Category Archives: Canada

Canada

We put the X in Kay-Eee-x-pah

Hey kids. In Canada today. Currently engaging in housewifery and listening to last Friday’s Shake the Shack on KEXP.com. Housewifery and Rockabilly goes hand in hand, I think. When I am up here full time (as of next Friday) I’m going to have to find something else to do as well. Spending my days alone, when Wil works he works 10 hour days, and cleaning will probably make me craz(ier). I’ve noticed I have started calling people on the phone. Just to talk. That’s totally unlike me. I’m a tiny bit worried, but I’m sure I will work it out. I’m thinking of taking deep water aerobics at this, apparently, really nice swimming pool in New West. I really like New West.

But here is my question to you. When I tell people I am moving to Vancouver… well, I guess I am lying a bit because I’m moving to New West, in the “Greater Vancouver Region,” … 90% of the time they say, “Oh I love Vancouver, great food.” Seriously. “Great Food.” Every time. So what I want to know is, those of you who have been here, and love the food, exactly what food do you love? I’m not much a foodie, but I like great food.

Tomorrow I head back down to the states, to finish up on the house. The movers are coming Thursday morning to put everything in storage. I can’t bring it here yet, as I have no status. I was disappointed, but I decided to concentrate on status after I get out of the house. We’ve bought some cheapy stuff to make the place comfortable in the meantime. Thursday afternoon, the haulers come to haul everything else to the dump. It costs more to haul than to move. Amazing.

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Canada

Single best border experience. Ever.

Smiley US Border Guard: So, where are you from?

Me: Redmond

Smiley US Border Guard: And what was your purpose in visiting Canada?

Me: To visit my boyfriend.

Smiley US Border Guard: And is he still there?

Me: In Canada? Of course.

Smiley US Border Guard: Have a nice day.

He made me laugh. I’m back down at the house for a few days. Pru has a dentist appointment tomorrow and I have a lot of work to do. March. It’s going to be all cleaning, packing, unpacking and cleaning some more. Fun. You know how I feel about hard work. But our new bed? ROCKS SO MUCH IT’S INSANE!

We don’t have phone or internet at the apartment yet, I’m going back up on Thursday to have that all installed and set up. Mucho importante. So if I haven’t replied to your email or commented on your blog in a while, I apologize. Let’s just get through this month, ok?

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Canada, William

I am the princess in this scenario.

So here I sit, on the floor, in the living room of my new Canadian home. My name is on the lease. On the floor is really the only place there is to sit, until I move my furniture up later this month. The floor, or the new bed. TBD today, sometime in the 3-6 o’clock time frame. That is my job today. Wait for the mattress people to call and then wait for them to show up. Wil’s job is to go to work and make us money. Yay!

Shopping for the new bed was an interesting experience. I’m used to making purchases by myself, for myself. I might ask for advice or recommendations before major purchases, and I always wanted my stepdad to look at the cars I was buying, but mostly I know what I want and I get it. If I can. This time, it wasn’t just me. I was trying to be very conscientious of the fact that this bed was going to be Wil’s too. So, imagine my confusion when he failed to have an opinion about anything. I’d bounce on the bed, tell him to try it, he’d sit down and give his stock answer “It’s nice. It’s good.”

We had a conversation that went something like this:

“Look, babe, I’m trying not to just think of myself here, trying not to just railroad you into a bed I want. It’s your bed too.”

“Do you remember when we got the mattress in Victoria, what you said after the first night of sleeping on it?”

“I believe I said it was not acceptable.”

“Right.”

“You could feel the springs. It was very old. But I tricked it out.”

“Yes you did.”

“I bought it pads and such. It was much better after I was done with it.”

“Yes, it was. But you see, I thought it was fine before you did that.”

“Ahhhh…. I see what you are saying. I have higher standards than you.”

“Yes.”

“And you trust my bed shopping talents because if it’s comfortable for me, it will be comfortable for you.”

“Sure.”

I think we found the perfect solution. I know from all the motels, hotels, etc that we’ve stayed at recently, Wil likes a firmer bed than I. So we got a Sleep Number bed.

Poor baby, he’s probably slept in crap beds all his life. How did he manage without me?

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Canada, William

I wish I had flashlights in my eyes

Every time I try to write about all the things going on right now, it comes out very flat. I think I am living on the surface of things. I have much to be grateful for, and excited about as well. We found a one bedroom apartment that we’ve rented for 6 months, which will give us time to figure out where we want to live. It’s generic, but they will take our cats, I will have a parking spot, I think I can fit most of my stuff in it, and it’s a block and a a half from Wil’s new job. This is great news. We bought our new apartment a new bed. The most money I’ve ever spent on a piece of furniture. On anything, really, that wasn’t a computer or a car. It’s a glorious bed. I can’t wait to sleep on it. And dress it in luxurious bedding.

But there are so many things going on that are less positive. More stressful. I was in a car accident. Not my fault, and no one was hurt, but my car is the one with the damage, the front end is all smooshed. There is so much work to do around the house, but I’d rather be up north. I’m anxious for the day when I will stay put for an extended period of time. It’s wearing on me. I want a home. I want to stay home. But these are all minor complaints, really. My stepfather is very ill. I mentioned this earlier, but didn’t go into detail. He is very sick, and the prognosis is fairly bleak. And this colors every single moment of every single day. Like looking through grim colored glasses. I can’t bring myself to write what is really happening to him – can’t stand to see it spelled out in fonts.

It’s all a bit too much right now. I might need a bit of a blog break. Or, at the very least, please excuse me if the posts are infrequent, or possibly whiny, in March.

I don’t know about you, but I can’t wait for Spring.

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Canada

Greetings from New Westminster

Surprise! We are going to be living on the mainland. Wil started a new job this morning. I dropped him off at work, but I didn’t pack him a lunch or anything. We are staying in a hotel right now. Along with Pru. I’m going back home tomorrow and Wil will, hopefully, be staying with a friend for a couple of days until I come back next weekend. We are looking for a place to live and we need one now. However, it’s not going well. 95% of all places listed don’t accept pets. We have a small geographical area we are looking in, because we want to keep the commute time, via public transportation, down. And we need a two bedroom at least.

There is a lot to be said for saving money. We saw a place 4 blocks from the new job, it met the deal breaker criteria I have – my own parking spot. Cats are ok. It has been newly refurbished so while the building itself is a bit sad, the apartment is nice with hardwood floors and new appliances. It’s only $175 more dollars than I pay now, not taking conversion into account, simply by numbers. However, it’s so dinky. SO SO SO SO dinky. Maybe somewhere around 600 square feet? 650? I could not fit half my stuff in it. I don’t know where we would put litter boxes. So cute, but so small. I just don’t know if we could fit there. You could not even fit a couch in the living room.

Plus, in the hallway, you could smell someone’s dinner cooking, and it smelled like they were cooking ASS.

We aren’t ruling it out, yet. It’s the most affordable, convenient, cat friendly place we’ve found. It’s available now. But we’ve only been looking one day.

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Canada

My beeswax IS their beeswax, apparently

I’ve given up worrying about the border guards. The Canadians don’t care where I work anymore. They can barely get enough enthusiasm going for my visits to even glance at my paperwork half the time. The Americans? Well, fuck ’em. They ask a billion questions and shine flashlights in my car, and they are kind of intimidating, but it IS my country I’m trying to enter, so I guess I’m not so worried about what they think of me. I now just tell them I’m unemployed. They get to ask the question that everyone wants to ask me, but are too polite, usually, to do so. What do I do for income. And, even though I fail to see how it’s their business, I tell them something true.

You really only need one kidney to live.

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Canada

Snowed in, in Canada

Woke up to inches of snow on the ground, and more fluffy stuff falling. I suppose, to some, snow would be expected in Canada. But this is Victoria. It’s below the 49th. Basically, whatever happens in Seattle, happens in Victoria. So, yes, they are getting snow down home as well. I think about a half foot has fallen here already, not sure what that is in centimeters. And it’s snowing again now.

We went for a walk today. The snow is still new and soft. Sidewalks, which were newly shoveled when we walked one direction, were completely blanketed again when we came back. I made bear prints in the snow. And threw a snowball at a telephone pole. Well, aimed for one at least. That was simply to show the world at large that they were in no danger from me, when it came to snowball fights. I considered making an angel, but I really only brought the one pair of jeans, spending most of my time in yoga pants when we hang out, and didn’t want to completely soak them. We stopped at a coffee shop and I had a large mug of hot chocolate, with whipped cream, and a chocolate swirl. It was a situation in which one could hardly avoid getting whipped cream on one’s nose. Watching the snow out the window, I kept thinking about Colorado. I need to go back there, someday soon.

I bet if I went outside now, in the dark, the world would be all silent, the way it is in the new snow. Everything muffled. Shhhh…. goodnight snow.

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Canada

Boxing Day – I think that means there will be punching.

Canadians are so nice. On Christmas day, the ferry ticket guy gave me a candy cane and a free one way walk on ferry ticket Yesterday morning. Then, inside the terminal, the general goods store, which was one of the stores open at 7:30 xmas morning, gave me free candy bars.

I felt bad. Here they are, working on Christmas, and they are giving me the presents. I didn’t get them anything.

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Canada, William

I believe in… miracles. Where you from? You sexy thing.

So, weeks and weeks ago I asked you if you believed in ghosts and then never told you why I asked. Silly me.

Last month, my mom and her husband, Bob, came up to Victoria to visit and meet Wil. We took them for brunch at my favorite brunch place, John’s place. And we took them on a Historical Ghost Walk of Victoria. Victoria, it seems, is one of the most haunted places in the Pacific Northwest. One reason? The Hudson Bay Company did not follow the cardinal rule of Poltergeist. They may, or may not, have moved the gravestones, but they DID NOT MOVE THE BODIES, when they kicked the native dwellers off their lands and started building. Man, you ALWAYS move the bodies. Always. Also, I don’t think ghosts like the water, so they are pretty much island bound. I might be making that up, tho, I’m not sure.

Wil does not believe in ghosts. I like the idea of ghosts. It appeals to me. But I’ve never had a ghostly experience. And I didn’t that night. Well, maybe I did, I don’t know. One of the symptoms of a ghostly experience is a sudden drop in temperature surrounding you. But it was night and outside and we were already cold. I could have been frosted in ghosts and not known it. Several times we were led through alleys and hallways that were supposed to be ripe with spirits. Nothing. Nada. And I had an open mind. Wil did not. When asked if he was at all sensitive, his response was “I’m the most insensitive guy you’ll ever meet.”

But, it was interesting. A slightly more gruesome way of delivering some history, so it’s fun. During the summer, they have five different routes. Victoria is that haunted. And I would definitely take visitors on one, if they liked. Good times. Spooky fun. Two spectral thumbs up.

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Canada, William, work

Not just another Monday morning excuse.

As you may know, Kraft Macaroni and Cheese is called “Kraft Dinner” up here in Canada. When I was in the store yesterday, I saw they had a flavor we don’t have in the states – sharp cheddar. I LOVE Kraft M&C… Wil, not so much. But he’s indulging me and we are preparing dinner of M&C and caesar salad. How domestic. By “we” I mean “he” of course.

Friday night, my car broke down on I-5, in the middle of nowhere. In the pitch dark. Surrounded by wolves, I’m pretty sure. Probably because I just didn’t get to spend enough money on the plumber earlier that week. Destiny thought I could use some more major expenses right before the holidays. Thank god for cell phones, although AAA could not find someone to come out to tow me, so the State Patrol sent someone out and I paid them out of my pocket. They towed my car to Mount Vernon, where the service station was already closed for the weekend. All the car rental places were closed for the evening. I had to stay the night at a Qaulity Inn. But they had wi-fi, which was, pretty much, the bright spot in my day.

I had to email in to work. I’m going to have to go to Mount Vernon and deal with my car. The spectacularly unhelpful whelp who was in charge of the station that evening seemed to think that there was no way they’d be able to fix my car in 2006. If not, I’ll have to have it towed somewhere else. Everyone says, based on the symptoms, it’s my alternator.

I tried and tried all weekend to find a way to make this tale more amusing. But the sad fact is, it’s just annoying.

Oh well. My mac and cheese is ready! Bon Appetite!

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