Finals are over!

And so my first year at McGill ends. Uh.
Frankly, at the moment, I'm a bit too overwhelmed to think anything about it. I'm knee-deep in boxes (packing sucks), and classes start up again on monday. Eee!
I've been trooping around town looking for either an on-campus job, or a business small enough that it'll agree to hire me beneath the counter, plus I still need to go apartment shopping. But as my future flat-mate isn't even in Montreal at the moment, I'm not even going to think about it. I may minoring in psycology, yay! It just feels so flaky though, but the classes are loads of fun. Especially abnormal psycology, mmm.
Blogger is being so fickle lately! This is about the third time I've tried to update, but it never works. So I'm thinking I'll switch over to live journal for good (I am a traitor, I know).

Anyway, I'll probably write something more exciting when I'm not as exhausted! :P

Name quiz!

These are fun! (even though my names suck a little)

Victoria Blandine Bond's Aliases

Your movie star name: Crackers Jean

Your fashion designer name is Victoria Prague

Your socialite name is Vicky-ticky Montreal

Your fly girl / guy name is V Bon

Your detective name is Horse Rochambeau

Your barfly name is Pringles Sex On The Beach

Your soap opera name is Blandine Gainsborough

Your rock star name is Chinese Caramels Road Runner

Your star wars name is Vicama Bondus

Your punk rock band name is The Falala Laddle

The Amazing Meganame Generator

Oh Finals

My life right now:
Wake up, study with Beata, get lunch to go and study, study some more, take a Timmy Ho's break (I have learned to worship the caffeine god!), study, have dinner, and study until I fall asleep.
Riveting, isn't it? My eternal study buddy is Beata, and I've been with her so much recently-- I wake her up or vice versa, she comes over until late in the night--, that we're beginning to pick up on each others' mannerisms. Creepy!
So not much is going on in my life right now. My brain is completely preoccupied with work, and everything else has been put on pause until next Thursday. In fact, I haven't been swing dancing in more than a week, egad!
I did take a break last weekend to go to a concert on Saturday. I went to see the Stars, my current favorite band, at the "Juste pour Rire" theater on Ontario. The venue was ideal; small and personal, and because we'd gotten there early, we managed to snatch a table on the upper level and watch the band's antics from above. Perhaps the best thing about the venue was that it was completely smoke free. It almost seemed wrong to emerge from the concert and not reek of smoke! The band sounded amazing live; I hadn't thought the girl's voice could be that... beautiful in real life, but I wasn't disappointed in the least. Since they're from Montreal, they were really pumped and the vibe great. They came in and threw a bunch of flowers at the crowd, but I didn't catch any :(. The lead singer even brought his dad on stage so he could recited the CD's opening line:
"When you have nothing left to burn, you have to set yourself on fire"

The crowd went crazy! So good! I had gone specifically to hear them perform this one song, called "Your ex-lover is dead", which they ended up playing in the encore. Whew! For a second, I thought they wouldn't play it at all. I love it because it sounds deceptively happy, but the lyrics tell another story:

"God that was strange to see you again
Introduced by a friend of a friend
Smiled and said 'yes I think we've met before'
In that instant it started to pour

Captured a taxi despite all the rain
We drove in silence across Pont Champlain
And all of that time you thought I was sad
I was trying to remember your name

This scar is a fleck on my porcelain skin
You tried to reach deep but you never got in
And now you're outside me you see all the beauty
Repent all your sin

Nothing but time and a face that you'll lose
I chose to feel it and you couldn't choose
I'll write you a postcard, I'll send you the news
From the house down the road from real love

Live through this and you won't look back
Live through this and you won't look back
Live through this and you won't look back

There's one thing I have to say so I'll be brave
You were what I wanted
I gave what I gave
I'm not sorry I met you
I'm not sorry it's over
I'm not sorry there's nothing to save
I'm not sorry there's nothing to save"

I love concerts, I'm hoping I'll get to go to many more this summer.
Anyway, that's enough of a study break as I have two more finals on Thursday. :P

Excuses

So.
This is the first time I've been on the internet since last Friday. By my standards, this is a long time! So just for a head's up on what's going on here:
-I'm still homeless
-I'll be renting out my friend Lopa's apartment this summer (whew)
-I'm looking for a job. Yay.
-I'm feeling pretty hopeless about finals. Help. Me.
-I've discovered a new Montreal band, The Stars, which make everything better
-I'm going to take classes this summer
-I've decided that my wedding will involve VAMPIRE ELEPHANTS, and that Beata will be my bridesmaid-- tragically forced to wear a seafoam coloured dress (Moo ha ha)

Also, I went to this thing called a Swing Ring on Friday and it was a-mazing. Everyone was wearing either poodle skirts or fedoras and suspenders, there was a live band called the Jello Shots that even played "Wade in the Water" (this is exciting), and I was a first hand witness to a swing-off. That's right, ladies and gentlemen, a swing off.
I'll describe it all later, but let me tell you, it was quite impressive. If I have time this summer, I'd like to go to a swing camp... I'm such a dork, oh dear.
Finally, I was just thinking today that in two days, my first year of university will be over.
Uh.
I can't believe it. Where has the time gone? I came to McGill with no expectations (just fears), but I can frankly say that this year was entirely unexpected. There's been a lot to deal with, and there have been a few hard times (when I wished I could just go home and curl up in my bed... oops, make that my ex-home), but there have also been some truly incredible ones. I'm so grateful I met the people that I met. What if? What if I'd gone to France? What if I'd gone into U0? So many little mistakes and choices brought here. If I could start over... I think I'd do it all again. I've never been happier, or more stressed, or more exhausted, or more enthusiastic. I feel as though I've never been so alive. I just hope that next year will be as good as this one, et cetera.
As much as I want finals to end, I don't want this year to be over!

Canadian swing dancing championships

So friday's lab ended up being intense, but once again Prof. Western was amazingly nice-- she spent at least three hours going over my suggested protocol (HA! If you can call it that) and teaching me how to use all the various lab equipment. I've been managing to make a complete fool of myself these days, it must really be a gift. An example:
Scene: the lab. The studious labhand is surrounded by ~120 tiny tubes and is filling each with seeds.
[Enter Professor Chevrette who, naturally, doesn't recognize me, a meagre student]
Moi: Bonjour!
Prof. Chevrette (thick trois-rivieres quebecois accent): Bonjour... Tamara est la?
Moi (having heard: "Ta maman est la?" and incredibly flustered): Ah! Euh, non, c'est ma proffesseure, euh...
Prof. C.: ...
Moi (finally understanding and reverting to english): ...she's in the office.
Prof. C.: ....OK, thanks...
[professor runs away, labhand hangs head in shame]

It's a good thing he didn't recognize me!
In other news, I went swing dancing on friday (OK, this isn't news, but this is), and ran into Lisa, the head of McGill Swing Kids. Completly excited as usual, she assulted me and started trying to convince me to go to the Canadian Swing Dancing Championships. She says she thinks my partner and I should enter the amateur swing dancing event, and the price includes hotel and hardcore dance classes all morning (competitions are in the afternoon). Well, wow! A competition, and I wouldn't even have been dancing a full year! I have to admit, I'm sorely tempted. I would learn so much, and get to see amazing dancing up close (and not just download the videos like a dork). The downside: it's pricy. I'm not sure if it's worth it...
Ugh, I'm still so full from this indian buffet we went to on saturday night... but it was so good. I've made it a goal to learn how to cook indian food next year. And it shall be good.