My brother and dad visited 2 weeks ago, which was awesome and I've pretty much seen all of Toronto now. It was great to finally be around family, from constantly Skype-ing. If this move has taught me anything, it's definitely something along the lines of "absence makes the heart grow fonder," minus the romantic undertones of that saying. This photo is Trev and I on Toronto Island in front of the TO skyline.
I do miss California a lot, and a bit more every time someone finds out it's where I'm from, because they always ask, why did you move here?? I guess California is a somewhat exotic, foreign place to these landlocked, half-English, half-midwesterners. Just based on the crazy humidity (I'm told this is the warmest summer they have in recent years) and silly words they sometimes use, I would agree that California has a foreign feel. My brother did catch me saying "eh?" a couple times, but it doesn't feel natural so I think it was forced.
The weekend after SOME of my family visited (I'm talking to you, Mom) I went with some great new friends to a music festival in the Canadian countryside called the Hillside Music Festival. I had only heard of a couple of bands, but figured it was a great way to get out of the city and appreciate some Canadian music. Well, I was right. It was absolutely amazing, aside from the crazy ant bites Alia and I got from pitching our tent on an ant hill..we're guessing we did, because neither of the other tent inhabitants got our amount of bites. There were some big Canadian acts that were really interesting to watch because I swear I was THE only one who didn't know the words to any of the songs. The festival had a folksy, bluegrassy feel to it, and I discovered some great new artists to add to my music collection. Just being back in nature was great, seeing as it's been mainly city and pavement for a good 4 months. I've met many people who either like the country OR the city. They are meant to be in one, and don't care too much for the other. I think that's something from my childhood that I really treasure, since I grew up in the mountains, I consider that home, but the city still holds an intriguing mystery about it. This is a photo of the evening sky out in the countryside at the festival:
The next weekend I went to the Osheaga Festival in Montreal, Quebec with my friends Helena and Peps. We were supposed to have a 4th person but that fell through, so it was the 3 of us, and we had a blast! We saw some great acts including the Gaslight Anthem and The Black Keys, who are my new favorite band. The only thing I will say about Osheaga is the amount of smoking that went on was RIDICULOUS. I swear, anyone who smoked smoked at least 3 cigarettes during the course of the day at the festival. I have many friends who smoke, but there are unspoken rules about smoking. Like being courteous since obviously many people don't smoke and don't want to smell like it. Not to mention that second hand smoke has been proven to be harmful in its own right. When you're in a tight group of people and the only place to let out smoke is directly on the back of someone's head, or right in their face, it's courteous to wait and smoke in a more open area. Anyway, that's my rant for this post.
This weekend I was east again, this time to Ottawa to again see Helena and Peps, but also VANESSA. Who, if you didn't know, has been in Bosnia all summer long. So this is a great reunion for the 3 of us who haven't all been together since they visited me in San Fran almost 2 years ago!! That being said, I've logged in some major bus rides recently which has given me a lot of time to think about things…mainly personal things that I hadn't been able to get over until now. It's a liberating feeling when you finally realize you're over something and can let it go and stop agonizing over it anymore. This is how I feel now. On a side note, these bus rides made me pay more attention to song lyrics, and I've realized how certain songs come on that you can relate to. It's weird, but also reassuring in a way.
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