52. Bake cookies for my dog.

Status: Creatively completed.

Here is a copy of my dog, Jasper's, allergy report:

Bluegrass/June grass, Orchard, Fescue, Ryegrass, Ragweed, Pigweed/Careless Weed, Sage, Willow, Oak, Elm, Sycamore, Alternaria, Penicillium, Rhizopus, Saccharomyces, Mixed Feathers, Housedust/mites, Beef, Pork, Soybean, Corn, Oatmeal, Barley, Carrots, Peas, Wool, Tobacco Smoke, Mosquito, Malassezia (that one means she's allergic to her own skin)

These are things she's borderline allergic to:

Redtop, Dock/Sheep Sorrel, Pecan/Hickory, Smut Mix, Mouse Epi, Wheat, Kapok, Flea

Miscellaneous Allergies:

Dragons, Santa's Sleigh, Pixie Dust, Trees filled with elves, goblins, Houses made of gingerbread, Communism, Henry David Thoreau, Easter Eggs, Clown shoes, Blue Wigs with a nice little fringe that blair said made me look young, Scotch Tape Dispensers. (she got her nose caught in one as a puppy)

How do you make cookies without any sort of wheat or oatmeal? You improvise! With potato, tuna, and green pepper. They were completely unorthodox and crumbly, but even my mom said they were tasty! And Jasper licked the bowl clean......

17. Go to the Nutcracker at Christmas time.

Status: Cultured.

I've been wanting to go to the full professional production of the Nutcracker (to complete my "Christmas spirit" list) for ages, but it's sooooooo expensive! Well this year, having worked part-time the entire semester, I decided that I could afford it (nevermind that I spent every last cent of my earnings last month in a Spice Girls fury.) We got all dolled up and headed out in the blizzard-like conditions to the fancy "Jube" to have our cultural experience. The whole thing was so over the top, I felt underdressed, and I was wearing a dress! There were people decked out in full length ball gowns and tiaras.

The ballet was excellent....and made me a little nostalgic. I was in my studio's production of the Nutcracker when I was 15, I played a kid in the party scene, and a snowflake in the winter scene....which are still arguably good parts.....but nothing compared to the Sugar Plum Fairy! Why oh why couldn't I have been the Sugar Plum Fairy?? It's just like my school's production of Alice in Wonderland when I was 9 (ish) and desperately wanted to be the cheshire cat.....and ended up being tweedle dee. :( Oh my hard life!

72. Take 10 pictures around campus.

Status: 20% (roughly the grade I'm expecting to receive on on my calculus final - see below)

While Edmonton isn't the most.....well.....aesthetically pleasing city (and has to make up for it by having an awesome mall), the campus really is nice. I don't know how many times I've walked home from the engineering centre late at night and noticed how beautiful the softly falling snow in front of the street light with the bunny munching grass under it looked, but didn't have my camera. So I am now taking it upon myself to take pictures like this:















Note that I didn't say I took these pictures....they may have been on postcards.....




I took these ones:












Yeah, I need to learn how to use my camera.......I'd add it to my list but I'm plum out of room!

11. Pass calculus with a B.

Status: AHAHAHA!

Short of a full-on Christmas miracle, this is not going to happen. Failing the midterm a little over a month ago put me in nerve-wrecking position for the final exam. You know you're in trouble when you've figured out that you need to score a 45% on the final just to pass the class, and you're worried that you can't even pull THAT off - a 45%!

With this reality on my mind, I tossed and turned all night, and then made the much dreaded walk to the Pavillion this morning. I was literally gagging on the way there, and my primary concern became not throwing up on the side of the road for everyone to see.

The exam went well.....considering. I would say the bad only slightly outnumbered the good, which is all I could have hoped for! The trig. limits completely baffled me, and my critical numbers in the concavity question were not easy to come by or work with (you try putting root of 2 into an already complicated function), but I breezed through the summations and integrals, and I'm fairly certain that I successfully determined the dimensions of a cylinder, if the length and circumference must add up to 168, that would hold the maximum volume, just in case the post office should misplace all of their tape measures and desperately need to know.

Whatever the outcome may be, it's a huge weight off my shoulders that it's over. And I'll tell you this much for certain. I am NOT taking calculus again if I fail. I'd rather drop out and turn to prostitution.

46. Take Matt to Flin Flon.

Status: To be completed on Dec.29!

*Singing* I don't want a lot for Christmas, there is just one thing I neeeed.
I don't care about the presents, underneath the Christmas tree.
I just want you for my own, more than you could ever know!
Make my wish come trueeeeee!
All I want for Christmas, is YOOUUUUU!

Shall I go on?

73. Go to a Spice Girls concert!

Status: Spiced up for life.

I don't even know where to start with this one. I first put it on the list with wishful thinking, but not really believing that it could possibly happen. I mean, you had to enter a draw just to win the chance to buy tickets! The London concert sold out in 35 seconds! I am SO lucky! I was at the very first show of the Spice Girls reunion tour.

So with the constant dilemma of the crucial concert outfit on my mind, I boarded a plane to Vancouver Friday afternoon. I would be in Vancouver for 3 days, but my suitcase was bursting at the seams with anything I own that could be considered even remotely Spice-like (couldn't find the great big union jack platform shoes I was looking for, sadly.)

Met up with my mom and sister at our fancy Robson Street hotel - and the view from our balcony, 26 floors up, was so gorgeous - my camera could not do it justice.

The next day and a half consisted of frivolous shopping, fancy restaurants (complete with guilty indulges in amazing desserts! The gingerbread cake from Earls comes highly recommended from this girl), and TERRIBLE weather! Honestly, it hardly ever snows in Vancouver - so accordingly the only time it does is when I stop by for the weekend. Vancouver snow is infuriating, it's not cold enough there for proper snow - it's just clumps of slush falling on your face. The wetness of it all chills you to the bone! When I stepped out of the airport back in -20 degrees Edmonton, I exclaimed, "Yes! Familiar cold!"

Wait, what's this about again? Right, the concert! Back on task, I met up with the girls Sunday afternoon to Spice ourselves up! I drank entirely too much wine while "baby-ing (-ish)" myself up, and was inappropriately half-cut to see a band that I loved when I was 11! Finally, and drunkenly, decided on a red dress with fishnet stockings, Baby Spice hairstyle, uncomfortable false eyelashes (in case they asked me up on stage with them, of course), and my rocket dog boots because it was cold dammit!





















Because of unreliable cabs we got to GM Place a bit late, no time for merchandise! Straight to our seats, and, after a David Beckham sighting (!!), there was a frenzy of activity, lights, and videos on stage.....and out come the Spice Girls looking amazing. They were a bit more sophisticated, sadly, but there was the odd platform shoe, union jack dress, and leopard print. They started with "Spice up your life" (I called it!) and went straight into "Stop" and my personal favourite "Say you'll be there" The screaming was deafening, particularly my own!


I don't even really know how to describe it - obviously the Spice Girls aren't the most exquisite musicians of our time - but it's about more than that. We had a blast reliving our childhoods, it was all so nostalgic and exciting......and yes everyone was crying during "Mama"! It all ended way too soon. I bought the World Tour program for an insane amount of money, and we were out the door into the pouring rain (I was "Drowned Rat Spice"). I still can't believe it's over. :(

And yes, they did ask me to go on tour with them. But after careful deliberation I had to respectfully decline their offer. My studies are more important.