Nearly 5000 KMs later...
The trip was something else. It was highs and lows and memories and near fist fights. Basically we left two weeks ago for Halifax. Lyle's roommate was fighting in some Ultimate Fighting extravaganza so we thought it'd be a good opportunity to get away for awhile. We had about 24 hours to get there, and the trip itself takes 21 hours. Needless to say, we were a little rushed, a little stressed and lightly packed. Our main problem once arriving in Halifax, was realizing not only did we not have access to tickets, but the event had sold out within minutes. I don't know why, but there wasn't a scalper to be found. Somehow, 30 minutes before the fight is supposed to start, Lyle lies to the ticket lady and says we were picking up tickets his girlfriend bought him. I don't know how he pulled it off, but we ended up getting two free tickets and getting amazing seats. The fights were interesting; Lyle's buddy got knocked out in about 2 minutes.
The next day we met up with my mom outside Halifax and drove to her bed & breakfast. I love it there. The town is tiny and unlike anything in Ontario, but the back deck has a nice view of the Atlantic.
Those first few days of the trip really gave me and Lyle an opportunity to talk about a lot of stuff. It was a little weird at first because I'm not really the type to sit down and share everything with someone, but it was really cool to be able to shoot the shit back and forth. I needed those talks. While the talks helped me get a lot of stuff out there, it also broke me down. I felt like such a disappointment to each and every single person in my life. Somehow, somewhere, someday, I had let them all down.
We basically spent most of the nights hanging out with this older guy Bill. His wife and him had moved from Windsor to Canso a couple of years ago and opened up their own restaurant. He is the most racist, homophobic, sexist person I have ever met. In fact, his first words to me were, "Holy shit, you're gay." I don't know how it happened, but he ended up being one of the greatest parts of the trip.
After breaking down during those talks with Lyle, things had been going fairly well for me mentally. I knew not everyone was going to accept my apologies and I knew that some would take them the wrong way, but I felt like at least I was putting it out there. It's hard letting people know how much you appreciate them. Right when I was feeling good with the way things were going, everything kind of hit another snag. I got in a fight with my mom. I tried so hard to not say anything back to her because I realized how stressed she was and I knew how hard she was working to make the bed and breakfast ready for opening week, but it got to a point where I just couldn't keep quiet. Basically, the fight was horrible, but after the fight we hugged and for the first time in a longest time, we really talked. Maybe I'm naive, maybe I'm an idiot, maybe it's both, but I had kind of forgotten how human parents are and how sometimes they too might feel slightly abandoned. I came out of the fight, happy that it had happened because I felt like I had learnt a lot about life and my mom and I felt like she had learnt a lot about me.
On the way home, we stopped in Edmonston, Quebec City and we visited with my friend Aleks in Montreal. While Aleks was working, Lyle and I decided to discover Montreal for ourselves. It is truly a beautiful city. I am seriously considering finishing my final year at Humber and moving there. We went to a couple of bars but both Lyle and I weren't very interested in meeting people. While this trip has been good for me in some ways, it's also killed me. Edmonston and Montreal are pretty much made for love. Everywhere you look there is a couple or a cute place to go to. The bars were filled with girls I wanted nothing to do with. The DJs played all of her favourite songs. And somehow, each night, she would somehow come up in my dreams. It has definitely been emotionally draining, but I guess everything in life is somehow a learning experience. Maybe I can learn to find someone as amazing as her again?
All in all, the trip was well worth it. You don't realize how good you have it or how wonderful your friends are until you spend two weeks in some tiny fishing town playing bingo.
The next day we met up with my mom outside Halifax and drove to her bed & breakfast. I love it there. The town is tiny and unlike anything in Ontario, but the back deck has a nice view of the Atlantic.
Those first few days of the trip really gave me and Lyle an opportunity to talk about a lot of stuff. It was a little weird at first because I'm not really the type to sit down and share everything with someone, but it was really cool to be able to shoot the shit back and forth. I needed those talks. While the talks helped me get a lot of stuff out there, it also broke me down. I felt like such a disappointment to each and every single person in my life. Somehow, somewhere, someday, I had let them all down.
We basically spent most of the nights hanging out with this older guy Bill. His wife and him had moved from Windsor to Canso a couple of years ago and opened up their own restaurant. He is the most racist, homophobic, sexist person I have ever met. In fact, his first words to me were, "Holy shit, you're gay." I don't know how it happened, but he ended up being one of the greatest parts of the trip.
After breaking down during those talks with Lyle, things had been going fairly well for me mentally. I knew not everyone was going to accept my apologies and I knew that some would take them the wrong way, but I felt like at least I was putting it out there. It's hard letting people know how much you appreciate them. Right when I was feeling good with the way things were going, everything kind of hit another snag. I got in a fight with my mom. I tried so hard to not say anything back to her because I realized how stressed she was and I knew how hard she was working to make the bed and breakfast ready for opening week, but it got to a point where I just couldn't keep quiet. Basically, the fight was horrible, but after the fight we hugged and for the first time in a longest time, we really talked. Maybe I'm naive, maybe I'm an idiot, maybe it's both, but I had kind of forgotten how human parents are and how sometimes they too might feel slightly abandoned. I came out of the fight, happy that it had happened because I felt like I had learnt a lot about life and my mom and I felt like she had learnt a lot about me.
On the way home, we stopped in Edmonston, Quebec City and we visited with my friend Aleks in Montreal. While Aleks was working, Lyle and I decided to discover Montreal for ourselves. It is truly a beautiful city. I am seriously considering finishing my final year at Humber and moving there. We went to a couple of bars but both Lyle and I weren't very interested in meeting people. While this trip has been good for me in some ways, it's also killed me. Edmonston and Montreal are pretty much made for love. Everywhere you look there is a couple or a cute place to go to. The bars were filled with girls I wanted nothing to do with. The DJs played all of her favourite songs. And somehow, each night, she would somehow come up in my dreams. It has definitely been emotionally draining, but I guess everything in life is somehow a learning experience. Maybe I can learn to find someone as amazing as her again?
All in all, the trip was well worth it. You don't realize how good you have it or how wonderful your friends are until you spend two weeks in some tiny fishing town playing bingo.