Random

I went into Toronto today to take care of school stuff as well as meet up with my good friend Al for lunch. After carpooling with Mel B and reading in a parking lot to wait for traffic to die down, I arrive at school. On the list:

Return 2 books
Pay for my health insurance
Get the 411 on my incomplete transcript

The first 2 are relatively self explanatory, so I'll jump to the 3rd item on my agenda. The current student visa I have expires at the end of December, so in order for me to complete my studies, I need to submit an application to extend my visa. One of the piece of information I need to submit is a transcript from my academic institution, which I had requested a week ago. This past Tuesday, I was made aware that I had 4 classes that did not yet have grades submitted, to which the registrar's office has deemed an unacceptable transcript to release. When I arrive at school today, imagine my surprise when I'm informed that I do not have 4 courses without grades, but 8 gradeless courses. To uphold a high standard of integrity, part of this dilemma must rest on my shoulders, for it was not my professors who were such procrastinators to allow 26 assignments to pile up, but something of my own doing. Because of this, I must take partial responsibility. Regardless, I still need a complete transcript to submit to the Canadian government in order for my student visa to be renewed. If this doesn't happen, then I think it will be adios Canada, and hello USA, and no diploma to show for my "hard work".

---------------------------------

I'm going to Detroit tomorrow with Natasha and Jen. I'm really looking forward to going home and see my parents and dog, and really glad that these two fine ladies were brave enough to come along. On the agenda:

Food
Fun
Farts

Actually, I don't have anything specific planned, which is a huge departure from how I usually plan trips. I'm just planning on introducing Jen and Natasha to my home town, my parents, hopefully my cousins, and to the street corner where I sold my first bag of weed.

Just kidding on the weed...


...Or am I?

---------------------------------

I'm doing something this Sunday that I've never ever done before in my life, and I'm scared out of my wits. I'm usually pretty good with new situations and experiences, but what I'll be doing is something that will require me to strip away many of the walls and security that I've grown accustomed to hiding behind and letting my flaws and insecurities to be in plain view for all to see. Sometimes authenticity is easier said than done.

---------------------------------

I had thawed a tube of ground beef in hopes of making some sort of cow concoction, but had to save my experiment for another day because THE KITCHEN SINK IS GONE!!!!!!!!! My landlord has been on a overhauling kick this past week and installed new cabinets, ripped out the old ones, and took out the old sink and is in the process of installing a new one. Although this is a good thing, I've been without a kitchen sink for a little over a week now, and haven't been able to cook anything except toast and boil hot water for my coffee. Needless to say, my lack of nutritious eats is being reflected in my rock hard poos, and I am not a happy camper.

---------------------------------

There's a new Greek restaurant that has opened up right around the corner from me. It's called the Greek House, and I've been hoping to try it out. Well, today was that day, and let me say, it's not what I expected. First off, I didn't even eat anything, because for me to do so, I would need to apply for a loan in order to afford their prices. Most every entree was over $20, and they didn't have my favorite Greek dish: Roasted Lamb. I'm hoping to go to the Detroit Greektown to satisfy my Greek food craving, because it has been thwarted twice this week: Once on Thursday, and again today.

---------------------------------

Let me touch on how the search for Greek cuisine on Thursday was foiled. Pernell and I were out picking up a movie, a child called Jake, and a woman called Margie. After the first stop at Blockbuster, I was talking about the aforementioned Greek restaurant I wanted to try, to which Pernell replied with a passionate explanation of how he loves Greek food and how we had to get some now. We tried stopping at the Greek restaurant, but it wasn't open, which only sent our craving for Greek food into hyperdrive. After picking up Jake and Margie, we continue our search for Greek food. We were under the impression that there was a Greek restaurant next to the Williams coffee pub in Westdale, so we drive out there, but soon discover that it no longer exists and has been replaced with some other establishment that something that's not Souvlaki and Gyros. Upon this discovery, Pernell and I begin to curse under our breath, which makes the need for Greek food an even higher priority for the day. We drive around for another 15-20 minutes, but don't find anything. So we drive back to the Greek House and see if it was open, as it was now closer to lunchtime. No dice. (FYI, I learned today that they're not open for lunch. Their hours are 5pm - 10pm) During the second trip back to the Greek House, Pernell says that there's a Greek restaurant on Upper James, but why would we want to drive all the way up there if we could find a Greek restaurant downtown?
(Oh, before I continue, I must add that all the while, Margie had to pee, so every now and then, I heard a voice from the back seat say 'I Need To Pee', and feel a pair of hands reach around the headrest and begin shaking it profusely.)

Anyways, back to the story.

After realizing that we weren't going to get any Greek food downtown, we submit to the cravings and drive up the mountain to find some Greek food on Upper James. Guess what? We didn't find any. By this time, my stomach was grumbling and beginning to eat itself, so we buckled and ended up feasting on cuisine from my motherland: Mexican food.

The moral of the story? I don't know, but what I do know is this: Where's the flippin' Greek restaurants downtown?!?!?!?!

---------------------------------

And finally, I have found what I've been looking for. Over the last couple months, I've been hearing this one song being played, but I didn't know the artist or name of the song. The first time I heard it was at Mars Hill, and it was played by the band as the "walk in" music. The second time I heard it was while I was browsing at an American Eagle store in Michigan. For the longest time, I've been keeping an ear to the radio and perusing the iTunes database in search of this song, but no dice, until last night. I found myself checking out American Eagle's website and saw that they had a media player. I thought to myself:

"Hmmm...maybe they've got that song on there."

After about 20 minutes of going from song to song, my ears were tickled by a familiar beat and riff. I listened a bit longer, and with as much excitement as I could muster, I lifted my hands in celebration and bellowed the word 'BOOYAH!!!!' for all the world to hear.

I had found the song. The mystery has been uncovered, and now I can sleep.

What song is it, you ask? It's a song called 'Steady as She Goes' by The Raconteurs. Not only did I learn the name of the band and song, I also learned that the lead singer is none other than Jack White from The White Stripes. I love this song, and in a span of 24 hours, I've already listened to it 20 times.

Can you say 'OCD'?