18 Weeks to go! OMG!

My to do list:
1. Get rid off stuff (anyone need anything?)
2. Sell stuff
3. Stock up on vitamins & birth control (although this might be free there with medical...check this)
4. Get international drivers license (is this possible in Victoria?)
5. Power of attorney here?? (ask sister)
6. Forward mail
7. Find a place to live that isn't a scam
8. Find someone to take over cell phone & contract (anyone?)
9. Sell car (April)
10. Buy adapters for electrical devices
11. Get Canadian passport
12. get pet passport or health certificate for Maya
13. Copies of medical records from doc and dentist
14. Find kick ass deal and buy plane tickets
15. finish my CV
16. List for customs of all luggage
17. buy huge luggage for check-on
18. Dom needs his European Health certificate
19. Find best shipper for packages
20. buy winter coats and gear on spring sales
21. get a job
22. collect all banking info, close appropriate accounts, set up international one?
23. All the other things I forgot right now....

Winter Wonderland

The past week here has been crazy! Snow everywhere just in time for Christmas, and it is absolutely beautiful. Dom kept saying he wanted a white Christmas, and he seems to have good luck. For those if you unaware, snow is rare in Victoria... in the 6 years I have lived here (holy crap... it has been that long?!?), it usually snows one day or two out of a winter and melts right away. This snow has stayed for more than a week now, and there is a a ton of it! 

I took these photos on Monday morning while shoveling out my office entrances. The sun was just starting to rise around 7:30 in the morning, and it was awesome!

Wise Words

Amazingly Beautiful paper cut illustrations

Illustrations by Yulia Brodskaya

Very interesting and inspirational words from the Dalai Lama. This is a portion of an article from the UK:

"It is fascinating," he says, speaking in slightly stilted English. "In the West, you have bigger homes, yet smaller families; you have endless conveniences - yet you never seem to have any time. You can travel anywhere in the world, yet you don't bother to cross the road to meet your neighbours; you have more food than you could possibly eat, yet that makes women like Heidi miserable."

The West's big problem, he believes, is that people have become too self-absorbed. "I don't think people have become more selfish, but their lives have become easier and that has spoilt them. They have less resilience, they expect more, they constantly compare themselves to others and they have too much choice - which brings no real freedom."

He has lived as a monk since childhood, but the Dalai Lama views marriage as one of the chief ways of finding happiness. "Too many people in the West have given up on marriage. They don't understand that it is about developing mutual admiration of someone, a deep respect and trust and awareness of another human's needs," he says. "The new easy-come, easy-go relationships give us more freedom - but less contentment."

Metallica

I surprised Dominik last night with tickets to see Metallica tonight! We leave for Vancouver around lunch time and stay overnight after the concert. I'm pretty stoked as I've never been to a big arena concert like this before, but mostly because this is one of Dom's favorite bands, and he has never seen them live. I just love seeing him happy. Happy 30th b-day baby!