Tatiana's Wanderings

I went out with a Miniso face mask at 12:30 on a 407. Went to Lansdowne T and T with my Asian old lady shopping cart to see if I could get a box of 50 face masks for $31. After lining up for 20 minutes because the line snaked around the market area of Lansdowne Mall, I FINALLY got inside with a temperature scanner check (which was fine) and managed to get a box from Customer Service. Since I was there anyway, I checked out the noodle aisle. I got Samyang Buldak Topokki noodles x2 and NEW Samyang Buldak Corn noodles x2 / Samyang Buldak Kimchi chicken terrorist noodles x2. My cart was already plenty full and bulky by the time I left at 1, but I decided to walk to Price Smart anyway, where the lineup moves MUCH FASTER! I got Fanny Bay oysters (May 5), Snack Pack vanilla pudding (May 22), plus NEW Snack Pack DRAGON TREASURE and UNICORN MAGIC puddings. Decided to get a NEW on-sale Aero Gold chocolate bar, a NEW on-sale Kit-Kat Gold chocolate bar, NEW Crave microwaveable meals (Bacon and Egg Scramble with Cheddar Cheese, and Chorizo Egg Scramble with Goat Cheese), and NEW limited-edition Tiramisu Oreos.

After that, I went home at 2:45 on a 407 to rest for a bit before going to London Drugs at 6:30. Planters BBQ peanuts (May 16), Pure Standards Products hydrogen peroxide, Arm and Hammer baking soda, on-sale organic Classico tomato garlic pasta sauce for the same $4 price as regular (sale ends May 27), a small Reese's Pieces (May 18), NEW Orange Vanilla Coke (May 8), NEW LaRose hand sanitizer for the same $4 price as regular, Tao Kae Noi wasabi seaweed snacks, Fudge Swirl Lindt truffles for tomorrow (May 2), and Aroy-D green curry for my Uncle Ben's jasmine rice. Got home at 7:25, which is fine by me.


Mamee chicken noodles with corn, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, and green peas for lunch!




( Planning ahead, oh my! )

MORE COFFEE TIME! IT IS LEAP YEAR 2020 TODAY! The Canucks played the Leafs today at 4, and lost 4-2... DAMN EMPTY-NET GOALS AND MY BIRTHDAY BUDDY AUSTON MATTHEWS! Eric Ho confirmed yesterday via text that he was coming over, and also called me at 12:10 to iron out some details, so YAY! I got him to pick up a 24-pack of Nestlé Pure Life bottled water from Price Smart on the way since I was running out. He got here at 2:15, so that was good. We talked about the parking pass / my spare keys, the skyrocketing coronavirus news, Nathan being overseas right now, the 2001 version of THE MUMMY RETURNS with Brendan Fraser, Jeremy, washing hands, my Ontario trip, the bacon quiche / Reser's mashed potatoes / meat lasagna / macaroni and cheese / Peanut Butter Pie Oreos / Mackie's Crispy Bacon chips / Mackie's haggis and cracked black pepper chips, the Lindt / Nutter Butter I gave him in a Ziploc bag, and David Ayres the Zamboni driver. He also called "coronavirus" SARS, and called the Alcan aluminum foil "cling wrap - you know what I mean." Not really or not at first, but he's still a good friend of mine!

Also discussed Jann Arden / a halftime show, 2011 and the Boston Pizza name change, HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA, my slipper socks / high heels bag / Boston Pizza gift card from Ruth and Joan, Carey Price / Patrick Roy (possible) trades / the trade deadline activity on Monday, ICBC driver premiums and car insurance, whether I caught any of Sedin Week, and the 9-3 Boston Bruins blowout the other night. Conversed about his smelling my hot sauce, the playoffs, Jim Hughson, his not preferring to drive during sunset / twilight hours, a cow in a plane for a THE MUMMY: TOMB OF THE DRAGON EMPEROR movie scene with Jet Li, and Don Cherry's podcast / being fired, the Juno Awards, the Simpsons controversy, Apu, and Krusty the Clown before he left at 6:40 after a disappointing Leap Day / Leap Year LOSS! DAMN EMPTY-NETTERS! Sure, I'll collect my empty bottles for him to redeem somewhere if he offered! Of course he did the dishes WITHOUT COMPLAINING!


Happy Leap Year Day 2020! Leap Year Day FROG! February 29! Feb. 29!




( February 29! Leap Year! Food and water! )

DIRTY JOKES!

How is pubic hair like parsley? You push it to the side before you start eating.

( Dirty jokes from Red's Twitch stream! )


After DOUBLE COFFEE TIME, I went out at 6:55 on a 401 to meet Chrystal at the Broadway London Drugs. Good thing I left early since the next Waterfront train was out of service at what HAD BEEN a surprisingly empty Brighouse Station! There was some guy clapping like a seal on the bus and at the station - thank goodness he wasn't in my train car! I got to London Drugs at 7:30, and was happy that there was no lineup at the post office so I could mail Corey and Julie's cards. However, I got a postal worker who was grumpy as fuck: I have NEVER been told that I shouldn't write anything in the corner of the envelope, otherwise the stamp would obscure the destination address! Fuck you, random guy!

Chrystal and I went to Pho Extreme Xe Lua: #17 and #1 it was! SPECIAL! We talked about her nephews Ethan (4) and Ethan (1 and a bit), Ayler, Hiero, Beckett discovering new words and the door, Beckett being "smart" by banging his head on the hardwood floor to delay Harmony's leaving for a school meeting, Beckett being really smart by putting all his molecule balls on the far windowsill so he can play with those and look at the reflected lights across the street at the same time (I left him to do that for a minute - he's fine and preoccupied), my broken suitcase, my replacement suitcase, my upcoming trip, and her just doing family things at home this holiday season. Angus and Melia and Phil and Grace have their own families now, and it would be pretty huge to have a family gathering! I got home at 9:05 on a 407, which is pretty good for leaving at 8:30. (Chrystal bused home again!)


Pho Xe Lua # 17 with Chrystal as a pre-Xmas 2019 dinner: Steak, flank, tendon, tripe, and fatty flank!




Right after Halloween, I was ChristmasFlamHam in Shiwa's Discord server!




From Tommy Chong: What's Your Stoner Elf Name? Mine is Smokey Jingletokes! Mike would be Buddy Evergreens! My ex-friend Jimmy would be Danky Sparklepipe!




Borked Heys suitcase which came with a busted zipper and an almost-impossible push handle...




Successfully packed replacement carry-on American Tourister suitcase with enough room for ALL my stuff, a working zipper, and a much simpler non-push handle! Way easier to maneuver on transit, too! My parents should have just lent me this one in the first place, then I wouldn't have had to store the first one in a weird way so I wouldn't have had to push the handle down every time I wanted to access it. *rolleyes*

After DOUBLE COFFEE TIME, I went out at 4:10 on a 407 for Dad's belated 70th birthday dinner at Kwong Chow. I got a text from Jon saying that dinner was at 5:30 and they were at Granville Island (I'd already said I would be at Save-On), so I bought more (on-sale or NEW) Stagg Chili (Dynamite Hot / Southwest Chicken style) and Western Family things since Mom and Dad would be giving me a ride home anyway. Whole mushrooms, mushroom pieces and stems, hot chili con carne, original chili con carne, liquid honey, lemon juice, grated Italian Parmesan cheese, and beef / vegetable / chicken instant noodles! I still managed to get to the restaurant on time: Mom was already there and wanted me to call Jon to see if they'd left home yet. Luckily, I already knew their true whereabouts, and also knew that texting was easier than having to find a place to take a call. I always delete her voicemails, anyway. Too inconvenient...

They got to the restaurant soon enough (but not soon enough for Mom), and we ordered a while after that. Discussed the restaurant's plastic bowls NOT being for the congee (Mom...), my "stealing" an extra plate from the dish pile for Jon (which caused one of the kids to say that stealing is wrong - hahaha), music school being over, plans for tomorrow / this week, Ayler eating the fish head again, Beckett slapping the table and being blocked from the TV screen, Auntie Kwai and dementia (and Dad not wanting to take on another person), Dollarama, Summer Reading Club ("I read to you - but you read the words I don't know!"), Hiero trying some jellyfish, Holly's move impacting her taxes because she's an American citizen ($12,000?!), the growing tomato plants on the balcony, and waterslide adventures today with mint chocolate chip ice cream. We walked to Jon's place, where I learned that Beckett now knows how to climb up onto the couch. Guess I should be extra-vigilant tomorrow!

On the way home, Mom wanted me to intercede with Martin and Rich about Vacation Bible School and getting someone else to administer Ayler's medicine instead of Harmony having to travel a lot to VCEFC or wherever they'll be. Nope, I am not doing that. I'm sure Wai-Mui and the other leaders have more important things to take care of... at least I got home at 7:30 instead of maybe an hour later! Spicy tofu triangles, spicy jellyfish, green beans with beef, red bean soup, tea, kombucha tea, chicken, beef yee mein, veggie congee, fish congee - what a dinner! The usual stuff, but still good! Maybe not after I tried eating 600 grams of tortellini earlier, though...


Random stuff from Mom and Dad: A yellow sweet Korean melon, a random pair of yellow socks with "fun" designs, two Chinese posters of oxen / birds / dragons with stickers and five bookmarks, "washed Mom grapes" in a paper bag (purple grapes), a pack of four 32-page Hilroy exercise books from Staples, six Hilroy 80-page one-subject red and purple notebooks also from Staples, Korean Kwangchun Healthful roasted seaweed x10, and six cans of strawberry Milkis carbonated drinks. (Snoopy and umbrellas!)

900g of No Name elbow macaroni, 900g of No Name fettuccini, a bag of random Japanese roasted green tea, random Chinese green tea powder x4, Twinings Earl Grey tea x7, a random Chinese green tea bag, Yama Moto Yama green tea bags x8, Bigelow Orange and Spice herbal tea bags x3, a Mighty Leaf Marrakesh mint green tea bag, Bigelow Darjeeling black tea x3, and a Twinings 100% pure oolong tea bag.


System Restore Disk: Do Not Erase! What's wrong with this photo?!




( Chili, dragon and oxen posters, notebooks, generic pasta, Milkis carbonated drinks, Grow-A-Husband! )