Category Archives: Friends

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So it begins…

Started my new job yesterday which was interesting to say the least…  Mostly because the guy who was supposed to be training me wasn\’t in due to the flu.  I however have become a little too accustomed to be being \”fed to the sharks\” and adapt pretty damn fast to these situations.  So I was working on the line with the owner last night which wasn\’t all that bad.  Except at first, I had no clue that he was one of the owners oops!  We got on well and rocked it out but the place was a freaking zoo at one point.  Rush from hell kicks in, were SO not prepared for it since we were short people who work during the day to make this whole prep thing happen.  All in all it was OK, it had its moments of total and utter fail but at least we got on well.

Funny enough another one of the owners (I think there\’s 5 of them) used to attend the university I work at and on the occasions that I was working in the actual cafeteria itself as opposed to the kitchen, I\’ve served him before.  So we both thought it was pretty funny that I went from serving HIM coffee, to having him sign MY cheques.  Everyone there is really cool, though.  Were all in the same relative age bracket, everyone is English which is awesome since my French is terrible at best.  So those two things alone make work suck a little bit less.

Of course there are always a few downfalls, as one would find in any kitchen.  The hours, OMFG there goes my life…  Sunday they\’re open from 2pm-1am, Monday-Wed 5pm-1am, Thursday-Sat. 5pm til 4am, yes that would be four o\’clock in the freaking morning!  Guess what shift I\’m working tonight and Saturday…  There\’s a few \”problem area\’s\” that need to be addressed but not so many to the point that I wouldn\’t want to be there unlike one place that I worked at.  So I\’ll be doing my damnedest to make that happen.  John himself said if anyone can whip that place into shape it you lol.  He is right though, years of experience do help and I have reached a point in my career that you know what\’s going to work and what isn\’t.

I have to admit though that the times that I have upstaged them thus far, they\’re pretty good about it.  Yesterday being a prime example: you work in any kitchen that has a grill and you\’ll know what I mean.  Each one has a drip pan underneath it that generally slides in and out.  Most places cover this with tinfoil because when your grilling chicken, the oil in the marinade tends to catch on fire.  However I was told that it was broken, I was like broken?  Dude its a drip tray, how on earth can you break that?  He said that its been jammed in there all day and no one could get it out.  That was until *I* came along and yanked that sucker out in all of 2 minutes.  I\’ve never seen a  bunch of boys so excited over such a  thing!

Tonight pending the exec Chef comes in, it should be interesting.  I like him, he\’s nice enough BUT he\’s also a recent graduate (class of 2008) and I also happen to be a few years older then him and he\’s a little cocky, but too much so.  Needless to say, we\’re going to be having a discussion today if he comes in.  No its not *my* kitchen, and I am OK with not being anywhere near in charge for a change but certain things just don\’t sit well with me for justifiable reasons.  Mostly I get into \”anal retentive Nazi\” mode when it comes to organization, cleanliness, food safety and efficiency.  Those are the 3 key areas that I always find need to be addressed to some degree or another.  Not that I\’m saying that my new job has a profound amount of those issues thankfully, it just needs \”the Steph touch\” 😉

Its a HUGE change from the life I have grown somewhat accustomed to and my schedule and its time constraints tend to turn people off more often then not.  Not that I can say I blame anyone for that because it takes a pretty tolerant person to date someone in this business.  The hours are insane, its stressful, becoming an alcoholic is always an issue (thankfully not for me, that\’s why I don\’t drink that much), its very demanding overall and you tend to become exceptionally bitter and jaded at best.  In any case I consign myself to the fact that I\’m getting out sooner as opposed to later.  I signed up for this life, it was my choice and like several other things I choose to do, you can either take it or leave it.  Not like it matters, since the last few dates I have been on haven\’t been all that remarkable.  I have a few ideas as to why, but mostly people automatically assume that because I work as much as I do, with the most random schedule ever that I won\’t have time for them.

WRONG…  I ALWAYS make time for those that matter.  Granted I can\’t bet here for everyone 24/7 but I sure as hell don\’t expect them to be there for me that much either.  Which makes the time you do have with them that much more precious.  It also makes dating someone who\’s in the same industry as you a hellish nightmare at best…  But its been done and if I was destined to, I\’d do it again.  Not that it matters because the last few have totally lacked the whole wow factor for lack of a better term.  I don\’t know if its one situation that I can\’t seem to let go or if I\’m just dead inside.  At this point its anyone\’s guess and there\’s only one way for me to narrow it done, but I have to nail down that one opportunity first to see.  Which very well might never present itself at this rate.

In other non work related news: I booked my ticket to go home and my annual Christmas tattoo appointment as well 🙂  Now I just need to take the time off of work.  I\’m hoping that won\’t be an issue…  I\’ll only be gone for a few days, I leave the morning of the 24th @7:30am and I have to leave Cambridge on Dec 28th @ 9:30pm to make my connection in Toronto for 12:30am the following day.  But it\’ll be nice to go home & see everyone and get my memorial tattoo for Jason as well (which in case you were wondering is booked for 3pm on the 28th YAY!).  If  your wondering what I\’m getting,  I\’m keeping a closely guarded secret.  Only one/perhaps 2 people know what I\’m getting and even Tim doesn\’t know yet.  I just said that I\’m getting a memorial piece and nothing more.  I\’m excited though!  I was going to get Gil to do it a few months ago but I thought better of it and decided to wait until I went home instead.  I need a little more time to heal and the tattoo usually helps, but in the end there\’s no point it rushing it either.

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Clearing something up…

OK first of all, I forgot to mention this a while ago so I\’m saying something about it now.  When you like someone (doesn\’t matter the gender) and  you are so socially in-adequate for a number of reasons that your not getting any…  Interrogating the person that you like by asking \”what went wrong in the last relationship(s) that you had?\” is NOT. OK. EVER.  First of all I at least happen to be smart enough to know that your just making a lame really bad attempt at trying not to be \”that guy\” as in the guy(s) I\’ve broken up with…  Everyone has a past, that\’s just the way it is.  So yes its bound to come up in conversation once in a while for whatever the reason.  Doesn\’t mean that we/they\’re not over it (because chances are we are) its just a part of our life.   That\’s just the way that it is…  However sometimes those subjects are touchy for whatever the reason and can on occasion induce fits of rage and are best left un-said.  Its one thing to be curious about the person your interested in but making them feel like they should be in an interrogation room is not.

So let\’s talk about my ex \”husband\” just to clear this up.  Not that I really feel that this is anyone\’s business per say, its not exactly a secret either.  The situation as a whole is a tad complicated and I get tired of explaining it, so from here on out if you don\’t read my blog, then I ain\’t telling you.  When I met him I still lived in Ontario and he lived here.  My past isn\’t all that \”pure and innocent\” as some people would like to believe (sorry but it is what it is and made me the person I am today).   Yes I did have one very UGLY abusive relationship among other ones that just didn\’t work out for whatever the reason.  Anyway we became fast friends & he had partially jokingly said you should move to Montreal and start over.  Little did he know I actually thought that was an amazing idea!  Cambridge has its charms but I was getting sick of the same old, same old and needed a change.  I figured it wouldn\’t have been so bad because I had a friend.

That was until we started dating, then it came down to who\’s going to live where.  He of course preferred that I moved to Mtl (who can blame him) and I wanted to get away anyway.  So in October of 2003 I came to visit him and fell in love with Montreal.  His parents were super religious (his father is a minister) and they don\’t believe in the whole sex/living together before marriage thing (this will be come relevant in a minute).  During said visit to Montreal that fall I seen the apartment that I would soon make my home and we got engaged.  So then we set the date, started making plans for my move and the wedding.  His parents posed a problem so we had to lie and say that I was staying with a friend in Lasalle (which at the time, I didn\’t even know where Lasalle was) until we got married.

I moved here on February 21st 2004 and even though I was living with him we had to maintain that ruse that  I was living with my imaginary friend and leaving all my furniture and what not with him at the apt. we had.  Got settled in, got a job and a car blah blah blah.  So in June that same year I had to go back to Ontario to tie up some loose ends and we told everyone that we \”eloped\” at city hall in Ontario.  Because we were originally planning on getting legally married in Ontario because then I could assume his last name (because I HATE mine) except we never did at that point because we couldn\’t afford it ($300.00 with the license/getting married at city hall) at that time so we figured we would a day before the actual wedding.   This way I could live with him freely (read without his parents hassling us, who didn\’t even live ON the island).

So my car needed a ton of repairs.  Caught on fire once, replaced the entire exhaust system, brakes, leaf spring blah blah blah.  Before we were due to leave to go to Ontario where we were getting married something got replaced on the car and the mechanic at Midas pointed out the ball joints on my front axle were due to go at any time and they needed to be replaced along with a few other minor things before it would be safe to make that long of a trip.  There went the $300.00 we had saved for the license and the actual \”wedding\” at city hall to make it legal.  Turns out we didn\’t have enough time anyway due to a million delays here in Montreal.

We asked his dad to preform the ceremony but he couldn\’t legally marry us in Ontario without someone from a religious order from Ontario in attendance which is why we were planning on going that route but his whole family thought we were already married (we even had the rings) and we were just \”going through the motions\” of the ceremony and having a reception.  So yes I had the dress, we had the rings and the whole nine yards, it was just never made legal.  The only \”legal\” marriage we had was strictly common law and nothing more.  So technically I was married, we just never bother making that happen on paper.  Sounds confusing?  I know, try telling/explain that a 100 times!  So in the end, we split up but I did consider him to be my husband in every sense of the word.  Why we broke up isn\’t relevant, it got ugly for a while be we have since sorted that out and even though were not best friends I no longer wish that he would get hit by a bus. We have both moved on with our lives and I\’ve been over it for a very long time.  The memories are bittersweet, just another chapter in my life story.

Since I\’ve been asked on numerous occasions for pictures since I don\’t have any posted (well duh were not together anymore)  here\’s a few to satisfy the curious:

In any case, it was one hell of a night!  Even though its said and done, people are still talking about it lol.

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Randomness!

Start my new job on Wed, have Friday off and a whole lot of crazy insane shifts to look forward to, YAY!  Went shopping today and got the most adorable red wool jacket EVER and I LOVE it!  Along with some other nifty stuff that I don\’t feel as compelled to mention.

I\’m also pondering a decsion of sorts in regards to someone…  But yet I still can\’t seem to totally make up my mind just yet but I\’m thinking if something doesn\’t happen and soon, that\’s going to be a total deal breaker.   Part of it *isn\’t* \”control-able\” due to schedule conflicts and what not but still after a while the whole \”good things come to those who wait\” tends to loose its luster.  I do give them credit for trying at least!  Yet in the same token to coin a phrase from the song (which adds a touch of irony to the situation for reasons I won\’t disclose) beautiful by the smashing pumpkins:\” And I\’m sure you know me well, as I\’m sure you don\’t.  But you just can\’t tell, who you\’ll love and who you won\’t\” .

Which you know it\’d be nice to even have a minuscule amount of say over who\’ll you\’ll like, never mind love.  Aside from the title, another line  from this song also rings true (for a few different reasons): \”Don\’t let your life wrap up around you, don\’t forget to call whenever. I\’ll be here just waiting for you, I\’ll be under your stars forever.  Neither here nor there, just right beside you.\” Carrying on with the whole sappy factor, I adore this song too: by starlight

So enough of the sappiness from me… If your all wondering what in God\’s name has gotten into me, I really have no idea either!

So moving along in other news, since I\’ve been trying to stay up super late in order to get accustomed to my new shift(s) and in doing so have been trolling the internet for something to amuse me and well needless to say, it hasn\’t dissapointed me!  I really have to give the most credit to MILA (my life is average) and thanks to David who told me about it in the first place.  Because occasionally people will post random websites on there and of course I have to go and check them out because well why not?  Along with MILA …  FML (fuck my life) has some odd bits of humor as well.  Let\’s not forget texts from last night (TFLN) which also has a few gems!

Then I discovered: Cracked (which is full of funny off beat humor), not always right (as in the customer!) hilarious if you ever worked with the public!  Thought I would share that with you all 😉

Random MSN tidbit that I happen to think is funny in regards to a certain recent situation:

Steph: \”I told my mom (left out some details *I DON\’T tell her EVERYTHING but this was just too damn funny NOT too!) and she was laughing so hard she was in tears!\”

C:\”he could have asked for a few tips, since I bet youre quite skilled in bed\”

(Why yes, as a matter of fact I am, thanks! haha)  No in case your wondering, nothing happened and no I didn\’t get any recently.

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Debunking myths, rumours & other asst\’ stuff…

So last night I stayed up a little later then usual because I was having the most random, although interesting conversation with Mike on the phone.  Which may I add (should he happen to read this) his roommate & I won a \”bet\” about the weather.  Would it snow before or after Halloween, we both said before (has to stick & stay white on the ground according to him) and well sure enough its fucking snowing!  Welcome to your first winter in Mtl Mike, your in a for a treat (Toronto ain\’t go nufin on this place!) 😉

Anyway then as I\’m about to go to bed, I get a text message at 12:07am out of nowhere that said:  \”I need you to tell me more about the HSV  thing its freaking me out\”.  HSV (Herpes simplex virus) should only raise cause for ANY type of alarm IF its

HSV-2 which is genital herpes (that sounds like a ton of fun! relationship killer) whereas

HSV-1 isn\’t so bad because its nothing more then a cold sore *ahem*

So yeah said person (they know who they are and yes they do on occasion read my blog so no need to name names) apparently isn\’t talking to me anymore because of a fucking cold sore I had two months ago.   Except said person needs to grow a pair and actually say so, I don\’t go away that easily…  But yeah OK saying you have herpes is a hell of a lot more damming/cryptic/nasty whatever then saying you have a cold sore but guess what ladies & gentleman chances are that you have the virus too and don\’t even know it! Its as common as a cold and easily spread and more often then not people come in contact with it in their infancy.  However its So flipping minor, well at least hsv-1 is, that there\’s no legitimate reason to get your panties in a knot over it.

So yes while you can in theory get genital herpes from HSV-1 its STILL only the HSV-1 strain, NOT HSV-2 which is FAR more damming then HSV-1.  Its pretty simple, you have a cold sore/fever blister outbreak, keep your lips to yourself!  My Doctor & both my dentists told me that the only way HSV-1 can spread is *IF* you actually have an open cold sore, HSV-2 well again that\’s a whole other story.  I honestly couldn\’t imagine what on earth I would do if I ended up with this (its a tad graphic) all over my genitals *shudder*!  Christ I have a fit if I have razor burn, never mind anything else!

Thankfully, on the rare occasions I actually have a cold sore( I almost never get them, I\’ve only actually ever had 3); I get uber paranoid about bacteria (well I already am, hate germs) but I kick the precautions up an extra 100 notches to make damn sure that the cold sore stays in the microscopic section of my lip and NO WHERE ELSE.    Not only that, I see my obgyn every 6 months and even though my sex life is non exsistant and has been for a while I still get my blood work done every 3 months just because I\’m paranoid cautious, aside from the fact that I have to get regular stuff checked anyway (sugar levels & blah blah blah) because of that incident in the summer of my blood pressure being sky high & what not.   So I figure if your siphoning blood out of me anyway, might as well cover all the bases and thank God I am STD free and I WILL stay that way too!

So I think that\’s just really a total cop out…  This \”incident\” occured 2 months ago and its only creeping you out now?  WTF?  Makes no sense to me, other then the one comment that they made in conjunction with me possibly being dissapointed (with what I STILL have NO idea).  Well I have some semblance of a clue I suppose based solely on an assumption due to a comment they made once a while ago.  I got news for them however, I have ways of finding things out (sneaky stalker ninja Steph) and they\’re NO where near as hideous as they may think they are.  My opinion actually such as it is, not that it matters now anyway couldn\’t be MORE opposite but whatever…  Ah sometimes I DO love the internet 😉

I am also not the only one who thinks this whole situation is ridiculous either( not only that but I expected a little more from them and thought they were smarter then that)…  Whilst gabbing gossiping/venting with a few friends on MSN, this was the \’jist of it:
C i lack words in danish, Spanish, Swedish AND English to describe how low that is lol
D: He wont talk to you because of THAT? wtf?
Steph says:
I know! OHHHH I\”M SO pissed!
C says:you should be..
Steph says: Thanks! Glad someone agrees with me!
C says:that\’s just incredible lame lol i cant believe he ignores you because of some cold sores..
Steph: I\’ve only had one in the past 5 years, likely due to the extreme stress of Jason dying, the time before that was about a month before I moved here and the time before that I was like 11
C says: damn >.<

So that being said, went on another job interview after work today.  Jason the actual manager was off somewhere so I was talking to the sous Chef and that was well \”interesting\” to say the least.  Bottom line for me on that Bistro job? Its an insult to my qualifications/bank account and my all around personal integrity as a whole.  So came home and applied for a few more that I know I\’m not over qualified for (for a change!) and I need to call Dominic as well sometime soon to see about doing a trial run in his kitchen.  It was such a  sketchy interview though!  Not only that, a lot of time has passed between Saturday and today so I have my doubts but ain\’t going to know squat unless you try.  So try I shall…  I\’m running out of time here though.  My rent ain\’t going to wait or anything else for that matter!

On a final note, my lovely friend and I have a long running inside joke about heels & fancy drinks 😉  So while doing a shoot, she was the first person I thought of (with someone else a close second) when I seen this image (well one of them anyway).