Paris, Blogs, Julia Child, and Photos!

I don't think I have jet lag, which is pretty awesome. I stayed up a little later than I should have last night, but I was functional at about 10 am, which isn't too bad. I did some grocery shopping, and then decided to beat the heat by going to see the movie "Julie & Julie". I enjoyed the movie immensely.

The movie complements many aspects of my recent life. First of all, as you all know, I completely fell in love with Paris while I visited, as did Julia Child when she was there. I am currently reading Julia Child's "My Life in France" and I'm loving it now that I have a picture of Paris in my head. Also, Julia Child is a pretty neat person, who didn't really find love or her niche in life until she hit her mid-to-late thirties, which makes me feel pretty darned hopeful. I think I've found my niche as a quirky science teacher, but the whole love thing hasn't worked out quite yet.

The second story line of the movie is based upon Julie Powell's book "Julie & Julia". I picked up this book and read it quite quickly while I was in the UK. As she approaches her thirtieth birthday, Julie decides to cook her way through Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking in a year. Julie's experience with blogging made me reflect upon my own experience in blogging. I really respect how honest Julie was in her blog; her husband encouraged her to skip the aspics (they are a gelatin dish made with meat stock... ew), but she didn't want to be dishonest with her readers. Good on her.

I also could completely relate with how Julie found community with her fellow bloggers. In my past 4.5 years of blogging, I've made some really great friends, and meeting strangers who connect with you through your writing is a wonderful experience. Of course, the whole second part of my trip was me hanging with a blog-buddy who is a great friend in real-life, and I'm so blessed that somehow through the world of blogging, Claire stumbled upon my blog, or I stumbled across hers, I can't remember how it happened. Incidentally, Julia Child had a sort blog buddy of her own; she had a pen-pal that she didn't meet until 8 years into their relationship, and this pen-pal had a hand in the publication of MtAoFC. I am so thankful for the friends that I've made through honest blogging.

I had totally intended to do a post just with pictures today, but I just had to blog about this movie. See it and/or read the accompanying books.

I have so many awesome pictures from my trip that show food, Paris, and blog buddy fun!

Back with a capital B!

Ahh, I love having the shift key in its "regular" place.

Anyway, I am completely shattered, but not exactly sleepy-shattered, but just thinking-shattered, if that makes sense. Long freaking flight from London to here, and then having to lug my luggage on a bus and then the subway and then another bus is oh-so-tiring. And to top it all off, it's 10:35 pm here, but 3:35 am London time so I should be crashing, but I'm too exhausted to even crash.

And apparently summer has bestowed itself on Toronto. It was so shockingly hot and hazy upon my return.

When I am more cognizant, I will post lots of pictures, but for now, check out some on Claire's blog. We had such fun, and I'm going to miss her. Why can't my good blog friends all live in one Utopian-city?? (I nominate Paris for this Utopian city 'cuz I love it!) I talked to Claire in my head all the time yesterday while I went on an Oxford St. shopping spree.

Oh, and Avenue Q was soooooooooooooooo amazing! I loved it.

Also, I find it crazy that I woke up this morning in London, but I'm going to bed in Toronto. Air travel rocks.

Also, even though I'm supremely exhausted at the moment, my awesome vacation has left me more energized than I have been in a long time. I've been scattered for longer than I care to admit, but I *know* that I've come home with more focus than I've had for a long time. And, goodness knows that I need this focus because the upcoming school year is going to be challenging both personally (Becca T being overseas) and professionally (new curriculum).

But honestly, I've returned home knowing that I can rock these changes, and focus on being a better, happier me.

p.s. Photos soon.

London, baby!

well, here i sit posting from the part of my trip where i have two days left 'til i get on a big old jet-plane to toronto. i'll be happy to be back in my own bed, and to be eventually reunited with my silly pals at home and rilo, but.... sigh, i've had a great time and i'm sad to see it coming to an end.

on tuesday/wednesday claire and i made the looooooooooooong journey from the scottish highlands to london. we almost got royally sideswiped outside of glasgow by a stupid caravan-driver who did not check his blindspot. it woke me up from my nap and it was one of the scariest moments of my life. thank god he decided to *not* change lanes at the right moment. from my vantage point, he was about a hair-width's away from hitting us.

we crashed at a flat of a couple of claire's friends in liverpool on tuesday. very lovely people they were.

on wednesday, we survived london traffic and made it to leyton, the ghetto-fabulous neighbourhood where claire lives. had a nice dinner and then crashed after a tiring two days of travelling.

yesterday i wandered around hyde park, went to the national portrait museum and then met up with claire for a lovely dinner and then met up with friends at a pub called "the cock" (tee-hee). oh, we also did a night-flight on the london eye (awesome), and then went home where i crashed on the couch after a long day of walking, fresh air, and lots of fun.

so today i'm going to the tower and hopefully getting some last minute shopping in. then claire is taking me to a party on a boat. exciting. finally, tomorrow claire is leaving me for edinborough and i'm going to wander about for one more day, then go see avenue q in the evening. i'm quite excited for the show, but it will be so sad that my awesome awesome time with claire is coming to an end.

so, with that, i should get on because i do hear london calling me. on sunday night, i'll be back in the t dot, so i look forward to catching up with blogs, and creating a super fabulous post with lots of pictures, and capital letters yet again.

weekend in inverness

well, i'm having a lazy sunday night in back in forres with my partner-in-crime claire. we had a great weekend in the very very pretty city of inverness where we tore it up at a scottish wedding. i was the random drunk canadian that every wedding needs.

the morning after the wedding, neither of us could stand the sight of white wine.

the rest of the weekend was filled with shopping, walking around inverness, and joinverness events.

i think i'm a great shopping influence on claire. i talked her into buying the iphone she's been wanting, and i also convinced her to get a great purse at monsoon today.

i did some shopping myself. it's so easy to forget about the conversion when you are exposed to great clothes in uk stores. everything here just looks so much nicer, and i haven't even hit london yet!

also, the book buying situation here rocks. at waterstone's, they have a great 3 for 2 deal, which i was totally going to resist, but claire talked me into it.

last night, after going out for a delicious indian curry, claire and i decided to go see the hangover instead of drinking more, 'cuz well, see the white wine comment above. it's a crazy funny movie, if you haven't seen it yet. at least we didn't wake up that morning with a tiger in our bathroom, but there were plenty of cupcakes in our room that claire had nicked from the wedding.

today we met up with the joinees at loch ness for a lovely picnic. the most random part of the picnic was when the fridge dudes we'd met up with (two guys who are walking with fridges down scotland to raise money for charity) managed to get some people to take the fridges across loch ness in their speed boat. i never thought i'd live to see the day when i'd see two fridges loaded into a speedboat at loch ness, but there you go.

other points of randomness: i thought i'd face less of a language barrier here than i did in france, but it was pretty cool when claire was talking about something else and said "hit the bin" which i thought was maybe a uk saying for "turn off the lights" so i did. however, i think it's claire's and my new mission to take over the world with hit the bin.

and yes, i'm taking lots of pictures and will post them when i'm at home. expect many vacay picture posts in a week's time. i unfortch had a really cool 10 second video of the eiffel tower sparkling that i accidentally deleted at the wedding. damned camera is not drunk proof. hopefully i can figure out how to retrieve it at home... *fingers crossed* really though, that's the worst that has happened to me on this trip except for the wasp sting that i got at versailles, and my encounter with a stinging nettle today at loch ness. and... it just means that i'll have to go back to paris and sit on the steps of the pantheon to get that shot again.

oh, and word from home is that my dad is rather fond of rilo and i won't have to worry about bringing her back to toronto because my parents are going to steal my cat. hmmmm, maybe i'll have to come back with a boquet of stinging nettles to retrieve my dear cat.

what's next on tap? well, tomorrow we are going to the beach and doing more cool stuff in the highlands, then on tuesday we're driving to liverpool, and making it to london (via stratford) on wednesday. then lots of partying in london up 'til my departure day on sunday.

hope you all are having lots of fun too, 'cuz i know i am! claire is completely not remedial (our new fave term) as a hostess, that's for sure!

trip update...

first of all, me, the punctuation stickler, is not going to be using capitialization because the position of the shift key on uk keyboards slows me down too much. enjoy it.

so, my first two days in forres with claire have been amazing. and it's not the red wine/strongbow/cider and red of the evening that's talking. i just love being part of a small part in another place on the planet.

so it's been so great to catch up with claire since i haven't seen her in almost two years. we've had a lot of catching up/gossiping to do and it's taken miles of driving/walking to get through it all but it's been great.

last night, we went to elgin, the next town over, to see claire's friends' band play and i enjoyed it even though was exhausted from the paris to forres trip.

today, we hung out in the beautiful findhorn, enjoyed a feast of food with her awesome family, drank a lot of red wine, then went out to the pub. i enjoyed being the exotic foreigner. then we drunk walked home, saw a hedgehog, and respectively checked our emails.

this weekend we are going to inverness and i'm excited for more fun.

so yah, win.

2 mins 30 sec post...

... so here I am in London Luton airport where I am waiting to check in for my flight to Aberdeen. I was browsing the internet computers and some guy was leaving with 6 paid minutes left and told me to use it. So after an email check, here am I.

Last day in Paris was awesome. I loved every minute of Versailles except for when I got stung by a wasp.

I also can't believe how much I loved the rent a bike system in Paris and didn't freaking blog about it last time.

Time's up. Click publish post.

Paris, oh Paris, be mine!

Bonjour toute le monde! J'adore Paris beaucoup!!

I have started to dream in French. These dreams probably make no sense, and would offend any francophone, but it's kind of cool to me. I have so far impressed two whole people in this city with my broken French that has been dormant for twelve years since I won the OAC French award. The first person I impressed was an American tourist whom I asked to take a picture of me and travel buddy Heather in front of the pyramid at the Louvre. The second was the polite lady at the newstand where I bought a cemetery guide for Pere-LaChaise cemetery where we tracked down the graves of Abbelard and Heloise, Jim Morrison, Chopin, Moliere, and Oscar Wilde. Thanks to Miss Ash for that tip 'cuz I loved it.

And there has been a lot to love on this trip. From seeing the essential sights in Paris like the Louvre, the Arc de Triomphe, the Eiffel Tower, Sacre Couer, Notre Dame, the Panthenon, and the Musee D'Orsay. However, it's been the little random moments that have been most special to me. Random moments like:

• the waiter at a little restaurant (that used to be a stable) patting my friend Heather on the head because she is short. However, since he gave us this free strong apple-flavoured booze, all is forgiven and we'd go back.
• our hotel room is very clean but decked out all Scottish/British-like with tartan carpets, pictures of golf and hunting on the wall, and well, tartan everything else. So funny. Maybe it's the fates getting me acclimatized for the next part of my trip.
• screw the Eiffel Tower: the best view of Paris is from the Ferris Wheel by the Louvre.
• last night Heather and I enjoyed drinking a bottle of red wine in the Luxembourg Gardens. I love any country where you can freely drink in public. As we were drinking our wine and eating our baguettes, a little girl approached us asking us for "pain pour les canards". Being suckers for a cute kid, we donated some of our dinner (several times) to the cause. Then, when our pain supply was exhausted, her father took her to cherche le pain. They came back with a huge loaf of bread and fed the ducks until it was all gone and then came and hung out with us. We had a nice conversation even though all of us were pretty incompetent in each other's languages.

Anyway, I could go on, but I have to go get more Euros to spend at Versailles tomorrow. Today we toured all kinds of castles in the Loire Valley which is a couple hours outside of Paris. I totally forgot about my obsession from a couple years ago about French royalty and their shenanigans. I am so excited for Versailles tomorrow.

On Wednesday, it's off to the airport for Heather to go back home (sorry Heather), and me off to Aberdeen to meet up with Claire. I'll be sad to leave Paris, but I've been so thankful for every moment I've had in this beautiful city and I know I'll be back.

So long, so long.

In about 3 hours, I'll be making my way to meet up with my Paris travel buddy, and they we are off to the airport. I'm so excited.

Also, in that time frame, Becca T will be coming by to borrow my big-ass red suitcase to take with her to Nice for the year. It will be the last time I see my best pal until March Break (hopefully) when I visit her in Nice. It will be so strange to be in a Becca T-less Toronto. It could prove to be the most emotional suitcase-lending ever.

Well, I need to eat, clean, and pack. Packing is the worst part of traveling, don't you think. I'm hoping to definitely blog a few times to keep you all updated on my adventures, so don't forget about me while I'm gone!

Au revoir!

Stratford Roadtrip/Bachelorette Finale Post

Part One: Stratford Roadtrip

So, after a failed attempt at making waffles for my pal Jolene this morning (I dropped them on the floor and was too mad to start over... they were crippled anyway), we left to bring Rilo, and all of her accessories to my parents' in Stratford.

Rilo was not happy about the roadtrip. She meowed a lot in the beginning, but eventually settled down in her carrier, with a supremely pissed-off look on her face. Every time I'd look at her, she'd meow, as if to remind me of how pissed off she was about this endeavor.


However, we arrived at my parents' house, she was very excited to have a whole house to explore. She wandered around cheerfully, and my parents seemed to like her, so I'm sure she'll be fine.

After the successful drop-off, Jolene and I decided to show Becca T around Stratford. We had a nice lunch on a patio, looked around our favourite stores, got ice cream, and walked around the river. Here's a picture of some funny-looking geese. (I call them knobby-nosed geese.)


Here's a black swan.


Anyway, after getting caught in the rain during our walk around the park, we headed back to Kitchener where Becca T and I would catch the bus to Toronto. However, we were delayed by a flat tire situation, and a torrential downpour, so we missed the optimal bus, and had to take a longer route. Which meant it was quite a rush for us to get to a TV in time for tonight's season finale of the Bachelorette...

Part 2: Bachelorette Finale

Since Becca T lives closer to downtown than I do, we went her place for the finale. Hence, I'm going on memory for my last Bachelorette post of the season.... Well, I'm sure I'll have to put my two-cents in about the after-the-rose special tomorrow night. Oh and special credits to rawbean who is watching the finale in Vancouver time while chatting with me on MSN as I write this post. She is totally refreshing my memory about key aspects of the show.

• Ed meets her family first. Her dad really really likes Ed and also has the biggest Canadian accent ever.
  
  
• At the end of Ed's visit, they all do a crazy hula dance to show fun-loving they all are. Would your family do this for a reality show? Mine surely wouldn't.
  
  
• The family seems to like Kiptyn too, although they don't do the crazy hula dance. Jillian's mom grills him with tough questions like "do you think communication is important in a relationship?" Tough one, eh?
  
  
• Jillian's grandma doesn't seem too impressed with this whole process, don't you think?
  
  
• Ed and Jillian have their final date where the big question is: "do they have chemistry in the bedroom?" I'm sure we're all completely relieved to find out the answer is yes.
  
  
• We get a lot of Kiptyn shots during his last date so we can all enjoy his ten-pack. We noticed that there are far few shots of Ed's hairy chest than Kiptyn's perfect chest.
  
  
• Now it's ring-buying time for both guys. Check out that bling!
  
  
• Jillian is dressed in a pale-pink dress that's very reminiscent of a wedding dress for the final rose ceremony.
  
  
• During the episode Jillian goes on and on about how crazy she is for each of these guys. It's driving me completely crazy.
  
  
• Kiptyn's up first. He tells her that he loves her, only for her to tell him that she's fallen in love for someone else. He was totally going to propose too. Poor guy.
  
  
• Then, it's the big twist. A red van pulls up with a disheveled-Reid inside. Untucked shirt - check. Running shoes - check.
  
  
• He goes on about how an idiot he was during the show, and how much he cares, and blah blah blah. He gets down on one knee. She needs time to think, since this morning she was ready to accept another man's proposal.
  
  
• She needs to think. The wise host helps her make her decision. Thank goodness for him.
  
  
• Anyway, she rejects Reid a second time, and know we all know the outcome. Ed tells her loves her, she loves him, he proposes, she squeals, and then she tells him how much fun they're going to have. Cue to montage of all their moments to a lame country song. They should totally get Wes to play at their wedding.
  

Anyway, it's been a fun season overall. Nothing better than a cheesy reality show to look forward to. I am looking forward to special tomorrow night which will wrap up lose ends and we'll find out if Mr. Ten Pack will be the next Bachelor.

Territory seems familiar.

1) My roadtrip to Timmins was a complete whirlwind. The drive to North Bay went very quickly, and we were able to meet up with my pal Sandee and her husband for an enjoyable dinner, even though the restaurant had run out of several items on their menu, the service was very slow, and the waitress broke my friend's wine glass into my martini glass. However, I wasn't really digging the Cactus Blossom martini that was in my glass, so I was able to switch back to yummy Strawberry Lychee because of this fortuitous accident.

We woke up really early on Friday to make it into Timmins by noon. This gave us time for lunch, and a bit of downtime before the ceremony. I elected to walk around Gillies Lake, and it was really nice. Unfortunately, I completely forgot my camera on my walk, so I don't really have any good Timmins pictures to show, so unfortch, no picture-filled blog post like I promised. Boo.

The ceremony was lovely, the bride was absolutely beautiful, and I got a little bit choked up, which is actually rare for me. The bride is a good work friend of mine, and might not be back in Toronto next year (still up in the air) and I'll miss her a lot.

The food at the reception was plentiful, and we had a good time, complete with me and my friend R getting kicked off a balcony that we sneaked on to dance. Then, we decided to walk 25 mins in heels home through downtown Timmins to our hotel.

The drive back on Saturday was looooooooong, but we managed to roll back into rainy Toronto by 4 pm. It's sad to say that I had to drive 8 hrs north to Timmins to experience some good weather this summer.

2) This evening my pal Jolene has come to visit me. We went for a long walk, grabbed gelato (amaretto, chocolate hazelnut, and black cherry for me), and then watched "Rachel Getting Married". Tomorrow, Jolene is going to drive Rilo Kitty and I to Stratford so that Rilo can stay with my parents while I'm away. Becca T is going to come with, and we're going to have a nice Stratford day with lunch, downtown shopping, and a walk around the river. I'm excited. Also, we'll be scheduled to arrive in Toronto in time for the season finale of the Bachelorette!

3) On Tuesday, I'm treating myself to a manicure/pedicure, then meeting up with my dear friend Fea and her *new daughter* for lunch, then running errands, then meeting up with my dear friend Eric for drinks or something.

4) And.... Wednesday is laundry/packing/then leaving for Paris day!

So, I'm definitely ending my first month of summer with lots and lots of fun! Love it.

The needle has landed.

So, I'm almost ready to head off to the *other* T-dot, Timmins, Ontario. I don't know if anyone else has called it that, but I will.

I am really really excited 'cuz tonight we are driving all the way to North Bay, where my dear friend Sandee (one of the Group of 9 from high school) lives. So drinks with Sandee, her husband, and my work roadtrip buddies tonight. (Although realistically, only me and R will go drinking. The other two buddies aren't as fun and will want to sleep. Boring!)

I think most of the next 48 hours will actually be spent in a vehicle, but whatever. I'll get to see parts of the province that I've never seen before, although the boreal forest (always the nerd am I) scenery will remind me of year teaching waaaaaaaay up north. (North of Red Lake, Ontario. That's truly north my friends.)

I am going to try and take lots of pictures for a picture-filled blog post.

And then when I get back.... like 4 more sleeps 'til I'm leaving on a jet plane to Paris!

I got miles and miles of things to see.

I had gelato two days in a row. There's the most awesome little place down the street from me, and the rule is that I can only go with a friend. So, when you want to hang out with me, usually I suggest gelato. Well, in the summer, if you can even call this summer. Our weather's been sucking this year. It's just a bit chilly, all of the time it seems.

Anyway, so I've decided that I am going to drop Rilo off on my parents' doorstep. All of my cat-sitting options are travelling at the same time I am, or over-stressed with work, or live too far away, or have other animals in their homes, etc. I almost had someone for the full term, but she's going away for the last week. Anyway, I'm lucky enough that my pal Jolene is willing to cat-taxi Rilo to Stratford on Monday for me, and then either my mother is going to force my grumpy father to drive Rilo back, or I'll just rent a car.

Also, I need to come bearing gifts for my parents when I drop off the cat. I think I'll get some coffee from Starbucks for my mom (Stratford does not have Starbucks), and for my dad a book. My dad will read anything. Does anyone have any suggestions of a book to appease my dad while he takes care of my cat?

Apparently I'm heading off to Timmins tomorrow for a work-pal's wedding. However, I've yet to hear any sort of confirmation from my ride organizer, so ummm, yeah?? I think I'm still going.

Well, now I'm off to a going-away dinner for Becca T. She's leaving Toronto at the end of this month, and will be off to France for ten months at the end of August. Lucky kid. I'll miss her lots though. Who am I going to have random post-work frappucinos with?

The Penultimate Bachelorette Post.

Well, we’re getting down to the wire. It’s the penultimate Bachelorette post, brought to you by me, Mathew, Becca T, Rilo, a very clean apartment, and a large bowl of cherries.

So it’s the “Men Tell All” episode. The host calls Jillian vivacious, which Mathew disagrees with.

They start by discussing Tanner P’s foot fetish, which Jillian was cool with. Then blah blah she was so happy when Ed came back, and blah blah she’s crazy about Kiptyn.

Now he’s grilling her on Wes. Her defense is that she didn’t get to see the red flags that the viewers did. She believes that he did come to the show looking to sell CDs, and might have had someone on the side.

She was sad to see Reid go.

Anyway, now we’re going back to the past to relive her relationship advice from a crazy Harlem Globetrotter. Then we get to see drunk Ed! Drunk Ed is pretty hilarious. Ha-ha.

Now they’re interviewing the douchebag bachelor from last season that unceremoniously dumped his first choice to go back to the second choice. Awww, they’re so happy. Yuck. I didn’t watch last season but I don’t like him.

Now they’re talking to all the men, with the exception of Reid (prior engagement? hmmmm), and Wes (too cowardly to face the music).

Oh, they’re all being mean to Jake for being too perfect. Sasha starts harping on Jake, so Jake tells him “f**k you”, and then there’s all kind of bleeping. However, breakdancing Mike sticks up for Jake, which makes me remember how cute I think breakdancing Mike is.

They fight about Man Code for a whole segment.

Then it’s crazy angry David in “the hot seat” and they grill him about groping Jillian and telling her she has a hot ass. Mathew points out that it looks like an infomercial when the audience claps.

Now Jake is in “the hot seat”. The audience seems to want him as the next Bachelor.

The next segment is all about talking about what a snake Wes was. He’s not there to defend himself, but they put together a musical montage to illustrate his douchebaggery. Honestly, can’t they put it in the contract that they *must* be there for the special?

More chatting with Jillian and then out-takes.

Now they’re going to look more at Kiptyn and Ed. Oh aren’t they both so great?

This episode was okay, but hard to post about since it was all talking. I have to say that I’m very disappointed that they didn’t have Wes on this show. It would have be funny to see the rest of the guys go at him and pick on him. What a weasel that he wouldn’t even go on to defend himself? Guys who are douchebags and then don’t show remorse are the worst.

Well, only one more show to go folks! And gee, it looks like it’ll be dramatic and emotional as usual. And wait, is that Reid coming back? Wow.

Update: We also watched the premeire of the show "Dating in the Dark". It was pretty entertaining. Did anyone else watch?

It doesn't always have to be beautiful...

Have you ever made plans that you didn't really want to make, but made them anyway, and then had them cancelled and was like "yeah!" when you found out? Well, I went against my best interests and made some plans that I didn't really want to make for this evening, and then they were broken by the other party in a very lame fashion, but I was soooooo happy! I got to meet up with Becca T for coffee, then go for sushi, then spend some time reading my book.

I'm reading "The Book of Negroes" by Lawrence Hill which is absolutely amazing by the way.

Anyway, I had a pretty fun weekend. A lot of it has been consumed by the reading of the above book. On Friday, I went to see the newest Harry Potter movie, and I really enjoyed it. My movie buddies, maybe not so much since they're not big Harry Potter fans, but just went with me out of mild interest/pity/they're good friends.

Becca T was in Ottawa last week when the movie came out. Before she left, she asked me "are you going to go see Harry Potter?" and I thought that she was asking me because she wanted to see it right away, so I said "you should see it in Ottawa with your family" thinking that's what she wanted to do, and not have to wait to see it with me. How ever she was hoping that I'd wait to see it with her, but we totally miscommunicated which means that poor Becca has not seen it yet.

But yeah, it was great for me, who loves all of the books much better than the movies. I enjoyed all of the awkward teenage romance in the movie, and I gasped at the big death scene in the movie, even though I knew what was coming. So, if you like Harry Potter, you must see it, but if you don't, perhaps go see a different movie.

On Saturday, there was a going-away-party for Becca T which was pretty fun. I think we're all getting old because it was at a restaurant in the Entertainment District and we were all like "I forgot how busy it is down here on a Saturday night..." Not that I was ever the biggest clubbing chick back in the day, but I don't even go down there for movies anymore. The party was fun, and at the after-party I had the most delicious banana martini.

Anyway, I've really only got one more full week to knock things off the list of stuff I have to do before my trip. One of which is figure out what to do with the cat. Anyone wanna come visit Rilo while I'm gone? I might have to leave her at my parents' but cats hate change and I think it will be best to leave her home with a frequent visitor.

And... tomorrow is the second last Bachelorette. I can't believe it!

Let this be a warning says the magpie to the morning.

Today was a typical lazy day of summer vacay.

The sun wakes me up at a little past 9:00 am. Note: waking up past nine am is not really sleeping when you fell asleep past 3:00 am. My "summer vampirism", as a I've termed my tendency to stay up late and wake up late in the summer, is in full effect. The only thing to cure it is for me to go on a trip. And since I've got less than two weeks until I'm off to Paris, I'll just go with the flow.

I wake up, eat some yogurt, and turn the TV to the numbingness of CP24. Rilo curls up on me and we both fall asleep while my fave summer guilty pleasure "The View" is on TV.

I decide to take myself out for lunch 'cuz, heck, why not? I finish book #23 of the year after lunch. It was pretty meh, but I liked the author's description of going on a vacay to Paris after her divorce. (Did I mention that I'll be in Paris in less than two weeks? Ha-ha. The excitement's sinking in.)

My favourite part of writer's trip to Paris is her description of government posters in hotels and restaurants that say "Beware! Alcohol kills slowly." Someone had graffiti-ed below this: "We don't care. We're not in a hurry." Awesome.

Then I decided to get a ginormous coffee and a celebrity-smut magazine and enjoy them both in the little park near my place. As I walked to the park I thought "I love this neighbourhood, I'd love to live here forever." I should have picked up a lottery ticket with that magazine since property values around here are sky high.

I listened to Neko Case (so addicted to her these days) on my iPod as I drank coffee and pondered at what a complete and utter douchebag that Jon Gosselin is. Yuck. I've never ever watched that show, and Kate seems abrasive, but at least she's taking care of her kids and not running around with cheap-looking 22 year olds while wearing tacky Ed Hardy shirts. Team Kate all the way.

I wander home and decide to blog before I tackle the unhappy task of cleaning my apartment. However, when I'm done, I think I'm going to walk to a little market and stock up on fruit and buy myself some flowers. Then, I'm going to start reading my next book, which I believe will be "The Book of Negroes" by Lawrence Hill. It's the summer reading selection by my staff bookclub, and I'll have to take notes so I remember it when we meet in the fall.

Tomorrow night I am oh-so-excited to see the new Harry Potter movie. I know the ending, since I'm a big fan of the books, but I'm pretty sure I'll cry at the end of this one.

p.s. Does anyone know how to underline in blogger? There's no underline button!! What demonry!

And popsicles in summer.

I had a very lazy Tuesday. I woke up early, had a grilled cheese sandwich for brunch (that's what I subsist on in the summer), and then spent the afternoon reading an entire book.

The book was "Without A Map" by Meredith Hall and it was good. It's the memoir of a woman who got pregnant when she was sixteen years old in 1965. She was sent away by her family, shunned by her community, and forced to give up her baby. Her book discussed how this affected her life. Anyway her mother is diagnosed with MS, and reading about her mother's illness made a bit of an emotional afternoon for me.

This evening, I got to see Neko Case play at Massey Hall and it was a great show. The opener, whose name I didn't catch but thanks to the internet I discovered it was Jason Lytle who used be in Grandaddy, whom I vaguely remember from the 90s. Anyway, he and his band were pretty enjoyable.

Neko was amazing! Even though I just saw her a couple months ago, it was completely work seeing her again. I loved every song, of course, but the ones that stood out for me were "Lady Pilot" and "Magpie to the Morning" because I am pretty sure she didn't play those last time. I also loved Neko's red shoes. And she noted that she was hoping she'd miss out on Toronto's garbage strike, but she thought it was pretty clean for a garbage strike. "Even your garbage strikes are nice!" she said.

I also splurged on a really cool Neko poster. When I get it framed and on my wall I'll post a picture.

Anyway, I'll end with a couple random points:

- Miss Ash posted about pet peeves and I just remembered one of mine: when companies make their shampoo and conditioner bottles very similar. I am pretty much incapacitated most mornings, and if they are difficult to tell apart it results in me wasting conditioner and getting grumpy and swearing in the shower.

- But swearing is good for you! Woot!

- Also, I'm getting a lot of hits on my blog from people who are searching "bachelorette ed green shorts". LOL

Enjoy your Wednesdays everyone!

Bachelorette Post #8

However, a brief snippet of Christy's life first. Saturday's wedding went very well. I think I totally rocked the mike as MC (ha-ha). People seemed to find me funny, and the Madrika who conducted the ceremony (it was a Jewish wedding) seemed to really find me funny because she raved about me twice. I also managed to convince people to run around like they were contestants on the Price Is Right, and really enjoyed seeing two wonderful friends get married. It was also great to have the opportunity to catch up with some of my favourite people in the world.

Anyway, as the Flight of the Conchords song goes, it's business time. That is, let's get to this episode of The Bachelorette. Oh, and the previews keep showing that someone has problems with the type of business that that FoC song actually refers to.

Off to Hawaii Jillian and the three remaining dudes go. She has some alone time to write “J + ?” in the sand. This is my problem too, but I don’t have a show to help me find the answer.

First up is Kiptyn. And they’re off on some exciting activities, while the rest of us shmucks are stuck going for coffee, dinner, drinks, movies, etc. for our dates. Too bad we all can’t score a reality show.

Oh and they come up with all sorts of wise relationship metaphors as they do a crazy rope course.

From watching the Bachelorette with me, Mathew has become highly sensitive to Jillian’s squeals and likens them to nails on a chalkboard.

She and Kiptyn have a dinner where they talk about leaps of faith and blah, blah. Then, they decide to use the same room card. And, there are no bedroom problems that we know of.

Second up is Reid. We miss the beginning of their helicopter ride because we are making frozen yogurt sundaes. Yum. Anyway, more talk about marriage, and expressing feelings, and such. Quite frankly, I was more interested in my sundae. (Not to diss the show, but it was a tasty sundae.)

However, apparently Jillian feels the way about Reid as I did about the sundae: head over heels. Now she’s talking about him moving to Vancouver because it’s easier for her. Honey, trust me it’s not easy for anyone to immigrate to another country. It’s not liking changing provinces, dear.

Mathew says that Reid must feel hot in that pressure cooker, considering all of the questions.

Here comes the fantasy suite card. I wonder if the host, Chris Harrison, actually handwrites those things himself, ha-ha. They decide to take it. She’s being quite the strumpet this episode she is.

And then we see them in the bathtub together. I think there’s such a thing as showing the audience too much. And what are their mothers going to say?

Next up is Ed. Lots of making out. She’s worried that she hasn’t met his family. Turns out his family called him Richie growing up. Some swimming. And now: surprise! He flew out his parents for her to meet. Mathew thinks this is against show rules, I point out that I don’t think the show *has* rules.

Mathew finds that this episode longer than usual. Then he makes fun of Ed’s green shorts, which I point out were his swim trunks.

They go to meet Ed’s parents. And after a lot of talking, awww, shucks, another pair of parents adore her.

And now it’s fantasy suite time! And a lot of talk. And now more making out. And talk about how much they like each other and how they are falling for each other.

Okay, now I have to watching them massaging oil into each other. TOO MUCH!

And now… the moment we’ve been waiting for… they have some problems. Maybe it’s the fact there are cameras and people everywhere???

Now it’s time for Jillian to talk about all of her feelings with the host. Dude’s got the easiest job ever.

She’s watching individualized videos from each of them. This is such a game show.

Now it’s rose ceremony time. Who is going? Mathew and I both say not Ed, despite bedroom problems. Mathew calls Reid to go because he seems farthest away from proposal, but I call Kiptyn because I think there is less chemistry between Jillian and Kiptyn than Jillian and Reid.

First off, Jillian wants to talk to Ed alone about the whole… well, bedroom thing.

Hmm, she gave the rose to Kiptyn. I’m wrong. And Ed gets second rose. Poor Reid has to go home. Awww. Now she tells him that she’s just not sure he’s in the same place as her. Now he’s all worried he didn’t open up soon enough. Now they have to say goodbye. He’s driven off in a limo, she sits on a bench and cries.

So next week they are changing Hawaiian islands, and we also get an exciting reunion show where all of our favourite characters such as Foot Fetish Tanner, Angry David, and Weasely Wes return.

Then in two weeks, it’s done. Oh, and I *will* be here for it. Phew!!

I took the train back; back to where I came from.

Yesterday I took the train home to good ol' St. Ratford. I love taking the train home in the early evening in summer because it means daylight. Taking a train in the darkness is a little bit boring because trains don't follow roads, so it can be a very dark journey and you don't see much. Which means that you can be productive and do some knitting, reading, napping, marking, or whatever strikes your fancy. However, it leaves very little opportunity for gazing out the window and daydreaming, which is what I'm all about.

Last night's train was great for the gazing and daydreaming. I saw all kinds of nifty things including scads of bright orange tiger lilies by the tracks, rivers, people fishing in the rivers, random backyards, dilapidated barns, a deer hopping through a meadow, cute little towns, baseball games in progress, old churches, and a hot air balloon.

Anyway, I'm in town for the wedding of my friend Sandra. My friend Sandra is one of the members of my group of pals from high school. We call ourselves "The Group of Nine" because well, there are nine of us, and we needed some thing to call our little motley crew and couldn't come up with something better. Anyway, we've been out of high school for eleven years now, yet we've still kept in really close touch. The internet has helped: we have our own little facebook group is the grown-up virtual version of our cafeteria table. It was the cafeteria where friendships were forged, strengthened, and many of our inside jokes began.

The nine of us actually haven't been together in the same room since the year 2000 though. We always have an annual Christmas gathering, and there have been some other weddings, but calamity (or schedule conflicts) tends to befall one of the members, and we end up with a family portrait with eight or less. We do however draw their face on a piece of paper and hold it up in their memory.

The last time we were together was when we *all* met Sandra's-then-boyfriend-now-husband Jason. So I think it's befitting that it takes them getting married for the nine of us to make it together again.

But wait, didn't I just call Jason Sandra's husband and they are getting married tomorrow? It's true - they actually got married in October. Jason is from the US, and Sandra wants to live with him after their (July 11th) wedding, so they had to get married early so that could happen because of the crazy red-tape that faces a Canadian marrying an American. So remember this when/if you watch that silly movie The Proposal, or are watching the Canadian Bachelorette choose her American suitor. Oh Jillian dear, you might not get to the altar as soon as you'd like I'm afraid.

Anyway, I get to be the emcee of the shabang tomorrow, so I'm at a coffee shop working on my schtick. It's good that I've started writing this post, because I feel that I've gotten my verbal juices flowing.

And, if my witty observations don't wow them, the cute new shoes and dress I got to wear will! It's always good to have fashion to fall back on.

(Belated) Bachelorette Post #7

Last night I made social plans on Bachelorette night. Luckily, I had a super-fun time, so it was completely worth missing the show. Of course, I taped it as I promised, but I’m only getting around to watching it now ‘cuz I spent my day watching the Michael Jackson memorial and talking on the phone.

It’s a sub-average chilly day today, so perfect for staying in, eating grilled cheese sandwiches, and watching TV. I decided that I might as well tune into the MJ memorial because I was very curious to see it. My verdict: it was very tasteful, respectful, had some great performances and well… necessary. MJ was a star in a different time: his music was able to reach everybody, which I don’t think happens at all anymore in our segmented-internet-twittering society. I grew up on MJ. I am pretty sure that there is no contemporary artist that bridges so many gaps across age, race, nationality, etc. He was a great artist, a controversial figure, but still he managed to touch everyone with the cautionary tale that his life seemed to be. Yeah, there has been too much media coverage, as there is with any celebrity-related story or political scandal these days, but the memorial was completely appropriate for an entertainer of MJ’s stature, which we won’t see again and the fact that so many people have been entranced by this story proves to me that a good-bye was needed. When his little daughter spoke at the end, I cried. Most of all, I am sorry for his children’s and his family’s loss. At the end of the day, he was loved, and anyone who was loved deserves to be remembered.

ANYWAY, onto the Bachelorette on tape!

The show opens with a review of Jillian’s feelings for the final four (all of whom she’s crazy about), and with the ultimate question: “Will Jillian finally get rid of Wes?”

They are in Spain now. This show has a nasty carbon-footprint, eh? Each rejected bachelor should have to plant trees.

First up: Kiptyn. He says a proposal is far-off at this point. Jillian says she’s here to get engaged. Huh. Maybe some staged flamenco dancing will fix this philosophical rift.

Moped ride, kids talk, eating escargot, talk, talk, talk. Will they spend the night together? She rejects the idea because she’s not ready yet. But they do go “cuddle”.

Second: Reid. They go for a picnic. Oooooooooh, Jillian says “If Reid and I moved to Spain, I’d be so svelte and skinny because we couldn’t order food.” Like she’s not now? C’mon!

Talk, talk, talk. Reid has problems opening up. Yawn.

Dinner. More talk. Will they spend the night together? Declined again. Good girl, though. Four guys is too many.

Note: It’s so nice to fast-forward through “coming up next…” and commercials.

Third: Mr. Leave-Girl-for-Job-then-Return Ed. He couldn’t stop thinking about her when he returned back apparently. Now, they’ll talk alllllllll about it during a carriage-ride. Then they talk more and make out a lot. In a fountain even.

They walk into an old, beautiful building. Ed says “this place is 5000 years old.” Jillian: “Really?” Ed: “No.” Jillian: “I’m so gullible.” YEESH.

Now kid talk. He’s ready to have kids in 2-3 years. That’s what she likes to hear. Will she spend the night together? She declines, especially because she’s afraid he’ll leave again. But he says he’d like more time with him… she bites her nails. They go to the fantasy suite to “hang out”. HMMMMM. They’re going to sleep in their clothes and snuggle.

Fourth: Weasely Wes. He feels at home in Spain ‘cuz apparently one of his songs was #1 in Mexico. Eye-roll. Just leave him in Spain, I say. Maybe they'll like him.

Bike ride time. Then talk talk talk. Wes says all kinds of sweet nothings, but sits far apart from her and she feels no romance. Some more awkward moments, then Jillian calls it an afternoon.

Dinner time. Time for her to bring up the girlfriend thing. No girlfriend. What about the career? If he was here to sell records, he’d be gone. Why isn’t he showing her affection? More lame shifty answers. Oh, he’s sooooo not getting a fantasy sweet.

She brings up Laurel. He slips up and calls her his “girlfriend… I mean, ex-girlfriend.” Then the note about the fantasy suite is delivered with perfect timing. LOL He says “I think we should.” She puts him in a cab, but they’re still going to have a rose ceremony.

Kiptyn: “If it’s me boys, keep it real.” Wes “if it’s me, know I’ll be back home having lots of sex.” Poor Rilo wakes up when I scream. EWWWW. There goes any snack I plan on having. What an ASS. The rest should gang up on him and beat him to a pulp. Defend your woman boys!!!

Here she is. Call him out. Tell him off! C’mon Jillian! Don’t be nice to him!

First rose: Ed. Second rose: Reid. Wes whispers congratulations to Kiptyn. Third rose for him, of course. Now what’s going to go down?? Ahhh. I hope she tells the mofo off. She asks to walk him out. She holds his hand! I’d kick him. Or, better yet, I’d order a milkshake, have it delivered, and dump it on his head.

As if he gets a limo and that other nice dude was left on the tracks? And the scum points out he’s the first guy to make it to the final four with a girlfriend?? Then he disses the other dudes. I fucking hate him. I wonder if Jillian’s going to see his footage?

Awww, I like the other three. I call Ed for the win though.

Next week: They’re going to Hawaii. The carbon footprint gets worse. And they say the finale's in three weeks? Oh no! I'm going to be away. Sigh. I guess I'll find out the answer super late.

Up late reading & programming note

One thing I love about summer vacation is that I can stay up really late (3:38 am) finishing a book that I know that I won't be able to sleep soundly until I've finished.

This is the book:



Here's a great snippet from the Publisher that describes the book very succinctly: "January 1946: writer Juliet Ashton receives a letter from a stranger, a founding member of the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. And so begins a remarkable tale of the island of Guernsey during the German occupation, and of a society as extraordinary as its name."

If you need a lovely summer read, read it. It's a book entirely written in letters but done oh-so-well. It took me about 40 pages to get into, but once I was into it, I couldn't put it down.

It's a great post-WWII story. Don't you find there are so many great novels/memoirs written about that period? There are little bits of this book that show the kindness of humanity, even when humanity has sunk to its absolute lowest point.

It makes me want to visit the English Channel Island of Guernsey. Of course, I looked at maps of the island, the wikipedia entry, and the tourism site as I was reading the book. How people found out about random topics they didn't know existed before the existence of the internet, I'll never know. Well, they have to wait until the library was open the next day, I suppose. Man, I love immediacy.

Oh, and this book has the best last sentence of any book that I can recall. I won't write it here, 'cuz it will ruin the ending if you decide to read it.

Which you should.

It's also one of those books that was so highly enjoyable that I think about how I can ever read another book after enjoying this one so thoroughly. Argh, I shouldn't have read it so quickly, but I had to. I have a tonne of books to be read, but I think I'm going to read Julia Child's memoir next.

Oh, and programming note: my usual Bachelorette post will be delayed this week 'cuz I have social plans, so I'll set my VCR (I'm so ghetto), watch, then post as soon as I can.

You shine a light.

Friday of my first week off is fast approaching, and today I thought "thank goodness it's not March Break, 'cuz my holiday would be almost over". I usually find that the first week of summer vacation is rather unproductive in that I have to decompress from the school year and that pace of life. I had lofty plans like going to some a.m. yoga classes, but, well, sleeping in was too attractive an option.

So what have I been up to?

a) Shopping - I have two weddings to go to this summer, so I found a new dress and shoes for those. Luckily, they are weddings with entirely groups, so I can get away with wearing the same dress twice. Anyway, dress shopping can be stressful, but I managed to find an awesome dress at the second store I went to. Thank goodness.

b) Reading - I haven't read too much yet, but I did finish one book which is like the first book I've finished in a month. My brain seriously goes to jelly in June. Anyway, one of these days I'm going to make a pile of all of my unread books and make it a goal to get through them by the end of the summer.

c) Socializing - I love having time to hang out with people. I've spent this week chilling with fellow teachers, since we're all in the same position of having free afternoons. Today I had brunch with a couple of friends from work, then spent the afternoon chilling in a coffee shop with one. I love lazy days.

d) Constantines! - Yesterday, I caught the Cons playing a free show at the Harbourfront for Canada Day. They are a great live band, and near the end of the show, the fireworks at Ontario Place started to go off. So everyone turned away from the stage and watched the fireworks, but fireworks to the Cons' song "Shine a Light" are pretty awesome. Anyway, it was a great time, and only rained a little.

Here's a Cons video that I love:


Oh, and here's a picture of the CN Tower all lit up for Canada Day:


So yah, week one has been good. I really gotta do some heavy duty summer cleaning now that I'm sufficiently (or maybe overly?) relaxed and make a to-do list of things like getting my haircut, making a dentist appointment, getting some stuff ready for my trip, etc.

Also, just so you all know, there's a city workers' strike here in the city and it's pretty gross. There is no garbage pickup, so the city's decided to have people bring their trash to a few parks. Ewwww. Luckily I don't live near these parks but I feel sorry for the people who do. And why do these garbage strikes always happen in the summer?

Well, I don't like ending on that stinky note, but I have nothing more to say. Ciao!

True patriot love, a-la-la-la-la.

Listening to this song on heavy rotation is my Canada Day tradition. Sir Plaskett (I believe he should be knighted for his immense talent) is so cute in this one!



Happy Canada Day kids!

ps I'll blog about my life one of these days soon. Basically it involves relaxing, visiting, shopping, looking forward to trips, and iced coffee.

Bachelorette Post #6

Welcome to another weekly installment of my comments whilst watching The Bachelorette. This week it’s just me and Rilo, as Becca T is at her cottage, and Mathew is off somewhere. Makes it easier to focus on the show without constantly having to tell people to go get their own ice cream, LOL. I’m a horrible hostess once you’ve made it to the upper echelons of my friend list.

Anyway, Jillian is off to meet the families of the remaining five dudes. Must be fun knowing that in the end of this, she’s going to piss off 80% of the people from these visits.


First visit – Reid in Philly: She greets with a squeal. Dude greets her with a coffee ready. Bonus points for that. Hmmm, Philly looks nice. I’d go there some day if there was a concert there or something.

Nice family house. I wonder what would happen if someone’s family digs were totally dumpy. I guess they wouldn’t be allowed on the show.

Second Visit – Mike in ?: Turns out he’s a twin. She greets dude with a squeal. A little family chit chat. Now, the twins are going to do a switcharoo. That’s going to appease her concerns about his age, that’s for sure. Oh she notices right away. I’m surprised.

More talk about marriage and kids and family and the sister shows up from Australia.

Meeting all of these families would be nerve-wracking, eh?

Third Visit – Kiptyn in San Diego – When she talks about Kiptyn, I think he’s her fave. I pick him to win, even though I still like Mike the best.

I don’t like her outfit. The light blue dress just looks like a nurse’s uniform or something, and I don’t think the jacket really goes with the dress.

Aw, shucks, yet another family likes her.

And the visit ends with a little moment in the hot tub.

Fourth Visit – Jesse in Carmel Valley, CA: I find Jesse unattractive, but he *does* have a winery. So…

Hmmm, this seems to be the rockiest go so far. Jesse apparently hasn’t “opened up” enough yet. Rawbean, I’m unsure if you will be winning that wine of yours.

Oooh, I don’t think his brother describing him as an “emotional ice cube” is going to help anything.

Oh wow, look at the family rocking out. And aw, shucks, yet another family thinks things are going in the right direction. And end with kissing scene.

Fifth visit – Weasly Wes in Austin Texas: (Note: I love Austin. Wes does not deserve to be there.)

Ahh, another greeting squeal from Jillian.

And Wes introduces him to his second family: his band. Then they perform Wes’s watered-down whiny country shlock music. Puke.

And Jake flies in wearing his Pilot’s uniform to tell Jillian about Wes’s fuckwittery! Yes!

Oooh, Jake shows up to tell Jillian that Wes has a girlfriend. Named Laurel. Whooooa. And Jake says that Wes will say that Laurel is just a girl from the past. Lying liar! Argh!

And now she’s going to bust him. Well, not really. It seems like she’s falling for the “she’s my ex-gf and we’re still friends” bullshit. Oh, now it’s going to be Wes vs. Jake; mano e mano. LOL I think that Wes is trying to pull out the grade 2 “she’s a girl AND she’s my friend” definition of girlfriend. They keep arguing. Jillian says she needs time to think things through. Wes sits there smugly. Jake goes and cries.

So after all this she decides to go meet his family to see if she can trust him. Mathew (who just showed up) thinks that his family (step-mom and three sisters) is in on it. And then she decides that it’s a new beginning for them and that she trusts him. Argh. Why are women so stupid about men sometimes?

OMG and when you think things can’t get more emotional, then ED shows up!!! (Ed left the show a couple of weeks ago because of his job.)

And it’s rose ceremony time. Two are going home. I say Jesse and Wes.

The rest of the dudes are shocked when Ed comes back.

Rose time: it’s Reid, then Kiptyn, then Ed (!), then… Wes !?!?! WTF Jillian? You take questionable bad-boy over fun goofy Mike who’s all about the marriage and the children which is what you claim to be. Argh!

But I called Jesse. Sorry Rawbean. You don’t win your office pool. :(

Awwww, and Mike is gracious in defeat. Oh, he’s young, and would have married her in a heartbeat and cute and goofy. Awwww, this is so sad. And she keeps Wes. Grrrrrrr…

Oh Mike, you say you were probably in love with her, but you were probably just in love with the *idea* of her. (Mathew’s all like: Christy you should email him.)

And now it’s scenes from the next time. They are off to Spain! And it looks like Wes slips up on his own lies. Oooh, I can’t wait!

Hey unravellin' traveller, where you travellin' to?

Yesterday I realized that in the past three weeks I've been to a bachelorette party, two birthday parties, a baby shower, a baptism, and a retirement party. Tomorrow night I have graduation, and then Friday is the end-of-school party. Luckily, I have a couple of weeks before my first wedding of the summer. I don't think I've ever had so many parties concentrated in a short span of time.

Today I made an appearance at work to clean my desk (it's so organized now!), and clean up some stuff in the lab. I really can't see any reason to make an appearance at school tomorrow since I have grad in the evening. So I am so done!

You may be asking yourself, so what *is* Christielli going to do with her summer? Well, it's a good time to ask that question, since the summer plans that I made back in May, and neglected to blog about, seem like they are real now because:
a) I just received the credit card bill with all my travel bookings on it; and
b) I just got my summer paycheque that will cover said bookings, plus my rent and a few other things. Good thing I have some savings to cover things like, oh, eating.

So, for most of July I will be kicking around Toronto. A couple of my July weekends will be spent traveling to a couple of weddings.

The first wedding is in London Ontario, and it's for a good friend from high school. I'm actually going to be the MC at the wedding, so I'll have to work on my speech during my first week off.

The second wedding is in Timmins. Timmins is like eight hours north of Toronto, and I've never been there (although my mom grew up there). This wedding is for a friend from work, and I'm going to road trip it up with another friend, and there may be some camping involved. I'll let you know about it, 'cuz I'm the least outdoorsy person ever, so I'd go camping just for the fact it would make an insanely funny blog post.

In between weddings, I need to make a list of stuff I want to do in Toronto during the month of July. One of the most important things I want to do is spend lots of time with Becca T, 'cuz she's going to work in Nice, France for 10 months, so I'll really miss her while she's gone.

Anyway, at the end of July is when the overseas-travel fun begins.

I'm going to fly to Paris, France and stay there for a week. I'm going with a friend from high school, and our plans revolve around drinking wine, going to museums, checking out Versailles, and being overall fabuleuses.

Then, my poor friend has to go home, but I'll fly off to Aberdeen to meet up with the
ever awesome and fabulous Claire! Claire and I met when she visited Toronto a couple years ago, and I've so excited to see her again! Basically, I'm going to hijack her life for a week and a half. We'll spend some time in Scotland, and then make our way to London.

So, exciting! I love love love summer.

Bachelorette Post #5

Well folks, it’s that time of the week again. Diet Dr. Pepper: check. Peanut M&M’s: check. Becca T: check. Rilo: check.

Becca T and I did the train through the Rockies thing two summers ago, but in the opposite direction. It was good times, however, we had to share our train with many other people, and unfortch, it wasn’t a bunch of hot bachelors. The unfairness of it all.

Ironically Becca T is being distracted from the show by this week’s issue of People Magazine that features “Summer’s Hottest Bachelors”. She likes Robert Pattinson the best and I told her she could cut out the picture of him and stick it in her cubicle. LOL

I’m sorry. Robby is not overly attractive. Becca T points out that they kind of match each other though (both dark brown hair, both have large noses). So, if people go for people who like themselves, they are a good match.

But, looking alike isn’t enough. Robby isn’t grown-up enough for Jillian, so the train has been stopped and Robby has been apparently dumped into the wilderness. Quote of the night: “I’m bummed because I just got kicked off a train right now.” I hope he has good survival skills. I think there are bears out there.

Wow. Mike is crying because Robby was left in the Canadian wilderness. Whoa.

Oh no! That weasely Wes has sneaked into her bedchamber! Ahhhh, he’s so blatent about how he’s just on to sell records. Who would buy the record of a lying weasel??? Oooh, he’s so villainous!

Wow. Beautiful scenery. This show is such a tourism ad for Western Canada.

Hmmm, I think I might find Reid a bit attractive. Both with and without the glasses.

Hide and seek is kind of cute, but Jake made it super corny when he said “I slipped in a little cuddle.”

LOL Reid’s overanalyzing reminds me of a certain friend of mine who will remain nameless.

Becca T is falling out of love with Jake because his hair is too flat.

Becca T: “Is that Kiptyn? He’s talking too much.”

Ohhhhhhhh, no! Tanner is flashing his tighty whiteys! So unnecessary!!! Gah! Jillian: “I didn’t need to see the package yet, although it was huge…” Someone comments: “it was like seeing a horse with underwear on.”

Now Tanner’s caressing her feet. “Now that I’ve felt how soft her feet are, I want her to meet my family,” he says.
Jesse is boring. Too much talk.

Okay, I’ll admit it. Breakdancer Mike is goofy and cute.

Drama between Tanner and weasely Wes. I hate Wes.

These guys all talk too much don’t you think?

And, after a one-on-one date with Reid, the train arrives in Banff Springs.

Anyway, the rose ceremony wasn’t very revolutionary. Wes was kept which is so crazy. Tanner was let go, which is no surprise. They had very little one-on-one time. Also, Jake was let go ‘cuz he’s too nice.

But… all of the scenes from the rest of the season are super exciting! OMG, dudes coming back! Problems in the bedroom! Lots of crying! Sign me up!

Soooooooo… now that we are down to five (at least for now), who are you cheering for? There’s Reid, Mike, Wes, Kiptyn, and Jesse. I think I’m cheering for Mike. Becca’s too sad that Jake’s gone to cheer for any of them. Mathew can’t even keep them straight enough to have a favourite. (He showed up late again.)

So, until next week Bachelorette fans!

Oh, joy, I can see you.

I like:

a) Diet Dr. Pepper. My local convenience store is making a killing off of me. I am addicted to the stuff and have started craving it at odd times. What a wonderful chemical soup it is.

b) Warm sunshine! Hello, where have you been? I was so unprepared for you today that I got a sunburn while meandering about town. Sunblock, Christy, Sunblock. Anyway, I wandered around U of T campus today 'cuz I went to my friend's daughter's baptism at a church on campus. I felt very nostalgic as I wandered around, since I have very fond memories of my university days.

This is Robarts Library which looks like a turkey. Whose idea it was to make it look like that, I'll never know. Anyway, I spent a bit of time at that library back in the day, but U of T has a gajillion libraries and I spent more time in the Med Sci, Earth Science, and Zoology libraries that this one.

This is University College. I like it 'cuz it's all gothy.

This is Convocation Hall. I took first-year anthro, bio, and psych, and second-year bio in this monstrosity. I also graduated from it twice.


c) My friend Mathew. He had a bday party on Saturday, so I thought I'd give him a shoutout. He's turning all of 27 on Wednesday, and is concerned about brain decline because of this study. Welcome to the club, buddy. Here's a picture of him playing with his camera. Will he kick my ass for posting this? Let's see...

d) Peanut M&Ms. The best part is if you get a peanut M&M that doesn't have a peanut in it, it's like an extra large super chocolately M&M. Mistakes can be great!

e) The album Still Night, Still Light by Au Revoir Simone. Thanks for the tip, rawbean! I've been listening to it all weekend and it's great. I got a iTunes gift card as a gift, so I had to break it in.

f)Boys who wear plaid shirts and worn-out Chucks and make me CDs. I have lots of new musical candy to get me through the summer. Plus some comedy too.

g) Scrabble for my Nintendo DS. I hadn't played my DS in a long time, but decided to get this game. I've become one of those people who play video games on the subway now. But, I'm going to have mad Scrabble skillz after I master the training games.

h) The fact that the coming (and last!) week of work more or less requires me making appearances here and there. I've exited the land of stress and report cards and marking and I like it!

i) My new Birkenstocks. They'll give me an interesting foot tan by the end of the summer, but fuck it, they're cute and comfy.

j) The cartoon below. It warms my edumactor's heart!

k) Bachelorette night is tomorrow! Happy Monday kids! Note: item h) on this list allows me to stay up late writing silly blog posts. Win! (As Claire would say.)

We throw parties, you throw knives.

Randomness from a busy week:

1) Tonight I went to a "Pre-Baby Party" for my work pal Fea who's having a baby in a few weeks. I was listed as a co-planner, but really all I did was act as a sounding board for the head planner. The other planner made a super-duper cake. The theme of the party was "Modern Tea Party". I was in charge of favours for guests (funky tealight holders with Zen tea attached) and donated my iPod for dance-rock modern-tea-party music (Los Campensinos!, Metric, Matt & Kim, Phoenix and a few other things). We had it on the patio of a cool hippie cafe in the Annex, and thank goodness the rain held out. It was really fun, and I'm so full of delicious food and cake.

2) After the tea party, I dropped by Shopper's to run an errand. I was browsing the magazines, and there were two little boys dressed in uniforms looking at video game magazines (any Nintendo Power fans from back in the day?) Anyway, one of them pointed at a magazine and said "excuse me, can you tell me how much this is?" I looked at the magazine and said "It's $12.99. Wow! That's a lot!" The kid kind of looked at me funny and said "I have that much under my bed."

Moral of the story: video game magazines are expensive, but kids these days have a lot of money these days so it doesn't matter.

3) So I'm in a happy work place right now. Marking: all done. Failure phone calls: done. Extra chances: given. Report cards: done. To-do list for Monday: written. Taking Friday off: you betcha.

4) So, I guess I just admitted to ya'll that I have a long weekend. What's in store? Tomorrow I'm going to try and clean my apartment a bit (it's a disaster and I don't feel like dealing with it right now), and I'm hoping for good weather so I can spend some time outside. On Saturday, I have my friend Mathew's birthday party. Sunday, I think I'll go to my work spouse's baby's baptism.

Oh, and I want to drink some fizzy drinks too. It's all the same if the fizzy drinks are nice.

Bachelorette Post #4

Well, we’ve already reached Bachelorette post #4! At the end of this show, it will mean that I’ve spent 8 hours of my life watching this show. Time well spent? Let’s not think about it.

Anyway, this post is brought to you by only me and Becca T.

Oh look, the opening is a like a montage of her squealing.

She’s wearing another hoodie. A girl after my heart. However, I bet I have more.

Mike: “It feels good in the hood.” I love lame-ass lines. I might adopt that one.

“Spark-of-awesomeness.” There’s another. Good job Mike.

Becca T, the queen of scarves, finds Jillian’s scarf a bit too sparkly.

Becca T had problems opening a couple bottles of sparkling wine at her party. Apparently she needed a saber.

Is that a leopard-print tie on Mike? It is! Ick!

Another hoodie. Turquoise this time.

She’s driving a snowmobile. She’s a girl after my pal Christa’s heart.

“8 guys snowmobiling in Whistler. This is every Canadian girl’s dream,” says Jillian. “Not mine!” exclaim me and Becca T. “My dream is to hang out with 8 guys on a beach in Hawaii,” says Becca.

Ahhhh, foot-fetish Tanner. My favourite shit-disturber. The snow must not be his fave ‘cuz snow boots aren’t the most revealing.

She’s totally into weasely-Wes a lot. Yuck.

Becca T and I still can’t keep track of them, especially when they’re wearing hats. Oh, mystery man in the hat turns out to be Kiptyn. She likes him as much as she likes the weasel.

Hoodie #3. Gray.

I think even I would enjoy a date on a glacier.

Becca T just called Jesse the “voice fetish guy” ‘cuz he said that Jillian’s voice was arousing.

Becca T really likes Jillian’s green shirt.

Mathew made it for the end of the show!

Jillian should stop crying about Ed. (He’s decided to leave ‘cuz of his job.) She’s got nine other guys.

Oh shut up, your heart’s not broken, honey. You’ve got a bunch of others. You clearly liked some of the others more anyway.

Becca T thinks that foot fetish guy always looks frightened.

She’s keeping foot fetish! We are all shocked. She doesn’t seem attracted to him. Again, I think he’s a plant from the producers there for entertainment and snitching.

Oh, she’s kept the Weasel. Mark’s all like “how dare you!” with his eyes.

Oh poor Mark. He just mentioned he’s been cheated on four times. That’s a lot.

And now it’s the best part: scenes from the next Bachelorette. Next week: the Rockies. And, in the future: overnight dates where someone can’t get it up! Oh no! Poor guy to have that happen on TV. And look, more scenes of Jillian crying.

Back to Christy’s life in the next post!

We all go out and we all come home.

Holla kids from the all-too-rare drunk post!

So tonight was my BFF (I will freely use that term) Becca T's wine and cheese.

I went to her house first to help set up for the party. When we were done, we had nothing left to do, so we sat around and sang to my iPod. As we were belting out Joel Plaskett's "True Patriot Love", I commented to BT "you know you're comfortable with a person when you'll just sit there and sing."

Anyway, the party was super super fun. I did my best to ensure that drunk-Christielli was in attendance.

I was cool enough that I actually introduced two people to each other who knew each other quite well. "Hey ________, meet___________." Then I looked at them and said "Hey didn't you guys travel to Costa Rica together?" Yup, they had. They also went on a trip to Florida together too and informed me of this. However, then they complimented me on how welcoming am I since I was nice enough to at least introduce themselves to each other. Then, I promptly bumped into one of them, causing her to spill red wine on herself. But, it's true! White wine does get red wine out so all was well!!!

Another awesome part of the party was giving Becca T her gift. When Mathew, Becca T and I went shopping in the States, there was an extravagant purse that Becca really liked. Mathew and I surreptitiously sneaked off to buy it, and she didn't know. Then, I emailled a couple other people to go in on it, and voila! Expensive purse for Becca T. She was sooooooooooo excited to get it. She had no clue. She carried it around for most of the party. Muahahahaha. I love giving someone something much loved and completely unexpected.

I love just chilling with my university friends too. I find I only see these people at parties, but I love them. I loved when my friend Ali told the story about how her husband (my pal Jon) had gone with her to the Bay to buy a vacuum, and then asked them "I have a Sears card, what can you do for me?" thinking that he was at Sears. I find this insanely amusing.

During this whole party, I found myself really missing my friend Alison. I met Alison in my second year of university. She had grown up with Becca T. The three of us actually lived together one year. Anyway, she's been in Japan for two years now with her husband and she will email me sporadically. Becca says they might be moving back and I hope so 'cuz I so miss her. I think I've changed a lot since the two of us were friends, but I know that she'd dig the person that I am now. I miss her. I'm going to email her tomorrow when I'm sober and tell her as much.

Yay for lasting friendships and drunk post out.

ps As I was posting this, a friend of mine sent me the following video and it's fucking awesome.

Watch, you're moving in an elliptical pattern.

Holla from the busiest week I've had in a long long time. Let's rundown shall we?

Monday - Weekly Bachelorette-viewing session with Mathew and Becca T (see previous post). For some reason, Mathew and Becca T have Rilo photo-taking competitions whenever they're at my place. Here's a shot from this week courtesy of Mathew.



Tuesday - On Monday, I found out from my work spouse that we had Tuesday tickets for Riverdance. She couldn't make it because her baby hasn't taken to a bottle yet, so I went to her place for a visit and to pick up the tickets. It was fun laughing about silly work stuff.

Becca T joined me for Riverdance and it was pretty good.

Wednesday was the annual celebration of Becca T's birth. I met up with her after school to see a taping of The Hour with everyone's boyfriend, George Strombolopolous. It was fun and he chatted with us! We went up after the taping to get a picture taken, and he noticed a binder in my bag and asked me what was up with that, and I explained I was a teacher who came from work, and he asked me if the kids call me "Teach" or "Miss", and then wished me a happy summer. Sigh.

Here's a shot courtesy of Becca T:


After the Hour, we met up with some peeps for a fun sushi dinner. Here's a picture of some edamame that I destroyed. How I love edamame.


Today - Did some laundry (yay clean clothes!), and I'm going to run out for gelato with some peeps in seven minutes. Yum, gelato.

Tomorrow - drinks with new Sloan friend.

Saturday - Big wine and cheese bash at Becca T's.

Sunday - I have to figure out some favours for a baby shower I'm helping to organize for my pal Fea from school.

Randomness:

1) I love love love the new Phoenix album "Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix". So fun. Got a copy for Becca T.

2) I just saw that they have Scrabble for Nintendo DS. I'm so going to buy that.

3) I first saw this bizarrely funny clip in university. A bunch of friends and I used to randomly act it out. Then a couple of days ago, a friend from work who knows I have a bizarre sense of humour sent it to me. It brought back so many happy memories.


Happy weekends!