the weatherman says the temperature out now is
-46C. no shit.
it's a monday night, and i just got back from kilkenny's. after 80 wings and a huge mudpie (split between 5 people), i'm ready to crash.
we're wrapping ourselves real warm before we leave kilkenny's when a group of guys walk in. "you're heading out into THAT?"
"yes we are!"
"i think there's a hypothermia warning out."
"how cold is it?" i ask.
"minus 47." he says.
"what? no way!" we look out into the cold, and change our minds. "it
looks cold." it was snowing slightly, and the glass windows of the bar were frosted. it was so cold out this afternoon that when you stepped out into the cold, within 3 seconds, icicles would form in the boogers of your nose. seriously. that was this afternoon, it's now colder than that.
*random insertion: i left my coat in liz's room in residence (rez) today, and was heading for my first 10am morning class. i thought that i could run a minute in the cold - building-to-building. it wouldn't take a minute even, i thought. i was wrong. the first 7 seconds was okay. after that, i immediately lost all sensation in my fingers and arms (it's an automatic reaction your body undergoes to "preserve" itself). my eyes started welling, and it was quite the sight; an asian girl, in leggings, a short-sleeved turtleneck and boots, running to class in -35C. guys on the sidewalks made an attempt to avoid me, and gave me right-of-way. i will never do that again. ever. you can pay me $3 million dollars, and i still will not agree to it. like i said, ever.
"yeah. i guess if you psych yourself up for it, it's not too bad." says the guy who just walked into the bar.
"i'm walking." i state, to no one in particular.
"where to?"
"university." says hana.
"all of you?"
"yes."
"well, good luck!"
marty suggests, "hey, maybe we should call a cab?"
"i rather walk." i say. "i'm saving."
"it's only $7."
"yeah. but cabs don't take 5 people."
"i can walk with val." says liz.
"no, don't worry, i can walk by myself. and you live on rez too."
"no, i'm warm enough."
"let's all walk then." says marty, who's dressed in a bomber jacket and jeans.
"no way you're going to survive this walk marty." i say, dressed in 4 layers, a pair of leggings under fleece pants and sheepskin boots. "at least liz and i are dressed for the walk. i'm good really. you guys can take the cab."
the conversation continues, and it is eventually decided that liz and i will walk back to campus, and the 3 other under-dressed friends of ours will call a cab.
"look, it looks like sparkles are falling from the sky."
"it's crystallised snow. not soft snow but crystal snow!"
"i can't believe it's -47C. doesn't feel like it."
"well, it is a story to tell; we walked home in -47C at midnight."
when we got to campus, we warmed up real quick. with no one else in the hallways except for the cleaning crew, we strolled about looking at posters in the hallways. we eventually stopped at a "SAFEWALK" call centre. it looks like the emergency contact buttons you have in lifts.
Safewalk is a system that was put in place by the Student's Union, which can be used by anyone on campus who needs/feels that they need to be walked anywhere on campus in the middle of the night. meant as a safety precaution, they hire students to walk other students anywhere on campus. it is also available 24 hours a day.
"maybe we should get safewalked back?" asks liz.
"yeah!" i jump the opportunity to use the system, and press the SAFEWALK button. the phone rings. within 30 seconds, a "hello?" is heard.
"hi. we would like to be safe-walked back to rez and just off campus?"
"okay. where are you?"
"coyote jacks." (a restaurant on campus)
a security car pulls up to the building within 5 minutes. ron tells us that people usually get walked, but seeing as to how cold it is (and no one's on the streets = no business), and how nearby he was, he decided to drive us to wherever we wanted to go! to residence for liz and HOME for me - right to my doorstep, at -46C. how can you not love it. AND i am $7 closer to paying rent.
liz and i are going to sign up to be safe-walkers.
valerie anne
in my 20s and wonderful.
dressed to dress you.
. i would do you, but i can't. it's just the wrong season right now.
I've been in canada for days.
. in need of a recommendation
. tattoo
. rolex
. prada bag
. hermes birkin/kelly
. hermes scarf
. prada penguin coin purse
. suped up VW jetta mk3 '97
. 911 Turbo
. WRX
. smoked e-codes/fogs
. porsche deep dish rims
.
my driver's license
.
a shaven head for my 18th
. be a somebody
. make {gravi.tee}
.
snowboard
.
own my first car
. travel: NYC, all over europe,
japan,
mexico, chile, argentina, spain, greece, laos, vietnam, bali, dubai, amsterdam
. publish a book entitled "you better quote val, or else" -
recommended by derek goh
.
fashion school
. travel: roadtrip canada
. travel: roadtrip USA
.
move out
. own a house
. ride the dragon in tokyo
. go fish/camping for a weekend
. open a cafe/boutique
. horse-riding
. speak korean/japanese/spanish/french
. skydive over mauritius waters
. white-water raft above level 3
. bungee jump from a suspension bridge
. break the world record for the longest time on a loop-the-loop roller coaster ride
. save an endangered species
. AND prove to my mum that i'll be married before 35.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 2.5 License.