One Wonderful Event

Well, maybe wonderful is a bit misleading. Silent content is how I feel about this situation.

So for 10% of our grade, we have to contribute to a blog over the course of a month on any topic that can be linked to course material. The teacher is using blogspot. Oh man, intense.

Will Kaleidoughscope make an appearance as such, or will a clever disguise be used instead? My years of blogging (3 months of which were professional), have paid off supremo, I would say!

I enjoy blogging (do not derive that I think of it as a chore because I don't post often), and for the first time in a long time I can use stuff that I do anyway and merge it with school with no problems.

It'll also let me unload my philosophical stuff that I have in mind so that I don't bother people with it on a daily basis. That is, recently, I've taken an inkling to harassing people with philosophical questions about what they're saying and so on. It's uh, a little plague-like.

Anyway, three cheers to philosophizing!

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Doodles

This'll only make sense to people who know something about Informal Logic Fallacies.

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#1: Shoelace Shambles

Once during my time in Katimavik, near the end of my trip, I decided to post a list of things that irritate me and I found that it was incredibly easy to do such a thing.

Unfortunately, the list was never really legible due to some weird formatting bug, but I found that the act of posting such a list relieved a lot of the tension I was feeling near the end of Katimavik.

I've fixed the list, and it can be found here.

I am now launching an entire blog initiative based on this concept. I can't say I'm living a particularly stressful life at the moment, but I like the concept of having content to write every day.

That's not to say that I'm abandoning the concept of life updates on my blog, but henceforth they shall be accompanied with something irritating. I'll also be trying to add way more pictures to posts, as people have suggested. Featuring original photography whenever possible!

Without further ado, I present to you my first topic: shoelaces.

You know when you go to tie a shoe, and you notice that one side of the lace is much longer than the other? You have to make a huuuuge loop just so you use that entire side of the lace, and it just ends up becoming loose anyway.

Sure, you could de-lace the shoe and make it even, but more often than not you're on your way out and you just don't have the time to do that. Eventually, you forget about the shoe, but subconsciously you know something's wrong. You know something's uneven on you, and you inevitably end up looking at your shoe once in a while and damning the shoelace.

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Waking up.

Today I woke up and I had the impulsion to go on Youtube and listen to "All the single ladies". I don't want to put a ring on it.

Cream of the crop.

Top student in the class.

There, I said it. I've never really been the top of any of my classes that I ever took in my schooling career. I'd definitely been... almost at the very bottom a number of times, but never the last, and definitely never the first.

So here I am - I have the highest grade in a class of 40 people, at the time that I write this.

Am I going to say I don't feel good? Do you expect some anti-climax?

Well, no, naturally, I feel pretty good about myself right now. I always used to envy all the people who somehow managed to be the best in the class. You always judge them, well, I do anyway.

They must have no lives.

Well, I never really thought that, I think that's a stupid thing to say, you have no life. It doesn't mean anything. Don't say it to people, it's not cool.

I feel part of this elite club now. Suddenly the type of people who used to not associate with me because I wasn't as good as them are the ones I find having the most in common with right now, in a classroom setting. It's so funny the way things work out.

Of course, in a class where a majority of the people either don't care much or just really struggle with the concepts, it's not saying a whole lot. I don't understand it - I find the class really easy. Do I think differently than the rest? Well, obviously, but I mean, for some reason, some people just can't grasp the notion, for example, of why

Q -> P
P

-

Q

isn't a valid argumentative form (for those who haven't learnt that philosophy mumbo-jumbo, it states that if Q, then P. P, therefore Q).

And they ask questions (actually most people in the class don't even bother to, and this exasperates the teacher even more), simple questions really, that I figured were understood.

I'm glad I took this course.

Edit 2011/10/04: Edited for grammar. Also, I should say that I wrote this post as a sort of ego-booster, but I hardly consider myself superior to anyone else.

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Zombies walk, racing thoughts.

Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrghhhhhhhhhh.

Pirate costume put together two hours before the Toronto Zombiewalk. The scar/wound is pretty cool no? It's oatmeal, liquid latex and spirit gum (?) is how you make it.

Anyway, Zombiewalk was coooooool, lots and lots of zombies. Some compliments, a lot of photographers.

Uhhhh I think I'm borderline with an existential crisis, it's going to hit me real soon in Philosophy I can feel it.

Help me find meaning, someone? Anyone? :(

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Philosophy.

I'm actually really enjoying this Philosophy course I'm taking.

I had my first class yesterday, and there were a lot of students (about 45), but most of them seemed actually interested by the course, and the teacher is really passionate about what she's teaching.

Of course, in a class that lasts 3 hours a shot with no breaks, my brain hurts when I walk out of the classroom to get to my bike and ride home. But at least I walk out feeling satisfied that those were 3 really productive hours. I haven't felt this productive since Katimavik ended, which is a welcome change.

My homework consists of asking people what they think Philosophy is. Some people really have no clue, and others I ask ask me to define the word "Philosophy", which at this moment in time, I can only really provide a dictionary definition which obviously does it no justice.

I'm finally heading to an employment centre to find a job, as I've been doing nothing since I completed my Greenpeace stint. I'm hoping to find something that I'll enjoy doing. If I could get a job like I had in Vancouver, except with pay, that would be so totally fantastic, but that's a slim chance.

Routine update.

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Angel on the sidewalk.

There's an angel on the sidewalk, all sparkly and white but she won't talk/

She'll blow you a kiss on the lips, but in return she'll expect your tips

Some of the passerbys stop to say hi, others turn their heads and go awry/

If you happen to lock eyes, you've forever fallen under her guise

Sickening.

It really is sickening - first a stomach ulcer, well, second, a cold, which isn't nearly as bad. I took drugzzz and the ulcer is gone, but I guess it lowered my immune system 'cause I caught this cold. I rarely get colds.

Anywayy.

Here, why not liven this blog up with a reallly good youtube video? Filmed in one take at the UQAM, it's getting pretty popular on Youtube!

Don't be a stranger

So.. um.. I remember saying "Don't be a stranger" to someone. The thing is, I can't remember WHO. Which sucks because if I'm saying "Don't be a stranger" to someone, it means that they're cool, ya know? And well, I'd hate to be a stranger to them, hahaha.

Shiz.

Hi Alice.

Hey Oh

Hey guys,

I've got a present on the way. But it's for me. And it's being shipped from the U.S. A neat little addition to my... collection. But you don't know what my collection is - that's because there is no collection, I'm not collecting anything, I just thought I'd buy this object and then I can use it. Great huh?

But I'm not selfish, no no. A, I know you don't read this blog, but I know you'll be really happy when you receive that giga-bar of chocolate in the mail - fine swiss chocolate, the very same type of chocolate that I once tried to make you believe was given to you by J, but it was a clever ploy. I bribed J to give you that chocolate bar, but I guess you knew that because she told you.

You have to be trusted by the people that you lie to//So that when they turn their backs on you//You'll get the chance to put the knife in

No no, harsh words are not meant for anyone! I just really remembered that clever line from Pink Floyd's Dogs. I mean, I guess if I had a lot of enemies, and I was a murderer, I'd follow it. Or maybe if I was a vigilante. But I'm not, so I guess... Dani California, rest in peace!

Am I really random? You know, a lot of things are random. Some things aren't random, like, a "Hello, how are you?" "Good thanks and you?" isn't random, because it's practically a reflex.

But asking someone out of the blue what kind of pie they like, that's pretty random, and actually a new hobby of mine. I mean, I'm not a pie fanatic, but when I'm bored and there are people around I don't know and they don't seem too preoccupied, I'll ask them what their favourite kind of pie is. Now obviously, this isn't really vital information, but if maybe one day I decide to do something productive and I end up keeping in contact with these strangers, wouldn't it be great if I could bake them a pie without wondering "Gosh, I wonder what kind of pie they like...".

Now I know this is an incredibly unlikely scenario, but life is filled with an incredible amount of unlikely scenarios that all fit together somehow, wouldn't you say?

I've got another thought that I want to explain here, but that's enough for tonight. But so I don't forget, I'm going to code my thought here into this blog so I don't forget it for next time: "Follow one person and witness the chain of reactions they unleash."

Good. Thanks for reading.

2011/10/04 Edit: Edited for simple privacy.

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Shambles

noun.: a condition of great disorder

I just felt like knowing the exact definition of that word - have no fear, my life is not in shambles. (:

Or maybe you really hate me and you wished my life was in shambles. and this blogpost has made you curse me under your breath. I dunno.

So it's the very beginning of September, and all around me, I see all these people going back to school, be it Elementary, Middle, High or University, and I think to myself, geez, I sort of wish I was doing something. See I have a hard time doing things I'd rather not do. I guess I need more willpower.

It was easy before, say, in grade ten - I just knew that next year, I'd be at it again, except grade 11. And then again for grade 12.

And after Grade 12, hell, it was also pretty easy, just do Katimavik!

And after Katimavik... wait what, university? But I'm not ready! Well, besides the fact I didn't get accepted for September anyway.

So get a job, Gabe! Get a job!

Right now, go update your resume! Do it!

Okay okay Charles, I'll do it... I'll do it tomorrow. Okay? Tomorrow, I'LL DO IT TOMORROW. I won't make as many mistakes if I do it tomorrow.

I get jealous of the people leaving. A bit. They're doing something, they're learning stuff. I'm not.

But I'm alive, and I'm doing things. That's a start, right?

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My first quest

My first quest in Katimavik, or goal if you will, was to never have to make bread. I had read before going into the program that House Managers were required to make bread for the group.

I've never really been much of a bread eater. Of course, I eat it, but I don't notice it if I don't have it. I've met countless number of people who need their buns with their spaghetti. Most people in my group were like that.

I was house manager for a total of eight times - that's eight whole weeks - in my Katimacareer. Not once did I ever make a loaf of bread.

A couple times I think A.G. and B.V. made me knead the bread they were preparing, but nothing more.

Of course, a fair share of the group called me out on my lack of bread-age - saying I was selfish for not wanting to make the damn bread for the group, and that it was a really stupid and pointless "quest".

But you know what, I may be the only Katimakid to have finished the program and to have -never- made bread in this age of bread-neediness. And I'm proud of myself.

Also, you may be interested in this kneadless bread recipe I found which prompted this post, haha. I might have even succombed to it during Katimavik had I known about it.

http://boiledcorn.blogspot.com/2009/08/no-knead-bread.html

Edited for private reasons.

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Si tu l’as, tu l’as

And if you don't have it, you sure as hell don't have it.

Feeling a bit nostalgic these days - yeah, I miss my Katimagroup.

And it was all true - after you come back from doing 9 months of doing stuff, you feel like you're wasting away. Even just doing a goddamn house meeting is stuff compared to the lifestyle which so quickly was brought back after settling back home.

Nothing will ever come close to the 9 month lifestyle I lived. School, university? Not a chance.

Sure, nothing's -really- stopping me from going out and doing stuff, but there's no sense of urgency or responsibility for going out. And there isn't much of a sense of satisfaction out of anything I do end up doing.

I do have the Fan Expo to look forward to this weekend, that's a complete three days of wake-up, take subway to Convention Centre and spend the entire day doing really exciting stuff. Maybe that'll energize me again? Haha. If anything I can get a kick out of little midgets with tophats on bicycles.

Thinkin' of going down to see a Jazz gig by an old acquaintance of mine tonight. We'll see.

I'm also working on a certain project that might bring a smile to a few old friends as well.

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Go Leafs Go!

So, taking the TTC home from Gandhi's house provided a few seconds of entertainment as I was walking by the last part of the train that I had just exited at St. Clair West. There was this fat guy with a huge Leafs jersey on with facepaint on and a massive hat yelling at the top of his lungs "GO LEAFS GO!" in a rhythmic manner. He was at the end of the train and facing everyone in his section, and he was just there going at it, flailing his arms while chanting.

I could hear him from like halfway down the station, and I thought it was pretty funny. The people in the same section as him probably didn't find it nearly as funny after a while, haha.

Of course, considering that the hockey season was over a month or two ago made this appearance rather unlikely. Maybe I'm unaware of some announcement or something? I dunno.

Currently reading - Watership Down.

I love rabbits.

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My love, do you sleep?

Do I sleep?

Do I dream?

No and no.

For the past week or so, I haven't slept. Well, I have, but it's not real sleep - it's the fake, light kind where you're conscious that you're in your bed but you have no sense of time.

Dreams? Well, I know I get them, it's just that I don't remember them. I used to dream plenty (that is, I used to remember plenty), but now... well, I don't.

Correlation? Obviously - if I don't get into a deep sleep, I can't dream. Now, even once in a while, when I do get a deep sleep (i.e. passing out at 6 am or something), I don't remember a dream.

So, that's half my life there.

The other half? It's pretty awesome - sometimes. Last week, Gandhi came over for a small Katimagetogether. And then a coupla days after - surprise surprise - K & D arrive from over yonder for a place to stay, and we have more Katimatimes.

And then - what's this? Gandhi decides to have a bigger Katimagetogether at his house? Oh sweet, so we all show up there, along with T, M, and C for an even bigger Katimaparty aka celebration of a couple birthdays. Hella fun.

It's actually been an exciting week, and I would say the positives outweigh the not so pleasant negatives. It's a fine rollercoaster, but Anxiety Attacks are really, really not cool.

Another negative is L being... mad at me, but I don't know why, they're all jumbled reasons - and all on my birthday, too. Now I'm not going to say that birthdays veto everything, but really, since when is not giving in to peer pressure such a blasphemy? Well hey, the birthday pie is tasty at least.

19! Expensive lonely bar errands to come? Ha Ha Ha.

... Some people know me enough to know that it'll probably happen.

Anyway, happy birthdays to Augusters and I sign out.

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Train No. 2

The train slithers

through the woodlands

But it also rocks

the sides shake

-ominously

The trees lurch forward

-tentatively

In the mind's eye, I see

a ghost train bounce off

hit the trees

and explode

into a multitude

of shelled pieces

Fast forward

turns out it's not a ghost train

Anguish; screams, yells, heat

intense heat

A Titanic-esque pose

The engineers refuse to leave

The upturned wreck; people inside

The panic; the burning heat

Slowly, but not surely, an escape

walking corpses; the lashing heat

Nothing to claim them except

Night, fire and wood

Too many trees

As everything starts to be consumed

They walk, no clear sense of direction

Away from the burning death trap

Away from the carnage

Away from the stench

Away...

Modelos

I'm a junkie.

I don't know exactly what kind, a special kind I think, because I'm not a junkie to any specific one thing.

I mean, you can easily tell who Crack Junkies are, and who Sports Junkies are, but me? You can't identify me.

I'm a junkie all right, a chameleon junkie. A person seeing me stay up till 5 am might think I'm an Insomniac Junkie, but then the next day they'll see me listening to CBC Radio One all day long, so they'll think I'm a CBC Radio One Junkie. But what if they saw me lurking around at the Wychwood Barns late at night, they'd think I was a lurker Junkie, but I don't go there every night.

Let's look at the Urban Dictionary definition of a Junkie, shall we? There are many, an accepted one would be:

Junk-ie –noun Informal. Generally, junkie (in terms of drug abuse) applies to someone addicted to a narcotic-- such as heroin, morphine, opium, codeine, and methadone.

So am I a Junkie? In the informal sense yes, because my body seeks out drugs, and then produces its own.

Ha, a real Junkie would scoff at me.

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My room.

Look, aside from living in my parent's basement (hey, I'm only 18!), I'm having a relatively alright lifestyle.

Okay, so I may be overdosing on Miley Cyrus/Hannah Montana (I have a couple posters in my room... + a bonus Tinkerbell poster), but I mean, I love her songs, they're so badass.

My setup is really cool. I have these big stereo speakers (surround sound baby), my new computer is ready for pick-up and I cleaned up the bar (which is also technically in my room). Miley really sounds great on the speakers too.

I'm doing a bunch of stuff these days. I have a YMCA membership, so I drop by whenever I can. There's fantastic weather (alternating between sunshine and heavy rain, I love it) so I bike around a lot. And I of course spend too much time at E's house, but that's been a habit of mine for many years now anyway.

I feel pretty relaxed, I don't have too much stress (yet...) and I'm not as lazy as I thought I would be. Right now, there are these potatoes baking in the oven, but they're special: Hasselbach potatoes! Which means they're cut thinly and you put stuff in them and it looks really quite lovely.

Yes, I know baking a bunch of potatoes isn't exactly a mean feat, but you know, it makes my parents jealous that I'm more creative than them, haha.

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Hiatus.

Terminated.

Katimavik is over.
It was a spectacular finish, filled with drama, tears, cognitive dissonance and a loss of a group living environment.

So Katimavik teaches you a ton of things, one of the biggest ones is reflecting.

So, at 4:30 am on a dull Monday morning, I will do just that.

Katimavik taught me that I can't get along with everyone.
Katimavik taught me that you can do things you can't normally do because you don't live with 9 rowdy teenagers.
Katimavik taught me to be more accepting of differences.
Katimavik made me more social.
Katimavik made me more confident.
Katimavik gave me a little more direction in life.

Would I do it again?
No.
Did I enjoy my experience overall?
Yes.

Time to get rid of the Katimadventureblog title.

A list of things that irritate me.

Ladies and gentlemen, I have decided to create a list of things that irritate me, some surprising, some obvious.

• People who insist on clinging to common small talk, especially, but not limited to:

- ``So did you sleep well?``
- ``How are you?``
-``Good morning!``
-``Goodnight.``
-``What`s up?``

I have better examples than these ones, but I can`t remember them at the moment. EDIT: I originally put the name of a dear friend of mine up here, and after careful consideration, have decided to remove the name, simply out of respect. Miss you, D.

Look, I know people mean well when they ask these questions, but they still irritate me to no end when it becomes routine and usually, they genuinely don`t care for the answer.

• Bread crumbs in peanut butter, nutella, etc. - I hate chewing on the stuff and tasting these crunchy little bits that I know were deposited by someone else when they spread whatever on their bread with a knife.
• People who ask a lot of questions, but not interesting questions, just dumb ones. This sort of relates to my first point. I just hate answering something when it doesn`t make a difference what the answer is.
• When someone wakes me up in the morning and says repetitively ``C`mon Gabe! Time to get up! You have to get up!`` So I stir a little bit in my bed, but it keeps going! ``C'mon Gabe, time to get up!``
• In relation to the above point, I am not a morning person. As such, I hate when people attempt to converse with me when I`ve just woken up. 
• When one end of my shoelace is much longer than the other, and I have to make a really big loop for one of them
• Really static hair that gets in your face
• When someone claims that ``this is my song, it totally like represents my life``. It just ruins any enjoyment I might have gotten from the song.
• When someone gains control of an iPod and speakers and skips to a new song when it`s halfway through. A certain someone does these two things in my group here.
• People who only want to communicate with me for the sole purpose of getting something from me, e.g. french help, but who otherwise would never consider talking to me
• People who struggle with the back doors of buses when all they have to do is lightly tap them. Or trying to open them when the GREEN LIGHT ISN'T ON.
• People who shoot down my well-thought ideas.
• People who slack off on doing laundry and I have to do theirs so that I can do mine

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A Dreamer's Hideaway

Get away, run away, fly away

Lead me astray

To dreamer's hideaway

Too often I find myself longing to lose myself somewhere in Vancouver.

Then I wish for fleeting contact with something or someone in my period of being lost.

From the Burrard SkyTrain station, I walked along the architecturally-perfect fountains, buildings and archways, but they looked fake to me.

I pretend to lose myself on the SkyTrain itself. I've been to every stop on both lines by now, but I always know where I am.

I once tried closing my eyes and plugging my ears to not know what stop I got off at, but I caught a glimpse from the station signs.

Buslines work too, and they're actually better for getting lost, but I don't get the same rush from being on a bus as I do from a SkyTrain.

SkyTrains take you farther, faster, higher. There are more interesting people and things surrounding the stations and the train itself.

I have never been afraid walking alone in Vancouver.

But sometimes I wished I did, to escape the monotone, the bland, the dreary.

And then in fear, maybe I'll find the dreamer's hideaway.

The Twilight Sanctuary

Hello.

Let me introduce you to my favourite spot in the Katima-house: The Twilight Sanctuary.

It's my favourite spot because no one really ever hangs out in the basement, sometimes K, but everyone is usually almost always upstairs in the living room. Technically, The Twilight Sanctuary is the second living room, but I've made it my own after seeing that no one wanted it. 

There's a black light, a lot of couches (one pullout bed!), a wonderful coffee table and walls filled with quotes written down by past Katimavik participants. I've made it my favourite hangout spot by supplying it with books, paper and pens to write, a music station, plenty of blankets, and I want to add more things soon.

Even this week, I've decided that I would move out of the guy's bedroom upstairs and sleep on the pullout-couch. It's really quite magical going to sleep with the black light on, I haven't slept so well since living in any Katimavik house. Of course, if my Project Leader found out, I wouldn't be allowed to anymore, but I fold up the bed every morning so as to not leave a trace. He rarely comes downstairs anyway. After billeting week, I hope to continue this trend till the end.

Here is The Sanctuary without the twilight. It's like a whole different place. The Twilight Sanctuary is exactly that - it provides me a sort of haven away from the group. When it's dark outside, it's the most magical place ever. Sometimes the moon shines through the little windows, too.

So, like I mentioned, I'll be spending the next week with my billet family. The family lives in Surrey (a shady part of the Lower Mainland, according to my coworkers). I think I'll have a great time!

Fairwell.

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The Workplace

I love my work.

I really do.

My coworkers are all really awesome. My "boss", Melinda is wonderfully nice. There's the hilarious IT guy, Scott, who's always walking around fixing things, he's great to talk to.

There's the Texan, Sean, who likes a huge variety of tea and who needs assistance with learning about World of Warcraft, of which Scott and I have plenty to talk about.

There's Andrea, the Mail Services Coordinator, who has a double-major in Sociology and used to be the Marketing Director for McDonald's for Western Canada. She has a lot of things to talk about!

I get a lot of free time. Okay, I guess I'm lazy. I spend a lot of time at work surfing the internet, or BLOGGING, like I am right now.

I'm also lazy at home. I have a lot of really cool pictures on my camera that would go well here on this blog, but I've just been too lazy to upload them and transfer them on here... I will though! There's a lot of neat stuff to see in Vancouver.

I will update more often, I've been slacking this week especially because it's really busy!

One night, we went to the Greenpeace office for a presentation on how our oceans are going to die because of overfishing.

The next, we had a meeting at a local coffee shop with Katimavik alumni, about our Community Involvement Project, which is going to be an "enviro-concert" centered on Sustainability.

The next night, it was a lecture at UBC about the "missing conversation" between Aboriginals and the rest of Canada. Very informative!

Tonight, we have a "semi-formal" potluck dinner with the two other katimagroups in our cluster, New Westminster and Burnaby. 

Saturday we're doing an all-day volunteer blitz for an artshow of sorts, on Kingsway.

So you see, plenty of things to keep me busy.

That is all.

Oh, and I didn't get accepted to UofT... :( 2024 edit: Ah, if only I had known what was to come... Switching to Innis might have been a mistake.

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Haircut.

So I have a lot of things to blog about, really, a lot of things, but I think what most people have been demanding are a before and after picture of the haircut...

I guess it is a pretty major thing, as I haven't cut my hair in a really, really, really long time.

Here goes:

The before...

And the after.

Oh, and the blue suit was on sale for ONE DOLLAR AT LIQUIDATION WORLD. :D

Real blogging to come very soon (with pictures! my new camera rules),

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How could this happen to me?

I've made my mistakesssss, got nowhere to run, the night goes on as I'm fading away, I'm sick of this life, I just want to screaaaaam, how could this happen to meeeeeeee.

So that was fun, cruising down Vancouver blasting this song through the windows to passersby while ridin' the Katimavan..

Today was an alright Katimaday.

Went to go see a movie on homelessness in BC.

I love my job! I'm in the process of building their facebook page, I'll be doing some web design soon, and the blogging on their website continues! www.tbvets.org/blog wooohoo!

So I finally ordered a new camera, it'll be coming in soon so that I can take sweet pictures of the best and worst that Vancouver has to offer - and who knows, maybe videoblogs (or a return of my not-so-infamous audiologs).

We'll see!

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Vancouver, Junos, and my travel hat

So here I am.

IN VANCOUVER.

I actually have a pretty sweet city view from behind this computer screen, all the lights and the police sirens and the lack of stars and condensed houses make me feel at home again! The most I've felt at home since I've left for Katimavik.

I live in a West Indian neighbourhood, there's a Sikh temple just around the corner that offers free suppers every day for anyone!

The entire neighbourhood smells like CURRY sometimes, SWEET!

My work placement?
My 1st choice this time, TB Vets!
http://www.tbvets.org/

I'm hoping to be doing some of their blogging work, video camera, computer, website design etc. there among all the other jobs that are there!

To get to work, I have to take a bus and take the SKYTRAIN, yay! I love public transit! Plus they give me a free pass, and it's unlimited, so I can use it out of work hours to go anywhere I want!

Tomorrow, I'll be with my Katimavik cluster attending the Junos! We're seat fillers, so we might sit next to famous people or something! Not allowed to ask for autographs though.

But it's gonna be a blast!

You might see me on TV.

Hi mom!

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Goodbye to Ste-Marie

So this will be the final blog I will ever write while in Ste-Marie.

I`ve finished packing everything, as we leave tomorrow for l'île d'Orléans, an island close to Québec City, for rotation camp, which means that I will be with two other groups (the ones who form our cluster of Ste-Marie, Québec, Lévis).

We shall do debriefing activities and mentally prepare ourselves for our last rotation.

In retrospect, I don`t think that my rotation in Ste-Marie was nearly as cool as the one in Strathroy.

Billeting sucked here.
My work placements were pretty horrible here.
I actually miss working at Search in Strathroy, the people were great, and I learned a lot more than I did here.

I`m pretty sure I`ll have a better time in Vancouver.

You know what tastes good, Kraft Dinner with the cheese and everything, WITH pesto sauce WITH hot sauce. Delicious!

Bars of Quebec

So lately I`ve been into going to bars (well, the one good one in Ste-Marie, Freddy`s) all alone, without friends, without Katimavik buddies.

When people find out (especially my Katimafriends), they think it is somewhat loser-ish behaviour.

Truth it, that`s one thing I really don`t care what they think about!

I go to the bar to escape from them, not to go hang out with them!

So yeah, they go to bars when it`s really really noisy and you can`t talk to anyone, just dance and stuff.

I like going to bars to relax and just have a nice drink, not necessarily get drunk, but that`s definitely a possibility now.

So last Wednesday I went to Freddy`s, and I met the nicest bartender I`ve ever met!

Her name is Sonya, and we talked for hours and hours about anything and everything!
She told me about her trips to Vancouver, Ireland and Egypt.
I told her alllll about the Katimalife and why I was there that night.

So I practically didn`t have to pay for anything, she paid for most of my drinks (cool bartenders are cool like that).

And then a guy, who was probably just done his shift joined in on the long conversation, and we all got along really well. And he bought me a beer (yes, I know it sounds weird, maybe, but it was all in friendship), and we all continued talking about life.

Where else would you meet such cool people?

I`m really really sad that I`ll never get to see them again, especially Sonya.

I`m gone for Vancouver this Wednesday.

I bought a camera, then returned it for a refund.

So a new camera is in order.

That is all.

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Woes of house managing

So last week I was house manager with Dan.

My fifth week as house manager, and it was my worst.

Firstly, because Dan takes absolutely no initiative for anything.
He`s always asking me what to do, it`s ridiculous.
Stop bothering me! Ahhh!

Secondly, because people like bitching and complaining about a lot of things.
Especially a certain someone who thinks that just because snacks aren`t laid out on a silver platter for him (when he gets home starving because he was too lazy to pack himself a lunch), there is no food to eat.

Apparently, people also don`t like to eat whole carrots. They must be chopped into bite size pieces.

AAAAAAGH.

I am also proceeding with my coping mechanism to deal with whom I believe is one of the biggest assholes I have ever met.

Harsh words, I know, but really, I think it`s true.

Bahahaha you better get your filthy hands off my desert!

What do you want to do tonight?

The same thing we do every night, try and take over the world!

Narf!

Gwahahahahaa!

Picture yourself in a boat in an alley, with black abyss trees, and a silver grey sky.
A lurker calls you with a voice so deadly, a girl with bloodshot red eyes.

I will walk through the shadows and the streets of Vancouver so that I may finally see the very best side of this world, a world of mystery and secrecy, of problems and misery, all within the confines of my unconscious Mind.

Wherever this Mind wishes to go, I will be led.
Whatever this Mind wishes to see, I shall be fed.
Whoever this Mind wishes to meet, I shall be with instead.

It`s time to break free, and the only real limit I have is curfew.
This will be the time to do things I would never dare to do.

So much to do.

Oops.

So tonight I had the irresistible urge to throw chocolate milk at Jessie`s face.

... I feel bad.

It was awful.

I`m sorry Jessie.

It was really weird.

Billetting in a medium nutshell

So I spent the last week and a bit at l'écovillage Mont Radar, to work and sleep there, among other things, instead of being at the Katimavik house.

On Saturday, there was this thing called Le Jam des Neiges where about 12 musicians came up to Mont Radar to have a jam. There was an organ, a drum set, three djembes (including mine), two flutes, an electric and acoustic guitar and a couple singers.

Anyways, it was a fantastic night, the sounds and melodies we made sounded really good, and Philippe recorded the entire night! I hope I can get a copy of our little orchestra, because I`d like to hear it again.

I ended the night by getting high with a couple of the musicians, and we smoked what they described as ``le bon pot des motards de la Beauce``, which means that the pot they had was from a biker gang or something, which is supposed to mean that the pot was really good quality? Well, I did get a nice high, so that`s that. There was good music all around and so on.

The next morning, two other musicians offered me and Dan some more pot (Dan was the other Katimavik participant who was billeting at Mont Radar with me, for the record, and he was asleep the first time I smoked up...). Dan immediately refused, and gave them what I can describe as a ``shameful`` look of scorn on his face. I openly wanted to try their pot, but Dan insisted I shouldn`t because ``it was against Katimavik rules``.

I ended up refusing too, because I was afraid that Dan was going to tell on me back when we got home, which made me quite mad... Ugh...

Other than that, the week was... Pretty bad.

On Wednesday, we were told to go into the barn and shovel a shitload of horse crap from the stall. It was frozen crap, and in some places, it was knee high. The stench was awful. It took the entire day.

The very next day, I woke up with a fever, and I was bed ridden for two days. I think it was the fumes.

I still have a cold now.

And otherwise, the week was very, very boring. It didn`t feel like billeting, because there was no one around, ever, we just lived in our little hovel, and listened to internet radio, and that was about it.

Back at the Katimavik house now, and work continues.

Only three weeks of work left for me at Mont Radar before we move to Vancouver!

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So I applied.

To Sociology & Urban Studies @ UofT, St. George Campus.

I like studying groups of people, as evidenced by my social experiments (which, despite the lack of updates, have been continuing in this house).

I love cities, especially Toronto.

Put those two together, and I get exactly what I`m looking to study at University.

Very doubtful I`ll get in this round, but when I don`t get in I`ll just work for a while and rack up some money for my tuition and upgrade all my marks so that I can get into UofT later. That`s really the only university I want to go to.

---

Because of unspeakable drama at two work places (including mine), I`m switching work placements!

I take T`s place at Mont Radar, an eco-village that was once an old military base (during the cold war).

I`m also billeting there starting tomorrow - it`s gonna be really awesome.

One of the two owners of the place has this big recording studio, a full drum kit, and the bunkers provide amazing acoustics.

Also, on Tuesday, there`s this big party happening, the Jam des neiges, which is just that, a big music jam. It`s going to be awesome.

Oh and the place has a few animals, most notably: elk, horses, chickens, roosters, goats and probably some others I don`t know about.

Because it is an eco-village, everything we do has to be environmentally responsible, obviously no wasting, and the food that we have to make ourselves for a week has to be ``eco-friendly``.

I wanted to buy 50 boxes of KD with the 100 dollars we get for the groceries for the week, but apparently that`s not very eco-friendly.

:(

Oh I won`t have much internet at all for the week, so uh, yeah.

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48 and 4070

So I had my 48 hours off this weekend, which I spent at my eldest uncle`s apartment. I didn`t have an amazing time by any sorts, I much preferred my 48 that I spent last trimester in Toronto.

We did go to the Winter Carnival in Québec City, it was pretty cool, snow sculptures and giant ice castles and the such.

My uncle is a little -senile-, among other things.
To get to the carnival, we parked at a mall. And well, to park at this mall (with a few hundred parking spaces), there are a few signs that say you have to be a shopper at the mall. Makes sense right?

Well, my uncle took it a -bit- too seriously. We went around the mall in stores to collect business cards, which we then neatly placed on the dashboard of his car. We also put a few receipts to show that we were paying customers.

After the carnival, we returned promptly to the shopping mall, and my uncle sort of panicked when he saw a tow truck just randomly in the parking lot.

After having calmed him and buying a few more random thingies (I bought an 8 gig USB key, to keep whatever I want with me) and displaying the receipts on the dashboard, we went for dinner at Mike`s.

Then we headed home because it was starting to hail.
He offered me some non-alcoholic beer, but I stuck with my glass of water.

Strange, strange uncle.

I`m house manager this week. Because the house is so small, there isn`t much cleaning to do.
Though I have to start supper really early because, well, our stove really sucks. Out of the four electric elements, only two work, and at that, one of them only works at half capacity. The only element that works fully also happens to be the smallest one.

Cheap. Quality.

Yesterday I made a sort of middle-eastern soup-dinner, with rutabagas, parsnips, sweet potatoes, plenty of spices (curry of course!) etc.

Then I made two batches, one spicy, one not.

The spicy was too spicy for some people who thought spicy would be good. It was fun to see their faces go red. I like spicy, and so I enjoyed my dinner.

Oh, and the regional director came the other day, we`re not moving houses after all. Sigh.

On Friday I move into my billet family`s house for a week and a half, I had a blast last time in Strathroy, hope it`s going to be the same.

Hmm, I`m also applying to UofT, but the stupid OUAC website is failing again.
If I don`t get in (I doubt I will), I`m going to come back home, fix up some grades, get a job somewhere and store up some money so I can apply for next semester. I really, really want to go to UofT, maybe for the international relations program or some sort of social science, so I don`t mind waiting. And neither do my parents.

Celery rules.
4070 reppin` Loblaws.

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Deception and recondition

So it`s the first time that I`ve blogged from my work in Québec - I would rarely get the chance anyway, as I`m usually in the forest.

Saturday night wasn`t bad at all - I`m the most persistant dancer. I danced for like 3 hours straight.

I`m not terrible at dancing actually, by myself, I do just fine. Really!

Put me with another person and things just get awkward. Real fast.

Even if I wasn`t in a social mood, I managed to find my own little bubble, my own little state of trance-like dancing clarity and had a good night. As you can see from this rather embarassing snapshot of me during one of my dancing epiphanies, it mattered not who or where I was, for at that moment, I was a being in my own world.

Interesting highlights of the night:

• A bunch of different people wanted to take pictures with me because they thought I looked like John Lennon. They were probably quite drunk.
• Asshole at the coat check in on my way home politely said ``Ladies first!`` to me
• Pascalou`s (Project Leader) dancing
• Two dancers who were pretty good on stage

And then I had to escort a couple drunkies home, back to the Katimahouse.

Sunday was a relaxing day. One of my uncles who lives in Québec City took me out to dinner at a local Ste-Marie restaurant. It was a bit awkward, he`s a little senile at times... For my 48 hours off next week I`ll be at his apartment. We`ll probably go to the Carnaval.

I`m so hungry.

I was anticipating going to the only restaurant in Ste-Marguerite, but I forgot it was closed on Mondays. Raaaah. Maybe I`ll go steal food from the kitchen in the municipality building, which I`m in currently.

I just tried calling N for the hell of it on the phones here, but I can`t figure out the long distance code-thingy. She thinks I`m ignoring her on Facebook, heehee.

I want to sleep sometimes.

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Fairy lust

Day 2 of Laura.

Perhaps I should explain myself better.

Laura happens when all the little negative things that happen daily to me, that I shove back somewhere, resurface and present themselves. When Laura leaves, I also believe that these negative things leave with her. So I think I need Laura. What if Laura never presented herself? Would this negative space that I have keep getting bigger and bigger? No, I think this space has a limit.
Maybe what I need is a different remedy than Laura.
Laura funnels the negatives out just once in a while, but what about... a different form of Laura, something that maybe doesn`t present itself as clearly as Laura, but still gets the job done?
Mary Jane? I don`t know.

Today we went volunteering - we started building the decor for a play (Annie) that the local high school is presenting sometime in April.

I`m not going to complain about the job that I had (it was cutting strips of tinfoil and twisting them into long rope things) because I got my peace and zen.

Zen twisting aluminium foil. What do you know.

Tonight, we`re going to the bar (Freddy`s) with our Project Leader, for it is his last week with us. I`d feel like a loser if I didn`t go, and if I stayed at home tonight as Laura, so I kind of have to go.

Saturday is Ladies` Night at Freddy`s, so the gals pay like 8 bucks and get unlimited beer, or coupons for a bunch, one of the two. It changes.

As such, I only pay three bucks for the coat check, and I can mooch for the night.

If you don`t know me enough, I never get myself drunk, because I`d hate to rely on other people to get home safe, or I just don`t want to deal with all the troubles that inebriety entails, and also to keep my hair safe. Countless stories about shaved eyebrows when you wake up in the morning have kept me wary.

I like the taste of most beers, and I can drink quite a lot without getting drunk, which suits me just fine. There`s also loud dancing music, but I`m not sure if I`ll dance, because I don`t think Laura can dance.

Will I just lurk in a corner and look all shady for the night?

Who knows.

Pixie rust

Another Laura day.
Ha, ha.

You know, the frequency of these little mood swings of sorts is increasing.

Why can`t I just smile and be outgoing and whatnot and make Laura disappear?

Can`t I?

I don`t know, I don`t think I can, because then my outside does not coincide with my inside.

Work blows.

Almost got a CTI for sleeping on the job.

I had worked all morning in six feet of snow, and even with snowshoes, it really drains you. So by the afternoon, I was really exhausted, so I kind of dozed off during lunchtime, and woke up later. My ``boss`` was rather unhappy.

Now I need to make a little schedule of sorts to follow.

I really do work, it`s just, cutting branches over and over again is just awful. Also considering the fact that the work could be done four times as fast with an axe or chainsaw or something.

Baaaah.

Going out to the bar tomorrow with our PL, who is, very sadly, leaving us for greener pastures. :(

We get to meet our new PL, Patrick, sometime soon. He`s supposed to be just as cool as Pascalou.

Doing some big volunteer thing at a high school all day tomorrow.

See ya.
Actually, I might not see ya.

Crashed Ice and Caffeine Cliffs

So on Friday and Saturday, my Katimagroup and six others (five of which were only there on Saturday) volunteered at the massive Red Bull Crashed Ice event in Québec City.

If you didn`t know, for the last few years, this event has been happening in Québec where they build a gargantuan slide of ice with twists, turns, bumps & jumps down which skate four competitors, trying to reach the finish line first.

On Friday, we were assigned to be security-ish people with official-looking uniforms going around to stop people climbing onto the slide. We then snow-shovelled the sidewalks. There were only about 20,000 people (because Friday is only the qualification rounds) , whereas on Saturday there were more than 80,000 people.

On Saturday, we got to see the finals (it was a bloody cold day...), and it was really friggin`cool. I managed to snag a spot really close to the slide, got to see the action right up front. Really exciting stuff. Hung out with a bunch of other Katimagroups too.

Then, when the event was over, oh god, it felt like we were in some sort of landfill. Beer cans/bottles, LOTS of Red Bull cans, and other various recyclables which we were assigned to pick up. It actually went surprisingly fast, with around 70 Katima-victims cleaning up Le Vieux-Québec, it only took about an hour to have bags and bags filled with stuff to recyle.

The hardest part was fending off all the drunkies who were somewhat hindering our tasks. There were a couple assholes who staggered up to us and threw their beer cans into the snow banks, laughing at us while we were cleaning up.

I`m not a violent person, as such, I didn`t feel the need to punch them in the face like so many other people would have. I contented myself with humbly passing by and ignoring them.

Being a massive Red Bull-sponsored event, free Red Bull cans all around.

Terrible, terrible idea for me.

I know I`m not supposed to ingest caffeine, but I kinda like the Red Bull taste, and it`s completely free, so I couldn`t help but take four Red Bulls. I also finished half a beer can before the ride home to Ste-Marie because I was so thirsty.

Definitely one of the stupidest choices I`ve done in Katimavik.

Hyper-ventilation, buzzing, vibrating eyesight etc.

And since I know you like to spy on my blog, K, thank you for that magic potion and that peanut-butter-bread-thing (it tasted awful, but er, that`s beside the point).

Didn`t get much sleep either.

Back to work tomorrow, oh joy.

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The Arctic

Today was a very windy day.

My work consists of taking this giant pole thing and cutting tree limbs off. Really, really repetitive and boring. The smile on my face on the picture below is deceptive. It's boring.

The picture is also deceptive in that I work with J. I`m not alone in wielding this beastly tool. Our system is that I`ll either adjust the hook thing at the end onto a branch, and J will pull the string to cut, or vice-versa.

So, since we get bored of that work quickly (we`ve been doing it since Monday - many more weeks to come...) we decided to drop the tool and go off to explore the forest, not following a path or anything. It was really cool, we found a clearing with a little hill surrounded by trees, and we ended up at a field, pictured below, and the wind is very strong. And it sounds just like that classic arctic wind (although it wasn`t particularily cold), a strong wooooooosh sound.

To warm up, a nice hearty lunch at the local restaurant (I work at the municipality of Ste. Marguerite - 1000 people or so, it`s not in Ste. Marie).

Oh, and at the end of the day today, I got to drive around on this ATV-with-snowtreads, it was a lot of fun. It`s almost like a tank, it can plow through anything.

After a hard day`s work, J and I relaxed on the ATV, and J`s camera is always snapping pictures...

Good times in Québec.

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Laura

Who is Laura?

Okay, Laura is the missing Katimavik participant from my group. Katimagroups originally start with eleven participants.

We only started with ten.

Laura was sick with mono, we figured she might join later. But no, she never showed up.

Laura is also a nickname for when I`m in a certain type of mood - according to the other people in this Katimagroup. It`s when I turn quiet and don`t speak very much, or something of the sort. It also represents all the girlish aspects of me - say, my long hair, my habit of using a straightening iron etc.

I don`t mind the nickname. It gives me a cover to feel the way that I feel - How are you, Laura?

Once people realize I`m in a Laura stage, I think I`m left alone more, which is good.

Work is going alright. I work with J now, since she`s done being house manager. We go into this beautiful snowshoe trail and clear branches out of the way. It`s boring and repetitive, but work is work, and we can clearly see the work we`ve accomplished by seeing the cleared path.

It does, however, get rather cold, because standing there cutting branches off doesn`t really keep me warm. I`m not moving enough.

And my feet kill me after spending a whole day in snowshoes.

We have this self-defence workshop tomorrow. Doesn`t sound very exciting - I grew bored of Karate class when I was younger. Twice.

I miss a certain someone.

Cold

Good evening madames et messieurs, this is my first blog post that I write from my new headquarters in Ste-Marie, Quebec.

Before I continue, I know many of you have been asking for a mailing address so that you can stop procrastination on those letters. Without further ado:

-Redacted-
Your deadline is March 20th, because that`s when I leave for my next rotation, which is, quite majestically, in Vancouver.

There`s also a phone number I can list, but we have a really cheap quality cord phone, which is conveniently located in the girl`s room. I don`t use the phone very much anyway. And besides, it`s really hard to get a hold of a Katimaparticipant, what with all the things we do.

So, first off, I gotta say, Ste-Marie is actually more exciting than Strathroy.
We don`t need to walk 25 minutes to get downtown, our house is pretty much there.
Of course, you know what I refer to when I say -downtown- in a 12,000 people city.

I live in a much smaller place than in Strathroy.
I say place, because it isn`t even a house, it`s in fact two apartments.

The bottom apartment is very small, it`s got a small kitchen, a little living room, a washroom, and two bedrooms, and I can get to any of those places within 2 seconds of each other.
The upstairs apartment is slightly bigger, with two bedrooms, a bigger bathroom, and a common space. Still very small.

To commute between these two apartments, one must go outside, climb the stairs, and go back inside.

Speaking of outside, do you know what the temperature these few days has been like?

I ought to inform you.

-30 without the wind chill factor.

Obviously, I came knowing that it would be very cold, but the cold, it`s...
You open your mouth, and you can almost bite into it, it is frigid.

My new project leader, Pascal, is very very cool. He is much better than our previous one. We have so many activities planned.

Tomorrow we`re going to the Musée des beaux arts, followed by a trip to the Québec Katimahouse.

Sunday there`s some swimming going down.

Next weekend we`re volunteering, along with seven other Katimagroups, at the Red Bull Crashed Ice! We`re gonna be right next to the action (we`re cleaning the mess up afterward) so tune into TSN or something and look for me (:

Oh, in case you didn`t know, the Red Bull thing is, of course, that giant ice-slide where these extreme badasses go down in packs of four at 70 mph on skates, trying to get to the finish line. Epic.

I work at La Municipalité de Ste-Marguerite.

I am very sad that I work there.

You see, I really wanted to work at Câble Axion, a local tv station. Everyone in my group thought it would be a perfect place for me to work. I thought so too. It was my number 1 choice. I didn`t get the work placement. I was really bummed out for a few days, it was depressing, and I still think it`s unfair, because the participant who got it only had the tv station as their 3rd choice.

So why didn`t I get my work placement?

Apparently, the work placements decide who works where, unlike Strathroy. It blows.

Ste-Marguerite isn`t bad, it`s half paperwork, half building a snowshow trail outside in the woods.

It`s just that the TV station would have been so perfect, I would have done some video editing, some reporting, some covering of press conferences etc...

Oh well.

I better damn well get my first work choice in Vancouver.

Other than that big deception, I`m still having a good time in Katimavik.

Oh, and at my work, between the hours of 8-9, 12-1, 4-5, I`m technically not at work, but rather at my supervisor`s house, because the building I work at is closed during those hours.

And I have nothing to do.

Free long distance calls though, and I get really bored.

-You- might get a call, if my boredom goes to an extreme, I might resort to a phone, out of loneliness.

Lots of things to talk about, but this blog is just too long, wouldn`t you say?

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