Today was my last Human Security class. Even though I had a hard time keeping up with the workload and contributing to the class discussions, I'm really happy that I took the course. It was was very enlightening, both about Human Security and the International community in general.
Our prof did his best to instill a sense of responsibility and humility in us, warning us that we need to be careful, because our decisions don't affect us - someone in some developing country pays for our errors. I feel like that was the most important thing I've learned all term. Heck, that's probably the most important thing I've learned since I've started school in general. It's easy to think about what *I* want to do, or how *I'll* decide to do things... But I've never truly considered the potential ramifications of my decisions beyond, "Oh, I might get in shit and get fired."
There was some amusement in our final class though. There were three final student presentations. When our prof was making the presentation topics, he randomly chose issues he knew about, and other ones he didn't know about. Well, today one girl had to do a presentation about a topic the prof wasn't aware of.
Her topic was about gangs recruiting children in India. She presented the different ideas of gangs, recruitment methods in general, etc... And then she had a slide in the middle of her presentation entitled, "Understanding Gaps in Human Security Research (Or: My Very Bad Day at The Library)." While trying to research gang recruitment in the Indian context, she could not find any resources on children in Indian gangs. She ended up talking to the prof and they changed her topic to be about why there's a dearth of information on the topic. She had three hypotheses and the first one listed was, "Hypothesis #1: I am not very good at researching." We all laughed and laughed. Her other hypotheses were interesting too, and the class discussion was also fascinating as we tried to figure out why there could be no information, or how we could look for the information in other ways.
This lack of information on gang recruitment of children in India is one of the things our prof was trying to warn us about. As he told us today, if there truly is no information available on this topic, it means that all other generalizations in the world on gang recruitment of children are made moot - India is the second most populous country in the world, so lacking information on this country means that we don't have all the necessary information to make a well-rounded hypothesis... I don't know if this makes sense to you, but to me, it was a pretty amazing concept.
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Monday, November 26, 2007
Cleaning update
I talked to my roommate tonight about what she wanted me to clean. As I mentioned, I thought I was a fairly clean person. It turns out that I am. It's just that she's super clean. I think what it comes down to is the fact that she's never lived in a student apartment before. I'm used to student housing being slightly dirty (or in some cases, ridiculously dirty), so I'm used to ignoring small things like scuffs on the walls, etc.
I told her to make a list of things she wants cleaned, and then we'll take turns doing it. She kept protesting, "But I don't want to make you feel bad - this is your house too!" But let's face it, it's not like she'll lower herself to my decent standards. LOL. She wants stuff like the cupboards (near the handles) scrubbed, etc... Yeesh. I thought I left psycho-cleaner back in Owen Sound.
I told her to make a list of things she wants cleaned, and then we'll take turns doing it. She kept protesting, "But I don't want to make you feel bad - this is your house too!" But let's face it, it's not like she'll lower herself to my decent standards. LOL. She wants stuff like the cupboards (near the handles) scrubbed, etc... Yeesh. I thought I left psycho-cleaner back in Owen Sound.
Spelling fun
I'm writing one of my essays right now and suddenly had a brain fart. I realized I didn't know if I should be spelling things, "per cent" or "percent." (I've seen them both ways in academic papers.)
After a quick google and a visit to the mother of all knowledge, Wikipedia, I came across their writing style guide that explained the differences between different countries and their spelling styles. I found a lovely little table on there that compared, Australia, Canada, UK, USA, and some other countries. I was amused to see how random Canada's column is. Our spelling varies from US to UK with a bit of French influence tossed in for fun.
I suggest you check it out here. It's amusing if nothing else.
P.S. Oh yeah, "per cent" is the British method while "percent" is the American. Since the queen is on our money, I think I'll use the British method... And it takes up more space on the page. ;)
After a quick google and a visit to the mother of all knowledge, Wikipedia, I came across their writing style guide that explained the differences between different countries and their spelling styles. I found a lovely little table on there that compared, Australia, Canada, UK, USA, and some other countries. I was amused to see how random Canada's column is. Our spelling varies from US to UK with a bit of French influence tossed in for fun.
I suggest you check it out here. It's amusing if nothing else.
P.S. Oh yeah, "per cent" is the British method while "percent" is the American. Since the queen is on our money, I think I'll use the British method... And it takes up more space on the page. ;)
By the power of Grey Skull!
Sometimes when I think over the past 5 years of undergrad, and where I am now, I can't help but feel like this... http://applegeeks.com/lite/index.php?aglitecomic=2006-06-23
The small things
Argh. It's amazing how one small issue can make you completely infuriated. I woke up feeling good - ready to tackle a new day, be productive, etc., etc.
After I got out of the shower and was just going back into my room, my roommate comes out of hers and asks, "Oh Maureen, do you think the bathroom floor is getting kind of dirty?" After I gave the stunning reply of, "Huh?" She repeated her comment...
It's like, "Just fucking ask me to mop the floors if you want me to!!!"
I can't really complain, it's good that I have a clean housemate. Admittedly she's a lot cleaner than I am - she's forever scrubbing things down while I subscribe to the idea that a little dirt is good for you in life. I'm tidy though - I also wipe down the counters, I do my dishes a lot more often than her (mind you, I create more dishes), etc. She's the one who cleans the bathroom most often and whatnot, but then again, I'm the one who thinks it doesn't need that much cleaning. If I do clean up, it tends to be while she's not home.
Anyways, the main thing that bugs me is that she had to flit around her question instead of asking me flat out. She has no problem confronting me at other times (e.g. this weekend we had to agree to keep my door closed with a scarf blocking the gap underneath it because I was apparently creating a wind tunnel by keeping my window open.)
It wasn't until she left the apartment and I sat down to eat my breakfast that I realized how much of a bitchy mood I had sunk into. If I had been a more confrontational person, I would have loved to have replied, "No, I think it still looks good," as I slammed the door in her face. :) But alas, I'm not, and I probably will end up mopping sooner or later.
After I got out of the shower and was just going back into my room, my roommate comes out of hers and asks, "Oh Maureen, do you think the bathroom floor is getting kind of dirty?" After I gave the stunning reply of, "Huh?" She repeated her comment...
It's like, "Just fucking ask me to mop the floors if you want me to!!!"
I can't really complain, it's good that I have a clean housemate. Admittedly she's a lot cleaner than I am - she's forever scrubbing things down while I subscribe to the idea that a little dirt is good for you in life. I'm tidy though - I also wipe down the counters, I do my dishes a lot more often than her (mind you, I create more dishes), etc. She's the one who cleans the bathroom most often and whatnot, but then again, I'm the one who thinks it doesn't need that much cleaning. If I do clean up, it tends to be while she's not home.
Anyways, the main thing that bugs me is that she had to flit around her question instead of asking me flat out. She has no problem confronting me at other times (e.g. this weekend we had to agree to keep my door closed with a scarf blocking the gap underneath it because I was apparently creating a wind tunnel by keeping my window open.)
It wasn't until she left the apartment and I sat down to eat my breakfast that I realized how much of a bitchy mood I had sunk into. If I had been a more confrontational person, I would have loved to have replied, "No, I think it still looks good," as I slammed the door in her face. :) But alas, I'm not, and I probably will end up mopping sooner or later.
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Word Definition
I now know what the word "cacophony" means. It's when hundreds of Canadian Geese decide to migrate by your window at 2am in the morning. It was surreal to hear them honking and honking, and the sound never ending...
Thursday, November 22, 2007
Suckerpunched by winter
Jesus Christ! I'm used to having weeks to get used to winter, where the snow will come and then melt and repeat this process a few times before finally sticking around. Not so with Ottawa. When I opened my curtains yesterday morning, the first words outta my mouth were, "Holy shit!" Everything was covered in 3 inches of snow. And it's more of the same today.
Judging from the weather forecast, it looks like there's more snow to come, and it's going to be here to stay. Wow. Prior to this, we only had two small small snow falls, where the flakes melted even before they hit the ground. Yikes!
Judging from the weather forecast, it looks like there's more snow to come, and it's going to be here to stay. Wow. Prior to this, we only had two small small snow falls, where the flakes melted even before they hit the ground. Yikes!
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Organic methods
Whenever I tell someone that I'm learning how to knit, they tend to give me the exact same expression. Their faces have written on them, "Are you insane?" even as they tell me, "Oh, that's nice, Maureen."
I like learning how to do/make things the authentic way. Yes, I know I can go out to the store and buy a pre-knitted sweater or blanket, but it's nice to know how to do it myself. I feel like I can better appreciate the hard work that goes into such creations if I know how to do it myself.
The same goes for cooking. While I love all the pre-made sauces and packaged foods out there, I prefer to know how to flavour my foods using real spices and whatnot. Plus, I feel it's healthier - those processed foods contain so much salt and random ingredients that you never really know what you're eating. It's so satisfying to try a new recipe and with the first mouthful think, "Mmm, this is so delicious!" and to know that nothing but your own hard work went into making it wonderful.
In other words, all these little pieces of knowledge just go to make me more self-sustainable.
I like learning how to do/make things the authentic way. Yes, I know I can go out to the store and buy a pre-knitted sweater or blanket, but it's nice to know how to do it myself. I feel like I can better appreciate the hard work that goes into such creations if I know how to do it myself.
The same goes for cooking. While I love all the pre-made sauces and packaged foods out there, I prefer to know how to flavour my foods using real spices and whatnot. Plus, I feel it's healthier - those processed foods contain so much salt and random ingredients that you never really know what you're eating. It's so satisfying to try a new recipe and with the first mouthful think, "Mmm, this is so delicious!" and to know that nothing but your own hard work went into making it wonderful.
In other words, all these little pieces of knowledge just go to make me more self-sustainable.
Saturday, November 17, 2007
Names changes and other occurrences
Huzzah! I finished my other presentation yesterday! I had to talk for 20 minutes on an indigenous group I found interesting. I decided to research and study the Aboriginal tribes in Taiwan. My presentation revolved around their changing status through History under the different governments of Taiwan.
The night before the presentation I had a ridiculously hard time concentrating and preparing for my talk. I ended up staying up till 2:30am trying to finish my outline, and then I could not not not fall asleep. I probably drifted off around 3:30 and woke up around 6am. When I heard Nasrin get up for her shower at 6:30, I finally gave up and also got up so I could practice a few time. The presentation went really well - I wasn't completely smooth in my delivery, but I felt it went a hell of a lot better than my Human Security presentation did. :)
To celebrate, I decided to go to St. Laurent Centre with Laura. (I keep forgetting her name is spelled Laura even though it's pronounced Lauda.) We wanted to go to East Side Mario's for dinner... It took us forever to get to the bloody mall! Because we were cold, we hopped on the first bus we saw that was heading to St. Laurent. This bus ended up taking us all the way out into the middle of nowhere, past every single hospital in Ottawa and only then did we get to the mall. Lesson learned: Always take the express buses.
Upon arriving at East Side Mario's, I gave the hostess my name because there was a wait time of 20 minutes. I turned around to talk to Laura when the hostess suddenly calls me back over. I swear to God, this is what she said, "Can you please listen for the name Maria? I forgot what name you gave me." I blinked and informed her that she could just call for Mo or Laura and the chick vaguely acknowledged me. 5 minutes later, I hear the name "Maria" belted out. Laura was laughing her ass off with me. I know these teeny-bopper waiters/waitresses aren't paid to give a damn, but really, to assign customers new names just to make their own lives easier? That was hilarious.
Another amusing happenstance was that a sales clerk at a clothing store tried to hook Laura up with one of her sons. Laura was trying on some outfits for a wedding she was attending and I was teasing her about being able to use the clothes for interviews. The sales clerk suddenly starts asking Laura if she's looking for a job and Laura explains how she already has a job because she recently graduated etc... Next thing we know, the lady's asking Laura how old she is and casually mentions, "Oh, I have a son who's 24." We waited until the lady disappeared before cracking up.
The night before the presentation I had a ridiculously hard time concentrating and preparing for my talk. I ended up staying up till 2:30am trying to finish my outline, and then I could not not not fall asleep. I probably drifted off around 3:30 and woke up around 6am. When I heard Nasrin get up for her shower at 6:30, I finally gave up and also got up so I could practice a few time. The presentation went really well - I wasn't completely smooth in my delivery, but I felt it went a hell of a lot better than my Human Security presentation did. :)
To celebrate, I decided to go to St. Laurent Centre with Laura. (I keep forgetting her name is spelled Laura even though it's pronounced Lauda.) We wanted to go to East Side Mario's for dinner... It took us forever to get to the bloody mall! Because we were cold, we hopped on the first bus we saw that was heading to St. Laurent. This bus ended up taking us all the way out into the middle of nowhere, past every single hospital in Ottawa and only then did we get to the mall. Lesson learned: Always take the express buses.
Upon arriving at East Side Mario's, I gave the hostess my name because there was a wait time of 20 minutes. I turned around to talk to Laura when the hostess suddenly calls me back over. I swear to God, this is what she said, "Can you please listen for the name Maria? I forgot what name you gave me." I blinked and informed her that she could just call for Mo or Laura and the chick vaguely acknowledged me. 5 minutes later, I hear the name "Maria" belted out. Laura was laughing her ass off with me. I know these teeny-bopper waiters/waitresses aren't paid to give a damn, but really, to assign customers new names just to make their own lives easier? That was hilarious.
Another amusing happenstance was that a sales clerk at a clothing store tried to hook Laura up with one of her sons. Laura was trying on some outfits for a wedding she was attending and I was teasing her about being able to use the clothes for interviews. The sales clerk suddenly starts asking Laura if she's looking for a job and Laura explains how she already has a job because she recently graduated etc... Next thing we know, the lady's asking Laura how old she is and casually mentions, "Oh, I have a son who's 24." We waited until the lady disappeared before cracking up.
Monday, November 12, 2007
Tools of the trade
Okay, time for some amusing add-ons to my knitting exploits. (I had been too tired to write anything more last night.)
When my roommate first brought out the knitting kneedles, I didn't get a good glimpse of them and just thought they were extra long pointy chopsticks. Oops! Next, when we began our knitting lesson, I realized that I automatically held the needle like I would a chopstick. Then she had to fix my grip because I was holding the needle at the wrong end (with chopsticks, you hold the needle further away rather than close to the point). I don't know how we managed to survive the first part of the lesson because we were laughing hysterically.
As for the actual knitting - that was also a painful process. I don't know how she managed not to beat me up or leave me where I was. It's hard enough for me to learn to knit normally, but trying to learn from someone who doesn't have the vocabulary to teach me in English? Even funnier. I kept making my rows too tight and because they were so tight, I had trouble differentiating between the different threads of yarn so I'd randomly skip a thread here and there. She'd inspect my rows and then laugh when she found all the gaps in them. LOL
I can't believe how difficult it is to learn how to knit. Teach me how to program in a computer language? No problem. Ask me to figure out why wars start all over the world? Sure thing. Ask me to wrap yarn around a metal needle? Count me out.
When my roommate first brought out the knitting kneedles, I didn't get a good glimpse of them and just thought they were extra long pointy chopsticks. Oops! Next, when we began our knitting lesson, I realized that I automatically held the needle like I would a chopstick. Then she had to fix my grip because I was holding the needle at the wrong end (with chopsticks, you hold the needle further away rather than close to the point). I don't know how we managed to survive the first part of the lesson because we were laughing hysterically.
As for the actual knitting - that was also a painful process. I don't know how she managed not to beat me up or leave me where I was. It's hard enough for me to learn to knit normally, but trying to learn from someone who doesn't have the vocabulary to teach me in English? Even funnier. I kept making my rows too tight and because they were so tight, I had trouble differentiating between the different threads of yarn so I'd randomly skip a thread here and there. She'd inspect my rows and then laugh when she found all the gaps in them. LOL
I can't believe how difficult it is to learn how to knit. Teach me how to program in a computer language? No problem. Ask me to figure out why wars start all over the world? Sure thing. Ask me to wrap yarn around a metal needle? Count me out.
Sunday, November 11, 2007
She can be taught!
Dude, I'm totally learning how to knit thanks to my roomie. I'm teaching her French and she's teaching me how to knit. I completed four rows of my wannabee scarf tonight. (I'll just have to sew some buttons strategically over the random gaping holes in it.) I also think I'm getting the better end of the deal - my French teaching abilities suck. I kept having to check the internet to confirm everything I was telling her - right down to finding a pronunciation guide to make sure I was saying things properly. LOL
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Sinification of my life
I've been totally geeking out on Asia for the past week or so. As mentioned in one of my previous posts, I've found a way to download Asian dramas on my laptop, so I've been devouring episodes of Taiwanese TV shows. I'm totally enthralled by them.
It's nice to be able to watch them and catch the various words I know in Chinese. I won't claim that I'm learning any new words, but I am learning different ways of using the words I've learned before. (e.g. This summer I learned the word "shi" which means "news/affairs". When watching my TV shows, I realized I can say something like "no affairs" and it'll roughly translate into "Nothing's the matter". So no one can claim that I'm not learning anything by watching TV. :))
By watching these TV shows, I'm also able to find their soundtracks on the web, so I've been listening to a lot of mandarin music too. It's a nice change from Western music and I find I can hear familiar vocabulary in the songs too.
Finally, all this Asian influence forced me to seek out a Chinese grocery store in Ottawa. My friend Cathy (who's originally from Hong Kong) took me to Unimart. It was just like shopping back in Hong Kong! I was so excited to be able to buy steamed buns and BBQ pork! I was like a little kid in the candy store. We're going to try to make these grocery trips into weekly outings.
Anyways, that's how I'm sinifying my life right now.
It's nice to be able to watch them and catch the various words I know in Chinese. I won't claim that I'm learning any new words, but I am learning different ways of using the words I've learned before. (e.g. This summer I learned the word "shi" which means "news/affairs". When watching my TV shows, I realized I can say something like "no affairs" and it'll roughly translate into "Nothing's the matter". So no one can claim that I'm not learning anything by watching TV. :))
By watching these TV shows, I'm also able to find their soundtracks on the web, so I've been listening to a lot of mandarin music too. It's a nice change from Western music and I find I can hear familiar vocabulary in the songs too.
Finally, all this Asian influence forced me to seek out a Chinese grocery store in Ottawa. My friend Cathy (who's originally from Hong Kong) took me to Unimart. It was just like shopping back in Hong Kong! I was so excited to be able to buy steamed buns and BBQ pork! I was like a little kid in the candy store. We're going to try to make these grocery trips into weekly outings.
Anyways, that's how I'm sinifying my life right now.
Tuesday, November 06, 2007
I am not a Hallmark writer
Cathy came to my room to make use of my scanner. She laughed at the motivational sign I've got taped to my wall above my laptop.
"Stop whatever you're doing because you're probably not enjoying yourself anyways.
Go do work!"
Go do work!"
Monday, November 05, 2007
Safety second
I just removed my personal alarm from my keychain. I don't know if something loosened in it or what, but the bloody thing keeps falling off and activating itself! I'll be locking my room door and it goes off, unlocking the door to enter the main hallway and it falls off. One day it fell off while I was walking down the hallway and I had to scramble to deactivate it. Even though I was meters away from my door, the alarm was so loud that Nasrin poked her head out because she knew it was me and the alarm.
I guess I'll just keep the alarm in a different part of my backpack and only take it out when I'm by myself at night. Sheesh.
I guess I'll just keep the alarm in a different part of my backpack and only take it out when I'm by myself at night. Sheesh.
A whole bunch of nothing
It's been awhile since I've updated, so I thought I'd toss out a bunch of random stuff that's happened lately... And not so lately.
As many of you know, I went back to Waterloo from October 18th to the 20th for convocation. I had such a blast. I love Ottawa, but it was nice to be back in a city that I know like the back of my hand. I'm not going to recap the whole trip, but it was terrific getting together with Shruthi and Victoria to go dancing, seeing Alyssa for breakfast, harassing Stacy after her convocation, and dragging my mother to restaurants that she didn't want to eat at.
Amusing anecdotes:
When my family and I went to the Rude Native for my "convocation dinner," my mom told the waitress that she would just like water to drink. Right away the waitress asked if my mom would like bottled, distilled, or perrier to drink. The look on my mom's face was hilarious - it was a mixture of horror, indignation, and exasperation. "Uhh, tap?"
Just before I graduated from UW, it decided to implement a mandatory bus pass system. Students just have to show their UW id to get on the bus. Since my ID is valid until 2011, I thought I'd try to use and abuse the new system, and it worked! However, the one morning I wasn't paying attention and got on the bus using my ID... It wasn't until I had to transfer buses that I realized I had used my Carleton ID to get on the bus. Yup, them bus drivers check out the ID reeeeal good.
I gave my first presentation in my Human Security class last Wednesday. I have to admit, I had been dreading the presentation A LOT. Much of my dread stemmed from the fact that I didn't have a very good grasp on my research - I had tried to take on too broad of a topic. I managed to stumble through my presentation but it was a difficult process at best. It wasn't until afterwards that I found out that my prof was a veritable expert on my topic too - he had written a major (controversial) report on it before, so he started going on about all these things that I didn't even know about my own topic. Thankfully I managed to get a great mark anyways. Phew!
On Friday Carleton held a co-op information session for all interested Master's students. After the session, all I can think is, "Sheesh! UW soooo spoiled me co-op-wise." I'm so used to UW's massive and efficient co-op machine that Carleton's seems dinky. LOL. The lady holding the info session was so proud that they have 6 dedicated interview rooms. Meanwhile I'm laughing behind my hand because hell, UW just built a brand new building with 100 interview rooms. Oh well. I'm totally signing up for the co-op program just because it's a good opportunity.
After the co-op session I went to Lauda's to cook her dinner and go out for a night on the town. We went to Caliente nightclub again, the salsa club. I really like the mix of music there - it has the regular bachata, salsa, and merengue, but it also plays reggaeton, soca, cumbia, and regular dance music. I had a lot of fun, but by 1:30 I was exhausted and Lauda was unwilling to go home.
The very end of the night was beyond awkward too. By 2ish the club was practically deserted, maybe only 15 people left, none of whom were dancing. Some random guy came up to Lauda and asked her to dance, and she told him to come back when the DJ wasn't playing salsa. Well, two seconds later the music switches to merengue, so the guy comes back, but he brings along his friend who drags me on to the dance floor. My dance partner wasn't bad looking - probably a bit older than me, but dancing with him was like being on a non-stop merry-go-round. He did the same 4 moves over and over, in the exact same order and everything. I was so tired that it was hard not to laugh (he actually caught me smirking once and asked me why). When the music finally changed to reggaeton we ended dancing together still... But it was really awkward because it was only the four of us on the dance floor, and when some guy tries to grind with me while people are watching and I don't have the cover of anonymity, I weird out. LOL. Thankfully some bachata came on and we sprang apart like opposite poles on a magnet.
Oh, Lauda and I also found this fantastic mexican restaurant at the corner of Bank and Second. I forget the name, but it's the only latin restaurant there. It even met with Lauda's seal of approval, so it must have been semi-authentic in her books. :) I highly recommend it.
Lastly, I have been totally geeking out lately on Asian television shows (more popularly known as "dramas"). When I was in HK, I never watched much television because it didn't have English subtitles. But I was always intrigued by the dramas that were playing - I could watch them and create my own storylines in my head... Well I recently found a website where you can download subtitled dramas. I've been totally enamored with all the bad acting, cheesy plots, and hilarious hijinks.
I guess that's it for my randomness. I need to go grocery shopping today - I have noooo fresh food left in my house. Hell, I don't even think I have packaged food to contribute to my meals... And the frozen dinners in my freezer are for emergency/lazy purposes only, so it's time to drag my butt out.
As many of you know, I went back to Waterloo from October 18th to the 20th for convocation. I had such a blast. I love Ottawa, but it was nice to be back in a city that I know like the back of my hand. I'm not going to recap the whole trip, but it was terrific getting together with Shruthi and Victoria to go dancing, seeing Alyssa for breakfast, harassing Stacy after her convocation, and dragging my mother to restaurants that she didn't want to eat at.
Amusing anecdotes:
When my family and I went to the Rude Native for my "convocation dinner," my mom told the waitress that she would just like water to drink. Right away the waitress asked if my mom would like bottled, distilled, or perrier to drink. The look on my mom's face was hilarious - it was a mixture of horror, indignation, and exasperation. "Uhh, tap?"
Just before I graduated from UW, it decided to implement a mandatory bus pass system. Students just have to show their UW id to get on the bus. Since my ID is valid until 2011, I thought I'd try to use and abuse the new system, and it worked! However, the one morning I wasn't paying attention and got on the bus using my ID... It wasn't until I had to transfer buses that I realized I had used my Carleton ID to get on the bus. Yup, them bus drivers check out the ID reeeeal good.
I gave my first presentation in my Human Security class last Wednesday. I have to admit, I had been dreading the presentation A LOT. Much of my dread stemmed from the fact that I didn't have a very good grasp on my research - I had tried to take on too broad of a topic. I managed to stumble through my presentation but it was a difficult process at best. It wasn't until afterwards that I found out that my prof was a veritable expert on my topic too - he had written a major (controversial) report on it before, so he started going on about all these things that I didn't even know about my own topic. Thankfully I managed to get a great mark anyways. Phew!
On Friday Carleton held a co-op information session for all interested Master's students. After the session, all I can think is, "Sheesh! UW soooo spoiled me co-op-wise." I'm so used to UW's massive and efficient co-op machine that Carleton's seems dinky. LOL. The lady holding the info session was so proud that they have 6 dedicated interview rooms. Meanwhile I'm laughing behind my hand because hell, UW just built a brand new building with 100 interview rooms. Oh well. I'm totally signing up for the co-op program just because it's a good opportunity.
After the co-op session I went to Lauda's to cook her dinner and go out for a night on the town. We went to Caliente nightclub again, the salsa club. I really like the mix of music there - it has the regular bachata, salsa, and merengue, but it also plays reggaeton, soca, cumbia, and regular dance music. I had a lot of fun, but by 1:30 I was exhausted and Lauda was unwilling to go home.
The very end of the night was beyond awkward too. By 2ish the club was practically deserted, maybe only 15 people left, none of whom were dancing. Some random guy came up to Lauda and asked her to dance, and she told him to come back when the DJ wasn't playing salsa. Well, two seconds later the music switches to merengue, so the guy comes back, but he brings along his friend who drags me on to the dance floor. My dance partner wasn't bad looking - probably a bit older than me, but dancing with him was like being on a non-stop merry-go-round. He did the same 4 moves over and over, in the exact same order and everything. I was so tired that it was hard not to laugh (he actually caught me smirking once and asked me why). When the music finally changed to reggaeton we ended dancing together still... But it was really awkward because it was only the four of us on the dance floor, and when some guy tries to grind with me while people are watching and I don't have the cover of anonymity, I weird out. LOL. Thankfully some bachata came on and we sprang apart like opposite poles on a magnet.
Oh, Lauda and I also found this fantastic mexican restaurant at the corner of Bank and Second. I forget the name, but it's the only latin restaurant there. It even met with Lauda's seal of approval, so it must have been semi-authentic in her books. :) I highly recommend it.
Lastly, I have been totally geeking out lately on Asian television shows (more popularly known as "dramas"). When I was in HK, I never watched much television because it didn't have English subtitles. But I was always intrigued by the dramas that were playing - I could watch them and create my own storylines in my head... Well I recently found a website where you can download subtitled dramas. I've been totally enamored with all the bad acting, cheesy plots, and hilarious hijinks.
I guess that's it for my randomness. I need to go grocery shopping today - I have noooo fresh food left in my house. Hell, I don't even think I have packaged food to contribute to my meals... And the frozen dinners in my freezer are for emergency/lazy purposes only, so it's time to drag my butt out.
Sunday, October 28, 2007
The world is ending!
It's snowing in Ottawa right now!
Okay. Just a few flakes. But the point is, it's snowing in Ottawa! It's been on and off randomly for the past couple of hours. It's so cold out, I've had to don socks and slippers, and I've got my sweatshirt on and have closed my window.
Okay. Just a few flakes. But the point is, it's snowing in Ottawa! It's been on and off randomly for the past couple of hours. It's so cold out, I've had to don socks and slippers, and I've got my sweatshirt on and have closed my window.
Saturday, October 27, 2007
Help, I've been defiled!
I totally just got ejaculated upon by my bottle of moisturizer, and boy does it have long range! LOL, I was moving my laptop off my desk and trying to wrangle my power cord around a bunch of books. I accidentally knocked my giant pump bottle of moisturizer off the desk and it landed on the floor... But in the process, it managed to launch some of its contents upwards and smacked me on the forehead, the bottom of my laptop, on my bed, etc.
High expectations
Sheesh I have some high expectations of technology. I was sitting here reading a document on my computer. I reached the end of the text on the screen and automatically looked up at the top of the screen again - only to realize that I hadn't yet scrolled down for more words yet.
Whoops. Someone needs to invent a mind-reading piece of hardware or something for doofuses like me.
Whoops. Someone needs to invent a mind-reading piece of hardware or something for doofuses like me.
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Random encounters
I went for a perm last night. It ended up taking me 2.5 hours because the woman talked so much. It was so interesting to hear her life story.
It turns out that she was Vietnamese, and that her mother and brothers and she came to Ottawa during the late 70s. Her father used to be a head military officer working for the Americans during the war. She was telling me how they lost all their possessions to the communist, her father was sent to prison camp, and how the rest of her family had to sleep outside on the streets while fleeing the communists.
Apparently her mother organized a small boat for her family and 43 other members of their extended family so they could flee to Malaysia. She was telling me how she had to take swimming lessons in case the boat capsized and whatnot. When I asked why she and her family settled in the Ottawa region, she told me it was because her mother had been able to contact a former Canadian soldier that they used to rent a house to in Vietnam, and he vouched for them to come to Canada.
It was so crazy to listen to the woman talk. You hear about these kinds of things happening in movies and books, but to actually encounter one of these people was mind boggling.
It turns out that she was Vietnamese, and that her mother and brothers and she came to Ottawa during the late 70s. Her father used to be a head military officer working for the Americans during the war. She was telling me how they lost all their possessions to the communist, her father was sent to prison camp, and how the rest of her family had to sleep outside on the streets while fleeing the communists.
Apparently her mother organized a small boat for her family and 43 other members of their extended family so they could flee to Malaysia. She was telling me how she had to take swimming lessons in case the boat capsized and whatnot. When I asked why she and her family settled in the Ottawa region, she told me it was because her mother had been able to contact a former Canadian soldier that they used to rent a house to in Vietnam, and he vouched for them to come to Canada.
It was so crazy to listen to the woman talk. You hear about these kinds of things happening in movies and books, but to actually encounter one of these people was mind boggling.
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