Shaking Hands and Darting Eyes... for a Good Day?

Today is the LAST day I will EVER have of High school Classes (hopefully).... My entire life I have been dreaming of this moment. This moment was the only idea sometimes that would get me through a extra long day at school with that awful teacher who seemed to like to pick on me and me alone. It was the thought of being free which helped form my outlook on life, freedom, and my exhausting need to be independent. However, now that I am here, my body twitches with the idea that I will not succeed or achieve what I need, or if I even know what I want. What if I just can't cut it? What if I don't meet the right people or go to the right events? What if I don't make it to school and spend my life in a restaurant (which, don't get me wrong, is a hard and trying job, but not what I want to do). What if when I get to where I want to go I screw up royally? Or what if I do not even WANT to be doing what I spend another 4 years studying? What if I take the easy road and my dad is forever disappointed in me, even if he wont show it until he is depressed?
Those are the things that float in my head every time I make a decision. The thing is, the only thing I want to focus on is enjoying myself, but to do that I need to be true to myself and work for what I want.
Saying all of that I feel like I haven't done so bad these past 5 years. I have achieved a fair amount, I have made lots of connections, I have a vision and a way to get where I want to be in another 5 years, and I have great people in my life.
So thanks to everyone supporting me, pushing me to strive to do my best, and loving me even when I made stupid mistakes.
Good luck everyone, and remember, Strive To Be Happy.

Rhinestone shades or cheap sunglasses

Beer drinkers and hell raisers, yeah. Uh-huh-huh, baby, don't you wanna come with me? That was exactly what I said to my boyfriend when I found out we were getting FREE ZZ TOP TICKETS! (For clarification purposes, thats not what I said, but it would have been super cool and since this is my alter ego I can pretend that I actually say stuff like that.) We had spent the weekend attending 50th birthday parties, eating ridiculous amounts of food, and trying to keep up with my mothers partying. We had planned to catch the one ferry home, and since Wes was in a bit of a hurry when my mom called from the other side of town at noon I was slightly freaked out. When I asked her why she wasn't picking us up to take us to the ferry she asked me a question that would change my entire LIFE. "Would you and Wes like some free floor tickets to go see ZZ Top tonight in Victoria?" I sat in awe with my mouth hanging open. Wes started to crumble his face thinking we weren't going to make it back. I looked at him and said "YES." After I hung up I asked Wes the same question. I am to this day amazed at how calmly he agreed to escort me to this epic concert when I knew he was really jumping around for joy inside. So we went. After dinner with my grandparents we hit the road and arrived at the Save-On-Foods Concert Hall. Wide mouth mason opened at 8. They were okay, had a positive energy, but I'm not going to lie, he sounded like a whiney chick. Next thing you knew they were walking off stage. The music playing over the radio fades. The lights dim. The screen behind the stage lights up with car parts. Spotlights hit two mikes and a drum set. Three men walk out. One wearing a simple outfit. He walks to the drum kit behind. The two others have long beards. One with an orange beard and a guitar. One with a white beard and a bass. NEXT THING YOU KNEW WE WEE BEING BLOWN AWAY BY FREAKING ZZ TOP!!!!!!!! Oh man, what a gooodddddddddd show! I got one of the coolest shirts there with ZZ Top on the front and the Destroyer on the back. The next morning Wes and I were taking the 7 ferry home. I decided i wanted to sit in the buffet even though Wes said he wasn't hungry and it was a waste of money. He ate two plates of food and french toast. As I was eating my meal I looked up and thought "Wow, that guy sitting right across from me looks like Dusty Hill from ZZ Top. Wes heard my thoughts (possibly because I said them out loud) , turned around, and said "THAT IS DUSTY HILL!!! THE BASS PLAYER." Of course naturally I stalked him until he was finished eating and pounced to make him sign my shirt. I walk up with a huge smile on my face and say "I was at your show last night!" He says, "Me too." I can smell the tobacco and tour bus on him, I can see the stains in his beard from trying to drink beer. I am tempted to cut a piece of his beard off, steal his hat, and run for the hills. Or at least the women's washroom. I dont. I get him to sign my shirt. Purple sharpie on grey shirt. Perfect. He walks away as others realize and swarm. I sit back down glowing like a mother might after watching her kid win four track races in a row. Long story short, best reason for missing class yet!!!

Dirty Heads

I know this is supposed to be a travel blog, but until I get out of this wonderfully constricting building my adventures will be limited to city - type. So I have decided to share some music with you. A very.... beautiful man at my work told me about this band. He likes a lot of the same music as me, and is always helping me grow my collection. There name is Dirty Heads..... fantastic right? Anyway, there most famous song is Stand Tall, and Lay Me Down, but one of my favourite songs is Believe. If any of you are looking for some great summer music to take you into a peace full oblivion this is one of them. Let it drift you away to a much better place, like the sandy beaches of Jamaica.

When I get older I will be stronger

This is one of the most beautiful songs I have ever heard. It sends chills up and down my spines, and sends goosebumps running along my arms and legs every time I listen to it and watch the passion of each singer. I mean, the song itself has meaning, depth, and a beautiful melody of many canadian singers, but the fact that all of these famous, talented, not to say high - payed performers all took time out of their busy lives to get together and try and help a country that needed it more then ever is absolutely ..... beautiful. The lyrics hold a special meaning and the way each artist brings his or her own to the song makes it that much better. I believe in helping others in any way you can, and I believe that using talents such as music, dance, cooking, writing, speaking, building, etc. etc. can be more help then simply donating a few dollars and walking away. These artists have given Haiti a voice as well as all of the people willing to help but don't know how. Other then that, this song is inspirational on a personal level. It encourages people to step up and help, or even to believe in themselves. I attended my grad twelve graduate dinner dance last saturday, and while we all were dancing someone requested the original version of the song. The lyrics "when I get older I will be stronger they'll call me freedom just like a waving flag." played again and again and I could not help but to think of myself getting older, moving on with my life, and achieving things I have always dreamed of. I just want to make sure everyone has not only heard this song, but has let it lead them to help someone who needs it. Don't forget, just because we think it's all over from the other side of the world, people, everywhere, are fighting for what they have lost.

Sex and the City ..2!!!!!

I started watching Sex and the City when I was in grade nine. My entire summer consisted of me luring people into my room to watch episode after episode, seasons 1 through 6. I would fall asleep to Carrie, Miranda, Charlotte, and Samantha and wake up to the theme song at odd hours of the morning. As I became older I started watching it on tv with more.... understanding. Last year, the movie came out. I was not able to participate in the instant festivities, but I did see it eventually in theaters with my best friend. Now, I am going to see the girls right! I have organized a very small gathering of women, four of us to be exact, to attend the movie this Friday night! Depending on if I work or not, we will be having cosmos (virgin of course.....) and a very classy, fancy, new york dinner before attending the 10 pm showing! We are all dressing up and I am so excited that I am going downtown today to find a very Carrie or Samantha like dress! Probably shinny and showing a little back, specially since Carrie always loved showing off the back of her black bras. J, M, B, and I will be living it up, Sex and the City style this Friday to wish the girls off since, I am sure, this is the last of the movies.

A beautiful Saturday!

SO! This saturday I do not have to work! I am so excited to not have an eight hour day in front of me. So instead I am getting up early (crazy I know but...) to go on a trail ride with Anna, a girl from the stable I ride at. She is riding the jerk-of-a-horse Jake and I am riding the -crazy-wild-way-to-fast horse PACO, a young, beautful, maybe not-so young appaloosa gelding. After a beautiful, maybe stressful, but exciting walk through the park, I will go home, have a shower, and dress up for a wedding. I have no idea who the groom is or his bride, but my boyfriend's mother's husband does so I get to go! I haven't been to a wedding in so long and after months I convinced my boyfriend that he had to dance one song with me. After that I will be rushing home to go out to my good friend's twentieth birthday! Shes grown up so fast :'( . My Sunday, however, will lack in this excitement for I will wake up, do some homework, and then go to work until the day is done. None the less, I am excited for the weekend and will stay this way no matter how much Friday kicks my ass :)

Salmon Are Sacred

Migration of the Wild Salmon
On Friday, May 7th, 2010, I paddled in a canoe with 9 other people from the docks of steveston to the harbor in Sydney, Victoria. The group I joined had been paddling for 10 days down from Hope on a journey to meet up with Alexandra Morton on her walk down the coast of the island to raise awareness for wild salmon and how much they needed our help. The people who had been canoeing arrived in Steveston for a rally on Thursday May 6th, and after their ride didn't show up, my dad, a retired fisherman, invited them to camp in our backyard. I brought pizza and cake over since it was their youngest paddlers' 13th birthday. On friday morning I went to wish them luck and just before they pushed off the dock (already 2 hours late) they invited me to join them for the day! How could I refuse?!? When would I ever get an opportunity like that again?! So i threw an extra life jacket on and jumped in, wearing nothing other than ripped jeans, van slip on's, a white cotton shirt, and my jacket. It took us four hours to make it to active pass, and we stopped to pee on Galiano Island. We got back in and paddled for another two hours, watching sea lions, harbor seals, and otters. After a while the fishing boat that was escorting us suggested that we get in the boat for a bit because the tide was turning and we were going to miss the rally waiting for us at the doc if we tried to paddle the entire way. A huge argument broke out on the boat because some people felt very strongly about not finishing the entire paddle, especially Darryl, the guy sitting next to me. We ended up getting on the boat, and I am glad we did, because we finally got a chance to relax and enjoy the beautiful sights going by. Darryl and I sat for over an hour talking, and eventually I convinced him that he needed to get back in the canoe and finish the journey, specially since I was the trade off because it was my dads fault we were late in the first place. He agreed that my excellent paddling skills and insightful conversation had been worth it so we all got back into the canoe and finished our journey with a little group of killer whales! We arrived in Sydney and waiting at the dock was Alexandra Morton! The lady who had started it all, as well as a few First Native Chiefs and some media crew! We had a large traditional welcome as well as interview after interview. Not going into detail, the night did not end up going to great, and I got extremely sick from the sun and then the cold, but every second was worth it! It was one of the most exciting adventures of my life so far.

60L Backpack

I have this beautiful, blue, 60 L backpack. I take it on most of my adventures when I can, and it holds everything I could need, well, almost everything. I like to pack my sleeping gear separately, unless I am going on a hiking trip. It holds my clothes, underwear, socks, jackets, lifejacket (for water adventures), shoes, toilet kit, first aid supplies, pillow (or just the case), books, and anything else that I may need. It is my traveling baby, and I absolutely hate leaving it behind.

On my adventure to live in the mud hut in Australia with my pal Leanna, the first thing I will pack will be my swim suite in the side pocket along with my underwear and socks. NEVER EVER be caught without your swim suite. It causes for uncomfortable situations and unbelievable wedgies. Next would of course be my lifejacket, mind you, I would probably pack that closer to the top. On the very bottom would go my rafting / outdoor gear. Things like water pants, fleece, booties, toque, and long johns. A jacket and a few pairs of pants would be on top. Two or three of my favorite sweaters would come next, followed by shorts and t-shirts. Once all of the clothing gear was packed, I would start thinking about actual gear. Since by then I will probably own a kayak, I will pack my helmet, lifejacket, booties, paddle, etc. in that to send across the world. I will for sure bring bug dope, lots of sunscreen, my swiss army knife, toilet kit, water bottle, and a few books, mind you, I'm sure Leanna will have enough for both of us. Pictures are a must, as well as something to charge and play my music, since we'll be living with no power, I'm thinking battery operated. Lastly, my stuffed animal horses; barely, thunderbolt, aiden, and the newest for my 18th birthday, who has yet to be named..... any ideas?

Well, thats all for now, mind you I have a feeling I'll be hauling 5 bags over.

Another Day, Another Minute, Another Second, GONE

The last two days have been sleep. Sleep at night, sleep during the day, sleep during class. Yes, I have been having crazy dreams, but they feel more like drunken nights I can't really remember that leave me feeling weak and un-motivated the next morning. Sometimes I wonder if I will ever get to my real adventures or if I will spend my life the way some people in my life do, working and working to achieve nothing.

Thinking outside the box

Since I am still sitting in computer class I thought you all would enjoy another Leanna story.
This time we were sitting in class doing our first real assignment at the beginning of the year. We had to make a page with images and lines and words and all this stuff given to us on the moon. Since neither of us really knew what was going on we tried to help each other as much as possible. As we were working we noticed a percentage on the top of the page. Both said %87. After pondering this number we came to the conclusion that this was our mark! We figured the teacher had put all the criteria into the program and it marked us as we went along. Every once in a while, maybe only once or twice, it would change and we would wonder what we had done! When we both got our projects back, we had both failed them!!!! Finally, after months of this puzzle un-solved, Leanna realized, this wasn't our mark, this was the size of the stupid word document!

Living in a Mud Hut

Leanna and I have had many exciting adventures sitting together in Computers. So many that I am surprised we are still sitting next to each other! However, one of the best days we've ever had was the day we decided to grow old together. We were sitting talking about our futures, as most teenagers do these days. She was talking about how she will become a high-payed accountant and make millions of dollars while I was speaking of traveling the world on next to nothing, leading people down rivers and rapids, and eventually living in a mud hut in Australia. At first Leanna would joke of having to send me money and eventually paying for my ticket back home to Canada so I could care for her children while she was out at some fancy-snazy-high-tailed-function. Eventually, she understood that she didn't want me taking care of her children unattended so we decided a new plan. I couldn't believe the gumption Leanna had when she agreed to this. I suggested that she might just get bored of listening to professors talking about money that was going to be too boring to even earn, and she should just tell them off, run away, bring all her fancy money, and come live in my mud hut! So she says "Ya! I'll just tell 'em to **** *** and come live with you in your goddamn mud hut!!!!!!" Ever since, Leanna and I have been building our dreams of living together in the great outback.

typical day in computers

I AM A DIRTY FRENCH MAN WITH A DIRTY FRENCH ACCENT! As I walked into class this morning I already knew today would either be hilarious or a disaster, so I decided to take fate into my own hands and do the funniest accent I knew, my dirty frenchman accent. It's simply myself flaring my nostrils, raising my eyebrows and speaking with a horrible wanna be french accent. It is not at all how french people look, sound, or speak, but it is a long-standing joke with my boyfriend Wes and I so I thought it would be important to share with the #2 person in my life next to my french friend Laura, Leanna!
Speaking of Leanna.....