Let me tell you how my vacations actually turned out. They were fast and slow, hot and cold, short and long... to summarize, they were kind of messed up. I left San Sebastian for Barcelona on a Friday to spend the weekend at Inga's house before flying out on Monday. My mom called on Saturday, however, to tell me that she'd been diagnosed with "follicular lymphoma" (can't tell you what it is really, I should really Wiki it sometime). Cancer always kind of puts a damper on things, so I ended up scratching the plan for Connecticut and going back to Yellowknife instead. Ev and I spent hours the next day changing all my plans - I still would go through Toronto on my way up to Yellowknife, and I'd bump back my return flight from JFK to give me more time up north. So I spent a few days in Toronto; Ev left for Connecticut on the 25th. I spent most of Christmas Day in a hotel in Mississauga, watching tv. I did battle the awfully cold wind and rain to get myself supper from Popeye's, which was the only restaurant around open; I had never eaten from there before, and I probably never will again.
Anyway, I shipped out bright and early on the 26th and stayed up north till the 6th of January. Not a whole lot to report: Reub was there for a bit; they got a Christmas tree just before I came but we never decorated it; my dog is cute; it was cold but pretty; we watched lots of Jeopardy. I went snowmobiling once with my dad and we drove alongside a dogsled. You don't realize how cool yet absurd those things look until you actually see one. I got a cavity filled. I managed to eat most of my gigantic slab of Arctic char at Bullock's (delicious, but for some reason you get a double portion size). There was nothing really happening in Mom's situation, since it was everyone's Christmas vacation. However, once I got back here she got word that her latest biopsy turned out clear, which means she will be doing four weeks of radiation on the affected area, rather than any chemotherapy. So that's great news.
Her and Dad were going to come to visit me here in February, but it looks like that trip will be postponed now. That is good news for the Fito & Fitipaldis concert that José Luis invited me to that week. (I think it's that week?) Whatever. The point is, I have a week off in February ("la Semana de nieve", "Snow Week", so nicknamed because everyone goes skiing). And I should be able to make a li'l trip down to the nether regions of Spain, otherwise known as Madrid/Ciudad Real.
I also have good news about my program at MIIS. Not only did I find out that I got in super fast, they also let me know only a short while later that they're giving me a $12,000 merit-based scholarship. The maximum they give out is $14,000, so that is pretty freaking awesome actually. Goooo me! :P Free money!!
As for my time in Toronto, it was really amazing. I have this weird love affair with that city... I'm not sure why I like it so much. But I managed to see a lot of great people and buy myself rain boots (sorely needed) and another pair of those Puma sneakers I love (just 'cause).
It was pretty cold, but I was so happy just to walk around the streets while Ev was at work. Yes, I also got to be with Ev again, which made me very happy indeed. I had a really good time with him, just eating out and walking around like we used to do.
That meant of course though that things were pretty shitty when I first got here. We agreed that we wouldn't speak for the remainder of my time here, so I had probably the longest week of my life this past week. Kudos to Molly and Aina for putting up with me and for their support. Aina even brought me out last night, so I was nice and hungover today to teach. You know... people here have the idea in their heads that I don't drink. I was like... what? Really? Wow, I was that much of a hermit last semester? For shame, Laura... for shame.
Ok, I can't figure out how to put pictures in the middle of my post, or I would put some up. And on that undramatic note, I sign off for now,
yours truly,
the Juicemeister.
4 comments:
First of all, thanks for your letter that I received before Christmas.
Happy 2010
Oh, man, I'm sorry about the change of plans for the holidays, but so glad your mom got some good news. I hope everything goes well and the radiation kicks cancers ass.
Congratulations on the scholarship! I need some of your luck!
To put pictures in your blogs, you need to upload them to flickr or another photo hosting site. Then, you take the HTML code for the picture, copy and paste it. In flickr, you can easily set up your blog in it and then there's a "blog it" button for each picture, but I think that's actually less convenient, because it uploads the picture and then you have to go back and write the blog.
thank you, daniela. why are you off facebook again? haha... gooooood luck for your acceptance!! :)
Hey Joosse!
I have (quite reluctantly!) started a blog just for Ty and I (so far) so that we can look back on our lives as we get posted all over Canada in the coming years of our marriage! Hahaha. Anyways, mine is blogspot too, and when I compose a posting there is a little picture icon just above the composition window. You can click that to add in a picture, and then you just cut the little html crap and move it to where you want it in the body of the text, and there it shall be once you post. I am the queen of run-on sentences!
Also, I'm sorry about your mama and am very glad that she's getting treatment and won't need chemo. I'm thinking of you my friend! And I'm not even slightly surprised that you got such a sweet scholarship- I'm actually surprised they didn't just give you the whole school. This isn't to say that they won't, eventually. :P
Looooooooooove you!
Laur
aw thanks laur!! i'll have to find your blog...
Post a Comment