bothered

Today I realized that I forgot a set of pictures back home. Basically it's pictures of me and my brother plus cousins when we were kids. These pictures have a sentimental value for me and it sucks to have to wait until I get home to look for them. Jeez I'm so disappointed in myself. I managed to bring all kind of junks that can be re-bought but forgot those pictures..Hmm oh well. I'm planning to do some blurb books, one on Mauritius and I guess I'll have to keep my family pictures for later as they're back home. I think I had them in an envelope with postcards and left the whole thing behind when my luggages were overweight.

I found them in my other journal! yay

missing things

Sometimes I can't help thinking of the things I am missing back home like family gatherings (I'm not a fan of all my relatives but it's still good to get together for dinner and chit chat), the birth of my puppies (first time mom Lulu), my dogs (do they even know that I am no longer there?), the market smell, the sugar cane blooming seasons, trips to Asia and the sea. Next time I'll go home, I'm sure the country will have changed beyond recognition as they were already changing the landscapes with malls and such. Last week, I was reading a description of the sugar cane blooms and an author described it as feathery. For me it has always looked like a silver lining, soft, and beautiful under the morning sun. Unfortunately I never took any pictures as it was on my way to work that I saw this beautiful scene. Imagine the same picture below but with a silvery feathery tapestry that extends to the horizon.

photo credit Khoi Huynh-Dinh

I guess missing home is something normal just as missing Toronto when I came back to Mauritius 4 years ago. I do feel like I've been living in Canada for years though..as if there has been no gap from 2005 to now and I am learning to like Mississauga. On Thursday, I was craving samoussas, and walked for some 45 mins or so to Britannia street as my aunt told me there was an Indian store there. Ok first I missed the store and went to a different one: the Curry Hill (samoussas and bhajees are not so great but their bryani is YUMMY: nuts mixed with spices, chicken and raisin-give me another portion anytime! yes sir!), then I decided to be "smart" and instead of walking down Queen St again, I wanted to find the street Vista which goes straight to the corner of the street where I live. Instead I ended getting lost.

It was a strange adventure as I thought the streets were parallel but some were not, so swearing at the heat, I went on walking, ended in a street called Brah..something, passed by a park and ended in a very Canadian area (white). This area is definitely older than where I live and so much nicer with trees on both sides of the streets (The street I live has trees but young ones and not tall enough to give shade), lots of green/gardens and feel more comfy/homely than the new neighbourhood although the houses are smaller. It felt like this movie big fish when the main actor stumbled in this village where the shoes are hanging on the electricity lines. I don't know this area felt different, then I ended in a "cul en sac". I went back on my steps, and took another street which led to a newer area. From far away I could spot a police car and was like:hurray now I can ask for directions and the traffic indicated clearly that there was a main road ahead. Arrived to the police car level to discover than I was right in front of the street leading to my aunt's house. Hahahaha the whole thing felt so weird and I definitely want to go back to this street to explore more. Well sure there are only houses there but I love looking at people's gardens and if I could I would have loved to own a house there. Newer residential areas feels too sterile and the vegetation will look good only in 20 years or so as the trees grow very slowly.

Hmm I succumbed and bought the moomin mugs. Also discovered this shop in Toronto: The Finish place and they sell moomin mugs but it's more expensive than from ebay (shipping included). Heh what can't you get in Toronto..

My folks are in Asia and I so want to go! I guess next time they'll go, I will as well but this time with a plane ticket paid by me!

random things

my random journal pages (inspired from Dina W classes and Journal Spilling book)

I am employed which is a relief after 4 months of doing nothing. I will use my first salary to spoil myself and then I'll have to get serious by saving and other priorities. It feels good to know that money will be coming in at the end of August and that since I'll be in banking I'll get discounts on many products..Hehehe oh joy! I've one week left to enjoy before training starts and my plan is to use it to complete my swaps. So far I've only one swap for Malin to complete. I also want to participate in the zines swap but I've no clue what to write although I do have an idea what my zine will be about. heh. I've been feeling lethargic lately with the heat and skipping gym classes because it tires me too much to walk under the sun..ok maybe it's just an excuse for my laziness.

Been working on several journal pages although I like to see them as work in progress than complete. Most of my pages are 4x6 inches and I've been wondering if I should not move to something bigger as too often my pages feel crowded and I still want to add stuffs! Today I spotted a woodpecker. This is a nice change from the usual American robins and sparrows. I do wish we had a bird feeder as I am sure there are more birds out there but they're not that active during the day due to the heat. Speaking of birds, I received my fly away chunky book back and here are some lovely sample pages (sorry the first is inverted-will correct it once I've installed Adobe CS5) :

I bought a new Hard Drive today, 1TB since I realized that 640 GB is not enough for me (oh yeah..I've an external 320 GB drive and my Macbook is 320 GB as well I think). I'll store all my downloaded movies and anime there. It'll be easier to organize and less of a hassle as I won't have to burn DVDs for a while. I am not much of a movie person and dislike DVDs because I need to find space to store them. I've realized that I need to cut down on my clutter as "each new possession loads us with new weariness". Sometimes it feels like hell to remember where I've put x or y item although I am usually an organized person. I'm de-stashing some of my craft supplies on ebay too, especially items I've bought for a project, never started the project and now keeping the supplies "just in case".

I'm craving for some moomins mugs..Should I, should I not? I left all my moomin DVDs back home but brought the books with me. At 22 USD each excluding shipping, these mugs are pricey..The limited editions ones are over 50 USD. Phew..The three below are in my wish list, including one with moomin mama and another with moomin/his gf . Here I am hoarding more items when my wish is to de-clutter but who can resist..aren't just they too cute???? Maybe I should buy one each month from ebay since they don't do combined shipping so I'm not losing anything.

persistence

“Nothing in the world can take the place of Persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and Determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan “Press On” has solved and will always solve the problems of the human race.”
Calvin Coolidge
(1872-1933); 30th Us President

I'm sad to see that many things are just one way but well the best is to ignore those kind of people, even if these are people I thought as friends. Just did Bodycombat classes and it feels good to get rid of your frustration. Bodyattack tomorrow! Hah.

provence

1. Village of Gorbio, Maritime Alps, Provence, 2. Sault, Provence, France, 3. Senanque Abbey, Provence, 4. Aix en Provence, 5. Dusk on the Gapeau river, 6. little laundry in aix-en-provence, 7. Aix en Provence - Cours Mirabeau, 8. Maisonette en Provence pas loin de Draguignan, 9. Roquebrune Village, 10. The sky of Valensole-en-Provence, 11. Provence colors, 12. Montagne Sainte-Victoire from Les Lauves, Terrain des Peintures, Aix en Provence, 13. lavande en Provence, 14. Provence sunset, 15. Provence road, 16. Provence

Dreaming of Provence and the soft warm sun against my skin in the afternoon and the soft breeze blowing in the olive trees. Can't say this is the case in Toronto as it's cloudy and rain is expected. I wonder if lavender can be planted in Canada. I saw something that looks like lavender in my neighbour's garden but they're so sparse. I guess I watched too many Marcel Pagnol movies for my own good. What I miss from the french side: good cheese, bread, wine, culture (spare me all this mainstream influence we get from across the border), french tv and above all books/movies. I rewatched Odette tout le monde last time and it made me smile although I skipped the boring parts. I still need to watch "ensemble c'est tout" and download more french movies.

It's funny how once you're far from something you used to take for granted, you miss it more. I'm also CRAVING cassoulet..I can't wait for the day I'll be living in the french part of Canada. Sometimes I wonder if I made the right move by coming to Toronto instead of staying in Montreal. Montreal might be old, smaller, and poorer but it has its charm of its own and most streets are like Queen street West with its own typical flavour. Bah I'm in Toronto for now and will try to do the best I can. I only want to be able to save and travel to France, Uk and other places and connect with the people than be a mere tourist.