Zoom North
Headed back up to Calgary today. Not ready to go back. I want just a bit more time in Moscow.
Edit: THIS KOKANEE FOOT HAS SIX TOES
BACK IN THE ‘SCOW
I am BACK IN MOSCOW AGAIN!
It always feels good to come back for a little while. It’s not quite the same now that my dad’s no longer living here (meaning my mom and I can’t go crash over there and visit, haha), but it’s still fun.
Calgary’s great; I love the big city, I love Canada, and I love pretty much everything else about it here (except CHEESE IS TOO FREAKING EXPENSIVE), but it’s nice to “escape” back to tiny old ‘Scow for a bit.
And buy $1.77 bags of shredded cheese from Winco.
ALSO. Did you know that there is no Colby-Jack cheese up here? I don’t know about the rest of the country, but Colby-Jack is not a thing in Calgary.
Which is dumb, ‘cause Colby-Jack is life.
Anyway.
A Thought
As you are all probably very well aware, I have moved around a lot in my life. Yes, most of that was in one city (Moscow), but I’ve moved a lot. Ask my mom.
At some point or another, I have missed living in most of the places I’ve called home, except for that first house on Grant St. (sorry mom) and that shithole I lived in in Vancouver for the first year or so (this one).
Another place that I’ve (surprisingly) not missed very often? My place in London, ON.
I miss the dorm room sometimes because it was so unlike a dorm room and more like a little apartment and I had it all decorated and pretty (this one), but I really don’t miss London at all.
I don’t know if that’s because those 70-ish days I spent there were part of a very bad time in my life or what, but I just didn’t enjoy it there. I knew I shouldn’t have gone, but I went anyway. And then had to come right back, haha.
That was really a rough time. Maybe I’ll tell you all more about it someday.
Maybe not.
Are you Koppen with your climate?
So this is a cool little website. It lets you type in a city and highlights places around the world that have similar climates to that city.
Here’s Calgary, with its Dfb Koppen climate (continental climate, no dry season, warm summer)
Moscow, with its Csb Koppen (middle latitude climate, dry season in a warm summer)
Vancouver, with its Cfb Koppen (middle latitude climate, hell on earth no dry season, warm summer)
And Tucson, with its BSh Koppen (dry and hot semi-arid climate)
Nice!
Back to Calgary today.
That was NOT ENOUGH MOSCOW TIME.
I need like two weeks down there, seriously. I just want to hang with my mom for a bit. I have a feeling we’re not going to be able to do that for much longer, so I want to hold on to it for as long as I can.
Also, it was super weird not being able to go to my dad’s house in Moscow. It’s no longer his house. That’s going to take some time to get used to.
And now I’m sad. Change blows.
Hey poop-o’s, I’m back in Moscow!
FREAKING FINALLY, it’s been way too long since I’ve been back here and seen my mom. I think early September last year was the last time. That’s super sad.
ANYWAY. I should be here for a week and a half or so. I’ve already walked 15 miles around the city, haha. And I’m going to go to Mongolian BBQ like 50 times because I love it and miss it.
And maybe I’ll even get my blogs all posted before I leave.
(I won’t.)
Homesick
You wouldn’t think I’d miss this little dink of a town, but right now, I miss it very much.
I’m excited to go back for a week or so in May to hang out with my mom/see Annabelle/walk around on my old routes. The cheaper groceries/clothes/everything will be a nice change for a bit, too.
Have more pics.
Walkin’ on the Sun
Holy buttgoblins, I’ve been missing Vancouver today. I was actually going to blog about how much I missed the city (and walking around in it), but as I started doing so, I remembered something else that was related but more interesting than my usual Van blathering.
“What is it?” You ask, grateful that you don’t have to scroll past another “Claudia blah-blahs about Vancouver” post.
It’s Walk Score!
From their “About” page: “Walk Score’s mission is to promote walkable neighborhoods. Walkable neighborhoods are one of the simplest and best solutions for the environment, our health, and our economy.”
Basically, a city (or a specific house in a city, either way) is assigned a score depending on how “walkable” that particular city/house is. If a house is closer to major things like downtowns, restaurants, grocery stores, parks, etc., it will have a higher score. If it’s far away from such things. Or, in the case of a city, if there aren’t a lot of sidewalks or pedestrian-friendly routes, the city’s overall score decreases.
So let’s check it out!
Yeah, that looks about right. The blue dot is where I lived, by the way.
And this:
That looks about right, too. Calgary is fantastic at the inconsistent sidewalk thing. And the taxi drivers that want to mow down pedestrians. DON’T GET ME STARTED ON THE TAXI DRIVERS.
What about Moscow?
That’s…surprising, actually. I don’t know if it’s because there just aren’t that many grocery stores in the city or (because stores/restaurants/etc. seem to be pretty clustered in specific spots)? Moscow seems waaaaay more walkable than Calgary. But that might just be because I’ve walked it so many freaking times that a 3-mile walk to Walmart doesn’t seem bad at all.
Hahahaha, yeah. Yeah.
Too bad Moscow isn’t named “Phileas”…
Because it’s Foggy as hell here today.
It actually looked like smoke this morning:
I had to walk to the U of I to do stats consulting stuff and the air seemed super smoky, especially over by my mom’s house. But I guess it was just fog?
This nonsense had better go away by Saturday morning. I will walk back up to Calgary if I have to.
How to Travel from Moscow to Calgary: An Illustrated Adventure
So here’s Calgary, right?
Here’s how far Calgary is from Moscow.
How do you think I would fly from Moscow to Calgary?
Well, the nearest international airport is in Spokane, which is here:
Reasonable route:
Would you agree?
Well, here’s how you actually get from Moscow to Calgary:
Dafuq, Alaska Airlines?
Also, all the layovers in SeaTac are like SIX HOURS LONG. Like I haven’t spent enough time in that airport.
(I know, I know, pointless complaining.)
Man, look at the air quality today
I missed the “early” bus this morning and was going to walk to campus, but last time I walked in this much smoke my eyes hurt for like three days straight. Since I have to proctor my students taking their exam today, I decided I would kind of prefer to have my eyesight for the morning and just waited for the “late” bus.
But tomorrow is WALKING DAY! I love Fridays for that reason alone. I should go to the fair, too. Anyone want to go to the fair with me?
Travellin’
If I were to rank the places I’ve been in terms of how much time I’ve spent there, it would go as follows:
- Moscow, ID
- Vancouver, BC
- London, ON
- SeaTac International Airport
Seriously. 99% of the time I fly, I have to fly through Seattle. 99% of those times, my layover is 3+ hours. Today, it was about 4 ½. It’s cool, though. I like that airport. They’ve got these awesome rocking chairs in the main food court thingy and they face a huge window looking out at all the runways/planes. They also rotate the artwork exhibits that are in the terminal hallways quite often, and they’re always pretty great.
ANYWAY.
I’m headed to Moscow! I’m actually in SeaTac right now; I’ll be home in three hours or so. Our old gang needs to get together and “party” in the basement.
And now I’m going to work on some stats stuff. I slacked off majorly and didn’t start my Stats Weekly posts at the beginning of the year (for various reasons); I’ll try to get it up for the midpoint of the year.
Vroom!
Wow
So I heard about the crazy homicide/suicide in Moscow. I didn’t know the young lady, but Dr. Bustamante was my professor for Psych 218 back in fall of 2007. It totally surprised me when I read about it, he didn’t strike me as someone who would do anything like that ever.
Strange, strange world.
Last day in Moscow
Total re-addiction to OK Cupid = accomplished.
Oh, and here’s the route for the next six days:
Wednesday: Moscow, ID to Bozeman, MT (~450 miles)
Thursday: Bozeman, MT to Rapid City, SD (~460 miles)
Friday: MOUNT RUSHMORE, OMFG (PRESIDENTS!)
Saturday: Rapid City, SD to Rochester, MN (~575 miles)
Sunday: Rochester, MN to Kalamazoo, MI (~494 miles)
Monday: Kalamazoo, MI to London, ON (~266 miles)
WOOO USA
HI PEOPLE!
I have returned to the states and am now sitting in my dad’s basement.
We totally need to do something fun while I’m back.
Sorry this is short, it was a long ride down here.
Today’s song: Kids (MGMT cover) by The Kooks
Appropriately, my summer begins today
Sort of. I’m still technically “enrolled” in my thesis, so I still should be doing research.
Which I am.
What joy.
But at least there are no more classes until September, so I’m FREE FROM CAMPUS! I’m coming back to Moscow on Sunday. Be prepared.
I also had an exceptionally strange dream last night. I can’t really say much about it except for the fact that it involved a lot of whipped cream, nudity, and swimming pools.
That is all.
Today’s song: Jukebox (Radio Edit) [Feat. Nicco] by WaWa
If night falls in a forest and a tree is still standing, does it cast a shadow?
Oh goodness, Thackeray’s Vanity Fair is hilarious. It’s putting me in the mood for NaNo, which is both good and bad, ‘cause right now I have far too much calculus to do to have any free time to write, which is bad, but it’s also making me think of new ideas, which is good.
Yeah.
Anyway.
So here is a list of things we need to do while I’m back in Moscow:
- Rock Band party
- Drunken party of insane fun (you all know what I’m talking about) in my basement. This time you’ll all need to stay the night, ‘cause I want to drink, too. This could be combined with Rock Band party easily.
- Go on a mini road trip. Because mini road trips are great.
- Screw around in the park.
- Screw around in Shari’s.
- Get naked (could be combined with any/all of the above).
- Drag show (I’m assuming I’ll be there for Pride).
Sound fun? I think so. I miss you weirdos.
Today’s song: Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood by Santa Esmeralda
Mr. Gorbachev, first put your pants back on, then we’ll talk about the wall, okay?
Yeah. So by now, you’ve probably heard about the shootings that happened here. It’s pretty late at night when I’m typing this up, and from what I’ve heard (or not heard, I guess) everyone I know in Moscow’s okay, so if you’re not from here and are wondering, there ya go.
I feel the mood must be lightened.
Eigenblogger 