A Little Surprise

So just a quick little post. Turns out I have been nominated for an OCNA award (the Student photography award)! I got an e-mail from a reporter asking me about how it feels to be nominated. Well to say that it totally came out of left field is an understatement. Looks like it is down to me and two other classmates. All three of the nominees are Loyalist students. Just goes to show how the school is dominating the photo school industry. Wish me luck come April 5th.

Thursday is Fast Aproaching

So my last weekend in town was pretty fantastic. I witnessed (And participated in) my first ever slow clap... A man fell off his barstool and Amie started the slow clap. Classic!

I pretty much have everything wrapped up here. All that is left is to pack my suitcase and jump on the plane. The anticipation is killing me. To think that in little more than 72 hours, I will be on the other side of the planet, in a place where I know not a soul. Exciting times to say the least.

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Geoff, Dave and Steve. Some of Saskatoon's best photographers. Hanging out for one of the last coffee nights for a while.
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Little Andrew Busby. This guy is a tank. He rams through all obstacles. Including slow moving photographers.

What I leave behind

Ten more days of having a comfortable life. Looking over my desk shows these creature comforts. Tim Hortons Double Double. Energy drinks. Two cell phones. My desktop computer with two monitors. Most importantly, pictures of friends. Friends that I will not see again for a while.

Sure I will meet new people in Hangzhou, heck I am getting picked up from the airport by a brit and sharing an flat with other English speaking people. Meeting people is not what I have problems with.

My problem is leaving the people that I have met. If I have known you for 28 years or 28 days, saying goodbye is not an easy task for me. Add to that the fact that my ten months in Saskatoon were filled with some of the best times makes it that much harder.

Here is to new friendships (Michelle, JD, The Amies etc) and old (Clay and the crew, Danielle and Brian, everyone from school) and whatever the next year brings.

Getting Close - The Shanghai Kid

Fred Gray lost her mom to cancer while she was in high school. She agreed to be part of Photosensitive's Cancer Project, which aims to raise awareness.
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My imminent departure is fast approaching. I have just booked my ticket to Shanghai for Feb 28. I am now working on the Visa paperwork. There is so much paperwork! At least I know when I get there that I am not just dumped into a crazy world. I have a week booked at a hotel in Shanghai before taking the train to Hangzhou. Now I am just hoping the weather decides to warm up a little.

I also now have a lawyer. A friend from high school is a lawyer at a VERY prestigious firm in Saskatoon. I called him up to see what I needed to get done in terms of handing signatory power to my mother. Hard to pay bills and all that crap when you are on the other side of the world. Well long story short, my mother now has power of attorney. I also now have a will. So time to butter me up to get all my good loot.

A big problem I am having right now is deciding what to bring. I am only taking my 70 litre backpack and a camera bag. This confuses many people, however my justification for one bag is that I want to travel light. The point of backpacking across the world is to see what you can live without. Even last year at school, I packed light. I had very little of my Saskatoon "wealth" with me as any of my classmates can attend to. My room was fairly bare. This is just going to be an extension of that.