maybe the best Globe and Mail photo montage ever

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/dear-roommate/article1196963/

the chasm between kids and no kids

"Mango is awesome." they said as I walked up to join the conversation at the buffet table at that baby shower over the weekend. "You know, Penelope Cruz and her sister design a line for the store."

"I think my sister shops there," I said, "I think there might be one in Galway."

"They're in the large city centres," they said, nodding wisely, "Paris, London - it's probably in Dublin."

"But Zara's really gone downhill," someone else said, "just in time for us to get one."

"But whyyyyy can't we have an HandM?" came the moan.

The host's greeting to me as I came in the front door? "Ha!!" She yelled, seeing that we were wearing the exact same shirt in different colours, "Love the COSTCO!!!"

Swoonedy Swoon

Somehow, as I was discussing a file with a colleague and sat down at the teleconference table for today's fed-prov call, I looked to my right and found myself face-to-face with the ADM most recently described in the MacLeans blog 'Inside the Queensway' as 'adorably nervous' and nicknamed 'Young F'. He is, ADMly speaking, younger. He's also a blonde dutchman, so he's probably a little older than his features allow.

He's the federal co-chair of the fed-prov forum my team leads, so we work fairly closely with him, although, as I am only a lowly senior analyst, we rarely speak. And certainly, never, never during these teleconferences. I usually just try to appear alert and brainy each time his line of sight drifts my way during the conversation.

Half way through today's call, however, he shifted in his chair, leaned in, put his hand in the small of my back, and spoke in a low voice in my ear. True, it was to ask if I had written down the commitments of each Province in the round table in detail (which I had), but still.....

Coffee time

Standing at the elevators on our way to get coffee this morning:

Older Male Colleauge, squinting at me: "Did you get your hair cut?"

"nope."

"brows done?"

"uh-uh"

"Well, something's different, and you look nice today!"

"uh, yeah. Thanks. It's this rockin' sunburn"

"Well, it suits you."

And by the way?

We did it.

Janey and I totally did it. We ran the 10k. There's even photographic proof of it. Heh. Am I ever glad that I listened when I crossed the start line and posed when crossing the finish.

Cause' I saw unposed photos of me, and do I always do that with my lips? I guess so, cause' upon viewing the proofs, Husband said, oh, you're doing the lip thing.

Seriously? I walk around with that face on? Y'all never told me?

Sigh.

It was long, and awesome, and as anticipated, I spent the majority of the race staring at Janey's ass while I tried to catch her, except for the part at the 7k mark where she looked behind her for permission to open up and left me so quickly I didn't even see her go.

Crossing that line a full six minutes behind Janey was one of the best feelings ever. Having worked so hard for something physical like that and finally achieving it with grace... I was happy to have shaved about 6 minutes off my own training time of chug, chug, chug, which boss-man says is 'substantial' (because I work on a team that checked my time pretty much the same time I did) and I wore the timing bracelet boss-man's boss made for me with printer paper and packing tape (no, look in the photo - that's the white band on my arm, just above the watch which is most definitely not a sports watch. So much for self timing.)

It was so, so, tear bringingly good that I'm letting Janey use that feeling to talk me into signing up for something even greater. Something even longer, in September. On the weekend exactly between our birthdays.

I'm not even sure what to say about it, other than I hope it doesn't rain much this summer!!