Updates (Now at regular intervals, I swear)

At long last the Olds group has settled into our routine. What does this mean? Well for starters I have my work placement. For the next three months I'll be employed at the Olds Agricultural Society, doing various admin work for them. But equally important is the fact that I now have a fixed schedule, which means I should be able to put posts up daily!

But Doug, what's been going on? Why thank you for asking. Since arriving here the group has been doing a number of workshops ranging from team building to proper workplace etiquette. That, coupled with being emotionally drained, and a bug that everyone in the house is just starting to get over has made the last week more that a little hectic. But negativity is not in my nature. I'm on the rebound, I have a work placement, and life is goooood.

Events
Immediately upon our arrival in Olds we were put to work on different community projects. Our second day we helped to set up the local hockey rink for the Canadian Student Leadership Conference, which was hosted here for a good part of that week. We hung some flags, set up some chairs, and got to know some of the townsfolk. Shortly thereafter we helped out the CSLC again, this time serving dinner for them as they enjoyed a rodeo competition. Did I mention Olds is a huge agricultural hub? I don't think places come more Albertan than it.

The House

As I previously mentioned, there's been a bit of illness going around the house. Everyone's on the road to recovery now, but two of the girls were hit a bit hard and had to spend a few days in bed. That, coupled with everyone being a bit homesick has translated into a low-energy atmosphere here. People are still tired, a bit cranky, but we all seem to be doing alright. Of course we all have adjustments to make; for some of us that means eating foods that are unfamiliar, and in quantities that are different from the norm, and for others such as myself that means getting used to living with other people. Still, the house here is fairly large, so finding a quiet place to be alone is never really that difficult.

The K-Files
Oooooooooh. This deserves it's own section. You may have heard that the house I'm living in is haunted. From what I know of the history of the place, it used to be a veterinary clinic (our main bathroom used to be the operating room for house pets). I've yet to see any ghost critters scampering around, and all the locals say that the doctor and his wife were incredibly kind people, which is not at all difficult to believe given the people I've met so far. However, there have been some weird things. Lights flickering on and off, windows opening when you return to a room, piles of clothing moving about, a fractured toe that occured in one guys sleep, and the coup de grace so far: one of my roommates woke up in the middle of the night and swears he felt someone, or something, grabbing his feet.

Now I know what you're thinking. I'm not crazy. I don't believe in ghosts. This is an old house, wiring is bound to be bad, and people are probably pulling pranks based on the rumors. If these strange events persist I may do some further investigation and try and catch the culprit in the act. Fingers crossed it's a ghost!

That's it for now kiddos, take it easy.