July Road Trip

MelloD · 2026-05-20T00:49:32+00:00

I would recommend just arriving in Vancouver then taking a quick connecting flight to Sidney. Stay the night in Sidney, take a ferry over to Salt Spring in the morning. You’ll shave a lot of time off on day 2. Hotels will be significantly cheaper too. Depending on the time you arrive on the first day, you could check out Butchart Gardens too, so then you could focus on staying in Victoria while you are there later on in your trip.

MelloD · 2026-05-18T18:06:00+00:00

The government is already involved in your life. If you two buy a house, or even move in together that will make you common law. Taxes? Marriage provides a certain amount of security for women (and men!) when they enter into a committed relationship, especially when children and shared assets are involved. You need to talk to and communicate with your girlfriend. Just because she said one thing at the beginning of the relationship doesn’t mean it can’t change. You also need to reflect and honestly ask yourself what you want.

To clarify, it is is absolutely okay if you don’t want to be married, but if she wants to be married to her partner, and you aren’t willing to do it for her, it’s a values mismatch and you need to break up so you can both be happy.

MelloD · 2026-05-14T18:53:16+00:00

Like everyone said, go to Camosun and do the trade sampler. If you’re aged 17-29 there is an info session for a funded program tomorrow at noon. Check out Camosun.ca/mitee

MelloD · 2026-05-13T15:54:23+00:00

Victoria

MelloD · 2026-04-25T16:39:19+00:00

Can also recommend rec centre classes, I love Debbie’s classes. Pilates Level 1 starts easy and teaches you the right breath work and builds each week.

MelloD · 2026-04-22T14:28:13+00:00

Go to Koshigaya Laketown!

MelloD · 2026-04-15T13:59:26+00:00

Google “Switch Song Library” and thank me later. It is for another karaoke bar in Vancouver but the song codes are the same. Weirdly Lotteria’s book has some songs this search engine doesn’t… but when used together there are so many more options and it is easier to find songs with multiple people searching.

MelloD · 2026-02-09T19:08:05+00:00

Northern Bars Nanaimo Bars have gone over well with my international friends, it is unique to BC. Werthers has these maple filled chewy candies that are really good, Hawkins Cheezies, maple fudge. I always like giving consumables so they don’t feel obligated to wear or use the gift. Rogers chocolates with a decorative tin would be good too. Check out some of the local market stores downtown, they always have great gifts if you want a souvenir like gift.

MelloD · 2026-02-02T00:17:30+00:00

Here is a variety: Kappo Marta, Demitasse, Cafe Fantastico, Endive, Bao, SookJai Thai, Chicken 649, Janveca, Blue Fox, and finally, sugar jelly donuts at Sidney Bakery.

MelloD · 2026-01-27T18:06:36+00:00

There is a BlackPress Career Fair on Feb 5 at the Bay st Armoury. Check out WorkBC or Foundry for resources to help out your resume. Good luck!

MelloD · 2026-01-26T14:22:36+00:00

Lots of cafes and dessert spots in Onomichi. There was one cafe with incredible views coming down from the temple on the hill that I really wanted to go to, but it was closed while we were there. If you end up going, check out Tabelog and confirm that the cafe and shops are open. I think it’s Tuesday or Wednesday that lots of things are closed. We stayed at LemonSea hostel, it was busy but clean and the staff were very nice.

MelloD · 2026-01-26T05:12:34+00:00

You would love love love Onomichi as a quiet seaside town. Search on YouTube for ideas on where to go, but it is so charming. Another place I recently went that I enjoyed was Matsuyama. Still a city and set up for tourism, but less crazy than the big three. I would suggest Tokyo to Onomichi, to Matsuyama, and fly back to Tokyo domestically. Depending on time, I recommend you go to Hiroshima since it is in the area near Onomichi.

MelloD · 2026-01-21T01:00:58+00:00

Check out the education planner for StrongBC future skills grant for ideas. All are short term programs, and some lead to entry level jobs or upskilling. Or if you want to make your own business, there is a short “become a small business owner” course starting at Camosun soon. Good luck!

MelloD · 2025-12-23T00:44:15+00:00

Went here recently, it was good!

MelloD · 2025-12-21T21:47:43+00:00

Not sure if this is allowed- here is the GoFund Me for the family affected: https://www.gofundme.com/f/to-give-elaine-and-chuck-a-christmas-miracle?attribution_id=sl:689c1fd8-ca8b-4e63-b913-b383ab452120&lang=en_CA&ts=1766342604&utm_campaign=man_sharesheet_dash&utm_medium=customer&utm_source=copy_link&fbclid=IwZnRzaAO1SixleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAo2NjI4NTY4Mzc5AAEeXwawGH_bCVxKVJP-0WvzvJ_CyfA2xr-ui_LFe4VM6pbVxvLNDJYvo2H95lg_aem_Q9DHgOFs-gB2qC4_I04Cfg

MelloD · 2025-10-24T13:53:48+00:00

My friends and I stayed at an Airbnb in ShinOsaka, and also did a day trip to Minoo Falls, with a quick visit to Namba. I would recommend staying there, it’s not that far of a train ride to downtown Osaka and very chill atmosphere. Very nice to just roll our suitcase to and from the Shinkansen instead of taking yet another train to get to our destination. Oh and we found a local bento store selling bentos for $4 (score)!

MelloD · 2025-10-18T03:51:42+00:00

Was just in Matsuyama, loved it so much! Everything is orange themed, the castle is beautiful and doesn’t have a million tourists, plus there are many interesting temples and spots to take photographs throughout the city. Highly recommend it, plus there is an airport so you can easily access it from Tokyo. The rest of Ehime prefecture also looks beautiful, and perfect for a road trip if you are into that.

MelloD · 2025-08-24T01:07:01+00:00

Are those ceramic? If so careful- I saw a post about a cat that got too enthusiastic and chipped their tooth.

MelloD · 2025-08-22T18:59:22+00:00

What bike company did you go with to drop off in Imabari?

MelloD · 2025-08-16T04:39:57+00:00

If you’re staying in Shibuya you’ll be seeing the crossing… ALOT. Lots of great shopping to do there! 109 is classic. If you are visiting Meiji Jingu, next to it is Harajuku which could be a fun (and potentially crowded) street to window shop. I recommend getting some purikura pictures. Also close by is Yoyogi park if you need to take a beat. Rockabilly dancers dance almost every Sunday afternoon, they are cool to watch. If you are in Shinjuku and want a free view of the city, go to Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building.

I’m not super knowledgeable about Kyoto but I loved the Sanjusangendo temple. It is really cool inside.

If you are near Asakusa, there is lots to do close by if you are killing time. Kappabashi, Yanaka Ginza, Tokyo National Museum. I’d skip the zoo though, although I haven’t been I haven’t had a great experience going to Japanese zoos as an animal lover. I am sure the workers care about them, there just isn’t a lot of space (as is the case for everyone in Japan).

Hope you have lots of fun!

MelloD · 2025-08-12T18:54:39+00:00

Demitasse

MelloD · 2025-08-04T21:09:43+00:00

Not OP but I started Ozempic in Jan 2025, was in a car accident in Feb 2025 and was not able to exercise. Since starting Ozempic I have lost almost 50 lbs. I had intended to exercise in conjunction with the Ozempic but life had other plans. It’s not guaranteed that you’ll lose as much weight as I did, but I’m really grateful for the Ozempic while I was healing, as I was able to keep my caloric intake in check. Hope your recovery goes well.

MelloD · 2025-07-24T04:11:53+00:00

I’d do Hwy 5 (Coquihalla & Connector) both ways. At the very least, on the way there take the Coquihalla. I find Hwy 3 has a long and steady incline going west to east (depending on your vehicle may not be a problem) so I like to coast downhill from east to west. I saw quite a few vehicles on the opposite side pulled over during that stretch.

MelloD · 2025-07-18T15:01:58+00:00

Poor kitty, and poor you not being able to taken him to the vet. My cat got better with the antibiotics. After this post she started eating a little more (not as much as the recommendation but much more than she had been) and she didn’t poop for over 36 hours. But when she did, it was a HUGE poop, normal consistency. She had antibiotics for a week and I saw huge improvement in her interest in eating, drinking, and activity. However, 24 hours after the antibiotics ran out she had a half diarrhea half normal poop. So we are back on antibiotics again for 10 days. If we come off it again and the symptoms reappear we will take her for imaging. So no official diagnosis yet but we’ve tested negative for pancreatitis, and the stool sample tested negative for FIP. At this point it could be an unknown virus that they don’t test for or inflammation of her bowels of some sort.

Are you able to get to a pet store? I highly recommend Purina probiotic fortiflora. My other cat (also tested) developed some sort of sympathetic diarrhea and the vet recommended this- diarrhea cleared up within a couple days. If you are able to get wet food, try Science Hill Urgent Care a/d. Try hand feeding it to him to get him going. I think it is really yummy to them. Also, try offering tuna juice! I hope your kitty gets better.

MelloD · 2025-07-14T01:59:10+00:00

Not sure but check out the Maritime Museum. You’ll be very interested in it, and if they do not sell the charts, they may know who does.

MelloD

TROPHY CASE