Random

2 am ramblings

December 15, 2012 by koalateagirl

Tonight, I tried to fill my head with beauty to mitigate the horror my mind is imagining to go along with the news stories I read. I worked a holiday concert for a local Montessori school – over 150 children singing and making music and generally being children – which helped a bit. After that I went to my friend’s house, gave their 3 year old her Christmas present and helped her get ready for bed. Her hugs helped mend my heart a bit too. I got to cuddle a 6 month old baby and spend time with his parents. I got caught up in the TV show Arrow (yes… there is beauty there too). I even stayed too late and watched an episode of Doctor Who.

At this point it was 1 AM and I really should have gone home to bed but I couldn’t do it. Instead I drove 5 minutes further west until I was outside the city limits and found a side road to park on. I had my BlackBerry with me for safety and took a blanket, my padded stadium cushion and my mittens and just sat in the dark. In the span of half an hour I saw 14 meteors. I sat quietly, and prayed for the world and for the families that wouldn’t be getting any rest tonight.

After 30 minutes, I drove home, got into my fuzzy pjs and am writing this. I’m not healed by any stretch but my soul feels a little lighter. Sometimes a bit of alone time with astronomical phenomenons in the dead of winter can help our minds proccess the unimaginable.

Hug your children (or other people’s children)! Go out and sit in the dark. Volunteer. Choose your method of healing but acknowledge that our lives have changed forever with the senseless deaths in Connecticut.

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.

Sponsorship Questions

August 28, 2011 by koalateagirl

I’ve been invited to attend the She’s Connected Conference in Toronto in September. I’m really excited to go because I want to learn how to make my blog and Twitter and Facebook accounts more relevant. In the last few days the excitement has started to be co-mingled with trepidation (yes it’s a $20 word but I love it so I’m using it). I’ve seen a lot of the other attendees actively seek wardrobe, travel, or shoe sponsors for the event. Lord knows I’d love to have someone pay for the hotel room for #SCCTO – Money isn’t a luxury I have a lot of right now, but I’m wary because I’m not sure I want to sell myself to do it. Right now, whenever I endorse something on Twitter, Facebook, or here, it’s because i use it and genuinely like it. I won a new Blackberry Bold 9900 on Twitter in July. I entered the #BB7FanNight Contest and won. I got to go to a really fancy launch party and play with all of the new devices that use the BB7 OS and choose one. I received it on Friday an tweeted that I love it. I really do love it. It has a touch screen and a keyboard and it’s really easy to use. There were no terms in the contract that said I had to tweet about how much I loved it – I gave Blackberry PR the right to use the tweets I entered the contest with in their advertising campaign, they liked one of the entries, I won a new Blackberry. If I hated the device I would say that, but I don’t.

Incidentally I also won a pair of Skullcandy ROCNATION headphones at the BB7FanNight event and I love them too. I’ve been looking for a new pair of headphones for awhile, and the ROCNATIONs in addition to looking really cool (they came with a cloth to make sure the outside stayed shiny!) are incredibly comfortable too. The only problem may be that they’re TOO good – when I tried to do some transcription off of a cassette tape they conveyed every hiss and crackle of the tape! I had heard of Skullcandy headphones before but figured they were too ‘hip’ for me – now I don’t care – I just love them.

I have an iphone that I got from my best friend. I like it a lot too – but there are some things about it that drives me nuts. I’m sure after I use the new Bold9900 for a year, there will be things that drive me nuts about them too. If I were to be offered a sponsorship by Blackberry, would I be free to voice any concerns I had about my device?

I’m afraid that if I enter into a relationship with a brand to get sponsorship for a conference, it will force me to not be honest about my opinions of products. I like to support local companies and failing that, Canadian companies. but I’m not willing to support a company that has crap products. I want my friends to know that when I recommend something (like I did with the Adult Essentials vitamins this week to a group of friends) that I actually use and enjoy the product. I’m still pretty new to the whole brands and blogs thing, but I’m not sure I’m willing to sell my soul for the price of a hotel room.

Unfair

August 11, 2011 by koalateagirl

Life is unfair sometimes. I am an adult and I get that concept. What I don’t understand is why my friend Mishi is being dealt such a crap hand by the universe right now. Her beautiful 2-year-old daughter, Stella has been diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. She is going to die and it will be sooner rather than later.
I met Mishi years ago (and no I don’t remember how many) in a band called Argonotes. We played at football games and had a lot of fun. Mishi met and fell in love with a wonderful woman named Aimee. They decided to have children. They were blessed with a beautiful little girl who they named Stella Joy. And yet she is dying. It’s been less than 2 months since they got the devastating news that Stella Joy is not long for this world. I don’t even want to think about whether I could show the kind of strength that they are displaying on a daily basis. From the beginning their priorities have been to ensure that Stella has a fabulous summer and cram as much life into the time she has left. I am truly in awe of these two fabulous people.

You can read their whole story here (note: you may want a box of kleenex handy)

http://www.stellabrunermethven.com/

exhaustion

May 16, 2011 by koalateagirl

the past week has been exhausting both mentally and physically – how does my body choose to react to the stress? By making sure I get less than 5 hours of sleep a night. Sometimes I think my body is engaged in an all out war with itself. I’m working tomorrow and have band rehearsal but am going to try to get a good night’s sleep tonight so that I can stay awake at band. Tuesday I’m sleeping in. Late.