I've been playing Star Wars Galaxies for the last couple of weeks - I've been on holiday from work for the last week and a half so have had a lot of time to game haha.  My hubby and his friends have played it on and off for years, but this is the first time I've joined in.  It's a lot of fun :).  I like how it's not just doing your quests and grinding.  We've built a house, decorated it, and even gotten married in-game.  The kids play too.  I've put up some screen shots if anyone is interested.   We went hunting Krayt dragons last night with a friend and some of his guild mates.  I'm only lvl 32 yet, so it was interesting.  We regularly go rancor hunting so I'm used to staying out of the way and combating from afar and healing (I'm a combat medic).  So, I was able to do that without a problem for the Krayt's until they spawned practically on top of me.  One swipe and I was done for lol.  But it was fun and I got a couple nice shots of them.   I'd also like to start an alt character of an entertainer just to see what they have to do (plus they get all the cute clothes :P) but my youngest shares my account so I have to wait until he's bored with it before I can start an alt. 

For those who know me and my rants about pay to plays, all I can say is I can justify this one.  I didn't have to buy the game so paying a monthly fee doesn't bother me.  I've always said, give me the game then let me pay the fee or let me buy the game and just play, not both.  If you want to roll your eyes at me and argue semantics, go ahead LOL.

While shopping at PetSmart to get some things for our bunny, I happened to walk past the adoption center that they do with our local Humane Society and noticed this cat that just captured my attention for some reason.  So, we decided to inquire about him.  His name is Yogie, he's 6 yrs old and was turned in by his previous owners due to allergies.  I couldn't help myself, so we brought him home.  He's a huge cat (I seem to have a thing for big cats I guess LOL), but he's quite friendly, even considering he's not used to us or our home as yet.  The ironic part is, he's already found our previous cat's favourite chair and made himself quite comfy there.  I've snapped a couple quick pics for now.  Once he gets a bit more familiar with us, I'll try to get some more.

This past weekend, we took the boys and our neighbours to Mom and Dad's campsite for the weekend.  We had a great time, even including the storm.  Yep, Saturday we got hit with a pretty bad hail storm, but thankfully we survived with minimal damage.  Here are some pics from before the storm, after the storm and the cleanup afterwards.  It was a mess needless to say.  Nothing like having to slog through ankle deep ice water just to get out of the trailer.

But, we actually had fun with it and it's definitely a trip none of us will ever forget :)

I've just had one of those days.  First work was crazy - just me and the boss today and we have major problems at one of our sites, ended up working with our vendor to figure out what was wrong and fix it.  Because of that, I missed morning coffee break and didn't get lunch until about 2.  We finally got that resolved and I scrambled for the next couple hours to catch up on the stuff I was ignoring in the meantime.

Then to top it off, I got stuck in road construction and stopped by 2 separate trains on the way home.   yeesh.

I'm on call tonight too, so it wouldn't surprise me if this sucky day continues.

Only good thing is that it's so nice and quiet without the boys here :P

Just a quick update, I know I haven't been around much, but it's been one of those weekends.

The week started great, things were so nice and quiet around here with the kids gone.   We talked to mom a couple of times and heard the kids were having a blast at the campground, so that was nice.

They came home on thursday evening, and the 4 of us plus my parents went to see the Cirque de Soleil show Saltimbanco.   It was pretty good seeing it live.  Plus, my bro-in-law had come to visit us for the weekend, so we had a nice family get together after the show (complete with the 'other' family :D).  We ended up staying up till almost 3 am.

On saturday, us 4, my bro-in-law and Angie and Dana spent pretty much the whole day together, including yet another too late night and a few too many drinks on the deck.  But we all had a lot of fun and I needed the distraction.

The bad part of the weekend (and the reason I needed distracting):  Dad called my just before 10 on sat morning, my grandpa was throwing up blood and his blood pressure was dropping, he and mom were leaving soon to go see him.  About an hour before they got there, he passed away.   He would have been 94 this September and has been in increasingly failing health in the last few years.  So, in many ways it is a relief he is gone and now at peace.  But, of course, that doesn't take away the sadness. 

I don't know how much I'll be around in the next few days again with stuff going on, but even if I seem silent, I am taking time to check on how things are with everyone and with WG. 

My dad just left with the boys about 20 mins ago to take them camping.  They won't be back until Thursday evening.  Oh wait, it gets better.  My parents will be taking them every week and only bringing them home on weekends, at least until I go on holiday from work in mid-August.  I just hope the kids don't drive them crazy lol.  Especially my dad.  Mom, who works with me now at the hospital lab - she's a lab tech as well and got hired on as casual relief after they moved here when she retired, will still be working over the summer so won't be out with the all the time like my dad will. 

To celebrate, Stripe and I plan on staying on the pc's all day still in our jammies and just vegging and enjoying the quiet :D

Some of you have heard bits and pieces of my 'other' family I have now, but I'm gonna go into a bit more detail about it.

A few years ago, we got new neighbours.  They moved in just before Christmas and since Canadian prairie winters are fairly cold (slight sarcasm there :P), I didn't actually get to meet them until the following summer.  Turns out that she knows my husband through their jobs.  So, one day she comes over and the two of us just automatically click.  Which is surprising for me as I don't befriend people easily.  I'm friendly enough when meeting people but it takes me quite some time to really feel like I'm friends with someone.  It certainly didn't hurt when she just popped over unannounced one evening with two bottles of wine.  Somehow two bottles turned into four and we were slightly ... ok very ... drunk lol. 

In the following years, we've all become such good friends that we consider ourselves family now.  It all started when Stripe started helping her out with fix-it jobs around the house and yard work (she's a single mom who was working 2 jobs until recently).  We ended up dubbing her the other wife.  Her son, who's just turned 15, was spending so much time over here he ended up being the other son. Stripe has been pretty much a father to him, so much so Dana really wants to do something for him for father's day.  There have been a few times when Dana had been slipping in doing his school work etc and the three of us adults ganged up on him to attempt to set him on the right path (poor kid lol). 

Tonight, I had the pleasure of attending Dana's grade 8 graduation ceremony and seeing him get the citizenship award for his work with the SCR and school patrol.  I've really noticed in this last year how much he's grown, and more than him sprouting up so much that's he looking down on me now lol.  From his attitude about life in general to how much he watches out for his 'little brothers' and become so protective of them, I can see how much of an asset he could be as an adult to the human race in general. 

Dana, I'm really proud of you tonight.  I know things have been tough for you at times but don't give up the great achievements you are making. 

So, here it is Monday yet again.  Up at 530 to get ready for work after a busy weekend of yard work, re-potting house plants, planting outside plants, house work and getting laundry started ... barely.  I seriously contemplated calling in stupid from work this morning but I apparently have this sense of responsibility that makes me feel guilty if I don't go in.  Plus, I was on call this past week (we take turns week by week as the person to contact after hours if something goes wrong with the system) and I needed to get the cell phone we use to the next person who is on standby this week.  So, I haul my tired/lazy ass out of bed into the shower, attempt to pretty up a bit and off to work I go.  So, now I'm at work yawning as much as I'm actually working and wondering if my headache will get any worse so I'll have an excuse to get out of there.  The a twist of fate, Todd (aka Stripe my hubby) calls.  Carl, my 10 yr old, is sick and Todd is on his way to pick him up from school.  Can I come home as he's short at work?  WOOHOO I'm already half way out the door! 

No, of course I'm not happy that my baby isn't feeling well but I'm so glad to be out that place today.  Now, I can rest and maybe even have a nap this afternoon.  And I can keep working on my neglected mounds of laundry.

Don't worry, Carl's ok, his tummy is upset.  I gave him some Gravol which he managed to keep down and he's peacefully asleep right now :)  And, my headache is gone :)

Funny how things works sometimes.

I was catching up on the friends page and noticed that bellemorda has Gaming Girls linked on her page and BOOM, I was so touched all of a sudden, just from seeing that link that I almost teared up.  I guess I didn't realize quite how much I've missed it.  Which is kind of ironic, a couple of days ago I was telling my brother-in-law that, while I was sad to see it go, I was also glad to realize that there are things in my life that are more important and a higher priority than GG was. 

But, I do dammit, I miss it.  It was small, not overly popular, but it was fun and I've managed to meet so many great people and broaden my gaming horizons and knowledge because of it.  No, I'm not going to bring it back, I still haven't found any more time to devote to it.  I'm so busy these days it seems I barely have time to scratch my own ass let alone run a gaming site.  And I do feel good in my decision based on how my life is these days.   Working at WomenGamers and GamingParents is great and I love doing what I can for those sites, but it's not just quite the same.  I guess that I was maybe so busy patting myself on the back for making the 'right' decision, I haven't given myself a chance to mourn the loss.

So, thx Belle.  By the way, your post about what to be happy about in your life was beautiful and I'm sure that it really set the mood in my mind that led me to my own little self discovery tonight.

And now I'm off again chasing the children lol.

Yes, it's Calisto.  I'm not sure why exactly I got rid of my original account, something about supposedly cleaning up my life after I shut down GamingGirls.  Plus I rarely ever updated the silly thing.  But I find I miss keeping up with all of you.  So, I've decided to try again.  I'm not promising any enlightening posting or even regular posting, but I'll try.  And know that I'll be keeping up with all of you even if I'm doing the silent lurking thing :P

I'll probably clean the journal up a bit and change some things over the next few days, just wanted to get it going again.  So add me dammit!!!  lol.  And let me know if I've missed adding anyone :s

Sherri/Calisto

*edit* couldn't resist the coffee theme rofl