What have I been doing lately??

It seems like I just woke up and summer had come and gone.
Fall has too, apparently:
I just nicely returned home from Thanksgiving and was greeted with some of the first snow of the season. Nothing has stayed more than a day but I am glad I got my winter tires and snow scraper when I was down south.

So what was my summer like? Here is a quick recap:

In JUNE I moved twice. (Got to be a new record for me- UGH!) That took up most of my month, and my energy. Short notice between contracts didn't give me time to arrange accommodations- fortunately a friend from church gave me a place to stay until I found an apartment.

My new place is decent.
Perks being that I have the place to myself and can shower, play violin, play music, cook, etc. whenever I want without worrying about bothering others. The building is relatively new and well maintained in comparison to other places in this city. There is a laundromat downstairs with washers and driers that actually work. The floors are laminate and tile and I have light! (A welcome change from the previous dark basement)
Downsides to the apartment being- farther away from work and the grocery store so I have to drive. I miss living with people- it is nice to talk to someone when I come home from a long day of saying nothing in the lab. And this apartment seriously lacks adequate ventilation. Most of the months of June-September are a blurr due to the heat frying my brain. Many days I came home to a sweltering apartment well over 35 C! Even now with evening temps dipping below freezing I haven't had to turn my heater on and I still have my window open most days. During the worst of the summer heat it got to the point that I looked up what temperature sprinkler systems turn on worried that one day I would find my apartment flooded. Purchasing and installing blinds and curtains, along with 3 circulating fans provided modest relief. Still, I didn't cook much all summer. The other problem with the lack of ventilation stems from the habits of my neighbours. Whatever smells are in their apartments are also in mine. I don't mind when the smell is their food but they also enjoy smoking (not always tobacco.) I have a "special" song for my fiddle that I play extra loud on such occasions.

I had 2 weeks vacation in JULY. This allowed me time to go home and visit with my dear friend and roommate from university. We were beach bums for a few days enjoying the coolness of Lake Huron and soaking up the sun while catching up. We don't get much time to talk because the time difference from here to Hong Kong makes things difficult so the opportunity to hang out was priceless!

After that it was off to Alberta to celebrate the wedding of my dear younger sister. What a beautiful day and fun wedding! Slacker bridesmaid (aka me) even managed to pull off putting together a slideshow of the bride and groom in just the nick of time (night before the wedding.) Then it was off to Jasper with the family for some whitewater rafting, hiking, glacier walking,elk, sheep and goat spotting, gondola riding, hot-tubbing, etc. adventures. I even managed to cross off a lifetime goal from my list: I made a snowman on my birthday!!!! Two actually!!! One on the Athabasca glacier and another on top of Whistlers Mt. in Jasper.

Then it was back to Ontario where I spent some time kayaking and then headed back to work.

I don't know where AUGUST went. It must have been a blurr of work, heat exhaustion, lack of sleep, repeat. I got a bunch of practising done on my fiddle and am progressing admirably. I have started to develop a love of old-style country music complete with banjos and twang. Despite the heat this summer many of the weekends were rainy and cool. So I didn't get as much beach time in as I would have liked. Also I would have liked to have gone camping along the Coastal Trail of Lake Superior Provincial Park, but weather and time and lack of a camping buddy meant that never happened. On two occasions I did get the chance to explore a small portion of the trail. Doing this barefoot and combining it with swimming, picnicking, picking Labrador tea, brewing tea on the beach with lake water, and drinking it as the sun set over Superior  made for one of my favourite memories this summer.

SEPTEMBER and OCTOBER flew by and I hardly know where they went. Most of my time was dedicated to work. My free time towards practising my fiddle and cooking. I have been helping out with getting a campus church started at the local university. We have dinner together after the service and I provide the food: soup and bread. I have been enjoying a chance to cook for others as well as a chance to try out new soup and bread recipes. On the downside I have been letting my fitness fall by the wayside. In the hot summer heat I stopped my running and soon found it all to easy to skip my other workouts. I found it all too easy to come up with excuses: heat, illness, laziness, business, new neighbourhood etc. until it had been way too long since my last workout. This week I have been making an effort to change this and it is kicking my butt!!!!! A simple 45 min lap swim had my arms and legs feeling sore and shaky, and an evening run was harder than I remember. But with some effort I hope to be ready for X-country ski season when it starts again.

If I am still here.
Who knows.
My current contract only goes to the end of this month so we shall see what happens. I guess I am back to that uncertain phase in my life again.... will the end of this year bring a record 4 moves in a year? or will I be able to stay in one place for more than 6 months?? Sometimes I find myself feeling that I am done with this place and it is time to move on... but I still don't want to pull out my boxes.

Midwinter Musings

Winter is more than halfway over and so is my job, but as of today there is still snow and I am still employed so I will rejoice.

Winter was a long time coming and still isn’t sure if it wants to stay. Here in the Sault we have had a milder than normal winter, there have been frequent mild spells which often cause my much-loved snow to melt and disappear, or settle and become hard and crusty- so unlike its original fluffy white self. But even though winter has been milder than normal at least we have had winter unlike many other parts of the country. I have been able to do a bit of X-country skiing, skating, and some snowshoeing too. So I guess there really are no complaints. All that remains to be done is to go for a sleigh ride and to go tobogganing and my winter to-do list is nearly complete.

The view from here lately has been a lot of this.

I see a lot of other things while I am out skiing but I usually see the best things when I don’t have my camera nearby; like the time I came within a meter of a gorgeous downy wood-pecker drumming on a tree as fluffy flakes of snow gently fluttered to the ground. Unless my painting skills greatly improve some things will just have to remain memories.

As my job contract nears completion I am feeling the wander bug set in again. Sadly the motivation to refresh my resumé is greatly lacking. I feel I am ready for a new place and a new adventure. I just wish I could take all my dear friends from here and bring them with me.

The snow sparkles outside my window and soon I will go out and enjoy it. But for now I am cuddled up in a blanket and sipping a large cup of magic mango mate. (It was an excellent Christmas present from my darling little sister. I would love it if she would send me some more! Hint hint) I have been enjoying it a lot lately which isn’t a bad thing. Apparently yerba mate is also called the “liquid vegetable” since it contains a pile of vitamins, nutrients and anti-oxidants (more than green tea!)

So get out and enjoy the snow then brew yourself a pot of deliciousness and settle in to some great music. This month’s discovery was a sweet band from Calgary Alberta called Lauren Mann and the fairly odd folk. I greatly enjoyed their sounds at a recent concert in Sault Ste. Marie and have subsequently been enjoying their CD. They are currently on tour so look them up and see if they will be near you- you won’t regret it! Or check them out on noisetrade where you can download some of their newest songs for free (although I am sure tips are appreciated.)