The only thing that I needed was to be sick on this busy week. Well, I couldn’t go to work today because I was feeling lousy, I didn’t even know if I had a fever this morning because I don’t have a thermometer. So I called in sick and called a registered nurse from Telehealth Ontario. After talking to her I ended up going to the walk-in clinic at First Canadian Place, that’s where my family doctor is, but since this time I didn’t have an appointment, I just went to the walk-in clinic. I waited for about 45 minutes (this time it wasn’t as long as some other times), I saw the doctor and she confirmed my suspicions, I have an infection of the throat: strep throat or tonsillitis, it’s ridiculous how you can get these diseases even if you’re not a kid anymore. So I went to the pharmacy at Dominion on Front and Church so that I could shop for my groceries while the prescription was being filled, and the most bizarre thing happened, my cell phone rang and it was my client from Ottawa wanting to ask me something about this really important project I’ve been working on. It was so embarrassing to let him know that I couldn’t answer his question and that I was sick and actually buying the medication. Anyway, I don’t know how I caught the infection, could have been at the hospital on Saturday. I just hope I didn’t give it to Ernie and Boyd who were sitting with me last night at the pub.

My brother is arriving tomorrow and I’m all ready with the fridge full because I don’t want to starve him. The only thing I didn’t get was milk, but that’s because I got my soy milk, if he wants real milk he can go downstairs to the convenience store and get some. I did get Cheerios for his breakfast, though.

After the corkscrew incident I finally got to formally meet my next door neighbours yesterday. I made some popcorn (from scratch, I don’t have a microwave) and I decided that I was going to give a bit to them and return the screwdriver. I knocked on their door and I could hear the woman on the phone but she was not opening. She finally heard me knocking and opened the door. She was really really nice and I gave her back the corkscrew with the bag of popcorn. She asked to see my apartment so we went to see it. They were really nice and we exchanged telephone numbers.

I had to go to work today, on a Sunday. It is just depressing and I don’t even get paid the extra hours. I’m just expected to show up if needed. Tomorrow I have to go to Mississauga for some meetings and will be back in the office by mid-afternoon . I am so busy it is ridiculous, and it is not as if we can just hire someone, the work that I have to do I have to do personally, so there’s not really much that can help me. My brother arrives on Thursday for a couple of weeks stay and I am worried that I won’t be able to pay enough attention to him because I’ll be so busy. Good thing he already made plans with Christian to go visit him in London next weekend.

At least I had a nice Saturday, after going to the hospital I went for dinner to The Keg with Jason, I had prime rib and it was very good.

Sometimes there are some advantages of living in a really small building with really small apartments. I realized it yesterday, the first time since I moved into my new condo that I actually missed my old building.

I wanted to open a bottle of wine and I have an old waiter-style corkscrew that I’ve used the last couple of times. The thing is I don’t drink a lot of wine, I don’t even have glasses, so I never bought a real corkscrew. Apparently wine companies are starting to make corks out of rubber and not real cork, Charlene just told me that it is because the cork tree is getting extinct. So my dodgy corkscrew did not work with this modern cork. I was not being able to put it out.

The first thing I thought was to ask the neighbours if I could borrow a corkscrew. But here is the tricky part about that: even though I live in a building with 495 apartments, I have not met any of the neighbours. I think the size of the building might be a factor to that. So I have only seen my next door neighbour once while she was leaving in the morning and she introduced herself and told me to come by anytime. I thought I’d knock on her door with the bottle of wine, have it opened and that’s it, after all any normal person has a corkscrew in their house, even me, but of course with my luck, mine is a piece of crap.

Anyway, I went and knocked on the door, the dog barked and I heard noise inside. Finally the husband opens the door but just a little crack. I could look inside and it was all dark. He was wearing a robe and looked kind of funny. I didn’t think they would be sleeping since it was 6:30 in the afternoon. But I am sure I interrupted something. The robe-wearing and dim lights were a sure sign of it. Never opening the door completely, he came back with the corkscrew and gave it to me. Since I was carrying the wine bottle, I offered to open it right there on the corridor and give it back immediately, but he told me to give it back when I was done (did he mean in two minutes? Seven? I’ll never know).

So later last night (at about 8:30) I went back next door and knocked to give it back but they did not open the door. Now I have it in my apartment and I don’t know what to do, Charlene says: keep it!, my mom says: give it back with a box of chocolates or something.

After the whole ordeal, I called Sheryl, my old neighbour, to tell her how much I missed her. If I had been in my old building she would not have just lent me the corkscrew, she would probably have given me a fresh bottle of wine to drink by myself. Anyway she said they were probably having sex, and I guess she’s right. People have sex at the oddest hours. Yes ladies and gentlemen, I am pretty sure that I interrupted my neighbours while they were having sex. How embarrassing!

Of course today I am going to Williams Sonoma to get a brand new corkscrew for myself. It’s the last time something like this happens.

The truth is I will do almost anything to have an excuse not to go to the gym, I promise I was going to go yesterday, I was annoyed after work and I thought the best way to let off some steam would be to sweat it out, I swear I was going to do it, but something came up and I went on a last minute date. The thing is, I will probably never go on a last minute date, but it was either that or going to the gym, and although I also planned on using the hot tub for a while (OK, I mainly planned on going to the jacuzzi and was going to pass through the gym really quickly), anyway, I went on this last-minute date.

So Zoom on King St. East has disappeared and now there is this place called Beerbistro, and that’s where I went last night. It was all right and I had a very good time on my date. I only had an order of “frites” and they were good (though it’s better when you are not with a health-conscious guy showing yourself as what everybody else knows you are, a pig -OK, a little piggy, I’m not that bad). The Bier Markt is way better and has a cooler atmosphere, Zoom used to be very stuffy and the Beerbistro is also like that.

Yesterday after work I went to the Flatiron and it was a lot of fun. Danman was there but just leaving, Paco was playing, Tara and Peter and Bull and Jaspr. I played the one hour Super Countdown game and by the 28th question I was trailing Paco on second place by a couple of hundred points. The 29th question was so easy for me, it was “What gameshow features Contestants Row?” COME ON!! I’ve been watching it ALL MY LIFE! So I pressed the number for The Price Is Right of course and Tara and Peter looked at Paco’s board and he had it wrong. So I ended up being on first place with one last question to go. We were all so excited. The last question was about the British Prime Minister in 1955 and since Jaspr is British he knew it and told me and I ended up winning! Everybody at the bar clapped and I got a free beer from Bull.

Later in the evening, I played the showbiz game and ended up being SEVENTH in the WHOLE NTN network (which includes the USA and Canada). It was so exciting to finally make it to the top 20 with my name on that list and everything.

I had a great time and it helped me forget that I was a little depressed since today is the exact second anniversary of the day I arrived in Canada and I have nothing to do at all. I was going to go out with this guy but he cancelled on me, so all my friends have plans made and I will probably will end up going again to the Flatiron. I always have a good time when I go there, but I was looking forward to doing something special to celebrate, even if it is just a date and it doesn’t mean much. The important date is the third anniversary.

I’m going to the hospital tomorrow, they called me to see if I could volunteer on Sunday this week instead of Saturday. It’s fine with me.

So I ended up ordering Japanese food, I was in the mood for sushi. But the delivery place makes you order 25 dollars to deliver. I decided to order tomorrow’s lunch as well, since I don’t think I am going to eat the whole thing. I couldn’t understand what the Japanese guy was saying on the phone when he asked if I was going to pay with cash or credit card, but I didn’t want to sound rude, so I just waited and tried to think what he could be asking me. It all worked out fine.

I am so tired it is just ridiculous. I just came home because I had a meeting at the end of the day. And now there is nothing in my fridge and it is too late to go to the supermarket and I am just exhausted. I think I am going to order either Swiss Chalet or sushi. I’m not sure yet. Thank god that tomorrow’s a Friday. I might go to the Flatiron just to celebrate.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day, everyone! Had green beer for lunch!

I was sick again last night. I hadn’t felt that bad since about 4 years ago when I was in the hospital just out of surgery and I remember that my cousin Vanessa was there and I just threw up like crazy, and I hadn’t eaten anything. It was a bit similar as last night. I hadn’t eaten anything and I felt so so bad. It’s that acid reflux/hiatal hernia thing, I am sure. I was out having such a great time and had to come back to my place because I almost couldn’t walk. I’m feeling fine now.

Today me and Clarissa are going to the St. Patrick’s Day Parade and later we’re going to the Peel Pub for a couple of cold ones. It shall be fun.