finally some excitement!

Sorry about the long silence. August was crap and not much worth writing about. Yuck.

But! It is September and I am feeling better. This weekend I got to both check out the Elora Quarry (a quarry with a spring in it and a little sandy beach - I swam around for over an hour) and a conservation area near Guelph (the downstairs neighbours were kind enough to bring me along on that one). It also had a little pond to swim in, which was quite cool. (Although then we went and sat by a stinky lakeshore for hours - didn't quite get that one, you couldn't even swim).

And now I have been invited along on a portaging trip to Killarney, which I am very excited about. It was a tough call, as this is a terrible week to be gone - I will be missing all the orientation stuff at Guelph once again, plus my first Neuroscience class. Bad. But I am SO dying to get out of here, and I couldn't pass up the chance to try portaging! We are renting a canoe onsite and (according to Neighbour Mark) not doing more than 5-6 hours paddling and portaging per day. It looks gorgeous and it's not supposed to rain (though I can imagine it will be freezing). I am currently packing massive piles of trail mix and quinoa for the trip. Exciting!

So see you after, if I don't get eaten by a bear... we should be back Saturday night.

Accomplishment

Today I ran up the insane steps that separate the Ward (where I live) from the posh bits of Guelph. RAN up them! I walk up them on a weekly basis to get groceries, and even that usually kills me after. On the way down I counted them. 106 - and pretty steep at that. I suppose it would be a very cheap fitness challenge to try and work my way up to running up them and THEN not collapsing afterwards!

the kindness of strangers

Things have gone all to heck with work. We should have been able to start testing my first real experiment for my PhD (code name Hot or Not) tomorrow. All was ready to go... until my undergrad assistant happened to mention today that she just remembered that one of the people she tested earlier in the summer while I was away had invalid data because the computer died halfway through testing. This data was what we were basing tomorrow's stuff on, and now I find it is all wrong. Everything has to be reanalyzed without that guy's data included, which takes ages.

So I found myself at the lab late today. I started around 3. It was almost 9pm by the time I looked up, so thought I should be getting home. I got outside, and the storm of the century was upon us! (see above).

It wasn't raining yet, but there was a HUGE lightshow above me - sheet lightning every few seconds, flickering all over the sky. I was terrified (I fear being hit by lightning!) But buses stop at 6pm on Sundays in Guelph (STUPID GUELPH!) so I couldn't catch a ride home.

Then the rain started. Torrential. I didn't have a coat because it was incredibly hot and muggy today, so I was soaked through within minutes.

I was huddled under a tree*, praying (SCARED OF LIGHTNING!) when a guy in red car pulled up and asked if I wanted a ride.

THANK YOU!

My rescuer said he hoped he didn't seem creepy, but he remembered being a student with no car (and he had rescued an old lady and her shopping during Tuesday's storm). I said, nope, not creepy, and I am incredibly grateful. He was a pilot called Cory who was just on his way home. He drove me to my block (not the exact house - I'm not THAT trusting) and now I am watching the storm with the lights out because the power keeps dying anyway. Incredible light show. My rescuer said he heard there were tornado warnings too, but haven't seen any funnel clouds yet.

I hope Cory got home safe**, but I will forever be thankful... and pick up all soaked pedestrians during lightning storms if I ever get a car.


* contrary to my dad's opinion, I DO know enough to come in out of the rain, even if trees might attract lightning!

** and that the rain hasn't knocked all my tomatoes off - they are almost ready!

There's a Reason that I Hate This Town

Well, there are many and none. It's not Guelph's fault, I suppose, but I want out of this place. I wish I'd coughed up the money/time away from work and gone back to Alberta for Folk Fest/Leslie's wedding/family holiday. Bah. As it is, I'm stuck here in the rain and everyone I remotely enjoy the company of has left town en mass. Lucky rats.

Lego masonry

Excellent use of Lego... Bricks are bricks, I guess!

Awesome.

baked lard
Serves 3
You will need:

* 150ml brandy
* 150g lard

Preparation:

* sift the brandy
* barbeque the lard
* throw it all away



Get your own random recipe here!

WJ

Oh yeah, forgot to mention last night in my exhausted haze that Will's beard stole the show.... all of Wales was very impressed (or horrified, I couldn't tell which!) My friends were a little surprised by his penchant for composing sermons at parties rather than dancing, but pronounced him "cute as a button".