Tonight I read an article entitled, "Home Sweet Hellhole" and was stuck with a sense of relief that:

1. We did not buy a condo when we moved here. Given our track record -- this would have been us.
2. Bad things happen to other people.

Guess what, I took this entire week and turned my living room into a workshop.

Neil has been so impressed with my handy work that he has allowed me to continue my painting spree and paint our bedroom furniture.

Here is the end result of this week:
2 bookshelves, 1 stereo stand, 1 magazine rack, 1 printer cart

Which brings me to next week. How to turn this ugly dresser into something new again (forgive the rushed and pretty crappy photo-shopped after photo)

I'll keep you posted on how the dresser works out.

Ahh, back in the day, there was this Larry Johnson (of the CHARLOTTE Hornets) commercial... good memories...

Anyone that knows Mr. N and I , knows that we both played our fair share of basketball back in the day. We had talked many times, while living in Vancouver, about driving down to Seattle for a game. Alas, the Supersonics weren't very good and it was nearly impossible to get tickets to them when a good team was in town - so it just never happened. Getting tickets to the Raptors doesn't seem to be as hard. We got these tickets free and the scalpers last night were selling their wares for half price, even before tip off. There could be a number of reasons: two sub par teams, the NHL All Star game was on, etc, etc.... That said, I was able to get us tickets to the Raptors/Lakers game in Feb. I tried every year for four years while we were in Vancouver to get Lakers/Supersonics tickets in Seattle and failed miserably... so go figure.

I have to say that the NBA has a much different vibe than any other pro sporting event that I've ever been to (CFL, NHL). First, they seem to really market it as a family event. There were a pile of kids in attendance and the entertainment they provided for kids was first rate. There was a lady (with her daughter) sitting next to us and they were really working the dance moves. I've never seen two people work harder at trying to attract the Jumbotron their way than these two. All I could think, while trying really hard not to laugh out loud was that if they do end up on the big screen, there is a good chance I'll be up there too -- looking like an asshole trying hard not to laugh at them.

Second, the crowd -- I'm going to go out on a limb and say that even though they were not at capacity last night and the game was really -- not the greatest thing I've ever watched -- the crowd was the best crowd I've been a part of -- and I've been to a couple of Grey Cups, where there is a championship at stake.

Third, though I still think that cheerleaders are a complete waste of humanity, I will begrudgingly say that the Raptor girls were the best dance troupe I've seen. Neil and I figure these women must get paid so they have to be able to dance unlike their CFL counterparts who if they can shake their ass and look good in a calender they're in. Here's a sample from last night (probably not the greatest clip to make my point -- there's a whole lotta ass shaking going on...)

In the end, we had a fun night. Thanks again for the tickets, AO!! You rock!!

My super most excellent Auntie O has managed to score me and the husband Raptors tickets for tonight. So we are off in a few hours... it's all good!! I bought Neil (for Christmas) tickets to see the Raptors vs the Lakers (Neil's fave team) in February so this is just icing on the cake. Sweet, sweet $160 per ticket sweetness and all for free!! I'll take some pictures so you can see what that gets you... we are lower level so that is cool. When I bought the Raptors vs Lakers tickets I bought upper level center and thought that I was splurging! I didn't pay $160 a pop, let me tell you that!!

Anyhoo, I'll post later with some pictures. Thanks again, AO!!

Today we learned a "high-rise" living lesson. Apparently when the fire alarm sounds, you are to remain calm, remain in your suite and await further instructions.

You see, this morning, Neil and I were awoken by the fire alarm. This thing is bloody loud (it sounds over our buildings intercom system). So it is going and going, blaring louder and louder. Neil and I slowly get dressed and even take some time to grab our wallets and a few important things -- you see, in our old place someone was forever burning toast so 99% of the time we were told all was well within a few minutes... not this morning. The alarm kept going and going...

So we eventually head out to the stairwell and head down 15 flights of stairs and out the emergency exit. We instantly see 4 fire trucks outside our building and 4-5 firemen heading into our main entrance. Neil and I take a minute to get our bearings and realize that we are the only people in our 25 story building standing outside. So we hang back a bit and follow the firemen to the front of our building. From this vantage you can see people in the lobby waiting for the elevator??? So we ask our doorman what's going on?? He says, "Oh, the fire department is here investigating as the alarm went off but you guys can take the elevator up to your suite. We usually ask that our tenants remain calm and in their suites unless told otherwise..." Okee Dokee.

Doesn't this seem weird?? The one time we had to actually evacuate our old building (the 1% was actually also due to burnt toast -- toaster started on fire) we had to wait outside while the fire department investigated our building. Seems to me to be less of a liability to ask your tenants to wait outside until they know what's going on -- and if they know what's going on... and it's a false alarm... shut the bloody alarm off, make an announcement, yadda yadda yadda...

An announcement was made --- eventually. Pretty crappy way to start the day. I should note that the fire alarm went off another 2 times during the afternoon. I sent Neil an e-mail and it went like this:

Subject: fire alarm is going off again
I am going to stay calm and in my apartment. If I die, know that I love you.

Krista

In other news, I have been on a painting frenzy. Stereo stand - done. Magazine stand - 1 coat. Old book shelf - 1 coat. Another old bookshelf -- to be started tomorrow. TV Trays X 2 - to be started tomorrow. Printer cart - to be started tomorrow. I cannot believe how easy this was and it makes stuff look shiny and new! I'll post pictures later.