Toronto chilled-out life

What day is it? Monday? Sunday? Ah i think it's monday. I have been off work for nearly a year so have lost all track of weekdays, i only know it's sunday because my friends get all tense and go to bed early muttering about 'bloody work'. I don't miss those days at all. Unfortunately i'm just about reaching my reserve budget so my thoughts are increasingly turning to sorting out some paid employment when i get back.

Yuk.

Anyway, I'm having a top time in toronto, and have about 6 or 7 weeks before I fly back. This feels like a short time and i'm kinda winding down the trip, but it's way longer than most holidays! So I'm fighting the wind-down feeling.

Man this laptop is hot on my legs.

The 3 day train ride totally screwed up my sleep pattern, basically because i didn't get any. I went to sleep at about 5am this morning and slept through until 4pm, now it's 3am and i'm blogging! Need to reset back to normal hours.

The train taught me a little bit more about myself. Some of the people sitting around me (all with 2 seats to themselves so it was kinda spread out) formed a little group which i was welcome to join, i chatted to them all a little, but i just wasn't interested. I preferred to sit reading, listening to music and staring out the window at the scenery. I've noticed this more and more on the trip, I am very independent and feel no need to hunt down 'casual' company most of the time, usually it just doesn't seem worth the effort of talking to people. Not sure if that's good or bad! It's prob ok as long as i don't take it to extremes, which i don't.

Heidi has an awesome flat, in 'downtown' but in a quiet leafy residential street with cool bars and restaurants at the end of it. The flat has a porch/deck out the front with a bbq and chairs, so yesterday I spent a few hours stripping the bike of all its touring equipment - racks, mudguards, etc, and giving it a thorough clean 'n lube. Both the bike and me enjoy this. Now it's back in stripped-down race mode and man does it look mean. Next was a run along the lakefront, it was a bit hot though, i'm still acclimating, I struggled with the heat and was drenched in sweat so just had a short run.

Later on saturday Heidi's boyfriend, Ryan, gave me a buzz and we went out for some food and beers, having a good laugh and ending up on Dundas Square which at night looked very blade runner with big video screens and the like, unfortunately they weren't extolling the virtues of moving to the offworld colonies, or telling you what to think.

Sunday was gonna be a ride but when i got to the end of the street on the bike i saw a massive thundercloud coming, and managed to get back inside before it kicked off. Heidi got back from camping a bit later with her flatmate, my other sister Chris came over for a couple hours, then it was off to meet one of ryan's friends for some bike chat. After a month of being told constantly by bert that i was fat and looked awful it was nice to be greeted with a "hey you're skinny!".

Today, well, today was mostly sleep, then a 5 mile cross country run, including going past the university which had loads of handsome students, then heidi cooked a good meal, which amazed me as when she lived in wales she dined exclusively on chips 'n cheese, or turkey sausages. How things change. We ate out on the porch where I met her friend Connor for the first time too.

So it's a fun time over here. Vancouver reminded me of edinburgh, and for some reason Toronto reminds me of Cardiff.

Plan for the remaining time is: stay here for a week or so, do a ride to niagara falls (a days ride away) and back, bike out to huntsville to see meddler's buddies, stay there a few days to a week i guess camping on their lawn, then a mate may be coming out with work to montreal so i'll go see him, then back to toronto early july for heidi's birthday, then my folks come out so i'll hang with them for a bit then back to the uk.

It's only 400 quid return with www.flyzoom.com from the uk to toronto - get booking! Darren, I give up on you, spend the money on that single-speed mountain bike you been wet-dreamin over.

Oh yeah you lot want photos don't you. Ok ok, tomorrow i'm wandering round the city on foot so i'll take some for yous.