Friday, Friday, Gettin' Down on Friday...

HAH!  Now you have that song stuck in your head, mwah-hah-hah-hah!  Okay, so I only did that because I've had that wretched song stuck in my head for days, and I felt the need to share my pain. 

Friday was a good day, in that I didn't get lost, didn't get on the wrong bus, and managed not to anger the blisters on my feet TOO badly.  I had an appointment at two with an advisor in the International office, to get my study permit situation (hopefully) settled once and for all, so I plugged in my desired arrival time into ETS and got my bus/LRT situation sorted out, with a schedule that was set to get me to campus about 1:48.  I left the house a little after one, then promptly returned to the house to get my jacket - it was COLD on Friday.  Like, low 40s cold, and what scared me, as I was shivering waiting for the bus, was that I realized that it is going to get A LOT colder as the year progresses.  Everyone was right - I AM going to freeze.  But, my leather jacket served me well on Friday, so (sincerely) thanks, guy who repaired my jacket.  You did a great job. 

I made it up to campus around 1:35.  Apparently, the LRT goes a little faster than ETS estimates.  I had time to kill, and thought about wandering campus some more - then my blisters started throbbing angrily (I think they can read my thoughts) so I just headed to the International office instead.  I got there around 1:40 - the place was packed and hoppin', due to the barbecue that was taking place in the quad just outside the office.  Joy.  I managed to find a seat near the receptionist's desk.  About two seconds after I'd settled down and opened my book, I was swarmed by a group of Asian girls, all talking to each other in their native tongue, all acting as though I was invisible.  Or part of the chair.  I ignored it and waited until it was near time for my appointment, then got up and made my presence known to the receptionist.  When I turned back to take my seat again, I found it covered by all of the girls' purses and whatnot, so I gave it up as lost and just stood near the counter reading until it was my turn.

Talking to the advisor didn't take long, and she was able to put my mind at ease regarding the study permit.  The university doesn't care if you have one, unless you're trying to get a job on-campus, so...I'm officially okay to start school on Wednesday...yay?  I'm trying to be excited, but there's that young part of me that's like, "School?  I thought we were done with that....>sigh< okay...."

Leaving the International office, I discovered it had started to rain - really rain - while I was inside.  As I was walking outside, I remembered that my umbrella was still in California.  Actually, both of them are.  I'd meant to pack them, but at some point in time, the thought just fell out of my head.  Nice.  Thankfully, it was a short walk back to the LRT station, and as I was getting off the LRT, my bus got there - the right one this time - so there wasn't a whole lot of time spent in the rain. 

That night, Aunt Cathie offered to take me to the West Edmonton Mall (or WestEd, as it's known locally).  Now, I've only been to Edmonton once before now, and I was about four years old.  I don't remember anything of that first trip, but this: Edmonton has a mall that has a roller coaster in it.  That was all I could remember, ever, from that trip.  That mall is the West Edmonton mall, and it doesn't just have a roller coaster.  It has a small theme park, with multiple rides, including but not limited to: a roller coaster (a big one), giant swings, tilt-a-whirl, one of those raise you up high and drop you thingies (2, actually, one for small kids and one for grownups), another roller coaster where you sit in cars that you can spin like the teacups at D-land, a train, and a bunch of other stuff that I didn't really take in.  That's in one part of the mall.  There is also a water park, with some giant slides, a kiddie land, and a huge wave pool.  There is a pirate ship over water, where there are bumper boats, and a dolphin show.  And a seal show.  There is an ice skating rink, and apparently the Oilers sometimes practice there.  There are three food courts, two of them your typical mall food courts, and one called Bourbon street that hosts a bunch of different pubs and real restaurants.  Oh, and there are about a million stores.  And a hotel.  We were there for nearly two hours, and all we did was walk from one end of the mall to the other and back.  We went into, I think three stores, each for less than 10 minutes.  It's huge, and it's all under one roof.  I thought my head was going to explode.  I also thought it was weird to have an amusement park and water park in a MALL, but, as Cathie pointed out, "What else are you going to do when there's six feet of snow outside?"  What, indeed.  Go to the mall!  Bring your swimsuit and your ice skates!