Eminem Not Afraid

Internation AIDS Memorial

Yesterday was the International AIDS Candlelight Memorial in Ottawa and across over 115 other countries. This is the second year that Ottawa has been doing the memorial. I was at last year's memorial with my Baba and I thought it was really good. My partner at the time pretty much organized it and my really amazing friend Elliott was there dressed in his suit with red flip-flops lol and he did a passionate speech; they had other speakers and performances. This year I found the whole thing a little different for me. So much has changed in that year since the last memorial. I have a few friends with HIV, and in February I lost a friend who died of AIDS-related illnesses. So this year, sitting in the park holding my flower and candle (that are distributed by the AIDS Committee of Ottawa to people at the memorial), it was a different mood for me. Last year was more of a celebration for the health of my friends and a silent protest to the less than adequate support and everything for people living with HIV. This year, it was more somber for me, thinking yes that I'm happy my friends are healthy (some healthier than me most of the time lol), but I thought of my friend RIchard. I met him while I started doing my community clinical placement with Bruce House and he quickly became a friend of Amanda (my clinical partner) and mine. He was always happy (even when sick or not doing very great). He was beyond easy to talk to and helped us immensely with our project at Bruce House. I would see him every once in awhile downtown doing so shopping or what not. Then after my placement I continued to volunteer there because Bruce House was more family-like than work and I had become really close with all the residents and staff. After a while, I was unable to continue volunteering during the year because I was working part-time and full-time school with clinicals and it just got to be too much. Then I found out in February that Richard had died. I was supposed to go on a trip to Miami with a friend, but cancelled it so I could make his memorial. It was a great celebration that Richard would've liked with everyone singing and dancing to the YMCA and other songs. So he's what occupied my mind a lot through the speeches and the performances last night, in addition to my friends still living amazing lives with the virus. It was another beautiful memorial! Hopefully next year's will be a little happier for me.

Chez Nous

I don't go back home to Timmins very often anymore since I left for university in Ottawa. I got either Thanksgiving or Easter, and Christmas and usually a couple times in the summer. When I do go back home it's always to visit friends and family and it ALWAYS leads to drinking liver-damaging amounts. I always try and see all my friends while I'm home (because there's a bunch of different friend circles), but regardless of the group....there's pretty much always booze. What else are we supposed to do in the frigid north!? The bars suck! The "club" (yes just one) is the most ridiculously sad room with flashing lights and music. But a Timmins tradition is that at the end of the night of boozing and bingeing, that almost everyone grabs food; often greasy chinese at the ever sketchy London Cafe or Pizza Pizza. The most traditional food though has to be Chez Nous poutine - hands down! It's is the most delicious disgusting poutine of life! At the end of bar nights, the little corner store is packed solid with people waiting for their various kinds of poutine; regardless of whether it's the middle of the summer, or -35 degrees in a snow storm and you can't even hold the poutine anymore cause your hands are so frostbitten-frozen (yeah I know from experience lol). It's funny though cause I don't actually get hungry when I drink, and I almost never eat; unless I'm WASTED and need food to prevent dying throughout the night. hahaha. So for my physique, it's probably better that I live 800+ kms away from Chez Nous, cause they definitely don't help the six-pak! Hahaha. Although, every time I go back home, there's always still at least one time each trip where Chez Nous is a MUST; but only drunk, they're not to be eaten sober and never question their health standards. haha.


Looking COMPLETELY sober eating poutine at Chez Nous one night in Timmins

Though not gay (actually married to the gorgeous model Brooklyn Becker), Andy Roddick is my favourite tennis player!

Gareth Thomas ... The Only Openly Gay Male Athlete

I heard this story when it first came out (no pun intended) and I thought it sounded crazy. This article is so well written and I think everyone should read it even though it's a really long article.

Gareth Thomas ... The Only Openly Gay Male Athlete - 05.03.10 - SI Vault

Super Sexy CPR

Super Sexy CPR from Super Sexy CPR on Vimeo.

"In order to be whole, each half must be whole on its own."

My Epic 18th Birthday!

My 18th birthday was one of my most epic birthdays! Lacey had a party for me at her house where her and I attempted Century Club. For anyone who is not aware, Century Club is where you take a shot of beer every minute for a hundred minutes with no breaks. We had my stopwatch counting down the minute and when it'd alarm, Lacey and I would down our ounce. Even when one of us had to go pee, we'd bring the shot with us and when the other yelled time.....shot was taken. As we got higher and higher up, time seemed to shorten between minutes. We had other friends at the party, some drinking (not doing Century Club) and a lot of sober people. We had sober people keeping the tally of our shots so we knew when we'd reach 100 and so that in my drunken state I wouldn't screw up lol. Century Club sounds kinda easy, but it REALLY isn't. It works out to 9 1/2 beer in an hour and 40 mins. Lacey made it to 51 and then tapped out and I kept going. I made it to 101 before everyone cut me off. I am an official member of The Century Club, and I would like to attempt it again sometime, but I no longer have the pressure of having to complete it since I'm already in the club. After finishing those beer, I thought that would be prime time to talk to my ex who was at the party, and who had recently broken up with me, about why they did it. Hahahaha I'm a thinker! The puking in the neighbours bushes brought the convo to a halt, especially since the neighbour was watching from the window! lol. Then back at Laceys, I just went through my drunken regular ridiculousness, i crawled under glass coffee tables thinking it looked like a coffin, i blew a candle out so hard that the wax exploded and covered my face and eyes, and eventually went to bed. I woke in the morning to hangout with the hangover and Lacey, until my mom would pick me up to bring me for KFC lunch with my whole family! KFC is probably the worst hangover food FYI. But, that night was epic! I am a member of Century Club! I had a GREAT birthday that year! Thanks Lace! Maybe this summer we'll get Lacey and Angelique to become members!

"If it doesn't negatively impact your life or the life of someone else, then you're not an alcoholic; you just have a high tolerance"

Back in the Drinking Days

When I was in grade 12, I because friends with two guy Jo and Eryk (brothers) and they became really good buddies of mine. Jo and I were bad influences on each other and when the two of us were around each other stupid shit always ensued. Stupid ideas like starting a band named "Tennis", starting our own meth business in Timmins, starting a male strip club in the north(I still think this is a good idea), stealing random shit like construction signs, and various legal and illegal activites; however, I'd like to say that 90% of the time we were drunk when coming up with our master plans.

The three of us used to play tennis all the time. Tennis is the love of my life! These guys were the ones who taught me how to play and then within 2 years of playing, I was working for the city as the tennis instructor for the summer. We made roadtrips in summer to Sudbury where they have the indoor tennis courts just to play tennis while the snow was around. Nothing makes me feel the same way as playing tennis. But then at some point they got more busy and less tennis playing was occurring (which sucked).

One random day when Jo and I were at Tim Hortons for coffee, he said that he wanted to get a kayak (out of nowhere) and so spontaneously I said I'd get one too! We drove down to Canadian Tire and bought kayaks, life jackets, paddles, and we started kayaking that summer! Hahaha. Ridiculous, but SO much fun! We'd bring beer and tie it to the back of the kayaks so they were in the water dragging behind; but the drag from the beer would slow us down and make paddling SO hard that we had to drink pretty quick. Then drunkenly, we'd fool around with our kayaks in the water; ramming them into each other, sinking them, etc. It was all fun and games till one time I was like "Jo is my back bleeding? it feels like I cut it." And he was like "no". 5 mins later...."Remember when you asked if your back was bleeding? Well it's gushing blood." Hahaha. Have a little scar that still shows up when I'm tanned in the summer.

Although, despite all that, drinking has always been something that remained. We always drank, and usually a lot! In grade 12, the last year before I left for university, I worked full time and was a student part time. But every wednesday Jo and Eryk were off work; so I'd skip every wednesday and the three of us would get breakfast, then do something (often get booze related supplies). And we'd drink early in the day. We started making shooters, like the fancy ones with layers and different colours, etc. We became really good at it too! And trust me, it's not easy when you're drunk trying to do that. But it was fun. Those shooter nights we'd drink like one, maybe two beer in the night and tons and tons of shots. I can't even do a sixth of the number of shots I used to do then! It was ridiculous! Now, when I return to hangout with them and drink, there's not usually shots anymore haha. We're getting old I think. And often I return or am about to return from Ottawa and Jo tells me he's not drinking anymore for various workout reasons, but I think I'm his drinking kryptonite cause he can't refuse when I'm around. We get wasted together.

I miss those times cause I'm not home enough to party and hang out with them. And I miss the stupid, STUPID ideas and things that Jo and I get into. I'm pumped to get home to see them again. Maybe I should try and convince them to come down here (even though Jo never would). I can't wait to party, kayak and play tennis again.


A normal shots night at the Rice house

"We control our environment and our environment is our thoughts; everything else is just physical manifestations of those thoughts"

Bus Adventure

To spice things up a bit today, Emilie and I decided to go on a bus adventure! It was soo much fun! We grabbed Tim Hortons, then got on a bus to Hurdman bus station. When we got to Hurdman, we got on a random bus that we've never taken and we didn't know where it went to. That was really fun! We went till it brought us back to Hurdman, way quicker than we thought, so we got on another random bus. This one dropped us off in the middle of nowhere. After walking a little we found a Boston Pizza in the middle of nowhere haha. We grabbed some pizza and martinis for more adventure and fun, then made our way back home. Lots of fun! I highly suggest everyone spruce up their life with some bus adventures!