Calgary

I got home from Calgary on Thursday around dinner time. The flight was uneventful, but I ran myself down from too much going on in Cowtown and developed a head cold, so my ears wouldn't pop. Hurt like hell it did. My left ear took a full two days to finally pop. aside from that, the trip was awsome.

I arrived on Wednesday the 14 at aroun 11pm Calgary time and my Mom met me at the airport. By the time we got back to her apartment and got everythign settled it was about midnight, so there wasn't much visiting, since 12 Calgary time is 3am Saint John time. Thursday we were up and about pretty early and headed down to Black Diamond to see my sister and finally meet my nephews. Cole is 4 and 1/2 and Seth is 2 and 1/2 so suffice to say my visit was long overdue. We made a quick stop at Walmart (only becuase we forgot to stop at toyrus) and picked up some stuff for the boys. Always good to bring presies...it helps smooth out that initial shy period. The boys and I got along immediately though, and began playing. That's basically how I spent the majority of my time in Calgary, playing with my nephews... they are very very busy guys.

Friday Mom and I spent the day putzing about 9th ave, stopping from shop to shop and seeing all the overpriced and unique things to be seen. Then later that evening we went out with her Friend Suzy. Mom took Suzy and me out for dinner at Earles to celebrate our birthdays. Suzy is the day after mine.

Saturday and Sunday I spent at Amanda's house in Black Diamond, playing with Cole and Seth. Monday was my birthday (thanks for all the facebook messages) and we spent the day asa a family. We all went to the show. MomMom, James, Cole, & I saw Iron Man, and Amanda took Seth to see Horton Hears a Who. Then we all wandered down to sears and had a family portrait done.

Calgary is very very dry and within a couple days my skin was like sand paper, so when I woke up Tuesday morning with a sore throat I didn't think much of it. Mom and I headed out and did some stuff around town, then went for pasta, and then around 4:30 I met up with my Friend Colleen. I have a lot of friends from my past life as a musician in Nanaimo who now live in Calgary, and most of them are still working musicians. Our mutal friend Lena was visiting Colleen and so Collie dedided to have a huge dinner party. (lena is an amazing chef) What started out as 19 people snowballed into 24 and then slipped back to 22. At colleens I started feeling a fever coming on and was really trying to hold it together, because I was looking forward to hanging out with everyone. I saw Bruce and his new girlfriend (they're having a baby... or could've already had it), Bob & Dawn, a bunch of people I don't know, and of course my favorite jet screamin hooty babe... Alida Schedel. Alida and I played in the same band together for it's entire run so she's like a sister to me. I got some visiting, but near 8 O'clock I finally had to admitt to myself that I wasn't going to make it, plus I didn't want to be passing a cold or something on to a lady who was about to have a baby any minute, so Alida and Jimmy(he rocks her world) ran me back over to my Mom's. They came up for a drink and, of course that's when my advil kicked in, and I felt better.
Wednesday we headed back down to Amanda's place for one last day with my boys, and then Thursday I was onthe plane back home.
Cole and Seth are both awsome little boys and had such a blast getting to spend time with them. Cole is very imaginative and we were able to play all kinds of game without the aide of a lot otoys and stuff to bog us down. It was a really great time.
I really needed a good dose of family, I've been missing it.