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If there’s one thing I’ve heard over and over again during my day today it’s constant rumblings and grumblings about the excess rain Vancouver’s experienced as of late. It poured last week, it poured all weekend and it rained again today. I’ve made a very simple and clear point about this city to others and I’ll repeat myself here.

If you were raised in the Metro Vancouver area or have spent most of your life here, you know that rain is a very prominent part of our fall/winter season, so you really should be used to it now. For those of you who have transplanted to British Columbia, it is a RAIN FOREST. It was raining long before you came to B.C. and it’ll rain long after you leave, so if you really hate all this rain that much, feel free to pack up and go home.

Today is Tony’s birthday. On this, the celebration of his 29th year, I wish him happiness, whipped cream bikinis, cool and crisp beers, true joy, Chinese twin sisters (or heck, even triplets), winning Cubs games and a fantastic next 365 days.

I can’t get enough of this rain. I love that it’s falling outside my window, greeting me when I wake-up. It makes the weekend that much cozier. Because I don’t think it’ll stop falling anytime soon, trekking to Winners in an attempt to find some galoshes looks like a necessity today.

One thing I’ve realized is that it’s this very weather that seems to be the chief contributing factor to winter weight gain. When the rain is falling and the wind is blowing outside, who wants to eat a cold salad? Give me something warm and gooey for dinner. Tonight’s menu will be beef fajitas, but sometimes a girl needs tasty snacks to get through rainy nights on her own. As I sat curled up on my couch last night watching Pretty Woman and daydreaming about what it’d be like to be a hooker with a heart of gold (okay, not really), I had the thought that it would be oh-so-nice of me to share my scrumptious caramel popcorn recipe with you all.

My feet have been soaked through almost all day. Today Chelsea and I walked in the Gulu Walk to raise awareness for children in northern Uganda. Chelsea’s long had a passion for Africa, and I was stoked to give my support to a friend and also to a note-worthy cause. Despite the fact that I did this mostly for awareness and not so much monetary support, I was still able to muster up one financial contribution. So to that person, and you know who you are (as do I), I thank you so much. It was the sweetest thing of you to do and I’m very grateful to know that I have friends with great hearts.

My favourite part of today was probably my favourite thing about time spent with Chelsea. Having people in your life that feel so strongly about the same things you do in the same way and share a value system so similar to your own is such an amazing blessing. We spent a lot of time talking about the very thing we were doing today to bring awareness to something that is all-too-often overlooked, but were also quick to point out that charity really does begin at home. I hold strong to the idea that if we helped out our neighbours, our brothers and smiled at those on the street rather than pretending they don’t exist, we’d be so much better able to help others around the world. It’s as I said to Chelsea, “how can I help you with your broken arm when my arm is gashed open too?”

What else did we talk about? We talked about moms and how grateful we are for them. Much like the fact that I don’t have a father, she’s got an absentee dad and so our mothers have been everything for us as we grow into women. It’s important to understand how important we are to our mothers, how much it means to them to know that even though we’re now adults, we still need our moms. And we do. I need my mom and I always will. Chelsea’s fortunate enough to have a mom now living nearby, but I adore the chance to go spend time on an acre in the woods to see mine.

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The other day, someone left an anonymous comment on my blog asking a simple question: “What do you understand the true meaning of love to be?” That’s a loaded question, to say the very least.

I’m not really sure I can fully explain what I understand the true meaning of love to be. I know that as I grow, become older and experience more in life, my definition of love will change, snowball and take different shapes. However, there are some aspects to real love that will remain solid while others are fluid. Love sometimes means choosing to love those that you do love. Love means offering forgiveness and forgetting. Love means sacrificing something you want for the benefit of someone you love. Love also sometimes means being “selfish” and standing up for yourself in order to love yourself. Love means keeping someone’s best interests at heart. And sometimes love is undefinable and something we can’t understand. Sometimes it’s actually not a choice, but it’s the best thing in my life.

“I read somewhere how important it is in life not necessarily to be strong but to feel strong.” - Christopher Johnson McCandless

Over the last day or two, whenever I’ve made mention of the fact that I wanted to see Into the Wild, a handful of people have asked “have you read the book?” My answer? Nope. In fact, I never even knew that the movie was based on a book. When I first saw the trailer a few days ago, I was drawn by the fact that it seemed to be a story about one person who got away from everything to find themself. It seemed to be a story about one person in search of what truly matters in life. See for yourself…

What struck me most about the film is the very thing that drew me to it. It was an examination of the human condition in its many forms but centrally around one person. Being that I’ve been through a personal journey thus far on my own this year, it was a story I could easily relate to on several levels. I want people to see this film because I want people - every person - to carefully examine in their lives what is of value. It’s what I’ve been doing and it’s such a freeing feeling. I’m sitting here at 11:24 p.m. and still trying to absorb what the meaning behind this film evoked in me. It’s too late for me to form any thoughts more coherent than this so check Tribute’s website for showtimes and see this film for yourself.

Videoclip courtesy of Paramount Vantage on YouTube

I’m sitting here at my desk, drumming my unmanicured fingertips (yikes!) on my desktop and coming up completely dry with something to blog about. I’d like to think that the rain would somehow inspire me since I love the rain so much, but brace yourselves…you may very well get to the end of this post and be filled with such anger at me for completely wasting five minutes of your life.

Last night I got my hair cut. I decided to buck out all the layers and go blunt in an effort to grow my hair to mermaid proportions. The bangs need to catch up though.

Why the webcam photos lately, you ask? I’ve lost my camera. Maybe it was stolen - I have no idea. I had it last time I was home on the Island and now it’s magically disappeared. I’m not really so terribly upset because it was a total piece. Also, I’m keeping my fingers crossed that Santa will put a new Canon under the tree for me this year. If not, I’ll dry my tears and buy one anyways.

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Lately I’ve really been discovering my roots…er, rather Roots, that is. For as long as I can remember, I’ve always had a strong dislike for the blandness that’s been produced by that store. It was far too Canadiana after they sponsored the Canadian Olympic team, but over the last few weeks, I’ve been exposed to how fantastic it’s become. True outdoorsy clothes, super cute and uber soft sweaters, leg warmers (!!), girlie toques, cuddly scarves, sweet waffle weaves, furry collars and everything else that is actually just so very me in terms of style.

Another reason to love the beaver? Live Green. Not only are they offering fabrics made out of eco-friendly bamboo, but Roots is spreading the anti-global warming message through a series of t-shirts to support Environmental Defence Canada. If that’s not enough, a new initiative in greener shipping options is putting forth an effort to tackle climate change. To learn more about how Roots is working with ZeroFootprint, click here.

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The plan for tonight was to visit Fright Nights at the PNE. With the rain and cold, kicking frightening bad dudes in the shin was the last thing I felt like doing. I contemplated joining Becky, John and Duane at Fogg ‘N’ Sudds to watch the game, but not only am I not drinking for a long time after last weekend, tomorrow I’m doing the Gulu Walk with Chelsea. So what instead?

A trip to the Ridge Theatre at 16th and Arbutus with my friend Amy to see the Sean Penn-helmed Into the Wild. I really know nothing about it except that it looks like a fantastic, outdoorsy story with a moving message underneath. I’d rather re-cap it tomorrow instead of trying to tell you about it right now, so visit the website if you’re thirsty for more.

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And last, but certainly not least, let’s have an updated look at Mt. Washington’s 24/7 live webcam in an attempt to tease you all. Having a mom and aunt living 10 minutes from the chain-up area is oh-so-sweet…

“In a world where celebrity equals talent, and where make-believe is called reality, it is most important to have real love, truth and stability in your life.”

- Bernie Brillstein, Film and television producer

How differently would our day-to-day world look if more people held on to this belief and truly understood the meaning of what love is?

Photo courtesy of mojoey on Flickr

Last week, Blender magazine released their list of the 50 “worst, wretched and craptastic” songs ever written. Each song was reviewed and stamped with an official “worst moment.” As anyone would and should be, I was curious to see which songs I consider to be personal favourites made the not-so-hit list. Curious too? Check out the list here.

While I’ll freely admit that the majority of songs on the list are stinkers in their own right, how John Mayer’s “Your Body Is A Wonderland” made the list while the “Macarena” didn’t is completely beyond me. In fact, no songs by Creed or Nickelback even made the list. I know - I can hardly believe it myself.

And while the idea of listening to “My Heart Will Go On” (and on and on and on and on) by Celine Dion 50 times in a row is nausea-inducing, it’s not more so than the idea of listening to “Kiss From A Rose” by Seal just as many times. I can undoubtedly say that is my personal “worst, wretched and craptastic” song of all time.

Have a look at the list, and then share with the class what your all-time “worst, wretched and craptastic” song of all time is.

Photo of John Mayer courtesy of Fresh 102.7

For the past 21 years, conflict has raged in northern Uganada, Africa, which has caused over 1,000,000 people to be displaced, mainly children and women. These uprooted peoples have mostly been herded into camps where conditions are so terrible that hundreds of people are dying each week. The lack of clean water, food and medical attention is the leading reason for such terrible circumstance.

“Last year, Vancouver participants not only provided a voice for peace in northern Uganda, their fundraising results helped towards the raising of over $500,000 for children’s programs on the ground in the war-torn region. GuluWalk Vancouver is looking to provide even bigger and better support in 2007. Join in the push for peace!“

What: Gulu Walk Vancouver

Where: Vancouver Art Gallery (750 Hornby Street) to Ceperley Park (on Beach Avenue - Stanley Park)

When: Saturday, October 20, 2007

Time: Registration starts at 11:00 a.m., Walk starts at 12:00 p.m.

If you would like to sponsor either Chelsea or myself, please click here. Search for either of our names in the Vancouver walk and contribute your pledge. We thank you all in advance for your support, whether monetary or even through words of encouragement. If you want to come out and walk for a good cause, there’s still plenty of time to register - just visit the website today.

Before you call me crazy, let me point out that a handful of West End balconies are already adorned with colouful lights, and my neighbour directly across the street keeps a Christmas tree up and decorated 365 days a year.

Michael Bublé’s holiday record, “Let It Snow,” was released in stores today, and my combined love for both Bublé and Christmas equated to a necessary purchase. My dinner is in the oven and while preparing said dinner, I broke my cardinal Christmas music rule by listening to the EP. Normally I don’t allow myself to break out holiday tunes until Starbucks has done the same in their stores, but I couldn’t very well let the cellophane go unwrapped for another three weeks. I will say that the 6 songs contained on the disc (which is available for only $6.99 plus tax at HMV) is a blissful 20 minutes and well worth breaking rules for.

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“Let It Snow” has rather appropriately been released today to coincide with the fact that the first traces of snow were seen falling on Mt. Washington this afternoon! As a lover of the outdoors and snowboarding, I can’t tell you how much this excites me! It’s hard to believe that the days of longjohns, lunchtime beer in the lodge, cool and crisp afternoons in the sunshine and the swooshing sound of my board slicing through powder are almost here.