Hi all,

Holy crap, it's been more than a month since I last posted. Sorry about that! My life is very much that of a typical student right now: I'll have absolutely nothing going on for a week or so, then all of a sudden there will be assignments to work on, readings to do and general chaos everywhere. Rinse and repeat every few weeks.

It's odd; it feels like I have nothing and everything to tell you guys (read: the 3 of you that actually still keep up with this), so I'll just give you updates of whatever comes to mind right now, stream-of-consciousness style. Apologies if you can't keep up!

Classes are going fairly well - I have 2 electives and 3 straight-up translation classes this semester. No evil profs, except potentially the translation prof who has a TON of random guidelines for us to follow on assignments. I literally have a half-page (and growing!) list of dos and don'ts, most of which are along the lines of "Prof HATES the word 'get'!" and "No gerund constructions". It turns translation into more of a puzzle than it needs to be!

In case anyone *doesn't* know yet, I also finally have a boyfriend! We met online on a mental health forum back in February/March, and started chatting as penpals. It continued that way for a while, until I finally told him that I was starting to see us as more than friends. He agreed, and a week later he told me he loved me!
The only issue is that he lives in England, so it's a long-distance MSN thing for now. Although he's planning to visit me in January!!

On a similar note, I've been making a fair amount of progress with my mental health. The counselor I've been seeing has helped me recognize my thought patterns and areas I really need to work on. She's also helped pull me out of a depressive episode before it got too serious, which has never happened before. It was kind of an eye opener for me!

... And that's about all I have to say for now. Stay tuned for the next episode in the soap opera that is my life!

Moi

Hi all,

So I'm finally starting to settle in to the new apartment. It's amazing - like living in a hotel. We have a pool, saunas, an exercise room and a movie room! And in the apartment itself, we've got 2 bathrooms and a freaking dishwasher. I have to say, it's one HECK of a lot better than living in res! Of course, we're still trying to figure out what we do and don't have; usually we find out we're missing something when we need it. So there's a lot of improvising going on.

The only thing that's not going so well at the moment is The Roommates. They've been doing a lot of frosh stuff this week, so we really haven't gotten to know each other that well. Despite trying to draw up a Roommate Agreement of sorts, we're still trying to figure out who should be responsible for what and what is/isn't acceptable. It's kind of awkward...

On the bright side, school is going fairly well. I ended up switching a bunch of classes around, so I'm now taking 3 translation courses (all in the same un-air-conditioned room, I might add), a Feminism class and a Medieval Studies class. So far most of my profs seem pretty decent, although I can see that my English prof treating us like we're in Grade 2 will probably get old fast. This woman (who looks like Mrs. Doubtfire, no joke) has already told us that "Spelling in English is hard" and asked us to name the advantages and disadvantages of working together in a group; you can only hear so much of that before someone snaps.


So yeah, that's more or less what's been going on with my life right now. Not sure when I'll post again, since I'm sensing an impending homework avalanche.

Moi

Hi guys,

Sorry I haven't posted in a while. Blogspot really dislikes my phone, and I've been too tired from work/busy packing to go on my computer much before now. I am in fact still alive, though, and actually doing pretty well.

First, since I know people were wondering, I did in fact figure out my living situation. I have 2 roommates who happen to be friends - they confirmed that they'd be living with me last week. They're actually at the apartment now; I'll be joining them tomorrow. Even better, we have almost all our furniture. A couple was moving out upstairs and sold us most of their stuff, then moved it down for us. And finally, we should have Internet and TV tomorrow evening. It's a pretty sweet setup, really!

(I should mention that my grandparents have played a HUGE part in all this. I can't thank them enough for everything they've done to help make the move possible, not to mention easier)

So yeah. I'm currently "taking a break" from stuffing everything into suitcases. I have a whole suitcase full of clothes, plus 2 others that contain a mix of clothes, valuables, toiletries, bedding, books and stuff that can only be described as "random". My grandparents are bringing at least one more filled with pots and pans, cutlery, laundry nuggets and the like. In other words: HOLY CRAP DO I HAVE A LOT OF CRAP!

Other than that, I don't have a whole ton of stuff to report. My WeightWatchers plan has unfortunately kind of died, since I pretty much stopped using my computer this summer which in turn caused me to stop calculating/tracking my Points. On the upside, I'm REALLY looking forward to be able to control what goes into and out of the apartment and what I eat this year. Hopefully I can resist the urge to buy junk, which in turn makes it harder to eat said junk. It's kind of a "blank slate" thing, y'know?

*sighs* Guess I'd better get back to figuring out what I'm forgetting to stuff into my suitcases. I'll probably post again after this weekend, though, once I'm a little more settled into the apartment.

Moi

Hi guys,

Things have gotten kind of insane since I last posted. Most of the chaos has to do with housing - to make a VERY long story short, let's just say that I got ditched by the people I was going to room with next year because one of their boyfriends came and screwed everything up... after my grandparents were more or less locked in to an apartment that we wanted to keep at all costs. It's that nice. We're talking 1000+ square feet, with access to a pool, sauna, exercise room, BBQ and sun deck here! And it's right across the street from campus. The boyfriend felt that the price was too much though (even after my grandparents subsidized it down to below-average student rent rates for the city), so he basically backed out and took the other 2 with him, leaving me to find new roommates for September. Grr.

</rant>

The other thing I've been figuring out is my diet and exercise. Things are going really well on the exercise front; I'm starting to go on more and more "long" (around 15km) bike rides. I'm not expecting to do any races soon, but it's definitely a start and it gets easier the more I do it. Here's hoping I can stay in the habit!

The diet thing, on the other hand, isn't going so great. I'm still monitoring my points... which means I can see how consistently I'm going over my "allowance". Something needs to change, and I'm really starting to see that carbs are causing me the most difficulty. In fact, the more I think about it the more I realize how addicted I am to them. So I'm going to try to drastically reduce my carbohydrate intake over the next few weeks, mostly by watching how much sugar and bread products I consume. If anyone has any tips/ways to help me do this, please share!

Ciao for now,
K

Hey guys,

Sorry I haven't been posting. I'm kind of swamped between my 2 jobs; I've been working an average of 42 hours every week (and that's not counting the 2 "extended" Saturdays I've worked so far). Honestly, it's kind of a love-hate thing so far. On the one hand, I mostly enjoy both jobs and the money is really going to come in handy next year. On the other, though, I'm spending an awful lot of time and energy at work. It leaves very little time for, well, life. And that kind of sucks.

Another side effect of my insane schedule is that I'm not really caring for myself as much as I should be. I have no time or energy for exercise and I end up eating out a lot at work, just out of convenience. That stops now. My grandpa challenged me to start counting my WeightWatchers points, and I've been doing it for about a week now. I'm still having trouble with portion control and have been a few points over my "allowance" each day, but overall it's going well. It gets me thinking about what's going into my body and gives me some direct feedback, which is nice. And hopefully, it'll help me lose some weight!

The other part of my get-healthy plan is that I'm going to set exercise goals. I'm starting off really small; my first goal is to exercise at least once a week for the next month or so. Even if it's just a really long walk with my dogs or a bike down to the grocery store, I need to get moving. It would be awesome if someone could hold me accountable at first; anyone feel like nagging me?

I know this is a short post, but it's almost 11 here and I need to get to bed. I have to be halfway across the city and able to deal with kids at 9 AM tomorrow.

Ciao for now,
Me

Hey peeps,

No, I haven't forgotten about you. Life's just been a little nuts since I got back. I started a full-time internship about a week after I got back, and my system REALLY hates the whole "getting up at 6:30 so you can work for 8 hours" thing. Don't get me wrong, I love the job (I'm translating/helping with school programs/doing whatever needs to be done at a children's museum here). It's just... insane.

So of course I decided to go back to my old weekend job doing birthday parties at an animal shelter. Bye-bye free time, but hello money! Hopefully I'll have saved enough by the end of the summer to pay most of next year's rent. Provided we can find an apartment, that is...

Yup. That's right. I have 2 roommates lined up, but we have nowhere to live. If anyone knows of a cheap place to live in the nation's capital, I'm open to suggestions! Provided, of course, that rent is less than $800/person with hydro.

So that's my life in a nutshell. Sorry for the short (and uber-late) post, but it's my bedtime.

Me

Hey guys,

So I'm officially 3 days away from finishing my first year of university. It's kind of bittersweet, really - while I am incredibly excited to go home and see my family (and take full advantage of real food/a clean kitchen/free laundry etc.), I'm going to miss my friends like crazy. I promise I'll write about that next week, but I don't want to start the whole "I'M GONNA MISS YOU GUISE" thing just yet because I've still got 3 days to go and I really don't need to be a bawling mess the entire time. Instead, I've composed a list of things (in no particular order) that my first year of university has taught me.

1. Keep track of your deadlines. The panic that comes with the realization that you have an assignment due in 5 minutes is just not worth it.

2. On a similar note, procrastination is a really bad idea. Studying an entire semester's worth of notes the day of the exam will get you nowhere.

3. There is no shame in taking advantage of free stuff.

4. It's OK to ask for help.

5. If you make a mess, clean it up! It's really pretty simple, but when it doesn't get done the results are often disgusting and/or dangerous.

6. A lack of privacy can be both a blessing and a curse.

7. Don't be afraid to share your struggles. You'd be surprised at how many other people are dealing with the same thing.

8. It's always better to do something than to do nothing. Even tiny actions can have a huge impact.

9. Don't judge a book by its cover.

10. Sometimes, you just have to improvise.

K

Hey guys,

Exam season is officially here. Just finished my first exam (which was just a 10-minute oral interview - I saw it as a warm-up), which kicks off a week of utter chaos and stress. 4 regular exams in 6 days, then I get to work on my Translation take-home exam until I hand it in on the 23rd, which is also the day I leave. Something tells me I'll be running on caffeine and adrenaline the entire time.

...

I got nothin' else for you. My brain is categorically refusing to think. Time to put on an episode of Two and a Half Men so it can recuperate.

K

Hi all,

Since I already posted once this week, this is going to be short and sweet. School is starting to wind down since exams begin almost right after Easter, so aside from a few random tidbits (like the fact that OMG I NEVER HAVE TO DEAL WITH MY ITALIAN PROF AGAIN, or the fact that in just a few short hours I'm going to find out whether or not I pass Philosophy) there isn't much to report.

Similarly, I don't have much more to say about the tattoos except for that I'm ridiculously proud of them, and that they're healing really well. They're starting to scab over, and once the scabs fall off the initial healing process will be more or less done. Meaning that I won't have to walk around smelling like hemp moisturizer all the time. Yay?

Finally, I'm excited to say that I get to go home tomorrow. I know I just saw my mom/sister/grandparents, but it'll still be nice to actually be home :)

Ciao for now,
K

Hi guys,

I know you weren't expecting anything til tomorrow at the earliest, but I just couldn't wait to tell you that I FINALLY GOT INKED!!!!!!!

*deep breaths* OK, I'm calm.

Since I know many of you are going to have the same few questions, I figured I might as well answer them here. That way I can just direct people to this post instead of repeating the same thing ad nauseam. Think of it as a Tattoo FAQ of sorts.

Q: Did it hurt?

A: Of course it did. I heard someone else describe it as feeling like someone's cutting you with glass, and that's actually pretty friggin' accurate. The pain fades fairly quickly though (right now it's less than 6 hours after my appointment and my wrists are more tender and sting-y than anything else), and those few hours/days of pain are nothing when you consider that this is a piece of art that stays on your skin until death.

Q: How long did it take?

A: A lot less time than I was expecting. I was booked for a 2-hour appointment, but because it's a small and simple line piece it only took about 45 minutes. 

Q: Can I touch it?

A: Not until the surface has healed, which will take at least a week. After all, this is an open wound and I'm not sure where your hands have been. You're welcome to touch it after the scabs have fallen off, though.

Q: Can I at least look at it?

A: Sure. Here's a pic:

Ooh, pretty

Q: What does it mean?

A: It's based on my "wing and a ring", 2 pieces of jewelry that I always wear (sort of, since my necklace chain broke and I have yet to find a replacement I'm not allergic to). The filigree on the outside comes from a ring that I bought after my first depressive episode 2 years ago, while the wing is based on an angel wing necklace given to me by my grandma after I almost died in a car accident last year. They're serious strength symbols for me and I'm proud to have them on my skin.
There's also a whole bunch of minor symbolism in there, which will likely change over time; for instance, the fact that they're pointing towards me (which is not that common, since most people orient their tattoos so that they appear "right side up" to others) is a reminder to take care of myself.

Q: How much did it cost?

A: $150, including the $100 deposit I put down. It was originally estimated to cost closer to $200, but since it took a lot less time than expected they cut the price. Sure, it sounds like I paid a lot, but I'd rather pay $500 for something I'm excited to wear for the rest of my life than pay $20 for something that looks like it was drawn by a drunk toddler with ADD. The rule of thumb is that cheap tattoos aren't good and good tattoos aren't cheap.

Let me know if you have any more questions and I'll add them to the list.

Moi

Hey guys,

I feel bad because this is the second week in a row I've left my posts until Sunday. I'm really sorry! I do have a legitimate excuse, though: I was chillin' in a hotel with my grandparents, mom and sister from Wednesday until today. They were in town for part of my sister's spring break, which was really nice - I do legitimately miss seeing my family, even my little sister (something which I was certain would never ever ever ever ever ever ever happen when I was younger). Well, that and the fact that the hotel was much quieter and more sanitary than my residence could ever hope to be. Having my food and stuff paid for didn't hurt either...

Yeah. Anyways, it was a nice visit. We ended up going to IKEA and a mall that I've never been to (only because it's a 1/2 hr bus ride away), which was fun. My mom went nuts at IKEA, since we don't have one at home - at one point she picked something up, asked me what it was, then put it in the bag after I stated that I had no clue. I guess if the Swedes built it, it must be useful, right?

Other than my mini-vacation with my family (which will be repeated this weekend, by the way, since I'm going home for Easter), things have been... going. It's just starting to hit people that exams start in just under 2 weeks and that we'll be done for the summer in less than a month. As a result, it's a constant battle between "I don't need to start studying/writing my 10-page term paper/doing readings just yet, I still have a few weeks" and "OMG I ONLY HAVE 2 WEEKS TIL MY EXAM! PANIC!!!". It's actually kind of funny watching people flip-flop between the two.

Well, at least until the howling starts.

Me

P.S. With any luck, I'll have a special announcement for you guys on Tuesday or Wednesday (or as soon as I'm able to type again, anyways).

Hey guys,

I can't say too much yet (mostly cause I don't want to jinx anything), but things are finally starting to improve around here. For one thing, the weather's been hovering around the 25 degree mark for most of the week, which means that I've been able to break out my wonderful second-hand foldable Pugeot bike and go for a couple long rides. It beats the heck out of going to the gym!

Also, I had an awesome conversation with my CA (floor monitor) that's really started to help me sort out my priorities. Let's just say that I have a lot of work ahead of me (ditto for my therapist!) and it's going to require a pretty big paradigm shift, but it'll be worth it in the end.

Last but not least, I may very well be getting my tattoos sooner than I thought. That's all I'm going to say about that, since talking about it too much seems to jinx the whole thing.

Slainte,
Me

Hey guys,

I'm stuck in one of those weird time warps again. This time, I'm mostly waiting for stuff that seems like it's light-years away... until it smacks me in the face. Take the Philosophy midterm I had today. I learned about it a week ago (rather harshly, as you might remember) and still managed to put the majority of the studying off until last night, when the lightbulb over my head finally clicked on and said "Hey! Midterm tomorrow! Get your [rear] into gear!" So I studied til 2 in the morning, slept, then woke up and studied for most of today (or, uh, this afternoon, since I didn't wake up til 11...).

Note that I wasn't intentionally procrastinating. My brain just didn't register the importance of studying for this exam until it was way too late. It's the same thing with a translation I have due next Friday: I've done some basic work on it, but I know I have another 6 hours or so of research and work to do before it's even somewhat presentable. So naturally, my brain keeps throwing distractions at me. My internal monologue goes something like this: "You know you have a big project to do, right? You should really get to work on th-oooh! You haven't played Bejeweled for like 3 hours! Just play a couple of games and then you can start the project for real. But maybe you should feed yourself or just get out of the room first..." and on and on until the translation gets, well, lost in translation. But I can bet you that this time next week, I'll be beating myself up for leaving the project to the last minute again.

Any ideas on how I can get out of that habit?

Me

P.S. I'm doing the 30 Hour Famine next week and am collecting donations. I'm collecting cash in person, but I've also set up a donation page (https://myfamine.worldvision.ca/famine/profile/17187). The site takes Visa, MasterCard and American Express. Just, y'know, in case you're interested.

Hey peeps,

As you may have gathered, I've been looking forward to getting inked for a LONG time now. I started planning sometime last July, and went in for a consultation in mid-December. The first appointment I could get was for 2 days after my birthday in mid-January, and I took it. I went in to see the final design 2 days before, only to be told that I shouldn't get the tats because I was on meds that could make me bleed the ink out. So I rescheduled for Valentine's Day. Everything was fine and dandy right up until 2 days before (you sensing a theme here?), when I got a head cold that once again prevented me from getting inked. Another reschedule, this time on March 15, and I would've had to skip class to make the appointment. Only problem? It turns out I have a midterm during that class. So I get to reschedule AGAIN. I do have a tentative date, but I'm not going to share it for 2 reasons. First, my artist is going to call me tomorrow and we'll see if I can go for 2 separate appointments (one per wrist) or maybe get another artist to put her design on my skin. The second reason I'm not sharing is because every time I start to get excited and tell people about my upcoming appointments, I have to move them. It's like a curse, or as my aunt puts it, "Maybe the tattoo gods are trying to tell you something."

Signing off so I can go study,
Me

Hey guys,

I know my posts have been pretty crappy and depressing lately. Truth is, I've been going through something of a personal shitstorm lately, which I unfortunately can't discuss here. I can tell you that it's less Eeyore-y (Eeyore-esque?) and more "A Series of Unfortunate Events", though. I'm actually handling things fairly well, just at my own pace. I'm hoping to return to regularly scheduled programming soon.

In the meantime...

Ciao for now,
Me

Hey guys,

Just a quick note to let you know I'm alive. I've had a run of bad luck lately (nothing serious, but it requires a LOT of different explanations that I quite frankly don't have the time or inclination to give) and am still dealing with the aftermath. Then there's those pesky "midterm" things...

*sigh*

I can't wait to get home for Reading Week tomorrow. For those of you who are interested, I'm in town from the 17th til the 26th. Fire me a FB message/email/comment/text/whatever if you want to get together!

Moi

P.S. One thing I should mention is that I didn't get my tattoos this week after all. I caught a head cold over the weekend and they didn't want me contaminating the artist. So now the appointment's been moved up another month. I've learned my lesson, though; I'm not going to say anything about the ink anymore. It seems to curse me when I do...

Hey folks,

As you may have gathered, I'm back from Vancouver now. I had an amazing time: we got to go to Stanley Park, I stayed in a hotel room that was twice the size of my dorm room (in a hotel that had "canine ambassadors"!) and I was spoiled silly. It was absolutely the perfect getaway!

Unfortunately, I've been hit pretty hard by reality now that I'm back at school. Today was especially crappy: I ended up missing my bus and running almost 20 minutes late to my first chiropractor's appointment* (during which I discovered that I had managed to pop one of the joints in my hip - ow), then got serious writer's block on an essay-style philosophy exam. Which just so happens to be worth around 30% of my mark. I ended up writing out most of my points in a list at the back of the test booklet, then begging my prof for mercy. Luckily, he seems like a pretty lenient guy so I may be able to salvage or make up a few marks. Still, I am hugely unimpressed with myself...

But yeah. Time for a little dose of happy (for me, anyways), 'cause I GET MY TATS ON MONDAY! FOR REAL THIS TIME!!! I'm excited and nervous and scared and absolutely can't wait! These tats mean a lot to me, and I really want to be able to show them off :D

And yes, you'll hear more about them as soon as I can type without crying (which may be a while, since they're essentially open wounds filled with ink and will take a while to heal).

TTFN,
Moi

*please don't judge me, Dad! It actually helped...

Hi guys,

As some of you who know me IRL (that's "in real life", Grandma) may have noticed, I've been kinda down lately. My body basically decided to rebel against me, making me deal with the flu, PMS and indomethacin withdrawal that amped up my citalopram side effects. As a result, I basically turned into a slug for a week and a half. Believe me, it wasn't pretty.

However, I'm happy to report that things are back on track now. Something that helped a LOT was the fact that I was invited to go to Vancouver with my grandparents for the weekend! So many things are perfect about this: getting to stay in a (clean! private!) hotel (with a TV! and a bathtub!), escaping the parties in res, getting to see my grandparents again, getting away from the snow... I can't wait! This is exactly what I needed to get myself out of the rut I've been in.

Another thing that helps is that I'm finally starting to sort out my housing situation for next year. Long story short, there's been a lot of confusion and stress about that lately since my Plan A (moving in with my current roommate) hinges entirely on said roommate's parents' choice of apartment. Unfortunately, they won't make a choice until March at the earliest, which is leaving things pretty late if I have to try and find somewhere else to live or notify my "backup plan" roommates that I won't be living with them after all. It's left me in a really awkward position, but luckily I've been able to find someone who understands my situation and is open to being my backup. Bonus: I actually like this person and we actually have a lot in common, which would make moving in with her a heck of a lot easier.

Oh, and a third bonus? My Italian prof made an announcement yesterday that made me very happy. I can't say much until I know more, but basically it involves an amazing opportunity for the month of June. Suffice it to say that I'll be incredibly happy if it works out!

So, yeah. That's my news for this week. I'm so glad that I have things to look forward to now - it makes it that much easier to keep going.

TTFN,
Me

Hi guys,

Have you ever noticed how time doesn't behave the way you want it to? When you're waiting for something, it slows waaaaay down, so that minutes feel like hours and a single day feels like an entire week. The same applies to meetings and classes - it feels like your brain is moving ten times faster than everything else, so that you come up with a million other things you *could* be doing... all in the first ten minutes. This leaves lots of time for your mind to bounce around like a kid on a road trip, constantly asking "are we there yet?!?!"

It's an incredibly frustrating concept, matched only by its twin - time speeding up when you're trying to avoid something. You know what I'm talking about. You're so totally focused on how much you don't want to do the thing you've been avoiding that it turns into tunnel vision, blocking out everything else that's happening around you. This makes it a heck of a lot harder to note the passing of time. The result? A sort of mental catapult that makes time pass so fast that you're at the "doomsday" before you know it. Of course, as soon as you get to that point, time (the sneaky bastard) slows right back down so that you can savour every second of whatever it is you've been putting off. Cruel, isn't it?

I have to say that I've been going through a lot of both of these phenomena lately. On one hand, I've been looking forward to getting my tattoos and going home for reading week, and it turns out they're 3 Very Long Weeks away. On the other hand, I start midterms (sort of) in less than a week even though it feels like I've had almost no class time. Why can't these events switch places, so that I can put off midterms (and have time to study for them) and fly home/get my tats right away? It's not fair! Someone needs to do something about this...

Ciao for now,
Me

P.S. Yes, I did change the blog template. I think it's less visually crowded and much easier to read than the old format. Thoughts, anyone?

Hi peeps,

Sorry for the late post. It's been kind of a weird week - everything's seemed to come and go in waves this week. Let me explain:

So last Sunday was my birthday, which means I'm now legal to drink everywhere except in the US. You'd think it would be a huge event, but you'd be (mostly) wrong. While my awesome roommate did buy me a cake so that everyone could sing to me, that was about the extent of the festivities for the day. The rest of the partying happened on Thursday and yesterday, when I had 2 family parties - one at an Irish pub downtown and another at my aunt's house the following day. It was a lot of fun! Oh yeah, and my big birthday present was a Keurig coffee maker - one of those single-cup deals that takes "pods" instead of grounds. I think it's safe to say that I'm going to have a lot of fun with that...

Of course, nothing really happened on Monday or Tuesday. My big accomplishment was getting groceries for the week. W00t. It should be noted that I was supposed to get my tats on Tuesday, but the appointment's been bumped to Feb. 13th because the artist was afraid that the meds I'm on would thin too much and I'd bleed the ink out. I have to say, it was a major disappointment - not only was I getting myself all worked up, but I had chosen that particular Tuesday because it was right after my birthday and the tats are my birthday present to myself. So yeah, I was pretty bummed.

Wednesday was pretty uneventful as well, aside from the fact that my grandparents came to visit and I moved into their hotel for a few days. I know it seems kind of pointless, but I just couldn't pass up a clean, warm shower plus access to a TV and a comfy bed. Of course, getting the chance to be spoiled by my grandparents was pretty nice too :)

And that brings us to Thursday and Friday, when I had my parties. Like I said, they were a blast. I was so proud of myself for being able to order a beer at the pub - even better, I wasn't ID'ed.

So that's my week in a nutshell. Sorry once again for the erratic posts - I think I'm going to try switching to Thursdays, since I only have one class that day. Any objections?

TTFN,
Me

I promise I'll write more tomorrow, but for now I just wanted to post the design my tattoo artist sent me. :D:D:D

Hi all,

Sorry I missed a post last week. I was enjoying my last days at home just a bit too much!

Anyways, the point of this post is actually to tell you about the Orlando trip. I don't want to bore you with an essay, so I'll just give you the highlights:

The Rooms - The hotel we stayed at had condo-style rooms, meaning that we had an actual kitchen, bedrooms, washing machine and a living room. Even better, each family got their own room, so we actually had plenty of space. It was really really nice - it felt like absolute luxury to someone who's been sharing an 8x11 box for the past 4 months.

Shopping - we blew an insane amount of time and money at Target. It's just so fun being able to look at all the American stuff that we Canadians can't get at home!
Other than that, we went to Downtown Disney a lot. It's a neat little touristy shopping area, with lots of cool souvenirs and displays and stuff. The two best stores (in my opinion) were the mismatched socks store (yes, it exists) and the Disney art gallery, which sold everything that my mom and sister could have ever wanted. Seriously, they were drooling all over the place!

Universal - We bought a week pass and went 3 or 4 times during the trip. Harry Potter World was REALLY cool, even if it was packed. And the rides in the park were amazing!

(We did go to Disney by the way, but the one day we went they closed most of the parks due to overcrowding. Serious bummer.)

Cirque du Soleil - This was our New Year's Eve event, despite the fact that we went at 6 in the evening. The show was INCREDIBLE - very trippy and surreal. And the way the artists used their bodies was mind-blowing!

Christmas - We did in fact do Christmas dinner and a gift exchange while we were away. It was kind of nice getting together the way we did :)

So yeah. That's my Disney trip in a nutshell. Not sure when I'll post next week, since I get my tattoos on Tuesday (!!!!!!!!!!!) and my wrists will probably hurt like hell for the next couple of days.

TTFN,
Me