Friday, December 19, 2008

snowboarding

Spent today snowboarding. We scored three free lessons through work so off again tomorrow and then Saturday. Waaaay to fucking cold though wind chill of -34 or something. I have pretty bad wind burn on my lower ears and tomorrow is going to be pretty cold to. My feet ended up frozen solid we pretty much went inside after every run to defrost. I tell you it is so painful when the feeling comes back into your toes. I was seriously going to pass out in pain!!!!

Question, I got my lessons for free and its just Brendan and I with TWO instructors.. what do I tip them? One of them is tag along training but he has been snowboarding in Switzerland for five years teaching so he has been helping me a lot. He has just never taught in Canada before. The lessons would have been about $540 before tax (whatever tax is) so im just curious what my American buddies think a good tip is. We were thinking along the lines of $40 each in a christmas card!!! I know how cute.

On a bright side I actually got off the chairlift without falling over and only on my third try to!!!! I think we are going on the faster chairlifts tomorrow though at Lake Louise...

eeek.

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

This country is bloody cold

have been dealing with some pretty extreme temperatures lately. Yesterday was a balmy -32C and today as I walked to work it was -41C. I don’t think I have ever been that hot! I’m surprised though at how easily I managed to deal with the extreme temperatures, granted I was outside for about 15 minutes max and any longer I may have ended up a human popsicle. A lot of people have told me horror stories about Canadian winters and they have been Canadian themselves! I wore about four layers of clothing which didn’t really make me warm but I survived!

One of the things I found most interesting was that when I breathed the moisture in my breath literally froze instantly and drifted little snowflakes onto my jacket. So the front of my sweater was covered in tiny little icicles of my own saliva!

Tomorrow is supposed to be warm -9C. Coming from never going below 15C its pretty bad how I now consider anything above -10C to be warm! My air conditioner back home was on a permanent 21C and I was still breaking out the doona/comforter! If the weather did drop below 20C everyone shacked up with hot chocolate and sweaters whinging about how cold it was! I remember going to Canberra with Brendan and being outside in -1C and just feeling so cold I wanted to die! What a way I have come where I am tolerating -40C!!!!

Don’t get me wrong though, still complaining! ITS BLOODY COLD TODAY!!!

Thursday, December 4, 2008

The Job

So I forgot to say but I didn't get that job.

I was a little upset because they didn't even ring my referances, I think I bombed a bit on the interview so they just assumed I couldn't do it.

Fact is while I am upset that I was deemed not good enough I'm kind of glad I didn't get it in the end. I really want to leave Canada and this job was going to tie me down in Canmore. They have TWO WEEKS annual leave... seriously how do people survive on that little leave. I want to do a road trip in summer to see the east coast. About all the job had going for it was the money oh and that I like working with computers.

I really like the people I am working with now and the flexibility. I like that I'm not here to work I'm here to enjoy canada. But deep down inside I'm an aussie and I always will be. One day I need to go home.