Hope it doesn't rain on Thursday!

I’ve been having problems getting to sleep lately. I go to bed and lie there, sometimes almost falling asleep but then waking up. I've no nagging concerns or worries or stress, and I'm pretty sure it’s not caffeine intake … *shrug* I think it may be due to a decrease in physical activity, as soccer's over, and because I'm working more I haven't been playing as much hockey. I guess we'll see later this week, as today is my last day of working to cover for someone's holidays. Anyway, despite this I've been feeling pretty good, and the past week or so has been less hectic than the couple preceding it, which is nice.

This past Saturday I planned to go to watch the open practice the Canucks were putting on, but actually getting up at 4:30am when I was already tired, and hadn’t gotten to sleep (as noted: different from to bed) until after 1:30am proved too much. I woke up, considered it, then went back to sleep for 6 more hours. I read about it and saw pictures, and enjoyed the fact that I didn’t spend 6 hours of the day on the combination of ferry and bus (referring to time on one plus time on another, not to a machine that travels on land and water whilst carrying large amount of people, because if that were the case I would be lamenting the fact that I didn’t spend six hours on it).

"This will be not be over quickly. You will not enjoy this. I am not your queen!" Yeah, so I saw 300 a couple nights ago. It was pretty good, and definitely had some spectacular moments (as well as some parts I would fast-forward through) and memorable quotes. Reading about Spartan history, I could see how they had thrown an assortment of popular conceptions (non-fictional or otherwise) into the film, and also where they had included historically accurate aspects of the culture and battle.

Random assertion of today’s blog: The taste of Vanilla Ensure reminds me of the smell of the powder of the calf milk replacer we used to give our calves … I love it!!

Finally got some pics from the ski trip

So, click the word snow and maybe you'll be able to check the pics out if you want to. Or you can just watch the show below. :) I try to allow for flexibility (come with goaltending, I guess ... haha)

Thanks to Mark/Gid for getting these to me. Anyone who's in there but doesn't want their picture in the album just let me know ... and I'll think of deleting you ...

Happy Ides of March!

Well, pretend I posted this yesterday, as yesterday is when I wrote almost all of it (excepting the few obvious amendments) ...

And happy birthday to Tucker! They always seem to win around his birthday … or maybe I just haven’t been paying attention to when they don’t. Ah well, either way I was really glad they pulled through and won their last two games!! And thanks to the Habs and Sens (I can’t believe I’m saying that) for beating out opponents in the playoff race. (This also applies to the Sens winning last night, although I kind of hope the Isles get the other last spot (8th) ... with the Leafs taking 7th)

Last weekend was pretty good. Although I did have a lot of work to do, I still managed to play some hockey, go to church (and on time, despite the time change!), and spend a lot of time (a bit too much, perhaps) out in the pouring rain. Nothing too eventful happened. I’m still searching for a place to live this summer, but there are some viable options.

This week has been moving along pretty smoothly, despite a lot of running around that I’ve been doing, trying to be everywhere I’m supposed to be. When I look at my schedule it doesn’t seem like that much, but when I’m actually living it, it's a different story … Anyway, I’m working to cover for holidays, so this week and next week I’ll be on 4 days a week (Wednesdays being the day off), which is a lot of hours, but thankfully I don’t have too much schoolwork to worry about at the moment. Yeah, good timing. There’s that, and I’ve spent a bit of time doing some marking for an undergrad psych class; it was actually enjoyable, and time well spent.

Random thought of the week: Has anyone made a video of men going through the process of a sex change, with the soundtrack being Britney Spears’ “I’m not a girl, not yet a woman?” If not, then why?!? Actually, don’t answer that question

Everyone prepare

For an increase in car accidents!!! In case anyone doesn't know what this refers to, and wants to know, here's an article for your perusal.

It's been a fairly decent week, especially considering the levels of sleep deprivation I've had. However, I would never have thought that I could play a decent game in net on less than 2 hours of sleep. Yay for learning!

School work for the rest of the term looks like it'll be quite enjoyable, as I have a couple of proposals (for which I am interested in the topics), and an assessment file/intervention that makes up the majority of the remaining work. My proposals centre around the idea of music and learning, one looking at comprehension when learning text to a melody, and the other focussed on the possibility of individual instruction in music through technology, and what would be the best way to approach that.

I can't not mention the Leafs, so I'll say that from the highlights I saw of the game against the Sens (Holy Leaf killer Mike Fisher, Batman!!) the goals against came when the Leafs got really scrambly in their own end. Granted, 3 of them were on penalty kills, but there's no accounting for 2 players covering the same guy and one player covering no one! And if you're having to dive around all the time (I'm talking defencemen, not Raycroft), you probably went wrong somewhere along the way. It did actually look like a decent game on the whole (again going from the highlights), and the Leafs had some good chances (although the score obviously doesn't reflect this) ... guess they'll have to get some revenge on Saturday.

*Note: Gill was not on the ice for any of the Leafs goals against. However, he was in the box for one of them.

And just because the Pacific Life open is on, and because I love Safin, I thought I'd share this:

Oh, those Russians ... :) I'm surprised by how many more people out here seem to play and watch tennis ... I guess it makes some sense, considering you can play a lot more (outdoors), but I'm not sure if that's the whole reason. Then what is it?

Flying time

Wow, it's March already!!

Well, I don't really feel like writing, so this is going to be quick...

The rest of reading break was great; I had a relaxing Thursday, and then Friday left for a hockey tournament. We played 2 games on Friday and one Saturday morning, and won all three (by respective scores of 3-2,2-1, and 1-0; I was playing goal for the whole tournament)!! That put us in first, and we headed into the final Sunday morning feeling pretty good. However, for various reasons I won't go into we had some on-ice problems during the final game, and ended up getting second place. Ah well, it was a good time. :)

The past week has been pretty good, with lots of hockey, tennis, and of course Thursday night soccer. I've been feeling pretty good health-wise, which is a blessing, considering the number of people falling ill around Victoria. I have a lot of work to do this weekend, and over the next couple of weeks, so I'm praying for better focus and concentration and lack of procrastination (something some people may have noticed I have a bit of a problem with, at least when it comes to school).

I haven't seen much of the Leafs lately, although I have been listening and watching highlights, about all I can do. Was sorry to see Ryan Smyth traded, and sorrier still that Edmonton is having a hard time dealing with it. Was sort of happy for Bertuzzi to be traded, although it's affecting my dislike for Detroit, which is not pleasing. Glad to see Perreault back with the Leafs, and also glad Tucker's getting healthy, although it didn't help them get a win tonight. Ah well, they did beat the Devils, who had been on a bit of a tear.

Anyway, nothing else to talk about, really, except .. oh yeah! I finally got to try the Nintendo Wii (some guy had one up as a demo at school, trying to help cajole people into voting for him). I played some tennis thing, it was fun.

Still working on getting pictures from the ski trip ...

Mount Washington, I love you

Although some people that went on the trip would doubtlessly convinced that it does not love them! Well, the ski trip was fantastic. I got two great days of skiing in, definitely enjoying the sunny parts of the second day, as when the clouds cleared we were provided a beautiful view of the surrounding hills and even over to the ocean if you were far enough up the mountain, which often we were. There were a few close calls of people falling off cliffs and sliding past their escaped ski in the out of bounds area and having to climb back up a hill, but all in all we enjoyed ourselves immensely and any wounds should heal in not too long a time. I have only once ever laughed as hard skiing as I did on this trip ... long story, and probably a "guess you had to be there" sort of funny, so I won't bother telling it.
Aside from the skiing, there was much to be enjoyed, such as sledding, eating, languishing in the hot tub, playing cards, and watching the Canucks game. The fellowship was a real blessing to me, as I tend to end up spending a lot of time alone when classes are on; it was almost like spending a few days with a really big family (there were 29 of us) ... :)
So yeah, I'm spending this evening just reflecting on that wonderful time, and preparing to move ahead to the rest of the week and weekend, when I have a hockey tournament (I'm playing goal), and also actually need to get some school work done! Hooray for that.
Hopefully I get some pictures from the ski trip up soon. I know there were some great ones taken.
As far as the Leafs game goes, well, I didn't get to see it, but I did watch highlights, and it must be said that Gill was not responsible for any of those goals. Didn't really look like Raycroft could do much about it either, at least not on 2 of them. I think they really need a solid effort tomorrow against the Isles, to get them back on track. Tucker coming back in a week or two should also be a boost. Why is it that Thomas almost always seems to play really well against the Leafs? The Canucks game (that I watched in lieu of the Leafs game) was really good, and it was nice for them to play well in front of Sabourin, and for him to get a win (it had been quite a drought).

A little more on hockey

Just thought I would say that I have yet to see a Leafs game this season where Gill has not been at least mostly responsible for a goal.
I'm sure I've mentioned this before ... unfortunately, it still holds true. To be fair, I haven't been able to watch all of their games, but still ...
Other than that, from what I've seen lately, I've enjoyed watching them play and haven't been too frustrated. There's been a lot of talk about needing to change the icing rule to no-touch. I think this would have its good side and bad side. Good side would obviously be avoiding the injuries that occur. Bad side would be if guys were skating slowing back pretending they couldn't get to it before it crossed the line, or not really trying to stop it from heading down the ice when they know it's going to be icing against the other team. And I think having the race for the puck can be great, especially when the team that iced it gets there first. It can make for some interesting changes in momentum if you win the race and end up keeping it down in their zone for a while. I guess really I'm saying it would depend on how it's called.
Anyway, the Canucks won tonight, and the Spitfires won 5-3 tonight (I scored 2 goals, Julie got a hat trick, and Jen was great in net!), so all in all a good Sunday. :)
Yay for getting up at 5:30am tomorrow to leave for the ski trip. I guess I should be getting to sleep soon ...

Reading weeeeeeeeeeeeeeek!!!!!!!!

I'm not that excited about it ... really! ;)

Anyway, yes, the coming week is reading week for many a university student, and as the last couple of weeks have been pretty busy and oft time tiring for myself, I am happy to be getting a break. Friday really felt like the starting of the break, or maybe even Thursday night, as I have no classes Friday (although I did work that day, as usual). Soccer Thursday was lacking in people (because so many people had midterms Friday), so, being short of players, we had to forfeit ... Therefore, we took a player from their team and played anyway. It was a good game, and we ended up tying 6-6!

Friday night, after IVCF, we had a games night at the gym, which was entailed of some volleyball, and then ... soccer! Yay!! That was tons of fun, despite the fact that I got nailed in the face with the ball (thankfully it did not involve a nosebleed, which was surprising).
Yesterday was another good day, although Alison left for home for the week. Other than that it was great, as I watched an awesome Leafs/Oilers game, and a couple of movies (which were good, but not as good as the game) :)

Aside from sitting in front of the television yesterday, I spent a bit of time cleaning, and a fair portion of time reading. I bought Inkspell Saturday last (hurrah for gift certificates), and am very much enjoying it! I'm glad it's a thick book, but somehow I still don't think it'll last me until Inkdawn comes out! Ah well, patience is a virtue. The Inkheart movie's supposed to come out this year. I hope it isn't massacred, the way Eragon was. It's New Line Cinema doing Inkheart, though, and as they also did the LOTR movies, there is hope.

I just liked this picture, and as I don't have any new ones of me, I thought I'd throw this one in! :)

under winterland

4 snow days in a row?!? And likely more? It's a good thing Mom and Dad got back from Mexico (getting well needed rest) before all the snow hit, or they may have been trapped in Toronto. I guess it's not as bad there as it is up in Bruce and Grey County, though. Craaaaazy snowy weather back home, there is … I wish I were there. Ah well, I guess I’ll just continue to put up with the drizzly greyness and the fog. Being able to stay active despite any type of weather is beneficial, so I’m managing to stave off depression. :D Speaking of which, hockey lately has been going well, I’ve been getting called to play out for the Spitfires, and goal at noon-hour shinny on Tuesday was awesome! We’ve been getting 2 goalies out so it’s lots of fun, and I managed to finally put out a decent performance this week. Nothing compared to Raycroft, though! Wow, it’s amazing what a turnaround he’s had, and it’s boding very well for the Leafs. I guess the Preds will be a test, but they often seem to play much better against good teams than against the bottom-feeders, so I’m thinking … 4-2 win for the Leafs. Nice to see Ponikarovsky, and even Antropov (to some extent, although he’s still too slow) continue building on their great return (I have mentioned this before, right?). I think Ponikarovsky would look great with Wellwood and Stajan, whenever Welly gets back.

The Barenaked Ladies concert last week was a lot of fun, especially since I wore my Leafs jersey. A lot of people from the Spits were at one of the shows (they played two Victoria shows), and everyone had a really good time. I would’ve replaced a few of the songs with others, but finally hearing When I Fall live more than made up for any of the ones I don’t care that much for.

P.S. I wrote this yesterday, and just didn't post it until today ...

Happy Daisy Day!!

I never knew there was such a thing, and I don't really like daisies all that much, so I'll hold off exuding any real sense of celebration until "columbine day" or "lilac day" comes along (if they even exist).
So, this week has been alright, although busy. I am staying on top of school work, and feeling fairly organized, so I think I'll be able to manage keeping everything together without getting behind or worn out. I'll have to check on that again in a couple of weeks. Intramural soccer is fun; I'm playing outdoor 11-a-side, and am slowing getting back into it (meaning, not sucking so much), after not really playing organized soccer for about 9 years. We've played two games, and the second was significantly better than the first, so that's a good sign.
I might be getting so more work, doing some marking, and I'll know more about that come Monday afternoon. The other job is still going alright, and any uncertainties I have are well addressed by the people I work with, which is great.
So yeah, this is fairly mundane to read, I'm sure. I wish I had something exciting to say. Well, I'm hopefully going on a ski trip during the first part of reading week (which is exciting to me)!! Oh, and I'm going to see Barenaked Ladies on Thursday evening, which is relatively exciting, although not so much as it once was ...
I hope Mexico is treating Mom, Dad, Jasmine, and Anthony well. Two of them really needed that vacation. ;)

Hockey news: Didn't get to see the All-Star game, although I listened to part of it. Didn't get to see the Leafs game last night, although I did watch highlights. I liked what I saw, especially from Raycroft. Nice to see Sundin get on the scoring sheet. Luongo's been on fire lately, which is awesome, and definitely has helped get the 'Nucks back on track.

P.S. Baby boys are better than baby girls (with the exception of Maya)!! ;)

Jed

Just thought I would put up a couple of pictures of me and the puppy ... :)

He's such a sweetie ....

I had a pretty good weekend, enjoying IVCF Friday night for the first time in a while, playing a couple of hockey games (skater both times), and even getting some organizing and school work done!
Work is still going alright, and I guess they're going to keep me, since I haven't heard anything to the contrary. :)

All for one, or some for all?!?

I was just thinking about whether it's better to spread yourself over a few different things, and get generally skilled in a few areas (such as some different sports, writing, musical instruments), and how this would contribute differently to your development than being focussed in one or two areas (like getting really good at one instrument or one sport). I think it's better for kids to try out different things when they're younger, because even if they aren't focussed on something until their 11 or 12, they still have the opportunity to make something their main focus and become the best they can be. Thinking of this makes me think about the example of playing violin, because I believe that there is little or no difference between kids who start when they're 6 or 7 and kids who start at 10 or 11, by the time they reach about 13-14 years, all other things being equal. As far as other things go, like hockey, I think it's likely beneficial to start skating earlier, but I would gather that kids who focus mostly on hockey from a young age, and those who have it as a small part of their life along with other hobbies/interest/past times would not differ significantly in ability so much that a child could not start focussing on hockey around the age of 12 or so, and catch up to those who have been more involved...
I guess the more technically challenging something is, the less likely being involved at a very young age is likely to make a difference, as the younger children with probably not become very proficient, even with a few years practice.
Okay, this train of thought has run out of steam, as it's getting late-ish and I'm tired-ish. Anyone have it one way or the other and want to comment, go ahead ...
Good night, and God Bless.
or alternatively:
Sleep well, and wake happy.

Quick note-eroo

So, the snow really does follow me around. I have yet to consult God as to why, exactly. :) I'm not complaining though. Coolest thing I discovered upon my return was NOT the snow, but that the people residing in the other part of this house got a dog. He's a lovely German Shepherd Husky cross (although he looks considerably more Shepherd) named Jed, and is about 9 months old. I will be posting pictures sometime in the near future! :D

Work (the whole day-and-a-half I've been through) has been going okay, although I do feel lost quite a bit of the time. Ah well, I'm sure it's a steep learning curve ... The people I work with are great (which includes helpful), which is a blessing.

After going a shocking 4 days without playing hockey *gasp* I will be playing tomorrow (Friday) night, as a goalie, and Sunday night, as a skater. I look forward to it immensely!!!

Last but not least: I know I've done some Starfield promoting before, but this time it's not just Starfield (although I would probably think Obsession the best song on this cd) ... anyway, if you want to listen to some free music, check this out: http://www.hearitfirst.com/xworship2007/

a quarter of a century?!?

Well, I’m finally back in lovely Victoria, after 5 weeks back at home in Ontario. It was a very nice break, exactly what I needed!! I had the chance to spend time with family, visit the people I wanted to (although some of them not for as long as I would’ve liked), play a lot of hockey with various family members, go horseback riding, watch an OHL game … the only thing lacking at all was snow, but as it made my frequent driving easier I won’t complain too much about it. J The only real problem on the personal front was it meant no skiing. As far as the environment and the troubles that’ll be cause due to insects, split trees, etc., is another story.
Christmastime was busy, but still enjoyable, as it usually seems to be. I always especially enjoy the Christmas Eve service, and I think it’s the same for many other people. I finally received an mp3 player, which I definitely appreciate, and it will be in constant use. My birthday (on the 8^th) passed in a less notable manner than I ever remember (25 years … what have I been doing all this time???!!??) because it was a day spent mostly in travels, but I did get a few treats and cards, and that was lovely. And as I’m sure at least one person would agree, I don’t need cake. Dad allowed me to buy myself a new hockey stick for my birthday, so it was indirectly his gift to me, and after careful and lengthy deliberation I chose the Sherwood Rhythm 9 (85 flex).

I’ve used it twice since its purchase, and I love it! The only other stick in consideration was the Nike Bauer One90 (where I would've gone for the Naslund model), but the Sherwood edged it out. I got the Crosby model because I like the curve.
Anyway, gotta get to class.

Winter Wonderland!!!

Seriously, here on the Island snow is falling, and it's not stopping. I woke this morning to a fresh-looking world, and although it's nothing new to me, the fact that it's the first snow of the season and the way the Islanders react to it (not the hockey team; I'm talking about the people from Vancouver Island) because they aren't used to this much snow, makes it even more exhilarating than usual! :D Forget the fact that the bus was 40 minutes late and my wet, gloveless hands are barely able to type because they are still warming up ... YAY SNOW!!!!
Church this morning was pretty good, and we met more of the congregation, and there was a luncheon afterward for us to get to know more about Trinity's vision and such, which is important. As far as everything else goes, I have work and more work over the next few days, as it is the last week of class and things are wrapping up. And then ... HOME!!!!!!! Obviously I denoted more exclamation points to that because it is more exciting than the snow. :)
On the hockey front ... well, I have to say Wellwood was driving me crazy in the third (of the Bruins game last night) ... if a drop pass doesn't work for you the first time, then don't do it again on the same shift, and ruin what could've been another good scoring chance!! Especially not when you're a goal behind!!!! :@ Ah well, other than that it was a decent game when they started skating. Hope they can take them on Tuesday.

Editted to add: The University is closed today because of the large amount of snow that fell over Sunday night, and continues to fall this Monday morning!! :D

Nearing the end

of the semester, it is. I'm definitely looking forward to having a break from writing papers and doing research for a while. Aside from a few of the assignments, I have enjoyed the semester ...
This weekend was pretty good. Our hockey game on Friday wasn't so much, but last night's was much better (a 5-1 win). I've finally chosen a church, so I'll be going there for the one Sunday I have left here, and then again when I come back next year. A couple of people from school go there, and the atmosphere was lovely, the sermon was Bible-based and succint, and the hot chocolate afterward was delicious. :) So yeah, that was a pleasant happening, as neither my suite-mate or I were really sure what to expect before we attended.
Other than that, not much news, so I won't bother trying to come up with anything, when I have much more boring and tasking things to do.
Oh, and in case anyone was wondering, the church is Trinity Christian ...

Denman and more

So, Sunday was another lovely day sprinkled intermittently with rain. They were doing something with power lines that day, so we had no power in the morning, but thankfully had all been invited over to a neighbour's for pancake breakfast! Mmm mmmm!! It was delightful, and after we were all stuffed we went for a lengthy walk that began along the road, continued through the woods, and ended with a wind-blown, salt-sprayed sojourn along the beach. It was fairly uneventful, but enjoyable in it's simplicity. The forest part of the walk reminded me a bit of being back at Saugeen Bluffs. I miss Sammy.
The rest of the day was spent either in games (such as Boggle, which I owned! [;)]), eating (Camino chocolate is delicious (hot or bar) ...), or drawing on the birthday boy (after midnight, when it actually was his birthday), all by the comfort of a crackling fire.
We got up Monday, heavy with the knowledge that we would be leaving that day, and were soon on our way. The trip home was less anticipatory than the way there, but we enjoyed it nevertheless, with yours truly (meaning ME) providing the musical soundtrack, if not the prosaic (relating to prose) one.
In other news, I played goal at noon-hour shinny today and "PUT THAT DOG DOWN" so many times; it was awesome!!! The best save was when a guy had a break away, started deking to his back-hand and had me going across a bit, but then he went back forehand, and I managed to (while almost doing the splits) get my left pad on it. He got the rebound, and me being sitting down I started trying to wiggle across and block as much net as I could while he held onto the puck, waiting for a good shot. He finally shoots ... and it was going top shelf, but I got my goal stick in the way! It was just spectacular (and a bit lucky, possibly) ... Too bad I don't play like that all the time, but maybe the day will yet come. It was nice being able to play Thursday (as my classes today were cancelled) as there was another goalie, and enough guys for most of the time to play 3-on-3 with a sub each side.
As always, go Leafs go!!! I predict a 5-2 win over Boston today.
Editted to add: Okay, so I was a bit off in that prediction ... who'd have thought that Thomas could play 2 good games in a row?!?

Denman Island!!

Yay for Denman (the link is to a photo album of this weekend - check it out!)!!! ... the rest of last week will go unmentioned save to say that I'm glad to be through it, and to finally not be falling asleep as soon as I stop moving. This past weekend I had the pleasure of being invited (with a group of other people) to a friend's family property on Denman Island.
I had never been there (actually, besides the friend and his dad, only one person had) and I was definitely very happy I went, for many reasons, the view from their back deck being one of them. We saw many a deer out in the fields.
We got there Friday night (we didn't make it on the first ferry ride ... a whole 18 minute-long ride), and arrived around 9pm, just in time to start a fire and have a late supper. Mmm mmm. The food the whole weekend was fantabulous. A group of us went down to the beach that evening and got a fire going for a bit, but didn't stay long as it was a bit chilly by the ocean.
Saturday we actually got to see the beauty of the island, no matter which window you looked out of. It started off with a game of Settlers of Cattan, as every weekend should, with late breakfast being a delicious interruption. After breakfast we took a walk around the property, visited the cows and the dogs, and then headed back to stack wood for the planned bonfire that night. We got back in just before dark, and some people played another game of Settlers, and there's proof.
The fire turned out rather well, and the fireworks were enchanting, and I also have proof of that!! Somewhere in there I watched the Leafs game, and although it was fuzzy, I enjoyed it very much (especially as someone there was cheering for the Habs). Boo-yah! :D So, the Leafs are still playing well, despite the loss of the captain, but I hope Raycroft comes back soon (he is expected to) because otherwise I think they'll be in tough against the Devils next Saturday. The Bruins they'll beat no matter who's in net! Mwahaha!! Go 4-game winning streak!!!
I'll write about the rest of the weekend later ... supper needs to be made ...

"Lots of cows, trees, rocks, dirt. Moo moo moo"

Hockey was great last night; so far in playing out I've gotten 4 points (3-1) in 2 games, which is not too shabby. And how about that Leafs game on Saturday night?!? They totally owned the Sabres, and as much as I love the Sabres I was okay with this since Buffalo's above them in the standings (though not for much longer, I think! ;)). T'was the first time Buffalo lost in regulation this year. The only bad part of the game was Belak's crappy "fight" with Peters. Seriously, if you're going to be in the box for five minutes, make sure you did something to deserve it.

Alison and I went to Saanich Community Church on Sunday. It was pretty good; I appreciated the diversity of music and the straight-forward message, and the congregation was very nice as well. We're still trying to decide, and I think we're going to be trying out at least one more church.

I'm going to my first ECHL game this Thursday evening, watching the Victoria Salmon Kings play the Fresno Falcons! Should be a good time, finally seeing some live hockey again ... Muchos kudos to anyone who can figure out (or bothers to try) why I chose to see them play Fresno.

Finally school work is slowing down a bit, and next week's reading week, so I'll be able to take a breath or two without feeling guilty that I'm not reading textbooks or typing up some paper or assignment ... oh, the anticipation!!! Denman Island, where I, Alison, and a group of other people have been invited to for the coming weekend should be a really great time also. the best part? We'll be on a farm!! Man, you can take the girl out of the country(side), but you can't take the country out of the girl. And I imagine that would really hurt, so please don't even try.

Just liked these lyrics so thought I would share them ... it's a nice sentiment:

I am the sound of love's arriving
Echoed softly on the sand
Lay your head upon my shoulder
Lay your hand within my hand
I give you all that I am

The 11th month ...

To some it feels like the 11th hour, I'm sure, or the beginning of the end. I will have to work at not wishing this month away, as for each day of it that passes I am one day closer to being back at home. So, every time I look at this post I'll be reminded to appreciate each day as it comes ...
This past weekend was quite lovely, entailing of: staying at a motel on the ocean, being the MVP of a couple of the hockey games I played in, and coming across a book sale in the mall adjoining the arena. It was a bit harder coming back to all the school work I have for this week (I actually managed to get a bit done while at the tournament), but I'm slogging through. Last night was the least Hallowe'eny I've ever felt on October, but then I don't ever remember working or playing tennis on Hallowe'en before. And what is with all of the fireworks?!? It's a weird West coast of Canada thing to set off fireworks over the weekend before Halowe'en, and the actual night, apparently. People don't even seem to know why they do it, mostly just because the fireworks are available to buy, so I've been told.
Anyway, hope everyone reading this is able to enjoy the continued changing of the season, and anticipate the approaching winter with at least a bit of excitement ...

Below is a poem I wrote for a friend who abhorred November, in an attempt to help her see the warmer side of the month:

Unconditional Love
Smile back at me
Crisp wind
For I know your chill
Is not personal
And thus am I pleased

Fall down on me
Rain of this grey sky
For I know you will soon
Be strikingly white
And thus am I pleased

Curl and dance higher
Smoke of the fires cheery
For I know that inside
Someone is being warmed
And thus am I pleased

Bring forth all that you can muster
Oh sweet November
For naught can I be turned
From loving you
For what you are