Hope you all had a lovely Thanksgiving holiday! I also hope you were all smart and avoided Walmart or Walmart or Walmart on Black Friday (seriously, America, what is it about Walmart that brings out such capitalistic rage?!)

I was very sad to see so many status updates of everyone going home to family and friends for the holiday, while it was business as usual up here in Canader. I am so very grateful for my family, friends, and the opportunities I've had in the last year, and I figured while I am sitting around reflecting on life, this would be a good time to write a reflective post about my first year in Canada (also, it's snowing, which means winter is officially here, and we have come full circle through the very distinctive Canadian seasons).

So, last month marked my one-year anniversary of moving to Canada (October 7). Obviously it's difficult to condense a year's worth of emotions, experiences, relationships, etc., of a new place into one post, but I will try to cover some big things. It's really strange to think about where I was and how much I've learned in the past year...

I have to admit I knew very little about our northern "neighbour" before settling here. I thought "eh" and"aboot" were old South Park stereotypes and that crossing into Canada automatically means crossing into some snowy Twilight Zone* However, a year later I find myself "eh-ing" and "cheers-ing" and trying to keep my "outs" from slipping into "oots." (Also, according to a few different people, I now say "Sow-uth"? I'm not going to admit to it, but my guess would be that it's a combination of a Southern/Canadian accent going on? Oh dear.)

*I promise I didn't think all Canadians lived in igloos!

Anyway, aside from "Why do you not have a Southern accent?" - the first question people usually ask me is why I moved to Toronto from South Carolina. I get it - it's kind of a bizarre thing and I don't really have a solid answer. At the same time, it wasn't a completely random decision. I didn't have a life plan after college except to A) get out of South Carolina and B) travel while I am still young and springy, and find a big city with public transit where I could "live out my youth." I also spent a good bit of my last semester of school trying to figure out how to avoid settling down and see the world with all of the money I hadn't saved in college. I had been researching some opportunities to work in Canada, but at the time I wasn't finding any solid leads. For a while I was even considering teaching English in Hungary (one of those "well it seemed like a good idea at the time" things, I admit...).

However, it is quite strange the way things work themselves out sometimes. I invested a lot of energy into figuring out "what to do with my life" but only hit dead ends. It seemed like my post-grad life would consist of moving back in with my parents to continue an endless search for the "perfect" life plan (whatever that is).

Anyway, one day after a ballet class in my last semester, I saw a poster for Jacob's Pillow internships outside the room. This caught my interest as there was actually a graphic design internship listed and it was an artsy organization. Granted I really knew nothing about dance at the time and was taking ballet just for kicks, but it turns out that glancing at a poster in the dance building - one I would never normally set foot in - would set things in motion for the next chapter of my life.

After some mental debate, I decided to pull an application together just before the deadline. The interviews went well and I was offered an internship. Finally, I had something to do for the next few months! I could let go, look forward to working in a new place for the summer, and that was enough.

I worked with a group of amazing people, including a girl who was moving to Toronto at the end of the summer. I had some plans in motion to move to NYC, but as another recent grad she had discovered a small window to come and work in Canada on a "working holiday." Well, I figured I had the rest of my life to live and work in the States, but only a few months to try working in Canada. I had been interested in coming anyway - why not just move to Toronto? Two other interns also had plans to move to other parts Canada in September - so we would have some friends to visit as well.

Now, no, I had never been to Toronto before, but she mentioned that Toronto has an big entertainment industry with many theaters, and this sparked my interest as I had a developed a love for arts marketing working at the Pillow. There was another intern from the Toronto area to answer some of our questions and sold me on the city as well. So I decided to go for it. Also, what is there to lose? I move there, hate it, and go home? At least I tried.

After I finished my contract at the Pillow, I submitted the paperwork to get the visa and sold my dear Rav4 Julie to finance the move. I managed to find some roommates on Facebook that were willing to take in a girl they had never met from a different country, and a few weeks later I condensed my life down to what would fit in a Honda Civic and headed north.

People who hear my story always say "you are so brave to move to a place you've never visited, only knowing one other person." Maybe, but I wouldn't say it was "brave." Really, this was just one of those things I didn't really think about, but again, just seemed like a good idea at the time (also see: "Teaching English in Hungary"). So yes, it was very brave of me to arrive in Canada and fall apart as soon as reality hit me. When I arrived, suddenly I was overwhelmed by homesickness and the uncertainty of my situation -  moving to a snowy, diverse city from a small town in the Southern US, with no job and little experience using public transit. My first few weeks were a blur of applying for jobs and trying to learn my way around, while longing for the place I was so desperate to leave.

Admittedly, my first few weeks in Toronto I was not impressed. I heard it was a clean, beautiful city, but I didn't find the waterfront condos and skyscrapers to be particularly charming. In usual Ellen fashion, I really began to question my decision, wondering if I would ever "take to the city." Why did I move here again? Why didn't I visit first and get a feel for the place? Would I ever be able to eat something other than peanut butter banana sandwiches? What if I never find my place here and I have to crawl back to South Carolina, money wasted, and, worst of all, having to tell myself "clearly you couldn't handle that much adventure."

Despite my fears, as the days passed, I found Torontonians/Canadians to be very friendly and caring, and the city didn't let me fall.

My first 24 hours in Toronto, my friends and I went to a contra dance. After the dance, some folks invited us out for drinks. At the same dance a woman introduced herself and offered to show me around Toronto. A week later she took me on a driving tour of the city and made dinner for me, and we ended up chatting about life for a few hours. On public transit, if you leave your phone, a stranger will try to track you down to return it to you. Or, if you happen to fall off your bike in the middle of downtown, strangers will come help you up and graciously spend 20 minutes of their commute-to-work-time figuring out how to put the chain back on your bike while making sure you are ok (I may or may not be speaking from experience). People (even the non-crazies) are usually willing to strike up a conversation with you while waiting for the subway or streetcar. Obviously, it is still a big city and I have had my share of cold stares and heated exchanges with strangers, but overall I find most people to be pretty nice and genuine.

Eventually I found work and established a routine. I worked with a great group of people at a little old theatre downtown, and started to feel settled in my snowy city life.

Another big challenge I faced was spending my first major holidays away from home. When "American Thanksgiving" rolled around, I had only been in Toronto for a few weeks, so my network was limited to a few Canadians I worked and lived with - that did not celebrate Thanksgiving in November. I bought myself a small dinner for one and Skyped with the family. I had a hard time getting into the Christmas spirit as well - trying to be festive in an less familiar place, knowing I wouldn't be able to join the family for the holidays. At the time I was pretty depressed, but looking back it was one of those "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger" experiences (I had a lot of those my in my first months here) I am glad I had. I very much understand there are worse places to be in life, so I am slightly embarrassed to reflect on this as I know things could always be worse.

Then, in February, I hit a major road bump when I thought I would have to leave Canada in April instead of the following October. This was very scary, but one thing I have witnessed this year is the power of positive thinking. For anyone who has struggled with immigration issues, it is usually a mess of red tape, differing opinions on everything, and endless run-around. At first I figured all hope was lost - how would I get immigration officials to pay attention to something as small as a working holiday visa when they have refugees and complicated permanent resident applications to tend to? To boot, the office that makes these decisions is in Alberta, a good 3,000 miles from Toronto, with a backlog of 4-9 months for a response on all applications submitted. I certainly couldn't re-submit an application and wait for 4 months for a response - I needed a new visa and I needed it fast, and I would have to accomplish this all over the phone.

I buckled down and refused to believe I would have only lived in Toronto during the coldest months of the year and have to throw everything away to go home six months early. After many, many phone calls and a little help from my program, I was able to find someone who pushed my case through and - voila! A new visa arrived in the mail about a month after I received my initial rejection letter. A few weeks later, I landed a job in my field, moved into a new apartment with a very good friend from the Pillow and winter was finally on the wing.

While I learned to enjoy Toronto in my first few months, after the snow melted and the city came to life I really fell in love with this place.

I began biking around the city (also can I say living in a place where it is not over 95 degrees all summer definitely helped my outdoor exploration efforts) and thoroughly enjoyed biking to work and discovering the trails around TO. In the summer months there's never a shortage of things to do. There are a million outdoor festivals for every culture in this melting pot (and there are a lot of them). It's easy to ferry over to Toronto Island or bike out to the Beaches to get out of the city for a day and soak up some much-needed sun by the lake. I also live in a really hip and fun neighborhood, where it's fun just to walk to the grocery store on Saturday morning.

My family came to visit in July, and I have to say it was a strange experience to have something so familiar, from home, come to Toronto. It seemed that my life in Canada existed in a different world from SC, and it was weird to have something so homey and familiar in Toronto - to have the two worlds come together. At any rate I had a blast showing them all of the things IRL I had been talking about for so many months. Now they can picture what a streetcar looks like, where the "stops voice" comes from, how my apartment is set up, and the like.

As soon as I decided I loved Toronto, the time was coming for my current visa to expire. Anticipating this, at the beginning of the summer I spoke with a lawyer about my options come October. She proved to be very unhelpful, saying I had few options and that my chances of staying legally were pretty slim. This, of course, sent me into a slight panic, as my care-free summer city life now had a firm expiration date unless I could find a company to sponsor me - which is no small favor. To get sponsored the company has to prove they advertised the position and prove they couldn't find a suitable Canadian to fill it - all with lots of paperwork and waiting for approvals from the government. Unfortunately the job I had didn't qualify for sponsorship. At this point I really began to hate the month of September, as again a year later I was brought back to the question "ok, that's over, now what should I do with my life?" as soon as I felt settled and happy.

I resumed the search for my perfect life plan, but, again, I couldn't figure out what that would be on my own and eventually had to just let go. Of course, as soon as I did, I found my answers. Through one of those friend-of-a-friend-of-a-friend connections, I was able to meet with another lawyer who told me that graphic designers are on a list of tradeable-skilled-workers with NAFTA, so getting a new visa wouldn't be a problem. A couple of weeks later I took my paperwork down to the border and was granted a new visa!

A year ago, I was so desperate to avoid "settling down." I often found myself bored in one place doing one thing all the time. After a year in Toronto, I can say I am rarely ever bored, and would be happy to stay here for a few years. I miss my family and close friends quite a bit, and living in a different country (while not that different from the US) has its challenges. I do love meeting new people, but it can be difficult only to be surrounded by people you've just met. Moving away has made me greatly appreciate those I love back home. I am quite excited to report that I will be home for Christmas this year, and I cannot cannot wait to see everyone!

Anyway, really the biggest thing I've learned is that I can take care of myself. I moved to Canada with an air mattress and some clothes. I found work and an a place to live. Eventually I found work in my field and now I have my own fully-furnished apartment. I can bike downtown and I am even developing a loyalty to a sports team. While I was unsure at first, now I am very happy here and I can't imagine living anywhere else!


Love

Me

PS - All of that said, I hope I sold you all on this wonderful city - so you will come visit!! I will show you a good time :) :)

The Bicycle Formerly Known as Prince*

*bike name/blog title courtesy of Ms. Doris Plum.

Rather surprinsgly, one thing that has taken me by storm in this city is the biking culture. Now, I wouldn't consider Toronto to be a wonderfully green, biking-friendly city. There isn't an extensive network of bike lanes to accomodate all of the cyclists (in fact, it was just announced they are removing more of the few and precious bike lanes downtown to "ease" traffic issues...) and it is a tight squeeze to ride on some of streets in the downtown core during rush hour. Nonetheless, once the snow melted and people emerged from hiding, an army of cyclists appeared all over the city!

Now, as a suburban girl from SC, I never imagined I would take to those dangerous city streets by bike -  on the road, with other cars, pedestrians, dogs, manholes, etc in the road ready to throw me over my handlebars. Also, I couldn't possibly ride my bike and get all sweaty just before shopping or work! The horror. Anyway, with a little encouragement from my good friend/former roommate who loved her bike, I have joined the ranks and taken to the streets on my clunky little bicycle.

I have to admit, in the beginning I was terrified. My history on a bike consisted of riding around my neighborhood and maybe along the sidewalk to the library. Never on the street. This had also been a good 10+ years ago. Now, they always say "it's like learning to ride a bike - you never forget", but I don't find this to be completely true. I felt like I had to learn to ride all over again - find my balance, start and stop in an instant, how to maneuver through traffic, use the curb to push yourself off, and generally gain some confidence. So this did take some practice.

After going out on the bike and not getting hit or run over, I began to realize I can do this. And I fell in love. It's an amazing way to see so much of the city while getting some exercise, and takes the frustration out of waiting on public transit. Also it's pretty satisfying to sail past the line of cars during rush hour. My commute to work takes an hour on the streetcar, but only 35 minutes by bike! So great.

My 80's-tastic bicycle! 

A few pictures from riding around TO (sorry for the poor cell phone quality).

However, one thing cyclists in this city probably fear the most - even more than crashing into an open car door - are the Toronto streetcar tracks. They are lethal. I'm pretty sure everyone I know who bikes regularly has fallen (literally) victim to their grasp. Apparently, if you don't cross these tracks at perfect 90-degree angle, they will reach up and grab you and pull you down. Now, after a lovely summer of riding around the city, paying careful attention to how my wheels cross the tracks, a few weeks ago on Canadian Thanksgiving I was finally taken down. I was riding along, thinking about how great life is, then prepared to cross the tracks. The next thing I knew I hit the ground, my fall cushioned by my poor left shoulder. Yes, I was wearing my helmet so I avoided a possible concussion, but I hurt my shoulder pretty badly and have been forced to abandon my bike for the past few weeks. Luckily it seems to be recovering well, so I don't think I did any real damage, but, lesson learned.

Fear the Tracks

Anyway,  I'm hoping one day I will be able to afford proper equipment and can do some longer rides. But I am happy cruising along on my clunky little bike for now!

Cheers,

E

Catch Me If You Can, or, A Rather Lengthy Post About the Last Six Months

WOW, sorry I have been a terrible Blog-ess and have not updated for a few...months?? crap. So much has happened in the past few months, and I think I got caught up in the crazy storm that was spring, (and now summer) So let's recap...

February: My dear friend Rebecca from Jacob's Pillow decides to move to Toronto in the warm, inviting month of February. There is lots of snow and excitement ahead. I discover wearing a tux at the theater everyday is lame compared to the t-shirt and jeans that was our old uniform, and learn every word to the songs from The Secret Garden Musical. Rebecca joins me as an usher at the theatre and we run around with Winter's on the Wing" stuck in our heads 24/7 in our flattering penguin suits.

Febrawrrary

March: I tell my landlord I am moving out March 31, and Rebecca and I begin the search for a new pad. Our wish list includes: laundry on site, running water, cool/funky/artsy 'hood, apartment with character, good light, and, a pool. My search for a design job proves fruitful and I land a job with a tiny design firm doing alcohol promotions and laying out captive insurance(?) magazines. Mid-March we are heading towards homeless and I start having a slight panic attack. Looking out on the homeless horizon, I have also started working my new job full-time during the day, whilst finishing Secret Garden at my other full-time job at night. Add a couple of freelance projects plus packing an entire apartment onto that and I felt free and happy as a bird. Yep. Anywho, we did manage to find the perfect apartment, and, as far as the wish list goes, we got the running water, laundry on site, an awesome neighborhood, a cool house, and a free indoor pool 1 block away. Add onto that some great neighbors below and our own bathrooms. Stellar. However, it is still winter, and cold. I begin to wonder where spring is, though I figure maybe up here in tha north spring comes in April...

Moving in!

Our awesome neighbors!

April: Nope, it's still winter. Sometime mid-month it snows. My body is very confused and I have never longed for warmer temperatures so much in my life. We move into the new place with the great* help of some Russian idiots. Rebecca does most of the work in return for a delicious* cup of Tim Horton's Coffee. In the end our stuff gets transported and as far as I can tell nothing was stolen?

*denotes sarcasm

Also mid-month we begin working Calendar Girls at the theatre. Still in tuxes. A few shows in we all long for The Secret Garden, as at least in that play there was music and authentic Yorkshire accents and a cast that didn't whine every time someone opened a door (not joking). We realize it's going to be a looong run. Luckily at this point I am down to part-time at the theatre, so I only had to watch the show 24 times instead of 48. A week after we move in, we are visited by two friends from the Pillow and Toronto hosts their Spring Thaw, a 3-day contra dance event with, well, lots of contra dancing!

Isabelle and Rebecca enjoying Kensington Market on a sunny Saturday

Toronto Spring Thaw Contra!

A few weeks later Rebecca and I throw a housewarming/birthday party to christen the house and celebrate my making it to 23. Being the awesomely cool people we are, we decided to host a theme party, and the chosen theme for this party was...Dead Celebrities! Rebecca (classy as always) was transformed as Liz Taylor, while I (not quite so class-ily) dressed up as Gary Coleman. Other notable guests included Jesus, Tupac, Aaliyah, and Lindsay Lohan's career. Fun times were had by all.

self-explanatory

May: Finally, finally, it begins to warm up - as in, it has stopped snowing. I knew the Canadian winter would be cold, but I thought people were exaggerating when they said winter is 6 months...apparently they weren't. We settle into our new place and I love exploring my neighborhood. We also discover the man who lives next door that our landlord described as "odd" is actually "legit bonkers" (albeit a pretty nice guy). He entertains us by screaming his cats names, screaming at squirrels, screaming at other neighbors, and creating interesting displays of objects in the driveway...

Crazy neighbor sock display?

Crazy neighbor corners me one night and tries to convince me to buy a bike off of him for $20. This wasn't a complete bike at the time, just the frame and some random tires (no, I'm not sure where he gets all the bike parts - but I wasn't going to ask questions...). I was wary at first, but after some nagging I  visit the shed where he hoards bike parts and car parts and probably dead bodies, I figure he must have enough stuff in there to actually build this bike. I give in and also decide that $20 isn't a huge risk if he doesn't come through, and he probably really needs this $20 to feed his cats: CLEOPATRAAA, PACKAAAGE, & PEAANUT BUTTERRR.

A few weeks go by and $20 more later, I have a complete, working bike! With a basket! And a bell! And reflectors! I am stoked. With a little push from the roomie who is already hooked on biking, I take to the streets of Toronto on my little lavender 80s-tastic "Bicycle Formerly Known as Prince." I start slowly, going to the store and back, then to the theatre and back, and finally the 5 miles across Queen Street to my other job. I surprise myself and get totally hooked on biking as well.

Then, after six long weeks, Calendar Girls ends much to the staff's relief and we get a break from carting walkers all over the place and humoring old people.

June:  Rebecca and I escape for a weekend trip to Montreal to see her beau in his natural environment and for me to take my first tour of the city. After a lovely weekend wandering around a cemetery and eating delicious poutine ("poo-tin" if you insist on being French about it), I fly from Montreal to good ol' Myrtle Beach for a week away with the parents and my good friend Sarah. The weather is perfect and we eat lots of ice cream and the smoked meat I was able to smuggle over from Montreal (sooo goood). After relaxing at the beach I was able to spend a couple of days in Greenville, catching up with my (now pregnant!!) sisters and some good old friends. Though I love Toronto it was really hard to see the people I love so briefly before returning to the hustle and bustle that is real life...

Looking over Montreal from Mont Royal

Sarah ma and I on da beach

When I got back to TO I worked at the theatre for a few days, for a quick run of a comedy troupe called Women Fully Clothed. It was a group of 4 women, one from old SNL, one from Whose Line Is It Anyway, and a couple other grads of Second City. I really liked their sketches and thoroughly enjoyed the show - if you have a chance to see them you should! However, the best part of the show was definitely seeing Martin Short and Eugene Levy! They must have been friends of the cast, and came to the show one night. Luckily I had to monitor the lounge where they met with the cast after the show and got to hang around creepily while they schmoozed. Good times.

Whew...and now, onto July...

July started out with a bang, and so far the rest of the month has flown by in a sea of my travel-ing and hosting travel-ers.

For the first weekend in July, I was determined to go to Ottawa for my first Canada Day experience and luckily everything came together to go on July 1st. I really wanted to get the full Canadian-patriotism-experience (and catch sight of the Prince and Princess, after all...).

I arrived Thursday night and woke up early on Friday the 1st to figure out what was going on in downtown Ottawa. I  really had no idea as to where to go or what to do or how the Duke and Duchess would make their way downtown, but armed with a bagel from the famed Kettlemen's bagels and the best iced coffee I have ever had in my life, I followed the sea of red and white until I reached Parliament Hill. It was about 10am at this point, and I moseyed along until I found a stage where I assumed the Noon Show would take place. The crowd to be thinner than I expected, and while I couldn't see the stage behind the people already gathered, I figured I should at least find a screen so I could watch the festivities that way. When I arrived a band was marching around some open grass in front of the Parliament buildings, and I think there was a changing of the guard somewhere in there...

...Anywho soon after I arrived the music stopped and people began folding up their chairs and started pushing against the barrier, and I asked around to see what was going on. Apparently they were getting ready for a mad dash to the main stage. This was very exciting news (though I may have been slightly scared that I would get trampled if people didn't look down to see the little person running in front of them...).

Now, I'm not sure why people wanted to arrive before 7am to stake out the perfect spot in front of the stage, because in the end it was all about how fast you can run/if you are carting kids with you/how much stuff you have/etc. Luckily for me I was by myself with a little bag on my shoulder, so I sprinted for the stage and was able to land a spot right up front with a perfect view (and a good view of the VIP seats on the stage where Kate and William and Stephen Harper and the like would be sitting to watch the show :) :)

Duke and Duchess

Sooeeeh I did watch the show that featured a large variety of Canadian artists, from folk dancers to circus people to a quartet to French rappers etc etc...buuut I probably did spend 90% of the time staring at the Duke and Duchess. As a bonus Prince William gave a speech!

Speech!

After the show I met up with a coworker who is from Ottawa, and tagged along with her to a BBQ outside the city. On the way we grabbed "Beaver Tails", a traditional Ottawa-ian food that is kind of like a funnel cake shaped into a flat oval. I tried the "Killaoe Sunrise" Beaver Tail, basically fried dough covered in cinnamon/sugar/lemon/deliciousness. Highly recommend.

mmm Beaver Tail!

The rest of the afternoon flew by at the BBQ, chatting, drinking, and playing Rock Band until it was time to head back downtown to watch fireworks. The fireworks were lovely and served as a perfect ending to a perfect day. Saturday I ventured downtown again in attempt to see the city sans 500,000 extra people. I wandered around Parliament Hill again where they were striking the Canada Day stages, so the area was still covered with trucks and stage equipment and the like. Later I visited National Gallery of Canada and the Byward Market before catching a bus back to Toronto.

downtown Ottawa - soo many people

Light and smoke in the sky...

In the days that followed I prepped for my parents' arrival the next weekend. They actually came to visit me! Tre exciting. Technically this was not their first trip to Toronto, but after 20+ years they were basically seeing the city again for the first time. They stayed for 3 short days in which we managed to walk the entire city, wine, dine, and a find a giant inflatable beaver.

Beaver Fever

Ma and pa enjoying gelato in the Distillery District

Dad & I in Dundas Square

It was a bit surreal to have them visit, as Toronto seems so far removed from anything really familiar to me. It seems really far away and separate from "home", so it was strange to have the two "worlds" meet if you will. The weekend flew by and I had to say bye to my parents, who I probably won't see again until Chrima. However I didn't have long to be sad, as my sister and her entire team of in-laws (mother, father and two brothers) arrived 4 days later for their first trip to Toronto. Again, it was strange to have bits of South Carolina in Toronto, but it was really good to spend time with my sister and her husband and I think they enjoyed visiting the city. I had a blast with them at the Blue Jays game as they played the Yankees. Highlights of the game included drinking beer, eating hot dogs and seeing Derek Jeter (because I've actually heard of him). Other highlights included seeing three separate people jump the barriers to run across the field and the Jays winning 7-1 (I think?).

Ab, John & I after the Jays vs. Yankees game 

Out on Lake Ontario

Sooo, if you're still with me - you WIN! You have defeated Voldemort, become the Lord of the Rings, etc (yes reading my blog is just as epic - what are you talking about?) It only took me like, two weeks to write this, anyway....

So there you have it, and hopefully I will keep you updated on all the exciting* news to come more regularly

Love,

ME

*levels of exciting may vary

Winter's on the Wing

Hi kids,

Sorry to leave you hanging for a while, but I have returned to Toronto and the blogosphere after a visit home with the family in South Carolina. My dear sister tied the knot last weekend, and I went home to join in on the festivities. Though the cold and snow had set in before I left, I must say returning from 60-degree, sunny South Carolina to the great white north is a bit of shock, and suddenly the cold hits me harder now than I remember. I also quite enjoyed overloading on bad cable TV, but I'm excited to get back into my routine and make use of my brain cells again...

I spent the week before the wedding helping my sister get all of her details into place, which turned out to be a lot of work. We visited the mall, Panera bread and the craft store more times in one week than I have in my life. Luckily I was well compensated with food and the title of Maid of Honor, with my sister  the Matron of Honor. All in all was beautiful and oh-so-much fun. I As always I enjoyed reconnecting with the extended family. I love Toronto but I hate leaving everyone.

My first day back was all business: laundry, grocery shopping, cleaning, and preparing for the arrival of my dear friend Rebecca, whom I met working at Jacob's Pillow. She just moved to Toronto and I foresee many fun times ahead. Also, I got a library card! I'm feeling more Canadian everyday. This is tre exciting.

Anywho, I start work again the theatre Tuesday, where I will don a tuxedo every night and watch The Secret Garden 48 times...let me tell you how excited I am about that. My schedule now will be six weeks working shows and four weeks off between, so I am on the hunt for another job as I strive to make ends meet and to be more productive throughout the day. Even this involves getting up before the ungodly hour of noon.

Lots of exciting things happening in 2011, eh? I hope you'll continue to follow me along ;)

Oh the Musical it Never Ends...or...wait.

It went on and on and on and on...until January 2nd. Sadly (for me, anyway, not for others) Rock of Ages closed on Sunday night. I watched it a total of 64 times, which is nothing compared to my coworkers who have watched it since April for a total of 256 times. Whew. I am sad though, as it is a fun, energetic show with good music for those who have to watch it over and over and over and over and over....

So now I am laid off until the beginning of February when the next show comes in, which will be The Secret Garden (the musical version). Blah. boring. Dry. Not that I won't enjoy it at all, I'm just not looking forward to watching that one over and over. It's only for 6 weeks, but stiiiilll. wah. Hmm, I guess I have to start coming up with other titles for my blog posts? We shall see.

So Sunday night after the last show we had a little staff/cast gathering afterwards with free beer and wine and it was quite lovely. The cast is (for the most part) a really nice group of people and I'm sad I wasn't around to get to know them more.

Sorry I haven't been posting very much, it has been crazy here cramming shows in between holidays, the holidays, and getting sick, and loads of other fun activities...all on which I shall update you...now.

So Christmas and Hanukah and the winter solstice and New Year's have all passed so I guess the "holiday season" is officially over. Also very sad. My first holiday season away from home was...err...not quite what I expected. Christmas Eve was just lovely, as two friends from work invited me over for a home cooked meal after I went to see the National Ballet Canada's version of the Nutcracker. (Side note: last year was the first time I had ever seen the Nutcracker. I went to the little York County Ballet performance, partially because they conveniently performed at Winthrop. It was mostly little girls and teens and recorded music and quite adorable. Sadly, one of the girls slipped in the snow scene and knocked into another girl and it was kind of funny. However, one of the dancers in the National Ballet Canada professional company also slipped and fell during the same snow scene. So either the snow is very slippery and this is common or I am cursed! eek!)

ANYWAY that night we had some kind of roast with rosemary potatoes and carrots (all in a toaster oven - impressive!) and I contributed the traditional Juraschek-Dykes Christmas Icebox Cake. I chose this specifically because I figured it was fool-proof, knowing I'm not much of a cook, and it is soo good but should really only be consumed once a year.

I've made the thing many times and there is no baking required. So I found the wafers and the cream and set to work. I even found a decorative Christmas tray to set it on. Well after about 10 minutes the whipping cream hadn't whipped at all, and I realized I was using the "wrong" attachments to the electric mixer. Once I found the "right" ones it whipped right up and I continued. I piled the cream on the cookies and once finished I marveled at my domestic skills. I decided to protect my creation with a little tin foil. As I lifted the tray to put the last piece of foil on top, I dropped the damn thing on the floor. Most of it landed on the foil and I wouldn't consider it spoiled, but instead of a presentable cake with neat little rows covered with cream, I now had a mess of cream and cookies. Proof I have no domestic skills. Now, of course I handled it really maturely and counted my blessings despite the mess, and by that I mean I and sat on the floor and cried. Good times.

The cake! I was so excited for about 5 seconds...

In the end we ate the cake anyway and it was rather delicious, even though it was less than presentable. Afterwards we watched Scott Pilgrm vs. The World. I had been wanting to see it, as lots of people have raved about it. I actually had no idea that it took place in dear old Toronto, so that was great, aaand a girl in our little dinner party was actually an extra in the movie, and she provided lots of insight so that was really fun. Then of course we chatted for a bit and drank too much wine and generally had a fine time.

Where I saw Ze Nutcracker

Wine, Scott Pilgrim, good friends, good times.

Then Christmas I woke up really late by myself and opened some packages from family. I made eggs and cinnamon rolls and laid around for a while watching cheesy Christmas movies. Later my roomie decided to make homemade hard lemonade (like, squeezed fresh lemons, added sugar and other, um ingredients, etc). This was also delicious. Too lazy to cook or leave the house, we ordered pizza for Christmas dinner. Later (a couple of glasses of aforementioned lemonade later) roomie decided to make brownies from scratch. Roomie turns on the burner which does not have a pan on it, but the burner where a paper bag containing pills and a roll of paper towels was resting. Naturally they set on fire and filled the house with smoke and the smell of burned plastic. So that was fun. I also skyped with the family for a long time which was very nice, including my 91-year-old grandfather. Oh, technology!

The next day I got up early and worked a double at the theater, despite Boxing Day (Dec 26th) being a holiday for most Canadians to go buy more crap. Boxing Day is our Black Friday, and everyone rushes out for big sales. I don't think I missed much.

Fast-forward to mid-week, a couple of days before New Year's Eve. On Wednesday, a couple of friends and I went for sushi between shows. I felt fine afterwards during the last show, but started feeling queasy towards the end. Instead of respecting my body, I went out afterwards to our favorite bar. I figured the queasiness was just dehydration and I didn't think much of it.

I could only stomach a couple of sips of my g&t before the nausea kicked in full-force. Luckily a friend drove me home and I made it home before I started actually vomiting. Really not sure if I would have made it on the TTC...all in all I thought the nausea was very strange. I rarely feel queasy and I like to think I have a stomach of steel. Eating food that has been sitting out or eating raw cookie dough doesn't really phase me, as I have never gotten sick...until now.

Anywho, that was close to midnight and thus began probably the worst night of my life. So, I will spare you the dirty details, but I didn't just throw up a couple of times then go to bed. For the next six hours my body cleaned out my entire digestive system: stomach, colon, everything. In the end I was extremely weak, dehydrated and in ideal shape for a colonoskopy. I was so freaked out by all of this madness I called my poor parents at 3 AM contemplating going to the emergency room. I didn't end up going and I survived, but it was painful.

Interestingly, the two people I ate dinner with didn't get sick, but I am pretty sure it was food poisoning from the sushi. My uncle threw up for 6 hours and did have to go to the emergency room after eating some bad sushi as well, and a couple of other people I know reported getting food poisoning as well from sushi. Actually, now that I remember, Earth Fare near my house in SC stopped serving pre-made sushi because they had so many complaints about illness, so there you go. Careful with that stuff! After my uncle's incident, his doctor mentioned it isn't necessarily he raw fish, but probably some old rice? Anyway, super NOT fun. Afterwards I was really weak and my stomach still upset and I slept a ton. I didn't have much of an appetite or consume anything but fruit and gatorade for about three whole days - whew.

Well, good thing New Year's Eve was less than three days later. I was still feeling off, so I didn't want to upset my body even more with tons of alcohol. So I went out with people from work and the cast from Rock of Ages for a nice, sober night of out with the old in with the new year with people I hardly know.

Happy New Year!

So that was a blast. Kind of...but just for fun here are my interpretations of my holiday week:

Glass half-empty:

Spent Christmas without family clearing smoke from the apartment and eating Domino's. Then had food poisoning which made me violently ill and miss an entire day of pay at work, followed by a quiet New Year's with people I hardly know, and without alcohol to take the edge off and really party. Good times?

Glass half-full:

Had an interesting first Christmas away from home that is actually pretty funny and will make for good stories for my grandchildren as I tell them about my first holiday away from home. Followed next by a thorough digestive cleanse where I shed most of my water weight and had the inability to eat for three whole days, causing my jeans to be loose. Also spent New Year's sober to avoid any stupid drunk texting and the like, partying with the cast of Rock of Ages. Good times!

At any rate I am happy to report that I am feeling much much better and back to normal. Last night was the Royal Alex Christmas Party at the very haunted Keg Mansion. It is an old Toronto mansion with a tragic history, now turned into a large restaurant with lots of ghost stories. We had a delicious three-course meal, some delicious shiraz, and delicious conversation. It was a very fun night and I'm grateful that I recovered for the festivities, though sadly I did not encounter any ghosts :(

The very haunted Keg Mansion

Also, I have become addicted to Ikea and thus have put some finishing touches on my room. I am excited to present to you my humble abode....before:

And after!

I have a bed, yay!

And other stuff, yay!

Lastly I'm headed home in a couple of weeks for my dear sister's wedding, and I must say I am seriously ready for some family time. Can't wait!

xoxoxoxo,

E