tuesday march 30

today i went to see hot tub time machine with my roommate. we went to rainbow cinemas, where tuesday tickets were only $4 and the theatres themselves were quite small. as such, the 9:30 screening of hot tub time machine was packed to the brim -- to the point where there were a handful of people that spent the duration of the film sitting in the aisle, on the floor.

monday march 29

today i watched my dodgeball team play a game in a nearby elementary school. afterward, while waiting for everyone to change out of their gym clothes, i noticed a large sheet of paper hanging outside one of the school's classrooms. it was a list of future ambitions of all the young students, seemingly completed by a preschool or kindergarten class, and titled "when i grow up i want to be...." while the most chuckle-worthy (kids say the darndest things) item on the list was kathleen's reply of "a teenager," my favourite answer, by far, was julian's: "a griffin, has two heads a lion head and eagel head."

sunday march 28

today i had a friend from montreal in town, who wanted to meet "for coffee." while i'm not a coffee drinker myself, i knew of a nearby shop called saving gigi that had gotten rave reviews from most of my friends. i'd never been to and wanted to try it, so i suggested we meet there. when we arrived, the feel was not quite what i expected. we ended up sitting at the only spots left -- the end of a community table in the middle of the room, next to two individuals on their laptops. the situation made me feel as if were at a library, and that our small talk was disturbing the tranquil setting. after we'd been there for about 20 minutes, the girl next to me put away her laptop in favour of some sort of small canvas, and began painting. is this what people do at coffee shops? is this what i'm missing out on by not drinking hot beverages?

saturday march 27

today i noticed that one of my friends, who was celebrating a birthday, had jeremih's "birthday sex" music video posted on her wall by a friend. this not only marked the second time i'd seen this on facebook in the last week, but also marked the second time i'd seen the gimmick used today -- earlier, i'd watched an episode of how to make it in america where one character had awoke another on her birthday by blasting the song. all this is to say that when my birthday comes around next week, no one had better do this to me. IT'S PLAYED OUT!

friday march 26

today i walked to my physiotherapy appointment for the third straight week. while my last two appointments had been on days when it was sunny and was going up to 15 degrees or so, today didn't put me in quite the same "spring is coming!" mindset. the temperature was down around freezing; the sun only intermittently out. nonetheless, i feel like the "summer rap" playlist on my ipod warmed me up by at least a few degrees.

thursday march 25

today i had a dream in which i beat someone to death with a wooden stirring spoon, and then played a casual game of tennis with tony and meadow soprano. both aspects of this dream made me feel as if i'd been watching too much of the sopranos lately.

wednesday march 24

today i was part of my first funeral procession, driving from the funeral home to the cemetery. given little instructions, my brother and i were concerned that we'd be the first car to hit a red light, and weren't 100% sure if we were supposed to keep going through it, or obey the law. luckily, when we arrived at the only traffic light along the way, we caught it as it turned yellow, making "go through" the obvious choice.

tuesday march 23

today i got a ride to london from my aunt and uncle. unable to take their two dogs with them to london overnight, they had dropped them off at a "pet hotel" before the trip. they shared with me some of the increasingly surreal details of this hotel, which i will now repeat:

• the cost was $35 per dog per night.
• their dogs had gotten a "suite" so they could stay together, rather than apart.
  
• one of their dogs was getting a $75 "spa treatment" which included a haircut and what sounded like a makeover.
• there would be "doggie ice cream" (no lactose).
  
• the dogs would be able to watch dog-themed movies.
  
• if they wanted to check in on their dogs, they were able to phone them. the dogs would get on the phone in the hotel's "bone booth." i am not making this up.
  

monday march 22

today i realized that i'd be able to use the plastic bag that i'd been putting over my cast when i showered for its intended purpose: to cover my suit when i took it from toronto to london for my grandmother's funeral. for some reason, the fact that i'd been able to use this boring old bag for two entirely different (but equally helpful and practical) purposes made me very happy.

sunday march 21

today i went to pizza pizza to order myself a walk-in special: a medium pepperoni pizza. when i placed my order, i was told it would take about 15 minutes, and sat down across the restaurant from the only other guy waiting there. over the next little while, i paid little attention to the goings-on around me, texting a couple friends and generally killing time. finally, i heard the call of "medium pepperoni!" i looked up and noticed the other guy had left, meaning the pizza must be mine. however, another lady, with her husband and kid, had jumped up and was approaching the counter. hesitating, i wondered if the family had come in ahead of me, and returned in time to get their order. i hung back and watched as the employee handed her the pizza and a dipping sauce (curious, i thought, since this had been my exact order). she took the pizza back to her family and excitedly opened it. immediately, their faces dropped. this is not what we ordered, their faces said. rolling my eyes, i stepped forward as she tried to return the pizza and complain. "i think that's mine..." i said. the pizza pizza employee confirmed the mistake, and the woman apologized. while she seemed sincere, i couldn't help but silently judge her, not only for being entirely unaware of the fact that i'd been there ahead of her, but also for grabbing the pizza that had been announced as "medium pepperoni!" when that was clearly not what she had ordered. ugh!!

saturday march 20

today i added the lcd soundsystem disco flashback mixtape to my itunes. this was problematic because of the inclusion of the track "first time around" by skyy. through extensive experimentation, i had discovered that there was only one double-letter that didn't appear a single time in my itunes: "yy." if i ever had an album going in my library and wanted it to come to a halt after the current song, all i had to do was type "yy" into the search box, effectively clearing my library. there would be no chance of the music continuing. i hate change, and skyy has ruined everything.

friday march 19

today i had a dream in which i composed a song that was better than anything i could ever come up while conscious. i was aware that i was dreaming and 100% sure that if i was able to remember the melody (and lyrics) when i awoke, i'd have a radio hit on my hands. although it seemed, in the dream, as if i'd never get the tune out of my head, i eventually woke up and had forgotten it within 30 seconds.

thursday march 18

today i received a phone call from my mother telling me that my grandmother had passed away. she added that the family was hoping i'd be a pallbearer at the funeral, leading me to wonder whether i'd be able to properly carry my part of the casket, given the weakened state of my still-recovering right arm. we agreed that i'd probably have to be put on the right side so that i could go primarily lefty.

wednesday march 17

today i added a feature to my blog that allows you to view a random entry from the 1200+ i've posted over the last three and a half years. i enjoyed this addition way more than i thought i would. it resulted in my clicking through the past for so long that i ended up fixing two typos from old entries and finding one post where i predicted the future in a dream: "tiger woods...caught attempting to cheat"!!!

tuesday march 16

today i saw various production trucks and trailers parked along my street on my walk to the hospital. a few of these trailers, including one parked right outside our front door, had names on them, such as "michael" and "amanda." remembering seeing a notice warning that the warner brothers pilot nikita was shooting nearby today, i decided to do some research when i got home. the results were far more entertaining than expected, as i discovered "michael" was shane west and "amanda" was melinda clarke, aka julie cooper from the o.c.. for a moment, i debated hanging out on my balcony for the afternoon, peering down at their trailer in hopes of a possible celebrity sighting, but ultimately figured that a five-second glimpse of julie cooper might not be worth the wait. plus, i wasn't sure i'd even recognize shane west if i saw him.

monday march 15

today i reached this landmark in my last.fm playcount and thought it looked so cool that i didn't listen to any songs for the rest of the night (even though i wanted to), so as not to change it:

sunday march 14

today i had my writing called "deplorable" by a hall of fame baseball journalist.

saturday march 13

today i turned out my bedroom light and laid down to sleep. with the wind howling outside and rain periodically pounding against the window, the scene was already creepy enough. it was, however, made worse when i heard a scratching noise at my door. a couple seconds later, i heard the loud banging of something against the door. i sat up and looked to see what was going on, only to find my door flying open and my roommate's cat standing in the doorway, staring at me in the dark. i think he just wanted to sleep in my room but it looked more like he was auditioning for a role in a horror film.

friday march 12

today i went to an "afterparty" without going out to any "party" beforehand, which meant not leaving my house until approximately 1:30 am.

thursday march 11

today i planned to go grocery shopping. before i went out, i decided to shave my neck, since the facial hair growth there had been bothering me. i went to the bathroom, pulled out my electric shaver, and had shaved the left side clean when the battery died. with no manual razors at my disposal, this put me in a predicament: did i wait for my battery to charge, to do the other side of my neck, or did i just go get groceries with hair on half my neck? it wasn't as obvious as it would've been on my face, but it was still noticeable and odd-looking. i decided to wait for the shaver to recharge. when it eventually did, i'd lost the drive to go grocery shopping.

wednesday march 10

today i came home after running a couple quick errands. when i walked up the stairs from our "lobby" to the main floor, i heard the faint sound of music. having seen our downstairs neighbour, michelle, in her house on my way in, i assumed the music was hers. as i walked through our house, it got a little louder, and i shook my head in disgust at the bass-heavy music she was listening to (and the volume level she must be playing it at!). as i continued through the house and walked upstairs to my room, i suddenly realized that the music wasn't coming from her at all, but rather was the tortoise album i'd left on upstairs, knowing my errand run would be brief.

tuesday march 9

today i attended my usual weekly physiotherapy appointment. at one point, before working on the inner elbow of my right arm, the physiotherapist decided to put a heating pad on the spot to loosen it up first. he advised "if it gets too hot, call me" and walked away. at the time of this advice, i only noticed a vague warmth, but the temperature kept rising and rising over the next couple minutes. i began to worry that this was some sort of test, and that the heat would just keep increasing until it reached a burning point, FORCING me to eventually call him to take it off. what would he be testing? how much heat i could take? whether i remembered his name? either way, i was concerned, since i hate yelling. luckily, the temperature finally leveled off at "very warm" and i remained silent until he returned a few minutes later.

monday march 8

today i was saying goodbye to a friend before i entered the bus station to head back to toronto. as i walked away from her, she called out "i love you!" focused on crossing the road at the time and plagued by my usual mediocre hearing, it wasn't until a moment later that i realized exactly what she said, by which time it was too late to reciprocate. so, after purchasing my bus ticket and getting in the boarding line, i pulled out my phone and texted her: "I LOVE YOU TOO!" i'm not sure it had the same impact, or if she even recognized that i was finishing our conversation.

sunday march 7

today i told my mom i'd watch the academy awards with her, since she seemed inexplicably excited about watching them. perhaps sensing the excitement, my brother and father stuck around the living room for the viewing party of sorts too. by 10:30, my mom was getting tired and announced that she was going to bed. within 30 seconds of her leaving the living room, the television was turned off and the rest of us had gone our separate ways, suggesting our true level of investment in the oscars.

saturday march 6

today i drove to a friend's house and parked about a block away. although i had my reasons for this, and i thought that they made sense, it would've been embarrassing to explain it all. so i was relieved when we left her house and were parting ways and i said "oh, i'm parked over this way" and wasn't asked to explain why. my reasoning was three-fold:

1. the day before, there had been three cars in the driveway when i arrived. in such a busy driveway, i was concerned that i'd end up blocking someone in or being blocked in myself.
2. i was driving for the first time since my injury and the only thing i was having trouble with was sudden turns. as such, it was much easier to pull into a spot on the side of the road than to make the sharp turn into the driveway.
3. this specific driveway still confused me.

friday march 5

today i took the greyhound bus to london from toronto. i've been battling a cold for a good part of the week and it had evolved to the point today where i had a consistent cough. not wanting to be a bad passenger on the bus, i managed to suppress the need to make hacking coughing noises every couple minutes for at least the first hour of the ride. during the second half of the drive though, i noticed a tickling feeling in my throat, forcing me to cough once or twice. when these coughs didn't get rid of the tickling sensation, i realized i had two choices: the first was a full-fledged two-minute coughing fit, which would eliminate the tickling but make it sound to everyone else on the bus they like they were traveling with a dying swine flu patient. the second choice, which i opted for, was to sit silently facing the window, eyes watering as i held off the urge to cough with every fiber of my body. this also eliminated the feeling in my throat, albeit not quite so quickly. when the discomfort passed, i thought i'd even gotten away with no one noticing my predicament. however, now that i'm thinking about it, i'm wondering if the girl sitting beside me asking if i needed sunglasses was less a result of a doting concern about my window-seat position, and more a reaction to the tears she saw streaming down my face as i looked out the window into the sun.

thursday march 4

today i went to a nice restaurant for my roommate's birthday. when the entrees arrived, i was faced with the predicament of which hand to eat with: if i chose my right, i'd be able to hold the fork like a polite, civilized person, but my limited range of motion in the right arm would make the dish-to-mouth movement look like i was mentally challenged. if i chose my left, that motion to the mouth was smoother, but my lack of lefty coordination meant holding the fork like a caveman. i tried both ways a little, feeling in either case like a child that you can't take out anywhere.

wednesday march 3

today i was experiencing some cold symptoms, and decided to make myself some tea, something i only do when i'm feeling sick. i pulled out the kettle, plugged it in, flipped the switch and went upstairs. a few minutes later, i came down to see if it was ready, but something seemed off. i opened the kettle and realized that i'd forgotten to put any water in. laughing at myself for being so dumb, i put some water in the kettle, plugged it back in, and went back upstairs. a few minutes later, i again came down to see if the water was ready, and once again realized something was wrong. this time, i'd forgotten to flip the switch to actually boil the water. embarrassed, i flipped the switch, and returned to my room. when i came back to the kitchen a few minutes later, the water was finally ready. i decided to blame the fact that it took me three tries to boil water on the copious amounts of cold fx i'd consumed.

tuesday march 2

today i cut up and warmed up some pita bread, intending to have a snack of pita and hummus. after preparing the bread, however, i looked in the fridge and realized that i was out of hummus, and wasn't a fan of the only other dip we had. having got the bread all ready, i didn't really want to put it back and wait for whenever i'd next go to the grocery store to buy hummus. instead, i ended up just eating it dry. it was one of the more depressing snacks i've ever had.

monday march 1

today i attended my first dodgeball game since the incident. after watching my teammates play for over an hour, and wanting to be back on the court myself, i declared that i'd be ready to play by the time our playoffs began in four weeks. i later remembered that only three days earlier, my doctor had specifically forbade me from playing sports for at least six weeks.

sunday february 28

today i saw graffiti that read: "run 4 you're life." normally this blatantly inaccurate grammar would rub me the wrong way, but in this case, the graffiti was located on the grounds of an elementary school. as such, it was easier for me to imagine that the perpetrator wasn't just ignorant of the difference between "your" and "you're" but rather hadn't even been taught it yet!