Sans Contente

My Feet Don't Hardly Touch the Ground...

2009-03-18T22:05:00.001-07:00

It looks like I'll be joining the local ball hockey league this spring, and everybody points out that it's really intense so today I began my Spring Training with a nice Rocky run. Last summer I ran to work nearly everyday and even on the bad days I don't remember this much pain. The first five minutes weren't so bad and then I hit a hill... well, more of an upward incline, and I knew I was going to be in trouble.

Fortunately, I was sticking to the sidewalk for today, so it was mostly level, but after 30 minutes I had a cramp that felt like my kidney was trying to break free so it could die on the side of the road. So it doesn't look good for my next couple weeks. I'm trying to design a run that will end near Tim Hortons so I can relax for a bit after, but I'm not sure how good caffeine is after an hour long run. Well, we'll call it a 15 minute run spaced out with 4o minutes of walking and 5 minutes of hanging onto street sign so as not to fall over in front of all the actual joggers.

I've never gotten a grasp of pacing myself, so I end up picking up speed until I'm exhausted and then trying to keep it up until I'm around the corner, away from any observers so it'll look like I can keep that speed up for the entire run. It also helps to pretend to check your pulse even if you have no clue how to do that, it makes you look pretty pro. And running is all about appearances.

As I get closer to home and sweet rest, I have to pass by a small gym, a gym with large windows and treadmills facing out. Not being a slouch about appearances I turned on the jets to try and impress all the lamers who do their running inside. I turned the corner and the wind picked up every piece of dust and gravel on the road and flung it in my face. Instead of cruising by the windows with a nice breeze in my face, I had to fight my way almost horizontally leaning into the wind, completely blind from all the grit in my eyes. But I managed to not break stride, so I think I showed them how real men run.

Lesson of the day: Appearance isn't everything. Especially if you don't have it.

Life Lessons with Matt… #1. How To Save A Blog

2009-03-16T22:37:00.000-07:00

I’m here again.

Life can get pretty routine when you aren’t dashing around Europe on mad adventures as homeschool backpacker, for which I am very sorry to all of you. Anyways, I am going to attempt to revive this blog, mostly for selfish reasons and partly so the loyal reader can get deeper inside to my personal life. The selfish reason is that if I can spend more time writing for Sans Contente, my dangerous level of TV watching will hopefully be cutback. Sadly, there’s a lot of junk on TV and I’m getting bored of channel surfing.

Now on to more interesting subjects: Reviving a blog from a pretty comatose state is a pretty intimidating task. I’ve lost all flow, so I have no history to fall back on… nothing that’s remotely connected to what I was doing last year. I don’t a weekly post schedule, or on-going storyline. My trip is long done… I’ll get you guys photos… soon…. promise.

Of course, because there hasn’t been a post in so long, natural tendency is to either make a really short “welcome back” post, or a really long catch-up post, but both of these are potential pitfalls. Too short and I have nothing to build on, so I end up spiraling into another year long hiatus. When I created Sans Contente I promised myself that I would not fall into one sentence posts about what I had for dinner that evening. You don’t want to read about that, and I don’t want you to know how often I eat frozen pizza. Too long an opening post and I exhaust all my ideas and have nothing to write about = dead blog.

I’m not entirely sure what sort of subject matter I want to pursue, so already I’m breaking a major blog-revival rule which is to have direction. Travel was a pretty easy subject to follow, and I’m finding that normal life is definitely a bit harder to make post-worthy. It seems most established blogs have some gimmick that they can fall back on if nothing super exciting is happening, so I’ll be gimmick-searching this week.

Now, in the effort to somewhat get you up to speed, I got back from Europe some 10 months ago and got a job. Now I am living the wage slave life Mon. – Fri. and playing video games on weekends. You are now up to speed. My goals for the near future are to post again sometime before the Winter Olympics, and to get my Roll-Up win ratio back up to 50 %.

So… I think this is long enough to fit into a medium size post category… peace out.

PS, I'm trying to figure out MS Word's blog function... it's very complex, but might help with posting regularly.

So Close You Can Almost Taste It

2008-04-21T01:12:00.000-07:00

My days in Europe are numbered. And that number is now 3. If you count today it's actually 4, but I'll be travelling for most of today, so I'm not sure if it's worthy of full day status. Of course, I'm travelling and it's a travel day, so maybe it's the only day that really counts. I'm getting off track.

I'm headed back up to Belfast to spend my last couple nights there. I intend to spend a day going to the Giant's Causeway since I never got to on my first visit to Northern Ireland, and then a day taking photos of Belfast, if I have any room left, since I never really felt brave enough during my first stay. And then I fly home, bringing this whole adventure to a close. It's actually almost bringing a tear to my eye, if I wasn't such a toughened old man I would surely weep.

I won't hide the fact that I've really yearned to be home for the last couple days, but now that I am on the brink of return, I'm going to allow myself of couple days to look back at all I have done, and the stuff that I will miss when I go back to life as it was before.

Early plans had me stopping in Dublin for a day, maybe, but now that I am a wise and experienced traveller... as well as travel-exhausted... I will probably just head straight to Belfast, so I can slow it all down and enjoy what I have left. No need to be a hero, Dublin will still be here when I am old and can afford another journey. Which will definitely be when I am old and not much sooner.

It's been a great ride, and I've got stories and photos to show when I get back. Lots and lots of them. Despite much effort and meditation, still not sure if I found myself, so all that was a load of bunk. Of course, the effort was more often put towards finding a room for the night, and the meditation on the differing values of granola bars, so maybe I just wasn't looking hard enough. And Europe is a large place, so I'm not really surprised I didn't find me.

The Rockband videos that the gang at home have been putting out have been a great inspiration in the of a good bass player. Sorry, Bono, the power stance just isn't working. Of course, the concept of a room to myself and plentiful food is also appealing. As well as conversation with people who speak my native accent, with no heavy accent.

I'll try and get another post in just before I leave, but if I don't I'll see most of you in a few. The prodigal son is returning...

Quick Update

2008-04-13T00:48:00.001-07:00

On the hostel monitor there is a big "Try Me" sticker that points to a button labelled "Splendid". I have no idea what it does, but it's becoming very tempting. Just after I check out tomorrow I will have to push it, just in case something bad happens. Usually 'push me' buttons lead to bad endings.

After today I go back to my old style of a new town every day or two as I start climbing northward toward Belfast. I'm not looking forward to it getting colder the further I travel, but it should be warming up in Canada by now.

For those of you keeping track, 11 more days in Europe for me. I can feel the end closing in, with a little spot of light at the end that is home. It's been a great ride, and I've seen more stuff than I ever expected to. Definitely worth every penny I won't have when I get home. I've been able to see the traditional tourist spots, the European getaway spots and the not so filled up spots, so I would consider it a well rounded trip.

In other news, I've got a wisdom tooth coming in or something, so I've got a lot of pain in my jaw as teeth fight for space. Kind of hurts to open my mouth extra wide, which I need to do to eat the extra big slices of flan. So I'll see about getting some Tylenol or something, and then try and ignore it till it goes away.

About this time...

2008-04-10T12:25:00.000-07:00

Sans Contente is now one year old, just had to point that out. This will also pad my post count and probably be the shortest post I ever make.

Happy Birthday, Sans Contente!

Happy Birthday to me.

2008-04-10T02:08:00.000-07:00

How does one celebrate one's own b-day when one is so far away from home? This is the question I will attempt to answer today. So far it has involved getting all my clothes washed so that I can not be a complete hobo for the last stages of my trip, and spending a lot of time on the internet. Because, as of today, I am in the last third of my stay in Europe. And this is the crazy part. I probably won't be able to post much in the coming weeks, unless a hostel I stay at has free internet to be abused. I will try and keep up on Facebook and emails, but it takes me a while to read blogs and post so that is usually optional.

I'll make up for the lack of posts with loads when I get back home and start going through my photos. Last rough count had me over 3500, and I'm into the red zone, with only 450-worth of data stick left. That will either be plenty, or not even close enough, depending on how it goes. Somedays I take photos of everything I come across, and sometimes I just let it slide and focus more on enjoying everything. Because, as much as I hate to bring it up, the photos are mostly for you guys, and myself in my old age, and most of the time I want to enjoy the fact that I'm here and drink it all in, which constantly fiddling with my camera gets in the way of to some extent.

In two weeks I will be on a plane, whisking my way back to Canada and a bed that doesn't squeak when I turn over, a room where nobody snores and prices that are decent. Haha, that makes it sound like I haven't enjoyed Europe, which is not true, but it has been a long 37 days up to this point and a nice place to relax sounds really good right now. I never would have thought that I would need to relax after this "vacation".

The next two weeks have me spending a couple days on the Southern French coast, than dashing northwards with a short stay in mid-France or possibly Switzerland, before crossing over the Channel, quickly going across England, over to Ireland and then up to Belfast. Should be suitably hectic. Along the way I will have to collect all manner of cheap trinkets so I look decently touristy when I get back.

Back to my birthday plans. When I left Canada I had no idea just how social eating and drinking and that stuff really are to me. Lately I have given up eating at restaurants and the like because there really isn't much need for it. I can do just as well (and more cheaply) by running down to the local supermarket each evening, and picking up whatever strikes my fancy. At the beginning of the trip I tried to eat out and enjoy the pubs and all that, but without other people involved it seemed quite hollow.

So, for the most part, I'm putting my birthday on hold for now. When I get back I do something crazy, but mostly just enjoy all the stuff I've missed since I left Canada. I'll stop by a bakery this evening and pick up a little cake or something, and the guy at the laundry sang happy birthday when I told him what day it was today, and the hostel is having a free pasta night so I'll indulge. Haha, mostly, I mean, I'm in Rome, what better birthday present can I get myself?

Other than those Lord of the Rings TCG boosters I picked up the other day... Tim, if you're out there... Isildur's Bane... oh yeah...

Happy Birthday to me...

My Lessons So Far

2008-04-06T00:42:00.000-07:00

Now that I've made it about 2/3rds of the way through my whole Europe experience, I thought I should take a moment to reflect over what I've learned. I went into this trip with some expectations that I would grow as a person, and other crap like that. The whole 'finding of myself' some would say.

Mostly I found out that I'm still pretty much exactly the same guy who left Canada. Only more so. I'm still apt to panic if things start to fall apart, but now I know that even if they fall apart, and even when I panic, I can usually stay just in control enough to find somewhere to sleep in the middle of the night that has a lock on the door.

I found that I can be a lot more social than I had expected, because when you're a month out of home and you are in the middle of a country that doesn't always speak English, you really enjoy talking to people who understand you. You can make do with talking to people who don't understand you but it's not quite the same. I've found that stories and experiences are a great way to meet people, and like Behn had told me before I left, you learn to pick out a Canadian accent in the crowd and home in on it.

My independance... is going along. I'm not sure if I'm more independant or not, but travelling solo you sort of have to learn to survive on your own. And now I'm starting to learn responsible independance so it's really working out. Last night I ate some salad, and this morning I ate some fiber cereal. Hopefully that keeps up after I get home.

I've also learned that thumbnail photos cannot prepare you for some of the sights that you will see. The paintings are really big, and the churches are really tall. And gold is really shiny. That being said, the Europeans are not different from all other enterprising people and they know how you milk every possible euro out of you to get into these places.

I'm pretty happy that I still have one more data card left, so that leaves me around 800 photos for the rest of the trip, which should be good, as I'm really slowing down on the photos. Both because I'm not as shutter-happy as I first was when I landed, and also that the Italians are pretty particular about not taking photos in most of their impressive locations. But I have some sweet shots of the exteriors, taking mostly out of spite.

Yesterday was Pisa, today Siena, tomorrow Rome.

Waterworld

2008-04-02T08:15:00.000-07:00

Here's the down low on Venice. If you don't know where you are, you're in big trouble. I've been lost more times than I can count in the last couple days, and even with a couple of maps. My personal wandering style of travel does not work very well in a town that was designed... well, I'm not sure how it was designed but not very linear. Add to this the extra narrow roads, and the extra high walls, so you have no periphal vision once you get away from the canals and it's a nightmare. But lots of cool stuff to see.

In other news, I'm already four weeks in. Already. It feels like it was just yesterday that I was in Belfast, scared out of my mind, and soon I'll be headed back there. I'm getting better at the eating and the booking of rooms and stuff, and just in time, as tourists abound here in Italy. Unfortunately, today I woke up with a bit of a sore throat, so I'm drinking citrus juice to try and keep that away. The last thing I want to get sick and start puking all over Europe. There's time to get sick when I get home.

I have a confession to make. I bought some miniatures. Now, because you make a big fuss, they were 40% off and it's all good. So we'll just leave it at that.

Great, well now it's dark and raining outside, so I'm going to head back to the hostel. Tomorrow I'm off for Florence, where hopefully I won't get lost as much and the internet should be cheaper so I can post more.

Doing as the Romans do.

2008-03-30T00:26:00.000-07:00

I am now in Italy. Took some getting here, but I made it. As I passed through Switzerland I was informed that my connection had be canceled due to a strike, and I had to wait a couple hours in Geneva. Which was cool, because I got to see some neat stuff, and not cool, because I got into Milan at about 8 pm, and it was dark and I wandered into a sketchy neighbourhood. But I'm still in one piece and although I didn't get to see that much of Milan, it taught me the importance of booking rooms ahead and also keeping on your toes.

As of today I am over halfway done my trip and that's a bit of a paradox. On one hand it feels like I've been running around forever, but on the other hand I know it hasn't really been that long. Still, halfway done, and the money is roughly halfway gone, so I'm doing alright.

Italy is... intense. It's so busy and it will only get worse as I go farther south. The Italians definitely have a shoe fetish, there are shoe shops everywhere. It feels a little awkward (ok, very awkward) to be a not-so-fashionable guy in a country where everyone is super fashion conscious. I remedied this by going to McDonalds.

Going to McDonalds is a bit of a travel habit for me. I try to visit one in every country I go to. It gets to get the bearings straight and to see how other people interpret fast food. It also helps to lower other people down to your standards. It was great in this case, because it's hard to take the Italians so seriously when you've seen them mucking through a Big Mac.

Of course, they do it a little differently here, and there was a big bodyguard standing around. Full suit, nice shoes, name tag... and a little, standard issue, McDonald's hat. I tried to get up the courage to ask him if it was required of him, but I couldn't. The hat kind of neutralized the whole suit. I felt sorry for him.

Today was the time change in Italy, which someone was nice enough to point out to me, so unless you guys changed as well, now I'm 10 hours ahead. Whoohoo, ftw!

worst post ever

2008-03-25T11:15:00.000-07:00

Just a disclaimer, the keyboards in France are arranged differently than in Canada, so this will be a little messy.

Im (notice the lack of puntuation, I have no idea where that button is) in Caen (which is pronounced Cawwwwwwwwww-n) and am adjusting to life where nobody speaks your language. Technically, they do, most of them, but that doesnt help when you get here. Your patience must grow in leaps and bounds. I have a newfound love for apricot flan. It is possibly mans greatest achievement. And Im not even kidding.

Many churches. It bizarre how often I walk around a corner and theres another church. I got to see Omaha beach, umm, some sand might have fallen into my pocket, but Im not admitting anything. Tomorrow Im trying to get to Juno beach, well have to see how successful that is.

I got here at 10.30 ish, and set out for the hostel. I got there in about 40 minutes, long walk, only to find out that is closed until June. I was speechless. I checked my guide, and yes, its marked down that its closed. It was the only hostel in town (actually, there seems to be another but its kind of sketchy looking, so Im glad I didnt find it) so I began the slow process of hiking around town, looking for a cheap single room. They were all full, or cost 50 euro a night, way over my limit. I finally found a room around 1.45, for 35 euro. So, double what I usually pay, but I need to sleep. Its on the 5th floor, and it has a TV, so Im set. Plus, my own shower, but no toilet. Must resist urge to pee in shower.

In other news, Im starting to shop for food more, instead of always eating out (or going hungry), its quite the learning curve but very rewarding. Saves me some money for trinkets too. Grrr, but not enough money for extended internet ramblings so I must go. Ill try to post again before I leave Normandy.

Waterford, and beyond.

2008-03-20T10:42:00.000-07:00

Today is my last day in Ireland until I get back in a couple weeks for my flight home. Of course the weather doesn't like my leaving and has taking a nasty turn, which is too bad because we'd been having really nice weather for a while.

The last couple days I was staying in Fermoy with Jill, where we celebrated St. Patricks by freezing our fingers off taking photos of the parade and then having a pint on the way home. I geuss that's about as traditional as you can get. We also got lost have adventures, but Jill tells it better than I can so here's the link:

http://jilliness.blogspot.com/2008/03/this-is-why-you-pray.html

Tomorrow afternoon I catch a train to Rosslare on the eastern coast, and then my ferry leaves at 11 pm for Cherbourg. That's really late, and it's a 19 hour ride, so... wow... that'll be interesting. And then I get to explore a whole new country. With a new-ish language. Technically I have taken some French in my many years of schooling, but none of it has really stuck, so I'll have to make it up as I go.

The guidebook is very confusing compared to my brilliant Ireland guidebook, but I'm only in Normandy for about a week so it shouldn't be too bad. It also looks like it's mostly trains to get around so that'll be a nice change. You kind of get sick of busses after a while.

Also, I'm happy to announce that I still havn't done any laundry. Looks like a new record, people. But I'm probably going to break done pretty soon.

That's all for today, I'll catch you guys on the other side of the Channel.

... St. Patricks...

2008-03-18T12:17:00.000-07:00

I've made it around the St. Patties corner, and I didn't have to sleep on any park benches. Came close one day, but it all worked out.

On Saturday there was a mass exodus of hostelers as the key hostels had to clear out for their St Patricks bookings, so it was a little confusing, but I was shipped over to another hostel that seemed just as good so I was happy. Never trust something that "seems" to be a good alternative. What I didn't notice is that the front entrance, in fact the only entrance, ran right into the rear entrance of a pub. Red flag. It was also in a little alley that many people use as a shelter from the street. Red flag. But I was naive and I got my bed in order and met up with some people who had been sent over from the same hostel as me.

Fast forward to that evening. Complete chaos. I'm not sure how the Irish can stand the revelry of young tourists around this time of year. Polish, French, German, American... the United Nations of Getting Wasted. The party started around 8 and didn't die down till... maybe 4 or 5 in the morning. And then people started getting up around 7. So very little sleep. And one very interesting character in my room, but that's a whole other post.

In Killarney I found the joy of take-away Chinese. It was around 10 and I was hungry, but I didn't want to go anywhere near the pubs so I found a nearby Chinese place and got myself some beautiful sweet and sour pork. Yum.

Whenever I get too big-headed, something always comes along to shoot me down. On Saturday afternoon/early evening, I was on the roll. I had dropped my shoulder bag and jacket off, I was light and mobile, and was cruising like a local. I bought some much needed travel amenities, I was really hot stuff. The weather was great, I was king. So I decided to finish off the night I would hop down to the local cinema and watch Vantage Point, since I never got to in Canada. A nice movie would be the perfect finish to a glorious day. I get in, buy my overpriced ticket and head to the washroom before the show. Where I find that I've been running around Killarney with my fly undone. Great. I sneaked into the theater and enjoyed the movie but I wasn't nearly as proud of myself anymore.

Anyways, now I'm embarassed so I'll leave it at that.

Moving Right Along

2008-03-14T13:34:00.000-07:00

I've done it again. I managed to lose both my hand towel (which had been stepping in as the replacement towel) and my watch on the Aran Islands. The hand towel was just me being forgetful as I have found that I cannot hang stuff up to dry, as I will just leave it there when I leave. And the watch... I have no idea where that is, somewhere in the hills of the island. I rented a bike, since it sound cheaper, healthier and more Matt than riding around in a little tour minivan. Wow...

All the brochures show happy, smiling cyclists peddling freely, having a great time. These are lies they are showing you. The only smiling is when you get off that bike to take a picture of the cute birds or something, and then you stop smiling when you straighten up and realize how far you still have to go to get... anywhere. I was the only tourist cycling, and I was the only one brave or dumb enough to go off into the 'trails'. The little quotation marks are there because I have no idea exactly where I was, or if I was even supposed to be there. Sure it was on the map, but that doesn't mean all that much on some maps here in Ireland. I'm pretty sure that if they were actual paths, they were meant for walking and not biking. But I am all that is man after all, and I will be king of that castle. So on I went.

You may have seen some of Jill's hiking photos of the little yellow man who is supposed to lead you on great trips of enlightenment and delight. He is actually the Deceiver, sent to lead you to some dead end where you will have to pedal 20 minutes back just to get your bearings. Granted, I think some of the rocks-with-little-men had been pilfered from elsewhere to rebuild walls, but now there is a grudge between him and me that is not easily forgotten.

I had a pocketful of free maps that people kept handing me, but there is an acute deficit in real world sign posts. Often there would be one directional arrow, point vaguely left or right, and then nothing to let you know you were on the right path. I ended up in many a strange driveway, utterly confused. I'm sure it was the work of the little yellow man.

My only sustenance was a soft-baked berry bar, and a bottle of this kind of orange pop that you can buy here. It is made, and I kid you not, with "real orange bits". Awesome. Unfortunately, this real orange pop has been sitting in my bag for a couple days and actually tastes like straight, carbonated lemon juice. So it gives me a little more zip.

At once point, I came around a corner, concentrating on safely navigating my bike down a dangerous incline, and in front of me are four cows. They're not in the pen on either side, they're right in the middle of the path. Now the path is about two cows and one Matt-with-bike wide at the widest point, and I'm not to at ease around large creatures that could easily crush me if they accidently lean into me so I was at an impass. Finally I got off my bike and tried to edge around them, but they kept moving away so I thought, what the crap, and gave chase. Must have been pretty bizarre to see a skinny little Canadian, pedalling like mad, herding four head of cattle up and down the hills of Inis Mor.

Eventually I got there, 'there' being the big fort that is the main attraction at the other side of the island. But once you get there, the stuff you've done just to get there, the stuff you've seen on the way, it kind of makes the fort pale in comparison. The fort just sits there, asks you to pay the entrance fee and then walk around impressed at a pile of rocks on top of rocks. They don't even let you climb on top of the walls and go all Helm's Deep on the other tourists. They don't even let you chuck rocks off the cliff, which is a doozy by the way... not that I went anywhere near it... by crawling the last ten feet on my belly... I wouldn't do that...

But the ride over to the fort... that's what I'm going to remember. Chasing cows, and flying down hillsides, with the wind in my ears, the taste of lemon driving me on and barely in control of the rattling handlebars.

'This citadel can and shall be taken, and I'm the boy to do it.' - The Philadelphia Story

World Traveller on the Net

2008-03-11T11:49:00.000-07:00

Seems like this trip is doing wonders for my blogging habits.
So I'm in Galway now, for two days, although tomorrow I'm actually going on a bus tour of the Cliffs of Mo... something or other. It should be fun. Oh yeah, anyone in Sligo, check out Grappas in the morning, I went in for a quick coffee before I left and the scones had just come out of the oven, so of course I had to have one. Delicious. Great place.

On Wednesday I'm off to the Aran Islands, Inis Mor to be exact, I'll spend the day and the night there and then get back the next day and head off to my next stop, which might be Dingle or might be farther afield.

St. Patrick's Day is closing in, but you can't really tell, other than a few shop windows. Today I came under attack from Mother Nature, who caught me in the open with a full fledged bombardment of hail. I had to take cover behind some ornamental boats. The natives found it quite humorous.

Shorter post today, still trying to find a way to upload pictures that won't take hours.

Just a short one

2008-03-10T10:54:00.000-07:00

I shouldn't been on today, or I'll get some bad habits, but I just wanted to let everybody know that I am in Sligo, and Ireland has come under siege from a furious storm. It has been raining for hours, and this is Irish rain, not that wimpy Canadian rain. But it's all good, and I still managed to ace Sligo, despite half the stuff being closed. Apparently Sligo is closed on mondays. Over a hundred photos taken, even some covert ones inside a church. I'm up over 400 now, total.

I updated my blog-reading list a little, so if you see your blog there, yeah, I browse occasionally. There are more, so I'll add them later.

Tomorrow it's on to Galway.

Donegal warms the heart

2008-03-09T15:48:00.000-07:00

So after a minor breakdown yesterday, I went to a little Methodist church today and met a nice, kindly couple who brought me home for lunch and tea and then we went for a walk where I got to take a lot of pictures of the whole valley. Definitely something I wouldn't have been able to do by myself.

Really nice folk who were keen to chat on all sorts of subjects and I have promised them that I will recommend Donegal to anyone else travelling to Ireland. And also the Methodist church, which was kind enough to welcome a soaking Canadian boy who felt a little out of place.

Then to top it off we went to a goodbye dinner for an American pastor and his wife who had to cancel their stay in Donegal for unexpected reasons. So I got to meet a whole bunch of people and learn many new stories and generally recharge. So it's true that God answers prayers for help. And when my mom made me promise to go to church, it was the wisest advice I could get.

In not so pleasant news, I was digging through my bag this morning and it appears that I left my beautiful travel towel in Belfast, and I am reduced to using my hand towel. And I've also lost my mini umbrella somewhere, despite never actually using it. Must have fallen out of my bag and rolled beneath a bed or a bus seat. Sorry mom, I really did love that umbrella. I was looking forward to walking in the rain and singing "Umbrella ella ella ella ey ey ey..." Or not.

So tomorrow it is off to Sligo, or Galway, and apparently there is a huge storm approaching the island, so I might get bottled up somewhere for a while, but I've got some good books, so that doesn't scare me.

I'm starting to miss home just a little bit, and everywhere I go, I see people, family and friends, and then I get closer and no, they don't look that close at all. Is there a name for these hallucinations?

Anyways, I'm on a borrowed computer, so I should hurry up. I'll write again in a couple days, I've got some catch up posts to make, and one that I did on facebook because blogger wasn't working. My journal is growing exponentially ( i'm not even sure i know what that means) and I must get it all down so you can further understand what my adventures are like.

Miss you all, and am feeling in better spirits.

Staying Alive

2008-03-05T09:41:00.000-08:00

I've been writing in my notebook, so instead of coming up with an original post, I'll copy that for today. It's pretty random, and jumps around, but I've only got an hour and a half, and I want to check up on some hostel sites and blogs. this is a multi-day read, so it should keep you busy. ps, the keys here in ireland are a little messed up. will try to cope.

...written on the plane...
No sleep at all on the flight. too much noise, and light. fortunately decent movies. juno, alvin and the chipmunks, bee movie and michael clayton. saves me some ipod life. not much to see. wonder if the sun will rise before we land. definitely wondering if i will have enough money. hopefully this is unfounded, time will tell.

strangely calm about everything other than money. hope for seat a or j on return, those are the window seat. (i had the seat next to the window seat but no one came for the window, so i got to switch between the two) row 23 is over the wing. you get some weird people on planes. screaming baby 2 rows up. (who then fell asleep on the bus ride to belfast.)

34 minutes to belfast and still no sun. starting to get really tired. i've moved over to the window seat now. it's all about to begin. ( i could now see the lights to various unknown irish cities) 17 minutes and sunrise... on the other side of the plane. of course. (i'm always on the wrong side of the plane. if the pilot says, look down to see something, i'm always on the opposite side.)

...written a little later in the college gardens...
almost didn't get on the bus to belfast, but i managed to dash to it at the last minute. i'm in belfast now. they almost didn't let me in, something about being an unemployed artist with no local friends or family (i forgot to mention jill) made the customs lady uneasy. and rather gruff.

i've only been here three hours and have been lost twice, given a map, lost a map and blended into the university district. i need that map back. i can't check into the hostel till 1 pm, so i have to wander till then.

ireland is chilly, green old, and full of brick buildings. and everyone jaywalks like mad men. myself being an amateur jaywalker, it takes me forever to get around. i have yet to bring out my camera, but the urges are getting stronger. this town is covered with little galleries for local artists. and the streets aren't labeled very well, so navigation can be tough without familiar landmarks.

...written in the hostel lobby...
I'm going to try double paging, (my notebook) otherwise I'll run out of room real fast. it's 2.45 pm here and I can feel the crash coming. I wish i could stay up a little later to see when it gets dark but i don't think that's going to happen. (i managed to stay up till 7, then slept till 9.30 am)

I think 3 days is going to be a day too much. Seems like if you remove the clubs and bars you can breeze through quite a bit in a day. didn't do much photography but the self-consciousness will pass. (or not) think i have to sit down and lay out a plan each day instead of wandering around. (or not) Should be easier in the smaller places. the buildings are so incredibly old, it staggers my canadian mind.

there are no old cars in belfast. after hours of looking i gave up. i have seen one car with rust on it. one. in a city covered with cars. i will have to keep this in mind when i head to more rural areas. tomorrow i will do a bus tour. and try to find belfast castle.

...written just before bed last night...
the irish are fast walkers. maybe they just have more energy, but they don't seem to realize some of the stuff around them. i passed an old brick church that is vacant for offices. we have nothing like that in kamloops but for them it's just empty offices.

i'm pretty sure i'll get hit by a car if i don't get out of town soon. looks like i won't get to that hockey game, which sucks, but it's far and requires a taxi ride. (and a 4th day in belfast, which is exessive). As tough as it is to walk everywhere, i'm glad i'm not driving. those roads are insane. i think the hostel guy thinks i'm a complete noob, which i am, so he's right.

...written today at lunch...
I took a bus tour of belfast today. a little expensive at £12 but very worth it. got to quickly run through most of the big stuff. (and tons of usefull commentary) belfast is not that big, in the 4 hours since the tour i have walked belfast almost end to end.

i went to st. annes cathedral, blew me away. so big. a really nice guy was inside, we talked about the extreme temperatures of canada, and the disparities of populations in countries like canada and australia. everyone in ireland smokes. but they seem to make it look more casual. it rained a bit today. it rains every night, but a little today as well. my raincoat performed spotlessly.

right now i'm looking for a 'net cafe called Roast Coffee (where i am now). I passed it's sister shop in town but it was very full. stopped for lunch and have just about blown my daily budget. Might now be able to eat tomorrow.

While i am still cautious about the camera, i made up for it on the tour, taking over 100 photos. I've seen two more cars with rust, and one pick-up (the only so far), and two VW rabbits, which barely cound in the beater category but i'm getting desperate. it seems like you either are rich enough to own a newish car or you walk.

every street crossing is a new adventure. my jaywalking-fu is growing in leaps and bounds. even so, i often forget that the cars use the opposite lane and check the wrong way. the roads are narrow and the cars are fast. on some of the larger crossing you have to jump from island to island to survive, like some twisted version of human frogger.

Almost got mugged today when i wandered into the more residential zone. actually, it wasn't close but if my steely exterior had cracked, those 6 year old girls would have smelt my fear and beat me to a pulp.

Tomorrow I think I'll try the new shoes i have. Oh yeah, yesterday i went to Bookfinders, a tiny used bookstore with cobwebs and a little tunnel that you can descend to where the owner makes homemade soup and sandwiches. Homeschool moms would have gone wild. it's right across from the college and quite quaint.

overall, i think belfast is cool but quite packed. not sure what i'll go look at tomorrow. ( i've found some new art galleries to look at.) Oh there's a shop called Forbidden Planet. at first i was averting my eyes because... well... you figure it out. (sounds kind of... exotic) but then i saw action figures, so i went in. they have every kind of action figure imaginable. BSG, Star Wars, Dr. Who, LOST! only £10! sadly i have no space for such glory. they also have a 2nd floor with comics and books. on my way back i should stop in.

i've written more in the last few days then since i left college and art history class, so i'll shut up. (and spend my last 50 minutes reading YOUR blogs. but no time for comments, sorry.)

Matt, still alive and at large.

I'm Leaving... On a Jet Plane...

2008-03-03T12:32:00.000-08:00

Right now I'm in YVR, and my flight has been delayed 30-60 minutes, so I geuss I didn't need to get here as early as I did. It's kind of a surreal state of mind, in transit, not really anywhere. Fortunately, I'm not panicked out of my mind, so I'm actually pretty relaxed right now. Not normal for me when I travel.

My boarding gate is tucked away in a lonely corner of the airport, hardly anyone around, but to get on the 'net for a last fix I had to wander in a main hallway, with some crazy huge native art. It's massive. I'd take a picture but I don't want to look too much like a tourist. Plenty of time for that in Europe.

I bought a new Terry Pratchett book for the flight, and my i-Pod is fully charged, so it seems like I'm good to go. It's raining like crazy outside, and now I'm starting to think that I should have kept my rain jacket in my carry on. Just in case I lose my luggage again. What are the odds of that happening twice in less than 6 months?

I've been semi-stalking three Irish people that wandered past my seat a while ago. So far my cover is good. Running out of time so I'll have to cut this short. Next stop, Belfast.

I'm still here, for a little while

2008-02-26T13:47:00.000-08:00

Just a quick update for now, I have to go to town for surgery (minor surgery, nothing to worry about) so this will be short.

I'm finally locked down on a departure date, and that is March 3rd. I had to push it back a little bit, because of today's doctor appointment, but it's still crept up on me. In six days I'll be on a flight to Europe, and I've bought the ticket so there's no backing out now. The pre-trip jitters are just starting to kick in, so hopefully I'll be able to keep them under control.

Right now I'm running around trying to figure what I'm forgetting to put on my 'to pack' list. It's like camping, when you know you're forgetting something that you'll need, only a lot bigger. My i-Pod is lost, and I'm not looking forward to that flight with it, so that's a top priority.

I had considered shifting my waking pattern a little each day to try and sync up with the new time zone, but then I realized this meant getting up at 3 am just to match an equivalent late morning. I'm not that obsessed with conquering jet lag.

Anyways, I've got to run now, so I'll fill you all in later tonight.

Lost 401

2008-02-05T23:43:00.000-08:00

I'm a big Lost fan. And I've been waiting a long time for this show to start up again. I'll try not to put out any major spoilers, but I can't guarantee it.

Initial Reactions:

First off, I wasn't totally sold on this episode. Everybody seems to love it, and I'm not really sure why? Hurley-centric? Yes, he did a really good acting job, but it wasn't that great a story. More flashforwards? We'll be getting tons of these and hopefully better ones, at that. Granted, it was an decent episode, but I was looking for something a little more exciting from a season opener.

Season 1, we have the pilot, which was brilliant, Season 2, we get to go into the hatch and learn about pushing the button, Season 3, we find out about the others and their little village. Season 4 doesn't quite match up.

But enough griping, because Lost is back and it's been a long wait.

Locke vs. Jack:

Most people seem to favour Locke over Jack, painting the doctor as a man spiraling toward implosion. Myself, I would definitely have stayed with Jack.

1. He's a doctor. When you are on a deserted island, always stay with the doctor.
2. People die when they travel with Locke. I don't see Boone on the show much anymore. Or Eko, although that one is as much Locke's fault.
3. Locke just killed Naomi. Earlier the same day, from behind, with a knife. Just so she wouldn't talk into a radio.

In general, Locke follows his own path, and Jack works for the people around him. I'm sticking with Jack on this own.

The Oceanic 6:

My current guesses for the unknowns are Michael (who is in the coffin), Aaron (the baby), and Desmond. Most of this is complete guessing but I'll try and make a workable theory for it.

Next weeks (actually in two days) episode is called Confirmed Dead, so it sounds pretty good, and I'll try get my thoughts on it out in a more timely manner. Cheers.

Travel Plans Continue, and All Night Halo

2008-01-22T21:05:00.000-08:00

My new passport has arrived, and as hard to believe as it might seem, I look like even more of stoner than in my last passport. Official photos do not suit me at all. I'd insert a pic of it, but the world is not yet ready for that type of horror.

So all I'm waiting on is the plane ticket now, which I'll probably be getting in the next week or so, when I finally nail down a departure date. February 25th, probably. I don't want to leave too early in Feb, because it's a lousy month to travel in, but I want to be well situated in Ireland when St. Patricks rolls around, so that I don't get lost in the festivities. It kind of helps that the flights of my chosen airline only go out once a week, so I don't have to pick a specific day, just a week that I want to leave in.

In other news, last Friday, after floor hockey, we had a lan-party, with lots of Halo. Umm, all night halo, actually. Till about 4 am, and then some of us started playing NHL 08, till 4 pm. That's got to be the closest I've ever been to my eyes actually bleeding.

Many people said we were dumb, and many of those were also female, so of course they don't get it. Nothing proves your manhood like being able to game for 18 hours straight, fueled by Doritos and Coke. After about 3 hours, you don't even have to verbally communicate with the other gamers around you, there is a psychic connection of sorts. Might be that you couldn't verbally communicate if you wanted to you are so brain-dead, but it counts for something.

All that, I finally beat David in over-time. w00t!
So worth it.

When Reality Ambushes You...

2008-01-12T23:49:00.000-08:00

I've got a little card, came in the mail, says my passport is waiting for me at the post office. Seems pretty early, considering I got my application in just before Christmas, and the lady was a little skeptical that it would get here in time for my rough departure date of late February. Hmm, she seemed pretty emphatic about that.

So either my passport is there, or a little note saying that something was wrong with the application and I'll have to try again, which would definitely delay the trip. If it wasn't the passport, they wouldn't have to hold the note for my personal pick-up though...

Anyways, I'm kind of nervous now, had a bit of an anxiety attack when I found out that my passport is here. It makes everything very real. I'd be leaving in just over a month. On a crazy adventure, that all of a sudden I'm not sure I'm ready for. Pretty scary.

Haha, you have to realize, I've never really been alone. Not like this. Growing up with a large family, often with grandparents within walking distance, seeing homeschooling friends at least once or twice a week, then at college in the fine arts wing where you can find people round the clock. No matter where I've gone there's always been people within shouting distance. Kind of a late-bloomer, I guess.

And now that the passport is here, there's nothing holding me back, other than the plane ticket, and I was only holding that back because of the unknown arrival of the passport. It's kind of like in the movies, when a scuffle breaks out and the hero (me, hopefully) is being held back by his friends and you yell at them to let you go, and they do, but you didn't want to be let go, you just wanted to act tough and now you've got a big angry guy who could snap you like a twig and no way to get out of it. Haha, kind of a long example, but it was pretty vivid in my mind.

Of course, this isn't as long term as buying a house or getting married or getting a "job", the kind that you keep forever, or going to school in some far off country, which is what is happening around me, but hey, 6-8 weeks, by yourself, on the road, living out of a backpack that is a lot smaller when you realize how much doesn't fit in it, that's a pretty big step for me.

Goals for this trip include but are not limited to:
1. Learning to live with a lot less stuff. I'm an awful pack rat and the room cleaning that has taking the last two months has taught me that I carry around a lot of stuff that I don't need, and I don't know why I carry it. Haha, that goes for mental junk as well as physical. Unneeded baggage just weighs you down, and this trip doesn't allow for that.

2. Stop needing everything. Closely related to #1, I seem to want to collect every part of everything, which gives me a lot of stuff that I then don't get rid of.

3. Get a lot more independence. I was always happier in a crowd, where I could follow someone elses lead. Won't be able to that anymore. This one goes back forever so it'll be the toughest to shake.

Wow, this is a lot longer than I expected it to be... but now I'm finally drawing a blank so I'll leave it at that, peace out.

By Request: Eduardo the Dancing Turtle!!!1!

2008-01-07T20:14:00.000-08:00

Eduardo is one of about five objects I brought back from Mexico, not including clothing. I got him... in the Xpu Ha gift shop... no, I got him at the Xel-Ha shop, the one just before you get out into the parking lot. There had been some really cool turtles on our trip to Chichen Itza but I didn't have time to barter for them, so I had been on the look-out for turtles, and when I saw Eduardo I know we were soulmates. Plus, someone had to rescue him from the greasy tourists who were pawing all the merchandise.

He's just big enough to fit in the palm of your hand, and he's got some heft to him, so I could justify carrying him around, and if we got in a fight with some notorious Mexican street gang, he could help defend me.
His beady little eyes struck fear in the hearts of all evil-doers.

On the flight home, I pulled him out of my pack and set him on that flimsy little folding table that comes out of the seat in front of you and he started spinning around. I quickly realized that Eduardo had dreamed about being a dancer and had not been able to pursue this ambition because he was stuck in a gift shop in Mexico. Anyways, now he is free to pursue his dreams and lives on my computer desk.

ps. Eduardo actually sucks at dancing, his skillz are nowhere near as mad as mine, but the effort is there and he is getting better.

Posted while listening to James Blunt and James Brown.

I wish I lived in Dog River

2008-01-07T19:24:00.000-08:00

So, am I the only fan of Corner Gas? For Christmas my dad got season four of Corner Gas, and as far as I know, I'm the only one who has watched any of it. It's not the greatest show, but in the pile of junk out there, it's pretty close to the top, especially for a comedy.

For those of you who have never seen this quaint piece of work, Corner Gas is about life in the small town of Dog River, Sask. and revolves around Brent, the local gas station owner-operator. Favourite character has got to be Wanda, full of snappy wit and sarcasm. It's full of canadian style humour and small town feeling.

Everyone sneers at it, but then I catch them watching Hannah Montana marathons... which is definitely lower on the TV food chain. TV is so full of that crap, at least watch something that isn't lowering your IQ at the same time. I geuss just watching is doing that anyways. Plus, it's relatively clean for a comedy, which always helps.

Now, I'm a sucker for season sets, and this is perfect because I rarely catch Corner Gas on TV due to it's somewhat obscurity. Or the fact that I'm awful with keeping track of when shows come on. And no commercials, that's huge.

Come on, people, support canadian content.

This post was created while listening to the Hot Hot Heat and drinking coffee.

225 Days Without Posting

2007-12-12T16:33:00.000-08:00

Since it's been almost 2/3 of a year since I've been here, quite a lot has happened.
I finished off my my convocation process, so now I am officially the hold of a bachelor's degree. That makes for good party talk. On a personal note, convocation seems a little anti-climatic after four years of build-up. I was on that stage for about 30 seconds. Took me longer to try and get the funny hat to sit straight.

I worked on the family farm all summer and then all fall, driving tractors and sorting ginseng roots. Had an awkward couple weeks when September came and I wasn't headed back to school. You don't realize how comfortable you are at school until you're not there any more.

In November, the family went on a trip to Mexico for a week, and I didn't exactly develop the tan I was hoping for but people say I'm "less white". One of the days in Mexico, I took off into the streets of Cozumel for some solo touristing, and I decided I quite liked it. Nothing against travelling with a group, but the freedom of wandering through the shops, looking for little turtle statues was infectious. Once you get the travelling bug, it doesn't let go. Photos of Eduardo the Turtle statue will be coming eventually.

In the days that followed I decided I should go to Europe on my own. I've always wanted to travel, especially Europe and hopefully this will be a growing experience. So now I'm planning 6 week trip to Ireland, France and possibly Belgium. I'll be leaving in February, and getting back just before my b-day in April.

Do I still live here?

2007-12-12T16:18:00.000-08:00

So, it's been a while. A long while.
Lost my password again. Tried for weeks to get in. Gave up.
Decided the world would have to do without my blogging, since it was obviously not meant to be.

Yesterday I was at Andrew's blog, and noticed he had linked to mine on his sidebar. I clicked the link, wondering if it was just someone else with my name.
And it logged me into my account.
Divine intervention has decided that I shall blog.
I'll be back in a minute with a more detailed catchup post.

happy b-day to me

2007-04-10T23:28:00.000-07:00

I feel old.
I woke up and quickly got a killer headache, that left me staring at the wall blankly for over half the day. And my six year old kid brother beat me at 8 ball, twice in a row.

But it was all worth it, cause now I'm feeling pretty pumped, and tomorrow is that start of the big rush towards graduation. So I'll be up early and I have a breakfast donut waiting for me to eat it when I get up. For me, that's an amazing amount of foresight.

I don't have much more to say tonight, but I will be attempting daily blogs... posts... writings... at least for the first week to try and get in the habit, as well as work that password into my memory.

And here are my paintings for your viewing pleasure:

the next starving artist

2007-04-09T22:15:00.000-07:00

On April 19th, I'm going to be part of the year end Grad Show at TRU, and it's kind of the culmination of four years of school for me. You could even say it's the culmination of 16 years of school. For one night. Haha, no pressure, Matt.

I've got some painting in the show, five so far, and it doesn't look like they'll let me put any more in. This is why you have to be careful about jokes pointed at classmates, is that eventually you will be in their power, and they will remember.

I'll put up some pics of my paintings soon, so that the world can see the type of stuff I do. I think it's pretty neat, but I have a personal bias, so that doesn't really count.

After grad I'll have to decide whether to pursue a Master's degree any time soon, but right now I'm putting those thoughts off. I went straight from high school to college, so I really don't want to have to deal with school again for a while.

Anyways, that's part one of my school life, tune in tomorrow for more juicy goodness.

First (or second) Post!

2007-04-09T22:02:00.000-07:00

So this is the second incarnation of Sans Contente. The first version is floating around the intranet with a couple posts and a lost password. You'd think I'd wisen up and write those little keys down somewhere, but I don't. Just like all those email addresses and phone numbers that you say you will remember but you never, ever do.

Anyways, welcome to the new site, hopefully it'll be even better than the first and great stuff will happen here. Now that the school year is just about over I should have a lot more time for this.

I've got a bunch of profile stuff to redo, so I'll run and fix that and then get a bunch of posts up.

Cheers,
Matt