There and Back Again, or, Bussy

I've been busy, but mostly, I'm bussy! Living in the 'burbs, and working in the downtown core in a city with a serious problem with it's road-way infrastructure (way too few lanes between the suburb I live in and the city proper), it only makes sense to take the bus. It's ecologically responsible, too, which is always a nice aspect!



That's a bus. That's actually the bus that brought me home this afternoon. The Red and White Rocket, as one particularly gregarious bus driver likes to announce it over the bus PA.

<-- I start out here. One bus, from that stop all the way downtown. No transfers is a nice luxury. Gives me ample time to read or knit without worrying about getting off and back on to another bus. Most days, the bus is the only motorized vehicle I set foot in. We have a car, but it stays home on work days. It isn't interesting, but it's how I get around.

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Friends of ours are FINALLY getting married this weekend (it took awhile for the groom to accept this whole "getting married" thing). October in Ottawa generally means autumn, however, the forecast is calling for mid-twenties temperatures, so typical seasonal formal wear is a little out of the question. I haven't been to a summer wedding in a while (lil' sis's doesn't count as I was a bridesmaid) so I need to acquire me a dress in short order. A little empire waisted number in this fabric should work, don't you think? The spots are actually much pinker than they appear in this pic (nothing like taking pictures under compact florescents at night!) and on a just-off-white ground. Almost breaks the "no white at a wedding" rule, but I think it's polka-dotted enough not to be a problem.

Gutsy, or, late!

My purse. It's about to be replaced, hopefully, because it's starting to fall apart, but for now, this is what I carry to and from work most days. Above, you can see my earbud spool, and the book I'm currently reading, A History of Reading by Alberto Manguel. It's very very good; I recommend it.

So what's worthy of note? Well, the fact that I have hairpins in multiple pockets (I generally have hairpins in every purse I ever carry, and in at least one pocket of almost every coat or jacket. The 3 pattern row markers are still in there from when I was knitting the BIL's kilthose. The MAC lipgloss I got - free! - when I took back 6 empty MAC containers. It's a great reuse project they have, and the lipgloss is fabulous! And I've been looking for that earring...

Sum, or, Blogstalking!

Who am I? Here are the most significant what's which make up my who.



I am a wife. The Man and I have been married since February 12, 2005. Being a wife has not long been an aspect of who I am, but it is something which shapes every day, including how I spend my days. Having a career-like job, rather than incurring greater and greater student loans through various graduate studies purely out of fascination which could drag me across the country, spending evenings at home or generally with my husband rather than downtown, considering issues of public education and politics which are of particular concern to people with families, or intending to someday have families are all ways in which being a wife has changed the shape of my daily life. It also means I have someone with whom to live, and with whom I can speak and share. It has also shaped my feminism, which is also an enormous part of my identity, which informs my outlook on the world. It is, however, remarkably difficult to photograph feminism.



I am a student. Despite the fact that I haven't been registered since April 2005, or that I haven't set foot in a lecture hall in almost two and a half years, I still consider myself a student. My joy is still in learning, in considering, in reading and discerning. I have topics for three or four research papers cooking up in my philosophical brain at any given time. I have kept all my texts from undergrad because I am, quite simply, far too attached to them and fascinated by the contents to sell them or give them away. And I reference them regularly, often in conversations with The Man. Our areas of interest and expertise differ so greatly, it does come in handy to have primary texts to which I can refer. Through my studies, I am a philosopher, a classicist, a considerer of world religions and a theologian.



I am a singer. I am also a choir member at my church. For that matter, I am also a Presbyterian, which is actually quite indicative of my personality. I am very Presybterian. I can honestly say, as a student of religions with a focus in Christian theology and practice, that Presbyterianism is absolutely the best fit for me. The fact that I was raised so is just a nice plus, almost a coincidence, really. I have been a first soprano at St. Andrew's, the church where The Man and I met, and where he was raised, for over four years. It was through the choir that I met my vocal coach, and it has been my lessons with her that have allowed me to begin performing amateur opera. Singing is euphoric and something I was meant to do.



I am a dancer. I began ballet lessons at 4, but for the past 12 years, Highland dancing has been my chief source of joy and exercise. Though I retired in June, I travelled on a first and final trip with my dance company to Moscow only weeks ago for an international dance festival. Now retired once again, I continue to teach classes at the studio. It's a joy.



I am a knitter. More generally, I am a fan of textiles, and the construction of garments. I worked briefly as a seamstress - not a handy way to make a living, that - and spend many of my free hours knitting or sewing, if only because I cannot justify spending my limited income on clothes I could make myself. So that's what I do.



I am mama to my furbaby. Wembley is my pride, my joy, and my baby. I have, unwittingly, turned her quite entirely into a toddler. She is cuddlier than any dog I have ever known or met, and does things which seem to me not canine at all. I love her.

So that's me. I'm other things: a Whedonophile, a bookworm, a yogini, but these are the elements of my identity which are most primary to me.