Switching over to a completely different matter now, we went out for supper last night, and as we were all getting into the van, several questions were asked about my impending trip. That I can remember, if I'd met the person I was going to visit at all before, and if they would be meeting me at the train station, because apparently the one in Toronto is quite complex. I wouldn't at all be surprised, and yes, they are meeting me there, but prior to making further arrangements, the thing I was most concerned about was getting from the train station to their apartment. I don't mind buses so much, as long as I look up the routes they run beforehand and have a fairly solid idea of which one I need to get on, and which other one(s) I'll need to transfer too, if necessary, but there's a reason for why I walked that first time I went to London on my own (for the furmeet): I hadn't done any research, and as far as I was concerned at that point, the bus routes just went wherever they felt like going, instead of more or less following the same street or series thereof, back and forth. It's much easier (and typically cheaper) to transport myself, in other words. Continuing along with what I intended to write at the beginning of this paragraph though, Adam and Naomi were talking to each other about how amazing June 21st was going to be, and it didn't take long to learn that another family get-together is being held at Uncle Brent and Aunt Carol's on that date. Mom eagerly advised me to think about booking it off, but my exact response was a disinterested "Considering what happened last time we went on a family trip, I don't think so". Apparently it'll be "different this time", because Adam, and quite possibly Naomi as well will be driving up with Trish, but as for me, this [--] is how interested I am in going at present. Not only did I effectively vow to never attend another one of those functions with what happened before we even made it to the 401 last time, but it's going to be during the summer (or perhaps late spring), and no. There's still plenty of time to leave a note for Melissa, should I happen to have a "change of heart", but my answer is a firm "No" for right now.
That being said, supper itself was moderately interesting. I still remember swearing off going out for supper as well, both because I thought there was no way I could possibly incorporate that into trying to lose weight, and because I wasn't comfortable with Mom or Dad paying when money was already tight (or so they said), but my attitude in that regard has since changed too. Eating healthy isn't particularly difficult, and I would be fairly annoyed if somebody had the same attitude about money towards me. So we went, and I ordered a plate of eight perogies and a side-order of garlic toast, which was nice and filling, but not overly so. Then Mom gave me half of her sandwich, and I briefly considered asking if we could order dessert, but she asked for the bill before I had the chance, so I didn't. Adam and Naomi were kind of... off in their own world, not acting immaturely, but not acting their age(s), as I told George, and Mom and Dad asked if things were mostly the same with me, to which I said yes, which was all too amusing. These days, things are fairly stable. Since last time you asked, however, well... it's better that we don't go there. Overall it was a nice meal though, and yes, that is also at least half of the reason I walked out to just past Walmart with George, then back home again. I had no way of saying for certain exactly how much I'd eaten at Smitty's, and I wanted to get candies from 7-11, so an extra bit of walking seemed to be in order.
Getting back to the present though, I would say I'm off to start washing the dishes, but it's only 2:30, so there's not much point yet. But what I should do is start making up a list of things to pack for / on Thursday, and then maybe vacuum the floor in here, since that needs to be done before I leave as well. And also start a transfer of this $15 in my Paypal account back to my checking. Remember that person I've technically been commissioning since last February? They've given me a refund (and apparently I'm not the only one), because in their own words, they don't think they could give me my money's worth anymore. Obviously it's a bit late to be raising a fuss now, but I'd prefer to be the judge of that, somewhat because I would very likely still be waiting if I hadn't emailed them on the 14th of that month to say "Happy Anniversary!" and such. Anyways, I can't very well change what's done, but I'm still left at a quandary for giving them feedback. Do I go about it honestly and give them a neutral rank, but with a rating of 7 or 8 out of 10 for refunding my money in the end, or do I rank them as positive but rate them 6 or 7 instead, on the grounds that they did refund my money, but weren't able to deliver the finished-product-as-advertised in the end? Probably the former, because it was a neutral experience overall, but they did make things right as best they could by the end of it. So I'll go do that right now, and then hope I remember mostly everything to put on this list. Just maybe...
