At last -- here it is. I find myself in the throes of summer as I write this.
Weekend plans? I GOT 'EM.
Friends returning from their adventures abroad? OH YES, IN DROVES.
Optimism returning? YOU BET.
.... Hence my blogging negligence. Granted, I can't be too apologetic considering May, June, AND July were write-offs. I took advantage of nothing mainly because... well, there wasn't much going on. But now, late summer is unfurling before me and I am excited to say that life is turning around.
I've been meaning to update about last weekend for this entire week, so I thought I should elaborate a bit on that front. Most of my time was spent at the gym or watching the first season of Heroes (which I CAN'T BELIEVE I HAVE NEVER WATCHED BEFORE LAST WEEKEND), but Monday was chock full of summer-y goodness.
That's right -- Ontario residents were blessed with a Civic Holiday on Monday, August 3 and, so, I was liberated from the beige life of the office. Dad and I headed down to the Kelso Conservation Area to practice our canoeing skillz. And, apparently, everyone else in the area decided upon the same thing. We spent about... maybe half an hour trying to get IN to the parking lot and then we spent another half an hour waiting to rent our canoe.
It was definitely worth it though, let me tell you.
We spent an hour on the water getting familiar with the paddles (it's been a while for us both) and just generally exploring the little inlets across the lake. Our plan is to work ourselves up to the point where we can cruise down the Grand River on one of their tours. Haha, after reading that paragraph, all I can think is, "GOD... that sounds so freakin' Canadian." All we need to do is portage a little and we are SO THERE.
Anyhow, all Canadiana aside for the moment, I met up with Ms. Chantal who is BACK HOME SINCE LIVING IN JAPAN FOR THE PAST YEAR! It was so surreal to return to our usual haunts after an absence of 365 days. It's amazing how easily you can fall back into familiar routines, though. Chantal even commented that by the time she reached her neighbourhood after her flight, it was like she'd never been gone in the first place. Weird how the memory functions.
Anyhow, I brought over a special 'Welcome Home' gift of champagne and Turkish delight and she gave me some cute/delicious souvenirs from Japan and from her short trip to Thailand. After that, we headed over to Boston Pizza for some "real pizza," as Chantal now calls it. (Yeah, I know Japan's not famous for their pizza, so, Chantal was definitely excited for the Real Deal.) I know she and I have been reflecting on our friendship as of late -- I mean, we've know each other since we were 14 and now, we've been to Japan and back and are planning a European extravaganza for next year. (Oh, yeah -- P.S. I went to Japan in March to visit with Chantal for 2 weeks.... that's an important bit of detail there, I do believe). It's amazing to think about your connection with other people, just to see how much you've accomplished together.
Look at me getting all sentimental. I blame the gorgeous weather for all this.
AND, side note: We had quite the hottie spotting while at Boston Pizza. Her name was Jessy and she was our waitress. I've been out to Chantal for a year now, but I've only ever talked about female celebrities I have crushes on. So, to acknowledge the fact that I check out women around me on a regular basis was... well, perhaps a revelation to her.
Mmm, Jessy... she had a crazy accent. I couldn't place where she was from, which leads me to believe it was a South African accent. (It's my default when I can't pin down an accent... and it seems to be accurate quite often). Chantal and I were chatting a bit about where I was in the coming out process and a bit about O'Neill, so I think Ms. Jessy overhead the fact that I'm a gay gal. I noticed she was making eye contact with me quite a bit and she randomly came over to ask me specifically how I was enjoying my multigrain pizza crust. I know, specific, right? And she kind of ignored Chantal a little which was hilarious to reflect upon.
BUT -- to end the experience, she wrote little messages on both of our receipts, right? I looked at mine only to find she'd written "Thank you very much! XO Jessy". <-- THAT'S AN 'XO,' people. I gloated over that one. Chantal pouted over her lack of an 'XO' and slyly said, "Maybe Jessy thought you were pretty damn hot!" I might have go back there -- AND SOON. Oh, ego boosts, how I love thee.
We caught the film Fifty Dead Men Walking and it was shocking, brilliant, amazing, and randomly funded by Canadian sources...? It details the story of Martin McGartland, a young man from west Belfast who was recruited by the British Police to spy on the IRA during the 1980s. He managed to survive his capture/torture at the hands of the IRA by throwing himself from a tower block window. And he's still in hiding as we speak. It was an excellent movie, I've got to say. But yeah, it was funded not only by Canadian sources, but by QUEBEC sources, if you can imagine it. Random indeed, but I'm glad they did.
... And here I am, standing on the brink of another August weekend with a few odd plans and a desire for improvisation. We'll see what I make of it.
P.S. -- I also have a LOT of blog updates to catch-up on. Prepare thyself for a deluge of comments.
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