not all was lost...

I must apologize to my readers... my last posting was somewhat grim, and it detracts from an overall positive experience at the Vancouver Garden Show.
some recent good news:

• the show was good. although the weather and crowds could have been better (as everyone agreed), I did cover my expenses and got to meet a great new customer base. I look forward to next year's event. my hat is off to some of the staff who organized things, especially Ana and Bree and Tabitha, who kept things so organized.


• and while our hats are off, thanks also to Rob at Mendelssohn who was able to save me some money on my bond for commercial entry into Canada. he won't know how much I appreciate it.


• thanks also go to the border guard who checked my passport and paperwork on my way back into the US this morning. it was nice to be welcomed home (and to have my paperwork accepted without freaking out at my passport photo--which is admittedly scary and thankfully will need to be replaced this year)


• my new camera and lens have arrived from Japan (because if we ordered it in Japan we could break down the payments over two years, which is the only way I could afford this badly needed upgrade).


• by the time he saw the doctor, Hiro's kidney stone appeared to have already passed out of the kidney and into his bladder. it subsequently passed out of his system. needless to say, it was very small (although painful on the way out). Hiro, under doctor's orders, saved the stone in a specimen jar and showed it to me on my return.

I took a lot of pictures in Vancouver. I started reviewing the shots and will post several entries in my photo diary soon. I'm especially glad that the shots I took at the UBC Botanical Gardens in the rain came out. of course, these may be the last shots I take with my trusty Nikon, if my new Canon is as good as I think it will be.
it's not all sunshine and seedcake, though. Hiro still needs to revisit his visa re-issue application because the US government has changed the process to an online system, and we're told that he has a strike against him because he can't/won't get a recommendation from CWU. why? perhaps because they'd need to admit on paper that they were incompetent. anyway, the re-issue route is still safer than the return to Japan route.
meanwhile, I've got to do some soul-searching myself.
my day job is at Microsoft, and I'm finding it difficult to stay motivated in my current position (the duties of which are hard to explain succinctly). there are times when that job is great, and I don't want to throw the baby out with the bath water, but there are times when I think I should just make a leap of faith now and try to support myself on my own. if only it wasn't just my life and happiness hanging in the balance... I'm very glad my manager there has been so helpful and patient until now. if anything wants to make me stay, it is the desire to show him that I can find my place at Microsoft; that his faith in me is not misplaced.
anyway, enough sermonizing. I've got work to do. I'm glad to be home to my own mattress too.