1.  Favourite book. (More than one is OK)
"The Time Traveler's Wife" - Audrey Niffenegger
"Tim" - Colleen McCullough (I enjoy re-reading this one every few years, which I can't say for too many other books)

2.  Favourite movie  (More than one is OK)
"Pride & Prejudice" - the one with Keira Knightly
"Blade Runner"

3.  Pet Peeve
Lateness
    
4.  Favourite fruit
Watermelon

5.  Favourite kind of food
Japanese

6.  If you could time travel, would you travel to the past or the future?
Hm, probably the past, since I'll know what to expect--what if the future's all apocalyptic and stuff?

7.  Favourite type of music
Classic Rock, alt-rock, electronica, 80s

8.  Favourite person
The Hubby

9.  Hobbies and what's your favourite
Knitting, watching anime

10.  What is your worst vice?
Spending way too much time on the internets, booze

11.  What do you consider your best trait?
Giving people the benefit of the doubt

12.  What makes you crazy?
Bad drivers, stupidity, chronically late people

13.  Favourite country to re-visit
Canada--it's a beautiful country, and there's no language barrier

14.  Favourite meal you had in the past
going hog-wild at Kappo Honda

15.  Favourite alcoholic beverage
ice-cold beer, preferably a Japanese lager like Sapporo

16.  Favourite song
Oddly enough, I think it would have to be "Waltz" by Suneohair from the Honey and Clover soundtrack. I think it's the one song I listen to the most, since it's on my GYM playlist on the iPod and I listen to it every time I work out. I always enjoy listening to it--I never fast forward past this one. Have to thank Sakura for hooking me up with the mp3 :)

17.  Favourite historical period
Hm, have to say it'd be right now--where would I be without my internet, showered people, and clean bathrooms?

18.  Favourite quote
"I'm trying to contain an outbreak and you're driving the monkey to the airport!"

- Hank Hill, to his wife Peggy about her letting their son Bobby become a child model (from King of the Hill)

19.  What is your ambition?
To be happy and to make those around me happy

20.  What are you wearing to the wedding.  (Any and all)
Well, 8 years ago, I wore a dress I bought at White House/Black Market for $80 (still have it)

21.  Favourite store
Like Remy, it'd have to be TARGET

22.  Least favourite kind of food
Overly sugary foods

23.  Phobia?
cockroaches!

24.  Your own worst trait?
Also like Remy, impatience

25.  Favourite smell
peppermint, lavender

26.  What do you think is the most underrated virtue?
Stability
 
27.  What do you think is the most overrated virtue?
Ambition

It's been a great two weeks, but like all good things, it must come to an end. I was in western Canada for a week, and I had another week off just hanging around at home, visiting some friends, etc. The Canadian trip with the Curtii was really fun; we got along pretty well. We met up with a lot of their Warcraft friends in Calgary and Vancouver, and they all turned out to be lovely people. With all the Asians in Vancouver, I was surprised to find myself the only Asian in these Warcraft gatherings. I wonder what the racial breakdown is among players? I think they're mostly white people. Having been to Eastern Canada a few years ago, it was interesting to get the Western Canadian perspective. For one thing, most of them seem to have a great contempt for the Quebecois (people of French extraction in Quebec), and consider the province of Quebec a great drain on Canadian resources. I've always thought of Canada as one big happy family, but as is the case with most families, nothing is perfect.

Calgary is a much sleepier city than Vancouver, and had a big cowboy culture, surprisingly. They have an annual event called The Stampede, where they actually herd a bunch of cattle and horses through the center of town--apparently it's a huge bash and people really go nuts. We missed it by about a week, but maybe that was a good thing. The highlight of our time in Calgary was definitely visiting Banff National Park. It's a huge park, kind of a like our Yosemite, perhaps, and we only got to see a very small portion of it, but what we saw was pretty amazing. We loved going canoeing on Lake Louise, and visiting the imposing Fairmont Banff Springs hotel. Vancouver was much more cosmopolitan, and since the weather was so nice, it almost felt like I was back at home--like an alternate universe Santa Monica. We got to see a lot of  Vancouver: we drove/walked through most of its famous neighborhoods, rode bikes around their huge Stanley Park, drove up to Whistler one day to do the ziptrek tour thingy, and took the ferry over to Vancouver Island and visited the Butchart Gardens. The only bummers were: not bringing my camera along to the ziptrek tour (didn't think it was allowed, but found out it was, grrr), not having enough time on Vancouver Island to see the town of Victoria, and leaving my Nintendo DS and ipod at the hotel! Luckily I remembered while I was at the airport and was able to call them and ask then to ship them out to me. Hopefully it won't take too long. Anyhoo, here is a flickr link with all 800+ photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/shwphotos/sets/72157605893923935/ Be sure to turn on the comments if viewing the slideshow. Now I'm just mentally preparing myself to getting back to work tomorrow--boohoo.