Day 11: Happy Boston Gay Pride Weekend!

Mermaids as The New "It" Thing

Straight up, I'm having some mixed feeling about this.  There's a part of me that's extremely extremely excited about having so many mermaid events, movies, and books coming out in the next couple of years.  Then, there's the other part that makes me nervous that mermaids won't be portrayed in the way that so many of us love them.

Then there's the issue of the bandwagon jumpers.  I know there are so many folks who love mermaids the way I do.  But I get nervous that people will be into the trend not because they love mermaids, but because it's the trend.

Does that make sense?

But, let me backtrack.  Let me gush about all the exciting things that are happening in the mermaid world.  I'm going to do it in order of the things I'm LEAST excited about (so that I can get the snark out of the way) to the things I'm MOST excited about.

Stephanie Meyer, the author of Twilight, takes on mermaids
*groan* *eyes roll*

Really?  I'm sorry if you're a Twi-tard...but I absolutely disagree with this.  Here's an article about what she's been up to and planning:
http://www.nypost.com/p/entertainment/movies/stephenie_meyer_no_DgiDULW5T8tmOlNIhQDJ1K 

Apparently, she's been interested in writing a new novel about mermaids.  But I just can't help but feel she will screw with the mythology and just fuck it all up (pardon my language).

In my opinion, she ruined vampires and werewolves, especially considering that she had not ever read Bram Stoker's Dracula.  I'm not really going to be okay with her ruining mermaids.  I really am not.

Well, this is actually the only thing I'm not at all looking forward to.  So on to the more exciting things!

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
On the whole, I have enjoyed the Pirates movies, even though I think Orlando Bloom is a horrible actor and Keira Knightly is just too damn skinny but feel kind of ambivalent about her.  Johnny Depp, though, well...he's hilarious and just seems like a really down to earth person even though he picks the wackiest roles.

But when I saw the first previews for this 4th movie and spotted the mermaids, well, I was excited all over again!  Then I saw a preview of it in the theaters, and was honestly shocked to know that mermaids play such an important role in the movie!

Basically, the plot of this Pirates movie is that Jack and his comrades are looking for the Fountain of Youth, which can only be found using the help of, you guest it, mermaids!!

Well, once I realized how important they were to the plot of the movie, my desire to watch this in the theater went from 0 to 10.  I might just check it one on a random weekday.

Possible Live Action "The Little Mermaid"
Here's the article that I saw posted somewhere:
http://perezhilton.com/2011-05-23-the-little-mermaid-gets-two-adaptations

I would love to see a live action movie of Andersen's version of the story!  It's obviously the better version, though I also love the Disney movie(s...though the 2nd one entitled "Return to the Sea" kind of pissed me off a bit).  But to finally get a well made movie by a pretty decent director would be great!

Of course, it's up to us sirenophiles to be the ultimate judge of that movie.  But I do hope it comes through and more information will come out soon!

"Mermaid" by Carolyn Turgeon
If you clicked on the link about about movie, you would have also seen that there's another movie out in the works.

This book has been on the top of my Amazon wish list for a while, and you better believe that when my finances are more in order that I'll be ordering me a bunch of books!

The "twist on the classic tale" is absolutely fascinating!  I personally have always sided with the Little Mermaid's point of view.  Call me biased, but I just couldn't help but feel more connected to the mermaid.  So, I'd love to read another mermaid-lover's take on the other princess' point of view.

Carolyn also has an awesome blog which I've been trying to catch up on where she interviews different folks who are involved directly or indirectly with the mermaid world.

Ariel's Undersea Adventure in California Adventure
I've been looking forward to this for forEVER!  I had the pleasure of going to Disneyland and California Adventure twice last year, and I definitely plan on making it there again before the year is over!

On June 3rd, the ride will open to the public.  So, the next time I make it to California Adventure, I plan on hitting up Ariel's Grotto (finally...I just have never been able to make it in time), Ariel's Undersea Adventure, and resting up on King Triton's Carousel of the Sea.

Me on the dolphin back in January 2010

But here's a video of the ride from someone who got to ride the preview of it.  It's not as exciting as I would have liked necessarily, though I'm not really sure what I would have wanted from it.  I do think that there was a lot of potential if this ride was a water ride, though I suppose there are already a couple of water rides in California Adventure.  The animation of the characters is pretty amazing, actually!  I think that's the most amazing part of it.

The First Annual MerCon & World Mermaid Awards
I mean, really, how could I not be the MOST excited about this???  Even though there's no way in hell I'll be able to afford to go this year (and I need to lose a couple of lbs before I get myself a mermaid tail), it's so exciting to be keeping an eye on how this first event is transpiring.

The World Mermaid Awards and MerCon is meant to celebrate all the sirenophiles out there as well as those who help us all live in the fantasy.

Part of the event will feature a convention full of artists, vendors, mermaid camps, and mermaid tail makers.

Mermaid. Tail. Makers.

Oh, one day...one day, I will have my own tail.

Oh! AND there's a Mermaid Pool Party featuring different professional mermaids!  People get to literally sit and swim around in their tails.  *gush*

I wish wish wish I could go to this.  It's almost as if the Mermaid Parade in Coney Island and the World Mermaid Awards bookend the summer.  And it's awesome.

So, like I said in the beginning, I have some mixed feelings about all this.

There's so much potential for all us mermaid lovers to get more from our community.  But I want *real* mermaid lovers (and I'm not going to define that...since I believe there are different levels of love), not posers who are getting into it because it's a trend and then move on to the next "It" thing.

But, I think the rest of us mermaids will be able to weed out those who are the real mermaids and those who are humans dressed as mermaids.

First Impressions

Since I've been doing all these interviews lately, I've thought a lot about first impressions.

What must people think of me as I walk in?  I've heard all kinds of things about how to dress, and I make sure to pack my pumps with me so that I'll look taller.

But then I get to introduce myself and talk about myself as a potential candidate.  At some point, when I become a bit more comfortable, my California comes out.

What does that mean, you say?

I think it means that I turn my friendliness level up.  I know that I still maintain my professionalism, but I'll make a quick joke or throw a little sarcasm in there following the lead of the interviewer.  I don't know if it's not okay to do that....but it's me.  It's who I am.

Then there are other times, when I feel like I come off really loud and obnoxious.  Usually, it's at a party, where everyone's somewhat loud and obnoxious.  But for some reason, I get very conscious of how I come off.

I have quite an eclectic group of friends.  Some are artists, dancers, musicians.  Others are engineers, scientists, scholars.  Obviously, there's a bit of crossover between the two types of brains.  But then their friends sometimes get a chance to interact with me in our social gatherings.

gorgeous Mercedes-Benz ad

Sometimes, I feel like I must weird people out.  Sometimes, I can be quite outspoken and honest.  Sometimes, I wonder if it makes people feel uncomfortable that I will sometimes blurt things out.

Let's say, I suddenly start talking about my "night job," which is much more for adults.  Some people get extremely interested, and some people don't make eye contact with me for the rest of the night.

At an old-school hip hop party my friends hosted last week, I was totally in-character and proceeded to greet people in a somewhat flamboyant way.  I don't know if that weirds people out.  But...it's me.  I was having fun.

Being a somewhat stubborn...okay...very stubborn person, I sometimes want to find a way to break through to new people who might be weirded out by me at first.  Like, maybe if they just talk to me more, they'll see that I'm pretty awesome.

I don't know why it matters.

I know I'm friendly, I know I can be a bit outspoken, and I know that the people who know me and love me are really the ones who matter most.

These are just some random thoughts that have flitted through my brain waves.  That's all.

Simple Pleasures Sundays - Being Sure (Astrologically)

I know it's been a while.  I don't really know where my mind has been.  Well, I do know that my body has been particularly busy.  So busy that I haven't had time to sit and write a blog post on Sundays!

I'm not really complaining, though.  But onto this Sunday's post!

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In the past week, people have been flipping out about their horoscopes.  At first, I thought it was another silly quiz on Facebook, but apparently it's because the news was blowing a story about astrology all out of proportion (No! The news never does that!).

I'm not really going to go into why people are so wrong.

Except to say that I don't know why the Earth's wobble is new.  Hasn't this been happening for, well, ever?

If you really want to understand what's happening, I really honestly suggest going to About.com's Astrology page.  She has interesting blog posts about what's happening in the world and in the stars, and breaks down the idea that there is a tropical zodiac (which follows the seasons) and the sidereal zodiac (which follows the star charts).

Again, why is this such a new idea?  There's the Gregorian calendar, the Chinese calendar, the Jewish calendar, the Muslim calendar, the Mayan calendar...I could go on, really.  All these ideas somehow are "understandable" to most people, and yet it would be ridiculous to think of there being variations on the zodiac.

Can you spot Ophiuchus?

Honestly, my favorite part about people who are freaking out is the fact that they barely believe in astrology in the first place, and yet they are extremely adamant that their sign isn't changing (for some silly made up reason, such as "it only affects people born after a certain year," or "I've been a [insert sign here] all my life! I'm not anything else!"

Sure, one can't claim that astrology is necessarily a science.  But then, I would feel wrong about discounting Traditional Chinese Medicine (which I've seen work better for some folks with strange ailments).

Now, I've been interested in astrology from a very early age (I'm going to blame that on my Aquarius Rising Sign).  So, I've done some reading and I've even know what my chart looks like (which, you should know what yours looks like as well! Click here to get it done for free!)

I've known that I'm on the Aries-Taurus Cusp, and I'm quite proud of that as is evident by my tattoo.

Tattoos are probably another reason why people freaked out!

I am not only proud, but I am not feeling any nervousness about being the "wrong" sign.  Sure, my chart my read differently if it were created through a sidereal perspective, and I would be a straight up Aries.  But, the sidereal perspective would probably interpret the signs in a different way as well.

And that doesn't change who I am and who I was as a person.

Our signs don't rule over us.  They can be for entertainment, and they can be some guidelines for understanding yourself a little bit more.

We all carry bits and pieces from the other signs, as we carry bits and pieces of our experiences with us.  There's more to it than just the Sun sign (which is what everyone is freaking out about).  There's a whole sky's worth of information about us that we've yet to discover.

But, it does help to have your feet on the ground and feel sure about your footing, especially while your mind is exploring the stars.

Flexing My American Rights

Today is Election Day in the United States.

I am personally one who believes that if one doesn't vote, they basically give up their right to complain about anything that's going wrong.  I also believe that some of the people I know who are unable to vote for various reasons are probably more deserving of that right than those who don't voice their choice.

It's always interesting to me when people are "not into politics."  It's fine to be frustrated by it all.  But it just feels so important to know what's going on just to be able to protect your rights.

So, while I'm not wanting to scare away my readers, I want to stress that I also agree to disagree.  I won't care less for you as a human being if you don't agree with me.

Now while I've always believed in the the power of voting, I've never taken much more of a role other than casting my ballot.

Since I've been unemployed, a friend recommended that I sign up to be a poll worker.  Apparently, for the one election day, a poll worker would work the entire day and be paid a stipend.  I hesitated a bit, just because I wasn't sure what I would be doing on election day.  But I went for it, and before I knew it, I was assigned as an Inspector to my voting location, but for a different ward and precinct.

Allston-Brighton Wards 21 and 22
and their Precincts

Training
Since it was my first time working the polls, I had to attend a short training.  I made my way to Boston's City Hall, and sat in a room full of new Inspectors.

Some things I learned from this training include information about who the Inspectors (people who help check you in, check you out, explain the ballot, tell you where you need to go by putting up signs and greeting you at the door, and anything else that might need to be done), Clerks (people who help check you in, keep track of numbers, and keep track of the voters), and Wardens (basically the big boss, who decides when breaks are, what your roles are, in charge of the ballot machine, and in charge of everything) are.

I also learned that people will generally ask questions that have already been asked.  Also, people are generally unappreciative of the choices that they are able to make.

At one point during the training, I realized that people were getting really grumpy at the training leader.  They were unhappy that things were going so slow or that people were asking the same questions, and I just heard a lot of mumbling and grumbling.

I was getting a bit annoyed at the time suck, but I knew that I had signed up and sent in my application for this job.  Naturally, I would need to be trained on how to do my job correctly, and it would have been a horrible idea to go into the polling place completely unaware of my job duties.

But seriously, I felt that I had nothing to complain about considering that we were all being PAID to attend the training.  I really just wanted to say, "Suck it up, people.  Be thankful that you even have this opportunity."

Official

Working the Polls
Gosh, this has been the earliest I've had to wake up in a really long time that didn't involve a shoe avalanche caused by Mencken.

Today, I worked from 6am-8pm.  I just have to say right off the bat that my feet are killing me!  Even though I was wearing comfortable shoes, my tootsies are exhausted.  Being who I am (that is, an event organizer), I was up on my feet a lot mainly because I couldn't just sit there when I saw that things needed to be done.

I also want to say right off the bat that this was one of the most rewarding voting experiences of my life.

"Do you know what ward you vote at?"
Firstly, it was fascinating to see how many people are completely unaware of where they need to vote, and even more fascinating how many people have not gone through the appropriate channels to change their information with the election department.  I understand that Allston and Brighton have a lot of residents who move a lot, so it makes sense that people might not know the specifics of where they vote.

By the end of the day, people were definitely more frustrated with the entire process.  They had worked a full day, some had come from the wrong location, and some had come into the wrong location.  At one point, one woman was exhausted and frustrated at being redirected to our location, stating that the previous poll workers were rude and she basically cried before heading to us.

Once 5pm hit, I started to greet people at the door and direct them to their correct table.  I really think it helped to lessen the clusterfuck at the doorways and prevented people from standing for a long time in the wrong line.

"I'm from the University."
One interesting experience (that hits on how much people take their rights for granted) was when one dude came in trying to take pictures of the polls and voting.  He took a picture, and I suddenly felt like he was really impinging on peoples privacy.  I called to him saying that I really wasn't sure why he was taking pictures and directed him to talk to the Warden.

As I stated earlier, the Warden is in charge of the entire show.  One thing I knew was that if I was uncertain about anything, I needed to ask the Warden.  She echoed my sentiments on uncertainty, and luckily there was someone from the Election Department present at the moment.  He proceeded to call someone and settle on the fact that no one knew who this guy was and hadn't been told about someone coming in to take pictures.

This guy had the most irritating attitude.  His responses consisted of, "I'm from the University Pollworkers Project" (to which I thought, ya..um..which university in Boston and so what?), and "I've been taking pictures all day at the State House" (to which I said, Ya well, this isn't the State House.).

I couldn't believe the crap that was coming out of his mouth.  If he's part of the Suffolk University Pollworkers Project, shouldn't he just go to the polls where Suffolk University students are working?  He didn't even ask if anyone was a student before taking pictures of the voting area.

Everything he said to justify what he was doing just felt so entitled.  And now that I know what this Pollworkers Project is, I feel like I now understand why I felt very little appreciation for the position at the training I attended.

Staying Impartial
Truly, the most difficult thing I had to do today was assist two different women in filling out their ballots.  One woman was legally blind and needed someone to read the names and the questions.  Another woman had hurt her hand and was unable to use it.  One of them voted for the Republican candidate for Governor, and it hurt my soul a bit to fill out that bubble.  Another woman voted very differently on the questions from how I voted, and it also felt difficult to explain them to her without sounding biased.

It's part of our job to not influence votes.  And it was definitely an exercise in restraint. 

Profiling
While I'm a little frustrated at the Suffolk University Pollworkers Project, especially considering that I would prefer more of the long time residents to sign up as poll workers, I understand the basis of it.  The majority of poll workers are much older, while all the voters are much younger.  I do think that more residents should know about this opportunity and really take advantage of it.

I definitely found myself asking specific questions depending on what I noticed from the people who walked through the door.  For example, I would ask, "Do you know what ward your vote at?" to anyone who seemed younger than 40.  However, to anyone who seemed older I would ask, "Do you know where you need to go?"

I definitely caught myself whenever the words would leave my mouth.  Near the end of the evening, I started just asking, "Do you know what ward you vote at?" to everyone who came in through the door.

Highly Recommended
Overall, it was great interacting with so many people who have worked the polls for so many years.  It was fun to chat with them and I felt so welcomed as the newbie.  I chatted a lot with one of the Police Officers that was assigned to work with us in the morning, and connected to all the workers present. 

One of my favorite things was to greet people who said, "This is my first time."  How amazing!  How inspiring!  How really, truly American.  To be there and be part of someone's initiation rites as an American citizen is really a powerful experience.

It was fascinating to be behind the scenes of the voting polls.  It really made me appreciate the poll workers more than I ever have before.  It make me appreciate efficiency as well as being prepared before showing up to vote.  It made me appreciate the entire political process.

I would most definitely do this again every election year if possible, and I highly recommend the experience to all my peers.

Living the American Dream

There's been a lot of talk in the news about immigration lately.  From all this business in Arizona to all the attacks on the 14th amendment.

I'm not going to wax poetic about why all of these recent events are just so wrong, but I do want to say that it's a shame that families and especially children are being attacked in all of this.

But I have been thinking a lot about a lot of the reasoning behind families immigrating into the United States.  Specifically, I've thought a lot about the American Dream.

Part of what I understand to be the "American Dream" is that the United States is the "land of opportunity."  Opportunities for jobs, better education, better standard of living.  Who wouldn't want something like that for their children?

Thought I think there's something to be said for finding ways to improve ones situation, I also think there's something to be said for absolute desperation.  There is desperation in abandoning all that you've ever known to go to brave a new world.

Don't get me wrong.  My mom and I moved to Los Angeles from the Philippines when I was 4 years old after being petitioned by my dad who was already living here with his family. We were lucky to already have the family connection, but I'm sure that part of the reason for moving to the U.S. was for that "American Dream."

The "American Dream" never felt so real for me until I was home in Los Angeles after our trip to Greece.

There's been a lot of movement and moving around in our house.  The weekend I was home, my siblings were also home, and my dad came home from working in Fresno.  But on Monday, I got to see how the regular day to day played out.

One of our cousins live with us, and she works the night shift.  My mom wakes up early to head to work, and gets home usually in the afternoon.  My dad is gone during the week, having been placed in Fresno, about 3 hours away.  My brother is living in Irvine, working hard and occasionally coming home on the weekends.  My sister is in San Francisco for school.  And of course, I am 3000 miles away in Boston.

Now, being home in Los Angeles for me is a constant string of questions starting in "When" and ending in "are you moving back home?"

I constantly have that question playing through my mind, especially being unemployed.  Watching my mom and cousin go through the motions of their days was somewhat eye opening.  I have always imagined our house as constantly lively, loud with laughter and smelling of Filipino cooking.  To see that it was more subdued and quiet, and perhaps even lonely, made me realize why I was always asked the same question over and over.

But, I ask, isn't this just part of the "American Dream?"  To have your children grow up, go to college, and find careers?  And isn't part of that experience to have a nice house that is basically empty because you've done your job of rearing your kids to get involved in higher education, have various job opportunities, and raise their standard of living by owning their own empty house one day?

Obviously, no one has to live up to those specific ideals.  But I do feel that it's one of the residual parts of attaining that dream, a part that no one really thinks about.  Interestingly, I do know that it is also portrayed in the media, but they mainly show you the young person's perspective as that is who they're marketing to.

So, here I am, back in Boston, living out that "American Dream."  I wish it was more like those movies, where I get to go home to do my laundry, or I go to visit my crazy family and some hilarious series of events happen which lead to someone finding the love of their life for the movie.

Instead, some of the joys of "being an adult" and being on my own is coupled with some of the loneliness of being away from the family and knowing that some of the family is away from the home.

Do you think new immigrants are aware of that part of the dream?

Living the dream

My Big Fat Greek Adventure - Kalineektha, Santorini

Yay!  We have television and internet again!  And just in time for me to leave for a weekend camping trip!
Alright...so, where was I?  Oh, ya!  Our night times in Santorini.

Traditional and Musical Evenings
The night we were heading back to Perissa from Red Beach, we learned how difficult it is to get back to different parts of the island by bus at night time.  Though we were pretty beat, we were also pretty hungry.

We had decided to check out Porto Castello Restaurant, which had advertised traditional Greek Dancing on Saturday nights.  Luckily, we made it in time for the live music (i.e. one guy on a keyboard and bouzouki) and dancing.

As we walked in, one of the hosts greeted us saying that we just had to go up to the roof deck for the entertainment.  We told him that we were really hungry, and he proceeded to say, "I'm on the menu."  I realized that I managed to walk right into that one.  But we found out that he was actually telling the truth, as he proceeded to sing "Sagapo," a great song I'm familiar with through belly dance.

At some point, the plates came out and the men danced.  That was really fun to watch, and it was neat to see the servers and other patrons participate, though I'm pretty sure the patrons were there mainly to try to call the female tourists up to dance.  At one point, there was a bit of Greek belly dancing music that started playing.  As I watched one of the guys doing some familiar moves, I decided to show that I could do a bit of that as well.  It was a fun evening.

Opa!

If you wanted to break your very own plate to break,
you buy them for 2 Euros each.

We actually were treated to live music quite often during our nights in Santorini.  Most of the music was very chill and relaxing, and very beach appropriate.  I must say, there's nothing else like being by the beach and listening to live music.

My Big Fat Greek Adventure - Kalispehra, Santorini (Part 2)

My posts are getting waaay long!  But there's so much to share!  I decided that I needed to dedicate one post to the beaches.  So this post will be dedicated to the other day adventures we had on this beautiful island.  Once again, here is the map of Santorini.

Santorini is named from Santa Irini.
But it is also known as Thira, which is also the name of the main town and port.

Thira/Fira
Truth be told, I don't really know which name is used by whom.  I'm assuming that Thira is used by the locals, and Fira is somehow easier for the tourists to understand.  But I could be completely wrong.  The th and the f sounds are really similar.  But to keep it simple, I'll just use Thira.

The white on the cliff is Thira.

We traveled to Thira on July 11th, the same day we went to White Beach and had our Fiat Panda.  This larger town is another major location for hotels and hostels, and there is a lot more shopping and museums to visit.

You want to be careful about where you park, as they will tow you away without hesitation.  But there are large lots of free parking around the main area of the town.  From the lot we parked in, we could see the other side of the island.

Santorini is actually quite small.  But there's so much to do!

My Big Fat Greek Adventure - Kalispehra, Santorini (Part 1)

Santorini

The other major towns, Oia and Fira, are up high on a cliff, and thus without beaches.  The northern part of the island does have some beaches, but we weren't able to visit them this trip.  One of the first things we discovered about the beaches of Greece (and really, perhaps most of Europe) was that we were definitely not in the conservative United States.  So:

The girls were tanning as well.

My Big Fat Greek Adventure - Kalimera, Santorini

On July 8th, at 7:30am, Jenny and I boarded a tiny aircraft headed to Santorini, one of the most gorgeous islands in Greece.

Santorini from Olympic Air's window

Our plane tickets told us that the flight would take approximately 50 minutes, which was about 10 minutes more than the flight from Boston to Montreal.  But we learned that that 50 minutes must have included boarding the bus that would take us to the tiny plane from the airport gate.

You know how when a plane gets to the right altitude, the flight attendants proceed to distribute snacks and drinks?  Then maybe 15-30 minutes later they start collecting your trash?  Well, this flight was so short that everything was super rushed!

*Plane reaches perfect altitude, seat belt signal turns off*
*Flight attendants start handing out drinks and snacks, which were cute little cookies that looked huge on the box, but were actually tiny!  It's like they multiplied as I opened the box.*
Flight attendant:  Here's your snack.
Me:  Thank you. *I start opening the box and were surprised by the tinyness of the cookies*
*Seat belt signal turns on*
Flight attendant:  Okay, give us your trash! We're landing!
Me:  But..wait..I just got my snack!  Aaahhhh!!

Seriously, as fast as you can read that scenario, that's how fast it happened!

My Big Fat Greek Adventure - The Parthenon and Democracy at Its Best?

We had decided early on to stay in Athens for a very minimal amount of time, mainly because others have told us to do so.  While there's definitely a lot to do around Athens and the mainland, my friend and I were focusing more on the rest and relaxation that would be taking place on the beach.

However, the one place I knew I needed to see was the Parthenon.

Word of advice:  If a travel book suggests that you go see a popular tourist site very early in the morning or later in the afternoon, I would listen to that advice.  Otherwise, you will get stuck behind a massive amount of people who came from a cruise.  Also, bring sunscreen.

Damn tourists...

It's really not as bad as it could have been.  But it was a very hot day, and I unfortunately did not put any sunscreen on.

My Big Fat Greek Adventure - Long Flights with Funny Ladies

What an amazing July it's been so far!  I'm so excited to share my adventures in Greece with my friend, Jenny.  So, let me get to it!

Long Waits and Rides
On June 5th, Jenny and I embarked on our long-awaited trip to Greece.  We were a little bit late getting to the airport.  But since we didn't have to check any luggage, we were pretty much right on time.

We had a stop-over in Montreal, Canada, where we discovered the wonders of Canadian ketchup.  Yes, that's right, Canadian ketchup from Heinz.  As we took several bites from our fries, we realized there was a slight sweetness to the ketchup.  We laughed, saying that maybe they put maple syrup in the ketchup.  Apparently, we weren't that far from the truth.

Liquid sugar???
Definitely better than corn syrup.

After about 3 hours, we were officially on our way towards Greece.  Unfortunately, we were on a plane that didn't have television screens for every chair.  Fortunately, the company was pleasant.

We sat next to this woman who was flying home to Lebanon after visiting her sister in Montreal.  She talked to us quite a bit, asking us how we met, where our families are from.  She even proceeded to show us her pictures from her trip.  The poor woman does not sleep at all on the plane, so she makes a lot of stray observations.

Well, she noticed a couple to our left and a couple to our right.  Of the couple on the right, she basically observed that they must have been brother and sister, since they didn't really talk to each other even though they slept on each others shoulders.  Of the couple on the left, she quietly pointed out how ugly the guy was when he was sleeping..with his mouth wide open!

Generally, I'm pretty good at sleeping on the plane.  I discovered that turning one of those travel pillows so that part of the arms fits under your chin.  Your head gets a rest, and you prevent falling asleep with your mouth open.  Win-win for everyone.