Just a quick journal to say it's my birthday, and share some little life updates.

Since getting back to Canada I was really depressed and feeling very empty. I saw some friends, spent a lot of time hiking outdoors in Niagara region and then finally got a trip to my family cottage, which turned into a huge fight with my awful sister, father, and aunt. All I wanted to do was be alone and take care of my grandmother but you can't do that when everyone around you is insane. I returned home frustrated and angry and desperate to start over. Suddenly my grandma was hospitalized, she was extremely sick so I spent a few weeks staying with her to help her recover and stay sanitary. Some friends offered me a room back in Winnipeg, my old city. So when my grandma was doing better, I packed up and moved.

Now I'm here, looking for work, living with friends, taking time to get back in touch with my sexuality a little, enjoying privacy and freedom, hiking a lot in the beautiful Manitoba forests and taking in the chill of encroaching winter. Money is tight and I haven't been this poor since college when I paid my tuition out of pocket.

But it has been a wonderful birthday, aside from my friends sadly losing a pet bird overnight. There were many art gifts from friends, and even one that made me really proud to be a good friend, commissioner and advocate for skilled artists. It has been a very memorable day and I'm hoping for an equally memorable night.

If you're inclined, leave a comment or shout here, or on my twitter balloons tweet. Thank you all for coming around the sun with me one more time, I hope the next time I post a birthday journal it's at the end of a year of nothing but success and happiness.