Domesti- hahaha, good one.

I just want all you people out there who think I've been batchin' it for the past 5 months, living on Alphagetti and a bottle of ketchup, to be rest assured that I can actually take care of myself.

For example, this evening I steamed up some cauliflower, carrots, and potato, and cooked a couple pork chops to go with. While that was cooking, I actually made some muffins, from scratch no less: banana chocolate chip - because we all know that banana chocolate chip muffins are a perfectly acceptable breakfast food (a meal I've been missing on a regular basis lately). Currently, there is not a dirty plate in sight, and the clean ones, well, Jesus is drying them for me, but they'll be put away momentarily.

And to round out an evening of domesticated houseworkery, I went greeting card shopping for an hour. Oh the shear blissful joy of it all! Wedding, Mothers Day, Birthday, Baptism, Shower - all requiring a well thought out card. I was quite overwhelmed by the time I was done, as I do believe I have read every greeting card stocked by Hallmark.

Taking a little time out of the day for myself, I meandered over to the bookstore to peruse the bestseller rack. Books have not been a high priority for me as of late, but I thought I might splurge and delve into a classic. I must admit that I have never had an inkling to pick up a Jane Austen novel, but on this evening Pride & Prejudice caught my eye. I've heard that Mr Darcy is quite the romantic; I'll soon judge for myself. And if nothing else, the zombies should keep it interesting.

These boots were made for - well, you know...

If you go out in the woods today,
You're sure of a big surprise.

Well, you may have found me had you been wandering in the same section of woods I was. I was on a mission though: to cover as much ground as possible before it got dark, AND to break in my new boots. I covered close to 6km in about an hour and a half, and my new boots are finally starting to feel like they belong on my feet instead of on a store shelf. They still managed to leave the backs of my heals a little sore, but a couple more travels from Harrison Park to Inglis Falls over the next couple weeks should make them all ready for me to wear them on my very first overnight hiking adventure. 63km of the Bruce trail during the 3 days of the May long weekend. (And somehow, that's the warmup for our 78km, 8 day trip to Killarney in August - go figure.) If you're going to do something, you might as well do it hard-core, right? ...or die trying.

Anyway, getting out into the woods is great (even if it is an overly traveled, high-traffic path). ...I just wish I hadda remembered the steep climb straight up the escarpment just before reaching Inglis Falls. Oh well, all part of the fun. Heck, by the end of the summer I should be able to run this trail! (NOT)

Great night for a walk. The forest smelled of new tree growth, there's still a ton of runoff making the streams burst at their seams, chipmunks scurrying through the leaves, birds chirping in the trees, the creeping myrtle is all out in bloom making a carpet of green & purple, and the blackflies aren't out quite yet!

Evenings like this are great for appreciating God's great creation.

....yes, that really IS a purple heart spray painted on a tree. I'm sure that's someone's way of showing they really love nature!

Clip Clop?

I was in my kitchen this evening doing I don't know what (nothing kitchen-y that's for sure) and through the open window heard the distinct sound of horse hooves on pavement.

There are always Amish folk driving their buggies around out in the country - horse hooves are a pretty familiar sound to me. It took me a second, however, to realize that I don't often see Amish folk strolling around downtown. Country yes, city, not so much.

Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.
The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow
Gave the lustre of mid-day to objects below,
When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,

wait... wrong story.

I did go to the window though and saw, not the Amish buggy I was expecting, but a carriage pulled by 2 heavy horses complete with a driver in a top hat and coat tails, and loving couple hugging in the back.

Since when has this become a cheesy tourist town?!

40 Things...

This is one of those stupid facebook survey things. Usually I just read them and answer the questions in my head. But, this is one of the better ones I've seen (aside from the '25 random things' one that swept the nation and even made the news). Still not going to post it on facebook, but it might be entertaining to read on here, since only 6 people read this anyway.


40 Secrets about yourself.
Be honest no matter what.

1. Have you ever been asked out?
At least 4 times to my recollection. Oh, wait. 5.

2. Where do you live?
If I told you that, and then somehow my boss found out and suddenly appeared on my doorstep one day just to drop in for a drink, I would have to kill you. So its best you don't know.

3. Middle name?
Same as 90% of the girls born between 1975-1985. I'll give you 3 guesses, you probably only need one.

4. Current relationship status?
Pathetically Single.

5. Does your crush like you back?
Crushes never like you back. That's why they're called 'crushes', cause they crush you.

6. Current mood?
I'm not sure there's a word for it.

7. What color of underwear are you wearing?
I don't remember

8. What color shirt are you wearing?
That would require me looking down. That seems like a lot of work.

9. Are you missing anything?
yeah, my Dignity. (see last post if that makes no sense to you)

10 If you could go back in time and change anything, what would it be?
I'd probably try not to misplace my dignity.

11. If you had to be an animal, which would you choose?
The one that would let me fly higher than an eagle. Or, maybe just an eagle. Although, I don't love the idea of eating raw meat.

12. Ever had a near death experience?
Hmm... Well, there was that time when I was like 7 and my friend told me that the road was clear so I came tearing down a hill and across the road, and a car totally had to hit his breaks for me. I, uh, didn't put a lot of trust into that friend again. The car didn't really even come close to hitting me, but had my father found out - THAT would have been the near death experience!

13. An activity you do a lot?
Blog?

14. Name a song stuck in your head.
The last person who filled this out had "Little Bitty- Alan Jackson" written in here. So... guess what song is going through my head now?

15. An embarrassing song you like?
ooh... this is so bad I don't even want to write it: Forever and Always by .... ugh... Shania Twain... (barf)

16. If you could be anywhere, where would you be right now?
In my bed

17. Last time you cried?
You don't want to know

18. Have you ever sung in front of a large audience?
Does singing as part of a choir during a public school concert count? ...I didn't think so.

19. If you could have one super power what would it be?
As a child I frequently had dreams that I could fly. Like, frequently to the point that I thought it must actually be possible (not that I actually tried it - I'm not stupid). But its easy really, you just have to jump into the air, and then its a lot like swimming. Apparently, these are dreams I have inherited from my mother. *sigh*

20. First thing you notice about the opposite sex?
Height. Are you taller than me? You need to be taller than me.

21. What do you usually order from starbucks?
A big cup o' nothin'. I don't even like to walk into starbucks. The smell of the coffee is almost enough to make me want to throw up.

22. What's your biggest secret?
(I can fly - shhh... don't tell anyone)

23. Favorite color?
Blue

24. Do you still watch kiddie shows or tv shows?
yes? Poorly worded question.

25. What's on your walls?
I have a really nice beige paint theme happening.

26. What are you?
What am I? Old. Boring. A Gemini. Right handed. Caucasian. A Secret Spy. Addicted to facebook.

27. Do you speak any other language?
My pa tells me I mumble.

28. What's your favorite smell?
Spring

29. Describe your life in one word?
Confusing.

30. Favorite tv show?
You mean, only tv show that even matters? Grey's.

31. Like running?
Only if I'm beating someone

32. What are you thinking about right now?
How tired I am, and how fun these questions are, and wondering if those two things are related and how maybe the people who read this might think I'm actually on crack.

33. What should you be doing?
Sleeping

34. Who was the last person that made you upset/angry?
Groan. We're not actually gonna answer that one. If you think its you, and you wanna talk about it... you know how to reach me. Otherwise, ignore this.

35. How often do you talk to God?
About as often as I talk to a lot of my friends - not nearly enough.

36. do you like homework?
Nobody in their right mind likes homework.

37. If you could have any last name in the world, what would it be?
Jingleheimer-Schmidt

38. Do you act differently around the person you like?
I'm done with liking people. I expect my pastor to arrange a marriage for me any day now.

39. who/what made you cry last?
What? Come on. Why don't these things ask 'what was the last thing that made you laugh so hard milk came out your nose?' Wouldn't that be more entertaining? And you wanna know what my answer is? Well, about a year ago, I went on this road trip to a magical place called Nashville. While driving, I would frequently just think about thinking about a certain tv comercial and I would completely lose it and start laughing uncontrolably for like 10 minutes. You know... the kraft commercial where Geri Hall says 'jalapeno' wrong? yeah... Its still funny.

40. Who do you plan to tag in this?
Well... Since this isn't facebook, probably no one. Lucky you.

The problem with 2 hour drives...

Pretty much everywhere I care to visit on a regular basis is a 2 hour drive from my home (depending on factors such as traffic, weather, and police patrol). There is a significant problem with a 2 hour drive with only myself to keep me company - I think too much.

Two hours gives me just enough time to think and analyze and reminisce and ponder and debrief (if necessary), and generally leaves me with a feeling of nostalgia and/or pure exhaustion. Believe me you, if I could remember a quarter of what I thought about during the previous 2 hours, there'd be enough material to fill a rather intriguing blog for a very long time. Too bad for you I'm an introvert with an extremely short short-term memory! (Speaking of... dear 'Anonymous', if that is your real name, who commented on my last post: PPpppttttthhhhh)

In my reminiscing this evening, I re-lived a moment from last weekend. Last Sunday I went to my most very favourite Evangelical Lutheran Church to hang out with the most excellent youth there. After a fun filled afternoon of picnicking with the youth, I was bumbling around the youth room getting ready to leave and I said aloud, "I feel like I'm forgetting something". Instantaneously, the only youth left in the room replied, "Yeah, your dignity."

....(insert blank stare here)....

I've gotta admit, that was a pretty great burn! I'm proud of her - we have taught the children well! Unfortunately, she was right, and I'm not sure where my dignity is. ...probably in the same place I left my integrity. (Hardy, Har, Har, that was a joke. Sort of.)

Integrity

I've been to a number of grad ceremonies. Grad speakers... meh, sometimes they're good, sometimes not so much.

I was at a grad yesterday though, and I've gotta say, the speaker was excellent.

Don't ask me what exactly he spoke about - I'm not very good at remembering details like that.

I do remember him speaking a lot about integrity though. About, as Christians, how we should strive to live lives filled with integrity.

I like that. Its something I'd like to do better at.

I have a strong dislike for CBC Radio

But... I made a discovery yesterday.

Its called 'Concerts on Demand' on CBC Radio 2.

On this website, they've got 945 (and counting) recorded concerts of Canadian artists. Pick the artist you want to listen to, hit play, and you've got an hour or so of personal concert right on your computer. Its pretty neat. Sure, there's a whole bunch of stuff like jazz & orchestra music that I'll never listen to, but I have already listened to a Great Big Sea concert and a Steve Bell concert and am looking forward to hearing Ian Tyson, The Rankin Family, and Gordon Lightfoot. woo.
(yes... I know I'm lame)

Laundry Day

I did something yesterday that I normally only do about 1000 miles away from home while camping. I went to the laundry mat.

I know what you're thinking - 'Don't you having a washing machine at your place?'
Yes. Yes I do. It doesn't spin, and believe it or not, spinning is key to good laundrying.

I had been taking my laundry to my parents' house. They claim to not appreciate it too much when I show up, eat their food, watch their tv, and use all the precious electricity drying my clothes. I don't see what the problem is.

But I've had some pretty busy weekends lately so I haven't had a chance to get to my parents' house. And I'm going to be busy every weekend from now until about the end of August (except for a weekend or two in mid July). Laundry was starting to become a problem. So I scoped out the two laundry mats in town and ended up going to the one that wasn't closing within half an hour of me arriving.

TWELVE BUCKS!!! $12. It cost me twelve dollars to do my laundry! Granted, I did 4 pretty large loads in an hour and a half. If my own machine wasn't busted, it would have taken a good 3 days to do that much laundry. Plus, I met a boy.

....

No I didn't. But I thought about it. What better place to meet a boy than in a laundry mat, right?
Actually, what I thought about was this, and it made me smile:




I also thought about how the laundry mat could be better and how if it was MY laundry mat, it would be way more cool, and people would come just to hang out because it would be such an awesome place (not to mention, a great place to meet guys). It would be nice and bright and clean and have a nice lounge and free wifi.

But the real kicker is that in the time I was there, there were at least 10 other people there. Now, they didn't all do as much laundry as me, but if they all spent even $6 each while there, that's $60 in an hour - and not a staff member in sight. That's pretty easy money. I think OS has enough laundry to support a 3rd laundry mat. Anyone wanna invest in a new business?

Maybe salad is like beer?

If you know me at all, you know that I am of the belief that 'you can't make friends with salad' and also: I don't eat salad, my food eats salad.

Salad, after all, is made with lettuce. Lettuce tastes an awful lot like grass. And I was taught at a very young age that you shouldn't eat grass, its bad for you. So why would I want to eat lettuce?!

Now, I realize that there must be some sort of health benefit to eating the stuff; that its not actually like grass, that it is actually good for you. And I've tried really, really hard to be open minded about it. I even let it remain on chicken burgers or subs instead of picking it off like I used to.

But to actually eat a salad.... that's a stretch.

I have a theory. In general, people, upon their first taste, do not immediately like beer. Its an 'acquired' taste. Now why on God's green earth would anyone willingly drink something they don't like in order to someday acquire a taste for it is a little beyond me. But I did it and will admit to liking a nice cold beer on a hot summer day. So my theory is: what if you need to acquire a taste for salad and I just haven't done so yet?

Going out on a limb, I actually purchased a bag of salad (that's right, the bagged stuff - you didn't actually think I'd make a salad did you?) to test out my theory.

Filling a bowl of the dreaded stuff to eat with my dinner, I topped it off with some fresh tomato and grated cheese, then doused the stuff in enough salad dressing to mask the taste of the lettuce. I managed to eat ....most of it. Ok, well, more than half of it anyway.

How long is it gonna take to acquire the taste of something I really don't like anyway? I still say it tastes like grass. And you know who eats grass don't you? My food. Moo.

Money for Parks - That's a good thing

Its about time Cyprus Lake got some money for upgrades!


Peninsula Park to get $1 million upgrade

Posted By BILL HENRY, SUN TIMES STAFF

Virtually every visitor to Bruce Peninsula National Park will benefit from the $1-million federal government investment announced there Tuesday, park superintendent Ivan Smith said.

The money to revitalize the park's Cyprus Lake Campground includes wider and improved trail access to the famous grotto at Georgian Bay, which almost every visitor to the park wants to see, whether they camp at Cyprus Lake or just hike for the day, Smith said.

"It will certainly improve the experience of the hiking trails, including the grotto," he said.

Bruce-Grey Owen Sound MP Larry Miller announced the $1- million project at the Parks Canada Visitor Centre near Tobermory Tuesday afternoon. It includes new washroom facilities, fixtures and tent pads at campsites, new toilet buildings, new bear-proof recycling and waste collection facilities, as well as the trail improvements. The money will also pay for the design stages for a new campground entrance and registration building planned in the future.

This hiking thing is getting serious

Essentially, this is about what my current hiking gear looks like....


Its time for a bit of an upgrade.

So I'm off to Suntrail Outfitters in Hepworth for the afternoon. (Easter Monday and I don't have to work!)

Its been probably 15 years since I've last been in that store. I remember it being expensive, but that's about it. Should be interesting. I'm not sure if I'll actually even buy anything. It'll probably still take a visit to MEC for me to get everything I need.

By the way, the epic adventure to Killarney is a go. August 8th-16th. There are only 3 of us going - if you'd like to come along, let me know. Seriously, we'd really like a 4th person. 78km in 8 days: it's not going to be a grueling death march through the woods. For the most part, we're only going 7 or 8km/day.

If you're interested in something sooner, there's a bunch of us going to hike a section of the Bruce during the May long weekend. This one will probably be closer to 15-18km/day for 3 days. Again, let me know if you're interested.

So true

Pretty sure I had one of these dreams just the other day. My other 'favourite' one is where the school bus is driving down the road towards my house and I'm frantically trying to gather up all the things I need to take with me while still trying to make it to the bus on time. I never manage to find everything I need, and I always wake up before I find out if I missed the bus or not. So frustrating.

TGIGF

"Thank God its Good Friday"

yep.... my pastor actually used that line in his Good Friday sermon this morning.

no comment.

Sock it to 'em

4:30 on Holy Thursday.
I suppose I could be working... But the truth of the matter is that I finally finished my Terrible Horrible No Good Very Bad Financial Report of Doom today (the one that was due at the end of February), and with that weight being lifted from my shoulders for yet another year, I don't especially feel the need to hurry into another project. Especially right before a nice long 4 day weekend!

So here I am, thinking about socks and not work. Trust me, my job has nothing to do with socks - ever.

I bought two new pairs of socks the other day. Wool socks. Special wool socks. Hiking socks. I'm pretty keen on this whole idea of a backpacking adventure right now, to the point that I actually bought special hiking socks! Silly me.

Really though, this is no joke. From the myriad of information I have gleaned from the internet (effectively making me an expert on the subject - obviously), proper socks are second only to properly fitting boots in the battle against weary, blistered feet. I don't know about you, but I'd rather not get blisters 50km into the middle of nowhere! So I invested in two pair of socks.

And by 'invested' I mean, they were bloody expensive! $20/pair expensive! (just like the ones in the picture from Marks Work Warehouse)

But, mmm...., they are the most amazing socks I've ever worn in my life. (They should be for that price!) They are something else. Putting them on is like a mini vacation to the spa. The wool keeps my feet nice and dry and just the right temperature. And they're super cushy and soft. The best part is that they feel like they're hugging the arches of my feet! Socks with arch support - who woulda thought?! Pure wonderful bliss. I'm wearing a pair right now - they're heavenly.

Workin' out with Jesus

Yeah, that's right. I've been working out with Jesus. Wii Fit style.

This past weekend I had my Wii Fit at a 30hr famine because kids generally like playing on it. Mostly, they like the balance games - hula hoop, ski jump... fun stuff.

The problem with Wii Fit is that everyone wants to have their own Mii to represent themselves, but there is only room to register 8 Miis on the game. I explained this to a couple girls at the famine and told them that the best solution was to make one Mii to represent everyone. They took up the challenge and started creating a Mii which would include facial characteristics from each of them. Well, it wasn't long before a beard got involved and suddenly, we had a very 'Jesus' looking Mii. We went with it, and took turns playing as the Jesus Mii all afternoon. Funny thing was that we made Jesus 6ft tall and the first person to step onto the balance board couldn't have weighed more than 70lbs. A 6ft tall man should not have a BMI of 3.2! Jesus almost fell over under the weight of his own body!

You may be thinking - This is the most blasphemous thing I've ever heard! But... think about it for a second. Who better to represent a large group of youth at a church (or anywhere for that matter) than Jesus himself? Besides, its a pretty common Christian theme to have Christ living in you, or through you, or for your life to be a reflection of Jesus. I don't think its that far off. Plus, I'd like to think that God has enough sense of humour to see there's no harm in going for a 15 minute jog with a cartoon Jesus leading the way!

Confession: Over the past month or so, a few people who haven't seen me for 6 months or more, have been suggesting that I've lost weight. Its true. ...Haven't actually worked that hard at it, and the wii fit can't take any credit for it; mostly I just stopped with the snacking and don't eat so much anymore. But I sure do like the look of that graph on Wii Fit that shows me I've lost 15lbs since Christmas! That's a pre-bible college weight and I'm pretty happy about it.

I'm still a lazy out of shape bum. And I'm still never going to join a gym. But I do need to get a little more active before I go trying to conquer a certain 78km backpacking trail this summer. So, me and Jesus are going to do a little more jogging, and hula-hooping, and rhythm boxing. Wii!

SWF...

I spent last night and today with my adopted Vanderstelt family. They really are my second family, my home away from home. You know you're part of the family when they tease you, and I get teased mercilessly there!

Typically, the teasing is about relationships (or lack there of). Guys; lets find a guy for Amy. Now, you need to understand that I've been telling Pastor Bill for probably close to 10 years that I'm pretty open to the idea of him arranging a marriage for me. He hasn't been successful thus far, but recently he told me about a book that he was reading (I think it was "Quitting Church") that suggested that this whole dating thing is only like 100 years old, and maybe its wrong, and really, maybe it SHOULD be the religious leader's job to pair people. I think I told him to get a move on; I'm getting old you know!

Well, this weekend the children of the family took matters into their own hands and wrote up a list of requirements which a guy would have to meet to be deemed suitable for me:

-loves road trips
-fun
-outdoors man
-must know how to two-step
-Christian
-NOT from Desboro
-No mustache
-6 foot+ (preferable)
-enjoys facebook
-has a vehicle (prefer pickup truck - send picture)
-has a good/stable job
-goes to church EVERY Sunday; even after partying Saturday night
-NO dresses
-Likes reading (Harry Potter,the Bible)
-tolerate country music, if not love it
-NOT born in Grey County
-enjoys pie & chocolate milk :D
-never been in jail
-decision maker
-good at communicating
-likes the Vanderstelts
-NOT a vegetarian
-older than Emily (preferably in the 27-34 range)
-ok with kids

(I did tell them that I think I'd prefer someone born in Grey County, but they kept telling me that's not an option because I'm related to everyone in Grey County. And I'm not quite sure why they felt the need to specify that the guy must not be into wearing dresses...)

On the whole, I'm pretty satisfied with the list. And believe me, you, this list will probably be posted on their fridge and stay there until I actually find a guy who meets the requirements! All joking aside, I appreciate it because, as silly as it all is, their opinion does matter to me. Guys be warned, meeting my parents is nothing compared to meeting my Vanderstelt family!

How many more hours?

I just had a pretty fun 3 day weekend.

Hung out all day Friday & Saturday at a 30 hour famine with a dozen or so pretty fun youth. They raised, get this, $2,500 for World Vision!! Doubled what they raised last year! Amazing.

We got a tour of the Waterloo Regional Food Bank food distribution centre. Its MASSIVE! Freaking intense. They have somewhere between 1500-2000 volunteers who move something like 3 gabillion pounds of food every year. It made the one I saw out in Nova Scotia last summer look like a train wreck (I mean that in a nice way - the one in NS obviously just doesn't have the resources that the one in KW has).

I will confess - I cheated. During the 30 hours I ate: 3 granola bars, a cheese string, a handful of almonds, and a couple bites of an energy bar. I didn't raise any money, so I didn't actually have any obligation to fast. I was there to hang out with the kids, drive them around, and make sure they didn't kill each other - not to starve. And yes, I made sure to never eat in front of the children - that's just rude. (It was bad enough that we made them go to the grocery store on free sample day!)

This is my 3rd year chaperoning (and cheating) at the famine. I cheat because the last time I fully participate in a famine (6 or 7 years ago) I thought I was going to die! Something about sending my blood sugar level on a roller coaster ride all day long from only consuming sugary juice, combined with only a couple hours sleep, left me curled up in a fetal position shivering and sweating and feeling like I was going to puke and/or pass out. Left me a little leery to ever try the famine again. But this year seemed really easy (much easier than the year I ate the Big Mac at 2am - don't ever do that. Just trust me on that one). I'd like to think that its because maybe I'm healthier than I've been in about 4 years and my body can actually handle the odd swing in blood sugar levels; that's a good thing.

Anyhue, good times had by all.

One observation from this weekend: Kids don't wear watches anymore. Like, NONE of them! They all have these stupid bloody cell phones and iPods and crap that they rely on for everything - even telling time. But in general, they're too lazy to pull them out of a pocket to see what time it is, so they ask the nearest person wearing a watch. All day long on Saturday: "What time is it? How many more hours?" ack.

Its like sleeping in a bag

Everyone's got that one sleeping bag that they've had since they were a little kid. You know, the one that has traveled everywhere with you, had the crap beat out of it, been washed so many times that its lumpy, the zipper sticks, and there's a hole in it where the stuffing is falling out. But its YOUR bag, and you know when its going to keep you warm, and you know exactly how much room it takes to pack it, and you love that thing - God help the person who decides to throw it away on you!

My dad had one that was ancient. It was this bright robins egg blue on the outside, and a putrid orange on the inside. Down-filled, he said it was the best sleeping bag in the world! My mother hated it because it left a trail of feathers everywhere it went. ...Now that I think about it, maybe her throwing out that sleeping bag actually had something to do with him cutting down her lilac tree. huh...

Anyway, I got my sleeping bag when I was in the 12, 13, 14 age range - I don't really remember. It was a Christmas gift. Big and warm. Blue on the outside, classic plaid flannel inside. That thing has been to Albert twice, Nova Scotia twice, and everywhere in between. The thing is a beast! It spends most of its time these days riding around in the trunk of my car, and has definitely picked up a car perma-smell. Its lumpy from being washed too many times. Its lost most of its 'loft' (ability to keep me warm at night) from being washed too many times. Some of the seams are starting to give out and show off the stuffing. And its just big, huge really; one of the bulkiest sleeping bags I've ever seen in my life. But its mine. And I'm having trouble replacing it.

I want to go light, and efficient. I worry about a new bag keeping me warm, so I tend to look for the -5 and colder rated ones. I don't really trust that rating system... When it says -5, does it really mean -5? Or does it mean that you have to be used to sleeping outside naked in a snowstorm for this bag to keep you warm at -5?

Price is a bit of an issue too. Sure, there are the $30 Canadian Tire sleeping bags. But then there are the $300 MEC sleeping bags. How much is a good night's sleep worth to me? Does the price difference really make that big a difference in how comfy I'll be?

And then there's the shape. You've got the regular rectangular bag. The one that most people are used to; the one that gives you plenty of room to shift around at night. The one that is basically nothing more than a heavy blanket with a zipper around it. You're all comfy, but honestly, halfway through the night when you accidentally kick it off of yourself, you freeze to death. And then you've got your mummy bag. That one where you crawl into it like some sort of Houdini, you have to get someone else to zip you in because its so tight you can't move, then you wrap the little hood over your head - you look like a giant human cocoon, but you stay warm! (Hopefully you don't wake up in the middle of the night having to pee...)

*Sigh* I thought I found the perfect compromise. I went to Crappy Tire (I know, I know, that was my first mistake) and I bought a 'Barrel' bag. The perfect mesh of the two sleeping bag worlds! All the roomy goodness of a rectangular bag, all of the squishy hooded warmth of a mummy bag. Plus, its about a third of the size of my current sleeping bag, making it much more convenient for that backpacking I hope to do this summer. I brought it home, yanked it out of the stuff sack, unzipped it, and jumped in to test it out. Comfy? Very. Warm? Well, I was inside, so yes. Good fit? No. I'm 5'10", not some sort of massive giant; this bag barely covered my chest! Its a good 6 inches too short to be of any use to me. So disappointing.

I guess those extra $$ do make a difference. Anyone wanna go to MEC?