Love the ladies in your life!

Happy International Women's Day! What a wonderful thing... I thought it would be fitting for me to blog about some interesting IWD facts and how I spent my day.

In case you didn't know, International Women's Day first began in 1911 in Germany, meaning this year is the 101st IWD. In some countries, such as Russia, it's a statutory holiday. How amazing would that be if Canada followed suit? Unfortunately that probably won't happen, as the UN ranks Canada low on the list of countries in regard to gender equality. You're probably surprised, huh? There is a lot I could go into around that topic, like how women in Canada still make 71 cents for every dollar a man with the same job would make. I don't want to focus on the negatives right now, but it is important for both women and men to understand that we have come a long way on the road to gender equality, but there is still a long stretch ahead.

All that being said, let me now tell you how I spent my IWD. This morning I attended an International Women's Day Luncheon put on by the Pictou County Women's Centre. I went early to help set up and take money for tickets, and then had a lunch while some local amateur actresses portrayed four women from Pictou County who have made important impacts on our community over the last 150 years. This included women from the African-Canadian and First Nations communties. The really great thing was that two of the actresses were actually portraying women they were related to - one was an aunt and the other was a great-grandmother. Very interesting and a fun way to learn some local history.

After the luncheon I got to work at Sobeys for the evening (lame, as usual), and although it was maybe not my ideal way to spend the rest of the afternoon/evening on such a beautiful day, I was happy to wish all my female coworkers a Happy International Women's Day. Next year I'm going to do something bigger for IWD though... I won't be working at Sobeys, but I think I will plan something to continue to raise awareness.

Often I find that when I mention women's rights or wish women a Happy IWD, it's taken almost as a joke or something equally as unimportant. I wish this wasn't so. Be proud, get informed, and don't take your rights for granted. You deserve more. Every day is International Men's Day.

So when I say Happy International Women's Day, I mean it! Celebrate the women in your life, everyday.

Who wants to hear about my cat?!

So once again, I'm trying a new blog design. I think it's looking more or less okay for now. My technological ability is fairly limited so unfortunately none of my blog visitors will be treated to any fancy-shmancy layouts or gadgets here. My one concern is this font I'm using for my posts. I feel like it looks far more serious than anything I'll actually ever be saying.

I have been pondering ways to spice up my blog a lot lately. Probably the best way to start would be to actually write posts on more than a monthly basis... I hear that really helps bring in the crowds.

I've been considering whether I'd be able to pull off a "themed" sort of a blog, but that poses a couple of problems. First, I have to come up with a theme. That would involve me knowing a fair amount about a certain topic, or having a hobby I can showcase on here. That really narrows down my list of options. Let's see... I could write about my cat, who I spend quite a bit of time with but doesn't really do much that anyone other than me, my boyfriend, and my mom would be interested in hearing about. Then there's women's rights, but I don't know what kind of an audience that would bring in, and my current readers (AKA my family and friends) already get stuck listening to me preach about that topic quite a bit in real life. So that leaves... books. I know a lot of books and I spend a lot of time reading. But there's still the problem of my thinking of things I can write about related to that topic. It's bad enough that I can't think of things to write about for my hodge-podge of a blog that I'm running right now. Looks like maybe a theme wouldn't work out so well for me. The title of the post alone will probably mean I only get 5 hits on this post tops.

You know what I should probably write about? Crop shirts. I did a post about them a while ago and it's still the number one google search that brings people to my blog. Those poor suckers. They are probably some young fashionistas looking for some stylish crop t-shirts online and instead their search brings them to my blog post where I basically rip up the whole idea of the things.

Well, looks like I'll have to ponder this some more and try to ramp up the interest level of my little blog somehow. Maybe I should just write about my daily life and hope that people actually find it more entertaining than it actually is. That's what everyone does on Facebook, at least.

Love Letters to Squirt

My cousin Yvonne has a contest going on her blog right now called Love Letters to Squirt! For those of you who don't know who Squirt is, he is Yvonne's senior citizen puppy.

So, Willow and I got to talking and we decided that a video was probably the best way to go for this contest. After a few bad attempts over a span of two days, we pulled something together.

As usual, Facebook was being a jerk and wouldn't let me upload the video on there, so my next best alternative was to blog it! Here we goooo!

And then I said...

So I was trying to be a good little blogger and I wrote up a post a few days ago, but I never got around to actually posting it. It's going to have to wait for yet another day now because today I have something else to write about.

I probably shouldn't. I'm sure it's not mature and it might even be a little petty considering the fact that the other person it involves probably won't read this. And if she does, well that's good too. Maybe it'll save me some trouble in the future. Anyway...

For anyone who doesn't know, I'm currently taking some courses at the local NSCC that I need as prerequisites for the BScN degree program that I want to go into next year. The courses are going well and my marks are excellent. The problem, you see, is some of my classmates in these courses. Actually, that's too general. It's more like just one person. The way these courses work is that the teachers don't really lecture or teach in front of the class, everyone learns mostly from the book and you work at your own pace independently, completing assignments and tests as you go.

I go to class to try to get as much work done as possible in that amount of time. This girl apparently goes to catch her friend up on everything that is going on in her life. Oh yeah, and it also appears to be her texting time, cause she does that basically non-stop. Everyone has to hear about her  boyfriend, all the drama of her daily life, the program she's sure she's getting into next year (I really want to break it to her that she doesn't have a chance of getting in because her marks suck and the program takes a very small number of people... none of which she seems to realize), family stuff, tv shows, food, anything and everything that pops into her "typical eighteen year old" mind. Then we have to listen to her complain about how she needs to get more work done, and she doesn't like trying to do schoolwork at home, etc etc. One time she tried to tell me that she thought the boyfriend killed Amber Kirwan because she heard he has ADHD and people with ADHD don't feel guilt. She got a little lesson on the difference between people with ADHD and psychopaths from me that day.

I've been trying to be passive since September. I have tried changing seats to be further away from her. I even bring earphones and listen to music. Nothing drowns her out. It drives everyone nuts, but no one ever says anything. Well, today something inside of me must have snapped. I was sick and tired of her coming to class and distracting everyone with her pointless nonsense. So, at one point I ripped out my headphones and said something along the lines of "Why do you two even come to class? You talk way too much all the time. It's every fucking day."

She her response was "Ok...", and then they started passing the cell phone back and forth so I can only assume they were talking about me. But you know what? I don't care. It was so nice and quiet for the rest of class! It was great. We'll see how the rest of the week goes. I suspect old ways will creep back in and I'll have to say something again. I'm hoping I'm wrong though and that she'll actually be more considerate from now on.

Anyway, that is my story from today. What's the lesson everyone should take from this? Shut up or ship out!

A Child's Christmas

The Christmas season carries lots of fond childhood memories for me and once in a while I find it fun to think back and let the warm fuzzies take over.

One of the main things I love about December is that it is also egg nog season, and I love me some egg nog. I know very few other people who actually like it too, but to me egg nog always reminds me of my grandma's house as a kid. She had this black side by side door refrigerator and she always had egg nog during the holiday season. That and polish pudding but unfortunately my love of that has die out with age.

Something else that has died with age is getting up before dawn to open gifts. I can't believe how early I was up some years. I didn't even have siblings to encourage the excitement. Of course that also meant that every year I got lots of gifts from Santa and was totally spoiled, which is really a great benefit of being an only child.

One of my classic memories that I frequently think of still to this day was when mom, dad, and I were out (I think) getting our tree and I had my arms inside of my coat. Mom always told me not to do this and not to run because I'd slip and not be able to catch myself. Well little Jessica apparently didn't heed those warnings because on that fateful day I wiped out on the pavement and only had my face to break my fall. I learned the hard way, but it was a lesson well learned because I don't think I've ever made the same mistake since.

Another thing I liked to do during holidays growing up was decorate my room. Thinking back to amount of effort I would put into it I have to say, I was a pretty creative youngster. I remember one year I made a fireplace out of construction paper and put it on my bedroom wall. It seems like it must have taken quite a bit of time to do, but I guess time is not really a factor in a child's mind.

I'm grateful to have had a loving, easy childhood because now that I'm older it's nice to look back on. I know that not everyone is so lucky, and I find that so unfair because every kid deserves to live a happy, care-free life. Christmas can be such an exciting time when there's no school, Santa, treats, and presents to look forward to. I wish I could make sure that more kids out there would get to have the same fortune that I did/do.

Oh the difference a couple of years can make...

So this past week I've been doing contract work for the Women's Centre. I've been going to different schools/grades around the county holding focus groups with young women to try to figure out what programs they feel they would most like to see in Pictou County. So far I've done three out of six focus groups: one with grade 6's, one with grade 8's, and one with grade 11's.

I basically asked all the girls four basic questions after bribing them all by giving everyone a lifesaver sucker:
1) Where do you hang out outside of school?
2) What do you do when you're not in school?
3) What do you think is going on with girls these days?
4) What programs would you like to see for girls in Pictou County?

The first day was the grade 6's. I was a bit nervous because I had no idea what to expect or how it would turn out. I was pleasently surprised at how fun it was sitting around talking to grade 6 girls, plus they gave up some great general info and some specific ideas. They also seemed to really enjoy the session and asked me if I'd be back... great kids, very friendly.

The next day was the grade 8 girls. Oh. My. God. That age group is such a pain in the ass. The principal told us that the group we were going to be talking to was pretty vocal so it should be okay. Yeah, right. I felt like I was some evil dentist trying to yank teeth out of these girls. They would barely even tell me where they like to hang out or what they usually do when they're not in school. Good god. These are not trick questions, kids. We got some info by the end of it, but I felt that it was no where near as successful as the first focus group. All I really found out was that they mainly like to eat, sleep, and text. Not joking, that is actually what they said to me.

So yesterday was the grade 11 focus group, and I have to say that it might have been my favorite so far. Maybe it's just because the girls are older and have more of a concept of what is going on with girls these days, I don't really know. The group I talked to was just very open and willing to tell us what's up. We probably could have stayed for even longer than our allotted hour if the girls didn't have another class to go to. Another interesting tidbit that came from the grade 11's was that they mentioned trends among young women that they have noticed, such as high pregnancy rates and hyper sexuality at younger ages, which matches quite well with the stats that we have at the Women's Centre from a professional point of view. Lots of great stuff from that group, and it boosted my morale after the grade 8 zombies.

Next week I have three more groups to do, and I'm interested in seeing the response from the same age groups in different schools. I'll keep you posted :)

Must... not... give... up....

I have like 10 other things I should be doing instead of blogging, but here I am. Just thought I'd share a little tale with you all tonight.

So one of my buds who is taking biology with me is doing a portfolio project which requires volunteers (enter me) to do 30 minutes of physical activity that gets the heart rate up to at least 70%. I must do this for at least 2 weeks (I think... memory is a bit foggy on this detail... could be longer). I tried to start doing this last Saturday. Then I was in so much pain for the rest of Sunday and Monday that I fell out of it and must now start again. So I did, tonight. I did something like 80 jumping jacks and a 20 minute run. The problem is that I'm terribly out of shape for this kind of activity. My yoga practices give me good breaths but don't really condition me for endurance in running. Meaning I basically die after jogging for 5 minutes straight. Needed a new strategy. Started doing run one minute, walk a minute. Much more achieveable this way, but not sure if I'm still meeting the requirements for the study. Will have to clarify at the next meeting. I also don't think my heart rate is getting all the way up to 70%. I'm getting up to somewhere like 130 beats per minute, but I need to be at 159. This poses a problem for me because my heart is already beating out of my chest at 130ish and my breath is pretty much maxed out. This makes me wonder if I'm just counting wrong and missing some beats or something. If anyone out there has any suggestions for improvements, I will gladly accept them!

What have I been up to?

My lovely aunt reminded me today that I need to update my blog! Thanks for the reminder... easy to update now that I have a day off to sit for a while and think about what I want to write.

So last weekend I did two main things that I'll write about: The Ten Thousand Villages sale and my overnighter to Cape Breton.

All I can say about the Ten Thousand Villages sale is... AWESOME! I was so excited to be there I think I may have peed a little. Okay, not really, but I was still really thrilled to attend. I was surprised by how busy it was there. I didn't realize how many people would be interested in such a thing. As you may have seen on my autocorrect blooper pic on facebook yesterday, I got a Christmas gift for my dad at the sale, but it wasn't a thong as my text message to my mother may have suggested! Next year I think I will get some gifts for other people as well. It's a great place to find some unique items, and I always love giving a unique gift! Other than what I bought for faja, I also bought myself a woven market basket which I plan on using when I go to the grocery store instead of having to take one of those nasty plastic baskets they provide for you there. Guess what, I see the range of people who touch those, and I would prefer not to have to handle the baskets after them. Chris told me I'm going to look like a weird hippie chick but I am A-O-K with that! Hippie chick is actually a pretty good word to describe me in general, I think...

My market basket. If you wet it you can re-shape it however you want. Neat!

So, after my Ten Thousand Villages adventure I hit the road to CB. A solid three hours later and I met up with my girlfriend Rebecca at her CBU dorm. After I presented her with my gifts of homemade chocolate chip cookies and a box of Halloween cheesies, we headed over to the mall for a little shopping (and by little I do mean I only bought three things... must manage self when self has no money...). After that we went to Don Cherry's for supper (thanks cuz for the directions!) and it was SO GOOD. Mmm... will be going there again for sure. Fast forward to the next day... Rebecca and I go to Mickey D's for breakfast and who do I see at the gas station next door? My mudder and fadder! Three hours from home and I still run into those nuts. A little while later I take off for home, and thus complete my long weekend.

So what else have I been up to this week? Well Chris and I checked out some new apartments being renovated approximately 30 seconds from where we currently live. Very nice and new but lacking a living room and enough space for all of our furniture so no go on those. Thursday night I went to an advanced screening of Twilight with my friend Katie, and tonight I'm going again with my other friend Lesley. Twilightttttt <3 Such a nerd, but I just enjoy it so damn much.

Speaking of books turned movies, Yvonne (linked ya twice in one post, practically famous?) got me thinking about the book, and soon to be movie, The Hunger Games. I've seen the movie previews on TV lately and it looks interesting, so I downloaded the ebook last night and will probably start reading it today. I'll let ya know how it is. Now if you'll excuse me, there is a little kitty snuggled in next to me and I think she looks like she needs some cuddles. Enjoy the weekend!

Let's talk about something else...

So today I'm getting pretty pissed off with people and their ignorant rumours. In case you haven't heard, the remains of the missing girl I had posted about before were found, and it is now being investigated as a homicide. I could rant about this forever, but I decided to do myself a favour and write about something positive on here today instead. Pictou County has been filled with enough negativity lately as it is.

So, what am I going to write about instead? Things I am actually looking forward to in the next while:

1) The Ten Thousand Villages sale happening at a local church this Saturday. In case you don't know what Ten Thousand Villages is, I've been gracious enough to include a link here for you! Twice in fact ;)Definitely check it out... it's right up my alley. I better bring a wad of cash with me because I suspect I'll want to buy everything. My only challenge is figuring out where the church is...

2) Going to Cape Breton after I stop by the sale on Saturday to spend some quality time with my friend Rebecca. Maybe some shopping, Don Cherry's, and who knows what else yet. What I do know is that it should be a good time.

3) The advanced screening of Twilight that my friend Katie and I are going to next Thursday. Loved the books, enjoyed all the movies thus far, and the tickets for the screening were an amazing deal because we got them through the college. Eight bucks for the movie ticket, which also includes a popcorn and drink. What a steal, I tell ya.

4) Finishing up some of my courses. I've already gotten the university application out of the way, now I just have to push through and finish these pre-req courses. One is almost done... two are about half way... then two more full ones to go... I will be glad to see the end... marks are fantabulous so far though! They'd be crazy not to want me to be a nurse :)

5) Being almost done of my Christmas shopping, and then it being Christmas. I have almost all of my shopping done already. I'm on fire this year... I started very early and was very successful in all of my purchases.  My biggest task ahead of me is finishing a scrapbook all about Sadie, which I'm giving to Chris's sister, Rachel. So far it's lookin' some good if I do say so myself!

6) My little kitty Willow getting settled and becoming more fond of us. She's getting there now, and I love it. I adore kitty snuggles!

Those are the main things on my mind lately. We'll see what comes after that! Enjoy the long weekend and try avoid all the negative vibes floating around!

Practically a profit

So today had the potential to be a very expensive day, but it turns out I ended up with more money than I started with!

To start off, Chris and I have adopted a little 18 month old kitty who we named Willow. She was under Brian&Lesley's deck crying for a week, so they felt really bad for her and took her in. They couldn't keep her though, and she seems like such a nice little kitty, so Chris and I finally said we would adopt her.

Today was Willow's appointment to go get spayed, since we all thought she wasn't. I got up bright and early to take her in to the vet, where I said my temporary goodbyes and leave her with the professionals. Back to home I go, and to my surprise a little while later I get a phone call from the vet. Turns out Willow is already spayed. Score! No charge for a fixed kitty. It did make me worried that she actually does belong to someone though, so once I got back from picking miss Willow up, I called the local spca. No one had reported a cat missing fitting Willow's description, and the woman on the phone seemed to think it sounded like maybe Willow was a "drop off". What a sin... not sure how anyone could do that to an animal.

On a side note... there was an article in the paper today about two puppies that were found with their throats cut, left on the side of the road. The woman who found them rushed them to the vet and it looks like they're going to make it! That is good news indeed... but it is disturbing that people do such things to helpless little animals...

Back to my original topic - After all my shenanigans with Willow were over for the day, I got ready to go to class for the afternoon. I put on a coat I haven't worn much lately, and when I got down to the car I put my hand in my pocket and found $10! I love finding money I didn't know I had!

Just to remind you of the math in case you haven't been keeping up, I:
Didn't spend $100's
Found an extra $10

Which is practically a profit in my mind! Good day.

Small town murder

Sometimes I don't know what to write about on thing darn thing. I suppose I'll follow my recent theme of talking a bit about current events. Missing girl has still not been found. So unfortunate. Latest happening in Pictou County was a murder in Trenton last night. Super! Let the havoc begin.

Let me mention something I also mentioned on facebook earlier today. Someone's status was about the shooting being an isolated incident, and that Pictou County is no more dangerous than anywhere else. A lot of people commented saying that there's been shootings in lots of other places, so it's basically no big deal, and that there's really nowhere any safer. I had to disagree with that. Here's why:

To the best of my knowledge, it is quite likely that the shooting was related to drugs. Mainland Nova Scotia has six hot spots for injection drug use. Four of those are in Pictou County - Trenton, New Glasgow, Pictou, and Stellarton. The other two are metro Halifax and Amherst. It is not uncommon for people to get pissed about drugs/money, which can lead to violence.  It's easy to pin a shooting as an isolated incident, but people can get caught in the crossfire. It doesn't take much for an innocent person to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

All this leads me to suggest the idea that moving to an area with less drug use actually could be safer than living in Pictou County.  Now, I'm not saying that people need to shit their knickers about it and pack up and move... in that way I believe that some of my fellow facebookers were correct. That being said, I don't believe that being apathetic about it isn't really the answer either. Why is it acceptable for people to be shot and killed in our community, no matter what the motive or reasoning behind it was?

Oh society, how you disappoint me.

So I guess it seems as though this blog has turned into more of a "weekly" posting rather than daily or really anything less than a week. Oh well, priorities call, especially during the school year.

As an update from my last post, the missing girl has not been located yet. Very unfortunate... hoping they find her alive and well very soon. It has really disturbed and disrupted the entire community. It's nice to see people banding together in a time of need, but I also find myself realizing how much I dislike society and, more specifically, the individuals within it. In terms of society, it really digusts me that in today's world, women are forced to be limited in their indepence and must depend on either A) a man or B) a group of other women for protection and safety. How ridiculous is that?! There really needs to be a shift in terms of people's socialization and what is deemed and defined as appropriate.

Referring to a recent news story from Halifax... men need to realize they they do not have the authority and power to dominate women. Grabbing a woman strangers behind is 100% not appropriate. This is also not just a women's issue BY THE WAY. Men need to react and respond to other men. That is how change will come about. I could really go on about this forever.

Anyway, back to my original topic... I find I am getting very tired of the general public lately. One girl goes missing and suddenly everyone's a top notch CSI agent in their own minds. Let the police and trained professionals do their jobs and stop speculating and drawing false conclusions. There is no need for anyone to decide to spread rumors or tear down the missing person posters. If you can't be useful, just mind your own business. If you're that kind of person, hopefully someday you'll go missing and no one will find you.

This really turned into a rant I suppose. Sorry... but recent events have been grating on my nerves and my patience is thinning. Might as well vent on a blog that hardly anyone reads! ;)

Missing

For those of you not from Pictou County or Nova Scotia, maybe you haven't heard that there is a girl from our one of our local towns missing since early Sunday morning. I was out searching for her today along with some of my family, and our luck appears to be on the same level as the rest of the town: nothing found yet. It's almost as if she vanished into thin air after she walked away from the bar.

This is disturbing to me for many reasons, but the main one is that it is one of my biggest concerns realized. As much as I hate it, I truly feel unsafe walking alone at night, even though I generally think I am being mostly unrealistic in my concerns. Walking in a well-lit frequently travelled main street? Pfft, surely how unsafe could that be in a small town? Apparently very unsafe is what we should be saying now! It doesn't seem right that we (women in particular) should have to be in almost constant awareness and some level of fear for ourselves. I know the general stats: people are most afraid in these modern times even though crime is at it's lowest. Somehow that really doesn't make me feel any safer though, especially not now that this young woman has gone missing.

I hope this doesn't turn out to be some kind of prank or cry for attention from this girl, but I also hope that she returns home safely and soon. I hate to believe that she is in some kind of danger right now.

The wrap up.

Once again, my blogging has dwindled due to a busy week. To make up for it, let me tell you what was so important that it kept me from keeping you updated.

Monday - Classes and work.... until a new baby girl was born into the world! My precious little niece (in-law... Chris's sister Rachel is who had the baby) came into the world at 2:37pm on Monday, September 26th with a healthy weight of 7lbs and the name Sadie Jo. Sadie is the smallest, sweetest little person I've ever seen/held. Whenever I told people about her everyone would say "I bet you want one now!". I can honestly say it made me realize that someday I probably do want one of my own, but also that now is totally NOT that time. I'm 100% content to just hang out with Sadie for the next 7-8 years.

Tuesday - Classes again (YAWN) and then out for supper with Chris, Brian, and Lesley. Mmm... chessecakeeeee. Oops, distracted thinking about chocolate cadillac chessecake. Anyway, after supper we all went over to the hospital to see baby Sadie and her mommy and daddy again. Later that night we went over to Brian and Lesley's to watch Tosh.0 (hilarious show). See how busy I was?!

Wednesday - Classes (notice a pattern?) and then Chris and I brought a lasagna we made over to baby Sadie's parents because the trio was now settled back at home. After that I went to an aqua zumba class with Chris's sister, Natalie. Aqua zumba is interesting, but I didn't feel much of a burn doing it in the shallow end so we might move on up to deeper waters next week and see how that works out (hoping I don't take in too much water and/or drown... my treading water skills are pretty rusty).

Thursday - No classes (surprise! bet ya didn't see that coming) but I did work all evening.

Friday - Classes (back to pattern). Out and about all evening and basically just doing other things than interneting. Went to that mall which was depressing because I am beyonddd broke but I'm craving new, more supportive sneakers. So sad.

Saturday - Work all day and then once again doing things other than interneting all evening.

Well that bring us up to today, and I've got a whole lotta nothing happening. Well, except cleaning the apartment and doing some schoolwork. Maybe I should clarify and say that I am doing nothing that I actually want to be doing. Ah well, at least I feel content that I have completed my blogging for the day! Enjoy staying inside cozy and warm on this rainy Sunday.

Don't do it!

I drove by a woman sitting on her doorstep wearing pyjama pants in the middle of the day yesterday and it got me to thinking. When I see someone wearing PJs during the day my perception is that there is something negative going on with that person. Sick, depressed, lazy, low self esteem maybe, etc etc. I should also probably clarify that I mostly only think this if I see the person wearing PJs IN PUBLIC. It hardly matters what you wear if you're staying at home all day. Although, I do think it boosts a persons motivation and self image if you take the time to clean yourself up and put on "day-time" clothing. In fact, I think there must really be some scientific correlation there. I once heard that it's important to set up a "study area" for yourself when you're in school because if you just flop on your bed to study, your brain associates that with where you go to sleep, so you tend to be less focused on actually learning. Maybe wearing PJs all day is kind of like that too.

Anyway, I'm sure there are "PJs in public" wearing people out there who would read this and say "There's nothing wrong with me! I just choose to wear this because it's what I'm comfortable in!" but I think those people should probably take a closer look at themselves and their reasons for choosing to wear that specific attire. Also, I think people should perhaps be more aware of their public image for other reasons as well. I doubt it would make you look too good if you came across your boss, potential employer, etc. out somewhere and you were wearing pyjama pants with some kind of animal/food/stripe on them.



I don't even think these are pyjama pants... but they certainly have the same effect...

 

Maybe I should get these ones...?



Ahead of the game.

I love when I realize that I am way more organized and ahead of myself than I thought I was. Maybe you know the feeling. It usually involves a few seconds of concern and dread, and is then promptly followed by the realization and relief that you had prepared yourself properly.

Yesterday I was heading up to Wicker Emporium to pick up a bookcase I have bought the day before. After I had already left my apartment, I thought to myself "Uh oh... did I leave the receipt for the bookcase on the kitchen table after I cleaned out my purse?" I thought I'd better check before I got any further away, so out my wallet comes and I unzip the main compartment only to see the desired receipt neatly folded and placed inside. Relief! And surprise... pleasent surprise because I had already thought further ahead of myself than I expected. I notice these types of incidences happening all the time to me. I'm not sure if it displays the fact that I am sometimes unorganized (because I had to stop and try to remember where the jesus I put the receipt) or rather the fact that I am actually quite organized (because I had the foresight to put the receipt in a convienient place for when I would need it).

Nonetheless, my bookcase is now home and sitting beautifully in the living room about half full with books. Still lots of room to aquire more, although I did just get a Kobo for my birthday from me Mudder and Fadder. I'm sure I will still buy real books from time to time, and even if I don't I have no doubt that I will be buying more than enough textbooks over the next four years to fill the rest of the shelves. Maybe I will even post a picture of my new bookcase for your viewing pleasure later on today!

Do I risk it?

For anyone who has never been in my apartment in person, you should first know that we have a fishtank in our living room that currently has nothing living in it. We used to have two newts (RIP Rodd+Todd), but they died and we have not replaced them with anything since. Sometimes it freaks people out because they wonder what kind of creature is in there and where it's hiding. That part is fairly satisfying for me as the owner.

The point is, I've been thinking about getting some angel fish ever since I saw the two new ones that my mama put in her gigantic tank. The only problem is that Chris has not been agreeable to this. Why? Because he says I have too much of a tendancy to kill things. This is not untrue. Plants, fish, newts, etc. To be fair I do still have some plants that I have not killed yet though. I just find that things get tricky sometimes... I certainly put in the effort... but things happen. I over-water... over-feed... don't make the tank secure so the damn things can not escape, you know... the usual... I just find that pets like cats are easier to care for. It's easier to see when they are sick or hungry/not hungry. Anyway, all this has not deterred me from wanting some new fishies... will have to work on boyfriend some more, I guess.

Does anyone have any suggestions or tips for me on caring for fishies? I could probably use some...!

One good, one bad

Looks like I'm not paying for books this year! Couldn't be happier about this. Managed to get all three books I need from the library. They are an edition behind the current textbooks, but I can deal with that as long as I think about the fact that I'll be saving 350+ dollars. Textbooks are SO overpriced, which I find incredibly unfair considering the fact that everyone knows how poor students usually are. Companies totally take advantage of the fact that students are obligated to somehow buy their product.

On another note, tonight is my first night back working for Sobeys. I tried to avoid it, but it was really the best decision for now. No point starting a new job and dealing with that stress when really I'll only be there for a few more months probably. So back to the grind I go. I really hope no one feels the need to go buy groceries tonight. It's rainy... stay home, snuggle up and eat whatever's already in your cupboard instead of coming to Sobeys and making me do more work than I want to. That's all I ask...

Bitch, get out the way.

FYI, when you're doing 80 on a highway where I can't pass you, don't glare at me as if I'm tailgating you. If road conditions are ideal, I expect you to drive the limit. It's not my fault that you're causing traffic to build up behind you, so don't look at me in your rearview mirror as if it is. Oh yeah, and passing lanes are for PASSING not continuous driving.


Road rage on my first day back at college? Great start to the year, I'd say!

The New Leaf Experience

Now, just to start, New Leaf is a men's intervention program for men who have been abusive in their relationships. I did an eight week placement there where I got to work alongside the facilitators and run the group sessions. The following is a reflection I wrote based on my experiences there.

During my eight week work practicum in the spring of 2011, I had a truly eye opening experience in many ways at New Leaf. Getting to know both the facilitators and clients, as well as external contacts, helped me to gain a more holistic insight as to what New Leaf is really about, and how this agency provides safety and the opportunity to change for the male clients and their families. To better explain my experience, I thought it would be most effective to list my key learning points.

1)      One of the first things I was told by the facilitators at New Leaf was to remember that there is always more to the story. The men I worked with at New Leaf often tell the facilitators things that leave us wondering, what’s missing here? I believe that this is probably the case in many different non-profit agencies, especially those that clients are generally mandated to attend. People only disclose the bits and pieces that they want you to know, which may result in rather important facts being left unknown to you. This may be because clients want you to perceive them in a certain way (such as a “good guy”), or perhaps they simply do not realize the importance of full disclosure. This leads me into my second point.

2)      People can be very good at manipulation, and the men involved with New Leaf are certainly no exception... they may have even created the standard. In this kind of environment, you have to be very observant and aware of what clients are saying (or not saying) and doing. Sometimes you can catch little hints of their manipulation and continue to try sussing it out further, but other times it can catch you completely off guard. It is these times that knock you slightly off balance, because it redefines what you thought you knew. These men have been practising and perfecting their manipulation skills for years in their personal relationships; I learned to understand that it is not me who is to blame when I am fooled by this

3)      To support these men without encouraging or enabling their manipulations, I’ve found that often the best reaction is no reaction. I began to learn that these men can be quite perceptive, and often they may say or do things with the expectation that you will present a particular reaction. Reminding yourself that is it best to give none helps curb the mind games that some of the men may try to play.

4)      While there is plenty of manipulation and incomplete information within the client circle at New Leaf, there is also the opportunity for men to change. While safety is a more prominent priority, the opportunity for change is still there. It is a slow and sometimes uncomfortable process, but it seems that there is often a point that these men reach where the resistant shell starts to crack. Of course, this is not the case 100% of the time, but it happens often enough for the facilitators to realize the benefits of this kind of work. Men often initially come in with the idea that “This is just who I am. I’ve been this way my whole life. I can’t change now.” That idea is simply untrue, and there are men of all ages who have gone through New Leaf over the last 25 years who can vouch for that.

5)      With the understanding that it is possible to change, it is also important to understand that the men who come to New Leaf are rarely truly bad people; they have simply made some bad choices. These are regular guys; it could be your co-worker, brother, neighbour, father, and so on. They don’t fit the stereotyped “wife beater” image. They aren’t monsters... they look as average as any other man you may encounter on the street. Most of them have regular jobs, friends, houses, and lives. They make poor decisions out of anger, ignorance, or sometimes both. This was a lesson I learned directly from the men... it is this they specifically wanted me and others to know about them.

6)      As for myself as a person, I learned that I am more open minded than I ever thought. I didn’t feel disgust or anger at the men like I thought I might after I learned what they had done to their partners. I was able to accept them as they are... probably because I know they have a great opportunity and are in the right place at New Leaf. They look and sound so unbelievably average that I found that I would sometimes have to remind myself why they are there. Going in, I had prepared myself for the bitterness and anger I thought I would experience coming from the men. But they aren’t like that... or at least not usually (of course, there are the exceptions). I was not alienated as a young woman during my student placement, and I rarely felt uncomfortable sitting around the circle with everyone else. I’d probably hate to know what was said during the smoke breaks outside, but for the most part I felt accepted.

                Doing my work practicum at New Leaf was a priceless experience for me. I often find myself referring back to lessons I learned there even now that my placement has long since been over. I understand so much more about the men who go to New Leaf and the opportunities they have there for safety and change. I would say that it may not be the right placement for everyone though, as it takes a certain type of person to offer the kind of support the clients at New Leaf need. Perhaps reading my experiences and lessons learned will help you decide if New Leaf is right for you...