So, yesterday morning I sprang from bed like, like, like something very springy indeed! I got paid today! I could go shopping!!

I also slept in, so I missed the eggs in the ivy-covered building, but sleep was much more vital and welcome than free eggs. Difficult though that may be to believe.

I girded up my loins, and my debit card, and strode out into the bright and shining, though not nearly so hot as it had been, morning, and prepared to spend some money.

I can't help it, shopping makes me happy. Nothing is nicer than buying something--buying anything, basically, but especially buying something cool.

My first stop was at a bookstore called Indigo right around the corner from the dorm. I was actually headed towards the Two-Starbucks-Chapters, but got distracted by the slightly nearer big building filled with books.

In the children's department, I found a wonderful thing, a great big shelf filled with Diana Wynne Jones books, some of which I had and some I didn't, but they were these pretty matching edition with this great art, and a couple of the ones I have are autographed first editions, and you really can't lug them around and read them in the street, so I bought all sixteen that they had, only missing three that they did not. Plus Blue Sword, the only Robin McKinley book I had yet to get, so that made seventeen books.

I wished that I could get some sort of volume discount, but threw that away as a pipe dream, until, at the counter the guy gave me a children's club card, where for every six you buy, the seventh is free, so I did get a discount! And since indigo and Chapters are connected, I can use the card either place.

I went home to drop off the books, then out for shopping part two, meaning going back to all the stores we went to the day before and buy all of the stuff that I didn't buy then.

I didn't so much, though. I went to l'Occitane and got some simply stupendous (and stupendously expensive) shea butter hand cream. It's for dry skin, which I don't have, but since my hands have been looking somewhat elderly lately, I'll take the most moisture that I can. It's really thick, like Crisco, and smells amazing. Not like Crisco.

I also bought three bars of soap, one fig, one verbena and one milk, because I am not made of stone. And, unlike Lush, I can replenish this stuff in New York, and maybe buy some other stuff, since my seldom seen self-control was in evidence here, and I only got those four little tiny small things.

I went to Chapters to see if they had any of the missing Diana Wynne Jones books, and they had one, plus I browsed their quite terrific travel book section and came away with a few more. Books and soap, what more could a person need?

Well, a really nice fountain pen, but for some reason, I couldn't find the stationary store from the day before--I went up and down the street I thought it was on, I tried to re-trace our steps as well as I could, but could not for the life of me find it. And it wasn't even on Bloor St., the street that disappears, moves, and eats landmarks for its pleasure.

After a bit more wandering and shopping, I went to the Royal Ontario Museum to meet Cameron.

Actually, I got there quite a bit early, since I thought I'd get there as soon as the price changed to free, and have a look around before she got there. It's a very grand and beautiful museum, and I started walking through it, looking for art.

I looked and looked, got a map, I searched around, but no art could I find, not a jot! When Cameron Got there, I said, "I can't find any art in this museum, only a bunch of stuff!" She explained to me that in Canada, art is in galleries, stuff is in museums. Bleh, I don't like stuff museums. But we were there, and we started looking around, and her enthusiasm started making me see with different eyes.

The stuff was beautiful, the stuff was interesting, it just wasn't paintings, but it still was art. And of course I knew that silver and furniture and baskets and jewels and clothing were art already, I just didn't much care to look at it. But then I did! And it was wonderful.

I particularly liked the bat exhibit, and the gems, and Cameron liked the clothing, and started doing some sketching.

She also sketched me at one point, when we were listening to a recording of how clean people weren't long ago. I find it astonishing that in three minutes she dashes off this drawing that is recognizably me, and with so much detail and life. Drawing is like magic to me, I have no idea how it is done and therefor admire enormously those who can do it.

I wanted to ask to keep the drawing, but took a picture of it instead. She made me thinner and helped my chin line a little, and yet, it still looks like me! Amazing.

Hanging from the ceiling downstairs was this incredible metal dragon, pouncing on unsuspecting passersby, or seeming to. Really, it was just handing from the ceiling, but one had the feeling that he could pounce if he chose.

Then I went to the gift shop and got a china cup emblazoned with information about the Year of the Pig for Mom. I was going to get her a pin, but not for $45, even Canadian.

After the museum, we went out for dinner. We sat in the outside back garden of this place, and ended up getting very cold indeed, which was peculiar, it having been so very hot only the day before.

I had garlic bread and mozzarella sticks, because plainly, I needed carbs and I needed them right that second. So I had carbs with a side of carbs, please, heavy on the carbs! Yummers!

After awhile, I let her go home to her husband, and we parted with plans to meet the next day. And I went back to the dorm and watched Ocean's 11 on DVD, and then went to sleep. And that was Day Three of my vacation.

Today's horoscope:
Business and pleasure mix today, be it an office party, celebrating a new job, getting together with colleagues from work, etc.

One year ago today:
For the past two days, every time I look around, there's a blinking light flying around my house like Tinkerbell, and I have to catch it and put it outside.

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Last Updated Sat 20 July 01:31:09 2002