I just bought a new camera! Really excited about it, probably spent more then I planned to, but thats ok, its a fantastic camera. Its a Canon (Powershot SD870 IS for those who know that stuff) and I has all sorts of great features. It is an 8.1 Mega pixel, with a 2.8 inch screen. I can do all sorts of fun photos with it and can't wait to pull it out and start snapping pictures on the way to Holland, not to mention while touring around!
I spent the day doing little things getting ready. Laundry.... Well really that might be the only important thing I did today. I put the iron on Canada Flag patches on my backpack. Found out my day pack has more to it then I figured. I am starting to think that my bag is going to be alot lighter and lesser packed then I originally expected. Yep, me, an unashamed over packer, might actually do a good job packing... Might... Have to see yet =)
Saturday, March 29, 2008
Saturday, March 22, 2008
As my Nerves Begin to Frey
So in ten days I will be on my way. To say the least I am more then just a little bit nervous about going. I am excited, don't get me wrong, but I am nervous as well. I am not exactly the worlds most spontaneous person, but somehow, in a months time, I quit my job, bought a plane ticket, and will be off for the Netherlands. Good times...
I think I have been explaining myself poorly. I say that I am going to Europe, to the Netherlands, to backpack. While this is true in some aspects I guess how I mean it might not be the same as it is understood. I am not going all accross Europe, staying in Hostels every night. I will be living out of my back pack, yes. I will be in Europe, yes. I hope to see more then just the Netherlands, yes. But while I am in the Netherlands, I have family to stay with, and friends.
Moms cousin(Piety) is picking me up from the airport and taking me north. After almost two weeks in the north, she is going to drive me an hour and a half away where I hope to meet up with a friend(my dads cousin's kid- Rene) and spend a day or two. Then it is on to the next city where I meet another friend(met through dad's cousins kid- Jero) and his place will be my base for the remainder of my trip. He is gonna travel with me sometimes, and hoepfully we have the chance to go abroad, and he is also going to show me Amsterdamm. I am welcome in his apartment as long as I want, so on that chance that I decide to stay longer, his place will likely be what I call home.
Hopefully I'll get the chance to stay at some hostels, to backpack and ride the train, but at the same time, if I can have this chance to see the country with people from there, that is pretty awesome too!
I just spent like three hours talking to Jero online and we are sort of starting to form some plans. It is hard to confirm much at this point, as he is not yet positive what his work schedule will be like, he is pretty sure his 5 hours a week is split between two days, leaving open for some long weekend excursions. Can't wait!
Packing for the trip is an experience in itself. I have to remind myself that I am carrying everything I chose to bring on my back and that it has to be resonable. I need to bring things that dry quickly, that don't matter if they get destroyed, and that aren't going to need to be broken in... in other words, I think I might be in trouble. I have to get new shoes, and break them in... I have to buy pants and travel toiletries... I guess Monday will be a big shopping day for me.
Anyways, I hope you all have a very happy Easter Sunday tomorrow, celebrating the resurrection of our Christ the Lord. We are having some family over and having dinner after church, I am looking forward to it. Always an interesting time when you put a bunch of us in one room:) Good night and God Bless!
I think I have been explaining myself poorly. I say that I am going to Europe, to the Netherlands, to backpack. While this is true in some aspects I guess how I mean it might not be the same as it is understood. I am not going all accross Europe, staying in Hostels every night. I will be living out of my back pack, yes. I will be in Europe, yes. I hope to see more then just the Netherlands, yes. But while I am in the Netherlands, I have family to stay with, and friends.
Moms cousin(Piety) is picking me up from the airport and taking me north. After almost two weeks in the north, she is going to drive me an hour and a half away where I hope to meet up with a friend(my dads cousin's kid- Rene) and spend a day or two. Then it is on to the next city where I meet another friend(met through dad's cousins kid- Jero) and his place will be my base for the remainder of my trip. He is gonna travel with me sometimes, and hoepfully we have the chance to go abroad, and he is also going to show me Amsterdamm. I am welcome in his apartment as long as I want, so on that chance that I decide to stay longer, his place will likely be what I call home.
Hopefully I'll get the chance to stay at some hostels, to backpack and ride the train, but at the same time, if I can have this chance to see the country with people from there, that is pretty awesome too!
I just spent like three hours talking to Jero online and we are sort of starting to form some plans. It is hard to confirm much at this point, as he is not yet positive what his work schedule will be like, he is pretty sure his 5 hours a week is split between two days, leaving open for some long weekend excursions. Can't wait!
Packing for the trip is an experience in itself. I have to remind myself that I am carrying everything I chose to bring on my back and that it has to be resonable. I need to bring things that dry quickly, that don't matter if they get destroyed, and that aren't going to need to be broken in... in other words, I think I might be in trouble. I have to get new shoes, and break them in... I have to buy pants and travel toiletries... I guess Monday will be a big shopping day for me.
Anyways, I hope you all have a very happy Easter Sunday tomorrow, celebrating the resurrection of our Christ the Lord. We are having some family over and having dinner after church, I am looking forward to it. Always an interesting time when you put a bunch of us in one room:) Good night and God Bless!
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
One More Day till Unemployment!
It is amazing how strange it can seem. Tomorrow at this time, I will be unemployeed. I will no longer have shifts in that building that I have spent so much time at. No longer have a need to be there. Considering, like any job, how much of my life it consumes, it is a hard thought to fathom. But it feels pretty good in its own way.
I will miss it. Staff. Customers. Even parts of the job. But at the same time I am so unbelieveably excited for my trip that it is hard to feel sad about leaving the job. Finishing with work simply makes Europe and the Netherlands that much closer...
My goal is to have my backpack packed by the end of the week. Ready to go. That might sound early to some people, a good week ahead of schedule, but it makes sense. This way if there is something last minute to buy, I have a week to remember it, to pick it up. And it means I get to get accustomed to my new pack. Going to go on some walks to get used to the weight and size of it. Not that I will be carrying the whole thing around often, but I need to have a little bit of a feel for when I do have to carry it for more than an hour or so. So if anyone is looking for a walk next week, let me know;)
In other news, I got to feel my sisters baby kick last night! Since she is due in early June and I don't know for 100% that I'll be back by then, we figured on trying to give me a chance to feel the baby move before I leave. So I went over last night, she sat, she ate, she lay down-on both sides, she had a slushie, and finally we got it to move a little bit. What a strange feeling. To hold your hand on a tummy and feel such obvious movement inside. Just a little miracle!
Have a great day, and a super week! I'll try to be in touch, have to get all warmed up and in practise for while I am gone=)
I will miss it. Staff. Customers. Even parts of the job. But at the same time I am so unbelieveably excited for my trip that it is hard to feel sad about leaving the job. Finishing with work simply makes Europe and the Netherlands that much closer...
My goal is to have my backpack packed by the end of the week. Ready to go. That might sound early to some people, a good week ahead of schedule, but it makes sense. This way if there is something last minute to buy, I have a week to remember it, to pick it up. And it means I get to get accustomed to my new pack. Going to go on some walks to get used to the weight and size of it. Not that I will be carrying the whole thing around often, but I need to have a little bit of a feel for when I do have to carry it for more than an hour or so. So if anyone is looking for a walk next week, let me know;)
In other news, I got to feel my sisters baby kick last night! Since she is due in early June and I don't know for 100% that I'll be back by then, we figured on trying to give me a chance to feel the baby move before I leave. So I went over last night, she sat, she ate, she lay down-on both sides, she had a slushie, and finally we got it to move a little bit. What a strange feeling. To hold your hand on a tummy and feel such obvious movement inside. Just a little miracle!
Have a great day, and a super week! I'll try to be in touch, have to get all warmed up and in practise for while I am gone=)
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Plane Tickets
I BOUGHT MY PLANE TICKETS!!!
Departing for the Netherlands April 1st, arriving on the 2nd. I return home May 2nd... Assuming that is, that I am ready to come home.
After all these years of saying it, I am finally doing it!
Am I nuts?
Departing for the Netherlands April 1st, arriving on the 2nd. I return home May 2nd... Assuming that is, that I am ready to come home.
After all these years of saying it, I am finally doing it!
Am I nuts?
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Good Day
I don't even know where to begin. This happens everytime I think. There ends up being so much time in between my blogs that so much happens I don't even know what to say when I finally sit down and write my hello... So I guess I'll just touch upon a few things.
A friend of mine, a friend of many, died late last month. Derrick Timmermans was involved in an accident as he was driving home from The Kings University College in Edmonton to Abbotsford during reading week. He hit a patch of black ice, spun out, and after a couple of days in hospital he was declared brain dead. While it is difficult to imagine that a 25 year old vibrant young man could be taken so young, at the same time we learned that his family is at peace with it. Two of his sisters flew out for the memorial and informed those in attendence that Derrick was 'ready to die', not hoping or waiting for it, but not afraid or worried about it. And as a further blessing, we learnt that all seven of his major organs, and both his eyes were donated. It is extremely rare for someone to be able to donate all their organs, so in a way he lives on in the lives that his family's selfless action of donating his organs restored life for many others.
RIP Derrick. God Bless to your family and friends. See you again some day.
In other news, a little less somber, I quit my job and am planning on going to Europe. More specifically, I am finished working at the Flying J as of March 19, 2008 after two years and nine months of work. It has been interesting, educational, stressful, and fun. No idea what is next in line for me in terms of work, but I am not to worried about it at this time.
The plan is that on April first, I will hop a flight to the Netherlands(Holland) where I will spend a month or so backpacking and exploring the country of my ancestors. I have always wanted to go and have talked about it many times, and while I have not yet bought my plane ticket- I am going to do it this time. I intend to embark on this trip solo, and although I am more than a little terrified about it, I strongly feel that it is the time to go. I emailed a cousin of my moms who lives in Friesland(Northern Netherlands) and she told me that I am welcome to stay with her for up to two months. Since then the trip got shorter, but it gives me the freedom to stay longer if it doesn't feel like the time to leave. I have also got ahold of a friend of mine from there, a guy I met about 5 years ago, and he said I can stay with him as well. He lives a bit more in the Western end of the Netherlands and is doing a practicum right now, only working a few hours a week. He was really excited to hear I was coming down and mentioned he might be willing to travel with me. I've another friend there, whom I met at the same time as that guy and he is pretty busy right now, but I am pretty sure(pretty hopeful) that he will be available at least a couple days as well. Finally, a friend of a friend is an au Pere in Switzerland right now and she gets weekends off and we might be meeting up for aweekend in Nice or something as well. So while I am going alone, there is a chance of meeting up with various contacts.
It is hard to believe it is real. I applied for a Mastercard and it came in the mail today, so I have my emergency money while I am gone. I bought a travel backpack this afternoon. It felt like a really big commitment, like admitting to my bank account that it is about to dwindle. It has me excited, like the trip is more real then ever before. Now I just have to work up the nerve to walk into a travel agent and book my flight.
The best thing about the whole thing is the fact that I really have no idea what I am doing with my life after this. If the month doesn't go well, I come home and return to life here, what is a month out of my life? It'll be an adventure in the Netherlands, in Europe, so it wont be anything close to a waste. But if it does go well, then who knows. Perhaps I will stay longer than the month, or I shall return home for the summer, put away some more money, and go back, in the fall, or next spring. Go back to travel more, or to work. To visit or to live. Anything is possible and since I really have no idea, I am trying hard to be open to any and all options.
So, to be cheesy, the winds of change are blowing and my world is about to be turned upside down. Heres to the adventure and the unknown to come!
A friend of mine, a friend of many, died late last month. Derrick Timmermans was involved in an accident as he was driving home from The Kings University College in Edmonton to Abbotsford during reading week. He hit a patch of black ice, spun out, and after a couple of days in hospital he was declared brain dead. While it is difficult to imagine that a 25 year old vibrant young man could be taken so young, at the same time we learned that his family is at peace with it. Two of his sisters flew out for the memorial and informed those in attendence that Derrick was 'ready to die', not hoping or waiting for it, but not afraid or worried about it. And as a further blessing, we learnt that all seven of his major organs, and both his eyes were donated. It is extremely rare for someone to be able to donate all their organs, so in a way he lives on in the lives that his family's selfless action of donating his organs restored life for many others.
RIP Derrick. God Bless to your family and friends. See you again some day.
In other news, a little less somber, I quit my job and am planning on going to Europe. More specifically, I am finished working at the Flying J as of March 19, 2008 after two years and nine months of work. It has been interesting, educational, stressful, and fun. No idea what is next in line for me in terms of work, but I am not to worried about it at this time.
The plan is that on April first, I will hop a flight to the Netherlands(Holland) where I will spend a month or so backpacking and exploring the country of my ancestors. I have always wanted to go and have talked about it many times, and while I have not yet bought my plane ticket- I am going to do it this time. I intend to embark on this trip solo, and although I am more than a little terrified about it, I strongly feel that it is the time to go. I emailed a cousin of my moms who lives in Friesland(Northern Netherlands) and she told me that I am welcome to stay with her for up to two months. Since then the trip got shorter, but it gives me the freedom to stay longer if it doesn't feel like the time to leave. I have also got ahold of a friend of mine from there, a guy I met about 5 years ago, and he said I can stay with him as well. He lives a bit more in the Western end of the Netherlands and is doing a practicum right now, only working a few hours a week. He was really excited to hear I was coming down and mentioned he might be willing to travel with me. I've another friend there, whom I met at the same time as that guy and he is pretty busy right now, but I am pretty sure(pretty hopeful) that he will be available at least a couple days as well. Finally, a friend of a friend is an au Pere in Switzerland right now and she gets weekends off and we might be meeting up for aweekend in Nice or something as well. So while I am going alone, there is a chance of meeting up with various contacts.
It is hard to believe it is real. I applied for a Mastercard and it came in the mail today, so I have my emergency money while I am gone. I bought a travel backpack this afternoon. It felt like a really big commitment, like admitting to my bank account that it is about to dwindle. It has me excited, like the trip is more real then ever before. Now I just have to work up the nerve to walk into a travel agent and book my flight.
The best thing about the whole thing is the fact that I really have no idea what I am doing with my life after this. If the month doesn't go well, I come home and return to life here, what is a month out of my life? It'll be an adventure in the Netherlands, in Europe, so it wont be anything close to a waste. But if it does go well, then who knows. Perhaps I will stay longer than the month, or I shall return home for the summer, put away some more money, and go back, in the fall, or next spring. Go back to travel more, or to work. To visit or to live. Anything is possible and since I really have no idea, I am trying hard to be open to any and all options.
So, to be cheesy, the winds of change are blowing and my world is about to be turned upside down. Heres to the adventure and the unknown to come!
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