Weekend!

Heyyyyy...I really will start to update this regularly. Maybe.

Back in Waterloo for the weekend, mainly for Amanda's party tonight, which is going to be a rockin-good time (actually, it'll be a country-good time...not rock :P) We're pre-drinkin at her place (she made 50 million jello shooters & pudding shots!) then hitting the Stampede Corral for some country fun. Back to her place after, likely for more good times, then crashing her place, and a big breakfast buffet tomorrow! Should be an awesome night.

I was at her place last night - it was great, b/c we got to spend time talking without other people around :) We also made all those pudding shots, which was FUN! We made chocolate pudding shots with Baileys, chocolate pudding with creme de menthe, vanilla pudding with Dooley's (toffee liquor) and vanilla pudding with raspberry liquor. Then the shots...some were just straight one kind, some had 2 types, some had 3, and some had 4! We had so much fun making them! :D

What else is new - nothing else with regards to Waterloo. Sarnia's alright. Ally, Warren & I joined the Y, so I started working out Thursday night. So I'm excited about that. Other than that, I've gotten into playing my guitar more, and the usual MSN & tv & other internetty stuff. I really like my place that I'm living at, and Rob & Katie who I live with :)

As for work. It basically sucks so far. It has the potential to get better, but the problem is that the plant was down, and just got started up (hopefully for good this time!) this past week, but so many people are so busy with that, that they just really haven't had much time for me. So I've basically been doing data entry so far. Augh. This is my 5th work term, so I want some GOOD work :( At least they're paying me well though.

Not much else. I think I'm going to go to the mall to look at getting a pair of workout pants (I'm using one pair of pants, but they're moreso my lounge pants, so I want others!) Then Amanda's tonight...woohoo!! Take care all till next time!

Most depressing day of the year

According to an article here, January 24th is the most depressing day of the year. This explains a lot about why I was really crabby all day.

Maybe I'll update about what's going on later this week. But I wanted to get this out there for discussion & to hear your thoughts.

When I woke up this morning, I was thinking for awhile before I got up. As I'm sure most of you know, they sent a probe to Pluto last week (story here) Which I think is pretty cool that they can do. No doubt about that. However, I also wonder, what's the point? What is the usefulness in spending all that money on discovering something that is so far away, and that I don't know how it would be any use to us? I think it would be interesting to go more into the core of the earth, to discover that. Plus, since we're living on earth, that might actually be more useful, and if we discover things about what's down there, it might be of value to us, and we could somehow use that information.

Your thoughts on this?

Breathe, breathe in the air...don't be afraid to care

Quick! Name that tune! :)

G'day all! Hope things are going well.

Things here in Sarnia are going well. I'm over halfway done the second week of work, and this week, actually got some work to do! So that's exciting. Right now, it's mind-numbing work: obtaining & graphing data, but it's going to lead into doing some heat exchanger optimization (and hopefully a work report ;)) Unfortunately, they continue to have a lot of troubles with the plant, so it's still not running. They're going to try it again this weekend, but they've just had so much bad luck with getting it back up & running.

My place of residence is working out really well though. I really like Rob & Katie (who I'm living with), my room is nice & big, the own bathroom thing just rocks...same with having my own big fridge & they have a big-screen tv! So that's pretty sweet. They're also leaving tonight till Sunday (unfortunately Rob's Aunt died, so they're going up to Petawawa for the funeral) so I've got the place to myself.

I'm also glad to know other people in town. Ally & I have hung out a number of times :) We went shopping this past Saturday, and then Ally, Warren & I went to see King Kong on Sunday. King Kong was pretty good, although a little long at the end.

Mom & Dad had a good trip to visit Jenn & Mike & Henry last week. They loved meeting their new grandson. I saw more pictures - he's a gorgeous baby! Some kids are not-so-gorgeous when born, and grow cute after a few weeks, but no, he was definitely beautiful from the beginning :) Mike was at a convention last week, that's why the parents went down, and from what I gather, I think Jenn definitely appreciated having them.

I've gotten back into learning guitar again. Although since I didn't practice for long periods of time ever, I'm working on the calluses again. So now my fingers hurt. But I'm determined to practice every day - even if it's just for 30-45 minutes. I'm learning chords, which are a bit boring, but definitely important before I jump into songs so that I have no troubles with the songs (and don't just learn tablature!) I'm trying, I'm trying.

I think that's it for now. I'm going to post this address on my MSN name, so if you're reading this b/c you got it from there, then welcome! I hope you enjoy (and as I keep saying, I'll try to update more often...but I never seem to find anything exciting to say) And please comment...say whatever...I like to know what you think! And that might motivate me to update more often ;)

Yay wireless!

I'm writing this while watching the Simpsons, and I was watching CSI before this. Both on the big screen - yay wireless!

Tomorrow's Friday - wahoo! Made it through the first week. Ally & I are going shopping on Saturday, so that'll be fun :) Although I wish I was in Port Dover tomorrow - I was there last Friday the 13th, and that's where all the bikers go on Friday the 13th - GREAT TIMES!

Work's ok. Still not too exciting. They were hoping to get the plant up today, but they tried to turn a compressor, and it got stuck. So hopefully they'll figure that out, and get it going shortly.

A bunch of us (me, Ally, Jun, Warren & Wing Yan) went out for dinner tonight, since we're all in Sarnia this term. It was a good time - the food wasn't fantastic, but it was fun. I think it was just good to get out with people! I think we're going to try to go out again - maybe make it like a weekly or biweekly thing.

Got an email from Mom & Dad today - they're down visiting my sister. Since she had to have a c-section, she's still a little sore, and her husband had to go for a convention. They're having a good time though - sent piccies of Henry - he's BEAUTIFUL! :D

Well, that's about it for now. I'm tired though - possibly soon time for bed :P G'nite all!

First hump day of the term!

Greetings all!

Well, I've made it through 3 days of work. Although so far, it's been mainly training (a lot of CBTs - Computer Based Training) & a tour & meeting people & admin stuff & reading. No actual work yet. Hopefully it'll get more exciting soon. The plant's been down for awhile - it went down in August for the regularly scheduled maintenance, but they had trouble getting it up properly, so hopefully it'll start up tomorrow. So that could be cool to see. Then hopefully I'll also be able to figure out what I'm doing, and talk to my supervisors more about it - they've all been pretty busy with this shutdown!

I'm not used to the getting up early though - I'm at work before 7:30am! When it's still dark...I look forward to when the days get longer :S

Other than that, my place here is really nice! The people I live with are super-nice, and the internet works well, and I started playing Gus again (the guitar!) Tomorrow night, a few of us who are in Sarnia are meeting up for dinner, so I look forward to that!

I had to get a medical done at work today - not fair when they don't warn you about having to take blood! :(

I wish I was at CUTC this weekend again...it was super-fun last year!

I wish I knew more about politics - especially with the upcoming election, people talk about it at lunch a lot. And I have no opinion to offer, b/c I really don't know much. Problem is, if I ask people about it, no matter who it is, I'm going to get a biased opinion.

I don't think I have much else to ramble about tonight. So I'll bid you all adieu!

Greetings from Sarnia!

Well I moved to my place in Sarnia yesterday, and am pretty well settled in. It's a nice place - a fairly large room, my own bathroom, access to kitchen & laundry, and a big screen tv. Thanks to the wireless, I have my lappy in front of the tv, and am watching Bend It Like Beckham right now.

My landlords also aren't home - they're supposed to be home either tonight or tomorrow afternoon. So it's been nice having the whole place to myself in order to settle in :)

I tried out my new rice cooker that I got for Christmas for dinner - best gift ever! I made pork chops, rice & steamed broccoli. So tasty!

Start work tomorrow...a little nervous, as usual. I have to be there by 7:15-7:30am...eww! I'm thinking I should go to bed soon, or else I won't be able to get up (also, chances are I won't be able to sleep very well :S) I'll try to keep this updated...so hopefully people will actually read!

WOOHOO!

My sister had her baby tonight! My nephew, Henry George James was born at 8:05pm, weighing in at 8lb 14oz (oy!) He has a head full of dark hair, and blue eyes. Jenn ended up having a c-section, so she's pretty tired, but both she & Henry are doing well. Mike was super-ecstatic about it :D

Looks like 2006 is getting off to a good start :D

Year in Review

It was definitely an up & down year. The general consensus seems to be that 2005 sucked. There were a lot of good things that happened to me, but also quite a few not-so-good. It's long, I'll warn you of that. But here's the lowdown of the year:

January
The year started with me ringing in the New Years in fabulous Sydney Australia. We had been on vacation since December 15, and came back to Canada on January 3. My 3A school term started on January 4 - it was a good start. Srijeet & I were friends again (well, for now). I'd also been talking to a few people in the chem eng class below me online during my previous work term, and met Matt & Faraz on the first day of school, and met others throughout January & February. I went to a conference (CUTC - Canadian Undergrad Technology Conference.) I helped that same chem eng class below me win Scunt (engineering 24-hour scavenger hunt)

February
Definitely the toughest part of the year - Pat dying of meningitis on February 4. It was very sudden. We were all given medication for it, in case any of us caught anything. Two days later, Vikram had a scare, and thought he also might have it, so we rushed him to the hospital. We went and bought our bridesmaid dresses for Alyssa's wedding - but I just wasn't into it. I did horrible on midterms. A few weeks after Pat died, there were two occasions that I went out drinking, and both times, I got sick really quickly from it from all the buildup of emotion over the few weeks beforehand. I had a 4-day weekend for "reading days" which was very much needed. I was also asked to write an article for the engineering newspaper on Pat, which I had sent an email out to a whole lot of people if they had advice or any reason that I shouldn't write - Vikram replied the night before it was due, and said that I shouldn't write it, b/c I was trying "to be Mother Theresa" but didn't actually deserve the feeling...just wanted the recognition. This was the end of a difficult, up&down friendship with Vikram (and consequently Srijeet) February was definitely the worst month of the year.

March
March was a very social month - I felt being with friends was more important than school. Although I still did concentrate on school - especially my organic chem course, as I had a 50% midterm in the middle of March (and I failed the first midterm)...however, I ended up getting 76% on that exam, and 71% overall in the course :) Although despite my being with friends & going out a lot, I still felt lonely (hell, I feel that all the time though) At the beginning of the month, I also got my co-op job for the summer, at OPG Nanticoke. Other big events - Bus Push. This was a charity event that I co-organized with 2 others, and we raised over $5300 for the Heart & Stroke Foundation. However, that same weekend, my Grandmother (only living grandparent left...she was 95 at the time, and now she's 96) was in the hospital with pneumonia, so I totally thought she was gone. But she pulled through, miraculously :) March was a fun month, but also had a few bad points too. However, I think because of the events of February, March was when I started to take a lot more pictures – I didn’t have many pics of Pat when she died, so I wanted pics of everything else after that!

April
The beginning of the month was a few social outings - one being to Elements with Peter (first time I'd really gone out clubbing with him...whereas this past term, as you all know, we drank a lot!), Calvin & Amanda L (first time I'd met either of them...Amanda became one of my really good friends this past term!) and a few others. Then finals. And the term was over. I ended up doing decently that term - a 72% overall average. Then, the last week of April, I moved to Port Dover & started my summer co-op job at OPG. Moved in with my two roommates there - Lucas & Christa. Oh, but the best part of April was on the last day - I was wandering around downtown Toronto when my brother-in-law called to tell me what my sister gave him for his birthday. The news that he was going to be a Daddy :D

May
Again, not many updates in May - 3 of them. And the first post had to do with some April stuff, and some May stuff. I went to see Weezer in Toronto. It was Friday the 13th, and where I was living (Port Dover) that's where about 100,000 bikers go for Friday the 13th, so it was an absolutely crazy party! We had a tree planting ceremony in honour of Pat. May 2-4 weekend followed, and Jess came to visit. May wasn't that exciting a month - it was cold at the beginning, and we didn't have heat, so there were days we could see our breath in the cottage!

June
June started my LJ-whore phase, which lasted June/July/August (although mainly the last 2)...b/c I decided to start to use LJ at work. Again, I was feeling lonely. But, seeing as I was in Port Dover, I started to go for nightly walks/lying under the stars. It was lovely - I started to really appreciate nature again. I went home a few weekends. I went to Canada's Wonderland. Jess came to visit me one Sunday afternoon, during which there was the cottage fire near me. The weather started warming up, and got quite hot towards the end of the month. Alyssa had a bridal shower. At the end of the month (after a lot of pain-in-the-ass planning) we headed to Ottawa on June 30th for Canada Day weekend. My camera was also broken for a few weeks in June (and 1 in July) so I have very few pictures :(

July
Beginning of the month had our awesome trip to Ottawa - good people, good food, good drink, good times! I returned to Waterloo for a frosh leader retreat. The following weekend was FishFest in Port Dover - one of the greatest times in PD all summer (that, and Friday the 13th!) I had my friend Ashlee & her boyfriend Drew up for an evening (significant b/c I've known Ashlee since we were 2, and she'd been dating Drew for 2 years, and I still hadn't met him!) I was home for Ashlee's birthday, and Sharlah's tea party (which was a surprise bachelorette party), and to pick up my copy of Harry Potter 6 (a week after it came out!) The end of the month had the long weekend, where Matt, Lou, Janet, & 2 of Matt's friends came for the weekend, which was good times, especially since I always seemed to be the one travelling to visit people.

August
The first day of August I finished Harry Potter (and cried after I finished!) Sharlah's afternoon wedding (which was gorgeous! Very Sharlah-like!) followed by Alyssa's bachelorette party. Green Day concert in Barrie, followed by camping the rest of the weekend. We found out my sister was having a boy. Alyssa & Jesse's wedding, for which I was a bridesmaid, so it was busy! I finished my work term at OPG & moved. All of my siblings/sibling-in-laws were in town, and we had a big party for my brother & sister-in-law's wedding. The end of the month was relaxing after a very busy August.

September
September’s always a busy month. Frosh week, where I met some people that would later become pretty good friends. I bought a guitar. School started. Srijeet & Vikram ended up both taking 8-month work terms, and weren’t in my class anymore, but Vikram sent me an email on the first day of class, which was our first communication since February or March, and we were ok. First Bomber night, which ended up being at Mongolian Grill since Bomber was busy, but then a few of us went to Bomber later on. Went to BOT, then to PumpHouse afterwards. Blaise’s birthday at Pumphouse. Pearl Jam concert in Toronto. My 22nd birthday. Country Jamboree/the Spur night. Started swing dancing again. Helped the chem eng class below me run a very successful Scunt (in a period of 40 hours, I slept for 2 of them!)

October
Chemikaze class kegger. A friend of my parents had a heart attack, which freaked me out b/c my parents are in that stage of life that heart attacks start to occur. Went to watch hockey at Pumphouse, which is when I re-met Amanda L, and after this, she became a really good friend this term. Thanksgiving weekend. Midterms. Potato Opening Party (one of the most fun nights this term!) 2-piece party, where I lacked much energy. Geoff’s birthday. Last day of midterms where we went clubbing and I don’t remember the old Chinese guy, nor falling asleep on my friends’ couch. Halloween party chez Matt/Ally/Sonja/Katie. October was a month where there were a lot of fun times, but overall, my mood was not great. I was confused on what I wanted to do in life – I definitely wasn’t enjoying any of my courses. Despite the parties/friends, I felt lonely. I was annoyed at a lot of people a lot.

November
Found out that this guy I know, Rob, was diagnosed with cancer. Semi-formal was cancelled, so we had a fun night at the Spur instead (after which, Pete tried to “one-line” it home, and we climbed the barrels at Seagrams! Grace’s cookie party. Went out for Pat’s birthday in her memory – Vikram came, first time I saw him in awhile, and the pain that he put me through, I realized it still hurt, and we would never be friends again. Beauty & the Beast: the Musical. Amanda’s housewarming party. Wine & Cheese party (never drinking that much wine again, for awhile!) Found out that a guy I’ve met before (offstream engineer from me) died in a wolf attack in Saskatchewan. Got my job at Nova Chemical for next term. Big swing dance, which I attended with Amanda L & her friend Ila. Martini night. I was semi-depressed/annoyed/etc for a lot of November as well.

December
Again, I wasn’t in a good mood for a lot of December. Main reason: finals. Few things before that though – Grace’s Christmas Party. Lou’s birthday at the Spur. End of classes, which seemed so soon. Then study. I had a horrible finals schedule. Mass transfer exam was horrible. The rest were alright. Party at Mark’s. Dad’s birthday. Watching hockey at Pumphouse. A lot of people finished finals the day before me. Last day of finals – out that night. I always find the end of the school term to be saddening – I have to say good-bye to people, and won’t see a lot of them for 4 months. I also didn’t get to say good-bye to some people, since a lot of people were done before me. I’ve seen a lot of other people from high school & such, so nice to catch up with them. Christmas came & went. My dad’s side of the family’s Christmas party. Boredom & restlessness b/c no school or work to keep me busy. Found a place to live in Sarnia. New Years Eve. And it was good-bye 2005!

It was a funny year – shitty in so many ways for so many people, but also some good stuff. I met a lot of awesome people. However, I’m glad to see it done. I enter 2006 with hope & optimism – I hope there’s reason for that!

A New Year

Well, 2005 is over. It was a strange year - it seemed to be shitty for a lot of people. If you look at the things that happened in the world this past year, it was a shitty year. For me personally, there were a lot of happy things that occurred - I met a lot of awesome people this year, or became better friends with people I already knew. And my sister became pregnant - my nephew will be born any day now. But there were a lot of crappy things that occurred (obviously, the worst being the death of my good friend Pat) I'm currently writing a Year In Review, which will hopefully be posted within a day or two.

However, I would like to wish everyone one of you who reads this a very happy new year! Here's hoping that 2006 is a major improvement over 2005! I come into the year with hope & optimism that it will be.

Cheers
Jill