Annual Christmas post

Well this is the first annual Christmas post with no promise of a post this day next year. But that comfort in calling something annual sure is nice. Like the way we go to church every Christmas eve when we know the service is going to be long and boring, or we still sing Christmas carols with just three of us at home. It's comfortable relying on that familiarity. Even though the church service may not be the greatest. It's the greatest in that you are there with your family and you will continue to drive around and look at lights and write Santa a Christmas note year after year as long as you are a family and you can go through these peculiarities together.

Even though Christmas comes with a lot of old traditions. It's also a time of setting new traditions, throwing out the old (not necessarily forgetting them) and coming together as a family, blood or not.
I have a friend whose parents are out of town so she spent Christmas with her brother. He slept over, they opened gifts, had nice customary quiche for breakfast followed by a not so customary holiday beer. My sister spent her holidays with her boyfriend and with his family. And my brother, all the way in Australia, probably spent Christmas on the beach somewhere having a BBQ with his multi-cultural family.
So I guess what Christmas is really about is coming together with loved ones and making sure no one is left out. That would make the real gift of Christmas, the only tradition that sticks... Love. Well love and turkey. You can't forget the turkey.

These past 10 days that I've been back in YK have breezed by, and yet it feels like I've been home for ages. But I guess home is where the heart is and that travels with you as you go. Apart from getting some quality time in with some good friends, one of my favourite parts of the holidays is waking up to a warm tail wagging from our golden retriever Attik. Every morning she is so excited to start the new day, she has to bring me a sock or a ball (whatever she can find really) as sort of an assurance present that that day is going to be a good day.  Maybe that or she figures it's her best chance at getting a good belly-rub. But it definitely starts the day off right.

Being up north in the winter it is key (in my very biased opinion) to get outside as much as possible if you want to avoid those winter blues. Walking in the woods out here can be so refreshing, with the snowy tree branches and endless lakes!
I even went x-country skiing for the first time in years at the ski trails with my dad this week. I tried to keep up. But the old man was too fast for me and had to wait around most bends. I was sore for days afterward, but it was worth it. My mom always says "the only thing your dad ever does quickly is ski and run ". Which is true, he tends to enjoy everything he does. Which is the perfect thing to do, especially at this time of year. Sit back and enjoy the holidays.

Merry Christmas everyone

xoxo  Annessa

Traveling Soul

Some would disagree with me when I say I haven't travelled much in my life. I know I have, but not nearly as much as I would like to.  I'm only 22! But from my travels, across Canada, over the east coast of Australia, to Brazil, South Africa, Cuba and a few other places, I have learnt some things.. and I'm going to share the top 10 that come to mind with you...

1. Tim Tams, chocolate covered biscuits from Australia, are delicious.. (Someone has a pack at the coffee shop I'm in!)  You can get them in the grocery store for a bit more than you would pay Down Under.. But definitely worth a try
-With a Tim Tam you must try a Tim Tam slammer...
First prepare a nice hot cup of coffee or tea. Secondly bite off each end of the Tim Tam, then lower the biscuit to your beverage so that one end is submersed, then quickly suck up the hot tea or coffee into the Tim Tam and immediately divulge!  You're welcome.

2. Coffee is not the same wherever you go. Be prepared. In Aus it's instant or expresso. In Brazil it's thick and sweet as hell(at least where I got it).  And at home it's freshly ground and comes with my dad's company in the morning. Yes, travelling may mean bad coffee.. But it's worth it.

3. Education is important and not everybody is privileged enough to be educated. Which is a shame and completely unjust. It should never be taken for granted.. And I am guilty of this at times.

4. This is more of a suggestion, as you don't have to travel to know that music is the universal language. Embrace it! Check out local bands and music festivals wherever you go. You may find something you love, and if not you'll at least have a good story to tell and hopefully good company to boot.

5. Dreads are cool, my brother has them.

6. Beauty is in your backyard. You don't have to cross the ocean to find it. I don't know a place I have been where there hasn't been a moment or a place where I've thought "wow, this earth is a wonderful thing".
I could stare out over the coulees, walk up pilots monument overlooking old-town Yellowknife (winter and summer), hike up a mountain in the rockies, sit on a hill overlooking the St. Lawrence river, or just take my dogs for a walk in the woods and be in awe of what the world and my backyard has to offer. Go on an adventure in your home town!

7. Friendships are funny. You can form an instant connection with someone, hang out with them for a total of 2 days and feel like you've known them a lifetime. I've met some of the coolest people I know, from all over the world, on my travels... knowing that if we were ever in the same place again we would get along like we'd never parted. Yet there are those people you meet and you think you enjoy their company yet you could be perfectly satisfied if you never saw or heard from them again, even if you have been friends for awhile.

8. Everybody has a story, points in their life which may or may not have helped shape the person they are today, and you can respect that, their story, without having to like them. You're not always going to like everybody you meet, but there is a reason they are the way that they are.

9. "I could be rich like a wandering gypsy, I could be poor like a fat wallet lost" - John Butler Trio. Happiness is free. You have to take time for yourself, do what makes you happy. It's cliche , but life is short. You don't know when or how you're going to die, but you can at least try to enjoy the time you have.

10. Family is where it's at. If you have a family who loves and cares about you, you should keep in contact with them. Sometimes it's easy to get carried away or distracted with whatever you're doing at the moment and you might not always take the time you should to write or call home. But it's important to them and healthy for you.

So these are just a few of the lessons that I have acquired along the way. I hope you have enjoyed reading them as you are now possibly thinking of some of the lessons you have learnt  :)   Cheers and happy Tuesday.

Annessa Nina

PS.. Hi mom and dad, tell the dogs I say ruff ;)

Halloween brings Halloween things

It is now officially November. Which means yesterday was October 31, and you all know what that means...  Halloween

Halloween is easier as a kid, more exciting and less exhausting. It comes one night a year, with one costume and a one-shot span of collecting candies before going home to sort and eat them before bed.
When you get to university you have to worry about parties and bars and figure out who's going where and when.
Then comes the costume, as a kid you're content wearing the same costume for 3 consecutive years . Yet as you get older costume repeats become more unacceptable, you swear each year that next year you will have THE BEST COSTUME EVER. That is of course until next year rolls around and you find yourself at Value Village at the last possible minute trying to scrounge something up.
Even after all of this (decent costume or not)  you have to figure out whether or not you will hand out candy on the actual date of Halloween. Weighing out the pros and cons such as whether or not you have money, a test, or a commitment to buy beer.            Yep it's a hard life.
Kids definitely have it easier, with their parents to plan and execute while they just have to worry about how much candy they can get.. But hey it's worth it, at least as students we don't have to plan parties, costumes, get candy AND take our kids trick-or-treating (for the most part). So we might as well enjoy it. Heck Halloween does only come once a year, and next year I will have a costume that will blow your minds!

I hope you all enjoyed this festive holiday, and you will be happy to know that I did go over to a friends place to hand out candy. We didn't have too many trick or treaters, but it was nice to see their excited faces as they said "trick or treat" or in one case just "treat". They're learning  hahaa  
Until next time,

Annessa Nina

Is it Christmas yet?

My most used iPhone app atm (at the moment) : CBC radio

Favourite time to listen: While making food and occupying the kitchen

Why: I can listen to fun interviews, keep up to date with the news, and if I'm feeling a little homesick I can tune in to Yellowknife's station.

So with Halloween just around the corner I've noticed everyone scrambling to get their last minute costumes ready. This year I'm being a little pig with two of my friends. I'm not in charge of most of the costuming.. But I am tempted to show up as a dead pig.. Beat down by the Big Bad Wolf (another one of my friends). Or at least bruised up from a crushed house... Now if my make-up artist of a sister lived here!

School and classes have been going well. Past that first mid-term period and am now trying to remind myself to study because the second set of mid-terms are just around the corner.

The days are getting shorter now and the sun is setting earlier and earlier each day and taking it's time to rise (just like I find myself doing). It's getting to the point of the year where I have to start putting my alarm further away from my bed, and I'm a morning person! But that being said we had our first snowfall of the season this morning and I got out for a nice jog and took in the crisp air before the warming afternoon sun got the best of it. I think I'm ready for the winter, ready for snow. Let's hope my truck feels the same way.

I've recently downloaded dropbox on to my computer and have been using it to share music with friends. It is so easy to do, just drag the songs from iTunes to your shared folder and voila you gave your dad the "tallest man on earth" soundtrack.. or vice versa you can get your friends to send you music they think you'll like. It's a handy tool with other uses.. and nope I'm not a paid advertiser, just an avid supporter. So check that out, and happy almost November.

Until next time.. Your biggest fan,
Annessa Nina

Ps.. Mom can you send me some cookies?  Thx

Open roads, Open heart, Good company.

I'm still wearing shorts because the weather's hot and it's almost October. I've been enjoying running outside still and hopefully will be well in to October and possibly November. I've been running in the coulies once a week and each time the run up is a bit better. Tuesday's run felt best yet, but those hills can be killer.

On Monday we learned a roundhouse kick in kick boxing. It was a lot of fun, and a little awkward feeling at first. I have a wicked bruise on my left forearm from holding the blockers. Makes me look tough.. Or like I don't know what I'm doing? Haha I'll stick with tough. I have another class tonight and I'm tired so I'm not as excited to go. I drove to Canmore last night and stayed overnight in Calgary before making it back for a 9am class. So I didn't get a very good sleep.

On the bright side.. I went to Canmore to see an artist that I saw when I was in Australia. This guy Kim Churchill from Perth Aus. He is around my age and has been playing the guitar since he could walk pretty much. So he plays the guitar, kick drum, harmonica and sings. Incredible. I went and picked my friend Sarah up from school in Calgary and we drove to this really nice little cafe in Canmore called Communitea. The atmosphere was nice and friendly, with candles on the table and they served wine,  beer, tea and coffee. We stuck to the non-alcoholic beverages as we had to drive back after. Besides Kim's music was all the energy you needed. After he was finished playing we got our cd's signed and were on the road to be back in Calgary by midnight. To our surprise and fortune the aurora borealis decided to keep us company the whole way there. I had never seen the northern lights this far south before. It was beautiful. Even living in the north the northern lights are always breathtaking. What's truely sad is that, like Sarah pointed out, some people never get to even see the stars living in the city. So if you're reading this I hope you take that in to account appreciate a star the next time you see one, or a million ;)

Cheers
Annessa Nina

I like my coffee black

In the land of school, there is so far no stress. We had our first anatomy lab last week and even though mine's on a Friday it went pretty well. I went to Calgary this past weekend and met up with some friends I hadn't seen in a while, which was really nice, and I made it back in time to get a good sleep on Sunday. Today was kind of chilly and I have a bit of a head cold so I was tired all day, plus it rained and rain never helps a tired mood. Although I did download some good Australian hip hop that I'm excited about and had a nap.

On Saturday I got up early to do the drive up to Calgary. I put gas in my truck and stopped for a coffee at Tim's. The drive went by quickly as I was excited to see my friend Sarah who I hadn't seen since the start of summer. I got to her place, which was cozy and nicely decorated (with a wicked sound system) , We chatted for a bit then went for breakfast. It was like we hadn't skipped a beat, the way friendships should be. Went to a nice little cafe and had coffee and eggs benedict for under ten dolla. YES

After a nice visit I went to Ali's place then to go pick up our friend Whit from the airport. We stopped for food and then went back to Ali's to shower and get ready for the day. Except we had to drive my truck back to jump start Ali's car because she left her lights on! People were laughing as they drove by and we had to ask some guys which wire goes first (red or black) they just shook their heads at us and said it didn't really matter.. Rude. Hahaha.

Back at the apartment we got ready and Sarah and Brittany (another yk'er) came over and we headed out to catch the last couple hours of the Calgary electronic music festival. It was outdside in a park and cold.. But we did a lap of the stages and danced until we were warm. It was funny to see all of the different people there... Young, old, hippies, preps. Everyone was having a good time. I could have set up camp just to people watch. But I'm glad we got in there, kept warm and kept movin.

On Sunday we first tried to go to an outdoor farmers market.. By the time we got there it was pretty empty except for a fruit stand and a few stands selling odds and ends. It was kind of cool at the same time. I don't know if we were late or if it was just late in the season. The vendors were all really nice though. After that we went to a huge indoor farmers market, with all kinds of food stands. It was a little too busy but I had some really tasty green curry, with a mini maple bacon donut for dessert. After the market we took our adventure to IKEA where Whit had to get some stuff for her home. We were there for hours...eating, napping, pooping, peeing, doing homework etc etc. (okay maybe not all of that). But it was fun and we got some good loot.

Apres I said au revoir to Ali and Whit monster and braced for the long and tired drive home. All in all it was a satisfying weekend catching up with good (not old) friends.

Back in Leth I had my first kick boxing class tonight. I was a little nervous for it because I didn't know what to expect. I had never kick boxed in my life. It was fun. I am going to be in shape. The warm up consisted of running, squatting, push ups, and core work and I'm sure they were taking it easy on us. But the hard part was holding the blockers up for your partner to punch. It's supposed to be easier if you move your blocker toward the punch but I definitely need to build up the endurance and strength of my shoulders. With all that, I am excited for what's to come and happy to have a new challenge.

PEACE
Annessa Nina

I'm here I'm there I'm everywhere

The 4 days I spent at my cabin were just what I needed before school started. Between moving in, classes starting, and catching up with friends I haven't had much time to put my feet up. So the tranquil days at the lake cleared my mind and re-energized my soul. I went to bed early every night, read a book, ran with the dogs and went swimming every day (even on the day the temperature dropped below 0 at night, don't worry though I think it was 10 degrees at the time of entry). Best of all I spent some quality time with the 'rents and had a fire started every morn when I woke up  :)

My drive to school was about 8 hours and uneventful. Flat flat flat oh and buggy with a side of road kill. Not that I'm complaining because I do looove the prairies. But it wasn't an exciting piece of road and I was a bit unhappy leaving the cabin.

I arrived in Leth on Sunday night. Stayed at a friends. Moved in to my place last Monday with my 2 new roommates. They're great and I think it's going to be a good year. ( Only a 15 minute walk to the uni from here).

This past week has been a blur, I'm finally settled in as of today. Classes are underway and my friend Ali came to visit this past weekend.
On Saturday evening we went to fresh fest (an outdoor concert in the school's green space). We danced the night away, then did some more booty shakin at Pulse "night club" apres.
But the real adventure happened on Sunday when 3 of us tried to float down old man river on an air mattress that we had bought at Wal Mart. The previous day I floated down with some friends and it was fine and dandy so we thought we would give it a try. But on Sunday when we got to the starting point,  we put on our sunscreen, then opened the box with the mattress and pump only to find we needed some huge batteries for the pump, yikes! So we borrowed a hand pump from the people ahead of us. The pump didn't connect properly so we were pumping the air mattress up in tandem in plus 30, with oily bodies for about 45 minutes. Yep it was a great work out! You should try it.
When we finally got on the river, it was nice.
We almost got to the railway bridge when the wind picked up and started blowing us in the wrong direction.. Luckily we could get out and walk... If only Kel didn't scream everytime she heard a snake (aka crickets) . By the time we made it to a parking lot, borrowed a phone and got picked up my hands were shaking, and I don't get stressed out easily! It was a fun day though craziness and all and I wouldn't have had it any other way. We picked up some sushi and had a nice unwinding evening.

Ali left back to Calg today, classes are getting off to a good start and I feel a little bit more organized with my room finally unpacked. My September has kicked off to a great start and I hope yours has too.

Until next time

Annessa Nina