CCS: Jasper

Well, that was when we entered Alberta, so it was nice, in an "oh-my-gosh-it's-pouring-rain-and-I'm-freezing" kinda way. Of course the tent trailer's battery was down, so we had to eat out of the campground, which sucked A) because we had just got there, and B) because you needed a pass to get in, and we had lost ours. We waited forty five minutes for our dinner, but it was really good, I have to say. Then we went for ice cream. Now I know what you're thinking: "You got ice cream while it was freezing in Alberta? Do you WANT frost bite?" Hey, I was wearing two jackets and I needed something that tasted good. Then Dad signed us up for Whitewater Rafting. Then we went back, hoping to find the pass and lo and behold, Mom was sitting on it. So we were able to get back in just enough time to go to bed. Nope. No fire on the first day of Jasper. Nope. I put a sleeping bag inside my sleeping bag and I wore a fleece to bed and that is the end of day 1 (which was really a half a day).

The next morning we got up pretty early, for my standards, which are like ten o' clock to eleven o' clock ish. We had a delicious breakfast, then went into town again to wait another half hour for the rafting thing. Then we had to dress up in a wet suit and a fleece and a jacket and basically get heat stroke in Alberta, which is hard to do. But when we actually got started.... that was fun. The rapids were big enough, and made the raft rock and I almost thought I was going to fall in, but I didn't. This isn't a thrill post, unfortunately. The rapids..... have you ever seen rapids? It was like the river was at war with itself. Ripples from both sides came and met in the middle, and they battled so hard it made a dip in the water that the raft would fall into. Then every once in a while, there would be one side of the river bubbling peacefully, and the other side it would be raging in an epic fight. It made me wonder what kind of circumstances would need to pop up for the river to act like this. I guess that's the seldom used left brain working. Stephen wasn't doing very well with it at first, but then the guide let him do the guiding. He was happy after that. He was ordering people when to row and when not to row, but it wasn't just "Row forward!" Nope. It was "Only Megan and Dad row forward!" and things like that. Then he started telling jokes....... that he made up himself. They didn't always make sense. Then when it ended, we got back to the camp site.

That was when me and Stephen started playing spy.

Stephen had recently developed an obsession with the Captain Underpants novels. So he would walk around the loop of the road with a walkie talkie, then he would say urgently into it things like: "Oh my gosh, Megan! Come quick! It's Professor Poopypants!" So I would rush on my scooter to where he was and help him. Then when he ran out of Captain Underpants villains, he started saying things like "Oh my gosh, Megan! Come quick! It's a black mamba!" That was pretty funny.

We had supper and a fire that night. Still no cookies though. That made me sad again. Then we went to sleep.

The next morning, I woke up late and my parents were already starting to pack up. I drank my coffee (which was actually half coffee and half cream that only came up to the half point of my mug). That was when they realized that Stephen had been at the bathroom for half an hour. We waited another five minutes, and he STILL didn't come back. So mom gave me a walkie talkie and I scooted all around the surrounding area of the bathrooms to try and find him.

I determined where he wasn't.

While I was still out looking, mom went to our camping neighbours, because we had noticed that they had walkie talkies too. So we all switched to the same channel. They went out looking in the other direction while their mom went in their car and my mom went to the front desk. I came back empty handed and dad went out looking too, but he didn't have a walkie talkie. Mom told the other girls where they could possibly look, and dad came back with news that someone on the next loop over had seen him.

After about an hour, the other girls found him.

Their mom tracked them down and gave Stephen a ride home while some guys from the front desk put his scooter in their pick up truck. Mom thanked them and we prepared to leave, having been delayed by that little incident.

Stephen's story was that he ha went to the bathroom, but on the way back, he had taken a "short cut". I couldn't believe he'd done that. He ended up over a bridge and on the other side of the camp grounds, for gosh sakes!

But that was his story, and after hammering it into big head that he should never take a short cut by himself, we packed up and left.

That trip was a lot more epic than it needed to be.

Cross Country Camping?: Monck

Okay, we went to six locations, so I'm gonna do six posts, 'kay? I'm gonna call them CCS: (location here). So as you can see, our first location was Monck, British Columbia. I called it MUNG - k - k. Everyone else called it just plain Monck. We got set up and everything. We took a walk on the beach to check things out. Then we roasted hot dogs and sausages on the camp fire. I wanted Mom to get some cookies, because last year we found out that if in a s'more you substitute a graham cracker with a cookie, it tastes like a million bucks. But Mom didn't get it, so I was unhappy. We had regular old s'mores then. End of day 1 (which was actually a half a day). The next day Mom had to go to Wal Mart in the town to get a bathing suit. No one else had to. She didn't actually get a bathing suit. Picky mom. That whole day Stephen scooted (on his scooter, I mean) to the bathroom. The fifteenth time he said "I'm going to the bathroom!" Mom just had to say (and I'm quoting here) "Good Lord, Stephen! Do you have a bladder problem or something?" Me and Mom were pretty boring, sitting around on our lawn chairs reading and doing cross words. I scooted with Dad (well, actually he was rollerblading; I was scooting) around the campsite. It was a scary place to rollerblade because you were either exhausting yourself rollerblading uphill (it was pretty bad on a scooter too) or about to die on the downhill (not quite so bad on a scooter, but still pretty scary). I stopped after our first round, but Dad kept going. For some reason. We went to the beach. The water is freaky cold at Monck, and it gets so deep that if you're five feet from shore you can't touch the bottom anymore. You think I'm kidding? I swear it's true. So Dad threw me in there and I got frost bite. Okay, it's not that cold. But it was pretty darn cold, I tell you! I read my book and was generally boring. Oh well. We had chicken for dinner and s'mores for dessert. I saw this read creepy bug by Dad and in the darkness of the evening I couldn't see exactly what it looked like, but it looked like a huge beetle of something. I was like "Uh.... Dad? There's a.... something by your leg." He looked down and was like "What is THAT?" He got it on the end of his stick and threw it in the fire. I have decided to name the bug Creepo. So yeah. End of day 2. The next morning we got ready to leave, packing up the tent trailer and all that. Then we left. Off to Jasper. The end.

Cross Country Camping?

We're going camping like, today, so I'm just warning you guys that I probably won't be able to blog unless Mom brings her lap top, which she might. We're going everywhere for two whole weeks - well, around B.C and I think maybe a bit down past the border in America, then we're going to everywhere in Alberta - it's like cross country camping, except not really. It's only like two provinces. But whatever. The point is that you probably don't wanna bother checking my blog every single day (you know, 'cause I'm so famous and everyone cares about all my weirdo rants and so on) until, like, August. Just to let you know. Anyway, my parents are gonna start yelling at me soon for being on the computer just as we're about to go (they always say "We're about to go! Get off the computer!" Then we wait like another hour with nothing to do) but I'm going to keep blogging anyways. I brought eight books camping. 'Cause it's two weeks! I brought the whole Percy Jackson series, (I LOVE those books, and I'm just gonna reread the series, possibly over and over and over.....) Inkspell (currently reading for the second time) Inkdeath (the sequel to Inkspell - hey, I'm gonna finish Inkspell over two weeks!) and this Encyclopedia of Magical Creatures (which is an encyclopedia, so that's just a fun read for when I'm bored and feel like reading about some ancient myths). I also brought all my most recent stories I'm working on - Randy, which I told you about, the ancient greece one, and this other one I've told you nothing about and I will in another post. I also might bring my marbles. Play with Grandma. Anyway..... talk to you later (probably A LOT later....)

Megan

The Family Reunion

Okay. I told you I'd tell you about it so I will. It started off okay, I guess. We needed name tags because no one knew anyone. Me and Madeleine tried playing marbles in the gravel; we did it at last year's get together. It didn't work this time, mainly because our moms came over and scolded us for cutting ourselves off from the rest of the clan. That didn't bother me or her, and no one else seemed to notice, but we had to join people anyways. So what we did was we found the tree farthest away from the people (I'm just gonna call them people; it's weird to call them family if you've never met any of them) and talked. We kind of had an agreement. I could bore her with greek mythology if she could bore me with medical anatomies and such. We were very open about boring people and didn't care that people didn't care. Anyways, eventually our moms came over AGAIN and scolded us on cutting ourselves off. We called it "Project Anti Social". They called it "Rude". I don't know what the big deal was, because nobody cared one way or the other, except of course for our mothers. So they forced us to join the three legged race. We sucked. Then we hid beneath another tree; closer this time. That way if our moms came over again wondering why we weren't talking to all the strangers, we could say without argument that it wasn't our fault, it was theirs for not coming over to say hi. Only something went wrong in Project Anti Social; people DID come over to say hi. They were three girls, around our age, sisters I think. Their names were Jessica, something or other and what's her face. They came over and I guess that they felt obliged to stay and talk, though we had absolutely NOTHING in common, and I could tell they didn't really enjoy our company. We weren't all that thrilled either. I started off the conversation with a bang, saying "Yes, I am weird. Let's just get that out of the way." They just looked at me like I was crazy. I can't say it's the first time I've scared people off; but that's another story. They made an excuse and went off towards the drink coolers. Madeleine was like "Ha! You scared THEM off!" Only they actually came back. Then Madeleine asked them which fracture in her anatomy book looked the most painful, and they went off to play some lame party game. "Nice," I said to Madeleine. "Hey, if you get to scare them off, so do I," she replied. Then we noticed that their drinks and shoes were left by us. They actually WERE going to come back. And they did. Only they ignored us and looked through each other's iPhones, which was really lame A) because they're sisters, and I think they've looked through each other's iPhones before, B) they came to us, under OUR tree, so if anything, we should be the ones ignoring them, and C) I was the only one without a phone. So then they went off (they really weren't very subtle) but they left their shoes and drinks AGAIN. They typed something on their phones and came back, asking us to say it aloud. A new girl was with them, her name was Zoey. They told me to go away because they were picking on Madeleine first. Then they invited me back over, telling me to say what they had wrote on their iPhone. You don't want to know what it said. Now came the realization I dreaded: I was related to some dumb popular girls. At least, that's what it seemed like to me. They listened to some bad music on their iPhone when Jessica said "Who wants to make up a dance to this song?" Everyone except me and Madeleine joined. So they went off underneath a different tree, and they most certainly weren't making up a dance. We noticed that whenever they saw us looking, they would do some moves. But when they were oblivious of our looking, they were sitting around gossiping. Things went from bad to worse when they disappeared again and suddenly Nathan and his new clone friends attacked them and us. Madeleine finally spoke her mind and suddenly Nathan was all offended. They attacked us on the air mattress, and I'm sorry, but I get mad. Madeleine said, "You shouldn't hurt us. We're family." Nathan2 - that's what I've decided to call him - replied with a dimwitted, "That's why it's OKAY to hurt you." That was when I attacked Nathan. I'm sorry, they were p!ssing me off. Nathan fought back, and so did Nathan2, but really, I've been fighting Nathan since he could walk, so I was well trained. They finally ran away. So that was our absolutely FABULOUS experience at the family reunion. Well really, what do you expect? You don't feel so bad dissing people you've never met, even if they ARE family.

My New Story

I'm writing a new story! I know this is like my third already, but whatever. It's set in ancient greek times, and I'm going to incorporate all the gods and goddesses into the book. It's basically about this girl named Cassandra who is so beautiful that all the gods fall in love with her. Her family doesn't know though, 'cause they were one of those people who didn't believe in the gods anymore. Her dad wants her to marry some jerk guy, and she can't do anything about it, because she's just a girl, and if anyone knows anything about ancient greece, girls didn't carry a lot of weight in the community. Oh, you know what! Scratch what I said about them not believing in the gods anymore. 'Cause right at the start, her dad wants to have a sacrifice to Hera, so yeah. Anyways, all the goddesses tell her something or other, either threatening or advice, and all the gods try to impress her or..... get her in other ways. It's gonna be fun to write. That's all. Okay. Bye.

Trip to Ontario

So after school ended we went to Ontario. And this is an exciting post completely devoted (as much as I can be) to the thrilling events that happened in Ontario. 1) I got off the plane, met Grandpa at the Ottawa airport and spent another long three or so hours in his muggy, musty old car. We finally came to my grandparents house. Then we ate. Then we slept. 2) I woke up. I occupied myself playing their big loud piano and talking to Stephen and Grandma and Mom on the walkie talkies as I walked aimlessly through Grandma's backyard (yeah, for future reference, there's a forest in her backyard). That didn't always work though, so that sucks. Then we went to the really awesome beach that is right by their house and we swam there. There were waves that were...... not all that big actually, but big enough that they were fun to jump over. I pretended I was beating up Poseidon (greek mythology obsession, hello) so Mom and Grandma were wondering why in the world I was karate chopping the water, hahahaha. Then we went to sleep. 3) Again, I occupied myself playing piano and talking on walkie talkies. We went to this independent store to buy Stephen his birthday presents. I also bought some more marbles there. I collect marbles. Then we did nothing the rest of the day and, you know, spent it in a slump. Then we went to sleep. 4) We wake up and remember that TODAY IS THE DAY THAT AUNTIE BEV, MADELEINE AND NATHAN COME!!!! Madeleine is my cousin and she's really awesome, so yeah. Nathan is also my cousin and.... well, he's in that stage of life where he's basically an obnoxious little boy. Grade two, so yeah. Then Madeleine, him and I began to write our yearly play. This year it was about a witch who needs to go back in time to kill the president so that she can rule the world! So she goes to Dr. Frankenstein's great great great great great great x 10 grand daughter to build her a time machine. So she builds it and then she thinks it's sending her back to 1960, but really it's sending her to the wild west. Then we went swimming and me and Madeleine developed a new branch of karate called Bubble - Fu. Then we went to sleep. 5) Family reunion. That was a blast. Imagine a hundreds of strangers claiming to be related to you, but for all you know, they could be the best friends of your neighbour's dog's brother's owner. And they all expect you to know their name. Like, "Hi, Megan, I'm your great uncle Fred, I saw you when you were about four years old, remember me?" And they're FAMILY so you can't LIE and say "Yes, good to see you again, how's your cat?" But you can't say "No, actually, I don't have the slightest idea who the heck you are," so you just kinda say something like "Oh...... hi." And they go asking my mom how they can make me feel more comfortable, and there goes me and Madeleine's 'Project: Anti - Social'. More stuff about that later. 6)Madeleine leaves! Boohoo! Boo hoo! Nothing else to do, but we go swimming and say good bye to the Eighth Concession, because we'll probably never see it again. Because now Grandma and Grandpa are moving closer to Ottawa which means good bye Midland! Boo hoo! (again). 7) Canada's Wonderland. We're not a ride family, but if we were that would've been heaven. We got Dad a Peanuts shirt...... with Snoopy on it! Yay Snoopy! 8) Back to the family. We go to where my great grandmother is now living (yes, living) in a home. She spoke dutch a lot, so grandma had to translate what all she was saying. She gave me some advice on writing that I will hold onto until my dying days..... because Nanny told me it in HER dying days. Tell you that later. Then we went to Nathan and his little brother Leo's house. Leo is a sweet little four year old. Unfortunately he has Nathan for a brother. We performed our play there and it was FABULOUS. I played the witch, Madeleine played the scientist, Nathan played Frankie (Frankenstein's great x 10 grand son) and Leo played a handy stage hand. Then I went to Madeleine's house to sleep while Mom and Stephen slept at Nathan's house. 9)Everyone comes over to Madeleine's house. Madeleine introduces everyone to the Murdoch Mysteries. She used to be hooked on the Simpsons, but now it's Murdoch. The show's okay, but I like the theme song best. Everyone went to a lame little beach, that really sucked, and then we went back. We had the cousin's birthday! Because the grandparents aren't there for all the cousins' birthdays, every year we celebrate all of them at once and get cake and presents and the works. Then Madeleine found her marbles and we traded and played and won and played. Good times. 10) The day of leaving. I pack and drink coffee while all the adults get organized, and then me and Madeleine play marbles until it's time to go. Then it's Good bye for another year Madeleine. Then we go to Nathan's house and do stuff. Then we get in that muggy musty little car. Now, there are velvet seats in there, and it was like thirty six degrees celsius in there with no air conditioner. So we hop aboard a plane and leave. The End.

My New Obsession

GREEK MYTHOLOGY!!!! I am SO obsessed with that. So excuse me while I rant and bore you as much as I can before I drag it out in various posts. Or would you prefer that? Hmmm....... well, I'll just tell you about all the gods in this one. There's Zeus, the god of the sky, and Poseidon, god of the sea, and..... Dionysus, god of wine, Hermes, messenger of the gods and god of thieves (Once, Emma tried to lock me out of her house, I was like "I'll just call on Hermes, god of picking locks!" She was like "You mean god of thieves?" "Same thing!"), there's also Apollo, god of music and prophecy and was it sport? I can never remember what the third one is. And also Hephaestus, god of...... gee, I don't actually know what he's the god of. Maybe the god of forging.... like, you know, forging swords and stuff. I think that's the word. Anyways, and then there's Ares, god of war. For goddesses, there is Hera, goddess of marriage and pregnancy, Athena, goddess of wisdom, Artemis, goddess of the moon and the hunt, Demeter, goddess of the harvest, and Aphrodite, goddess of beauty and love. Then as for the ones that don't count as Olympians, Hades, lord of the Underworld, Hestia, (she gave up her throne for Dionysus) and Persephone (she was abducted by Hades because she was so beautiful, and Hades wanted her as his wife). The End.

Flaws and Factors

So, I've been thinking. Everyone thinks that they want to be perfect, but what fun would that be? If you're perfect, then you have nothing to laugh at. If you're perfect then you're only pressuring other people to be. And THAT can lead to disasters like eating disorders, depression, and the likes. So I think the world should just accept their Flaws and Factors. For example: me. Well, it's easy for me to see the flaws of myself, but not so easy to see the factors. Well, I guess that I am a bit outspoken, and sometimes can't hold myself back from doing and saying things that I probably shouldn't. I can be a bit TOO sure of myself...... and sometimes I don't have faith in myself the slightest bit. BUT......... I am awesome. Okay, just kidding. But I am easy to be friends with I think, and I am always the LIFE of the party. But I wonder........ is being a "weirdo", so to speak, a flaw or a factor? So many questions....... Anyways, back on task. So everyone has flaws and factors. We're human. And you wouldn't be you if you didn't have those flaws...... and you'd be sad if you failed to appreciate your factors. So live life without regrets and knowing that your flaws aren't failures, they're quirks. Quirks = good. And your factors are open to mostly to everyone but you. You yourself normally have to dig deep to find them in this messed up world we live in. But knowing that everyone else can see them at least gives ME a bit of comfort. :)

Did I Mention I'm A Published Author Now?

THAT'S RIGHT!!!! I got published!!!! Unfortunately it's not what you think. Or what I hope you think. I haven't published a novel. BUT..... I AM a published writer now. See, there's this journal of writing that circulates the whole district and I got published in it. And best of all, it was a story I wrote for school that I absolutely adore of myself! I'm so proud of it! Sure, the story's in french, but that's not the point! The point is that I have a resume now. For when I get a BOOK published, you know? And besides, what do you expect from a french immersion student? I mean seriously!

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O O yeah, see that's supposed to be a music note, whatever. I GOT PUBLISHED!!!

Schools Out!!!

Woohooo!! Well, actually, school was out a while ago, but I haven't posted in months. Anyways..... so, not a lot new. I passed sixth grade (big surprise, huh?) and am currently filling out my school day memories book with, well..... school day memories. WHOA!! Another big surprise, right? So, yeah, I'm still celebrating the fact that I can wake up when I FEEL like it now. I can wake up at 12:00 in the afternoon and no one would care. YES!!! YES!! YES!!! *evil laugh (which I rock at)*