If Katmavik had a prologue, this would be it.

Hey all!

This blog is new for me and I have a feeling for many of you. I'm going to try and update it as much as humanely possible (mostly to keep my mother sane). I write in a fairly similar manner to which I speak which means that there is a good chance some of the things I say won't make sense and there will probably be some ..colourful.. language to top it off. I'll try to keep this to a minimum (My grandparents read this you know!!). I was told by a great man to never stop writing and to follow my passions. This advice I will take to heart and we'll see where it takes me! I hope you enjoy following my blog, and if you don't.. well, frankly I don't give a rat's furry petootie! I'm writing this more for myself than anything so like it or lump it, this is how it's going to be.

In a mere 48 hours I will be embarking on the largest adventure of my life. The blur of emotions that are rushing through my head at mach chicken are something I've never felt before... I don't think I'm particularly fond of it. Sure there's the excitement; this is a brand new experience, an opportunity that contains the potential for almost anything I could dream of. There's also the total 'Oh my God! Shit your pants' fear. For those of you who don't know, 9 months is a loooooong bloody time! A time that I'm sure will fly by one minute and drag seemingly into infinity the next. The length of time isn't really what's bothering me.. It's more the fact that I don't know when I'll get to see my family and friends again.. It's this unknown that's driving me arguably close to insane. I say arguably simply because I know a large number of you already consider me to be insane even for signing up for Katimavik.

My flight leaves Calgary International Airport at 9:10 Wednesday, Sept, 23rd. I fly into Toronto and have less than an hour to get to the correct terminal. This could be catastrophic for me as anyone familiar with my sense of direction (or lack there of) will know. I'm just happy that I'll have Jennifer to travel with. Hopefully she won't let us get too lost! :p
*Jennifer is in my cluster and not my group which means that we'll be travelling together and most likely seeing a lot of each other yet not living together. While I'm in Dieppe her group will be in Bouctouche NB. During my Kamloops stint they will be in beautiful Penticton and when I'm in London they will be in Hamilton.
When (/if) I make my plane from Toronto to Moncton I will have a 3 hour wait in the Moncton airport before the bus comes to take us (my whole cluster) to Mass-O (Orientation camp). I believe we're spending 5 days there and we should be moving into our house next Monday. Mass-O is taking place at a shut down children's bible camp. When I found this out I was really worried that they may try to convert me.. My dad's biggest thought that they may need to use some form of brainwashing techniques in order to get 32 young adults to behave for 9 months (fat chance!) Either way I'm going into this experience with an open mind and a thirst for knowledge. Who knows, something good may even come from it! (and no Grandma, I'm not talking about children with red and black hair!)..(anyone who doesn't understand that comment.. kindly disregard it)
Well I think I've rambled on sufficiently so I will leave you with this.. I will miss you all so much! My family, friends and community. You have been there for me my entire life and now you're supporting me still by allowing me to spread my wings and to find the person I want to be. I want to say thank you for always being there for me and for guiding me toward adulthood. I love you all!

'A friend is someone that knows you as you are, understands where you have been, accepts what you have become and still gently allows you to grow.' (I don't know who wrote this but I saw it on a painting in a school a couple years ago and it stuck with me)