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Fourth Post: Goodbyes

I’ve heard it said many times before by countless famous singers, poets, and advice givers everywhere that it is not wise to raise one’s expectations too high, for fear of disappointment. Dating a new guy? Don’t expect him to be the one, just in case he breaks up with you. Job interview coming up? Don’t expect to be hired, just in case you don’t get it. To put it simply, expect the worst. I know that this sounds pessimistic, but I actually agree with this idea. I think it sort of keeps us humble. 

So before moving into my new place last August, my expectations about coming to Ottawa were low-medium in terms of my overall expected enjoyment. Just in case it did happen, I prepared myself for 8 potential months of being a loner and hating my job, so that any disappointment wouldn’t be a surprise. However, within a couple weeks of work, these fears were pushed to the back of my mind, and within a month, were forgotten. I realized early on in the term that I had been very blessed to not only be directly working with other coops, but to find great friends in them as well. It was them that made the typically boring, 9-5 suburb life so much fun. Four months have never flown by so fast! 

It’s honestly crazy how quickly you can get to know a group of people if you spend enough time with them. For me, my favourite days of the semester ended up being the ones spent at work, staying past the time when everyone else went home, playing cards with coworkers, working out together in the gym, or just staying, sharing stories and talking about movies. I know for a fact that the first few weeks back next month in January will be rough without those same after work activities, as a new set of coops arrive for the Spring term. Even now that I’m home in Surrey, my brain is still stuck in Ottawa, thinking about my friends there and what my next semester will be like. This time though, I’m more concerned that my next semester won’t measure up to the fun that this past semester has been, which is just as nerve-wracking as before. 

But at least now, I know what to expect. That fear that this would all be a flop is gone and I’ve got many awesome memories to hold on to. I’m so thankful for the new experience gained and for each new friend. I’ve been so blessed. 

So I guess that’s it for now and for this year as well! I’ll be resuming posting in the new year as a brand new chapter begins. So thank you for reading! I hope you have a Merry Christmas dear reader, and a new year filled with blessings as well. For a lil visual, here’s a picture of the Nokia gang at our recent Christmas party. Gonna miss em :’) 

Thanks again for reading and God bless!

Angela 

#AngelaExploresOT

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Third Post: Survival guide

     Today is November 19, 2017. I’m currently sitting in a Tim Hortons/Wendys, viciously drinking a hot cup of coffee while tapping my feet up and down in order to warm up from the 20 minute walk it took me to get here. It’s 4:50 pm, the sun has already set, and I guess it’s pretty safe to say that winter is here. Last night was our first snowfall here in Ottawa (yay!!), but despite all the winter horror stories that I’ve been hearing since I arrived here in late August, it only left a few centimetres and not half a foot like I was expecting. Still though, a few centimetres of snow and a couple gusts of wind were enough to make my skin tingle, my nose run, and make me regret not staying at home where there is also coffee, warmth, and wifi. Silly me. 

     But even during this short trip to the Tim Hortons/Wendys, I found that there was a small lesson (of many others that I will talk about later) for me to learn, in this case: wear thicker pants. That, or consider taking the bus when it’s windy and -2 degrees outside. But it’s alright, I’ll know better for next time. 

     This got me thinking though about how much I’ve learned while being away, so I thought I’d compile a little list. Some things will be more general, cooking tips, personal responsibility tips, etc, and others will be more Ottawa-specific. All will be from personal experience. Let’s start with general though. (I’m assuming that out of my small readership, there won’t be many who’ll actually need Ottawa-specific facts. To be honest that section is more for my own fun so I can roast Ottawa in the name of education LOL) 

Okay, let’s begin!     

General tips, dos, don’ts, and lessons learned

1. Having a car is a blessing which should not be taken for granted. Besides my family, friends, and the abundant supply of sushi that there is back home, driving is what I miss the most 

2. Grocery shopping should be done often and in small amounts so as to not completely destroy your shoulders when carrying groceries home, lamenting about the 6 minute drive it would’ve taken you to get home instead of the 20 minute walk (again, a car is a blessing)

3. Mold should be dealt with IMMEDIATELY. I hate mold, as I’m sure most people do, and I avoid it at almost all costs (shoutout to my dad who usually deals with it for me). I somehow found mold growing on a block of cheese that I bought (yuck) and being a real mature adult, I picked up the cheese, flipped it over so that I couldn’t see the mold, and continued with my day, thinking that I had just solved the problem. To keep the story short though, I threw the cheese out a week later, $15 dollars poorer but perhaps less naive about cheese x mold growth patterns

4. Pay attention during the end of each month because you know what sucks? Forgetting to load your bus pass and being that embarrassed person whose pass gets declined with a whole line of people waiting in the cold behind you, while you try to charm the bus driver into a free ride ��\_(ツ)_/¯

Ottawa-specific tips, dos, don’ts, and lessons learned

1. First things first: the busses here are always late. This is not an exaggeration. They are legitimately, never on time, so if you think you’re running late to the bus, don’t worry cause you’re probably not. They do vary in lateness; sometimes a bus will be four minutes late, sometimes it’s 20. Either way, it’s uncool. I think I’ve taken a total of five busses in 3 months, maybe, that came early or on time. It is a rare occurrence and surprisingly makes me miss Translink busses (which is saying something) 

2. The suburbs of Ottawa don’t have too much going on in terms of food. Well, they don’t have much going on in general (sorry Kanata!!), so if you get a chance to go downtown, get a meal you love to eat and then get another to take home with you for later. To paint a picture for you, the closest mall to where I live is called Hazeldean Mall. Originally I was hopeful that there was a mall close by, but was really disappointed after visiting. My manager has even referred to it as the most useless mall around. To be honest I kind of agree, excluding the attached grocery store which is decent but not great (sorry Hazeldean!!)

3. Everything here is pretty spread out. On Google Maps things tend to look closer than they are so don’t be fooled!! After three months of living here, I’ve found it pretty clear that Ottawa and its suburbs were designed for people who have cars (excluding downtown Ottawa, which is actually walkable and not bad for transit). If you’re not convinced, right across from my house is a never ending field of wheat in one direction, and a never ending field of wheat in the other direction, which is pretty typical for a lot of the area (I will follow up with photo evidence if necessary)    

4. Wear two pairs of socks!! Despite the lack of snow, it has gotten super cold here. Last week reached a low of -10, which Surrey hardly ever gets even in the peak of winter. This gave my toes an experience of cold that I have never felt before and don’t wish to feel again. 

     Okay, so I’ll end the list there cause this post is getting a little long (thank you for reading this far!). I know for a fact that there are many more things that I’ll get to add to this list in the six more months that I have left, which I am looking forward to. Despite all these things though, the fun that I’ve had here has been worth the stress of the busses and the cold temperatures. The people that I’ve met are so fun to be around, that I find myself wishing this semester could even be a little bit longer :’) Anyways, that’s all I’ve got for now. Thanks for taking the time to hear what I’ve been thinking about. I hope this haphazard list was benefitial to you in some way, even if it just made you laugh a little. Wishing you a good rest of November and an awesome Christmas-prep season <3 

     For a lil visual, here’s a pic of me at the airport at 2am, arriving in Ottawa for the first time last August. Oh, the things that I didn’t know��😜

Thanks again for reading and God bless!

Angela

#AngelaExploresOT

[angelatakesottawa-blog]

Second Post: Thanksgiving weekend

     A few years ago in 2008 or 2009, my family had recently moved into our new house and were experiencing one of our first Thanksgivings in a new place. As was typical, my family was over to celebrate with us, everyone doing their part to help prepare different components of the big meal. I remember this year in particular because we were changing it up and having salmon instead of turkey, (which I was a little salty about because turkey was my jam), and also because of an accident that happened in the kitchen which was messy at the time, but is pretty hilarious to look back at now. 

     That day, my aunt was in charge of preparing the salmon for us, while my mom was busy preparing a few other things, so it simply went unnoticed when my aunt preheated the oven to 350 degrees while there were still plastic containers inside, unbeknown to her. A little while into the hectic preparation process (which consisted of everyone running around the kitchen, shouting things like “have you seen the butter??” or “we don’t have enough wine glasses!!” or even “when are we gonna eat I’m hungryyyy”), I noticed something in the oven while grabbing a pair of scissors for my mom. At the bottom of the oven, there was this weird, green, puddle-like thing that I glanced at but didn’t think about too much, as I assumed it was some kind of exotic dessert that my mom was trying to make, as she often does. Soon though, someone noticed that something was up and all of us realized that

a) my mom needed to buy a new cooking basin

b) ovens should always be emptied a few hours before the cooking begins (especially on holidays), and

c) we would be eating dinner a little later than normal that year because of melted-basin clean-up related issues. 

     I found myself thinking about this Thanksgiving today, mainly because it is a complete contrast to what I’m doing this year. My family back home is without a doubt having a Thanksgiving similar to the one I’ve just described (without any melted cooking utensils ofc, we learned our lesson that year), but I am currently in my house by myself, and will maybe watch that holiday episode of The Office to celebrate. For me, this year’s Thanksgiving is quiet and relaxed and it’s definitely different to all the others I’ve had, but I’m not really upset about it though. I’ve been lucky enough to experience many awesome Thanksgivings with family and will be able to again next year when I’m home. That’s what I’ve been telling my mom for the past couple weeks every time she’s tried to book a flight for me despite the insane Thanksgiving weekend prices. Missing a turkey dinner one year won’t hurt. If anything, it’s making me thankful for that family time that’s so important, and also that I have a mom who is an awesome cook. I’ve had to cook a lot lately and it’s dawning on me that I have a lot to learn in the kitchen. 

     Anyways, just like any other day or holiday, I remain thankful for what I have. On my worst day, I’m still blessed with more than I deserve. I get to be on this adventure! And I won’t even be alone all weekend; some coworkers and I who are also from out of town are celebrating tomorrow with “friendsgiving”, which I’m looking forward to. I could never run out of things to be thankful for :) 

     So I guess that’s all for now. Thank you dear reader, for taking the time out of your day to hear my thoughts. I’m wishing you an awesome weekend, and hopefully an even better month of October. Have another serving of turkey for me! Here’s a lil picture of my parents and I for a visual, talking about our weekend plans over morning/afternoon coffee. Unfortunately, I don’t have a picture of the green mess that happened in 2008, or I would’ve included that for sure 😜

     Thanks again for reading and God bless!

     Angela

#AngelaExploresOT   

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First Post: Week 1

     Picture this: it is 8:30am on a rainy Thursday morning. You’re sitting on a bus. It is typical in size, volume, and smell (which is ofc, not amazing), and it takes you through a winding road and an impressively clean complex of high tech, high quality, high pressure, companies. It is 8:34. You exit the bus, enter a daunting building, and arrive at your designated cubicle. 

     As you do, a man whips by you with a tray of coffee cups, calling to a colleague in distressed French. Something about an upcoming deadline and an unfortunate lack of whipped cream at the coffee shop (but you can’t know for sure as you do not really speak French). You make a personal note to make the effort to get a French-English dictionary on your way home, but knowing yourself, you probably won’t and will pick up something a little more in line with your priorities. For example, ice cream. A short, frowning, woman dashes past you as well, focusing simply and only on a booklet in front of her, absorbing the details of the words while on her way to a new destination. All around you is chaos, noise, the smell of coffee, computer talk that you don’t understand, regular employees observing you (realizing that you're a student who fits in here, but doesn’t, but does), and a few other students that look as lost as you do. 

Okay. 

     So that was hectic! Interesting, intriguing, a frenzy of emotions, aaand that was also not what happened to me this week. Yup. That was all me right there, exercising my imagination. But I’ll tell you this. This fun lil story was one of my expectations when I decided to leave my home on Canada’s west coast to come on a crazy adventure in a new city. And boy, was I just as surprised when I arrived to work for my first real day at 9:00 in the morning to enter a quiet office where employees were discussing yoga, some tech talk, and the rain that has been visiting us every single day. 

     But before I go any further, let me introduce myself very quickly, in case you haven’t read my quick bio at the top of the page, or perhaps have already forgotten my personal facts during the earlier, exhilarating, description of what did not occur. I’m Angela and last week I moved from Surrey, British Columbia (which is in the Vancouver-ish area) to Ottawa, Ontario on an 8 month quest to learn as much as possible as a coop student. I’m working for Nokia, which does not just make indestructible phones believe it or not! It is a tech and telecommunications company, which provides a lot of the technology behind the physical and wireless systems of Facebook, Telus, Bell, and other large companies, (wow). I bet you didn’t know that pretty much every Google search you make is made possible through some of Nokia’s systems worldwide. Well I didn’t know that either so don’t feel bad ;) 

     So I've been here in this city for just over a week, so I don’t know how much I can actually say about Ottawa as my experience of it has been limited at best. But from what I’ve seen, it is similar to BC in many ways (including typical things like available cuisine, lack of decent parking, and the friendliness of the general population). Ottawa does differ however, in language (je besoin d’etudier mon francais), one way streets (of which there are a multitude), and interestingly in the fact that nobody says thank you when they exit the bus (a cultural thing?). 

     So far though, it has been good. My coworkers are very friendly, my landlady is graciously treating me like her child, telling me that she’s adopting me for 8 months, and my cooking is not terrible so I don’t think I’ll starve. The first week has been slightly slow as we are still getting set up - I’m writing this in my empty cubicle, with a laptop that needs an ethernet cable. My mentor has yet to remember my name consistently, and we don't even have wifi on our phones yet, but I am extremely excited to start on our first project. Hopefully next week when we are set up, settled in, and adjusted, we can start the real shtuff. Until then, I remain in my cubicle, waiting for IT to get back to me about my laptop and soft-phone registration, which I neither know what is or how to use (what the heck is a soft-phone?). 

     Anyways, thank you for taking the time to read this short life update, dear reader. I hope you are also doing well in all that you’re seeking to accomplish. Here’s a picture of me in my cube for a small visual, waiting for IT to get back to me while swinging back and forth in my big girl chair :) 

Thanks again for reading and God bless!

Angela

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Sixth Post: Last Couple Weeks

    Throughout most of high school and some of first year, I supported myself by working at a Japanese restaurant for about 3 years. I worked at Edo Japan from the ages of 15-18 and became super close with my boss, Andy, who was always generous and treated myself and my sister like his nieces. When Andy heard that I was moving to Ottawa last August, he gave me a red pocket with $50 in it as a gift and told me it was “good luck money” so that I would be successful on my little adventure. I didn’t spend it until pretty recently because I thought it would be nice to have the reminder in my wallet that there are people back home who are wishing me well.

    So the other day I finally used up the $50 good luck money and it got me into a reflective mood. It’s honestly weird: some of the time I feel like I’ve lived in Ottawa my entire life because it was so easy to become familiar with the city and with my everyday routine. And then there are times when I feel like I’ve just arrived and still have so much more to see and do here. Either way, I’ll be home in about two weeks and I’ve been feeling half relieved and excited about it, but also half sad; it’s definitely bittersweet.

    In terms of relief, it’s really an amazing feeling to know that my original fear that my coop experience would all be a flop proved to have no merit as I’ve had an amazing time and have learned so many valuable things. For that, I am relieved and so thankful. I’m also very excited to be at home where winter was pretty much over a couple months ago. As I type this post on April 15th, there is still snow on the ground and more coming this evening *wipes a tear and puts on another sweater*.

    The sad feelings are of course due to the upcoming goodbyes that are inevitable. Right now since we only have a couple weeks left, my squad and I are trying to do as many activities as we can while I attempt to get as much finished as I can at work. There are so many things to wrap up before leaving and it’s all coming to an end so fast. 

    I am of course, very happy to be seeing my family and friends again when I get home. My sisters and I have already been talking about our plans for the summer and if I’m making a prediction, summer 2018 is gonna be *lit*. My mom has been texting me almost everyday with a countdown to when I’ll be back (which is so cute) and Andy, my old boss, told me to get in touch when I get home so that he can treat me to a free lunch at Edo to catch up. What a trip it’ll be to tell my boss from my first job serving sushi all about what I’ve done at a job that’s completely different and has honestly changed my life. All in all, it’s a really exciting time. I’m so excited to go home, take everything I’ve soaked up these past months, and use it to make something great out of the rest of this year.

    So anyways, thanks for reading this quick (and cheesy) life update, dear reader. This will most likely be my second-to-last post with one more coming up in a few weeks. I do admit that I took my time coming back to this blog as I fell into a small obsession with Friends (which is taking up an embarrassing amount of my time), and got busy with end of term projects and other things. Time really really flies. Anyhow, I hope you are enjoying your April, dear reader, whether you’re just getting through finals or through the week. Here’s a pic of me at a reception area of the office for a little visual, being a goof while there was no one at the front desk :P 

Thanks again for reading and God bless!

Angela

#AngelaExploresOT

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Fifth Post: Winter in Ottawa

Throughout a lot of 2017, a conversation that often came up in my family was around the topic of travel. Around the dinner table we would discuss future plans, where we all wanted to go, if our school schedules would allow travel, and logistical topics like that. Eventually after a lot of convos and dedicated research by my mom, an actual plan was born and my family ended up in Mexico for Christmas, spending it away from home for the first time. In just a week, our family quickly got used to the tropic air, the friendly Mexican staff at our hotel, and the unlimited nachos and sangrias. It was a *lit* time (as my dad might say, to our embarrassment haha).

On one of our last days there I met a boy from Oklahoma while playing a couple games of beach volleyball with the other guests, who was also vacationing with his family. After finding out that I, thankfully, spoke English too, we began talking about where we were from. I of course, brought up the -20 degree weather that I was experiencing in Ottawa, to which this boy was shocked to hear about, calling his dad over to tell him about the ridiculousness of Canadian weather. We laughed and eventually went back to our families for the evening, mine leaving Mexico a day or two later. I arrived back in Ottawa a few days after that to snow and ice, experiencing temperatures worse than those I described to the boy.

Winter here has been an *experience*, to put it simply. Throughout January, I found myself looking back at my favourite pictures from our vacation and wishing that the slight tan that I did get hadn’t already faded within a week of being back in Ontario. For those who don’t follow me on snapchat or instagram and haven’t seen my reactions to the weather in real time, I’ll describe what winter’s been like here: 

Winter in Ottawa is like having your face pinched by someone after they've held their hand under a cold tap, right as you walk out the front door. It’s buying a hot chocolate when I don’t even want one because I just need something to warm me up quick. Winter in Ottawa is my boss telling our team to go home early so we don’t get stuck in traffic for three hours because the roads are full of snow. Don’t get me wrong though, these things do happen in BC too, but just not to the same degree. Before coming here, I think I owned a single pair of gloves that I used maybe a few times a year. I now own about five pairs and one set of mittens because they are just necessary. 

So like I said, it’s been an interesting experience. The weather has actually been some of the reason why I haven’t written a blog post until now. The cold just made me feel so lazy and uninspired, which resulted in a many nights of just sitting in bed with a cup of tea, binging the Office and drowning in Buzzfeed articles. But thankfully as February is close to wrapping up, the weather has been warming up slightly and I can see an end in sight! I wore sneakers out today for the first time since early December which felt great and also weird to not have to lace up a pair of boots. I never realized how awesome we have it in BC to be able to wear sneakers almost all year round. 

Anyways, I’m just about to boil some water for a cup of tea to drink while I watch Stranger Things edits and cheer on the snow to just hurry up and melt already. Thank you for reading this quick life update and I hope you are having an awesome February :) Here’s a quick pic of me in Mexico in front of a Mayan temple for a lil visual of what our vacation was like. Oh Mexico, I miss you and your 25 degree weather <3 

Thanks again for reading and God Bless!

Angela

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