This is probably my last posting before I leave good old Ottawa for my week in Montreal. It has been a great journey that I wrapped up last night with a nice little get together with all of my closest friends. I have met so many incredible people in my last four years here and although not all of you could make it last night, you all really had an important impact on my life one way or another and hold a significant place in my heart. I am going to miss you guys very much.

We started out the evening at The Blue Cactus, where we had to wait an hour and a half to be seated. We were 12 people in total on a Friday night, so the long wait had to be expected, but I felt bad for everyone that was hungry and who wanted to sit down. The place was packed and I had friends scattered all over the place and I just wanted everyone to be happy. I got a little stressed out, because I wanted to spend some quality time with everyone who came to see me and I wanted everyone to be comfortable. I get all rawled up about little things, and I forget to have fun because I get worried that people won't be having a good time.

After dinner we moved our way up to Eighteen, a poshy martini place where we were expecting to see some friends of mine. But I think we were too late and missed them. There I had the strongest most potent martini I have ever had in my life. I never felt so buzzed after a mixed drink like this before, and it tasted awful! The drink I ordered was called the New Yorker (that I tried to order in a New York accent, but no matter how hard I try the French always prevails) and it had orange juice, absinthe and some other kind of liquor that I can't remember. Our time spent in that bar reminded me of a scene taken straight out of an episode of Sex and the City, as we were talking about out latest embarassing anecdotes, our latest conquests and the boys in our lives while slowly savouring our martinis (it wasn't as much savouring for me but more more like drinking it very slowly because I couldnt handle too much of that horrible bitter taste in my mouth.)

Then we hopped to the next bar. Yes, you've all guessed right. We walked accross to Zaphods at around 12:30am, where we spent the rest of the evening. It was only Nayeli and I at this point, but we met with some of her fun co-workers. The music was a little off this time but we still managed to have a really great time. I had one of Nayeli's co-workers come out just to see me... I had met him just last monday and appearantly he really wanted to see me again. So that is always very flattering and it well ended the evening.

In these last few days I really wanted to make sure to see as many people as possible before I leave. Thank you all for giving me this time. I know that I will be back some day, but I have never been gone this far away from everybody and not have the choice to come home whenever I wanted to. Im hoping that I can have as much fun there and to find as many great people to hang out with in Japan.

On another note, I'm still not done packing and I'm still waiting for my employer to e-mail me. My next entry will be next week, so I hope you dont miss my sappy writing too much. What can I say, that is what most girls do. I can't help it. I will try to be funnier and quirkier next time. But for now, I just want to tell you all how much I have enjoyed my last 4 years in your great company. Thank you, and till next time. We never know what we will be doing or where we will be in our lives when we meet again, but I wish you all the best of luck.

e.

"Its been a year of funerals and nobody blames you for anything, all the same you put space between this and the volcanos, and today is the first day of the rest of your life." -Craig Cardiff Year of Funerals

I thought I would start this entry with a nice little quote. Not that I am trying to copy you Rachel or anything. I just thought it was appropriate because of the many changes that have recently occured in my life that have brought me to take some drastic decisions (like going to Japan for example). Although it has been hard to move on, I have decided to seriously take my future into my own hands and to start fresh, "the first day of the rest of my life." Call me lame, whatever. Sometimes music say it better than you ever would.

So here is what's been happening in my life in the last few days: packing, throwing out stuff, packing, getting more boxes in South Keys dumpsters, seeing friends, packing, drinking, partying.. oh and waiting for my employer to respond to my e-mails. This whole waiting thing has been really stressing me out lately. Why isn't my future boss responding to any of my e-mails? Is he on holiday still? Is he too busy? did Japan's Internet system completly shut down ? Oh wait... do I still have the job????? Well I did sign a contract, so there shouldn't be any reason why I wouldn't be, but why is he not replying to any of my e-mails. This is very sketchy. Let's just hope that there is a legitimate reason for all of this.

Anyway, im still living my life as though I was still going to Japan in the first weeks of September. I'm going to Montreal this week-end for a week to see my family and some friends one last time before I leave. Its going to be nice to see everybody! But I need to be all packed and ready to go before this saturday since we are moving out my stuff only on the 28th to go to Toronto. There I will be waiting for my work visa so that I can finally get my plane tickets. Thankfully I will be keeping myself busy volunteering at the Toronto International Film Festival and spending some well wasted time with some of my besterest Ottawa friends in the world.

So last night Nayeli and I went out to meet Lyndsay at her friend's house for some pre-drinking before hitting the Z. We were waiting for the bus with our ginormous bottle of Rose, when all of a sudden these cops appeared out of nowhere to ask us if we had been drinking. It wasn't like we were talking loudly, or dancing on the benches or anything. We thought that they were coming to warn us about something that happened in the South Keys area, like some kind of robbery or rape. But no, they were wasting their valuable time asking two innocent girls if they had been drinking waiting for the bus. After checking to see that our bottle was actually closed, they almost made us miss our bus, but thankfully the driver was nice enough to wait for us... how insulting! They should have sneaked in on us when we were actually pissed drunk after almost finishing the bottle in less than an hour which resulted in Nayeli giving me a piggy back ride singing Mr Brightside at the top of our lungs on our way down Slater! I don't think I have ever had a dull moment with this girl. I am gonna miss you Chiquita! I have the best time with you. I am so happy that you will be Toronto in September with me.

Well that was my little anecdote for the day! I should get back to packing now.
Write to you all very soon!
e.

It has been awhile since my last entry... I dont think I need to say that these last few days have been extremely busy. Of my 4 wonderful years in Ottawa, I only have 6 days left in this city. Although I will miss it here, I still have all the memories, and remember them as the best moments of my life... meeting my best friend, my first birthday party in Ottawa, my first date, my first A, my first apartment, and my amazing friends that I truly learned to appreciate in my last months here. I dont know what I would have done without you guys: Heidi, Nayeli, Cynthia, Sara, Rachel, Jessica, Rusty, Shane, Natalie, Lyndsay, Matt... you are true friends and I couldnt ask for better. Thank you for the good talks, the good advice and the good times, je vous aime plus que tout au monde.


For the people who know me really well, we all know that I own tons of things. I cant remember the last time my room was clean, or the last time I saw my carpet. I love to shop and I dont like to get rid of things as useless as they may be. But I have spent the last week in my room sorting out through a mound of clothing, buckets and cabinets of beauty products, and I have set my mind to get rid of as many things as possible. So last saturday, not only did I fill about 7 garbage bags, Cynthia and I had a Massive Yard Sale (thats what we wrote on the posters by the corner of the street.) I tried to sell everything, from my jewelry, skis, bicycle, my annoying glass tables, my crappy slow as hell computer, old clothes, winter jackets to my collection of magazines. Well, it was a success... I sold $310 worth of stuff, including my computer that I sold for $150. I couldnt believe it. I dont think that thing is worth more than $100. So Im taking a break from this madness to write you all.

Although the packing and yard sale went well, I still had to get into a little predicament that kind of put a stick in the wheel of productivity. I think you will all like this little story. Last Monday I was invited to this party with Matt at some of his friend's house. Nobody had warned me of how crazy this night was going to be. Everyone there was probably some of the friendliest people I had ever met in my life, the most generous and the most fun too. I really felt like I fit in and it felt right. I drank, I drank and I drank, and got so wasted that at some point I needed some time alone in the electrical field behind my friend's house to take a short nap. That spot must have been a popular mosquito hangout because they had quite the party around my wrists and my ankles. The next morning I woke up covered in mosquito bites, and a day after, my left ankle was so swollen that I couldnt walk. The next day as I noticed my feet changing colour, I thought it would maybe be a good idea to go to the clinic. It turned out that I got a really bad infection under my skin. The doctor told me that if I didnt treat it and put my feet up for 2 days, it could culminate into flesh eating disease. Well, that was fantastic news! So I couldnt do much for 3 days, but my ankle is much better now... Its now turning yellow, which is much more reassuring than the purply reddish colour I had before.

So here it is... I hope that made you laugh.
Please come back to read about my upcoming trip...
e.

OK so I wrote just a few hours ago... but here I am back at it after a long night of drinking. Maybe I shouldnt be writing about how many times I drink or how drunk I am since my mom and other family members that I love are reading this. But trust me when I say that I am a very responsible drinker and that as you can see I made it home fine!

So tonight I went to meet Nayeli at Quinn's, a bar located right next door to The Mayfair. Nayeli and her co-workers were having this kind of party to celebrate the end of summer thingy, so I was invited to join. I had the chance to see other people that I love such as Rebecca and Melda, and other friends of mine that I made through Nayeli. It was nice to see these people again. The moment I got there, I could tell that people had a couple of drinks and that I should maybe try to catch up with them. So I did.. and how!

At your dissapointment I dont have some kind of wacky story to tell you guys like in the last entry. Although Nayeli and I composed a really nice musical about how badly we needed to pee while we were waiting for the bus. It was one of the most magical moments of my life! All I have to say is that since this is the last summer that I have left to party hard with my friends, I make sure to go all out and to really appreciate every second that is left of my youth... so sad. So many of us are moving on and getting serious jobs, its today or never to really appreciate what there is left of it all.

Tonight I had a great time, and I know that tomorrow night will just be another party! Make the best of it and dont take anything for granted.

I will now go drink a glass of water, maybe eat a slice of bread and try to find my bed in the disaster that is my room... till next time. Party hard everyone!

e.

It was 4:03pm in the afternoon yesterday when an Air France airbus crashed in a creek near the 401. For anyone that wasn't in Toronto yesterday, the weather was quite atrocious and it caused the plane to skid on the landing. Luckily, there were no victims from the crash and the local news called it a miracle! There were only about 40 minor injuries, but left many many people in a great deal of shock. Right after the accident, the passengers ran away from the wreckage and went to cover from the heavy rain under a bridge until some buses stopped by to pick some of them up. It was not too long after they escaped the wreck that the plane blew up in smoke and filled the air with a black heavy hue.

At 4:03pm, I was on a bus on my way downtown and the rain had not yet reached my part of the city. I was calmly reading my book when all of a sudden it started to pour down. From my window I could see people running around looking for shelter. Never would I have thought that merely a few miles away from me these 347 plane passengers survived such a tragedy. The worse is that I did not know about it until I got home at around 10 o'clock that night when my mom told me. I felt strange thinking that this could have maybe happened to me last thursday when I was the one coming back from Paris if it was pouring with rain. When you look at the wreckage on the news today, it is impossible to think that anyone survived. I think it is important to send our thoughts to these people that miraculously got out of this plane with their lives. These people will have to live with this experience for the rest of their lives, and many of these passengers were children. Sure it makes a wonderful story to tell their grand children, but today they all look at life under a different light. Remember to live by the moment and tell the people around you that you love them, because you just never know what the next day will bring. Sure im being a big sap, and some of you problably want to hit me over the head with a baseball bat, but deep inside you know I am right. Right?

So there... I love you :)
and kisses to all!
e.