- I finally bit the bullet a few days ago and bought a premium membership for Picnik.com. Not that it was a big bullet to bite really – only $24.95 for an entire year. I’ve been having a ball playing with all the great features! Picnik is Photoshop for Dummies – very simple and easy to use.
There’s an app to get rid of your wrinkles, add highlights to your hair, spice up your eye colour, paint on some lipstick and so much more.
Here’s a before and after I did of some random child in Mexico:
 I tinted the background, whitened her teeth, highlighted her hair and covered up the bathing suit. This was one of my first attempts, but still a pretty decent end result. The trick is to start with a high quality photo, zoom in and then make your changes.
- Our oldest daughter now has her learner’s license as of this past Monday. I can’t believe that my little baby is old enough to drive – it blows me away. So far Gold River has nothing to worry about as her Dad has not let her drive out of the arena parking lot. Much to her dismay of course!
- Mi esposo and I will be heading to Puerto Vallarta again next week. Just the two of us – no kids, no parents. The recent deal out of Comox was just too good to resist. Plus I still haven’t sent our friend Nacho the pictures I promised him, so I guess he’ll get them hand delivered! And truth be told, we have never had a honeymoon, so 15 years later is about time!
- My inbox is full of comments/suggestions/inquiries about a local Skate Park. Opinions are most welcome. To ensure a high number of comments, this imaginary Skate Park will probably have a fence surrounding it, and a great deal of dog poop…..
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 - On my way home from Campbell River yesterday, I had just passed the ‘candy cane pole’ when three separate oncoming vehicles flashed their high beams at me. Sure enough, as soon as I rounded the next corner, there was a police car on the side of the road.
I know this is a long standing tradition among all motorists, and is a great way to warn others about animals or other obstacles on the road. But what I think about is all the drugs that are brought into this community on that very road. If you high beam someone, it could just as easily be a car bringing drugs to be sold in Gold River. Or what if the police were watching for a stolen vehicle or a kidnapped child? Along with warning the general public to reduce their speed, you could be giving the heads up to a criminal. Just something to think about.
- I can’t get over the amount of visitors the Buzz receives everyday. It just keeps going up and up – it’s fantastic! With the amount of daily visits, you’d think we’d have more comments around here! What’s up Gold River? Do I need to talk about dog poop again?
- I’m very happy to announce that my dear Rose will not be moving. She waited, she wondered, she prayed, she worked hard and it paid off! She got a full time (well, almost) job! Yay Rose!! I can’t believe we’ve been apart these past years, it’s just not natural Rose. We’re meant to be together – like fine wine and stinky cheese!
- If you didn’t already know, Sandie Rose is a Travel Agent and can help you out with almost anything – from trips to Canucks tickets!
- I received an anonymous email the other day from someone who was a little ticked that I talk about some things that are going on in Gold River, but completely miss out on other events and happenings. If you’d like something posted, then by all means – let me know! You can use the contact form at the top of the page or the email icon on the right. And yes, there have been a few things that I do not post. Emailing me anonymously will not get things on the site, no matter how many times you send it. There are also issues that require a great deal of research (ie: Sea Lice) which tend to get put on the back burner because of the time involved. Please keep in mind that I work full time, have three children (technically two, but I include the husband) a house to clean, laundry to do, meals to cook and wine to drink.
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 - Well the Olympics are over – now what the heck do I watch?? I’m not much of a TV watcher, except the occasional Reality TV trash…. and Wheel of Fortune of course! Last night I won over $20,000 and a trip to Ixtapa Mexico and the family didn’t even congratulate me! Geeesh.
- Old Rose’s identity is out of the bag for a few of you smarty pants. It’s a funny story to hear Rose tell it.
- I was contacted by a student from DePaul University in Chicago. She’s doing a paper on Hyperlocal Blogging and wants to interview me! I’m kind of excited – will keep you posted!
- I will have a 16 year old as of this Saturday, which I am having trouble wrapping my mind around. I swear she was just off to Kindergarten the other day!
- The kids are out for Spring Break as of today. Today and tomorrow are Pro-D Days (for the high school anyway) and then next week is their official break. For the first time in a long while we have nothing exciting planned as I’m working. Last year we went to Mexico. This year we might go to, erm, Campbell River?
 - Finally starting to feel a bit better after poisoning the family Tuesday night. I thought I would make an easy night for myself and throw something together in the crock pot. We had chicken breasts thawing in the fridge, and even though they weren’t quite defrosted, I figured what the heck – they’ll thaw in the crock pot! (If you’re guessing that the Foodsafe course is not listed on my resume, you’d be right.) Long story short – two of us got sick, and the other two didn’t. I can’t say for sure that it was the chicken, but I can hardly type that word without feeling a wave of nausea.
- I think I mentioned Canadian snowboarder Rob Fagan last week – he grew up with my cousin in Cranbrook. He raced in the Snowboard Cross event Monday, but didn’t make it to the finals due to bumping into another rider. He did end up coming 5th though, so a pretty good finish all things considered.
- Speaking of people we know on TV, have you seen this commercial yet?
That’s Aaron Douglas who is probably best known for playing Chief Tyrol on Battlestar Galactica. I grew up with him in Creston – he lived right down the road from me. We were in the same grade (and class) for a few years, and then he moved away, never to be seen again. In high school I remember him being a big drama geek – guess I should have paid more attention to the drama geeks eh?
- I love Thursdays. Everyone in my house goes to hockey practice and I have the whole house to myself. Sometimes I crank the 80′s rock and run around the house naked, but usually I just have coffee and watch TV. 
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 - For whatever reason, my husband and kids don’t share my love of Wheel of Fortune. I can’t even sway them by singing the theme song – I don’t get it. I win us thousands of dollars from the couch every night. You’d think they’d appreciate my skills more.
- I got a little misty eyed yesterday when the girls presented their Dad and I with a Valentine’s present. They put their hard earned money together and bought us two tickets to Odika’s Valentine Day Dinner. Sometimes I love teenagers.
- My oldest daughter make this strange concoction last night (a definite cheat on the diet), called ‘Cake in a Cup’. It tasted a LOT better than it looked:
 I imagine your mouth is watering after looking at that photo, and you’re all dying for the recipe, but please don’t flood my inbox with requests.
- We joined a Survivor pool for the first time ever for the Heroes vs Villains round. I drew Tyson Apostol, and the girls drew Russel Hantz and Courtney Yates. (Yes, we allow underage gambling around here.) We’re all in the Villain category, so here’s hoping one of us can make it to the end.
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 I know, I know. It’s Friday. Such is life.
- I started a new job this week which has been a big adjustment for this late night lovin’ girl! Last night I was in bed before the kids – they looked worried about me. Even though they’re teenagers now, they’re still creatures of habit and routine and me hitting the hay at 9:30pm threw them for a loop.
- Speaking of a change in routine – I think our poor Mattie (that’s him on the left) is having the most trouble with all of this. By the greeting I got last night after work you’d think I’d been away for a month!
- I’m starting to get pretty excited for the start of the 2010 Olympics next week. An old boyfriend of my cousin’s, Rob Fagan from Cranbrook, BC, is on the Canadian Olympic Snowboarding team. It makes things a lot more exciting when you can not only root for your country, but for someone you know as well! This is Rob – he’s on the side of The Bay (I believe) in Vancouver:
- I didn’t pay attention to what the groundhog said the other day – Spring? More Winter? I think I’ll go with Spring – everyone is talking about their crocuses and daffodils starting to come up already! I’m pretty sure Mattie didn’t dig up all my bulbs last year, so I just might have some flowers again this Spring! Here’s hoping.
 I just remembered it was Thursday this very minute! Holy cow did the week go fast!
- I’ve been a walking maniac these past few days. One walk Monday and Tuesday night, two walks yesterday and two walks again today! If I keep this up I’ll be as skinny as my husband in no time! (hehehe)
- As much as I’ve been enjoying all the walking around Gold River, I don’t enjoy the dog poop much. Holy crap! (pun intended) We have a Great Dane and I’ve never seen so much poop in my life. The Village of Gold River has designated Nimpkish Park as a temporary Off Leash Area until March 31st (I believe – correct me if I’m wrong on the date), and they have also provided poopie bags around the park for people to pick up after their dogs. I think it’s great that the Village is allowing this as there isn’t anywhere in town for the dogs to run around free, but I can’t imagine they’ll allow this again if dog owners continue to leave it in such a state.
- Would anyone like a couple of teenage girls? I have two I’m willing to give away – cheap! Boy I sure miss the quiet, relaxing days of colouring and crafts…. ~sigh~.
- The food situation is so bad around here (ie: healthy stuff only in the house) that the hubby has taken to eating croutons as a snack! The poor thing, he’s wasting away!
 - I got quite a few giggles this week when I was downtown running errands and overheard different people talking about Gold River Buzz. I was standing in line, and one person asked me if I read the site! Too cute! I thought everyone had figured out who is behind the site by now!?
- I’ve met an amazing group of people online from all over the world, and in the past few years we’ve developed a very close-knit friendship. We got together in Rhode Island in 2008 (having never actually met before) and rented a beach house for a week. One of us flew in from England, me from Canada and the rest were from all over the US. We had such a great time – truly like old friends! We are now trying to plan another get together for 2011, and we’re thinking HERE IN GOLD RIVER! They have all seen my pictures of Gold River, and were with us every step of the way when we were working to get transferred back here, so they are excited to see firsthand what I love about our beautiful Village and area! My girlfriend Claire from England has a real thing for ‘lumberjacks’ (as she refers to loggers), is under 30 and single! So all you single lumberjacks keep her in mind for 2011! hehe
- If you didn’t see Desiree’s update on her Haiti fundraiser, the ring sold for $345! I asked her if any of the bids were from my husband, and she said no. Huh.
- We are still following the P90X diet here, but no one has turned on the exercise DVD’s since that first day. I refuse to weigh myself on that stupid scale, but am pretty sure I’ve shed some pounds as my fancy sweatpants are loose! My husband hates my fancy sweats because they’re red – he told me once I look like Santa in them. Yes, you read that right. Santa Claus. If you are a man and are reading this, please add that to the list of things you should never say to a woman. 
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 - As you can see, I’ve added yet another new picture for the Thursday Buzz. I’m thinking I’ll keep this one for a while however, as I’m somehow quite attracted to this goofy mutt.
- I went for a walk tonight and it dawned on me how fabulous it is to be able to go for a walk outside at 8pm on January 13th wearing only a light jacket and sweatpants – my fancy sweats of course!
- To the gentleman walking his dog tonight on Muchalaht Drive – I apologize for not realizing you were talking to me when we passed each other. I had my little mp3 player blasting rockin’ walkin’ tunes on a deafening setting, so did not hear what you said. Which is why I gave you that goofy smile. Sorry.
- It was one week yesterday since our family started our new eating and exercise regimen. P90X can kiss my big fat behind, so I have moved on to greener (read: easier) pastures. The hubby and girls have decided they are fit enough to stick with the P90X program, but apparently ‘sticking to it’ means doing it once last week. (Actually… they didn’t even finish the first video – they made it about half way through and decided they were all far too hungry to continue – haha.)
- Exactly who decided that the digital bathroom scale was a good invention? I really don’t need to know my weight down to the thousandth decimal. Knowing that I am X decimal 492 lbs is overkill. I miss the old scales – you know, the ones with the little dial on the top that you could (ahem) adjust to ensure a proper reading? If you adjusted the dial while you looked at it from the (far) left so that the little line was exactly on zero, and got on the scale, it almost always said that you had lost five pounds! Now THAT scale I liked!
- On a completely different note – is there anyone local who happens to speak Spanish? And by ‘speaking’ I mean a bit more fluent than ‘dos cervezas por favor’, because I’ve got that phrase down pat. If so, please shoot me an email – I’ve said for years that I want to learn another language, but never seem to get around to it.
Happy Thursday Gold River! And remember – tomorrow is Friday!
 Yes, Thursday again! My goodness, that week went quick! (And I can’t even blame it on the tequila….. oh wait, yes I can.)
~First off, I’m tired of that perky Thursday cat graphic. I’m liking this lazy dog much better.
~Speaking of dogs, I wish there was some sort of a ‘poop-picker-upper’ service in Gold River. I would pay for this. Twice a week, come to my backyard and go nuts.
~If you are my someone’s husband and you ask me your wife to do you a favour in the way of making a couple phone calls and writing a follow-up letter, do not have the bad manners to change the specifics mid-favour and then insist to me your wife that you told me her something in the first place, when I she clearly remembers you did not.
~If the above is confusing to you, don’t worry. It will not be confusing to the person in question. Or wait. Maybe it will be, as he is confused.
~Our whole family started the P90X program yesterday. Don’t worry, I got out of doing the workout DVD (hehe), but I made sure we all followed the nutrition plan to the letter! We had fantastic meals (very healthy and low fat), but these meals took me all afternoon to prepare. I’m having a hard time figuring out how you could have enough energy to workout when you’re exhausted from being in the kitchen all day! (I’m not kidding – we had roasted red pepper soup [from scratch!], salmon with a lemon dill sauce [from scratch!], wild rice and asparagus for dinner.)
~I need to change the header picture on the website as it is clearly not Fall anymore. Does anyone have a nice wintery photo of the area that they would be willing to let me use until Spring?
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I tinted the background, whitened her teeth, highlighted her hair and covered up the bathing suit. This was one of my first attempts, but still a pretty decent end result. The trick is to start with a high quality photo, zoom in and then make your changes.
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