Anything You Can Do...

I have a needy bladder. Maybe too much information but true, nonetheless. Long car trips are exercises in dehydration and that is within a glorious nation filled with Tim Hortons and gas station washrooms scattered along the way. Traveling where washroom facilities are less accessible can be trying for me and I often have to plan my day/meals/beverages around my washroom needs. Even when they are available the toilet is often out of service or too nasty to actually go near. Going beside a tree can be messy without the right technique (and I can't say that I've perfected it as of yet). Here is a potentially revolutionary device that I am considering test-driving for when I spend 2.5 months in a developing country in 2011. If men can pee standing up without disrobing, why can't women? I present to you: The SheWee.

It even comes in pink! And NATO green! And Brilliant Blue! And Clear! And who could forget, DESERT SAND!?

Are you with me ladies?

Crossing off Something Nerdy

After many months of planning and waiting I was able to cross something off of my life to-do list. Something quite nerdy. I started a book club :) It is a sporadic one since its members are busy grad students but, nonetheless, we have read one book, discussed it and are in the plans for a second. That counts as a book club. I believe I mentioned the selection process on here back in November. Yes, it took until last week to be accomplished and there was a high attrition rate BUT there were 5 members in attendance and we talked about Margaret Atwood's Oryx & Crake.

We discussed themes and how the story paralleled our current society and what we thought Snowman would do at the end and what Crake really was planning and why. We ate lots of candy. Afterward we celebrated with a swim, a soak in the hot tub and a fry in the sauna.

The club hopes to hold another session in May when we all return from our first placements across Ontario. We need some book suggestions so I think i'll go do my research.

Commercially-Sanctioned Love Day

Last weekend was many things:
Long.
Not long enough.
Family Day.
A bridal shower for a friend from high school.
Valentine's Day.
The first time I had seen 'the man' in 6 weeks.
The start of the Vancouver Olympics.
Chinese New Year (although this one [unfortunately] did not come into play).

The bridal shower and bachelorette parties took place in Sudbury so I trekked 5 hours north for the weekend. Valentine's Day was spent at SCIENCE NORTH! While most patrons were families with children I think we may have had the most fun there. Go nerdy-science-love day!

First floor: rocks. Ok, not the best opener.

Next floor: BUGS! The knowledgable 'bluecoats' answered all of my questions and let me hold the following fauna: Madagasgar Hissing Cockroach. Giant Millipede (it felt like a toothbrush!). Atlas beetle. The typical lifespan of an Atlas Beetle is 4 months. Now you know. I'm basically fearless.
The insect/arachnid floor included a butterfly...house (?). Off to a not so great start, we let a butterfly out while we were entering the room! Woops! Good thing some attentive 10-yr-olds corrected our folly. Mark then waited patiently while I stared down a butterfly trying to molt its coccoon. Alas, mr. butterfly waited until I left to make his grand entrance.

Next floor: Animals Native to Ontario! Go turtles! Plus a fat, formerly-frost-bitten beaver, and tree-dwelling porcupine and secret Norwegian rats. The staff takes some of the animals out at select times during the day for teaching and touching purposes. We missed the flying squirrel, but, gosh darn it, I wasn't going to miss the skunk. We may have been the first people at the skunk pen and waited patiently while the attendant roused Rosise the descented skunk with promises of dog treats. She was adorable and extremely sociable. For Valentine's Day I pet a SKUNK! TAKE THAT!

Next floor: various athletic time trial games. I'll let you guess which of us enjoyed that part of the excursion most. Oh, racing up stairs! Jumping as high as you can! Grip strength!

After an eventful time at Science North our minds were full but our tummies were empty. This is where we faltered: driving around an unfamiliar city for quick food we caved and bought at the first fastfood place we could find. For our big Valentine's dinner I had apple juice and cookies as we watched the Olympics between runs to the corner store for Tylenol. We were both sick but it was one of my favourite times :)

Sign of Asperger's: Perseverating on one Topic

A few weeks ago I creeped a friend's blog and learned about a fabulous band from the UK: Mumford & Sons. It took me a while to remember that I live in Toronto where bands actually visit and play shows. So I looked them up and there was a sold out show this past Monday at Lee's Palace. A good friend and I grabbed two tickets on creeplist (read: Craigslist) and dutifully stood in line on Family Day to see them play. Oh yeah, the band. Mumford & Sons. We found ourselves standing about three rows (ie. 5 feet) from the stage and settled in for a good night.

The Opener: Sunparlour Players.
A two man/10 instrument act. Honestly, the lead singer also played guitar, bass and drums. The other member sang, played guitar, bass, drums, bell, xylophone, accordian, and one (both?) of them played banjo. Not-the-lead-singer guy (who looked like he may be an invesment banker by day) often played two instruments at one time. Oh look, no need for another band member, I'll just play bass AND xylophone AT ONE TIME. The music was folky rock and kinda gritty. Not sold enough to buy a CD but worth a listen.

The Main Attraction: Mumford & Sons. 4 young guys from the UK who also rotated instruments like crazy. They sang and played with every ounce of what they had and clearly loved performing together. Plus all 4 are very attractive. The lead singer has a strong and raw sounding voice that is, at first, unexpected but soon very familiar. It was their first show in Canada as the headliner so they were surprised that so many audience members knew all of the words to the songs (even though the album hasn't been released in Canada). All four laughed and joked with the crowd, although the young looking one on the guitar (Winston) was a mumbler and I never had any idea what he was trying to say. The band interspersed a few new songs in the show and all had the same folk style with enigmatic lyrics that characterizes the band. In the encore they surprised us with a sans-technology version of one of their older songs which just further highlighted their musicianship. It was a great show. I could easily go every week.


My current fave by Mumford & Sons. The Cave.

[ETA: somehow I double-posted the same video but I can't seem to edit one out. Woops!]

My Clothes-mate

Until now I had never had a friend that I could share clothing with. I was always taller, shorter, bigger or smaller than friends or had an entirely different style. Hi-C, however, has been showing me how to adorn myself with quality clothes for less expensive prices. Her secret: try it on in the store and then buy it on ebay for half the price.* She has also lent me some quality jeans to feel the difference and, blogosphere, I don't think I can ever go back!

About a month ago we spied a lovely dress on the main floor (read: not on sale) of Anthrologie. She promptly found one on ebay and it arrived last week while we were making apple & cheese scones! It looked gorgeous on her so I gave it a whirl and fell in love. This weekend I made my very first purchase on ebay and will soon be in possession of an "In-A-Moment" dress. I'm so lucky that Hi-C is such a good sport.



*You may already be privvy to this information but it was new to me.

Thanks Internet

For all the great things that the internet makes possible it also keeps a record of failures.

Feeling ambitious today after a great jog outside (so glad to be back outside! See ya later, treadmill!) I have been perusing training programs for running 10km. I'll be back up north soon for placement and no longer be forced by my own cheapness to walk at least an hour every day, therefore, I need a more intense exercise routine. While discussing this lofty plan with my (oh so sensitive ;) librariMan I let slip that I had run a 5km race before.

Oh, and that I came in last. Completely dead last. My time was 33 minutes but it was only the second time I had ever even made it that far without stopping (the first was two days before in an effort to not die). I was in grade 10, had only been running for a month and, let's be honest, had (and still have) never been athletic.

What does an ever-sensitive librariMan do in a situation like this? Offer comfort? Maybe some encouragement? He googles my race! And thank you internet: there is a record of me finishing dead last in a community fundraising race 10 YEARS AGO! That's right, October 9th, 2000 I came in last. Next time I ever attempt anything competitive I'm going to be certain to come in at least second last.

Food of the gods

SLP 2011 was granted a day off school today (from our fairy godmother). My good friend Hi-C hosted a homework group/baking session all afternoon.

First on the menu: Ginger cookies. We got this recipe from the good ol'net and highly recommend it (if you like your ginger cookies tasty and chewy). Another recommendation: double the spices.



Next (interspersed with some articulation assessment scoring), and the namesake for this post:
GOAT CHEESE & PEAR PIZZA. I don't care what time of day you are reading this, just go make this right now! So easy and a beautiful mix of sweet and savoury.

1. Buy some of that premade pizza dough (don't be lazy, the dough not the already baked crust).
2. Flatten onto floured pan (you know, pizza style).
3. Smother with pesto sauce (the tasty green stuff).
4. Carmelize onions and put on top*. Be generous.
5. Thinly slice pear and put on top. Keep up the generosity.
6. Sprinkle (inundate? Depending on your personal tastes) with GOAT CHEESE.
7. Bake (follow baking instructions on dough bag).
8. Savour.
9. Thank me (or actually Hi-C).

*You may actually want to do this as #2 and shift all other steps down one.

DAF: Delayed Auditory Feedback

Some of you may have heard about a 'miracle cure' that came out a few years ago for stuttering. One of the brand names is Speech Easy. Here is a heartwarming video demonstrating just how amazing the device is: a person can go from a severe stutter to fluent speech by simply inserting what looks like a hearing aid into the ear and turning it on. Immediate effects. (skip to about 5min in to see the actual heart-wrenching).



The principle behind the device is Delayed Auditory Feedback. The speaker's voice is echoed back in their ear with a delay of about 50ms (give or take). The hypothesis of why it works is that it creates a situation like choral speech that typically increases fluency (ie. it is like someone is speaking with you). Being an SLP student I get to learn about these amazing things, in fact, I take a whole class (6 hours a week!) in just stuttering. There is, of course, a catch because there always is. The effects of the device tend to wear off after some time as the brain gets used to the echo. It isn't a replacement for treatment and actual control of stuttering but may be a wonderful option for someone who is desperate, who stutters severely and who has tried everything.

The science behind it is interesting. Technology that causes stutterers to become more fluent can cause disfluent speech in nonstutterers. In class I volunteered to read a passage aloud while wearing headphones and the professor would switch on DAF at random intervals. My speech became slow, disfluent, repeating syllables, prolonging sounds. I didn't stutter exactly but I stumbled over my words much more than I normally would. Someone tried it before I did and, not wanting to be shown up, I tried to read even faster. Impossible! Every time I would try to speed up I would just start stringing together almost unintelligible syllables.

You can try it yourself. Do it with a friend because you may not realize just how different you sound. Download this software (it is free as a trial). Crank up the delay to approx 150-200ms (although try a range to see what causes the biggest effect). Wear some headphones and turn up the volume. Now read a passage. Try speeding up. Slow down. What happens?

Science rules. Ps. You'll need to have a microphone /built-in mic in order to do this activity.

An Offensive Blog

My little sis has a blog. I personally think that it is hilarious. This may have something to do with us sharing a childhood environment. While our humours are similar there are in slightly different taste.

Caveat:

If you are in any way offended by swearing: do not read it.
If you are in any way offended by sexual innuendo: do not read it.
If you are in any way offended by blatant references to sex: do not read it.


Otherwise, I think it is safe.

Scattered

Witnessed good mother-child communication today. This is the stuff we learn about in school (yep, I'm in grad school and they teach us this!).
Setting: Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) in the biodiversity section. Mother is with her 3-yr-old looking at a case of insects.
Mom: Whats that?
Child: Bug
Mom: What is another name for a bug? *here mom waits for an awkwardly long time to give the child a chance to respond. This is good!
Child: babbles a little
Mom: Insect :) Another name for a bug is an insect. Look at me when I say it: In-sect.

She waits for responses. She has the child look at her when she says the word so they can see how it is formed. She repeats the word many times in a variety of sentences. I wanted to ask her if she was an SLP or had been to an SLP!

Next story:
Last weekend a few friends and I were walking past the University of Toronto at approx 7pm. Just as we turned on to a side street there was a low but powerful boom. The kind that causes the ground to move beneath you. It was almost exactly like the mini-quake I experienced in Peru. Not being hardened Toronto citizens we all stopped where we were and, after a bit of thought, ventured back to investigate. The air started to get hazy and there was a funny smell.

Me: thinking someone blew something up. Waiting for debris to rain on me.
The rest of Toronto: no one even awknowledged that it happened! Our little posse was the only group that showed any sign of concern or even recognition.

Recently joined with Couch Surfing again. I have yet to surf or to host (I don't have a couch but I indicated a willingness to show people around). Reading through the profiles makes me want to travel!!!! Is it wrong to use it as a free place to stay within the same province???

ETA: Forgot to actually finish the whole sounded-like-an-explosion story. Sorry to leave you hanging about the current state of downtown TO. What happened? Nothing. Or at least, we never did find out and I checked all the news sites I could think of for days afterward. Of course, the smartest thing to do is always walk towards the big boom sound...

No Day But Today (RENT)

Opening night tickets to RENT in the Canon Theatre Toronto = GLORIOUS!

The place was full but had a laid back atmosphere. I was excited to go (more than excited) but a little unsure of what to expect without most of the original cast. There was nothing to worry about. With Mark and Roger, two characters with the most stage time, played by the initial cast, Anthony Rapp and Adam Pascal respectively, there was a comforting consistency.

All the other parts were well acted but clearly cast not to fill a role but the shoes of the (very well-known) cast members before them. Nicolette Hart as Maureen had the same nasal whine that Idina Menzel brought to the performance. Michael McElroy had the same rich voice and smooth mannerisms that Jesse L. Walker as Tom Collins. All, except for the notably blond exception of Hart as Maureen, strongly resembled that first Broadway cast. While talent is important we humans like consistency.

The 'new' Angel had quite a bit more personality, he seemed to have fun in his role. The singing, however, was quite a bit flatter. With 'Today for You' being a favourite song of mine it was somewhat disappointing.
Idina Menzel, the original Maureen, was incredible. It would be intimidating to fill a role that everyone who loves RENT associates with her but Nicolette Hart held her own. While she could have been a bit more feisty Hart managed good vocals and some very funny moments (ie. mooning Benny with flair during "La Vie Boheme").
The number that, in my humble (read: new to musical theatre) opinion, was far superior in the production to the film was the Tango Maureen. It was sassier, angrier; the dancing was more fun, the actors had the right chemistry (or lack there of) between them.

If you have only seen musicals in the movies (and that is still me to a large degree) get out and see them live! It is a bit pricey but worth the fee.


--type casting to fit what the original characters created
--the Angel had more spunk and personality but the singing wasn't as impressive
--trying to live up to Idina Menzel
--superiority of the Tango Maureen

Adam (2009)

A film you (likely) haven't heard of but definitely should see (trailer). If for nothing else than the soundtrack and Hugh Dancy's stunning performance as Adam.

The story follows a young man with Asperger's syndrome* while he copes with change and relationships. The scenarios were realistic (ok, mostly, it is a movie afterall) and the acting even more so. When Adam finally explains his condition to Beth the writers used it as an educational opportunity. Maybe a bit transparent but a necessary explanation nonetheless. This isn't a review as much as a bulletin: watch this film! It is quirky and heartwarming and, yes, a little slow at times but entirely worth it. To restate: at least get the soundtrack filled mostly by The Weepies and Joshua Radin.

Here is a taste: (caveat: this song is also associated with those frilly Vampire movies - don't make me say the name - which I discovered on youtube with some disappointment)




*Asperger's Syndrome: This was the deciding factor for our movie selection last night as budding SLPs and we were not disappointed. The characteristics most emphasized in the film were the social awkwardness, necessity of routine and the intense dislike of change.

For a personal account I recommend the book "Born on a Blue Day" by Daniel Tammet. Some of the promotional material touts him as an "Autistic Savant" however I believe that the term Aspergers is more accurate. Tammet relates what it is like for him to have an incredible intellect but an almost absence of social skills.

My Traveling Downfall

If you asked me whether I like a wide variety of foods I would say YES! I love food! I'll try anything! However, if you asked me more specific questions like "would you try chicken feet?" I would say NO!

I have the illusion that I'm adventurous with food because I love many different cuisines (Indian, Thai, Latin American, Chinese baking, etc.). Yet, there are many many things that I could never tolerate. I like the safe versions, the vegetarian menus found in Canada. Once you start throwing in fauna I get squeamish. I'm at the point now that I think I could eat most meats. Meats meaning muscle-based animal products of land animals (Snake? I think so! Zebra? Sure! Otter? Why not?). Did I mention that they have to be cooked?

Things you will not see me eating:
1. Uncooked animal products (eating ceviche - a dish of raw fish in lime juice - was almost too much for me). Sushi and raw whale meat are out.
2. Bugs.
3. Gristle (you know, those cartilagey parts)
4. Organ meats.
5. (Most) Sea creatures (I can do shrimp/lobster/crab/fish if absolutely necessary but I draw the line there....no octopus, fish eggs, squid or sea cucumber anus)

Places that would cause me the most food anxiety:
1. China (oh, but I do want to go!)
2. Japan
3. France

Anywhere I go I should research "safe" foods (which is somewhat unfortunate because food is a major part of the travel experience - especially sharing meals with new friends....). Why is it always so rude in other cultures to turn down a dish? They could all come to my house and I won't be offended if they say no to my chickpea meatloaf or veggie stew!

ETA: Apparently French food isn't as obviously awful as I thought lol. They to use all parts of the animal: the liver, other organs, and yes, escargots. Also, I dislike wine. And I dislike blue/stinky cheeses. And mushrooms. It just wouldn't go over well.
And I like ketchup; I hear you can't ask for ketchup.

A Cog in the Consumerist Machine

Oh Christmas. A big struggle of mine is to avoid purchasing goods that I don't need and be satisfied with what I already had. Well, I cracked over the holidays (and I still have to buy textbooks....where is the "queasy" emoticon when you need it?).

It all started with an apple. It is, of course, a glorified email checker. A gloried email checker with time-sucking games and pretty graphics. My favourite 'app' so far is the CBC Radio one....mmmm Vinyl Cafe.








Then, from wonderful Mark, I received one of the most spectacular pieces of technology I have ever owned. It is called a BAMBOO and it is glorious. I can write in my chicken scratch and it translates it into type. It is pressure sensitive: a lighter touch means a thinner line; press harder and get a thicker line. The main reason for the gift is my digital scrapbooking hobby. Unfortunately, my current/old laptop is so clogged that I am unable to open the necessary photo editing software.


Which leads to my true consumerist glitch: a new laptop. I fell for Boxing Day. The beast (aptly named "Zack Morris") just three years old but with a stuck mouse button, a screen that doesn't stay where it is placed, etc., etc. It has been replaced with a shiny new Samsung. I agonized over my choices with both my brother and my manfriend being subjected to hours of "But will it run Photoshop?" and "Which one would you buy?". I feel like a got a decent deal and it runs more than one program without stalling so check one for me. The screen is lovely.

A few other fave gifts I received (in no particular order):
- TWO Mr. Potato Heads! (one regular, one spidey....great for SLPs)
- A custom t-shirt with Bill Nye the Science Guy's mug on it and the line "Science Rules" (the back reads "Inertia is a property of Matter")
- Bananagrams


Some of the favourite gifts I gave:
1. Hamgburger Phone. To: mini-sister
2. Hand-made scarf. To: boyfriend. (it looks rather handsome on him).
3. Ice cube tray that makes teeny glasses (ok "shot" glasses). To: mini-brother
4. Beer. To: dad.

Food Brainstorms (StomachStorms?)

When my dad and I get together we mostly talk about food. He is good at cooking it (I'm slowly picking up a few of his skills) and we're both good at eating it. We have a knowing look when something should have had goat cheese involved but the rest of the family vetoed our choice.

Today I fried up some perogies with onions and little bacon; standard fare. I like to mix cuisines so I dressed it with salsa since the perogies were a little on the bland side. That got my dad and I stomach-storming about how to make our own perogies and how to do it in a bit more exciting way.

We came up with a few ideas*:

The main ingredient in all the recipes would be potatoes with the other ingredients mashed inside.

1. Italian-style: goat cheese, sundried tomato, fresh basil leaves
2. Greek-style: feta cheese & olives
3. Indian-style: cauliflower, curry paste, (goat cheese?). Maybe some mango chutney and yogurt for garnish.

The question is, how motivated am I feeling?

*These have likely already been done but they were original to us.

Squints

Feeling somewhat helpless. Without my glasses anything more than a foot in front of my eyes is a big blur. This computer screen is about 18 inches away but I can detect movement so I know where the cursor is; good thing I can do the typing-without-looking thing. PS. My glasses broke tonight. The lens popped out and isn't pop-back-inable (the transparent wire that holds it in place snapped). I actually think I'm doing pretty well for typing but excuse any mistakes please.

I flew back home a few days ago and have been mostly in chill mode. We decorated the tree (after some family drama) and finished Christmas shopping. My goals for vacation are 1) to finish reading Oryx & Crake (for bookclub), 2) Order my textbooks, 3) Run every second day. That's about all I gots.

Procrastination Post

This week is exams. Just three but I'm out of practice (and I haven't done one as intense as anatomy since.....well, I haven't ever!).

All week has been spent at the school. This means consuming too many calories by eating out all the time (trying to now bring more food to conserve funds) and living in the study rooms. Spending hours drawing out all the different motor and sensory pathways. Study breaks for McFlurries and dancing to "Single Ladies" and "All I want for Christmas is you" by Mariah Carey.

Things I still have to do before christmas:
-Shop
-Send Cards
-Pack
-Clean my room
-Post an ad for the place I live (planning to move out at the end of Feb....have I taken on too much?),

Looking forward to: making gingerbread houses, snowshoeing, late night coffee dates, hanging with family/friends/Mark, decorating, NOT STUDYING

Worst Present Ever....

We had our gift exchange today for the SLP students (woot!). Since not everyone does Christmas we kept it P.C. and called it ANEGS (Anonymous Nondenominational Exchange of Goods & Services aka. Secret Santa). I got to be the gift giver outer (who happened to wear a santa hat).

What a day. People were so generous, creative and thoughtful (quite a few sweet Mr. Potato Heads!). Not gonna lie though, I think I got one of the WORST/best presents :)

Earlier in the month we had been discussing what to get our 'chosen ones' and I was saying that I would be fairly tough to shop for because I don't like traditional generic gifts: I don't use candles, I don't want body products (I'd rather choose my own, thanks) and I don't drink hot drinks like tea or coffee very often.

I saved mine for last feeling awkward choosing my own gift. Opening it I got: tea, a bar of yummy smelling soap, candles. Yikes. I'm thinking to myself "How did they manage to get all of the things I dislike in one gift??!"
But I opened it in front of everyone and apparently I put on a pretty good show of excitement.

Then I came across the note: If you hate these gifts yell "I hate these gifts" and my nondenominational elves will bring you something better. So I did*. And I got a new gift: the always awesome seashell chocolates and a gift card for BMV books. What more could a girl want? So, apparently you can't trust anything I say if I tell you that I like something.

Included in this gift was a little something extra. The night before I had asked my secret santa on facebook for A's on my exams without having to study. Here is the declaration I received:

"From this day forward, Ms. Katie V. of the SLP class of 2011 will receive a mark no lower than A+ on every exam she takes, regardless of her performance on aforementioned exam. Furthermore, Ms. V's chair must be pre-warmed before each class and she will be provided with a basket of fresh baked pastries and refreshing, tangy beverages. Ms. V has the right to put a halt to any lecture in order to demand a thorough back massage from the lecturer (or from anyone else in the room should Ms. V. deem the professor below her standards). This is assuming she attends the lecture, which for her (of course) is optional."
-Someone very powerful at the U of T.

I can't wait for next semester to instate these rules!

*I ruined it a bit and read the note out loud. I guess I was supposed to just yell that....but I felt terrible!

Leslie V: November 15, 1928 - December 1, 2009

My grandfather was the type of person who always gave of himself and never mentioned it to anyone. He raised 6 children with my grandmother in what must have been a very busy and very crowded house. They were go-with-the flow-type of people: they let their children bring home stray animals, let turtles live in the bathtub (the only bathtub for 8 people, I still haven't figured that one out), let hitchhikers tent on their lawn and draft-dodgers live at their camp when they needed a place to stay.

He lived his whole life in the North where he became a skilled fisherman and hunter. He and my father once took me fishing and we landed a good-sized pike. When we got to the shore and the fish was still suffering in the bottom of the boat he handed me his wooden club and told me to give it a good whack on the head. At the time I was mortified but I realized that the fish was going to die anyway, he just didn't want it to suffer. Grandpa Les was also a fantastic gardener. Just this summer I started the first garden of my very own and he always had great advice for me. (He told me to tie the leaves of my cauliflower plants around the head so that they would stay white; now you know too!). That was another great thing about him: he didn't hoard his talents or knowledge but shared it with his children and grandchildren. At work he was recognized as an expert at splicing rope and cable in the mines and his hard work kept the other miners safe.

One of the greatest things I will remember about grandpa is the way that he loved his wife and how he cared for her for the 12 years that she was sick. As my grandmother slowly lost the use of her body he worked tirelessly to ensure that she retained a high quality of life. They would do exercises together everyday to keep up her strength. The family got a special chair so that she could go outside where they both loved to be.

This past Saturday I had the honour of helping to carry the casket of this truly good man.

My grandfather died on Tuesday. It was unexpected. He was a very good man and I have something in the works about who he was to be posted later. The funeral was this Saturday.....in Wawa. When you don't go there very often you start to forget how hard winter hits. I remember now: 2 feet of snow in less than 2 days.

Thursday: took the Go-train to Georgetown. Sat in the corner on my suitcase and did homework on the way. Did you know that commuter trains have no baggage areas?
Drove with my aunt from Georgetown to Sudbury. (just over 5 hours).

Friday: Sudbury to Wawa. 6 hours in good weather. We hit a snowstorm half way there and chugged at 60km for the rest of the way.

Saturday: Woke up to a foot of fresh powder and closed highways. Some family had to get a police escort into town for the funeral. Funeral post-poned by an hour.
10:20 pm: leave Wawa for the Soo. Hit white out approx 50 km from home. At times we couldn't see the sides of the road to know that we were still on it. Big props to cousin Greg for his mad driving skills.

Sunday: The Soo to Toronto. 8.5 hours. Parry Sound to Sudbury we had 10 feet of visibility, slushy roads and wind.

Total distance logged: 2100km.

I will be using just my feet for transportation for a long while.