Priority: High

I went to Hawaii this weekend. Yes, it is extravagant for a weekend trip, but the flight prices were cheap, and because it was a family vaycay, I didn't have to pay for anything else.

This weekend has been all kinds of ups and downs.

Up because I got to see all of my immediate family and a good chunk of my extended family.

Up because my nieces and nephews (two of each) are the most awesome kidlettes ever. The kidlettes and I were Team Awesome all weekend. My 1 year old niece was trying to scream my name for the last two days. My 4 year old nephew said I was his girlfriend and tried to stay up all night so he wouldn't miss a minute with me. My 6 year old niece wore her Canada sweater with pride and was fucking awesome-sauce.

Down because it was so short.

Down because Monday was spent in front of a computer working. As these nieces and nephews of mine were on the beach, yelling for me I was forced to deal with a 'client issue'.

Normally, I don't mind working from home, but this was not home. This was a house on Oahu's North Shore. This was time that I was supposed to have with my family that I don't get to hang with much.

This was MY time.

My family understands the reality of mortality and this weekend made me realize: at any point, any one of these people might not be here. And should they stop being here I would be left with nothing but regrets for not spending Monday frolicking on the beach with the cutest half-breed kids in the world.

So, this weekend left me with one nagging question: where the fuck are my priorities?

Dood's Weekend Eve

Tomorrow, my best dood, Smelly, comes for our annual Dood's Weekend.

I know I've talked about Smelly before, but I don't think I've ever told you about him.

KEY FACTS:

• His name isn't really Smelly.
• We met in 1996. Yes, you read that right. 1996. It's mind blowing right? Soon, we will have known each other for more than half of our lives. What?!
• He was actually my grad date, although we went out separate ways after the dance - in fact, I don't think we even danced together. 
• We have never shared anything more than platonic exchanges. Although he gave me a gas pedal two weeks before grad, and that wasn't very friendly. Jerk. 
• When I came home from New York, he drove my car to Calgary to fetch me and drive home with me. 
• After high school, we almost stopped being friends because his girlfriend didn't like me. 
• I've asked him to leave before. 
• He got me a boyfriend once. The guy wasn't a good boyfriend, but Smelly made that one happen. 
• He is a total guy, without being a total guy about it. I mean, he loves all things boys should like - hockey, camping, etc - but he isn't a macho douche. 
• He once told me I looked like a lesbian. 
• He is possibly the best dood anyone could ask for. 

That last one isn't even an exaggeration - Smelly has stuck by me for 14 years. It hasn't mattered what I say to him or tell him, he says his piece and then moves on. He's pretty awesome like that. 

Smelly (left) and I at my 25th birthday. 

We are doing our 3rd Annual Dood's Weekend in style. Thur - Sun will be spent over a table and Catan, I'm sure, Monday we are going to Miike Snow and Tuesday we are going to The xx (yes, I'm giving them one last chance). 

It's going to be all kinds of awesome. 

Chag Kashruth Pesach

This past week marked a little milestone for me - my first real-life Passover experience, with God's Chosen People and all!

You see, my girlfriend invited me to celebrate Passover with her and her family. I was the only Gentile in attendance. It was a full evening's worth of food, prayer, singing and wine.

And let me tell you, Sarin's mom can cook! I got matza ball soup, tapas and spreads of every variety, so many main course options it was like a restaurant and some serious dessert yumminess.

Also, I totally got to see Sarin get her Jew on - she was singing, and praying and everything! She refused to put on her traditional Passover clothes, which was a little mean of her, but whatever.

I felt like I was meeting my boyfriend's parents for the first time - I was nervous and excited and well, I'm really grateful to these people for having Sarin -  and I wanted to make a good impression.

Anyways, just a little shout-out to Sarin and her familia - thanks for the Passover goodness. It was totally the best Passover meal I've ever had.

Vacation Highlight: Switzerland

When I planned on going to Switzerland to see about a boy, I had no idea it would be the perfect ending to an already perfect trip.

Paris was loud. There was a constant buzz to the city, just like there should be. But Parisians are different than any other city-dweller I have encountered. I am not sure why, but the city didn't capture me the way New York did. I mean, NYC was love at first sight, where Paris was lovely, but did not inspire me to pack up and move there.

The train to Bern was stressful to say the least. My nerves were wracked and all day, all I could concentrate on was seeing the Swiss boy I met months ago. Not to mention my luggage had become very large and heavy. oye.

When I got to Bern, the first thing I noticed, other than the boy of course, was the smell - so fresh and so clean - and holy shit was it quiet. That was to be expected, traveling from a city of millions to a city of 200,000 but it still  acted as such a pleasant surprise.

My Swiss friend was an incredible host. Taking me for great food, showing me the sights, introducing me to his friends, drinks all day long, smoking at will, a day trip to Interlaken and not once did he annoy me - a miracle in and of itself.

He was all kinds of great and he didn't make me feel like too much of a burden at any point. Laughing at me wearing ridiculous outfits, recognizing that not only am I loud, but very silly - he was a great punctuation to my trip.

His awesomeness made leaving incredibly difficult though. I haven't been that sad to leave a boy in a very long time, but I did and allowed all of the TGV to read the sadness on my face - it was hard to hide between the tears and all.

For all of my cynicism, my Swiss friend provided me with something I thought I had lost - hope. Hope for something great, something special and more importantly, hope for someone special.

So thanks for the hope Switzerland - it is much appreciated and desperately needed.

Vacation Highlight: Train Travel

The first time I experienced train travel was on my way to Versailles. I don't really count it though because it was a short trip, and I was still in a foreign-land daze.

The next time I took a train was from Paris to Bern, Switzerland. It was a 4.5 hour ride from one country to another - can you imagine?! It would take longer to get from Vancouver to Edmonton.

When I was in Bern, we went on a day-trip to Interlaken, again via train.

This time it was awesome. We stood and had a sandwich and a beer for lunch, followed by a smoke - at the train station. Yes, you read that right, I was able to smoke, inside the train station. yesssss!

We couldn't finish our beer before our train, so we took the can onto the train.

Sidenote: This was very common - people walking around drinking alcoholic beverages. Usually just beer, but even in Paris, people were casually strolling and drinking and smoking and it was the best thing ever.

The train-ride to Interlaken was beautiful. Lakes snuggled into the foothills of the Swiss Alps, the snowcapped  mountains, well it was splendid.

Check it out:

Of course, not all train travel is happy travel - the ride from Bern to Paris was depressing as shit. And it was late, but the cops all of a sudden were on board, so I think we may have been smuggling a criminal or something.

Also, is it weird that I didn't have to fill out any paperwork going into France or Switzerland, and they didn't even look at my passport going or leaving Switzerland?! Does anyone else find that strange?

Anyways, trains are awesome and I wish we had more access to them here. That would be great.