Four Hours

That is long how I spent in a line up today.

American Apparel was having a rummage sale this weekend up to 85% off. So I got to the location when the sale was to start (10:00) and saw the line up wrapping around one corner of the building. When I joined that line up, I didn’t know what I was signing up for. People were budding in everywhere, pushing and shoving, and the line was barely moving at all. There were little girls who skipped classes to come to the sale and grown ups skipping work to stay in the line up.

I had my iPod nano to keep me entertained (I prefer to shop alone, especially at warehouse sales) but after a while, my legs hurt to bend. I have no idea how hours just passed by but I did not get close to the door at all. In those four hours I spent standing in a line up, I moved…maybe 40 meters? It was ridiculous.

Nearby businesses such as restaurants and real estate offices had a real tough time because their entrances were blocked by a line up of people. Actually, the line had a width of about 6-7 people because of all the budding in that was happening. So a bunch of staff were sent out to make sure that the line up was broken up to free up the drive-ways and entrances and stay that way. Now, inside the warehouse being short-staffed, the line moved much more slowly.

People trickled out ever so often with a bag full of clothes from the sale. The first few had smiles on their faces but as the time went on, they looked disappointed and upset. At the 4th hour, one guy gave a detailed description of the chaos inside: many of the clothes are no-name (not AA brand), many of them are defective, and you’re in luck if you are sizes XS, XL, or XXL. The stock wasn’t being replenished as promised either.

So that did it for me and I left the line up. I tried to walk off the stiffness in my legs and staggered to Kensington Market and eventually got home. My legs are still hurting. That was such a waste of time. I will not go to stupid warehouse sales like that ever again. 😡

Mixed Feelings

I can’t sleep and it’s 10 minutes until 3am. So I am going to ramble.

I’ve been home for 1.5 weeks and it already gets me sad to think about leaving in January. I love this city with beautiful Christmas decorations in Bayview Village mall, three types of garbage collection, and even the monster raccoons. And although we are not a terribly chatty and expressive bunch, I love my family. Skylar is already getting attached to me. I would like to think that it is because he loves me and missed me, but it is most likely because I am usually home to give him plenty of attention. I have many people I want to reconnect with, and make up lost time with. I want a group of steady friends that I see on a regular basis like on “How I Met Your Mother”. I love the competent hustle and bustle of people here and roads full of cars with some dangerous vehicle maneuvering.

But when my affinity for this place is re-ignited, I hear my dad’s voice in my head saying something along the lines of: “The world is bigger than Toronto. Be smart with how you use your time.” When I am at the end of my life and looking back, I don’t want monotonous years that gets mushed together. So I look back and think of all the great times I had when I took a chance and stepped out of my comfort zone here. Summers in England, Québec, and the States were all awesome times. I learned a lot, made friends, and have rich memories of my childhood and youth. And considering that I feel bad for people trapped (knowingly or not) in their little fish bowl without a good exposure to different cultures, I should be happy to have another opportunity to broaden my horizon.

So I am excited to tackle Australia and all that comes with it in January. There’s plenty to look forward to. I might feel slightly upset to be out of the day-to-day loop with my family or to miss out on building friendships here, but I will make new routines, new connections, and importantly, new memories.

Note: I miss Shawn but I love how excited we get to chat with each other. Neither of us are particularly thriving being away from each other but I am enjoying this “absence makes hearts grow fonder” phase. 😉

Vaccines

Today I got two vaccines – one on each arm. On my right arm, I got my seasonal influenza vaccine and on my left arm, I got my H1N1 vaccine. The milky-white H1N1 vaccine vile at the doctor’s office was the last one there and almost empty after my family got their vaccines.

We were lucky to skip the long line ups and long waits at the doctor’s office and get the vaccine quickly without any fuss. I feel bad for other people who have had to or will have to spend a lot of time trying to get themselves immunized. I’m also glad that I didn’t have to pay for my seasonal flu vaccine…I love Ontario.

My right arm (seasonal flu) doesn’t hurt a whole lot, just the normal amount as from all previous flu vaccines. But my left arm (H1N1 flu) is quite uncomfortable. The doctor said that it will be hurting for 3 to 4 days. Oh well.

I’m watching “Kate: Her Story” and the interviewer is asking her pretty tough and touchy questions! Kate is handling it very well.

As much as whiny and stressed-out she is, she is super strong to raise 8 kids, provide for them financially, and go through a difficult divorce all in the public eye. But I have to admit that her hair frightens me a little…

A Day in Kensington Market with Anita

The title says it all – I had a lovely time with Anita at the Kensington today!

We met at the Moonbeam Coffee Company and had a catch-up session over almond-banana-blueberry smoothies. The weather was nice outside so we sat outside on the patio to chat about Montreal, Toronto, Saskatoon, family, med schools, and the future.

Then we hit up one of my favourite stores – Courage My Love! Click on the link – BlogTO does a real good job of describing CML.

They had a huge collection of cashmeres that were lovely to touch. I started going to this store since mid-teens and it still has the vintage magic air that I love about it. We didn’t buy anything from this store but had fun browsing.

Anita suggested that we go to a relatively new store called Blue Banana Market, and I am glad that we went!

It’s 2-storeys full of one of a kind items and whimsical little trinkets that maybe I don’t need to have but I really want to have. Not only do they ship things from all over the world but they also showcase lots of local talents. I bought two pairs of earrings that were made by local jewelery-makers. We must have spent almost an hour in the store but we didn’t even see absolutely everything. Next Saturday is BBM’s 2nd anniversary in-store party and I hope to drop by. 😀

Our next stop was Wanda’s Pie In The Sky for some yummy food.

Although the pies looked delicious, I had a craving for a brie sandwich after seeing a brie baking pot in the BBM. Anita got a rustic apple pie and we split a little bit of each for a meal – and it was very good!

To finish off a visit to Toronto’s Kensington Market, we rode the streetcar & the subway with the weekend rush-hour crowd. I loved spending time in one of the best places in the city with Anita, who is easy to talk to and fun to hang out with. 🙂

In Transition

It was surprisingly (or not so surprisingly) easy to leave Saskatoon. The sad parts were my last times seeing Jenn and Tammy, and saying good-bye to Shawn at the airport. It’s okay, it’s a small world and I will see them again.

I’m “home” but I feel unsettled. Because of all the fun that is real estate, we are in a basement suite now then moving into a new house in Vaughan and dealing with the squatters in our other house. While I did not live in luxury in Saskatoon, this is a marked change from my usual home in Toronto. It’s okay, it’s only a matter of time and then we will be in a house that I like even better than the Alfred house. 🙂

Other things I am excited about: spending time with family/Skylar, decorating the new house, going to quality dance classes, baking for the holidays, having lots to do in this beautiful city and having friends again. I’m going to make a to-do list “Home for the Holidays“.

In children’s eyes

Ah, kids…

The picture above reminds me of some funny moments while interviewing children for a research project. Today at work, I was going through some data and although I have seen probably close to 40 children, I remember most of them pretty clearly. I will never forget them acting out the sentences to memorize, telling me that they felt “sometimes (neutral)”, or enthusiastically greeting us as we set up the CPT in the shady abandoned classroom corner. 🙂

Just as I said

I think Shawn is getting better – he remembered that I wanted to go to Caffé Sola and offered to take me there for a treat! 🙂

He ordered a sipping chocolate and a brownie.

Isn’t it so pretty? It was soft and rich in all its dark chocolate glory. I ordered a big pot of Angel Mist, which is basically Angelwater tea misto.

It was very tasty. Today was also the day my earrings could come out. It’s been 8 weeks since I got them re-pierced! But I don’t have any earrings to replace the studs. Shawn caught me telling him about all this.

Two of little things that bring me joy are unique and pretty bathrooms, and a sink full of soapy foam. I snapped a quick photo of the sink vanity. I love the big mirror!!

One Week Left!

I have one more week left (nine days to be exact) in Saskatoon until I hop on the plane to go home. 🙂

I cannot wait to see my Skylar and my family. It will be nice to see my friends too. I recently reconnected with a friend from middle school through the magic of Facebook. Some days, it can be annoying but there’s a reason I keep it around.

There’s quite a bit left to do in a week. I decided that I won’t be going grocery shopping because I can live off whatever is already in the fridge and the pantry. I will be packing and cleaning like a mad woman. I have to finish Middlesex and return it to the library. There are cards to write and treats to deliver. And I still get one last dim sum dinner with Shawn, who has been occupied with midterms and TAing this week. ♥

I want to squeeze in a large pot of Angelwater tea (spearmint-lavender) from the Silk Road Tea Company at the Caffé Sola. Dave took us there last weekend on a rainy day. We seem to like getting together on rainy weekends for food. They are community-focused and very selective of the quality of ingredients they use. No pre-made syrups or factory-made pastries here. I had a small pot of Angelwater tea and a fresh loaf of pumpkin bread last time, while Shawn had a soft chocolate espresso brownie just out of the oven to go with his sipping chocolate (extra thick chocolate). Our drinks came in great pottery cups and Shawn and Dave gave them extra points for having heavy cutlery. The employees are great and despite the poor location (and I can’t comment on their coffee), I highly recommend it to anybody looking for a place to chill or chat. It reminded me of how much I enjoy local coffee houses. I have a habit of buying lovely tea so I will have to hold back when I go there.

Somehow this post turned into a rave mini-review for Caffé Sola… :S Well, now you want to go check it out yourself, don’t you?

Just for Fun – Jung Typology Test

Jenn mentioned the Jung Typology Test a while ago while talking about her free-for-all Monday night discussions. I was feeling a bit insomniac, so I decided to do a test.

I am Provider (ESFJ; Extraverted – 11%, Sensing – 12%, Feeling – 88%, Judging – 22%).
Shawn is Architect (INTP; Introverted – 67%, Intuitive – 25%, Thinking – 50%, Perceiving – 22%).

The descriptions (links above) were dead-on for each of us and as it turns out, we are pretty compatible. 🙂

Actually, my type changed from when I took it a month or two ago but I won’t tell him. 😎

Hotness My Goodness

This is a “just-for-fun” post.

There are some things that, I have to admit, make me swoon when he is not looking. It’s actually harmless because I don’t come across these often in real life…except for some. 😉

• Humble people who have something to be humble about.
• Great sense of humour that doesn’t become annoying, which is surprisingly rare.
• Glasses on handsome men, of course. Don’t you know that I was made an officer in the “Nerds are Hot!” Facebook group?
• Nice smelling guys make me do shameless double-takes.
• Sharp dressing men. Not like a confused metrosexual or a desperate hipster. Just clean, neat, and sharp!
• Blessed with raw musical talent and knowing how to use it. The best example I can think of is…Jason Mraz.
• Strong and gentle dance leaders who can read my body better than I can.
• Someone with lots of passion and life.

Well, that was useless rambling. One piece of good news is I am probably finally over Jude Law.

Ah…maybe not yet.