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!
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!
posted by Jill at
12:11:00 a.m.
3 Comments:
Hope you have a better 2006. :) I bet you'll enjoy your new experience in Sarnia. Only 6 months and one week until the wedding!!
By
Anonymous, at 12:03 p.m.
wow, you've got amazing memory, it was nice to read about what you were up to for the year and recap all the school stuff we did together. ttyl gal!!
By
Anonymous, at 3:30 p.m.
Thanks Bekah. I hope yours goes well too (although I'm sure it will...you're getting married!) Wow - can't believe your wedding's so soon!
And Lou...hahaha...half-amazing. I also have a private blog that I write a lot more in. Plus 5000 pictures from this year. Those definitely helped in the writing of this entry! ;)
Love ya both! :)
By
Jill, at 4:37 p.m.
Post a Comment
<< Home