Canada and Beyond

Yesterday was Canada Day and everyone was out getting walloped except me, who was stuck in bed the whole day with a cold. Only left my pit to shuffle down the corridor to the bathroom, feeling – and probably looking – like a 100 year old hunchback. Everyone else was out dressed in red & white, draped in flags with antlers on their heads.

It’s weird to be back downtown with all the XXX Peepshows, falafel stores and homeless people everywhere… At least the homeless guys here are enterprising. One will drop and give you 20 push-ups and another will shimmy up a lamppost if you give them some money. My favourite is a guy who will set fire to his beard for a quarter. The homeless situation here is shocking and depressing. The first two people who cross my path get 50 cents each and the rest of the time I just smile and feel like poo that I have no job and have a budget of $6 a day, so can’t spare any money. It’s very tricky.

The noise in my room is awe-inspiring. I’m sure it couldn’t have been any noisier living off Times Square when I was in NY. There’s yelling, swearing, traffic, beat from nightclub next door, bar across the road and bar directly underneath us. Lulled to sleep the other night by a fight outside the window & someone yelling “I got you motherfucker! Bitch! I’ll take both you faggots on!” Poetry.

Last night was worse than ever. 3 busloads of people were dumped outside the hostel at 10ish and proceeded to stand in the street bellowing the national anthem. This was followed by such catchy chants as “if you’re proud to be Canadian, yell fuck yeah!” “FUCK YEAH!” People all night have just been yelling and shrieking at eachother. I’ve no idea why people have to do this. I have never in my life stood in the middle of a crowded street and shrieked my head off.

View from my room at 3am.

Boating Course has been postponed til next week which is a relief as I wouldn’t have been able to go anyway with my col This gives me another week to practice tying knots. I’m pretty rubbish so far, but at least the people at my table in the bar the other night had lots of fun with my rope. A Canadian girl taught me how to make a lasso and snare hot guys with it (of which there are v few). Plus I think slinging a rope around their necks and yanking them toward me is perhaps a tad forward.

Starting to think the hostel has been whisked away in a hurricane and dumped in Cork. It’s constantly swamped with Orlas, Siobhans and “your man” Padraigs. At least the 62 post-menopausal members of the New Zealand dragonboat racing team have taken off, having driven everyone else on the first floor mad with their lack of consideration, noisiness and stereo blasting Hey Baby (ooh ahh) down the corridor at all hours.

I had some work at last!! Worked Thursday 10.30 -3.30 and will also do Monday. It was the easiest temp assignment I’ve ever had. I was basically there to cover for the receptionist when she went on her breaks. Nothing to do the rest of the time except get in her way and tidy the kitchen, and very little to do when I was actually working. Had time to create new blog and check my emails whilst receptionist watched a DVD of Coach Carter on her computer. It was an advertising agency, so everyone very laid back, young and trendy. Yuck. I have no urge to work in an office again. I want to work out in nature, maybe something to do with sailing. People do all sorts of jobs I’ve never even heard of. I met a girl recently who drives a blimp.

Anyhoo. Rumour has it there’s a beach near where I am now so I’m going to lie down and try to feel better.

LATER
Went to the beach for an hour, where I fell asleep and drooled into the sand. That’s the wonderful thing about Vancouver – no matter how noisy or overwhelming it gets, there’s always somewhere beautiful nearby. The beach was hardly more than 5 minutes away from busy downtown street. But I’ve decided to definitely leave after my course finishes in mid-July. I don’t know if I’m turning into an old fart, but the constant noise is driving me mad. Even on the beach, I was surrounded by people yelling and shrieking, and eventually left when some git sat down next to me and pulled out a guitar. Maybe I’m just feeling like this because I’m ill.

Just treated myself to chicken stir fry at Denny’s diner on Davie Street. I feel too weak to cook, and am sick of eating 93cents pizza, plus I haven’t eaten out in weeks. There are lots of attractive guys on Davie Street, I can’t help noticing. Pity they’re all gay. So bunged up I was tempted to cut my nose off with my knife and fork.

Tags: Vancouver

This entry was posted on Saturday, July 2nd, 2005 at 7:38 pm and is filed under Vancouver. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.