To say that I would never watch a gymnastics movie, while that. Is simply not true. I loved the movie “Stick It” and must have seen that movie dozens of times. The movie I just saw was “Full Out”. This is based on the true story of Ariana Berlin. Early on in the movie, she gets into a car accident with her mother. After a period in a coma and severe injuries, she is faced with not initially walking and is in the hospital dealing with physiotherapy.
Having her whole dreams taken away and her meaning in life. She initially struggles to find meaning in life and where her new life will take her. This road leads to hip-hop dancing and eventually back to gymnastics with a warm and fuzzy ending.
Given what I have been through I can really relate to her struggles. Even before this I never really had big goals and was waiting for inspiration. Now I feel like I need to do something and want to find that something but many possibilities a beyond large rolling Austrian Alps, but a big rocky Swiss Alps now.
This movie is available on Netflix and worth a watch.
Sundays are typically good quiet days to reflect on the week that has passed. It is now September 18th. We are leaving Vienna, and for the first time in weeks, I am not hung over. After a decent but shorter ride we arrive at Olympia Olomouc mall in the Czech Republic and there is a TV in the middle playing a Canada vs Czech Republic game from a tournament being held in Canada. Canada was of course winning. Go Team Canada! However, it was thee lunch stop and since we were at a food court I had to try local food… I at at this local place that serves fried chicken in wraps called KFC.
Back on the bus and we arrived at the Birkenau concentration camp. It had gotten really foggy, dark, and cool as we arrived there with spots of rain. It was very spooky. I went in two of the buildings and there was lots of Jewish groups having guided tours. I didn’t read most of the plaques or go in most of the buildings, the place just hit me with sorrow and I just wandered around the paths.
Next we went across the street to the much smaller and more interesting Auschwitz camp. This place was built in the late 1800’s to house the Polish troops from the Franco-Prussian war. Then around 1940 the entire town was deserted as the Polish peoples were no longer allowed to live in the area and their leaders were jailed here. Then as this place was filled up, the second camp was built across the street. If you went to Auschwitz you were lucky compared to Birkenau.
I managed to go through three buildings, each of the twenty some buildings are dedicated to the story of a different group of people that were “holcausted”. The buildings I went through told the stories of the Polish People, the Politicians and the Cripples. After that I couldn’t take anymore and had to just wander around. Something was just not right and I’m a person that needs to know why to understand and there is just no why when it comes to the holocaust.
Then it was off to Krakow for dinner, and then a night on the town. Not sure how much money to take out, I take out 250 Polish Zlotys. ($90 CAD) I had lots of shots at an awesome shots bar. As everyone else mostly decided to leave to find a club, I wasn’t really in the mood so I went to get a Chicken Kabab that tasted off but I was drunk and hungry so I ate it anyways (a big mistake). The other person I was walking back with wanted to go to the gift shop at the Hard Rock Cafe so I waited outside for her. As we were walking down the street every single place on the Main Street it seems converts to a Strip-club, and get calls to come in. I was really partied out at this point and getting sick from the Kabab.
Since the Summer I was getting these bubbles on my head, and still am but not as bad. This night incredibly drunk, I decide that I need to get a better look at this. It has been worrying me since before the trip, and I didn’t have time to see a doctor. I therefore spend two hours in the shower shaving my head with a face razor. This was a huge ordeal, and I wanted to give up a few times. How can you give up with a partly shaved head? So I had to finish.
The next morning was a free day for the morning, I went to the old town square and met up with the “free” walking tour. We spent hours going around and seeing everything and learning the importance of Krakow since Medieval times, and finishing with the castle. I tipped him 50 Zloty for the amazing tour, which apparently was an excessive amount. On the way back to the hotel, I stopped at another Kabab place for lunch.
The group then took the bus to the nearby salt mine. This place was beyond amazing and we walked for hours through this maze of underground marvels. There was the most amazing cathedral carved in the cave. Although I couldn’t take a picture of it without buying a licence. My feet were so sore this day, the tough skin was starting to crack and bleed at this point of the trip. It was a lot of walking for sandals.
Then we went back to town to make and eat Polish Pirogies and other awesome Polish food. Since My feet were sore I didn’t go out and had drinks near the IBIS Budget hotel.
The next morning we left Krakow, we made a few hour stop along the way in the beautiful town of Banská Bystrica, Slovakia. Unlike Pisa, the whole church is leaning in this town. I had to borrow pocket change in this town as my Euros were in the suitcase and we were transitioning from Zlotys to Forints and I really needed to use the washroom. After touring the town, I found the grocery store and picked up lunch on my credit card. We then took the best group photo of the trip and were off to Hungary.
Today I looked through MyFitnessPal and determined that my weight loss goals did not happen as I started the year as 134.7kg and ended it at 133.3kg although I have gotten smaller in all the other measurements. So I then I turned to my iPhoto to remember what I did this past year, and I have picked out the best one for each month.
January
Best of 2014 – January
Over the holidays there was a lot of freezing rain and my driveway had very thick unbreakable ice. My thought was if I could get down to the asphalt it would allow me to get rid of more of the ice as it would melt in the sunlight.
However, it resulted in charred remains on top of the ice, as the dried out wreath burned very quickly.
February
Best of 2014 – February
Since it was very cold and lots of ice, what else do you do but escape to where it is warmer. One of my goals of 2014 was to add as many countries to my list as possible. Another goal was that I would not go to Europe again until I reached 115kg (which is still the goal) as motivation to actually lose weight. Therefore very last moment I went to a travel agent for the very first time and booked my first cruise to add 4 new countries (which ended up as 5).
March
Best of 2014 – March
Needless to say, It snowed a lot more in March. I was still sporting a very nice tan though, and remained very bundled up. I also did not take many pictures in March so it was either this or the new former Premier giving a speech to a room full of people at the local riding nomination meeting, my first of two this year with two uncontested candidates.
April
Best of 2014 – April
This is a phone of Claire Hughes on her Claire’s Big Bike Ride for Bell’s Let’s Talk campaign for mental health issues.
For me April was a really good month this was when I started to get smaller and began the year-long process of replacing most of my clothes.
May
Best of 2014 – May
Besides being my birthday month, May continued the positive vibes of April. This photo is from the first test screening of The Divorce Movie. This movie featured many people who I have met from various areas of my past, and was a really enjoyable film that just happened to by the type of movie that I would have seen anyway.
June
Best of 2014 – June
From my past travels when anyone asks what is the greatest place I have ever seen, the only true answer is Berlin!
This brings us to the start of the World Cup season where I went out almost every day to watch the games and cheer on team Germany over when possible German beer, or as close to it as possible. (Sometimes Dutch beer when the Netherlands were playing.)
July
Best of 2014 – July
Now I could have used my celebration photo from when Germany won the World Cup, however, who doesn’t love a fireworks show.
In typical Saint John fashion it was rainy, foggy, or something else on Canada Day and the fireworks got delayed, I went out to the grassy field at Portland Point where I ran into my old friend April and her gang that I had not seen in a few years and became a very great evening.
August
Best of 2014 – August
If you read my last post you will recall that I really enjoyed the 2nd Fundy Fringe Festival, this was a photo during one of the evening shows with many of the performers.
Most of the best memories I do not have, or would not post them here, but were a highlight of my year.
September
Best of 2014 – September
This year I started to go to the local stand-up comedy nights “No Holds Barred” with Jon Forward at the R Bar. These are great nights filled with laughs. This was from the September Show during the Harvesting the Arts festival. There are so may stay cats in Saint John that during the act this cat came wandering in the bar and provided for great improved moments of stand-up comedy.
October
Best of 2014 – October
In October, I took a trip to the Canadian Wireless Trade Show in Toronto did a lot of cool things that I probably should have blogged about. For Halloween I went to Medieval Times and did not know there was a costume contest so I did not dress-up but had a great time anyway. This is a photo of the Knighting ceremony for Mario, to try to get his princess. (Sorry Mario, your princess was in another castle.)
November
Best of 2014 – November
Up until June, it had been a tradition to go to the Urban Deli for breakfast every Saturday morning for about 4 years. Then they stopped serving breakfast and I wandered to several different places like Big Tide and Bourbon Quarter before I stumbled on Billy’s Seafood. The first few times I was not thrilled with its people watching potential, then I started sitting at the bar and the entire experience changed. After several weeks on the way to the Imperial Theatre to see The Sound of Music I stopped by Billy’s to try the dinner menu. This was the Cornmeal Haddock that I had that night.
December
Best of 2014 – December
Now to finish off the year, is my usual weekend haunt, The Canterbury Lounge. Typically, the highlight is an amazing drink that Adam creates with a smile, not this night. It was a giant Bear, on a Chair, with a Hat!
After the mess of a year 2012 was my New Year’s resolution was that 2013 was going to be a year of firsts. This year also seemed to acquire a slogan as well due to my Contiki trip, and that was #noregrets.
Now I know that I have ignored updating here as often as I should in favour of quick tweets, Facebook posts, and Instagrams. For the year-end post I thought I would take a moment to list my firsts for the year (in no particular order).
1. Had a real birthday celebration.
2. First time in Monaco and Liechtenstein (small enough to be a single first).
3. Went to an adult costume party for Hallowe’en.
4. Exceeded my custom’s limit.
5. First major out-of-town music festival. (Osheaga)
6. My first “snowboard”.
7. Tried out a few new restaurants. (Decimal 81, Britt’s, Lemongrass)
8. Volunteered for my first theatre event. (Fundy Fringe Festival)
I have also included below a gallery of some of this years best moments that I have photos of.
Just a quick post today and the first of many more. I have seemed to get out of my slump from the past two years and have been trying new things.
On the fitness side of things the summer has been very non-structured and I have been eating in moderation a little bit of everything,
My goal for September is going to be no alcohol or chocolate.
The first is going to be difficult as I have a German beer stein that I have been wanting to christen on the first day of Oktoberfest on September 21st but I will delay it as Oktoberfest is still going on in Munich until October 6th.
This is the time of year that everyone is setting their goals for the new year. Some unrealistic and some to easily obtainable because you are going to do it anyway. I have set goals like everyone else. But let’s face it goals still suck.
One of my goals this year are to write more, in the range of 2-3 times a week. This is also one of the reasons that you are reading this is because I have written it.
Next thing I want to accomplish is to become a better person. I am going to change my diet to be more reasonable and not so restaurant based. Let’s face it I could probably count the number of times I have cooked in the last year on 2 hands. Pretty much everything has been from Tim’s, Wendy’s, Subway, McDonald’s, Starbucks, Java Moose, Urban Deli, or Saint John Ale House for the past year. The exception being frozen stuff or sandwiches from Sobey’s. This has also resulted in a net weight increase in 2011. Although I am still down from the start of 2010.
The next thing on my list is to read more. I am going to try to actually read 10 books this year. In addition, I am going to try to reduce the amount of movies I go see in theatre. I think that 40 should be a reasonable number. There are some good choices this year but it does not appear to be nearly as good of a year as my 300 year in 2009.
I am also going to try to see somewhere new this year. Last year Vancouver, Hoboken, and Bologna where great new places but this year needs to be totally new. I also don’t really want to travel alone again this year so my big goal will be to find someone to travel with.
I have tried many times to try a new language but it is very difficult unless you can immerse yourself in it for a month or two.
Despight the fact that learning to speak French much much better would help me find a more decent job, the language I would really love to be able to speak is German. I personally find German one of the most important sounding languages in the world. There is something in the sound of it that makes it feel familure and noble.
I also love how they construct larger word putting smaller ones together. I would also live to hang out in a platz over a piaza.
That being said Italian would also be cool and more specifically Venician. Venice is one very amazing place that you can very easily lose yourself in.
As you can see CEFM.ca has a fresh clean new look. It is a metaphor for things happening in my life now. I am preparing for the bittersweet life of Academia. I am returning to UNBSJ in a little over a week only this time I have a plan. I am intending to complete my BA with an Economics Major and History minor.
I am also going to take a stab at the LSAT next month. I haven’t started studying yet for it. C’est la vie of the eternal procrastinator.
I am also happy to announce that the goals I have set to lose weight are moving in the right direction. I have not been able to get to the gym this week, my old back injury from High School just came back. However, it did a big snap that really hurt Wednesday while running for the bus and is tender but it feels like it repositioned in the right way for the first time in a long time. I should be able to head back next week.
I’m considering moving my Gallery section to Gallery3 however it is not ready yet and there are no themes at the current moment that meet my PHP knowledge level to modify to the new WordPress theme that I am using now.
