The Pictures Paint a Way Better Picture than What My Vocab. Could: Up in the Mountains

30 Dec 2010, Tunnel Mountain - Elevation: 1,690m/5543ft.


The breathtaking view near the mid-point mark of the hike up Tunnel Mt.


The West view from the top of the mountain.


A close up bird's eye view of Banff town, where're Santa and his elves?


The East view at the top and the scarcity of daylight - It's only a little past noon at this point in time and we're beginning to loose the sun.

Banff Discovery - The Road Names

So it seems that bears are extremely fond of leftovers in the garbage and will congregate around dumpsters as soon as they spot an opportunity to. I was impressed when Jae Yong told me that the town had installed bear proof dumpsters at every corner of the neighborhood for people to rid their trash in. With so many of these bear proof bins around, I hope to spot a bear soon (from a safe distance, that is).

While I was navigating my directions with the help of the town map, I noticed that with the exception to Banff Ave., all of the other roads are named after animals. Apparently, the pioneers here were the Native Indians, mainly composed of the Crees, Kootenays and the Blackfoot tribes. They were here long before the Common Era. Then came the European explorers, adventurers and hunters in the 1700s. When the town was built in the late 1800s to realize the tourism potential that the land, the hotspring and the Canadian Pacific Railway have to offer, the choice for the road names depicted the dwellers’ appreciation for the wildlife.

*Note that 'Wolverine' here refers to an animal from the weasel family instead of Logan from the X-men... Other than the above, we've also got Lynx St., Squirrel St., Elk St., Rabbit St., Cougar St., Fox St., Antelope St., Hawk Ave. and Eagle Cr..

Today, the employee demographic of Banff's tourism industry are largely comprised of tourists who are riding on a holiday and work visa, earning wages at enterprises such as the ski resorts, hotels, snow gear rental stores, coffee shops and more.

Banff Upper Hotsprings

Banff Upper Hot Springs, 28 Dec, 2010.
Location - Banff Upper Hot Springs
Admission fee - $7.00
Coin locker - 1 Loonie
Swimsuit and towel rental cost extra, but we brought our own ; )

T’s time to squeeze myself into the swimsuit again. A dread, but the hot spring calls for it.

I couldn’t help but to feel extra body cautious this time round. I’m pretty sure that it is because of the 2.8 lbs that I’ve gained over the Christmas weekend with a thousand gratitude to Monica’s irresistible cooking and the constant holiday feasting.~The honey & spice coated-roasted pecans are so good!~ Else wise, the hot spring experience was a darn pamper!

The spring wasn't as impressive as the Hokaido ones featured in travel magazines that are frequented by the mountain monkeys. However, imagine your body steeped in a pool filled with 39 degrees Celsius warm, mineral rich water in the midst of the Northern cold while the clouds roll and the snowflakes melt, literally, inches above you. The steam from the spring killed the snowflakes. Furthermore, you have the the picturesque view of the Rockies across the street to indulge in all day long. I can't complain. Finally, top it off with Timmy’s hot chocolate and an old classic donut after the near 3 hours dip.

~So Revitalizing~.

Location: Banff, AB | Length of Stay: 10 days

Not at the Rockies yet - the view from the plane hours away from AB, Dec 27

The Great Canadian Rockies is an excellent hotspot for winter sports: alpine skiing, snowboarding, stuff that gives you the adrenaline rush and makes you look cool...you name it buddy. I have zero athletism and detest pretty much everything that has to do with the body in regards to physical workout, eye-muscle coordination, balance and speed; especially speed.

What on earth am I doing here?

(1) I’m visiting a roommate cum friend of mine, Jae Yong, whom with her boyfriend, In Sung, had graciously offered me accommodation during my 10 days stay here. Hence, it’d be nice to catch up with her and finally meet her better half as I’ve heard lots about him.
(2) Attempt to bond with the North and her majestic winter. (Disclaimer to Self: You've never quite gotten used to the cold in Toronto even after having lived there for 6 years. What awaits you in Banff?)
(3) When I’ve reached the point where all else that could have been done had been done, I might attempt skiing depending on my gust-O meter reading.

After (with this I also meant ‘if’) I've tried skiing, survived it and have grown bored by the 7th day - which I doubt I will - I’m sure that there must a sufficient pool of hot, international athletes with exotic accents hanging abouts and around town after coming back from hitting the slopes, ever-ready to feed the eyes of any agreeable married and unmarried lady. I’m also sure that I don’t have to wait until the seventh day to do that.

Mini Chapter with the Customer: Christmas Special

A customer arrived at the Box Office with a pre-adolescent child 8 minutes after the show-time...

Me: May I have your last name please?
Customer: Smith. [Her real name is not used]
[I started searching for her tickets in the 'S' compartment in the ticket box]
Me: And your first name?
Customer: Jane.
[Weird...No tickets under that name.]
Me: Might the tickets be purchased under a name of a friend or family member ?
Customer: What! You can't find them! Shit! I'm going to be late because you are f*cking disorganized!
[She pounded her purse on the counter surface.]
Me: (Wh-at? I'm pretty sure that you arrived late to begin with...)May I have a look at the credit card the you've purchased the tickets with.
[She tossed me her card which my supervisor grabbed to run a credit card search in our ticketing system (to locate her transaction) while I search the Master List for her name...which I still could not locate; all the while, the constant execration and purse pounding did not tire her. The computer was taking a while to run the credit card search so I wrote her a pass for emergency seats under the best judgement that it's unlikely for further ticket sales to take place at that point since the show has already started and that we could also hunt her down during the intermission if we could not locate her purchase, which would mean that she did not buy any tickets.

Turns out, she did bought the tickets and they were purchased online. Unfortunately, she inverted her fist and last name when checking out her basket items. Consequently, we had her tickets printed and filed in the 'J' compartment under the name of Smith Jane.

I don't know if customers are aware of the intensity of their abusiveness could send the customer service person, who is helping them, further into panic mood, which hinders our ability to think clearly and problem solve. In all seriousness, it has always been our preeminent pursuit to strive to be calm, level headed and collected.

That being said, I'll keep in mind for the future to search under the customer's first name when I couldn't find their tickets under their last name. Lesson learned.]

Happiness Redefine

Last week, I was browsing around the pastry section at Sobey’s and happened to stood next to an elderly gentleman who was looking at the cakes display. By elderly, I meant, he appears like a man in his seventies and walks with the support of a walking cane, his voice quivers and he seems to have came from a generation when tweed wear was still part of the pop-mass-street-culture, decades before Ralph Lauren turned it into a high fashion statement. He turned to the store attendent and said,

“Excuse me, I would like to order that cake for next Friday, the one with the blue and white balloons,” he tapped his finger at the glass of the refrigerator where the cake was sitting at.

“Just a minute, sir. The one with the balloons?”

“Yes.”

“Okay, what would you like to write on the cake?”

“Oh. Please write ‘Dear Sheila,’ and it is spelled S-H-E-I-L-A, ‘Happy 48th Anniversary, love, Art’ as in A-R-T.”

“Congratulations. Where do you want it delivered?”

“Oh. No. Thank you. My wife will find out. How about if my grandchildren pick it up for me? I thought I’d use their help to surprise my wife. This is what they look like...” He pulled out a photo of his grandkids, “This is Kevin, he’s eight, and this is Rachel, she’s fourteen. The fourteen year old will be able to take care of the cake. Do you need to make a copy of this?” The old, sweet dude had Operation Cake-Purchasing all planned out prior to his visit to the store.

“Awe, they’re cute. But we don’t need their picture, they can pick up the cake just by showing us the receipt.”

“Excellent! Thank you very much.” He smiled and seemed genuinely happy.

A small kind of bliss generated by an act of affection, as exampled by Arthur planning a surprise for his wife with the help of his grandchildren, somehow, in an extraordinary way, comes to weigh more than a university degree, having a hot boyfriend or a talent to show off and a noteworthy career than I’m desperate to erect. Who knows? Fifty years from now, they would probably be of little significance to me. However, if life turns out for the worst, then I would always remain envious of Art and Sheila (as well as a bunch of other people). Congratulations to the couple on their 48th anniversary, marriages that last as long as theirs are getting rare.


The Jelly Fish Aquarium at the Toronto Zoo, Summer 2009

Emo Venting Is Far From Over

"The harder we work, the luckier we get,” - Jon Bon Jovi.
Great concept, but the number of its proven real-life application probably mirrors the unequal distribution of opportunities and resources among North American artists; less mention the global population.

"When a person really desires something, all the universe conspires to help that person realize his dream." - Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist.
The universe is sure one bloody bias entity that plays “favorites” with people such Jon Bon Jovi.

Optimism is something that cannot not be taught to and/or influenced on especially when 'looking at the brighter side' ceased to be effective. Ever heard of 'Dry Optimism'? Nevertheless, "the first way to change your life is to change your mind," so a librarian told me today.




Addie at High Park, May 11th 2010.

It Still Snows In May

Hey guys,

Thank you so much for coming over yesterday despite the short notice, crappy weather, travel distance and pricey TTC fare. It wouldn't have been as fun and meaningful without you. It was undoubtedly one of the best, the most epic times that I've had since the new year of 2010. I hope that you enjoyed last night as much as I did and thanks again for being nothing less than awesome.Special thanks to Beth for the beautiful cake, which she had made from scratch and decorated. If it wasn't for her, there wouldn't have been a dinner+dessert kinda party at all.

With lots of love,
Siew Ling

生日礼物

我原本心已决定 - 就让过去成为过去, 而且近来的心情总算比之前平静了不少. 可是, 在我正想试着接容所谓的 '拿得起' 还有 '放得下' 的时候, 你千古 "难得" 传来的短讯又让我再次地沉没于绝望中. 我深知你永远都不会如同疼惜她那般地关护我, 而我今世来生也不会比她来得优先. 所以我不得不问你, 你这把戏儿何时已? 你何时才玩得够? 你是否不将把我逼得走头无路你就会坐立不安? 最后, 你的短讯上所说的, 我会依照你的指示去做, 算是我谢谢您的关心. 阿彌陀佛!


Garden findings: Dandelion

当青春剩下日记 乌丝就要变成白发

I've had a couple of blogs and journals since 2004, however most of them were discontinued due to reasons such as 'I've grown out of emo-venting' and 'project completed, hence there's no need to track it anymore.'

Life goes on even when we're not blogging and/or leaving our little marks of existence on Facebook. Ironically, it is these marks of existence, as microscopic and virtual as they are, that help make what we did and who we connected with a little more meaningful upon retrospection.

Needless to say, they document our trivial thoughts and mundane actions, in which each respective one is like a grain of sand that assembles the sands of time in our mortal hour glass. Perhaps by looking back at the trail marks that we had left behind with the passage of time, we can come closer to understanding ourselves a little better at a later year or age.

Consider this blog created for my future Self when there comes a time for her, when she needs to and could only find the answers by looking back into her past.