dreaming over the ocean

So, i don't really know if i quite call myself a rower anymore. but, every once and a while these days, I jump in a boat. So, this was at head of the fish regatta last weekend. Lots of fun, in a mixed boat of the four coaches from my team, and 4 of the rowers. 7 seat, how i love sitting in you. donna, how i miss having you sit in front of me... Club d'aviron Montreal | Mixed Collegiate Eight

so, I woke up at 4:45, with the intention of going to le bassin d'aviron, to coach this morning. this, to me, is normal. remember how I have said that something strange happens to me every day in Montreal. Well, it is 7:30, and I am sitting in a cafe, not at practice. My girls are probably just coming off the water now. first off, I missed my bus, by about 15 seconds* At that point, I though: "hmmmm, so this is how the day is going to go..." so, i speed walk 15 minutes down the hill, to get to the metro. get into the metro on time, and wait for it to start (if I ride it to practice in the morning, I have to get the first one.) We hear the electricity start up, and promptly in about 1 minute, there is an announcement: Le service de metro est introrumpter pour une temps indeterminer. The metro service is down for an undetermined amount of time. oh crap. so, I wait. and wait. and wait. 45 minutes- an hour later, i determine that there is no point in going to the ...

just sent this email to a friend of mine. life is funny... Have a physiology exam tomorrow night. sigh. so much work these days! but, i *love* physiology, so, that is okay. I am just worried that they will ask tricky questions.... rolled my ankle on a root last night on a evening run through the park. it was dark. ouch! and, i thought "oh, it will be fine." today, icing and elevation last night.....swolllllen! made a decision about my first 70.3 in the spring... MOOSEMAN! in new hampshire, in early june. Yay! so excited! when I was walking to school yesterday, I saw a man fall on his face. ironic thing was that it was about 50 meters in front of the door of a hospital. but, blood gushed *everywhere* and i was able to practice my "firstaid/nursing" skills :) and, i think my contacts are in the wrong eyes this morning... ugh. ha ha, that is about it! just a day in the life of amo!

for a regatta this weekend, coaching. and it is raining. a lot. it sucks. had to deal with an almost hypothermic girl this morning. bad weather is not what i miss about rowing, and i am sooooo glad that I do not have to be on the water right now. .... Despite the fact that is was sooooooooo wet today, (pretty much i stopped caring if i were walking in shin deep puddles with DC shoes on) we had a great day~ one of my girls one a medal in a single, and there were a couple of other strong performances and top 3 finishes! wooo! at the end of the day, I was able to take off for a little 30 minute run. And, it was amazing. so beautiful! Saratoga Springs is so beautiful! the fall colours on the road that I ran down were incredible, and breath taking. And, it stopped raining. And, i could *smell* and *see* and *feel* and *hear* the fall. and, i remembered why i think the fall is my favourite season. good day today... good day.

so, i woke up this morning, with the intention that I was going to ride my bike to rowing practice. It was a bit damp outside, but, okay. I can deal with that. but, I was still hesitant, since I have not been riding it as of late. but, today was the day that I was going to drop it off a shop. So, here we go... got on my bike, and left. cruised down the hill. and, the weird thing about it is that i ride my bike to practice every morning.* nothing new, here. but, i was riding, and then i crossed the bridge, and then i looked up. there i was, in the middle of who-knows-where. same path that i take everyday. and, all of a sudden, I was lost. It took me a good 7 minutes to figure out what was happening, and where i was going. i mean. comon'. who gets lost on a bike ride that they take every day?!?! [apparently: i. do.] got to the boat house, and realized that i didn't bring any "regular clothes" for the day. only warm "morning practice" clothes, an...

so, I finally have been able to bring my bike to a shop. sigh. so excited to get it worked on, and to not be afraid to ride it, with fear of hurting it.... but, it is also a little scary to bring it to a shop that i know nothing about, except for the fact that online, it seems pretty good. but, i left feeling like I was going to feel slightly violated once I get the invoice. sigh. We'll see. today includes: going to gym, going and visiting a client in the community, and eating yummy meals with my rowing team, and my mum's close friend. sounds pretty good to me. so much going on in life right now, that i will follow up with a big long post in a day or two. Heading down to Saratoga, NY, this weekend, to go to a regatta.... Ahhhh, Fall in New York state. Beautiful .... i suppose. as long as it is not freezing. and raining.

so, I would like to preface this by reminding you that this is my second M.Sc. Indeed, apparently, I cannot stop going to school. apparently, I like the anxiety, and possibly the challenge or the stress. on the other hand, maybe i like to learn. learning is fun. despite the fact, that more often than not.... [learning. is. hard.] [both in life. and. school] so, on that note, i write to say that I have just completed my second mid-term exam. well, really my first *big* one. and, it was pharmacology. if you don't know what that is. well, don't bother learning it. it is really not important. but, it is a science, in the biological realm. it is hard. it has a lot of information, and apparently, a big class. i haven't been in a big class for years. and, it has also been years that I have had to write an exam like that. so, with a weekend of anti-social behaviour, lots of caffiene, and a little word to the one upstairs, I went in knowing I had done all I could. and,...

pharmacology. mid-term exam. tomorrow night. lots of info. ugh. blog settings. can't really read title, on top of new heading photo. wish i knew how to make the "description" lower. can anyone tell me how?

not sure if i expected photos like this to surface any time soon! ha ha! awesome. these are from my summer in Cameroon, with Teen Missions, in 2001. So, I had just graduated High School, i broke my arm falling off a roof, fell in love, was called to full time service in africa, and had an all round amazing summer. here are some funny photos! our eating circle hanging out with the local kids (love the glasses!) Debrief in Switzerland!

so, robbed this off of simon whitfield's blog. also, excited to say that my friend kristen melberg has just joined the same Tri team that I joined last week~ so, that means: me, donna, kristen, and Coach Mary (the four of us with fleur de lys necklaces!!!) who raced in NOLA are going to be training together.... well, together meaning: via the internet.... here are Kirsten and i, post IMNOLA 70.3 and our spectathletes! and, in other great news: yesterday was a day of surprizes and answered.prayers. got a package containing a beautiful gift from a friend in the mail. got a letter from BC student aid with my new loan agreement in it, meaning that i can get that fricken thing processed! sigh. yesterday was a good chapter in my story. well, maybe a mini addendum!

not much to say, just some photos from the recent past: Prince Edward Island Fishing village. Sept 2009 Fall colours in the laurentians. fall sitting in the laurentians. Not so much a lake, as a swamp. but, still pretty. McGill Outdoor Club "new members" weekend. Self-portrait, North Point Prince Edward Island

so, I am sitting in Toronto (well, a suburb of..) at my uncle's place, and will be here for the next few days (it is a long weekend~ thanksgiving!), and i am soooo happy to be away from montreal for the weekend. everything has just been a little overwhelming the last little while, and i am due for a break. my uncle has been doing triathlon and long distance running for a long time. he is a IM completer, and a current sprint tri affectiano... (is that a word?!) at any rate, we have good talks about swim.bike.run. and, sitting outside of the room i am staying in is a indoor trainer, and a nice light set of zipps. His kids, my cousins, are also very athletic, working in bike shops, loving cross country ski racing, and running... i have another cousin on this side of my family (my mom's side) who is a 2:59 marathon runner. so, at any rate... there is at least there are a few of my family members who appreciates my little obsession. talking about that... new set of running shoes...

to those of you who read this via a feed on facebook... it is much more exciting if you just link to my actual blog! recently, one of my profs declared, "remember that no matter what, no matter how your day is going, you are going home at the end of the day. Your client, most likely, is staying at the hospital." And, to me, that might be one of the statements that will form my nursing career. remember, that you are going home. last night, I had a good "dang, i want to go home right now" thought when going to bed. and, then i sent a text message to a number of my friends [the ones who believe. in. the. power. of. prayer] to get them to pray for me, just to know that i am supported. yesterday, was a day that was frustrating in my books. a frustrating email, a frustrating meeting, and a day where everything seemed to take longer than planned. in addition, my running shoes were lost at the regatta on the weekend. it was raining while i was on the water, and things...

first off, "hello" to all the people linking over from bikesnob. this is me. with (maybe not) my bike. and a mountain... so, i guess that it has been a while since i have had a fairly decent post. yesterday, was a day that was laced with annoyances, and kinda made me realize that there are so many things right now that are wearing on me. my student loan got screwed up . I am still waiting for the $ which was supposed to arrive in my account on the 1st of september. I have eaten through my savings with moving and "getting started in school" expenses, and I HATE that I have had to ask many people to help me out, especially my parents. I feel like virtually every day is a day that i am thinking "if i spend this 2$ on coffee, what am going to have to cut out later." or, "dang, i have to phone my automatic withdrawals, and tell them that they cannot take it out because it will bounce." I HATE that I am 26, and feel like i have to rely totally on othe...

Ha ha! so, today, the highlight might be the fact that I just made the second comment post on bikesnob. this, to me, is hilarious, because i soooooooo don't care. but, it is definitely humourous, because i always tend to think "sigh, those 1st commenters are so lame!" and, now, i am a lame 2nd commenter. ha!