we all decay.

It seems to be that kind of week. I don’t know what’s wrong with the world lately but it’s gone a little insane.

First off, I received my credit card invoice in the mail and there is a fraud of over 600$ on it! The purchases were made all over Canada and some of them were even returned afterward! The nerve! I had my card on me when most of it happened so I guess only the info was stolen and then copied on a different card…I’m no expert so I don’t really know, but the people who did this certainly did! Now the bank is investigating to make sure it really wasn’t me.  Bleh.

Then I learn that the President of the airline I’m employed under has left. Left the ship to sink. The media is covering this like hungry vultures saying that there is no chance of survival. I beg to differ. It will be a rough ride for sure but I do think we can make it. In a time where we are renegotiating the collective agreement, this certainly does not make anything easier. We will have to sacrifice a lot of things to keep our jobs and I am not sure I want to know what it will be just yet. I only hope we can all stick together and fight as a united team. These are important times!

Lastly, we finally moved out of our old apartment last night. For good. We had told the owners that we were going to be there after work to clean up and move the last bits of what we had there. Well imagine my surprise when I walked in yesterday and found all my things jumbled in random bags and my landlords cleaning out the place for us. I barely had time to realize what was going on that I was drowned under a sea of insults. Without evidence of anything (because none of it is true), I was accused of destroying the apartment and threathened to be sued for damage!  That coming from people who left us without heat all winter in a place that is falling apart, who allowed someone to steal my camera during the apartment viewing, who didn’t care much for repairs when things broke on us and who were standing there illegally since we hadn’t received the 24h mandatory notice before they entered our apartment.  Unbelievable!  People are messed up I’m telling you. I have been so nice to them all through the 2 years we lived there. I have been so patient, so tolerant. This is what I get back. Disrespect and threats. Wow. I’m still in shock.

It must have been the grey hair I found amongst all my shiny black ones. My first one!   

Everything goes downhill from there apparently.

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blue monday.

My apartment is empty. Feels like I am camping out in a squat. We had movers from El Cheapo take all of our belongings to the new place yesterday. What a relief it is to have someone do all the dirty work for you!  I remember how painful and long the process was when we did it ourselves. 6 hours of horrid labour that I never want repeated. Yesterday, the movers did everything in 3 hours. It went smoothly and all before sundown! They were great to deal with and that is well worth my money. Now we only have to wait for the current tenant to leave so we can officially move in. We kept the tv, the laptop and whatever fit in a suitcase. So in the meantime, we are sleeping on an inflatable mattress, watching tv and eating out.  Ah the joys of moving!

Speaking of which, it is pretty much official now, our digital camera got stolen during the viewing of our apartment. Since it has been over a month now, I don’t know what our resources are but I am very frustrated by this. You would think that when you allow your landlord to come in your living space, he automatically becomes responsible for your things. Nothing should be missing when he leaves!  What are you supposed to do as a tenant? We last used our camera the night before the viewing to download some pictures on the computer and the next day it was gone. Never seen again. That is so unfair! It was brand new! I will try to talk to my landlord about this but I doubt he will cooperate. Any suggestions?

I learned today that one of my favourite restaurants, Sushi on Bloor, had to close down due to sanitary issues. I almost cried when I heard that. I certainly hope they clean up and reopen soon.  I don’t want to have to go to their competitor’s place. Bring back my sushi!

Also on a much sombre note, some airline companies are in the deep end and struggling to keep afloat (including mine). The experts predict a 50/50 chance of getting out of this one in one piece. Great, just great.

It’s that kind of Monday, eh?

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bittersweet wondering.

I am living in a cardboard box. With the move date less than a week away, it’s almost impossible to recognize our beloved apartment. We are in the middle of packing and the place is a complete mess. As I put all my belongings away in boxes, I can’t help but feel a tad sentimental. I usually can’t wait to get out and move on, but this abode has been the home of many wonderful things and I am finding it surprisingly hard to let go of it. Don’t get me wrong, I am looking forward to settling in our new niche, but the transition will be one to grow into slowly. I think of the feeling of home this place gave me, being freshly transformed into a flight attendant and leaving it at the wee hours of the morning to catch a flight, the return of a birthday trip that became an engagement celebration, the wedding planning and the preparations on the morning of the big day…all memories that I cherish and take with me. I can’t wait to start this new venture. Minus the boxes.

With this feeling of change, I have realized that I am starting to eminently miss my career as an FA. I flew to Montreal a few weeks ago and I truly sensed I was lacking something important when I stepped on that plane. I felt like an impostor. There was something so familiar and somehow comforting about the smell of the cabin and the frenzy that happens before departure. And I miss that. I treasure the excitement of arriving at the front desk of a hotel, going to your room for the night, enjoying the little piece of quiet and alone time and the discovery of a new city and its people. I am delighted when I meet passengers and hear their stories. I love making someone’s day with a simple gesture. This job is made for me…..only a little over a month to go and I will back in the great blue skies!   Deplorably, there is one pivotal detail that affects me more than I would want to at this point: the raise in airplane accidents in the last few months. They average to about 2 a month now and that scares the hell out of me. I want to go to work without having to worry about my ‘office’ diving straight into the ground. Somebody please make sure those aircraft are operational!

On the same matter, I noticed that I haven’t really told you about my current day job since the week I started.  At first, I was slightly hesitant about the whole thing but it turned out to be a great disposition for the few months before my big return to my real life. I guess everything does happen for a reason after all.  The staff is very convivial and it is a verrry relaxed environment and the workload is minimal compared to what I am used to in this position.  I have a fairly normal schedule that never changes (not sure yet if that is a positive or negative) so I can make plans and stick to them and it allows me to get back to my roots, hence this blog.  How often do we get to try something else out just for a few months?

Just as if the world wasn’t crazy enough already, the Pope has announced during his visit to Africa that he is against the idea of condom use to help in the prevention of AIDS.  What the f***?!   Ok, this is no surprise coming from the Church, but I still have trouble believing that people are denied a tangible solution to a problem that is devastating the country just because of religion.  Africans imperatively need a better education concerning their sexuality and societal ethics and the Pope’s statement just takes them back to a time where we did not have the resources to teach and help those countries; to deny them this opportunity could be desastrous.  I don’t need to mention that this has raised many protesters’  ire.  This is a fight that needs to be won!

Another thing that irritates me; apparently fur is back! In a time where faux-fur has become the norm and PETA has all kinds of famous people campaigning against the use of carcasses as coats it is quite surprising that Lundstrom is making a comeback in the fashion industry with this article. I almost fell off my chair. There is NO reason why anyone should be wearing fur these days unless you live in the far north and hunt to survive.  Wake up people: fur is DEAD!

On a lighter note, Winnipeg now has their own rock festival. I must admit that this is good news to me as that city has the most beautiful summer weather and this adds to their cultural curriculum that is already pretty impressive.  Too bad this said Festival has to be Rock On The Range. The lineup is pretty horrible except maybe for Rancid, Rise Against and our own Billy Talent. Hoepfully by next year they will get some true rockers to play before the headlining bands.

That’s it for today darlings.

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