What a long week...

Just as I started to feel settled in, things just went off the wall. Monday, I was informed that my uncle, all of a sudden, got sick and was sent to the hospital. My mom and the rest of us were worried, but our worries came to an abrupt end when, sadly, on Tuesday, he passed away. My uncle was only 73, although he had bad hips all his life and was recently confined to a wheelchair. I hadn't seen him since before I left for Australia, and was never that close since he lived in Toronto with his family, but nonetheless, I was sadenned by his loss.

It was oubvious that we would all go to the funeral in Toronto, the only problem being that our bathrooms were being renovated. My mom was worried to leave the contractors alone in the house so orginally she had asked me to stay home. I was upset because I wanted to go and pay my respect like everyone else. Thankfully, we got a cousin of ours to stay at our house for a few day.

Wednesday morning, I got up early and took a shower in preparation to leave for Toronto. As I come out of the shower, I start drying my hair and then I hear 'clink'. I look down and see my eyebrow piercing lying on the floor. The end that kept it in place was nowhere to be seen and most likely was washed down the shower drain. I wanted to put it back in but knew it wouldn't stay without the end. Normally I would have rushed to a piercing studio but since we were on our way to Toronto, I just didn't have the time. My mom never liked it to begin with and since she was mournign, I figured I'd save the trouble of arguing with her and just accept that it's gone. I told my mom I guess it was meant to happen since I had it on my eyebrow for 8 months and I never had a problem of it coming off. in any case, although I thought the ring made me look cool, I KNOW I'm cool with or with out it (haha!).

Wednesday afternoon we got to Toronto. Since we were 4 people (my brother and my parents and I), there was not enough room for all of us at one of the places we were offered to stay at (on a side note EVERY hotel in Toronto was full for some film festival), I ended up at my brother Mark's wit his wife, Connie and their baby Charles, and the rest of us were at my aunt and uncles.

The whole week was full of mixed reactions. On one hand everyone was sad that my uncle passed away, but on the other hand I never saw my nephew before, and my mom felt much better when she got to hold him and see him as well. Also, almost all the family that was there at the funeral and the shiva house (the place appointed for the mourners to mourns and have people com eby to give their condolences) are family I hardly see since they all live in Toronto. In fact the last time I saw most of them was right before I went to Australia for my other uncle's funeral (unfortunately before I went to OZ, my mom's brother passed away and just now my mom's other brother passed away - she only had 2 brothers, no sisters).

So for the past few days, we spent most of our time at my cousins house, either praying, eating or just talking about whatever to others.

The last two nights when the tension was easing, I went to see two movies, Flightplan and Corpse Bride. Corpse Bride is quite fun and I enjoyed it although it's short (about 1 hour, 20 min). DO NOT SEE FLIGHTPLAN! REPEAT DO NOT SEE FLIGHTPLAN! Three quarters of the movie is about Jodie Foster looking for her duaghter on the plane. Then everyone convinces her she's crazy and she starts to belive she may have made up the fact her daughter was alive (since her husband had died and she was travelling to the states from berlin in the first place to bring his body over in a coffin). Then, she realizes she's NOT crazy and spends the rest of the filming STILL looking for her daughter. Did I mention the WHOLE movie takes place on a plane?!?! Finally RIGHT near the end the plot twist emerges, she saves the day and all is well in Narnia!

Anyways, I'm home now. It was a crazy week since I had planned to go to Toronto at a later time and I was still getting used to the fact of being in Montreal as opposed to Australia. Now I'm tring to get back into things again. This week I hope to start and finish my photo album! Also, I want to start looking for schools. Anyone know any good schools in MOntreal for Graphic Design??? (or somethign similar?)