9 more sleeps...

...and it's off to Paris! Yay! I guess that means I need to think about what I'm going to pack...

What do you do when you want to be outside, but you have no one to go with you?

It's such a nice day and I wanted to be outside. Either go for a walk, play tennis, go to the park and toss a frisbee - anything active outside. I called Irma, but she wasn't home. Apparently she was at work. She told me to call Matthew, and I did, but he had to work in the afternoon. Hmmm. I would've called Jenn, but she's in Montreal. I would've also called Joi, but he's in Japan. So what do you do when you have no one else to call? You end up shopping. =P. So much for being outside. First I went to Sport Mart to use this gift certificate I had, so I bought a pair of shorts. I wanted to get a pair of sandals, but they didn't have the ones I was looking for. Next, I went to the mall. Big mistake. Even though I told myself I was only going to window shop, I ended up buying a pair of flip flops and 2 shirts. *sigh*. The way I see it, everyone is to blame for me shopping. Had I been able to "play outside", so-to-speak, I wouldn't have set foot in the mall or any other store for that matter. So, it's everybody's fault. hehehe. =P

Weekend in Toronto

OK, I finally have a chance to "clear my memory" and write about my weekend…


FRIDAY

At the airport
I was scheduled to take the red-eye flight to Toronto at 1:00 am. I got to the airport 2 hours beforehand, only because I thought there was still construction on the freeway. There was a bit of construction but not enough to affect traffic. So much for that…

So what does one do at the airport, when almost everything is closed and the only store that is open closes in 10 minutes? I bought a bottle of water and a Kit Kat, and then walked around the airport. Only problem is, the airport is not that big, so trying to kill some time by walking around wasn't successful. I ended up looking at my map of Toronto, and highlighting the places I would be going to, since I don't know Toronto that well (only my second time there). That took a whole 10 minutes. And at this point, I still had over an hour to go before the flight. There was nothing to do and I had nowhere to go, so I headed to the gate and waited until it was time for us to board.

People watching
Since I had nothing else to do, I couldn't help but watch people who were waiting for the same flight. Businessmen, moms and kids, students, etc. I noticed this one guy with an Old Navy bag who wasn't bad looking ;-). And I also noticed these 2 "army-looking" guys. "Army-looking" in the sense that they had the brush cut and matching tattoos. But then, for all I know they could be gay or something and the matching tattoos was their "thing"? I guess the reason they caught my attention (besides the fact that one of them asked me for change for the vending machine), was that one of them somehow reminded me of Irma's "Joey" (with the shoes and all… hehehe). I told myself that I wouldn't mind sitting next to this guy on the plane.

On the plane
Finally it was time to board the plane. I was anxious because (i) I was excited to go to Toronto to see my friend Alison, and (ii) I just wanted to sleep on the plane. As it turned out, the army guys sat next to me. Coincidence? The older guy sat next to me, while "Joey" sat next to the window. I would've preferred to have the window seat, but the flight was full and I had no choice but to sit on the aisle seat. I waited for the older guy to get settled in because he kept fidgeting (he was a bit taller and couldn't get comfortable in his seat). When he finally stopped moving around, I dozed off. After being asleep for about an hour, older guy accidentally kicked me. So much for trying to sleep on the plane. A little while later, he elbowed me. Then kicked me again, then elbowed me again. He apologized, but I just glared at him, thinking to myself if this guy hits me one more time, I'm going to punch him. Ugh. He managed to switch seats with his friend without bothering me. Had the older guy sat in the window seat to begin with, I probably would've been able to sleep. And if that wasn't enough, some guy 2 rows ahead of me was snoring. Argh.

Made it to Toronto
I arrived in Toronto at 6:30 am and took the bus (just my luck – army guys were on the same bus) to the Royal York Hotel, and met my friend Alison at the nearby Tim Horton's. I was so happy to see her. We briefly talked and then went for breakfast because I was so hungry. We went to Marchélino Mövenpick in Eaton Centre. It was a bakery type place with muffins, bagels, danishes, etc. At first I had a muffin and it was so good! And since I was still hungry, I had a muesli bagel with cream cheese and a mochaccino. Yum! Normally I'm not a coffee drinker, but due to the lack of sleep, I needed something to keep me awake.

Shopping with Alison
After breakfast, we met up with her sister Linda, and went shopping. I only tagged along, since I wasn't really in a shopping mood. Alison had to pick up some last minute things and it was funny watching her run around. I helped her out as much as I could, and she finally found what she was looking for. Yay!

[Sidenote: there are many good looking guys in Toronto! ;-)]

Back to East York
We took the train and headed back to Alison's apartment, where I met her dad, Donald, and her youngest sister, Lanore. I took a bit of a snooze, while Alison and her sisters prepared for the day (wedding rehearsal). Once they were ready to go, Alison's fiancé, Raph (short for Raphael) picked us up. It was the first time I've met the guy and I must say he's really nice. I heard so much about him from Alison, and saw pictures of him before, so it was good to finally meet him.

Church Street Village
Raph and Alison drove me to my B&B on Church Street (a nice area which happened to be the gay community) and they headed to the wedding rehearsal. The house I stayed at was quite cozy and it was within walking distance of everywhere I had to go to. The room I got wasn't that big, but seeing as I was by myself, I didn't need a big room anyway. The plan was for me to sleep (something which I didn't get much of the whole weekend), and then have dinner with Alison's family and relatives from Ireland.

My Extended Irish Family
Alison made arrangements for me to meet her family and relatives at the hotel they were staying at, which was 5 blocks away from where I was. I got to the hotel and waited in the lobby for her relatives, not really knowing who they were or what they looked like since I've never met them before. A little while later, Alison's mom Margaret, and her husband Bruce, greeted me. Then the rest of the relatives showed up and I was a bit overwhelmed when I was introduced to 10 more people:

• Marion & Joe (Alison's aunt and uncle; Marion is Margaret's sister)
  
• Peggy & Christy (Alison's aunt and uncle; Christy is Margaret's brother)
  
• Marion & Martin (Alison's aunt and uncle; Martin is Margaret's brother)
  
• Louise & her husband Martin (Louise is Alison's cousin)
  
• Sharon (Alison's cousin; Louise's sister)
  
• Dave (Alison's cousin; Peggy and Christy's son)

I was a bit confused when they were telling who was related to whom (I felt like I needed a flow chart or something), but I managed to figure things out. Somewhere in the midst of things, I became their "long lost adopted cousin".

Dinner and drinks… and more drinks…
We had dinner at the Windows Café, the restaurant in their hotel. The food was not bad, but one thing to keep in mind: If you have more than a party of 4, get separate bills. We The "grown-ups" had a bit of an issue with the bill. Somehow they couldn't calculate what each person owed. First, they put in money for the food; then they split the cost of the wine and put in money for that; and then put in money for gratuity. I don't know why they had such a tough time figuring things out, but we sat there for about half an hour before the bill was settled.

After dinner we headed to Boosters Bar (also in the hotel), where we had more drinks and the guys played pool. I already had some red wine with dinner (surprising for me, since I don't drink red wine), so I wasn't expecting to be drinking too much more after that. Was I wrong! One thing I learned is that the Irish can DRINK! I had a couple screwdrivers, and somehow more screwdrivers kept appearing in front of me. 3 glasses of red wine and 5 screwdrivers later, I was feeling pretty good. I played a game of pool with Martin (Louise's husband) and won! Yay!

Random Thought
I never realized eyebrow muscles could get sore? Dave was showing me this "left eyebrow, right eyebrow" thing (ie. how certain looks and expressions can be interpreted with the raise of an eyebrow), and by the end of the night my eyebrows felt numb.

SATURDAY

Eaton Centre
With Booster Juice in hand, I walked over to Eaton Centre in the morning to do a bit of shopping. I had my Eaton's card with me, and I was planning on using it. But the plan didn't pull through. I forgot how big Eaton's was. There was almost too much stuff in there. I almost bought a pair of jeans, but held back because I was a bit "iffy" about them. I decided to walk through the mall and see what was out there. While I was in the BeBe store, my phone rang. It was Alison's sister, Lanore, telling me that a friend was going to pick me up at 1:00 pm to take me to the church. It was 12:20 pm. I hurried back to my B&B and quickly changed.

To the church
Alison's friend, Sean and his girlfriend Naomi, picked me up at around 1:15 pm. And it was off to Mississauga for the ceremony. Sean was anticipating heavy traffic, but the estimated hour and a half drive took only 45 minutes. We got to the church at 2:00 pm, and the ceremony didn't start until 3:00 pm. What to do for an hour? Sean and Naomi took me for a drive around Mississauga. [Mississauga is more of a suburb and is much quieter than Metro Toronto. If I ever had to move to Toronto, I'd move to Mississauga.]

The ceremony was nice and simple. There were a few funny moments (comments the priest made; Alison almost forgetting to say "I do"), but one thing that stood out was when the priest said "No one is perfect."

Reception in Toronto
After the ceremony it was back to Toronto for the reception, which was held at Hart House in the University of Toronto. I was impressed with the buildings and landscaping of the university. The buildings reminded me of castles and the grounds were so pretty. Apparently a lot of people that get married, have their pictures taken here. Alison and Raph were getting their pictures taken in front of Hart House. Once they were done, it was time for the reception.

The reception was so much fun! I met more people [Elisa (the italian with the funky shoes), Steve & Denise, Rupert, Ahmed, and Serena (Raph's sister)], and had a couple drinks (OK, I had 3 but who's counting? =P). I really enjoyed the music they played too. They had everything from Frank Sinatra to ABBA to AC/DC to Cyndi Lauper. Raph and Alison were enjoying themselves, and it was fun to watch them.

Irish terms
"half (time)" (e.g. half eleven = 11:30)
fag = cigarette
lift = elevator
kitty = pool (money)
"Oy"
"ring" her = call her

Teary-eyed Moment
If anything, you'd think I'd get all teary-eyed at the wedding. But I didn't. Toward the end of the night, I got a chance to talk to Alison. There were just some things I needed to get off my chest and tell her. Even though we've only known each other for 2 years, it seems longer. I just had to tell her how she's been a great friend and that I would miss her, since they're moving to New York. I know that we will still keep in touch, but who knows when I'll see her again. I was just bummed that she was moving away. As I was telling her all this, I got a lump in my throat and couldn't hold it back. We both started crying, but laughed about it afterward.

One more drink…
The reception ended by midnight and "my Irish family" wanted to go for drinks. I walked back to my B&B to change (mental note: no matter how comfortable high heel shoes are, don't walk more than 2 blocks in them), and met them at Mick E. Fynn's. By this time, my feet were sore and I was really tired. I had one drink with them and called it a night.

SUNDAY

Brunch
I woke up at 8:30 am and met everyone for brunch. I saw Alison and Raph one last time. I said my goodbye's and after brunch, Dave and I walked around downtown to kill some time. I headed back to the Royal York Hotel and managed to catch the 1:00 pm bus back to the airport.

On the home stretch
There wasn't much traffic on the highway as I thought there'd be, so I got to the airport 2 hours and 20 minutes before my flight. Great. It was such a hot (and humid) day, that I needed to rehydrate myself (no, not with alcohol =P). So I had this strawberry-mango-peach-with-a-little-bit-of-banana-and-pineapple-juice yogurt smoothie. It was so refreshing!

With all this time to kill, I walked around the airport (which is much bigger than ours). I noticed the line through security was getting a bit long, so I figured I might as well go through and just hang out around the gate. As I was waiting, I noticed a couple people who were from Edmonton. One guy was on the same flight going to Toronto, and the other guy was someone I spoke to about a potential (side-)job opportunity a few months ago (but didn't pan out). I also saw one of the managers who works with my company, but he didn't notice me even after looking straight at me and me calling out his name? Oh well.

I slept 3 hours of the 3.5 hour flight back to Edmonton. Thank goodness I was sitting beside someone who wasn't fidgety and was just reading a book.

And the weekend doesn't stop there...

Just when I thought I'd be able to relax, Irma called me to let me know that we were doing our traditional Café Select thing with Joi before he leaves for Asia for 2 months. Uh, OK.

Irma and I met Joi and his friend, Poon (a.k.a. Paul). Paul has been assigned as Joi's "representative" while he's gone. Although Paul hasn't quite mastered the "art of being Joi", he should hold up OK. hehehehe =P. We were feeling quite yuppie-ish with the red and white wine (drinking seems to be the theme for me this past weekend) and the smoked salmon and fruit & cheese platter.

Highlights:

• Sweet (Bon Bon) Caroline
  
• "Her name was Lola, she was a showgirl…"
  
• Tony & Naomi
  
• too much laughing
  
• wine connoisseur/cheese specialist

Oh, but there's more…

We had a staff party on Monday night at BBQ Acres (some acreage in the middle of nowhere). It's my first staff party with the company, so this was a good chance for me to put faces to names. I rode with Larry and Rick and when we got there, they had some activities going on (volleyball, badminton, soccer, frisbee, football, etc.). I played a bit of volleyball, and then played badminton (my partner, Tim hit me in the back of the shoulder with the birdie). We also played this volleyball wobble relay game for prizes. My team won, and I got this cool mug, but someone walked off with it. :-( After that, a few of us played this velcro-ball-catch thing (I forgot what it's called). I had fun with that, but my arm was a little sore after. We had a steak dinner and I had 8 drinks throughout the night (hey, it was hot outside and I had to keep myself hydrated. hehehe. =P). It was a fun night and I'm glad I went.

Finally some sleep

Since I had the day off on Tuesday, I finally got a good night's rest. I slept in until 10:00 am, then met Lynne for lunch at Joey Tomato's. It was a nice day, so we had lunch on the patio and had a couple drinks (those bellinis are SO good). After lunch, I went shopping with my mom for my cousin's birthday present, then took a power nap before volleyball.

Volleyball – Playoff Game 1 & 2

Our first playoff game was against Team Unknowns. We won the first set, but they came back and beat us 2-1. Our second playoff game was against our "other half", Team Volition. Again we played 3 sets, but they also won 2-1. Even though we lost, we played pretty well considering we only had 4 players and were playing teams with 6 players. We had a couple wacky plays, and some long rallies, but overall this volleyball league was fun.

I've got Spirit

The highlight of the night was when I was awarded the Spirit Award, for displaying excellent sportsmanship during the spring volleyball league. What's even better is I got a $25 gift certificate at United Cycle. I guess this means I have to go shopping now. ;-)

Warm weather trend

We've been having some awesome weather. It got up to 34C yesterday, and 33C (I think) today. I'm trying to take advantage of the warm weather by being outside as much as I can (eating on the patio, going for ice cream, etc.) But with all this heat, I think I'm suffering from mild heat exhaustion – at the end of the day, I just feel so tired and drained. I've also been drinking tons of water to keep myself hydrated, but you can only drink so much before you feel bloated.

Flavor of the Day

I had blueberry cheesecake ice cream today. Yum! Yesterday it was pineapple ice. At this rate, providing that the weather keeps up, I think I'll be able to try every flavor of ice cream. [I really need to get back to the gym].

Whoa, that was a long post but at least my head's all clear…

Stay tuned

Update on the past weekend to be posted soon. Haven't really stopped since I left for Toronto. And now I'm off to have lunch with Lynne...

Ready to go

I'm packed and ready to go. And I even had time to do my nails. =P Now if only my brother would get here so he can drive me to the airport. I hope I didn't forget anything. This is the reason why I hate packing at the last minute - there's always that feeling that you may have forgotten something. Oh well, if anything, I can always get it in Toronto. ;-)

ETA to departure: 6 hours and 49 minutes (give or take)

Since my flight leaves at 1:00 a.m., I need to be at the airport by 11:00 p.m., which means I have to leave the house at 10:00 p.m. because of construction on the freeway. So really, I have less than 4 hours to pack and get ready. Can I do this? ARGH!

Shopping Mission with Irma

Before I could finish my sentence, Irma jumped at the chance to go shopping. ;-) Our mission was to go to the mall to look for a pair of shoes for me, and a top for her. The mission was successful in that I got a pair of shoes [which were the last pair in my size, but unfortunately they weren't on sale, but they made up for it with the "comfort factor"] to go with my dress, and Irma got a top... plus 3 other tops... and 2 pairs of shoes. OK, so the other 3 tops and the 2 pairs of shoes weren't part of the mission, but hey, they were on sale! hehehe. =P

After our shopping experience, we went to get something to eat at Tony Roma's. Although it didn't seem like much shopping, we were quite tired after the whole ordeal. I guess we were concentrating so much on getting the right thing. At least, I was anyway. ;-)

Panic Mode Update

As of right now, (i) I still haven't packed, but I have somewhat of an idea of what to take with me to Toronto. I figure, I'll skip the gym tomorrow and go home after work and pack then, since I'm taking the "red-eye" flight out (1:00 a.m. Friday); (ii) I bought a pair of shoes. Yay! (iii) I have tomorrow evening to get my stuff together. No pressure, right?

Volleyball - Game 4 & 5

We were scheduled to play two games last Tuesday, but since I couldn't make it (because my car died the weekend prior), I found out that we "won" against Team Red Devils, only because their team didn't show up, and lost the second round against Team Saucy Super Singles [try saying that a few times =P]. So at this point, we're in 5th place. Not bad, I suppose.

Volleyball - Game 6 & 7

We were also scheduled to play a double-header tonight. One game against Team Red Devils (again), and the other against Team Divers. Unfortunately, some members of our team were either away on holidays or had other plans, so we had to forfeit both games since we couldn't play with 3 players. :-( Oh well. We played with some of the members from Team Red Devils for fun, so it was OK.

Catching up with Lynne

As I was walking out of the locker room, I ran into Lynne whom I haven't seen in a while. I was supposed to get together with her daughter this past weekend, but something else came up. We got a chance to catch up on things and also planned to go for lunch on Tuesday, since I'll have the day off (again).

[Mental note: cute guys working out at the gym]

Panic Mode

As I'm sitting here typing away, I realize I don't have much time before I leave for Toronto at the end of the week. So here's my dilemma: (i) I haven't packed yet (because I haven't figured out what I'm going to wear while I'm over there); (ii) I need to buy a pair of shoes to go with the dress I'm wearing to the wedding; (iii) I only have a couple days to get it together. [OK, don't panic.... aaarrrggghhhh!!]. I know I'm only going for the weekend, but I like to have all this ready before hand.

Quote of the Day

I got this from my tea this afternoon:

"If the heart of a man is depress'd with cares, the mist is dispell'd when a woman appears"
-- The Beggar's Opera (1728)

Translation: If it weren't for women, men would be depressed all the time. hehehe. =P

Too Busy to Write

I feel like I haven't blogged in a long time. But it's only been 4 days. I've just been too busy doing stuff and enjoying this awesome weather we're having. [It's a nice day again today, so I need to be outside].

Thursday
Irma and I watched the hockey game between Detroit and Carolina. 99% of the people there were cheering for Carolina to win. I was the 1% cheering for Detroit. =P And they won! Yay! I'm not a Detroit fan, but I just wanted them to win.

[Sidenote: Chandler look-alike]

Friday

Since I went for an ice cream run (swiss chocolate almond – yum!) in the afternoon (I was taking a "mental break" from work – ah, who am I kidding, I just wanted to get out of the office =P), it was only fitting to go for a walk with Irma. We walked for about an hour through the trails, then headed back to her place to get ready for a night out.

Random Thought
I read in this article that "The average person takes 9000 steps each day. In a lifetime that is 3.5 trips around the Earth." Hmmm, with all that walking Irma and I have done since we've known each other, I wonder if we've made it around the earth once so far, so-to-speak? What do you think Irma?

The night was going well until we came across 3 obnoxious guys who basically kicked us off our table. I was ready to punch one of the guys out, but since I work there, I didn't want to be "banned" from my place of work. Besides, it wasn't worth it. And I got one of the guys who works there to "talk" to them. Not so much kick them out (which is what I would've preferred), but just to talk to them.

[Sidenote: I ran into 2 guys I went to junior high with and they haven't changed at all.]

Saturday

After work, I went home, had some lunch, and sat in my backyard and read a book. I don't usually like to just sit and tan, but I couldn't get a hold of anyone who wanted to do something outside (like go for a walk, or go to the park, or play tennis, etc.). So as a last resort, I sat outside with my dog. I wanted to work on my tan and I think (or at least I'd like to think) I got a bit of color. Who am I kidding, I'm still working on getting a base for my tan. Ugh. =P

Anyway, after sitting in the sun for a couple hours, I had to get ready for 2 functions to go to:

1. Happy Birthday Som!
   Joi's cousin was having a dinner at Thai Valley Grill and the food was SO good. There was way too much food (spring rolls, this salad with peanut dressing [forgot the name], chicken curry, sweet and sour tofu, and so much more), which meant I ate way too much. Plus it didn't help that Som ordered 11 dishes for 7 people. It didn't seem like a lot, but we probably could've gone without ordering the last 2 dishes.
   
   
2. Aloha!
   After dinner, Joi and I went to Lily and Brad's Hawaiian stag/stagette party which was held at one of their friend's house. By the time Joi and I got there, it seemed like most of the people had left. They also had a lot of food (they even had lechon), and as much as I wanted to eat more, I couldn't.

Highlights:

• Joi got lei'd (and they were "quality" ones too)
  
• Lily's friend Michelle trying to make blender drinks but couldn't get the right mix
  
• Joi's "card trick"

Sunday
Equals rest day for me. As much as I wanted to be outside again, I felt too lazy to do anything. Part of the reason was because I overslept this morning (woke up at 11:30 am). I took a shower after lunch to "wake me up", but it didn't really help. I ended up bumming around the house, looking out the window, and wishing I was outside. Maybe it was just my body's way of telling me that I need some rest. So I ended up taking a nap in the afternoon. So much for being outside.

Now the clouds are starting to roll in and we're expected to get some rain for the next 2 or 3 days. Oh well, it's not like it's the end of summer. There'll be more days to "soak up the sun". ;-)

Walk Run Walk/Run in the Park

Since it was such a beautiful day outside (current temperature is approximately 25C), I decided to skip the gym and kickboxing and went for a light jog/power walk at Hawrelak Park. Plus, I wanted to work on my tan. [Irma, I tried calling you at home but there was no answer. I guess you're at work.]. I jogged one lap and then walked another lap.

There were quite a few people enjoying the sun. People running, walking, roller blading, playing football, baseball, soccer, etc. And of course, there were the lazy bums who just laid in the sun. And there's nothing wrong with that, but I prefer to be doing something active.

Tea with Jenn

It's been about 3 weeks since I saw Jenn, so we went to Second Cup for some tea and to catch up on stuff. We talked about our upcoming reunion, which we've decided we're not going to attend (because we already keep in touch with people we want to keep in touch with, and we didn't feel like spending the money, which will likely end up in the pockets of the people organizing it). But we're thinking about, or at least I am, having dinner at the italian restaurant across the street from the church hall it's being held at, and just watching the people from there. At least this way we get to see the people we went to high school with, but don't have to do the "small talk" thing (which I'm not a big fan of).

Day Off Again

What should I do today? With no vehicle, I'm limited as to what I can do.

Any suggestions?

Bad Saturday Afternoon

After waiting an hour and a half on Saturday afternoon, the tow truck finally came to the mall to tow my car to my house. Thanks Joi for the hook-up. :-) [Sorry about the dent and the bird dropping on your car. =P]. Once I got home, I took a nap to rejuvinate myself.

Pre-Summer Party at Spence's

After my nap, I went to Spence's (former co-worker) house for his annual pre-summer party. It was good to see Spence and some of my old co-workers again. But one thing I noticed was that I wasn't really socializing with too many people. Part of the reason was because there were quite a few new faces. And the other part was I couldn't really relate to them anymore. A couple of them were talking about work, and I didn't really want to hear it. The whole tone of party didn't seem to match that of last year's. Mind you, there were more people last year, but this year everyone seemed more subdued. Not to sound conceited or anything, but I'd like to think that I played a part in being the "life of the party" last year. This time around, everyone seemed more serious. Even though the guys were watching the hockey game between Detroit and Carolina (Go Detroit!) and having some fun, something was missing. I also felt like I didn't really belong there. Sure Spence invited me, but maybe I should've thought twice about going? Oh well, I made my appearance and left.

Better Saturday Evening

Irma and Irene came to pick me up at Spence's and we headed to Ceili's (pronounced kay leez) for a drink. We caught the last little bit of Dave (I forgot his last name)'s act. There wasn't that much of a crowd, so we headed to Whyte Ave.

Plan A was to go to Suite 69, but there was a line to get in. Plan B was to go to the Attic, but again there was a line. Finally, we went to the Billiard Club. This was the first time I've been, since I started working there. There was also a line, but it's a good thing I knew the guy who was at the door. [Mental note: Working and hanging out at the same place of work is not so bad. Especially when you don't have to wait in line to get in, and you get discounts on drinks. ;-)] Irma, Irene and I walked in and the place was packed. It was a good crowd. ;-)

Five and a half drinks and a shot and a half later, I was gone. Don't get me wrong, I was having a lot of fun, but I couldn't see straight.

Highlights

• "Let me guess, you're filipino right?" (opening line from this east indian guy, whom I had a funny conversation with)
  
• cheers
  
• Shaggy and Norma (or is it "Norma"?)
  
• "I'm not cold" (my comment while walking outside, after consuming all that alcohol)
  
• "Thank you for driving Irma"
  
• "Irene, this is all your fault!" hehehehe. :-)

Since I didn't want to have a hangover the next morning, I took the "necessary measures" to get rid of it. And it was effective.

My Parents are Back

They had a bit of a delay in Vancouver, (since their flight from Japan to Vancouver was delayed so they missed their connecting flight back home), but they made it. I'm glad they're back and the best part is they brought some pasalubong. ;-)

Another late night last night...

Irma and I went to the Druid last night. It was OK, I got the attention I needed (hehe) ;-) , but I didn't get home until 3:00 a.m. By the time I went to sleep, it was 3:30. So trying to get up 4 hours later to go to work was a bit difficult.

Construction Season

Construction is happening everywhere. And everytime I tried to avoid a construction site (by taking a detour), I came across another construction site. It was a no-win situation. I ended up driving around the city just to avoid the traffic caused by all this construction. I know I need to be a bit more patient, but with 4 hours of sleep, I was a little cranky to deal with all the traffic.

My car died

After all this driving around the city, I had to make a pit stop at the mall to drop off some stuff for work. But when I went back to my car, it wouldn't start. It definitely wasn't from lack of fuel because I had just filled it up before I got to the mall. So what to do? I was parked in our "Private Parking" stall (to be used when we work), but I didn't want to get a ticket (since I can't just leave it there), so I contacted security to see if they could help push the car to a "normal" parking stall. Thank goodness my car died at the mall, rather than in the middle of nowhere. At least this way, I could just walk home. So now I have to make arrangements to have my car towed from the mall to my house.

Does this mean I need a new car? I wasn't planning on getting one for another 2 years...

Slack Afternoon

I have done absolutely nothing this afternoon. After lunch, I did a bit of work but then the electricians came in to install some new lighting in our office. So what did I do? I went to Baskin Robbins for mint chocolate chip ice cream. Yum! I went with a co-worker of mine and we took our time walking back to the office. But even then, the electricians still weren't done. Instead of just sitting around and doing nothing, I went to Chapters to "stimulate" my mind. I flipped through a Vogue magazine and an Oxygen magazine, and after a half an hour, I headed back to the office. So much for stimulating my mind. =P When I got back, a couple other co-workers were just sitting around chatting. Seeing as I didn't want to be anti-social, I sat with them. ;-) [Besides, if they weren't working, why should I?]

I really have no motivation to do anymore work. Maybe I should just take off now and go to the gym?...

Summer 2002 - Mission 1: Walk Across the Bridges
Status: Complete

No, not the Bridges of Madison County =P. It was another beautiful day outside, so Irma and I decided to go for a walk. A very long walk, that is. The trek started at Irma's apartment. We headed to Queen Elizabeth Park, and from there followed the trails. During our trek, we passed by the Edmonton Queen Riverboat, went through Rafters Landing and Henrietta Louise Edwards Park, until we finally got to Cloverdale Park. From there, we went across "Bridge #1" (don't know the name of it and I'm not sure if there is a name for it?) which took us across the river and into downtown. Once we got across, we decided to go up and down some stairs, and up and down more stairs, passed through Louise McKinney Park and then up, up, up more stairs. By this point, we reached the MacDonald Hotel. Now that we were in downtown, we walked to the Legislature Building until we reached "Bridge #2 - High Level Bridge". We had walked across this bridge before, but thought that it would add to our challenging hike. Again, we went across the river and headed back to where we started. We passed by Kinsmen Park, up Fort Hill, and made our way through Queen Elizabeth Park. 2 hours and 15 minutes, and about 500 miles later (OK, so I'm exaggerating a little), we made it back to Irma's apartment. It was definitely a long walk, but it was great to be outside. :-) Gotta enjoy the good weather while we can!

Tune in next time for "Mission II: Walk to Hawrelak Park"...

Allocation of time during my Sunday off...

• working (1 hour)
  
• checking email, paying bills, etc. (1 hour, 30 minutes)
  
• taking a nap (2 hours)
  
• going to Safeway to buy some dog food (20 minutes)
  
• cleaning the house (3 hours)
  
• laundry and ironing (1 hour)

For a grand total of approximately 9 hours. I've pretty much put in full day. And it's supposed to be my day off? [OK, so maybe I didn't need to take a nap, but I'm trying to catch up on sleep I've missed since Friday night.]

The Sum of All Fears

Irma, Joi and I went to see The Sum of All Fears last night at Paramount Theatre. I'm not a big fan of nuclear-war-type movies to begin with and I found some scenes dragged on a bit. But overall it was not bad.

You know you're getting old when...

... you go out drinking, have 4 drinks in an hour and a half (one of which was carbonated, which is what set me off), go to sleep at 3:30 am, and wake up 4 hours later (with a big headache) to go to work. I know I should've paced myself, but I really needed a drink. ;-) [No, I'm not an alcoholic and I'm not in denial either. hehehe =P].

It was another adventure with Irma. We went to the Druid last night and had a few drinks. All I have to say is "Your clock is ticking. Not your biological clock, but literally your clock is ticking" and "3 minutes" [Needless to say, you were successful in completing your mission. But talk about cutting it close. hehehehe. ;-)]