// I Left Without Saying Goodbye

The night before I took off for Calgary I thought to myself "you should post saying that you are leaving!" Well, you're reading this post now so you know that I didn't post a goodbye note. You may not have even known that I was in Calgary at all! I think only my family and Dyllan knew pretty much! Anyhoo, I am home after a long eight day trip... Let's take you through the events!

Day 1: Thursday
After a nice 4 hour sleep, I woke up at 4am on Thursday, July 19th and filled up Fj and picked up Nicole and Kasi. We were officially on the road to Calgary at 5:22am. It pretty much rained the entire time until I think it was about Golden. It had stopped raining at Revelstoke, but we didn't see the sun until Golden. We got into Calgary at about 8:30pm, Alberta time, and settled into Jasmine's house! After chit-chatin for a while, we made are way to Wal Mart where I purchased my bed! Then we got home and pretty much hit the hay. I was spent.

Day 2: Friday
The Empress began her 4 day adventure around Alberta and I was there to chase her! I wasn't sure how far I would go, but I wasn't planning on going all the way to Medicine Hat. It was rather frustrating at first trying to find all these shots but with no where to pull over and not knowing where I'm going and the sun isn't in the right place and argh!!!!!!!! All the things that come with trying to chase a train in an unknown city. I pretty much just gave up on Calgary and headed to a place just outside of the city limits. Once I finally cought her, it was smooth sailing. I ending up turning around at a place called Bassano? Something like that... Anyhoo, I didn't realize that it was 90 minutes out of town!

Once I got back we all went to Sunridge Mall I believe its called, and shopped! Then we watched 'I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry' and that was pretty good times. Wasn't the greatest movie, but it had some funny laughs. After that, we went to Arby's!!! Yay! We never get Arby's and it was nice to eat there! We ate lots! Then we went home and I think we played Settlers... I can't remember... I'm going to say we did, and I won!

Day 3: Saturday
I had decided earlier that week that I wasn't going to make the trip out to Medicine Hat to watch the Empress do several round trips out there, but rather stay and spend time with the girls! We started the day late mainly because I hadn't slept in forever, and I needed sleep! Then we went to the train store! Yay train store! I bought lots of stuff... it was great!

We then made are way to Bowness Park where we rented a paddle boat! I thought those were the coolest things, until I got in and realized how hard it was to paddle! Holy Crap! No joke! I couldn't walk after! My shirt was absolutly soaked in sweat because my lifejacket was hugging me the entire time. After that, we just walked around the park and had a peaceful evening, until we went shopping again! This time we went to Chinook Centre, and had Arby's again! Yay! Then we went home and played Settlers again! Or was it the first time we played? Hmmm....

Day 4: Sunday
The master plan of the day was to wake up at 4am and take a 3 hour drive to Medicine Hat where I would then chase the Empress from Medicine Hat to Lethbridge. That never happened. I went to bed at like 1am so a 3 hour sleep would not have done well. Instead, I woke up at 9 and went straight to Lethbridge. The Empress didn't get in until 2 so I had lots of time, but I wanted to be down there in advance so I could scope out some good shots! It was in Lethbridge I spent the entire day watching the Empress pull back and forward across a bridge all day. Not just any bridge though, the worlds tallest, and longest bridge in the world! It truly was a sight to see, one of the amazing experiances of the year! However, I burned my legs really bad. Really, really bad. Wow, they were almost glowing red. Thankfully there okay now, but before... Wow. I was onfire! Here's one of my better pictures of the day... it really was amazing! When I got back I think we played Settlers again... No... maybe not. Okay, I really have no clue.

Day 5: Monday
Today was the day the train stuff ended as the Empress came from Lethbridge to Calgary for her final day. She was apperently suposed to leave Lethbridge around 1pm, but apperently they changed it and she left at 10am. So we started to head for Lethbridge at 10am not knowing that she was already on the way. Luckily Nicole spotted her half way to Calgary, and the chase was on! It was fun, and I brought Kasi and Nicole to chase her with me that day! It was the first time Kasi chased a train, and she liked it too! Once we got home we went to Montana's Steak House! It was okay... the ribs sucked, but everything else was pretty good! When we went back to Fj and I got in I noticed something funny. I cheched her out, and sure enough, my front left tire was flat. Damn! This was not good since the next day we were going to Edmonton. I filled it full of air and we went back to Jam's house where I called my dad. He told me I had to take it in first thing in the morning, ultimitly dooming are Edmonton trip. I was super bumbed out since I thought I may be buying a new tire. We were going to play Settlers, but then we didn't because I was too tired and sad... and the girls didn't want to play without me!

Day 6: Tuesday
I woke up bright and early and started my search for a tire shop. It was very annoying because I couldn't find out when one tire place opened, and the other I couldn't find! This one place I went to, which was suposed to open at 8am, was still closed at 8:30, but with people in it. I went in to check it out, and I thought somebody was going to come out with a shotgun (it is Calgary afterall) so I left pretty quickly! Finally I found a place then fixed it very quickly, and it only cost me $25! Wow, I was so amazed! The trip to Edmonton was back on!

We must have left around 10:30am, a little later then we had hoped for, but nevertheless, we were on the road. Why go to Edmonton you say? Duh! West Ed Mall! It really wasn't that great shopping wise for me, but the coolest thing was the rollercoaster! Wow, it was absolutly amazing! Kasi was the only one that would go on it with me, and one of Jasmine's friend's friend's got us a free pass on every ride! Unfortunatly, due to the craziness of the coaster, it caused my butt to bleed! It soaked right through my boxers and shorts and I had a red stain on the back of my shorts. I guess my bumb wasn't really for roller coasters yet... It sucked too cos we had a free pass for EVERY RIDE! Oh man, and there were tons more cool rides too! After I got all cleaned up I learned how to drive a Segway! Click here if you don't know what a Segway is, I don't know how to explain it. It was the coolest thing though. Honestly, you all have to try it. I don't even know how to explain it but you just almost float! It's like your new feet! So that was West Ed Mall! We didn't get back until 1:30am and we were all wasted.

Day 7: Wednesday
This was the official day of rest. We must have got up around 1 or 2, but even then, we didn't shower until about 3. I know for a fact we played Settler (because it was yesterday!) and that was pretty much all we did all day. In the evening I dropped the girls off at the mall while I checked out the train store one last time, and then we went to the Cheesecake Cafe! All the food sucked which was incredibly disapointing. However, the Cheesecake was good, but by the time we got to it, we were all full! We then went home and spent are last night jokin around in Jam's room.

Day 8: Thursday
Yes, that would be today. I am extremely tired as I got up at 5am (4am BC time) and I just got into the house an hour ago. Yes... it was a long drive.

That my friends was are trip. It was fun, epic, all of those things a trip should be. It was nice to see Jasmine and spend all that time with her too. It was nice to see the Empress as well! Very cool! Anyhoo, time to go and not blog... Gooodnight!

// Summer 6-Pack

Wow, that was great! Jade, you've really stepped it up a notch!

// There She Goes

While chasing the Empress these past couple days Jean said the perfect song for this trip would be "There She Goes" and I thought 'Wow... That song is annoying!' By the end of the trip it was stuck in all are heads!

I received a phone call, and a letter today. The phone call coming from work, and the letter from my insurance company. Work called to see how much longer I'd be off work for, and I told them I'd talk to them tomorrow, when I see my doctor. The letter from the insurance company stated that they would no longer pay me until I got my doctor to fill out some more medical forms. I wondered... how weird that this would all happen on the same day.

Then it came to me! On the medical form I filled out the Doctor said that it would take at least 4 weeks to heal, but probably more. I filled that form out 4 weeks ago, the same date I posted my last post. My operation date!

Yes, it has been 4 weeks since I have posted, and lots has happened. I've been to Summerland, Kamloops twice, Andrew Greenwood has lived with me for a week, Canada Day, Jasmine visited, and most importantly, I've had a couple extra holes in my bum!

The operation was a success (I think) and I have been recovering slowly. I can pretty much do everything I used to be able to do, but now I just have to go to the Doctors office every day, and change my bandage and dressing twice a day. At first, I couldn't even sit. People, take advantage of sitting. It is the most amazing thing. Not being able to sit very well was absolutly terrible.

The first couple days of being a crippled were stressful and confusing. You see, my Doctor is stupid, so he thought that I would be able to change my own dressing in a 3cm deep cut. My dad was going to do it the day after my operation, and as soon as he took everything off, I started to bleed like a mofo! We rushed down to a walk in clinic, where we had no luck so we went to VGH. From there, they changed the dressing and did all that jazz and I felt better. When I got up, there was a pool of blood on the hospital bed. I had never seen so much blood in my life, and it was mine! Wasn't too pleasant.

The next morning at 5am, I noticed that blood was soaking through my rather large bandage, so we went down to VGH once again. I really didn't enjoy the hospital visits. They were long and frustrating. The only good thing was that they had a free coffee machine! I guess people didn't know it was free so they would put there money in the machine and it would spit it out, and not realize it. So when it spit my dad's loonie out, I must have found $5! That was pretty cool!

After that week, I started going to the Doctors office daily, seeing a nurse where they would put new packing in the wound, and gauze and bandages and what not. Things started to get better and better after that, which leads us to now.

Driftwood came to live with us for a week, and that was super fun. It was like having another brother around the house. He was here volunteering for the Jazz festival and half the time we didn't even see each other. He would always be doing something, or I would always be doing something. Nevertheless, we would always have a 5-win N64 Smash Bros. Tourney. Every win a day would count as a point, and we would see who would be the supreme champion at the end of the week. It was epic, it was courageous, and it was victorious for me! Ah yes... how sweet victory is...

The most recent events were of course Jasmine coming to town, and me leaving town! That's right, I left when Jasmine left! Well, not exactly. I had planned to go up to Summerland with Nicole and Jean on the Thursday of July 5th, and make are way up to Kamloops that night, then follow the Empress from Kamloops to Vancouver on the Friday. Just as soon as I plan that, Jasmine tells us that she is coming to town Wednesday morning! Anyhoo, it worked out well in the end. Everybody got too see her Wednesday, we had dinner with her Friday night, and Nicole and Kasi hung with her Saturday morning. Then Nicole went to work and Dyllan and I hung out with Jam, Kasi, and Rose for the afternoon. After that, everybody came over to watch a movie, and Jam had to leave early, and that was the Jasmine visit.

Thursday and Friday's trip, which I named The Empress of Summerland, was HOT! No kidding, it was incredibly hot! I haven't been so hot since... I don't know when. It was lots of fun though. Jean slept a lot, I drove a lot, and overall, I think everybody enjoyed themselves. We followed her from Vancouver to Kamloops yesterday, which again, was tons of fun. The entire trip we never really got any sleep. For the Thursday morning, I only got 3 hours of sleep, and Friday night was only 5 hours. I was close to falling asleep at the wheel from Summerland to Kamloops, but I didn't! Because I rock! But it made Nicole very paranoid. I won't do it again, I realized that if it weren't me driving, I'd be pretty damn freaked out.

I haven't really accomplished too much with 4 weeks off. I can't really travel far since I need to go to the doctor everyday to get my butt looked at, so I guess that's a good excuse. The Empress of Summerland trip was pretty awesome, Andrew keeping me company was great, and it was nice to see Jasmine. So I wouldn't call the past 4 weeks a waste. I mean... it's time off work while getting paid... that's just freaking awesome.