New MacBook

I think the purchase of my new MacBook is summed up nicely in this photo taken with iSight:



Jealous? I think so.

The day after the worst week ever.

Now that I've found a pocket of time, I will briefly review what I've had to do this past week:

- Write two mid-terms for accelerated summer school courses

- MOVE! (No small feat)

- Work at my Legislative job
- Work at my Statistics Canada job
- And by no means an awful obligation, but Edd's parents arrived this week for their Canadian holiday as well...

Now, I'm the first to admit that I generally enjoy having a full schedule, though it certainly does have its drawbacks. I often joke that I may be a workaholic in training, but deep down I love the bragging rights working nearly full-time and attending school full-time affords me. But this week was simply overkill. Moving is in itself, a huge job. Now, factor in two mid-terms on the day before and the day after moving day (which of course, as anyone whose ever moved knows, turns into 'moving week'), on top of juggling my work situation... Oh, did I mention it was nearly 40 degrees Celsius the entire time we were moving, and then the moment we finished, it dropped to 25? Blah.

Thankfully, it's all over. Now it's just a matter of damage control, tidying this disaster of a room here in the old Anglican residence and trying to relax. Easier said than done....

Demenager

I won't bore you with the details of what I've been up to, as I don't have enough time to post it all today. Our lease in our current flat expires at the end of the month, and accordingly, I shall be residing in the only place that had any room left: an Anglican theology residence. Sweet. I'll try not to be blasphemous. Anyway, it will be for the full month of June, until I return to BC. Here is a viritual tour if you are so inclined.

Gah, Two mid-terms this week... Can you believe how accelerated summer school is?!

Bienvenue a Canada

Bonjuerno. Exams are finished and I am now waiting for final marks to roll in for all of my courses. I got one back, a personal best... but I fear it's too late for these types of grades to really impact my mediocre GPA... So much for post-graduate options.

On a less pesimistic note, Edd's sister Becca and her boyfriend Marek have been in town for the past week and a half. It has been so much fun to have them visiting, and it's made me appreciate Toronto from a different perspective, trying to remember how I felt the first time I visited this city. I'm certain Becca will post photos once she returns home so you can peep at them then should you wish.

We also had a very productive weekend. As Becca and Marek are currently trapezing around South-Western Ontario, Edd and I resigned ourselves to the umpteen tasks requiring our attention before our lease expires in 2.5 weeks. Realizing that there's no sense in shipping loads of unnecessary stuff back to BC at the end of the month, I blitzed through all of my clothing to decide what to get rid of (and I mean REALLY letting go of stuff I still really like but don't use often). I am quite proud of my discipline in parting with so much stuff since it's not an easy task, but even Edward the Frugal was inspirational in saying that I could always go shopping to replace the old stuff if I needed to (and so the cycle continues)...

Summer school starts tomorrow. I know some of you are thinking I've been in school forever and will I *ever* finish? The answer is you're right, it has been for.ev.er, but rest assured, I will be done at the end of June...

Cambridge-bound.

It's official. Rena was accepted into Cambridge for her PhD in Archealogy! Way to go, smartso! Since she is too modest to brag, I will gladly do it for her.... The family is rather proud of this one.

Saw Tristram Shandy with Edd last night, on the advice of Michelle. I didn't fully comprehend what I'd seen until I read a synopsis of the novel on which the film 'refers' to, but I fully enjoyed it nonetheless. Steve Coogan is now my newest crush, though I admit I am but a lowly North American unfamiliar with Alan Partridge and all that he represents to the Brits (although Edd would gladly tell me about it for hours given the opportunity). Here is a gratuitous photo of Steve Coogan:

And another, for good measure:


Dreamboat indeed!

And to make up for the poor Edd-mocking... Arrrrrrrrrrrsenallllllllllll!

Three guineas per week.

In true Murphy's Law style, just when you think things can't go worse, they do. Tuesday morning, as I was furiously attempting to complete an essay and prepare for an interview uptown, all before my 9-hour shift at work, the worst possible thing happened. I spilled an entire pint of water on the keyboard of my laptop. The good news is that the computer is still functional. But the bad news is that there are still some pretty signfiicant players on the keyboard, guys and girls like 'e', 'r', 's', 't', and sometimes 'y', who just don't seem to want to recover.

As a temporary solution, I have bought an external keyboard. It looks ridiculous attached to a laptop, but at least I can type! If things don't improve with the keys over time, I am going to have to bite the bullet and invest in a new computer. This isn't as tragic as it sounds, I've been wanting a new one for awhile as my current one is showing her age. My next 'puter will be an Apple, most likely an iBook. Being on a modest income of three guineas per week, I am waiting for the release of the iBooks with Intel, so I can profiteer by purchasing one of the old ones at a discount. The first person to see that they've started selling the new Intel iBooks and informs me by way of email will have my eternal gratitude.

In other news, it's exam season. First one isn't until the 27th, so it's been an effort to start studying early. Summer school begins mid-May and I will be taking one last course (ok, 2) to fulfill my requirements: Gender Issues in Religion (or as Amy called it "a course about how women are treated like crap"), and Children's Literature. I'm hoping the reading list for the latter is all stuff I've already read like Swift (one of my favorite authours of all time) and Munsch (not going to happen, but would be sweet).

Blah.

Arctic Contamination.

First off, I want to send my sister a huge congratulations for her acceptance into Oxford university! Rena, you make me proud to be your sister. More importantly, you've dispelled some of the rumours about 'Surrey girls', and for that feat, you deserve a medal. She/we are stil waiting to hear back from Cambridge before she makes any decisions. I will update you on this issue as it develops.

Right. Well, the past few weeks sans paid work have been a lovely respite. I beat Super Mario Bros. 2 for NES, which was a labour of love. Those 20 hours were well spent. I also squeaked out a bit of work and got several assignments. For some wacky reason, my grades this term have been rather good despite the lack of energy/planning that has gone into them. Sweet.

I have an essay due next week on any topic relating to Canadian Aboriginals and the Environment. I've chosen to focus on the impact of Environmental Contaminants on the health of the Inuit in the Canadian Arctic. I actually wanted to write about the implications of Climate Change on the traditional lifestyles of the Inuit, but given the nature of C.C., there is very little empirical material to work with. I guess I sort of took the 'easier' route, but when faced with a 20 page essay and less than a week to do it, wouldn't you?

Anyway, I think what's particularly interesting about the impacts of Environmental Contaminants on the Inuit (and perhaps I'm alone on this) is that these toxic pollutants which have accumulated are *not* in any way the product of careless behaviour of the Indigenous communities who inhabit these Northern areas. They are almost exclusively created in areas of temperate and tropical climates and are transported long-distance via air currents.

In simple terms, these pollutants are generated by people who are fortunate to reap the benefits of the activities that produce these toxins (industrial activity) with the majority of the environmental consequences affecting people 5,000 kms away. This is just another example of how Indigenous people/people of colour are disproportionately affected by environmental degradation. When I was in New Zealand, I read an interesting study about how the most disadvantaged people in a society tend to suffer the highest health impacts stemming from environmnetal issues, as they are often marginialized onto undesirable and thus cheap lands, which are often near landfills, heavy industry etc. I had never really considered this until then, but I haven't been able to stop thinking about these findings since. It's yet another example of how pervasive systemic discrimination is in the Western world....

Les choses

Voyons donc. Another slew of assignments complete and my Research Project has thankfully come to an end. The L.A. are also on another one of their infamous breaks so I now find myself with more free time than I know what do to with. My goal in the next few weeks is to actually get ahead on upcoming assignments, like normal people usually do. Perhaps my most self-aggravating trait is that I am by all accounts, a last-minute, down-to-the-wire kind of person when it comes to completing tasks which is not only stressful for me, but those in proximity. But to give credit where credit is do, I have not had to pull a single-all or excessively late-nighter this year and my grades aren't terrible (by my standards).

Only a few more weeks left of this term. Sadly, I must do another course in the May/June semester as I ended up dropping a course earlier this year due to my head nearing explosion from stress. My contract at work goes until the same time though, so it works out well. The only problem is the lease on our apartment is up at the end of May, so I have to figure out where to live for June. Any suggestions? Should be warm enough just to join the thousands of homeless people in Toronto and sleep on the street.

But for you B.C. people, I am planning to return around the end of June to disturb your normal routines. As you all know just how much I love Surrey, I'm going to be counting on you to keep my sanity!

London, Ontario

Last weekend, I accompanied Edward to London to visit some of his lovely extended family. Now, I was a wee bit hesitant to agree to go, not because I thought his relatives would be anything less than welcoming, but rather because I have a lot of school/project wrap-up work to tackle. But as soon as we arrived, all these thoughts fled from my head. Everyone was so enthusiastic and friendly, despite the bad weather and prevalence of winter-related aliments. Edd's second cousins, Sam and Matthew provided plenty of entertainment when we stayed at their lovely country home (yes, it's their house rather than their parents). We also went tubing at a nearby hill which was a lot of fun. I really miss interacting with the 'natural' environment; being constantly surrounded by so many human-made structures downtown and so little greenery is starting to really get to me, thus I was thrilled to escape it for a brief 2 days.

Anyway, here is Matthew lounging in a toy chest:




And Sam modeling his ultra-cool car:




Anyway, it's now the following weekend, and Leonard is here visiting so I am going to stop ignoring him now.

Les photos

I finally caved and got a Flickr Pro Account. Photos from the Festivus party last weekend are up here, as well as some other recent ones.

Today at work there is going to be a vote that will determine if all essential services run by municipalities in the province of Ontario will go on an illegal strike. Good times.

Reading Week

This was a fun weekend. Not only did it mark the beginning of Reading Week, but it also meant the end of midterms! Borrowing the idea slightly from Mattson, here's a breakdown of what I did over the weekend:

Friday: Edd and I went to Greektown for some truly authentic and rare to find outside of Greece treats. We both had our standard frappes (metrio and glyco, of course) although unlike the usual hot and sunny backdrop that we associate these drinks with, it was -15 with windchill and pitch black outside. Nonetheless, we indulged our imaginations and pretended we were indeed back in the Peliponisos in August. Edward also tried loukomades for the first time, and though they were cold and lacked the usual sesame seeds, they were still pretty damn good. I think we'll be returning to Greektown more frequently as the weather improves.

Saturday: The Colonel and I went on an impromptu jaunt around the city. We ended up having to go the vet's on the spur of the moment so I hauled the poor cat around in his pet carrier in very cold weather. I got lots of curious looks from fellow subwayers, but most people exchanged smiles. It's fun to see animals in transit. It reminds me of Richard Scary's Busy Little World. Anyway, Saturday evening was Edward and Jesse's corporate company party, which was held at a 'swanky' hotel. We were definitely the youngest people at the event, and likely the most subdued. I've never seen so many thirtysomethings 'let their hair down', but it's nice to see people having a good time, at a work function no less. After all, it sounds like Filogix is a crazy company. And I'm sure I made a great impression as Jesse's boss saw me stealing wine off of someone else's table. Discretion is not my forte. There are some photos of the night here (once I manage to upload them).

Sunday: We went to Hero Burger on Queen St. West for arguably the best burgers ever. Their Soul Burger (100% vegan) is the tastiest faux-burger I have ever eaten. I hear their Signature burget is pretty good too. More strolling was done along Queen West, but it was very cold so we retreated into a nearby Chapters and I bought the funniest book on a foreigner's experience living in France: A Year in the Merde. I was literally gasping for air from laughing so hard while reading it last night. All in all, it was a lovely weekend, the kind I hope to have more often once I am free of academic obligations for good!

On a more sombre note, Greig, I'm so happy you're safe! I can't believe how absolutely terrifying and I suppose life-affirming that experience must have been. Hands down, your Valentine's Day was worse than mine.

On a more upbeat note, Leonard is coming to visit in two weeks! Huzzah! It's only been five years of broken promises in this area, Lenny. Seriously though, I am very excited for his visit. It's also going to be Canadian Music Week so we'll probably take in some shows by fledgling bands. Sweet.

Midterms

The Legislative Assembly came back this week, just as midterms began. Thanks for the good timing, Dalton. There have been some scandals and emotional confessions in the chamber as of late, and I truly find it emotionaly exhasuting. I don't know how the politicos handle the constant bombardement.

Valentine's Day was no better. In fact, it was arguably the worst day I've had in ages, although entirely unrelated to my romantic life. You know those days when you wake up and everything just goes wrong? I wanted to just crawl back into bed and sleep. Thankfully midterms and work are over for the week, and I can focus on obsessivley playing flash games, which is my compulsion du jour.

Reading Week is next week, and beyond working and catching up on school, the options are few. I have been asked to go to London, Ontario next weekend, which I am contemplating although I have a dififcult time reconciling the idea of visting the very place I mock so often for its thieved name. But an opportunity to leave the downtown core is always welcome. As much as I adore my neighbourhood, and realize how very privileged I am to live in such an incredible location, in a top-floor apartment overlooking Yorkville, the university campus and with a prime view of Toronto's only castle, it gets tiring constantly being surrounded by city noise.

Oh, one last Ontario-politics reference... this MPP is the spitting image of my dad. "Daddy, is that you?"

EDIT: Photos are actually up now.

My fantastic friend Frank (nice alliteration, if I do say so) came to Toronto for a very brief visit this past weekend. That's right, he flew from Norway to spend 4 days in Toronto. It was a blast! For those of you who may not have been keeping up, Frank was one of my closest friends back in Dunedin, NZ. So it's been a long time since we've been able to get togther a wreak havoc.

We took some photos of our escapades, and you can find them here. I recommend looking at the sets, rather than the photostream, which makes no sense at the moment.

Engagements.

So recently, a slew of people I know became engaged. My sister's friends have long been getting engaged, as they're all about 5 or so years my senior, but I thought I was still too young to be entering the stage in my life where *my* friends were starting to get married (beyond the anomaly that is Laura and Hamish).

But over the holiday break, 3 couples I know got engaged. So congratulations to (in no particular order) Kat and Mike in Auckland, Cassandra and Joe in BC, and Shannon and Greig at home. I am genuinely very thrilled for my friends that have found the people they want to spend a long-term portion of their life with. Go you guys!

However, all this amour has brought my own relationship insecurities to light. Why can't I just be *happy* in a relationship? Why am I so all over the map with what I want out of it all? Is it fair to blame my own parents' for my commitment-phobia, when I see how unhappy their marriage was? Blah. It's not my style to post about my intimate thoughts, but for once I want people to know that I am relationshiply-challenged.

Hip-hop Kitty

As I mentioned in my last post, we got a new Foster Cat. I present to you, the Colonel, in all his hip-hop badness:


In other news, life continues to be confusing, but also exciting... More perhaps on this later.

Happy New Year.

So I was on a temporary hiatus from blogging over the past few weeks. Alas, I shall now update you all as to what I did over that time:

I went to New York City with Ben to visit my friend Hayden. Had a fabulous time, staying in Brooklyn in Hayden's flat (thanks, H!) and enjoying the sights and sounds of Bushwick. Seriously, the neighbourhood we were staying in was straight out of the movies. Hasidic Jews walking around, subway tracks overhead with sparks flying onto pedestrians below, sketchy dealings occuring around us. I wanted to take a photo to capture the surreality of it all, but I decided I didn't want to have my camera stolen, as we stuck out enough in a socio-economically disadvantaged neighbourhood. Here is a photo of me taking in the local culture:

We did some of the other requisite activities one does in NYC, but the throngs of tourists who had descended upon the city for the Holiday season combined with our general overall apathy towards American culture meant we weren't too fussed in doing more than eating and wandering the streets. If you wish, you may look at the photos from the trip here.

My mother also came to visit me in Toronto over the holiday. It was actually unexpected until 2 weeks before she was due to arrive, but a welcome surprise. She's the type of woman who never gets sick; I can count the number of times I've seen her sick in my lifetime on one hand. Of course she was sick the entire time she was in Toronto. As a result, we didn't really do much outside of the flat so there's not much to say about this... She is now in Greece for the next two months, visiting friends and family, so I guess better she was sick here than there.

Classes have re-started, and this semester promises to be better than the last one. The classes are more engaging, my schedule is much lighter, and the weather should only improve as we approach the summer season. I am taking a really interesting course called Aboriginals and the Environment, which I have been looking forward to for a long time. My interest in this area of Geography was piqued when I was in NZ and I saw how Maori consultation was required in order for resource consents to be granted under the Resource Management Act. Translation for non-geographers: in order for any structures to be developed or altered signficantly, consultation with local Maori is compulsory. It's about freaking time Canada incorporates indigenous beliefs and practices into its Environmental Management.

And I passed Statistics! By a lot! Hooray for me! I am so relieved that I am not mathematically retarded. This means that I'm on track to finish this summer (can you believe it's only been like... 5 years?)

On a bittersweet note, Nelly, our beloved foster cat of 7 months was finally adopted last Wednesday to a wonderful couple. I know she is going to be happy with them, and that they will give her all the cuddles and treats she deserves (well, maybe fewer treats would benefit her pudgy tummy). And I also know that her story is the entire reason we volunteer with the Annex Cat Rescue: to take cats who are homeless and match them with a loving, permanent home. But it doesn't make saying good-bye to her any easier. Bye-bye, kitty.


However, we have a new foster cat to occupy our time (and distract us from doing any actual work). His name is The Colonel, and he too was once a street cat. He is pretty awesome. His meow is the highest pitch meow I've ever heard, which is funny because he was apparently the tough leader of a group of cats, hence his name. . He is very affectionate, and likes to spoon in bed. But The Colonel's story isn't all good news. He has Feline Leukemia, which not unlike the human strain, is essentially terminal. Unlike human Leukemia, there is a vaccine for FeLv, but unfortunately street cats aren't privy to proper medical treatment in time (i.e. before they contract the illness). Despite his medical condition, he is energetic and entertaining.

A bien tot...

Why I hate Comic Sans Ms.

So I finished exams yesterday. What a relief. Though every semester is challenging in its own right, this semester may arguably have been the most taxing of all. With the over-employment, volunteering and harder-than-usual courses, I think I managed to maintain my sanity in the end. Thank you to everyone who put up with my whining and irritable moods. I love you all.

Now, some of you may not be aware, but I have a hatred toward the Comic Sans Ms font that has consumed me for some time. Now, my problem really isn't with the font itself, but rather with the gross misuse of it in inappropriate circumstances. Comic Sans was never meant to be used for business or academic works, and I would extend this idea towards the medical and hospitality industry. The use of that font on your sandwich board does not imply that an atmoshphere of fun awaits me, should I choose to enter your establishment.

So imagine how ecstatic I was to find out there was an entire website run by and for people like me, dedicated to ending the misuse of said font - Thank you to Edd for finding it! This is my new favourite site. Here is their explanation of the growing movement toward banning Comic Sans:

"In 1995 Microsoft released the font Comic Sans originally designed for comic book style talk bubbles containing informational help text. Since that time the typeface has been used in countless contexts from restaurant signage to college exams to medical information. These widespread abuses of printed type threaten to erode the very foundations upon which centuries of typographic history are built. While we recognize the font may be appropriate in a few specific instances, our position is that the only effective means of ending this epidemic of abuse is to completely ban Comic Sans."

I couldn't have said it better myself. They even have a photo gallery documenting instance of Comic Sans misuse, sent in by advocates of the movement. Here is a great example of someone carelessly using Comic Sans on a document that necessitates something more appropriate for its purpose:

I encourage anyone reading this who shares the sentiment to express it in the comments section.

I found another incredible website produced by the Planning Department for the City of Vancouver, showing the revitalization of the False Creek area between 1978 and now. Although it will probably be more impressive to those who have familiarity with the area, it will still be pretty incredible for those who do not.

...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LENNY!


Love,
Krista

Can it be true?

Somebody pinch me. Earlier this year, I said I would probably struggle all semester-long with Statistics, and I'd be lucky to pass it. For you see, I am not particularly mathematically inclined, although I did end up with an A in Math 11 when forced to retake it. But overall, the trend has been that I, Krista, daughter of an engineering-educated father, was bad at maths and the plethora of number-related subjects that it spawned.

So you can imagine my shock when I unsuspectingly picked up my problem set and saw this:





Wait, look closer:




Yes, it is out of 100. I got 99% on a Statistics Assignment. All by myself. I rule!

Time to gorge myself as a reward.... If you need me, my face'll be buried in a bag of candy.

Snow, snow, go away.

Today was the first proper snowfall of the season. Ever since I started my degree in this city with its a-typical Canadian climate, I have been counting down the number of winters I would have to suffer through before I could graduate and move far away, ideally to a tropical climate. Today was no different. Maybe because I didn't grow up in a snowy climate (those of you non-Canucks may not realize, but the West Coast really is milder in comparison to the rest of the country in terms of winter weather), I am really horrible at walking on snow and ice. While I see everyone else walking briskly, heels and all, through the snowy conditions, there I am in the background, skidding and slipping all over the place, even though I am wearing my lovely Ralph Lauren winter boots. Every time I leave my flat, I pray it won't be the day I slip on the sidewalk, fall (face first, of course) and slide directly onto the adjacent road where a passsing car with worn tires and a distracted driver won't quite stop in time. This is the reason I sometimes think I am obsessive compulsive...

At least this means I will be able to go snowboarding soon!

In other non-weather related news, I am on a mini-break from mandatory school assignments until December, which I now realize from looking at the calendar, isn't really the far away after all. Still, I am excited that I will be able to focus on other pressing matters, such as my Research project, sleeping properly, working and of course, knitting warm things for this cruel winter.

I am not going home for Christmas this year. This probably isn't news to those of you who know me; I've only been home for this holiday once in 4 years, and I'm not much of a Christmas person anyway. This being said, I have been presented with a number of lovely prospects for the holiday season: my mother may stop in Toronto en route to Greece to visit her parents, and I may be going to NYC some point over the break to visit my lovely friend Hayden, who also is going to be far away from home for Christmas. We actually spent Christmas 2003 together when we couldn't afford to go home then either, so it would be cute if we repeated it this year. Regardless of what happens, I'm sure I will be happy as a clam to be with someone I love, stuffing my face with treats.

On a sidenote, I have been given a supervisory position for a (single) shift at Parliament, which totally isn't a big deal at all, but I am mildly excited since I'm the only new employee who has been given this opportunity. I think it's probably somewhat related to the factI've clocked some serious hours in the few short months I've been there.

Footprinting.

Since I last posted, I have uttered the phrase "I have NO time" countless times. As is the way every fall, Thanksgiving marks the beginning of craziness at uni, and it doesn't end until after exams are finished at Christmas. On top of this though, my job at Parliament keeps me long hours (although I am very grateful!), and volunteering for two different organizations occupies a lot of time as well.

However, as if I didn't have enough to deal with at once, I went ahead and got a second job. The title of my position is Ecological Footprint Research Assistant, and I am working under the supervision of the Director of Climate Change at the University of Toronto. My work is focusing on Radical Roots, a not-for-profit, worker-run collective located on campus who have hired me to help them minimize the environmental and social implications, or the 'ecological footprint', of their activities. Here is a brief newspaper article on the project, for those of you who are interested. Note the reference to me as the to-be-hired work-study student.

I am very excited to be involved in this project as not only is a great experience for me simply in terms of ameliorating my research skills, but also because I think it could potentially make a signficant contribution to the organization's efforts. I must also admit, it may give me a minor advantage when it comes to looking for a 'real job' after I graduate. Or at the very least, it won't hinder me.

All the work has left me with very little time to get my assignments done however, and thus my anxiety level is pretty much constantly in the high range.. I know school should be is priority number one, but I have become so apathetic in my last year that my only concern is finshing.

I took a well-earned break this weekend and went down to the Niagara region to look at the leaves, which were purported by the Weather Network to be "absolutely stunning". Perhaps they were, but the gale-force winds ripped all the leaves from the branches by the time we got down there, and I feel somewhat gipped. At least I got to go dino-golfing in Niagara Falls. On the drive back, we stopped at Balls' Falls (what a name) to admire the waterfalls and old buildings on the property. As you can see in the pictures, it was rather eerie when we were there right before sunset.