Nico Space

My mom told me my great uncle Henri died the other night. His wife tante Fernande, died a few months back. I knew tante Fernande but I don't remember oncle Henri.
Mom said all he wanted was to die before tante Fernande. He asked tante Fernande to ask God to come and take him as quickly as possible. He just didn't want to live without her. My mom said that tante Paulette said, "it only took two months to bargain with God to let him come".
Every christmas he would tell people that he didn't want any presents because he already had his Fernande.
After she died his daughters would come in and cook for him and he would just go straight to sleep right after supper.
I am happy he is at peace now and reunited with Fernande.

I got an invitation in the mail today for Luke and I to go to Daniel and Rachel's wedding. As my mom says, it's time for us to have a real party after such a hard winter.

Nicole asked me to type a blog for her:

This has been a good weekend so far. Yesterday I followed Luke around downtown and watched him shop for new clothes. He only brought crappy worn-out clothes to Wales, and now they've all fallen apart. I asked him him why, and he said it was a stupid question. I don't think it was a stupid question. I picked out a black shirt with tiny polka-dots for him to buy. He's been just a bit sick for the past few days, coughing and sniffling and taking tons of my Vitamin C. He's such a WEAKLING.

Today we met my classmate Ali at the local food market across the river from the millenium stadium. We were there to get some interviews and vox pops (quick opinions from random people) for a TV show project. My piece is about the recent increase in demand for local food. We got some good footage, and then had some excellent Indian food from a stand for lunch. Yummy!

It has been really nice outside here for the last week or so, and we've been enjoying going for walks. Today I think we'll go out to Bute Park and play frisbee. I don't have a frisbee, so that's an issue. I hope we can find one somewhere. It seems like a good idea.

Well, off I go!

Take care,

Luke

I mean... Nico

I was watching Ellen the other day and her trainer (who has the most irritating smile I have ever seen) said stress causes you to gain weight in your tummy area and no matter what you do your body will refuse to lose it.
I thought this was interesting since my belly and my hips are where I store it all.
So, I got to thinking, maybe I am stressed.
I read up a bit about stress and it says it can cause severe mood swings.
Hmmmm...

In the article it said to eat healthy snacks.
I generally eat pretty well, especially lately.
Does anyone have any stress busting ideas?
I don't really want to be all high strung for the rest of my life.
However, I don't want to be a dead fish.

I have heard through the grapevine that Sonia has given birth again! Félicitations David et Sonia!
I immediately called Viviane but she wasn't there and Angelo didn't know if it was a boy or a girl.
All in good time...

I went for a run in the park by my house today. It is a really amazing park with a nice river running through it. It is super huge and full of people doing fun outdoor things. There are often kids swimming in the river. It looks itch infested to me but most little rivers and lakes do since I am especially prone to the itch. I have low quality skin.

When I run I always find it nice when I forget I am running and get lost in my thoughts. As I was galloping through the trees I was so happy at the thought of Sonia having another baby.

It doesn’t seem like that long ago that we were playing barbies in her basement or talking about how many kids we would want some far off day. I have to pinch myself sometimes.

My dad says it is more difficult to think of positive things about people than it is to think about negative things. I am feeling a little down today because I think I am thinking too much about negative things and not enough about the positive.

Here is a list of the happy things of today:

-When I woke up I didn't have trouble getting out of bed, even though it was 7:00am

-My hair dried in a really nice way naturally. Sometimes it doesn't

-The people at the French immersion week I am working at are very nice and interesting.

-A guy from the French thing said I reminded him of his grandma. But only because she is from Moose Jaw not because I looked like his grandma. But I am sure his grandma was very beautiful, even when she was older.

-Chris joined Facebook. Yay!

-I love the Lavergne Lions group on Facebook and I am so happy that I now have a way of talking with my cousins.

-It was sunny and warm today. I didn’t wear a jacket and I was hot.

-I wrote about a third of an article, which is due in a month. That is a first.

-My partner for my group work is a live and well. I was quite worried about his whereabouts.

I was watching CNN tonight for a little too long.

I am sad about the school shooting in the States.

I thought it was very funny that one of the first messages from the white house was that they had aid available. This should probably be a normal thing for the government to say but I felt they were trying extra hard to dot their i's and cross their t's. The government has not done so well dealing with disasters in the past.

I get worried when they begin to talk about needing more security in schools. I definitely do not think it is a good solution.
If going to school begins to be like getting on an airplane I think everyone should drop out.

Sometimes people go nuts and there is nothing we can do to control that.

For the time we have on this earth we should try and make it as pleasant an experience as possible.

Fear gets us no where.

Well it's back to reality after a magical trip. Scotland was amazing and now I realize I have seen the whole of the United Kingdom. Well, been to every country anyway.

Our tour guide to and from the isle of Skye was amazing. She was such a good storyteller and her love for her country was inspiring. It made me want to explore Saskatchewan!

She was also able to make history come alive! Her description of the battle of Culloden in 1746 was so interesting. It explains why Scotland is the way it is now.

After Scotland lost the battle a series of laws were put in place which were to deteriorate the highlanders culture. She explained that these laws destroyed the clan system. They were no longer able to gather in large groups, they were disarmed, their land was taken away, the kilt and the tartan were banned and the chiefs were no longer able to have power over the clan.

Our guide said there was lots of immigration after these laws were put in place. I felt really sorry for the highlanders after her description but I also couldn't help but think that a lot of these Scottish immigrants would just repeat history and implement similar laws on the native people of Canada.

I have renewed energy after this trip and I wish I had time to go to the library and read some historical novels that a girl on the trip recommended. Unfortunately, I have soooo much work to do. I am very happy we went to Scotland but I am left in a bit of a tight position. I took on a job for the next three days leading secondary students in some games in french. So, it's going to be a busy week.

Hello blog,

For the past two nights I sat in front of the tv and did homework. Half doing homework and half watching tv. I think I have inherited my mom's habit of watching tv while she does other things, like ironing. I know my aunty Paulette does this too. I don't think I have ever seen my mom just watch tv. She is often doing two things at once.

When I just watch tv I get a little stressed and feel like I am wasting time. Maybe my aunt and my mom feel the same.

Anyway, I am sick of doing homework in front of the TV. I need something to iron.

Today I was at school and saw that there was bar work available. So I have just finished a shift at Salt, a bar in the bay. The staff there is really nice and it felt good to bartend again. I miss funny customers.

My teacher says that one of the first rules when you are on assignment in a foreign country is to get out of the office and meet people. That is the only way you will have something to report.

I think it is one of my main rules in life. The most amazing things happen when you leave your comfort zone and meet new people. The only way to grow is by leaving your comfort zone. It feels a tad uncomfortable at first but it pays off hugely.

For example, tonight I did not really feel like bartending. BUT, I was sick of being on my couch in the evening and sick of my money in my account draining away rather then growing, so, I took this job. The first day at a new job is always crappy.

However, because I left the comfort zone of my living room and put myself in a crappy first day at a new job position I met a girl who bartends part-time but also works for one of the major television stations here. She gave me some e-mail addresses and I may be able to get some work experience.

Who knows what will come of it. It doesn’t really matter. It’s just important that I met some fresh faces and stepped out of routine.

When I was working at the cactus full time it became a comfort zone. Outside the comfort zone seems more dangerous but I think the comfort zone is incredibly dangerous. Years could disappear without anyone noticing.