Time for that monthly update!
I've been so busy maintaining the other blogs I've got going that I haven't had a chance to update on here. Excuses, excuses, I know.
Tomorrow I head off to Peru! I CAN. NOT. WAIT. If you're interested in keeping up todate on my travel stories please add my travel blog to your reader/followers//whatever: Travel With The A-Train
Life has been hilarious lately. I created a profile on Plenty of Fish and have been experiencing the dating world... POF guys, blind date guys, etc etc. I made a promise to myself of no relationships before the new year, and so I've just been seeing what's out there. I've had some good experiences and some weird experiences. I've got a top secret project happening so if you're keen to learn about that, let me know.
Updates from Peru to happen soon! Adios everyone!
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Monday, October 25, 2010
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Omg, what happened? Life, apparently
I finally feel like I can breathe again - my life has been sooo hectic for the last month or so! I pretty much got home from Europe and was thrown into things full swing.
Sept is always a busy month for me at work, being that the students are back to school etc. We've got back to school things going on, and then all of a sudden it's Thanksgiving. Now that Thanksgiving has come and gone things have settled down a bit.
I was out of the office helping set up a new office in St. Catharines for a few days, I've done 4 different trade shows since Sept 30th - Career fairs, international Opportunitie fairs, travel fairs and photography shows... I've done presentations and I've cooked massive dinners. I've had staff hand in their resignations. I bought a new computer, planned and unplanned a few trips. I've also been turkey dumped.
That is, if you can be broken up from a relationship that never really was official.
And even though I was pissed that day (I'm hardly to blame - I thought things were progressing cuz all signs pointed to that fact) I knew deep down that it was never going to be forever and if it had been I would have been miserable! Haha... so after a good angry drinking session I was on the mend and back in the game.
Things have been comin up Alanna as of late...
I found out about a job that would be perfect for me, though I don't know whether I'll apply
... and then I found out about a free trip to Peru offered through work. Catch is I just have to market the destination and train my staff. Hardly difficult - that would happen anyway!
... and I'll likely jinx it by saying it, but I've met some pretty intriguing people through various channels and it's refreshing to know that people who think the way I do still exist.
So things are good. I've got about 2 weeks before I have a week off... And then another 2 weeks before another week off... and then just 3 weeks before Xmas! Guess that means I should get myself started on planning my xmas shopping.
Sept is always a busy month for me at work, being that the students are back to school etc. We've got back to school things going on, and then all of a sudden it's Thanksgiving. Now that Thanksgiving has come and gone things have settled down a bit.
I was out of the office helping set up a new office in St. Catharines for a few days, I've done 4 different trade shows since Sept 30th - Career fairs, international Opportunitie fairs, travel fairs and photography shows... I've done presentations and I've cooked massive dinners. I've had staff hand in their resignations. I bought a new computer, planned and unplanned a few trips. I've also been turkey dumped.
That is, if you can be broken up from a relationship that never really was official.
And even though I was pissed that day (I'm hardly to blame - I thought things were progressing cuz all signs pointed to that fact) I knew deep down that it was never going to be forever and if it had been I would have been miserable! Haha... so after a good angry drinking session I was on the mend and back in the game.
Things have been comin up Alanna as of late...
I found out about a job that would be perfect for me, though I don't know whether I'll apply
... and then I found out about a free trip to Peru offered through work. Catch is I just have to market the destination and train my staff. Hardly difficult - that would happen anyway!
... and I'll likely jinx it by saying it, but I've met some pretty intriguing people through various channels and it's refreshing to know that people who think the way I do still exist.
So things are good. I've got about 2 weeks before I have a week off... And then another 2 weeks before another week off... and then just 3 weeks before Xmas! Guess that means I should get myself started on planning my xmas shopping.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Links to photos on FB
So that everyone can see my photos - here are the links to the albums I've posted from my trip:
Dear Helsinki, I think I have a crush on you
To Paris, with Love
You Cannes have fun...and it sure was Nice
Sonya and Julian's Wedding
Dear Helsinki, I think I have a crush on you
To Paris, with Love
You Cannes have fun...and it sure was Nice
Sonya and Julian's Wedding
5 Flights, 2 trains and more tube rides than one needs (France/UK Part 4)
My first original bit of this update - since I was so busy with getting to the UK and prepping for the wedding I didn't have much chance to update.
Aug 26
Had a relatively uneventful night - Janet finally recovered from her hangover after I'd gone on an epic journey up the hill to this old castle overlooking Nice. It was amazing. Though far too many stairs. I wasn't prepared for the massive hike I took myself on and thus did all this walking in my flip flops.
Got lost in Old Nice, but that was okay because it's a fantastic place to get lost in.
Back to the hostel and got Janet moving. We met up with Jake and the 3 of us went for dinner in Old Nice (nevermind that I had just come from there). I showed them where I'd gotten some amazing gelato and we wandered around for a little while.
Attempted to drink on the beach but everyone was just exhausted so it was an early night.
Aug 27
Up and packed around 9... went and got some breakfast and strolled along the boardwalk one more time.
Bus to the airport, checked in and got on the plane - lucky I did too, as Janet was stranded in Nice one more day due to a whole host of issues.
Froze on the plane since I didn't think to grab my sweater as it was 27C outside in Nice. Should have thought though, since it was about 18C when I touched down in London. It was fun to fly into London City Airport since we flew over all the iconic landmarks - the Gerkin, the London Eye, Tower of London, Tower Bridge etc.
Got off the plane and figured out how to get to the hotel. Waited for the guys (forever) at the Aldgate East (Leman St. Entrance) because I didn't think walking was going to be an effective way to find people. Eventually they found me and we went to the hotel. Almost got hit by a car 3 times within as many blocks. Pretty much every time I came to a street I looked the wrong way and stepped out into traffic.
Dumped the stuff off and put on warmer clothes. Off to the pub at the end of the street.
Back to the hotel to figure out what we were doing in regards to meeting Huff's sister Liz and her bf Jimmy. Grabbed our map and set off to find them on commercial street.
Got lost. Walked in circles... realized our map only shows bus routes. Flippin useless. Found a pub. Decided it was best to stay there while we waited.
Liz and Jimmy found us - off to Brick lane we went. Got haggled by the guys at all the curry shops all saying they'd give us the best deal (how odd is that - the brown guys saying they'll GIVE us a good deal! Usually they're wanting the good deal) Got overwhelmed and had to stop for a drink... 2 for £5!! How could we say no, really.
Walked back down Brick Lane with the goal of getting a couple rounds of drinks, papadums, starters, mains, rice and naan, all for £10 each. We almost succeeded. Got starters, mains, rice, naan, and 20% off drinks bought at the store for £10 each. Not too bad. Picked probably all the hottest things on the menu and had a great time.
Back to the hotel we went, I crawled into the beds (we had 2 twin beds pushed up beside each other for the 3 of us) and slept on the crack between the guys.
Aug 28
Up super early to pack and get ready for the wedding. Packed an overnight bag and had a shower. Out the door to the tube station and off to Kings Cross station. Dropped my big bag off at the left luggage people and went to buy a ticket. Figured it made sense to buy a return ticket to make Sunday easier.
Got some breakfast (muffin and coffee) and onto the train. Yay for free wifi on the train.
Got picked up at the train station by someone, but not sure who he was (found out later that he was the best man's father). Dropped off at the hotel where the girls were getting ready. And cue photo-gal....
Shot the girls getting ready, got myself ready and off to the church we went. Wedding ceremony was long (I thought) for a protestant wedding but easy to shoot due to great lighting conditions. Was befriended by the videographer.
Will skip all the boring wedding info - it was a great time, suffice it to say. Off to the hotel, completely exhausted, passed out pretty much the moment I laid down.
Aug 28
Slept in a bit, though it seems the only sunny parts of the day in the UK are at 6am.
Walked to a McD's for breakfast, but missed breakfast. Back to the hotel to get our stuff and head to the train station. My foresight of getting a train ticket for the return was pointless because we were leaving from a different station and on a different line. They couldn't even exchange it for me.
Arrived in Liverpool station - had to tube to Kings Cross to get the guy's stuff. I left mine there to make life easier. Tube to Aldgate - check back into the hotel from the other day, have a nap. Coordinate with Sonya, plan to go to her place around 7:30. Head out in search of something to eat. Walk... stop at a pub.... walk.... find a grocery store, buy random food.... walk.... stop and eat random food outside a university....walk.... debate another pub... walk... and arrive at Sonya's.
Enjoyed some finger foods at Sonya's and some drinks along the canal behind her house. Put the pictures on her computer and then had to head back to the tube station. Tubed to Kings Cross, grabbed my massive backpack and tubed to the airport... 25 stops later. Arrived at Heathrow something like 12:00am.
Scouted out a spot to sleep - another girl joined me and we shared the bench. Alternated between emailing people and attempting to sleep. The airport was insanely cold. Eventually at 5:20am the check in desk opened and I was able to check my bags. Proceeded to customs because I really just wanted to check in and eat something and nap til my flight left.
Got on the flight - slept the entire way to Helsinki.
Helsinki to NYC was a good plane - lots of movies to watch and food was decent too. Arriving was something of a panic situation because there didn't seem to be enough time to get my stuff and get to the next flight. Luckily they said it was delayed so I didnt' need to panic. Got onto the smallest plane ever (only 3 seats in each row) and took off to Toronto.
I was an extremely happy girl when Adrian told me that he'd pick me up, so I didn't have to wait for the shuttle to take me home. He met me outside the arrivals and took me home...
Aug 31
Back to work. Sigh. Pictures will be up on my photo blog soon!
Aug 26
Had a relatively uneventful night - Janet finally recovered from her hangover after I'd gone on an epic journey up the hill to this old castle overlooking Nice. It was amazing. Though far too many stairs. I wasn't prepared for the massive hike I took myself on and thus did all this walking in my flip flops.
Got lost in Old Nice, but that was okay because it's a fantastic place to get lost in.
Back to the hostel and got Janet moving. We met up with Jake and the 3 of us went for dinner in Old Nice (nevermind that I had just come from there). I showed them where I'd gotten some amazing gelato and we wandered around for a little while.
Attempted to drink on the beach but everyone was just exhausted so it was an early night.
Aug 27
Up and packed around 9... went and got some breakfast and strolled along the boardwalk one more time.
Bus to the airport, checked in and got on the plane - lucky I did too, as Janet was stranded in Nice one more day due to a whole host of issues.
Froze on the plane since I didn't think to grab my sweater as it was 27C outside in Nice. Should have thought though, since it was about 18C when I touched down in London. It was fun to fly into London City Airport since we flew over all the iconic landmarks - the Gerkin, the London Eye, Tower of London, Tower Bridge etc.
Got off the plane and figured out how to get to the hotel. Waited for the guys (forever) at the Aldgate East (Leman St. Entrance) because I didn't think walking was going to be an effective way to find people. Eventually they found me and we went to the hotel. Almost got hit by a car 3 times within as many blocks. Pretty much every time I came to a street I looked the wrong way and stepped out into traffic.
Dumped the stuff off and put on warmer clothes. Off to the pub at the end of the street.
Back to the hotel to figure out what we were doing in regards to meeting Huff's sister Liz and her bf Jimmy. Grabbed our map and set off to find them on commercial street.
Got lost. Walked in circles... realized our map only shows bus routes. Flippin useless. Found a pub. Decided it was best to stay there while we waited.
Liz and Jimmy found us - off to Brick lane we went. Got haggled by the guys at all the curry shops all saying they'd give us the best deal (how odd is that - the brown guys saying they'll GIVE us a good deal! Usually they're wanting the good deal) Got overwhelmed and had to stop for a drink... 2 for £5!! How could we say no, really.
Walked back down Brick Lane with the goal of getting a couple rounds of drinks, papadums, starters, mains, rice and naan, all for £10 each. We almost succeeded. Got starters, mains, rice, naan, and 20% off drinks bought at the store for £10 each. Not too bad. Picked probably all the hottest things on the menu and had a great time.
Back to the hotel we went, I crawled into the beds (we had 2 twin beds pushed up beside each other for the 3 of us) and slept on the crack between the guys.
Aug 28
Up super early to pack and get ready for the wedding. Packed an overnight bag and had a shower. Out the door to the tube station and off to Kings Cross station. Dropped my big bag off at the left luggage people and went to buy a ticket. Figured it made sense to buy a return ticket to make Sunday easier.
Got some breakfast (muffin and coffee) and onto the train. Yay for free wifi on the train.
Got picked up at the train station by someone, but not sure who he was (found out later that he was the best man's father). Dropped off at the hotel where the girls were getting ready. And cue photo-gal....
Shot the girls getting ready, got myself ready and off to the church we went. Wedding ceremony was long (I thought) for a protestant wedding but easy to shoot due to great lighting conditions. Was befriended by the videographer.
Will skip all the boring wedding info - it was a great time, suffice it to say. Off to the hotel, completely exhausted, passed out pretty much the moment I laid down.
Aug 28
Slept in a bit, though it seems the only sunny parts of the day in the UK are at 6am.
Walked to a McD's for breakfast, but missed breakfast. Back to the hotel to get our stuff and head to the train station. My foresight of getting a train ticket for the return was pointless because we were leaving from a different station and on a different line. They couldn't even exchange it for me.
Arrived in Liverpool station - had to tube to Kings Cross to get the guy's stuff. I left mine there to make life easier. Tube to Aldgate - check back into the hotel from the other day, have a nap. Coordinate with Sonya, plan to go to her place around 7:30. Head out in search of something to eat. Walk... stop at a pub.... walk.... find a grocery store, buy random food.... walk.... stop and eat random food outside a university....walk.... debate another pub... walk... and arrive at Sonya's.
Enjoyed some finger foods at Sonya's and some drinks along the canal behind her house. Put the pictures on her computer and then had to head back to the tube station. Tubed to Kings Cross, grabbed my massive backpack and tubed to the airport... 25 stops later. Arrived at Heathrow something like 12:00am.
Scouted out a spot to sleep - another girl joined me and we shared the bench. Alternated between emailing people and attempting to sleep. The airport was insanely cold. Eventually at 5:20am the check in desk opened and I was able to check my bags. Proceeded to customs because I really just wanted to check in and eat something and nap til my flight left.
Got on the flight - slept the entire way to Helsinki.
Helsinki to NYC was a good plane - lots of movies to watch and food was decent too. Arriving was something of a panic situation because there didn't seem to be enough time to get my stuff and get to the next flight. Luckily they said it was delayed so I didnt' need to panic. Got onto the smallest plane ever (only 3 seats in each row) and took off to Toronto.
I was an extremely happy girl when Adrian told me that he'd pick me up, so I didn't have to wait for the shuttle to take me home. He met me outside the arrivals and took me home...
Aug 31
Back to work. Sigh. Pictures will be up on my photo blog soon!
Nice is nice... (France/Finland Part 3)
Haven't updated much since all I've done for 3 days is basically sit on the (rocky) beach and drink wine and beer.
Absolutely not complaining. There was a guy playing trumpet on the beach earlier. Was pretty awesome.
Had an amusing evening last nigt-drinking beer on the beach, playing drinking games. Went to wayne's, the only bar we've been to...with the exception of the completely random reggae bar we went to that we went to that the tall guy with dreads paid for 5 of us to get into... And then bought us drinks. Not a fan of Cuba libre drinks or vodka shots.
Met random guys from the uk, though they abandoned me at the bar and I had to finish my drink alone.
A tip- the correct answer to random guys who pull over and open their car window to ask "do you have a boyfriend" is always "yes" whether or not that is the case. I can't imagine what stories I'd have if I'd answered no. :S
Another tip-drinking every type of alcohol known to man is recipe for disaster...poor Janet has been just above corpse status all day.
Breakfast was a coffee at a Turkish or morroccan cafe and then a fantastic chocolate croissant on the boardwalk overlooking the water.
Hmmm seems 3hours on the beach may have been too much. My skin on my back hurts a bit... And I have a significant tan line across my chest and on my butt... Oh well.
Not sure what to do with my afternoon. Janet is pretty much comatose and the guys have afternoon plans as well.
Perhaps just read my book seaside or sit and enjoy a coffee somewhere. Still have wine to drink... May be flying solo on that one.
Absolutely not complaining. There was a guy playing trumpet on the beach earlier. Was pretty awesome.
Had an amusing evening last nigt-drinking beer on the beach, playing drinking games. Went to wayne's, the only bar we've been to...with the exception of the completely random reggae bar we went to that we went to that the tall guy with dreads paid for 5 of us to get into... And then bought us drinks. Not a fan of Cuba libre drinks or vodka shots.
Met random guys from the uk, though they abandoned me at the bar and I had to finish my drink alone.
A tip- the correct answer to random guys who pull over and open their car window to ask "do you have a boyfriend" is always "yes" whether or not that is the case. I can't imagine what stories I'd have if I'd answered no. :S
Another tip-drinking every type of alcohol known to man is recipe for disaster...poor Janet has been just above corpse status all day.
Breakfast was a coffee at a Turkish or morroccan cafe and then a fantastic chocolate croissant on the boardwalk overlooking the water.
Hmmm seems 3hours on the beach may have been too much. My skin on my back hurts a bit... And I have a significant tan line across my chest and on my butt... Oh well.
Not sure what to do with my afternoon. Janet is pretty much comatose and the guys have afternoon plans as well.
Perhaps just read my book seaside or sit and enjoy a coffee somewhere. Still have wine to drink... May be flying solo on that one.
So, I can't think of a good reason NOT to live in Europe.... (France/Finland Part 2)
Aug 22
2:48pm
Leaving paris to head to Cannes/Grasse to visit Olivier. Train left late, story of my life with trains. Didn't have anywhere near enough time in Paris, seems to be a theme- not enough time anywhere
Sitting beside a very nice German girl who speaks French, English, and probably 8 other languages. Jealous of these Europeans, with their abilities to communicate with everyone everywhere and so grateful for their patience with me, the so obviously clueless canadian girl who looks at them helplessly at the onset if any communication, attempting to get out "je ne parle francais... Anglais?" before they think I'm a complete moron.
I seem to have an ability to attract the black men of Paris-the only guys who've hit on me have been such. It doesn't come without it's merits, as the (very attractive) bus driver this morning either thought I was cute while clueless and when I got off the bus too soon he told me to get back on and he desposited me off at the correct stop.
The French children also seem to enjoy me. Had a small baby immitating me yesterday on the metro, sticking her tongue out at me in response to me doing the same thing to her. on the train today a kid, probably about 4 was entertaining himself and I by playing a hide and seek/peek a boo game with me...and annoying his mother in the process.
11:54
Olivier met me at the cannes train station and we drove back to his house. It was nice to not have to carry my backpack any longer. Arrived here and met his cat Sidney, who is much smaller than hamish though really that's most cats I think.
Anne-Sophie, Oliviers girlfriend arrived home from work at the tourist place in town and we all went in the pool. I'm incredibly pale in comparison to everyone here!!
Went to Antibes for dinner, got to have typical French dinner of crepes with cheese and ham- le galettes jambon et fromage avec un salade croquante - with crunchy salad. Whatever cheese they used was awesome!! Reminded me of the cheese from Greece, saganaki.
After eating we strolled along the pier with yacht envy. Some seriously massive boats! Multi million dollar ones I mean.
Trying to use more French. My comprehension is improving though I'm still not confident with speaking. Tomorrow we will go to Cannes and enjoy the beach, work on our tans and then not sure. On tues before I head to Nice, Anne-Sophie is going to take me to one of the area perfume factories and tell me about the process.
Exhausted now, looking forward to sleep
2:48pm
Leaving paris to head to Cannes/Grasse to visit Olivier. Train left late, story of my life with trains. Didn't have anywhere near enough time in Paris, seems to be a theme- not enough time anywhere
Sitting beside a very nice German girl who speaks French, English, and probably 8 other languages. Jealous of these Europeans, with their abilities to communicate with everyone everywhere and so grateful for their patience with me, the so obviously clueless canadian girl who looks at them helplessly at the onset if any communication, attempting to get out "je ne parle francais... Anglais?" before they think I'm a complete moron.
I seem to have an ability to attract the black men of Paris-the only guys who've hit on me have been such. It doesn't come without it's merits, as the (very attractive) bus driver this morning either thought I was cute while clueless and when I got off the bus too soon he told me to get back on and he desposited me off at the correct stop.
The French children also seem to enjoy me. Had a small baby immitating me yesterday on the metro, sticking her tongue out at me in response to me doing the same thing to her. on the train today a kid, probably about 4 was entertaining himself and I by playing a hide and seek/peek a boo game with me...and annoying his mother in the process.
11:54
Olivier met me at the cannes train station and we drove back to his house. It was nice to not have to carry my backpack any longer. Arrived here and met his cat Sidney, who is much smaller than hamish though really that's most cats I think.
Anne-Sophie, Oliviers girlfriend arrived home from work at the tourist place in town and we all went in the pool. I'm incredibly pale in comparison to everyone here!!
Went to Antibes for dinner, got to have typical French dinner of crepes with cheese and ham- le galettes jambon et fromage avec un salade croquante - with crunchy salad. Whatever cheese they used was awesome!! Reminded me of the cheese from Greece, saganaki.
After eating we strolled along the pier with yacht envy. Some seriously massive boats! Multi million dollar ones I mean.
Trying to use more French. My comprehension is improving though I'm still not confident with speaking. Tomorrow we will go to Cannes and enjoy the beach, work on our tans and then not sure. On tues before I head to Nice, Anne-Sophie is going to take me to one of the area perfume factories and tell me about the process.
Exhausted now, looking forward to sleep
The bus driver is into Druids? and other musings while traveling (Finland/France Part 1)
This year on my travels I decided to type up some thoughts etc while on my journeys... I posted it on facebook as I went, and I'm just far too lazy to come up with something original... so here it is.
Aug 18
The airbus picked me up, and within minutes the driver informed me he was a musician who would be performing at a week long Pagan festival north of toronto. He makes mention that the the people there are happy and people in "real life" ate bitter assholes.
He has a book entitled "the mysteries of Druidry" laying on the floor of the bus
Toronto Pearson airport finally has wifi. Free, I mean.
The woman at the Finnair check in counter informs me that my bag weighs 14kg, and I think I've packed everything I ever like to wear. What are people crying about when I tell them they only get 20kg??
My bag gets checked all the way thru to Paris and i'm able to grab a change of clothes to land in Paris with. Forgot the toothbrush but somehow have a massive tube of toothpaste so I'll be okay.
Realize that Swiss Chalet has a 300% mark up on their Rickard's Red after ordering a drink. Don't care since really there isn't any other bar to go to here. Remember after security that all the "good" stuff at this airport is after the duty free section.
Thoughts while travelling
Aug 19
Slept most of thr flight had an empty seat between me and the old Asian man sharing my row. Hope he didn't mind I took over the seat. Slept in about 100 dfferent contorted positions due to there being about an inch from my knees to the seat ahead. Can't speak for the food as I skipped dinner. Breakfast was a stale bun with some turkey type meat and some cheese and somthing vaguely resembling lettuce. No free wine :(
Woke up when they announced the "breakfast" and coffee (yay coffee!!) and was treated to views of fjords and the craggy coast line of northern Norway. Incredibly beautiful and just seeing it from the plane makes me think Norway deserved to be on my list of places to visit.
It's neat to see the roads snaking thru the rugged terrain, bridges spanning the bodies of water. Can't really imagine what possessed people to settle way up here with limited access to the world. I have a feeling that unless you go off to school or catch the travel bug you likely stay for life.
2:52pm
On the bus to the city centre to meet Atte. Pretty sure a girl just got on with a hula hoop. In it's own carrying case. Is hula big here?
From what I could tell from the plane, finland is covered in tall evergreen trees. I could have sworn I was landing in northern Canada. Maybe everything north of the 49th parallel is covered in evergreens?
Can't read a word anything says. Probably a good thing I'm just going to the city and back. Correction- only words I recognize are ones that ikea has named stuff after like Malm. Don't know what/where that is, just know my entire bedroom set is names after it.
My little camera appears to be broken, thank god Adrian loaned me his for my underwater housing.
Aug 20
10:15am
Rafe was rigjt, helsinki is awesome- the people are friendly and the city is beautiful. I think I have a crush on the city.
Learned Sweden is the other official language and the signs are in both languages. Which explains the familiar ikea words.
Moomi is a famous childrens cartoon character. Must bring something with him home for Wylie.
The free wireless at HEL made me angry.
Finland is definitely canada's cousin-the people love to go to the cottage, BBQ, and drink beer.
J'ai mal à tete parce-que je (enjoyed) trop des boissons dans Helsinki!!
Enjoyed a picnic with reindeer meat, meatballs, wine and fruit at suomolinna (sp?) and walked around tr fortress. Met up with some of Atte's coworkers randomly and a night of drinking proceeded.
6:06pm
Getting from the airport to the gard de Nord was okay. After standing in an epic line I was able to use my rail pass to get from cdg to the city. Saved me 8.70€!
Made friends with an old French man that vaguely resembled robin Williams if he was French and less hairy.
Figured at gard de nord I would be proactive and book my train ticket to Cannes saving myself having to do it Sunday morning. This consisted of waiting in the wrong (long) line about 4 times. Once I was finally able to book my train (only 3€!) I was off to figure out the metro and get to the hostel to drop my stuff off and freshen up. And find some food, since the sandwich given to me on the plane wasn't doing much anymore.
Found the hostel, found my room-4 european floors up!! and dumped everything on the bed.
Checked up on Internet and went for a walk to find food. I think I have language stage fright because I panic when I have to speak French. Went back to the room and had a short nap.
Left again with camera in hand in search of the louvre, as it appeared within reasonable walking distance. Grabbed a chocolate croissant to eat. Found a street, rue st Denis, with no cars and too many places offering crepes for 1€. I think I know what is for dinner. Resting my tres fatigue pieds dans la fountaine a la louvre.
9:08pm
After the louvre I walked down the champes élysées...all the while singing the nofx song in my head. Unfortunately I didn't make a friend like the song is about.
My feet were killing me, but I figured I should maybe go look at the eifel tower while I was relatively close. Strolled over there, marvelled at the massive lines to go up to the top...and then laid on the grass for a bit. Took the metro home and stopped at the very conveniently located grocery store. Bought some bread, turkey, Italian mozzerella and some yogurt. Oh yes, and a tall can of beer. Made a very unexciting sandwich and now laying on my bed trying to decide what to do next. Should check out the lights of Paris but my feet are just completely dead.
Tomorrow thinking I'm going to do the bike tour I'd read about, as I really don't think I can handle anymore walking!! leanot with my flip flops and not until I get some serious sleep!
Aug 18
The airbus picked me up, and within minutes the driver informed me he was a musician who would be performing at a week long Pagan festival north of toronto. He makes mention that the the people there are happy and people in "real life" ate bitter assholes.
He has a book entitled "the mysteries of Druidry" laying on the floor of the bus
Toronto Pearson airport finally has wifi. Free, I mean.
The woman at the Finnair check in counter informs me that my bag weighs 14kg, and I think I've packed everything I ever like to wear. What are people crying about when I tell them they only get 20kg??
My bag gets checked all the way thru to Paris and i'm able to grab a change of clothes to land in Paris with. Forgot the toothbrush but somehow have a massive tube of toothpaste so I'll be okay.
Realize that Swiss Chalet has a 300% mark up on their Rickard's Red after ordering a drink. Don't care since really there isn't any other bar to go to here. Remember after security that all the "good" stuff at this airport is after the duty free section.
Thoughts while travelling
Aug 19
Slept most of thr flight had an empty seat between me and the old Asian man sharing my row. Hope he didn't mind I took over the seat. Slept in about 100 dfferent contorted positions due to there being about an inch from my knees to the seat ahead. Can't speak for the food as I skipped dinner. Breakfast was a stale bun with some turkey type meat and some cheese and somthing vaguely resembling lettuce. No free wine :(
Woke up when they announced the "breakfast" and coffee (yay coffee!!) and was treated to views of fjords and the craggy coast line of northern Norway. Incredibly beautiful and just seeing it from the plane makes me think Norway deserved to be on my list of places to visit.
It's neat to see the roads snaking thru the rugged terrain, bridges spanning the bodies of water. Can't really imagine what possessed people to settle way up here with limited access to the world. I have a feeling that unless you go off to school or catch the travel bug you likely stay for life.
2:52pm
On the bus to the city centre to meet Atte. Pretty sure a girl just got on with a hula hoop. In it's own carrying case. Is hula big here?
From what I could tell from the plane, finland is covered in tall evergreen trees. I could have sworn I was landing in northern Canada. Maybe everything north of the 49th parallel is covered in evergreens?
Can't read a word anything says. Probably a good thing I'm just going to the city and back. Correction- only words I recognize are ones that ikea has named stuff after like Malm. Don't know what/where that is, just know my entire bedroom set is names after it.
My little camera appears to be broken, thank god Adrian loaned me his for my underwater housing.
Aug 20
10:15am
Rafe was rigjt, helsinki is awesome- the people are friendly and the city is beautiful. I think I have a crush on the city.
Learned Sweden is the other official language and the signs are in both languages. Which explains the familiar ikea words.
Moomi is a famous childrens cartoon character. Must bring something with him home for Wylie.
The free wireless at HEL made me angry.
Finland is definitely canada's cousin-the people love to go to the cottage, BBQ, and drink beer.
J'ai mal à tete parce-que je (enjoyed) trop des boissons dans Helsinki!!
Enjoyed a picnic with reindeer meat, meatballs, wine and fruit at suomolinna (sp?) and walked around tr fortress. Met up with some of Atte's coworkers randomly and a night of drinking proceeded.
6:06pm
Getting from the airport to the gard de Nord was okay. After standing in an epic line I was able to use my rail pass to get from cdg to the city. Saved me 8.70€!
Made friends with an old French man that vaguely resembled robin Williams if he was French and less hairy.
Figured at gard de nord I would be proactive and book my train ticket to Cannes saving myself having to do it Sunday morning. This consisted of waiting in the wrong (long) line about 4 times. Once I was finally able to book my train (only 3€!) I was off to figure out the metro and get to the hostel to drop my stuff off and freshen up. And find some food, since the sandwich given to me on the plane wasn't doing much anymore.
Found the hostel, found my room-4 european floors up!! and dumped everything on the bed.
Checked up on Internet and went for a walk to find food. I think I have language stage fright because I panic when I have to speak French. Went back to the room and had a short nap.
Left again with camera in hand in search of the louvre, as it appeared within reasonable walking distance. Grabbed a chocolate croissant to eat. Found a street, rue st Denis, with no cars and too many places offering crepes for 1€. I think I know what is for dinner. Resting my tres fatigue pieds dans la fountaine a la louvre.
9:08pm
After the louvre I walked down the champes élysées...all the while singing the nofx song in my head. Unfortunately I didn't make a friend like the song is about.
My feet were killing me, but I figured I should maybe go look at the eifel tower while I was relatively close. Strolled over there, marvelled at the massive lines to go up to the top...and then laid on the grass for a bit. Took the metro home and stopped at the very conveniently located grocery store. Bought some bread, turkey, Italian mozzerella and some yogurt. Oh yes, and a tall can of beer. Made a very unexciting sandwich and now laying on my bed trying to decide what to do next. Should check out the lights of Paris but my feet are just completely dead.
Tomorrow thinking I'm going to do the bike tour I'd read about, as I really don't think I can handle anymore walking!! leanot with my flip flops and not until I get some serious sleep!
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Big Day!
Tomorrow's one of my favourite days! It's getting on the plane day!
The shuttle is picking me up around 5pm and then I'm off to Toronto to get on my Finnair flight. This is my first trans-atlantic flight without someone to travel with me, which is a bit daunting. More than anything, the waiting around at the airport for 3 hours before departure all by myself is going to drive me crazy.
I'm meeting my friend Ren's friend Atte in Helsinki upon arrival and he's going to give me a quick and dirty tour of the city. I'll spend the night at his place and get back on the plane in the morning to go to Paris.
I've got 2 days in Paris (well, 1 and a half, and a bit) to explore and see as much as I possibly can. I'm hoping to do a bike tour on Saturday (I've heard great things about Fat Tire Bike Tours so I think I'll check 'em out http://fattirebiketours.com/paris ) and then I'll know where to explore at night. Cuz, really, what would a trip to the city of Lights be without a night stroll? Hope I make some friends in the hostel!!
The shuttle is picking me up around 5pm and then I'm off to Toronto to get on my Finnair flight. This is my first trans-atlantic flight without someone to travel with me, which is a bit daunting. More than anything, the waiting around at the airport for 3 hours before departure all by myself is going to drive me crazy.
I'm meeting my friend Ren's friend Atte in Helsinki upon arrival and he's going to give me a quick and dirty tour of the city. I'll spend the night at his place and get back on the plane in the morning to go to Paris.
I've got 2 days in Paris (well, 1 and a half, and a bit) to explore and see as much as I possibly can. I'm hoping to do a bike tour on Saturday (I've heard great things about Fat Tire Bike Tours so I think I'll check 'em out http://fattirebiketours.com/paris ) and then I'll know where to explore at night. Cuz, really, what would a trip to the city of Lights be without a night stroll? Hope I make some friends in the hostel!!
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Countdown
It's almost my favourite time of... well, I was going to say year, but this will be the 3rd time this year I've gone on vacation.
I'm pretty lucky, I have to admit. So far in 2010 I've been to Vegas, Vancouver and now I'm off to Finland, France and the UK.
I take off on the 18th, (only 11 days!) and land in Helsinki on the 19th. My friend Ren has kindly set me up with his friend Atte, who lives in Helsinki. Atte's offered to show me around the city and lend me a soft surface to crash on before I leave on the 20th bright and early for Paris.
A few days will be spend in Paris (20th-22nd) when I will head to Cannes. My friend Olivier, whom I met when I was working in Australia, is going to meet me at the train station and take me to his place in Grasse, about an hour north of Cannes. (I did some research on Grasse - apparently it's the perfume capital of France?) I'll hang out there for a few days and then on the 24th my friend Janet, whom I also met while working in Australia, will be coming from Ireland to meet me in Nice and hang out with me on the beach.
On the 27th I'm flying from Nice to London City airport, which is quite close to my friend Sonya's place in London. From there I'll find the hotel that my friends Andy and Mike (both from here in canada) are staying at and proceed to get ready for Sonya's wedding on the 28th.
This will be my first time shooting a wedding internationally (be sure to check my photo blog for pictures). The wedding is going to be in Knebford (pretty sure anyway) just north of London. After the wedding I'll have one more day in London before getting back on a plane to come home.
So much travel but I can't wait! I'm essentially going on my own but have so many people to meet up with along the way that I'm hardly going to be lonely.
...
I'm pretty lucky, I have to admit. So far in 2010 I've been to Vegas, Vancouver and now I'm off to Finland, France and the UK.
I take off on the 18th, (only 11 days!) and land in Helsinki on the 19th. My friend Ren has kindly set me up with his friend Atte, who lives in Helsinki. Atte's offered to show me around the city and lend me a soft surface to crash on before I leave on the 20th bright and early for Paris.
A few days will be spend in Paris (20th-22nd) when I will head to Cannes. My friend Olivier, whom I met when I was working in Australia, is going to meet me at the train station and take me to his place in Grasse, about an hour north of Cannes. (I did some research on Grasse - apparently it's the perfume capital of France?) I'll hang out there for a few days and then on the 24th my friend Janet, whom I also met while working in Australia, will be coming from Ireland to meet me in Nice and hang out with me on the beach.
On the 27th I'm flying from Nice to London City airport, which is quite close to my friend Sonya's place in London. From there I'll find the hotel that my friends Andy and Mike (both from here in canada) are staying at and proceed to get ready for Sonya's wedding on the 28th.
This will be my first time shooting a wedding internationally (be sure to check my photo blog for pictures). The wedding is going to be in Knebford (pretty sure anyway) just north of London. After the wedding I'll have one more day in London before getting back on a plane to come home.
So much travel but I can't wait! I'm essentially going on my own but have so many people to meet up with along the way that I'm hardly going to be lonely.
...
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Almost - Final BBB results...
Howdy All!!
I've got the preliminary results from this years BBB fundraising event...Last year we raised just over $8300 and I set our goal for this year as $9500.
Well, we didn't hit our goal, but we beat last year!
Total so far: $8600
... so now I need your help! I really want to hit $9000... so if you have a bit of money to spare and want to help a great cause, please click on the link below and donate directly to the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation.
http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?SID=2649243
Thanks everyone, I sincerely appreciate your support in this.
Cheers,
Alanna
--
alanna foell : professional photographer : www.afphotography.cjb.net
I've got the preliminary results from this years BBB fundraising event...Last year we raised just over $8300 and I set our goal for this year as $9500.
Well, we didn't hit our goal, but we beat last year!
Total so far: $8600
... so now I need your help! I really want to hit $9000... so if you have a bit of money to spare and want to help a great cause, please click on the link below and donate directly to the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation.
http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?SID=2649243
Thanks everyone, I sincerely appreciate your support in this.
Cheers,
Alanna
--
alanna foell : professional photographer : www.afphotography.cjb.net
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Photo Blog
Since I'm lazy and can't be bothered to make a website with my photos, I've started a photo blog...so if you read my ramblings, check out the photo blog...
http://alannafoellphotography.blogspot.com/
http://alannafoellphotography.blogspot.com/
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Fuck Cancer. Gah!
As we all know, it's the 5th year of the Barn Burner Bash, or as it's now called "Bald! Breasts! Bands!"...
Who would have thought that we'd have this party again and again... and that it would become the massive event that it has? Amazing that my mother let us have these parties in the first place... and that we're now honouring her by having them continuously.
This year will be great. I can't wait. I'm sick of fucking cancer. God. Cancer is a bitch. Cancer is that kid you just wanna beat up at school but for some stupid reason you can't. And Cancer is that jerk that kidnaps all the people you think are awesome and takes them away from you.
SOO many people I know have been affected by cancer. My mom, my grandparents, my uncles, my aunts, my friends. Breast cancer, brain cancer, colon cancer, this cancer, that cancer. Agh.
I can't wait for the party this year. I think it'll be great.
Who would have thought that we'd have this party again and again... and that it would become the massive event that it has? Amazing that my mother let us have these parties in the first place... and that we're now honouring her by having them continuously.
This year will be great. I can't wait. I'm sick of fucking cancer. God. Cancer is a bitch. Cancer is that kid you just wanna beat up at school but for some stupid reason you can't. And Cancer is that jerk that kidnaps all the people you think are awesome and takes them away from you.
SOO many people I know have been affected by cancer. My mom, my grandparents, my uncles, my aunts, my friends. Breast cancer, brain cancer, colon cancer, this cancer, that cancer. Agh.
I can't wait for the party this year. I think it'll be great.
Monday, July 5, 2010
BBB5 - Help Us Find a Cure!
Howdy!
It's getting closer and closer to the date!!
Like in other years, we're having a benefit to try to find a cure for breast cancer. If you can make it to the party, you'll get to enjoy some bands, drinks and food. But, if you can't make it, you can still help out the cause and donate online. This year's goal is $9500 (we hit $8400 last year!)
Like in other years, we're having a benefit to try to find a cure for breast cancer. If you can make it to the party, you'll get to enjoy some bands, drinks and food. But, if you can't make it, you can still help out the cause and donate online. This year's goal is $9500 (we hit $8400 last year!)
You can help support me by making a secure online donation using your credit card. Click on the link below:
http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?SID=2649243
If you want to come to the party:
July 17th, 8pm - whenever
7907 Wellington Rd. 45, Mapleton ON (punch that into your gps to get there!)
Thanks for your support, I sincerely appreciate it!
--
alanna foell : professional photographer : www.afphotography.cjb.net
Monday, June 28, 2010
Sadness
Through him we met Dan, who let us stay at his house for a week. Both guys showed us enormous amounts of hospitality.
Steve came to hang out with me in Sydney when I was there, and came down to Melbourne for my birthday after we moved there. He also came down to Melbourne and took Trishelle and I along Great Ocean Road. I later went to visit Steve in Wagga and he showed me around Junee. All in all, just a great friend over all. When I had to leave Australia it was so hard to say goodbye to such a great person.
I've been bugging Steve to come visit me in Canada since I got back here. He almost made it once, a couple years ago when he booked himself a ticket to come to the USA. However, his plans fell through and he wasn't going to make it.
Then, about a year ago things changed. Steve went into the hospital feeling dizzy and headachey and found out that he had a tumor growing on his brain. He under went chemo and radiation and all the things that go along with having a malignant tumor. Thankfully his friends and family have been kind enough to keep me in the loop as to what has been going on with him, even if the news hasn't always been good.
Lately the news was even worse - his tumor has returned and is now inoperable. The doctors aren't looking very hopeful and friends and family are spending all their time with him, sending good vibes and positive energy. I've been thinking about him a lot too lately.
The thing that makes me the most sad is knowing that Steve'll probably never make it here to Canada to visit me and see all the things I told him about, go all of the places I wanted to take him and generally let me repay the favour he did me by letting me stay with him when I was in Australia. And more so, when I get myself back there, he may not be there to hang out with and share a beer with and talk about "the old days".
I've known so many people battle with cancer, the crap that goes along with it. The heartache, the not knowing, the wanting all the problems to be over. There reaches a point where you stop wanting the person to get better and instead just want their suffering to end. You no longer want to remember a person as being sick, and instead want your lasting memories to be of them when they were happy and well. Either way, you just want the whole ordeal to tip one way or the other - get better or end.
I'm sending all the good vibes and thoughts to Steve's family, hoping that something, anything, happens to end their pain.
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Help us find a cure for breast cancer at the BBB5!
Hey everyone!
As you may know, last year I shaved my head in support of finding a cure for breast cancer. I'm not shaving my head this year, but we are having another benefit party! We'll have bands, and other people will be shaving their heads in support.
I'd love it if you could make it to the party but if you can't you're still able to help us find a cure. This year's goal is $9500 (we hit $8400 last year!)
You can help support me by making a secure online donation using your credit card. Click on the link below:
http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?SID=2649243
For more details, check out our Facebook group : BBB5! Bald! Breasts! Bands!
If you want to come to the party:
July 17th, 8pm - whenever
7907 Wellington Rd. 45, Mapleton ON (punch that into your gps to get there!)
Thanks for your support, I sincerely appreciate it!
Alanna Foell
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*************************************
If you are having trouble viewing the above web address, copy & paste the entire URL into the address bar of your browser.
IS THIS EMAIL GOING TO YOUR JUNK/BULK FOLDER?
Add message@e2rm.com to your address book to ensure that you receive all future emails in your Inbox.
--
alanna foell : professional photographer : www.afphotography.cjb.net
Friday, June 11, 2010
Surprise!
Yesterday was a pretty sweet day. Midway through the day I was talking to "the new boy" (whom I'll refer to as A) and asked if he was on his way to his friend's cottage. He said "Nope - I'm heading towards London tonight!" Which immediately made me break into a big smile (and I probably looked pretty stupid, staring at my phone doing so).
It was a dual purpose visit, partly to see me and partly to take pictures at the bar competition at Jack Astor's but I still fully appreciated that he kept it a secret from me.
I joined him at the bar comp along with my roommate (things are working out fantastically there!) and then we went to join my old boss for karaoke at a different pub near by. I told A to let me know what his plans were and I'd let hime know whether I'd join him downtown.
Next thing you know he shows up where I was and stuck around til the end of the evening - skipped hanging out with his friends to spend time with me and a bunch of girls he didn't know.
Such a sweetheart.
It was a dual purpose visit, partly to see me and partly to take pictures at the bar competition at Jack Astor's but I still fully appreciated that he kept it a secret from me.
I joined him at the bar comp along with my roommate (things are working out fantastically there!) and then we went to join my old boss for karaoke at a different pub near by. I told A to let me know what his plans were and I'd let hime know whether I'd join him downtown.
Next thing you know he shows up where I was and stuck around til the end of the evening - skipped hanging out with his friends to spend time with me and a bunch of girls he didn't know.
Such a sweetheart.
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Catch 22
I've realized something interesting recently... I'm kinda damned if I do, damned if I don't... hear me out:
I can meet someone and keep certain aspects of my past a secret and they will trust me and have no reason to worry, and I'm left wondering if I can trust myself this time around...
Or, I can have a fully open relationship where the other person knows EVERYTHING about my past... and thus doesn't think they can trust me and thus doesn't want to be in a serious relationship.
In the past I've kept things I've done kinda hush-hush since most guys don't need to know those details and I'm sparing them. However, I keep repeating the same mistakes over and over.
Now I've met someone who knows just about everything there is to know about me (and I'm sure if he doesn't he will at some point) and it's kinda refreshing. There are no secrets, and because of this I'm not tempted to repeat past mistakes (probably because I know he knows what I'm capable of and I would be fully held accountable for my actions). However, because he knows my past he doesn't think he'd be able to trust me in an "actual" relationship.
So there really is no winning. Not to say I'm trying to get myself into another serious relationship after the end of my last one. Just a little realization of the fact that I really can't have both things - trust and honesty.
I can meet someone and keep certain aspects of my past a secret and they will trust me and have no reason to worry, and I'm left wondering if I can trust myself this time around...
Or, I can have a fully open relationship where the other person knows EVERYTHING about my past... and thus doesn't think they can trust me and thus doesn't want to be in a serious relationship.
In the past I've kept things I've done kinda hush-hush since most guys don't need to know those details and I'm sparing them. However, I keep repeating the same mistakes over and over.
Now I've met someone who knows just about everything there is to know about me (and I'm sure if he doesn't he will at some point) and it's kinda refreshing. There are no secrets, and because of this I'm not tempted to repeat past mistakes (probably because I know he knows what I'm capable of and I would be fully held accountable for my actions). However, because he knows my past he doesn't think he'd be able to trust me in an "actual" relationship.
So there really is no winning. Not to say I'm trying to get myself into another serious relationship after the end of my last one. Just a little realization of the fact that I really can't have both things - trust and honesty.
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Next Moves...
I've been trying to figure out what my next move is going to be. That's not to say I'm up and outta here any more, just that I feel a lacking in my life and know I want to go out and explore and try something new.
I tossed around the idea of working on a cruise ship for a little while, but now I'm not so sure. I would be taking an almost 50% pay cut - and I don't make that much now!! I have my car to continue paying for as well as my student loan etc. Ultimately I don't want to do something that's going to put me into debt.
What else does that give me? I could work in an STA travel (kinda the same as Travel CUTS but in the UK/Oz/NZ etc) and do a similar job as here. Doing that in the UK would be great as I could travel around a lot in Europe and make some connections there, and it's not terribly far from home that if I wanted to come back for a few weeks to visit I could.
I could also go work for a company like Contiki and see where that takes me.
The hard part is, I have things here that I don't want to just walk away from. I don't want to leave just for the sake of leaving. At this point I'm leaving myself open to opportunity.. if it comes knocking I'll open the door.
I know I don't want to stay in London, but I don't know where I want to go otherwise. I could move back to the Waterloo area, or maybe Ottawa...both have their merits. I have friends and family in both locations but I always end up wishing I was in the other place.
Could move closer to Toronto, be somewhat in the middle of it all... but I don't really WANT to live in Toronto, nor can I afford to.
I need someone to come up to me, offer me an amazing job and make my decisions up for me.
I tossed around the idea of working on a cruise ship for a little while, but now I'm not so sure. I would be taking an almost 50% pay cut - and I don't make that much now!! I have my car to continue paying for as well as my student loan etc. Ultimately I don't want to do something that's going to put me into debt.
What else does that give me? I could work in an STA travel (kinda the same as Travel CUTS but in the UK/Oz/NZ etc) and do a similar job as here. Doing that in the UK would be great as I could travel around a lot in Europe and make some connections there, and it's not terribly far from home that if I wanted to come back for a few weeks to visit I could.
I could also go work for a company like Contiki and see where that takes me.
The hard part is, I have things here that I don't want to just walk away from. I don't want to leave just for the sake of leaving. At this point I'm leaving myself open to opportunity.. if it comes knocking I'll open the door.
I know I don't want to stay in London, but I don't know where I want to go otherwise. I could move back to the Waterloo area, or maybe Ottawa...both have their merits. I have friends and family in both locations but I always end up wishing I was in the other place.
Could move closer to Toronto, be somewhat in the middle of it all... but I don't really WANT to live in Toronto, nor can I afford to.
I need someone to come up to me, offer me an amazing job and make my decisions up for me.
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Sunshine, Lollipops and Rainbows
Life is good.
Can't say that, a month after breaking up with the only person I ever considered spending my whole life with, I ever would have expected to be so content. But I am, even though it seems sometimes that people are trying to make my life difficult.
I've got some good things happening right now. And while some of them are not all together a secret, I'm just keeping a bit quieter than usual in one respect.
- Work -
I've got an endless expanse of opportunity ahead of me. I've been tossing around the idea of finding work on a cruise ship (I always inadvertently type "shit" when I write that!) for a few months next year. It was something I wanted to do a few years back but kinda forgot about. I know a girl that's been doing it for a few years and loves it, so I'm hoping to get a few pointers there. And what a great opportunity to work and travel!?
Other than that, my great plan of being able to go back to Australia on a different passport might be failing. I did a bit of research into it recently and I have a feeling it's not as easy as I would have hoped. However, I am still going to get my Irish passport so that I can work in Europe later.
I think I've decided to stay here in London until at least Christmas this year. I don't know exactly what I'll do after that, but that's kinda what I'm thinking right now. Obviously not going to just ditch my job... will likely aim to have a replacement before I take off anywhere. I'm sure the boss will appreciate it.
- Living -
I found a roommate!! I'm super excited about this too. I answered an ad on kijiji and we both hit it off right away. The girl that's moving in is about 21, has a dog, is into photography and is pretty much the same as I am when it comes to music/movies/etc. So I think things will go really well! She's moving in June 1st. The other great thing? She's not a student and thus isn't taking off anywhere any time soon - which means I wont' have to search for someone to live with me afterwards!
- Adventure -
My next big trip is out to Vancouver for Canada day weekend. However, not certain how that's going to go. Originally we (Trishelle and I) were planning on staying with S and wD, but with my breaking up with DJ things have gotten awkward there, apparently. Not on my end, mind you, more so on wD's. So now the question remains: Where do we stay if we are to go out to Vancouver? Hostel? Hotel? Or do we go to Vancouver at all? I was looking into changing my flights and where we could go for the same price - and if we're having to spend money on a hotel anyway, why not go somewhere exciting? So I've been considering Nassau, Bahamas a little bit.
Who knows though, maybe things will be okay a month from now.
Other than that, I'm heading up to Ottawa this weekend and taking Ren with me. Trishelle was supposed to come for the weekend but bailed on me for who knows why now... at least I still have Ren. The weather should be beautiful... I'm so looking forward to the time off work.
Can't say that, a month after breaking up with the only person I ever considered spending my whole life with, I ever would have expected to be so content. But I am, even though it seems sometimes that people are trying to make my life difficult.
I've got some good things happening right now. And while some of them are not all together a secret, I'm just keeping a bit quieter than usual in one respect.
- Work -
I've got an endless expanse of opportunity ahead of me. I've been tossing around the idea of finding work on a cruise ship (I always inadvertently type "shit" when I write that!) for a few months next year. It was something I wanted to do a few years back but kinda forgot about. I know a girl that's been doing it for a few years and loves it, so I'm hoping to get a few pointers there. And what a great opportunity to work and travel!?
Other than that, my great plan of being able to go back to Australia on a different passport might be failing. I did a bit of research into it recently and I have a feeling it's not as easy as I would have hoped. However, I am still going to get my Irish passport so that I can work in Europe later.
I think I've decided to stay here in London until at least Christmas this year. I don't know exactly what I'll do after that, but that's kinda what I'm thinking right now. Obviously not going to just ditch my job... will likely aim to have a replacement before I take off anywhere. I'm sure the boss will appreciate it.
- Living -
I found a roommate!! I'm super excited about this too. I answered an ad on kijiji and we both hit it off right away. The girl that's moving in is about 21, has a dog, is into photography and is pretty much the same as I am when it comes to music/movies/etc. So I think things will go really well! She's moving in June 1st. The other great thing? She's not a student and thus isn't taking off anywhere any time soon - which means I wont' have to search for someone to live with me afterwards!
- Adventure -
My next big trip is out to Vancouver for Canada day weekend. However, not certain how that's going to go. Originally we (Trishelle and I) were planning on staying with S and wD, but with my breaking up with DJ things have gotten awkward there, apparently. Not on my end, mind you, more so on wD's. So now the question remains: Where do we stay if we are to go out to Vancouver? Hostel? Hotel? Or do we go to Vancouver at all? I was looking into changing my flights and where we could go for the same price - and if we're having to spend money on a hotel anyway, why not go somewhere exciting? So I've been considering Nassau, Bahamas a little bit.
Who knows though, maybe things will be okay a month from now.
Other than that, I'm heading up to Ottawa this weekend and taking Ren with me. Trishelle was supposed to come for the weekend but bailed on me for who knows why now... at least I still have Ren. The weather should be beautiful... I'm so looking forward to the time off work.
Saturday, May 1, 2010
Self Inflicted, but for the best
Argh! I spent like, an hour yesterday composing a really long entry and then silly me closed the window without saving. That's what I get for composing outside of the usual Blogger window that's smart enough to auto save for me as I ramble.
I realize that my last post kinda left everyone hanging (everyone being the like, 3 people I know actively read this blog) and I think it's time that I explain why exactly I need(ed) a contingency plan.
Wed night, right before I posted my last post, Dave and I broke up. After 2.5 years of being back together (and 6 years pretty much to the date since we started dating) we realized that we're not good at being in a relationship together, at least not in some of the more important ways.
It happened like this. I arrived home to find Dave sitting at my kitchen table waiting for me. The first words out of his mouth were "We have to talk". We've never had a "sit down, lets talk" experience in all of our years together so I was a bit nervous to say the least. He confronted me about something that had happened in Vegas (and chose not to stay there, apparently.) and I told him his going to Japan has had my brain all effed up. He said he couldn't stay here anymore and that we'd talk soon, took his things and left.
I spent the remainder of the night on the phone with anyone and everyone. As I've come to realize, when I have a problem - with my relationship, my work, whatever - I discuss with those close to me... but not those involved. So while I've discussed any problems Dave and I might have been having with my friends until I've felt comfortable with the issue, it never is fully resolved with Dave.
So we met on Monday to sit down and talk. It was nerve wracking! Our first "real" talk since getting back together. The last time we'd had one of these talks was on his birthday, after I got home from Australia and before he left for China. And after that I was left wondering why we'd broken up in the first place.
We laid it all out, well, mostly.
I told him that in his decision to go to Japan he never considered me. All my friends had said that it wasn't fair of him to just decide to go without consulting me, as we were a "unit". I had told them all they were wrong, that if I had the opportunity I would also take it, blah blah blah. However, the more I thought about it, the more I realized they were right. And so we talked about this. He had thought that there wasn't much point in talking about it until it was final, to which I replied "which would have been way too late!" I never would have told him not to go, but I would have liked a bit of consideration on his part in regards to my feelings.
We also talked about our inability to communicate with each other when it comes to issues. We're both "path of least resistance" type people and won't confront someone when something bothers us. This is fine if you're a country like, say, Switzerland, but in a relationship that eventually leads to other problems.
We discussed how we've fallen into a rut. We live together, see each other every day etc but we've turned into roommates instead of partners. More and more we've become comfortable doing things separately - hanging out with friends, doing groceries, etc. Sure we hang out at home but that intimacy of a relationship has been lost.
We had a good talk. But it came back down to one thing - we have a lot of problems that we would have to solve before his going to Japan. And, with his going away, IS there a point in trying to fix them now? Both of us agreed that no, there isn't really. I still love him, I do. I think he is one of the nicest people I know and we get along marvelously. We're just too similar in our inability to discuss problems and deal with them.
So we called it quits. We've been taking a break from seeing each other, only communicating when absolutely necessary. It seems to be for the best, since seeing each other often we would likely fall back into the same patterns and repeat the same mistakes.
I realize that my last post kinda left everyone hanging (everyone being the like, 3 people I know actively read this blog) and I think it's time that I explain why exactly I need(ed) a contingency plan.
Wed night, right before I posted my last post, Dave and I broke up. After 2.5 years of being back together (and 6 years pretty much to the date since we started dating) we realized that we're not good at being in a relationship together, at least not in some of the more important ways.
It happened like this. I arrived home to find Dave sitting at my kitchen table waiting for me. The first words out of his mouth were "We have to talk". We've never had a "sit down, lets talk" experience in all of our years together so I was a bit nervous to say the least. He confronted me about something that had happened in Vegas (and chose not to stay there, apparently.) and I told him his going to Japan has had my brain all effed up. He said he couldn't stay here anymore and that we'd talk soon, took his things and left.
I spent the remainder of the night on the phone with anyone and everyone. As I've come to realize, when I have a problem - with my relationship, my work, whatever - I discuss with those close to me... but not those involved. So while I've discussed any problems Dave and I might have been having with my friends until I've felt comfortable with the issue, it never is fully resolved with Dave.
So we met on Monday to sit down and talk. It was nerve wracking! Our first "real" talk since getting back together. The last time we'd had one of these talks was on his birthday, after I got home from Australia and before he left for China. And after that I was left wondering why we'd broken up in the first place.
We laid it all out, well, mostly.
I told him that in his decision to go to Japan he never considered me. All my friends had said that it wasn't fair of him to just decide to go without consulting me, as we were a "unit". I had told them all they were wrong, that if I had the opportunity I would also take it, blah blah blah. However, the more I thought about it, the more I realized they were right. And so we talked about this. He had thought that there wasn't much point in talking about it until it was final, to which I replied "which would have been way too late!" I never would have told him not to go, but I would have liked a bit of consideration on his part in regards to my feelings.
We also talked about our inability to communicate with each other when it comes to issues. We're both "path of least resistance" type people and won't confront someone when something bothers us. This is fine if you're a country like, say, Switzerland, but in a relationship that eventually leads to other problems.
We discussed how we've fallen into a rut. We live together, see each other every day etc but we've turned into roommates instead of partners. More and more we've become comfortable doing things separately - hanging out with friends, doing groceries, etc. Sure we hang out at home but that intimacy of a relationship has been lost.
We had a good talk. But it came back down to one thing - we have a lot of problems that we would have to solve before his going to Japan. And, with his going away, IS there a point in trying to fix them now? Both of us agreed that no, there isn't really. I still love him, I do. I think he is one of the nicest people I know and we get along marvelously. We're just too similar in our inability to discuss problems and deal with them.
So we called it quits. We've been taking a break from seeing each other, only communicating when absolutely necessary. It seems to be for the best, since seeing each other often we would likely fall back into the same patterns and repeat the same mistakes.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
and... cue contingency plan
Life has recently taken a nosedive.
I've gotta come up with a new plan for my life since the last one is officially in the crapper.
And this time, it's completely my fault.
I've gotta come up with a new plan for my life since the last one is officially in the crapper.
And this time, it's completely my fault.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Las Vegas
I realized I haven't really mentioned anything about my recent trip... Not because nothing happened but because I've been too busy playing catchup since getting back to get around to it!!
I drove down to Niagara on the Lake to meet Ange and leave her car at her dad's work. From there we took my car across the border (Ange might have flirted with the border guard a little bit) and then to our hotel for the night. It wasn't anything to write home about, but it was a place to park the car and sleep a little bit before heading out in the morning.
We went to Cracker Barrel for dinner (apparently it's THE place to eat in the US - it reminded me of the Crossroads in Elmira, which is all mennonite cooking).
It took forever to get to sleep on the Thursday night, and we were up again at 3:30am. Got ourselves dressed and ready to go and took the shuttle to the airport. I was incredibly impressed with the friendliness of all the security people at the airport.
Finally got on the plane (we were there at 5am and the flight didn't leave til 6:30... way too early) and then flew to Detroit. Stupid me forgot my headphones in my car and thus couldn't listen to music. Flew out of Detroit and arrived in Las Vegas at about 10:30am.
Got ourselves through the airport and outside into the nice warm air. Got a shuttle to our hotel and then went to find something to eat. We managed to be find some food and check in fairly early... and then off to the pool we went.
Spent a lot of the day laying poolside soaking up the (hot) Las Vegas sun. Drank some beers and then went for a walk over to New York, New York for dinner... on the way over there I managed to have a door swing back and hit me in the leg and cause me to bleed. For an epicly long time. *sigh*
After our naps we decided to go for a walk up the strip. Walked as far as Caesar's Palace and Ange found Serendipity - an ice cream place that's somehow connected to her favourite movie. Ate again...got this huge sandwich that I only managed to finish half of. Took the rest home and packed it in the garbage can under lots of ice.
I'm sure we did other things- mostly drinking beers here or there, I think... but eventually went to bed and got up the next morning.
Ate breakfast and checked our emails (there was free wifi in the food court) and then went out to the pool. Continued to burn ourselves to a crisp. Spent probably another 4 hours outside again. Went inside, changed and got ready to go for lunch at Burger Bar, which was between Luxor and Mandalay Bay. Walked over there, sat down and ordered... and then Ange's sweet tea somehow spilled all over her lap. She was drenched head to toe... so after lunch we had to walk back to the hotel room (3 hotels over!) and get her changed. Headed back out to the outlet mall south of the strip to do some shopping. I bought some strappy wedge sandals so that I could dress up.
Our bad luck of the day didn't end there though - while we were at the mall I managed to lose my cell phone. I didn't realize until I was back in the cab to go to the hotel. We drove around the block and back into the mall. I ran to the bench I'd been sitting on and looked for my phone - it wasn't there. I checked with the Nike store, not there... went to information to see if anyone had turned it in, but they hadn't seen anything. They told me to call the next day and they'd check to see if anything had been turned in.
Went back to the hotel, had another nap and then got all dressed up to go out for drinks at Mix, a club at theHOTEL, which is part of Mandalay bay. It's on the 64th floor of the place and overlooks the whole strip - pretty amazing view.
It was another late night by the time we got home...
Sunday morning was again spent poolside, but since it wasn't as sunny we didnt' stay out that long. Decided to walk up the strip further and see the stuff we hadn't managed to see before. Made it all the way up to the Wynn before we were exhausted. Ate a big lunch at a cowboy themed place at Treasure Island (mmm pulled pork sandwich) and then took the bus back to the hotel. On the bus Ange and I got into a massive giggle fit about the woman behind us smacking away on her gum and then the guy ahead of us who's XL sticker was still on the back of his shirt.
When we got back to the hotel we decided to waste some money in the slot machines. Once it got dark went for another quick walk to get some pictures of Vegas at night with my SLR.
Also, I called the outlet mall to see if anyone had found my phone - and they had!! I was amazed. They said I could come get it, but I figured I'd wait til Monday morning before catching our flight to get it... spare ourselves having to take a cab 2x.
Got dolled up again, this time wearing our "What Happens In Vegas" shirts that we'd made. We grabbed a bite to eat at the food court and headed out to MGM to try to get into Studio 54... which we couldn't. There was a private function going on. So, we headed over to New York New York and went to Rok Vegas, which wasn't a rock club... had a great time. We got a tonne of people to sign our shirts and made friends with some guys from Scotland who were there for a guy's bachelor party.
After a few incidents we headed over to this cool little piano bar also at New York New York. Stayed there for a while and then went back to our hotel to gamble a bit. I spent a grand total of $5. Hahah whoot!
Monday morning arrived and we got ourselves ready to go home :(
Checked out and took a cab to the mall to get my phone. After a bit of miscommunication it was determined that yes, my phone was there. I got it back and we headed towards the airport. However, on the way we realized we'd forgotten our passports in the hotel!! So back to the hotel instead and Ange ran to get them... she returned not too long later and informed me that because my name was on the room I had to go... so I ran up there and conveniently the maid was cleaning our room at the time. I got our passports and ran back down... back in a cab we got and to the airport. ... with just enough time to check in.
The flights were thankfully uneventful. We had to connect through Atlanta, which was kinda out of the way, but got back to Buffalo around 11pm.
I dropped Ange off at her dad's work and we parted ways.... and I drove back to London... got home around 2:30 or 3:00am... and immediately crashed.
Such a great trip. I'd love to do it again, but with more money to spend. It's not a cheap place to go, and you can't really spend more than 4 days there without getting overwhelmed (or needing a liver detox) but I think it was definitely worth it!!
I drove down to Niagara on the Lake to meet Ange and leave her car at her dad's work. From there we took my car across the border (Ange might have flirted with the border guard a little bit) and then to our hotel for the night. It wasn't anything to write home about, but it was a place to park the car and sleep a little bit before heading out in the morning.
We went to Cracker Barrel for dinner (apparently it's THE place to eat in the US - it reminded me of the Crossroads in Elmira, which is all mennonite cooking).
It took forever to get to sleep on the Thursday night, and we were up again at 3:30am. Got ourselves dressed and ready to go and took the shuttle to the airport. I was incredibly impressed with the friendliness of all the security people at the airport.
Finally got on the plane (we were there at 5am and the flight didn't leave til 6:30... way too early) and then flew to Detroit. Stupid me forgot my headphones in my car and thus couldn't listen to music. Flew out of Detroit and arrived in Las Vegas at about 10:30am.
Got ourselves through the airport and outside into the nice warm air. Got a shuttle to our hotel and then went to find something to eat. We managed to be find some food and check in fairly early... and then off to the pool we went.
Spent a lot of the day laying poolside soaking up the (hot) Las Vegas sun. Drank some beers and then went for a walk over to New York, New York for dinner... on the way over there I managed to have a door swing back and hit me in the leg and cause me to bleed. For an epicly long time. *sigh*
After our naps we decided to go for a walk up the strip. Walked as far as Caesar's Palace and Ange found Serendipity - an ice cream place that's somehow connected to her favourite movie. Ate again...got this huge sandwich that I only managed to finish half of. Took the rest home and packed it in the garbage can under lots of ice.
I'm sure we did other things- mostly drinking beers here or there, I think... but eventually went to bed and got up the next morning.
Ate breakfast and checked our emails (there was free wifi in the food court) and then went out to the pool. Continued to burn ourselves to a crisp. Spent probably another 4 hours outside again. Went inside, changed and got ready to go for lunch at Burger Bar, which was between Luxor and Mandalay Bay. Walked over there, sat down and ordered... and then Ange's sweet tea somehow spilled all over her lap. She was drenched head to toe... so after lunch we had to walk back to the hotel room (3 hotels over!) and get her changed. Headed back out to the outlet mall south of the strip to do some shopping. I bought some strappy wedge sandals so that I could dress up.
Our bad luck of the day didn't end there though - while we were at the mall I managed to lose my cell phone. I didn't realize until I was back in the cab to go to the hotel. We drove around the block and back into the mall. I ran to the bench I'd been sitting on and looked for my phone - it wasn't there. I checked with the Nike store, not there... went to information to see if anyone had turned it in, but they hadn't seen anything. They told me to call the next day and they'd check to see if anything had been turned in.
Went back to the hotel, had another nap and then got all dressed up to go out for drinks at Mix, a club at theHOTEL, which is part of Mandalay bay. It's on the 64th floor of the place and overlooks the whole strip - pretty amazing view.
It was another late night by the time we got home...
Sunday morning was again spent poolside, but since it wasn't as sunny we didnt' stay out that long. Decided to walk up the strip further and see the stuff we hadn't managed to see before. Made it all the way up to the Wynn before we were exhausted. Ate a big lunch at a cowboy themed place at Treasure Island (mmm pulled pork sandwich) and then took the bus back to the hotel. On the bus Ange and I got into a massive giggle fit about the woman behind us smacking away on her gum and then the guy ahead of us who's XL sticker was still on the back of his shirt.
When we got back to the hotel we decided to waste some money in the slot machines. Once it got dark went for another quick walk to get some pictures of Vegas at night with my SLR.
Also, I called the outlet mall to see if anyone had found my phone - and they had!! I was amazed. They said I could come get it, but I figured I'd wait til Monday morning before catching our flight to get it... spare ourselves having to take a cab 2x.
Got dolled up again, this time wearing our "What Happens In Vegas" shirts that we'd made. We grabbed a bite to eat at the food court and headed out to MGM to try to get into Studio 54... which we couldn't. There was a private function going on. So, we headed over to New York New York and went to Rok Vegas, which wasn't a rock club... had a great time. We got a tonne of people to sign our shirts and made friends with some guys from Scotland who were there for a guy's bachelor party.
After a few incidents we headed over to this cool little piano bar also at New York New York. Stayed there for a while and then went back to our hotel to gamble a bit. I spent a grand total of $5. Hahah whoot!
Monday morning arrived and we got ourselves ready to go home :(
Checked out and took a cab to the mall to get my phone. After a bit of miscommunication it was determined that yes, my phone was there. I got it back and we headed towards the airport. However, on the way we realized we'd forgotten our passports in the hotel!! So back to the hotel instead and Ange ran to get them... she returned not too long later and informed me that because my name was on the room I had to go... so I ran up there and conveniently the maid was cleaning our room at the time. I got our passports and ran back down... back in a cab we got and to the airport. ... with just enough time to check in.
The flights were thankfully uneventful. We had to connect through Atlanta, which was kinda out of the way, but got back to Buffalo around 11pm.
I dropped Ange off at her dad's work and we parted ways.... and I drove back to London... got home around 2:30 or 3:00am... and immediately crashed.
Such a great trip. I'd love to do it again, but with more money to spend. It's not a cheap place to go, and you can't really spend more than 4 days there without getting overwhelmed (or needing a liver detox) but I think it was definitely worth it!!
Friday, April 2, 2010
Latest and Greatest Plan
I was sitting around today thinking about how am I going to work in the EU after I'm 30 if I can't get a working holiday visa - and then it hit me! I can get dual citizenship to Ireland and get a passport! Hurray!!
So I've been doing my research - if I've got a grandparent who was born in Ireland I can apply for citizenship. I have to provide a birth certificate, a marriage certificate and a death certificate. Not totally certain what to do after that, but I'm thinking I'll start the process soon.
Yay!!!
So I've been doing my research - if I've got a grandparent who was born in Ireland I can apply for citizenship. I have to provide a birth certificate, a marriage certificate and a death certificate. Not totally certain what to do after that, but I'm thinking I'll start the process soon.
Yay!!!
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
March Round Up
I've got to stop writing blogs about how I haven't written in ages... so I'll just recap March and maybe think of something exciting to say about April.
My Birthday - summed up in one word: AWESOME. I had a fabulous birthday. I got to see all my favourite people.. well, not ALL, but at least the ones who are in Ontario, and had a great time out at the bar. Tak was home from BC for the weekend and so he made it down to London for the party and brought apple fritters from St. Jacobs. Adrian and Ren came from Toronto and Brad, Andy and Huff came down from Waterloo. Even my brother and Lindsey made it. Pictures from Facebook:
My birthday, part 2 - Dave totally sucked at getting me a birthday present... but I got over it.
IUD - After more deliberation, I decided I'd go ahead with the lovely "knock me out and stick'er in" procedure. It won't be until April 30th, but I think it'll be great when it finally gets done.
Running - at the start of march I started running at the gym while watching season 7 of 24. I was doing great - about 5km in 40 min, burning something around 440 calories. I was pretty impressed with myself until....
Mystery Illness - Just after my birthday I started getting this pain in my pelvic area that went through to my back. After about 4 or 5 days of this constant pain I went to the doc who thought maybe I had a kidney stone. He sent me for an ultra sound which resulted in nothing. However, I have a friend who is an anatomy student and she suggested that maybe I'd hurt myself running and that I'd done something to my hip flexor. I looked it up and it seemed completely plausible. So, I was told to stop running for a bit and see if it helped.... sadly and gladly, it has. However, I haven't been able to work off any of the food I've eaten. *sigh* Gotta find something to give me a cardio workout but doesn't result in pain.
Dave going to Japan - it's more or less official that Dave's taking off in Sept for 8 months. I'm still working through the logistics of getting a roomie and all that. I plan on switching bedrooms, giving up the bigger bedroom to the new person and taking the smaller room. However, I have to find a smaller bed to go in the "master" bedroom, and move my queen bed home and replace it with my double bed from the glen... so complicated! Most frustrating part is the fact that I will have to get it all done before I go to France, since Dave will be gone before I get home.
Vegas!!! - Okay, so not a march thing, but I'll be going to Vegas next week! I can not wait. I think it will be amazing... If only I could justify spending money on gambling...maybe then I'd end up rich. Hmm.
Reebok Easy Tone Shoes - I've been checking these out... They aren't nearly as fugly as the Sketchers ones. They look like normal running shoes but with rounded bottoms. However, they are stupid expensive. Like, $120 or something. HOWEVER - I was at Payless the other day and saw a pair of shoes that are really similar to the Reebok ones - but way less expensive!! Like, $45. So I think I might get them - and start walking at lunch time now that the weather is getting nicer.
Hmmm... what else. I have to make a turkey for Sunday. Dad decided that we have to have easter dinner. Fun. Lets hope I can wow my grandparents again with my awesome cooking prowess.
My Birthday - summed up in one word: AWESOME. I had a fabulous birthday. I got to see all my favourite people.. well, not ALL, but at least the ones who are in Ontario, and had a great time out at the bar. Tak was home from BC for the weekend and so he made it down to London for the party and brought apple fritters from St. Jacobs. Adrian and Ren came from Toronto and Brad, Andy and Huff came down from Waterloo. Even my brother and Lindsey made it. Pictures from Facebook:
My birthday, part 2 - Dave totally sucked at getting me a birthday present... but I got over it.
IUD - After more deliberation, I decided I'd go ahead with the lovely "knock me out and stick'er in" procedure. It won't be until April 30th, but I think it'll be great when it finally gets done.
Running - at the start of march I started running at the gym while watching season 7 of 24. I was doing great - about 5km in 40 min, burning something around 440 calories. I was pretty impressed with myself until....
Mystery Illness - Just after my birthday I started getting this pain in my pelvic area that went through to my back. After about 4 or 5 days of this constant pain I went to the doc who thought maybe I had a kidney stone. He sent me for an ultra sound which resulted in nothing. However, I have a friend who is an anatomy student and she suggested that maybe I'd hurt myself running and that I'd done something to my hip flexor. I looked it up and it seemed completely plausible. So, I was told to stop running for a bit and see if it helped.... sadly and gladly, it has. However, I haven't been able to work off any of the food I've eaten. *sigh* Gotta find something to give me a cardio workout but doesn't result in pain.
Dave going to Japan - it's more or less official that Dave's taking off in Sept for 8 months. I'm still working through the logistics of getting a roomie and all that. I plan on switching bedrooms, giving up the bigger bedroom to the new person and taking the smaller room. However, I have to find a smaller bed to go in the "master" bedroom, and move my queen bed home and replace it with my double bed from the glen... so complicated! Most frustrating part is the fact that I will have to get it all done before I go to France, since Dave will be gone before I get home.
Vegas!!! - Okay, so not a march thing, but I'll be going to Vegas next week! I can not wait. I think it will be amazing... If only I could justify spending money on gambling...maybe then I'd end up rich. Hmm.
Reebok Easy Tone Shoes - I've been checking these out... They aren't nearly as fugly as the Sketchers ones. They look like normal running shoes but with rounded bottoms. However, they are stupid expensive. Like, $120 or something. HOWEVER - I was at Payless the other day and saw a pair of shoes that are really similar to the Reebok ones - but way less expensive!! Like, $45. So I think I might get them - and start walking at lunch time now that the weather is getting nicer.
Hmmm... what else. I have to make a turkey for Sunday. Dad decided that we have to have easter dinner. Fun. Lets hope I can wow my grandparents again with my awesome cooking prowess.
Friday, March 5, 2010
My Junk is Junk (Boys be warned!)
So, it's official - I'm turning in my girl card. Boys just do not have the same amount of troubles as girls do, nor do they have to endure the things girls do in order to be sure they are healthy.
After a year of wanting to get it done, I finally went in to get an IUD inserted. I am sick of the pill and want some type of birth control that doesn't require thought. After a zillion doctors over the last couple years I finally was at the point where I held the little box in my hand and presented it to the doctor and said "alright, put it in!"
It was supposed to be that easy.
However, as is the case with all my down-below experiences, it was not. It never is. Why? Well, my junk is apparently just that. Junk. Always fricking broken. God.
Remember this? Allie's story about why people should get the Gardisil vaccine instead of ending up like her. Well, that story leads into this...
The whole procedure started out awkward enough with the med student there watching on as the doctor explained what he was doing in extra detail. He explained the IUD and how it has strings. They like to cut the strings long, "so they just float around like wobbly spaghetti" (his words, not mine) because if they cut them short that they can be kinda pokey "which some partners don't really like". Hmm. No kidding. I'm sure guys would love the idea of being poked while doing it! After that, it was the standard lay on your back, feet in the stirrups routine. Warn the student not to insert speculum into wrong hole? Check. Look! Thats a cervix! Check. Swab the inside of me with a scratchy brush to make sure I don't get an infection? Sign me up!
And then things took a weird turn.. he goes "Have you ever had surgery on your cervix before?" and I said yeah, a couple years ago. And he goes "Hmm..." and not in a "well, that's interesting" kinda way. More in a "well, that's not good" kinda way.
So then he stops and says "We can't do this today..." and proceeds to explain that my fantastic cervix, whom I almost feel needs a name since it gets talked about so often, has healed up and has scar tissue pretty much making it closed. If he were to try to put the IUD in, I would probably be in paid akin to child birth. GREAT.
Thankfully my doctor is a nice guy and he went onto explain that all hope is not lost - I have the option to be put under and they will manually dilate my cervix. That's right. It's so painful that they knock you out. AWESOME. The whole thing is called a hysteroscopy. Look it up. Not fun sounding. At least he didn't use binocular action like the other doc doing my colopscopy did.
What's with me and various "scopy" treatments in the nether regions...
So now I have to make the decision whether it's worth my while to undergo minor surgery to have a piece of plastic with copper wrapped around it inserted into my uterus. Easiest form of birth control ever? Yes. Cheapest over the long run? Heck yes! ($11.99/60 months = 20c a month!) Worth being knocked out so the doctor can torture your insides? debatable..
Ack! Why me!?
After a year of wanting to get it done, I finally went in to get an IUD inserted. I am sick of the pill and want some type of birth control that doesn't require thought. After a zillion doctors over the last couple years I finally was at the point where I held the little box in my hand and presented it to the doctor and said "alright, put it in!"
It was supposed to be that easy.
However, as is the case with all my down-below experiences, it was not. It never is. Why? Well, my junk is apparently just that. Junk. Always fricking broken. God.
Remember this? Allie's story about why people should get the Gardisil vaccine instead of ending up like her. Well, that story leads into this...
The whole procedure started out awkward enough with the med student there watching on as the doctor explained what he was doing in extra detail. He explained the IUD and how it has strings. They like to cut the strings long, "so they just float around like wobbly spaghetti" (his words, not mine) because if they cut them short that they can be kinda pokey "which some partners don't really like". Hmm. No kidding. I'm sure guys would love the idea of being poked while doing it! After that, it was the standard lay on your back, feet in the stirrups routine. Warn the student not to insert speculum into wrong hole? Check. Look! Thats a cervix! Check. Swab the inside of me with a scratchy brush to make sure I don't get an infection? Sign me up!
And then things took a weird turn.. he goes "Have you ever had surgery on your cervix before?" and I said yeah, a couple years ago. And he goes "Hmm..." and not in a "well, that's interesting" kinda way. More in a "well, that's not good" kinda way.
So then he stops and says "We can't do this today..." and proceeds to explain that my fantastic cervix, whom I almost feel needs a name since it gets talked about so often, has healed up and has scar tissue pretty much making it closed. If he were to try to put the IUD in, I would probably be in paid akin to child birth. GREAT.
Thankfully my doctor is a nice guy and he went onto explain that all hope is not lost - I have the option to be put under and they will manually dilate my cervix. That's right. It's so painful that they knock you out. AWESOME. The whole thing is called a hysteroscopy. Look it up. Not fun sounding. At least he didn't use binocular action like the other doc doing my colopscopy did.
What's with me and various "scopy" treatments in the nether regions...
So now I have to make the decision whether it's worth my while to undergo minor surgery to have a piece of plastic with copper wrapped around it inserted into my uterus. Easiest form of birth control ever? Yes. Cheapest over the long run? Heck yes! ($11.99/60 months = 20c a month!) Worth being knocked out so the doctor can torture your insides? debatable..
Ack! Why me!?
Monday, March 1, 2010
I'm ALMOST "Old"...and other new things.
It's the 1st of March. I have a week til I'm 27 - officially in my late 20s. I'm torn about how I feel about this one. Part of me is like "sweet! I'm an adult!" and the other part is like "dammit. I'm supposed to be an adult".
But whatever - it's an excuse to party it up, birthday style, like I do every year. I'm super excited about this year, even if it means a million people are going to be crashing on the various spaces on my living room floor and all that. But it will be good times.
More than that though, I'm super excited about all my travels this year. Vegas, Vancouver, France, Cali... I don't know where I'm going to find the money to do it all but it will be great times.
Ange and I are off on an A-Team adventure to Vegas April 9-12. I can't wait, it's going to be fabulous. Not exactly sure what we'll do while we're there but I think we'll have a great time.
Trishelle and I are hoping to get out to Vancouver in July for Canada day and then I'm off to France in Aug with a stop in Finland on the way there and a few days spent in England on the way back. And then, way off in Oct, Deb and I are going to do a California road trip.
The only downside to my exciting travels is that theres a decent chance that Dave won't be here when I get back from France. He'll most likely be on a plane to Japan where he's going to be doing an exchange for 8 months. I'm still not super excited about this, even though I think it's a fantastic opportunity. If it were me in his shoes, I'd be all about going on exchange... however I'm the one stuck in London for another 8 months. With like, none of my friends. And having to find a roomate for 2 semesters.
Nothing is for sure with Dave going yet, so I'm trying not to worry too much about it. However there is going to come a time where I have to figure out what's gonna happen. Argh.
But whatever - it's an excuse to party it up, birthday style, like I do every year. I'm super excited about this year, even if it means a million people are going to be crashing on the various spaces on my living room floor and all that. But it will be good times.
More than that though, I'm super excited about all my travels this year. Vegas, Vancouver, France, Cali... I don't know where I'm going to find the money to do it all but it will be great times.
Ange and I are off on an A-Team adventure to Vegas April 9-12. I can't wait, it's going to be fabulous. Not exactly sure what we'll do while we're there but I think we'll have a great time.
Trishelle and I are hoping to get out to Vancouver in July for Canada day and then I'm off to France in Aug with a stop in Finland on the way there and a few days spent in England on the way back. And then, way off in Oct, Deb and I are going to do a California road trip.
The only downside to my exciting travels is that theres a decent chance that Dave won't be here when I get back from France. He'll most likely be on a plane to Japan where he's going to be doing an exchange for 8 months. I'm still not super excited about this, even though I think it's a fantastic opportunity. If it were me in his shoes, I'd be all about going on exchange... however I'm the one stuck in London for another 8 months. With like, none of my friends. And having to find a roomate for 2 semesters.
Nothing is for sure with Dave going yet, so I'm trying not to worry too much about it. However there is going to come a time where I have to figure out what's gonna happen. Argh.
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Allie Camera
So I finally got myself around to taking some pictures. The subject ended up being me because my cat gets mad when I keep taking pictures of him. I borrowed a pretty sweet lens from work and slapped on some make up and entertained myself for a while. I used to do it all the time, putting makeup on and taking pictures of myself. Some people make fun of me, but whatever!! .... and yes, that's my wig. Someday my hair'll be long again!
Here's a few:
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Shred Update
I've been doing the Shred for like, 15 days now.
I measured myself this evening after working out and was horrified to discover that NOTHING HAS CHANGED!! Actually, that's a partial lie - the only part of my body that seems to have decreased was the area under my boobs. Great.
Gotta say, I'm feeling pretty discouraged this evening! Bah! Not to mention my downstairs neighbour complained about my racket on Monday night after I went all out... so now I'm resigned to doing my cardio half-assed.
I think it's time I get myself back to the gym.
I measured myself this evening after working out and was horrified to discover that NOTHING HAS CHANGED!! Actually, that's a partial lie - the only part of my body that seems to have decreased was the area under my boobs. Great.
Gotta say, I'm feeling pretty discouraged this evening! Bah! Not to mention my downstairs neighbour complained about my racket on Monday night after I went all out... so now I'm resigned to doing my cardio half-assed.
I think it's time I get myself back to the gym.
Saturday, January 9, 2010
30 Day Shred - Week 1
So I started the 30 Day Shred. It's a dvd with Jillian Michaels from the Biggest Loser. It's only 25 min a day, which I think I can bring myself to do. It's been hard getting motivated some days, and I'm sure if I would stop eating crap food I'd be doing better but I've planned to stick with this, and stick with it I will do.
I took my measurements today, about 5 days in. I also took pictures of myself, which I hope to call "before".
Start Jan 9
Calves 15.25
Thighs
lower 19
upper 25.25
Hips 42.5
waist
where I wear my pants 34
"true" waist 29
bust 32.5/36.5
arms 11.5
And before pictures:
lifted butt
toned arms
some ab definition
back definition!
Not sure that all those things are possible, but here's to trying!!
I took my measurements today, about 5 days in. I also took pictures of myself, which I hope to call "before".
Start Jan 9
Calves 15.25
Thighs
lower 19
upper 25.25
Hips 42.5
waist
where I wear my pants 34
"true" waist 29
bust 32.5/36.5
arms 11.5
And before pictures:
Things I'd like to see gone:
the love handles
the saddlebags
the flabby belly...
and things I'd like to see appear:lifted butt
toned arms
some ab definition
back definition!
Not sure that all those things are possible, but here's to trying!!
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