Life by the Numbers

10 - the number of new items of clothing that I have bought (read: my mom has bought for me) before I leave for Ontario. Probably a little too much, but that's ok. Its not like I have a limited amount of stuff I can take on the plane.

9 - the number of hours I will be awake before arriving in Hamilton. I hate waking up early.

8 - the number of months that I will be gone. You people better miss me!

7 - the number of days before I begin classes in the strange and foreign land known as Ontario.

6 - the number of family members that I leave behind, because on Saturday, Kerri Lynn will officially become a Vanderberg. Or a Haney-Vanderberg, but that's still close enough.

5 - the number of friends I will already know at Redeemer. Maybe by Christmas it could be 6.

4 - the number of hours it will take me to fly to Hamilton. Flying makes me nauseous.

3 - the number of cousins that I get to visit in Ontario!

2 - the number of suitcases I have to cram all my belongings into. Suddenly, 10 new things don't seem like such a good idea. I guess I am wearing whatever doesn't fit. Maybe I shouldn't have left those sweaters for last...

1 - the number of lives I have to live. This new phase of my life is coming whether I am ready or not. Here's hoping I make the most of it.

Evacuation

Last night was my second last shift at Ric's Grill in the water tower. It was pretty much like any other night, full of a lot of smiling, "follow me's" and the usual whole lot of nothing. That is until approximately 7:50 when the kitchen burst into flames and the fire alarm started screaming its warning for us to flee the impending danger. It was chaos as people began screaming and rushing toward the elevator, only to find that they had to take the stairs down instead. Soon the flames started following us down the stairs and we barely escaped with our lives.

Well, maybe it wasn't quite like that, but there definitely was some smoke and a piercing alarm. Apparently, the hoods on the stoves stopped working, causing smoke to accumulate and set of the alarm. Funny thing though, when the alarm went off everyone just sat there and looked around. No one jumped out of their seat or thought that they were in any danger. Good thing it wasn't a real fire. None of the staff really knew what to do (safety first..ha!) so we told all the tables that it was just a false alarm and that they didn't have to leave...that is until the manager told us two seconds after we told everyone that we did indeed have to evacuate the building. Did I mention it was raining outside? So everyone goes down the 150 stairs and huddles outside in the rain. The fire trucks and ambulance come to check everything out and make sure that the building really wasn't on fire. Many of the people who were eating there were still standing around, as if they were determined to get that steak they ordered a half hour ago. News flash: the building has been evacuated and the grill can't be turned back on, unless you want to go through this whole ordeal again. You won't be getting your steak tonight ladies and gentlemen.

Eventually all the tables left, leaving a lot of uneaten food and unpaid bills and only the staff were left to freeze outside. Thankfully, some of the servers who were able to think quickly in an emergency situation remembered to grab their cameras so we could take pictures of the occasion. What a lifesaver. After it was established that there was no fire, we were allowed back inside and it was decided to close the restuarant for the evening. But what did we do with all that food, uneaten and untouched, you might ask? We ate it of course! (Shameless plug: the crab and shrimp stuffed mushrooms are soo good...and I don't even like crab, shrimp or mushrooms!) The manager bought us all a drink and we called it a night and left the building...this time becuase we wanted to.

Beatiful Prairies

I love the prairies. There is such great beauty in their simplicity. They will always be my home.

Summer Resolution

I have come to the conclusion that I worry way too much. While I have known this about myself for a long time, I have never really done anything about it. Example: On Monday afternoon, Robyn, Tim, Jordan, Whitney and I decided to go floating down the canal, but not before I asked everyone at least ten times if it was safe. So as we were driving along the canal to get to our starting point, I saw a more turbulent area in the water underneath some type of machine. I automatically assumed it was a weir and launched into my story about people dying when they get too close to weirs. Everyone said that we could just get out of the canal and walk around this part, but I was still very skeptical and got out waaay before we needed to. Images of people getting sucked under and chopped into little pieces kept entering my head, making it pretty difficult to enjoy the ride. Needless to say, no one died and it turns out the scary machine thing was just a pumping station for irrigation and not a weir. I still think it looked pretty dangerous...but it probably wasn't, seeing as Tim had gone through it before and the friendly farmer driving by didn't seem too concerned that we were getting close to it. Therefore, it is my summer resolution to stop being such a worry wart and relax a little bit. I could wait until New Year's, but I might have an ulcer by then.

Working World

This is how I feel most days at work, minus the ridiculous facial expression. You would think that I would enjoy getting paid to sit around and surf the internet, check facebook and e-mail 20 times a day and create a blog, but I think my brain cells are dying by the second. It wouldn't be so bad if it was only one job, but all three of my jobs are giving my brain too much rest. Now I don't mean to sound ungrateful for my jobs because they have been a real blessing, but I would like to think that I have some skills oustide of sounding pleasant on the phone and internet comprehension that can be utilized. Maybe I am wrong. Maybe that is why I have no clue what to do with the rest of my life if I have to fit in a typical 9-5 job somewhere. Sitting here at this desk makes me miss the days where I didn't have to worry about paying for an expensive education and could just spend my summers as a I wanted. I was free to go on vacation, spend time at camp, enjoy the sun and hang out with friends. Now I know that these days are not as far in my past as most peoples as I was a late-comer to the working world (I am still sticking to the story that I was focusing on school, no matter what anyone says) but I still miss them. As my mom would say, "Welcome to the real world." I am obviously not used to reality. But I don't have to be, because once summer ends I will enter into the world of textbooks, learning and hopefully, new friends. This is my transitional world, beyond my safe little bubble at home but shy of a completely independent state. I am glad there is at least three more years here. I am going to need them. I am looking forward to becoming a student once again. For now, I have to get back to "work."

Initiation

I have now officially entered the blog world, thus leaving behind my anonymous blog stalking status. I am doing this for the sake of my friends and family that I will be leaving behind as I head out to Ontario, which is coming sooner than I am ready for. I can't promise I will be good at this whole blogging thing but I will try my best not to let it lie dormant for too long.