Feels Like the First Time

So last night I grew the balls to get on stage and do stand up comedy for the first time.

I don't really remember very much of it because it all happened so fast, but I was told afterwards that I did a great job. On a sidenote, this was also something on 'my list' of things to do before I die... so I am pleased to check that one off now.

If any of you are thinking about this, I highly recommend you try it.

My dear co-worker at MTV, Derek Forgie hosts the event about once a month in support of the HSSE. It's a very warm and welcoming environment for people who just want to get up on stage and try stand-up for the first time.

Join their Facebook Group and come out and participate in their next event. It's only $5 and each act is about 5 minutes a piece.

Here are some friendly tips I learned from last night:

-be prepared for the spotlight (it was so damn bright I couldn't see a single person in the audience and it was weird hearing them laugh but not being able to see them at all.

- don't be afriad to adjust the mic stand/take the mic in your own hands

-use the stage. Act shit out, especially when giving anecdotes.

-Chill out. Drink a beer before you go up and loosen up a bit.

-out of courtesy to the other acts, keep it as close to 5 minutes as possible.

in health and humour,

-A

MLG Time Lapse

Pretty cool to see the transformation.

Also kind of creepy that I was being watched for 5 days...

Google Street

Big news. Google Maps has just launched street level views for Toronto. What does this mean? I can finally explain to friends where the hell I live now!

Check it:

View Larger Map

To the left is Burrito Boy. To the Right is Tequila Sunrise.

Where does that leave me? 

Heaven. 

Back on blades again

When I quit figure skating six years ago to work in TV, I never thought those two worlds would ever come together again for me. I was a competitive figure skater for over 10 years and stopped at the end of high school so I could attend Ryerson for television and concentrate on working in TV. 

After years of freelancing with Insight Productions I received an e-mail from my producer saying that they were teaming up with CBC to create a new entertainment show called Battle of the Blades. Not only were they looking for a floor director, but they were looking for someone to do this from ice level. I couldn't believe what I was reading. This job had my name written all over it. The question was, could I fit back into my skates again? (The answer is no, but luckily my sisters always had bigger feet than me). 

Walking into the Maple Leaf Gardens for the first time in over ten years immediately brought back all the memories. The smell of the arena, the runny noses, and the sweet sweet sound of my blades crunching edges into the ice. I felt right at home again.

We had our first meeting on ice with the participants when suddenly I was surrounded by hockey legends and figure skaters I looked up to growing up. 

I think the general feeling at that moment was shared by all of us; we were excited to get going and bracing ourselves for the long days ahead.

Even though we've never done a show like this before, I felt completely comfortable knowing I had such an great team around me in every dept who I've worked with in the past. From the producers to the TVA's, I knew we had such a solid group on board.

I mean, look at this Leafs Dressing Room: Peter and Sandra brought life to a room that's been boarded up and vacant for years!

Before I knew it, it was our first show day. The audience started piling into the Gardens and really brought life to the arena again (some even sporting their leafs jerseys). As I skated around before the show, I thought to myself, 'Wow, I get to do the two things I love to do tonight: Skate and help run a live TV show.' And of all places, the Gardens!

So if you haven't booked your tickets yet, get on it. Tickets are $5 through Ticketmaster and are selling fast. Then let me know what day you're coming and make sure we get some embrace time. I'm only here for one more month before I head off the Aussie to conquer more TV. 

and stay tuned for more pics from the rink!

After Hours

One of my favourite people to drink with is my good man Clint. As an Instructor at the Toronto Institute of Bartending  you can imagine why. Not only does he teach me how to make fun drinks, but his knowledge on the history of certain cocktails is impeccable. 

After hours, we like to make our own drinks and play around with different mixes. The possibilities are simply endless. Last night, we decided to pay omage to our good man Tom Collins and somehow created what we like to call:

'The BumbleBee Twist: A member of the Collins Family" 

So without further adieu, here is how you can enjoy one...

What You'll Need: 

-lemons

-simple syrup (equal parts sugar/water)

-ginger beer

-Absolut Raspberry Vodka

-After 8 chocolate straws

-ice ice baby

How to Make it:

-mix 2oz vodka, 1 oz squeezed lemon, 1/2 oz simple syrup 

-add ice, and shake

-strain into a glass filled with ice

-top with ginger beer

-garnish with a lemon twist

-use wedge from your twisted lemon and place on glass

-break After 8 chocolate straw and place in the grooves of wedge

-Serve and enjoy!

Stay tuned for more of our late night creations

New.Beginnings.

Ok. So I'm at this weird crossroad in my life.

After working slightly over a year for MTV Canada which is a place thriving with incredibly creative and brilliant minds; I started thinking about my future in this industry. I absolutely love the company and love what I do so much that I could see myself working there for a long long time. This led me to realize how lucky I am at the age of 24 to have such a sweet gig. I must be doing something right if they like me enough to keep me around this long.

But then, it happens... every time I log onto a social network, (Facebook whore) I see yet another album of a friend who has posted their experience from Europe (or the like). 

And then there is me... the one who has never been outside of North America. Seriously.

I've done my share of US states including the incredibly gorgeous Hawaii. And like any other college kid, had my share of spring breaks in Cuba etc.

But I've never lived outside of the city for more than a couple of weeks. Toronto is the only life I know. And I feel like now is that time go out and experience this sort of stuff before I settle down to a 'real job' if you will, (although working in TV is definitely not your 9-5). 

So I took the leap of faith. I sat down with my producer and talked it out. She was completely on my page, in fact even had stories to tell of when she did the same thing.  

Now it's happening... I'm taking this next year off to travel to Australia. I'm not just going for the beaches, boys, and sexy accents (although it is rather appealing) but to also try my hand at working in TV land out there. 

So what's the point in traveling if you're just going there to work you ask? 

TV works a little different...it's a lot of freelance which when planned out right can allow you to travel in between gigs. This could mean Fiji, New Zealand, Thailand. Hell, I'm going to try and hit everything I possibly can while I'm on that side of the world. The more money I make out there, the more I can do with it. 

And then it became real. I found a super great deal through a company called VAustralia and literally jumped at the chance to book a flight. I had butterflies in my stomach watching the payment go through and the itinerary show up in my inbox. 

I'm stoked. I'm reuniting with my Whistler homies and old friends. Everyone is telling me it will be an experience I'll never forget. "You'll love it Alicia. You'll never come back"

But then, my heart drops. My company posted a job two days after booking my flight for a position that has my name written all over it. As I read the qualifications I'm mentally checking off the list in my head:

-Online social butterfly? Check

-Understanding and evolving with these social networks? double check

-portfolio of writing skills? triple check

-Photography skills/photo editing- check check could this job get any better? check

-HTML/ web understanding - check check I can feel the tears forming check

I have to stop here... It hurts to replay this in my mind.

The perfect job at the worst possible time.

Why do I feel like I'm making a mistake by leaving?
I'm not. I just have to keep telling myself that.

I can't wait to look back on this day and laugh about it :)

a little inspiration from Steve Jobs

As I stand here at a crossroad in my life. I stumbled upon this...




"Sometimes life is going to hit you in the head with a brick...don't lose faith. I'm convinced the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did. You've got to find what you love. And that's as true for work as it is for lovers. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking...and don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it."
-Steve Jobs

Thanks Steve. I needed this.

EGG-cellent Choice

So I'm the type of girl that enjoys making food but hates following recipes. You won't find teaspoons and measuring cups in my kitchen. I like to eye everything out and experiment with what works and doesn't when it comes to food. So if you're anything like me, perhaps you will enjoy my food posts. So with that being said, feel free to change/experiment with this one. 

Weather you're cottaging, camping, or just feel like firing up some breakfast on the BBQ, this next recipe I'm about to share will change your life. My sister's boyfriend Adam has been making this in his family for years and it's not only delicious but super easy to make.

What you'll neeed:

-cupcake tin

-carton of eggs

-margarine/butter

-chopped veggies (onions, mushrooms etc)

-shredded cheese

-BBQ/campfire/grill

-friends to enjoy it with

-start by scooping a small spoonful of margarine/butter into each tin

-add chopped veggies 

-cook over grill until veggies are cooked 

-crack an egg into each tin

-cover the egg tins (to ensure complete cooking coverage)

-add cheese to top of each egg

-once cheese is melted, remove from heat, and let it cool briefly

-scoop each egg onto a plate

-serve and enjoy!

resting. in. peace.

I awoke to yet another harsh reality on the world of Twitter. Martin Streek has passed away. 

I didn't want to believe it, but when I saw Alan Cross confirm it and Josie Dye comment on it, I knew it was real. Tuning into the Edge this morning Josie could barely keep it together as she alluded to his death and played one of his favourite NIN songs.

If you've ever listened to Toronto radio, then you know who Martin Streek is.

I used to work on the Hour with Strombo who had nothing but great things to say about this man. Earlier this year, I arranged for my roommate (who was studying radio broadcasting) to sit down and interview Strombo and his thoughts on media, politics and music as a whole. I leave you with these words that he had on Streek:

"Martin Streak and David Bookman are so important to this city, what they do for music…Streek when he’s on the radio.. quality wins. They believe in music. They are the snipers waiting by the window keeping everyone on their game. Because their music knowledge is impeccable, their passion is unrivled and they’re not afraid to tell you. They understand how important a record can be to your life." 
-George Stroumboulopoulos

RIP Martin Streek.

You were, and always will be a Radio Legend.

the conversation

Nonna: Aleech, whenna you gonna geta boyfriend and get married and have kids?

Me: (laughs)

Nonna: (serious face) 

awkward silence...

Me: umm, soon?

Nonna: Soon? I'ma gonna die and never get to see!

Me: Well you'll have to live forever then :)

The Way You Make Me Feel

The rumours started when I was working at MTV around 5pm. All the TV's were tuned into CNN, CTV, and every other news station possible. It was starting to turn into a mad house as people anxiously hit the refresh buttons on their webpages. Ironically the only answers we were getting were from gossip blogs. TMZ, Perez, Twitter and Facebook were reporting that Michael Jackson had been taken to hospital.

I jumped onto Twitter myself and didn't even have to scroll through the trending topics because nearly everyone I was following was already posting links and for the most part posting "Michael Jackson dead?".

With less than an hour away until our live shows, producers immediately decided to throw their rundowns out the window and address the issue everyone was talking about. In fact, The Aftershow dedicated their entire show to MJ discussing their reactions, how they found out, and some of their favourite memories.

I brought the twenty somewhat audience members up to studio and immediately let them know that this was going to be a very different After Show. No applause. No joking around. MJ was gone and even I couldn't believe it.

What suprised me though was that the audience full of 16-20 yrs old really didn't care. They didn't get what the big deal was. In their eyes, MJ was a pedophile.

To me, MJ was my entire childhood. My dad who was a part-time DJ, had every MJ album on both CD and vinyl and blasted his songs at least once a week. Singing 'The Way You Make Me Feel' at the top of my lungs while daddy blasted the tunes, changed the tenor of my day and it still does to this very day.

During commercial breaks of the live show, I started snapping and humming some of MJ's classic hits hoping to get some sort of reaction from these kids...but they didn't know the words. They had no idea about how this one man changed the face of music. They just knew him as the guy that changed his face.

So for those who don't understand why so many people are paying tribute to the King of Pop (or why he has this title) please read below and take some time to do some research on your own.

"First, people forget that the Thriller album essentially saved the recording industry when it was released in 1982. Suffering from the double whammy of the post-disco sales depression and a brutal recession, Thriller almost single-handedly resurrected the music industry"- Alan Cross, (read his Metro article here)

When Michael Jackson released Thriller, he made a music video for "Billie Jean." It was a good one and his producer, CBS Records, knew it. But when they presented it to MTV it was turned down. MTV had never aired a black musician's video before. So, Walter Yetnikoff, the Chairman of CBS told MTV that if they didn't play Michael Jackson's videos, they wouldn't have access to any of CBS's videos. So, MTV gave in and aired "Billie Jean," which broke the colour barrier.

But he did so much more than just that. He gave music videos life again; creating short films and working with some of the best directors that experimented with new technologies including the face morphing feature in his video 'Black or White'.

And then there was dance. In my opinion, one of his most important contributions was his imperative to dance. Artists such as Justin Timberlake, Usher, Chris Brown and Ne-Yo may have ascended the pop charts because of their excellent songs...but they became superstars because your jaw dropped when you watched them dance. But no one has yet to recapture Jackson as a dancer- the Moonwalk completely rewrote the book on male sexuality in music.

Still to this day, dance groups everywhere are learning the choreography to MJ's songs. From subway dancers to television shows like SYTYCD, there is nothing that excites me more than when someone pays omage to the King of Pop.

So to all the tweeney boppers. I leave you with wise words from the great Alan Cross, "Forget the lurid allegations, the buying of the Elephant Man’s bones, the hyperbaric sleeping chambers, the plastic surgery and the dangling babies...Let’s not focus on the tabloid stuff. The man did enough that we should remember him for the great groundbreaking talent that he was."

R.I.P. MJ

An Ode to the Caesar

Those of you that know me, know that I love the tomato.
I eat them like apples and drink Caesars like water (not to mention my family makes homemade tomato sauce every other year). You'll never find a shortage of 5 things in my kitchen: Vodka, Celery, Clamato Juice, Hot Sauce and Avocados (but we'll get into that another day).

This year marks the 40th anniversary of a truly Canadian cocktail, the Mott’s Clamato Caesar. Every bartender in Canada knows how to brilliantly make this spicy concoction, but as my friend Clint put it, "ask for a Caesar outside Canada, and you’ll get a bowl full of lettuce, croutons, and anchovy salad dressing."

My advice, don't even bother ordering one in the States. Once you get your server to understand that it's a drink and not a salad, they immediately respond with "Ohh, you want a Bloody Mary". EPIC FAIL. Don't let their fancy garnishes fool you with the crap that lies inside this liquid red 'cocktail'. I have been dissapointed all too many times when ordering this drink... It's made with tomato juice, not Clamato and it tastes like shit.

To mark the 40th Anniversary, the TIB has created all sorts of variations of the Caesar including one made with Canadian Whisky and muddled sage..Mmmm. You can’t get more Canadian than that!

For those of you who haven't tried a Caesar yet (gasp!) or just don't know to properly make one. Here is the Classic Caesar as to which all other Caesar’s are variations of…

For more recipes go Motts website (they've got all sorts of downloads and recipes)

Classic Caesar
1 oz. Vodka
2 Dashes of Franks Red Hot Caesar Spicer
3 Dashes of Fresh Cracked Salt and Pepper
4 Dashes of Lea and Perrins Worcestershire Sauce
4 oz. Mott’s Clamato

Combine all ingredients in a highball class with lots of ice. Mix by pouring back and forth and just before the last pour into the glass, add a celery salt rim. Garnish with a celery stick and lime wedge.

My good man Clint's Caesar Tip: Never Shake… it changes the texture and consistency of the cocktail.

Cheers and Happy Birthday Caesar!

the deadline

how do you represent life in a 7 minute video?

...you can't right?

on a lighter note

we had a rough day so we decided to make the best of it.

she thinks they're gross...

... I think they are stunning

the one thing that makes me happy... always

no sugar tonight in my coffee

Its been almost a whole year since my last post.
Wow does time ever fly.
to sum it up:
I scored some sweet tv jobs,
moved into a cute condo,
met a boy,
fell in love,
visited Hawaii
saw the set of 'Lost'

and here I stand baking banana muffins in my booty shorts.

life is sweet

* 

I'll give you confidence...

To all my friends that critique me for always walking with my head down:

I found five dollars on the ground today while walking home.
That wouldn't have happened if I wasn't looking down.

How's that for confidence.

You keep walking with your chin high,
I'll watch out for the bills flying by.

Walking home this morning, I passed by this bench on the Danforth. What a nice way to start the first day of the year,  

And so...

and so tomorrow there will be another number,
for the one who had a name.

Fragmented Female

What do you do when you have no motivation to get the work done?

The papers keep getting put off.
You can't see the floor of your room anymore
and you keep reminding yourself you'll do it...

...later.

You're freaking out on the inside
wondering if you'll fall through the cracks this time.

You stop and think about what life would be like if you just said 'fuck it'.

You suddenly wake up to reality and wonder why the hell you're talking in the third person.

I take one last look around the room, suck it up and start writing the paper.

Calendar Girl

If I am lost for a day try and find me,

but if I don't come back then I wont look behind me.

All of the things that I thought were so easy
just got harder and harder each day- The Stars

satisfaction lies within the imagination

Scenario: Monday morning.

Sitting on the streetcar, looking over my study notes for an exam. A woman comes on, decides to sit right behind me and chop on her gum profusely. I’m talking full open mouth chewing action to the point that I can hear the saliva swooshing around in her mouth. I turn around to give her the ‘annoyed’ look. She doesn’t get it. She continues to chomp. I turn around and grab her by the back of her head and smash it into window…repeatedly until her gum falls out of her mouth. Suddenly I hear “Church Street” over the loudspeaker. I awaken from my daydream, grab my things and exit with a smirk on my face

Still

The World Keeps Spinning

But I am Still. 

Summer Days

drifting away to oh, those summer nights...

Meet Francesca Woodman

Francesca Woodman (1958-1981) was an American photographer best known for her black and white pictures featuring herself and female models. Many of her photographs show young nude women, blurred by camera movement and long exposure times, merging with their surroundings, or with their faces obscured. Her work continues to be the subject of much attention, years after she committed suicide at the age of 22.

 

The beauty and intelligence in her photographs are a testament to the tragedy of her loss and the depth of her sorrow. I am forever in awe of her. 

Chicken Shit

WARNING: I HATE PETA

So I was walking along Front Street today when I noticed a crowd of PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) petitioning about boycotting KFC. I couldn't help but laugh when I saw the sign, "Broken Wings and Legs".
This seems to be a touchy subject in the news right now... so why not feel it up?

First of all, Pamela Anderson of all people is representing this case for PETA. Last time I checked big boobs loves to sport the leather.

Second, this issue is a problem in the United States right now. What the hell are you petitioning in Canada for? All the chickens used in the Canadian chains of KFC come from the same manufacturers that we buy from in the grocery stores. This is clearly another American fuck-up. I understand you're trying to spread the message, but what the hell kind of power do we have over our what our neighbours next door are frying up? Last time I checked, they lived in their own world.

And my last point (although its my opinion) is still a fact of life. They're fucking chickens. They are not endangered, nor do they serve any other purpose in the world than to breed more chickens and feed us. If you love them so much, take one home for a day... I'm sure you'll be indulging on chicken wings when you realize how dumb they really are, along with your idea to protect them.


Don't say I never warned you...

Growing Up

Today we go back to the places we came from and go back to the same things we did last summer and every summer before that. We will come into town on that same familiar road, and even though it has been months, it will seem like only yesterday. As you walk into your old bedroom, every emotion will pass through you as you reflect on the way your life has changed and the person you have become.

You suddenly realize that the things that were most important to you a year ago don't seem to matter so much anymore, and the things you hold highest now, no one at home will completely understand. The memories and the stories from school won't mean anything to anyone at home and yet you resent them for that… if only they could share that happiness with you.
Who will you call first?
What will you do your first weekend home with your friends?
How long before you actually start missing people barging in without calling or knocking?
Who will get Big Slice with you at 3am?

Then you start to realize how much things have changed, and you realize the hardest part of university/college is balancing the two completely different worlds you now live in, trying desperately to hold on to everything all the while trying to figure out what you have to leave behind.

Today, we leave our world of living next door to our best friends, walking across campus to eat, instant messenger, 8:00am classes, and the perpetual procrastination to a world that will seem foreign to us despite the fact that we lived in it for eighteen years.

But it is different now.

We now know the meaning of true friendship. We know whom we have kept in touch with over the past year and whom we hold dearest in our hearts. We've left our high school world to deal with the real world. We've had our hearts broken, we've fallen in love, we've helped our best friends overcome depression, stress and death. We've been wasted and we've stayed up all night on the phone just to talk to a friend in need.

There have been times when we've felt so helpless being hours away from home when we know our families needed us, and there are times we know we have made a difference.

Today we leave.
Today we take down our pictures, and pack up our clothes.
We will leave our friends whose random email and phone calls will bring us to laughter and tears this summer. We will take our memories and dreams and put them away for now, saving them for our return to this world. We will return to the same friends whose random emails and phone calls have brought us to laughter and tears over the year. We will unpack old dreams and memories that have been put away for the past year. Today we will dig deep inside to find the strength and conviction to adjust to change and still keep each other close. And somehow, in some way, we will find our place between these two completely different worlds...

bubbles

there is something magical about bubbles.

someone buy me a damn bubble machine for my bday

The Value of Knowledge

So its been a while, but the procrastination has finally come back to bite me in the ass. Exam time= crunch time with a side of stress and sleepless nights. Just want to give a few shout outs to my best friends Starbucks and Redbull who helped me get through this… I couldn’t have done it without you.

As I sat outside today in front of my residence (Pitman Hall) studying for my final exam, (yes the end is near) I looked around at my fellow peers and got carried away again observing their actions. I hope it doesn’t come off weird when I say that I am fascinated watching other people when they don’t think anyone is looking. I find people are more cautious when they know they are being watched (and I’m sure many scientifical studies have proven this).

But then I started to become aware of the sights and sounds around us, as a group of young adults baking outside in the sun. The music playing, the fire truck sirens, the chatter of knowledge…all combining into one great ambient force. The majority of people had their head buried in some type of reading material from books, to notes, to magazines. We are a generation bombarded, yet enticed with ideas that address and question our intellect. But then I wondered, are we really learning anything valuable here?

Lets say I was to go to bed tonight and wake up thousands of years in the past with the knowledge I have now. Would it be of any use if I really can’t explain nor create the system that I live in now, where everything is literally at my fingertips? We think we’re so great and modern, but the problem is we depend on it. I depend on it.

This year for example, I learned the system of radio transmission; signals are sent through the air to be picked up by receivers. Simple right? But how would I explain that to someone in the past who has no concept of music, let alone the radio. These signals travel through the air… like birds? Like magic? Same thing goes for television, and computers… or any piece of technology for that matter.
What good is knowledge if it just floats through the air? It travels from computer to computer. It changes and grows every day but few actually understand it. We just use it. Depend on it. Expect it.

Hmm... I wonder what would happen if it was all taken away. If we lived in a world where the only conflict of interest would be who makes the fire, and who does the hunting, opposed to who gets to control the tv remote. Oh wait, scratch that, everyone pretty much has their own television now.

Secrets

The very secret that you're trying to conceal
is the very same one that you're dying to reveal- Feist

illusions

judge me not
and let me be
don't go by what
you think you see

Vitamin D Love

and the sun felt so good on my skin today...

Distorded Faces

Meet Richard May

he's been my inspiration for my upcoming Digital Media projects:

Check out more of this work here

A City Full of Broken Mirrors

We as humans always want something more…something better than what we’ve been given. It’s all over the media, its in the shows we watch, and frankly, being a student at Ryerson, I couldn’t possibly escape being bombarded with billboards upon billboards of the ‘ideal’ product or look claiming to better my life.

The flashing lights, the endless pamphlets, and the people preaching the ‘word’ of God?
This is Toronto. Or is it?

Today as I walked past the giant billboard of Sarah Jessica Parker posing for a Gap ad, I couldn’t help but wonder, in a city where ‘beauty’ seems to be unattainable, why are we always chasing it?

I mean we have American shows like 'The Swan' and 'Extreme Makeover' which only reinforce the message that you're body is never good enough. My professor played us an old clip from a tv show in the late 50's called 'Queen for a Day' where different housewives would literally compete for who had the worst life and why they deserved to be pampered. It made me sick to my stomach seeing each woman trying to top the other, and today much hasn't changed. Its something within all of us, no matter how nice of a person you are; we females are ALWAYS competing with one another. And the finger of blame almost always gets pointed to the media. But what if the media, and all other messages were swiped off the earth completely... would we all of a sudden be nice to one another?

For some reason, I highly doubt it.

Sure it would be nice to have more shows out there embracing woman in a positive way, but really it all comes down to your own self confidence. As hard as it is to see yourself in a city full of broken mirrors, it comes back to how you absorb it, and what you decide to do with it. I passed another billboard today with Paris Hilton on it, I realized that you've essentially got two choices: become depressed by it, or look at it and realize you've got way more than she ever will... class and respect.
As I posted in my earlier blog,

Its not what you do to your body
but what you do to your mind that counts

photoshop

I scanned this daisy and photoshopped it for my Digital Media Class. It's amazing what you can transform with Photoshop.

Skipping the Small Talk

It seems that the theme of my conversations lately have regarded the act of ‘blogging’.  Just yesterday I had a friend ask me, “What’s so great about blogging?”

The answer is simple; there isn’t anything so ‘great’ about blogging. It is what it is. Yet, it makes so much sense for me to do it. I’m growing up today in a technologically savvy generation where literally everything is going web-based and digital. Clearly, I see nothing wrong with bringing my thoughts online.

To me blogging is like having that deep conversation with a friend where you’re past the point of small talk and dig right in to the issue.We all build up models of how we see the world around us. The more information we have, the more we refine our model one way or another. What we ultimately do, is tell ourselves a story of what the outside world is. Any information I absorb from my environment is always coloured by the experiences I’ve already had. I believe Mr. Keating put it well in Dead Poet’s Society when he said, “We don't read and write poetry because it’s cute, we read and write poetry because we are members of the human race, and the human race is filled with passion."

To blog, to bitch, to better ones-self…whatever you want to call it, simply works for me. Now, no doubt people may disagree with what it is I have to say, but that’s the beauty of it all; it is something I can call my own. However insignificant it may seem in the web world, it’s enough to keep me satisfied simply because I am being true to myself. Beat to my own drum if you will. And right now, the beat is sounding pretty damn nice. Try it sometime.

Feist

Meet my favourite Canadian artist: Feist

http://www.listentofeist.com/

We May Have Conquered 4 Seasons, But Can We Weather The Financial Hurricane?

So today I sat myself down and really thought about things. What began as a career path question ended in a radical observation on life. As if I'm not already in a financial slump, the future outlook doesn't look quite promising either.

No doubt, times are pretty good right now when it comes to society's financial stability. Real estate is booming, corporations are expanding, and wealthy families are adding more to their pockets with each passing year. People are truely outwitting and outplaying, but doesn't only one person outlast the others in the game of survivor?

Let's be honest, the larger corporations get, the less loyalty they exhibit.
Life expectancy is shooting higher, while saving up for it is well underestimated.
The pension system can and WILL be defeated by demographics.
and society's distorted love affair with real-estate will only lead to heartbreak years from now.
Call me naive, but I can't help seeing the truth when I dissect the logistics of it all

It seems that my parents' generation have the mentality that playing by the old rules(working hard, paying your taxes, and raising your children) is the key to success. Yet, today people are getting married later, delay having children, and even with twice as many dual-income families as a generation ago, people still believe they have no job security. So I started to wonder, in a world where morality appears to be dead, isn't an old-fashioned approach to life now just a one-way ticket to failure?

The government is over 600 billion dollars in debt... it will NOT be there to help you decades from now. As the baby boom generation ages, who's going to buy all these four-bedroom suburban homes that they live in now?
So with the lack of workplace justice and plethora of empty homes that will haunt my future, (along with no doubt corporate mergers sweeping away tens of thousands of jobs without warning) Isn't the only security we have, is that which we create for ourselves?

So why today, are people still putting forth all their money into their homes, when really you have no way of knowing its going to be worth the same amount years from now. Are we on the way to another depression? and if so, does anyone else see it? I'm sure they do... but disussing it would only cause a moral panic.
It just seems like my generation is getting the shorter end of the stick...
Once this all passes, and the boomers retire, will we be left cleaning up their shitty remains?

How do you win immunity when there is none?

Cartwheels

I promise to do at least one cartwheel a year for the rest of my life...

Life Comes and Goes so Quickly

To top off my shitty week (and yes, it's ONLY Tuesday) my mum informed me last night that one of my family members passed away and another is in critical condition.
All I could do was cry...
I know that life doesn't go on forever, but I think having two pieces of bad news hitting me at once was hard to take.

I started thinking about the people in my life, and how at any given moment, they too could disappear.

So many questions raced through my mind... Was our last exchange honest or just a silly repartee? Did I say everything I wanted to say to that person? Did we leave things on a good note? But most of all I wondered, did I know that person as well as I could have?

It seems that our society has become so wrapped up in itself...

...I have become wrapped up in myself.

Today I realized that there is more to life that just my selfish shortcomings.
Here I was complaining about a silly flu bug, while someone, somewhere, was struggling just to breathe.

I've decided to visit my Grandfather in Florida for reading week, because frankly I have so many questions about the man's life that I have always wanted to know. What was stopping me from doing this sooner?
...Me.

People often say repsect your elders, and now for the first time, I understand why.

the journey is that much better with a friend by my side.