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I know you are all waiting in anticipation for the Thanksgiving dinner you are about to enjoy.. (only a few more hours before the delicious smells will be delicious tastes in your mouth).. but I just wanted to take a few minutes to tell you all what I am most Thankful for this Thanksgiving.

First, I think I need to update you all a little bit.

I DID end up joining a sorority and it’s just been the greatest decision I have made since deciding to come to UBC. I have 60 new sisters! Though maybe not blood family, they are my family just the same!

As a most of you know, I have just moved to Vancouver with my bf from Denmark and as such have a limited number of people we know around here and definitely no family in the area. This being, Michael, my bfs first Thanksgiving in Canada, I was a little sad to find out that he might be having KFC for his first Thanksgiving meal (we are too broke to be investing in a full on Thanksgiving dinner for just the two of us… hehe). However, this was NOT the case.

After being persuaded by some of the other sisters (I joined Alpha Gamma Delta… Judith is my pledgemama and I guess her mom is renowned for making AWESOME dinners), I asked Judith if it was alright that Michael and I come and join their Thanksgiving. Normally I wouldnt dare to impose like this BUT apparently, Judiths mom makes “the best food” “would love to stuff you guys” and “would be offended if i didnt ask”.

So… last night, and only getting lost once on the way, Michael and I arrived at Judiths house to be greated by what felt like her entire family! It was soooo awesome and soo perfect. Michael and I felt soo welcome and I just fell in love with her family. I looooved the hustle and bustle and the multiple conversations going on at the “kid table”. We were all “encouraged” (and i use this term loosely as i do believe there were 4 separate occasions where we were told we werent eating enough) to take seconds, thirds, and even fourths. We spent the rest of the evening digesting in the company of Scattegories and Cranium (intensely fun games.. though i do feel I might have hurt Cams ego a little when i whopped his butt at scattegories! hehe).

Other than being soo thankful for the opportunity to show Michael what Thanksgiving is all about (and Judiths family most certainly did that), which i cannot say enough, I am just so thankful to know that there are families out there so open and willing to share in their happiness and bountiful holiday with otherwise perfect strangers. 

On that note, I hope you alll have an awesome day and enjoy your families…. Its time for me to get back to my Philosophy paper!

Thanks again Judith and her family! I cant wait to share more stories about my awesome sisters!  Hey Alpha Gams!!! 

There isn’t really a whole lot to say about our first week at UBC that I didnt already expect. TOTALLY busy, didn’t make it out to half of the Frosh week stuff that I wanted to but i must say, i think i kinda shocked myself (the following is a tale of personal wonder).

When I was growing up, I have always been kind of a tom-boy and very individual. When I was 19 I moved to Denmark on my own and I thrive in my travels when I am flying solo. That is why to my surprise, I decided to “try out” for a sorority.

There are 7 sororities at the UBC, all with there own unique outlook, personality, charity and support system. During my very intense RUSHing at the Panhellenic House (the name of the building where all of the sororities have there rooms and where sisters can live if they would like to rent an room), I probably met a million women in the course of 3 hours! The idea is to equally introduce each of the sororities and their uniqueness to all the girls who are interested in joining, over the course of 2 nights. From there, the sororites and interested parties, decide:

1. If the sorority “life” and involvement is for you. Its not for everyone. Really. It craves a certain about of time, commitment and willingness to help that not everyone is capable of giving when taking 30 credits at the UBC.

2. If they (the sorority) can see you being apart of their “family”. And that is what they will become. With some sororities even adopting a hierarchy of family-hood (big-sis, li’l-sis, etc.) I can only imagine what the relationships in these groups of incredible women are like.

I am totally new to Vancouver and very interested in getting involved in my community. As I will be majoring in Psychology, I hope to get deeper involved into some charities where I can hopefully build a good repetour and gain some experience in my field. This, and the idea of possibly recieving additional scholarships, are the reasons why I find myself extremely excitied to see if the sorority I would like to join (Alpha Gamma Delta) is also interested in me as a member.

Now, these arrangements are not to be taken lightly. There is a, in my opinion, high “dues” price that one must pay to become a member. At the same time, one also must be willing to commit a certain amount of time not only during the RUSH process, and initiation but also pledging and so on. I find myself worried about if i will be able to make the balance between different areas of my life, which i will need to do in order to be successful during my time at UBC. Working is a necessity, in order to have the funds needed to keep myself sane. I am a very committed student and thus use as much time on homework as I can muster (sure not more then the common UBC student, however). My boyfriend will need his cuddles and affection every now and then (as will I)  so I am forced to ask myself if there is enough time in there for me-time and time with my possible sisters…….

I dont know but I think im willing to find out. Sooo exciting!

So, I had a pretty productive day yesterday and due to that productive day, I can comfortably say, I have an apartment! And im not just talking about a place that I have to pay rent for, or a place with 4 walls. I am talking about something that actually feels like a home. You see, the passed few weeks, I have been living with nothing in my living room but a sofa and the TV sitting on the floor. Yesterday I got a TV stand (thank god) and  a great arm chair which i love and everything just feels so much more complete. I used craigslist to get this stuff and I thought about how invaluable this site would be to anyone so here it is: vancouver.craigslist.org . You see, anyone that has just moved to Vancouver will benefit GREATLY from craigslist. Having just moved here myself from Europe, I am not entirely sure of the popularity of craigslist so this blog might be pointless but IF not… whew… I’m glad I remembered to cover this!

Anyways, craigslist is this great website where you can find EVERYTHING you need. (Did I mention VERY affordable… sometimes FREE!?) Apartment searching? craigslist! Need a place to rest your feet? craigslist. Heck.. need a woman? CRAIGSLIST! Even if you just need some entertainment, you gotta check out the “missed connections” list. (I like to pretend that each one is talking about me! Man, do i feel loved/desired after 15 minutes of reading those!) And there’s no way you can feel lonely when you read through the someone “seeking” someone adds! There are tons of people in Vancouver! Who knew!

When I was in high school, there was this trend that said that you had to have a job on the side, or at at least that’s what most parents thought. Building a work ethic, earning your own keep; I guess that is what it was all about. I am feeling really good about not HAVING to rely upon money from a job in order to live while i’m studying now but I really sympathize with those who do.

(NOTE: There are a lot of jobs on the market though! Seriously, I hope your looking now cause jobs are there for the picking).

I was reading the other day and I found a comment on how psychologists are seeing a trend moving away from that “Must work while studying” mindframe, where parents are actually focusing on their children getting time to study, a well-rounded social life and rest because of the benefits on their educational experience. And i’m thinking “Holy cow…. this is huge!” Part of me is thinking, Damn (is that still considered a swear?)! Does that mean i’m going to have to pay for all MY kids’ extra-curriculars because the trend might be all the way over on the side of the spectrum by then? (For those that don’t know my humor, which is everyone so far, I am very sarcastic… This is one of those moments.) But the other part of me is just so damned jealous of the kids growing up now. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed the friendships that I made while having a job on the side, and of course the money but it was hard work! My marks definitely suffered (without a doubt) because of my focus shift on doing a good job rather then getting good grades. Not to mention fitting it all in. I have recently applied for a job here in Vancouver (more because i am soo restless having very few friends in the area; 2… thats right, I have 2 friends.. and one of them is in Victoria!) and I ended up with 2! I have no idea how i am going to balance that, but I am just soo glad that it’s not a “Must”.

When you are in school, studying should be your priority. Thats my opinion, anyways. I know we have all seen the type of student that takes advantage of the situation if their parents offer it to them, but don’t give up parents! There are still a lot of students out there that would really show you what their made of if only they had the time. Yes, Life is about Balance, but There are only 24 hours in a day. And part of the equation has got to include destressing time… and if your lucky.. family time!