New Year's Resolutions: 09-10 Edition

Greetings on and all, it is time once more for a Glenergized Season Premiere, as I finish my summer sabbatical. Since the new school year is starting soon, I feel it important to make a few resolutions given that a new school year represents a new beginning for those of us in the field of education.

Increased Focus on Teaching:

I feel very good about how my rookie year on the International Teaching Circuit went. However, with all the time I spent learning how to “China” I was certainly guilty of not focusing enough on the task at hand.

Cook More:

I love cooking, but I have certainly gotten lazy with all of the cheap restaurants that can be found around Suzhou. I am certainly guilty of one of the habits which I decried as “Ineffective”.

Weigh Less:

This is heavily tied to the above point. Restaurant food is certainly a contributor to my expanding waist line. While I do not consider myself to be overweight or fat, I definitely weigh more than I did a year ago. My goal by the end of the year is to be back to somewhere in the 160-165 pound range.

Learn more Chinese:

Ugghhhh....there are moments when this language has been the bane of my existence. I find it exceptionally difficult to master and remember, but yet I know that it is important for me to do, especially while I am here in the country. I think that I have been decent at learning Survival Mandarin, but I certainly have a long way to go if I hope to be the next Da Shan.

(Quick Aside: For an excellent article on the trials and tribulations of learning Mandarin, give “Confessions of a Chinese Language Student” by Ericka a read over. It's ridiculously funny.)


Write More:

I certainly have not been the best blogger this past year. While I split this blog up last year, started writing for Lost Lao Wai, and even made a contribution to a Travel Site, I feel like I have been writing less than I was in the past few years. I plan on fixing that one, and I guess this post is a good start.

Until next time,

G

Fun With Wolfram Alpha

My apologies for not being the best, and certainly not the most diverse blogger of late. But it turns out that running a second blog, posting for another one, the Great Firewall of China, and you know, real life, are rather large drains on a person.

Another reason for my detachment from this bit of space has been my newest distraction, a wonderful website called Wolfram Alpha. This website if part of a very ambitious project to make the sum of human knowledge immediately computable. Sort of like Wikipedia for the math geek, which makes it very clearly in my territory.

This site has dozens of features, all you have to do is type in any of their many types of inputs, including (but certainly not limited to) measurements, musical notes, geography, colours, anagrams, dietary reference, and of course good old fashion mathematical functions.

After putting in some different inputs I learned the following things about myself:

-My height, 5'10", is approximately equal to 0.97 fathoms, the length of DNA strands of the human genome, and the distance that light can travel in 5.9 nanoseconds.

-My birthday, December 30, 1982, is day number 2 455 334 on the Julian Calendar, it had 9 hours and 18 minutes of daylight in New York, and is 9643 days ago...I know, I don't look a day over 8000, but that's besides the point.

- Currently AIG has a stock value of $1.70 while Freddie Mac has one of $0.79. In the past five years they have had a return of -97.64% and -98.64%, respectively. Economic, what now?

- Swine Flu has 12 107 cases with 87 deaths worldwide

-My first name is ranked 502nd in the United States, with most people who share my name in their 40s and 50s, also there are an estimated 93 538 people who share the name in the US. Making my name 1 out of 2502. Not quite making me the 1 in a million that I had hoped.

-My last name, by contrast, would be ranked 191st if used as a first name, with 267 546 people in the US expected to have that as a first name. That's right my last name is almost three times more common as a first name than my own first name. Can't say that I'm the slightest bit surprised by that fact.

- In world rankings, Canada is ranked 2nd in land mass, 36th in population, 224th in population density, 136th in population growth, 8th in life expentancy, 23rd in median age, 9th in GDP, and the top three languages are English, French, and Plautdietsch. I have no idea what that third one is.

-Toronto (the closest major city to my hometown) and Suzhou (where I'm living now) are 11 460 km apart, with Toronto having an elevation of 85m higher.

-The title of this blog, is sadly not a recognized word, when I entered glen_______ into the crossword feature, I got no recognizable words.

- When asked "How many roads must a man walk down before you can call him a man?", it said "The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind (according to Bob Dylan)". Hard to argue with that one.

- However, it does not know the answer to "How do they get the caramel in the Caramilk bar?" or "Where in the world is Carmen Sandiego?". I guess the developers need to word on that one.

While they need to get to work on answering those last two questions, there is still a lot of fun to be had, and a lot of useless junk to learn. Go ahead and give it a try!

Until next time,

G

20 Meaningful Albums

After the wild success of the "25 Random Things" on Facebook, it seemed destined that music geeks around the world would find something to combat this meme. Thankfully, there was indeed something to come out. I was tagged of this one the Book, and decided that it would be better served as a blog post as well. Feel free to copy this idea (since I clearly did) and post it yourself, and if you are writing this on Facebook, please tag 20 (or so) people who you would like to know about their musical tastes.

The rules for this are simple, find 20 albums that mean the most to you and tell us why. These do not need to be in any particular order, and in no means should represent your thoughts on the 20 "best" albums, just ones that have a special meaning to you in some way, shape or form.

Sounds simple right? Well I thought it was going to be a simple exercise, but then I started writing, and I had a hard time stopping. It amazed me how much my history of musical tastes, is so interrelated to my own personal history, not only serving as a backdrop, but occasionally as a major player, developing a story of its own....enjoy!!!

***************************************************

1. Arcade Fire -- Funeral

I'll always remember the moment that I acquired this album. I had just got off a bus stop when I noticed someone drop something. Desiring to be the good Samaritan, I rushed through the crowd to pick it up and return it, however, by the time that I fought my way over to what they had dropped, the very person had boarded the very bus that I just got off from and the doors closed, leaving me with a CD in my hand. After processing the events, I went home, and curiously put it into my stereo, and everything changed.

Alright, so I made that all up. My story of how I cam across the most meaningful piece of art is far less romantic than that, and to be honest, is a little bit sad.

Like most of my musical moments of my University days, they traced back to one man, Ryan McNutt. See McNutt (whose blog I have linked to on multiple occasions), is far more of a music geek than I have ever been, and has provided me with countless suggestions and insights into music at different points in time.

It was late in 2004, and I was discussing some record or another that should be the album of the year, and he interjected and told me that his pick was by a Montreal band called “The Arcade Fire”. I nodded and said that I would check it out. The next day, I went out and downloaded a few of their songs, and to be honest, I was not all that impressed. I thought that they were good, but far from great, and I paid them little attention for months.

Then one day, while I was more or less dissatisfied with my life, “Rebellion (Lies)” came on my iTunes shuffle, and I heard something different. Something resonated with me that wasn't there before. I can't place my finger on it, but it just sounded...better.

The next time I found myself in a record store, I knew that I needed to buy this album. While I had heard most of the songs on it before, I had yet to hear it that way before, and in that particular context. I was amazed at the symmetry of the album, and how beautifully all of the songs were put together (in particular “Haiti” and “Rebellion (Lies)”). I was spell bound at the art work on the cardboard case. I studied the lyrics and extracted meanings upon meanings.

My lack of income and fast internet connection had turned me into a downloader for most of my University days. I had forgotten the beauty in an album, the story it tells from it's opening song, down to its aesthetics. Thankfully, along came Funeral and reminded me that an album really is more than a collection of songs, it can be something so much more.

While I could go on and on about my love for this album, I suppose that I have committed to talking about 19 others...

2. Nirvana -- Unplugged in New York

Back in the mid-90s these new things called “CDs” came out. Apparently they were much more convenient and durable than tapes. Needless to say, my younger sister and I wanted them, badly. But we had quite the problem, no CD player. We asked Santa for one, but nothing came. We saw how great they were at friends house, and longer for one of our own, when finally our mother gave in and bought one for our house.

Since we obviously needed to expand our collection, my mother signed us up for one of those stupid record clubs that the internet has thankfully killed. For those of you who don't remember, there were these companies that gave out deals were you could buy 12 CDs for 1 cent each, if you bought several other CDs for a vastly inflated price. It sounds like a good deal and all, but to be honest, the choices of CDs simply weren't any good.

My mother told me that I could pick out as many of them from the list as I wanted, and I did not really liked any of them, so I ignored it. I am sure now that if I looked back I would find all sorts of hidden gems and CDs that I would absolutely adore, but that simply was not the case when I was 12.

I wanted what all pre-teens want more than anything, acceptance from their peers. I was always looking for some bands on this master list that I had heard of, and finally I noticed one that was not The Backstreet Boys. I was a little bit too young and dorky to get into Nirvana when it mattered, but I knew that I had heard a few of their songs on the radio and I did like them, so I jumped when I saw Unplugged in New York.

I discovered a host of other great CDs (including several other by Nirvana), and this one became largely forgotten. However, when I entered a more adult phase of my musical life I rediscovered how beautiful this live album is. When I listen to it now, I am amazed that my 12 year old self could appreciate something as mellow, raw, and nostalgic as this album, but somehow I did. I'd like to think that it was other reasons than just wanting to fit in, but that may be a little hard to say now.

3. Cake -- Fashion Nugget

There are many advantages to having an older sibling, but one of the most tangible is an earlier parent free access to a car. Of course, one of the other advantages to this is that you get to listen to their much older (and usually better) musical tastes while they are driving.

While my older sister, has introduced me to a great deal of excellent bands (and I'd like to think that I have repaid her in recent years) one of the ones that really sticks out to me is Cake. They are a band that is not so big, so I can not really assume that I would have found them on my own, and certainly not so early. Either way, this would quickly become the sound track for car rides with my two sisters, and very much remains a band with a strong familial connection for me (and presumably the other two as well). Special mention to “Stickshifts and Safetybelts”, THE definitive road-tripping song.

4. Everclear -- So Much for the Afterglow

Another album that has a special place in our family to me. The major exception being that my older sister and I arrived at this one independently of one another, and to no surprise, we both loved it.

The songs of a broken family held a special resonance with me at a particularly challenging time in my teenage life. The song “I Will Buy You a New Life” was particularly poignant for me in my summer before I was about to move to Nova Scotia, and start a new life of my own. Whenever I hear this CD I am taken to a bit of a hard place, but am relieved to know that I made it out fine enough.

5. Eminem -- The Slim Shady LP
6. Eminem -- The Marshall Mathers LP

Eminem's major label debut was another musical gift from my older sister, as she had heard it just before it really broke through. I fell in love with his witty and relevant lyrics, violence and anger aside. It is worth noting that this was shortly after I moved to Nova Scotia, and I remember being mocked for my choice in “scary death music”, but that just led to me listening to this amazing album on my own.

Of course, after a year and a bit, “The Real Slim Shady” became a huge single, and helped propel everyone to rush to the store and go for The Marshall Mathers LP.

Needless to say, I was able to listen to that one in whatever company I wanted.

7. Matthew Good Band -- Beautiful Midnight

Not all of my musical energies were being devoted to angry but intelligent rap at the time. There was still a rock starved side to my soul that was drowning in the sea of Brittney-pop that was the late 90s/early 00s.

Thankfully, I found an outlet with this aptly titled, beautiful album.

I think that this is legitimately one of the best put together albums I have ever heard. The track listing here is near perfect. Instead of just going with the traditional track number, each song was given an hour of the night, and each song matched the mood of that particular time. My favourite of course being “Let's Get it On” for midnight.

8. New Radicals -- Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too

I have a bit of a strange story to acquiring this album (and a real one). See when the single “You Get What You Give” came out in 1999, I was not particularly impressed with it. I mean, it was catchy, but I just didn't seem to get it. My younger sister when out and bought the CD, and seemed to listen primarily to the single, which quickly reached one hit wonder status. I did not think too much about it and moved on.

Fast forward a few years, and I was dragged to some god-awful movie with Mandi Moore (A Walk To Remember maybe? I really don't remember, someone please help me out with this one) and it used the song “Someday We'll Know” from this CD, which I instantly recognized from the CD. Somehow, when I heard it in that theatre, I got it.

That summer when I went home, I borrowed it from my sister and listened to the CD front to back a number of times, and fell in love with it. From the stellar opening “Mother We Just Can't Get Enough” to the depressing “Crying Like a Church on a Monday” finisher, this CD has it all. It chronicles an amazing romantic journey with highs, lows, twists and turns.

Thankfully she let me keep the album from then on, and I can fully appreciate it all the time.

9. Hawksley Workman -- Lover/Fighter

Like a lot of Canadians, I grew to like both “Striptease” and “Jealous of Your Cigarette” by Hawksley Workman, mostly for their perverted connotations. I decided to purchase Lover/Fighter on a bit of a whim, and have never lived to regret it. Like the last few albums I have listed, this is amazingly put together as the character in the songs alternates between a lover and a fighter from song to song. Also, this started my backwards journey of Mr. Workman, which has led to some of my absolute favourite and personal of songs on my playlists.

10. Green Day -- American Idiot
11. Franz Ferdinand -- Franz Ferdinand
12. The Killers -- Hot Fuss

From the fall of 2004 to the spring of 2005, I worked as a Recruitment Officer for Acadia University. One of my major responsibilities was to drive around to different high schools all over the Maritime Provinces. Needless to say, this involved a lot of time alone in a car, so a good CD collection was an absolute must. I bought (and made) several CDs over the course of that year, but these three stand out as the best purchases to soundtrack the open road. Whenever I listen to any of these now, I am taken back to stunning East coast scenery and some deep and personal thoughts.

13. Arctic Monkeys -- Whatever People Say, That's What I'm Not

After a year working for “The Man”, I moved to Scotland for a year. While there I got to experience a bunch of excellent British bands the way they were meant to be experienced, fervently. However, the biggest explosion came in January of 2006, when The Arctic Monkeys released their debut album. Records were shattered, people were amazed, and great musicians earned their place in the spotlight. Not only is this a fantastic album, but it really helped me understand that depth and scope for the British passion for great music.

14. Broken Social Scene -- You Forgot It In People
15. Wilco -- Yankee Hotel Foxtrot

These two fantastic albums came into my life a little late, but were still incredibly appreciated. For a variety of reasons, these two would soundtrack any late night lesson planning or marking I was doing in either Teacher's College or during my first year of teaching. If you ever need any music to play while you are questioning your career motivations, these two albums get my highest recommendation.

16. Sufjan Stevens -- Seven Swans

While I will fully acknowledge that either the Michigan or Illinois albums are far superior to this Sufjan release, this one still holds a very special place in my heart. I first got into this album at a point that seems like a life time ago. I was really falling for this very special girl, who shall remain nameless for a variety of reasons. I would often play this very mellow and reflective album when I was alone and thinking about her. Now her and I did not work out, for another variety of reasons, but this album and I worked out just fine. Whenever her and I were together we would often listen to different music, so I never formed a direct connection between her and this album, instead these tracks became connected with the feeling of love to me. Whenever I listen to these songs (especially “The Dress Looks Nice on You” and “To Be Alone With You”) I can't help but feel like I am falling in love again, even if it is just with the gentle melodies.

17. Sigur Ros -- ( )

Last year, I was in a state of flux, starting a new career, with a very busy and demanding schedule. As a result, I had difficulties fully slowing down at the end of the day, and I would find myself tossing and turning for hours at a time before falling asleep. Thankfully, this album came along to help me. The volumes that are spoken in this album are simply astounding, despite the absence of any real language. The album seems like it was designed for someone to fall asleep to, as it starts out a little restless, but eventually clams down, only to softly stir later on.

18. Stars -- Nightsongs
19. Kanye West -- Graduation

Before I start let me get two important things out of the way: Firstly, I realize that this is an incredibly bizarre album pairing, and secondly, I am also fully aware that both of these albums pale in comparison to some of the other works by the band and artist. Last year, while living in Oakville (the suburbs of Toronto) I got to become something that I had never really been before, a semi-regular concert goer. I went to as many concerts as I could, and thoroughly enjoyed them all, however two really stand out to me, Stars in November, and Kanye West in May. Both shows were fantastic, but the most memorable moments of each show came when they played songs from the albums listed above, “On Peak Hill” and “Flashing Lights” respectively. So whenever I hear any songs of either album, I am taken back to some special moments experiencing music the way it is supposed to, in the ringing of the ears and shaking of the chest.

20. Arcade Fire -- Neon Bible

It ends how it begins.

After having such a fantastic experience with their debut album, I had lofty ambitions for their follow up, and I was not at all disappointed. When I first heard this album I was simply amazed. More than Funeral I felt that this album was made for me. “Ocean of Noise” described my previous relationship, “My Body is a Cage” described the one I was in at the time, and I feared that my future would be written in the “Neon Bible”. I listened to this album almost obsessively, even sneaking to my computer to hear it during my lunch breaks at school, and every time I found something else that was somehow, someway connected to my life at the time.

Had they written it just for me?

Obviously, I can only assume that they did not, but it felt like it at the time, and looking back I feel it still. While Funeral reunited my love for music, and reminded me of what it was capable of, Neon Bible took it a whole different level for me, and made it personal. It reminded me that music can mean a different thing to everyone in this world, and that is what makes it so special, the fact that you can genuinely feel like an artist is making something for you.

***************************************************

So there we have it, a lot longer than I anticipated, but done none the less. Hopefully you'll share your lists too, fair is fair after all!!!

Until next time,

G

Some Insights Into My Twisted Mind , Volume VI

So it's been a very, very, long time since I've last done one of these. I thought that I was going to retire this feature to be honest, but I came along this excellent little survey, reflecting the Presidential Candidates, and I must say I was pretty shocked with my own personal results.

91% Chris Dodd
90% John Edwards
90% Barack Obama
85% Mike Gravel
85% Hillary Clinton
84% Dennis Kucinich
84% Joe Biden
76% Bill Richardson
41% Rudy Giuliani
29% John McCain
25% Tom Tancredo
22% Mike Huckabee
21% Mitt Romney
18% Ron Paul
12% Fred Thompson

2008 Presidential Candidate Matching Quiz

So I always knew that I was a Liberal thinker, but I didn't think that the contrasts would be this obvious. The 8 Democratic nominees top the survey, with the 7 Republicans sitting at the bottom.

I don't know too much about Chris Dodd, since he isn't one of the front-runners, but I guess I should look more into him. Also, at a tie with 90% each, I'm not surprised that I really want to see an Obama-Edwards ticket. So I guess this site did a not bad job of pegging me. Although, I'm pretty shocked that I have even 22% in common with Mike Huckabee *shudder*.

This may be the retirement of this feature, unless something else earth shattering comes along (hello, Canadian Party Leader likeness tests, anywhere?). So I hope that you've enjoyed these posts while they've been there. Next time, I'll turn to something a little less personal.

Until next time,

G

Remembering a Princess

First off, I'd like to apologize for not posting this on Friday, I was a wee bit busy and went to my Dad's place, which is still in the stone ages and free of internet access.

I remember August 31, 1997 really well. The whole week, hell summer, was a period of intense turmoil for me. My mother, sister and I were in the process of moving from Ontario to Nova Scotia, and I was quite torn on the whole thing. I was looking forward to making a fresh start but nervous to leave my friends and the remainder of my family behind. Anyway, to make an insanely long story short, I decided at the last minute to move in with my dad and stay in Trenton and my flight back to Ontario was scheduled for August 31, 1997.

The night before I was busy packing and was quite anxious about the day ahead of me so I stayed up late playing on the old 486 that I had in my bedroom at the time and listening to the local Truro Radio Station when a news bulletin came on. I don't remember the exact wording, but it told me that Princess Diana, Dodi Al-Fayed, their bodyguard and the driver had been involved in a car accident which had killed the driver and left Diana and Dodi in critical condition. I was concerned for a moment, but ultimately indifferent, I was 14 years old and these were people I had never met after all. I eventually went to bed getting ready for the long emotional day I was about to face.

I wake up earlyish on my fateful day and as I just finish brushing my teeth and reach to turn the water on I hear a knock on the door. It was my mother, looking visibly shaken, told me that Princess Diana had died. To be honest, I thought that she was emotional since I was leaving, but in retrospect I think that it wasn't only my impending departure that had left her shocked.

After an emotional day, I leave for Toronto to be greeted by my dad and grandparents. After unloaded my stuff and complaining about the airline food, we head out to the car. I was shocked to see my dad talk to a complete stranger about how sad the events surrounding Diana were. I mean, talking to a stranger about another strangers business. It appeared so very odd.

Like everyone else, I was shocked at the events that followed, Buckingham Palace littered with flowers, intense US media coverage, the Queen staying in Scotland, the public backlash, the State Funeral, the Queen's eventual tribute, the traditionally stoic Brits bursting into tears, and of course a hit Elton John single. And like everyone else, I proceeded to allow these events to slip from my conscious and get replaced with my more immediate, tangible concerns.

Fast forward to April 2007. I was teaching in China, and the first lesson that I had to do was on British Politics and Culture. I had to watch the second half of the movie The Queen (which by the way is HIGHLY recommended) and then lead a discussion on it. Now I had never seen this movie before, and for those of you that haven't, it chronicles the Queen's tumultuous few days between Diana's death and funeral. It focuses mainly on the public backlash that she receives and how she responds to the situation. I found it especially powerful because it mixes in a variety of news clips from the time to add an intense sense of realism to the movie.

Due to my schedule, I had to repeat the lesson 6 times, each time I watched the movie I got more and more involved. I shook my head in disbelief every time I saw all of the flowers at Buckingham Palace and I was touched by the powerful words of Earl Spencer as he eulogized his sister. As I discussed the video with my classes I was amazed at how my perception of the events had transformed over a decade.

For some reason I missed Princess Diana, I wanted her to still be around, I wanted her to make a difference. I wondered what cause she would be fighting for right now. I imagined what would have happened if she had spoken out against the War in Iraq - would the Brits have even gone if she said no? How much awareness could she raise for Global Warming? What about AIDS? She did a ton of work for AIDS victims in her lifetime, how much more work could she have done in a decade?

Fast forward a little bit more to last Friday, the 10 year mark. I sit alone at my dad's place watching the news, and CBC does a special retrospective on Diana which I watch in amazement. I am amazed by all of Diana's achievements but ultimately I become amazed at myself. I was in awe of what I was doing, something that I hadn't done a decade before or 4 months previous when I was discussing it. I sat there and I cried.

Now I don't know if I was crying for a life lost, or for two motherless children, or for a better world, or maybe I was crying because I was reminded of my own personal situation.

It doesn't really matter why I cried, but the point is that I did cry, and after a decade of holding those thoughts in let me tell you, it felt good.

Until next time,

G

My Ides of March - Part 2

I am going to take a bit of a break from the wrasslin' posts for a minute and post about something I talked about a while ago, My Ides of March.

On March 27, 2006, I left Scotland. Give a click right here if you want to read the general story of that one.

I don't really have as much to add as I did for my last Ides of March entry since it is not nearly so long ago or as influential. But I just wanted to make a quick recognition as to the day and that I am thinking about it.

As I think about it, it really blows my mind as to how different these past 365 years have been for me as a result of my departure.

For starters, I would not have had the summer I did at Kodiak. I may not have gone at all or I may have gone for the second session alone. That would have robbed me of the best, most educational summer I have ever had in my life. I grew so much, I met so many people, I had the best time ever.

Second of all, my year at Nipissing would have been vastly different. Chances are I wouldn't have been so in to my section and all of the friends that I made. Therefore I am sure that my year has been so much better than it otherwise would have been.

Right now, my future is really up in the air for next year. Where to go, what to be? Stay local, go international? Stick to teaching, think about something else? I have no idea right now, but suffice to say my plans have been getting a wee bit more focused over the past couple of months, due to some wonderfully unforeseen developments. I'll keep you informed on that one blogees.

Anyway, I'm sorry that this is such a lame blog entry, first of all I'm typing this up in class, second of all I am rather exhausted and drained with school/life at the moment. Plus, I seem to only be able to be thinking about wrestling of late...

Until next time,

G

Some Insights Into My Twisted...Face???

Over the past few weeks I have seen these "Celebrity Look-alike" posts come up on Stalkbook and they have served quite entertaining. I have spent a considerable amount of time posting pictures of my face to this site to get some results. I have had everyone from Patrick Stewart to Hayden Christensen to Hugh Heffner Elle McPherson come up. But this seemed to be the one that worked out the best...mainly because there are no bald old men or female supermodels.

http://www.myheritage.com

So apparently I'm three parts Italian, one part Mummy Hunter, one part Superman, one part Android, one part obnoxious pop star, one part female news anchor and one part Jedi. This site is eerily accurate.

Anyway, I had best get back to work now...and by get back I mean start. I missed school...

Until next time,

G

My Ides of March - Part I

This time of year is a bit of a strange one for me. More than any time of year I take this opportunity to look back on my life and reflect on it a little bit. I know that is normally reserved for Birthday's, New Year's, Labour Day and all sorts of other special events, but for me it is early March. Why you ask? Well that's because tomorrow, March 7, marks a very important anniversary to me. It was on this day, 13 years ago that I found out that my parents were splitting up.

Now before you go on or start to get emotional for me, this is not one of those "life has been so hard" rants. I do not doubt that they made this decision with my (and my sisters) best interests in mind and it was undoubtedly for the best. Mom, I know that you are reading this, so please there is no need to feel guilty out there. It is not like that.

What I do this time of year, is look back and think about just how different my life is as a result of that day. Every year it always amazes me.

When I think about it, if my parent's had not gotten divorced I never would have moved to Nova Scotia, I never would have went to Acadia, I never would have met Chris Organ and found out about Kodiak, I never would have realized that I wanted to be a teacher, I never would have went vegan, I never would have met Melanie and went to Scotland for a year, I never would have lived my life the way that I have since then. I mean just for a moment think about it, how many of you, my best of friends, have I met as a result of the events I mentioned in this paragraph? Startling isn't it.

That really doesn't take into account the growing up that I had to do as a result of this. I think that I am a much stronger person than I otherwise would have been. While I still may be a big kid right now, I imagine it would have been much more profound otherwise.

Anywho, I don't really have much else to add now, I really need to get going. I don't have the usual "I love my life and all of you" closing all figured out for this entry. You are all probably getting sick of that one. I know that they are unacademic, but I love looking at my own personal counter-factuals, and wondering what my life would have been otherwise. I will look at another, more recent one in a few weeks for Part II of My Ides of March.

Until next time,

G

Some Insights Into My Twisted Mind, Volume V

I haven't done one of these in a while, and I saw this little ditty posted on my buddy Dave's Stalkbook notes, so it was really only a matter of time....

To further your insight into my mind, I figure that you all need to know which X-Man/X-Woman I would be. Clearly an important part of my personality...

*****************************************************************

You scored as Iceman. Iceman is a very powerful but volitile X-man. His ego and reluctance to follow orders means that he often clashes with Cyclops. Despite being immature sometimes, he's very popular with the ladies and is an extremely powerful X-Man. Powers: Can lower the temperature in areas around him. Basically, he has a near limitless ability to freeze things and make massive amounts of ice

Storm 75% Iceman 75% Jean Grey 70% Gambit 65% Nightcrawler 60% Emma Frost 60% Colossus 55% Rogue 55% Beast 50% Cyclops 45% Wolverine 40% Most Comprehensive X-Men Personality Quiz 2.0 created with QuizFarm.com

*****************************************************************

Well Gambit and Nightcrawler were always my favourite X-People, but I can't say that I will argue with "His ego and reluctance to follow orders means that he often clashes with Cyclops. Despite being immature sometimes, he's very popular with the ladies". Well maybe the "popular with ladies" part, but everything else adds up.

I'm kind of surprised that my Cyclops is as high as it is, Cyclops is a jerkass, I never liked him. He's too much of a by the book wiener. I also only got Iceman over Storm on a tie-breaking question, they needed to know if I was more hot headed or preferred the rain. Tough things to compare I say, but I think that I made the right decision.

So I guess looking back at all five of these things, I am a Performing, Emotional, Adventurer made of ice, who just happened to serve two terms in the Presidential Office. My personality seems to be shinning through more and more...

I feel that I have really opened up with all of you here. Now I feel kind of vulnerable for exposing so much of my soul to you. I think that I had best lie down for a while to recover.

Until next time,

G

Some Insights Into My Twisted Mind, Volume IV

I was just thinking that I needed to add another one of these up here sometime soon, and then as luck would have it we did my all time favourite bit of psycho-analysis in Management Class today. That's right this entry will not be about me being a former President, a guy with a cool hat, or a big fat loud mouth, no sirree, this one is about what colour I am.

First off, I have done the True Colours test more times than I care to name, but every time I get something a little bit different and I am absolutely fascinated by it. For those of you unfamiliar with this particular test, the purpose is to divide everyone into one of four different colours, Orange, Gold, Green, and Blue. The test is quick to point out that everyone is a bit of every colour and it is the varying degrees which make it more interesting. Just so we are all on the same page, here is the right up it says for each colour, courtesy of http://www.mytruecolors.com/:

*****************************************************************

Orange represents energy, consuming physiological potency, power, and strength. Orange is the expression of vital force, of nervous and glandular activity. Thus, it has the meaning of desire and all forms of appetite and craving. Those with Orange as a Primary Color feel the will to achieve results, to win, to be successful. They desire all things that offer intense living and full experience.

Orange generates an impulse toward active doing: sport, struggle, competition and enterprising productivity. In temporal terms, Orange is the present.

Gold is the body's natural perceptions. It represents a need to be responsible, to fulfill duties and obligations, to organize and structure our life and that of others. Those with Gold as a Primary Color value being practical and sensible. They believe that people should earn their way in life through work and service to others.

Gold reflects a need to belong through carrying a share of the load in all areas of living. It represents stability, maintenance of the culture and the organization, efficiency, and dependability. It embraces the concepts of home and family with fierce loyalty and faithfulness.

Green expresses itself psychologically as human will in operation: as persistence and determination. Green is an expression of firmness and consistency. Its strength can lead to a resistance to change if it is not proven that the change will work or is warranted. Those with Green as a Primary Color value their intellect and capabilities above all else. Comfort in these areas creates a sense of personal security and self-esteem.

Green characteristics seek to increase the certainty of their own values through being assertive and requiring differences from others in intellectual areas. They are rarely settled in their countenance, since they depend upon information rather than feelings to create a sense of well-being. Green expresses the grounding of theory and data in its practical applications and creative constructs.

Blue represents calm. Contemplation of this color pacifies the central nervous system. It creates physiological tranquility and psychological contentment. Those with Blue as a Primary Color value balance and harmony. They prefer lives free from tension... settled, united, and secure.

Blue represents loyalty and a sense of belonging, and yet, when friends are involved, a vulnerability. Blue corresponds to depth in feeling and a relaxed sensitivity. It is characterized by empathy, aesthetic experiences, and reflective awareness.

*****************************************************************

So before you all read ahead, anyone who has not done this test with me (i.e. anyone who I know from somewhere other than Kodiak or Section 23), give those profiles a read over again and try and guess what my colour is.

You picked orange right? I felt a lot of eyes in the class today looking my way when they read off the Orange Description.

We had to rank a variety of different attributes from 1 to 4, and the highest possible score for any given colour was 24 and the lowest possible score was 6.

So here are my True Colours:

Gold: 6
Green: 13
Orange: 18
Blue: 23

That's right, I am most definitely the emotional type and not the adventurous loud mouthed type.

The part that gets me every time is just how accurate this test is at describing me. We were given a table with the one heading "Area of Life" that described different characteristics of each colour. I am not going to bother typing all of these up right now, but I just wanted to highlight a few of these blue characteristics.

Under "fantasy to be", we Blues are listed as "a messiah". I can't say that I really argue with that one to say the least. On a hilarious side note the green were listed as "a wizard".
Under "guilt", it says "let someone down".
By "mood in relationships", we are "meaningful".
Apparently I am rewarded by "acceptance of who they are".
And nurtured by "vision of a better world".

Also they had a section of symptoms of what to look for when people of the different colours (man I feel so racist typing that up!!!) are having bad days and for Blues it says two that caught my eye, namely, "Attention-getting misbehaviour" and "Fantasy, day-dreaming and trancing out". That first one really makes me laugh.

Really very eerie just how accurate this impersonal test designed by someone I don't even know can describe me so very well. But the real funny part was that the professor described the different colours in more detail. He was going on about how Blues tend to take things personally. I felt a huge weight on my shoulders and that it was somehow my fault for taking things personally and I felt a huge rush of guilt. How pathetic is that?

Anyway, sorry to make this really long post just about me, I suppose I really need to watch my ego. Man I'm starting to take that personally!!!

If any of you are interested then CLICK AWAY to find your own True Colours. I would love to know.

Ohh on a side note, as a Blue, I am naturally a people person. I went around my class and predicted where people would be (I guessed their top two colours), and I'll be damned if I wasn't right a solid 9 times out of 10. So if you are going to take it, please message me and have me guess, I take it as a huge challenge.

Alrightie I think that I've ramble on about myself long enough. It is time for me to sleep now. Not sure what will be coming out next here on the ol'Blogeroo. But I'm sure it will kick all sorts of ass.

Until next time,

G

Random Acts of Glenness, Version IV

Alright so I haven't done a Random Acts of Glenness in a long time, and I really, REALLY don't feel like doing any work right now, so here we go with #137-169. Enjoy!!!

137. I consider the first time I beat Mario 3 one of the proudest moments of my life
138. If I don't get enough sleep I tend to be a wee bit cranky
139. I don't wear a watch
140. The reason for this is that I think it is more social to ask people if they know the time
141. I am pretty good at eating with chopsticks
142. I both love and hate Teacher's College
143. I included the words "DO NOT FEED THE ANIMALS" on an assignment for Methods this year
144. I never know what type of super power I would have if given the choice
145. 1984, by George Orwell is my favourite book ever
146. I say "Stick it to THE MAN" more times a day than I can count
147. I am a huge bed hog
148. Sometimes I wish I wasn't just considered "the funny guy"
149. That doesn't mean that I am going to stop wearing a tutu
150. I really like to write, but I hate showing people what I have done
151. For some reason, blogging is the exception to the above rule
152. People doubting me is one my biggest sources of motivation
153. I'm affraid of heights
154. I think that finding Camp Kodiak was the best thing to ever happen to me
155. I think that leaving Scotland when I did was the second best
156. I get stressed out about hockey games
157. Amsterdam and Paris are my favourite cities that I have ever been to
158. I spent my whole life growing up with three grand-parents and now I only have one
159. I said a poem that I wrote at my grand-mother's funeral
160. I really like to cook
161. I own more Simpsons memorabillia than I can bother to remember
162. I think that the UK version of The Office is the funniest show that I have ever seen
163. Sometimes I wonder if I will make a good teacher
164. I like to draw childish things like stick people and sea monsters
165. I have way too many inside jokes with people to keep track of them all
166. A lot of people think that I am left handed for some reason
167. One of the best compliments I have ever received is that I make people comfortable
168. I hardly ever participated in sports as a kid because I was too self-conscious
169. Now I play, and just don't care

That'll probably do it for me, I should be getting myself to class soon. Not sure what I plan on writing about next, the second Predictacular should be coming soon, and I know that I owe another "Music to _______" from oh so long ago. Ohh and I have homework as well, I suppose.

Until next time,

G

iTunes, youTunes, weTunes

A little over a month ago I posted this little ditty and the face of my blog changed just a little bit. On the left hand side of your screen you can see the "Who I've Been Listening To Lately" heading. I installed last.fm and the way I listened to music on my computer changed. Well not so much the physical act, but my habits changed. After this site created my profile for all to see I realized that I had to stop listening to so much bad music. That's right, I was in a bit of a bad dance music funk at the time and figured that if other people can see who I've been listening to than I had best carry on with a more discriminating taste. After this I went back into an Indie-ish music fix as you can see by the abundance of Sufjan Stevens, TV on the Radio and The Postal Service that I have been listening to.

I decided to make this post in order to give everyone a better insight into my odd and eclectic musical taste, I decided that I would list the Top 25 songs I have listened to since I got this computer back in September according to my iTunes play count. Before I ever got last.fm I was hoping that this could be a regular feature here on Get Glenergized but then I got last.fm and I got lazy as a result. Perhaps it is the new found energy (or should I say, Glenergy?) from the New Year, or maybe I'm just really bored. Either way, here goes the Top 25 songs that I have been listening to over the past 5 or so months.

25. Nine Inch Nails vs. The Beatles -- "Come Closer Together". Not the highest ranked mashup on this list, but definitely my favourite one. I love both of these songs separately, but I think that they are perhaps even greater together. The mix of the two choruses into "I want to fuck you, right now" makes me laugh every time.

24. Jose Gonzalez -- "Heartbeats". I simply love the guitar in this song. Sure it is simple, but it really gets the point across. While I do love this song, it is not my favourite version of this song, nor is it the most listened to. Stay tuned for that one.

23. The Arcade Fire -- "Intervention". The follow up single to one of my favourite albums ever (more on that one to follow). The Arcade Fire are one of those very rare bands that you can listen to over and over again and still find something new to enjoy every single time. This song is no exception, and it has got me VERY excited for Neon Bible.

22. Madonna -- "Hung Up". Alright, guilty pleasure time. I open myself to all of your judgments and mocking for posting this. But I really like this song. Madonna is one of the most influential musicians, oh ever, and this song proved to me that she is more than capable of reinventing herself for the twenty-first century. Plus, I like dancing around my bedroom to this one.

21. Kanye West -- "Gold Digger". Alright as you can see we are veering away from pretentious Indie Music and onto much more poppy stuff. I love Kanye West, I think that he is so incredibly cool. In fact when I was teaching a lesson on the Fraser River Gold Rush to a group of Grade 8s I referenced this song by saying "I ain't sayin' he's a gold digga, but he ain't dealin' with no broke river". It made me laugh, what can I say?

20. Jason Mraz -- "I'm Yours". Soooooooo, I'm a wee bit of a hopeless romantic. Not sure if that surprised any of you out there in blogosphere. This just seems like such a perfect song to dance romantically in the kitchen with that special someone to. Sorry if that made any of you vomit. I'll stop.

19. Eagles of Death Metal -- "Flames Go Higher". The first of three Eagles of Death Metal songs to make it on this impressive list. Not sure what to say here other than it is a really super awesome. Eagles of Death Metal do a wonderful job of combining catchy lyrics with rocking power guitar. What more can you ask for? Oh if you recognize this little diddy then it is probably because you saw "Thank you for Smoking" (and if you haven't, then what the heck are you waiting for???).

18. The Arctic Monkeys -- "I Bet That You Look Good On The Dancefloor". I had the pleasure of living in Britain when these guys first took off. I was so incredibly happy to hear their hits making the rounds on this side of the pond. I am a huge fan of catchy rock that you can dance to and these guys fit the bill perfectly. Sure they sound (and look) rather dirty and unkempt, but it's all part of the English midlands sound and scene.

17. Eminem featuring Nate Dogg -- "Shake That Ass". Despite all of his obvious detractions I have long been a fan of Eminem. He is capable of some truly amazing and insightful lyrics. This song however, is a terrible example of that. What the song lacks in depth it makes up for with a great beat and more importantly, some good natured immature humour.

16. Outkast -- "Morris Brown". While the album Idlewild was a terrible let down, this song was great none the less. Like most Outkast songs it will always be compared to "Hey ya", which will make it inevitably fall short. If you are able to drop those comparisons, then you will surely be able to enjoy this one.

15. Fall Out Boy -- "Dance, Dance". Another guilty pleasure of mine. This song is a great one to well, dance to. You dance to this song when you are home alone too, admit it.

14. Death Cab for Cutie -- "Someday You Will Be Loved". This song breaks my heart a bit every time I hear it. Listen with caution

13. Metric -- "Dead Disco". Here we go, some more Canadian Indie Music. Metric are so good, and I think that I may end up marrying Emily Haines when I grow up. I sort of missed Metric's rise due to being in a different continent and not having regular Internet access. I am rather jealous that a number of my friends got a chance to see them in concert in the fall on their East Coast tour.

12. Eagles of Death Metal -- "Miss Alissa". I talked about these guys for "Flames go Higher", but this song is even cooler. Catchier beats, faster guitar riffs, dirtier lyrics, what more can you want?

11. TV on the Radio -- "Ambulance". This is exactly why I love TV on the Radio. They are so multi-faceted. Some of their songs are great to rock to, but this one is sung a capella and is very mellow. I don't think that I can do the lyrics and an ounce of justice, so here is my favourite part.

"oh i will be your ambulance if you will be my accident
i will be your screech and crash if you will be my crutch and cast
and i will be your one more time if you will be my one last chance
so sweet dream fall with me
fall fast fall free fall with me"

10. Sufjan Stevens -- "Come on! Feel the Illinoise!". When I hear this song it is no surprise that Sufjan Stevens is dominating the list on your left right now. I can't believe it took me this long to get into this guy. If you haven't heard him yet then get to a CD Store and grab any one of his albums. You will not be disappointed.

9. Death Cab for Cutie -- "I Will Follow You Into the Dark". Another sad song by Death Cab. This one does not so much break my heart as it makes me a wee bit lonely that there is nobody who would follow me into death. Listen to the song and it won't sound so weird.

8. Feist -- "When I Was a Young Girl". If things don't work out between Emily Haines and I, then I think that Leslie Feist will do wonders for a future wife. She has such an amazing voice and has a wonderful way with words.

7. Jay-Z vs. Linkin Park -- "Encore vs. Numb". Alright so it is not quite as cool as The Gray Album but Collision Course is still pretty awesome. While I am not a fan of Linkin Park, this song does it for me. "Encore" is one of those songs that sounds oddly better in Mash-ups than it does by itself.

6. Ted Leo and the Pharmacists -- "The Golden Finch and the Red Oak". I could listen to this song all day and be totally at peace with myself. Try it sometime.

5. Bloc Party -- "Banquet". I simply love Silent Alarm. This song is definitely no exception to that rule. I almost included this song in Music to Break Up To just because I listened to it so much dealing with my own personal break-up. It was a little tough to make some lyrical connections with. Just trust me, it's well worth a listen or 36.

4. Eagles of Death Metal -- "I Want You So Hard (Boy's Bad News)". The last time these guys will be on this list, I swear. This is easily my favourite song of theirs. Perhaps I find it autobiographical or something. Anyway, here is the video for this one, I really have to get me a guitar like that guy has...



3. The Arcade Fire -- "Rebellion (Lies)". This may just be my favourite song ever. I don't think that there is a shade on my mood spectrum that I can't find some way to enjoy this song. I can dance to it, do homework to it, think about life to it, it really does not matter. This was the song that really got me hooked on The Arcade Fire, and I am really quite thankful for it.

2. Stars -- "Your Ex-Lover is Dead". For whatever reason I was not a huge fan of Stars when I first heard them. But here I am now a little older and perhaps wiser and I can't get enough of them. This song really got to me with the following lines standing out in particular.

You were what I wanted, I gave what I gave
I'm not sorry I met you
I'm not sorry it's over
I'm not sorry there's nothing to save

And now, the moment you have clearly all been waiting for...The song that I have been listening to the most since September

1. The Knife -- "Heartbeats". You forgot that I alluded to this song way back at #24 didn't you? Well this is the original, and definitely superior version of this song. I first heard it after checking out Travis' blog and seeing the video that he had posted. At first I wasn't a huge fan, but I simply could not get this song out of my head and had to keep listening to it until it got out. But then it came back and would never let me go. I'll keep with my tradition of stealing from Travis by posting this video as well. If you don't like this song at first give it another listen to in a few days. Trust me, it will grow on you.




So that concludes this epic marathon post. I have a few more ideas of things to blog about over the next few days. I have missed wireless Internet streaming through my brain and giving me cancer as I type. God bless technology.

Until next time,

G

My 2006

I have been thinking about writing this blog for a long time. I suppose, I have been thinking about it, in some way or another for the past twelve months, but I have been thinking quite concretely about it for the past several weeks. This year has been by far the most educational year of my life. I think back to who I was at the beginning of this year and I barely recognize myself. I have been wondering just how much information to include in this write up. I don’t want to offend anyone or anything, but I feel that I owe nothing but complete honesty to myself and most of you have probably heard the interesting parts of my year anyway. As a result, I have decided not to censor any information as I write this up.

Before I begin to explain my 2006, I had best explain how 2005 ended for me. To make an incredibly long story, incredibly short, I had moved to Scotland at the end of August 2005. I was following my girlfriend at the time Melanie, who had accepted a teaching job in the small town of Dumfries, in south-western Scotland.

While I was meeting many new friends and traveling to many amazing places on the other side of the world, I still was, by and large, not happy. I spent several months unemployed. I had a job waiting for me as a supply Educational Assistant, but I had to wait for months, upon months to get my police record check. But finally, after months of waiting, I finally got a job. In December of 2005, I started working at a school that was attached to a Residential Care Home. There were six girls, aged fourteen to fifteen living there. They had all been removed from their biological parents by Social Services for a variety of reasons that I find far too terrifying and saddening to ever want to mention again. Needless to say, they had some very specific challenges, not only academically, but emotionally as well. If teenage girls are difficult to deal with, these ones were downright impossible.

After only being there for a short few weeks, it was Christmas Holidays already. This was to be my first Christmas away from home, a difficult challenge for anyone. Now since my parents have been divorced since I was eleven, I have long been used to not being around everyone I know and love for the holidays. As a result, it was not that big of a step to go from being around one parent to being around no parents.

Melanie and I used this time off of work for both of us to travel. After having an “Orphan Canadian” Christmas in Scotland, we hoped on a flight to Dublin on Boxing Day. After spending a few days exploring the city we took the ferry across to Wales, and hiked up Mount Snowdon on my birthday before returning to Scotland on New Year’s Eve to bring in 2006 with our Scottish friends.

So here I am, a quarter of the world away from home, many amazing travel opportunities at my finger tips, starting a promising new job, and approaching my two year anniversary with Melanie. This year seemed to be full of promise, adventure, and education. Looking back, I can’t believe just how incredibly right this newfound optimism was.

January started off simple enough, I returned to work, very excited to see the girls again. In my few weeks before the holidays it was clear that I was the “cool Canadian”. They were very interested in hearing my stories of home and comparing them to their own stories of home. While the weather got cold, and the sun became a distant memory the month carried on. The days were a mix of challenges and rewards, and the nights were full of drinks at the many pubs Dumfries has to offer. In this time, I should note that my friend Andy and I decided that we were going to run a half-marathon. Yeah I know, laugh it up, but I had agreed to run a 13 mile (20 km) race. We had signed up to run the Stranraer half-marathon at the beginning of March, but had begun to train at this point. So when I wasn’t at the pub, I was busy running. I got quite good at it, if I may say so myself.

Near the end of January and into February, my honeymoon period with the youths I was working with changed to the bitter monotony of married life. Things got hard for me at work, really fast. I had a terrible time dealing with the girls I was working with. Normally I can handle tough kids, but these were different. I was having a lot of trouble, but I felt that if I just had a bit of a break I would be fine. Lucky for me, there was a school holiday in February, so Melanie and I decided to hop a plane to Amsterdam. I can not speak enough about that city. I fell in love with it. It just has the most relaxed atmosphere of any city that I have ever been to. It is one of the few big cities that I have been to that I could honestly see myself living in.

When I returned, I felt refreshed and thought that everything would be better. How wrong I was. Things continued to spiral out of control for me at work. And after getting really upset and feeling really down about everything, I did something that I am not at all proud of. I quit. It is a decision that I don’t think that I will ever be able to fully let go of for as long as I live. These girls have always been let down by the adults in their lives. Even though they were outright trying to scare me away at times, I wanted to stick it through and show them that I cared, that I saw something in them, no matter what they saw in themselves. But then at the end of February I put in my notice to quit. My last day would be March 3, coincidently, the day before my big half-marathon that I was so excited about.

But then a funny thing happened, a truly rare and monument occurrence. Scotland got snow. I am not talking any massive White Juan level blizzards, just a soft dusting, maybe half an inch. But since that is something that they are just not used to dealing with, it seemed as if the entire country shut down. My half-marathon was postponed. I found this really hard. I had been looking forward to this for several months and had been training really hard for several weeks, only to have it taken away from me at the last minute. Since we had already rented a car for my race, we decided to turn it into a road trip (WHHOOOOOOOOO!!!!!). So me, Melanie, and our good friend Shannon (another proud member of the Dumfries-Canada Embassy) took the car and decided to just drive north. We ended up getting all the way to the Isle of Skye, a simply magical part of the world. It was uninhabited, barren, snow covered and magnificent. Please check out those pictures in my “Assorted Scotland” album on Facebook, or better yet, go and take some of your own pictures to show me.

So here I am, without a job, again. However, fate would look down on me in an interesting way, and after being unemployed for only one day, I got a call. I was offered to work at the same school that Melanie had been working at in Dumfries. I got to spend time in the Learning Centre there, and I really loved it.

But a few weeks later my world got thrown for yet another loop. For a variety of reasons which do not need to be said in here, I found myself single for the first time in two years. That’s right, Melanie and I broke up.

As a result of this, I had to come back home to Canada. I was looking into a number of flights and found it to be “cheaper” to fly from Glasgow to Paris, and then from Paris to Toronto a week later. Note the use of the quotation marks, since that clearly did not take into account paying for hostels, site seeing, and of course having to eat every day. But none the less I decided to go and spend some time in France.

But I still had a good five days to kill in Scotland. At the start of this time, I felt really quite alone. All of my friends over there were teachers, who I thought to be much more Melanie’s friends than mine. But none the less, I received an overwhelming amount of support from my friends over there. On my last night before I left, two of my very best friends over there, Shannon and Michelle, threw me a going away party. I found this all to be genuinely touching as everyone over there proved to me that they were genuinely my friends. That night, I knew that I would miss them a lot more than I had originally thought and I felt that I would be missed far more than I thought that I would.

It is important to also note, that in those five days Melanie and I spent a large amount of our time talking and gaining closure. While I was sad to go, and even more scared to move on with my life, I left Dumfries without an ounce of anger towards her.

France was an amazing experience for me. At first I was a little anxious about traveling alone, but I quickly fell in love with it. I arrived at my hostel in Paris in the evening and proceeded to make friends with my roommate Ryan. We talked outside briefly, and I said that I was planning on taking a walk, and I heard that the Eiffel Tower looked great at night. So off we went, making many beer stops along the way. After a series of stumbles we finally made it to the Tower. At this point all of the beer I had been drinking caught up to me. Unfortunately, all of the public washrooms were closed at this point, and so I found some bushes. As I stood there starring up at the Eiffel Tower, peeing, I couldn’t help but laugh. My first trip to the Eiffel Tower was not quite as romantic as I had imagined, but it was memorable none the less.

Ryan and I proceeded to travel around Paris for a couple of days before heading up to Normandy where we got to see Juno Beach (to read my entry on that click away). After a few days in Northern France, Ryan and I parted ways as I returned to Paris and he got a ferry to England.

I still had a couple of days in Paris, so I had already booked my spot at the same hostel I was at before. I quickly made friends with my two roommates, Lisander and George, and a Spanish guy Ricky in the hostel. We wandered around the city, with me as their French translator. I had an amazing time with those guys and I have really missed them since I left.

Then on April 3, for the first time in almost eight months, I was home. The next day, I received some wonderful news. I had been accepted to Nipissing University for the Bachelor of Education program. I had applied to both the Primary/Junior Division and the Intermediate/Senior Division. I was really quite torn as to which one I wanted to do, but in the end I decided to stick with my first instinct and go for the older students, a decision that I will probably question for a very long time.

I laid low for the next couple of months. I did the occasional odd job and spent a lot of time visiting a bunch of my friends, both in Ontario and in a trip to NS I made in April.

That would all change at the end of June when I made my annual pilgrimage to McKellar, Ontario. For the fourth year in a row, I went up to Camp Kodiak for another summer. This one, however, would be very different than any other summer I have had. The resident Kodiak Legend, Nicholas Hanson, was unable to return to camp this summer. Also, a number of returning counselors were unable to go for the beginning of the summer. As such, I was asked to take a number of responsibilities around camp. Including (but not limited to): leading team building activities during staff week, being the head of the canoe & kayak program, serving as an academic tutor, planning Theme Days every Sunday, delivering the meal time announcements, hosting the Camp Fires every Wednesday, playing the Spirit Fairy, and of course looking after my own cabin of nine hyper active eight year olds.

Needless to say, I had a very busy summer. However, it was made possible since I had by far the best collection of co-counselors I have ever had. I was so lucky to have my summer mom, Karen, and Rachel, the one person at camp who could make me look responsible. To stack it even more, we got the help of some Junior Counselors, as second session came and Ashley Beane’s amazing sense of humour and maturity beyond her years came to help us out. So there we were, Glen and the Girls, sure our kids were tough and down right infuriating at times, but we made it work. My three co-counselors made last summer not only amazing for me, but without them, I don’t think that I could have managed it at all. I feel sorry for whoever I end up with this summer, as they have a very tough act to follow in my eyes.

Every summer there is something very special at Camp Kodiak, Kodiak games. The premise is very simple, divide the camp into a Blue Team (The Voyageurs) and a Green Team (The Habitants) and they “compete” against one another in a series of events. In my past few summers I have been various levels of leaders on both teams, but this summer I was asked to play the neutral role of Spirit Fairy. I, of course, decided to wear a tutu and call myself Glenderella and prance around the camp amusing and terrifying children throughout the day.

Normally, I say that Kodiak Games is better than Ten Christmases (and given my opinions of Christmas, that may not be saying ALL that much) and is usually my favourite day of the entire calendar year. However, this year it was different. As that just happened to be the day that one counselor was fired and three others decided to quit. I quickly went from being the Spirit Fairy to the Drama Fairy as I spent a lot of the day talking to a variety of different people about the events including some of the people who would end up quitting. Combine this with the staff marathon, a 5 km race in 30 degree weather (which I of course ran in a tutu) and that is the recipe for one tough day. But none the less, I had to remain excited and energetic. One can not be sad in a tutu after all. I even addressed the camp at the end of the day and made allusions to the staff leaving and other troubles that had been taking place around camp. All in all, this was probably my most exhausting day of the year, but I feel it may have been my most educational day as well.

I returned home to Trenton, and proceeded to hibernate for the next week after surviving on a solid three hours a night of sleep for the previous two months.

Then on the last weekend of August, I set off on another adventure. I packed my life into the car and drove up to North Bay to start a new life and get ready for school. The roads that lead me to North Bay are rather interesting actually. When I first decided that I wanted to be a teacher when I grew up, I thought about Nipissing University. Then in September of 2005, I met a couple while I was in Scotland, Rob and Eileen. Eileen had gone to Nipissing the year before and Rob had been working at the University’s technical support. They raved about Nipissing and North Bay. After consulting with Melanie, I decided that Nipissing would be my first choice of schools. One of the main reasons was that Rob and Eileen would be in North Bay and I wanted to make sure that Melanie would have some sort of a social circle, and not just my fellow Education Students. However as the year went on, and plans changed, I found myself going to Nipissing all alone. Not exactly what I had planned.

But none the less, there I was up in North Bay. I tossed and turned the entire night before my first day of classes. I ended up getting out of bed at 5 because I was just so excited to go back to school for the first time in nearly a year and a half. As I drove to the University I realized something. This was the first major venture I have done by myself in a long, long time. I knew my roommate at Acadia from high school. I did not go to Scotland by myself. But here I was walking into Nipissing all by myself.

Due to a hilarious clerical error, I ended up in the wrong section on the first day. After figuring everything out, I ended up getting with the right group, Section 23, by the second day and all was worked out from there.

These last four months have really flown by that I don’t know if I can break them down in the same way that I did for many of the other months. I have spent a total of six weeks on placement so far (One in September, two in October, and three in November), with a Grade 8 class. At first I was really quite worried about spending time with Grade 8s. I don’t remember being all that pleasant at thirteen. But I was quickly won over by these amazing students. They have done an amazing job at both reaffirming and questioning my decisions. I am totally confident that I am doing the right thing pursuing a career in education. I find it both rewarding and challenging, and feel that I have a natural talent for it. However, I have really questioned if Intermediate/Senior (Grades 7-12) are right for me. I can’t help but wonder if I would be better suited for younger students. But, I have made my decision and I am happy with it so far. I may end up changing streams later on in my career, but who knows?

Things up in North Bay have been absolutely amazing for me. I have been blessed with a great section and many great friends. While I may complain about some elements of the program, I am still honestly and genuinely happy to be at Nipissing. After some of the struggles I have faced over the past several months (and even years), I am really very happy to be doing what I have wanted to be doing all along.

So what does 2007 hold for me? Well if I could tell you that, then I would be advertising my psychic hotline instead of writing a blog. But I am going to do a teaching placement in China in April, which I am incredibly excited about. I plan on staying over there and traveling as best I can for May as well. I then get my second expensive piece of paper in June before heading up to Camp for my Fifth summer. I hate to say it, but this may end up being my last summer for a long time. I don’t’ have any definite plans for September, but I have been leaning more and more to teaching English in Japan, Korea or China. But who knows? I never have been much for planning anyway.

As I look back, I can’t help but be amazed at where this year has taken me and what next year promises. This really has been the most educational year of my life, and I think that when I look back this may end up being one of the most influential years as well. Thank you all for a part of it in some way, shape or form.

Until next time,


G

Some Insights Into My Twisted Mind, Volume III

I figure that I haven't done any random ass on-line personality tests in a while, and I have a Unit Plan to finish. Therefore, I decided to hit an oldie but a good ol' Sparks Tests.

Unfortunately I can't just embed the results like I could the other ones, so to see the results in full gimme some click love. But here is the gist of what it said:

*********************************************************
You are a Performer!

(Dominant Extroverted Abstract Feeler)

You are a PERFORMER (DEAF)— personable, self-assured, and excellent under pressure. You are extroverted and strong-willed, which, in combination means you are good with people and aren't willing to let opportunity pass you by. Congratulations. I'm sure all the peons you've stepped on never saw it coming and didn't feel a thing.You have formidable creative talents, and you often following what your heart tells you instead of your logical mind. Your exuberance can earn you many friends and admirers, despite your ambition, or it can intimidate the less confident into keeping their distance. It's also possible that you're Madonna.

Compared to 14,963,255 other test takers...

82% are more Submissive than you. 8% are more Dominant than you. 10% are just as Dominant as you.

95% are more Introverted than you. 1% are more Extroverted than you. 4% are just as Extroverted as you.

5% are more Abstract than you. 85% are more Concrete than you. 10% are just as Abstract as you.

46% are more Thinking than you. 46% are more Feeling than you. 7% are just as Feeling as you.

*************************************************************

Can't say that I'm all that surprised...I knew that I would be dominant; I tend to get my own way, ha ha ha. The fact that only 1% of the world is more Extroverted than I am sort of scares me. I knew I was a big fat, loud mouth, but I didn't think that I was THAT big of one. And 5% more Abstract than me? Why am I not surprised...I would expected me to be higher on the Feeling scale, but what do I know about my own life? I have only been living it for 23 years...

All in all, rather interesting quick little bit of psychoanalysis. If you want some way to put off studying, give it a whirl and let me know how you did. If anyone out there is more Extroverted than I am, I would love to see it!!!!

Until next time,

G