Up, up and away!

June 19, 2011

After our first two failed attempts (1. weather 2. wasn't feeling well), Shivan and I finally managed to suit up and jump out of a plane! We chose to jump from Skydive Toronto, which is in Cookstown, about 45 minutes north of Toronto.

I ended up writing "NO FEAR" on my hands (you can see it in the vid), partly as a shoutout to Kenny & Co., but I was pleasantly surprised to see that Shania Twain had written and signed the same thing inside the plane that we jumped out of.

We crammed at least 10 people in the tiny plane that took us up into the air. Between three jumpers, their tandem instructors, and the videographer/photographers, it was pretty packed. The ascent in the plane was a little nervewracking. It took a lot longer than I expected to reach 12,000 feet, and I spent the majority of my time staring at the altimetre on my hand, hoping that we had reached the necessary height. I didn't even see Shivan jump out of the plane (he was first, I was third). By the time it was my turn, I didn't even have time to be nervous anymore. It was just like 1...2...3...GO!

There was a slight moment of hesitation on my behalf when we launched out of the plane, but when you're attached to a tandem instructor, there's not much you can do -- you just go with him! Skydiving was nothing like I had anticipated. Freefalling is nothing like the feeling you get when you're on a rollercoaster. No big Gs, no dropping stomach. It really is just like a whole rush of air pushing against you. I can tell you that I felt absolutely no anxiety about freefalling, as I was falling, however I did have a really hard time breathing/catching my breath, so I spent a good chunk of my freefalling just trying to breathe, instead of really enjoying the experience. That being said, it was still incredible, looking down and seeing so much scenery and just KNOWING that you're the closest you'll ever get to flying.

That's me pulling the chute cord. You can see the parachute deploying.

I was supposed to pull the cord when we reached 6,000 ft on my altimetre, but I was so caught up in the experience that my instructor had to place my hand on the cord to remind me. After that, a quick jerk upwards as the parachute deployed, and we spent the next few minutes gliding gracefully down to the earth. Got in a bunch of turns too, and those were stomach-dropping but fun!

After landing, I couldn't believe the adrenaline rush! Admitedly, I had to sit down to catch my breath, and the crash after all the adrenaline tapered down hit me harder than expected. I would have taken a nap in my car if I could.

Post-jump

Overall, an incredible, exhilarating experience. I'd do it again (if it didn't cost nearly half a grand after vids/stills/taxes) in a heartbeat.




It is one thing to be in the proximity of death, to know more or less what she is, and it is quite another to seek her.
-Ernest Hemingway

Recap: The Big Apple

Five days was definitely not enough time for me to spend in New York City. I arrived in the city on Wednesday afternoon. I met up with Tammy, an old friend from Calgary who moved to Toronto, and then to NYC for school. We roamed around the city, meeting first at Bryant Prak, walking to Central Park, eating street meat, and making a stop by the Nintendo store and the Lego store. In the evening, my cousin and her bf took me to Boqueria (named after the incredible market in Barcelona, one of my fav stops in Europe), a tapas restaurant.

Pockets in the wall of the Lego Store with pieces sorted by colour!

Thursday was museum day. I (semi-) conquered the New York subway system and made my way to the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), and later, the American Museum of Natural History. I'm not much of a art buff, so MoMA didn't interest me as much as the MNH, but I did get a chance to see "The Persistence of Memory" by Salvador Dali, "Water Lilies" by Monet, and "The Starry Night" by Vincent van Goh. They were all spectacular. I thoroughy enjoyed the MNH. It's like the ROM..but better! Also had some really good street meat. Waiting in line for over 25 minutes at 53rd and 6th. I think when I first counted, there were over 35 people in line! Absolutely worth the wait.

I can't even see the end of the line from this picture.

Thursday night was...memorable to say the least. My cousin took me to BonChon Chicken, a Korean restaurant that serves really, really good wings. YUM. I also met a bunch of her friends. Let's just say it was like real-life Sex and the City. Plenty of juicy gossip, scandalous news, sexy tidbits, and upscale fashion. It was nice to hang around girlfriends for a bit. Definitely a change from my gamer dudes back home.

Malaysian food for the munchies. Yum.

Friday was spent shopping around with a close friend of my cousin's. Shopped along Broadway and ate some yummy Malaysian food. Friday night dinner was extravagant and memorable, as we spent it at Morimoto (Iron Chef America, anyone?). Easily one of the most delicious Japanese meals I've ever had. Definitely pricey, but well, well worth it. Of course, in true New York fashion, we hit up another bar after dinner to continue the drinks. By Friday night, two other cousins had flown up from California and Texas to start our girl's weekend.

Can't seem to find the description of this on the menu..but trust me when I tell you it was yummy.

Avocado toast at Cafe Gitane. Tart, smooth, with a bit of a kick.

Saturday morning brunch was spent at Cafe Gitane, a hipsteresque cafe that serves French-Moroccan food. Tasty, I probably wouldn't go there again. No reservations allowed, and the wait was quite lengthy. More shopping for Saturday and Sunday. We also stopped by Joe's Shanghai. Best. Soup. Dumplings. Ever. MUST GO.

Soup dumplings!

Century 21 is easily my favourite place to shop in New York City. It's like...Winners meets Macy's. The store is MASSIVE (it spans over a city block) and has brand name everythings at cheap prices. Managed to pick up a bunch of Tokidoki purses. We also had dinner at Imperial No. 9, and hit up quite a few exclusive bars that I'll never. Partying til 3-4am in the morning every night is exhausting! I lasted until Saturday night, at which point I cabbed home early and crashed at 2 a.m.

Crack Pie from Momofuko. Doesn't live up to the hype

Unfortunately, between hanging out with my cousins and shopping, I never did end up making it to the Statue of Liberty, seeing Wicked on Broadway, or hitting up Serendipity 3. That being said, I did get a kickass view of the Empire State Building from the rooftop of my cousin's condo, visit Ground Zero, eat a lot of street meat, do a lot of shopping, and visit a bunch of museums. So, just because I didn't get to do all my bucket list items, I did have an extraordinary time during my stay. There's so much that I did while I was New York. I've detailed most of it, but there's still so much that was fascinating that I wouldn't be able to retell. The people, the culture, the experience, the atmosphere -- I'm glad I made the trip, even if it was all a little overwhelming. Still lots to do, and I'd have to spend over a week here next time I'm here. But all in all, I wouldn't have changed a thing.

View from the top of my cousin's apartment at 29th & Park Avenue.

Awesome view of the Empire State Building from her rooftop.

Ground Zero. Breathtaking, heartbreaking

The girls! <3 my fam

Concrete jungle where dreams are made of
There's nothing you can't do
Now you're in New York
These street will make you feel brand new
Big lights will inspire you
Hear it for New York!
-Empire State of Mind (pt II), Jay-Z & Alicia Keys

Mini updates

(Full entries to follow)

-New York City was a blast, but I didn't get to knock off as many bucket list items as I wanted to.

-Cousin from Calgary visited, so I've been taking her around Toronto for the past few days. Definitely discovered a chunk of the city I had never seen before.

-Officially bought and paid for my skydiving vouchers from Toronto Skydive. Just need to book the exact date now. Edit May 27: Going skydiving tomorrow! Edit May 28: Waited 10 hours in the hangar at the skydiving centre, but clouds were too low the entire day. Bust. Gonna reschedule when the weather is guaranteed to be nice.

Cherry Blossoms

"The flower that blooms in adversity is the most rare and beautiful of all."

I have lived in the Greater Toronto Area for nearly my entire life. For whatever reason, I only just today discovered that Toronto has its own cherry blossom park.

"In 1959, the Japanese ambassador to Canada, Toru-Hagiwara, presented 2000 Japanese Somei-Yoshino Sakura trees to the citizens of Toronto on behalf of the citizens of Tokyo. The trees were planted in appreciation of Toronto accepting re-located Japanese-Canadians following the Second World War."

Here I was, thinking about putting "Go to Japan to see cherry blossoms" on my bucket list, and all I could have done was just go to High Park. I love cherry blossoms.

They finally bloomed this weekend. I wished I could have taken my mother and the rest of my fam. It would have been amazing to celebrate Mother's Day amongst such beauty. I can't even see them before they fall because I'm leaving on Wednesday to go to New York City, and by the time I come back, it will have been too late. For future reference, the High Park Nature Centre keeps a blog and updates its readers about the progress of the cherry blossoms, as they don't last for very long, and timing is essential.

I'm actually really disappointed that I didn't get to see them this year. Sigh. Next year, I suppose. And so it's officially on the bucket list...

"In the cherry blossom's shade
there's no such thing
as a stranger."
— Kobayashi Issa

Mama

My mom was not always my idol.

As a teenager, my mother was my enemy. I lied, I bickered, and I sneered at my mother's well-to-do attempts to teach me right from wrong. I always knew everything. I was always right. I don't think I was a particularly difficult child, but that didn't mean I didn't make mistakes. And I'm sure many of my mistakes kept her up at night, wondering if she had screwed up somewhere along the line. Looking back now, I can confidently say that she didn't. In fact, I am so thankful that she put up with my behaviour and teenage angst.

It wasn't until I was finished school, working, but still living at home, that I began to see and fully appreciate how much my my mother had given up to raise me and my sister. I saw the late nights where she would stay up, waiting for me to get home from a night out partying, just to make sure that I got safely. I saw the early mornings where she would wake up to pack us lunch because we liked to sleep in and then rush out the door without eating. She'd always manage to wrap up toast so that I wouldn't have to skip breakfast, knowing that I wouldn't eat otherwise. I saw a woman who would commute 4 hours a day to work one of her four jobs that enabled her to pay the bills and keep food on the table. My parents would often fill up my gas tank for my car, knowing that my money could be better spent on tuition and textbooks.

I could probably pinpoint the turning point in our relationship sometime during my first year of university. I lived in residence and went home every weekend. One Sunday afternoon, shortly after dropping me off and driving the half hour back home, I called her, nearly in tears, because I was lonely and missed her (my campus wasn't very big, and most people were still out visiting their own families on the weekend). Without skipping a beat or asking any questions, she got right back into her car and came back to pick me up. I spent Sunday night at home and she drove me back Monday morning for class.

My mother had gone from being the person I spent years running away from, to the person to whom I turned to, regardless of the circumstances. I have so much respect for her now, and I'm a little disappointed I wasn't able to realize it when I was younger. Even now, my 13 year-old sister rolls her eyes at me when I tell her that mom really does knows best. I can only hope she realizes how lucky we are before it's too late.

Tell you mother you love her -- every day, not just today. I realize that I am very fortunate that she is still such a big part of my life. I know in the years to come, I still have much to learn.

“My mother was the most beautiful woman I ever saw. All I am I owe to my mother. I attribute all my success in life to the moral, intellectual and physical education I received from her.”
-George Washington

I love you, Mommy.

Mom & I, 1990
One of my fav pictures.

A Good Life

There's just something about this song that never fails to pick me up. If I'm tired, frustrated or bored, I throw on "Good Life" by One Republic and by the time the chorus rolls around, I'm already bopping my head and tapping my foot.

What is a good life? I tried flipping through my old philosophy texts from my first year at university. On a rather ambitious venture, I decided to take a course entitled, "The Meaning of Life". Yeah, ambitious. In retrospect, I should have known that a single semester studying the works of Descartes and Dostoyevsky, among others, wouldn't teach me "the meaning of life." To be honest, I'm not sure if I've walked away with much from that class, apart from my first (and possibly only) A+ paper in university.

I'm not sure what constitutes a good life. "Good" is relative. I know that I have certain goals I want to achieve (be a realtime court reporter). I know the kind of person I want to strive to be (honest, inspiring, humble). I know that I want to leave some sort of legacy, even if it's only the lessons I pass on to my children ("Never waste food"). I want to be able to live my live fully, wholly, and at the end of the road, have no regrets. Then, I will have lived a good life. I need not have walked on the moon or herded elephants in Africa -- though that would be pretty cool. I want to say that I did everything I wanted to do. I suppose that's what pushes me to accomplish all the items on my bucket list. Some are ambitious (land frontside/backside 180), some are a little out of my hands and depend on others (Stanley Cup for the Leafs, anyone?), while some are downright daunting (stand on Kjeragbolten, join a paintball league). But I'm determined to do it all, hopefully sooner rather than later, but definitely by the end of the road.

"When you look back on your life, you'll regret the things you didn't do more than the ones you did."
-- H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

I hope you enjoy the song as much as I do. One day, I'm gonna go to all the places that they mention in the song, and then some, and I'm gonna make my own "Good Life" video.

New York, New York!!

I'm finally going to New York City! Some of my cousins are flying up from Texas and California and we're all staying at another cousin's house in NYC. Girl's weekend in the Big Apple!

Statue of Liberty, Serendipity 3, Wicked on Broadway, Central Park, Soho, Greenwich Village...I'm so excited! Granted, I'll be wandering around New York for 3 whole days by myself since my cousin is working, and I'm arriving before the other two fly up, but no worries, I'm sure I'll have plenty to do. Counting down the days! =)