The early afternoon was decidedly heavy, so I turned up the volume when I stepped outside. There was powder in the air, powder everywhere, and soon I was snowblind.

As I stepped on the bus, I looked at my watch and realized that I was leaving almost two hours early for class. How had I made such a mistake?

I decided to use the best of my time and do some browsing. I saw what appeared to be Nadine in the mall, and would have approached her if:

1. I was absolutely sure it was her
2. a sudden case of shyness hadn’t taken over me

I took off to Zone to see if there was anything new, and alas, an open-air chime box was available. I was tempted to buy it, if the song wasn’t some Christmas carol. Afterwards, I set off for Folio, but to my disappointment, discovered that it’s been replaced with a soon-to-be furniture store.

I decided to peruse the bookstores in the area, and the first one I went to had nothing of interest. Even at Chapters I didn’t find any new translations of A Hero of Our Time, or the audio novel of Lolita read by the sultry voice of Jeremy Irons. The third bookstore I went to, a surprisingly modern store with eclectic finishings, had a very selective collection of books. Every wall or pillar had shelves set up with books of a different genre, and the entire place was quite a change from the bustle of the street right outside. At one corner, there was a mechanical fireplace with four very distinct flames warming up the air. The fire would have seemed much more realistic if not for the odd churning sound coming from the chimney. A couch was set up in front of the fireplace for people to read, but only a beautiful, navy blue, long-haired cat was sleeping on it, belly up, one paw lazily stretched out towards the fire.

Put in a different mood by the serenity of the store, I set off for class, and promptly changed my playlist.

Black then white are all I see in my infancy.
Red and yellow then came to be, reaching out to me,
Lets me see.

—Tool, Lateralus

Inhale.

Colours are washing over you. Drifting, shifting, twisting, changing. No point of focus, no solid shapes. You feel the contrast and graze the answers.

And this takes you to a place you’ve never been, but always dreamed of. Where you’re bathed in happiness, and you can see the warmth of the light. When you hear nothing but stillness, and feel nothing but contentment.

And this picture in your head is as real to you as your heartbeat. You become lost to this world when your eyes roll back and your head tilts backward.

Let me take you there.

I had a short discussion with a local lawyer on intellectual property tonight. I figured that it would help me be better prepared for any of the ideas that I’m thinking of bringing to fruition. It was fairly informative, and he treated me to a pitcher at Mike’s Place after.

That’s when I learned that Mike’s Place has Double Diamond on tap. Double Diamond. On tap. At campus.

Uh oh.

Last week I signed up for the National Capital Region Table Tennis League. Teams are two to four members each, and play in a round robin over four months. Three matches are played every week, and each match consists of two to four singles sets and one doubles set. A problem I have is that I start to hold back and doubt myself when I’m up against someone I’ve never played before, causing me to lose my offensive control game, the only thing I’m good at. I figured that joining the league would be a good way to expose myself to different playing styles, and get myself comfortable with playing new people.

We only played two matches today, winning the first and losing the second. There’s quite a mix of skill level there; from former national team players turned national team coaches, to provincial junior team players, to recreational amateurs, to beginners, to paraplegics. I’d say that people there are between 14 and 60 years of age.

Since I’m actually either sweating or sitting in my sweat for more than four hours there, I’m tempted to start using anti-perspirant again. I haven’t used any in over four years, since I don’t actually smell very much when I sweat. I’ll take the fact that I still have friends (and have actually been dating) as confirmation of this belief.

This has been the busiest weekend EVAR. It’s been the first time that I was too busy to write an entry. I mean, I usually make time to write, with the same priority as showering and eating, but yesterday I only had time for two of the three.

Friday was all running errands and watching Return of the King (which was alright). Much to my surprise, Aaron, Trolley, Wheaties, and Nick all chipped in and bought me Double Dash, which we promptly played until five in the morning. I woke up with just enough time to get to practice (although it was only four hours of sleep), played for two hours, then came back home and slept some more.

By the time I was awake, it was time for Aaron’s pot luck. I had a chance to meet Chris, Mel’s boyfriend, who’s a fucking great guy to hang out with. Of note were Jen’s potatoes, which must have been the most flavourful I’ve ever tasted. I brought about three dozen of the Bailey’s truffles I made, which were well received and gone in five minutes.

I got back around two in the morning, collapsed on my bed, and here I am now, groggy and hungry. In half an hour I have a ride to the first matches of the newly formed city-wide table tennis league. I’ll be playing for about five hours in rotation, varying between singles and doubles matches. I expect to be one of the worst player there, which means that I’ll probably gain a lot of play experience.

I still need to start an economics assignment and watch an accounting tape, both of which were supposed to be done on Friday. Today might just be another total write-off.