weekend bonus!

I just learned that not only do I get to see Lindsay this weekend, I get to see Claire too!

SUPER BONUS!

Has there EVER been a stair gang reunion of this size on the lower mainland? What will transpire?

I will have to put on my Assistant Dean of Nerdiness cap and figure something out...

vancouver

It's been almost a week since I posted. Geez! I need to work on that...

I got up early this morning, and went to Vancouver. Nice, leisurely and beautiful sailing across the straits, and a nice calm bus ride into downtown Vancouver. It is eerily beautiful here right now - all the highrises are swarthed in a misty heavy fog, but the sun is streaming through in these immensely powerful shafts of light. I have dropped my bags at Linds' office (thanks for the Bag Check service Linds!) and am just sitting in a Starbucks (surprise surprise) enjoying my Grande with-room Americano. Now, anywhere I go, I pretty much look for a Starbucks; after all, it keeps my expenses down!

This 'Bucks is in the basement of one of the Bentall Centre towers, Bentall IV I believe. These buildings are the definition of International-style hideousness on the outside, but their retail areas in the basements have been given a tidy makeover over the last few years. But I experienced something interesting on my way down here today.

There is a woman cleaning the escalators. It is a job I never even thought of. She has been cleaning them for twenty minutes. I continue to watch her clean, and continue to watch the general public pretend she isn't there. The escalators are quite narrow, and she just sits down with her feather duster on the balustrade between the up/down sides, wiping finger prints and scuffs off the side panels. People cannot walk past her (and there are wont to do in Vancouver), so they just stand right behind her squat form, checking their watch or consulting their Blackberries (Bentall is like financial centre. Each of the towers is a bank. I am under the TD Canada Trust, RBC is across the street).

I am not meaning to say that these people are deliberately ignoring her, but perhaps they are as shocked as I am at the very presence of an escalator cleaning woman. I guess it is something that happens all over the world, and a clean escalator is something that we ALL take for granted. Do you ever have those moments where you are surprised and learn something new, even though it is completely and utterly logical?

productivity

Today is going to be a productive day. I have decided. It is beautiful out - the sun is shining, there is hoar frost all over the place, and it is day that demands I go outside. Gonna get me some fresh air!

And run some errands... groceries, finally get all my prescriptions transferred, get a list of doctors who are accepting new patients, get some pants hemmed. It's gonna be a good day.

And, I am bringing my camera... perhaps I will get some photos taken. I've got a bit of an itch!

change of plans

Is defeatedly optimistic a feeling?

I sat down this morning and did my budget for this semester. Due to the semester from hell, my student loans have gone to keeping creditors off my back. That leaves not a lot of money for other things, like groceries.

So basically, I can't actually afford to keep the four-course course load I have planned. So, I am dropping one more course, which leaves me with three. Believe me, I am not thrilled with the idea, but at the same time, it is simply a reality.

With all of the changes in my life since 2004, forth and back with different life goals, I have assumed the responsibilities of a life after education before having an education. My monthly expenses at the moment make it difficult to pay the car payment, pay the VISAs, pay the phone bill, rent, etc. So I just need to scale back my plans.

I am glad that I sat down and figured this out. I refuse to put myself through what I did this past semester. However, I will not give up on my plan. I will just soldier on, and learn new things and experience things I want to do along the way.

Here is to an amended 2009!

falling apart

So nothing can ever be right in my life, or at least it seems like that sometimes.

The air up here is SO dry and it is absolutely wreaking havoc on my skin. And I am allergic to every single cleaner at Starbucks, and my arms are SO FREAKING DRY AND ITCHY and I scratch them in my sleep and I just cannot heal! My hair is practically crispy, the dandruff I used to have growing up has reasserted itself, AND my eczema refuses to cooperate. AHHHHHHH!!!!!!!

So as I flake, scratch, and crumble into non-existance, I am slowly going crazy trying not to scratch.

Dave's meme

Ok, so I thought it was MY turn to start something.

And I don't even know if this is a meme, or perhaps just a challenge.

I want everyone to locate the song that most encapsulates how they have been feeling of late. Don't analyze, just pick the song that you have been listening to, or deriving pleasure from, etc.

Find it YouTube, and put it on your blog. It doesn't have to be the music video for the song, I am more interested in the lyrics. As evidenced by my selection below, sometimes you just can't find the video.

My song is "I'm on Standby" by Grandaddy.

where the hell?

I know everyone has likely already seen this video, but I stumbled across it again today. "Where the hell is Matt?" is such a good video, and is designed to pull at the heartstrings. Don't get me wrong, it tugs at mine too (and thanks to my media studies courses, I have better understanding of why... it's the music.)

Anyways, in rewatching it, I realize that it does have a larger meaning or subtext - basically, that regardless of nationality, political allegiances, language barriers, etc that we can all dance. Or in truer terms, that regardless of where we are, we are all human beings. I think that is something that well forget from time to time. I can think of a few world leaders who could watch this...

So for those who haven't seen it yet, or simply want to rewatch it, here it is.

Happy New Year!

A yank on your ear for the first of the year!

Happy New Year everyone!