I had tons of fun on my birthday; got to see lots of people. My folks got me a digital camera and Barb & Toby got me a memory card. I took some pictures with it, but I haven't uploaded them to my computer yet. Once I do I'll post them for all to see.

I leave for Cuba in 3 days and I probably won't have access to the Internet until then. If I have (cheap) access to the net in Cuba I'll post updates while I'm there. Otherwise this blog is on hiatus until January 10th or 11th.

Ciao!

I'm now 23 and Kayla is 20. I'm almost in my mid-twenties, weird... Tonight I'm we're going for dinner at the Cactus Club and then to the Toad 'n' Turtle for drinks. Everyone is welcome to come out for drinks, so give me a call if you need directions.

Christmas was very, very busy and I didn't really get to spend a lot of time with anyone, but I had fun. I started out at Kayla's house on Christmas eve. We ate a bunch of Danish food and despite Kayla's warnings I enjoyed it all. After supper we opened gifts and I was quite spoiled. Kayla got me a Nintendo DS (w00t!), and her parents got me a really nice sushi dish set and a book about Paul Martin. They got me a bunch of other stuff too (I even got a gift from Kayla's grandma who I've never met), but I wan't list it all.

Kayla got a trip to Halifax to visit her best friend Amanda. When she opened it up she cried, and then her Mom started crying. If we can manage it we'd like to go to Halifax and Newfoundland this summer. It'll be costly for sure, but Toby is going this summer and I've really been longing to go lately. Kayla will want to spend most of her time in Halifax and me in Newfoundland, but we'll try and work something out.

I got Kayla Dance Dance Revolution Extreme and a Dance Pad for PS2, her Mom an aroma therapy set, her Dad a wine kit thing, and her brother a GBA game (Kayla gave him a GBA. My old one actually...). Kayla is really good at DDR, but when I tried it (I made sure she wasn't home to see) I sucked it up really bad. Really bad.

The next morning Kayla's parents made an excellent breakfast and then we were off to my Dad's house (in Kayla's Mom's '04 Jeep Liberty!). I got to see Toby, my Dad and his girlfriend, and eventually Barb. My Dad got me a really nice winter jacket (finally I can be warm!) and some nice swimming trunks for Cuba. Toby got me the Matrix DVD set, which I wanted really bad. My Dad's girlfriend got Kayla some homemade soaps and me some homemade cookies. Very good stuff.

I gave Toby Metroid Prime and SSX Tricky for GameCube, My Dad had bought his gift from me already (*eye roll*) already, so I chipped in for a laser level from Me, Toby, and Barb (note to self: I still actually have to pay Barb). Myself and Kayla gave my Dad's girlfriend a bottle of Chilean wine.

After a quick lunch and a visit from Barb we took Artemis back to our house (not fun, lots of barking) and were off to Strathmore.

Things were really rushed in S'more, so once we got there we opened our gifts right away. My Mom got myself and Kayla some clothes and I also got more shorts and 2 pairs of sandles for Cuba. I gave my Mom an oil burner kit & book and Jack 2 word puzzle books. After that we went to a family friend's house for a gift exchange and supper. It was pretty crazy there, I think there was something like 22 people. By this point I was exhausted so all I really did was sit and watch people get progressively more drunk. I had lots of fun (food was awesome), but I finally had to leave at 8 because both Kayla and I were ready for bed.

So that was my busy Christmas. Since then I've worked at Blockbuster (blech!), moved some more stuff from the old place (very close to being done), and played lots of my DS (I bought myself Mario 64 DS). Today will be another long day (I started work at 8am), but I know I'll enjoy myself. I've started becoming more excited about the Cuba trip now that it's less than a week away.

Sorry, not much time to blog. I hope everyone had a good Christmas. I got to see all my family and got a pretty good haul too (Nintendo DS & Matrix DVD set!). I have to head back into Calgary now where I have no Internet. Bye!

Well kids, school's out forver. I finished my last exam yesterday, and considering I forgot it was cumulative, I think I did pretty well. Here's to the real world!

I'm still busy moving in and I'm working everyday until I leave for Cuba except for Christmas and Dec. 27th. Kind of sucks, but I need the money since I'm taking a week off.

Not much else to report really. My and Kayla's birthday is on the 28th, so if you're in Calgary make sure you keep the day open.

Well, I've been quite busy since my last post. I've done three of my five exams, I have another in 4 hours, and my last (evar!) tomorrow. Saturday Kayla's family was coming in to help us move our furniture. That's it, just furniture and anything heavy. Kayla's Dad brought a big truck, so I figured we'd be done in one or two trips. In the end Kayla's Mom, Dad, & Brother showed up as well as my Dad, Mom, and Jack. Our Moms decided that we were moving everything, not just the furniture. Kayla and I hadn't packed anything because we weren't expecting to move any of the little stuff. Fortunately we had 8 people, so in about 4 hours we had moved everything except for stuff in the bathroom and a bunch of crap in my storage room. I owe everyone a big favour, especially those who moved my giant (and extremely heavy) GameCube demo until down my narrow, twisting stairs.

Kayla and I still have tons of unpacking to do, as well as cleaning at the old place. I'll be pretty busy until I go to Cuba, but I'm so less stressed at this new place. If anyone wants to drop by, feel free to do so, it's just a little cluttered right now.

Toby came in on Saturday and I saw him briefly, but I think he's pretty busy trying to visit multiple households. Barb comes on Wednesday and Sushi will ensue at some point.

Anyway, I should probably study so that I don't get raped on this exam, like I did the last one.

Kayla and I got the keys to the new place this weekend and we've moved in a few things. Today we got our bed from my Mom, and on Saturday we're moving our furniture. On Sunday I hope to move the bulk of our stuff so that we'll be completely moved in by Christmas.

All this would be fine and dandy if it weren't for the fact that I have final exams right now. I had the first one yesterday, two tomorrow, one on Monday, and one on Tuesday. I really can't wait for them to be over so that I can relax a little bit.

It'll be a stressful couple of weeks, but it will worth it when I have a nice new place, get to see my friends & family, and then off to Cuba.

Air Force One is dead again. Kayla and I had drove to Airdrie to see her brother in a play and then back into Calgary to pick-up some stuff for my staff Christmas party. Just as I was turning the corner to go into Edelweiss Village to buy to European treats, the car just died. Turning on the hazards didn't even work, she flat lined. So after flagging down a random person and having him and Kayla push the car (not my idea) we took a taxi home. Kayla drove us to the Christmas party (her vehicle isn't too healthy either) and a great time was had by all.

The next day after a 9-5 shift at Blockbuster (blech) my Dad drove me to the vehicle and I called AMA to tow me for the umpteenth time. It's now parked behind my new house that I get the keys to today. So while I'm not too happy about the dead car, or the final exams that start tomorrow (eek), I'm very happy to have a new place to live.

I just had a lengthy meeting with my boss where we planned out the next 8 months for three of the four programs I'll be working on. My time has litterally been booked up for the next six months with planning, writing, and meetings. I hit the ground running as soon as I get back from Cuba, so I'm definitely going to need that week to re-charge. I'm going to be super busy, but I think'll be able to handle it all. I was expecting to work your typical 8:30 - 4:30 day, but it looks like it'll be more like an 11:00 - 7:00 day. Now if you excuse me, I have some terms of reference to write.

The past few days have been interesting, to say the least. At work I've started some of my full time duties, even though I'm still part time. At school I had a mock Arctic Council which was a lot of fun but also a lesson in futility because of the Americans. I've also got 4 of my 5 papers back and it seems as time went on my papers got worse. The first paper I did recieved an 'A', but the last one received a 'B-'. Not too bad, but I was hoping to boost my GPA a bit this semester. Home life is good, Kayla's been really stressed but I won't go into that. My Christmas shopping is done and I have to start packing pretty soon here for the move.

I experienced a weird thing yesterday; I had my last University lecture of my degree. I walked out of that class just like any other but while riding the train to work it struck me that I may never have another class. If you include primary and secondary school, I've been persuing my education since 1986, that's 18 years. I've been in University for 5 of those years. I've become so accustomed to school that it's hard for me to imagine life without it. Yeah, I bitch and moan about it during midterms, papers, and finals, but I really do enjoy school for the most part. In the very least it's a rewarding experience.

I didn't get to celebrate my last day of classes because I had two meetings (well three, but two were at the same time) at work and by the time i got home it had been a 12 hour day and I was exhausted. I still have to study for finals, do lots of house work, and pack all before Christmas. So I guess the celebrations will have to wait until Cuba, but I have no problem with that.

Oh yeah, Ralph? Suck it!

I used to hate trading games, I wanted to hold on to every game I had. However during my time at Blockbuster I amassed a lot of games that were purchased simply because they were cheap. So I recently traded in 8 games (!) and walked away with Metroid Prime 2, Jak II, Street Fighter Anniversary Collection, and a Christmas gift for Toby. I still have some credit left which I will be using for King of Fighters 00/01 and I-Ninja. I'm still working on Halo 2, so all those games will have to wait.

The Good:
-Done midterms
-Done Papers (woo!)
-Got an A and an A- on two of my papers
-6 days until end of classes
-12 days until new house
-22 days until Xmas
-25 days until birthday
-30 days until Cuba
-45 days until fulltime work

The Bad:
-I somehow have to get through a 15 hour work day on 4 hours sleep
-Exams from Dec. 14 to 21
-Thought I had banked hours at work, turns out they overpaid me. I owe them money now
-Revenue Canada denied my appeal and told me to hurry up and pay them
-Piss ass poor

The Ugly:
-Bad habits