"There's Only So Much You Can Learn In One Place..."

"..... the more that I wait, the more time that I waste".

Okay, I already know how gay it is to quote a Madonna song but I am addicted to music and figured that with all of my plans and life changing decisions for 2008 that this quote and song (Jump) was perfect to describe this year.

I know i'm late in posting any of my adventures in Cuba however Christmas nearly knocked me flat on my ass and didn't leave a lot of time for posting. I also managed to catch a vicious flu bug so figured as I am couch bound covered in Vicks Vapour Rub that it was a perfect time to blog. Here goes:

Cuba is an amazing country that is full of history, scenery, and some of the most friendliest people I have ever met. I'm a trip advisor junkie so I pretty much had every detail of the resort and a big list of "things to see" about a month before I even departed. We spent the 7 days in an all inclusive resort in the city of Holguin which is in the south eastern part of Cuba. Unfortunately we were no where close to Havanna so I will have to schedule a trip back so that I can visit the city that EVERYONE talks about. The best way to describe Cuba would be like going back in time about 50 years. Almost every car that roams the streets are over 50 years old. The modern conveniences that exist in our world simply aren't available to Cubans. The poverty is intense yet no one goes hungry or homeless as the government provides everyone with food rations and free medical care. If you ever get the chance to go make sure you leave the resort and find out what Cuban life is really like. Resorts can be re-created anywhere and don't give you any idea of what the country you are visiting is really like. I could go on and on about the social situation in Cuba but honestly have no desire to. I will save those discussions perhaps for another blog.

End result: I came back sunburned (I'm now a few shades less white), relaxed, and ready to start 2008. I also made some amazing friends at the resort who I now have to make vacation plans to go and visit overseas. Thanks to the Brits, I spent three nights going to bed with a bucket beside my bed. Damn can they drink. I'm also not any thinner.

We arrived back to the snowy cold of Canadian winter late on December 23rd. I was pretty wiped out and i'm sure my liver was fighting to detox so I pretty much was comatose in bed on the 24th. My Christmas was pretty bleh as my sister had decided to spend it with her boyfriends family and my mom had gone out of town to spend Christmas with my family. I lost an uncle to cancer on the 26th. It wasn't a very "merry" holiday.

For New Years Eve some friends had convinced us to go to this "Moulin Rouge" night at a downtown upscale French Restaurant. It was pricey and quite mediocre. I hadn't been out for New Years in about six years so I guess I was expecting something spectacular. Instead, it was all of the wait staff dressed up like the girls from the lady marmelade video. There was a mistake with the countdown and New Years had actually passed by the time anyone figured out that we were supposed to be counting down. There was a mad rush to get to the dance floor and all of us got seperated. We all ended up spending New Years by ourselves. It was quite depressing and I really hope that it isn't tradgic foreshadowing. I went home at 12:20am.

So, here officially in writing are my resolutions for 2008:

1) Be nicer to myself.
2) Be healthier and learn to love vegetables.
3) Spend more time with my family (this could be hard with school but I will try)
4) Work hard in school and believe in myself that I can do it

Ok, it's in writing so all of you can bitchslap me when I screw up. I look forward to bitchslapping all of you when you screw up as well. :-)

Happy 2008 Everyone!! Let's make it a good one!!