Soft Revolutions- The End

** edited as previous post indicated for privacy.

This post will mark the end of the blog on Edmonton. This last post will be up for a very short period of time and personal. I debated even putting it up, but as most of the people reading are like family to me, there's no reason to keep from sharing. Just be nice and don't tell me I told you so.

Soft Revolution

“We are here to take the blame/ to take the taunts and the shame/ we are here to make you feel/ it terrifies you, but it’s real / It will keep you up all night, and in the flood of the morning light, spilling out across your room, you’ll say the words, we’ll get there soon…
The revolution wasn’t bad, we hit the streets with all we had…and a dream inside our heads, and after changing everything, we couldn’t tell, we couldn’t sing. ’

- Stars, ‘Soft Revolution’- Set Yourself on Fire - Arts & Crafts 2007

Self-Explanatory

Let's see how good all of you are at analyzing images and songs:



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6bHPk4Vx84

Flaming Lips- Do you Realize
Clap your Hands Say Yeah- Home on Ice
The Pixies- I bleed
The Acorn- Heirlooms
Gwen Stefani - Early Winter
Shotgun Rules- Funeral Starts with Fun
Yo La Tengo- I shot Any Warhol
Frank Sinatra- New york, New York
Daniel Lanois- the Deadly Nightshade
and then......

Weezer- My name is Jonas!



we're optimistic about the future but there's a lot of stuff we need to deal with before December 16th rolls around.

Incidentally, ALL of the above songs came on randomly from my shuffle option and it was frightening how suitable they were for us this morning.

Birthday Weekend!

I'm going to attempt to make sure this post doesn't go too long because guess what? I had an AWESOME birthday weekend!

See that cake? Someone very special made it for me. Actually I got kicked out of the flat on my birthday to go for a mani/pedi (thanks mum!)while it was being baked (complete with oreo icing). We've been eating that cake for breakfast and lunch SINCE Friday now. Traditionally it always snows on my birthday, but instead it was glorious here.

While these days (november 6 and 7th) are traditionally one big party as my friends and I are scorpio-central, Ashton kept me so busy so that I wouldn't miss them.

he's the best!

we were to go out to one of the best vegeterian restaurant's in canada, padamandis and it was even their monthly all-you-can-eat buffet dinner but once we got there there was a line for over an hour, so disappointed we wandered the DODGIEST part of Chinatown going in and out of restaurants to look at menus for food we could eat. We must have gone into at least half a dozen by the time we had just decided to turn around and go home when there was this hole in the wall shop that popped up declaring 'vegeterian oriental food'- it was even better than Padamandis. I couldn't help but to be like, 'see God wanted us to find this place!' We had four courses that consisted of wonton soup, rice rolls, szechuan 'beef' and lemon 'chicken' that we're both still going on (re: drooling) about.

on to the most exciting part of the plan- aside from the really nice bottle of champagne Ashton got for us to share later that night, ahem. Now Ashton and I are NEVER on time for anything - it's just not in the stars but when we arrived at the theatre we were able to get front row seats! So every Saturday I listen to CBC religiously including the variety show called 'Go'. Actually, I listen to CBC pretty much always so the theme of the show 'CBC Families' was completely appropriate. We snagged free tickets to it too.

Poor Ashton could only guess, 'is it rex Murphy?' for all of the quiz show parts while I was doing everything NOT to shout out the answers to the onstage contestants. The concept was if you had grown up listening to CBC you would know all about it. The musical guest was Colleen Brown who is a current fixture on radio 3. I had a chance to chat with the host Brent Bambury after the show and he said he misses Ottawa lots. We laughed so hard our sides hurt. I've resolved that I need to get out to other CBC tapings as they're just so much fun!

Host of Go, Brent Bambry and myself - very cool guy. Please mr. Bambry can you give me a job with the CBC?!

We were kind of lazy for the rest of the weekend except for indulging in this insane vegan pizza from the Funky Pickle 'edomonton's BEST pizza'. We finished a LARGE pizza between the two of us within about 20 minutes. I also caught the new Coen Bros. film, 'an ordinary man' today while Ashton tried to sleep so he could do the night shift at the shelter. I need to see it again because in typical coen bros. style the end was so open-ended and just downright haunting. I loved how there weren't major hollywood actors featured in it... I digress, my film nerdiness is coming out.

Thank you for all of the lovely emails and cards, and phone calls on Friday- they meant so much to me. I love my friends and family dearly and there were well wishes from Germany, the UK, America, Scotland, Japan, and all over Ontario and Quebec.

Another exciting announcement- I bought my ticket back to Ottawa, ontario! I'll be back in ottawa as of December 16th until January 1st! We're really excited and can't wait to spend time with so many of you.


love and miss you all! xoxo

- Samantha

ok, so while I have been feeling better with socializing lately the REAL reason I'm staying in Edmonton is this...



Be warned, ashton and I's sushi adventure is next to come.


* a preview

Halloween

sorry about the hiatus last week, I was confined to bed from last Friday until this past Saturday. The flu bug hit- not swine flu, though for a while I definitely felt like death had warmed over.

I'm feeling better now, still have a very unattractive cough and sensitive stomache but Ashton's been amazing in looking after me. (like better than anyone save my mother could have). I've been cooped up inside since then so yesterday was what an excuse to get out and have some fun on the town!

Keep in mind, where we live, one block off Whyte, is THE main bar strip and Halloween it seems has been taken over by drunken adults looking for another excuse to 'pull'. When we were walking to the grocery store we saw not one, but four giant pickles as well as pirates skateboarding along.

I went as a grand ol' opree cowgirl (think a LOT of PINK). I had this western style dress kicking around and some rockin' cowboy boots therefore, just needed the hat (also pink). It seemed appropriate, being alberta and all, but I have a sneaking suspicion that had I worn that same outfit on any other day here, it wouldn't have raised any eye brows. Oh, Alberta...

Ashton's look on the other hand, frightened me. He's shaved off the whole beard to keep only- bad sideburns and a stupid (yes, I'll call it that, even here. I refuse to kiss him right now, it's too disturbing!) He got these giant glasses, pullover vest, mcdonalds tie, and then stole my hair gel to have this horrible comb over. What a pair huh?

We had been invited to a house party, which I thought was to be a typical non-descript drink until you puke up green gummy worms Halloween ordeal but it was anything but. Anyone familiar with the film SHORTBUS? Well, think about that minus the hedonism. We got there after encountering some of the whyte ave crazies, this time a 'camel' being 'rode' by two men. I wasn't allowed to buy any candy. :(

Anyways, I don't know how to describe how cool this house party concept was- freak show meets carnival? The people had cleared out their house to create this maze made out of bed sheets hung up but with pillows and different turns that brought you to an old time radio or candy or just a really cool group of people just chilling. In closets (though you wouldn't know it) there was video art displays and places to watch as well as your own opportunities to create art including another room covered with maps on the floor and art/light installations of 'body mapping'. Everyone got a mini light to try to find things on the maps, or they could just play with old slides. Be warned however, there was a 'confession booth' where you went in and confessed whatever to have it typewritten up and then placed on a wall of shame. mine: I'm vegan but I'm totally going to eat an oh henry bar tonight. (I didn't.)

So those were the FIRST two rooms, and I ended up going with a stranger to the bathroom (what?) because there was an art installation there as well. The whole time there was a dj spinning crazy music in the living room and people taking photographs. Performance art was a must and there had been microphones and video cameras placed through out the house to mix into the performance art (dancing? but also?) The night ended with a drag-strip performance and we danced all around them.

The whole thing sounds super pretentious, but it wasn't. It was the most non-judgemental people I've met in a long while. Everything was VERY queer/GLBQT friendly and centered without drawing attention to itself. And the costumes were incredible! There was a broken down wind up doll, Ziggy Stardust complete with their boyfriend of Freddie Mercury, but who am I to talk, as I spent a good part of my night hanging out with a pregnant salmon, complete with spawn.

I'm hoping that I'll be able to recognize some of these people around campus so that we can hang out more, but this one event is going to keep me positive about edmonton for a while. And truthfully, I'm REALLY looking forward to going back to work, albeit I know I'll have TONS of work to do tomorrow.

Take care all of you, hope you didn't overdose on the Halloween fare.