Happy Hour! Weeeeee!

I spent all day painting and avoiding bats, which is a really great way to start living in your head. Seriously. Do you know what I mean? All that menial labour, and you're so mentally bored that you start analysing all of the nonsense in your life, pinning down the exact moment that things went horribly wrong and now you're an old maid, living with your parents, painting their bathroom!?!?!?

*eh-hem*

Anyway, a few things seriously cracked me up tonight, so if you need an upper and the drugstores are closed, check these out:

- Video On Trial is the only TV show that makes me laugh out loud. Comedians making fun of music videos, OH the hilarity that ensues.

- If you've read and loved The Gallery of Regrettable Foods, then you'll love this blog - "Do What Now?"

- And I need, NEED this CD!!! "Songs for Ice Cream Trucks." If you go here, you can listen to the full track of "Where Do Ice Cream Trucks Go In The Winter." ... SO worth it!!! I promise it will make you smile!

That's it for now!
Gillian

Memo To The Bats Re: House Calls

Dear Bats,

I'm sure that you're lovely and fuzzy, but I beg you to refrain from letting yourselves into our house. Bats belong outside, not inside. Last night was the third time that we caught one of your renegade adventurists in our hallway. All of our attempts to block your entrance have failed, and we admit defeat in your quest to drive us insane. We can't sleep because of you. We can't open closets because of you. I was driven to tears last night over the anxiety of having to go to the washroom in the dark. I nearly wet my pants. So stop it, okay? I'm sick of sleeping with the light on and cutting liquids from my diet. Just leave us alone.

Tonight, as a gesture of our parting on positive terms, I will be sleeping in the car. This should allow you the time and space to finish up whatever "bat business" you need to attend to in the house, and then you must never, never come back again. I'm too young to die of a heart attack/sleep deprivation. You win. Take what you want and then leave us alone.

Thank you for your cooperation,
Gillian

Blomidon Park

Well, even *I* have to admit that this province has some pretty spectacular scenery. This is Blomidon Park on the Bay of Fundy, about 15 km from the house.

Fog rolling in from the less sheltered side of the bay

Low Tide

Better shot of the fog, and pretty grassy things

Red cliffs... The soil is very red, this doesn't do it justice

Oooh, pretty!

Still not sure I wanna live here tho ;)

Gillian

Mad Ravings From The Bat Cave

Not a lot is new on this coast. It's been insanely hot, which is making us all a little weirder than usual. The humidity out here is staggering. It's like the world is your sauna; open pores, clothes heavy with the damp, everything is sticky. It's all I can do to lay in front of a fan watching fashion television on the satellite dish. (Nathan, can you believe mum let us have a satellite dish?! I can't either!) I'm really torn over Haute Couture. Being a Fashion Designer is one of my Top 5 Dream Jobs. (The other four being Artistic Director, Novelist, Museum Curator and Music Video Director... now you know!) At any rate, Haute Couture is just ridiculous, but how fun would it be to design? You could be like "I'm Christian Dior and I'm going to make a dress entirely of feathers" and people would pay a million dollars for it. And you would just laugh and say "I can't believe they fell for that." I would name my fashion line "Delcourt" to channel my French roots. Tres Chic!

Hmm, what else? Only two bat-nights so far, and lord help us, NO pest control companies (there are only three in the Annapolis Valley) have called us back. I think I'm past the Denial and Anger stages and am onto Bargaining. My nights are spent lying awake, creating elaborate plans on how I can get out of this. (If anyone has access to a hot air balloon, please drop me a line.) I've been dealing with my stress in the usual ways of colouring my hair and baking things (auburn and peach cobbler.) While I was colouring my hair I started to think about Tarzan, and wondered if I could use Jane as a role model in this adventure? I decided I'd have to have the Victorian Safari outfit to make a real go of it (Like Jane's outfit, in the Disney Tarzan movie! heehee!) It's all about the outfit, you see? I have fashion on the brain.

Alright, mum has discovered that I'm hiding and has "requested" my help unpacking again *sigh*

I miss you all. Come save me!!! HEEEEELLLLLPPPPPP!

Gillian

Welcome To The Pit Of Despair... er... Canning, Nova Scotia.

Well...
I am sitting in a room full of boxes, thinking back on my first five days in Nova Scotia. I’m trying to pinpoint the worst moment in five days of brimstone-and-boiling-lava HELL.

Was it the first day/night without electricity, sleeping on an air mattress?
Was it the heart-attack inducing array of nightmarish bugs? (see Figure A.)
Was it walking into the crooked, bizarre home-sweet-home in the middle of freaking nowhere?
Was it the realisation that I’ll end up working at Walmart if I stay? (The Walmart in New Minas, that is... because this town is too small to even have a Tim’s...)
Was it the bat flying around inside the house at 5:30 yesterday morning?
Has it been the ongoing struggle for internet access???

Perhaps it has been all of these things combined that have driven me over the edge. So let me make this perfectly clear:
I WANT TO GO HOME. RIGHT. NOW.
I’m going to try and stick around and help my parents with renovations and set up this summer, but I think I’ll have to move to Halifax in the fall at the very least to make a living doing anything (besides which, I can’t stand living in the country. This is so horrifying.) I dunno. I just don’t know. I just wish I could find a place where I belong. So far Nova Scotia is definitely NOT IT.

Although things have been 95% horrifying, there have been a few vaguely interesting things too: - On the ferry over from New Brunswick we saw lots of dolphins and a few Minky whales (not really well, just their fins, but still.)
- I finished Harry Potter.
- It’s been so humid here that I keep having flashbacks of The Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland :P
- The bats were cool... until one came inside... and then I cried.
- The air raid siren on the volunteer fire hall goes off at noon every day, which is cute.
- The soil and sand here are red, red, RED! The Cornwallis river looks like it’s filled with chocolate milk when the tide comes in.
- We went for a drive a few nights ago while the fog was rolling in over the cliffs, which was very surreal and slightly creepy. I took a picture of a boat. It was good fun, but mum was pretty sure we would fly off the cliff in the fog... in my opinion, this is a preferable alternative to living here.

So the plan for now is to barricade myself in my room when it starts to get dark until this little “bat problem” is resolved. Aside from that I plan on working REALLY hard getting this place in shape (I have my doubts that this will happen) so that I can move somewhere reasonable. This was a stupid move on my part. Good for mum and dad, but not (I emphasize, NOT) for me.
I miss you all TOO much,
Gillian

Figure A: This charming creature is about the length of my pinky from his antennae to tail. They like to hover menacingly in front of your face and say "BOO!!!"

Foggy Boat

Are We There Yet?

I am SO sick of this meshugana journey!!! GAH!!! GAH!!!!

I didn't get a chance to post yesterday because Dad ran off with my laptop, so let me fill you in on the past few days of nonsense.

Day Six - Ottawa to Quebec City

We had breakfast (Starbucks in a crowded hotel room) with my Aunt, Uncle and Cousin in Ottawa, which was really nice. From there, however, things went horribly wrong. It was a terribly rainy day and I wasn't mentally prepared for just how French Quebec would be. Bilingual nothing, this place is ALL FRENCH! I was irritated about that as we pulled out of a Tim's and dad was waiting at a yield sign to get onto the highway when an impatient truck driver decided to go around us (what the heck?!) and promptly smashed into us instead. Luckily only the tail light sustained damage, but boy were we angry!!! After that I pretty much decided that I hated Quebec and that I was catching the next flight to Calgary because this was a stupid adventure! Then I had a nap. I woke up in old Quebec City and darnit, it was so freaking beautiful that I decided I couldn't really hate it as much as I wanted to. It's like someone just put a piece of Paris in Canada, it's just incredible! I went for a walk with my mum, found a book store that was selling Harry Potter, and came back at midnight to pick up my copy!

Thank goodness my French is decent enough to understand this sign :)

Medieval Boutique... So lovely!

Pretty Street!

Day Seven - Quebec City to Fredericton

Today was less eventful, thank goodness. The day started with hotel/cat/map madness, but things cooled down enough for me to get seriously involved in Harry Potter, which allowed me to be vacant for most of the day. Ahhhh. Then this evening my mum and I had dinner with Kirsten and Claire! It was sooooo nice to see them, and Claire has just gotten sweeter and more beautiful since I last saw her. I can't believe she's five months old already! What a sweet pea! And Kirsten is as beautiful as ever too :) Ahhh, it will be so nice to live closer to them :)

Alright, well I have to get up at 5am to catch the ferry tomorrow (blah) so that's all for now. Tomorrow... Nova Scotia... Ye Gods!

Gillian

Day Five - Sault Ste. Marie to Ottawa

One Word:

GAHHHHHHHHHH!

Driving cross country is driving me to drink. You spend 13 hours in a car and I defy you to not wish you had a bottle of Amaretto to help soothe your nerves. So I ordered Nachos and a glass of Merlot from room service... SO THERE! HA! I'm having a drink (insert *gasp* here.)

Today was so long on account of all of the highway construction and a little episode of being completely lost and hungry around Sudbury. Apparently it's the season for blowing up granite in the Canadian Shield! Who knew?

But here's the good news:

1. We're staying at the Marriott tonight, which is super posh and lovely. They have Bath & Body Works products for the tub and the bedroom is big enough for yoga! I also have a gorgeous view of downtown Ottawa from the 16th floor!
2. Tomorrow should be much shorter, as we're heading to Quebec City.
3. Tomorrow night at midnight: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows... Need I say more? Now I just need to practice saying "Avez-vous Harry Potter?"
4. Saturday I get to see Kirsten and Claire! EEEEEE!!!
5. I have nachos and Merlot and an enormous king sized bed... ahhhhh la dolce vita!

I think that's it for now! Time to go relax :)

Love,
Gillian

Day Four – Thunder Bay to Sault Ste. Marie

I swear the days are getting longer and longer, melding into a big lump of a day with short intermissions of coffee, fast food and hotels. It also doesn’t help that we’re going back through time zones, and losing hours. Also, Ontario is too big... I mean, really. How big does this province need to be anyway?

This trip has taught me that I’m easily pleased. This is what I need to be happy:
1. Coffee (are we surprised?)
2. Music... constantly... preferably that I can sing along to.
3. Clean, un-scary bathrooms.
4. Hotel rooms that don’t smell funny.
5. Lots of activities to keep me busy.

I’m starting to get worried about moving to a small, quiet town. I just don’t deal well with silence, it actually causes me anxiety. I drum my fingers, fidget, twitch, shift around. Talk about a city girl. I’m sure you’ve all started taking bets about how long I’ll last, so I’ll get in on the action and bet that I won’t last five minutes, OR that I’ll resort to listening to my iPod at all times.

Our day today consisted of skirting around Lake Superior. Great Lake?! That thing is huge! It’s like an ocean, you can’t even see the other side! Close to the end of the day we managed to convince dad to go to Katherine Cove, a little beach area with soft sand and an area to paddle in (who knew that Lake Superior had beaches?) It was just heaven :) Here are a few pictures of our beach break!

Sandy Belal... He thought it was just the best thing ever!

Dad, Belal and Mum!

Me :)

Tomorrow is Ottawa! I'm really excited for that one, and will hopefully get to see some family too!

Love,

Gillian

Day Three - Winnipeg to Thunder Bay

SO MUCH DRIVING! I always have big ideas about posting interesting pictures and stories for you to read, but we keep getting to the hotels late in the evening, starving, carting angry animals, and by the time I climb into bed it seems like a huge effort to write at all!!!

Today started off rough, with really angry pets and a late start and many stops. Being stuck in a car for so long is starting to wear on me and all Yoga Zen has disappeared into twitchy angst. I feel like I need a good shot of something strong.

Ontario is certainly different from the Prairies! The lakes, trees and rocks are gorgeous. The Trans Canada Highways is lined with rocky outcroppings, and almost every one had an Inukshuk perched atop. It was so neat, so many Inukshuks helping to guide us on our journey. I took lots of pictures, but am too tired to put them up tonight.

Thunder Bay is really interesting from what I've seen, and I'm looking forward to the scenery around Lake Superior tomorrow and being one day closer to our destination.

Love to all,
Gillian

Day Two - Regina to Winnipeg

Another long day, full of prairies. There's not really much to take pictures of, unless you like a lot of flat wheat fields. Wheat, wheat and canola and wheat... woooo... this country is darn big. Darn big, and full of wheat.

I have to say, thank heavens for Tim Horton's... Tim Horton's, with their reliable coffee and consistently clean bathrooms. We've run across many a sketchy bathroom thus far, but the pinacle of sketchy was at a KFC in Moosomin, Saskatchewan. We stopped for lunch and my dad ordered us some salads while mum and I went to the washroom. It was a recently renovated KFC, but the bathroom.... TERRIFYING! The first thing you notice is the massive hole in the floor right in front of the toilet... then, the disgusting toilet... then, while standing and washing your hands, you notice that your feet are slipping on the grease-coated floor... and then the door that sticks and refuses to open. Yikes. We got through that fiasco, and drove to a park to eat lunch, only to discover that our salads were, in fact, totally rancid... *sigh* Needless to say, we didn't eat them, but there must have been something extraordinarily bad about that KFC, since my mum and I were both edgy, twitchy and shaking afterwards. Dunno if it was bad vibes or some toxic fumes, but it was no good.

The lesson I've learned? Stick with Tim's.

I hope Ontario is better :)

Love,
Gillian

Day One - Calgary to Regina

That...
THAT...
was a long day.

I'm sitting in the Holiday Inn, Regina, watching Edward Scissorhands. I'm a total space cadet right now. Saying goodbye to Nathan, Sheila and Grandma Bell this morning was haaaaaard, and all that driving? I thought it would never end. It felt like we'd been driving for hours, and we were still in Alberta! And then, Saskatchewan, which looks just like Alberta! Ack! PRAIRIES! ENDLESS PRAIRIES!

... I don't really have much to say... um... I'm alive... I'm emotionally all over the place... that's it for now.

Love,
Gillian

I've Got Those Happy Feet

Last night was my very last chance to dance with my Salsa buddies from the Student Dance Club. Unfortunately, it was 30 degrees last night, so much of the night was spent in front of a big fan by the door. However, this inspired me to get everyone's "Dramatic Model Pose" photos. It was lots of fun, and slightly disgusting at the same time (so sweaty!)... good thing I like these people :P

Enjoy :)





Haha... cheesy shot of me, but I was told to "Ham it up", so what can I say?
I'm going to miss everyone soooooooo much.
Leaving first thing tomorrow... I hope they have wireless in Regina.

Love,
Gillian

Surgeon General's Warning

I am now an expert on the physical side effects of moving cross-country,

WARNING: Side Effects may include constant tears, nausea, insomnia and irritability. Individuals suffering from these maladies should not be around people because it starts to get really annoying after a while. Especially the nausea. Perpetual nausea. Good times. I should have named my blog Perpetual Nausea. Weeeeeee!

Yesterday we said goodbye to the house, which was incredibly tearful and hard. We moved there when I was twelve years old. I love that house. It's so full of memories. I took some pictures, but I'm not ready to look at them yet, so maybe I'll post them later. Blah. I'm all muddled. I would really love a hefty tranquilizer and a long sleep.

Well, we start the drive on Sunday, so I'll keep you posted on things whenever I have an internet connection.

Love,
Gillian

Video Time

It's good to be home again, but now comes the most challenging part of my journey: Saying Goodbye.

Let's avoid that unpleasantness for now. Instead, a bevy of videos....

I need to see this movie:



And this one, too. I love Claire Danes...



A video of Johnny Depp riding Pirates of the Caribbean at Disneyland... Me? Obsessed? ... maybe... (I really do prefer him with eyeliner! haha. I'm crazy.)



And this is the weirdest music video I've seen in a while, but I really do like her album:



Love, Love, Love,
Gillian

The Happiest Place On Earth

First of all, I want to say Thank You to Josh and Susan for making my Disneyland dream come true! Secondly, I would like to thank Walt Disney for wanting to create such a magical place. I don't really know where to begin, except to say that it was amazing and magical, TRULY magical, and I really felt like a little kid again. It's been YEARS since I really felt that sense of wonder at anything, but I felt it here. You know how when you're a kid and things still have that "wow-factor," so that all you can do is stand there with your mouth hanging open? I just had that! That hasn't happened in years!!!

So what made it so spectacular? Well, my theme park experience has been limited to West Edmonton Mall and Calaway Park, which are really cheesy and loud and annoying. I had higher hopes for Disneyland, but I was blown away with how impressive it was. I swear to you that there really is fairy dust in these buildings and rides. It's so lovingly crafted and impressive and amazing and... real! I really don't know how to explain it. For example, the Haunted Mansion is this beautiful old house and you go in and there's this enormous, amazing ride inside and I was staggered... How... HOW could they fit this ride in there? It MUST be magic, it HAS to be magic. Pirates of the Caribbean!? How? HOW does it all fit in there, how, HOW can the animitronic Captain Jack Sparrow look like the real, live Johnny Depp, so that you swear it's a person, even though you know better? And it's not at ALL loud and annoying and cheesy, and I couldn't help dancing through Main Street, USA like a five year old, because it's just special and beautiful and happy. I love it. I was amazed. It really, REALLY is the Happiest Place on Earth :)

My favourite rides were Pirates of the Caribbean (which I went on four times), and no, not just because of Johnny Depp. I was freaking STAGGERED by this ride, the sheer size and craft of it just blew my mind. My other favourite was Space Mountain (which I also went on four times.) I am soooo not one for roller coasters, but when I finished Yoga School I said to myself "Gillian, some rides are scary, but you're not going to die. So just don't ask if it's scary, just do it. If you die in an amusement park accident, then it was just your time to go." So I marched up to Space Mountain. First Rule of Amusement Parks: Anything involving the name "mountain" will also involve roller coasters. ...and? IT WAS SO COOL! It's a fast roller coaster, but it's totally pitch dark in there except for stars EVERYWHERE, and you're just flying through the stars and it's wicked cool. I love it because I can't see the track, which magically removes the "anticipation fear" of "dear god, I'm going to plummet to my death in that next drop." And without that fear it turns out to be incredibly fun!

So now I'm on a mission to go back, this time with Nathan, Sheila and my parents. It's awesome, trust me, it's worth it. You'll love it. Mum, you'll especially love the Indiana Jones ride... so cool!!!

I took a few pictures, but not many, since most of the rides are dark inside and you can't use flash photography, but MOSTLY because I was too busy having fun to think about silly pictures. But here are a few of the ones I took :)

The Pirates of the Caribbean Sign :P

The Stage at The Princess Fantasy Faire... I would have been in heaven here when I was small.

As requested by Butler, this is me trying to pull the sword out of the stone... didn't work so well! Nice Castle out back, though :P

Tigger, mauling my nephew at our Character Breakfast.

Susan and Caspian on a streetcar in Toon Town.

Caspian and Ariel (and Tiger.)

The Sailing Ship Columbia. You can ride around the lagoon outside Tom Sawyer Island during the day, and at night it's featured in Fantasmic with Peter Pan and gang. It's so neat!

Caspian got picked out of the audience to do the Jedi Training Academy. He was sooooo excited, and now has his Jedi Diploma ;)

The Haunted Mansion.... mwahaha... HAHAHAHAHAH!

Me, at our Character Breakfast. heehee... What, I look happy? really? heehee!

Well my darlings, I'm home tomorrow and have much Pirate Booty to share with ye! arrrrr!!!
Can't wait to see you!

Gillian

Golden Gate Park Pictures!

Just some quick pictures from our trip to Golden Gate Park today :)

At the Conservatory of Flowers Carnivorous Plants exhibit...

Conservatory, Electric Blue California Sky, Palm Trees, ahhhhhh.

Caspian being a noodle.

Sharp little teeth!

Pitcher Plants. They like to drown tasty bugs.

Feed Me, Seymour!

So Pretty!

Water Lily... Doesn't eat bugs :P


Camel at the Carousel... Love his lovely big eyes!


My favourite horse at the Carousel.

Tiger at the Carousel.

Now I'm off to bed, leaving for The Happiest Place on Earth in 7 hours!!!

Love,

Gillian