Back with the cat

Just a short update: I arrived home safely...now trying to adjust...

Friends

Thankful for a wonderful last Friday afternoon with lots and lots of tea and sushi ♥

I want to...

Instead of going through my daily morning routine of reading all my blogs on my blog list while I'm having breakfast, I just turned of the light and watched the sun rise slowly over the mountains. See the sky turn from black, to gray to a burning orange-red. Because...in just 10 days I won't be here anymore. I wont see those mountains, and the fog which hovered over downtown and made everything look gloomy and sinister. Fog with glowing mountains above...

I want to hold on tight and never let go

Last days

I don't really feel like giving a recap of this year (Though I've been doing it myself quite a lot over the last couple of days). Just so much: 2012 was crazy, awesome, beautiful, scary, challenging...the best year in my life so far. And I'm thankful for everything that happened.

And to be honest...I'm just going to finish 2012 quiet and lazy. Some time to think, to plan, to recover, to enjoy. And for that I used one of my Christmas gifts this Friday. A gift card for Michael's. Heaven on earth.

For everyone not familiar to Michael's: It's a huge craft store filled with ribbons, baking stuff, tape, pearls, paper, fabric, yarn...pretty much everything you can think of. Thanks for an awesome Christmas gift!! :)

I also looked a bit more into the black dress section. This challenge might have to wait until next year though.

What do you think?

And I watched the hunger games and ate all my Christmas cookies in the evening! (Comfy cozy)

Since things have to be balanced I woke up to sunshine (for the first time in what feels like years) and decided to go for a run. I love how the mountains look now. Beautiful! (Who's in for a snowball fight?!)

Running down to the store. Shopping and walking up.

Oh and just to prove a point of Vancouver-is-so-expensive: I bought 7 bananas, 1 jar of pickles, 1 jar beet root, yogurt and a small pop...and payed 17$!!!! (What would have been like 5 Euro at home, but oh well....)

Here we go with random-end-of-the-week :)

(Oh and I've got a lot of complains that it wouldn't be possible to post comments on my blog, if you know something about that I would be really glad to hear of it!)

Listening to:
Hall Of Fame - The Script
Home -  Phillip Phillips
Die Young - Kesha
Abraham's Daughter - Arcade Fire
Counterfeit - Greg Neufeld
The House - Katie Melua
Red Baloons - Katie Melua

Photo of the Day {Monday}

 A heart from the Barista...I guess it was my smile ;P (or the tiny fact that it was the 24th...and I'm super bubbly on those days...oh well :D)

Photo of the day {7(!) days until Christmas}

Yes. They have Katniss Everdeen as a Barbie. I'm shocked too, I know.

(actually this is the picture of yesterday, but oh well. We don't take it too serious with the randomness, right?!)

Update {Christmas songs and a hot chocolate}

Because I thought an update on my current situation would be nice here we go:

I'm feeling waaaay better after my second day of rest and (less) pills. So while the snow rain is slightly drumming against my window, I'm inside all nice and cozy with my favourit cup of hot chocolate (because nothing warms you up better than a hot chocolate) and nothing feels better than finger prickling from the warmth of the cup you wrap them around.
I can see the whole beauty of the christmas decoration our neighbours from across the street got out (I'll sneek out later to get a decent photo, promise) and I'm looking forward to a nice and cozy evening with a movie and some light christmas preparations.

If I could, I'd send a hot chocolate and some glitter to everyone together with a nice christmas song. Instead you have to go and get it for yourself. But I'll think of you for sure :)

Photo of the Day {Tuesday Chili}

Heute mal in Deutsch.
Der Blog kommt momentan ein bisschen kurz (keine spannenden Geschichten) dafür bin ich weiterhin mit meinem Praktikum beschäftigt (und meinem lustigen Team aus vier Kerlen und Oskar) und der Tatsache, dass es (kaum zu glauben aber so wahr das man den kopf verlieren könnte) nur noch 18 Tage bis zum 24en sind!!!

Ich fühle mich ein kleines bisschen beruhigt, da bereits alle Listen und Pläne geschrieben und entworfen sind...jetzt muss nur noch auf magische Art und Weise ein bisschen (viel) Zeit herbeigezaubert werden...ob man sowas wie eine Vorbestellung beim Weihnachtsmann einreichen kann?

...lieber Weihnachtsmann, ich wünsche mir mehr Zeit. Herzlichst. Jo.

Naja. Falls nicht...wird schon ;)


Mein Zimmer hat sich weihnachtlich verwandelt (Fotos am Wochenende wenn ich mal Tageslicht in meinem Zimmer abbekomme) und auch die Stadt packt die Lichterketten und Sterne aus aber ansonsten ist es weiterhin nicht zu kalt und doch kalt und regnerisch...kein Schnee!
Und gegen das Wetter hilft immer wieder am besten:

Chili con Carne ♥

mhhhhhh...

Du brauchst:

• Oliven Öl
• 1 Zwiebel
• 1 Knoblauchzehe
• 500gr Hackfleisch
• 2 Dosen zerkleinerte Tomaten (meine waren schon leicht vorgewürzt mit Knoblauch und italienischen Kräutern)
• 1/2 Packung/Glas eingelegte Tomaten (Sundried Tomatoes in Olive Oil)
• 1 Dose schwarze Bohnen
• 1 Dose Mais
• Gewürze (je nach Geschmack. Ich habe benutzt: Salz, Pfeffer, Chili, Cayenne Pfeffer, Hot Sauce)

Knoblauch und Zwiebeln anbraten, das Fleisch dazu. Ablöschen mit den Tomaten. Erste Würzrunde. Dazugeben die eingelegten Tomaten (kleingeschnitten) und einen Teil des Öls aus der Packung (das kann auch direkt schon ein bisschen am Anfang zum anbraten benutzt werden!). Dazugeben Bohnen. Dazugeben Mais. Abschmecken mit den Gewürzen und je nach bevorzugtem Schärfegrad. Voilà!

Zwischen den einzelnen Zutaten und am Schluss lasse ich das ganze immer ein bisschen köcheln.

Ganz edel: Als Beilage Knoblauch Brötchen (bevorzugt: die hausgemachten von Mama)

Ofen vorheizen. Brötchen halbieren. Bestreichen mit Butter. Parmesan drüber reiben. Knoblauch Gewürz (wir hatten fertiges von Cosco mit Kräutern und ein bisschen Salz) drüber sträuen und im Ofen knusprig werden lassen.

Guten Appetit :)


(Sämtliche Schreib-, Tipp- oder Grammatikfehler werden bitte meiner reduzierten Nutzung der deutsche Sprache zugeschrieben! :P)

Photo of the day {November Tuesday}

Belated, but still:
Guess who's starting with all the chirstmas decoration :)

Otherwise: More rain, more work :)

Photo of the day {November, Tuesday}

My first Matcha Latte ever! Quite green. And it actually does taste like grass! (I thought my colleague was joking...). Well we'll see ;)

Oh and the 167 Days in Canada section has been updated. Have fun in the middle of your week :)

Some every-day things {life at its normal stage}

So after I finally caught up with the last weeks posts I wanted to catch up with a bit more recent stuff. With a 40 hours work week it's all about the small in-betweens that make your life ;)

Raphael loves to jump into pictures.......

Back from Saturday in Seattle: I did not really point out at how much I enjoyed shopping in Anthropology. Well now I did! Oh...and can you see how much the others did (apart from jumping into pictures which were actually supposed to display all this awesome kitchen stuff...which I want in my non-existing kitchen right now!) Anyway. They survived ;)
(And my cup I bought accompanies me every day now)

I love my breakfast muesli each morning. Fruits and yogurt and nuts and jam and granola...so much goodness in one bowl! And since it's all sugar reduced, high in protein and fibre (well take out the jam) but apart from that: It's also healthy! Yay!

The weather is...the way everyone expects it to be. No news here.

Nice decoration in one of the shops in Gastown (actually my phone wallpaper right now...) and they were filming fringe right in front of my work just the other day! Walking past officers and vintage dressed people on my way to get coffee definitely adds up to the whole break-experience!

Thinking about buying a new black dress...but I'm not really satisfied yet. So still looking :)

Apart from that it's really getting dark now early. Gone are the days of sunshine and T-shirts. Though cozy evenings at home with a book and some hot honey-ginger-lemon water have definitely something as well. Have a good start in your new week :)

This week {What I've learned so far}

It's Saturday morning. My heater is on the sun is shining in my room and I'm done with my week. It wasn't an easy week I have to admit. It was actually the most difficult week since I came here. But...

...life is not just always easy.
...you have to step out of your comfort zone to grow.
...it is also ok to break down and be weak and to cry.
...allow it to be shit (sorry) but also give it a new try after it. Close it. accept it as what it was and start over again. Everything should get a second chance!
...friends are the most important thing in life. They will always be there for you. They are the ones who catch you when you fall and comfort you when you can't!

...and last but not least: It's never totally dark! There is always a tiny bit of light! You just have to find it! 

 So much about what I've learned this week. I woke up this morning even before 7!! (The first day I could have slept long..and what do I do...wake up before everyone else is up. But oh well). So I made myself a healthy yummy breakfast (After I was shopping this week), started my mails, watched the sun rise ♥, started my laundry and thought things over.

And this is what my week now looks like: (Sorry for so many phone pictures it's just so more convenient than carrying my big camera around with me all the time. But promise: There are two posts already waiting including high quality camera pictures!)

To work in the morning...and back when it's dark...

To brighten up my mood on Tuesday...or was in Wednesday?!...Starbucks (with the Red cups!)...oh and I fell in love with those cute snowman cookies :D

Oscar ♥...this is what he does to you when you eat :D

Shopping after work on Thursday (can u tell I had a cold?!) and sushi afterwards

Waiting while my Chai is in preparation...well waiting to be done...after all the thousand customers are served who came before I did....*sight*

We found out this huge educational gap of mine at work: I didn't know Dill Pickle Chips! The guys took care of that one :D (and Ketchup Chips!)

Some Hockey on Friday! Go!

And my breakfast this morning, just because I think it's so good that it should be mentioned: Banana with Greek yogurt nuts, cherries, muesli and honey. Yummines! ♥

 It was a challenge. I took it. I survived. Bring on the next week! ;)

Ganz kurz zwischendurch

Ich hab die beste Familie mit den besten Studenten abgekriegt, stimmts?! ♥ Danke Pasc :)

Hihi ich hab das Halloween Wochenende gut überlebt (Und war Sonntag Nachmittag endlich wieder zu Hause). Ansonsten zeigt sich Vancouver von seiner besten regnerischen Seite. Immer mehr Laub fällt von den Bäumen und ich bin gespannt wie es wird wenn der Halloween Hype vorbei ist. (Halloween hier ist RIESIG! Ab vier Uhr Nachmittags standen die ersten Gestalten am Samstag vor den Bars in der Schlange!!!) Und Morgen ist nochmal groß mit Feuerwerken und allem drum und dran.

Gestern war dann einfach ein Ausruh-Tag, ich bin direkt nach der Schule nach Hause und bis halb sechs ins Bett (einschlafen mit "Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone" Audiobook). Dann gab es die Nachrichten (NYC und der Sturm und Auswirkungen für Kanada) und Abendessen mit meinem Gastdad. Und dann wunderbare Schokokekse und "The Vow" während die Wäsche ihre Runden in der Waschmaschine und anschließend im Trockner gedreht hat. (Die muss jetzt noch gefaltet und weggeräumt werden...*sight*). Und dann früh ins Bett!

Ich versuche mich demnächst nochmal ausführlicher zu melden, aber es ist momentan meine letzte Schulwoche (Nächste Woche Montag beginnt dann das Praktikum!!) und demnentsprechend ist momentan alles ein bisschen voll (bis aus Gestern ;))

Genießt also noch das Herbstwetter mit heißem Tee und Schokokeksen und ich melde mich bald ausführlich ;)
Ganz liebe Grüße :)

Cloudy Thursday

I finally found a pattern for my days and weeks. It varies (still) but it feels like I'm really here now (which makes two month in total to adapt...).

A rainy downtown night

I love autumn for all those colours...

On the bus

Makes me think of warm and cozy mornings in France ♥

The biggest smiley face ever for a really hard working main class ;)

And my favourite bus stop....though I think everyone there thinks I'm weird since I keep on making pictures pretty much every single morning...sorry for everyone who sees me there!

Otherwise it was test-week again. I had my first Yoga class ever on Sunday (and I might get addicted to it). I also really really need to buy some rubber boots and some legwarmers (and maybe another warm sweater) since it starts being quite cold. And all in all I think I might just stay here forever ;)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Do something every day {crazy}

I think we should break up routine with something crazy everyday.
I went through the kids-water-park yesterday. Bare feet. Skipping :)

Beautiful autumn-ish Vancouver ♥

And there might have been a smile on one or two of the faces of people passing by :)

Happiness

I wish sometimes I could share my happiness with others...

 The feeling of warm sun on your skin, music in your ears and mountains on the horizon

 Walking

 All this little in between. Sparks of colour. Reminder that time changes and moves on constantly but that it also provides space and opportunities for new things to happen...

 I could either see 6 lines in front of our house, noise and litter...

 But you can also see flowers, black and shiny crow feathers on your way...

And and endless blue sky

Happiness inside your stomach :)

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and a bit late, but better late than never: My weekly instagram addiction 

Being up early, road trip pizza at steamworks, cooking with friends, my mornings, persuaded someone to buy a kindle, Canada place, leaving ships, nails, that or that or maybe that :P, lunch, new things, old things, sushi with my class on Friday, daily lunch, yum fries, home ♥

I'm still here {autumn's knocking on the door}

The past week has been a bit quiet (which is due to me being a bit of a mess). I had some tough things going on, things which put me down  and made me sad and things that took me off balance. But it's getting better now so you'll get updates soon ;)

Waiting at the bus stop...

shoes and jumper ♥

all those little in-between-streets...last meters before home....

Vancouver has changed over the last two weeks. Autumn walked in and waved its goodbyes to summer (It smells like autumn now every morning!) I love it. The mixture of wet earth, changing leaves, fresh air, a bit sea, a bit mountains, a bit of gray sky and this crisp feeling which you only get in autumn. It also means wearing more jumpers and sweaters and less T-shirts but I'm fine with that (especially since I bought myself a wonderfully over sized fluffy jumper last Friday!)

walking a little longer...

if it isn't red or orange or yellow...it's green ;)

did I ever mention that I have something for old and rusty cars...?!

School is still fun, our Starbucks (or for a change: Blenz (one of the thousand brands of Canadian coffee shops)) visits increase and I'm probably drinking too much coffee (since people just have to hear my name and immediately think of coffee) but I think this also just fits perfectly with Vancouver and autumn. 

Tomorrow I'll be up early, renting a car with a friend of mine and discovering Canada another way. Post on Monday ;)
So I wish everyone a nice, relaxing and rain free weekend ;)

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and because another weeks passed (again) my weekly instagram addiction

nails (though they change often...), Pizza hut Pizza for the first time in my life!, good morning sun and mountains and endless blue sky, Mexican on Tuesday, cheesecake on Thursday, new nails and pen drawings, brownies for someones addiction (not mine (this time)!), calendar, sun on my feet...enjoy it as long as you can!

Oh! And I totally forgot the best!!!

I

have

    ~                                     a                                         ~

DESK!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I love my host family! :)

A desk for Jo ♥