I’m two days late in writing this (okay, only one day, but holistically speaking, it’s two), so I apologise if anyone had been expecting me to say something. (Like anyone actually reads these things … I’m kidding, of course, some you do care about what I’m doing, although I really don’t know why…
Anyhoo, you’re probably wondering what I’m going on about. Well, late on 5 January 1998, I arrived to start my life here in Greater Vancouver. It’s been one heck of a year. Here are some of the things I did … in no particular order:
- Travelled on the Pacific Starlight.
- Started my first real relationship.
- Rented my first apartment.
- Became a BC resident.
- Got into a car crash.
- Started to learn how to decorate properly.
- Turned 26.
- Got a contract within 24 hours of arriving in the Lower Mainland.
- Started to work for a video game company.
- Survived two rounds of layoffs.
- Got rained on a few times.
- Got caught in the blizzard of ’98.
- Fell in love with the view in Vancouver.
- Went to New York.
- Went to San Francisco.
- Went to Los Angeles.
- Went to Monterey.
- Went to Blaine.
- Went to Nanaimo (repeatedly).
- Went to Victoria.
- Went to Calgary.
- Went to Kelowna.
- Went to Whistler.
- Memorized the location of every Death By Chocolate restaurant.
- Watched Pop Up Video too many times.
- Bought a proper umbrella.
- Blew out three bicycle tires.
- Got addicted to Japanese food (especially sushi).
- Ate strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries for the first time.
- Ate pumpkin pie and loved it.
- Got addicted to New England clam chowder.
- Also tried Manhattan clam chowder, but don’t like it as much.
- Got engaged.
- Wore sandals for nearly 10 months of the year.
- Had Indian curry … still have it fairly often.
- Went to a vegetarian restaurant … and liked it.
- Was introduced to Allison’s family. They liked me. (Frightening, eh?)
- Learned how to pronounce “Tsawwassen”.
- Learned far too much about real-time 3D computer graphics.
- Went on Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride for the first time.
- Visited Head-Smashed-In-Buffalo-Jump.
- Saw everyone of my relatives in the calendar year.
- Visited Cathedral Gove.
- Visited Rathtrevor Beach.
- Saw Hollywood. Wasn’t impressed.
- Saw goats living on the roof of a market.
- Found some the X-Files filming locations.
- Visited White Rock.
- Went to Point Roberts.
- Started planning for the wedding.
- Moved Allison into my apartment to stay.
- Woke up every morning for a month to the sound of jackhammers (Allison had it worse).
- Washed about 100 loads of laundry.
- Saw Lee Aaron singing swing.
- Saw the Symphony of Fire from 15 stories up.
- Drank hot chocolate in the lobby of the Hotel Vancouver.
- Went up the Empire State Building.
- Built a dam in the Coquihalla River out of small stones.
- Found some of the best red wine I’ve ever had.
- Tried ice wine.
- Drank a martini. (Hated it – too much vermooth.)
- Went to the PNE twice.
- Saw Cirque Parasol.
- Travelled on a San Francisco Cable Car.
- Witnessed the Technikal Superdogs show.
- Saw Chilliwack live.
- Went to the Rob Zombie concert. Survived with minimal hearing loss.
- Discovered why snow sucks here.
- Drastically reduced my spending habits.
- Got a promotion and a raise.
- Wrote a lot of email.
- Survived “It’s A Small World” without losing my mind.
- Used about 30 rolls of film.
- Managed to survive a year without drinking one cup of coffee.
- Enjoyed 22 pints of beer.
- Got sick twice.
- Went home for Christmas.
- Went to Niagara Falls.
- Visited the Ontario Science Centre. Was disappointed with the changes.
- Saw the Star Wars Episode 1 trailer when it debuted.
- Missed my family and friends. Sometimes terribly.
- Fell in love with Allison each and every day.
- Discovered that I don’t play Quake nearly as well as I thought I did.
- Got seven haircuts.
- Took the Universal Studios tram tour. Missed getting eaten by a shark.
- Bought a barbeque.
- Varnished a table and four chairs.
- Saw Shakespeare in the park.
- Danced willingly. Particularly at the Blarney Stone.
- Complained bitterly about the cost of living in Vancouver.
and
Wrote too few Observer’s Logs. Hopefully I’ll make the practice better in ’99.
It ought to be interesting to see what 1999 brings me. With luck, I’ll have as interesting a year as I did last year. Be rest assured, you’ll hear all about it…
