Magic Cottage Creations

Magic Cottage Creations
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August 13, 2015

Stress Creep

By Maryanna Gabriel

"You are giving me stress creep," my daughter says to me. Stress creep? Excuse me? I made my daughter repeat the comment. I was not sure I had heard her correctly. It turns out I had. I wondered if this was some upwardly mobile Torontonian, hip way to express oneself, for that is where she is based. It is a vivid way of putting things. I clearly understood the sentiment. I was merely pointing out that there was a cloud icon with a lightening bolt coming out of it placed on the weather report that happened to be the day she is marrying. It is a garden party after all. "Do you have an awning?" I asked rather sensibly under the circumstance. She replied, "That was Dad's job and he has not gotten around to it. Bring an umbrella." Hmmm. We hung up after other wedding chit chat. (I know you think I already wrote about her marrying. I did. She is marrying twice. This is the legal + relative/aunt/uncle type wedding.) I pondered the term. It occurred to me to look it up. Guess what? It's a completely legitimate scientific term that engineers use (my daughter is an engineer among other things). Define stress creep. "Stress Creep may be defined as a time-dependent deformation at elevated temperature and constant stress." Sounds like my week trying to save the garden in this heat wave... or rather my rather furtive looks in the mirror as time goes by... or perhaps how one feels with the visa bill...you get my gist. Love it. Lets wish the bride a wedding free of stress creep. Her mother too! And hey. One could always throw the term casually around  just for the mere pleasure of it.