Capes :)

I think my cape-making project was a success - whew!

Here is a (dark) video clip of 3 of the kids running around the house on Christmas Day with their capes on:

My aunt first thought that I had purchased these for the kids! Nope - 100% handmade. Well, I didn't weave my own fabric or anything, but you get the idea :)

Santa's Little Helpers

This past weekend we were hit with 2 winter storms that dropped around 12 inches of snow on us Friday and Sunday. So Christopher and I hibernated ourselves indoors. I only left the house to walk the D.O.G with Christopher and Tyson making regular trips out to keep our driveway and sidewalks clear.

Whilst holed up inside, we worked like little Christmas Elves. Christopher kept busy making batch after batch of his famous Almond Florentine, which we boxes up to give out to friends, family & neighbors for the holidays. And I worked diligently on making 6 superhero capes for the little ones in my family. The capes are double-sided (so that's like making 12 regular capes!) and have velcro closures at the neck (so the kids can't strangle/choke themselves). This was my first sewing project since making a pair of boxer shorts in Grade 7. We even bought a brand-new sewing machine just for this! I was plenty worried about ruining my cousins' kids Christmas gifts, nevermind wasting money on a sewing machine I would never use again.

All in all though, I think the capes turned out pretty well. I made logos for Batman, Superman, Wonderpets, and a Princess crown. Hope they like them!

Nature vs. Nurture

The other weekend when we were back in Canada we stayed with Christopher's parents. After they went to bed we decided to take the dog for a walk.

When we went to the closet to bundle up with our coats and boots we came across an interesting site - two pairs of the same shoes. After closer inspection it turned out that Christopher and his dad have the exact same pair of Merrell hiking shoes. Each pair purchased independently of the other and through different channels (online vs. retail store) and in different countries (Canada vs. US).

The part that makes it even funnier is that Christopher hemmed and hawed over which shoes to buy over the course of at least a week. We had a friends & family coupon for Zappos, so we wanted to make sure we made our selections carefully. He read all the reviews and comments on the shoes that were highly rated by the site. And those shoes even come in 3 different colors.

But after all that research, I guess there's no denying what's in your genes. Chris looks so much like his father that there never was any question as to their relationship - but if there ever was, I guess this settles it!

Harnessing the Power...

of humans?

I have often wondered if it would be feasible to capture the energy generated by people working out at the gym. All those treadmills, elliptical trainers, stationary bikes, and even weight machines could be set up in such a way that the energy exerted is stored in a battery of some sort. The power collected could be used by the fitness facility to subsidize their energy usage.

I am all for reducing waste. I am a big fan of leftovers. I love selling/giving away things on Craigslist/Ebay. I find it very cleansing/therapeutic to take bags of used clothes to Goodwill. But there always seemed to be something a little odd about all the people sweating like mad to burn calories just for the sake of burning calories. Images of some poor donkey walking in circles to mill flour pop into my head.

Well - the Internet has the answer to everything I guess. Look what a quick google search turned up: http://www.inhabitat.com/2007/03/08/human-powered-gyms-in-hong-kong/