side of Canada for his one and only Canadian concert date this year. I mean, it's so rare he plays live anymore that I didn't think I'd actually ever see him.
When the show was first announced it took me about half a second to decide that I was going. I then emailed my mom and told her I was getting a her a ticket so she better organise her vacation to NB around the concert date. My mom is the one who introduced me to McCartney and the Beatles (Dad played me Jimmy Buffet). I pretty much grew up on that music, Beatles, Wings, or McCartney solo, it's all good. She first saw McCartney when she was 14 and the Beatles were playing Vancouver.
So Saturday morning we set out on the most beautiful day summer has to offer so far and did the 4 hour drive to Halifax. We made good time and found out that there was a shuttle being offered to the concert site, just a 15 minute walk away from our hotel. Perfect!
We got to the site (the Halifax Commons) just after 2:30, with promise of the gates being opened at 3 (well, they didn't until 3:30, but no matter). At about 10 past 3, we heard and saw a motor brigade coming up the road, sirens and lights and black SUV's and who had his head out the window waving to all? Sir Paul himself - that was so cool, totally perked up the crowd.
The opening acts were fine, I especially enjoyed Joel Plaskett Emergency. He's great fun.
But there was nothing like the show itself! Everything just went up in quality and showmanship and effects and sound, just fabulous.

This was the playlist:

Drive My Car
Jet
Only Mama Knows
Flaming Pie
Got To Get You Into My Llife
Let Me Roll It / Foxy Lady
Highway
All My Loving
Long And Winding Road
My Love
Blackbird
Here Today
Dance Tonight
Calico Skies
Mrs Vanderbilt
Eleanor Rigby
Sing The Changes
Band On The Run
Back In The USSR
Something
I've Got A Feeling
Paperback Writer
A Day In The Life/ Give Peace A Chance
Let It Be
Live And Let Die
Hey Jude
-
Day Tripper
Lady Madonna
Mull of Kintyre (feat. 78th Highlanders Pipe Band from Halifax)
I Saw Her Standing There
-
Yesterday
Helter Skelter
Get Back
Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band / The End

I mean could you pick it better? I was thinking about that. You have a repetoire like his and it's 50 years of music and history of music. Really I had only 2 I really, really wanted to hear and the rest I'd be fine with (Let it Be and Live and Let Die) - he played them and back to back and Live and Let Die was the coolest performance I'd ever seen! With fireworks!

I did manage to take some very shaky video. I'm going to post it in order here to give you some idea of the show. I had about 18 minutes of video on my camera so this was the best I could do. A couple more things before the video. First I don't think I've ever seen someone play to a crowd and make such a large gathering feel so intimate. There were 50/60 000 people there. He was really funny. After the hoopla of Live and Let Die, he kind of clutched at his heart and shook his head as if to say, I'm getting too old for this :o) All in good fun of course. He also pulled a girl up onstage who had distracted him with her sign of : Paul please sign my arm so I can have it tatooed. He did - I hope she follows through (my mom said she would). Finally, can he ever rock it! Guitar, piano - no matter. Just so impressive!

A good bra is hard to find

My friend Tammy and her friend Ann opened a bra shop up last fall. Appropriately named, The Girl's Bra Shop (their blog link is on my sidebar), it developed out of the neverending quest for the perfect bra. You all know what I'm talking about girls. There is nothing worse than buying a bra only to find you hate the way it fits 3 days later. The shoulder straps don't tighten properly or the underwire digs into your ribs or its not quite as supportive as you first thought. In other words, a complete waste of money.
I finally got time away to go for a proper fitting at The Bra Shop yesterday and oh my goodness was I surprised. First of all the sizing. I was way off in my sizing, in fact when I asked the fitter she told me probably 90% of women that they see are wearing the wrong size. What a difference the right size and a proper fitting make. I know these girls are trained to do a proper fitting. (I was there for an hour). These aren't girls who want to work a mall job and really don't know what they are doing. I know that Tammy and Ann were trained by a specialist and had an intensive course to do what they do. Another difference was once I had found my size and tried on everything in the store in that size and narrowed down my choices, the fitter asked me to try everything I liked on again and take my time. Sit down, stretch, move around. You know then if it's going to dig or ride up in the back or anything else that bothers us about bras.
I ended up with 3 (but could have taken home 6 or 7 easily). And I'm just amazed at the comfort. I know it takes more time, and may cost a little more (but not so much, you'd be surprised), but it is sooooo worth it!

Oh the things you can find

So I admit it, I'm a lurker. And a lot of you are lurkers too. It's amazing what you can discover by lurking on places like Facebook and doing a little Googling isn't it. For example this week I discovered an old friend of mine has been divorced, remarried and has a new baby. I didn't find him, I found his new wife. Completely by accident. Strange isn't it? Do you ever google yourself? I've done it. My blogs and some of my friends blogs come up. As well as some work I did with the local Shakespeare society. Not too surprising. I know it's harder to find me on Facebook. I've set my privacy settings pretty high. But really, the stuff I post is mostly for me and my good friends. Is that hypocritical of me? Kind of a new morality quandry isn't it? What do you think?

Happy Canada Day!

So I'm one of those annoying people that knows stuff. Random stuff. My husband hates playing any sort of trivia game with me because he says I turn into a completely different person (all competitive). Anyways, I read an article this week on how Canadians really don't know a lot about their own country. Most of the questions seemed like they should know it, but I'm not really surprised at the ignorance. I teach children and I've gotten over the shock of them not knowing their provinces, because they never do. I do have a song to help them learn them of course (you knew that was coming). So here's my own Canada Day trivia quiz. Just 10 questions long. I'll post the answers in the comments section. Let me know how you did (no googling!)

1. It is currently 2009. How old is Canada this year?
2. How many territories are in Canada? Name them.
3. How many provinces are in Canada? Name them.
4. What is the capital city of Canada?
5. Who was the first Prime Minister of Canada?
6. Who is the current Prime Minister of Canada?
7. Who was the first Canadian to win an Academy Award?
8. What is Canada's newest province?
9. What is Canada's official national sport?
10. What was the last Canadian team to win the Stanley Cup?

For some fun Canadian reading take a look at Why I Hate Canadians by Will Ferguson and How to Be A Canadian (also by Will Ferguson and his brother Ian Ferguson). They are really interesting and really funny. Very Canadian.