2 minutes of research probably helped me save hundreds of dollars

My Direct Energy renewal form just came through the mail. I don't know anything about natural gas which is why I signed up with this guy that knocked on my door 5 years ago. However, i remember hearing the riterate.ca radio commercials with the tagline of "Those who get it, save" so I decided to take a minute to check out their rates vs what Direct Energy was offering me in the renewal letter. Turns out that Riterate.ca is cheaper than Direct Energy so I was going to cancel my Direct Energy contract and sign up with riterate.ca. Fortunately, I took another minute to find this thread on redflagdeals.ca. Based on the info posted on this thread, I also checked out energyshop.com which confirmed that riterate.ca was indeed the cheapest out of all the gas marketer rates but I also ended up checking out the Enbridge Gas distribution rates (the rate directly from the utility) and it turns out that their rate is almost 50% cheaper than the fixed rate that is offered by riterate.ca.

Net: I am cancelling my super-expensive-I-can't-believe-I-have-been-with-them-for-5-years contract with Direct Energy and going back to the variable Enbridge rate. At least I know (from my 1 minute of research) that Enbridge does not make profit from the price of the natural gas. They only profit from the delivery of natural gas which you have to pay regardless of which natural gas supplier you choose.

Living vicariously ...through your child

I think generations of parents have tried to live vicariously through their kids. For example, my parents forced me to take piano lessons because they never had that opportunity. Now that I am a parent, I think about how my son is going to be a great jock, how he is going to be able to sing and play multiple instruments, and be the most popular kid at school. That pretty much sums up the complete opposite of my childhood.

Who knows, he may very well end up being a nerd that can't throw or catch a ball. Or worse, he may end up hanging out with the wrong group of friends and get into all kinds of trouble. At the end of the day, I guess we really don't have any control how our kids turn out. Thank God for His protection, grace and mercy!

Sick

I have been sick as a dog. I worked from home on Friday and half of Monday but decided it was time to get back into work today. This decision turned out to be a mistake because as soon as I got to work, I already felt like I was run over by a truck. Nevertheless, I soldiered on until 4:30 when my husband offered to drive me home. I took a nap until dinner time and now I am ready for bed again. Goodnight and good health to you all.

True Olympians

I was watching the opening ceremonies of the Paralympic games the other day. As the athletes entered the stadium, some walking and some in wheelchairs, tears began to stream down my face. As the commentators gave snipets of the athletes' background, I was so overwhelmed by their stories. I can't even begin to imagine what each of them has had to go through to get here. These athletes have had to overcome all the obstacles that life has dished out for them and still manage to emerge as champions. These are true Olympians.

My bucket list

In no particular order, here's my bucket list:
- go to Las Vegas and stay at a 5-star hotel
- take my kid(s) to Disneyland/world when they are old enough to remember it
- run a marathon
- write a book
- go to Europe
- stay in a hut that is floating on water like the ones they show in travel brochures
- volunteer at the Olympics
- celebrate our 10 year anniversary on a cruise
- celebrate our 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, etc.. wedding anniversary
- get an annual subscription to a live theatre production
- go on school field trips with my child(ren)
- pay off our mortgage
- start my own business
- have another kid
- take my kid(s) to live theatre
- become a stay-at-home mom
- become a children's bday party photographer
- join a synchro skating team
- go to a 5-star all-inclusive resort
- take my kid(s) camping
- get a zoo membership and go once a month
- sing in a real choir
- learn to play an instrument
- read through the whole Bible
- read the Bible every day for 1 year
- become a godmother
- volunteer
- retire in Vancouver
- become a board member for a non-profit organization
- live in another country
- throw my son a bday party at McDonald's

Stuff that I've already checked off my bucket list:
- get a driver's license as soon as I can
- learn to drive standard
- finish high school
- work in Hong Kong
- get a degree
- get a good job with a great company
- take a bartending course
- show my husband where I grew up in Calgary
- skate at the Olympic oval in Calgary with my husband
- take my husband to Hong Kong
- get married
- go on a cruise for our honeymoon
- go ziplining
- go on a biking/camping trip in PEI and Nova Scotia
- buy a house
- run a half-marathon
- get an MBA with honours
- have a kid
- go on mat leave for a year
- breastfeed for at least 1 year
- go to NYC with my husband
- take my son to Hong Kong
- get a job in marketing

Tom yum soup

My husband made me Tom yum soup today because I was craving it this morning. The soup had the perfect blend of spicy and sour flavour. It was even better than at the restaurant because it had a lot of chunky vegetables which made it a complete meal all on its own. tom YUM! :)

$30/month

We hardly ever watch TV so I called to cancel our cable now that the Olympics are over. This will save us $30/month. Last night, I turned on the TV to see if they have disconnected our cable yet and ended up wasting an hour watching Jeopardy and the Shopping Bags. Until they get around to disconnecting our service, I can still indulge in mind-numbing TV programming and waste my time so I don't waste my $30/month.

Practise makes perfect!

 

I really enjoy being a children's birthday party photographer. It's great to have all these opportunities to practise and to build up my portfolio!