Ooo….The Excitement

So much to write about…I just don’t think I’ll get around to it all…tomorrow classes begin, and I’m getting up at 5:30am.  Which means I need to be getting to bed early!

I’ve finally got my “new” laptop (essentially on loan for 2 years from SAIT) set up.  It wasn’t necessarily a pleasant experience, but it had to be done.  On the bright side of things though, my dad once again offered to buy me a LCD monitor to use with the laptop instead of the old CRT I had.  This time I took him up on it.  So in the picture you can see the new laptop on the top left (the old laptop is underneath it), and my new monitor on the right.  :-)  I think I’m going to have to rearrange things again tomorrow though, both screens are just a bit too far away from where I sit, and I really don’t want to strain my eyes.  I’m really looking forward to using a 2-monitor set-up though – it’s working great right now, I’ve got Facebook on the laptop screen, and my blog writer on the LCD.

 

This weekend I went to Kicking Horse in Golden, BC with Jason.  His cousin’s wedding was on Saturday.  It was fun, although the ceremony and reception showed me that I want a completely non-traditional wedding when the time comes for me.  Luckily, Jason seems to agree.  Us and our best friends, and someplace warm and far away.  And that’s it.  No reception or anything.  Actually, I could probably handle a larger wedding if I had to, but the thought of a reception actually terrifies me.  I have absolutely no desire to be the centre of attention in front of that many people.  Ick.  I’ll have to get some pictures from someone else (I left my camera in the townhouse).

Originally, Jason and I were just going to drive out Saturday morning, and come back Sunday morning.  But we ended up staying till this morning, and went mountain biking yesterday.  AMAZING!  I had such a blast.  It was a great deal – $125 each for a lift ticket, bike, padding, helmet and glove rental, and then the damage insurance.  We went with Jason’s brother Tom, so he was able to help us find some good trails.  Although I felt a little guilty since Jason and Tom were just flying down the hill, and they kept having to stop and wait for me.  Especially the first run – the second run I figured out that the bike was actually more responsive when I let off the brakes and gained some speed.  Who would’ve thought?!

The only downside to that is when I crashed, I crashed pretty hard.  The first run I basically fell over sideways a couple of times when I hit some rocks.  But I landed on some soft moss-like plants, and had a quick giggle and was good to go.  Second run though, I missed a turn and went over a berm onto some chunky rocks.  I managed to go over my handlebars into the bushes though, so it wasn’t too bad overall.  A couple bruises on my legs, but the biggest one is definitely on my bum.  No scratches though.  My giggle-fest lasted a good minute or so though for that one.  Then I went down a pretty big drop, which went well, but then I ran head-on into a log, and I went over the handlebars again.  Oops. 

I was pretty sore last night – my right leg hurt every time I moved it.  But today I’m a bit better, the pain’s a lot more muted.  Hopefully tomorrow it will be even less.

Jason and I definitely want to go biking again now.  We’re thinking we’ll try to head out next year with a group of people.  Should be awesome.

Anyways, as much as I’d like to continue writing (especially since I’ve got anything but writer’s block right now), I really need to be heading to bed.  Tomorrow is going to come much too quickly.

Stressed!

Too much to do.  Not enough time to do it in.  As usual.

Tomorrow’s Orientation.  Not really looking forward to it…but I’m still going.  Then the long weekend!  Woot!

Sorry for not blogging.  I feel somewhat guilty (especially because I’ve been wanting to).  It just really hasn’t fit in with my schedule.  Hopefully next week things will change.

Bon Voyage!

I leave for Montreal in 11 hours!!!  I will be back on Monday.  And chances are, I won’t be blogging while I’m away (although stranger things have happened).

But I went to SAIT today to find everything.  And pick up my new laptop.  So I will definitely be playing around with it next week.

In other news, Jason is looking into a position up in Fort McMurray.  I completely support him (although I know I’ll miss him like crazy if it all works out).  It will suck a bit for the 2 years I’m in school, but we’ll be in a much better position after that (like probably buying a house!).  And considering the conditions up there, it is a much better option for him to go there and make money than it would be for me to go.  :-p

Right now, I need to get a bit of sleep so jet-lag doesn’t completely kill me.  So have a great weekend.  TTYL!

Change Is On It’s Way

I have had “post a blog” on my To Do List for the past month.  I managed to get one entry up a couple weeks ago, but that’s pretty pathetic to my mind.  Perhaps I just have my expectations set too high, so I don’t even make an attempt.  That’s probably what it is actually – I always feel like I’m not putting forth my best effort if my post is shorter than 5 paragraphs or so.

This whole summer has been about change though, so I think changing my attitude towards blogging is easy enough to do.  Now I just want to post more often, with no expectations about length or content.  I’m also thinking I might use my cell phone to take pictures throughout the day (when it makes sense to), and upload those.  Just for something different.  Plus I’m thinking I need to post a link on my Facebook and Nexopia pages every time I post.  Having readers motivates me more.

I must say this is one of my better summers overall in terms of spending money (or in this case, not spending money).  It’s not that I’m not buying stuff, because I still am, I’m just a bit more selective.  So I usually get stuff that I will actually use.  And I’ve become much more dedicated about making up a list before I go.  Not that a list stops me from browsing and getting more than I need, but it does tend to minimize it a bit.

I’m also switching my credit cards around.  Because I want cards that have rewards that actually benefit me.  This was prompted when my CIBC Visa informed me the Shoppers Optimum Points option was being replaced by the Dividend/Cash Back option.  I don’t exactly use my card enough to get enough money back for it to be any use.  So I’ve gotten a Visa through Citizens Bank.  With every purchase, money is donated to a charity, and I earn points which can later be turned into yet another donation (and a tax receipt for myself).  That just makes way more sense to myself.  Now I’m trying to switch my BMO Mastercard with Airmiles for a Canadian Tire Mastercard so I can potentially get a free oil change a year instead of nothing with my Airmiles.  2 years, and there’s very little I can get with my points.

I miss doing my make-up differently everyday, and doing my hair.  Lately it’s just been some mascara and powder, and my hair up in a ponytail.  Exact same everyday.  I was putting a bit more effort into my make-up on the weekends, but I’ve been slacking off there too.  This is something else I want to change.  I’m going to make the effort to do one or the other, if not both.  It makes me feel good about myself.  Yea, I can feel good without them, but when you’re having a bad day, every little bit helps.

 

I had the day off work today, so I was actually able to get a lot accomplished.  It feels pretty good overall.  I’ve noticed I’m getting a lot more organized the older I get.  My room no longer has a huge pile in the middle.  I’ll put stuff on the floor sometimes, but it’s because I’d rather put it there than not put it away properly.  I also notice that when I feel stressed about something, any mess drives me absolutely bonkers and all I want to do is clean.

I managed to clean my fishes’ bowls tonight.  Well, to be honest I just changed the water.  Whenever I clean it, the chemical I add to neutralize the water makes the water go all murky.  And the fish make lots of bubbles that kind of crust on the top.  It’s very weird.  So essentially, I need to clean the bowls, put the water with the chemical in it for a day, and then put fresh water in so the fish don’t die.  Although they are pretty hardy fish.  They have to be with me.

Tonight is the first night of my Sleep Schedule.   I had to come up with something to help me prepare for 8am classes in the fall.  While the 8am part may not sound so bad, 1) I’m a night owl, and 2) I’m going to have to get up at 5:30am so I have time to get ready and catch the train.  But I’m not going to complain too much since I have no more than 3 classes a day, and I’m off by or before 3pm 3 days a week.

Now I think everyone who has read all of this should make me super happy and leave a comment (you don’t need an account or anything.)  Please?!

Slightly Addicted…and Not Going to Stop

I blame Jason.  And I’ve told him that.  :-)  For some odd reason, he is proud of the fact.  :-s

 Anyways, I’m officially addicted to Guitar Hero III.  There’s no other explanation for playing 5 songs total (over 2 days too!) and deciding I want to go out and buy the game, and guitar, for myself.  I don’t play video games!  I have 2 other video games to my name: a volleyball one I got for Christmas years ago (and never played more than a few times), and The Urbz.  It gets worse:  I bought the game, and went home and played it instead of doing my computer assignment.  Granted, if I hadn’t done any work on the assignment over the past two weeks, it was highly unlikely I’d so anything last minute.  But still.  And after that, I was tempted to skip my very first night of Riders on Board (and subsequently, my first time snowboarding this season) to keep playing.  Thankfully, smartness prevailed.

 However, I did come home for snowboarding, and picked up that guitar again.  Which is why I’m writing a blog at 3 in the morning.  Guitar Hero kept me occupied till 2:30am.  The only reason I stopped is because I “beat” the easy level.  That’s 42 songs worth.  And that doesn’t include the ones I redid for various reasons.  *sigh*  I am impressed with myself and how quickly I’ve improved though.  My first few scores were three stars and like 15,000 points or something.  By the end I was getting 5 stars and 50,000+ points on a good chunk of the songs.

 Snowboarding tonight was a lot of fun.  I actually forgot just how much I love it.  It was bloody freezing out though.  That definitely sucked.  But it came back quickly (as expected)…and by the end of the night I was pulling Front 3’s again.  I had way too much trouble with the kink rail though – my first attempt resulted in me getting raped by the rail (and there is a visible bruise on my butt to prove it), and then slamming onto my upper legs (where my cell phone happened to be), which resulted in a charlie horse.  Lovely start to the season.  Also, either my goggles or my bandanas decided to bleed colour – so I have this black like going under my eyes and across my nose – and it doesn’t want to wash off!

 Oh, and I found out that I managed to scare one of my friends with my driving.  I’m not really surprised, but I am a little bit hurt that she wasn’t able to tell me to my face.  I realize I’m an aggressive driver, so I try to tell everyone who’s a passenger with me that if they feel uncomfortable with my driving, to let me know.  I want people to feel safe driving with me.  But obviously she didn’t feel comfortable telling me at the time.  Or now either, seeing as she told another friend that she would never drive with me ever again.  Oh well, I just need to deal with it and move on.

As for other news, I was accepted into SAIT in the Architectural Technologies program.  I’m really, really excited.  :-)  This now gives me something else to look forward to.  On the downside, I’m even less motivated to do my university homework (and attend classes).  At least there’s only 2 weeks left.  But that means I should probably be studying for finals!

 I really need to get some sleep though…so good night!!!

Jumping Without Looking…Again

It’s kind of funny how it works, just when you think you’ve been completely abandoned and yet you need a hand to hold more than ever, hands suddenly appear everywhere.  Well, maybe my situation isn’t (wasn’t?) quite that desperate, and the response wasn’t quite that miraculous, but that’s the gist of it.  I’m definitely thankful though.  Makes me feel a little bit better about what I’m thinking of doing.

 I decided to tell a friend about my “plan” that I muttered about in my last post.  And there was nothing but support.  So, I figure I may as well throw it out there.  Here goes:  I’m thinking, well, seriously thinking….maybe even almost 99% sure I’m going to, switch to SAIT next year and take Architectural Technologies.  Because I honestly hate university.  The school part of it at least.  I am not motivated or interested in my courses.  All I think about is how it has absolutely nothing to do with what I want to be doing.

 I think that’s my biggest problem with university.  Granted it’s only the first semester, but I can make my mind up quickly sometimes.  The focus is on learning, but not learning things that will be useful when you actually get a job.  With my current degree I’d have to slog through 2 years of complete bullshit courses before I could even start to do anything related to architecture.  And that kind of pisses me off.  Especially since that’s the “fast-track” way.

Besides, when talking with my parents, they brought up some very true points.  Granted, I’m still reluctant to admit to them.  Such as the fact that I put snowboarding before school this year.  Definitely refused to admit to that before (which is probably what pissed my mom off so much).  But it’s true, if I was really serious about architecture I would’ve gone out east to go to school.  That’s where the good programs are.  Not only did I decide to stay here, but I made up my entire class schedule (including choosing options) based on wanting to snowboard training at least 1 afternoon a week.  Perhaps I subconsciously knew that university wouldn’t be for me?  Who knows, it’s possible.

One of the things I brought up in our conversation was how I didn’t know what I was good at that I enjoyed anymore.  Actually, I’m pretty sure I said there wasn’t anything that I was good at.  And my dad brought up drafting right away.  It’s kind of weird how you forget about the little things sometimes.  Like how much I absolutely loved drafting back in high school.   I can actually remember the first time I did it in junior high, and I loved it even then.  So yeah, I guess there still are things that I’m good at that I enjoy.  They just don’t happen to be right in front of my nose.

And that’s kind of where the whole SAIT bit comes in.  Actually, I’d been thinking about transferring before, but not too seriously.  There was also a bit of pressure from certain people (who I won’t name because they’re really special to me, and they’re just voicing their opinions) to get a university degree and not waste myself on anything else.  Which I’m realizing isn’t right.  Because there’s no point in me getting a degree if I’m not going to be happy with where I end up.

So I’m going to go talk to some counsellors, at U of C and at SAIT, and just make sure I’m making the right decision.  And then (hopefully) I’ll apply.  And go from there.