Life – Page 13

Making sense of the senseless

December 14, 2012 by koalateagirl

I woke up this morning, a little bleary eyed but happy. I went to babysit a friend’s 6 month old while she volunteered at her daughter’s preschool. Nothing out of the ordinary. This afternoon I sat looking at my BlackBerry in disbelief as I read the stories out of Newtown Connecticut. I spent the better part of an hour just staring at my twitter feed on my BlackBerry as if my doing that would somehow change the news. I wanted this to be a tragic mistake, that somehow, through some kind of Christmas miracle, those children and adults wouldn’t be dead. I cried a bucket full of tears. It put everything in perspective – yeah the job hunt isn’t going great right now but I’ve got a supportive family and a great network of friends. It could be so much worse.

I just don’t understand what has to be going on in someone’s mind for them to take a semi automatic rifle into a school full of children. Yes there is something to be said for gun control but there is also something to be said for the identification and treatment of mental illness with which the shooter was clearly suffering. With the gunman amongst the dead, we will never know his true motivations. What I do know is that there are 26 people, 20 of them children who won’t get to celebrate Christmas. That is a national tragedy.

Please: Go hug your kids, your neighbour’s kids, a friend’s kids. Tell your family how much you love them and how mich they mean to you. Try and make something good come out of this truly senseless tragedy.

Poppies

October 31, 2012 by koalateagirl

I have a thing for Poppies. I love them. I love what they symbolize, I love that I can grow them, and I think that they’re one of the prettiest flowers out there. I also love how they blossom on the lapels of Canadians for 2 weeks before Remembrance Day. With Remembrance day being less than 2 weeks away, I thought I’d post some fun facts and figures about our symbol of Remembrance (Source: Legion.ca)

[Read more…]

Remember

October 26, 2012 by koalateagirl

Remember verb ri-ˈmem-bər

1. To retain in the memory; keep in mind; remain aware of.

2. To recall to the mind by an act or effort of memory; think of again.

(Source: Dictionary.com)

Today is the last Friday in October, which means that it’s the start of Poppy Campaign by the local branches of the Royal Canadian Legion. I have worn the same poppy for the past three years but I always make a donation into the box whenever I see a volunteer giving out poppies. It’s a common misconception that poppies are for sale. Poppies are not for sale, rather they are freely given away. You can choose to make a donation but it is not mandatory. According to the website of the Royal Canadian Legion, “During the Poppy Campaign some 18 million poppies and 70,000 wreaths, crosses and sprays are distributed across Canada and overseas annually”. 18 million poppies. The number is staggering. When you make a donation to the Legion through the annual Poppy Campaign, the money is used to help veterans and the families of veterans. The main purpose of the Poppy Campaign, though, isn’t to raise money but to remind Canadians of the sacrifices made by over 117,000 Canadians who died in service to their country.

[Read more…]

Thoughts on She’s Connected 2012

October 24, 2012 by koalateagirl

In case you haven’t noticed, I’ve been blogging over at my other blog Adventures with my BlackBerry for the last few months. I’m going to have another wrap up there but from the technological side of things – how my BlackBerry helped me make connections and made my conference experience more enjoyable. This is more about the experience I had at She’s Connected (or SCCTO which was the twitter hashtag for the event), what I learned, and the great people I met.

Overall, I had a great time at She’s Connected. The getting up at the crack of dawn wasn’t something I was looking forward to but I had great carpool with Courtney and Jacki and not only did we get to the hotel an hour before the conference breakfast was supposed to start, the fabulous people at the Renaissance Hotel were able to check us into our room super early (at 7am) so that we didn’t have to come back later and check in or try to do it after the conference when we were tired etc. I have to say that the Renaissance is a fabulous hotel, and I wish I’d spent more than just one night there! I’d go back for Grey Cup in the blink of an eye but it’s definitely out of my price range!

I learned a lot about myself at the conference. I learned I can be funny and witty in real life even with strangers and when I’m scared to death that I’ll say something stupid and they will write me off as a moron. I learned that mink eyelashes are pretty cool and very dramatic but take a long time to get used to. I learned that having a professional do a blow out on my hair leads to the same result as me doing one – flat hair in less than an hour! Not that the stylist from Blo wasn’t really good, but my hair is stupid that way. It looked fabulous for the hour, but then it was just messy and full of product. I learned that I really get a kick out of people complementing me on my business cards (which were super fabulous thanks to Lindsay from Grace Announcements).

The sessions were amazing. It’s impossible to pick just one to single out as the best. One of the best part of the sessions was that the panelists and speakers were more than willing to meet and speak with the attendees after the panels. There were 2 time slots in which I couldn’t find a session that I really wanted to attend, one on Friday and one on Saturday. This worked out pretty well because it gave me a chance to hang out in the McCafe lounge and get my nails painted and enjoy a chair massage. On Friday I got to hang out in the Molson 67 lounge and learn about pairing Beer and Cheese. This was really awesome and I’m never going back to wine and cheese again.

SCCTO - Molson 67 - Beer - Cheese - Tasting - — Beer and cheese = nature’s perfect pairing.

I learned a lot about trying to find a niche in the overcrowded world of online writing, editing and social media. I got some awesome advice from awesome people. I got to meet people with whom I’ve been tweeting and BBMing for over a year (I’m looking at you Christy and Christine). I learned that if I love blogging (and I do) I should keep doing it. That getting a chance at a community manager position isn’t as impossible a dream as I thought it would be and that some brands and agencies are okay with paying bloggers.

I missed the Friday ’80s Party because I wanted to go watch the ~~Argos Lose~~ Argo game and play with the Argonotes. I love playing with the best band in the CFL. Even when the team loses, we get to go out and entertain thousands of people. I did, however, stick around for the Shades of Grey party on Saturday night. There’s not a lot to say about that Party other than wow. I got gel nail polish put on – it’s supposed to last 2 weeks and so far it’s lasted through me digging in sand and typing so I’m impressed. The food was delicious! It’s A Cake Thing made some of the best cookies and cupcakes that I’ve ever had! They looked as good as they tasted.

Cupcakes - shades of grey - SCCTO - — The Shades of Grey Cupcakes

All in all it was a great 2 days. I’m glad it was only 2 days because I was exhausted at the end of the party. I know I’ve missed some wonderful people and things in this wrap up but the point is, it was a great experience and I can’t wait to go again next year.

Please Excuse my absence.

March 26, 2012 by koalateagirl

It’s been a rough couple of months. Every time I think I’m going to get back on track and blog again something happens. First it was pneumonia. I have had it before but I had obviously forgotten just how much it takes out of you. I ended up pulling the muscles between my ribs by coughing so much. Let me tell you – sitting at the computer (or anywhere really) was the last thing I wanted to do. Then, my house was burglarized. I am thankful that it was only material goods that were stolen (Wii, games, DVDs, Monitor, Laser Printer) but it’s still shaken me. I’m pretty good at putting on a happy face and going out into the world but having my space invaded and *my* things taken scared me. It’s especially frustrating since I’m still looking for work and don’t have the money to replace what was stolen. The total for the stuff that was stolen was just under my deductible on my renter’s insurance so there’s no point putting a claim in. I’ve had to evict a housemate because he a) didn’t pay rent and b) took a swing at me when I asked him about the rent.

The lack of a full time job is also frustrating. I have applied for over 100. I’ve been interviewed 10 times (and yes I know that a 10% interview rate is good) but keep hearing that I’m overqualified. I’ve been lucky enough to find contract work redoing a doctor’s filing system to add dividers and repairing all the broken file folders. It’s hard work but it’s work and I’m grateful for it. I’m not sure what the future will hold. I’ve had more than one company tell me they want a full social media plan as part of my application for the job. Um. I’m pretty sure that’s what you’d be HIRING me to do. If I gave it to you as part of my application, why would you hire me? Why not just steal my ideas and get someone else to implement them? I know I sound jaded. I hate sounding jaded. I am a trusting person by nature and I hate that I’m becoming less trusting. I want to see the best in people. I want to work where my ideas will be appreciated and where I can learn new things. I want to be challenged in my work. Is that really too much to ask?

This wasn’t the post i sat down to write today. but it’s the one that needed to be written. Hopefully now that I’ve jumped back in, my words will come more freely.