End of the semester, out on good behavior at the jail and oohhh look fluffy white stuff came from the sky.

Christmas time is upon us again, where oh where did the time go?  This time last year, I was already at home and loving the snow and the weather. I am currently writing this still in DC curled up in my chair, not loving the un-snowed winter that is happening right now.  But as of tomorrow, I will be making my journey back to Alberta to the land of snow and winter and fantabulous family!!!!

As is tradition, once we finished our last final and before we all decided to hightail it every which way throughout the country, all of us girls went out for a Christmas dinner.  The place of choice - Rosa Mexicana which is a wonderful place to eat.  We were set to toast us getting through this semester and surviving our internships when Colleen so gracefully told us that she could not drink.  Yes people, she is pregnant.  Yay!!!!  It feels like the group of people from Knocked Up the way we have all bonded this past year and whatnot.  So, along with the toast to school, we toasted Colleen for becoming a mother.  Wonderful news all around for everybody.  Supper was wonderful - just got to sit back and talk about how internships were going, what Christmas holidays people were going to have, basically talked about everything except for school.  I love nights like that when school is not on the list of topics.

After supper, Kalyn and I decided to head to the White House to check out the tree as last year I had missed it.  The tree was amazing!! So big, so colorful, so bright.  They also had a bunch of trees around the big tree for each state.  I did not get a chance to see the Capital tree or even zoo lights (but from pictures from friends, zoo lights looks the same from last year).  I am super sad though that I am not able to see the Calgary zoo lights which is Aly and our's tradition for the past three (or four?) years.  I am sad that I will not be hitting Calgary at all this trip so this is a shoutout to all my Calgary peeps in that I miss you and wish you a very merry christmas!!!!!  

IT SNOWED!!!!!!!  Not a lot mind you, not even close to what Alberta winters are like, but I saw white fluffy things come down from the sky and they were huge fluffy flakes.  The snow actually stuck around for a couple of days so I was in complete heaven.  The city, however, was not.  At the thought of there being 1 to 3" of snow falling, gasp and shock and awe in how much that is (total sarcasm), the city shut down.  Government closed.  Highways were barren. I was outside in the street, dancing in the snow.  When not dancing in the street, I was curled up in my chair, playing crib, watching curling, having tea.  It was a wonderful way to spend a winteryish day.  Heaven.  Why can't there be more days like that around here?

I got to participate in the Wreaths Across America at Arlington Cemetery and it was quite the experience.  I had no clue what to expect as I have never heard about it before and at first thought it was what I had seen at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldiers and laying wreaths there but I was so completely wrong.  A whole bunch of students from the school went on behalf of the school and got to lay about 8 wreaths per person.  I started worrying that I was going to lay a wreath on a site that may have family coming to lay wreaths or wanted to make sure I laid wreaths on sites that had nobody and did not want them to feel left out.  So many thoughts were going through the head when it came to laying a single wreath.  Who should I lay it on?  

My thoughts were that I tried to lay wreaths on the sites that had both a wife and a husband name on it that way it was like both people got the benefit of a wreath and just in case no family would come to lay a wreath.  I also laid wreaths on sons and daughters of those people who fought in the wars to make sure they were accounted for.  Just being there was inspiring and amazing - the amount of people who showed up was massive and just watching the Cemetery start filling up with wreaths was quite the sight.  I was standing on a hill, just watching people line up for the wreaths and then weave through the grounds, to pick which gravesite was going to get their wreath.  I am so glad I was able to take part in something like this.  We were standing in line to get the wreaths and I was telling Steph that I don't think we have something like this up in Canada since we appear to be the world's designated driver and thus don't need a cemetery like this to house all the soldiers from the wars, but just to be able to be part of something like that was quite touching.  I love the fact that even though I am not from here, that I am not American, I can still be part of something that is deeply American, that affects a lot of people.  Those memories are ones that are truly touching and meaningful.  

My time at the jail has been amazing.  Providing therapy for seven individuals was such a journey, some days went better than others and some people were more apt to change than others.  At the end, before I left, three had gotten released, and I felt like a mother whose children were leaving home hahaha.  I wished them luck and told them that I never wanted to see them again so hopefully they listened and learned something from the therapy.  I also got to run an Anger Management group and a Job Readiness group and the anger management was so fun, I am definitely doing that again.  The job readiness, not so much as that was painful and was like pulling teeth.  I am hoping that in the new year, I am allowed to run a group wherein the inmates will draw to music in order to understand/talk about/get in touch with their feelings.  This type of therapy has never happened before in the jail, so I am not sure if it will fly or not.  I am so lucky to be at the jail though for my internship as the experience I am getting there is insurmountable and the atmosphere is so fun and exciting and definitely not boring. 

Well tomorrow I get to look forward to a 12 hour travelling day, from my house to my brothers, so yay!!!!  This Christmas is the one with my sisters down so it will be pretty awesome of a time.  I hope everyone has a wonderful, happy, safe and extraordinary Christmas.  And, here is a clip of my favorite Christmas moment to leave you with.  I miss everyone and love you guys to pieces!!!!

Pigeons are friendly. Canadians are colorful. Gall bladders are dependable.

Well American Thanksgiving was upon us and the wonderfully fantastic Stephanie decided to play host to us orphans who had no place to go for Thanksgiving and it was a spectacular time as it was the first time that I got to partake in American Thanksgiving.  I think last year I was partaking in being a hermit on Thanksgiving.  I was going to experience Black Friday but then I realized that being tramped and potentially having an arm ripped off for reaching for a piece of clothing or something was not high up on my list of things to experience so I kindly declined the offer.  Maybe one day I will do it.  And that one day I will have a job and can actually buy stuff on Black Friday hahaha.

So the day arrives and I meet up with Nina and Meg to walk over to Steph's and thankfully I was smart enough to ask Nina and Meg if they wanted to walk cause it is sketchville walking over to her place.  Such colorful characters (not Canadians as per title of posting and what will follow later) were wishing us a happy thanksgiving.  And pigeons.  Not friendly.  A flock of them took off/swooped down near us and I damn near jumped into oncoming traffic to avoid them.  Nothing friendly about flying things.  Get to Steph's and the smell of food is amazingly delicious.  And I got to meet Capone, who is an absolute sweetheart and Muppet, who looks exactly, identical, to Sprocket from Fraggle Rock.  Sadly, no football was on so I didn't get that American experience but the Macy's Day Parade was on so we got to watch some of that.

Supper was a lot of food.  Tons of food.  More food than was imaginable.  Steph and Lauren made poutine for an appetizer and it was amazingly delicious and then supper was served.  The dishes were, *clears throat* - stuffing, mashed potatoes, candied yams, bean salad, pistachio salad, spinach salad, tofurkey, cranberries, rolls and broccoli salad.  For dessert we had individual pumpkin pies/souffles and truffles.  So much good food.  Definitely stuffed myself big time.  After supper was the fun times of playing Apples to Apples.  My first time playing, and Lauren's.  We kicked some ass, newbie style hahaha.  Meg and I have similar warped minds so we were laughing quite a bit when it came time for us to lay our cards.  And for dessert/a surprise, Lauren brought us Kinder Surprises from Germany!!! I didn't realize they were banned from the States and now I realize that I have not seen any while here.  Overall it was a wonderfully awesome day spent with fantabulous company.  Thank you girls for providing me with a day with no school and no jail.

I decided to keep the wonderfulness going and took a day out for myself to go do something touristy as I haven't done that in a very long time.  So on the docket was the Smithsonian American Art Museum as I wanted to feel sophisticated for one day.  Being at the art gallery was absolutely amazing in that it was so calm and peaceful.  The ability to sit in front of some paintings and just look at them and not think about anything other than the colors, what the picture was showing and how I felt about the picture (sounds very hoity toity doesn't it) was something that I definitely needed.  Some of those pictures were absolutely exquisite and I can't believe the time and imagination it took to paint them.

Art galleries, I think, are going to be some of my favorite places to go as they are very calming and peaceful and just to be able to stare at such beautiful things is a wonderful way to get through a day.  There were just too many pictures to love there.  I can't wait till I go to the other art museum as it is much bigger and it will take the whole day getting through it.  After I got home from the art museum, I kept the "me" day going and actually picked up my cross stitch.  I haven't touched it since August and it is still so very slow going.  I am hoping this winter break I can get a lot more done on it to make a dent to try to get into closer to completion hahaha.  I am starting to get antsy on starting another one but can't until this one is finally completed and hung up.

Next up is to get through this week of final exams and massive papers, then work at the jail for a couple of weeks and then off to home for a wonderful 2 weeks of family time!!!! I can't believe December is upon us already and that 2013 is almost said and done and gone.  Where oh where has the time gone???  Insanity I tell you!!!!  But the countdown is on and the stress to finish is here.  20 more days till I am home with family.  4 more days till this semester is done.  WOOOOOHOOOOOO.  Miss and love you all!!!!

Mario Androgynous' car probably takes better turns than mine........

So, if you couldn't gather, life has been pretty filled up with school and internship lately, hence why no posts have been posted.  I seriously do not have a life right now and it is not good.  I need to start trying to make time to go and do stuff as I am starting to get all twitchy and lifeless without doing touristy stuff.  So hopefully this will be a change for me.  But who am I kidding really.....in a month this semester will be over, I will have a couple of weeks of internship and then I will be home for Christmas.  And then the gong show will happen all over again.  But for now, I am giving you something to read.   

For Canadian Thanksgiving my brother and sister in law decided to come down to check out the sights of Washington.  And in particular, the Air and Space Museum.  It was going to be fantastic.  But then the government decided to go ahead and take a break.  Shut down all the museums.  Tape off all the monuments.  Basically close down everything I was going to do with my brother and sister in law.  Thanks a lot government!!!  The day they flew in, the weather was not good.  In fact, the weather was pretty bad the couple of days prior to them coming and the weekend they were here, it was supposed to be rainy.  So another thing to work around.  I go and get them from the airport and make our way back home.  They got to see one of my favorite views of the entire city - the Basilica at night, which is so astounding.  It reminds me of a castle one would see in Disneyland/world.  Just amazing.  We get home and we have supper here and then crash.  The next morning, I am working on my project due for school and suddenly I notice that my battery is no longer charging and I lost my internet connection.  I poke my head outside the bedroom door, notice my brother moving around to go shower, but then also notice that the microwave isn't on nor are my internet lights.  We had lost power.  Great.  I do some googling on my phone (thank god for that) and find out that power has gone out in our area and that people are trying to fix it, with an estimated time of 2 hours for fixing.  No good.  So we go old school - light a bunch of candles in the bathroom for them to shower with and light candles up around the place (thank god for my love of candles).  Thankfully power comes back on shortly thereafter so we get a slight plan in mind and head out the door.  

First stop - Ihop.  We all share a love for breakfast, so that was pretty good.  And now that I have actually gone to that Ihop (yes, I used my brother and sister in law as guinea pigs), I will probably frequent it again. From Ihop, we made our way down to the White House.  Took them via Freedom Plaza and the nice hotels.  Walked all around the White House, paused, then walked on by.   From there we were going to go to the Newseum but plans got changed, so then we decided the Spy Museum, but the line up was too huge for that one so then Crime and Punishment Museum it was.  Spent some time there and then off to Fado for the obligatory yet wonderful visit.  My brother was slightly excited (he does not show excitement at all really but I think he was excited) to have Guinness from the tap and I had to show them the fantabulous potato quesadillas.  From there we went and caught a movie to kill some time before the hockey game and then went to a place where I thought they would be showing the hockey game since they are supposed to be known for being a hockey pub, but alas, they did not carry the Canadian stations, so off to home we went for some beers and to watch the game here.  In the end, not a bad day, but I feel like we did a lot of walking without anything really being accomplished.  

The next day we had breakfast at home and then went out to do the monuments walk as a friend had gone the weekend before and said that even though they were taped off, people could still go up to them.  She lied.  We did the "tidal basin" walk, but it wasn't the walk really.  We went past Jefferson, which had people on the steps saying that the monument was closed.  So then we were going to head over to Martin Luther King and Lincoln, but they had closed off some of the pathway so we had to detour around the basin to get back to the main strip to go see Lincoln.  Went up to Lincoln, paused, sat and did the obligatory reflection over the pool, then made our way back to Washington and cut over to the White House to find some coffee and a bathroom.  

Had a little break then went for some cupcakes and spent some time at Madam Tussuad's. Then went for some wonderful supper and back home for some drinks and Uno.  The next day, went for some breakfast again at Ihop and then took them back to the airport for their flights back home.  It was a whirlwind of a trip and I hope they had a good time.  I felt so bad with the government shut down, the weather being how it was and the loss of power the one morning.  It seemed like really nothing was going in our favor for their trip, so if they decide to make it down again, hopefully it will be a much better trip and then my brother can finally see the Air and Space Museum.  

Another thing that I did was go and see a college football game.  College football down here is crazy - people get so into it and take it very very seriously, so when the opportunity came up for me to attend a game, how could I pass that up.  So up to New Jersey I go to see Rutgers v. Houston with my dear friend Riya.  We left right after internship on the Friday and made it home in somewhat but not good timing as we hit traffic a lot along the way, but it was okay for me since I got to see a lot of sights.  The Friday we got to her house, we just ate and then went to bed as the next day was going to be quite long.  Her mom had supper ready for us and oh my goodness, these potato spicy pancake type thingys she made were amazingly good - I felt like such a pig as I ate so many of them but they were delicious.  The next morning we get up and start outfitting ourselves in the Rutgers gear and make our way down.  The plan was to get there early to tailgate some and then head into the stadium for the game.  

There were people everywhere.  It was insane. The excitement and atmosphere was crazy as it was their homecoming weekend so that amplified everything. The game itself was not that great as Rutgers got absolutely tromped, but the experience was pretty good.   After the game we went for some ice cream and then back to the house to get ready for a birthday party that night where I got to meet Riya's friends that she always talks about and it was quite the evening hahaha.  I can say that her friends made me feel quite welcomed and they are a bunch of characters hahaha.  Got home, absolutely crashed/passed out, then the next day we went to Princeton and wow, such a gorgeous campus.  So romantic and old school and just beautiful.  Makes me in awe of people who can afford to go there.  After Princeton, we made our way back to DC.  It was a huge whirlwind of a trip, very action packed, but wonderful.  Good memories all around.  

Practicum has been going good - many stories and many interesting experiences are happening there, but we are surviving and judging from other students' stories about their places, we got one of the better spots for experience wise.  Very draining though - usually when I get home, I am beat and do not have the brain function to do anything.  I got spoiled last year with having so many days off that my brain is finding it hard to adjust, but I am doing it.  School is also going good - I can't believe how fast this semester is flying, this year actually.  Christmas is right around the corner, which means this year is almost done.  So scary of a thought really.  It means I need to start thinking of what I am going to do with my life once I am done and graduated.  A very scary thought indeed.  Maybe I should start looking into the next degree I am going to get.....hahaha.  Just joking.  Maybe not though.......  

I hope you all take care and know that I miss you very much and cannot wait to see snow!!!!!!!!!!!!!  

Almost shot at, almost got attacked by the dogs, warned about being spit on and feces thrown at us and what to do in case of a hostage situation.......what did I get myself into????

I know I know I know - I haven't posted anything since July 8ish.  I have been hugely slacking on this whole blogging business, but it isn't like I have such a fascinating life that you need to tune into every week to read about.  However, I do have things to talk about since July but right now, what I did today is way more pressing than anything else (just because I am apt to forget some things that are just too good to not share with people).  What did I do today you ask??? Well it was my first day at my practicum at the Department of Corrections!!!  Here is how the day panned out.......

 

In the morning, while getting ready, I had to get some inspiration to get into the mindset of the atmosphere of where I was going, so what better to do that than the King himself.....

The whole time getting ready, I am thinking to myself - should I have my hair up? Down? Heels? Flats? Can I wear a skirt? Should I wear pants?  What about a necklace? Rings? A watch?  So many unanswered questions had me very frazzled and unprepared as to what was going to happen when I arrived at the prison.  Still, at this moment, they are unanswered as we never had the chance to sit and talk with our supervisor(s) about our schedule and whatnot so hopefully all those questions will be answered on Friday when we meet with them.  Settled on some clothes, packed some food and headed out my door for the great unknown.  Oh the places I will go!!!

 

We arrive at the prison (half an hour early) and go inside to ask where we are supposed to go for the training facility.  The guard at the reception desk tells us to go outside, to the right, walk up the road and the facility is on our left.  So, we do exactly that - go outside, turn right, start walking up the road.  Yeah, we weren't supposed to do that.  At all.  A security guard drives up to us, very loud, barking, mean sounding dog in his truck (K-9 unit) and asks us where we are going so we tell him.  He tells us that we are on an unauthorized road and walking where we were, we could have been shot or the dogs could have attacked us if they were roaming free (cause apparently there is an invisible fence that the dogs know not to cross to go into the parking lot.....I highly doubt that.....).  Well, needless to say, not a good start to our day (however, seeing as we were three girls in dress pants and blouses and whatnot, I think they could have been a little bit more personable in telling us that we were in the wrong place instead of treating us like inmates that just broke out of prison - some of the classiest, nicest looking inmates ever!!!!). 

 

We get to the training facility and there seems to be some confusion as to why we are there and what we are there for.  We were sitting in the classroom, waiting for the training to start, and the security guard comes in, telling us about the place - you get spit on, feces thrown at you, inmates on suicide watch are pretty much naked, how inmates will try to get power over you, how the ERT works, things like that........he told us one story about an inmate attacking another one on the head with a shank or something like that and all I could think of was an inmate stealing one of my zombie shoe heels and stabbing another inmate in the head with it......gotta find the comedic relief in everything hahaha.  Once all the hullaballoo about how we were, why we were there got sorted (and at this time it was about 10:30) we learned that we were supposed to be over at the main building for training, so we start to hoof it over there.  However, we get held up as the security officers were working with a dog - we got told to wait until the training was over, but then the guy said to come forward, so we did, but he was talking to the dog, so then we got yelled at again by him.......I kind of hope he doesn't remember us so we can get off to a better start than that.  Riya looked at me, saying she didn't want spit or feces thrown at her, but I think (desperately hoping) that those acts are more towards the guards and not the interns......I am going to keep my rose coloured glasses on for that thought.......

 

 

Get into the training session and what are we learning about - Prison Rape Elimination Act (with a test afterwards).  This day just keeps getting better and better.  After the wonderful tutorial on prison rape, we get a tour of the facility.  It was almost like we got into the mentality of inmates as every time someone came down the hall or we saw people, we all went into a single line against the wall - some wonderful conditioning right there hahaha.  It was pretty interesting the tour - got to see into some of the housing units, the medical center, the library, the processing room.  Some times I felt bad for the inmates as there we were - 7 girls and 1 security guard peering through windows to look at them, watch them.  I guess it is something that they may be used to and I guess it is something that I will not have to think about when there.  When we were passing the release cell, there were two guys in there, and they were watching us, so I wanted to look at them, but didn't want to, and then found myself in a quandary - if I did look at them, should I smile? Should I not smile? Am I to be stonefaced in there?  Can I be my Canadian niceness?  Again with the plethora of questions that went through my head while there.  One funny part during the tour was when we had to go through security to get into the housing units, the guard that was giving us the tour was explaining to the other guards who we were and said "no, this is not the Chinese tourists".  It was pretty funny.  I am glad some people are there have a sense of humour. 

 

After the tour we go back and get our ID badges (it is official!!!! but we don't get to keep them when we are all said and done with our internship, which sucks balls) and parking passes and then we get the short version of the orientation training - was told where to park, how our ID badges work, who to talk to if we have a problem and what to do in the event of being held hostage.  Yep.  That's right.  A hostage situation.   The guy told us to remember four things if we get held hostage:  1)  do not show the captors fear (does fainting show them fear???) 2) do not fight them but try to sit back and observe the people involved, what they are doing, etc etc 3) go along with what they are doing and do not try to fight them (but if we have the chance to escape, take it) and 4) always remember the Army motto - never leave a man behind - so keep up the hope that somebody will be coming in for us.  He added a fifth one during his speech - if we hear guns going off, drop to the floor.  He then went on to explain what would happen after we were rescued and all this jazz, telling us that we would probably be at the prison for about 20 hours for the aftermath and crap like that - this time it was Riya who found the comedic relief in it all when she asked if we could claim all of those hours against our 700 we need to do.  Thankfully, in all the years the guy worked there, he has never seen a hostage situation - it sounds like they have a pretty good plan if it does ever happen. 

 

So, after that whole day, I didn't learn what our dress code is, what our schedule is, who our supervisor is, if there is a guard in the room with us when we are working with the inmates, how to protect ourselves if an inmate comes after us (the emergency relief team (ERT) will get called but it will take them 30 seconds to get there - a lot can happen in 30 seconds....) or what area of the prison we are working in BUT I did learn what happens if a prisoner claims he/she got raped, how security guards should not have sex with the inmates and how to conduct ourselves in a hostage situation.   I am pretty sure I am missing some things from today but there was just so much to look at and take in and panic about.  This will be a very interesting place to work at and if I can get out of it unscathed, I think I will be able to work with just about anybody.  This will be an experience of a lifetime, that is for sure. 



Oh the company I keep.......*beyonce song comes on* Riya: Ohhhhh Beyonce Meghan: I hate Rihanna

Hello hello folks - happy Canada Day to my Canadian peeps and happy 4th of July to my American peeps (too many bloody holidays now to keep track of).  First and foremost - I GOT AN AIR CONDITIONER!!!! I don't know why it took me this long to go get one (probably because I didn't want to ask a friend to drive me somewhere to get one) but I think Kalyn was starting to get worried about my health and my projection of cantankerouness towards them so we went and got one on Sunday and holy smokes - it is awesome.  I never want to leave my place now hahaha.  I have also started to freeze my pillows and that makes a huge difference at night (I am actually keeping my freezer free of food to allow room for my pillows).  Some days are better than others to be outside, but when it is above 40, I tend to cloister myself at home and not move.  Needless to say, my cross stitching has been getting done and looking fabulous!!!! I am not going to post a picture until it is completely done, but I am so proud of it!!! 

Meg, Riya, Kalyn and I took a little road trip a couple of weekends ago to Rehoboth Beach (to listen to the conversation Riya and I had about where exactly the beach is was along the same lines as a Gilmore Girls conversation as I kept saying that the beach was east of us, Riya kept saying that Washington is basically on the east coast and said that Delaware was to the North and the conversation went back and forth for a bit.  So, for those people who are confused - Delaware is both North and East of Washington....hahaha) to hit the beach and to go outlet mall shopping.  The drive there wasn't that long but I swear for about 15 to 20 miles, all we saw was cornfields.  It is like the world's worth of corn came from this one area.  And then, of course, my imagination started and all I could think of was either Field of Dreams or Children of the Corn.  But seriously folks, the corn went on for miles and miles and miles.  It actually got tiring to look at after a while.  And I saw some deer, which was nice as I don't see much wildlife kicking around these parts.  When we got to the actual beach (after the monsoon of a rainstorm went through), I was in heaven being surrounded by all that water (my Aquarius and Pisces coming out in full form) and seeing the Atlantic Ocean.  It was so calming to be standing there, watching the waves and dipping our feet in it.  Meg and I were like children in that we would wade out into the water and when a big wave was coming in, scream and run back onto the beach.  Oh how much I wished I had my bathing suit that day and could have actually gone into the water and just had fun.  That day there was no school or life stress - the water was my escape.  We are definitely going to go back.  This picture taken by Kalyn and is probably one of my favorite pictures of my time spent down here thus far. 

So the past week was 4th of July and I mean, come on, how can one not celebrate it in the nation's capital!!!! Wednesday night we had a BBQ/sleepover at Kalyn's place so that we were all in one place and could go downtown at the same time and not lose each other and the BBQ was amazing.  Hotdogs, hamburgers, salads, dips, wine, beer, good music and good laughs.  America had thrown up in Kalyn's place so it was hard not to feel American hahaha. Thursday morning, it was like America had thrown up on us.  Red and blue hair paint was sprayed in hair, only colors on our bodies were red, white or blue and an impromptu Star Spangled Banner was sang in the car on the way to the metro station.  We stopped at the Giant to grab some food for the picnic and I felt like we were in an oddball parade as people would just stare at us.  We got downtown in good timing and managed to catch some of the Parade and then we headed over to the Mall to see some of the Folklife Festival. Stopped in at the Tavern for a beer and then made our way over to the sculpture garden to soak our feet at the fountain (one of the best parts of the day as it was roasting out and I definitely needed to cool down in some way).  The Capitol Fourth concert didn't start until 8ish, but we got to the Capitol around 4:00 to get some good seats for the concert and fireworks.  It got packed in there when the concert started - I couldn't even tell you how many people were there (between people at the Capitol and at the National Mall but there were people everywhere).  It was hot sitting there for 4 hours in the sun, on the concrete.  I am surprised that I didn't burn more than I did in that heat, but I got more color to me (which is super odd for me hahaha).  Once the concert started, the wait was worth it.  First up was Barry Manilow, who should lay off the botox or face lifts or whatever he is doing as he is looking pretty plastic.  He sang some songs (actually none that I knew, surprise surprise) but still good to listen to him.  Then some American Idol winners, a Motown Music broadway thingy, a broadway star, Darren Criss (whom to Meg's dismay only sang 1 song and that was the only reason why she was there in the first place hahaha 0 - so sorry Meg) and.......NEIL DIAMOND!!!!! It was amazing!!!!  Oh my goodness.  Listening to the crowd sing along with Sweet Caroline was just wonderful.  So much energy in that place and to hear the people was fantastic.  Here is the youtube link to him singing (kind of shaky as I was singing along).  Sweet Caroline bum bum bum

 

The reason why I wanted to be at the Concert so much was for John Williams - he is a kick ass composer and he did some of the score to Lincoln and it was astounding (I don't know other words to use for amazing, wonderful, fantastic hahaha).  Very moving and touching.  But then, the piece de resistance to the whole night was the 1812 Overture to the fireworks with live cannons going off!!! I love fireworks and these ones did not disappoint at all - they seemed to go on forever and with the music and the atmosphere was just memorable.  Here is the link to the finale of the fireworks:  simply amazing and wonderful .  Below is the actual video to the 1812 Overture fireworks display - you can hear me in the background when I get super excited about the cannons hahaha. 

 

Summer is upon us.....I shall never have straight hair again........

With me having a slight summer vacation in May before my summer semester hit, right after Mom and Amanda came down to visit me, I headed up to Calgary for a week to see friends and family up that way as I am not sure when I will be making my way back (although now it appears at the end of July if the school schedule remains the same).  And, as per usual, I can never have a boring flight......this time I decided to fly out of Baltimore as tickets are way cheaper than flying out of Reagan and I got to ride a train for the first time ever and I loved it!!!! I would train it anywhere (I have a notion to just to go the train station, look at all the trains leaving and jump on one for an adventure).  They are so roomy and nice and cool and just watching the scenery is very relaxing.  This person is definitely a fan of trains.  I am still on a hunt for a good flight path as I am trying to avoid La Guardia at all costs, so this time, I flew down to Dallas and up to Calgary (the scenic route but only 1 layover).  I do not know if that will be my flight path again as I learnt that Dallas is pretty good for delayed flights.  Once in Dallas, my flight was delayed about an hour and then the flight up to Calgary was pretty rough - we had turbulence the entire way, and I am not talking about your slight pitching or bumpiness, I am talking about jarring and pitching enough that a couple overhead bins came open and luggage started falling out.  There were a couple of times when I looked out the window I couldn't see anything moving so I thought we had just stopped midair and was waiting for the turbulence to pass or something like that.  And then there were a couple of times that the show would quiet down to let the captain speak overtop but all you heard was this voice saying 'hello, hello; is anyone there? Can anyone hear this?' and I thought to myself 'holy fuck, even a tower can't read us right now'.  I thought for sure this was going to be one of those flights that the air masks were going to drop.  And out of it all, while people were panicking and the stress level in that plane was super high, the lady sitting next to me (who was born in 1937 fyi) did not speak any English whatsoever had this smile on her face the entire time as she had no clue what was happening hahaha.  I thought that if we were going to crash, she was going to crash with a smile on her face.  When the pilot finally came on to tell us that we were going to start the descent into Calgary, normally this takes about 20-30 minutes to do from the time he announces to the time we pull up to our gate. Not this time...no siree......he announced, I watched clouds go whipping by us out of the window and then bam!!! bounce!!!  a little skid!!! we were hitting the runway and hard.  People actually screamed a little and clutched the seat in front of them for dear life.  I normally am not a panicky flyer, but I was quite happy to be off of a plane and safely onto Canadian soil. 

 

Amie was picking me up from the Airport (and a trooper she was because of the delays and the fact that I had no voice between the humidity I left in Washington and the allergies flaring up when I touched down in Calgary) and from there we went to Ranchmans.  We are still trying to figure out whose harebrained idea that was as I didn't land until after 11pm so we didn't even get to Ranchmans until midnight, but it was a blast.  We both realized that we are 1) too old and 2) too out of shape to be dancing like we used to do (the first polka we did completely did a number on us).  We ended up closing the bar though (go hard or go home) and then crashed for the night.  We ended up meeting these two guys that loved to dance so it worked out perfectly for us.  And they were so nice and escorted us to McDonalds afterwards (I was so hungry from not eating and all the panicking from that last flight).  It was a wonderful welcome back into Calgary and I told Amie that it would be hard for her to top that welcoming so it may now just be a tradition of ours.  Later on in the week I met up with Amie and Hailey for a zoo trip and that was so much fun!!! I can't believe how much Hailey has grown (funny how time does that) and just listening to her talk and how smart she is...you have a wonderful girl there Amie!!!  It was a wonderful time seeing her and I can't wait for when she comes out to Washington. 

 

While in Calgary I got to visit with Aly and work peoples and go see Court and discuss all the wedding details with her since I was going to miss her wedding.  I even commissioned Court already to be my wedding planner if I ever need one as that girl was on the ball for everything and did everything herself.  Very crafty that cousin of mine is.  One thing I had to do while in Calgary was get a TB test done for my practicum site - I have never had one of these done before so I didn't know what to expect and I pitied the nurse that got me.  She was telling me that if my skin around the needle mark started to puff up/bubble, it meant that I was having a reaction, which isn't a good thing.  So, me being panicked already, as soon as she inserted whatever was in the needle, my skin puffs up and I start panicking 'oh my god, I have TB!!!!!'  She calmly told me that everybody has an initial reaction to it and it will go down in a couple of hours and then I need to watch my skin to see if there is a reaction.  I was to go back in 2 days for them to check out the test and see if I had a reaction and for those 2 days, I checked out my arm a million times a day to make sure there was no reaction.  Oys.  I panicked for nothing as I am TB free!!!!  Woohoo. 

 

The flight back to Washington was, thankfully, not as turbulent but still had some delays in Dallas.  Flew in no problem, and then got settled in at my gate for when my flight was going to leave.  Start up the laptop to do some emailing and whatnot as I had over three hours to kill and suddenly an announcement comes on that our gate has been changed.  Okey doke.  So pack up my stuff and start heading to the new gate (which was, thankfully, in the same terminal but at the other end of it).  Get down to the new gate, get settled in to wait, start up the laptop again.  Do some stuff.  Then an announcement comes on - our gate has been changed again.  So, pack up everything, start walking to the new gate (which was a couple of gates down from the original gate).  Get to the new gate and this time I am start enough to not bring out my laptop - I just pulled my book out, hunkered down and started reading.  I got to a really good part and an announcement comes on.  They are changing our gate once again.  Grumble grumble, pack things up, head to new gate.  Finally, after 3 gate changes and an hour delay, we are ready to board the plane.  And, lucky me, there are military men on this flight.  Hot military men.  Maybe this flight just got a bit better.  But, as I have no luck, I was not seated next to one or anywhere near one - they sat either in first class or right near the plane and I was near the back.  I couldn't even look at them.  No luck for this chick.  Land in Baltimore and whoosh - got hit with a wave of humidity.  Right.  I forgot about that.  I was so happy in Calgary with the coolness and the rain that I declimatized myself from DC weather.  Not a good thing to do. 

 

Summer semester has started up again and the two classes I am taking are Group Processes and Forensic Diversity.  Thankfully the prof seems to be pretty easy going and not too much into the whole teaching part of school so he is going to shake things up with having classes outside and being more hands on and stuff like that.  One of the assignments is to write a paper on my culture/heritage so I have been plaguing my family with questions about where we came from, how did we get to where we are, stuff like that and it has been interesting and wonderful all the responses I have been getting back.  I am learning so much about my family that I never knew and now am seeing how I came to be the person I am today through and from my family.  It will be a fun paper once it is all said and done and my family has helped tremendously for it.  I also got a job on campus - before, the jobs were only available for those students who had federal student loans but now they took away the student loans part as a requirement so it is open to us international folk - very happy news.  Originally we thought that I could work while I was getting my Social Security Number and they would just back pay/retro pay me but sadly, they could not do it. 

So I "worked" one day and then had to go down to the Social Security office to submit my application for a number.  While at work (just on campus as the receptionist) the freaking cops show up - how the hell did they know I was working illegally!!!?? Hahaha.  Someone accidentally called 911 and then hung up so the cops had to come and just make sure everything was kosher.  I laughed pretty hard when they left though.  Great timing.  My application is in for a SSN and it should take 7 - 10 days from last Thursday to get here and then I can start working, again.  I kind of feel bad though because I will only be able to work for July as August I plan on coming home as I won't have as much of a break at Christmas time than I did last year.  But I could also stick around here and make some money.  Oh a conundrum. 

 

For all of those reading this in Southern Alberta, know that my thoughts and prayers are with you guys.  That flood did massive damage and I hope that everyone is safe and secure.  I keep thinking that if I was still in Calgary, my place would be absolutely gone and I would have lost anything that I wasn't smart enough to pack with me, which makes me wonder what I would have been smart enough to pack with me.  I don't know if I even would have had the time.  I am one of those people that once I sit in my chair, have my cross stitch and movies playing, I am oblivious to what is happening outside and around me.  I may not have even noticed what was happening until I saw water come through my windows and probably by that time it would have been too late for me to meander around my place, trying to figure out what was important enough to take then and what could be left behind.  It makes me panic about the people that have lost everything in this flood and how sad I am for them to basically start everything all over again.  It also puts things into perspective for me a little bit - here I am complaining about the hotness and humidity, but it isn't like that is taking me away from my home and me losing my valuables and possessions.  I really have no right to complain about the heat (I still will complain by the way hahaha).  I have been in contact with basically everyone that I know in Calgary and they are said that they were safe and secure, so that is a blessing. 

 

So here was an update for you folks on what I have been doing (the pictures are from the Botannical Gardens and some hodgepodge ones).  Basically with the heat, it has been a pretty lazy lifestyle.  I finally went out and did some touristy things so I will write about that soon but just figured I should catch you up on my trip (for those checking track - don't go through LaGuardia ever because they lose luggage, security sucks and the airport is not user friendly and if you go through Dallas, be prepared to be delayed) and the start of the school semester.  On a good note, I am actually tanning which is amazing so that is something new and different for me hahaha.  I miss and love you all!!! Take care!!!!

Things I never thought I would say: Oh Mom is Googling that right now on her phone......

So every year, we are trying to do a Girls Weekend in that my mom and two sisters and I will get together and catch up on life, smile, obtain memories and have some good laughs.  This year, my mom and one sister (other one is training for an ironman competition, or at least I think it is an ironman competition) came down to Washington to see *my* city and catch up since school was over and I found myself in a break before summer semester hits.  The plan - they fly in Thursday night, leave Tuesday morning and the rest is for me to fill up the time with wonderfulness.  So, let me walk you through our days and what we did and everything my mother and sister experienced with me while here.  There is nothing really to comment about the travelling days (Thursday and Tuesday) so I will just skip those and go straight to the funness!!!

 

Friday

Friday was my mother's birthday so for her birthday gift, we went on a Lunch Potomac Riverboat Cruise and it was a glorious day for that.  The sun was shining, the were hardly no clouds in the sky, perfect.  The food was so yummy and the entertainment was hilarious (watching Ma learn how to Wobble was priceless!!!!) and going up on the top deck to look around at everything and pointing things out to my sister and mother made it feel like it was *my* city.  We saw some wonderful things like where Obama keeps his helicopter (why this is public knowledge is beyond me), the only working drawbridge on the Potomac (sadly it didn't raise up when we were there) and the Titanic monument.   From the cruise, we walked to the monuments to see them all, which is something I haven't really done yet since living here.  We started at Jefferson (which was my sister's favorite), saw all of Roosevelt Memorial, hit Martin Luther King, then Korean Memorial, Lincoln and the reflecting pool, off to Vietnam, saw the Constitution Gardens and the area where they gave tribute to the signers of the Constitution and then to the WWII Memorial (which is my favorite). 

We were able to sit and put our feet in the water and just look around at everything, Lincoln behind us, Washington in front of us, the peacefulness and tranquility of the fountains.  We walked around the Washington Monument to hit the metro station and then it was off for supper at La Rosa Mexicano, which was amazing for Ma's birthday dinner.   After becoming absolutely stuffed and uncomfortably full, we made our way back home and basically just passed out from all the events and exciteness from our first day. 

Total walking miles: 6.2 
Food ethnicity:  Mexican 
Theme of the day:  Mom's birthday and monuments!!!

 

Saturday

Saturday was hard to figure out as the weather was potentially rainy but is why we have umbrellas.  It was a slower start to our morning but a leisurely paced one.  We got down to the Capitol and walked around the Capitol Reflecting Pool to the Botanical Gardens.  There was this dressed up fairy who was walking around; I think she was my favorite part of the Gardens hahaha.  All of the flowers and plants were amazing and so pretty.  Then we went outside to see the Rose Garden and it was like heaven in there.  The roses were so big and colorful and in bloom and just a wonderful little piece of heaven.  From there we walked around to the other side of the Capitol, walked past the Library of Congress and Supreme Court (which I never knew was that building), walked down to the Senate Reflecting Pool and fountain (where I had the surreal moment of realizing where I was living) and back to the metro station for food.  From there, we went and saw Freedom Plaza and walked to the Whitehouse.  There was a protest for Guantanamo Bay so we did not stick around too long in front of there, and the weather started turning a little sour so then we decided to head to supper at Founding Farmers.  Had another wonderful meal there, ate too much, made it back home and had some wine, cheese and watched Ma and Amanda do the wobble (which I also taped so I have such wonderful blackmailing material hahaha).

Total walking miles: 6.1 (excluding the walking in the Botanical Gardens)   
Food ethnicity:  Home grown American 
Theme of the day:  Government

 

Sunday

 Sunday was a clichéd day as we hit both the Basilica and National Cathedral.  First up was the Basilica, which is a short walk from my place.  See all the little chapels and mosaics there is just absolutely gorgeous and peaceful.  I really don't know what to say about this place as it is just an amazing place that is breathtaking and words can't really describe it.  From there we went to the National Cathedral, which was poorly planned on my part as I did not realize it was Pentecostal Sunday so they had a mass going on when we were there so we didn't have enough time to properly look and admire all the stained glass windows and go down to the crypts to see everything there.  But we did head out to the Bishop's Garden, which was beautiful and in bloom.  I kind of wish we had more time to look at everything there but oh well - at least they got to see it and can now appreciate how old and amazing it looks (in the picture, those two really really tiny people are Amanda and Ma standing in front of the doors).  I still need to go there and take a picture of all the gargoyles hahaha.  After the Cathedral we went for some sushi, which was again, delicious and made our way home where we played some cards, drank some wine, had some cheese.  Note to people:  when playing cards with Amanda, it is best to sit directly to her left as you may be able to take advantage of that spot hahaha. 

Total walking miles:  5.1 (excluding the walking in the Basilica and the Cathedral)
Food ethnicity: Japanese
Theme of the day:  Life and Gorgeousness

 

Monday

Ma decided that she wanted to see the Holocaust Museum as it is something that she will probably never have the opportunity to see so off to there was our first stop.  Going through a second time was good as it allowed me to read things I missed the first time and talk about some of the issues that happened, what started the war, things like that.  From there, we went for some foods and then decided for a impromptu trip to Arlington Cemetery, another place that I haven't been to yet.  On our way there, something that was bound to happen during the trip finally did happen - we lost our Mother.  When exiting off the metro station, she went one way that didn't really have an exit, took an elevator to who knows where and we told her to stay where she was and we would find her.  Amanda and I went down to the metro guard, asked him where the elevator went to and he said to street level, so we quickly went up there and saw Ma walking down the street, thankfully not too panicked looking hahaha.  The cemetery is beyond words - all the tombstones in lines and going on for miles and miles.  We walked up to see JFK's eternal flame and Robert Kennedy's grave site and then off to see the Changing of the Guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. 
Now, the weather had indicated that it was supposed to be the day of rain and cloudiness and whatnot - nope, no, no it wasn't.  It was hot and humid and wet and hot.  Thankfully we had our umbrellas with us for shade but it was still too bloody hot out there for me, so after seeing the Changing of the Guard, we decided to go back into DC and head for some foods.  What was kind of crazy was walking back to the entrance, we passed a tombstone with my name on it and there sat a Blue jay.  So, naturally, I had to google what the symbolism of a blue jay means and what is one of the words that describes a blue jay - fearless (if you do not understand the connection, that is what I have tattooed down my spine).  It was kind of spooky how that had happened.  I had to take them to Fado for the potato quesdaillas so that was our last food stop.  And man, those things will never not be good.  I
could eat them all the time.  Fado is one of my favorite pubs so I am glad I was able to show them the place and I think they enjoyed it as well.   After Fado, we went and did the Monument walk at night as seeing Lincoln and Jefferson all lit up is a sight to be seen.  Just sitting on the steps of Lincoln with Amanda and Ma was a wonderful feeling. 
Total walking miles:  9.6 (excluding walking in the Holocaust Museum) 
Food ethnicity: Irish 
Theme of the day: Death 

I am probably forgetting some things that we did or experienced and some funny things I wanted to say about our trip, but at the moment, nothing is coming to mind.  So, Ma and Amanda, feel free to add to this with your comments about the trip, what you enjoyed, etc etc.  You guys came down at the right time as I was in need of some family and love; I enjoyed our time together and doing everything with you guys and glad you had a wonderful time and didn't mind all the walking hahaha.  So many more things to do and see next time you guys come!!!!!  Love you lots!!!