Facedown, On The Ground.

This is wonderful. Thanks, Stumble.

Ou Est Charlie?

In Quebec, Where’s Waldo is called Ou Est Charlie. I think this guy could give Charlie AND Waldo a run for their money.

In It To Win It.

Tomorrow is going to be a great day! Jimmy and I are competing in a turkey showdown/potluck at my place. His turkey is currently bathing in 4 liters of chicken broth in a refrigerator vegetable drawer while mine is chillin’ in the fridge stuffed with onions, garlic and fresh savory. We’re planning on starting the morning with a walk up the  mountain to see the crazy gorgeous red-orange-yellow leaves before we tend to our babies. I’m thinking of naming mine Cordelia.

May the best man win.

And We’re Off…

I’ve been back in Montreal for almost a month and things are really starting to get rolling…a bit too much partying and far too little studying, but what else is new? Its my last year in Montreal, so I’m going to do my best to take advantage of every uniquely Montrealaise experience I can…

September so far:

• A dinner-cooking schedule 5 nights a week with the roomies has resulted in delicious international cuisine and good conversation with crazy cool people
• New job @ Starbucks appears to be going well
• My graduate-level seminar is far less intimidating than expected, and therefore I must kick its ass
• A housewarming party that involved as full house, firecrackers in the street, sidewalk chalk, and good times all around
• General drunken revelry Mtl-style

Some things I am getting psyched for in October:

• Going to a talk being given by the Dalai Lama about the need for compassion at the Centre Bell
• Puces Pop aka a giant Montreal version of Market Collective
• A night of strange movies with Megan (aka Teeth and The Wackness. Yessss.)
• Gay movie night
• A visit from my Faja
• A trip to Kingston and Toronto
• A trip to le Village…waaaay overdue
• A walk up Mount Royal to see the gorgeous fall leaves one last time….possibly at sunrise
• Buying Tegan and Sara tickets! Sainthood at Place des Arts January 18th!

Some things I need to get on in order to keep my life on track:

• Keep my spending under control
• Complete a far larger proportion of my assigned readings
• Book a GMAT time
• Study like woah for the GMAT (aka relearn math)
• Come up with some crazy good topics so that I can ace my term papers
• Get on my grad school applications ASAP

Two of my roommates are avid climbers. Last night I discovered their training tools – a hand strengthener and a pull-up bar. Right now I can do approximately half of a pull-up…but by the end of the semester I expect I’ll have mad upper body strength. Fingers crossed!

Summer Oh! Nine Mix

My summer mix has yet to be retired…I’ve been listening to it exclusively since I returned to Montreal 11 days ago. Here it is:

• I’m Goin’ Down – Florence and the Machine ft. Kid Harpoon
• If it Kills Me (The Casa Nova Sessions) – Jason Mraz
• Skinny Love – Bon Iver
• I Think I Need a New Heart – Magnetic Fields
• Ghosting – Mother, Mother
• Re: Stacks – Bon Iver
• Tallymarks – Thao Nguyen
• Be Mine! – Robyn
• The Best Deceptions – Dashboard Confessional
• Manhattan – Kings of Leon
• Throwing Bricks – Florence and the Machine
• I Want You Back – KT Tunstall
• This is the Dream of Win & Regine – Final Fantasy
• Leavin’ (acoustic) Jesse McCartney
• Revelry – Kings of Leon
• Elephant Gun – Beirut
• Alloway Grove – Paolo Nuntini
• Handle Me – Robyn
• This Lamb Sells Condos – Final Fantasy
• Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa – Vampire Weekends
• Glycerine – Bush
• Please Please Please let me Get What I want – The Smiths
• Postcards from Italy – Beirut
• Use Somebody – Kings of Leon
• Galaxy of the Lost – Florence and the Machine
• Last Request – Paolo Nuntini
• Postcards from Italy – Florence and the Machine
• Jenny Don’t Be Hasty – Paolo Nuntini

Albino Peacock

wtf. Sooooo cool.

Ukuleles and Gangsta Rap

I spent this week at work alternating between listening to the rap anthology a friend of mine made for me and youtube videos of people playing the ukulele. It’s official: I’m productive AND high class.

This girl is my favourite ukulele master and coincidentally, she also raps in some of her songs.  What a perfect combination!

Brand New Spaces

Tomorrow I jet off on my adventure to the West Coast – a kind of consolation prize for missing out on my summer plans to live carefree in Victoria at my cousin’s house, work in a coffee shop and frolic on beaches. I’m happy to report that even though Victoria began as a complete escape from everything that was going on, it graduated to exciting adventure and has now settled into the role of a super chill vacation. This is a good thing.

Apparently, somewhere between the stress of school and the bumps in the road I seem to have gotten over my resentment of Calgary – I can finally see it for what it is and enjoy what it has to offer. I forgot how nice it is to just be home.

Even though things here are comfortable and stable and good, it’s probably time to get out of here and explore something new. I’m looking forward to adventuring, even if it is just for a week. Maybe next summer will be the year I go somewhere new where I don’t know anyone and figure out how to go it alone…

For now, I’m just scrambling to pack and say goodbye to the fams and my favourite cool kids before I run off.

82 hours and counting…

+ Shakespeare in the Park (aka music by Notorious B.I.G. and M.I.A.)

+ Aussie Rules (aka dueling piano bar)

+ The Ship and Anchor (aka booze and buddies)

+ Global Fest (aka fireworks)

+ Crescent Heights (aka romance and drug deal voyeurism)

+ Nellies (aka deliciousness)

+ MEC (aka protection from the elements)

+ Market Collective (aka trendy arts and crafts)

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1 Hella Excited/Preemptively Exhausted Alexandra

Books in my possession that I had planned to read over the summer.

But now there is no way in hell I will finish them.

Poor Michaels in Onanole, Manitoba

• Survival of the Sickest – Sharon Moalem (started!)
• In Defense of Food – Michael Pollan (started!)
• Death with Interruptions – Jose Saramago (started!)
• Lolita – Vladimir Nabokov
• The last Temptation of Christ – Nikos Kazantzakis
• Breakfast of Champions – Kurt Vonnegut Jr (done!)
• Lullaby – Chuck Palahniuk
• Learning to Love you More – Miranda July (done!)
• Tao Te Ching – Lao Tzu (started!)
• no one belongs here more than you – Miranda July (done!)

I also bought a GMAT prep book about a month ago, and if I am still planning on writing the test in the fall, I am going to have to get off my ass and start learning right quickly. I’d say there is a 50/50 chance that I complete any part of that book by the time school starts.

Yesterday, my Dad brought me back a copy of what he says is the best architecture book around from our favorite used book store, Poor Michaels. I’m told it will change the way I understand what is around me and equip me with all the information I need to critique it. We shall see…