I think it’s high time we had a contest around here! Simon (the African Grey parrot) has spent several hours a day over the past few weeks practicing a song. I’ve recorded one of his practice sessions (see the black video below). The first person to correctly guess the song
Continue readingTag: F. The Whole Enchilada
knitnut.net: Making stuff
Here’s some of the stuff we’ve been making lately. This is the flannel quilt GC made for his son. He just finished it last week. It’s the softest, biggest, coziest quilt yet. This is my mod sampler quilt. It’s got kind of a yellowish hue in the photo, but in
Continue readingknitnut.net: First visit to the Nordik Spa
GC and I went to the Nordik Spa up in Chelsea. It’s about a 20-minute drive from downtown Ottawa. Neither of us had ever been there before, or to any spa for that matter. We went for The Baths, which are a set of indoor saunas and outdoor pools of
Continue readingknitnut.net: I agree, somewhat, with Tom Flanagan
I have what I know will be a very unpopular opinion about a highly volatile subject. I should probably keep it to myself, but I feel compelled to share it. It’s about Tom Flanagan’s remarks about child pornography. The remarks for which he was roundly lambasted, fired as a CBC
Continue readingknitnut.net: A day in the life
This is what my day looks like so far: 9:00-12:00 – all-staff meeting at work to do a SWOT analysis of the organization (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) 2:00-3:30 – Conference Call 3:30 – meeting with funder 5:30-6:30 – House of Commons to watch Bill C-279 being debated. That’s the
Continue readingknitnut.net: We know how to have fun
GC got a sliver in his foot from the hardwood floor. He said it felt like a long, skinny sliver. There wasn’t much to see, but he was limping and wincing. Later, when we were getting ready for bed, we saw that his foot was swollen. I insisted we go
Continue readingknitnut.net: Gender Failure
I’ve set up a google alert for ‘transgender’ so I can keep abreast of transgender news and activity on the internet, since my favourite part of my new job is about transgender stuff.
So, on my first day with the new Google alert, I was google-alerted that Ivan Coyote and Rae Spoon were playing a FREE […]
Continue readingknitnut.net: Aliens, Duncan, and the Baby of Science
This was a busy weekend – we went to a friend’s for dinner on Friday, then breakfast club and a vet appointment for Duncan on Saturday, and the vintage clothing sale and the Ottawa Parrot Club birdie garage sale on Sunday. Plus, you know, the not-so-much-fun things like laundry, grocery shopping, meals and housework (ha […]
Continue readingknitnut.net: Diagnosis: Too much freedom
We took Simon to see the avian vet yesterday, to consult about his behaviour problems. She thinks he’s got too much freedom and he’s taking advantage of it. He has overthrown the rulers and seized power! I need to rein him back in, start some daily training and convince him – gently – that I’m […]
Continue readingknitnut.net: First week of work, and a psychotic parrot episode
So far at my new job I’ve been immersing myself in reports and files and getting up to speed on the subject matter and my projects. The subject matter is fascinating but the projects are a little intimidating because there are so many, and some of them require skills I’m not sure I have, like […]
Continue readingknitnut.net: I got a job!
I had the interview on Friday afternoon, and then on Saturday, when I was at Duncan’s vet’s office, I got the call offering me the job. I announced to a waiting room full of strangers “I got the job!” and they all cheered. It’s not just any job, either –
Continue readingknitnut.net: To nanowrimo or not to nanowrimo?
It’s that time of year again – nanowrimo, or National Novel Writing Month. Thousands of people are devoting the entire month of November to writing 50,000-word novels. I don’t actually have a plan this year, or even an idea of what my novel will be about. I’m just going to
Continue readingknitnut.net: A road trip and a Jewish wedding
GC and I were in Montreal for the weekend, for his cousin’s daughter’s wedding. It was my first Jewish wedding and I have to say it was a lot livelier than your average Protestant wedding. They sing and dance and break glasses on purpose! At the reception they do this
Continue readingknitnut.net: Simon says hi
Simon has a new word. It’s a little word, and it’s not the most exciting thing a parrot has ever said. But there’s just something about the way he says it… The word is “Hi.” He says it in the sweetest, friendliest, most enticing voice I’ve ever heard. You can’t
Continue readingknitnut.net: An apple gadget infomercial with GC, Duncan and Simon
GC made an apple pie a couple of weeks ago, and being the clever guy he is, he went gadget-shopping first. Then we prepared our very own infomercial, complete with cameo appearances by some of our animal friends. (My favourite part is the last five seconds.) Incidentally, since making this
Continue readingknitnut.net: Melancholy Autumn
They said it was going to be a drab autumn, on account of the drought, but it was actually quite dramatic. My friend Nancy says every autumn has its own dominant colour, and I think this year it was orange. I don’t know if there actually were more orange trees
Continue readingknitnut.net: Throwing things off balconies
There’s this three-storey apartment building at the corner of Caldwell and Merivale, on the edge of the Experimental Farm, right by the path where I go for walks. There are nine balconies facing the Farm, and sometimes, if I’m lucky, I catch glimpses of people living their lives. There used
Continue readingknitnut.net: The lowdown on substance use
Last night I attended a free session at our local mental health facility. It was called Getting the Low Down on Substance Use, and was presented by Michael Coughlin, a registered nurse with the Royal’s Substance Use and Concurrent Disorders program. I was interested because I have a young friend
Continue readingknitnut.net: Best birthday EVER
I had the best birthday EVER. It involved three whole days of getting spoiled. There was an excess of gluttony. GC made me french toast with a mountain of fruit, and he took me out for dinner at The Buzz, and my son took me out for dinner at GuadalaHarry’s.
Continue readingknitnut.net: And the winner is…
Thanks to everybody who entered my sock contest! I entered all your names into RandomPicker, and RandomPicker randomly picked a winner. And that winner is…… SID! Congratulations, Sid! Sounds like the timing is right, since you’re contemplating giving up your barefootedness. Please send your snail mail address to zoomery at
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