HELLO!
The past couple of years have indeed been different for us all, and I guess we are just figuring out how to best navigate life in these times. As spring came in 2021, the weather changed, it got warmer and I was super happy about this. I had spring classes, spending May and June in online classes. I went out a couple of times to visit people and generally just lived life as best as one could with online classes and COVID.
I think the major thing that happened to me was that I moved out of my apartment for about 2 months and stayed with two friends and my sibling in a house we rented while I had classes.
The major reason for the move was that it was more cost-effective for all of us to stay together because we all had summer trips planned and a short-stay house was a good solution for the spring. This was the first time I was living in a house with multiple friends and I was a little scared that we would not cohabit well due to personality differences, but I was pleasantly surprised. This was in fact my best spring, and I can confidently rank it as one of my best experiences with other people. We got a house together in a part of Calgary called Silverado. Apparently, Silverado as a name has something to do with horses, which explained the horse motif on the town sign.
We spent the first two days moving in and cleaning, after which we settled in, purchased needed items and groceries. There were two shopping areas close to the residence and the bus stop was at the most convenient place- in front of the house. It was a 30-second walk to the bus stop. The shopping centre to the left had Walmart, Best Buy, Dollarama, Shoppers drug mart and some other food places that we frequented so many times. I am sure Booster Juice had our house address and faces memorized, as we either stopped there for smoothies or ordered them to the house.
The shopping centre to the right had a lot more restaurants, a shoppers drug mart and some other stores I did not care so much about. The nearness of the bus stop encouraged us to go out, and even though we did not take the bus, we found it easy to walk in either direction due to their proximity and convenience. I also got a bicycle which I rode a couple times around the area. Every single time I rode my bicycle, I felt superior and better than everyone else because I had just “exercised “.
I also did a lot of cooking and some baking in this house because the kitchen appliances agreed with me, and I was 4, 5 seconds from purchasing the exact same blender because it was just so effective. I know now that when I have money I will invest in kitchen appliances. I have a baby blender that I currently use, but using that other blender changed my life literally. The oven was also so much bigger and better- it had a timer and everything. I also discovered that Walmart close to us had better prices and better deals than the one close to my regular apartment. I started asking myself if it was financially feasible to continue to drive to Silverado after we left to keep using their Walmart.
One issue with the area of Silverado was how far it was from the rest of the city. It was so far from the rest of my life that after the last train stop, I still had to take one short bus to get to the house. The other issue for me was that the air conditioning was not working as well as I would have liked because the weather got ridiculously hot on some particular days and it felt as if I was going to fry. It was this dry, intense heat that did not allow you to sweat because there was no humidity in the air. I still prefer the heat to winter though.
As summer came, we all gradually went on our trips and finally moved out of the house.
Till next time,
Cheers!
Call Me Ajala 