Love: Going Green

   Good morning my dear readers, I hope you are all doing well and that the weather is just absolutely gorgeous. I had a good night last night since I went to a VIP movie with Riles. Not only did we see a really good movie, we had food delivered straight to us; can't get any better than that! I've been trying to go out more often and to spend time outside of my apartment. Don't get me wrong, I love to stay inside with a good book, or have TV show marathons, but a little fresh air never killed anyone.
   Since I had so much fun yesterday, there is another fun event happening Saturday night AND it's on my university campus. This event ties back to the title of the entry. No it is nothing about environmentalism but actually with my identity. It is a franco-ontarian night that celebrates our 400th anniversary. Some of the most famous and dedicated franco-ontarian performers are going to perform at a coffee shop where one of them is a group of indie singers, another is a comedy duo and the last is a spoken word poet and rapper. I'm going with some people from work, and though last summer I had my group, this summer is different, but just as good in its own way.
   I used to say "j'ai le sang vert" which directly translates to "I have green blood". I don't say it as often now, but it doesn't mean that my pride in my franco-ontarian identity has diminished; no, quite the contrary. But now I pride myself on my bilingualism as well. Being part of something does not diminish your value or reduces you to the norm, it adds to your identity and makes you unique. We are who we are, regardless of who we know and what we do.

K.P.H.

Laughter: Restrictions Do Apply

   Good morning my dearest readers and I hope you all had the chance to rest a while yesterday. Today is the first day that I haven't woken up before 6:00am this whole week and I'm feeling quite refreshed. I would describe myself as being a morning person, and I don't think there's a more beautiful time of day than sunrise, but a girl still has to sleep.
   I figured I haven't told you all a funny story in a quite some time so I thought that my first morning back would be a good time to start it off. And wouldn't you all be surprised to know that this funny story includes my roommate Riley. Summer has officially started and Katie has gone back home as well as going on a trip so that she can practice her french. Riles and I are both working in Ottawa for the next three and a half months; I'm at the university like always, and Riles works at a VIP movie theater (fancy right?) so things are busy, and there are even weeks where we barely see each other because our schedules are opposites. As unfortunate as that may be, there are perks that come with his job. One of the perks is that he has a little adorable hat that he has to wear as part of his uniform and it makes him look like little kid going to the park with his parents. Aside from that, he also gets movie passes that allows us to go see free movies. Before we went to see our first movie, Riley made me agree to certain terms and conditions that I must follow every time we go out to a movie. When it's all three of us during the year, I don't have to follow his rules because Katie is there and if he gets embarrassed, he can just pretend that he doesn't know me, but when it's just the two of us, that excuse doesn't exactly work anymore.
   The reason Riles established rules for our public movie viewing is because I am a person who is intrigued easily as well as confused relatively easily when it comes to story plots; (the most ironic statement from an avid reader yet). I'm also a person who is used to making small comments with Katie when we're at home watching shows together, so that tends to transfer to films (whether public or at home). And finally, I have very distinctive laughs (that's right, I've been gifted with many) and I have a tendency to laugh at the most inappropriate moments. You roll all of that into one movie, and you have one very embarrassed Riley. Katie on the other hand, loves my quirks and loves to see Riley embarrassed so she encourages me. I'm getting much better so that people around me (other than Riles) don't get annoyed, so usually I try to pick a spot that's far away from everyone if I can. And so the rules that I have to follow are basically making me do the complete opposite of everything I usually do during movies or shows. It's going to take practice but I'm already much better. I've never had to work so hard for a free movie in my life!
   Anyways, I do what I can with what I have and it's the effort that counts, right? It might be more tempting to embarrass people in public (especially if they're like Riley) but know that whatever you do always comes back to you. On a last side note, these rules do not apply to the previews and believe me when I say that I use that to my full advantage! Until I write again my dearest readers;

K.P.H.

Literature: And Thus It Begins

Good evening my dearest readers and I must say that I've missed you dearly. It is a difficult thing to not write when it is engraved in your being but the wait is over. Summer has started and the jitters of the new job are slowly rubbing off freeing up more of my time for you! 

I'm starting off small with the "L" I've been dedicating more of my time to, and that is Literature. I love my program at school and I do love to read, but reading for school and reading for fun are two very different experiences. Now that I've started to read for fun again, I've managed to complete three books already since May has started, and have already gotten a start on my fourth. I do have the Reading Challenge that I want to complete so the more I can do this summer, the better it will be. The one thing that I do love about this reading challenge is that it forces me out of my comfort zone and makes me read stories I might not have picked. I'm getting a larger look on life, and thus adding to my own.

I'm glad to be back and can't wait to keep writing this summer. It's been a pleasure and I can't wait to tell you all about the adventures ahead!

K.P.H.

This is not Goodbye, this is simply a temporary Absence

   Good morning my dearest readers. I am taking this opportunity to apologize for my absence on the blog and to declare that I will be prolonging this absence for another month or so. I've decided that it isn't fair to my regular readers that I am not writing as often as I should be so I will taking a leave until I start off my summer job. I will be busy with school, volunteering and the transition into my new job at work. I will publicize my return so that all of my usual readers might return to their daily reading.
   I am truly sorry for this temporary departure but I find it is necessary so that I may return with new stories and a sane mind. I hope you all have yourself a great spring and I will enjoy your company all in the summer.

K.P.H.

Laughter: The Week After the Wonder

   Good morning my dearest readers! I have the time today to take a few minutes to post on the blog. I've been reading non-stop so I'm giving my eyes a little break. My mom came to visit me during the weekend and it was quite the weekend in deed.
   She arrived in Ottawa on Friday and the fun started then and there. We went out to dinner and talked. It doesn't seem like a wild night, but it's never a dull moment when having conversations with my mom. Saturday was an eventful day. We started off our day with a little bit of exercise followed by a grocery trip to get Lucky Charms since it's a tradition in our family to eat the cereal on St. Patrick's Day (since she can't be there on the actual day, she prepared in advance). We checked in to my mom's hotel and my little cousin Aphelele came to visit. We went swimming and just spent some quality time with each other. After that, we did a little more shopping because I need new clothes for summer. The reason being... (drum roll) I got the job as Head Ambassador!!! It's super exciting and this weekend was not only a reunion but a time of celebration. After shopping, we went to a new restaurant (since my mom needs to do someone she's never done every single say) and then we walked a good 3km back to the hotel. We watched "Into the Woods" not knowing it was a musical and laughed through it all. Don't get me, it was a pretty good movie, just not at all what we expected. The last day, we did more shopping, more walking, had breakfast at the hotel and vegged out at my place until it was time to go over to my aunt's house for dinner. More quality family time.
   As the weekend progressed, my mother and I realized that we laughed more and more at the simple things, but also at the funny things that kept happening. I guess we're just a magnet for fun stories. So I encourage you to have a weekend of good times, and take advantage of the time you have with those you love because those are the stories you're going tell other people.

K.P.H.