had an awesome birthday yesterday. I got tons of well-wishes from my online friends, I had a decent dinner with my brother and sister-in-law, and then got serenaded by my co-workers at work. Then to add the cherry to the sundae, two people at work made a point of saying "hey there, birthday girl" to me, which felt awesome.

It was so much fun, I almost dont wanna wait a year to do it again ...

Please Click "Read More" to view the pic.

thanks to the track feature, I happened to re-read Randalynn's "Stark" stories and once more was hit by how well Randalynn writes. Not for the first time, I wished I could meet Jo Stark, since we have a few things in common ...

For those who havent read them before, or just want to read them again, here is a link:

http://bigclosetr.us/topshelf/book/906/stark

looks like my little logjam in my writing has broken. Ideas coming like snowflakes in a blizzard ....

had coffee with my friend Erin yesterday, and she asked me if I did anything to augment my breasts. I dont, but the whole time we were talking afterward I was self-conscious about them. It felt almost like I was topless, if you understand what I mean. I've been told this is a pretty normal reaction for a girl ....

Although I was born in New Brunswick, I consider Calgary, Alberta to be my childhood home. I was there from age 5 until age 19, except for the year I spent in Denver, so we're talking 13 years in the city during my school years.

Well, right now, my childhood home is under water.

A flood the likes never seen before has hit southern Alberta, causing the evacuation of more than 100,000 people, and some brave souls have taken to Facebook to post pics of what the city looks like, and its ... devastated.

Well, my brother has made some moves toward us moving past some of the hurts from the past. It all started when I sent him a message thanking him for coming to my poetry reading, and I talked about something he had mentioned at the time, that he felt like he was mourning the death of his brother Todd. I said that if you want to think of it that way, Todd laid down his life so I could live, so he was a hero.

Well, last night I had an interesting dream. I was taken to a busy street corner, and asked to deliver a package that had a towel, a facecloth, and a hand towel. The challenge was, I was naked.

Life occasionally sends you a little irony to make you think God has a bit of a sense of humor.

I have been reading a web comic called "misfile" and its amazing. Its the story of a boy whose life gets misfiled into the girl drawer by a slacker angel, and how he/she deals with the results. If you read it, be prepared to want to sit and finish it in one setting like I wanted to ....

Here is the link:

http://misfile.com/?date=2004-02-22

Well, I had the WORST flashback I have ever experienced last night, and to say I'm not in a good place right now is putting it mildly.

well, my reading of my poem at church went well. A number of people came up afterward to tell me they were moved by it, and as a bonus, my brother was there and I think he liked it too. Much yayness!

The other day my mom took me out for lunch, and as we entered the restaurant, I noticed a young man (Mid 20's at a guess) wearing a suit and tie. It suddenly occurred to me that a man in that outfit is .... interesting. He was handsome enough that I'm sure I would have done the double look no matter what he was wearing, but the suit really added something.

I'm just glad that the fact I did the double look doesnt freak me out as much. Still freaks me out, mind, just not as much ....

Ah, well.

As a writer, I love words. I love trying to learn where they come from, how they came to mean what they mean, how some words have changed meanings over time, and how some words can have deeper and stronger meanings to a single person.

One word that's like that for me is the word "rape". I always use it to describe what happened to me over "molested", because for me, what happened fits "rape" better. "molested" sounds softer, somehow, only "rape" seems to have the meaning I need when talking about what happened to me.

Well, apparently, there has been a change of plans. Instead of reading the poem at the lunch, I will be reading it during the church service. Anybody who lives in Edmonton is welcome to come, and prayers and good wishes are appreciated, as I havent spoken in front of so many people before ....