going going gone

i bought two train tickets today. one to dieren, netherlands and one to basel, switzerland. i'm going to basel to visit tim for the day on november 5. and i'm going to visit my host family in the netherlands from november 1-4. it'll be a short visit, but it's only like a few hours there.

gotta jet to the airport now.

freedom!

this morning, at about 6.30/7 my sister came home. i had been up since 6, so thankfully she didn't wake me up. she and her boyfriend probably broke up.

good news, gerry gets here tonight. yay!

it's not my fault...it was my parents that locked me in

i am currently locked in our apartment in heidelberg.

things could be worse. it *is* an entire apartment. and i *am* by myself. i have a washroom, kitchen, bed and the internet. it's certainly not like i'm locked in a bathroom naked or something. that would be full-out ridiculous. and i am entirely free from fault. my sister only has one key (it's bent so she hasn't straightened it to get it copied) and as she left for her boyfriend's place in the city 30km away, she locked the door. it's the kind of door that you need a key from either side to lock/unlock.

so, the people from upstairs think i hate them for sure, cause it's a pretty lame excuse when someone knocks on the door and you have to yell through it, "ummm... i can't get the door open". they weren't all that concerned... they were just like, is markos there? no? okay! don't worry about "trying" to get the door open. have a good night!

i am so not even kidding.

guess i'll turn in for the night. burn.

this again?

i was super tired earlier. went to bed. couldn't sleep.

it's now 2.40 am and i'm no longer tired. boo urns.

i should have taken some nytol with me. that stuff knocks me out. maybe my sister can get her boyfriend to get me some when i give him the list of american groceries to buy.

today we went to ikea and i bought my sister a present... but had to borrow 50 euro to pay for it. i forgot that not everywhere in europe takes mastercard/visa etc. total burn. and of course i left my ikea card in canada... why would i need it here?

it takes my sister forever to do anything. i either need to let that be what it is, and never have a fully productive day here, because i will spend 7/8 of my time waiting (which i hate) or start to take matters into my own hands, which may piss her off enough to get her going. it's hard to say though.

the weirdest thing is that she hates anything different, so it's hard to get a commitment or a solid answer. which makes it hard to plan.

otherwise, i'm having fun. most of the people i've met are pretty cool, and i'm planning a lunch (hopefully mexican depending on what annemarie's boyfriend can get from the american p/x) for sunday with gerry, markos, annemarie and maybe keefe.

i'm starting to think a bit in german... at least it's coming back...bye bye dutch, deutsch is moving back in.

jet.........lag

oy. i managed to stay up 'til a decent sleep time last night thinking that then i would sleep until about 9am and then just be awake. my body's not super impressed. in fact, in may be rebelling. i'm too old for this shit. ;o)

i *did* wake up at nine, and fell almost right back to sleep. then markos came over at like 10 because he forgot a paper in the car yesterday, so we had to get the car key from annemarie. i tried to stay awake but couldn't. and just got back up with a dream/reality combination. i was dreaming that i was leaving for my trip and that i wanted to say bye to my mom. so i went back to her apartment (no, she never lived in an apartment) and she wouldn't answer the door (this is where the buzzing came in). and then someone told me she had died. i was pissed that no one had told me. that's when i woke up.

yesterday

i got picked up at the airport by my sister and her friend's brother, markos. we came back to the apartment in heidelberg, went to get lunch, i had falafel, they had gyros.

after we got back to the apartment, we played a game of continental. then anne and i went out to meet her boyfriend, keefe and went for sushi. this was an act of utter patience. i was so tired at this point, but we had to wait for keefe to get to the meeting place, then we had to wait for his friend to get to the sushi place, wait wait wait for the sushi, then we went to his friend's place and ate. his friend was nice, and leant me an adapter so i can charge my computer.

finally we got home, and i played a game of crib with danielle online and then totally passed out. i barely remember the game, sorry d.

germany ho!

tonight i leave for germany. in the meantime, a list.

• lunch with shannon (a girl i know from elelmentary school)
• do some laundry
• buy some hallowe'en candy
• fax and mail some papers to the lawyer in hope
• get some waxing done
• maybe allow myself to look at a cute new pink bra *maybe*

i hope i can do it all!

day 4 & day 5

we went to frank llyod wright designed house, falling waters. we also found a vegetarian restaurant, which was quite nice.

then we got to the b&b which was next door to the owner's farm. barb and i ate pizza from 2 sisters pizza. and rachel had food from the vegetarian restaurant that she bought at lunch. we all had a tonne of homemade cookies.

there was a woman staying in the suite downstairs, and a young couple staying in the other room. the couple from penn state, got there shortly after we ordered pizza. they went to their room and immediately had a shower. which is totally fine by me, but was hilarious because we were int he kitchen and you can hear EVERYTHING. even them running around afterwards, saying "tee hee". the three of us could barely hold it together. in fact, we probably didn't.

we were visited by sue, the owner of the b&b, who was a riot. rachel and i were talking about it, and it's such a different way of life. she grew up on the farm, married the boy from the farm next door, has never traveled but feels like she has with meeting the people that stay at her b&b. simple, a little naive, but happy. and we can't fault her for that. very nice. very very nice. in fact, i would totally recommend going there. especially if you like breakfast. we didn't stop for lunch. it wasn't even mentioned.

after breakfast we left for toronto. rachel took me out for dinner at khmer thai. and then sarah and chris and i got to hang out a bit.

northward bound

today we're heading for home. we're stopping at falling waters for a tour, and then we'll spend the night at a b&b in mill run.

chances of having internet at the b&b? slim. so allow me to predict:

we will drive a lot. there will be floundering on making a decision on where to eat. falling waters will be amazing. there will be some more driving. and i will be glad to be at the b&b and out of the van. then tomorrow there will be more driving and more indecision and then i will be very happy to be in toronto.

as an aside... i realise my attitude has been crap lately. i can feel it, and reading back on posts, i can see it! let me explain what's going on, in my favourite format, a list.

this trip has been very frustrating for me
i've been dealing with pms
there was a mess-up with some legal papers, so now there's a delay
and extra fun, in less than a week it is/would have been my mom's birthday.

just bear with me a few more days... i should rebound nicely.

i'm trouble

i really really don't understand how i can get myself into this kind of trouble. it's not like i'm a complete country girl who has never lived in a city and is all innocent and stuff. i mean... c'mon! why do people approach *me*?

here are four examples quickly written, so i hope they articulate what went on. the second one honestly freaked me out.

1. coming back up to the room (by myself on thursday) there was a guy in the elevator with a cart full of luggage. i was just going to wait for him to use the elevator, and then call the next one. he saw me waiting and insisted "ladies first". i thought that meant that he was going to let me use the elevator first. and was like, you're already in elevator... don't worry, i'll take the next one. then he pushed the cart out, with much effort, and was like: go ahead. after a bit of banter, i conceded. then he asked if i minded him using the elevator too. obviously i said no, and then he got back in, started pushing and pulling the cart, trying to manipulate it in. FINALLY he got the cart in, and was like: hi! you must be american. i was like no, i'm canadian. he then proceded to tell me how he was from saudi arabia, and it was his first time in the u.s.a. blah blah blah. thankfully he had to exit the elevator before me.

2. today i was waiting for the bus and decided it might be betterer to just take a taxi to the metro station and metro it in to d.c.. i saw a taxi go by, and waved to it, trying to get the driver's attention. of course the taxi driver didn't see me. the driver in the white van behind him did. and drive by, giving me a couple honks. then they drove around the block and beeped at me. the second time they drove around, they ended up behind barb and rachel, who asked if i wanted a ride, and seeing the other dude, and trying to ignore him, i was like: hells yeah!! and ran to them, white the guy was behind them waving at me.

3. at target i was waiting outside for rachel and barb, and getting a piece of gum. the security guard asked me for a piece. okay, i did need to make him repeat himself, because really, i wasn't expecting him to talk to me. of course i gave him a piece, and then afterwards really really made an effort to copy danielle's "do not approach or talk to me" attitude. and it worked. after the earlier experience, i was not wanting a repeat.

4. i wanted a veggie burger at the museum i decided to eat lunch at. in case you don't know... i hate mushrooms and am constantly needing to ask if veggie burgers have mushrooms in them. so i had to ask the guy working at the cafeteria. he said no, and then asked if i was allergic to them, OBVIOUSLY i said yes. then he said he'd go ask. i thought that afterwards he said, "you sure you're allergic to them?" so i said that "yes, i am." apparently he really said: are you from d.c.? because when he came back he said that they do have mushrooms, and where am i from in d.c. i was like: oh! no, i'm not from here. i'm from canada. and he was like: day-amn. canada's far. that's too bad.

day 5

today we went to the smithsonian.

unfortunately there were lots of things closed for renovations. burn.

however, i did get to the museum of american history and the hirshhorn.

then i went to pick up dinner at this indian place. once again we used mapquest to find directions. when will i learn? in tonight's directions there were mistakes for the way there, and the way back. totally brutal.

day 4

today we went to the vietnam memorial and for lunch at a museum.

then rachel and barb went to the holocaust museum and i managed to get back to the hotel. did some laundry and then headed back.

we went for dinner at this cafe with mahlette, which ended up having really good food.

day 3

i got to meet maya angelou... for like 3 minutes when i went to pick rachel and barb up from her house, they had lunch there. then we drove to alexandria, virginia.

the suite here is really nice. we decided to have thai last night. the place we ordered from wouldn't deliver so i went to pick it up. total disaster. it took me over an hour to get it. first of all the place was far away. and secondly, the way back was different than the way there.

oh america!

it's hot here. seriously. well, not right this second, cause it's 8am, but yesterday, it was like 30 degrees, and now that we're in north carolina, it's probably hotter.

as an aside, i'm wondering if west virginia is considered the south. if you know, please share.

oh and p.s. there are 9 guys in the lobby right now. 5 of them are wearing khakis and a blue shirt. and one is my age with a mini-ponytail. the kind that 40 year old "mid-life" crisis types grow.

no one else is not wearing shoes. just me. but this guy has tumi luggage, and i'm pissed about it. if you're going to spend so much on nice luggage, at least get a cute colour, not boring black. boo urns.

i've checked out the next hotel. apparently it's very close to the pentagon, and other military and government buildings-the names are curiously unmentioned. there is internet access, so fret not, i'll be able to blog from there.

day 2

today we drove to north carolina.

tomorrow rachel and barb get to go to maya angelou's for lunch. i may get to meet her when i pick them up. it was pretty funny in the van today when barb said that i could drop them off and then pick them up because she'd really like maya to meet bella (barb's assisting dog). then she realised what she said and was like, oh, and you too, ursula. well, funny in a weird way. not so ha ha.

*but* i did get to take some pics for barb's article, so if they're used in her article i'll get a photo credit for the toronto star. that's exciting.

after lunch at maya's we're going to d.c.. i need to research the smithsonian, so i can figure out what i want to see.

day 1

today we drove to west virginia. we left toronto later than intended but ended up making decent time. it was actually a fairly uneventful trip.

we are staying at the ponderosa b&b in lookout. the guy that owns it is really nice. it's actually a really cool place. the idea is that it's a hunting lodge, so there are some dead stuffed animals hanging around, but other than that, it's really cozy; kind of like a mix between camp and a hotel, if that makes sense.

tomorrow we're off to winston-salem, north carolina. it's my first time to west virginia, and it will be my first time to north carolina. yay!

what the h?

sometimes, like on the eve of a road trip to north carolina with rachel and a woman i've only met for dinner, i wonder what the h am i doing? seriously.

i know it's going to be a great trip, and maybe, just maybe, somehow i'll have to go to lunch with them at maya angelou's. but really, who does this? my original plan was to have been in germany almost a week ago. no scratch that. my original-original plan was to have been in germany a few weeks ago. plans changed. i'm having a great time in toronto and i'm super happy that i extended my time here. it's been great hanging out with chris and sarah. (in fact, i'm glad that i ended up staying longer than i had originally thought in kingston and arkona too. i know that everyone has been worried that they haven't been great hosts, but the complete opposite is true. it's been a good balance of alone time, and time with people. YAY!)

so yes, you're only young once, but who does that kind of detour on their way to move to a country that they've never been to before. oh wait, i guess when i left for queen's i'd never been to ontario...although it is in the same country. and then there was holland for a year when i was 15... but i was staying with families there. families i'd never met before...but who, presumably would be nice.

hmmm. maybe this move is somewhat out of character, and somewhat totally in character. huh. and i do know someone in ireland. now. someone i've already beat at cards, so maybe there won't be a lot of differences there. *mwah hah hah*

that said, i'm packed and ready to go. how much luggage am i bringing on this leg? a normal amount: one small carry-on case and my computer bag.

my cell phone's gone the way of my car, as in, i don't ahve one anymore. but maybe there will be internet at one/some of the hotels we stay at. if not, feel free to email, i'll reply next sunday. wish me luck; i really would like to meet maya.

beautiful things

today sarah and i went to the mall. well, first we went for brunch, and despite the service mostly sucking the food was great. the potatoes were well cooked, and basted in some kind of a curry. this is a recipe i am going to try to mimic. and the omelette was sooo amazing. very very fluffy, with roasted red peppers, feta, and onion. i would like to figure out how they got it so fluffy. i suspect they might have seperately whipped the egg whites.

okay, at the mall i bought the light coloured rocket dog shoes that i wanted in chocolate brown, but since i am replacing a light coloured pair of sneakers, this pair of cute cute shoes will do the trick. and i just bought two pairs of chocolate brown shoes. i also got a new pair of jeans, to replace the cute foxy ones and a matt & nat bag in chocolate brown with cyan accents and the matching wallet.

sarah bought a pair of black no-heeled cowboy boots and a kelly green matt & nat bag.

YESTERDAY

chris and i did some work, and waited for sarah's client to finish. so chris and i went for roti, and it was delicious!!! oh, and of course one of the customers asked about my bag. later sarah and i went to the chelsea lounge to meet up with sean and friends. they have yummy cosmos there! and then we cabbed it to this other place... i can't remember the name, but the cabbie was awesome! i asked him what was going on, cause i think it's polite to talk to the cabbie. he was like, oh not much, just picking up beautiful ladies. and then when he asked us, sarah was like: oh, not much, just picking up beautiful cabbies! it was sooo funny. then we were talking about getting money from the bank machine, and i was like, oh! don't worry, we have enough to pay you. and he said, don't worry, you could just pay me next time! what a character!

it's weirder here

i think toronto is a bit of a weird place for me. i feel so different here. different from people that live here. it's so awesome to visit my friends, but the life is different.

chris said it tonight, over dessert... he couldn't live in montreal, and he couldn't live in vancouver... too much slacker lifestyle. it's probably the exact reason i couldn't live in toronto. it's too go-go-go. everyone's got things to do. call me lazy but i have enough stress going on, i don't need a city to create it for me.

on that note, i *am* having a great time here. i'm actually learning the city a bit better now. cause i've been traveling transit by myself. i can now get downtown by myself. and i now know that sarah's street runs east-west, not north-south. i know when to get off and where to catch the streetcar from the bus.

today was good. i emailed, did some dishes, worked out flights (to germany for gerry, from germany for me) did some work and then did some shopping/walking around. and got to sarah's office-with directions, but by myself. yay!!! (oh, and some girl totally smiled and said hi to me on the street...i don't know why... but it was nice. kinda like being back in my old hood.) tonight we went to dinner at the phnom penh-like restaurant on st.clair. and by we, i mean sarah, chris, sean and me. then we went for dessert and chitchat.

we got home and all went to our macs. :o) msning/emailing/working. yay! i got to touch base with danielle and ian.

HM

mmm... i felt a little HM today.

sarah and i went for brunch today down by her work. we decided to split our breakkies because we both wanted more options. i would like to mention that i quite like splitting breakkie. i've said it before, and i really mean it. cause i always want eggs, toast and homefries, but that doesn't allow for the much adored pancakes and french toast. with sharing you can get it all. and in the right proportion. anyway, i didn't get my breakfast. and people who had come in after we'd finished sarah's were getting served. it was a total burn. eventually it was brought, and later some more toast was brought. but we were full by that point.

i went to a computer store to get a bag for my computer. it's a bit harder than you'd think. so i made the guy show me all of the bags that will fit a 17" powerbook. everything was ugly, or didn't fit. and i said so. i mean, c'mon, apple prides themselves on design. designers buy their products. no one can design a cute carrying case for the 17"? i don't think so. then i almost bought a cover that you put on it, and then you put that into another bag... which would have been fine, but not what i wanted, and not helped in the issue of having to take my computer out of my carry-on for going through the x-ray thingy at the airport. but, in the last minute, he found another one. and now i have a cute carrying case, in silver, with handles and a shoulder strap. yay!

on my way back, i stopped at the corner store, bought some flowers, milk and bottled water. then i went to this astrology site that sarah has me addicted to. i was checking out how to seduce myself... just to make sure i'm doing it right. astrologyzone.com-it's the way to go.

"Her sign rules the centaur, half man, half horse, pointing high, toward the sky, which symbolizes her quest to reach the lofty goals she's set. She could be "high maintenance" in that you will have to endure all the highs and lows of her existence, for her motto is nothing ventured, nothing gained. Alas, some things just aren't going to work out, but unlike Cancer, who will try to second-guess themselves, Sag's optimism will buoy her up. She will be on to Plan B in no time. Sometimes this could be exhausting for you, so keep the vitamins handy. Places To Go, Things To Buy Her."

okay, i'm gonna do some dishes and laundry. and put these flowers in some water.

hit the rails, jack

today i head back to the t dot. there has been a bit of a change to my already reworked plan of leaving for germany on wednesday. now i will go to north carolina with rachel and barb (this woman who rachel works for) next tuesday. and then the monday after that, leave for germany. i'm not sure when that means i will leave from germany to ireland, but that can be worked out.

this morning shelley made pancakes. this means that in the past 8 days i've had pancakes three times. all three times with maple syrup. saweetness!

thanks to kenji and shelley for hosting me this week. entertaining me with CSI and law & order (a near unlimited supply), feeding me, playing games with me, and not getting mad when i tease their oldest child... it will be fun for you!

yay arkona!

momma needs a new pair of shoes

yesterday was the first day since b.c. that i spent most of my day outside the house. instead of continuing to feed my agoraphobic tendencies once again, i went with kenji, shelley and kids, to the mall and then to shelley's parents' house for thanksgiving/christmas dinner.

the mall. a success. i bought two pairs of brown shoes. one a plain pair that will look nice with my brown pants, and the other looks cute with jeans. they're the little slipper kind. they were the only ones out of 7 pairs that i picked out in size 10. and they fit well, and look cute. yay!!! i also got laura secord chocolate to bring to the baker dinner.

dinner. a huge success. ohmygosh. i was so full. everything was yummy. and i got to talk hockey. saweet.

vacation time zone

huh. today is saturday.

i guess i kinda knew that. it just didn't really sink in until now.

shelley and i went to the spa for facials today. yay! so nice. as soon as we left the spa we compared. yes we both got foot massages while the mask dried. shelley enjoyed the quietness and i almost fell asleep.

after the spa, we took a different way home. passed kenji's other church, and stopped at this small farm for maple syrup. let the irish rejoice. it's the same maple syrup that kenji and shelley have at their house, and i've tested it out. yum.

now we're going shopping and then to celebrate christmas at shelley's parents' house. yes, i said christmas. :o)

oh, didn't win at blackjack last night (at the casino) but it wasn't such a harsh loss that i'm crying about it. kenji and i had fun, and enjoyed some cheesecake and conversation at a cafe somewhere nearby.

gettin ready to get lucky

yay!

kenji and i are going to go play blackjack soon (once the kids are in bed). i forgot to mention that it could be a lucky day... it started off with banada pancakes and maple syrup. saweeetness, yo!

and i'm not totally sure what's going on, but i think det. logan (my first ever law & order boyfriend) is on Criminal Intent... replacing my latest law & order boyfriend, det. goran (vincent d'onofrio). i'm so confused! if you know, please update me.

slow it down

this evening will be the first time since tuesday that i have left the house. i'm okay with that.

as mentioned, my time at the maruis is meant to be catching up, laughing, games and tv. and it's been good. tonight kenji and i are going to try our luck at some blackjack. tomorrow morning, shelley and i are going to get facials.

my horoscope said i was going to be reintroduced to an old friend. my response? maybe they mean blackjack!

i don't have much else to blog about now, but once i leave the house, i probably will.

it's okay, i forgive you

whoot! i love you soooo soooo soooo much, and no, i'm not mad.

you did such a great job tonight, i'm really proud of you. this is our year for sure.

trev, todd, i adore you both. welcome back.

canucks 3 - coyotes 2. we're back in the game boys. i love you.

time of reckoning

on sunday night i got to meet up with gerry (cute irish boy whose blog i started reading last year and with whom some kind of (if it's on the internet, does it count?) relationship formed). first you've heard of it? well, it's been a secret for a while, and since things went so well on sunday, i am only now going really public with it.

i'm not going to go into how weird i think my behaviour was, but instead i will focus on the present... oh, and the future too, i guess. :o)

things went really well in niagara... i guess as well as i could have hoped, even. he did not turn out to be an axe murderer, a weirdo, or have characteristics that should set off any alarms. i'm paranoid, and super critical, so i'm gonna go with my gut on that.

we had fun, and fully plan to continue this hookup in cork. yay!

especially since i know i can rock the pants off him at poker. mad skills, indeed, look out ireland.

for the next week, i'm in arkona. a girl's gotta go where the thanksgiving dinners are!! i'm hanging out with the marui family. oh the sweetness of people with cable, and an equal love of law & order and of course the children that enable this love of making the parents so tired that a quiet evening at home is exactly what they need. that's pretty much my speed these days too!

yay!

i don't know if this is enough info about gerry for all of you, my vast expanse of fans. i guess we'll see. sorry i've basically been off the planet lately, i guess the irish are distracting.

niagara

good times in niagara! yay!

today G and i went on the maid of the mist after a nice walk by the falls. oh! and we had pancakes with maple syrup for breakkie.

later we're going to meet up with G's friend, suz and go for a drink.

off she goes

sarah, chris and i are going for brunch today. shortly, i think. then sarah and i are going to get pedicures, and hopefully there will still be lots of time to come back and shower. i did buy a shower cap to protect my flat-ironed hair.

plans for niagara? having lots of fun, possibly gambling, and maybe going to a winery.

t dot

i'm in toronto tonight. tomorrow i train it to niagara. hopefully it will not be like the last time i was on a train... you know, yesterday. all day.

today i caught up to raza at yorkdale mall, then sarah and i went downtown to do some shopping. i don't think we really bought anything. it was kind of a bust. and actually, when i was younger, i really liked it when the streets were busy, it felt like i was really in a city. now i don't. well, i guess i don't when it's grossly humid out and stores don't have A/C on.

we had nepalese food for dinner. so good. the waiter was pretty funny at the end... asking me where i was from and stuff. weird.

anyway, it was good to meet up and shoot it with raza, and then do some shopping with sarah, but now i'm beat. and my ugly foot hurts. maybe if i didn't call it the ugly foot it wouldn't be so self-destructive. but i really think it's just a vicious circle. we also saw a concert tonight... antony and the johnsons. i can't remember the name of the first act, but i liked them too. the concert was at a united church on bloor.

i didn't buy anything at the furla store. i find i don't get the service i want in ontario. well, usually i do, but sometimes at stores i haven't been. like when i would have bought that matt and nat bag in kingston. at least f'ing greet me if you want me to spend $500 on a bag, that i could get somewhere else cheaper! *idiots* *gosh*

that's all of my anger. out.

since i've been out of the house all day, it felt good to be back. so much so that i was compelled to say, it feels good to be home... at someone's home.

tomorrow is niagara. whoot.