May the Fourth

Happy Star Wars Day! I don't care if I post the same video every year on this day, it makes me happy.

Just to cement my nerd level, every time I watch this video I can't help but think "they'd never get accepted into the 501st with those incomplete Stormtrooper outfits."

What Happens in Vegas Gets Blogged About

I visited Las Vegas for the first time in January. It was a whirlwind visit to celebrate a friend's fifth anniversary of being declared in remission. Woo-hoo! 

Hello there, sexy!

It was a very quick visit which I think most people would agree is the best way to do Vegas, but it was long enough to wet my whistle and I will definitely head back for a weekend or two in the future. As it was, I was happy just to tag along with everyone else's plan as some of them had been there before.

Reece's Peanut Butter Cup Martini - heaven in a glass!

We drank a bit a lot, gambled a bit - I'm happy to say that I only lost $4.90 in all my slot playing which was much less than I had budgeted for losing! - wandered a bit, danced a bit, and just had a fun time. 

Fremont Street was a fun way to waste some hours

Before I knew it, the weekend was over and I was taking my final cab ride to the airport. I've already created a to-do list for the next time I go back.

Until next time, Vegas. You were a lot of fun.

The Dog Ate My Blog Post

Tonight's planned post (HA! Like I have a plan) had to be put aside thanks to YouTube taking frickin' for-ev-er to upload a video. Now it's late and nearing bedtime. As penance, here's an elephant video.

Taken October 23, 2016 at Tarangire National Park, Tanzania.

May Plan

Um, hello.

So, I haven't written in a while. Four months and 23 days to be exact, but who's counting? The longer time went without posting, the more I had to say, the longer the writing got, the more insurmountable the idea of posting became.

How to fix this? I've set myself a goal to post every day in May. Something. Anything. Recaps of the past few months, videos that make me smile, the going-ons in my life, and perhaps about a few of my other May goals. Fair warning, BC has an election on the 9th so there may be a political rant or two depending on what happens in that.

For now, I'll just post a video that always makes me happy.

(The two Swiss farmers are Sebi and Paul, and there's a whole series of ads featuring them.)

After a March filled with reminders and conversations about Switzerland, I started April by joining some Swiss friends (now residing in Victoria) for cheese fondue. Let's guess who has been feeling homesick for one of her homes-away-from-home since then. Perhaps being wistfully nostalgic about die Schweiz (or di Schwiiz in Swiss-German) will be one of May's posts.

New Year! Same Old Me!

Well, folks. We did it. We survived 2016. And given the year it was, that was no small feat!

Before we leave 2016 behind forever, I encourage you to check out Col. Chris Hadfield's Facebook post of good things that happened this past year.

We good to move on to 2017? We are? Good.

I haven't made any resolutions per se this year, but I do have a few items or habits that I'm working on. (But without set goals attached, so I hesitate to call them resolutions. If that makes sense.)

I want to get better about saving money. To do this, I'm using the budget sheet that Liz (One Twenty Five) created. It's not that I'm bad with money, but I'd like to grow my savings. I've been slowly chipping away at it quicker than I'm putting money into it. I'm not a banker, but I'm pretty sure that's not how saving works. I'm hopeful that at the very least this will get me into a better habit of thinking about what I'm buying before I plunk down my cash.

I'm still working on my Swahili. My future plans include more return trips to Tanzania, so this will be on my list for the foreseeable future. I also have visitors coming from Switzerland this summer. If there is anything their last visit taught me, it's that my command of the German language has dropped considerably. I would really like to get through a sentence without pausing to think of the next word. With multiple languages in the plan for this year, I used Lindsay Does Languages Yearly and Monthly Planner. (She's a great resource for tips and tricks to help you learn a language if that's in your plans for 2017.) I'm also participating in the Instagram Language Challenge over on Instagram if you want to hear me speak Swahili. (If you are learning a language and want to participate, check out Lindsay's Instagram for the January prompt.)

Comic by Itchy Feet, a great language and travel comic.
Also, I can't tell you how many times I'd default to
German words when trying to speak Swahili.

In case you missed it above, I HAVE SWISS VISITORS THIS SUMMER!! YAY!

The best surrogate parents you could ask for when you follow a boy to Switzerland.

I also started bullet journaling again. I kept a bullet journal for the first couple of months of 2016 and found it a great help in making sure I actually crossed items off my to-do list every day, but I misplaced the journal in August. With the trip et al, I just never got around to starting another one. Some people have very fancy journals, but I stick to the basics. Who has time to artfully decorate each page and colour-code the washi tape and stickers? Definitely not me! (To see examples of what I'm talking about, click here.) I follow the style in the video below. If you're interested in giving a bullet journal a try, it's a good place to start.

On that note, I wish you and your loved ones a wonderful 2017!