Sorting Through the Clutter
If you somehow were able to unearth my diary amidst the clutter of my room, then you would probably find something like this...
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Sorting Through the Clutter If you somehow were able to unearth my diary amidst the clutter of my room, then you would probably find something like this... |
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Sunday, March 07, 2010 I don't have a particularly acute sense of smell. My olfactory gifts are pretty standards. But once in awhile, a familiar smell, scent, odour will drift by - filling my head with an instant jolt of memories. I don't keep a diary. But smells will do the trick if I want to wander a little bit down memory lane. I bought this fancy new shampoo in first year of university, when I moved away from home for the very first time. I wanted it to be a year of everything new. I bought this shampoo again last week. I didn't even know they still made the brand. The moment I started sudsing up my hair, I was hit was this unmistakable feeling of homesickness, uncertainty, and anxiousness. For absolutely no reason at all. But with a flip of the shampoo bottlecap, it brought back all the feelings of moving away for the very first time. Or how about the time I was walking on the sidewalk on a hot sunny summer afternoon. I didn't even notice the guy walk past me but all of a sudden I was holding hands with my first love. It was Fall, the leaves were fluttering off the trees, and I was walking amidst the century-old buildings at the university we both attended. That cologne smells like butterflies in my stomach, first kisses, and endless daydreams about the first boy I ever loved. My brother got me this drugstore perfume that I still love to spray on from time to time. I stopped using it for awhile, but started using it again sometime last year. It made me think of all the times I got ready for dates in my purple bedroom, of when I got dressed up to go out dancing all night long, or when I was meeting the girls downtown for dinner. Whenever I spray that perfume on, I smell excitement and anticipation. So who needs to write things down in a diary, when I have all these scents - all these olfactory cues - that waft around me? posted by Jenn | 7:25 PM | Monday, January 05, 2009 Yet another year has flown by. Why does it seem like time is on fast forward once we graduate from school? So what have I done with my time in 2008? Time for a recap: - started 2008 without any boys by my side. (as opposed to the disaster exactly a year ago) I haven't rung in a new year without a boyfriend since almost a decade ago. Needed to learn to be alone. - ran the social committee at work - learned how to deal with a fickle heart - took up a Culinary Arts class! I learned how to cut a whole chicken into 8 usable parts, how to make reduction sauces, how to make the flakiest, melt-in-your-mouth quiche ever - took up Salsa lessons. I kinda know the basics but taking lessons really made a difference - snowboarded on the west coast for the first time ever. It was the best snowboarding experience of my life. The powdery snow was incredible - went to NYC for the first time since the Ex and I went back in 2006. It was a little strange because I associated that city with the happy times I had with the Ex. It was strange seeing the city with other people. - saw my first Raptor's game - learned how to really let go of the past - fell in love - traveled to China and retraced the steps my dad took when he was in high school - stood in the same spot that my dad met my mom - learned about my roots, my heritage, my past - traveled to Vancouver and met the boyfriend's parents (They loved me! ^_^ ) - best friend got married! - got formally recognized at work for my recent work achievements! - reconnected with some of my engineering buddies from undergrad - relearned how to study - wrote my professional engineering exam - had our first big fight as a couple - celebrated Christmas with the boyfriend by my side. - rang in the new year in NYC! Labels: Nostalgia posted by Jenn | 8:53 AM |Wednesday, January 30, 2008 2007 has indeed passed too quickly. I don't think I'm the only one who feels that way. Like my lil' bro, I too think that the year passed by so quickly that I barely have had time to reflect on it. - Started the year quite painfully. Wanting to look forward but holding onto the past. - Assigned to and started a organization-wide initiative at work that eventually came to fruition in 2008 - very happy about that accomplishment - Made and cemented solid friendships at work. You know me - I'm all about building relationships. It's what makes me happy, no matter where I may find myself - My lil' bro decided to join the army - despite my misgivings, but with my full support - Backpacked through Eastern Europe - learned about the incredible strength of Hungarian Jews and developed a deep respect for the perseverance of these people - Learned how to play golf! - Did a lot of work travel: Vancouver crab one week, Halifax Lobster the next - Still learning to move forward - Perfected my skills in "juggling" - Prom 2007: discovered that I still fit into my high school prom dress :) - Discovered how much I miss my lil bro. Cherished the times when he was back to visit. - Had my first tele-conference breakfast because we couldn't break our Christmas tradition - Best friend got engaged! Labels: Nostalgia posted by Jenn | 11:33 PM |Monday, February 06, 2006 Having housemates/roommates/flatmates/suitemates are great. It's great to come home from work and have someone who gets you and your strange sense of humour. Someone to shoot the breeze with over any topic. Someone to make random comments to while watching "My Name is Earl". I've been fortunate enough to have good roommates my entire life. I've never had to deal with the "nightmare roommates from hell". The ones that seem to be very common in movies. Let's take a short jaunt down memory lane, yes? First year university: Shared a room in the biggest residence at McMaster University with N. She was this cute blonde who had a great sense of style and great taste in music. Someone exactly like me..hehe. Well she was the Caucasian version of me. We got along great, but never became close friends. We were never at a loss for words though, whenever we bumped into each other on campus throughout the next 5 years. Second year university: Moved out of the Res life and into this cute little house with 3 other girls I had met in first year. Every natural hair colour was represented in this house: two brunettes, one blonde, and a redhead. This was definitely an interesting year. C (the other brunette) and I got along famously. We still keep in touch and are really good friends to this day. The other two were best friends when we all moved in and became mortal enemies by the end of the year. I learned a lot that year. I learned how to cook, how to share one phone line between 4 girls, how to share one bathroom between 4 girls. Third year: Since everyone went their separate ways after second year, I moved in with a bunch of graduate students. Prime location, gorgeous old-fashioned house. All girls again, but this time, things remained civil..mostly because we were all pretty much strangers. I was hardly home this year. It was my first year coming out a long-term relationship. I partied a lot and my housemates eventually wondered if I had moved out. Fourth year: All the grad students graduated and moved out! I had the house all the myself and I recruited my friends to move in. Two of my guy buddies moved in with me, along with a high school friend that I had recently reconnected with. This year was jokes! I loved my housemates. It was the first time living in a co-ed house and it was so good to get some testosterone injected into the mix. A year of screams, laughs, tears, and good food. Fifth year: One of the guys decided he wanted to live somewhere new. So we had a new girl move in with us. Poor A, he was stuck in a house of girls, but I think he still enjoyed it. He was the guy, so he had to do all the "guy stuff" like fix broken toilets, remove dead mice, kill spiders. But I don't think he minded too much. We've all graduated and I've lost touch with most of my housemates but A. He is one cool dude and I miss him. He's far away now since he's moved off to B.C. this year, but our MSN convos always make me laugh. Grown-up Life: After about a year at my company, they shipped me off to the East coast. I did some searches on the internet for people who had an extra room in their apartment. I met 'M online and I could tell from our emails that we'd get along great. We met in person and a week later, I moved in with her and S. Quite possibly the best strangers-turned-roommates I've ever had. 'M and I shopped, held Sopranos marathons, had girly nights in, and super-fun nights out. My four months on the East coast flew by. Memory lanes are the ultimate. Labels: Nostalgia posted by Jenn | 6:03 PM |Tuesday, October 25, 2005 I had the nicest cabbie drive me home yesterday. My pick-up was in the shop, so I had to take a cab home after work last night. I only had 15 bucks on me, so when the meter hit $15.00, I yelled out "Stop! I only have 15 dollars on me, so can you let me off here". We were mid-conversation and mid-intersection. He stops the meter and says that his conscience wouldn't allow him to just drop me off here. So he proceeded to drive the rest of the way to my apartment for free. What a nice guy. I've encountered many nice taxi drivers along the way. During my last year in university, one of my girlfriends and I were coming back from a long day of Christmas shopping at Limeridge Mall. We were caught in the middle of a torrential rainstorm and were carrying 10 bags each. We normally would've taken public transit but it was too miserable so we opted for a cab ride home. Now, anyone who knows how far Limeridge is from the campus would think that's a foolish decision. But you had to be there. There was no way we were gonna haul around those shopping bags in that downpour. The cabbie took us down from the mountain back towards the campus. I think it came out to almost 20 dollars. But instead, he charged us 4 bucks...what bus fare would've been. Still makes me smile to think about it today. Labels: Nostalgia posted by Jenn | 8:38 AM |Sunday, October 16, 2005 You know that feeling of missing someone so much that it brings tears to your eyes when you meet them again? I felt that today at church. Labels: Nostalgia posted by Jenn | 1:49 PM |Sunday, August 21, 2005 This past weekend reminded me so much of university days. Bar-hopping non-stop, dancing for 5 hours straight, wandering the crowded George St. at 4am, looking for post-clubbing food, squishing into a taxi, trying to convince the cabbie to take me home for free, not succeeding and ended up having to crash at some stranger's house. You wouldn't believe the amount of inside jokes that can result from one crazy night out. :) I miss it and at the same time, not really. I think I've grown up in the past year or so. It's super fun, but not something I can or would want to do every week. Today is going to be my sit-back and take-it-easy day. I'm a working girl now. I can't do the student lifestyle 3 days in a row and then be expected to go back to work on Monday and perform at top-notch level. Two days in a row, maybe. Labels: Grown Up Stuff, Nostalgia posted by Jenn | 1:50 PM |Wednesday, April 20, 2005 The little preview of summer yesterday was gorgeous. We trekked over to the Waterfront Trail, strapped on the blades and then we were off. It felt so good - the night air against my skin, the wind whistling by my ears. And it reminded me so much of school. Blading around at night in Hamilton. Dropping by people's houses along the way. The weather's being such a tease. It's gonna rain today. Labels: Nostalgia posted by Jenn | 7:34 AM | |
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