Lord, Bless this Easter Basket

So besides falling off the writing bandwagon for what I suppose is a week and a half now, I've up and moved to St. Catharines finally. Piotr and I spent our first night in the apartment last night (which is only partially furnished until my parents come on the 17th to move my crap out of the Huron St. apt in London).

So much has happened even in the couple days that I have lived down here now.
1. I got a full time job as a reservations agent in Niagara Falls. I should be excited about it because I love the hospitality industry, but it's in a cubicle in a basement with no windows.
2. I fell down the stairs, or rather slid down them yesterday at Piotr's parent's house. They were only 7 or 8 steps, but I hit my spine and tailbone on every step with the back of my head following after. I wasn't allowed to sleep for two hours because of the possibility of a concussion. No concussion, but one hell of a headache followed. I did wake up today, obviously.
3. Piotr and I took an Easter basket filled with kielbasa, babka, and other goodies to be blessed by the priest today. It's Polish tradition. Tomorrow we eat it and lots of other yummy goodness. I should really be a cook.4. I've mixed up the breakfast casserole my parents make every Easter ready to be cooked for breakfast tomorrow. Think 9 eggs, 3 cups of milk, 3 cups of cheese, 1lb of breakfast sausage sliced small all mixed together and poured over six slices of bread in a 9x13 casserole dish. Sits overnight. Cook in the morning for 45 min at 350F covered with tin foil, then another 10 with the foil off. Serve and Smacznego!
5. I feel like even though Piotr and I live together we're not really spending 'quality time' together so far. He took an extra shift at work during the Easter holiday weekend when he doesn't even have another day off. His buddy is in town for the weekend from Ottawa and is leaving tomorrow, and went to go hang out with him today even though we were supposed to dye some Easter eggs already and whatnot. I don't really care about him taking the time to hang out with his buddy at all, but this could have been planned out better so that he didn't have to break plans with me to do it. Because let me tell you, there's nothing I like better than dying eggs at 11:30pm when I have to get up early the next day. *sigh* So is life. I guess the reality of it is I'm just lonely. I'm here in a new city and don't know anyone. Hell, I'm not even in my own country yet again. I don't understand why every time he goes to hang out with his friends he can't invite me along once. "It's like a boys only kinda thing" doesn't really cut it with me. Every time I went out with my girlfriends in London or Burlington, he was always invited. I find this annoying. So that's it about my personal rants and what's been happening. Even though my bloggin class is done and I don't have to write in this anymore, I will continue to do so because it is really great to get stuff off of my chest.

BTW...my new neighbors smoke weed and try to cover it up with some nasty-smelling perfume, which makes it smell even worse. Disgusting.

Funeral of a Canadian Solider

I've been in St. Catharines this weekend visiting my boyfriend, but yesterday I had a random chance to experience the funeral of Warrant Officer Dennis Brown, 38, on a sunny Saturday afternoon. Hundreds of people lined the outskirts of the immediate vacinity where the funeral was taking place. I haven't felt that sad in a long time, just standing there with my dog, watching this ceremony take place. The hundreds of people can with a multitude of Canadian flags and respect. Brown left behind a wife and four children. I can't imagine or even want to imagine what his poor family is going through.

For the story on Brown and the other two fallen soldiers, click here.

The reason I'm writing this blog is because being from the United States and knowing the amount of soliders who have died in Iraq and Afghanistan, you would think that I would have been to a soldier's funeral before, but I haven't. I didn't even go to the funeral of Nick Carnes, (a friend of the family), who died in Afghanistan in August 2007. I find them too painful. I figured this would be a good opportunity to pay some respect. I may not agree with war, but I do support soldiers of both countries, and give my respect to Brown and his family. I hope they are able to move forward with their lives eventually and that Warrant Officer Brown will never be forgotten. I know Nick will never be forgotten by those of us who knew him.

For more on Nick and other Kentucky National Guard Members who have passed away, click here.

7 times Two = 1 month

Today is significant it two ways:

1. Today marks the 7th month that Piotr and I have been together.
I always say, "Where has the time gone?" I actually mean it, and wonder how fast our time together will go once we move into together. Will it progress slowly or continue at its current pace? Will we take each other for granted or be able to get along as well as we do now. These are all issues that I've been trying to reconcile in my head, but it makes me nervous. That's why I'm trying to keep the most positive outlook possible.

2. Today also marks the five week marker when I will move to St. Catharines.
We have an apartment all set up, so I'm starting to relax a little bit. We officially get the apartment near Penn Center in St. Kitts on April 1st, even though I don't finish school til the 9th. I only have one final exam in American Studies (cliche I know), so it will be okay. The other thing I have to worry about is finding a job. I've been applying to some hotels in the area and I actually have an interview at the Crown Plaza Hotel in Niagara Falls next Tuesday for a reservations agent. The two and a half years I've worked as a front desk clerk comes in handy in Niagara. Wish me luck!