First Post

I'm taking a big chance trying to blog tonight. I'm in my new accomodations with a really shaky wireless connection. Apparently there is internet here but I am stealing the signal from "donna" wherever she is because our internet isn't working. Anyway, I'm sure everything will be sorted out when we receive the new modem in five days. Until then, "donna" is allowing me to bring you this, my first post on the Metro Goddess Blog. All the posts preceding this one have been copy jobs for your entertainment only and not really written by me. Oh, except for G.O.D.D.E.S.S. That was definitely written by me. Did you like the accompanying photo? Too funny!!!

*** I'm getting nervous now so I'm going to switch to WordPad to type this. ***

So I’m here and I’m loving it! I’ve been very busy since I got here. My Dad met me at the airport so after we said goodbye to the other Goddesses and found the car in the airport’s HUGE parking lot, we were on our way home. As you may recall, I wasn’t sleeping too well before I left Mexico so after a quick dinner out and a bit of unpacking, I was anxious to hit the sack. I slept like a dead person and woke up feeling refreshed and excited to start my first full day in Canada. We headed back to Toronto so that I could check out a place to live and look at a few condos for sale in my neighbourhood. In case you missed it, I live HERE which is just about the hottest 'hood in Toronto right now. I was so lucky to have the foresight to buy here over six and a half years ago when there was virtually nothing here. Now it is a booming arts community, hosting special events, ecclectic art galleries, boutiques, furniture stores and restaurants.

I am actually living in my own condo building, sharing a two bedroom, two bathroom condo with one of the other owners who I’ve known for six years. I have my own partially furnished room with private bath. I had to supply a bed which was fine with me. I love my bed! I have a huge closet, two dressers, a night table, computer table and loveseat. It took some creative arranging to get my queensize bed in here but since I am used to living in small spaces, I am really quite comfortable. The unit has central air, washer & dryer, dishwasher, microwave, etc. The owner will be travelling to the west coast at the beginning of May for an undetermined length of time so I will have the place to myself for up to two months. She is happy to have someone she knows staying in her place while she is away so the arrangement suits us both perfectly.

After Saturday afternoon downtown Toronto, my Dad wanted to drive up to Downsview Airport to the Toronto Aerospace Museum to deliver a model. I think I mentioned somewhere that airplanes are my father’s passion. Check out his website HERE. He sells a few things on consignment at the museum but wanted to donate a model to help them raise money for the various work being done by The Aerospace Heritage Foundation of Canada. I was introduced all around and taken on a tour of the facility where they are busy restoring Canadian-made heritage aircraft. This is such an important part of Canadian history.

We eventually returned home so that I could have dinner with one of my oldest and dearest grade school girlfriends. We've known each other since Grade 4 and it was a pleasure spending the evening with her. I experienced my first "reverse" culture shock when I called a taxi to take me back to my Dad's. I had $15CDN in cash and thought that would more than cover the fare so when he told me it would be more like $20-$25, I nearly died! Between us, my girlfriend and I didn't have that much so she ended up driving me home. We laughed all the way about our inability to scrape together $20 to pay the cabbie. He thought we were crazy when I told him “thanks but no thanks”.

On Easter Sunday, I took a bus to Toronto and then transferred to the northbound subway to meet another girlfriend for a trip up to Barrie. There, we were meeting a third girlfriend and her family for Easter dinner. We all met each other in 1984 during basic training when we were in the Canadian military. My married girlfriend and her husband are still in the military with three children and I haven’t seen them since last summer. My godson is now as tall as me and his two younger siblings are growing as fast as grass after a summer rain. We ate, we drank, we laughed and then we ate some more. I gave the kids their woven bracelets from Cheap Charlie’s in Bucerias and was gratified to learn that I am still their coolest aunt. What a relief! Now they are all on MSN Messenger so I am looking forward to those conversations and their possible visits into the big city to see Tia Juliana.

TO BE CONTINUED ...