so long, Resto..
Date: Sunday, July 25th 2004
Feeling...: tired...stupid dog woke me up at the crack of dawn today. *sigh*
Listening to: Michael Bubl�...how did I not know about him until now?
Excitement brewing over: Montreal in...THREE DAYS?? I didn't even realize it was so soon until I typed that :S Also, "Horizons" (more on that in a bit)
Concerned about: nothing at the moment. I'm finally doing the things I've been wanting to do all summer and I'm loving it (...is it just me or does that phrase automatically conjure images of the Golden Arches? Damn those catchy advertisements...)
People/things that made me smile: co-workers...they were bittersweet smiles though, because in two days it'll be "I used to work at Resto"...
New thing(s) I�ve learned: on Friday I helped my sister prepare for a camping trip. I now know how to pitch our huge tent (to add to the two little ones I already enjoy putting up), as well as how to check the oil and tire pressure in her Jeep (I assume they're the same for any vehicle. Well...maybe not a Mack truck but I doubt I'll be getting my hands on one of those anytime soon...) I feel like that chick...Maggie something...who used to be on Road to Avonlea and now has her own do-it-yourself home renovations show. Except I have nicer hair.

LOL...
Additional witty comments (heh heh heh): Well as you may have deduced from the above notes, I gave in my two weeks' notice at Resto a few days ago, and Tuesday is my last scheduled day. The thought of leaving makes me feel slightly sentimental, since it's been my home-away-from-home for the past 10 months. I don't, however, regret the amount of free time I'll have to just sit in my backyard in my pyjamas at two in the afternoon, with no schedule whatsoever hanging over my head. The next four weeks are going to be blissful :)

I've already started to enjoy the reduced number of hours I got in my last two weeks - I've done my best to make up for all those days in July when I desperately wanted to go swimming but was working through the adult swim hours at our townhouse complex's pool. I've been eating well and exercising and stretching and I've never felt this good in my entire life. Nor have my arms ever been this buff (Ray, you'd be proud :D )

Decided to finally take up Farah's offer to stay with her for a bit in Montreal, so that's where I'm headed for the long-weekend. I can't wait. We haven't had a sleep-over in almost ten years :D Then there's "Horizons", a leadership conference I've been "invited" to attend at Mac on the weekend of the 13th. Assuming that my application form gets there in time (*sigh* I mailed it right on the deadline...I don't tend to procrastinate much, but starting to do so with a leadership conference application form seems slightly ironic to me, don't you think? heh heh heh) it seems like it'll be a lot of fun. It's on campus too, so I'll get a chance to taste-test residence life with people I'm gonna have lots of time to get to know over the next few months...

I finally broke my own record - haven't posted for a month and a half :|
Date: Sunday, July 11th 2004
Feeling...: odd. Just found out that a guy we went to school with was stabbed to death on Friday at Empress Walk. It's just so local...I mean we weren't friends persay but...they describe him running into the Wendy's and dying on the bathroom floor and I can picture exactly how it happened.
Listening to: humming Petula Clark and imagining I'm three years old again (we have video footage of me belting out "Downtowwwwwwwwwn" to assist my memory..)
Excitement brewing over: MAC!!!
Concerned about: well, not so much concerned but I'm not looking forward to quitting work. I most certainly will NOT miss the snooty customers and I'll appreciate the free time...but I've made some good friends whose absence from my daily routine will definitely be felt.
People/things that made me smile: couple of new sales staff started today. I can't believe it's been nine months since I was in their shoes. I could've had a kid by now.

Okay that was funny, c'mon now :D
Additional witty comments (heh heh heh): I've been wanting to update for AGES now, but first I had to finish typing out my train journal and since then I've been too busy for my own liking - working on average 5-6 days a week and fitting in a couple of short trips out of the city. Went for the annual pilgrimage to Ottawa with my family for Canada Day, but had a better time on July 2nd than the 1st. We got there the afternoon of the 1st and just as we stepped into our room the skies darkened like something out of a cartoon and it began to pour sheets of rain and hail, and at one point a small funnel formed - I am so completely not joking, we were on the 21st floor of the hotel, and we were watching it with a mixture of fear and awe, until an emergency alarm went off and fear took over and we (well, I) flew down 21 flights of stairs to the lobby along with most of the other guests staying there. then, just as quickly as it came, it was gone and the sun gradually came out, and we at least enjoyed the evening. Saw Chantal Kreviazuk perform "Time" and "In This Life" on Parliament Hill, and heard Tom Cochrane playing "Life Is a Highway" just before the fireworks. Then went back to the hotel and collapsed from sheer exhaustion. The next day was nice, walked around the city - Byward, the canal...oh and Nate's for dinner and sugar pie :)

Last week's trip was more relaxing - went up to Denise(from Resto)'s cottage on Tuesday night and came back on Thursday morning, with Ben and Cameron (also from work). Just a quick getaway but Wednesday was one of the most relaxing days I've had in a while, there was literally nothing to do and it felt beautiful. There were already seven of them up there (Denise included) so the three of us slept in Cameron's tent. (At this point in the story everyone either says "ewww, sharing a tent with boys??" or else raises an eyebrow at me. In reality it deserves neither reaction.) The first night we ended up getting into bed at around 4am, but none of us could sleep so the three of us got back up at 5 and went down to the dock to try to catch some fish. I almost caught something but then decided I was happier just pretending to try rather than hooking something in the mouth, so I yanked the line out before it could take hold. Ben and Cameron caught a few but threw them back in cause they were small anyway - Cameron let me look inside one of their mouths and it was like a human throat, slightly disturbing...no one caught anything very big and by about 6:30 we decided the sun was too bright to fish anymore and we decided to give sleep another try...succeeded 'till 11-ish.

Other than that...okay last thing and then I'm going to bed cause it's getting late. I found out by accident (long, uninteresting story) that I got my first choice for residence at Mac - single room, co-ed dorm. This, as most of you realize, is highly exciting!!! No sharing a room with bitchy girls for me...no sir-ee bob. Everything about September makes me antsy, I just want it to hurry up and GET HERE...

Aaaaaaalrighty, I'm exhausted. G'night!

(awww, I've missed you, Pandywaffers *sniff, sniff* :) )