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It feels like it's time for an update.... (1. how often should I update?)

This week has been my first real week of work in my office (2. what should I do to jazz up my boring office?) doing actual stuff other than training. I'm trying to have a good attitude about the early mornings, but waking up at 6:00 am is not my thing. It would be better if I actually left the office at 3:00 like I'm supposed to, but it's been busy these first couple of days with meetings being planned in the afternoong that seem to extend past my ability to concentrate (3. how does Eric stay awake in a meeting after being up early and working for 8 hours?)

Still in a conundrum about where to live. I guess I have some ideal place imagined in my head that will never be a reality. I guess all I want is a room to myself with a bed and a desk, and a house with other people that I actually know. (4. Where should I live?)

It was hot on Sunday and Monday, now it's cold again. (no question associated with that)

I've been living with my Aunt Marg and Uncle Andy; they have cable, but only basic, which means no TSN, which means no Sportcentre. I've watched that show probably almost everyday for the last 4 or 5 years, and I am missing it right now. (5. What should Eric do without Sportcentre?) Plus, I've come to love the High Definition that I was fortunate to live with the last year or so. Hockey playoffs in regular TV just isn't the same, and related to both, I need a solution before football season gears up in the summer....

It seems I have spare time these days. Being up early means I have a couple of hours in the afternoon, and with less friends around here, not much of a social life right now. (6. What should I do with my spare time?)

It may be cold, but I think I want to go for a walk, and maybe an ice cream.

Place to Live

I've been looking for an apartment in St. Catharines, but feeling a little discouraged.

First, they cost a lot of money. If I was willing to live in a sketchy neighbourhood, or in a run-down buiding, then maybe I could get away with paying only $600-650 a month, but if I want a decent building in a decent neighbourhood I'd be easily paying $750 a month for a 1 bedroom. Not nice.

Also, based on my experience in Sudbury (see previous post) I realized that I don't think I want to live all on my own. It would be very nice to have roomates or something like that; unfortunately I don't really know anybody here that is also looking for a place, and I don't think I want to start looking at the random-people-I-don't-know-looking-for-a-roomate listings. Hmm. Maybe I'll pursue some possibilities with the family in the area.....

Sudbury

I had to spend this last week in Sudbury. That's where the head office is for the company I work for; I needed to be there for training. The job seems good, and I'm happy with the people I work with and for, but Sudbury is Lame (with a capital L).

First, being alone in a hotel room for three nights is not fun. I was done working everyday at 5:00, leaving about 7 hours to kill before going to bed. So I watched a couple of movies, took my time with dinner, watched tv, made phone calls, etc. It still sucks to be alone like that though.

It's nice to be back in St. Catharines.

May Long

I made it to St. Catharines just in time to relax over the long weekend.

Saturday night I hung out with some of the Wikkerink cousins plus friends. We wanted to go to some ghetto bowling alley in Grimsby, but it turns out it was closed, so we played pool instead. Still ended up being a pretty decent night. Caleb was along with us; it was his birthday. He was complaining and stuff, which I don't really understand. If I was his age and had the chance to go play pool and hang out with some of my older cousins and siblings for my birthday, I would have loved it.

Sunday I went to church at Covenant in St. Catharines (that's where most of the Postma side goes to church). Afterwards I went to hang out at the De Vries house. Mostly played Wii for the afternoon, then a wonderful steak for dinner, and then a little driving tour of the area hosted by Peter and Johnny.

Monday there was a little party; I think it was for me. Just a barbecue and joking around with cousins, lots of fun. We walked through Virgil later in the evening to go watch the fireworks for Victoria day. I wasn't expecting much from a small town like Virgil, but I was pleasantly surprised. In fact, the fireworks there kind of put the Winnipeg fireworks shows to shame.

I'm too tired right now to remember any of the really good details from the weekend.

The Long Journey

Wow, Ontario is giant. It just goes on and on for miles of unaltered terrain of trees and rocks and more trees and more rocks, with a few spots of lake. Because of some issues that I had to take care of at the car dealership in Winnipeg, I didn't get out of the city until about 11:30 on Thursday morning.

I had leased a brand new 2008 Honda Fit a couple of days before I left for Ontario. I love the car, it's quick, fun, new, reliable, and really versatile. I spent the beginning of the week packing up all my stuff; some for garbage, some for Tim, some for Value Village, and some to take along. Nicole balked at the idea that I would fit it all in my car, but the Fit did not disappoint, it all managed to make it in perfectly. Not much room for much else though.

I stopped first to fuel up in Ignace, Ontario. I almost had a heart attack when I found out that gas was $136.9 per litre, but after filling up the tank still only had to pay about $35. Not bad at all. Ontario's wilderness continued. I finally stopped for the night in Marathon, Ontario. I wanted to make it further that night, but it was late and raining and I was tired. So after a pit stop at the Travelodge that was on the highway for the night, I continued on. I left Marathon at 8:00 a.m. and drove like mad.

At about 8:30 p.m. I pulled into my Opa and Oma's place in Beamsville, where the family was celebrating Opa's 79th birthday. I hung out there for about a half hour before making the last jaunt to Virgil, where I had arranged to stay with my Uncle Andy and Aunt Marg.

So after a long journey, I crashed for the night, and took care of unpacking and all that stuff on Saturday morning.

Here's a map of the route through the barren wastelands of Norhern Ontario. About 2200 kms in total and about 24 hours of travel time (including stops and stuff like that)

The Beginning

I suppose it's time I started this thing. In May of 2008 I packed up my life in Winnipeg, Manitoba and set out on a new adventure. I was hired as a Regional Web Controller with Sun Media Interactive, working out of St. Catharines, Ontario.

I decided I should start blogging about my experiences because there are a fair number of people back home in Winnipeg (yes, Winnipeg is certainly still home) that are interested in what I'm up to on a day-to-day basis, also, I don't want to have to tell the same stories a dozen times over.

So, here is my life.