The Sanitation Department Don't Mess Around

In the library today, I was thinking about how mysterious headphones are. You could be listening to anything. I started playing a game where I’d guess what might be playing. Dear Evan Hansen?

Sometimes I wish I lived in a musical and could break out into song and dance with no one noticing or hearing me. What better time than when avoiding my urban studies reading at the library? I don’t think my table mates would appreciate it.

It’s been a productive hour; I read over my class slides for a couple of minutes and spent the rest of the time looking at study-abroad opportunities.

Tell me, is it a bad idea to go to Australia if I have no intention of surfing? In my mind, it’s like coming to Canada with no intention of skiing (it’s not like that).

I have another couple of propositions.

• #BringBackPassiveVoice. What’s the big issue with it? I feel like I missed something. No one ever told me what was so bad, but every time it comes up, every English teacher around scowls. Like, I get it, it sounds better in active voice, but sometimes that’s just a sacrifice that needs to be made. Maybe things are different in Australia.

• I feel a great loss at my lack of blogs to read. I feel like I’m writing into a void. Bring back blogging 2023. I’m bored of Instagram. This is a petition for you, my readers, to start your own blogs.

I’ve got to head off to calculus. I wonder if the roads will be as heavily salted as Monday. While walking up, I started having vivid flashbacks to Brooklyn.

Some shade the copious amount used in NY; we all know, best case scenario, there’s a centimeter or two sticking.

Still, as Celeste once said to me, “the sanitation department don’t mess around.”

-Violet

Packing List and Some Very Original Motivational Quotes That I Definitely Wrote. Myself.

I’m back by popular demand. As usual, I felt pensive in the jersey tunnel. I reminisced on an old blog post and my question about the tiny doors that line the walls. My curiosity was squashed as I learned pretty quickly that people likely didn’t come out of them - they just held brooms and such. Nothing gold can stay, Ponyboy. That’s life.

Here's a picture I edited of C. Thomas Howell from the Outsiders (THE Ponyboy), warping time to show him in his 30s. I used a teen photo and one taken during 'middle age' to achieve this effect.

Celeste told me to squawk like an eagle while crossing the border. Unfortunately, I missed my opportunity both on the way there and on the way back. Some say it was out of fear; some say I’m a perfectionist. (How do Eagles squawk?) (Don’t tell the Feds I said that).

Naturally, as is the expected reaction to hearing I took a bus, you might be wondering, “what did Violet pack with her?” Well, I’ll tell you.

I tried to pack as light as I could leaving Montreal, which was a good call because I had absolutely no space on the way back.

For my friends up north, though - I did not return empty-handed. One grocery trip and two stuffed bags later, I come in hand with not one but TWO packs of Trader Joe’s takis. Yeah, you’re welcome.

To this day, it’s weird to me that there’s neither Trader Joe’s nor Target here. Not that I go to Target. Ever.

Emo to leave the warmer weather, I brought my spring jacket back to Canada with me. Will it see the light of day? Probably not.

I am also bringing back some microwave popcorn (shoutout mom), so I can join Thomas in the popcorn grind. How do I know he makes popcorn? That’s a secret I’ll never tell. (I can smell it in the hallway) (and I’ve seen kernels scattered across the floor).

To take it back a couple of months, over winter break, as a last-minute addition, I brought my little digital camera. This time, while packing, I decided to bring the battery charger. Now, if your first thought after hearing that is that I’ve probably been using the camera, you’d be wrong. While it isn’t likely the battery will change much, I decided to take the chance on myself.

Hey - you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take. One step for mankind, one giant leap on the moon.

[When putting this through Grammarly - you can't say I'm not classy - I was told that 'mankind' is dated and non-inclusive. In the spirit of accuracy, I'll keep it how it is, but I'll be sure to dm Neil Armstrong a complaint].

I can’t tell you all too much, though; my parents always told me a little mystery is the secret to success.

Still, I have more I thought I should share.

My goal was to watch the Last of Us’s new episode on the way, but unfortunately, there was no outlet in sight, and my phone had a scary low battery for an 8-hour bus ride. I took the hit and decided to watch it on myflixer later. As they say, God gives his toughest battles to His strongest soldiers. It’s hard for the Last of Us (us being people without VPNs).

[Edit: I started the download at 5%, and it worked. There wasn’t much point in downloading it because my phone died, but at least I could watch it legitimately once I got back. One last slice of America, you could say… I have some thoughts, but no spoilers on here].

By the end of the bus ride, this one girl in front of me had reached up for her bag in the overhead bin probably twenty times. I made that number up, but all you need to know is that it felt like she was standing up, rummaging through her bag for longer than she was sitting down. I also made that up, but it was a lot. It made me wonder what was in there that needed such constant attention. A hamster? A small dog? Maybe a kombucha scobi?

I’m also curious about the carpets in buses, movie theaters, arcades, etc. Do the manufacturers specialize? In my mind, there are three generic designs, but I’m sure it gets more specific than that. I wonder who designs them. And why? Like how did it start? You never see those carpets anywhere else. Are there new releases every year that bus manufacturers and theater designers are on their toes excited about? It’s like the new Apple Watch for architects.

On the topic of monotonous design, I’ve deduced, after lots of research (stopping at at least three rest stops in my life), that all rest stops look the same. I wonder - have I only been to NY rest stops? Do outside states have different ones? Are they state-run? What do Canadian rest stops look like? Maybe one US developer took rest stop monopoly? Or maybe the type of person deciding to open a rest stop usually has a niche sense of architectural style; it comes with the gig. Who knows.

Another thought for you all - slivered almonds look like they taste how they sound. Slivered. Granted, I’ve never had almonds. Or slivered almonds.

And with that, I stepped off board the Excellence. (McGill Bus)

- Violet

Iron Chef Competition

The Insider Scoop, was it worth it?

Charlotte and I woke up at the bright hour of 9:30.

I started my morning by setting off for the kitchen (not the BMH kitchen, don’t get ahead of yourself). I prepared two (2) piping hot cups of coffee in my Moka Pot and finally got the attention I’d been craving - one of my neighbors stopped in to fill her kettle and commented on it.

After months of daydreaming, I finally made my Irish coffee dreams come true. It was a bit ad-libbed, but it was better than I expected.

As the clock ticked 10:45, it was time to head over to the dining hall. After some initial confusion, we were led down a looming staircase to the depths of hell. After months of questioning what the kitchens looked like, I finally saw them for myself.

We got a tour, and while I consider myself seasoned in organizing (my last job had a closet), the other participants had to be shown how to find what they needed.

Just like on Iron Chef, we were presented with mystery ingredients, which we had to incorporate into our dishes.

Unfortunately, unlike in Iron Chef, we weren’t cooking alongside Bobby Flay. (Do Canadians know who he is? If not, have they never seen Worst Cooks In America? To take it a step further - is Guy’s Grocery Games a thing here?)

Time flew by, and it went searingly well. Good one, eh? (Canadian cultural reference to make up for the Bobby Flay thing. Terry Fox. Grade Eight. Trying to knock them all out in one paragraph. The Annex. The Beaches. The Mapleleafs).

Also, I tried passionfruit for the first time, and damn.

As for what goes on in the BMH kitchen, that’s a secret I’ll never tell. XOXO, Gossip Girl.