Burrito West Blog

We went to a Vancouver Canadians baseball game today. I'd post a photo but it was waaaaaay to hot to think about taking out my camera.  Here are some photos you can enjoy instead.  Even though we were seated under the stadium awning, we were full on in the sun with no breeze at all the whole time.  I think it was 47 degrees C.  That's my estimate.  I nearly died.  I love baseball games, but not when I'm literally feeling sweat dripping down my body.  That's not the mental image you wanted, I know, but I have to convey to you somehow how very very hot it was.  It was so hot I forgot the rules of baseball.  I forgot which team was ours. I forgot that having a rootbeer float, even if the money is for charity, is a bad bad idea.

And we lost.

But I still love baseball, especially when tickets are $12.50.

charity:water always launches a special campaign for September (the anniversary of when they started).  These campaigns always come with beautiful videos and graphics and will make you feel all inspired at the amazing things that can be accomplished in a short time. I love Septembers now.

The 2011 September Campaign. Our 5-year-anniversary video from charity: water on Vimeo.

This is a really interesting article about something called decision fatigue.  I'll wager a bet that everyone has experienced this problem before.  Given the huge number of decisions we all make in a given day, it's no wonder I end up standing in the grocery store at the end of the day holding cookies and chips instead of real food.  Clearly I've just run out of good decision-making juice!

Saturday I made a trip out to a place I've been wanting to visit for a few months now.  It's an all-volunteer run cat shelter called Katie's Place.  What started as a small venture by half a dozen animal lovers to care for some homeless cats in a barn has turned into an amazing facility caring for over 100 cats.  All on volunteer time and donations.

The shelter is set up like Best Friends - divided into 8 or so common rooms that house about 10 cats each, and all of them have access to spacious outdoor enclosures.  I'm always happy to see shelters where the animals are not in cages.  The rooms are built with ledges and cubbies and shelves all over the place so the cats can each find their own little hideouts.  Most of them were laying in the sunny porch, even though it was 30deg out!

I spent two hours there, hanging out with cats and chatting with volunteers and a few potential adopters (yay!).

I didn't fall in love until the very end when I met two twin petite all back cats that turned out to be a mother-daughter pair (the mother only 5 months older than the daughter).  They're so tiny and adorable and I wanted to bring them home.

I normally do okay at shelters.  I mean, I want to take everyone home, but I'm pretty good about not falling in love with anyone in particular.  But these two little gals were so sweet and tiny (I'm a sucker for a tiny cat) and friendly!  I haven't been able to stop thinking about them.  We can't adopt them - two cats in a small apartment is definitely the limit... but I've been trying to think of someone I know who needs cats (that way I can visit them frequently).  So far, no luck.  I often think that if Peter and I ever get a larger apartment to live in, it will be for cats. 

Hopefully I'll get out to visit them next month, get my fix that way! 

You may recall that back in December and February I hassled you all to donate to my Charity:water campaign. Thanks to everyone who did because we collected $1000 together: yay! In about a year, we'll get GPS coordinates and some details on the well that money helped to build.

I'm still head over heels in love with Charity:water and so I check their blog regularly and follow them on Twitter. That's how I found out about Rachel - a little girl who gave up her 9th birthday to raise money for Charity:water.

She fell short of her $300 goal by $80 but vowed to do it again for her 10th birthday. Except that she died in a car crash on the highway a little after her birthday. A far too common occurrence, really. (35,000 people die every year in car crashes in the US) Her family decided to re-open her Charity:water campaign to accept donations in her memory. And people donated. A lot. And news coverage started and it went viral, in the best possible way. Her campaign is now at $1,193,109 and climbing. That will provide clean water to 59,655 people who desperately need it. That will radically change lives for so many people, it's almost hard to comprehend.

It's been wonderful to watch - what amazing things can happen when a whole lot of people each contribute a little. It's a little ray of awesome in a world of strife and struggle. Charity:water is planning to take Rachel's mom on a tour next year to see some of the villages where Rachel's wells end up getting built, to see first hand the effect of her daughter's legacy. I imagine that'll be pretty life-changing.

Here's the link if you want to keep an eye on Rachel's campaign and see how high it goes: http://mycharitywater.org/rachels9thbirthday

Holy cow, how have I not mentioned to all you fine people that my sister has started a fabulous blog!

She lives in London (England, not Ontario) and her blog is about her experiences with both England and Canada and tips on moving and living abroad.

I'm waiting for the post that explains why banks don't install way more ATMs, because every single one I saw in London had a queue. Also, I can't wait to see how they're going to cram all those visitors in for the Olympics, London appeared totally full to me. :)

Anyway - go check it out!

Did you know that black cats are the least likely to be adopted at shelters?

Poor, beautiful black kitties. All because our culture has some superstitions about black cats and bad luck/witches, or because black cats just aren't as visually attention-grabbing.

Some friends of mine went to the shelter to get a new cat a few months ago, after their very elderly cat passed away. I lobbied hard for them to get two cats (success!) and then told them they should really consider black cats as they are so often overlooked because of stupid superstitions. Sadly, they did not get any black cats. On the other hand - Suzy took in two black kittens that needed a home, so she's a hero to me (especially since they've proven to be naughty kittens on occasion).

We had a black cat growing up and she was fabulous, and our current handsome devil, Bernoulli, is pretty confident he's the best looking thing in our apartment and I can't argue with him on that, except to point out that Kitty is pretty easy on the eyes too.

Anyway - this a just a note to make you all aware that black cats are AWESOME. They have a wonderful, mysterious beauty and every now and then they do the stretch that makes them look like a Halloween decor item, which I think is a bonus.

Next time you or a friend go to adopt a cat, make a point of finding a black cat - they don't deserve to be overlooked and the shelter people will LOVE you. I guarantee you there will be plenty of black cats to choose from, sadly. But if you don't make a point of it, you'll probably get distracted by some redhead or tabby - they're so showy.

I'm reminded of this because Best Friends Animal Society is trying to increase adoptions of black cats with a Back in Black event and 50% off adoption fees for black cats at participating shelters. Maybe something our local shelter should consider!

Peter and I had cable tv for a while there (got a super discounted package such that it was cheaper to have internet+tv than just internet). I just cancelled it last week and feel much better now that it's gone. It's too easy to waste time that way.

Possibly related - Peter and I went out into nature yesterday. We went for a hike to Levitt Lake up by Squamish. Our guidebook was funny and the directions were kind of spotty (also, it dates from 1998 we discovered afterwards, which pre-dates our move to Vancouver), but we found the lake! It was pretty, but without a good place to hang out and relax so we didn't stay very long. Instead we had a snack, enjoyed the view, and then hiked out and went to the pub by the Squamish River (which is stunning). That's my kind of nature - viewed from a patio with a nice seat and food. The most amusing part of the trip was driving the car-share vehicle - a Smart Car - up the rutted logging road to the trail head. At one point we pulled over to let some SUVs and pickup trucks by.... they thought we were pretty funny but the Smart Car made it, so I think we win.

Like all hikes, I ended up with a headache after, which is awfully annoying. I should just take some excedrin before I even get to the trail really. Next time I'll try that.

When we got home we grabbed our books, I grabbed my knitting and we went to the park across the street, spread out a blanket and napped/read/knit in some nice dappled sun. Great way to recover from a more strenuous nature excursion.

Something is wrong with our cable box so I go to log on to my online account for support and when I log in it says "Something is wrong." They really hit the nail on the head there. I find that very amusing.

Have I mentioned how much I love the summer dance series going on at Robson Square? It's pretty fabulous. Friday nights are for ballroom/latin and Sunday afternoon is salsa. This used to go on every year but has been put on hold for a few years while they renovate Robson Square - but it's back - yay!


The ice rink surface is nice and slippery, great for turns. The organizers play some good tunes, and loads of people turn out to dance. It's fun!


This was one of the things I kind of daydreamed about when we started dancing - being able to walk around a city, stop in a public square and do a few dances and then continue on. Something about dancing out in the open air just seems right.


There are dancers of all skill levels and it's neat just to spend some time people watching there. The only thing lacking really, is a gelato place nearby. :)