UP IN SMOKE

So what is this picture doing on my blog? Have I started smoking again? Am I thinking about it after over five years of being smoke free? Well, smoking has been on my mind today but not in the way you think. I was on my way to the gym tonight with a quick detour to a friend's house. I was there to check on it while she's away for a week. She had asked me if I wanted to stay and look after it. I politely refused but suggested I drop by on and off. Last year I had stayed in her house and did not want to repeat it. She smokes in her house and being the non smoker I'm now...I can not stand the stench of stale smoke. Even the occasional visit has to be cut short because of it. Being in the house made me realise how happy I am to be smoke free. No more coughing, no more phlegm, stinky clothes, sheets, towels , stale ashtrays overflowing with butts and the horrendous expense. As I pulled out of her driveway my cell phone rang. My son was on the line asking me if I could pick him up a pack of smokes on the way home from the gym. I agreed. It wasn't until after I bought him his pack that I felt this tremendous guilt in contributing to his addiction. Here is a boy who spend all his young life begging his mother to stop smoking and continuously cited the perils of such. She finally did and guess who started. I blame myself for so much from the asthma inflicted on my daughter to my son thinking it's okay to smoke because of me. Now it's my turn to continuously try to get him to stop....and I will not buy him any more smokes!

Warm Fuzzies

Home again after five days of city life. Flew into Vancouver on Thursday and spent a wonderful few days with my lovely girl. We had a lot of one on one time from my first ever manicure, lunch at the Vancouver Art Gallery, dinners at the Cactus Club and Stepho's and take out sushi. We spent a whole afternoon at Stanley Park doing the seawall walk and a scrumptious picnic lunch. We went shopping in the downtown core and enjoyed an evening at the Richmond Night Market with Brock, Jessi and Ange. I must say that once is enough unless you like to be packed as tight as a sardine can. We also watched a couple of movies, finished off a bottle of Pinot Noir, made a delicious steak dinner and had many a mother/daughter talk. Hard to imagine that we managed to cram so much in so little time. Tuesday morning I flew home my heart filled with the warm fuzzies...comforted in the knowledge that I will see my girl again on Friday.

Cactus Club Cafe

Stanley Park Seawall Picnic

Richmond Night Market