Ramada Hotel Edmonton

... all the different types of crafts made by the people here.
August 13 & 14 - More Meetings, Worship, and Prayer

August 15 - Free day and evening spent enjoying a meal and cultural dance with other members of the CSB

August 16 & 17 - CSB Retreat. Group Activity on the 17th is the Flight of the Gibbon. 2km of zip ...

... and partly because the Fairmounts in every city are usually the oldest and most historic.  I have to say after looking around I preferred the Crowne Plaza.  Then I just kept walking making a point of taking photos of the skies about which after a rainy morning were bright and filled with bubbly clouds.  Then I ran into Edmonton Tourism.  I walked in all arrogant and cocky and told the lady working at the desk, " I'm your best friend."  She looked at ...

... send the bags to Edmonton on the next day's flight. This was for me and Eva as Helen was able to get her checked bag to go all the way to Edmonton (though in the end it didn't and ended up with our bags). Once we got back to Edmonton we made another claim but with United this time as it was United that we flew from San Fran to Edmonton. We did what we needed to do and hopefully the bags will be delivered to us tomorrow or the next day. The bag situation was such a gong show. I got the ...

... us off as we left for Edmonton. We arrived in Edmonton, and stayed with Corry's uncle for the two nights. We shopped on the Thursday, then Kaitlyn had a doctors appointment on Friday, and we shopped. On Saturday morning we went to the airport. It was really hard saying goodbye to them because I'd only been living with them for about 3 months, but they'd been so good to me and we were so close. Then I began the 24 hour trip home. The planes were ...

... and hear all the m************s of the ice, which is apparently a good thing... Faith and I walked all the way across the lake to the other side, just to say that we had. More of the time it was about mid calf deep in fresh snow. It took us about 5 or 10 minutes to get the whole way across. Then we had to walk back, but even though it was about -32 degrees C we weren't too cold because it took quite alot of effort to walk in all the snow!

After school, Dana, Lexi and I went to Lexi's house, then to a hospital christmas party (both Lexi's parents are doctors) then ET joined us when we went tobogganing! It wasn't a really big hill or anything, but it was really cold! We had snow fights and were tackling eachother and eating the snow and stuff. Then we went back to Lexi's and watched movies. The next day I was with Lexi again, and because I hadn't made a snowman ...

... finally got to school, no one did much in the first class, everyone was too excited. It was only religion anyway. Then in the second lesson we all had to go to the gym for the Halloween pep rally! They were introducing the volleyball teams to the school, so we had to wait out in the hallway until we were called. But before that they did this this where they get everyone who had a birthday in September or October to go to the ...

... covering bushes and trees and gravestones and massive spiders and headless people along the walkway and pumpkins everywhere and things like that! It was amazing! There were at least 2 or 3 houses along every street who went all out like that, others put up a few things, and some didn't have anything, but pretty much everyone handed out candy on Halloween night, but I'll get to that later. Anyway, so ...

I don't remember the last time I experienced autumn this way. It's different than the change of seasons than I have endured in previous years. Somehow I feel more ready. Somehow I feel safer. It doesn't seem so cold and sudden this time. When I stroll through the heavily treed streets in my neighborhood, I feel calm. The fallen yellowy, orange, and crimson leaves have covered the sidewalks so deep that I can't keep from kicking them ...

... to expect that which I cannot expect is my idealized state. Whatever comes will be perfect and will be it. I'm glancing at my bed, the last night I'll spend in it for 6 weeks. I look around my apartment (I should have cleaned it more thoroughly) and take it in. Part of me is stalling because I believe I'll have a difficult time sleeping (or will be disappointed on some level if I don't). My eye falls on my backpack, and I hope it will barely come in under the ...