East Coast Life

So I've been living back on the east coast for over 2 weeks now. I've been working for a week, and move into my own apartment tomorrow night. I can't wait. I've been living out of boxes and suitcases for a couple of months now, and a messy apartment (as I packed) a month before that. Anyone who knows me, understands what that chaos does to me...I've been okay, not too cranky, but I NEED to get unpacked. I don't have a lot of furniture to unpack things into, but I can get started. I have kitchen cupboards, so at least can unpack the kitchen stuff. I also have those shelves in the living room, and 3 closets. I bought a nifty rack at Wicker Emporium for in the bathroom as there is no real vanity, or shelving in there. I still have to get a shower curtain, and am hoping the landlord made sure to get the shower rod re-installed or I shall be bathing...

Tis a wild and windy night here tonight. I had missed the storms of the east coast, and how it felt to be cozy inside while the wind howled outside. I have to work in the morning, so am hoping the rain that is to follow the wind, takes all the snow right back away again. It's freezing rain at the moment, whipping around everywhere. Stormy is somewhat unsettled by the weather, and pacing the floors. He hasn't heard the wind howl like this as we moved up north while he was still a young kitten, and prior to winter. I am very thankful I do not have to be oustide in it!

The job is going well. I was finally assigned some work today, and was thrilled about that. I have been reading policies, procedures, manuals, other peoples work, and attending a plethora of meetings...now I have some actual work to do on my own, and it's been interesting! Tomorrow I am visiting a facility with another worker, and will spend the day there, inspecting.

It's good to be back on the east coast...

And The Week Rolled On

T'was a good week overall. I managed to get a job, an apartment, and didn't get lost in the commute. I'll be working for the government again, doing a similar job, but with a different population. Good pay, and my office cubicle (yes, I am finally being stuffed into a cubicle...first time since 2001 when I worked for an insurance company). I do however, have a window in my cubicle, and because we are on the 6th floor, I have a view, and within that view, is the harbour and one of the big bridges that crosses the harbour. Cool. My co-workers seem nice enough, and the office tower is located in a mall, so shopping is very convenient...that could also pose a problem as well...too convenient.

My new apartment is the second floor of an old Victorian era house. Quite roomy, with lots of windows. Heat and hot water is included which can be a very huge bonus for sure. I have my own private entrance, with a small deck, perfect for a bbq and a couple of chairs. There are trees in the yard that will shade the house, also perfect as anyone who knows me, know that I do not like the heat. It's a two bedroom, with a very awkwardly shaped kitchen and bathroom - they took one big square room and created two wedge shaped rooms out of it, which works for the purpose, just offers very awkward room shapes.

Shopping for the new apartment is a blast - I sold all my furniture, gave away much of my bed linens, dishes, curtains, etc before I left the north. Now I get to pick it all out again! Hooray! I moved out of an apartment with 3 windows and a door with a little window. Now I have 7 windows and a door with a little window in it. Wicker Emporium has a great sale on now so I picked up a few things. I have put a deposit on the table and chairs shown above, and hope to pick it up on Saturday. I also have my eye on the red chair shown, at Wicker Emporium.

It shall be a fine mess once I start unpacking...41 boxes plus 3 rubbermaid bins, and my car full of stuff, numerous bags of clothing and other items...Stormy will enjoy the empty boxes as usual, and I will enjoy getting rid of them as I unpack. I hope to have a housewarming by the middle of the month, once I am able to get the place furnished enough to have folks over. Let the games begin...

The Boy Returns To The East Coast

Stormy is due in any moment. While I was roaring across the country for 9 days, he was chauffeured to the airport this morning by someone from his foster home, my good friend S aka Hairy Hoser. Stormy was able to jetset across the country, with someone else tending to his needs. S told me the A/C cargo staff in Van were pleasant and showed an interest in Stormy. I hope he is not too shell-shocked by the time he arrives. I have a fresh litterbox waiting for him in the car. When he flew up north in 2005, he spent a half an hour in the litter box upon arrival at the hotel.

And then he arrived. We are at home now. Stormy has had a quick bath and found out where everything relevant to his life is. Now he has flopped in the hallway outside my open bedroom door. All must be right with the world...the boy has arrived.

The Cross Country Tour

After dropping the non-resident daughter off at the airport on Saturday morning, I headed to my friend S's house to pick up some things I had left with him. I couldn't fit it all in and the non-resident daughter too, so had dropped some stuff off before I picked her up. I also dropped off Stormy there too so had a wonderfuly albeit short visit with him. I also got stuck in S's driveway...and wanted to torch my car by the end of it. Winter was my enemy on the west coast for sure. After I got out of the driveway, I took S. for a quick lunch and then headed back to visit for a little with Stormy and S's family before returning to New Westminster where I had spent the previous night with an old high school friend. It was snowing like crazy, as it had been most of the friggin time on the west coast since Christmas. We braved the weather and drove downtown to West Hastings and visited the new Amsterdam Cafe, where my friend bought me a lovely t-shirt that smelled very strongly...we stopped at a tavern close to her home, had a beer and then headed back to her place for some catching up. I headed out early the next morning, headed for Kamloops.

Kamloops was at the end of the Coquihalla Highway, aka the Coke. The highway was somewhat intimidating when others talked about it so much, how bad the weather gets, how steep the mountains are, that chains are required, that it closes on a moment's notice, etc. However, I was fairly lucky and although the roads were snowcovered, they were manageable and I was able to make fairly good time and got to Kamloops in daylight. I visited there with good friends for the night, did some laundry, and left the following morning, destined for Calgary.

After crossing the Rocky Mountains, the skies cleared, and the highway levelled out. I made it to Calgary in good time, and spent the night hanging out with my cousin J., who cooked a lovely supper and we watched one of our favorite movies, Love Actually. After sacking out on her comfy sofa, I left early again the following morning, destined for Winnipeg.

The prairies were a blur, as they usually are, however I was treated to a stunning sunrise just outside Calgary, and had to stop to snap some photos with the big camera. I didn't stop much along the way otherwise, passing everything but the gas station. It was a long friggin haul to Winnipeg, but I made it, and arrived in the 'peg by about 9pm I think, where I bunked in with my ex-husband's sister and her husband for the night. It was great to see them, and to catch up on their lives. It had been several years since I had seen them both. I was exhausted so decided to stay an extra day and rest up, and visit some more. I left early again the next morning, bound for Thunder Bay.

Northern Ontario was a waste of space...dammit it took FOREVER to cross. I made it to Thunder Bay by about 7:30pm, and found my hostel relatively easy. I didn't particularly like it as it was more like staying at your nosiest aunt's house...what a busybody the hostess was and my room was right near the common areas where she lurked, chatting endlessly on the phone. I left really early again in the morning, headed for North Bay.

I did not make it to North Bay, having taken the northern route through Kapuskasing. It took FOREVER!!! I ended up checking into a motel about 8:00pm that night, having had ENOUGH of the endless, boring, two-lane highway, with trucks trying to force me off the road. I got up the next morning and headed for North Bay, arriving mid-morning and had some things I hoped to accomplish there before moving on. I have an infant sister buried there, and no one has visited her grave since the funeral. At first it was difficult for the family, and then we moved away and never returned. I had promised my mother I would stop by with some flowers and visit the dear little one in the cemetary. It was not to be. Turned out there was no grave marker, and 2 feet of snow or more in most of the cemetary. Without a marker and all that snow, it was impossible to locate, as I didn't know where to start. I visited the funeral home, and after a few calls, was connected with a gal who could help me find it in the spring. After shedding tears of loss about not being able to fulfil my promise to my mother, not to mention my inability to visit with the sister who came after me, I left the flowers against the fence in the graveyard, the wreath and teddy bear with the funeral home, and hoped someone would find her in the spring. I later spoke to the gal who managed to locate the plot's whereabouts, and she promised to bring her flowers in the spring and take a photo of the plot to send to me.

After the emotional rollercoaster that was North Bay, I headed for Petawawa to visit with another high school friend that I had managed to keep in touch with ever since...those are rare. Some things never change...she was much like I remembered her. We went out for supper and before long I had to hit the road again, as I was destined for Munster, just outside of Ottawa. I made it there by about 9pm, and was completely exhausted by that point, so made the executive decision to stay an extra day to do some laundry and rest up a bit. I did some shopping in Kanata with my cousin's wife, and left Munster early the following morning, destined for Sussex.

I didn't make it to Sussex. Turns out it was much farther than hoped, and took much longer to get there. I ended up staying in another hotel, just outside of Woodstock. New Brunswick was another boring and long drive, with little to see from the highway. I got up early the next morning and headed for Sussex to visit with another dear old friend. It was great to see her, and I thoroughly enjoyed the brief tour of her huge 150 year old home, which she runs as a bed & breakfast, and a few apartments. By late morning, I knew I should get my ass in gear and finally make it to Dartmouth. I landed there about 3pm, and was ever so glad to finally get the hell out of my car, and to see the folks.

There I was, having completed a cross-country tour in January. It took me 9 days, and once I was out of BC, had nothing but terrific weather across the country. BC was beautiful this summer, but what a friggin mess it was this Christmas...I was glad to be out of it. Now I have to find a job and a place to live...in the meantime, I'm bunking in with my parents. Stay tuned...

San Francisco

Fog, rain, cold. That would describe San Fran...we did get a break from the rain when we went to Alcatraz. The hostel was nice enough, but very large and very formal. We much preferred the Ocean Beach hostel in San Diego. The San Fran hostel was also located right smack in the middle of Little Saigon...which was unfortunate because neither of us like Asian food that much...so we dared to get pizza at a local pizzaria run by Muslims...that was interesting. Or should I say painful. I think I had a bit of food poisoning as I was wracked with terrible cramps later that night that doubled me over in pain. Great way to spend New Year's Eve. We stayed in, both tired and weary of tramping all over the city in the cold, foggy, damp weather. We watched the ball drop on my computer, and spent the night just hanging out with each other. If the weather was better, we were going to go out and look for something happening outside, but it was crap, so we didn't bother. Parking was atrociously expensive...$18 per day!!! We visited the Haight-Ashbury district too, but the weather kept most folks away. The shops were cool, but there was no hippy vibe, like there would be in the summer. I shall have to return in search of clearer weather and a better experience. We saw just a glimpse of the Golden Gate bridge as we drove out of San Fran, in the fog...boo.

San Diego

San Diego was beautiful weather, sand, sun, and groovy people...lotsa surfer dudes too. We also went to the San Diego Zoo...lotsa animals, lotsa people. We took a few hours and dashed over to Tijuana...dirty, crowded, annoying...bought some stuff and came back...

The Grand Canyon and the Hoover Dam

We left Las Vegas and headed father into the desert for the Hoover Dam and the Grand Canyon. It was plenty warm enough at the Dam, but when we got to the turnoff to the Grand Canyon, the temperature was -12C, and there was about 3 feet of snow. WTF? We were going to camp...so we chose a small motel in Williams, at the junction. We checked the weather for the morning and it was -27C at the Canyon...jaysus murphy...so after bbqing supper on the motel's grill which conveniently happened to be outside our motel room door, we went to bed early, and got up to head to the Grand Canyon. It was simply stunning, 3 feet of snow or not. We didn't stay more than an hour or so, as it was damn cold and we wanted HEAT with our sun, so after some photos, gift shop, few more looks, we headed south towards Mexico, and picked up the interstate to San Diego.

We finally saw hundreds of cactus plants in the Arizona desert, and took a ton of photos. By the time we hauled into San Diego, it was about 10pm, and we were dog tired. The hostel was again quite nice, and just 2 short blocks to the beach...yahfrigginhoo!

Viva Las Vegas

Once we arrived in Vegas, things began to look up. The hostel was quite nice, with a pool (outdoor so closed), a hot tub, laundry, kitchen, internet, and just down the street from the Freemont Experience. It was sunny and warm, and we were so DAMN glad to see the end of the snow, at least for a while. We went down and checked out the Freemont Experience that night, and the huge screen over the street was amazing - we watched a video on it, which was cool. We tried some gambling, had a prime rib dinner, and got our photos taken with the Chippendales boys, who smelled and felt VERY NICE...

Day 2 in Vegas, we went down to check out the Vegas Strip, starting at the MGM Grand, where we had a look at the lion enclosure in the casino, which was pretty cool. The enclosure is temperature controlled and sound proofed. The lions are rotated out so no one lion spends much time in the enclosure. The strip was full of casinos (of course), restaurants, gift shops, tourists, and plenty of guys and gals handing out flyers for hookers...we checked out Madame Tusseaud's Wax Museum, which was very cool. We posed with tons of stars, and had most of the museum to ourselves that day. We also went to M & M World, Coca-Cola World, and several other themed buildings/areas.

That night we went out for a buffet at Treasure Island, which was quite good, but I wish I had a larger appetite to make it worth my while, heh heh...it was also a lengthy lineup to get in. We rode the "Deuce" which is a double decker bus that runs up and down the strip all day and night.

Day 3 in Vegas was Christmas Day, and we went to the Stratosphere for a tour and a ride on the XScream, which was a quick but thrilling ride that teeters out over the edge of the tower. Then we were off to check out more of the strip. We left at one point to go see a large aquarium off the strip, but it took forever to get just to the bus terminal, so turned around and went back to the strip as we had tickets for a show that night. This was the highlight of my trip - we saw Beatles Love Cirque du Soleil...it was AWESOME! I highly recommend it, however it is wrapping up this month. I bought lots of souvenirs, and took photos in the amazing theme area next to the theatre. After the show we were able to catch the fountain show at the Bellagio, and the Volcano show at the Mirage.

The Rest of The Beach Bum Tour - Day 3

Being a busy trip, I didn't get much time to post while travelling so will do my best to highlight it now, in retrospect.
Day 3 - Still fucking snowing in Oregon. WTF?? So we had to get the motel owner to roust his lazyass son out to help shovel and push us out of the parking spot and into the parking lot. Missus came out, wringing her hands, not knowing what to do about the snow. Said she had a shovel but there was snow in front of the shed where it was kept. SO GO GET IT! Finally we were pushed out into the parking lot where I promptly got stuck again. There was about 18 inches of snow on the ground, nothing plowed, hardly driven on. Got pushed into the sidestreet that led to the main street, and stuck again. Still not a speck of snow had been plowed. We ended up with 3 people shovelling us us out and then finally were pushed onto the street and off the races we were.

So then we though, well, lets get out of the mountains and head for the desert...big mistake. We were still too far north not to run out of snow, and the higher we went in the mountains, the more snow we came across. It was near blizzard by the time we reached the summit, and the only one on the highway. I made an executive decision to turn around, and the snow was so thick, I had to follow the "cat's eyes" down the mountain and back into rainy weather instead of snow. It was a terrifying drive, with few guardrails to save you from falling off the side of the mountain should you begin to slide.

Once back off the mountain, we started driving south again on the interstate, bound to hit Las Vegas by the following day. We parked in front of a hotel around 11:30pm and napped for a few hours before hitting the road again. We finally drove into the desert sun, and away from the snow by about 2pm the following afternoon. Day 3 of our trip was NOT FUN.