Summertime

I miss home.

I miss summer.

This particular photo was taken during the summer of 2008, from behind my parents' summer home. I love the colours... the reflection of the sky in the water... and just how tranquil everything appears.

My parents' summer home is one of my favourite places in the world. It's a place to go to get away from everything. For the longest time, we didn't even have a phone. Unfortunately, that changed a couple years ago. However, so few people have the number, it's still peaceful. It's about a 90 minute drive from my parents' house, and about a 30 minute drive to any semblance of true civilization. Most of my time spent there is spent relaxing, usually with a book, and often with a cold beverage.

Last summer, for various reasons, I didn't get to spend any time there. However, I plan to rectify that issue this summer.

It's the time, not the money

So, this week got off to a bit of a rocky start.

Yesterday was a beautiful, sunny day. I was driving from one school to the next, listening to some tunes. There was nothing else on the road around me. Out of nowhere, I heard a rather loud pop and saw a line running across the windshield in front of my eyes.

At first I wasn't sure what had happened. I thought something had perhaps come out of nowhere and hit my windshield. However, upon closer inspection, the site where the crack started appears to be the spot where I had a chip repaired about two years ago. I'm assuming the repair failed, and with the nasty weather we had on Sunday, switching from cold to mild with freezing rain, back to cold, and then warming again yesterday with the sun, the windshield suffered as a result.

Thankfully, I have comprehensive coverage on my vehicle, which means this won't cost me any more than my deductible at most. Another option is the fact that Speedy, which repaired the windshield two years ago, supposedly offers a lifetime warranty on the repair. I'm going to check into this option first and see where it takes me. Either way, it's not a huge expense.

The time involved, however, is what annoys me. Wasting time contacting Speedy, the insurance company. Losing the use of my vehicle while the windshield is being replaced. I still haven't gotten all the work done from when my rear windshield was broken out in October. I still don't know how that happened. I'm still finding glass inside my car. For 5 days in late October/early November, I was relying on others to bring me to work, and home again in the afternoon. I don't relish the idea of giving up my car again to have the repair finished. So, between the repair from October, and the installation of a new windshield, it appears I'll be without a vehicle for several days again this spring.

I plan to wait until they've stopped covering the roads with gravel (that's what they use here in the middle of nowhere instead of salt). At this point it looks as though I might be without my car for Easter. I don't want to replace the windshield, only to have it covered in chips by the time May rolls around.

Snow Days!

One of the perks of being a teacher is the fact that often, when the weather warrants, the schools are shut down. These unexpected holidays are a teacher's best friend. Many of my co-workers have midterm exams to correct this week, so a day off is a welcome surprise. These days often give us teachers the time to work on things during the day that we would often have to do, in the evening, on our own time.

I, on the other hand, am spending the day cooking, baking and cleaning. I have chicken in the CrockPot (such a godsend that appliance), have butter softening to bake chocolate chip (with Toblerone chunks) cookies, and have washed dishes, tidied my apartment, and swept the floor.

This is the second snow day this week for my school. There was one Monday as well. Unfortunately, I missed that one as I was in Corner Brook (2 hours away) for a medical appointment. I was completely surprised when the call came this morning. I honestly wasn't expecting it. The weather didn't look too bad when I woke up at 6:45am for my shower. However, not long after I got the call, the weather started. It became quite snowy very quickly, and the wind picked up.

Another benefit of the snow day: being able to go back to bed!

An interesting development

I received an email earlier this week regarding a position for a teacher of the blind in the Bahamas. I was intrigued. I contacted the person who sent the original email and asked for some information. The parents of the student provide housing, a salary, benefits.

It has the potential to be an amazing experience in my opinion. But do I want to pursue it?

I seriously doubt the salary would be even remotely close to what I make now, which is rather significant. Would I be able to cover my bills? What is the cost of living down there? All important things to ask.

I've been thinking a lot about it. I really think I need to look for something somewhere else for next September, for various reasons. However, do I really want to go to the Bahamas? Especially as I've never visited and don't know what I'd be getting myself into.

I think the best route may be to continue with what I'd planned - look for a job in Vancouver. I love the city, and I have friends there. There's a bit more to it than that, but that's another story.

Who's coming for dinner?

One of the things I hate most about living on my own is cooking for myself. I enjoy cooking, and I'm quite a good cook (endorsements can be provided by family and former roommates). However, I hate cooking for myself. I don't see the point of going through all the preparation of cooking for just one person. I could live on grilled cheese sandwiches and soup if I had to. At most, I might cook one meal a week, eat it for several nights, and then spend the rest of the week living on quick and easy meals.

A couple events will hopefully help me change these bad habits. The first is that a coworker has moved into an apartment down the hall from me. She also lives on her own. We've decided that we're going to try and cook meals for one another. We did this a couple times before Christmas. It was nice to have someone to cook for, and the company was also enjoyable. Last night marked the first shared meal of the New Year.

The other event is the introduction of a CrockPot into my small supply of kitchen appliances. My brother asked me what I wanted for Christmas, and that's what I asked for. Yes, I'm getting old. My two big Christmas gifts were appliances. But I digress... I used my CrockPot for the first time yesterday to make sweet-n-sour pork. It was delicious. My friend and I both enjoyed a healthy serving, and I have 3 meals now in the freezer. With the CrockPot, I can prep the night before, dump everything into it in the morning, and when I get home I have a lovely cooked meal. I think I'm in love.

Let's get this started

I am back in the-middle-of-nowhere, having spent the better part of two weeks in civilization.

Don't get me wrong, I don't completely loathe being here. I've met some wonderful people, I have a job I genuinely enjoy, and the scenery is beautiful.

That being said, there are things I don't enjoy. While St. John's is a small city when compared to Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Ottawa, or even Winnipeg, I do consider it to be civilization. It is the location of the only AVEDA salon/spa in the province, which happens to be my salon, and preferred spa. There is relatively decent shopping. The grocery stores are generally well-stocked, and have a large variety. It is also the only place in Newfoundland where there is a Starbucks (3, and soon to be 4).

Here's my dilemma: do I remain here where I have a permanent position, or do I try to obtain a job somewhere more civilized? As things stand at this moment, my job search this spring will be composed of two cities: St. John's and Vancouver. I either want to be closer to my family, or as far from them as I can possibly hope to be. If things don't work out for this coming September, I'll stick it out here, and hope that I can find something for 2012.

For now, I'll make do with my Tassimo, buy my groceries in Corner Brook when I can, and look forward to any possible trips back to civilization throughout the course of the year.