Miracles and Madness.

Now that the Blogger app isn't getting updated for the iPhone, I'm not able to write posts on the go, hence the sparse amount of posting as of late.  I might have to start searching for a different blogging site! 

Wow, I'm down to my last shift soon and then I'll be back in town full time.  I can't believe it's already May!  Here's a picture of some of the shift crew (representing at least seven languages in total - what did I say about Canadian diversity?):

All in all, it's been a good experience.  I've been able to familiarize myself with high/medium/low voltage equipment and their inner workings and operations.  Friends and family like to ask me about my experience as one of the few females on site, and I always say it's quite alright.  Sure, there are comments about my size ("little lady") and even how I smell (good, I think?).  There are offers to help when I'm carrying something heavy (like my own self-imposed giant luggage).  I'm easy to remember and spot.  Really, the most stressful thing for me is having to backup-park the truck.  Which is pretty minor anyway considering there is a rearview camera.  I actually don't have much reason to complain.

I'm happy to report a mini-miracle.  The matriarch of one of the first Filipino families to welcome my family to Canada suffered a stroke recently.  Things were looking bleak.  Two shifts ago, I visited and she was completely unconscious and doctors weren't very hopeful.  There was even the option to pull the plug, which was understandably an extremely traumatizing thought for her son to even have to fathom.  My parents did notice that she seemed to have more colour and movement compared to when they first saw her, so we had a small hope that she would actually get better and maybe even wake up.  Her hand felt warm and strong when I held it, and her fingers had the dexterity to search for a rosary that slipped through her fingers.   

I visited her on this set of days off and she was awake!  It was amazing.  She still can't speak or swallow very well, but she looks us in the eye with recognition and responds by nodding her head "yes" or "no" to questions.  It will be a long road of rehabilitation and recovery, but just to see her awake is such a relief :)  This tiny woman is a trooper!  She welcomed us with such warmth into her home (it was the first home in Canada that my family stayed in) and she helped out my parents so much with starting out in a new city/country/continent.  I'm so glad she's still here.  I found a picture of her with me at my high school prom (she makes me look tall, but she's actually 4 foot something and the epitome of adorable Filipino aunt):

Hang in there, Auntie Joy - we're rooting for you!

This set of days off was an eventful one.  I planned to do some major purging and cleaning at the condo but was promptly interrupted by a car collision when I was grabbing some vegan pizza (Papa John's garden pizza minus cheese plus sides of garlic sauce yummmm) with my sister.  Some guy ran a red light and was strangely dazed and very passive when we confronted him.  Maybe he was really depressed or really high or really shocked.  Fortunately no one was seriously hurt.  Things could have been way worse!  We could have been pedestrians.  Or he could have hit a cyclist.  Or Hachi could have been in the car.  But in this case, the worst part consists of my sister having some whiplash.  And my formerly unscratched and undented car is now horribly dented on the driver's side.  I can't even open the driver door.  However, I magically was able to escape pain-free.  Again.  I realize that I now have been T-boned twice and rear-ended twice without obtaining whiplash.  Strange gift I have.  Thank goodness for insurance, which is covering my sister's physio and car repairs. 

The Oilers have made it to the second round of playoffs and it is madness in the city.  It's good crazy rather than bad crazy though.  I am quite enjoying all this city pride and spirit.

Mind Farts
-pistol squats.  i can do them consistently now!  calisthenics is a wonderful thing
-read The Accusation by Bandi.  it's the first piece of fiction to come out of North Korea from a North Korean author that STILL lives there.  he/she has to use the code name Bandi (firefly) to avoid persecution.  fascinating short stories about the middle class but also very disturbing.  a society that is supposed to be based on equality should not have so-called middle class citizens freezing and starving to near-death

My Canada.

 
Taken from Pinterest

I am back from another shift, trying to recover from a re-caught cold and catch up on a ton of laundry from my trip.  CBC is currently airing a public funeral service for 3 of the 6 men that were killed at the horrific attack on the mosque in Quebec by some racist psychopathic idiot.  The funeral service looks very full and the capacity of the arena it is being held in is 5,000 people.  I saw in the crowd faces of many ages, many ethnicities and costumes of different faiths.  The prime minister spoke, municipal and provincial government leaders spoke and various community faith leaders spoke.  I am very touched by the show of solidarity across the whole Canadian spectrum.  This is what the world needs to move towards.  There are so many different kinds of "us" here.

Really, this diversity and tolerance is one of the biggest things that comforts me about this country.

Even at the site up north that I work at, I encounter so many different people from so many backgrounds and we are all just trying to get through each day safely while being able to earn income for ourselves and our families.  I have colleagues who celebrate Chinese New Year, colleagues who celebrate Diwali and colleagues who fast during Ramadan. 

I Get It, Dad.

Work has me flying back and forth between Fort McMurray and Edmonton quite a bit for the next three months or so.  It's surprising how fast a human can adapt to a new set of conditions.  My first shift was 8 days and by Day 2 or 3 I was feeling like I had already gotten the swing of 4AM wakeups, camp buses, camp food and 8PM bedtimes.  While I'm at site, there's so much new stuff to learn and work with that the hours fly and before I know it, I'm bussing back to camp to eat dinner and workout.  Camp life is not too bad ... I was able to eat my fruits and veggies, use the gym facilities and finishing reading this book during my free time:

So much delight in this story.  Reminds me of the detached, matter-of-fact narration and topsy-turvy events in movies like Royal Tenenbaums and Amelie.  

I have to say, I now understand why my mom used to make my sister and I help clean the house and make sure there was delicious food to eat a couple of days before my dad would get home.  Because when I got back to my condo late at night in Edmonton after my 8-day shift in Fort Mac, I was HANGRY!!  Just a grumpy tired hungry sleepy ogre who ended up crawling into her bed.  Lesson learned.  I am definitely not driving home from the airport at 10PM while still in 8PM bedtime mode.  Instead, I'll be snacking on the plane and then taking a cab home.  I don't even know how my dad did it for two decades while having to deal with jet lag as well.  I've definitely gained a new respect for how my parents operated while my dad was out working at camps and my mom made sure the household was in good working order.    Now I am enjoying my days off before I fly out again.  The days off aspect of this rotation is quite lovely.  I don't even have to go to the office at all.  I can instead enjoy hanging with Hachi and getting delicious amounts of sleep and exercise and socializing and Netflix and books.  It's gorgeous outside too:

Somehow recent weather patterns have caused a beautiful frosty white coating on the tree branches plus it's been foggy lately too.  So winter wonderland-y.