well the last couple of weeks i was back home.. home being southwestern ontario.. and it was a good trip… everything just seemed to fall into place and it was like i didn’t live in vancouver for the past year…. the two weeks was fill with adventures ranging from intoxicated good times to intoxicated good times plus something else…. it was great to see all the changes in london and in everyone and i was pleased that everyone was willing to put in that little bit of effort in order to spend some time with me… now, it’s kinda cheezey but i’d like to thank everyone with a brief message found in the following unordered list:
anyways, i don’t know what else to say except that this trip was exactly what i needed… and it has put me back in my grove and has shown me what life could be like and what it basically should be like. now, all i need to do, is continue to build upon what i have here in vancouver, and somehow figure out how to gain the awesome friends and family i have back home.
well i knew this streak of illnessless couldn’t last forever. yesterday my throat started to hurt and well.. today when i woke up, it was even worse. other than the discomfort experienced when opening my mouth or talking, i feel great, so i am hoping the tea, honey, garlic, and these anti-bacterial lozenges will do the trick, and asap, so i can goto work tomorrow and prep for my two weeks of vacation!
well the countdown is on and it is now less than four days until my arrival in the lower half of upper canada. the excitement inside me has begun to flare, as has, a tad bit of anxiety. for this trip, hanging out with all my old skool chums is totally key, (as is fully-completely taking my mind off of work)… the thing is, with this visit i want to maintain the freedom and flexibility i have here on the west coast – meaning that, i am not to feel defined by any preconceived notions on how i will act or behave. i think this whole obsession i have with this ‘reminder thing’ is somewhat puzzling, but anyways, i can’t help it.. i just can’t stand it when someone basically tells me my own ‘preferences’, and well the anticipation of this is enough to keep me ‘predictable’. now, i honestly don’t think that will be an issue this trip, but it does always cross my mind when entering a former environment.
anyways, with this visit i know there is something deep inside me that is craving the comfort of home – my friends, my family, my car, and all the great things that come with these. my two weeks in ontario will be great, as long as, i bring my new (slightly changed) self, take advantage of every moment and create many new experiences, based on a foundation of comfort and security.
over the past week.. i have purchased a few things for my apartment to make it seem, umm, less institutional… i’ve picked up a few tropical plants for the living room, some baskets for the bathroom and a few posters for the walls… and now.. this flat of mine feels just a tad more homier (even though i have never had plants, baskets, or posters in my home before).
ok today i realized that i am way over worked, and there is nothing i can do to catch up, besides temporarily halt (or at least strictly limit) the addition of any new tasks. it is not that i haven’t been able to successfully switch between the many thousand tasks i do each day, or not be able to prioritize accordingly… it’s just that there are too many things that i have to do… shit, i woke up this morning, and the absolute second thing i did was make a to-do list for the day.. and looking at it right now… there are still 7 things of high priority that should have been accomplished today, but were bumped because they were not as important as the other 16. ohh, and btw, tomorrow, ‘eat lunch’ is going on my list.
now, i guess it is september and well this is a busy time for us folks in education, and combine that with the the fact i have been without a holiday (excluding the couple of days i took in july – see enjoy the ride) since last christmas!!! anyways, i am fairly confident that this excessive workload will pass within the next few weeks and then everything will be a-ok again… but for now, i’ll just have to continue to plow through the piles of sticky notes, to-do text files, and of course all those flagged emails.. and see what i can pull off besides the last few chunks of my hair.
be well.
call me disturbed if you must, but last week i realized that i had not seen a car accident, in full blown action, in quite some time. and guess what, this morning all my dreams came true… as a fire truck with a whole bunch of active sirens and lights cautiously approached the intersection of smithe at burrard, a motorist on burrard who was apparently dumbfounded by all the flashing and loud noises, quickly slammed on her brakes and bam… she got rear ended… it was absolutely great!!! there was not quite as much action and damage as i was craving, but either way it has helped quench my thirst for accidental automobile destruction.
also on the way home i saw the aftermath of a collision on the burrard bridge, this one wasn’t as exciting since it simply extended my bus ride 20 minutes.
as my one year anniversary of being in vancouver quickly approaches, i find myself sitting here, attempting to ponder the results of this past year. i realize that i am anxious to draw out conclusions and record them on this blog as something successfully accomplished in the past; however, that is totally not possible yet.
the results of my move to vancouver cannot be fully understood until a date somewhere way in the future. yes, i know, i’ve experienced a lot of new things in the past year, that have enabled me to do as i wish, but i also know i have missed out on a lot too, so right now, all i can do is hope i made the right decisions along the way.
hold up, let me clarify here, (more…)
well folks, the time has come to confirm my highly rumored and fervently anticipated return to the second-largest area and most populous province in canada. i’ll be arriving at yyz on september 30th and returning to yvr on october 16th… 15 whole days!! this should give me nearly enough time to visit with everyone who misses me dearly… i kinda wish i was leaving tomorrow, since i am well in need and overdue for some holidays… but oh well, before i know it, i’ll away from work… sitting in my old bedroom with my dial-up internet, and old cd collection; driving my audi 100 around on the open road; chillin’ with all my pals, catching up on the last year, sharing some drinks and laughs; enjoying thanksgiving with my family, eating some turkey, and dealing with ‘the usual’; and well, overall, having a great two weeks back home.
wow, yesterday was such a good days. it all started in the morning, where i felt kind of in my own little world.. yet, while walking to the bus stop, eye contact was made with many people and smiles happened all the way. by the time i got to work, i just felt like something was different. then at work, the morning tossed a torrent of problems directly at me, which through an elevated stress level and the use of many communication tools, i was able to completely resolve by days end. then, on the bus home, the conversation i started, which included topics such as bad breathe, wine, art history and pauly shore, was a pleasant change and by the time i got home my day was absolutely peaking, at which time i prepared to head down to false creek and try out dragon boating for the first time with chris and nonie. it was pretty kool, a bunch of people in a boat, paddling in sync, 6-10-then something else… it was pretty intense trying to keep in rhythm but i think it did pretty good. anyways, i am still pretty indifferent with the sport, and not quite sure if i’ll do it again, or if i should just go try something else again… anyways, i need to get my ass to the office to finish up a few things, before we head down to spanish banks for a little mexican bbq…
yey, i just bought my first monochrome laser printer and it’s absolutely great… now, it’s not an overpriced hp which would be ideal, since i have been brainwashed to think that way… it is only a samsung ML-2010 but it was a damn good deal… 100 bucks (after $70 instant & $30 fill-in online rebates) for 22 ppm, 10 second for first page out, 8MB fixed memory, 150 MHz processor, and 1200×600 dpi effective output.
i’ve always held off on buying a laser printer, since i wanted to wait until i could justify buying one that supported network printing right out of the box, but then it dawned on me… with the airport express i don’t need it. just plug in the usb.. and the printer magically becomes rendezvous/bonjour/zeroconf friendly and automatically appears on my network.
here’s to wireless printing and killing trees, cheers!