August 26th
Today was the last regular parade, so all bands were on and we were huge. 9 across!! we also got to do the "in the bottle, out of the bottle" drill. This basically means that we get narrow and long when we need to fit through tight portions of the parade. The sound was huge and I really liked having 9 tubas behind me! The wheels were pretty cool too. This afternoon we rehearsed the Final Parade on the parade square until 4pm. Apparently we don't go onto the hill for the last one. We go to the tomb of the unknown soldier and do a ceremony there while picking up the centuries to end the summer. For this parade we will be 10 across! After the long afternoon of waiting and rehearsing, I packed up my barracks box with everything I could possible squeeze into there and took it to the bus depot with Brian after supper. Mine weighted 96 lbs and the limit was 100. Close call, but now I don't have to take that plus all my own luggage to the airport. There is no way I would make it out with all that anyways. When I got back, I practiced before doing my boots for the last time! man, I really hope I can pack up all my stuff. I've been down sizing and getting rid of things I don't need. Hopefully it will work out!
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Day 121
August 25th
Today was the day of the dreaded BFT. But first, everyone who was on the BFT was also on parade in the morning. I drank so much water and juice all day long, I don't think I've ever had that much hydration in one day before. The BFT is a 13km rucksack march in combats while carrying 50lbs on your person. It is supposed to be done with a rifle included in the weight but we did it without the rifle. That just meant more weight on your back, but you could move your arms more easily. I coated my feet with foot powder and even coated the first layer of socks with powder before putting on the thick wool socks. Then I made sure I had about 2.5 liters of water with me and I was set. I discovered that if I rested the waist strap of the rucksack on the lower pouches of my tack vest, then the strap would not rub against my hips and the weight would be more spread out. This worked out well for the most part, but on the way back I was using my free hands to help lift the weight off my shoulders. Our route took us up and down the canal path and on the way up it felt like we were almost running. I was actually close to quitting and then we got to break for about 8 mins at the half way point. The break really helped and since we were really ahead of schedule, we took it slower on the way back. We still wound up doing the 13km in 1hr 53mins. The time limit is 2.5hrs. After you do the ruck march, you have to do a 25 meter drag of a person about your weight. That was really easy lol. Then we had some time to shower, start laundry and relax briefly before getting ready for the final party. I decided to wear my white dress again and it's a good thing I did. The final party was pretty formal. For $40 the food was pretty sad. Basically the thing that made it seem good was that the gravy smelled good. I won't get started on that because I could just tear it apart lol. The slide show was really entertaining and a great idea to do. The awards and speeches were pretty funny! My pants got an honorable mention for "best kit" in the Harry Awards! Only because they were so tight on the thighs and butt ;) After the meal and all the formalities were over, there was a Funk band followed by iPod tunes. Of course they had to play "We've got the Funk" and other Funk tunes, so I was dancing all night! I got back to the shacks after 1:30 sometime and attempted to chat with Dustin, but pretty much failed lol. I drank some more water (probably working on the 4-5th liter of the day) and went to bed.
Today was the day of the dreaded BFT. But first, everyone who was on the BFT was also on parade in the morning. I drank so much water and juice all day long, I don't think I've ever had that much hydration in one day before. The BFT is a 13km rucksack march in combats while carrying 50lbs on your person. It is supposed to be done with a rifle included in the weight but we did it without the rifle. That just meant more weight on your back, but you could move your arms more easily. I coated my feet with foot powder and even coated the first layer of socks with powder before putting on the thick wool socks. Then I made sure I had about 2.5 liters of water with me and I was set. I discovered that if I rested the waist strap of the rucksack on the lower pouches of my tack vest, then the strap would not rub against my hips and the weight would be more spread out. This worked out well for the most part, but on the way back I was using my free hands to help lift the weight off my shoulders. Our route took us up and down the canal path and on the way up it felt like we were almost running. I was actually close to quitting and then we got to break for about 8 mins at the half way point. The break really helped and since we were really ahead of schedule, we took it slower on the way back. We still wound up doing the 13km in 1hr 53mins. The time limit is 2.5hrs. After you do the ruck march, you have to do a 25 meter drag of a person about your weight. That was really easy lol. Then we had some time to shower, start laundry and relax briefly before getting ready for the final party. I decided to wear my white dress again and it's a good thing I did. The final party was pretty formal. For $40 the food was pretty sad. Basically the thing that made it seem good was that the gravy smelled good. I won't get started on that because I could just tear it apart lol. The slide show was really entertaining and a great idea to do. The awards and speeches were pretty funny! My pants got an honorable mention for "best kit" in the Harry Awards! Only because they were so tight on the thighs and butt ;) After the meal and all the formalities were over, there was a Funk band followed by iPod tunes. Of course they had to play "We've got the Funk" and other Funk tunes, so I was dancing all night! I got back to the shacks after 1:30 sometime and attempted to chat with Dustin, but pretty much failed lol. I drank some more water (probably working on the 4-5th liter of the day) and went to bed.
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Day 120
August 24th
Today was Dustin's last day, and really it was only half a day too :( He joined me and the rest of the band for an early breakfast and then I had to get ready for parade. After parade we spent one last hour together before he had to go to the airport. After being together almost 24/7 for 10 days, we were still giggling and laughing with each other up to the end of his visit. I think this is a good sign! After he left I showered, went to lunch and started on my practicing for my audition. I didn't sound too bad, but I'll be happy when parades are over. Hopefully I have enough time to get into good shape! Then I came back to my room and took a nap because I had a rough night sleep. After supper it was pretty rowdy in the shacks and ppl were doing all kinds of things to wrap up the summer. I helped out a bit with a slide show for the final party tomorrow and practiced some more. After chatting with ppl online and in the shacks, I think it's time for bed again. Less than a week till I'm home!
Today was Dustin's last day, and really it was only half a day too :( He joined me and the rest of the band for an early breakfast and then I had to get ready for parade. After parade we spent one last hour together before he had to go to the airport. After being together almost 24/7 for 10 days, we were still giggling and laughing with each other up to the end of his visit. I think this is a good sign! After he left I showered, went to lunch and started on my practicing for my audition. I didn't sound too bad, but I'll be happy when parades are over. Hopefully I have enough time to get into good shape! Then I came back to my room and took a nap because I had a rough night sleep. After supper it was pretty rowdy in the shacks and ppl were doing all kinds of things to wrap up the summer. I helped out a bit with a slide show for the final party tomorrow and practiced some more. After chatting with ppl online and in the shacks, I think it's time for bed again. Less than a week till I'm home!
Monday, August 23, 2010
Day 119
August 23rd
We slept in again this morning which was really nice. I went to breakfast at the last possible time and when I got back, I started setting up my teaching studio and registered for some courses. We stayed in for the morning and Dustin finished his book while I practiced a bit. I also packed up my stuff to get ready to move back to the shacks :( After lunch we took off for downtown. We walked down Bank street and looked in some of the shops and book stores. I found some music that I will probably wind up buying before going home. We made it to the mall and did some clothes shopping. Dustin helped me and we found a really nice sweater and LeChateau. I also found a nice shirt at a store that we don't have in Winnipeg so I bought it. We eventually made our way in to the market and checked out all the places to eat. There are a lot of choices there but we decided to go with Stella's. It was very nice and we paid about the same as what you would at any pub but the food at Stella's was much better. On the way back we got a Starbucks drink to share and picked up some bagels for dad. He is getting so spoiled with all the bagels that I'm sending home for him! Altogether it was a very nice day out and we were both glad to be doing something other than going to a museum. Yay for the good weather!! When we got back, I moved most of my stuff back to the shacks and did my boots. Pretty soon I won't have to polish boots anymore!!!!!
We slept in again this morning which was really nice. I went to breakfast at the last possible time and when I got back, I started setting up my teaching studio and registered for some courses. We stayed in for the morning and Dustin finished his book while I practiced a bit. I also packed up my stuff to get ready to move back to the shacks :( After lunch we took off for downtown. We walked down Bank street and looked in some of the shops and book stores. I found some music that I will probably wind up buying before going home. We made it to the mall and did some clothes shopping. Dustin helped me and we found a really nice sweater and LeChateau. I also found a nice shirt at a store that we don't have in Winnipeg so I bought it. We eventually made our way in to the market and checked out all the places to eat. There are a lot of choices there but we decided to go with Stella's. It was very nice and we paid about the same as what you would at any pub but the food at Stella's was much better. On the way back we got a Starbucks drink to share and picked up some bagels for dad. He is getting so spoiled with all the bagels that I'm sending home for him! Altogether it was a very nice day out and we were both glad to be doing something other than going to a museum. Yay for the good weather!! When we got back, I moved most of my stuff back to the shacks and did my boots. Pretty soon I won't have to polish boots anymore!!!!!
Day 118
August 22nd
We slept in hard core this morning to make up for the short night and long day that we had. After lounging around and taking it really easy, we made it to the Museum of Nature by about 3pm. That was a pretty good one to see. There was a lot of variety and even a live insect farm. I guess it wasn't all that bad that we missed the insectarium in Montreal. The only bummer was that on the way, the back wheel on Dustin's bike popped. This was the same bike that we patched up before except this time we were no where near Carleton. So we left with enough time to walk back and get ready before going out for our fancy dinner at 18. We got all dressed up and made our way down there by bus. The restaurant was quite romantic and the waiter was very informative and helpful. We decided to do the 5 course blind tasting with the wine pairing instead of choosing our own meals. First they gave us a little spoonful of flavor. It had apple, cheese, squash and some kind of herb on it. Then we got 2 slices of baguette (I had the whole grain) with whipped butter. We had champagne with this. For our appetizer we had shrimp done 3 different ways. Two of them were with butter and different flavors I think. the one in the middle was the best, it was chopped and made into a hot mixture with who knows what and stuffed into a zucchini blossom! That was tasty :) It came with a white wine. The next dish was a salad with 3 different tomatoes. They were garnished with minced and marinated olives and very smooth goat cheese. mmmmmmmmm That was one of my favorite dishes. It also came with white wine. The next one was BBQ fuagra and Octopus with suuuuper sweet octopus jus all around it. Another winner! This one also had white wine and at this point I was feeling all the wine lol. Then on to the main course which was the ostrich that I was planning on ordering had we chosen our own meals! It was very good. They cooked it so that there was that raw part in the middle and there were bits of pepper corns coating it. There was also a mix of potatoes, corn and a tasty sauce all around it. This one came with red wine! By this point Dustin and I thought we would guess at what the dessert might be but we were both wrong. Dustin guessed some kind of Angel Food cake with berries, I guessed cheese cake with berries but it was a very rich piece of chocolate brownie and Mango gelato ice cream sitting on shredded unsweetened coconut with dried but very tasty cherries on the side. wow! This came with a small glass of ice wine which Dustin said is really expensive. That meal was a real treat and I'm glad we splurged and went out for it!
We slept in hard core this morning to make up for the short night and long day that we had. After lounging around and taking it really easy, we made it to the Museum of Nature by about 3pm. That was a pretty good one to see. There was a lot of variety and even a live insect farm. I guess it wasn't all that bad that we missed the insectarium in Montreal. The only bummer was that on the way, the back wheel on Dustin's bike popped. This was the same bike that we patched up before except this time we were no where near Carleton. So we left with enough time to walk back and get ready before going out for our fancy dinner at 18. We got all dressed up and made our way down there by bus. The restaurant was quite romantic and the waiter was very informative and helpful. We decided to do the 5 course blind tasting with the wine pairing instead of choosing our own meals. First they gave us a little spoonful of flavor. It had apple, cheese, squash and some kind of herb on it. Then we got 2 slices of baguette (I had the whole grain) with whipped butter. We had champagne with this. For our appetizer we had shrimp done 3 different ways. Two of them were with butter and different flavors I think. the one in the middle was the best, it was chopped and made into a hot mixture with who knows what and stuffed into a zucchini blossom! That was tasty :) It came with a white wine. The next dish was a salad with 3 different tomatoes. They were garnished with minced and marinated olives and very smooth goat cheese. mmmmmmmmm That was one of my favorite dishes. It also came with white wine. The next one was BBQ fuagra and Octopus with suuuuper sweet octopus jus all around it. Another winner! This one also had white wine and at this point I was feeling all the wine lol. Then on to the main course which was the ostrich that I was planning on ordering had we chosen our own meals! It was very good. They cooked it so that there was that raw part in the middle and there were bits of pepper corns coating it. There was also a mix of potatoes, corn and a tasty sauce all around it. This one came with red wine! By this point Dustin and I thought we would guess at what the dessert might be but we were both wrong. Dustin guessed some kind of Angel Food cake with berries, I guessed cheese cake with berries but it was a very rich piece of chocolate brownie and Mango gelato ice cream sitting on shredded unsweetened coconut with dried but very tasty cherries on the side. wow! This came with a small glass of ice wine which Dustin said is really expensive. That meal was a real treat and I'm glad we splurged and went out for it!
Sunday, August 22, 2010
Day 117
August 21st
We woke up at 3:45 to get showered and walk to the Bus station. Our bus left at 6am and they suggested being there an hour before but that was very unnecessary. We probably could have showed up just 20mins before. We both managed to sleep a bit on the 2 hour ride there which was nice. When we got there, we took the subway to Olympic Park only to find out that the Biodome and Insectarium were closed due to a strike :< That was a bummer but we quickly made a plan B while waiting for the Botanical Gardens to open. The Gardens were beautiful and had sections like Japanese, First Nations, Rose, Chinese, Alpine, Water, Greenhouse, Vegetable and Toxic Gardens. I didn't realize how big the place was until we decided to skip the vegetable and toxic gardens because we were tired of walking. We spent about 4 hours walking through the gardens and some of them like the Japanese and Chinese ones had little Pavilions in their garden. The Japanese one was all about lacker (how to gather, how to use) and displayed the pieces of art that were made with lacker. The Japanese Gardens had a pond with carp in it and I touched them. They seemed to like attention from ppl and thought that we were going to feed them. After eating lunch we moved on to the Chinese Gardens which were pretty cool too. There was a tea house in the middle but part of it was closed for the day. There was also a house where we got to practice our calligraphy. It was quite relaxing and a lot of fun. I also enjoyed the greenhouse. There was a lot of variety and a lot of cool plants to see. It's amazing how many plants are in the world! Our next stop in Montreal was the Bio-sphere which is all about being environmentally friendly. It was a great place for kids and we had fun there too! I learned that I need to step it up and be more environmentally friendly from one of the self quizzes that I did. Then our next stop was the planetarium near Old Montreal. We had supper and then caught a show which brought back childhood memories for me. It was really nice to see all the stars without light pollution. After the show we walked around Old Montreal and then went back to the Bus Depot. The ride home was less enjoyable because we kept stopping to pick up more passengers. Both Dustin and I were glad when we finally arrived back at Carleton!
We woke up at 3:45 to get showered and walk to the Bus station. Our bus left at 6am and they suggested being there an hour before but that was very unnecessary. We probably could have showed up just 20mins before. We both managed to sleep a bit on the 2 hour ride there which was nice. When we got there, we took the subway to Olympic Park only to find out that the Biodome and Insectarium were closed due to a strike :< That was a bummer but we quickly made a plan B while waiting for the Botanical Gardens to open. The Gardens were beautiful and had sections like Japanese, First Nations, Rose, Chinese, Alpine, Water, Greenhouse, Vegetable and Toxic Gardens. I didn't realize how big the place was until we decided to skip the vegetable and toxic gardens because we were tired of walking. We spent about 4 hours walking through the gardens and some of them like the Japanese and Chinese ones had little Pavilions in their garden. The Japanese one was all about lacker (how to gather, how to use) and displayed the pieces of art that were made with lacker. The Japanese Gardens had a pond with carp in it and I touched them. They seemed to like attention from ppl and thought that we were going to feed them. After eating lunch we moved on to the Chinese Gardens which were pretty cool too. There was a tea house in the middle but part of it was closed for the day. There was also a house where we got to practice our calligraphy. It was quite relaxing and a lot of fun. I also enjoyed the greenhouse. There was a lot of variety and a lot of cool plants to see. It's amazing how many plants are in the world! Our next stop in Montreal was the Bio-sphere which is all about being environmentally friendly. It was a great place for kids and we had fun there too! I learned that I need to step it up and be more environmentally friendly from one of the self quizzes that I did. Then our next stop was the planetarium near Old Montreal. We had supper and then caught a show which brought back childhood memories for me. It was really nice to see all the stars without light pollution. After the show we walked around Old Montreal and then went back to the Bus Depot. The ride home was less enjoyable because we kept stopping to pick up more passengers. Both Dustin and I were glad when we finally arrived back at Carleton!
Day 116
August 20th
This morning Dustin woke up at the same time as me to come to breakfast so he would not miss parade lol. When we woke up, there was no power in our building. I walked over to the muster area and it seems like no one had power this morning. When we went for breakfast there was no power in the kitchen either and we had boxed/cold breakfasts. Boo. Oh well, better than nothing. The morning went on as usual and we got power at 7:30. When we got to the drill hall Dustin was there waiting with hid camera. It was too cute. Ryan Wherle and Nelson were also there this morning which was nice because Ryan could answer any of Dustin's questions. The parade started and Dustin was beaming the whole time lol. He walked up with us and took so many pictures and videos that he filled his camera! After parade I found out that I had the next day off! So we booked our bus tickets to Montreal and decided to go see the Biodome, Botanical Gardens and Insectarium. After lunch we took off for the War Museum and spent 5 hours there! Wow, were my feet and brain ever tired! Good thing we decided to take the bus this time. When we got back, we got ourselves organized for Montreal and went to bed early.
This morning Dustin woke up at the same time as me to come to breakfast so he would not miss parade lol. When we woke up, there was no power in our building. I walked over to the muster area and it seems like no one had power this morning. When we went for breakfast there was no power in the kitchen either and we had boxed/cold breakfasts. Boo. Oh well, better than nothing. The morning went on as usual and we got power at 7:30. When we got to the drill hall Dustin was there waiting with hid camera. It was too cute. Ryan Wherle and Nelson were also there this morning which was nice because Ryan could answer any of Dustin's questions. The parade started and Dustin was beaming the whole time lol. He walked up with us and took so many pictures and videos that he filled his camera! After parade I found out that I had the next day off! So we booked our bus tickets to Montreal and decided to go see the Biodome, Botanical Gardens and Insectarium. After lunch we took off for the War Museum and spent 5 hours there! Wow, were my feet and brain ever tired! Good thing we decided to take the bus this time. When we got back, we got ourselves organized for Montreal and went to bed early.
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Day 115
August 19th
Today was the day that Dustin was going to come to parade, but he accidentally missed it because he was looking at the time on his iPod which was still set to Winnipeg time :s So he'll just come tomorrow instead. While on the hill today, the rubber band the holds my lyre on properly snapped and I had to hold it in place for the entire march back! That really sucked and made me slightly clumsy on the change music drill. I decided to polish my boots right away today because I forgot yesterday...oops! After lunch, Dustin destroyed me in an epic tickle fight before we went out Kayaking on the lake. Lucky for us we almost got back to the dock just as it started to pour! We had a drink and some nachos at one of the restaurants while waiting for the rain to end. After the walk back, we looked around for the ppl in the shacks to see if anything was going on tonight. We witnessed an air soft gun attack and eventually found Beare, Hardy and Geary who were all going to Beare's house for some hot tubbing. We joined them and had a relaxing evening.
Today was the day that Dustin was going to come to parade, but he accidentally missed it because he was looking at the time on his iPod which was still set to Winnipeg time :s So he'll just come tomorrow instead. While on the hill today, the rubber band the holds my lyre on properly snapped and I had to hold it in place for the entire march back! That really sucked and made me slightly clumsy on the change music drill. I decided to polish my boots right away today because I forgot yesterday...oops! After lunch, Dustin destroyed me in an epic tickle fight before we went out Kayaking on the lake. Lucky for us we almost got back to the dock just as it started to pour! We had a drink and some nachos at one of the restaurants while waiting for the rain to end. After the walk back, we looked around for the ppl in the shacks to see if anything was going on tonight. We witnessed an air soft gun attack and eventually found Beare, Hardy and Geary who were all going to Beare's house for some hot tubbing. We joined them and had a relaxing evening.
Day 114
August 18th
Today Dustin stayed behind to relax while I went on parade. It was pretty good with nothing too interesting. Our Director told us that we would be taking it easy and not learning any new marches for the rest of the summer. I like the sound of that! After parade a couple of us went to The Works for lunch. Perfect opportunity because Dustin was interested in going anyways! Then we walked back because you always feel pretty full after going to The Works. Then we skipped across the canal to go to the Agriculture Museum. It was fairly small and more family oriented, but there was a nice display for bees and we got to see cows get milked! All together a very nice afternoon. After I went for supper, we relaxed a bit and then went for an evening walk to the falls near the beach. Unfortunately it was too dark to see the falls so we will have to go back during the day sometime.
Today Dustin stayed behind to relax while I went on parade. It was pretty good with nothing too interesting. Our Director told us that we would be taking it easy and not learning any new marches for the rest of the summer. I like the sound of that! After parade a couple of us went to The Works for lunch. Perfect opportunity because Dustin was interested in going anyways! Then we walked back because you always feel pretty full after going to The Works. Then we skipped across the canal to go to the Agriculture Museum. It was fairly small and more family oriented, but there was a nice display for bees and we got to see cows get milked! All together a very nice afternoon. After I went for supper, we relaxed a bit and then went for an evening walk to the falls near the beach. Unfortunately it was too dark to see the falls so we will have to go back during the day sometime.
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Day 114
August 17th
We slept in a bit this morning and got up in time for breakfast. However, we were running a bit behind for our bi-plane ride and had to scoot over to the Aviation museum pronto! I didn't realize how far away the museum actually was, so we were biking pretty fast for almost an hour. When we got there we found out that the guy who was supposed to take us was not there. His plane was still in for repairs. So we decided to do the Beaver plane which was a bush plane that could land on water. We did a tour over part of the city and mostly the Gatineau Hills. It was super cool and we did a brief water landing. Dustin got to sit in the co-pilot chair and got some sweet pictures from that seat. I was waaaay in the back and got a little wooozy from the smell of fuel :s Anyways, it was really nice to see everything that I've seen in the city from an aerial view. When we landed, we had a little freak out from excitement and then once we calmed down, we checked out the rest of the museum. We mosied back and made some stops along the way for snack or sight seeing. Some highlights are the park along Sussex, Rideau Hall and the Rideau Falls. On the way back I picked up my teapot from the Mud Oven. It's looks pretty good and I'm happy with the colors for the most part. I should have done an extra layer of blue water in some spots, but oh well can't change that now. Then we came back and took a nap! My napping habit has become contagious and Dustin is enjoying the down time. After that we had supper and relaxed a bit before going for a nice evening walk.
We slept in a bit this morning and got up in time for breakfast. However, we were running a bit behind for our bi-plane ride and had to scoot over to the Aviation museum pronto! I didn't realize how far away the museum actually was, so we were biking pretty fast for almost an hour. When we got there we found out that the guy who was supposed to take us was not there. His plane was still in for repairs. So we decided to do the Beaver plane which was a bush plane that could land on water. We did a tour over part of the city and mostly the Gatineau Hills. It was super cool and we did a brief water landing. Dustin got to sit in the co-pilot chair and got some sweet pictures from that seat. I was waaaay in the back and got a little wooozy from the smell of fuel :s Anyways, it was really nice to see everything that I've seen in the city from an aerial view. When we landed, we had a little freak out from excitement and then once we calmed down, we checked out the rest of the museum. We mosied back and made some stops along the way for snack or sight seeing. Some highlights are the park along Sussex, Rideau Hall and the Rideau Falls. On the way back I picked up my teapot from the Mud Oven. It's looks pretty good and I'm happy with the colors for the most part. I should have done an extra layer of blue water in some spots, but oh well can't change that now. Then we came back and took a nap! My napping habit has become contagious and Dustin is enjoying the down time. After that we had supper and relaxed a bit before going for a nice evening walk.
Monday, August 16, 2010
Day 113
August 16th
We actually got up early for breakfast and Dustin says I tricked him into getting up early lol. We biked downtown and made it to the hill by 8am oops. We wandered around the hill while Dustin had a hoot with his camera. When it was 9am the info tent opened and we got tickets for our free tour of Parliament. "awesome sauce" - Dustin. We got to see the house of commons and actually go in this time :) the senate, the Library (but ppl were working so we could not take pics or talk while in the library). This time we got to go up the peace tower!!! For some reason they would not let us up while the changing of the guard ceremony was happening. We saw the page turning ceremony in one of the room. The books that had their pages turned were documents of the names of the fallen in all of Canada's wars. We wandered to the Art gallery and saw the war monument along the way. We took some time to read a lot of the things written around the city for heroic acts of Canadian soldiers. We spent about 3 hours in the Art gallery and realized how tired our feet were. After that we had a snack and headed back to Carleton for a nap. Then we got Dustin hooked up with some groceries and took off for the By Ward Market. There we had Indian food for supper and explored a bit before going to the sound and lights show. It was a lot better than I thought it would be. Dustin took a lot of pics today so I will get them onto my blog when he is back in Winnipeg. On the way back my tire popped :( good thing we were close to home. We fixed it with George's help and then went to play 99 with the guys in the lounge. It was a hoot toot lol! Wow, we added a card that lets you add rules to the game and that made it so much more fun!
We actually got up early for breakfast and Dustin says I tricked him into getting up early lol. We biked downtown and made it to the hill by 8am oops. We wandered around the hill while Dustin had a hoot with his camera. When it was 9am the info tent opened and we got tickets for our free tour of Parliament. "awesome sauce" - Dustin. We got to see the house of commons and actually go in this time :) the senate, the Library (but ppl were working so we could not take pics or talk while in the library). This time we got to go up the peace tower!!! For some reason they would not let us up while the changing of the guard ceremony was happening. We saw the page turning ceremony in one of the room. The books that had their pages turned were documents of the names of the fallen in all of Canada's wars. We wandered to the Art gallery and saw the war monument along the way. We took some time to read a lot of the things written around the city for heroic acts of Canadian soldiers. We spent about 3 hours in the Art gallery and realized how tired our feet were. After that we had a snack and headed back to Carleton for a nap. Then we got Dustin hooked up with some groceries and took off for the By Ward Market. There we had Indian food for supper and explored a bit before going to the sound and lights show. It was a lot better than I thought it would be. Dustin took a lot of pics today so I will get them onto my blog when he is back in Winnipeg. On the way back my tire popped :( good thing we were close to home. We fixed it with George's help and then went to play 99 with the guys in the lounge. It was a hoot toot lol! Wow, we added a card that lets you add rules to the game and that made it so much more fun!
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Day 113
August 15th
Parade got rained out!!!! So I spent the morning finishing my packing. Then we had a special presentation for Drum Major Pete in the band room. After lunch Alexi waxed my legs!!!! followed by me waiting for Dustin to show up. When he got here we got him settled in his room and then took a walk around the lake. It was raining all day but we seemed to get about an hour of no rain so we could have a nice walk. Then we got back and found out that everyone was at an after fortissimo party in the mess. We stayed and had pizza and danced up a sweat! The we went back to his room and tried some of my newly learned salsa moves together. Turns out that he knows the cha cha and not salsa but they are so similar that we sorta made things work.
Parade got rained out!!!! So I spent the morning finishing my packing. Then we had a special presentation for Drum Major Pete in the band room. After lunch Alexi waxed my legs!!!! followed by me waiting for Dustin to show up. When he got here we got him settled in his room and then took a walk around the lake. It was raining all day but we seemed to get about an hour of no rain so we could have a nice walk. Then we got back and found out that everyone was at an after fortissimo party in the mess. We stayed and had pizza and danced up a sweat! The we went back to his room and tried some of my newly learned salsa moves together. Turns out that he knows the cha cha and not salsa but they are so similar that we sorta made things work.
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Day 112
August 14th
We did a short dismount parade today. No reason, I think they just feel sorry for us because of fortissimo. After lunch I took a nap right away and then woke up to start packing. I did my boots and was mostly done packing before going to supper. Funny when Fortissimo starts to become routine :s Nothing to interesting happened before the show. Ppl were taking pictures like "all the tubas" or "with my mom" etc. The RCMP routine went really well and the horns played the "GOAL" note at the perfect time! When we got back, I helped Dustin with packing by answering some last minute questions. Then I had some tea and polished my boots with the guys.
We did a short dismount parade today. No reason, I think they just feel sorry for us because of fortissimo. After lunch I took a nap right away and then woke up to start packing. I did my boots and was mostly done packing before going to supper. Funny when Fortissimo starts to become routine :s Nothing to interesting happened before the show. Ppl were taking pictures like "all the tubas" or "with my mom" etc. The RCMP routine went really well and the horns played the "GOAL" note at the perfect time! When we got back, I helped Dustin with packing by answering some last minute questions. Then I had some tea and polished my boots with the guys.
Day 111
August 13th
This morning we did parade and the US marines joined us on the hill for the inspection tunes. This was the third time in 50 years that another band has joined the ceremonial guard on their guard mount. It was a lot of fun telling them what drill to do while on the hill. We has to whisper it to them right before doing it. This was also the first time since the war on terrorism that any US military band has left the country and not gone to Afghanistan. When we got back from parade, we got the afternoon off! I did my boots and watched Hell's Kitchen with Jeremy and then took an epic nap until supper time. My room mate and I chugged a cup of coffee before going on the bus and I was so hyper! When we got to the hill we did the usual standing around, talking to other bands and tourists. Donegan and I found a lovely family who stood and talked to us for over half an hour! Then we were off to the show! My feet were feeling a bit better this time but I got a huge headache right before our music change. Oh well, I fought through and felt glorious relief when I got to lift my bear after the show. When we got back I did my boots and took some time to settle down before going to bed. I don't know how ppl go out after fortissimo if they have parade the next day.
This morning we did parade and the US marines joined us on the hill for the inspection tunes. This was the third time in 50 years that another band has joined the ceremonial guard on their guard mount. It was a lot of fun telling them what drill to do while on the hill. We has to whisper it to them right before doing it. This was also the first time since the war on terrorism that any US military band has left the country and not gone to Afghanistan. When we got back from parade, we got the afternoon off! I did my boots and watched Hell's Kitchen with Jeremy and then took an epic nap until supper time. My room mate and I chugged a cup of coffee before going on the bus and I was so hyper! When we got to the hill we did the usual standing around, talking to other bands and tourists. Donegan and I found a lovely family who stood and talked to us for over half an hour! Then we were off to the show! My feet were feeling a bit better this time but I got a huge headache right before our music change. Oh well, I fought through and felt glorious relief when I got to lift my bear after the show. When we got back I did my boots and took some time to settle down before going to bed. I don't know how ppl go out after fortissimo if they have parade the next day.
Friday, August 13, 2010
Day 110
August 12th
We did parade today and the fanfare team for Fortissimo came on the bus with us to watch the parade. I can now say that I am over the hump of learning how to play on the march and I can start being more picky with my playing. I am also not as distracted by the percussion when I am in the rank in front of them but this could be because there were cymbals behind me. In the afternoon we were allowed to wear respectable civis for the rehearsal on the parade square. Basically we were fixing up whatever went wrong at the dress rehearsal on the hill last night. After that I went painting one last time and finished my teapot!! Now they cover it in some kind of green paint and put it in the kiln. I can pick it up on Tuesday and I'll post a picture of it :) After a quick supper we were off for the hill once again. This time the show was for real and the canons were fired up for the 1812 overture. We play the I believe song from the Olympics and there is one point where the horns have a really loud dissonant note that is supposed to be the sound when the winning goal of the men's hockey game was scored. This loud note has to line up with the video that is playing on the huge screen above our heads. They show a clip from the winning goal and during the dress rehearsal the band was 30 seconds early. We can't shorten the video because it came from CBC, so we had to play is slower and last night it was only 3 seconds off which is a huge improvement and I think the audience could figure that out. We'll see how close it gets tomorrow! Also during the dress rehearsal there were a bunch of cables and cords running along the ground where we did our RCMP routine and one of the Tuba players almost tripped on it, but thankfully they were not there tonight! There were a lot more ppl out tonight too. One of the band members found the news clip that advertised Fortissimo and invited ppl to come watch. When we got back I hung out a bit trying to stay away to go out and watch the meteor shower, but I fell asleep watching football and stumbled to my room when Jeremy woke me up.
We did parade today and the fanfare team for Fortissimo came on the bus with us to watch the parade. I can now say that I am over the hump of learning how to play on the march and I can start being more picky with my playing. I am also not as distracted by the percussion when I am in the rank in front of them but this could be because there were cymbals behind me. In the afternoon we were allowed to wear respectable civis for the rehearsal on the parade square. Basically we were fixing up whatever went wrong at the dress rehearsal on the hill last night. After that I went painting one last time and finished my teapot!! Now they cover it in some kind of green paint and put it in the kiln. I can pick it up on Tuesday and I'll post a picture of it :) After a quick supper we were off for the hill once again. This time the show was for real and the canons were fired up for the 1812 overture. We play the I believe song from the Olympics and there is one point where the horns have a really loud dissonant note that is supposed to be the sound when the winning goal of the men's hockey game was scored. This loud note has to line up with the video that is playing on the huge screen above our heads. They show a clip from the winning goal and during the dress rehearsal the band was 30 seconds early. We can't shorten the video because it came from CBC, so we had to play is slower and last night it was only 3 seconds off which is a huge improvement and I think the audience could figure that out. We'll see how close it gets tomorrow! Also during the dress rehearsal there were a bunch of cables and cords running along the ground where we did our RCMP routine and one of the Tuba players almost tripped on it, but thankfully they were not there tonight! There were a lot more ppl out tonight too. One of the band members found the news clip that advertised Fortissimo and invited ppl to come watch. When we got back I hung out a bit trying to stay away to go out and watch the meteor shower, but I fell asleep watching football and stumbled to my room when Jeremy woke me up.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Day 109
August 12th
We got to sleep in till 9am this morning and it was a glorious sleep in! We had to be on the parade square for 10am where we rehearsed for about an hour and a half. Then we had lunch break for an hour and a half! I decided to relax in my room and go later so I would beat the rush. Good idea but then I couldn't take a nap, mind you I didn't really need one. After lunch we did a run through of the show on the parade square. I decided to keep my feet still the whole time just to see if I could stand at attention for the whole show. It was pretty easy to do in combat boots, but the real test will be in parade boots. We got a 2.5 hour supper break, so I went painting for just over an hour. I am very close to being done, all I have to do is more coats of the blue. I'm not sure yet if I want to outline things in black. The outlining paint applicator is not thin enough for my liking. Hopefully I can finish it the next time I go in. Anyways, our timing was 6pm and we were off to the hill for a dress rehearsal in full ceremonials. It was pretty much a show except we made 2 obvious mistakes in playing the music and there were no canons in the 1812 tonight. I put my insoles into my parade boots and they felt so much better. I don't know why I didn't do that much earlier! It still really sucked to stand still and not move my feet for 2 hours while standing on cement, but not as bad as I thought it would be. Who knows, by the 5th performance I might not be saying that anymore! When we got back I did my boots and laundry and hung out with various ppl before calling it a night. Again, what a long day...
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Day 108
August 10th
B band was off parade today and we got to sleep in an extra hour and a bit. We spent the morning going through the RMCP routine 5 times and then waited around outside while the other bands did their thing. Then we went to lunch. Over the break I found out that my e-mail address has been sending porn to my contacts :s I had to delete my account and message all my contacts from the new account that I made. Good thing it was only one of my addresses that went wrong. We spent the afternoon doing a run through of the show but skipped the playing of a few tunes. Then we had supper and did the show again after supper. I find it a lot easier to stand for hours in the evening than in the hot afternoon. Then we came back to the shacks, showered and i relaxed but it seemed like there was a huge party going on on our floor.
Monday, August 9, 2010
Day 107
August 9th
Oh my goodness, what a long day! We did the usual parade this morning except the marches got changed at the last minute. I really don't like it when that happens and I don't see the point. It didn't go all that bad though. I can tell that I am doing much better now than at the beginning of the summer. After lunch B band provided music for the NAVY Ladder routine and then joined the rest of the bands (all of the bands involved) in the band room. There are so many musicians here!! It was really loud too. I didn't play much because I couldn't hear myself and was just mispitching because of that. I decided to save face instead, but I do know that I will have to look at some of the stuff. Then we all went for supper and I took a short nap before our next timing. At 6pm we were out on the parade square doing some full band rehearsals. B band got to wait for the first bit because we will not be on the hill for the first few tunes anyways (yay, less music to carry!) Then we played 1812 which was much easier to do on the parade square because I could hear myself and see the conductor who was on a huge podium! Actually all the pieces that we did out there seemed to go better. I really didn't enjoy that afternoon in the band room and I had to wear earplugs which made playing difficult. B band got to leave early because we will be static during Fortissimo and the rest of the bands had to rehearse some more drill. When we got back, we got our timings for tomorrow morning and a set list. I put my music in order, took a shower and went to our bible study. That was a lot of fun too. There were 11 people there today, awesome!! I really enjoyed the passage that we studied and I'm going to miss this group when I go back home. I spent the rest of the evening with Dustin and then went to bed.
Day 106
August 8th
Parade this morning was also very good. We had 3 euphoniums this time so I didn't have to blast my face off as badly lol. We had an earlier timing for the afternoon and got started right away which was nice too. We worked on the RCMP routine again and also got to watch A band rehearse the NAVY ladder routine with the guards. It was a lot of fun because we were all singing our parts from inside the tent where we were on break. Thankfully we got off a bit sooner today, I think it was around 3pm. I took a shower, had a snack relaxed a bit online and then scooted off to the mud oven after finding an umbrella to borrow. I got all the detailed pictures colored in and started on the blue water. I think I will have to give some parts an extra layers but other than that, all I have to do is the water! That might take a while because now I have to get around all the little pictures that I made lol. I came back, had supper, polished my boots, did laundry and practiced one of my pieces. After that Chelsea came over and we had a nice chat with some tea! Then Dustin came online and everything just worked out really well with timing tonight. We managed to talk about details regarding him coming to Ottawa. I was tired though so we cut it short and decided to try to chat earlier this week since I will be tired from long days of Fortissimo prep :s
Parade this morning was also very good. We had 3 euphoniums this time so I didn't have to blast my face off as badly lol. We had an earlier timing for the afternoon and got started right away which was nice too. We worked on the RCMP routine again and also got to watch A band rehearse the NAVY ladder routine with the guards. It was a lot of fun because we were all singing our parts from inside the tent where we were on break. Thankfully we got off a bit sooner today, I think it was around 3pm. I took a shower, had a snack relaxed a bit online and then scooted off to the mud oven after finding an umbrella to borrow. I got all the detailed pictures colored in and started on the blue water. I think I will have to give some parts an extra layers but other than that, all I have to do is the water! That might take a while because now I have to get around all the little pictures that I made lol. I came back, had supper, polished my boots, did laundry and practiced one of my pieces. After that Chelsea came over and we had a nice chat with some tea! Then Dustin came online and everything just worked out really well with timing tonight. We managed to talk about details regarding him coming to Ottawa. I was tired though so we cut it short and decided to try to chat earlier this week since I will be tired from long days of Fortissimo prep :s
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Day 105
August 7th
This morning 2 of the euphoniums were not there so it was just Sharpe and I on Parade. Good thing we both kicked butt on parade! We played so loud and didn't make any mistakes...maybe 2 lol. After parade we thought we were going off campus to rehearse the RCMP routine but we wound up staying here. The crappy part was that the parade square got double booked and we had to wait for over an hour before we could use it. Then we put the routine together with the RCMP and worked on it until about 4:45. That was a long day :s and as soon as I could, I made my way over to the mud oven to keep working on my teapot. I think this may take me a long time to finish simply because you have to do so many layers of each color. Since we got off so late, I only got to work on it for an hour and then went for supper. After supper I did my boots while watching the football game which ended terribly! I also got some nice chatting time in with Dustin :) I miss you!
This morning 2 of the euphoniums were not there so it was just Sharpe and I on Parade. Good thing we both kicked butt on parade! We played so loud and didn't make any mistakes...maybe 2 lol. After parade we thought we were going off campus to rehearse the RCMP routine but we wound up staying here. The crappy part was that the parade square got double booked and we had to wait for over an hour before we could use it. Then we put the routine together with the RCMP and worked on it until about 4:45. That was a long day :s and as soon as I could, I made my way over to the mud oven to keep working on my teapot. I think this may take me a long time to finish simply because you have to do so many layers of each color. Since we got off so late, I only got to work on it for an hour and then went for supper. After supper I did my boots while watching the football game which ended terribly! I also got some nice chatting time in with Dustin :) I miss you!
Friday, August 6, 2010
Day 104
August 6th
After 5 days of no parade, I was on again today. Today was also Drum Major Peet's last parade before his retirement. They tried to have his last parade yesterday, but they did it again today so CBC could video tape us and do a story. That was crazy having a camera man walk through the band while we were on parade. There was also someone from CG taking pictures and getting right up in his face! The only crappy part was that we were told what the marches were only 2 mins before the morning rehearsal, so they sounded pretty bad on the way to the hill. In the afternoon we did a sit down rehearsal of fortissimo music followed by a few more run throughs of the RCMP routine. Wow, goo thing we did that refresher because I think we put it together with the RCMP tomorrow. After supper I did my boots and then went to the Mud Oven with two girls from the bible study. At the Mud oven you choose a ceramic object and paint it. Then they glaze it and bake it so that the finished product is shiny, water proof, microwave and food safe. I chose a teapot which was one of the more expensive items, but probably the one I would use the most. I was thinking of just giving it some plain colors with an abstract design or just sponging on a second color, but I decided to have some fun and do an ocean scene instead! It won't look as professional but I'd rather it didn't look store bought. When I got back I made a cup of coffee and went to practice. My body is back in the swing of late night coffee followed by practicing for auditions! I also got to play in the large space of the band room and quite enjoyed my sound tonight :) I'm going to have to make this a regular part of my day now which means that my daily runs may not happen anymore :(
After 5 days of no parade, I was on again today. Today was also Drum Major Peet's last parade before his retirement. They tried to have his last parade yesterday, but they did it again today so CBC could video tape us and do a story. That was crazy having a camera man walk through the band while we were on parade. There was also someone from CG taking pictures and getting right up in his face! The only crappy part was that we were told what the marches were only 2 mins before the morning rehearsal, so they sounded pretty bad on the way to the hill. In the afternoon we did a sit down rehearsal of fortissimo music followed by a few more run throughs of the RCMP routine. Wow, goo thing we did that refresher because I think we put it together with the RCMP tomorrow. After supper I did my boots and then went to the Mud Oven with two girls from the bible study. At the Mud oven you choose a ceramic object and paint it. Then they glaze it and bake it so that the finished product is shiny, water proof, microwave and food safe. I chose a teapot which was one of the more expensive items, but probably the one I would use the most. I was thinking of just giving it some plain colors with an abstract design or just sponging on a second color, but I decided to have some fun and do an ocean scene instead! It won't look as professional but I'd rather it didn't look store bought. When I got back I made a cup of coffee and went to practice. My body is back in the swing of late night coffee followed by practicing for auditions! I also got to play in the large space of the band room and quite enjoyed my sound tonight :) I'm going to have to make this a regular part of my day now which means that my daily runs may not happen anymore :(
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Day 103
August 5th
Happy 6 months Dustin!! I was off Parade this morning to do my QL4 test. Funny, I still had to get up for muster at 6:50 and I still did the morning rehearsal in the band room just for something to do. My test didn't actually happen until 9am. It went well and my sound was actually pretty good! I kicked butt on the scales and sight reading which makes me happy :) the bummer about not being on parade was that I had to spend the rest of the morning in the library. After lunch we got to be live music for the guards as they practiced their NAVY routine. I'm starting to understand why ppl complain about standing still for long periods of time. Although the guard's routine was entertaining to watch, I already know that my knees and lower back are going to be sore after all this Fortissimo stuff is done. After all that I showered, did my boots and went for supper. Tonight everyone is going to a pub on campus to listen to a celtic band made up of CG players. So I spent some quiet time in my room before getting ready and going. It was a lot of fun and I even knew some of the songs which was nice. Then they did some organized dancing and opened the floor to casual dancing too. I found my Folklorama voice and did some drunk cheering followed by some improvised dancing! Around 10:30 I came back to my room to chat with Dustin for the rest of the evening. I'm so excited for when he comes here, it's going to be so much fun!
Happy 6 months Dustin!! I was off Parade this morning to do my QL4 test. Funny, I still had to get up for muster at 6:50 and I still did the morning rehearsal in the band room just for something to do. My test didn't actually happen until 9am. It went well and my sound was actually pretty good! I kicked butt on the scales and sight reading which makes me happy :) the bummer about not being on parade was that I had to spend the rest of the morning in the library. After lunch we got to be live music for the guards as they practiced their NAVY routine. I'm starting to understand why ppl complain about standing still for long periods of time. Although the guard's routine was entertaining to watch, I already know that my knees and lower back are going to be sore after all this Fortissimo stuff is done. After all that I showered, did my boots and went for supper. Tonight everyone is going to a pub on campus to listen to a celtic band made up of CG players. So I spent some quiet time in my room before getting ready and going. It was a lot of fun and I even knew some of the songs which was nice. Then they did some organized dancing and opened the floor to casual dancing too. I found my Folklorama voice and did some drunk cheering followed by some improvised dancing! Around 10:30 I came back to my room to chat with Dustin for the rest of the evening. I'm so excited for when he comes here, it's going to be so much fun!
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Day 102
August 4th
I missed breakfast today, not because I slept too late but because I was too lazy to get out of bed and didn't think the food was worth moving for. So I did my blog from yesterday and did some reading until it was closer to 10am. Then I went downstairs and got the march list for tomorrow and the day after. The band room was freezing again so I decided to practice in my room since it was after 10am at that point. I also reviewed my QL4 pieces because my test should be any day now. When ppl got back from parade, I went to lunch early to beat the crowd. On the way there I was told that I'd be pulled off parade tomorrow to do my QL4 test. Hey, I'm not complaining because tomorrow is supposed to be really muggy again. I came back and did some more reading and was falling asleep on my book. So I decided to take a nap which lasted 2 hours. Hey, at least it's not 4 hours anymore! I woke up really sweaty and thought I might have been sick but it's just because it's so muggy here. As I was waking up there was a huge thunder storm happening, so I watched it for a while and in about half an hour it was over and the sun was shining again. Then I went for supper and practiced euph until I had to leave for my first salsa class at beginner 2 level. I wound up borrowing a bike because the ground was soaked and I could not rollerblade on that. This time we have two instructors, but I think one of them is only there for demonstration and when the guys and girls split up. The splitting up for part of the class is a good idea and gives us a chance to fine tune our steps and hand positions. We did a big fine tuning review and also changed the way we do the basic step. The new step for today was for the ladies and I think it was called the progressive left turn? Anyways, they said it was the most difficult move at this level and it's nice that they started with it so we can get a lot of in class practice done! Now that we all have a bit of a foundation from the first beginner level, we are doing more dancing rather than watching demonstrations during the class time. I'm really excited to get better at this! After I biked home I decided to go for my "daily run". I did the usual run around the lake and since I was feeling good I thought I'd push myself to go towards Moody's bay. The plan was to go half way and then turn around but I just kept going and wound up going all the way! I also took the long route back which made my run an hour long. It seems like running for an hour would suck but after you get into the swing of it, you just keep going like the energizer bunny. I got back and downed two cups of water before taking a shower. Then I made some tea and watched the guy's poker game. After the game I did some tidying of my stuff because we have a room inspection tomorrow morning. Bed Time!
I missed breakfast today, not because I slept too late but because I was too lazy to get out of bed and didn't think the food was worth moving for. So I did my blog from yesterday and did some reading until it was closer to 10am. Then I went downstairs and got the march list for tomorrow and the day after. The band room was freezing again so I decided to practice in my room since it was after 10am at that point. I also reviewed my QL4 pieces because my test should be any day now. When ppl got back from parade, I went to lunch early to beat the crowd. On the way there I was told that I'd be pulled off parade tomorrow to do my QL4 test. Hey, I'm not complaining because tomorrow is supposed to be really muggy again. I came back and did some more reading and was falling asleep on my book. So I decided to take a nap which lasted 2 hours. Hey, at least it's not 4 hours anymore! I woke up really sweaty and thought I might have been sick but it's just because it's so muggy here. As I was waking up there was a huge thunder storm happening, so I watched it for a while and in about half an hour it was over and the sun was shining again. Then I went for supper and practiced euph until I had to leave for my first salsa class at beginner 2 level. I wound up borrowing a bike because the ground was soaked and I could not rollerblade on that. This time we have two instructors, but I think one of them is only there for demonstration and when the guys and girls split up. The splitting up for part of the class is a good idea and gives us a chance to fine tune our steps and hand positions. We did a big fine tuning review and also changed the way we do the basic step. The new step for today was for the ladies and I think it was called the progressive left turn? Anyways, they said it was the most difficult move at this level and it's nice that they started with it so we can get a lot of in class practice done! Now that we all have a bit of a foundation from the first beginner level, we are doing more dancing rather than watching demonstrations during the class time. I'm really excited to get better at this! After I biked home I decided to go for my "daily run". I did the usual run around the lake and since I was feeling good I thought I'd push myself to go towards Moody's bay. The plan was to go half way and then turn around but I just kept going and wound up going all the way! I also took the long route back which made my run an hour long. It seems like running for an hour would suck but after you get into the swing of it, you just keep going like the energizer bunny. I got back and downed two cups of water before taking a shower. Then I made some tea and watched the guy's poker game. After the game I did some tidying of my stuff because we have a room inspection tomorrow morning. Bed Time!
Day 101
August 3rd
I got up in time for breakfast again and apparently a lot of ppl did. There was a group of guys who got up early to dress up in the CG Monster suit and go watch the parade this morning. I got some practicing done, but the band room was so cold that I had to take a break in between to warm up. Then I took a nap because I only slept 4hours last night...oops! After that wonderful nap I went for lunch and practiced in my room while everyone else was at that masterclass. Then Allison came back from her leave and it started raining. She went out slip and sliding lol. I got curious and started reading the book of Mark. I figure it might be a good idea to do a refresher before going into the next bible study. I'll read as much as I can from the other gospels so I have some notes to compare with. Then I went for supper and found out that a bunch of ppl were going out to see inception. I decided to tag along! So I went for my run and showered and was ready in time to go :) When we got there it was sold out of course, so we waited for the 9:45 show. I bought some peanut butter and jam from the bulk barn and some tea from Starbucks. The PB+J will come in handy when Dustin is here. I'm sure we will be having a few sandwich days while we are out and about. The movie was really good and I liked the idea of dream within a dream etc. The special effects were pretty cool too. Anyways, after cabbing it home I chatted with Dustin a bit and then went to bed.
I got up in time for breakfast again and apparently a lot of ppl did. There was a group of guys who got up early to dress up in the CG Monster suit and go watch the parade this morning. I got some practicing done, but the band room was so cold that I had to take a break in between to warm up. Then I took a nap because I only slept 4hours last night...oops! After that wonderful nap I went for lunch and practiced in my room while everyone else was at that masterclass. Then Allison came back from her leave and it started raining. She went out slip and sliding lol. I got curious and started reading the book of Mark. I figure it might be a good idea to do a refresher before going into the next bible study. I'll read as much as I can from the other gospels so I have some notes to compare with. Then I went for supper and found out that a bunch of ppl were going out to see inception. I decided to tag along! So I went for my run and showered and was ready in time to go :) When we got there it was sold out of course, so we waited for the 9:45 show. I bought some peanut butter and jam from the bulk barn and some tea from Starbucks. The PB+J will come in handy when Dustin is here. I'm sure we will be having a few sandwich days while we are out and about. The movie was really good and I liked the idea of dream within a dream etc. The special effects were pretty cool too. Anyways, after cabbing it home I chatted with Dustin a bit and then went to bed.
Monday, August 2, 2010
Day 100!
August 2nd
Today is 100 day! Just like in elementary school when we counted the school days lol. I did not wake up at 4am today. In fact, I got up at 8 and went down for breakfast. This time I was the only one there from B band. I didn't cover the light from my window this time, so I think it may be the fact that my room mate gets up earlier than I do on our work days. I actually didn't notice until today that I have the whole pod to myself! After breakfast I rollerbladed downtown to replace a battery in my metronome. By the time I got back, it was 12:20 and the conducting masterclass started at 1pm. We had to show up at 12:50 if we were going, but I still had to shower and eat lunch. At the same time I could feel major cramps coming along, so I ate in my room and basically camped out there until supper time. Thanks Dustin for keeping me company :) I showered, got some laundry done and had supper with the guys. After supper I went for a run to test one of the info facts on our "poo calender". It said that you don't have to wait half an hour after eating before you go swimming. Half an hour doesn't make a difference because it takes your food 3-4 hours before it passes to the small intestine. So I ran immediately after supper and didn't get a cramp! I did feel a little heavier than usual, but that's for obvious reasons. When I got back, I looked like I just got out of the shower. I had sweat beads dripping off my body everywhere. It's not really normal that I sweat that much unless I'm on parade on a hot day, so I checked the weather and it was 28 degrees. hmmmmm smart. Off to the shower again! After putting away laundry I chilled for a bit before going to our first bible study! That was super fun and I'm really excited for the next one. The group of people is great and I'm really interested in what we are reading. I was very nervous going into this because the last time I was at a bible study, I was about 6 years old and I played with the other kids lol. I have never participated in a bible study before and I think it's a fun idea. At the end we read the scripture for next week's meeting and we are all super pumped. It's going to be a good one. I like trying to imagine what ppl were like back then and how they spoke, were they smart? Could you trust a stranger? Why does it seem like they all had so much free time? So many questions for discussion! I was able to reference the song "A voice Proclaims" to the scripture we read today. I guess I should say that we are looking at the Gospel of John. This really meant nothing to me when I heard it, but now I know that it starts when Jesus is presented by John the baptist and starts gathering his disciples. We talked for just over an hour and I actually felt really comfortable sharing my ideas even though I had never studied the bible like this before. After that I hung out with some ppl in the lounge and watched some of the poker game. There is almost always a poker game happening in the lounge, so that's pretty much a guaranteed source of entertainment. We got onto an intense discussion about the crappy transit system in Winnipeg and the structure of the city in general. Eventually I made it to my room, did some reading and listened to some good ol' Harry Belafonte!
P.S. After spell checking for 100 days, I noticed that my spelling accuracy has improved! Practice makes perfect :)
Today is 100 day! Just like in elementary school when we counted the school days lol. I did not wake up at 4am today. In fact, I got up at 8 and went down for breakfast. This time I was the only one there from B band. I didn't cover the light from my window this time, so I think it may be the fact that my room mate gets up earlier than I do on our work days. I actually didn't notice until today that I have the whole pod to myself! After breakfast I rollerbladed downtown to replace a battery in my metronome. By the time I got back, it was 12:20 and the conducting masterclass started at 1pm. We had to show up at 12:50 if we were going, but I still had to shower and eat lunch. At the same time I could feel major cramps coming along, so I ate in my room and basically camped out there until supper time. Thanks Dustin for keeping me company :) I showered, got some laundry done and had supper with the guys. After supper I went for a run to test one of the info facts on our "poo calender". It said that you don't have to wait half an hour after eating before you go swimming. Half an hour doesn't make a difference because it takes your food 3-4 hours before it passes to the small intestine. So I ran immediately after supper and didn't get a cramp! I did feel a little heavier than usual, but that's for obvious reasons. When I got back, I looked like I just got out of the shower. I had sweat beads dripping off my body everywhere. It's not really normal that I sweat that much unless I'm on parade on a hot day, so I checked the weather and it was 28 degrees. hmmmmm smart. Off to the shower again! After putting away laundry I chilled for a bit before going to our first bible study! That was super fun and I'm really excited for the next one. The group of people is great and I'm really interested in what we are reading. I was very nervous going into this because the last time I was at a bible study, I was about 6 years old and I played with the other kids lol. I have never participated in a bible study before and I think it's a fun idea. At the end we read the scripture for next week's meeting and we are all super pumped. It's going to be a good one. I like trying to imagine what ppl were like back then and how they spoke, were they smart? Could you trust a stranger? Why does it seem like they all had so much free time? So many questions for discussion! I was able to reference the song "A voice Proclaims" to the scripture we read today. I guess I should say that we are looking at the Gospel of John. This really meant nothing to me when I heard it, but now I know that it starts when Jesus is presented by John the baptist and starts gathering his disciples. We talked for just over an hour and I actually felt really comfortable sharing my ideas even though I had never studied the bible like this before. After that I hung out with some ppl in the lounge and watched some of the poker game. There is almost always a poker game happening in the lounge, so that's pretty much a guaranteed source of entertainment. We got onto an intense discussion about the crappy transit system in Winnipeg and the structure of the city in general. Eventually I made it to my room, did some reading and listened to some good ol' Harry Belafonte!
P.S. After spell checking for 100 days, I noticed that my spelling accuracy has improved! Practice makes perfect :)
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Day 99
August 1st
I think I solved my sleeping problem. Step 1, remove room mate from room. Step 2, cover crack of light that shines in my face every morning. Step 3, refrain from taking 2 hour naps in the afternoon...no can do! But seriously, covering the crack of light may be the key. I woke up at 6am because of my alarm and then continued to sleep until 7:30 at which time I decided to go for a run. This time I went around the lake instead of to the beach. It feels like that might also be 5km but I'm not sure. It took me the same amount of time as the 5km did yesterday. Then I showered and made it in time for breakfast! I joined some of the other B band ppl and found out that Jaden had the key to the band room :) so I spent almost 2 hrs practicing. Then I decided to take a break and go look at the menu for the courtyard again so I could decide what I wanted to order. When I got to the website, I noticed a blurb on the bottom that mentioned a fire that they recently had in the air ducts of the restaurant. I read the letter that was posted and realized that that was why no one was picking up the phone when I called to make reservations yesterday. They will not be opening until September, so Dustin and I have to find a different restaurant :s I spent the rest of the morning looking for options and found quite a few that I never noticed before. One of them totally had me convinced as soon as I saw it, but they are not open in the summer months for some strange reason. I managed to find 5 new ones to look at and sent them to Dustin. After lunch, some more practicing and a 3 hour nap, we met up online and quickly narrowed it down to 2. Alelier didn't have any pictures of the actual restaurant on the website and I was at the point where all the menus looked good so the mood of the interior was going to be the tie breaker. So I walked over to the mysterious restaurant and met a lady who was also looking for it! We found the address on a small building that looked like it was a house at some point. There was no sign with the restaurant name on it but when I looked inside it was definitely a restaurant. Really cozy and small and the diners sit in booths which is nice for some privacy. I'm going to go back on a tues-sat when the are open and see if I can look inside while it's up and running. Right now it looks a little sketchy, but I was talking to Emma about it and she said that a lot of places in little Italy look like that but the food inside will not disappoint! It's also only a 25 minute walk away. The neat thing about Atlier is that you just show up and get a 12 course tasting meal for a fixed price. The menu changes due to what's in season and such but it seems like a well thought out idea. The other top choice restaurant is called 18 and the menu is similar to that of the courtyard. They also have a 5 course blind tasting option for a very similar price. It looks like there is more substance to the dishes in this one whereas Atelier looks more like edible art. I think I need to sleep on this lol. Anywho, after my walk I watched "sex and the city" with Emma and then "how I met your mother" with the guys.
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