The whole pub/bar/club thing has never been my “scene”, which I guess is mostly due to the fact that I do not drink! It has nothing to do with any religion or anything like that, I’ve just never acquired a taste for any of it and I have tried almost everything! Jo and Stacey have both tried getting me to try various drinks in an effort to get me / see me drunk, neither succeeded! haha!

So last night after having take-out, a treat from Jill (Brian’s girlfriend), everyone wanted to head to this little pub where their friend Jason was. So, out we went! I was conned (yes Jo, conned haha) into playing pool. Me and Buck (Brian’s brother) against some other guy and his mom! We played two games and lost two games, but it was fun! Buck was wasted, so I’ll let his horrible playing slide this time! After being there for about an hour or so, the bartender (who does not like Buck for whatever reason) decided to kick Buck out! Of course, with Buck getting kicked out.. it pissed Brian and Jo off (us girls too) because Buck didn’t do anything wrong. One of the waitresses said Buck was “too feely” but all he did was put his arm around the girl and asked for another round of drinks. All of the guys up there do that and they’re not doing it in a flirty, I want to get in your pants kind of way.. they’re just being “friendly”. I guess the girl doesn’t like that kind of thing so when she told the bartender, they asked Buck to leave and called him a cab. Lots of drama ensued afterwards but it’s so not worth getting into.

Other than a few minor things that happened, the night was pretty fun. I was actually having a better time hanging out here at the condo versus the pub but again, that’s just because I am not big on the pub/bar/club scene.

Anyway..

Today is move in day, yippee!! Jo’s showered, so I guess I’ll hop in soon. I think we’re going to hit Ikea (pray we don’t get lost haha) and look for a bed and mattresses, duvet and shower curtain. I know we need plates and silverware too. I’m just so ready to get into “our” place and just relax for a few days! I miss the catlets tremendously, so we’ll be picking them up from the kennel later on this evening. It’s supposed to snow tomorrow and Monday, so I know I won’t be out and about either of those days! I look like a little old lady put-putting around the city, going as slow as a snail. Hey, I’m not used to driving in snow and ice, give me a break.. hahaha!!!

This will be my last entry until we have service in our place, which hopefully will be in the next few days! See you all then! :]

Last night, we decided to do a “game night” since the Calgary Flames were on! We ordered pizza and wings (thankfully not hot wings) and watched the game. Good times! The Flames won 4 - 2 and “my” man Iginla had a hattrick!! I can’t wait to see the game in person, Jo’s promised to take me! :]

In other news, Jo had his interview yesterday and decided to turn down the job because the pay was way too low and nowhere near what was quoted when he first spoke to them! By that, I mean nearly $10 off! I don’t blame him for not taking it at all! He’s in a position right now, where he can pick and choose because he’s already got a full time job. This was just a second job with full time hours and benefits!

We spoke to our landlord this morning and we’ll be able to move in tomorrow! They’ve painted it already (it’s a khaki kind of color.. or no, sort of like the color of an iced cappuccino) and today, they’re doing all of the cleaning! I’ll just be happy to get moved and settled in, kick back and relax for a bit! We’ve seriously been “on the go” for the last couple of weeks! The drive up was exhausting, my arms are still aching! Where we’re staying, it’s about a 20 minute commute into downtown, so if we have to make our way to get something that isn’t right here, we spend about an hour going and coming. That’s if traffic is moving steady and not slowing down during rush hours! It’s gorgeous here though! Brian and Jill’s condo is lovely!

Tonight we’re going to grill out (or in, not really sure about that haha) and they’re wanting to go to the neighborhood pub! That should be interesting, considering I’ll be the only one not drinking! I’ve been crowned the designated driver for the night, which is all good because then everyone can just let loose and have a good time and not worry about the drive back! Brian laid out of work today, which I think is mostly due to wanting to hang out with Jo and possibly since Jill is also off today through Sunday! I’m sure we’re all going to have a great time tonight!

That pretty much sums everything up! I miss the catlets! We’ll be able to bring them home sometime Sunday! We just wanted to get moved in without hauling them all over the place. Jill’s also allergic to cats, so between that and us not wanting to burden them with the cats, we decided to place them in a kennel for a few days!

I’m going to get though, I need to fold some laundry and make the bed! I like to keep things tidy! :]

I figured I’d give a better update than the smaller, previous one!

We left on Wednesday March 21st, here’s how the trip went! We traveled up through Georgia to Tennessee via I-75. Once to Nashville, we veered off on I-40, which took us through Arkansas (for Stacey, Are - Kansas lol). We stayed the night about 30 miles west of Little Rock our first night! On day 2, we continued west on I-40 through the rest of Arkansas, Oklahoma (which by the way, has the worst roads I’ve ever driven on!!) and into Texas! The weather thus far had been gorgeous! As we were getting within about 20 miles of Amarillo Texas, the sky started to get really dark, which scared us because hello.. we were in Tornado alley!! Anyway, the sky kept getting darker but it only unleashed a minor rain shower and it only lasted for about 30 minutes! In Amarillo, we veered off to the North West, via US Hwy 87/287! This took us through the back roads (sort of) of Texas and into New Mexico. It was beautiful! We made it to I-25 just ahead of the New Mexico/Colorado border and made out way up to Pueblo, which was our stop for that night! Once we got the cats settled in, we decided to grab a bite to eat! Off to Arby’s we went! The girl who took my order could not understand my southern accent, so I had to repeat my order about 5 times! Hahaha! So, we get back and finish our dinner and head to bed! The next morning, which was the 23rd! We were back on I-25 and headed to Denver (and Denver is gorgeous!!)! From Denver we kept north to Cheyenne, Wyoming! This part of the trip was a complete bore, as was the rest of the trip from Wyoming through much of Montana! We stayed in Billings, Montana (more horrible roads by the way) for our 3rd night. We headed out the next morning, the 24th, on I-90! Once we got into the Mountains of Montana, it was a lot better, even though the winding roads that took us up and down and all around the mountains (cue in “She’ll be coming ’round the mountain lol) were making me dizzy! We arrived at the US/Canada border around 3pm, the line was so long! It took us about 45 minutes just to get to the little window where they take all your information! They had us pull around to the main building, so we could get cleared through immigration and traffic (for our goods). This only took about 20 minutes! We were then on our way to Calgary from the border! That seemed like the longest part of the trip because we were so anxious to get into the city! As soon as we saw the skyline, we floored it!

Calgary has gotten so much more beautiful and has really grown since we lived here last! I was worried about navigating but after a few mistakes and getting lost only a couple of times, I’ve nearly mastered the major roads! Jo called me a true Calgarian yesterday, after I was chugging down a French Vanilla Cappuccino, yelling at the drivers that were going to slow and getting in my way! Haha! It’s not nearly as bad as the city of Atlanta where traffic is concerned but man, some of the drivers here are complete jerks!

Jo has an interview for his second job at 12:30pm today! He’s going to work 7 days a week for a few months, until I am legal to work here! He says that I may not even have to work but I want to, so!

Like I said in the previous entry, we’ll be able to move into our apartment by Friday afternoon! They’re painting the walls and replacing the appliances, including the dishwasher! Yippee!! It’s a one bedroom, one bath but there’s a small room on the left when you walk in, which has been granted to the cats! We went out looking at furniture yesterday and found a lovely chocolate brown, suede sofa! It’s called “The Aviator”. We found a recliner to match! We also stopped by Ikea and browsed through the beds and accessories. As much as I love their stuff, the store is laid out horribly. You have to go way out of your way to get out of the dang thing, even if you don’t purchase anything! At one point, Jo took off with the store map to talk to his mom on the cell outside, I was left browsing around and it didn’t take long at all for me to get completely lost in the 2 story building! I was a little grumpy for an hour or so after that but I got over it. haha!

Anyway, that’s the run-down on the last weeks events!

We are hoping to have everything turned on Friday morning, so hopefully we’ll have permanent internet by the weekend! :]

We made it! Yes, we did! We arrived on Saturday, March 24th and are safe and sound!!! Jo starts his new job next Wednesday and we move into our new apartment Friday! Speaking of the apartment, I must tell you.. it has a beautiful view of the Rocky Mountains, hardwood floors throughout and stone tile in the bathroom and kitchen!! We are staying with Jo’s good friend, Brian and Brian’s girlfriend, Jill. They’re really awesome and we cannot thank them both enough for allowing us to “crash” here until the apartment is ready!

Anyway.. more updates later. It’s a bit late!!!

Well, it will be starting tomorrow. Haha!! I wasn’t going to update again before leaving but I’m anxious and have a little time to kill! The cats are at the vet, they’re getting their shots again! Crazy, but all of the apartments and customs said we had to have their records that were no more than 30 days old and they got their shots last in December 2006! We’re also scheduled to talk to the vet at 3pm about the tranquilizer deal because my dad decided, last minute, that he did not want to take them to the airport for us. Lame!! So, the cats will be taking this journey with us!! I just wanted them to be comfortable and somehow I don’t think they’re going to be, riding in the car for 3-4 days! There’s nothing that can be done about that at this point though. My sister, mom and I are having some tension the last couple of days. It’s a long story and personal to my sister, so out of respect for her, I will not go into it here! My sister wouldn’t be able to do this anyway because of the kids and her work. Mama wouldn’t either because of my grandmother and her work. There’s just no one else that I would be able to put this on and be comfortable with it, so.. that’s that!

The truck is completely loaded and by completely, I really mean weighed down and bulging! I don’t think there’s anything else that we can cram into it! We still have to load the cooler and cats (in their kennels) though, that’s all the room we have left! We didn’t get to take as much as we wanted but we’re taking enough to get us by until we can get other things shipped up to us!

I guess I should primp myself. We’ll be headed back to the vet and then my mom’s! I doubt I’ll be back online at all before leaving so be well everyone! I will catch back up when I get settled in a new city.. a new country (though same continent).. and new home!

In closing I’d like to add… *sings* Oh the road again.. just can’t wait to get on the road again.. lol

Well then! So last week I did the whole hair cut / style, right? Well, last night I decided I’d just put in some highlights which were sort of bronze colored, according to the box. My hair was nearly black prior to doing this! Well, the color didn’t take all over, only from the roots to about 2 inches down. Yuck. All I could do was laugh really, it’s not like it can’t be fixed! So, today I decided I’d take that as a hint and just try something different, yet not new! I went with a dark auburn brown. Buzz, buzz, buzz! That only took to the area that was highlighted, which has never happened before and I’ve done color like this before! It’s always taken in the past but nope, not today! I look ridiculous!! lol!! I guess you could say I have a “hair don’t” at this point! I went back and bought a dark brown / natural black color that I’ll use to cover this mess! I am so disappointed that the auburn didn’t turn out. Pffth!

Did anyone catch Dancing With The Stars? I think Joey Fatone, Ian Ziering and Apollo are my favorites this season! I do miss Emmitt though! :]

So, things with the export on the truck are settled! I won’t have to register my truck in Canada for 30 days after my arrival, thank goodness!! We’re still waiting on permission from our lien holder but customs said that was ok because I would be considered a visitor for the first 30 days anyway! Sheewww!! We are going to be heading out around 5am Wednesday morning! We’re hoping to arrive in Calgary late Friday or early Saturday! I really didn’t want to get there on the weekend because we really wanted to hit the apartment hunting early! We’ve found several that we like but we’d like to see the location and interiors (in person) before committing and such!

I’ll be heading to my mom’s for a few hours tomorrow evening, so I’m not sure if I’ll update again before getting to Calgary. If not, I’ll catch up and check in when I get there! ;]

Half asleep, staring up at the ceiling and counting the little glow in the dark stars I placed there in high school (for the record, they weren’t glowing, it was 9am lol)… my sense of smell picks up on something!! Something that smells sort of sweet, yet sort of salt too. I decided to go ahead and get up to see what this “smell” was. As I open the bedroom door, I realize it’s Jo cooking. I proceed to the edge of the stairs, where I hear him moving around in the kitchen, as he’s cooking. I thought I heard him say something but further reviews makes me realize that he’s not “talking”, he’s humming. But what, you ask? The theme to Sanford and Son!!!!!!!!!!!! hahahahahaha! If there ever was a dork…

I’m supposed to be going shopping today, with my sister Nikki! I found some adorable capri’s that were marked down to $11.99 and an additional 40% off. I also need to keep looking for some pants, I’m on a mission for a black pair! Hrmf! I found some cute Tommy flip flops too, I know it’ll be a while before I can wear them but they’re on sale at The Shoe Dept, for $11!!

Anyway!

I’m going to go help finish with cooking breakfast! We’re making pork & bacon with egg, stuffed in crescent rolls! mmmm!!! I also need to get cracking on a caramel cake for my sister! I made one last night but Jo couldn’t resist and dove right into it! ;]

Well, we hit a little snag. We were all set to leave on Saturday, that was on Thursday! My, my how things can change! I sent off for my passport, which I won’t have before leaving. That’s perfectly ok because I’m going to be entering Canada in a private vehicle, so proof of citizenship to the US is all I’d need. Well, anyone who’s applied for a passport knows that when you apply for a passport, you have to submit your birth certificate. It didn’t dawn on me at the time of doing my passport application, that I’d be sending the only copy of my birth certificate that I have/had. Durhhhhhhhhhh, right?! So, I started to panic Thursday, realizing that I’d done this. I was born in a different county, near Atlanta, GA. It’s about 2 and a half hours from here. I had to get up early Friday morning and travel to the Health Department there and get a new copy because the passport process is delayed so much since January. Well, along with this, we didn’t realize how much we had to do concerning “exports” of items. I phoned the border patrol where we’d be crossing and they told me to go to their website, read the information under “exports”, fill out the form and submit all items by fax to them 72 hours prior to our “crossing”. Sounded easy enough at the time… hmmfff! Not at all!! Since our vehicle isn’t paid off in full yet, we have to obtain permission from the lien holder! So we’re now waiting on the “ok” from them to export my truck into Canada. We cannot leave before doing this, otherwise we’ll face a $500 penalty at the border. Yikes!!!

So, just wanted to give a quick update. They said it will likely be Monday before we get this “ok”, so hopefully by Tuesday or Wednesday we’ll finally be on our way!!

I need to get going now though, I have to head over to my aunts and help her move some things out to her shed! :]

I wasn’t sure about a subject! This entry will likely be all over the place. hahaha!!

I’ve decided to do something different with my hair! I’m thinking of going a bit shorter. Perhaps somewhere between chin-length and shoulder-length. I’m having my stylist do chunky layers too, since I wear my hair wavy so often these days. The layers will give more wave action. I’d do my hair curly but my hair is honestly a pest! It’s naturally curly, yet wavy in some spots and right along my face, it’s straight as a board. For the first couple of years of my life, I had pure ringlets it was so curly.. of course, it was also blonde back then. haha! From about the age of 5 or so until I was 26ish, I wore it straight. Sometimes I’d roll it or curl it but never styled it as “naturally” curly or wavy. Not until about a year and a half to two years ago. It’s a lot easier to do this way than it is to spend 45 minutes blow drying (my hair is also quite thick!) and another 20 minutes straightening out the stubborn areas with a straightener. I’ve also rarely ever used hair products in my hair, like gel/hair spray/mouse/putty. I guess you could say I’m a n00b, to a degree but I’m starting to master these things. I want something different than I’ve had before but I’ve honestly tried many, many styles. I’ve done the “shag”, I’ve done the “bob”, I’ve done the “blunt cut” and I’ve done the stacked-do that’s short in the back, longer in the front… and several styles in between. The last time I had my hair cut/styled, I went with what they called a “punk shag”. I still don’t understand this style, it just looked like choppy layers and not so much the shag style. Jo doesn’t want me to go too short, neither does my mom. It has nothing to do with not liking my hair in shorter lengths, they just end up being on the receiving end of my tears and “omg, my hair is so short”’s! lol!! I can’t blame them. A bad hair cut can be devastating, well, not necessarily bad but you know what I mean.

I think I’m going to do it though. I’m just going to fly with it because it’s time for a change and what better time for something like this than now! I think I’m going to color it today too. Two toned. Right now it’s nearly black, which is nice with my fair skin and green eyes but I’m thinking of going closer to my natural hair color for a while, which is a medium/brassy/reddish brown. The second color, I think, will be like a honey highlight or something. Then again, I might just leave it as the single color if I like it enough.

Here’s a couple of samples of what I am thinking about;

What else..

I think this “move” has finally hit me. I’m still super excited and happy about it but it’s sinking in that I will not be a hop-in-the-car and just-down-the-road from my family. My biggest concerns with that are with my surviving grandparents, my mom and my nephews. Both my grandpa (dad’s side) and grandmother (mom’s side) are not doing so well. Of course I’d be right back here if something should go wrong but still. My mom and I are really close now, like best friends and it’s going to be hard not having her to hug or having our “slumber parties” anymore, well, not until either of us visit the other. I’m going to hate being apart from my nephews and basically watching them grow up from afar. I’m sure my sister, her fiance and the kids will eventually visit but it’ll be nothing like going 2 miles down the road to hang out. I’m going to be nearly 3000 miles away! Three thousand miles! I know they say that home is where the heart is but how could that be realistic? My heart is in many places! It’s right here, in Georgia! It’s in Newfoundland! It’s going to be in Calgary, as I fell in love with the city and will have my husband and cats with me. But seriously, it’s going to be hard. Especially the first few months.

I joke around with my mom sometimes, saying how this move is going to be the hardest thing.. yet it’s so easy for me to do. Sounds crazy, right? The hard part is letting go of family and friends that have kept me anchored in a place I no longer feel happy with. The easy part is moving on to something better, giving myself and family the things we both need / want. I can’t give that here because the cost of living is ridiculous when you take into account that the job market barely exists in small-town America anymore. I’m going to love being in Calgary, I know I will and I don’t have to be convinced of that at all. I’m going to be near the Rocky Mountains, in a beautiful city with so much I can do and so many photographic opportunities! That’s why I’m excited! I just can’t deny my sadness though.

Tonight, I’m spending hours on end with my adorable nephews Tyler, Landon and Trent. Nikki asked me and Jo to come over for dinner and a movie. Tomorrow, I’m having lunch with my grandpa and then I’ll be going to my mom’s and spending as much time as possible with my mom, Tammy and my grandmother. When I get home, I’ll spend time with my dad and Kim before trying to get some rest for my big, first day of travel on Saturday. We’re going to leave around 4 or 5am. Why so early? It’s going to be my longest travel day. I want to drive as far west as possible on my first day, plus those of you into “Nascar” (not for me, sorry to say!) know that the race is at the Atlanta Motor Speedway. I’m sure there’ll be lots and lots of nasty traffic and if you have never been graced with the traffic of Atlanta.. just know this, it STINKS! When I had to photograph my best friend’s wedding a couple of years ago, we had to travel through Atlanta to get to Roma, GA. We were nearly stopped from the Tangier Outlet (maybe 30 miles from downtown I guess) from 4:30pm - 7pm. Worst traffic delay I’ve ever been in to date.

Well, this entry has turned out to be pretty long and started out rather girly. lol! My apologies! haha! I need to get going though. I have so much to do today. I need to cash our income tax checks (we were good and decided if we cashed them, we’d want to spend them haha). Then I need to go get this hair of mine chopped off. After that, I’m going to check out some of the local stores for sales. I really need some pants. Speaking of, why is that places around here seem to stop selling pants the second it heats up? Seriously, people do wear pants year-round! All I could find yesterday was capri’s, which I love but I won’t be able to wear those for a couple of months yet! After that, I’ll be heading to my sisters for the evening / night!

I’m sure I’ll update this blog at least once more before I leave on Saturday but for now, I must sign off!

Brandon? Are you kidding me? Sure, he forgot some of the words. Uhm, hello, cough Haley anyone??!! I’m sorry if you’re a fan but the girl just isn’t stacking up to the rest at all! I thought Brandon was a heck-of-a-lot better than Haley!! She wasn’t even in the bottom three!!! I don’t understand why she’s still in this competition! She’s got a pretty face, I’ll give her that.. but modeling would certainly go better for her! If she isn’t voted off next, I’m going to start to think this entire thing is rigged from the beginning (which I guess could be true either way lol)!! Sanjaya would’ve even been a better vote tonight.. I think America hath made a boo boo!!

I really hope Jordin wins! She’s adorable and has an awesome voice! I guess I should keep my Georgia loyalty up and say Stephanie is my favorite but I’d rather be honest! tehe! She can sing, but Jordin just has a spark!!