the calm before the storm

only a few short days to go before we are back in taiwan once more. the reality of everything is really starting to sink in and i find myself becoming more and more protective over the time i have left. i picked up my visa today so that is pretty much the last thing to cross off the to-do list. at the same time, there are these little nagging voices in my head that if i could listen closely enough, i'm sure i would find my list a little incomplete. oh well, the voices have had their shot and for now they need to keep it down in there.
it's been a great visit here in hanover over the last 3 weeks. hard to believe that this time next week i'll be sitting in taipei, likely at work and more than likely to reconcile all that's happened in the last month. a move followed by a cross-canadian road trip, followed by a wedding reception party, followed by days and days of driving hither and thither across southwestern ontario doing more visiting, all the while trying our level best to sort out our banking, car loans, address info, plane tix, visas and contracts. on top of all that, we've been trying to squeeze in as much q.t with the family as possible. phew!
like i said, it's been a great visit but also a tiring one. really need to slip back into a routine and start living life again. we leave for taipei on friday and arrive sat night. been thinking about just heading straight out after we arrive to see some familiar faces, but we will see how that goes. one thing is for sure, i'll be having a taiwan beer and a tea egg as fast as is humanly possible after arrival. ahh...looking forward to the days ahead.

home again

been back in the old country for about a week and a half and man, what a lot we've seen so far. 9-day road trip was awesome...got to see so much and taking the time to see it was well worth it. once we were back, it was great to see everyone at our wedding reception party. everyone who organized it went to so much trouble, and even though i was against the idea in the first place, i can honestly say i glad i was convinced to change my mind.

spent the long weekend traversing across sw ontario to see some peeps and places. tried to cross all the friend visits off the list, but have a couple left to see before we go.

aside from the friend visits, we have trip planning, visas, tix and car stuff to take care of before we leave. not too mention the banking, mail, and all that other stuff which needs attending to. it just seems like it's never-ending, but we are getting there.

keep you posted as things develop.

on the road (again)

we're off! started our 9 day trek back to ontario and have spent it so far driving at a leisurely pace, seeing the sights, and soaking in all things canadian. it goes without saying, but this time around shit is a whole lot better. no grueling 10-hour driving days. no relying on the breeze to keep us cool (a/c is the most) and just a whole lot of other pluses.
update again in a couple of days and i will be sure to post some pics.

getting ready to go

been awhile again since i've updated, but the decision has been made to return to taiwan. we've both finished up work and are getting our stuff ready to go.

it's hard to believe that it's come up so fast. it seemed like we had all of this time on our hands. we just put some stuff up for sale last week and pretty much everything has sold. we'vetaken all of our treasures off the wall, stuffed the holes and packed up the goods. it just feels like it's happened all so quickly, but I think that's ok. there is so much that we already know about going there it seems fine that everything is accelerated.

so, we've got a bit to go before we leave. thinking of leaving nanaimo on wednesday, but maybe tuesday if we get everything accomplished that we want to. there are a few things around the island that i wouldn't mind doing before we leave. a trip to gabriola on tuesday might be awesome, but we will see.

also considering meeting up with a few friends along the way, but have yet to pin down plans. hopefully will iron that out over the next few days.

other than that, this officially marks my first entry from my new notebook...not that exciting, but nice to have something a little more suited to my needs at the moment. pretty much the same as before, a little slower in the memory department, but nothing that can't be upgraded.

alright,gott go but will update along the way.

sunday updates.

god how i hate working sundays. there's just something about the calibre of the sunday shopper that gets under my skin. maybe it's the bargain-hunter with multiple coupons and teased hair who checks the receipt. or possibly it's the 'dumb dad' who rarely shops on sunday but has decided that todays the day he's going to shop. dumb dad has just waited in line, with his kids for about 5-7 minutes which to a non-shopper like him is agony unless he's at c0stco and knows how much he'll save. the kids, of course, jump at the cashe 'impulse table' which is at the same height of an 6 year-old child. they have been asking him questions about this and can they please have that, to which he replies with "What?" and "Put that down." as dumb dad gets his turned and is asked how he is, he smartly replies "Great now that it's my turn." This implies slow service. Silly, you wanted to shop on sunday so you've got to expect lineups. there are all kinds of shoppers just like you. it's ok tho, you look like you've had too much sun because you have flaky forehead skin from where you've gone bald. have a nice day and have fun entertaining you shithead kids.
work is over for another two days! hurrah! hmmm. i have a questionable story of morality to share with you. i was at the supermarket tonight and i wanted to get some yogurt-covered raisins as my 'car snack'. while these are fine and dandy, there are also yogurt-covered cranberries which are shockingly more expensive. so, i sneak some into my bag of y.c.raisins which is then rung in at the much cheaper, raisin price. it's twice as nice when you dip you hand into the bag and pull out a cranberry later, it's a nice surprise.