My Writings. My Thoughts.

From back in the day

At » 3:11 PM // 0 Comments »
My favourite picture of my grandpa and I from when I was like 1 year old (I think).

Every now and then it really hits my pretty hard that he's gone, which is a little weird because it's been almost 7 years. Oh well.... Miss you, love you!


From small ideas grows greatness

At » 7:42 PM // 0 Comments »
From time to time I see people wearing shirts that say "To Write Love On Her Arms" and "Love is the Movement". But it wasn't until recently that I really understood what it all meant. It wasn't until I found the TWLOHA website and read what it was all about that I really understood the impact those words could have.


TWLOHA started because some people wanted to help their friend get the treatment they needed after being denied entry to a treatment facility. They created and sold the t-shirts in order to raise the money to save their friend's life.


The mission
To Write Love On Her Arms is a non-profit movement dedicated to presenting hope and finding help for those struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury and suicide. TWLOHA exists to encourage, inform, inspire, and also to invest directly into treatment and recovery.

Depression is something that runs rampant in society, though no one really talks about it. It's even made its imprint within my family, though my story is the only one mine to tell.

When I was in high school I was treated for depression and at one point kept overnight in hospital one night because my mum didn't know how to help me. But I was lucky to find a great group of people, both socially and professionally, to help me learn how to deal. What probably helped the most was my sessions with the psychologist just talking it out, but I'm sure the anti-depressants influenced that too (though mild they were effective lol).

I consider myself really lucky because I learned early on how to properly deal with things and be constructive about it instead of shutting down. I know a lot of people who have confided their own struggles to me, none of whom would dare to post something like this in such an open forum as a blog for fear of who would find it. But there's no sense in hiding things like depression - if you do, you can't get help and you can't help others.

Here's my favourite part of the TWLOHA vision statement:

You were created to love and be loved. You were meant to live life in relationship with other people, to know and be known. You need to know that your story is important and that you're part of a bigger story. You need to know that your life matters.
This is what everyone needs to know.

This is everyone's truth.




To find help: www.twloha.com/find-help/
To buy merchandise: www.zambooie.com/twloha/
To donate : www.twloha.com/move/
On YouTube: www.youtube.com/TWLOHA

Who cranked the heat...??

At » 7:05 PM // 0 Comments »
As this long weekend comes to a close I feel the need to ask who cranked up the heat? Out of almost nowhere comes beautiful hot days....and digusting humidity. Summer has arrived....at least for the moment anyway.

Time to get out the sunscreen!!

The weekend has been very productive but a little stressing too. I've managed to get a lot of stuff around the house done and get out to the dog park a handful of times too. And thankfully, the stress has subsided as my mum has been released from hospital with the offical A-O-K!

There have been a couple notable downfalls to the weekend.

1. Today the power has been cutting out repeatedly.
2. A nice couple in the neighborhood has moved away.
3. And finally, a beautiful long weekend has made me long for my summer vacation.

And since the power is out again and my laptop's battery is about to die, I'll cut this short and get back to my book. I am of course referring to the one that I am reading, The Pillars of the Earth, not the one that I am writing...which has been on hold for a couple months. I am the Queen of Procrastination lol.

Who's Bemused?

At » 11:35 AM // 0 Comments »

...that would be I.

But I suppose the better question would be: Who am I?

I am an only child of European-born parents. My mother is from beautiful Scotland, land of bagpipes, kilts, haggis and beer, and my father is from Germany, the land of brautwurst and sauerkraut. Both of whom came over to Canada on the boat; my father arrived in 1954 in his leiderhosen with his older brother and sister and his mother; my mother arrived in 1967 with her four siblings and parents. As a child I spent a lot of time around my grandparents and my cousins, the result being my Nana and Papa (my mother's parents) are huge parts of who I am and strained relationships with cousins (fall out from family politic nonsense, which is present in all families).

For my benefit my mother enrolled me in the French immersion program in school, which I continued in straight through high school and subsequently moved to the nation's capital where Québec is only a stoplights away.

The move to Ottawa was due to my acceptance to Carleton University where I studied Sociology/Anthropology, linguistics and law - obtaining a degree in Sociology/Anthropology. Once here I fell in love with the city - though not huge there is lots to do - and to my mother's dismay after almost 9 years I have not yet moved back home. Quite the opposite in fact, I bought my first house in Ottawa and even adopted a little dog, Tucker.

I've been lucky to meet a lot of really great people in school, at work and around the neighborhood but recently the desire to be closer to home and family is stronger than ever.

- In November 2009, my great aunt died and at the funeral I met a whole new slew of cousins.
- In December 2009, my Tante Hannie (great aunt Johanna) who's going to be 94 in July 2010 slipped and broke her ankle, requiring surgery and physical therapy.
- My best friend, whom I've known since we were in kindergarten, has had two little boys and I'm miss so much of their lives being so far away.

These things together with others have stirred in me the urge to be closer to my family and even begin my own. Before starting my own family I would of course have to meet the right guy, which if I could custom order I've got an idea or two about what would be ideal (custom ordered guy) as I'm sure all women do lol.

But while I wait to come across that person I'll keep living life, having fun and blogging about the randomness of life and all the things in it. In 2005, I began blogging as a skeptic to the whole concept and while my posts have been sporadic at best over the years I've continued and learned more about me in the process.

So there you have it. I am bemused... with life and all its goings on.

...Guilty??

At » 2:52 PM // 0 Comments »
(useless tidbits about me that you will waste 5 minutes of your life reading)

Browsing through my reads, a friend posted a blog game - copy, paste, and change some words to make it my own.

First game is this:

RULE 1 - You can only say Guilty or Innocent.

RULE 2 - You are not allowed to explain anything unless someone messages you and asks!

RULE 3 - Copy and paste this into your blog, delete mine and type in your answers and tag your friends to answer this.

Asked someone to marry you? Innocent.

Ever kissed someone of the same sex? Guilty.

Danced on a table in a bar? Innocent.

Ever told a lie? Guilty.

Had feelings for someone whom you can’t have back? Guilty.

Kissed a picture? Guilty.

Slept in until 5 PM? Guilty.

Fallen asleep at work/school? Guilty.

Held a snake? Innocent.

Been suspended from school? Innocent.

Worked at a fast food restaurant? Guilty.

Stolen from a store? Guilty.

Been fired from a job? Innocent.

Done something you regret? GUILTY.

Laughed until something you were drinking came out your nose? Guilty.

Caught a snowflake on your tongue? Guilty.

Kissed in the rain? Innocent.

Sat on a roof top? Guilty.

Kissed someone you shouldn’t? Guilty.

Sang in the shower? Guilty.

Been pushed into a pool with all your clothes on? Guilty.

Shaved your head? Innocent.

Had a boxing membership? Innocent.

Made a girlfriend cry? Guilty.

Been in a band? Innocent.

Shot a gun? Innocent.

Donated Blood? Innocent.

Eaten alligator meat? Innocent.

Eaten cheesecake? Guilty.

Still love someone you shouldn’t? Innocent.

Have/had a tattoo? Guilty.

Liked someone, but will never tell who? Guilty.

Been too honest? Guilty.

Ruined a surprise? Guilty.

Ate in a restaurant and got really bloated that you couldn’t walk afterwards? Innocent.

Erased someone in your friends list? Guilty.

Dressed in a woman’s clothes (if you’re a guy) or man’s clothes (if you’re a girl)? Guilty.

Joined a pageant? Innocent.

Been told that you’re handsome or beautiful by someone who totally meant what they said? Innocent?

Had communication with an ex? Guilty.

Got totally drunk on the night before an exam? Innocent.

Got so angry that you cried? Guilty.

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