B.L.F.P.

The New Year is only three days away but it’s hard to notice because of the summer weather. I’m still used to seeing mounds of snow & feeling minus degree temperatures but not this time. It’s hard to believe how fast time flies when you’re not looking. So much has happened in the last 365 days, from the controversial Beijing Olympics to the electing of Barack Obama, the first Black President of the USA. It’ll be a year to be missed . . . or forgotten if you’re one of the millions of victims suffering from the global recession.

Like last Saturday, I went on another scenic bike ride to the eastern side of Christchurch, exploring more unvisited neighbourhoods. The lucky residential districts (Queens Park, Parklands, & Waimairi Beach) are located north of my previous excursion, New Brighton Beach. The layout and appearance of these districts remind me of Orleans, an eastern suburban neighbourhood in my hometown of Ottawa, except the houses are bungalows and palm trees are the favoured flora.

I seem to be examining a lot of residential properties, preferring contemporary (modern) bungalow designs, and watching a lot of housing programs on TV dealing with purchasing, selling, and renovating. My favourite programs are Location [x3], Relocation Relocation, and Grand Designs. I’m at that age where I want to buy and live in my dream house/apartment, but the problem is that my total net worth is laughably low.

Bottle Lake Forest Park (BLFP) sits north of Queens Park & Parklands, giving people a place to get-away-from-it-all and walk, bike, and even horseback in the wilderness. The park is actually a large pine tree plantation, giving it a Canadian appearance, and it hides many walking and biking trails. I found it odd that it’s also home to a small landfill. Biking through this park is fun & exciting but you have to remember that you’re best friends are dead pine needles & rocks – avoid biking in sand! I made my way to Waimairi Beach and enjoyed the sounds of crashing waves and the ocean winds. The opening scenes of the movie Saving Private Ryan flashed in my mind as I gazed at the undamaged coastline, imagining it to be fortified like the beaches of Normandy in 1944.

The bike ride back to campus was an adventure because I wanted to see if I could get back without having to rely on a map. I spent quite an amount of time stuck in suburbia, trying to find the main roads that lead to the city centre. The method of trial & error can be tedious at times but I was able to make it back to my residence just in time to watch Grand Designs where an architect succeeds in rescuing and renovating an abandoned English castle. The bad news was that he was left with a 350,000₤ debt, and my legs were aching after the long bike ride.

Well, this will be last post for the year that once was, 2008, and I would like to wish everyone a Happy New Year! All I have to do now is think of several achievable resolutions for next year and wonder if the OC Transpo strike in my hometown of Ottawa will last longer than the previous 24-day strike of 1996.

See you all in 2009!