Day 1: Toronto, ON to Cornwall, ON

Destination: Cornwall, ON
KM driven: 462.7
Location: The Anchor Motel

I just pulled into Cornwall, ON about 15 minutes ago. The Super8 was straight off the hwy but I drove on to see if I could find the Comfort Inn I had already set my sights on. I think I took a wrong turn somewhere, but the Anchor Inn $49.95/night sign certainly caught my attention. I wanted to log onto my laptop to check the reviews first, but I thought I would throw caution to the wind and give it a blind go. The room is presentable, and there is even a mini fridge which some higher class motels don't have. There's a tv and a little desk for me to set up shop, and I'm pretty much pleased as punch to have found this place.

My trip took a rough start as at the last minute I remembered a book I had to deliver to my mother. I had forgotten to drop it off the last few times I was in town. I called to see if she could last 2 weeks without it, but alas she needed it. I was kind of hoping either her or my father would offer to pick it up from my house but that was some foolish thinking. I was already way late leaving my house so tacking on another hour to the trip was not something I was happy about, but it was my own fault. I feel a little bit hopped up right now. After a McDs lunch, a redbull and a large Timmys I'm about ready to perform a one-man read through of Who's On First.

I wanted to do something today that would be new and exciting but the desire to stay on the hwy and drive straight was too high. It wasn't a huge deal, but I was going to stop at the Big Apple. I've driven by so many times and never stopped in. But really, what am I going to do with an entire apple pie? I did stop in Gananoque for a pit stop and saw my first Groceteria. What's a Groceteria you ask? I don't know, I didn't stop, but you can go to Gananoque yourself to find out.

I have to get used to this tiny keyboard. My father let me borrow his Acer & internet stick. Which is tres convenient (don't mind me while I practice my Francais). I'm actually a little bit nervous to enter Quebec because my French is disrespectfully awful. I need to do a bit more research for my departure tomorrow. I have a good idea of what I want to do. I'm thinking an early start would be beneficial. One thing I want to do will include a super gigantic stair climb which I'm not looking forward to. Previous gigantic stair climbs have always proven to be less than enjoyable. But I think this one might be worth it.

J-out.

**EDIT**
Now I understand the cheap price. I just found some pubes in the bathroom sink. Oh well, you get what you pay for.

Hokay...

The semi-plan was to get ready on Thursday night and then leave straight from work, but that didn't come together too well so here I am now, still at home with a sink full of dishes and laundry and packing to be done. That's ok though, because I am officially ON VACATION. So everything is aiiiight. I still have a lot of research to do, but my dad gave me is Acer with an internet stick so I'm hooked up for my trip. Or maybe I should say hooked in.

So. Thursday night Adam and I completed what was already the beginning of Toronto adventure #4, which was to explore the Bridal path. We previously took a lackluster trip down the Northern portion of the street, which looked less fancy than Mississauga Rd N of the QEW. I knew that couldn't be it, so I googled again and found a giant portion that we had missed. And what a spectacular portion that was. It's weird for someone to be so rich they can afford a mansion. And for someone to want to live in such a grandiose home. A home so large they need to pay several people to take care of it for them.

Jumping back in time, I went out for brunch with Sarah and Pete on Monday morning. We hit up this chain called Boom Breakfast. They have stores on College, just by me on St. Clair and then up near Yonge and Eg. I had the Boom Breakfast, which is just the standard eggs bacon and home fries. I figured getting the standard would be good way to judge the food. Plus I was all Bennied out from the last few visits to Futures.

So that's it, #3 & #4 down, and I'll have to pick up from were I started at when I back to Toronto. I leave this afternoon for the cottage.

Such Is My Life

I cannot believe what happened to me today. In efforts to give my landlord a direct deposit instead of an email transfer I have gone more than out of my way. First I went to my bank and waited for 20 minutes only to be told I had to go to his bank. Fine. Next day during lunch I went to his bank and waited in line. When it was finally my turn the lady was like, will you be depositing cash? And so I said I would go use the ATM. My card was not working so I left. Finally today I went to my bank to take out my rent and go back to RBC. At the ATM I was reminded of my apparent $400 daily withdrawal limit. I figured I would take that amount to RBC and email the rest. I pulled into RBC and as I stepped out my car my deposit envelope flew open and all of my money went flying EVERYWHERE!!!!! I was freaking out chasing 20s all across the parking lot. Luckily two very kind people helped me run the money down. I ended up $40 short, but overall it could have been a lot worse. Serves me right for doing my landlord a favour, right. It was like the opening scene from A Perfect World except less fake money blowing in the wind, and more my money blowing in the wind.

I leave on my two week adventure starting next Monday. I still have a ton to do. I need to drop my car off for a tune up and to make sure my transmission is alright. I've left it pretty last minute, so I'm pretty much going to be taking the trip either way. But a good lube oil filter never hurt anyone. I've started to create my itinerary, and it's starting to look pretty fantastic. I had first thought I would take a trip up North this weekend and start my trip from there, but with the amount of things I have to do I might just stay in town and get my business together and leave on Sunday. We shall see. I need to plan out some iPod playlists. And I need to take a few books that I want to get through. And most importantly I need to get a list of things to do in each city. I'll try to update from the road. I've decided that based on the weather I will probably be staying in motels and not camping so much. Also a lot of the campsites will be closed at that time. Part of me wishes someone was going with me, but another part of me is happy to be going alone.

Adam had a fantastico dinner party last night. I don't know what it is, but all of his friends make really delicious food.

Also, I'm extending my Toronto Discovery Challenge into the Fall. I have a few more to add but I'll never make it to 10 before Summer officially ends.

Time to sleep.

Yike, Likety

I thought the heat wave was over for the summer, but I clearly thought wrong. There was actually a good stretch of days that I didn't have to use the fan. I even contemplated packing it away in my closet. I would have had to unpack it because dangity dang it's hot out. My neighbour said nice night and I told him it was too hot, but he replied that I should think back on this weather in January and decide which I prefer. I think it's a close call, but I would rather sweat to the oldies without lifting a finger rather than wake up because my nose is so cold I can't sleep. But it was a close call.

Work has been really terrible for me lately. I've made/contributed to 2 major errors, and now a 3rd project of mine is taking a turn for the worse. It makes me want to just pack up and leave, but that's just taking the easy way out. I have a "talk" with my manager coming up, so who knows what that will lead to.

I've been doing some getting away over the past few weekends. From a full house cottage weekend to a day trip to Sim's new place, I've been busy. The weekend after next I'm going back up north and then from there embarking on a two week trip to the Maritimes. If I had the time or money I would extend the trip. But I can't afford to cover my work wages plus pay for vacation costs for that long. Even two weeks is pushing it, but I figure I'm only young once and I can always earn the money back.

I wanted to write more but the heat is getting to me. I missed the buskerfest last week because the timing didn't work out. But I did pick up a wicked piece of advice from that day, which I shall share: ♫Whenever scrambled eggs start getting you down, you can always go -- eggs benny♫

Go on.....git.

There is one thing that can happen in the mornings that aggravates me above most all else, and that is having my driveway lane way blocked. Last Thursday and Friday the same City of Toronto worker was blocking the driveway with his work truck and he would not move. On Thursday I was the second of two cars in a line to get out and the first person wanted to turn around so I did it, and proceeded to drive the wrong way to leave. It might just be a driveway but it has an exit separate from the entrance, it's the size of one car width, and there's a one way sign at the entrance. I'm pretty good at math so I've figured out that the entire lane is one way. It was completely begrudgingly that I did that, and not without shouting to the City worker that he cannot park to block a one way driveway. Then on Friday he was back again. I waited for maybe 20-30 seconds before I honked. He waved his hand as if to say 'just a second', and then went back to work. So I honked twice and he ignored me. Then I yelled something along the lines of, "You're going to have to move your ****** car, this is a one way driveway." Then I got a lecture about not cursing and giving him respect. I got out of the car to make sure it was a City of Toronto truck, wrote down his plate, and once again begrudgingly turned around to leave going the wrong way. If I had hit anyone on my way out it would have been 100% my fault. He didn't force me to drive the wrong way, but if I wanted to leave I didn't have any other choice.

Then today I came home to find someone parked in my spot. That was just so fantastic. The landlord knew it was the downstairs tenant but didn't seem to care. So right now I'm parked on the street. I walked to the back and they were sitting out there and said he was just leaving. If he wasn't staying overnight there was no reason he couldn't have parked on the street. That behaviour annoys me. Right now because there is construction on the back of the house, there is only room for the big mud pile and one car. I pay for that spot, don't let anyone else use it. Period. Thanks.

Work is a nightmare and I am getting really behind on a few of my projects. I'm looking forward to this upcoming weekend. It should be a nice relaxing weekend getaway. I'm actually procrastinating on some take home work right now.

Also, Visioneers is NOT a good movie. It had such potential but it bit the big one. Maybe the problem was going into it thinking a movie with Zach Galifianakis about an epidemic of people exploding was a comedy, big mistake.

I'm As Quiet As A Fish

I have had quite the week. I latched on to my Aunt and Uncle and spent as much time with them as possible, because I think they are amazing. They came and picked me up on Tuesday and we went and had breakfast/lunch in Kensington. We walked around for a bit and then settled in for food at Last Temptation. I'm glad I had been there just a few weeks previous when Divell came into town, or I might not have known where to go. I enjoyed the food, very much. Then we hunted down one of the last remaining Banksy tags from his May 2010 visit. It's behind the old OPP building on Harbour just before Bay. I got us lost trying to find it, and then miraculously we ended up at the exact right intersection. I didn't have my camera but it was quite neat. Then we cruised for a while trying to find an adequate place to dine with the family. After much difficulty we scored reservations for 6 at Origins at 9pm, and not a moment sooner. The food was unbelievable, un-be-lievable. It cost an arm and a leg but it was sooo good. Before dinner though we walked around the Distillery District for a while. I think that neighbourhood is a must for tourists, and of course locals. We sat on the patio at the Mill Street Pub, and shared a quick little something before heading to my brother's condo. This worked well for the rellies because they needed to see his place, but fitting it into another day would have been difficult. They really filled their days to the brim with activities. Wednesday I met up with them after work and we went to the Rainbow Theatre for an airing of "Exit Through the Gift Shop Door" which is a documentary on Banksy and some related graffiti artists. I quite enjoyed, and would recommend to anyone interested in the subject. The whole time we were trying to find a posted for my Aunt to steal and take home. They got one from their trip to Spain and I guess she's starting a tradition of sorts. The movie was followed by a sad goodbye in the parking lot. Not dramatically sad, but I don't know when I'll see them next and I miss them already.

Today I met Sonny after work at her work. We hopped over to Dai Ichi for some really yummy sushi. We're getting better but we still haven't learned how to order the right amount of food. The 3 roll Maki Set was definitely too big. Of course we did fill up on some of the free apps we got, because of the wait. There was this DELICIOUS one that was potatoes in a honey garlic sauce. Drool. Afterwards we went to Gairloch Park in Oakville, and I brought my camera to take some pictures. The waves were really strong and were beating up against the rocks in a really beautiful way. After a quick stop in with her parents we headed back downtown. I was really impressed to see an Alex Janvier hanging in her parents' bathroom. He's one of my favourite artists.

I have some decisions to make this weekend. My place is relatively clean since I scrambled for it to be presentable for my Aunt and Uncle. It's not the best, but the next phase of cleaning can wait. And by next phase I mean finish unpacking my boxes. The cottage freed up so I'm thinking that sounds like a good option.

I had already been there, but I'm counting the Distillery as Toronto #2.

Just So You (K)now

I had a fairly enjoyable day at work yesterday. There are a group of people that can make my office a fun place to be. A crisis was averted, yet several others seem to be emerging. But my manager admitted that the most recent of tragic turns for the worse was not my fault, and was unforeseeable from my position. I do still feel responsible for the rework effort required.

In good news I have secured my time off and will be embarking on a two week journey to the East Coast in September. The trip shall start and end with time at our cottage. I'm not supposed to know this, but I have it on good authority that we will be getting a hammock up there. That is perhaps some of the sweetest news I have heard in a long time. I can picture the good times already. So from the cottage I'll drive across and down through Ottawa and begin to look for some places to happen and make some stops along the way. I already have a draft route in mind, including: Fredricton, Hopewell, Summerside, Charlottetown, New Glasgow, Halifax, Lunenburg, Saint John, and perhaps a few QC cities on the way home. Not all of those are going to be overnights or I might find myself in an even tighter money situation. I have been putting money aside to prepare for my first down payment, but I feel this trip is more important.

I had a great weekend up north this weekend past. There was a family wedding, and my Aunt and Uncle from LA are up visiting. They are just the coolest people, and I wish I got to see them more. Apparently a family trip to LA is in the works for next summer. I stayed up both nights talking to my uncle, and during the day we sat on the patio and he played guitar for us. Very good stuff.

And last night was a night like many others. I met up with Adam and went for a coffee at Tim's on Davenport, where he shamelessly admitted to the clerk I didn't want a donut only because I had just gorged on pizza. Thank you Adam. Then we skipped down to Woodbine Park to see what the good word was. With the darkness and the fog we couldn't see much, but we took a nice walk down the boardwalk. I think I'd like to mark that down as my first of ten required new Toronto activities this summer.

Take it to the Nth Degree

There's this neighbourhood cat that likes to sleep in my driveway. Twice now I've made that tight turn into the one way alley to find an orange and white tabby taking a snooze. First time he jumped out of the way, but the second time he meandered, and then sat calmly as I drove past. It made me laugh but really it scares me. I worry about the kittens. They're not actually kittens, I just more often that not refer to all cats that way.

I took a trip this weekend to Kincardine. I got kind of surprised at the volume of traffic remaining on Saturday morning at 10:30. What is everyone else doing being a lazy git like me and not leaving bright and early, if not Friday night? The time on the road was a bit too extended for my liking but I quite enjoyed walking around Kincardine. I stopped first at a beach and took some photos and read for a while. I didn't want the main street to shut down before I had a chance to look around so I headed that way shortly after. I can't romanticize the trip because it was an ordinary somewhat uninspired trip. I just have a burning desire to travel every nook and cranny and of this country. Looking back now I wish I had kept a better diary of my trips. I'm still young, there's still time.

I'm reading 'Franny and Zooey' by JD Salinger. It would have perhaps sat on my shelf unread for decades to come if Adam hadn't picked it off to borrow one weekend. He found out that the Royal Tenenbaums was loosely based on the characters from this book. Very smart but unusually bizarre. It took a bit to get into, but I've enjoyed it. I'm excited for the next book selection. I must say, I can't afford to continue buying books, I really must stop. I have spent at least a few hundred on books this year alone. I have enough unread to last me a while, so I best reign in that spending.

Dinner with Shmucks was not what I was expecting yet still hilarious. Randomly ran into Adam Mansour from LP. All grown up and married, very exciting.

I challenge myself to do 10 new things around the city before the summer is out. Be it parks or cafes or pubs, I must explore more. I'm also going to start going to bed earlier and taking better care of myself all around.

Snap Back to Reality

I'm back downtown finally. I really enjoyed house sitting in PC for two weeks. It was nice having some people over for a swim. And the AC was perfect for some of the hot nights. But I did watch entirely too much tv. I felt like Kenneth on 30 Rock when he said, "Do you know that there is a channel that tells you what is on the other channels?" Going from HD satellite to plug and play is going to be a bummer, but probably better for me anyways. I should find more constructive things to do with my time rather than melt in to my sofa.

I want to go away again. I'm itching to leave the city. I'm also spending more than I make so I should probably cool it. I need to learn to manage my money better. I think I do a good job most of the time, but something is still killing the bank.

I have an entire Sunday afternoon to myself. What shall I do?

Goodnight, Amherst

I finally went out to the Fringe Festival last night with Adam. The first show we went to was unfortunately sold out so we went out for dinner instead followed by some drinks at the Green Room. I decided to start the night with a double shot of Rye, but I'm pretty sure what was brought out was Scotch. Needless to say the experience resulted in an embarrassing moment I would rather not reveal nor recreate. The good times continued with the Fringe show 'Goodnight, Amherst' which was based off of the song "38 years old" by the Tragically Hip. It was a good show, but unfortunately about 2 scenes in I needed to use the bathroom and spent the remainder of the show thinking about that. We followed the show with some beers at the tent and then the Victory. Then Adam and I walked back to his place and picked up some Souvlaki at the 24 hr diner. It was like 2:30am with not an empty seat in sight. We ate and watched Futurama but after only one episode I was spent and took a taxi home.

The heat wave has finally broken and the weather is magnificent. My apartment has returned to a normal summer heat, and I don't even need the fan anymore. Though I thank my lucky stars for even having it. Since the wave hit last Sunday I've spent almost every minute at home laying on my couch trying not to melt. I successfully avoided succumbing to the desire of having A/C. I'm going to be house sitting at my parents' house for the next two weeks. Ironic that when I finally have A/C I won't need it.

I can't get enough of the viral video Double Rainbow. It's just so hilarious. And I regret not taking video of my own personal double rainbow experience. I didn't break down and cry, but it was pretty intense and I did start to wonder what it all meant.

Julie out.

Salutations & Sayonara

I walked into my bathroom this evening to find my walls and ceiling covered in baby spiders. I seriously hate it when egg sacks birth within the confines of my personal living space. Not only is it disgusting, it's rude and uncalled for. There's an entire outdoor world for them to crawl around in and perform their birthing rituals. Blech.

It's just past 1:00am right now and I wish it wasn't 25C (31C w/ humidity). I hate having to sleep with the fan on because it's so loud. The blowing of the air would be soothing on its own but it makes this grinding noise when it reaches the far right of the oscillation turn. And it grinds even more if you try to keep the direction static. My mother has offered to buy me a mini air conditioner, but I'd like to see if I can hold out. Only a handful of times have I been reduced to underwear and a wife beater to maintain my sanity. I think my next place, if it's rented or purchased, I'll be sure to have A/C and central heating checked as mandatory.

I accomplished a lot this weekend in terms of taking steps towards cleaning this place up. I made a list of 24 mini tasks with hopes to complete them all by tonight. I got through 16 of them so that's acceptable. I like to tick items off a list to feel like I'm making progress. And I try to avoid getting an inflated sense of accomplishment by doing all the small stuff first, at least this time I did. I cleaned out my car, which I'm very happy about. I even scrubbed out the compartment between the two front seats. I think I found about 12 dollars in total, 4 of which is sitting in a mug filled with soap for reasons I'd rather not get into. I've never used the compartment before because it's always been jammed full of really weird items. Like mouth wash that expired in 2007. How.

I should sleep. My bathroom door shall remain shut to give me a false sense of security against attack tonight by any of the remaining spiders. Though I did manage to squash about 95% of them. When I get out my step ladder I mean business.

We Have Crashed The Party

I'm listening to Strung Out On OK Computer. A great classical rendition of perhaps one of the greatest albums every composed. A really nice way to start my Saturday. I was a little bit late rising this morning, but I spent the greater part of the morning in bed finishing The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. It makes you think about the times we live in and how fortunate we are. Even in war times we are not deprived of anything.

I went up North with Adam last weekend. The weather was a bit unforgiving but we did manage a trip into Bobcaygeon and an outdoor fire on Saturday night. We watched a lot of 30 Rock, and drank a lot of beer. We ate like royalty (or at least like cottage royalty), and spent spare hours in our respective corners reading. I'm pleased as punch that we have set ownership of the cottage. Although it's no longer my weekend playground paradise available any and all weekends on a whim, I'm pleased to see it turn back into maybe what it once was. With constant feet traveling through it perhaps it will regain the confidence it once had to operate as a full-time summer home.

It's been a pretty quiet week for me. I've been working really hard at the office. For the first 3 days of the week I felt pulled in a hundred directions. That's an exaggeration but even being pulled in 5 ways can be stressful enough. I have 13 projects on my plate right now, and I just finished 3 but then I gained 2 back. And it's always the weirdest problems that arise. It's hardly my responsibility to ensure our scripts are properly written to ensure file transmissions from DOS to Unix are successful. How did I even find out that was the problem you might ask? Dumb effing luck. Rant at just the right time and you might find yourself sitting next to a networks genius who is more than eager to solve your problem.

Last night on my way home I swung by the Fringe tent to see A&D. While in the driver's seat I somehow lost my wallet. At a stop light with one foot diligently on the brake I reached around with my other foot to see if it had fallen to my feet. And as some person was walking past my car I accidentally tapped the gas and revved my engine. I'm such a complete dork sometimes.

I guess that's all for now. I did sweet nothing on Canada Day, so now I really must clean. The other day I was by chance browsing some photos I took of this place before I moved in. So clean, so crisp. I want to go to there.

The Best Days Of Our Lives

I don't know how some drivers can be so bold. If you make a directional mistake you should find a safe and appropriate place to correct yourself. Don't get me wrong, I've made a U-turn or two in my day, but only when I felt the roads were open enough and it was safe. Turning onto Vaughan from Oakwood there is a lane going straight and a lane going left with an advanced green. I was in the left lane and while our light was red the guy beside me did a U-turn in front of me to head back North up Oakwood. 4 seconds later it was green for me and I had an advanced light. If he had been mid-illegal-jerk-move I could have hit him, and that pisses me off.

3 people today at work got fired. It's possible that one quit, but it doesn't make me feel good about where I'm working. Not good at all. Once again I have something thinking to do. Some soul searching perhaps.

I took the collectors home today because I have come to distrust the hwy alert signs. Whenever it says both Express and Collectors are very slow I take Collectors. Turns out they lied (big surprise) and Express was WIDE open, while Collectors crawled at a speed slower than a car that is not accelerating. Just as I was thinking, "Sure would be nice to hop that hwy divider" a 4x4 did just that. At an opening between cement fences he took life by the balls and merged into the fast lane. I was jealous. It was slow because the 427S was closed for diplomats. I actually got a little peak at a motorcade being escorted by police. I'm not anti-G20, but if you've seen the fences they have built downtown it's scary and creepy. Total police state.

Also...
Pirate Radio: One hundred opposable thumbs up.
Men Who Stare At Goats: One giant WTF

SHUT IT DOWN

I'm wearing an old faded custom tank top right now. When it gets really hot in here there's no choice but to wear as little as possible and wait for the air to cool. My mother has offered to purchase an AC but I refuse, for now. I made an exception for the space heater that only gets used 3 months out of the year, but an AC would be much larger and more wasteful. Today the heat wasn't as bad as the end of May. I did get a little bit reflective and thought that it's sad when all that you have left of someone are some ancient memories, a faded tank, and some sour grapes. But that's life.

It was such a beautiful and amazing weekend. Not counting the fact that I once again locked myself out of my house everything just seemed to come together. I got to see a lot of family, I went to Frank's housewarming and saw Tamara down at the Skydome for 10 minutes between her buying tickets and entering the stadium. I sat off to the side in the shade and read for a while. Guernsey is getting really good.

Sunday night I went to Adam's on the way home. After a failed attempt at a harbourfront coffee, we went down to Cherry beach and skipped stones in the dark. Knowing your after hour coffee locations that are parking accessible is key. Unfortunately we failed and had to rely on good old reliable Casa Loma Timmy's.

It was a really enjoyable weekend. Perhaps the funniest part was picking up my keys at Sim's place. After about a 15 minute chat Sim goes, "So how are you planning on getting back into your place??" I paused for a second as my brain ran triple checks for sarcasm. "...Ummm, I'm going to get my spare keys from you?" I also had to remind her where she had stashed them, which I found very amusing. With the allergy medicine in an envelope marked "Julie's keys".

Now, to find the solution to neck acne and life will be perfect.

Peee-aaaccch

I got a nice surprise today on the way to work as my Check Engine light suddenly flicked on. Yaaaay. I spent the rest of the trip in cursing my car and my soon to be non-existent bank account. Through out the day my mind wandered away from the engine problems until 6pm when I was once again confronted with the glowing light of doom. It wasn't until about half way home that I remembered there was a higher than likely chance it was only because my gas lid wasn't screwed on properly. I was fairly certain that would be the reason for the unwanted orange thing on my dash, but I have become so accustomed to chagrin I was preparing for the worst. Luck be a lady, it was my gas cap. Now tomorrow I get to see if the light goes back to normal and I can move on with my life. Ironically, I'm about 50km short of my scheduled oil change and I might not have noticed had the lid not been loose. Who knows.

I just got rejected for another job. At this point I'd just like to get an offer to feel better about myself. I'm not too upset, it's just the principle.

I almost got an opportunity to work in a performance for the Fringe Festival. Turns out the director got someone else and my services were not required. I'm ok either way, but it would have been fun to challenge myself with something new like that.

I'm going back to Newmarket this weekend to see my awesome Great Aunt. Then I think there's something father related happening on Sunday. Stuff stuff stuff.

I've moved onto The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Anne Barrows. I've heard good things, so we shall see.

Too Intawnce

I'm a bit crispy on the outside right now. I would probably be in more pain if I hadn't spent 5 days practically room-bound in Mexico with scabs forming all over my sun exposed upper body. This is a mild discomfort compared to that pain. Though it does hurt to bend lift or stretch in any way.

I just got back from a nice relaxing trip to the cottage. We roadtriped to Germania and Coopers Falls in looks for some ghost town adventures. The cities were slightly more inhabited than anticipated, but what can you do. I still enjoyed the broken down buildings and the old school gas pump.

On the way home we came across a giant snapping turtle attempting to cross Hwy 48. We circled back and came up behind it again. Nik got out of the car and intimidated the turtle back into the grassy lands to the right of the hwy. He seemed to resist at first, but as we were driving away we saw him crawling further back into the grass. It was so cute from far away. He would crouch down low, but when startled he would stand tall on his legs, adding about 2-3 inches to his total height.

Jak called me later in the evening when we got back. I had missed a party in Oakville, and she wanted me to remind her of the funny name I once came across at work. "I know the first name was Richard, what was his last name?", to which I replied, "Sac."

I've moved onto A Complicated Kindness by Miriam Toews. Seems good so far. I liked the direction Beatrice & Virgil took, it was a different type of read but I liked it.

Can't wait to get back up north again. Can't - wait.

Lazy Sunday

It's been a lazy week for me. I had a very lazy weekend with very little planned. I left my house for a grocery shopping on Sunday but I think that was about it. I've grown accustomed to a 10pm weeknight shopping time where very few people are in the store. Switching to weekends is a pain. I did accomplish a lot around the house. I finally filed away all of my car repair receipts (which I had been amazing at keeping but terrible at filing). I finally disassembled my lame Halloween t-shirt of ttc pins. I thought about putting them back up onto the black board I made but that is over. Perhaps I will resurrect them in some other fashion when the time is right. I emptied one of my 4 remaining moving boxes. And I finished Oryx and Crake. I cannot wait to get my hands on Year of the Flood to get back into that story. I've officially moved on to Beatrice & Virgil by Yann Martel. My mother tells me the book has received mixed reviews. I'm waiting until I finish before I pass final judgment.

I had a funny exchange yesterday with a guy I work with. I went into the supercube to see one of his coworkers but he was the only one there. So I pointed to the guy's desk and said, "Do you know where this one is?" In response he said, "I think he's gone to lunch. He left at 12 on the button and previous to him leaving he was asking me about Middle Eastern food places." To which I said, "Your logic is sound." To which he replied, "I'm an analyst, a business analyst." That cracked me up. Later in the kitchen he was complaining about the air quality and always sniffing at work. I told him I have the opposite problem but when I go home I sniff more. And I attribute part of it to the cat the people downstairs got. I said, "I've never seen the cat but I did notice a giant bag of cat food outside their door." To which he said, "You could be an analyst too!!" I love smart jokes that connect back to something else.

I also had an hour long debate with another coworker about corporations investing in their reputation. His stance was that corporations will readily invest in their reputation because it creates a profitable return because it increases favour with the consumers. One big example was companies going green. And I told him that a company would not go green unless it was profitable for them and that the boost in reputation is a byproduct of the business decision. If going green was more expensive then a company would not do it. Believe it or not that took an hour and even spilled into after lunch emails back and forth with links and such. I wonder if this will carry on further.

The weather's looking less than favourable but I'm thinking cottage this weekend. I'm really hoping the weather forecast turns. My real intention is to use the cottage as a base camp and take day trips to (kind of) nearby ghost towns. Shaves off that first three hours quite nicely. We'll see.

Him and Her

I took some items from my parents' garage sale last weekend. My mom was selling these two ink drawings my Grandmother had brought home from Bali. I'm not sure they fit my decor but I actually remember them hanging in her house in Minden, so I was sold. I've posted a picture below. I was too lazy to switch out the fisheye so whatever.



I think I'll hang them vertical beside my bookcase. Then I can always be reminded of my grandparents when I look at them. I tried looking up 'Him and Her' in Indonesian but my crappy internet connection has failed me. I can't decide if the internet is just really bad or my computer is dying. Maybe I'm lucky and it's both.

Onyx and Cake

I just got back from a nice Mother's Day dinner with my family. I didn't have flowers for my mom, but I do want to surprise her at some point with some. Either at her office or at home. Sadly I probably wouldn't be able to find her office on campus. But she always surprises me at my office with flowers on my birthday so it's time to return the favour.

I stayed over with momsy and dadsy on Friday, so I could be ready bright and early for a garage sale. The weather was supposed to be horrid but my mother asked me to stay in hopes that it turned around. We were up at 7 and preparing, and people were already hovering at the end of our driveway. My dad hates garage sales so he left in a huff. I told him I don't love them either but supporting each other is something we just do. Not sure I got through to him. We sold pretty much nothing, which was a disappointment. We had some good stuff. A barely used bar fridge for $30. A set of Love Seats for $50/each (though I'm sure my mom would have accepted less). We did sell a small antique item we inherited. The woman who bought it had had the exact same piece until her son-in-law sat on it. So the story goes. She was pretty happy to have a replica to keep the memory alive.

I've skipped books and I'm now on Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood. It took me a bit to get into it, but now I just don't want to put it down. I've also been spending my free time trying to learn Blackbird on the guitar, the Sarah McLachlan version. Even though it's just two frets up from The Beatles it's a bit easier for me. I'm not there yet but I'm working on it. Adam played me the intro when we tripped to Ottawa and I've been wanting to pick up the rest ever since.

I'm going to try to work out more. My parents recently got me an exercise bike, and I need to start using it more. I had been for a while, but I got interrupted. But it's back on. Giddy up.

Where Fore Art Thou Rhino

I went out last night for a drink in Parkdale at a bar called The Rhino. Son and I went down and then two of her roommates and their significant others showed up. The last time I traveled West of Dufferin on Queen was in 2006 to go to the Cadillac Lounge. So it's about time I rediscovered Parkdale. We each had a pint of the house beer, Rhino Lager. I think I've developed a pretty good taste for beer, but this one I did not like. The after taste of the first sip was like Rhino excrement. And although the after taste weakened as the drink continued I don't think that will be an experience I will be duplicating anytime soon. Maybe in 2 years when I find myself back at Rhino I'll think to myself "Didn't I once say this tasted like Rhino ass?" and I'll order one more just to prove myself right. But until then, no way Jose.

One couple left early, but the four of us went back to their place to watch Romeo + Juliet. That has been a long standing favourite Soundtrack of mine. I ended up leaving before the movie was over as the power went out and I was suddenly feeling very sleepy. Interesting end to the evening. All in all, good times.

Also, I need to kick myself for looking down on someone at work who didn't know Juliet's last name. Me: "Well I doubt it's Juliet Capulet so it has to be Montague."