well here is a quick update. today, i was at the office for the first time in quite some time; i moved to my new place in Vancouver’s west end; my mom and sister are currently visiting; and, my trip to edmonton was largely a success.
so i am heading to edmonton tomorrow morning, and i am looking forward to the trip. i have never been to edmonton or even alberta and i see this as the beginning of my canadian tour. why edmonton you might ask? well, that’s simple; it’s a business trip. i am attending a 3 day conference monday, tuesday, wednesday, and i figured i’d fly in a tad early and spend the entire weekend in a strange and unfamiliar canadian city. now, this weekend will provide me with some new places to visit and a huge mall to shop at, while the days of the conference will give me a chance to mingle and develop professional relationships with my colleagues from all over this vast nation of ours. now, the last time i went to a conference of this magnitude, i was still a very naif pupil; unsure of my position in the overall scheme of things and thus somewhat dependent on my boss’ confidence and interpersonal skills. also, since my role at that time did not harness the connections made at the conference, many of them simply fizzled away. this time around, i am actually in a position to utilize these interrelationships, and i look forward to building my network. it’s all on me baby, and it shouldn’t be a problem at all… well, assuming we have the normal after-hour gatherings at a local watering hole.
well i did it, today i signed a lease for one year. i made a commitment for once in my life. *pat, pat* now i didn’t really choose to make the commitment, since it was ‘required’ to end my quickly approaching homelessness, however it was a big step for me. so my new place is in the west end, basically as east as you can get in the west end, but a perfect location no doubt. 1.5 blocks to… a grocery store, a bus stop that has a bus that goes directly to work, to shopping, etc. my suite is half renovated, meaning it has a new kitchen sink and counter top, but with old cupboards.. now none of that will mater once i fill it up with my shit.. and make it my home. i could of went for a wholly renovated suite on the 14th floor facing the mountains, but it was quite small. so i went with the 8th floor, the extra 100 sq. ft. and a view of downtown instead. i will probably flickr some pix when i move in. but for now, you all can rest assured that i have a home for canada day!
there must be a way to obtain rental housing without that dreadful ‘auction’ feeling, which is that feeling of pressure, where you need to make a snap decision now, or you’ll miss your chance to have what you are being presented. it’s that feeling that doesn’t allow for much comparison, research, or all those important things that are done by good consumers. now.. none of this would actually matter if we were talking about peanuts here, but housing will take up >1/3 of my income.. and to-boot it comes with a nice one year commitment… well, i guess the easy way, is to get ripped off and simply bite the bullet, but there is just something inside me, that hates doing that.
currently, i find myself struggling to write anything of significance and this is troubling me dearly. this is quite unfortunate, since i do have plenty of idle time, that i can waste to write and post to this blog. i guess i am just in desperate need of a marvelous and inspirational occurrence that will give me something exhilarating to transcribe and share – writing about my trips to the beach are starting to aggravate me, since they are just a record of a now routine event where nothing thrilling ever materializes.
so yesterday i watched way too much ‘family guy’, especially episodes with the commentary turned on. i know this, because last night, my dreams had a voice track over top of whatever was going on. now, i don’t actually remember what i dreamt, so i can’t really write too much more… but i do distinctly recall the voice over… now onward.. this morning, when i woke up, i decided to toss on the hoodie and head out to cash in my free beverage at safeway… and on the way back the pad.. i ran into dave (one of the students who was working for one of the partnering offices of last week’s event)… it was kinda neat, actually running into somebody! he had a full car and obviously plans, so i just continued my voyage back home. i then chilled out for a while, finished my drink, and then headed back out and went to the book warehouse, where i picked up a book (reefer madness, schlosser, 2003). next, it was just me, my book and a bottle of water, that headed down to the beach.. it was unusually cold for May, but it was still pretty comfortable…. after a couple of hours of reading and people/water/mountain watching… the hunger started to engulf my mind, so i returned home and made some eats. then i read some more… took a shower… and watched some family guy. – please accept my apologies for this mundane post, but it’s all i can share without actually engaging in some multi-directional dialogue.
the feeling inside is so motivational that it is shocking; actually feeling like you are willing to do anything, just to get a chance. you still need to keep your kool though, and not try too hard, but while you hope all night long that tomorrow another opportunity will arise, you realize that, if it does, you will have the power to gain something, that you can be that much closer, and this is truly amazing. bare in mind you need to play the cards you are dealt, so act accordingly to achieve maximum results.
damn there goes me neglecting my blog again and thus leaving you, my vast and loyal readership, hanging in a void with nothing more than profuse curiosity to help pass your time. stay tuned. (i need to end it there folks, kuz i caught myself drawing up a lame baseball analogy, explaining how i’m back)
well that was probably the best visit to the beach yet. after i finished watching ‘the rules of attraction‘ (for probably the forth time), i was suddenly without anything to do, so i decided to grab the ipod and a red cup and head to kits beach… i found a log to sit on and just watched the sun set behind the clouds as the water waved up on the shore. it was really relaxing, peaceful and a perfect setting for some reflection.
today was overall a productive day. once i awoke, i immediately wanted to go out on the town. i figured i would do some sunday shopping, and grab a few things that i have meaning to get for the last while. so the first stop was the starbucks at 4th and vine… “tall americano please…” then i went out and waited for the bus, which seemed to take for ever to come. and then when it did, it was the wrong bus… as in a bus that isn’t suppose to go down forth, but ohh well, i got on anyways… it was pretty full, except for at the back where there was this fuck head sprawled out, talking on his cell phone, acting like he owned the world. he was talking about some new car that he bought for 80k, and how these new wheels are going to get him laid. it was pretty funny when i caught myself feeling like punching this guy in the fucken head. lol.. ok sorry… anyways, then at the next stop, a bunch of people boarded, and made this guy move over… and this one girl sat beside me… she had already been shopping since she had some bags with her… then all of a sudden, she pulled out some chocolate lip balm from one of the bags, and put it on… i of course had to comment on this, since the smell of the chocolate was very overwhelming… then… we were stuck in traffic… i guess there was a marathon going on today, which was why the bus was going down the wrong road… it took about 45 minutes to get to downtown, which normally takes like 10 minutes… once downtown, i headed into the mall… started at sears, but it didn’t have a good vibe so i left, and ended up at rw and co… where i was looking at bunch of stuff… i ended up buying a necklace, kind of like the one i had before, but nicer… and a shirt… i then walked in and out of various stores through the mall.. blaw blaw blaw… bought some sunglasses, a card, socks… etc… then i left.. got on the bus.. and headed back to kits… i then went and got my hair cut.. and went to safeway to buy something to make for dinner… then i came home… made a sandwich… took a shower… did some laundry and started to watch ‘the rules of attraction’.
so today’s approach was slightly different… in order to keep my good mood and high spirits, which i accumulated throughout my day at work.. i came home and slid right out of my office attire and directly into my beach gear and headed straight for the beach. i walked the shore barefoot through the sand/shells/sticks and watched all the pretty people having fun… i even saw a cute couple run right into the water… which i can only imagine was freezing cold… but damn awesome!! now i am back at home base, to write this, and next i am off to return a dvd rental and enjoy the remainder of my evening.