Florida Vacation

This week I'm in beautiful Fort Lauderdale, Florida. :) We're on a week vacation down here to enjoy the warm(er) weather and to take advantage of the American Thanksgiving holiday. Our condo is huge and right on the ocean, right beside the Marriott, where we have access to their restaurants, pools, and services. My dad's mother flew down from Toronto and is staying with us this week. And I've also been blessed to be able to spend some time with Josh, who lives two hours from here. We spent a few days hanging out, talking, and just having fun. No overanalysis of what we are/were/could be. Just two people who care for each other, are trying to find their path in life, and are at peace with whatever ends up happening.

Here are some pictures from this week.

^ complimentary cookie from Hilton Doubletree

(where we stayed in Orlando on the drive down)

^ a date with my never-ending reading project

(it's my first Austen and I'm not too impressed!)

^ delicious new Organic Sangria! I love this.

^ rooftop view of the beach.

^ the living room in our condo/apartment.

We have the entire 2nd floor!

^ breakfast nook, bright and sunny

^ coffee area and balcony

^ main foyer

^ beach bound with Dad, Randy, and Lin

^ Josh and I found this at a Publix

^ our location. It's amazing how far south we are!

^ at Ft. Myers beach with Josh's parents

^ sand castle competition going on!

 ^ an inside peek at some of the entries... the event closed at 5pm and we arrived at 5:05pm. :(

^ then we made FISH TACOS for dinner! yum.

I watched you sleeping quietly in my bed
You don't know this now but there's some things that need to be said.
And it's all that I can hear, It's more than I can bear.

What if I fall and hurt myself?
Would you know how to fix me
What if I went and lost myself?
Would you know where to find me
If I forgot who I am, 
Would you please remind me?
Cause without you things go hazy.

Sick

Unfortunately, with everyone at home and at the office being sick, I myself have become run-down with a mild fever, sore throat and hurting sinuses. I spent today in bed-- and to the doctor I go tomorrow! :( I hate being sick, primarily for the Opportunity Costs. No energy, no appetite, no goals for the day except to nurse my symptoms. I will probably head to see the local herbalist, Dr Eli, tomorrow to see if she has anything to help me get well. Hope you're all healthy out there!!

Last weekend my mum and I took the dogs on a hike at Red Top Mountain state park. :) The weather was beautiful and we had a great time. (The only thing that really put me off was the snack selection at the park information lodge... there was one kind of granola bar and ten or more kinds of chocolate bars. I won't even elaborate on how I feel about that). This weekend we had some family visit from Ontario on a whirlwind Country Living and garage saling trip. My Aunt Rachel and her mum came to visit for 3 days to look for stuff for my aunt's barn shop up in Ontario. She finds the coolest antiques and chique things from estate sales and local artisans to sell at her store. We had a great time running from place to place searching for the "lucky finds"... and the jokes we made and the great people we met along the way were just wonderful. It was a great weekend. :)  I put a few pics below... but I'm waiting for my iPhone to charge so I can post the rest!

^ fresh air

^ beautiful lake

^ view from walking along the trail at Red Top Mtn

^ dinner and drinks at the country club with the ladies :)

Not only is work really busy this week, I'm doing a lot of thinking and research regarding where I want to be next year. I'm looking into everything from how to re-enact my Ontario health insurance (which involves moving back up there) to studying at Queen's or Oxford or wherever else... to traveling again to find myself. I also have to think about applying for jobs-- where, when, and in what field? Things have gotten a lot more complicated. I am, however, thankful that the world is literally at my feet. I just hope that I can figure things out and be able to afford my next step in life.

Until then, here's a new song from a favourite of mine, Benjamin Francis Leftwich... who will be playing in Atlanta on Dec. 19! :)

Fall Creek Falls, TN

This weekend I drove up to TN to hang out with some friends. Here are some pictures from our trip up to Fall Creek Falls in Pikeville, TN. What a fun dayyy!

^ awfully close to the edge...

^ gorgeous fall colours :)

^ long way dowwwwn

^ FALL CREEK FALLS

^ view from the bottom

^ run Bambi run!

^ we're coming back here in January

^ these mountains are part of the Eastern Ridge of the North American continental bowl;

the Rocky Mountains are the Western Ridge. :)

^ Em and Kristin 

^ yodelling and dancing to mother nature at sunset 

^ last look while driving home

This Week

Happy Sunday morning!  :D

This week was a busy one at work. No time to eat lunch, let alone keep all of our clients' huge amounts of printed data straight. It was crazyyyyy. By Friday after 6pm Holly and I were very ready to be done. But, we made the deadline despite numerous setbacks...and kept our sanity (well, most of it). Who is really 100% sane? ;)

Anyway, this week I took a (free) class at REI, which is an outdoors/hiking-type store. The class was called Bike Maintenance and Repairs. It was really informative and I learned a lot of basic tips about maintaining my bike. I really need to get out and cycle more. The Silver Comet trail, which starts in Smyrna, goes all the way into Alabama. I love that trail. :) Too bad the roads are way too dangerous to ride around here.

Yesterday I finally upgraded to a smartphone. It took a long time... and a lot of persuading. But, by the time my little flip-phone required charging twice a day and gave me electrical shocks while talking on it, I decided that upgrading was a necessary evil. I went into the Verizon store with my arms crossed, ready to walk back out with the same ol' phone I've been using for 5 years... but my Dad was too determined to see me with modern technology to let that happen. Let me just say, however, that the iPhone is an amazing contraption. I am loving it so far. :)

Yesterday my brother got a new car, a Jeep Commander. It's awesome and I'm super jealous. I'd take it camping and on all sorts of outdoors adventures if it were mine. Does theft count if it's amongst siblings? ;) jk.