Saturday night was my 21st birthday party, and what a party it was! I decided to have a costume party after a bunch of my friends expressed an interest, and I'm so glad it was successful. We had tonnes of food and drink, a lot of really great guests, and so many laughs I lost count.
I think I'm really lucky to have the quality friends I do. I'm so grateful I have them around.
Halloween is tomorrow night and I'm going to have even more fun with even more friends. Lucky me!
-Laur

Fudge-y?

I had a pretty sweet day besides picking all my nail polish off in the Ed elective of DOOM. Had lunch with my peeps after our presentation, which was also nice, and then got to visit with Irina while we waited...and waited..and waited for the stupid bus to arrive. The weather was GORGEOUS, I love my friends, and I've had a great day.
And I got Pizza Hut and an ice cream cake for dinner. SWEET!!!!!!!
-Laur

21

Today is my birthday! 21 years ago today my mom welcomed me into the world at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto and waiting over a month after my due date to deliver. Sorry, Mom, I don't know how many times I can apologize!
I'm pretty excited to be 21 because it means I'm really, REALLY out of my teenage years. That makes me happy. I've come to the conclusion that up until I turned 18 I was basically powerless; I felt unable to exercise any control over my life and I really didn't enjoy it.
I have some power over the things that happen in my life, the choices I make and the people I keep around me, and I think it's going to be good. Really.
So tonight when I get home, after I vacuum and start my laundry and clean my room and drag the Halloween decorations out of the basement to take stock, I'm going to eat my birthday cake and appreciate how sweet it is to be 21.
And Rohit, if you're reading, I'm coming to have a drink with you in Seattle this summer BECAUSE I CAN :D

-Laur

And as I grow up...

My mom said something to me earlier this evening that really struck a chord. She said "You will find, daughter of mine, that as an adult you must choose 50/50 friends, friends that give as much time and effort to maintaining your relationship as you do." Today I ended my lengthy relationship with a close friend who did not, suffice it to say, give her 50.
I felt really bad for a little while after doing it, like maybe it was my fault that our friendship had failed, that maybe I was the inept one, not her. But that is not the case. I have a group of wonderful, supportive, caring and understanding 50/50 friends who have showed me that. I have friends that know when the time to celebrate Me is, and I know when the time to celebrate Them is. We can talk for hours and never try to outdo each other; we can just listen.
So now I have stopped beating myself up. I hate to hurt people, after watching other people in my life hurt the people that loved them most, but I understand that there was more anger than hurt involved on the opposite side of this situation, and that they probably don't have the capacity to be hurt by my words anyway.
Ending this relationship was the hardest thing I've had to do in a long time, but in the words of Meredith Grey:
"It's over. It's over. It's so over."

-Laur

WEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!

The cold medication I took today made the walls move. I was sitting in my Teaching English class watching the blackboard dance from one end of the classroom to the other.
Pretty freaky.
I think I'll go to bed now.

-Laur

A-choo!

I have a cold. It came at me out of the blue. One minute I'm partying at AlleyCatz for Emile's 22nd birthday and the next I'm sneezing around Walden Galleria in Buffalo, going through a pack of kleenex every half hour. WOO! Gotta love it! Though I have to say I'm much happier that I got it now instead of later in the month. Having a cold on my birthday would have sucked a lot.
On a happier note, I am glad to report that my Gramma is doing very well. She's in a sub-acute unit in Edmonton General Hospital doing some rehab stuff and generally just taking a breather. She has her own telephone line in her private room so we speak to her almost every night. She already knows the names of everyone in her unit and even has someone to watch the hockey games with. As for her elbow, it seems to be healing well. She says it's always sore, but then again, she did shatter it and they did have to surgically reconstruct the whole thing. The lesson here: DRINK YOUR MILK! Haha, I don't know how much that's going to help when you're 83, but she does have osteoporosis, so I'm sure that didn't help the situation.
Yesterday night we had a lovely turkey dinner with some friends. Everyone tried to stay away from me so I couldn't breathe on them, so I felt like a leper. YAY!

I hope I can kick this cold soon. Less than 2 weeks till my birthday!

-Laur

Black and Decker idolatry

In the words of my absolute cooking show idol, YUMMO! Right now I am, among other things, baking a challah bread in my very new Black and Decker breadmaker, making a reading schedule to organize my troubled mind, and drinking a lovely mug of vanilla early gray tea.
I've been home all afternoon getting things done, this and that, some TV watched, a PowerPoint presentation on the Ontario Referendum completed, a shower taken, and other such things. Wednesdays are a rather wasteful day for me, and I don't appreciate them at all. I go to school for one hour, and then come home again. Sometimes I get back on the bus at 4:45 and go to work, but not today. I'm glad I was somewhat productive, though, because now I can teach tomorrow and I can also get back on top of my readings.
This year, I have to admit, is one I'm not at all enthused about. A lot of my classes are unexpectedly dull, and some of my teachers are downright terrible. I'm trying really hard to keep a positive outlook on things, to stay motivated and do my work, but it's more difficult than I had imagined.
Tomorrow I get to teach, and I'm really excited about that. I like most of the kids and since they don't know me very well yet, I hope that I make a good impression on them tomorrow. I haven't been as proactive as some of my other TC friends in planning lessons and taking charge, but I hope tomorrow marks the beginning of a semester full of learning experiences.
Right now I'm listening to "Being for the benefit of Mr. Kite" by the Beatles on beatlesradio.com. Quite a great site and some very awesome music.
I've also been planning my birthday parties recently, so that's something to look forward to. 19 days until I'm 21. Pretty crazy!
And of course Harry the horse rules the world.

-Laur