free tylenol and runaway oranges.

all of those months of flashing my optimum card at shoppers has finally paid off!! i went in to pick up a bottle of tylenol, headed to the cash, and the lady asked if i wanted to pay with my points. i didn't know i could! so i did - why not? i walked out of there ten dollars richer than i thought. feels good!

then we were sitting in the parking lot of whole foods, waiting for my brother to finish work. we sat near the entrance/exit to the store, and i was just looking at people going in and out. i saw this man, exiting the store - his cart filled with shopping bags, on both the lower and upper level. as he rolled toward the second door, his oranges started rolling out of the bag on the bottom level and onto the floor - he had no idea, then as he turned his cart to park it, he saw his produce on the ground! he bent down to pick them up and return them to their rightful place. one had rolled a little farther away, and this lady, upon exiting the store looked down and saw the orange. she promptly picked it up and STARTED PEELING IT! she did not even turn around to see perhaps where this mystery orange had come from, she obviously did not care that it was just there on the ground - i mean, she had NO idea how long it was there for!! my parents and i just stared as this woman just walked away eating this stolen fruit, no guilt evidenced on her face! the man had no idea that she was eating his orange. he went along his way, content that he had picked up all of his runaway oranges.

man, the things you observe. they are too much! but we got a good laugh out of the whole thing. a nice way to perk up an otherwise gloomy and rainy day.

christmas eve at 966 inverhouse

the last few days have been a blur of shopping malls, supermarkets, starbucks, polish sausages, dental appointments, blasts from the past, music, bookstores, watching skating at city hall, new cd's, impacted wisdom teeth, table settings, cooking, 'what not to wear' and i love every minute. there' s so much more stuff too, but i just can't remember it all.

i am in the midst of helping mom with christmas preparations - i type this as i melt some butter in the microwave. multitasking at it's best...? ah ha, i hear the dinging of the microwave. ogt to jet!

merry christmas!!

vacation thinking time

i am sitting here, eating a small plate filled with baked goodness, and drinking a glass of milk in a festive glass decorated with candy canes. the kids choir at church sang a song on sunday called 'christmas is no time do diet' - an amusing song, that i apparently have taken to heart, hahaha. not that i diet - i don't believe in diets, just eating healthy and everything in moderation - but that school of thought has been tossed out over the holidays (along with any other 'school' related thoughts..haha). well, why not enjoy it?

in the midst of all this celebration and festvities, there are SO many things to be thinking about this holiday - especially concerning the summer, and next year. with only one more semester left before the completion of my bachelors, there are so many open ended questions -what am i doing next year? (that's the BIG one) where am i applying? what am i doing this summer? and then on top of all of that, there's the notion of moving back home (which in itself is not a bad thing, it will just take some getting used to). i believe i have answers to some of those questions - although nothing is set in stone, there are certain paths i would like to follow, should God open those doors.

what am i going to do next year? well, i would LOVE to get into the 2 year baccalaureate urban planning program at ryerson. that is my primary goal - to be an urban planner.

where am i applying? ryerson, of course. but then, perhaps some colleges just as a fall back...

what's the plan for this summer? i am considering going on the Navs mission trip to ecuador this spring. two weeks in guayaquil helping to build a camp for young children, while building relationships with people in the community and sharing Christ with them. i'm also thinking about doing the j'explore program -the bursary program where you go to a french speaking town for five weeks and learn the language. i know a few people who have done it and say it's a great experience. the only cost to participants is travel to the destination. along with all these ideas, we are definitely moving next summer. this involves packing up the house again, and moving (hopefully for the last time) into our new townhouse on the other side of oakville.

all of these things, i would love to have happen. but all i can do really is apply, and pray. praying and trusting God to direct my future is the only way that i will be happy. no matter what paths He chooses for me, i know that He's put me there for a reason. i would love to be at ryerson next year, i'd love to go to ecuador - but i've just got to be patient and wait for His leading.

well, i guess i've spilled enough on here for now - this is what happens when i have free time on my hands: i think :) it's a great pastime - go ahead, do it. you'll be glad you did...

i think it's christmas..oh wait, it is!

chocolate covered strawberries [check]
homemade hummus [check]
homemade shortbread [check]
apple cider and cranberry punch [check]
fruitcake [check]
mini h'ordeurves [check]

yep, it's christmas time at the ramcharan household.

- home -

the demands of academia have subsided for a short three week hiatus, and i have escaped my tertiary institution's hometown for said weeks. i arrived home yesterday evening - definitely thrilled to be back in the gta for a while. i enjoyed the benefits of having a television, and will avail myself of its programs in a moment from now. there is no way i'd miss watching 'home alone' during the holidays. no way!

today was pretty good - we went to the mall and did a little shopping. they say today is the busiest shopping weekend of the year, but somehow i felt the mall population did not reflect such prediction. perhaps i was in the wrong mall :) oh, and - i got a haircut today. surprised? i'm not! i agree, it did need a trim, so i didn't mind cutting it - although normally, when the suggestion is brought up, i do try to resist.

anyways, i hear the kettle boiling, and i am off to enjoy some 'awake' tea. it's really good, i recommend it. catch ya on the flipside.

posted here are some pictures from the birthday shindig at shoeless last week saturday! it was a great time :)

guests at the fabulous affair 

cutting the cake - harder than you'd think [it was an ice cream cake! mmm] 

the birthday girls - making a wish 

cheese lover's heaven

i have just returned from a wine and cheese gathering at jasmine's house, where five of us girls enjoyed chevre, gouda, guiness cheese, cheddar and brie with crackers, baguette, apple pie and apple slices. it was a wonderful affair with diana krall and dim lighting to contribute to the mature atmosphere. the cheeses were absoloutely scrumptious - a true cheese lover's heaven. we will do this again. one more semester left in which to do it. it will be fabulous.

we're gonna party CUZ it's my bday!

it's all OVER! essays, tests, take home exams - all done and a thing of my past! man it feels so good. yesterday after i emailed my take home to my prof, i went out for bubble tea with bren and michelle, then we got a pizza, went back to their house, watched napoleon dynamite, then played with makeup. it was a fantastic evening/night i must say - quite carefree and relaxing. today is slated to be just as good - so far, the plan is to wait around until the postman comes so i can collect a package. then later tonight, some of us are headed out for wings at shoeless, then to see 'rent'. i am looking forward to it! i think i will spend today doing things i don't ever get a chance to do...playin the keys, guitar, pleasure reading...i'm looking forward to it.

thanks to all the people who've passed on birthday greetings today - they are much appreciated :)

we're gonna party like it's your birthday

i could not have asked for a better day. last night was the highly anticipated birthday celebration of jasmine and i, and it was fantastic! we reserved the upper room at shoeless - the party started at 6:30 with people making their way in as time went along. we enjoyed wonderful company, great conversation and yummy food (i highly recommend the buffalo chicken fingers and lattice fries- SO worth it). jasmine and i were sung to as the servers brought up a cake, courtesy of my crew from first year. after dinner we availed ourselves of the games around us - pool, foosball and air hockey. probably the most intense game of foosball was played last night, complete with victory dances and pseudo trash talk :) the party went on for quite some time, people only started to leave at about 9:30/10ish, but there were some of us who hung around until we thought we should just move the party elsewhere. so we decided to rent a movie - madagascar - and watch it at rob's house. all in all, it was a fabulous night - i had a wonderful time, so thanks to all who came out!

i'll post some pictures as soon as i get them :)

sigh of relief heard around the world

congratulations - we survived. three weeks later, i can proudly display:

3/3 papers
2/2 presentations
1/1 in class test

all done baby!! today, i handed in my final term paper, and did a presentation about my paper - both went well. the completion of the semester was marked by a mini celebration at the new starbucks - esther, ricky and myself treated ourselves to delicious lattes and enjoyed sitting around, just chatting, with no overly pressing assignments. this semester has been, i'd say, one of the best. classes were fun, interesting, we did well, we were on top of things - i would dare to say that for some of us, we've finally hit our stride. ['we' refers to my fellow geography crew - ricky, eshter, michelle] all in all, a fabulous semester.

tomorrow the party will continue as we get together to celebrate jasmine's bday (dec 1st) and my bday (dec 6th) - i haven't had time to get excited, but i am starting to feel it...! for those of you who won't be there, or can't make it, i'll try to post some pics so you can see what you missed ;)

as for the rest of the night, i do believe i will start to work on my take home exam. let the good times roll.