A Bit of a Rant and I'm Glad They're Done...

I had some fun watching the Olympics in my sweatpants during reading week, but I'm glad they're done. I love Canada for a lot of reasons, but Canadians have been acting way too American lately! What is with the spirit of domination? This week, I actually overheard a Canadian say in all seriousness, "People who don't cheer for Canada shouldn't be allowed to live here." That doesn't scream "welcoming country of great diversity" to me.

Also, the "Own the Podium" campaign was lame. Talk about eating your words, then spitting them back out and trying to rearrange them more favorably. How about simply treating your athletes well and then letting their performances speak for themselves?

Hockey I understand. Canada should be possessive and obsessive about hockey because it really is their game. And I'm glad they got their gold (I like to think that when my home country lost, it made me a more popular person here in Canada). Actually, I probably would have cheered for your team if the whole "Own the Podium" thing wasn't so annoying. Wouldn't be the first time I cheered against an American team, after all.

Anywho, a few positives to finish off... Canada, your athletes did great, your hockey team showed up when they needed to, and you showed great national pride. Also, I loved watching what the Americans did in dominating the podium, my favorite Seattle boy Apolo Anton Ohno for what he accomplished in his own medal count, and of the grit that our young underdog hockey players put into their games, not to mention Ryan Miller's incredible tournament in goal.

OK, now that I have conducted my own personal closing ceremony, I am DONE with the Olympics and I don't care how badly people want to talk about hockey tomorrow.

Brace yourselves, this is going to be a great post...

Last night I was falling asleep, just as I do almost every night. Sam was still awake, but she was in her own room, down two flights of stairs. 


As I was drifting off to sleep, I heard noises that made me think that Sam was coming upstairs to tell me something (footsteps going up basement stairs, basement door opening, quick steps through first floor, gentle steps up to the second story). So, I woke myself up a little, but then the steps went back downstairs. Sam saw that my light was off, so she went downstairs to check my calendar. Sam and her family made me make a calendar so that they know where I am most of the time.


After calculating approximately what time I would have to leave the house in the morning, Sam decided that she could wake me up without feeling too bad about it, so I listened again from my bed as she gently walked up the steps and towards my room. Sam gave a light couple of taps on my door then invited herself in.


"I know you're trying to sleep, but you really have to come to my room and see something that's on my TV."


Sam's always trying to get me to come see things and I really wanted to get some sleep, but she assured me that this one was worth it. She was pretty convincing about it, and she could barely contain her excitement, so I dragged myself out of bed.


I followed Sam down the first and second flights of stairs and towards her bedroom. She took a peek into her room, then let out a little giggle and instructed me to go look.


This is what I saw.....


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It's Robyn Roste on TV! And she's not even standing on the sidelines of a curling rink. Adlai, if you want to see Robyn on TV, you need to start watching Christian television late at night.

Ready, Break!

Since I have to work all weekend, tomorrow is the last day of my five day reading break. I accomplished a small amount of reading, an even smaller portion of which was for school. I spent a good amount of time watching the Olympics in my sweatpants. I spent some time with some of the people who I have not been able to see much of because of my otherwise busy schedule.

To kick off my break, I went to a Valentine's Day party on Sunday night after work. That's right people, I went to a social event and it wasn't even because Sam dragged me along (she was on practicum that day). We played Battle of the Sexes and, even though us girls lost, I got to surprise everyone with my knowledge of the cultural sporting event that takes place in Pamplona, Spain.

One of the interesting things that has been weaving its way through my week is a bit of graphic design work, which is really fun. I'm creating a logo for a guy I know who is just starting to get into event planning. It's not a paid job, but I'll get into some concerts for free. Plus, graphic design is really fun! I haven't had much time for creativity since school started, so it was a nice addition to the week.

Days off?!

I'm a little busy. It's a little different than my usual carefree pace, but it seems good.

I'm a full-time student again. I'm studying math, rocks, and history this semester. I love math!

I got a job on campus (that's the only place I'm legally allowed to work right now). I like it so far. I work with some fun and diverse people.

The lady who trained me is the cutest Polish lady I've ever met. Not that I've met many Polish ladies, but she's great. Her name is Jadwega, and if you can pronounce that right on the first try then you are doing better than I am. She is a super-cashier and knows pretty much everything there is to know about our small store.

I also have a friend at work from Ghana, so I am being called obruni once again. That's Twi, one of Ghana's national languages, for white person. It's fun to talk about Ghana and the places we've both been. I can't wait until the FIFA World Cup rolls around so we can cheer for Ghana.

One of my bosses is a total goof, which makes things fun. The other day I looked into the kitchen and he was serving food with the head of a mop under his hat, like a wig. It looked so funny.

Hmm... what else? I spend ridiculous amounts of time on the bus/train. It takes about an hour and a half to get to school/work, which makes for about three hours a day in transit. I don't mind, but some nights I am only home for seven hours. That does NOT leave enough time for sleep.

But this week I am on reading break. I have to work tomorrow and Sunday, then I have five days off to get ready for midterms and just relax. I think those five days are exactly what I need to recharge for the last eight weeks of winter semester. Yay!