Awake!

It's after 11 pm on Sunday night and I should go to bed soon, but I wanted to blog since I haven't in a while. This weekend was very busy, but also very fun - which is the BEST possible kind of busy! On friday, I met up with Chelsey and we spent the afternoon catching up on each others' lives since we saw each other in August. For dinner, we went to a nice restaurant in Oakville for their "Taste of Oakville" festival. We chose a mediterranean place which was cozy and very delicious, and even provided leftovers for today's dinner!

That night, I hopped on a GO Train and headed to Emma's new place. I meant to only stay until yesterday but we ended up having so much fun that we extended our visit until today (which is actually quite typical, if you know us). We went to the mall, beach, lounged about at her house, got some work done and had an adventurous time getting dinner on Saturday night! I was able to meet the family she is staying with while on co-op. They are very sweet and Emma is fortunate to live with such nice people.

I also took some pictures for my photography project. Here is one overlooking the city and train tracks:

Taylor and Josh's Wedding

Yesterday I had the privilege of being a part of a very special event - my friends Taylor and Josh's wedding. I met Taylor on the very first day of high school in 2005. In grade 10, she started dating Josh and they have been together ever since. I was so excited when I heard they were engaged in February earlier this year, and even more excited that she chose me to be one of her bridesmaids!

Their wedding was a truly beautiful event! I had so much fun getting ready, dressing up and talking and laughing with Taylor and the other bridesmaids. Taylor made an absolutely gorgeous bride! The ceremony went surprisingly well for me — I thought either I would stumble down the aisle or sob through the whole thing — but I walked fine (despite the 3-inch heels) and was too excited for them to cry (although I came close)! I will never forget the look on Josh's face when he saw Taylor coming down the aisle with her father, and the smiles on their faces when they were pronounced husband and wife.

The photo shoot was a blast and the photographer was absolutely amazing! I can't wait to see them on his website when he updates it. We had a lot of fun doing different poses and watching Taylor and Josh get their pictures taken. The reception was also very fun. By that time, I still couldn't believe I was sitting at the head table — I felt so honoured to be part of their day! I'm so excited for them to begin their new stage of life together and hope they have a truly amazing honeymoon this week :)

Photo credit goes to my amazing mom and dad!

Thoughts on Week 1

After my first week of classes, I think I am in for a good semester. All of my studios — Print Media II, Photography III and Experimentation in Past and Present Techniques — seem awesome! Since they are all classes that I have chosen myself (and aren't courses I have to take), I know I will enjoy them all. It also looks like I won't have to buy too many supplies or materials on my own for them also, which makes me, and my wallet, very happy. I am already working away on my first projects in all of them and I'm excited to share them when they are done!

My UTM classes are Sociocultural and Linguistic Anthropology and Baroque Art and Architecture, which are classes I kind of have to take, so I'm not extremely excited about them, but they seem like they will be fine! I actually haven't taken Baroque yet since classes started on Tuesday and it is on Mondays.

This weekend, Paul drove down for a visit and we ended up having a great time! We explored Mississauga both on foot and in car, but not on public transit — a first! This year, Paul has his own car and it is very nice to have him drive me around! We went for a walk to enjoy the beautiful weather (especially after the cold spell we had) and ended up geocaching! There are a lot around where I live so we will have to find them before the snow arrives! We also went for a nice sushi dinner to celebrate the fact that we've been dating for 4 years. It sound like a really long time, but definitely doesn't feel like it!

#100!

Today, I woke up to go to my first day of school, but before I headed out, I checked my computer because there was something I was checking for. I checked my iStock, and as I had hoped for, I got my 100th download! This was the picture that sold:

My first day of class was really good! Besides the Sheridan strike complicating transportation, all my classes went well and I'm really excited for the upcoming term. Photo III started off with a lesson on custom white balance, something I was never able to figure out before today. I'm writing a quick post so I can go downstairs and hang out with my new roommates and catch up on how our days were, so I will leave you with another picture from iStock that I sold today, and is very appropriate for the first day of class:

PS. If you like my new blog background, check out the site www.patterncooler.com — you can pick from so many background patterns and even change the colours and scale!

Moved in

Today, my amazing parents helped move me back in to my townhouse from last year in Mississauga. I've pretty much unpacked everything and I'm ready for my first day of class tomorrow — Print Media II and Photography III. It's kind of amusing to me how my Sheridan classes take up so much of my schedule. This term, I have 18 hours of studio classes and only 5 hours of class at the university! Below is a picture of my room this year. It is basically the same as last year, but I rearranged my desk and have a new dresser. I also have two new roommates who seem very nice! I'm excited to get to know them better as the year progresses!