Pirate's life for me


I was talking to some girls from my pottery class and we were discussing the very intellectual subject of what is your pirate name...well it is

My pirate name is:

Iron Charity Bonney

A pirate's life isn't easy; it takes a tough person. That's okay with you, though, since you a tough person. You can be a little bit unpredictable, but a pirate's life is far from full of certainties, so that fits in pretty well. Arr!

Get your own pirate name from fidius.org.

Break through

I finally did it!!! I linked my turns for snowboarding. Finally, it happened. Last Thurs. night I finally decided that I was going to committ and do it and not let my fear stop me. So, I decided not to think about it and just did it. So, I did up my bindings, squared my shoulders, took a deep breath, kept my weight directly over my board, put pressure on my front foot, shifted my hips forward, leaned back and made my first turn from my heel side to front side....I did it, that is until I leaned too much forward and caught and edge and went down. For the brief moment I made the turn and was feeling proud until I went down and hit the snow. Luckily, it was fresh powder and it was soft to hit. I have been practicing and subsequently have linked my turns, still not stellar but getting better. This is a mini triumph for me and fear of committment...well at least when it comes to snowboarding...Committment is a whole different story when it comes to other aspects in my life.

My three little munchkins

What is going on?


I have once again been neglectful of my blog. In all honesty, it has not been a priority for me at all. Obviously, my mind is elsewhere. Mostly, very focused on work and getting these projects off and running before I go back to school. I am actually very happy with work and everything I am doing. I have been pretty involved in the planning of a 2 major meetings, one focused on bringing together researchers we have funded to discuss their science and the other on increasing capacity in the areas of obesity research. It is nice to be so involved and have feedback on what is going on. In addition to those meetings, I am also working on 2 major funding initiatives that I have written and will help administer. Work is hectic but going well.

As for my real life, things are good. Most of my activities are going well, volleyball is fun, pottery is shaping out to be really interesting, snowboarding okay, guitar non-existent, and French class a bit overwhelming. So, beyond guitar and snowboarding all is great. However, I am determined to master the two.

What else is going on? My birthday was great; my friends blindfolded me and took me to the spa. I was really surprised and it was so relaxing. I think it was one of the best birthdays yet. My friends actually cared enough to plan it and keep it a secret. I thought we were going snowshoeing but when I finally could see it was the spa I was in shock. It was so incredible. Then the following weekend we went to Big White. That was fun, albeit the big wipeout took the wind out of my sails for a day or so, but the next morning I was at it again. It was really good snow and the Sunday we had blue skies. I really enjoyed myself.

Officially Old!!!

Today I can no longer honestly tell people I am near my mid-twenties. I am now officially in my late twenties. I was fibbing a bit before when people would ask how old I was, I used to say "oh near my mid twenties"...aiya no more!!! I am old.

I am not sure if at 28 I am any more grown up, I certainly don't act that way but perhaps there is a different level of expectation of me now that I am 28. Certainly my family feels that I should start "settling down", whatever that means!!! 28 to my family seems like an ear mark for life to take root, but I am just not on that path. I have no desire to have babies and buy houses right now, I think I am too busy just enjoying being me. There is another adventure in the horizon and so many places yet for me to travel to.

I would love to share my adventures with someone but until that right person comes along I am content to travel solo. My co-workers jokingly tell me I am a spinster but if being a spinster means I can take a month to travel Europe and not have to worry about responsibilities other than what city to see next then I am happy to be a spinster. Don't fret too much, I want to put down roots and have a family but not before I am ready, perhaps after a stint in Australia and some time in Africa....hmmm...by the time I am 40 should be about right.

As well, thanks to all you folk out there who sent me birthday wishes, it was appreciated and I was touched you remembered.

Hawaii

So, the plans for Europe have been put on hold yet again, a bit sad but definitely for a good reason. My friend from uni, Vesna is getting married in April in Hawaii. I have never been but am excited about being there for this occasion. Hawaii would be a lovely place to get married. I know that it will be beautiful.

I guess, Europe will have to be post-poned again. There is some thought about going in August, but that is prime Tourist season....perhaps it is just not meant to be at this point. I guess I will have to deal with my disappointment about not going to Europe by going parasailing or snorkeling in the blue waters of Hawaii. ;)

Boarding Babes

In an effort to be a more well rounded individual I have been taking a number of different classes and trying to get into different things. There is of course my ongoing struggle with my mushroom fingers and guitar, mastering the clay and showing it who is boss, a return to volleyball, my desire to become more worldy-French lessons, and finally my efforts to channel the edgier boarder in me. The latter being the most painful I have decided.

I bought snowboarding equipement a few months ago because I figured that it would incentive to go up and learn. Who knew I was so uncoordinated, well actually I knew that but the bunny hill beat it into me yesterday, just extra emphasis that I am not very coordinated. Every muscle in my body now aches, and I am sure that there are more aches coming as I try to board on a more regular basis. However, I will not be defeated by the soft white stuff that is not so soft when you are zooming down the mountain and lose your edge. I am going to get good, all it takes is committment as my cute Aussie instructor told me yesterday, of course I smiled back and said yes, you are totally right, while in my mind I was thinking.."I have fear of committment", I hate the C word. Oh well, I have to learn to deal with committment in some form and this might be the first step in conquering it.

So, wish me good luck and pray that my bones are not as brittle as I think they are. Feel your fear and do it anyways, go committment!!!!

Blogging

Heya, it has been a while since I have written a blog, beyond the announcement of my new niece. I guess it is because I have been busy but probably because I have been lazy.

So, what is going on in the Wacky World of Char, well I have decided to keep myself very busy. I have a schedule that is jam packed, playing volleyball, doing pottery, snowboarding and learning how to parle francais. So that ties up every weeknight except Tuesdays. Tuesdays was suppose to be self learning guitar, so far that is not going so well, darn these mushroom fingers and lack of musical talent.

I figure that this is a great time to be doing all this stuff cause once I start gradschool in Sept. I will have no time for anything but sleeping, studying and working. I am almost looking forward to going back to school, not entirely sure if I am excited about it, but not dreading it. It is about time I start a new chapter in my life.

However, before I head back I would like to have one last adventure. I am thinking about doing a trip to Europe this spring, London, Paris, and Prague. Three places I have always wanted to go to. Paris in the Spring, it will be lovely...perhaps even meet that dashing European man who will sweep me off my feet. Well, that or try to mug me.

Other than a full plate and visions of springtime in Paris and Prague I have been recuping from way to much festivities over the holidays. It seems that I have been at one social function or another since the beginning of Dec. I think it will all come to an end once we get past Chinese New Year, Jan. 29th. Finally, no more food.

Just also want to say thanks to you faithful readers of this blog. The postings are not always so entertaining but I am glad that there are a few of you who keep reading.

More babies

My sister Christine had her baby on Dec. 28 at 3:00pm and I am now a proud aunt to another baby girl, Kiyah Rylee Cho. She is adorable and a beautiful addition to our family. I cannot believe that we have another little baby in our family. Time goes by so fast and my nephew will be 2 in a few weeks. Sometimes thinking about it makes me feel old and then my nephew does something silly and I am right there acting silly with him and he makes me feel like a kid again. I adore those kids.

Life and everything else

Still swimming along in the stream of life. Going along with the current trying to keep my head above the water and trying not to bump into too many obstacles. Occasionally, I feel something slimy brush up against my leg and I quickly swim away.

Life goes on

So, life has been swimming along. The unpacking was haulted due to the lack of storage, ie my books are still in boxes cause I need a bookcase. However, everything else has been unpacked and we are settling in. I am still unsure about the furniture arrangement and will probably change it again, knowing me. The room is a bit weird in that it is big but it is long and not very wide.

Anyways, I am heading off to Toronto this week for work and I heard that it is snowing there. Brrrrrr..... I am going to do some shopping so hopefully the malls are heated.

Settling In

I finally moved!! The actual process was not too bad. The packing was the worst part. I never knew I had so much stuff....Just boxes of books, clothes, shoes, and more shoes! It took about 2.5 hours to complete my stuff and the whole entire process took about 6 hours. Not bad. The only difficult thing is that I live on the second floor and there is no elevator, I do not know how the boys got the couch up the stairs.

So, now I am mostly unpacked. Only a few more boxes left to unpack and then home sweet home. It is a nice apartment and I hope that I will be happy here.

If you are ever in the neighborhood stop by to visit.

Box Lady

You know those homeless people who carry around cardboard boxes and cans. Well, I have become one of those people, well not homeless but what I affectionately call myself, the box lady. I have been slowly taking boxes home with me from work for the last few weeks. Seeing how I commute on public transit to work it is sometimes a very trying process. It is wet, the bus is packed and here I am with several Xerox boxes. It is not a good time. I will be glad when it is all over.

Packing Process

The packing process is very slow going. I still cannot believe how much stuff I have.....I think I need to learn to let go of things. I have clothes, books, shoes, stuff up the wazooo......

In 2 short years post Japan, I have managed to get all the stuff back that I had gotten rid of before going.

Other than that and work, life is going along. Guitar is going, not so well but going, pottery is still lopsided but incredibly enjoyable.

So, in a nutshell my life is still boring.

Moving....

I am once again packing up all my stuff and moving again. I am excited about moving, not the actual moving process but about my new digs. I will be moving into an apartment about 5 blocks from where I am currently living. For those of you familiar with Kits, at 6th and Vine , it is right near the trendy 4th ave, although I am not that trendy. It is super close to grocery stores and a bit closer to the beach. I like this apartment cause it has a huge wide open space, and a big bedroom, small closet (boo hoo), but I will miss living in a house with a backyard and a patio. My brother and I decided to move in together, to the delight of my parents. My parents seem to think that I will be a positive influence on him or something.....little do they know (as I slip on my hood of innocence).

In the meantime, I am busy packing and trying to figure out how I managed to accumulate so much stuff in so little time. As well, seeing how my bro and I do not have furniture and house stuff we are busy hitting up family and friends for their extra stuff. So, if you have couches or other furniture you do not want, let me know.

As always, Hotel Charlene will be open and if you ever need a place to crash then you are welcome to come stay.

Drugs...I want drugs......

Today I had my other two wisdom teeth pulled out and let me just say that I think I am going to die. No, I am not being over dramatic but I am in lots of pain. I had two pulled last week and it was not too bad, but today I look like a chipmunk, my jaw hurts, and I have a throbbing pain. I cannot eat and I cannot take any more Advil. I am in pain, and I want drugs...lots of them.

I am trying to distract myself by going on the internet but that does not seem to be helping. I should have insisted on the prescription for tylenol 3.

Lucy Wu

On Sept. 22, 2005 we added a new edition to our family. My oldest sister, Marlene had a beautiful baby girl. I would love to introduce you to Miss Micah Abigail Wu. She weighed in at 6lb 14oz. She is absolutely beautiful and I cannot believe that I am an aunt again. I plan to spoil her rotten and teach her all the cool girl things that all girls should know, or at least I think she should know.

The Lucy part, is that my co-workers were the one of the first people to find out that my sister had a baby girl, at that time I did not know her name and one of my co-workers decided that we should call her Lucy.

Goth Girl

So, the piercing experience was not too traumatic. Actually, I was a bit disappointed that it was so uneventful. It was not painful at all and was pretty quick. The explanation on how to take care of it, took longer than the actual piercing.

Promptly after that, I decided that I needed more changes in my life. Me with my short attention span was getting tired of my hair colour. I have been sporting red highlights for the last 2 years or so and decided that I wanted a change. So, I decided to go back to my roots, literally and dye my hair black.....jet black. Well, my hair is jet black and yup, you guessed it boring. I think I look like one of the Beattles. Between the bad haircut and the colour, I could pass for one of the fab four. The hair colour looks too much like my natural colour and it is boring, I have lost a parf of my funkiness. I am sad about it. I called my hairdresser to see if she could put some different coloured highlights in it but she essentially told me that if she were to lighten it it would fall out. So, ladies and gents...I am stuck with boring black for the next 3-6 months.

Getting Pierced

As some of you know, I have wanted a tattoo for a long time. At 18 it was going to be a green nice swoosh, at 20 it was going to be a sunflower on my big toe, at 22 it was going to be a lady bug on my big toe, now at 27 a cherry blossom on my ankle. As you can tell, I am very much indecisive and my choice of tattoos vary with my interests at the time. So, although I have always wanted a tattoo, I have never gotten one cause I know with my short attention span I will inevitably grow tired of my choice. I have yet to find something that I like to keep it on my body for the rest of my life. So....I have decided to get a piercing instead, not quite the same but perhaps easing myself into the motorcycle loving, leather clad, pierced, tattooed rebel that resides in my heart. When I was in Australia I nearly got my nose pierced but did not actually do it cause I was worried about what my school and students in Japan would think. So, today at 5:00pm, my best friend Seunghee and I will get our belly buttons pierced together. Not nearly as permanent as a tattoo but just wild enough to make my mom cringe. Not that I am doing it for that reason, but I always want to be different...To have that edge, although you would never know by looking at me that secretly in my heart I want to be edgier.

Surf's up Dude!

My girlfriends and I took some time off work last week so we could have an extended long weekend. We decided that we were going to go to Tofino, on Vancouver Island to learn how to surf. At first I was not to keen on surfing, oh so not flattering wetsuits and bathing suits and the frigid waters of the Pacific Ocean just did not appeal to me, but then the idea of surfing warmed up to me, cute surf dudes hopping on my board and teaching me how to surf….hmmm…the possibilities. We were suppose to go camping but ended up staying in a lovely cabin on the beach, where it was a hop skip and a jump down to the ocean. The cabin was a bit crowded with 16 of us but it turned out to be a really good group of people and we all got along. I particularly liked the morning breakfast and the warm coffee. Yes, for this weekend only I was a caffeine junky….now I am in detox mode and no more caffeine for me.

The surfing was good, although my cute surf dude teaching me how to get up on my board did not materialize, I still ended up having a good time. The water was cold and the wetsuits tight but that was all forgotten about when you make that small triumph and actually get up a bit before you fall over. I got over my morning grogginess and ended up getting up early a few mornings to get out and hit the beach when the waves were good.

The trip was a great idea and I ended up having a really good time. It was a really good bonding moment for us girls, and we all got to know each other better. Surprisingly consider how much time Sandra, Nicky, Seunghee, and I spend together already. In addition to meeting some other new people in that cabin.

Wanderings of my mind...

I am sitting here at work trying to be productive but it is difficult. I am in the process of doing an analysis of Childhood Obesity Grant Application reviews....yes it actually is as tedious and boring as it sounds. Earlier this morning I was in a teleconference and could barely stay awake through it.
I am allowed to be bored with some of the work that I have to do but I am not allowed to complain about my job. This is what I have decided recently. because after being in a few jobs were I was not entirely happy, this job has been a godsend. I actually feel like I am doing something and being productive instead of selling my soul to the devil. Some of you know what that refers to.

I am also excited about my upcoming trip to Tofino, I am feeling like I need a bit of a get away. I was recently in Toronto but I feel like I need a bit more of a holiday. TO rushed by all too quickly and then I was back at work again. So, this Tofino trip will be good for me. I am looking forward to camping and even looking forward to the ferry ride. Strange, seeing how for many years I hated the ferry because of what it signified. That is another long story and I will not get into it here.

The summer has been good to me. Lots of good times with friends and sunny weather. The weather in August has been nice and almost makes up for the crappy rest of the summer that we had.

I am now in the process of looking forward to the Fall. We have a busy work schedule with several conferences and perhaps a bit of work related travelling to these conferences. I do like travelling but work travel is not always so relaxing. I have my eyes set on going on a bit of a European Vacation. I would like to go to London, Paris and Prague this fall but that is all dependant on the Finances as well as what I am going to do about my living situation. Our lease is up in December and I am unsure of what I would like to do. I like having a roommate, but I also like living on my own and I miss the space and solitude of having a place to myself. Decisions....decisions.....

Anyways, I think that is all the mad wanderings of my mind on a lazy Tuesday afternoon in the office.

Birthdays and Anniversary

Last week I went to Toronto to celebrate my friend Stephi's great Aunt Flora's 100th birthday. Aunty Flora is the matriarch of this incredible family and helped raise several generations of children. Stephi's family is huge and there are an abundance of Aunts, Uncles, cousins, brothers, sisters, second cousins, half brothers and half sisters. I was once again overwhelmed by the sheer number of family, although a bit less overwhelmed this time around because I had met a lot of them last summer for Stephi's wedding. Once again, I was made to feel very welcomed and one of the family. I have been adopted into their family and feel truly loved by them. Imagine meeting about 140 people and every time being introduced as "my daughter". It was lovely.

This weekend is my 2 year Anniversary being home from Japan. I am glad that I am home, although I have pangs of missing my life there and sometimes wish I could be in two places at once. However, I think that I have settled back in to reality and am enjoying Vancouver.

On other news, I am continuing with pottery and have managed to make some more lopsided mugs and bowls. I call it "Wabi Sabi", the Japanese art of imperfection. I still really like it and have been challenged by my friend Barney to make a fruit bowl. I tried to do it last week, but darn my small hands and my inability to bring the clay up to centre it. I am determined that I am going to get it done.

long time

It has been a long time since I have posted anything on this. It was definitely not one of my priorities over the last few months. However, I was reminded by my friend Stephi to update it recently. So, lots has been happening over the last 2 months. I went to the Maroon 5 concert, the Barenaked ladies concert, the Sarah Mclachlan concert, went to see Miss Saigon and also went paragliding. Hmmm...I think that is it though.

The concerts were very cool, I really enjoyed all of them but I must admit that the Sarah one was the best. She is such a gifted musician and you become lost in her music. I sat there mesmorized and at one point had tears in my eyes. She has this ability to convey so much in a simple song.

Miss Saigon was incredible, I knew the story but did not really appreciate it until I actually saw it. There was a audible gasp from me at the end. It was touching and once again made me teary. Yes that seems like a theme for me. I can only imagine how it was like, my parents actually lived through this part of the story and it made me realize just how lucky I am.

Paragliding on the other hand did not make me cry like that but shout and scream in excitement. Paragliding was awesome. I cannot believe how incredibly high up you get to go and how far you can see. I was allowed to steer and it was very very cool. That is until we landed with some cows who were very curious about what I looked like. We jumped out near Agassiz near Chilliwack where I grew up. I miss the "wack" and I was happy I was able to see it.

It has been an incredibly busy few months with me with work and trying to live a very full social life and enjoying the summer in Vancouver. It seems that I am trying to jam pack everything in there before the weather turns wet.

Anyways, I am sure that I have done a ton of other things that I cannot even remember doing.

Ghost....

I have been taking pottery lessons and I absolutely love it. There is something rewarding about transforming a lump of clay into something that is functional. I must admit somedays it is really frustrating to throw a piece on the wheel and get it so that it is not lopsided. However, it is also very therapeutic to work with your hands. Sometimes, I am amazed at how a simple idea can turn out to be this great piece. It has only been a month or so but I am really loving it and could see myself doing this for a long term.

I have always wanted to do this and never really got to doing but am so glad that my friend signed me up.

I will keep you guys posted on the going ons in my pottery world.

So it has been more than a months since I have written.......

A lot has happened in that month. I made a final decision about gradschool. I decided that I am going to defer my admission and go back to school fall of 2006 instead of next fall. My heart just was not excited about it. I think it is the right thing to do. That along with a new possibility at work of taking on some other responsibilities and moving beyond what I am currently doing. Keep your fingers crossed for me.

On a personal note, it has been a bit of an emotional roller coaster for me. There was some excitement about someone that came back into my life, but in the end my heart was too fragile to deal with it. It seems that I too easily throw my heart out there and expect everyone to accept and to feel the same way about me as I do with them, but that is not always the case. My friend calls it passion but sometimes I think it is stupidity and recklessness. Not everyone is like me.

My uncle passed away 2 weeks ago and it is still very tough for me. We were close and I always felt a connection with him. From the day I was born he has always looked out for me and loved me. He was ill for a while but I was not really aware of it. He died at the age of 66 which I think is way to young. It was especially tough cause it was around the same time that my grandmother passed away 4 years ago, it seems like this is deja vu all over again, with some of the same type of stuff happening again.

Sometimes, I feel like I am so wrapped up in my own life that I neglect to think about my family. They are incredibly important to me and I never ever let them know enough how much they mean to me.

The Verdict is in....



I heard from gradschool last week, the day after I got back from my short trip to San Fran. I was in vacation mode and was quite relaxed and then I check my email and I found out that I have been accepted to the program. I am not sure if I am happy about it or if I wish I was not accepted. It is a bit of a mixed feeling. Not sure what I am going to do at this point. I have been grappling with this decision for almost a week now. Wish there was some simple answer.........

Anyways, SF was fun and I had a great time. The weather was fabulous and I loved the feeling of the city. Definitely laid back and cultural.

What has been going on?


It seems that I am not a very regular blogger anymore....hmmm..not even sure if anyone out there reads my blogs anymore...if you are reading this then send me a message and I will keep posting.

So, what has been going on in this little head of mine and in this life of mine over the last couple of weeks...........well, there is the thing called work which seems to take up most of the week. The job itself has not gotten any better and I still have moments where I want to leave, but there has been a change in the dynamics with the staff and it is actually quite fun to be in the office when everyone is there. We have a comradery and we all go out for walks together. It is nice. I feel less isolated and more willing to deal with work.

I have applied to gradschool, one school and have had a subsequent interview. The interview was rather short and I was nervous, not sure how it went....not sure I care...which is the worse part. Do I really want to go to gradschool??? Hmm...it seems that I am not terribly excited about which says something to me, but at the same time I think it is time to go back to school and population and public health seems to be what I want to do. I should hear back in 3 weeks or so.

What else have I been up to....... the guitar practice is coming really slowly. I am definitely not as musical as I thought I could be. Come one, everyone picks up a guitar and they think, cool now I am a rock star. How wrong we are, my darn mushroom fingers and trying to move them. I am determined though.

I have been chilling on the weekends, trying to get some training in for the sun run, a 10 km run around Vancouver. We are doing as team building exercise. It should be good and I am pretty sure that I will super sore after I do it.

For the first time in a while, I am feeling truly like I am home again. Up until recently I never quite felt like I had settled back into Vancouver. I felt like an outside observer along for the ride. I am feeling a lot better now and am enjoying where I live and appreciative of how close the beach is.

On the family front, my little nephew is getting much bigger now. I had the opportunity to spend an entire day with him and I could not help but love him even more. He discovered cats for the first time and it was a neat experience to see the discovery reflected on his face. At first it was a bit of a scary look, our cats are pretty big and he was frightened of them. I took him over to the cat and took his hand and let him touch the fur, it was funny to see the reaction, it was this mix of confusion and delight of how soft the cats were. By the end of the day he was walking up to them and petting them himself, while he was doing this, he would laugh uncontrollably. When he left he went up to the cats to say good bye. It was absolutely so cute.
I still cannot get over how much I love my nephew Caleb, someone who cannot even talk yet and all he wants to do is eat and sleep.

The joys of being an aunt.

So....I think that is everything that I can think of to write about. I am going on a bit of a roadtrip tomorrow, we are driving down to San Fran. which should be fun. I am looking foward to it.

Sakura


The weather has been incredible in Vancouver lately. We have had lots of sunshine and warm weather, which means that the cherry blossoms (sakura) are in full bloom. The sakura always reminds me of spring in Japan and sitting underneath the blossoms and having a cherry blossom viewing party...hanami. It is a reason to drink, but I think a good reason to enjoy the beautiful flowers. I have been thinking a lot about Japan lately, it seems like it was such a long time ago that I was there. There are days when I think to myself that I was not there, it seemed like forever ago.s

Kaiya,

I have wanted to learn how to play the guitar for a while now, ever since I had the opportunity to hear my friend Barney played. I was inspired by how incredibly cool it sounded. So, 2 weeks ago Jason, King and I went to go check out guitars. I had the intention of only going to look around and not actually buying one. I was playing around with one, when I mentioned that I was having a hard time reaching around the neck. One of the salespersons heard me and mentioned that they had smaller guitars on the other wall, I immediately was drawn to this cool looking blue one and started playing around. I tried some other ones but just could not get over this one. According to my companions, it had a nice sound and was not too bad to play. I was definitely drawn to it and thought, what the heck if I am going to learn to play, than I should invest in something nice.

It took me a less than a day to come up with a name for him. At first I was not sure if he was a he or a she and thought hmmm...should he be a Naoki, a Lola or even Cal...but then it came to me.....Kaiya. Barney and I were having lunch and there was a little boy named Kai sitting beside us and was t0uched by his enthusiasm and gentleness. I thought that this would be the perfect name for my guitar. I have always like the name Kai, but I know someone named Kai and did not want to appear that I had named my guitar after him. I do like him but to name my guitar after him......I think not....so Kaiya was the next best choice.

I have been working hard at getting the fingering right and developping the callouses.....I am determined to go from A7 ot D.......

Post Party

Last Sat. we had a bit of a party for my birthday. A grand time was had by all I think.
We decided that we would create a drinking chart based on the "Char Ratio" of drinks, eg. for every one drink that I had someone had to have two drinks. I must admit it was probably not a very fair ratio but afterall it was my party.

Valiant efforts were made by all to keep up and I think that several people actually did. There was live music, cupcakes and lots of friends and new faces to meet and greet. My roommate, Jason even wrote a song about me. I was touched, that was the first time anyone has ever written anything about me...nice stuff, I mean.

The post party clean up was not too bad, thanks to the help of Barney and I was not too hung over. All in all it was a good way to usher in being 27.

Happy Chinese New Year!

A very happy year of the rooster to everyone out there. May this year bring you much prosperity and happiness.

Supposedly, as a Horse the year of the Rooster will bring me good luck and romance in my future. Yippie Skippie...romance...does that mean long term committment or just a random boy?...hmm....what does the Chinese fates have in store for me. We will see. It also suggested that this year will be a good year for a new career or for travel. Both equally inviting to me. Keep your fingers crossed, if I do not meet someone at least I will get to travel or start a new job. Perhaps I could somehow combine all three together.

I had dinner with my family last night. It is tradition that you have New Year's Eve dinner with all your family and everyone has to be there. You are supposed to end off the year together as a family and start the next one together. There are a bunch of other superstitions that my family practices but are not overly zealous about. Stuff about showering and brooms.

I just know it was nice to be fed good food and spend time with my family.

Birthday Boy

Saturday was my nephew, Caleb's first birthday. I cannot believe that he is already a year old. It seemed like it was only a few months ago that he was born. He is absolutely the cutest little guy in the whole wide world and I adore him. He is beginning to walk and recognizes faces. Of course his Aunty Char is one of his favourite faces. He likes to touch your face and will laugh and giggle if you smile at him. He is beginning to take steps on his own and when you tell him, "where is the light, he will look for it".

We had two parties for him, the first was dinner at the Richmond golf and country club for all his family, 60 of his family from both sides. Then on Sunday we had another party for him with all his little friends. It was fun, but I am not sure if he understood what all the hoopla was about. He did have fun though, he laughed and got lots of hugs and kisses.

I feel a special connection to him because we almost share the same birthday. Of course his is a few days earlier than mine but we have a connection nonetheless.

Speaking of birthdays, in a few minutes I will officially be 27, aiya. As a child I could never imagine ever reaching 27. It seemed like an impossibly high number and now I will be 27.

I had visions of myself at a different place at 27, perhaps at a different job, with someone and maybe even married. However, that is okay, I am content with my life, because it extends to beyond a job beyond boys.....that is what I have learnt in my ripe old age.

Progress of Gradschool applications

The gradschool applications are progressing slowly through the haze of what has become the fogginess of my mind....yes my mind is quite foggy, because it has been so long since it has been challenged to think about anything beyond the most simplest of things, including adding and subtracting and making photocopies.

Rest assured though, that I will get them done and have them submitted. No guarantees that I will get in but I am certain that I will have made a valiant effort.

I have a little more than a week to get it done, I am almost there. Reference letters are on the way, 1 pager essay done-needs to be proofread, CV is being composed as we speak. The only thing left to do is to give them money...yes bribe them...or more likely have them take my money to reject me.

Many Frosties

Last week it snowed in Vancouver. It was incredibly beautiful. I hate the cold but I love the snow. Seems strange because the two things are inherently linked, and how can I like one but not the other? Part of the dichotomy of me I guess.

Snow brings out the child in me. I cannot help but laugh and smile as I play in it. You cannot resist making a snowman or throwing some snowballs at your friends. At night while it was snowing I would go for walks and look up at the sky and marvel at all the millions of perfectly formed snowflakes falling to the grown, hoping that it would snow more so I could have a snow day and not have to go to work. I did have to go to work but the snow made it worthwhile I guess. I took a walk on my lunch break to Burnaby Mountain park and saw lots of people sliding down the hill, it was too bad I was in my work clothes or else I would have commandeered a slide and slid down.


The snow is slowly disappearing now. It has been super cold out lately and most of the snow has turned into trecherous ice patches that are determined to get me on my way to the bus in the morning, not so beautiful now but a reminder of what was once all the beautiful snow we had.

Happy New Year!!

It has been a few weeks since my last blog and I just wanted to wish everyone a great 2005, as they say in Japan akemashite omedetou gozaimasu.

Things are well at the new pad and I have gotten used to living away from the fam. again, and let me say it is lovely. I now have two cats which never cease to shed all over and fill my dark clothes with enough hair to construct a new cat.

Work is work, and I am plugging along. I am currently trying to keep all my options open. I am also attempting to complete my grad school application but it is not going as well as I thought it would be, perhaps there is a part of me that does not want to go to gradschool...not sure why exactly. Perhaps it is the fear of ending up with another degree and not being able to find a job again, or the fact that I will not have any income while I pursue this thing that I am not really sure about.

I am working on trying to come out of my transistion period and try to pursue something that I will be passionate about.

Season's Greetings

Another Christmas has come and gone. Time seems to go by so fast, it seems like it was only yesterday when I had just gotten home from Japan and was happy to be celebrating Christmas again with my family. I loved the travelling and seeing the world, but Christmas was always one of the hardest times for me because I was not with my family. I feel like I missed out on two years of family time.

Christmas was and always will be one of my favourite holidays. As a child it was because of the gifts and the excitement of the holidays but now that I am a little more grown up it is about spending time with my family. It is one of the several holidays that all my cousins, aunts, uncles, and extended family all come together. As much as my family drives me nuts but underneath of it all, I love spending time with them....keeping in mind that I can only put up with 24 hours at the most.

This year was not different, we had Christmas at my sister, Christine's house. We had it on Boxing day due to the in-law scheduling with my sister's families. This year was particulary good because it was my nephew's first Christmas. It was quite exciting for everyone else but him. I think he enjoyed being picked up by everyone more than the presents.

I hope that everyone had a fabulous Christmasx and that it was filled with much joy and happines.

Moving sucks...

Finally, we have settled in to our new place. Moving activities actually ended up taking two days and it was a bit stressful, who knew I had so much stuff. I thought that after I got back from Japan that most of my stuff would be not needed, but low and behold I had more stuff stored away from my uni days. Crazy, loads and loads of rubbermaid containers of books and course materials.

Anyways, it took longer than the several hours that I had anticipated to unpack and settle in. I was not pleased that it took so long. Work was also super busy and my roommate was away in Dallas so that left about an hour at the end of the work day to come home before bed to unpack.

Fortunately, with a little alcohol to help the cleaning I was able to clean everything up for the party that through precisely a week after moving in.
The party was fun, we had loads of alcohol and live music. Surprisingly, we crammed a lot of people into our small place.

The awesome thing was that on Sunday I went to my sisters to make cookies and when I got back, the place was cleaned. Almost by magic it was great.

So that in a nutshell has been the last two weeks of life in my new hood.

BRRRRR....Cold....

Last Friday it snowed up at SFU. SFU is about 600 feet above sea level and it was raining down in Vancouver but snowing great big wet clumps of wet snow. It seems that Christmas is upon us and in 5 short weeks it will be here.

Christmas has and will always be my favourite time of year. It is not about the presents and gifts but because my family spends the day together. When I mean family, it is all my aunts, uncles, and cousins and it is a big dinner and fun and games.

Sayonara to the Ghetto hello to cute boys...

As some of you are aware, over the last 5 months I have been half-heartedly looking for the perfect place to live, sans parents away from what I call the ghetto. It is not really a ghetto, quite a nice neighborhood but not for me. Initially, I was adamant about living on my own, my Japan experience told me that I liked it but after looking at several places and the rent that accompanied it I decided that I could not afford to live on my own and thus found a roommate. He was initially a friend of a friend, and at that time a brother in law of another friend, and has now become my friend and I am delighted to say, my new roommate.

I am ecstatic to report that I found a place to live and we will be moving in there Dec. 1st. It is located in Kitsilano, the young hip, trendy part of town, cause we all know that epitimizes who I am. It is located at 6th and Stephens in an old heritage house with stained glass windows a deck and a big backyard. I am very excited about all of this and looking forward to having my own space again. Of course according to the blog below the place for me to meet cute boys and such.

As always hotel Charlene is once again open for business and y'all are always invited to come over and visit

Where you lives dictates your potential to meet boys....

Read the article below, even more reason for me to move away from my affectionate ghetto into the elusive Kits area......

There are research companies who claim they can predict with great accuracy what kind of peanut butter you eat, the type of car you drive, how often you mow your lawn and even your underwear preference just by looking at your address. How? According to Simon Simek, a Columbia University Lecturer and President of Simek/Gomes a strategic marketing consulting firm, "people with similar interests tend to cluster together geographically." In other words, people who are like you do things like you do, buy the things that you buy and live in places that are similar to where you live. It makes sense, doesn't it? Think about your city. Don't certain neighborhoods denote their residents' personalities or lifestyles? Young and hip, broke but cool, just broke, family-oriented, or retiree haven? Simek says, "The kinds of choices people make on how they live their lives, how they spend weekends, what they like to eat, and what they like to do will dictate where they live." He claims that where we live is a choice we make based in our psychographics - sort of a personality soup combining our lifestyle, aspirations, social background, personality, education and experiences. It stands to reason then, that if you want to meet someone who has similar interests and values, who enjoys doing the things you enjoy doing, the first place you should look is where you live. Simek adds, "people with similar psychographics by nature are attracted to the same types of areas or neighborhoods." What's more, is that once a neighborhood starts getting a certain reputation (artsy, highbrow, trendy) even more people of that particular group will be attracted. According to Simek, "there's a comfort level established with that - you want to be around people who are similar to yourself." So, although you may be searching high and low for the guy or girl of your dreams, you might want to at least start your search in your own back yard. I'm a strong believer in looking for love close to home - I met my own sweetie at a restaurant right next door to my apartment. There are other advantages to dating people from your own neighborhood. In big cities like LA and New York, it makes sense to stick to your own turf, otherwise you'll end up spending half the night stuck in a cab or worse, in bumper-to-bumper on the freeway. Not having any luck in your neighborhood? Take a look at where you live. If you're not happy with your current digs, Simek suggests that you start searching for dates in areas where you wish you could live. That way, you'll be meeting people with similar aspirations. In fact, the next time you're searching for cuties on Lavalife, try searching by geography (postal code) rather than your usual criteria, whatever that may be (height, weight, income, love of small animals.) You might just find that what you're looking for is a lot closer than you think. Hey, it's worth a try, right? If nothing else, at least you can start your new romance knowing the two of you probably have the same taste in peanut butter.

Lisa Daily is the author of Stop Getting Dumped!

New Running Shoes

I know it seems silly to write about shoes, but alas I love shoes. As evidence by the number and diversity of shoes I own. Shoes, more shoes some sandals thrown in there for good measure.
I bought new Asics Gel 1090 running shoes over the weekend, my new balance were just not cutting it anymore. My visits to the gym have been sporadic at best this fall but I am hoping that cause I bought new shoes then that would be incentive for me to go more. Let me say that I tried out my shoes yesterday on the treadmill and they were lovely. My running was not so lovely but the shoes were great. I have a bit of knee pain and tight shins but I can safely say that it would have been much worst had I not had the new shoes. Let's face it, my body is falling apart and I welcome the day where I could have bionic knees and other various bionic parts. Super hearing, Super eyesight....being able to fly....

P.S. I forgot to extol the virtues of my new boots too, they are "very Char" as my friend put it.

Fall News...

Fall is definately upon us here in Vancouver, it has been raining for the last 2 weeks off and on. When I groggily wake up and crawl out of bed it is still dark out. Then when I do make it up to work after fighting for a seat on the bus with all these fresh faced doe eyed first years, who are looking a bit haggard this week (mid-terms), I look out of my window to see fog and rain. Welcome to Simon Fraser University, home of concrete and rain. Luckily, today is a sunny day and it has almost made me forget about the previous weeks rain, just as the right moment before I go mental from the greyness of it all.

Lately I have taken up knitting again. My friend wanted to learn how to knit so I taught her what little I know and now we have created a Wed. get together called "stitch and bitch". I am in the process of making socks and will probably start on some toques (hats) for my nephew soon. He has outgrown the one I made for him last winter. Let me know if you need a scarf or a new toque, it will keep my busy on the cold winter nights in Vancouver.

I know I appear to be an old lady with my knitting and gossiping but alas, it is a hobby and keeps me out of trouble.

Visit to the Bay...

Today my friend Muryn and I wanted to get some yarn and we decided that we would pick some up at Zellars (Walmart, Target, like discount department store). While I was there I decided that I would stop at the Bay, where I used to work. Things have changed since I have worked there about a year ago. They now have to wear uniforms and the display cases are now all new. I stopped by to say hi to Isabel and bumped into my old manager. Strange...but glad that I am no longer working there. As much as I complain about SFU, I am so glad that I am no longer selling my soul to the devil.

The way I remember it....

Rain and more Rain...several weeks ago, the view from my window at my desk was of blue sky and trees with red and yellow leaves, now all I see is grey and fog. Welcome to fall, winter, and spring at SFU. Because we are up on a mountain, it gets foggy up here and you can barely see beyond the fog. It all brings back memories of my undergrad.

Between the greyness and the yellow glow from the flourescent lights above me, I am feeling like the happiness and cheeriness that I was bathed in only a few weeks ago has all but vanished. Oh how I long for the beaches of Australia. Which makes me think about taking my Christmas vacation there again....which goes against my rule of thumb only allowing me to visit one country once, until I have seen all the ones that I want to.

Anyways, hoping where ever you are at is warmer and brighter than here.

We have had an Indian Summer...

For the last two weeks, I have worn my trusted Birks and flip flops out and about. It is so nice to have the sun on your feeties, after they have been stuck in shoes and socks for almost a month straight. The weather has been really nice here lately and it makes me feel like singing when I skip down the street. The weather has been fantastic in Vancouver, crisp sunny fall days and I can see the red leaves outside of my window at work. It is nice to be able to look outside and see sunshine and not the cold dreary fog and greyness of SFU.

Yet, still I am counting down the minutes until the end of the day and I get to go home.

Waiting for the Minutes to Pass.....

It is a beautiful crisp fall Friday afternoon, here on the hill. I am literally counting down the minutes before my day ends and I get to go home to unplug from the rigors of my job. The beautiful day outside of my window combined with the red leaves of the trees, is beckoning me to be outside and away from my computer. I just cannot concentrate on the work I am suppose to be doing and thus, thought that I would chip away at some time by writing in my blog, something I have not done in a few weeks now.

It has been an interesting few weeks here, the job satisfaction seems to have plateaued, or perhaps more accurately has flatlined. I am working on trying to do more things that challenge me and keep me stimulated. Some days it is easier than other days.

Nothing too new or exciting in my life. I have not found a place yet. I am after an "ideal" place for me to call my own and so far I have not come across anything that I could call home. Perhaps I am being too picky, but I also feel like I have a right to be picky about where I live. Keep your fingers crossed for me...

I am also plotting my next adventure. Europe and Cuba are calling. New Years in London or in Havana? The only problem is that with the previous month's hurricane in Cuba, I am not all that sure that Cuba will be that great to go to. London may be a better place, but is London wet in the winter time? I am open to suggestions of countries/cities to go visit for Christmas.

I need to start planning now afterall there are only about 3 months before winter break.

Back to School...

The one thing about working in an educational institute is that when school starts up in Sept. the entire campus is filled with wide eyed young and optimistic 17 and 18 year olds, not yet jaded by the realities of papers, unending reading, and exams, not to mention how useless their 4 year degree is the real world. Perhaps that is my jaded bias....

I have been stopped a number of times by some lost student looking for some building on campus. Lucky for them, my tenure as a tour guide for SFU has well prepared me to answer their queries and I can confidently tell them where the Maggie Benston Centre is and if they should ask the history of it. I have tried to be as helpful as I can, remembering what it was like to be overwhelmed in the first week of school trying out to figure out the maze of the AQ. The only real complaint with the start of the school year is that the bus is always jammed packed with people and I cannot get a seat, however it that is made up for with them once again openning up the cafeterias so I can buy outrageously expensive food on those days where I have woken up too late to make my lunch. Hooray for institutionalized fare...

Rain and the Bus

On Wed. I was on my way to work and had just stepped out of the skytrain station (skytrain is like the subway but above ground) and was on my way to the bus stop, when I see the bus at the corner. I pick up the pace so I can get on this one and do not have to wait in the rain for the next one, only to slip on the curve, land with a resounding thud on my ass, twist my ankle, and bruise my fragile ego. The worst part was that I was wearing a skirt too. I sat there stunned for a moment and gathered what little pride I had and proceeded to hobble up onto the bus. I was so embarrassed and the bus driver kept asking me if I was ok. With my swollen ankle and wet skirt, I manage to feebily reply that I was ok, only to feel completely humiliated on the inside.

That was the start of my day. The day at work was not much better...the dragon lady strikes again. Luckily the saving grace was that my nephew came over, when I got home from work. He is still as cute as ever, a little bit of a munchkin and roly poly. I absolutely adore him to pieces.

Happy Anniversary

I realized today that this weekend was my one year anniversary of arriving home from Japan. I came home a year ago on Aug. 20th amid optomistic and perhaps too idealistic hopes. This year has indeed gone by fast, suprisingly fast considering how at some points it was quite a struggle even to get up in the morning without pangs of feeling like "what the heck am I doing here?". It has been a retrospective year filled with struggles and a bit of self discovery.

My last year in Vancouver has been interesting, I thought that things would be the way I had left them when I went to Japan, but it definately was not. I have said this before, life in Japan is like living in a bubble and when the bubble bursts you think that things outside of it are as you remember it to be. Nope! Wrong.....wrong...wrong....I am far too idealistic for my own good. In fact, almost everything has changed around me, and about me. It has been an eye openner here. I think that at this point I am still learing about all these changes and learning how to deal with it.

I figure that once I learn to deal with everything I will have reached an enlightened state. Life is complex, if you have not figured it out. That much I know for sure, (as well as learning about selling my soul to the retail commercialism called the Bay and learning a bit about real estate). Somedays I am not ready to deal with the complexities of it and would just rather stay in bed. Then there are those days where I am optimistic and hopeful that I will figure it out and eventually become a grown up .....hopefully there are more of those days than the stay in bed days.....

Even with all the difficulties it is good to be home.....

Symphony in the Park

I had been looking forward to this. I heard from my sister that the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra was going to have a symphony in the park. I was quite excited, the last time I went was just before I left for Japan and I had my going away party there with all my friends. It was a nice time and fond memories. I felt loved surrounded by my friends. This time I contacted some of my friends to go as well. I had been looking forward to it all day and was very antsy sitting at work. I was even snuck out early cause I just could not stand to be in my office for any longer. However, just before I left I checked on the internet to see what time it was, thank goodness that I did, cause it was in Deer Lake Park instead of Stanley Park (miles away) which I had thought. We would have driven out all that way for nothing.

So with our subway sandwiches in hand, Carolyn, Jake, Mike, Adam and I, we pulled up some lush green grass to sit and listen to the symphony. It was quite beautiful and nice to be listening to such incredible music surrounded by nature. It gave you that warm fuzzy feeling. The only drawback was the bugs and the cold. We remedied that by leaving a little bit early to miss the crowds and of course had some Tim Hortons to warm us up before watching some senseless violence namely Kill Bill 2. I would say it was a quite enjoyable evening.

More on the Quarterlife Crisis

They call it the "Quarter-life Crisis." It is when you
stop going along with the crowd and start realizing
that there are many things about yourself that you
didn't know and may not like. You start feeling
insecure and wonder where you will be in a year or
two, but then get scared because you barely know where
you are now.

You start realizing that people are selfish and that,
maybe, those friends that you thought you were so
close to aren't exactly the greatest people you have
ever met, and the people you have lost touch with are
some of the most important ones. What you don't
recognize is that they are realizing that too, and
aren't really cold, catty, mean or insincere, but that
they are as confused as you.

You look at your job... and it is not even close to
what you thought you would be doing, or maybe you are
looking for a job and realizing that you are going to
have to start at the bottom and that scares you.

Your opinions have gotten stronger. You see what
others are doing and find yourself judging more than
usual because suddenly you realize that you have
certain boundaries in your life and are constantly
adding things to your list of what is acceptable and
what isn't. One minute, you are insecure and then the
next, secure. You laugh and cry with the greatest
force of your life. You feel alone and scared and
confused. Suddenly, change is the enemy and you try
and cling on to the past with dear life, but soon
realize that the past is drifting further and further
away, and there is nothing to do but stay where you
are or move forward.

You get your heart broken and wonder how someone you
loved could do such damage to you. Or you lie in bed
and wonder why you can't meet anyone decent enough
that you want to get to know better. Or maybe you love
someone but love someone else too and cannot figure out
why you are doing this because you know that you aren't
a bad person. One night stands and random hook ups start
to look cheap. Getting wasted and acting like an idiot
starts to look pathetic.

You go through the same emotions and questions over
and over, and talk with your friends about the same
topics because you cannot seem to make a decision. You
worry about loans, money, the future and making a life
for yourself... and while winning the race would be
great, right now you'd just like to be a contender!

What you may not realize is that everyone reading this
relates to it. We are in our best of times and our worst
of times, trying as hard as we can to figure this whole
thing out.

Wanted

Wanted small 1-bedroom suite for a single working female. Responsible and clean, not too much of a partier. However, not opposed to having groups of friends over for a few drinks and movies. Must be open to allowing friends come stay the night at "hotel Charlene"

I am clean not neccessarily a neat freak but not a pig either. Preferable not to share a bathroom with some random strangers who apparently has not cleaned it in a while.

Location is negotiable, as long as it is away from SFU Burnaby campus so I can get as far away from that place when I leave work as possible.

Not willing to pay an arm and leg for rent, something resonable would be nice. Trying to save money to go back to school next fall so the lower the rent the better, as long as it is not a festering dark dodgy apartment surrounded by shifty people so when I come home at night I do not fear for my life.

(I think this ad sums up some of the difficulties I have been having in trying to find a place)

Changes are everywhere

I decided to change the look of my blog, you know me and my short attention span. I think that this change is a good one. Although, I have a short attention span I am not all that fond of change in real life. Change is inevitable and there is nothing I can do about it, but at the same time I am resistant to it. I know that change equals growth and maturity and is usually viewed in a positive manner by most people, but in my juvenile way I am not always welcome to change. In some aspects of my life I think change is important but in other aspects, usually something as I view that will change to a negative manner than I want to run from it. Is this normal, do any of you feel that way?

Working girl....

I have been diligently getting up early in the morning and dragging my sorry sleepy ass onto the sky train and making it up the mountain to get myself into work before 9:00 am each morning. I have been consistently getting there early, not quite bright eyed and bushy tailed, but as eager as I can muster to be at 8:30 am, to be the bestest Executive Assistant I can be. I must admit though, that for the most part as keen as I appear to seem I am bored out of my mind. I am just not sure how I can spend 8 hours planning and scheduling someone else's life.

I am not going to complain at all about this job. There have been issues but true to my word I am thankful that there is some consistency to my life and I am doing something.

Last weekend was a long weekend in BC, coincidentally called "BC Day". I went to Seattle to visit my friend Tara who lived in Japan with me. It was nice to see her and to hang out with her before she headed back home to Minnesota. We had a chance to catch up and to reminisce about Japan. On Sunday morning we went kayaking on Lake Union. It was a spectacular day and the water was warm. We paddled around for about an hour or so and then had some lunch at this great Thai restaurant. After that we went to Discovery Park and did a short little hike down to the beach. The water was this beautiful inviting blue but in actuality freezing cold. The mighty Pacific as you would guess is not that warm. It was a nice relaxing weekend with her and then to cap it off I went shopping and bought some new shoes. Nothing like a little bit of retail therapy to feed the soul.

It was a wonderful weekend. I have been visiting all my JET friends and crashing on their couches..you never know, I just might call you up one day and say that I am coming out to your neck of the woods to sleep on your couch......be warned..

Other than work consuming the most of my day, everything else seems to be fine. I have not really made much of an effort in the apartment hunt. I am still trying to decide the exact area I want to live in and how much I can afford to pay in rent. There is a

A hunting we will go.........

I have been halfheartedly looking for a place to live. After a long day of staring at a computer all day the last thing I want to do when I get home is go on the internet and do more blank staring at the computer screen. I guess my hunt has been rather unsuccessful, seeing how I have not been really looking.

The few places I have come across have been out of my price range. However, in the Japanese way I will gambatte.

Back to Life...Back to reality

Well, I have been home for almost two weeks now...My brain however is still on vacation mode.  It wants to sleep in and not think about work, I have a hard time kick starting it in the morning.

It seems that each time I go to Toronto it gets harder and harder to leave.  With my two dozen Krispy Kreme donuts in hand, I begrudgingly walked into the airport in Toronto.  I am not sure if I got strange looks cause of the number of donuts or because I was all teary eyed and sniffly.   I felt so sad about leaving that when I went through the metal detector and it beeped, and they asked me to remove my birkenstocks, I nearly burst into tears.  It was a sorry sight to see me walking through the metal detector bare foot sniffling.   

Previously I was complaining about the fact that I was unemployed and was feeling like I was not doing anything.  Well, I am now a functioning member of society, contributing to the work force.  Albeit in a less than self-desired level.  I am not going to complain though.  I am determined to do the bestest job I can and be the bestest person I can be. 
s
It is strange to be going back up to university everyday.  I spent the better part of 4 years at that place and once I graduated I never thought that I would be back there so soon.  It is some ways it is a little unsettling.  Probably attributed to the pavlovian training we endured as undergrads.  Just walking past the large lecture halls of first year Physics and Chemistry makes me cringe with fear.  I can remember the stress of sitting inside that cold fluorescent lit hall trying desperately to write as much information down as possible before my brain released all the information. 

Some days it still feels like I am a student again, when I walk into the student run coffee shop and buy my breakfast and think to myself," man this food is overpriced".   I am surrounded by these kids who are untainted by the realities of life and the lack of possibilities with just only having a silly bachelors degree.  ;)
Boy do I sound like a jaded crusty bitter old woman at the ripe old age of 26...aiya, really I am 26....

Seriously, I am happy to be employed and with that financial freedom and other travel opportunities.  I am itching to do another trip again.    There  is so much more of the world I have yet to see, I have only seen the smallest part of it.

Wedded Bliss

I finally made it to Toronto after traveling via bus, car, and train across upper New York state. I arrived in Toronto late Thurs night sitting on my butt for 5 long hours from Buffalo. I must say that I enjoyed spending time with my friend Marie and meeting her family and friends.

I arrived in Toronto to a house full of family and friends, which I would later discover to be the first of a weekend long of partying for the wedding. I was promptly introduced to everyone and welcomed into the family like their long lost sister. It was nice to be so quickly and readily accepted to be a part of the family.

We spent Friday prepping for a party for more family due to be arriving for the wedding. When I casually asked how many people were coming, I was expecting 50 at the most, but to my shock, I was told "only about 120" or so...Just a small family get together. This was only the brides family too...Uncles, aunts, cousins, second cousins, half brothers and half sisters.....I could not keep everyone straight, but was introduced to everyone among hugs and kisses.
It was a big party, with lots of food and good times. They hired African drummers to provide the music for the dancing. Little did I know that this would African dancing, let's say that it puts the lambda to shame, I have not seen so much hip gyrations and grinding in so many people at the same time. I was happy to clap along, until someone grabbed me and pulled me into the circle. I was desperately grabbing at anything to prevent humiliating myself. Alas it was futile and I had to accept my fate, so with a deep breath and a quick silent prayer, I attempted to shake my booty like there was no tomorrow. Lets say it was not pretty and not even that appealing but for the sake of the party I was willing to sacrifice my pride.

The wedding went beautifully and everyone had a lot of fun. I pulled out the good ol' dress and the healy things they call shoes, put on some make-up with my newly manicured hands, and headed out in a rolls Royce. The rolls was arriving too late for the bride to go to the ceremony so I was designated bride stand in and got to ride in the rolls to the ceremony, along with 3 cousins.

Stephi and Ken, looked so much in love and the ceremony was fun and light hearted. Everyone seemed to enjoy the wedding very much. There was a lot of personal touches, like hand made cards, wine, and personalized CD's. Their family loves to party and have a good time. Everyone was on the dance floor having a ball. Even after my previous nights humiliation, I figured that I would dance too. That of course, was helped along by some liquid courage. We danced so much that at one point we all took off our shoes and hiked up our dresses and put our sore feet in the fountain. It was an interesting sight to see a bride with her shoes off and her wedding dress hiked up with her feet in the fountain. It was so much fun to let loose and enjoy it. This has probably been one of the most enjoyable weddings I have been to.

The family has been absolutely welcoming and lovely. I was introduced as their adoptive sister/daughter and welcomed as one of their own. Of course the father having 11 siblings and the mother having 9 siblings, I have picked up a lot more uncles, aunts, and cousins, not to mention second cousins. The only problem with getting to know all of this family, they inevitably decide that they know of someone that they can set me up with to rightly marry into the family.

I am having a wonderful time in Toronto, it is nice to surrounded by such kind warm hearted people, who so quickly and unequivocally accept you as one of their own.

Mad Wanderings

I spent a week in the city wandering around from one tourist attraction to another. Armed with my trusty subway map and my credit card, I managed to have a good time in the big apple. I figured out the complex puzzle of the subway system without getting lost too much, but mostly I just walked around the city. It was a great way to get a feel for it and to be able to see a lot more of it, the only down side is that with walking 40 blocks a day your feet inevitably rebel against all the walking and you develop blisters. My feet definately had enough of my walking and decided that it would no longer fit into my sandals. My trusted Tevas which have accompanied me on many of my trips were one of the worst shoes to wear.

I probably hit most of the famous must see sites in the city. However, I think that my favourite ones would have to be the empire state building and the Guggenheim. I went to both the Metropolitan and Guggenheim museums of Art. Each had their own charm, but I have to admit that I was partial to the Guggenheim, because of its beautiful architecture and design.

No trip to the city would be complete without doing some shopping, unfortunately due to my limited funds and the limit of my credit card, I could not shop as much as I wanted to. There is a plethora of shops that I could have spent a fortune on but alas the life of a poor twenty something.

After lugging my big ole bag onto the greyhound bus, and sustaining an injury in the process, I managed to avoid talking to some dodgy Chinese men on the bus, to arrive safe and sound in Albany New York to stay with my friend Marie. I am having a great time with her and spending time catching up. I am a serial friend floor crasher. Heck, what are friends for....

I (Heart) NY

So, finally after what seemed like an endless bus ride filled with fitful sleep and a very uncomfortable seat, I made it to NY city from Toronto. It was one of the worst bus rides I have ever experienced. I was not a happy camper at the end of it.

I have been in the city for several days now and am slowly checking off my to do and to see list. Most importantly I was able to spend some time with some friends of mine that I have not seen in a while. My friend PAK, (there, satisfied I mentioned your name) came up from Boston to see me. He was a fellow JET and one of the first people I met in Japan. As well as Elita, she and I came up from TO together.

Our first day we spent wandering around getting a feel for the city...umm...getting a feel for the shopping more accurately. There is some great shopping to be done here. Then Pak and I ventured to Little Italy for dinner. It was a great experience. It was a street that was blocked off and full of open air restaurants. It is if I were actually in Italy, well at least how I imagine Italy to be.

Day two started off in time square. We lined up for tix to a broadway show. Unfortunately, Pak could not come back with us because he had to take the dodgy Chinatown bus back to Boston. He missed out, we saw RENT. We were pretty close to the front so we had great seats. It was a really neat experience. We did some more wandering through the city. Elita and her friend Connie, had to catch their bus and train respectively back to Toronto. So I was left to wander around by myself.

I have a NY moment to share, I went to Rockefeller Centre and sat down on this round bench to eat a sandwich. I have just taken out my sandwich, when a police officer starts heading towards me. I make eye contact and smile, and he keeps walking towards me. I start to worry..uh oh...have I done something wrong, maybe I cannot eat here. Just as soon, as I start to become nervous. He approaches the guy next to me and says, "what are you doing here?, What's this? Why is it open? The man says, well officer I was going to go to the bathroom. The officer tells, him to put it away and zip it up and then takes out his baton. He tells him to leave this area and escorts him away from me. The officer then walks back to his post and starts whispering to the guy next to him. I swear, he is whispering about me and how naive this west coast girl is. I simply continue to eat my sandwich, swearing that I will be more conscious of who I sit next to from now on.

That probably has been my only real negative experience in NY and it was quickly remedied. I have done quite a bit of touristy things, like the Empire State building, lady liberty, and the UN. Besides the Jay walking, the constant honking traffic, and the pushy people, New York definitely has its charms.

Last English Class

Yesterday, I had my last volunteer English class. I have really enjoyed my weekly visits and lessons. It was a chance for me to stay connected to the Japanese community and to hang on to a bit of the JET life. I will miss it a lot. The classes were never really well planned...my fault, but nonethless really enjoyable for me. It was a combination of teaching English and a chance for me to practice what little Japanese I have left. They were a fun group of ladies.

It seems that this trip will mark the divide from my post-Japan floundering and the next step of finally participating in a grown up life. I am happy to take this step, but at the same time conscious of the challenge of it. Hopefully, when I get back from my trip, I will finally settle in and have a bit of direction in my life.

Friendships....

I am happy to announce that a few of my friends have finally moved back to Vancouver. I am excited to be in the same city as them. It has been too long since we last lived in the same part of the world. Hopefully, we will be up to our old mischief again.

Friendships is something that is hard to describe, it is just something that is there. I have always been blessed by some incredibly special people in my life whom. They have stood by me and encouraged me on some of my bluest days. It is nice to know that there are people out there rooting for you.

Some friendships have changed over the course of the last few years, some have become closer while others, we have drifted apart. I guess, that is a part of the way things work in life. I figure that it is about kharma, those people meant to be in your life will stay in your life, those not meant to be will not be....

Harry Potter

Last night, I went to see Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. It was definately my favourite Harry Potter movie by far. This one was more interesting and more as I had pictured the book in my mind. The story line was true to the book, while not being caught up in trying to have every detail of the book in the movie. It was scarier than the other ones but not as dark. If that makes sense. I definately recommend going to see it if you have not seen it yet.

Finally

After 8 long months, 2 less than stellar "jobs", unfathomable job applications and cover letters, and numerous thoughts of unworthiness and self pity, I finally found a job. I got a real job that pays real money and I do not have to sell my soul or sell anything. I will be working as an administrative assistant at Simon Fraser University, my alma mater. I will be working in the institite of Nutrition, Metabolism, and Diabetes with Dr. Diane Finegood. It should be a challenging position. It will be similar to my previous job at SFU before I left for Japan. It is a familiar environment and probably will remind me of my undergrad days. I just cannot get away from that place.

As well, I have decided about school and what direction to pursue. I want to do the MSc. in Public Health at SFU in 2005. I plan to do the stream relating to working with non-profit organizations. It is finally something I am excited about. Yippie!!

Life

It has been a while since I have updated my blog. It seems that I spend very little time on the computer now. It is a definite change for me. I remember the days in Japan where I would check my email several times a day, now I check it about once or twice a week. Strange isn't it. I guess it is because, email/internet is not the only link with the outside world for me now.

I have not really contacted anyone. Ever since my return home, I have been sort of a recluse, not entirely sure why I have been anti-social. I think that I am in a reflective mood, a bit self absorbed in my own inner chaos. That is not to say, that I do not think about you guys out there once in a while. I do miss everyone.

I have been reading quite a bit, from very deep and thought provoking books dealing with self-help and differences in cultural identity to total garbage fictional stories, which I can finish in a day. I have also been exercising my creative energy by doing some design work. I hope to have a website showcasing what I have been doing, up and running soon. Wish me good luck. I will keep everyone posted on the progress of that.

I have also been working. I got a job as a hostess for a real estate company. I definitely do not have to sell my soul in this position, like I did at the BAY. It is quite relaxing and I get a lot of reading done there, but sometimes I feel like I need to be challenged more. I have this brain, which I barely use and it most certainly is well on its way to turning into mush. The ideal job has still alluded me but the only thing I can do is to gambatte and keep on it. (gambatte is the Japanese term for persevere). I am sure that something will work out, be it sooner or later. Hopefully sooner than later though.

I guess, the only thing I can do is approach life with a great big smile and face it head on as best as I can. I am confident that good kharma will help me out.

Dalai Lama

Last weekend I had the opportunity to see the Dalai Lama give a talk on "Universal Responsibility". Ever since reading the "Art of Happiness", I have wanted to hear him speak, so when I heard he was coming to Vancouver I had to go to his talk.

Unbeknownst to me, Archbishop Desmond Tutu was also there and he introduced the Dalai Lama. You would think that these two great spiritual leaders from oposite ends of the religous spectrum, would be very serious and unapproachable. However, this is not the case, both are very charismatic and have this quirky sense of humour. I can now see why those two are best of friends. It is like sitting down with two of your grandfathers.

I think the message that the Dalai Lama presented was universal regardless of religion. The fate of humanity lies within each and everyone of us. Each of us has a responsibility to act compassionately towards our fellow man. With this ideology, many conflicts and wars can be avoided.

The Dalai Lama is serenity personified and he just fills you with that same sense of peace and calmness. He can pack a stadium like a rock star but yet hold his entire audience captive to the point where there is utter silence around you. It was a truly unique experience.


Now on a less spiritualy enlightening experience....

Random Man

On a different note, I had an encounter with another random man while driving the other day. I made the mistake of looking over to the car beside me and making eye contact. He motioned for me to roll down the window. We proceeded to have a little bit of a conversation while stopped at the light. Without getting into the details I could have had some Italian man's phone number and a coffee date.

It was a small reminder that even when you are not feeling your most attractive, something like this reminds you that you just might not be as ugly as you think.

Serious Thoughts

When I was little I would always fall asleep in the car during a long car trip. I remember all the times that I would pretend to be still asleep when we got home, so that my father could carry me to me room. As a child you believe that your father is the strongest and smartest person in the world. No matter how old you get , that idea is always in the back of your mind and you carry that with you always.

Well, I have been faced with confronting that notion of invinsibility. Several of my friends' dads are facing very serious forms of cancer/disease. All the sudden, at 26 my friends are dealing with their fathers becoming dependant on them and eventually not being there. My friends' dads have made me realize that I do not value time with my father, I often take him for granted. Over the last few years, I have noticed that my dad is no longer the same invinsible super hero that I had always pictured him to be in my minds eye. Although, I have known for a long time, I rarely talk about my father's degenerative eye disease. Still now, it seems weird to be writing about it on my something like this and still not comfortable with talking about it. With each passing day, my father becomes more human and more dependant on those around him. It is a tough idea to face that your father is no longer that same person, who carried you up to your room.

So, I guess this is just a small reminder to tell your dad that you love him...a bit cheesy perhaps, but tell that to my friends faced with potentially losing their dads.

Sandals Report

Due to the unseasonably warm weather we have been having in Vancouver, I have been able to release my poor feetsies from the confines of socks and shoes early this year. I love the feeling of being able to wiggle your toes and allow the fresh air to touch my gross feet after months of stuffing them in icky thick socks and shoes. This weekend we had a record high 26 degree Celsius- beautiful blue skies weather here. It was wonderful to feel the warm sun on your face and chase away the drab dreariness of the winter blues. It is amazing how a little bit of sunshine can lift your spirits and make the world seem so much brighter.

Quarterlife Crisis

It is sort of like the mid-life crisis but it happens when you are in your 20's and 30's. Defined as the time in your life from when you finish school until you figure out where you are headed in life. It can be confusion about a career, your love life, the decision to start a family, etc. It supposedly is very common but not talked about.

What are your thoughts on that? I have picked up a book on it and have been reading about it. I am curious to find out what you faithful bloggers out there think about this topic. For those of you who think you have a quarterlife crisis or those of you who think they have gone through their quarterlife crisis, I am interested in your opinions.

For those of you interested in the book, it is called "quaterlife crisis and is written by something Robbins.

Bringing Japan to Vancouver

It was just like I was in Takaoka again, surrounded by noisy 15 and 16 year old kids, giggling and excited about all the damage they could do shopping. It was great. On Monday, 18 of my former students had a 3 day stopover in Vancouver and I was invited to meet them.

I was looking forward to seeing them and catching up. I met them at Granville Island and joined their little tour group. I cannot believe that over 6 months have passed since I was last in Japan but it was like nothing had changed at all. I felt like I was one of them, in fact almost everywhere I went, everyone thought I was Japanese. It was fun to be immersed in it all over again.

On day two we went to Victoria and left at the ungodly hour of 7:30 to catch the 9:00 am ferry. I was super tired. However, it was fun to hang out with them all day and get to know some of the kids that I had not taught. They were a good group of kids and made me feel welcome.

Ohhh, my little kiddies....

Random Man...

I was waiting for the bus on Saturday morning, reading my "What should I do with my life book", when I look up to see a man staring at me. I make eye contact and smile, yes, I know I probably should not have done that, but he was wearing cute overalls and I cannot resist overalls. They remind me of kids.

Well, he proceeds to ask me what I am reading and I tell him about the book. He does not seem to get it and asks me, what kind of jobs are they doing? I try again to explain the premise of the book but again he does not seem to get it. He then asks me where I am going, I tell him I am going to work at Oakridge. He then starts talking about all the hockey games on that night and how it is all Canadian teams playing. He says that the Canucks did well the night before. I smile and ask him if he likes hockey, he mutters something and then starts walking off.

It has been a while since I have run into random men, so I guess it was about time. He was harmless and seemed nice. Plus it was on a busy street with lots of cars going by so if he tried something I could just run into the street for help. No worries.

Proud Aunty!!

I have just added some more photos of my nephew onto my online photo album. Just click on the link to the right. Enjoy.

Teaching English...

When I left Japan, I thought that I would never again teach English again. Heck, after 2 years of unruly highschool students anyone would feel the same way. Well, today I volunteered to teach a group of adult Japanese people conversational English. I actually really enjoyed it. It was fun and something I am totally comfortable with, it was like second nature. In fact, it reminded me of Japan and all the Eikaiwa lessons I did. Sugoku nasukashi!! I hope to continue doing it week after week.

What should I do with my life?

Recently I picked up a book called "What Should I do with my Life?" It is a collection of real life stories from people who found careers/jobs/a passion in life. I have started reading this book in the hopes that it will inspire me to get out there and do something. So far, I have read about a doctor who left her job to work on robotics and an advertising agent who became a hortoculturalist. Interesting changes those people took, hopefully like them something will spark the passion in me and I will find my calling in life. Wish me good luck.

On a more positive note, I have started doing Yoga and Pilates. I find that the Yoga is good for relaxation and dealing with some of the stress in my life. The pilates is good because it forces me to use those core muscles that I have taken for granted, all the slouching I did at my desk in Japan over the computer. It makes me feel good to be using all those muscles that I had to learn about but now have forgotten the names of.

Here is a picture of my new nephew

Meet Caleb.

I am very very happy to announce the arrival of Caleb Isaiah Wu. He weighed in at 7 lbs 9oz. I have to say that he is the most beautiful baby I have ever seen. Usually, when they are first born they are all wrinkly and red, not very attractive at all but he is simply perfect. I am not saying that cause he is my brand new nephew but in actuality in a totally unbiased opinion he is beautiful.

I sense our bond already, afterall we almost share the same birthday and when I picked him up today he was crying but soon after he stopped crying and fell asleep. I think we will get along well, I am going to be the bestest ever aunt in the whole wide world to him.

Happy Chinese New Year!!

Sorry, it was a little late but I have been preoccupied as of late and completely forgot to wish those faithful blogheads out there a very Happy New Year! Gung Hay Fat Choy! Wishing each and everyone health and prosperity over the upcoming year of the monkey.

Supposedly a good year for the horse folk out there.

I was a good Chinese New Year surrounded by my family eating traditional Chinese foods, a far cry from the lonely New Years I had last year in my cold apartment eating sushi.

Aunty Char!!

You know how it is, you are in the perfect REM sleep dreaming that you are on a white sand beach, sipping a margarita, enjoying the view of the ocean, and as far as the eye can see you are surrounded by nothing but coconut trees and your very tall, dark, handsome, and highly intelligent personal masseuse, then from out of nowhere you hear the phone ring. You groggily think, hey there are no phones on my beach, then you wake up and realize the phone is ringing.

I was woken up at the un-godly hour of 7:00 am this morning by my brother-in-law. It seems that he took my sister to the hospital because she was having contractions. So, for the whole day I have been patiently waiting and waiting for the stork to drop off my little niece of nephew, it has been 12 hours so far and nothing, nada...hope he/she comes soon. I cannot wait to be Aunty Char.

I find myself spending too much time watching TV. What is it about TV that sucks you in and then proceeds to zap your brain of all independant thought. I question whether I have any self control what-so-ever and how long it will take for my brain to turn to mush.

In my efforts to combat the slow decay of my brain I have tried to switch to the computer and read interesting things and the news as well as reading books. I will also try to get out and about and try to do some lessons or something other than sitting my butt down in front of the zombie machine.

Still looking for a job but no luck so far.....I have decided to redo my resume and see if that helps any. Keep your fingers crossed for me.

As for going back to school next year, still not 100% sure of what direction to head. Everything is up in the air still. Hope to come to some conclusions. If anyone out there has any suggestions of interesting careers then send them my way.

Happy New Year!! Full update of what is running through my head as of late.


Well, actually, Happy January 8th. I wish a 2004 filled with much joy, challenges, achievements, and above all laughter, for each and everyone of you.

I had a wonderful holiday, it was my first holidays back and it was good minus the working part. I was able to enjoy the sights and sounds of a "Canadian Christmas" and also learn how hellish it is for those poor people working retail. It was also wonderful to spend time with many of my friends whom I have not seen in a long time. They were home for the holidays and I was really happy I could spend time with them. I truly missed everyone and our crazy interactions.

As well, we had some snow in Vancouver. Which is a rarity. I was quite happy about that. The one thing I always liked about Japan was the snow we got. I love the way it makes you feel when it snows, like a big kid. I still get all excited about snow and want to rush out and play in it. I will never get too old to go out and build a snowman nor go sliding down the hill. It was funny cause we had a snow warning for Vancouver, oohh nooo, we were going to have 10 to 30 cm of snow overnight. "Tell everyone to stay at home if they can, power might be knocked out, yada yada yada" The whole city shuts down for a little snow, trust me I have friends in TO who get that on a regular basis and where I lived in Japan it snowed for an entire month.

I did have a chance to see some movies during the holidays. I tried to catch up on a bit of pop culture that I had missed during my tenure living in my bubble overseas. I watched quite a few movies, "the Last Samurai, Pirates of the Caribbean, X-men 2, Lord of the Rings Return of the King, American wedding, and Bowling for Columbine". Let me say that I would recommend the Last Samurai, LOTR, and Bowling for Columbine. The other ones kind of sucked, well let me say that Hugh Jackman makes a very hot wolverine.

I watched Bowling for Columbine twice and I really liked it. It was thought provoking and reminded me just how stupid we as humans can be and how careless we are with each others lives. Time to stop and think.

Finally, life is still moving along in a transitional kind of way, a little too slow paced for my liking. I am as always still searching for a job. I am a bit disheartened by the whole process and the sense of futility. I try my best and do what I can but sometimes it just does not seem like enough. I will persevere though. Life always has its way of working itself out. Until something better comes up, I am still working one day at the BAY, long story but the bottom line is that I love working with the people there.

If no job appears in the horizon in mid-Feb. I will take a little train trip to TO, Montreal, Ottawa and NY. I have some friends in that neck of the woods and thought that I would take some time to see them as well as see this country a bit. It should be fun and I am looking forward to it. The plan is contingent on the employment situation as well as the new addition to my family. I am going to be an aunt. Can you imagine, auntie Char...I am ecstatic. My eldest sister is pregnant and is expecting in Feb. Let me say a great time to be born.

I will fill everyone on the details when he or she arrives, although I have a gut feeling it will be a little boy.