What I'd rather be doing

As usual, on a Thursday, I’m at work.  Don’t worry; I posted this and hooked up with Mama Kat's Writer's Workshop before I went to work.  It’s not like I’d play around on my blog while at the office…… (just sayin’,  in case the boss ever finds my blog).

As much as I LOVE my job (again for the boss), there are plenty of other things that I would also love to be doing.

-I would love to be sitting out on my balcony with a good book and a cup of tea.

-I would love to be having a picnic by the lake.  I live literally five minutes from a lovely lakeside park but do you think that I ever get there?  Ha!  I must get out there!

-I would love to go shopping, not because I need milk and tampons but just because I want to for totally frivolous things.  Of course, I need to work for the money to do that…..

-I would love to have the day to spend with my kids.  Of course, they’re teens now so even when I do have my vacation time, they probably won’t hang around with me.  A mom can dream though.

-I would love to spend some quality time writing both for this blog and some fiction.  I’m not spending enough time on either lately (sorry!)

-I would love to be sitting out on a terrasse somewhere drinking wine/sangria/beer/whatever with my lovely SIL.  I’m not seeing enough of her these days.

-I would love to be sitting on the sidelines watching my kids play soccer.  I enjoy the socializing with the other parents as much as I enjoy cheering my kids on.

-I would love to go to the movies for a couple of hours of air conditioned, well-entertained bliss.  There is always something out there that I want to see but, somehow, I don’t ever seem to go.  What’s up with that?

-I would love to take a nap.  I never napped when I was younger but, once I had kids, I learned the value of a good nap.  There’s nothing like “checking out” for an hour or so on a peaceful afternoon.

What would you rather be doing?

Kathy

A letter to myself

“It’s time to start dating again but, before you do, you write a letter to yourself.  Write that letter.”

I got this writing prompt from Indie Chick Lit to use on my fiction blog but decided that it would be better over here where I “keep it real” and talk about life.  Obviously, I’ve been single for quite a long while now so I’m writing this with a lot of hindsight from lessons learned.

Dear Me,

Let’s just state the obvious – dating is tough.  You don’t want to meet a guy in a bar.  This is where the drinkers hang out and you’ve had enough of that crap to last a lifetime.  You don’t have a huge circle of friends so you don’t tend to go to many parties or get-togethers.  You don’t belong to any groups or associations where you could meet people.  These are big hindrances.

Then you have the online dating sites.  You can meet some nice people there but there are more losers than winners in that world.  Well, I suppose there are plenty of duds to be met in person as well but at least you can weed them out a little bit more easily in person. 

However you go about meeting guys, here are a few tips:

-never, EVER, date a man who is married or otherwise attached.  You deserve to be his “#1”.  You’re smart enough to understand this one without any more explanation.

-make sure that a man respects you enough to actually call sometimes and not just text.  If he’s really into you, he should want to hear your voice.

-if all he ever wants to do is get together at your place and not go out and do things, he’s either…… a) married/attached without telling you or  b) has no interest in actually dating you; only in “hook-ups”.

-speaking of hook-ups, try to stay away from them.  They’re not healthy, physically or emotionally.  They might be fun at the time but, without any real friendship behind them, are really pretty empty experiences.

-if you don’t feel respected then you probably aren’t being respected.  Go with your gut; it’s always a mile ahead of your brain and two miles ahead of your heart.

-be happy with yourself.  A person who is not happy in her own company cannot expect anyone else to be attracted to her. 

You’ll meet a few nice people along the way as well as a few not so nice ones.  That’s how life is.  One of these days, though, the right one will come along and you’ll have found your partner.  Until then, enjoy life; get out there, laugh and live well.

 

Kathy

My Favourite App!

This week Mama Kat asked us what our favourite app is as one of her writing prompts.

I recently got an iPad Air and absolutely love it!  One of the first apps that I downloaded was Next Issue (www.nextissue.ca).  It is Canadian but I have no doubt that there is an American version of it too.  With a subscription of $14.99 a month (premium membership), you can get all of your favourite magazines on your tablet.  The first month is free so that you can try it out and see if you like it.

We’re not just talking about a few obscure magazines here like Cat Lovers Monthly or DIY Mushroom Gardening; no we’re talking big magazines like People, Entertainment Weekly, Cosmo, Glamour, Food Network Mag, Time, GQ, Oprah and so many more.  The first two that I named are my favourites and are weekly magazines.  There are some months where I would buy each of them two, three and sometimes even four times in a month.  The monthly membership fee for full access is going to save me a bundle!

I have a hard time imagining myself giving up holding a book in my hand but I’m willing to update myself for magazines.  Some of them even have links that you can hit to see movie previews or other digital extras that people holding the paper magazine don’t get.  Another thing that is nice is that you have access to past issues as well.

I download the new issues that I’m interested in when I’m at home with wi-fi and then I can read them anywhere I want regardless of whether I have a wi-fi connection or not.  Do note though that you do need wi-fi for any links that you want to check out.  Once you’ve read the issue, you should delete it from your tablet to save your device’s memory but can always download it again in future if you want to refer back to an article.  You have unlimited access!   You can also share a page by email if you want to share an article or a recipe.

Just a few of the many magazines!

As you can tell, I’m obviously in love with this app. 

Kathy

Celebrating Canada Day

One of the prompts at the Writer’s Workshop this week is “show us your red, white and blue”.  Since July 1st is Canada Day and I am Canadian, I’m dropping the “blue” and showing my maple leaf pride.  This post would normally go up on Thursday for the Workshop but I'm putting it up today for Canada Day and will link up on Thursday.

I realize that it is practically un-Canadian of me to be boastful about my country.  We are known for our quiet pride and self-depreciating humour when it comes to talking about our country but I have never been shy to say that I am a proud Canadian, proud Quebecer and proud Montrealer.   

Yeah, I'm boasting  ;)

Canada is known for its vast open spaces and natural beauty; its universal medicare; its citizen’s penchant for saying sorry and ending sentences with “eh”.  We are known for our love of hockey, maple syrup and poutine.   

We have given the world celebrities like Jim Carrey, Celine Dion, Tatiana Maslany, Justin Bieber (sorry!!), Ryan Reynolds (not sorry!), William Shatner (Montreal boy!), Michael J. Fox, Keifer Sutherland, Nathan Fillion, Mike Myers and so many more.  You’re welcome world.  There are many others who my American readers may not recognize like Rick Mercer, David Suzuki, Russell Peters, Brent Butt, Ron James and (again) so many more. 

  

We have harsh winters in many parts of the country and very hot summers and a population who can get much joy out of both.  I must say, though, that the heat and humidity have just kicked in here and I have found myself longing for a bit of snow as I lay in bed sweating.  Only a Canadian would say that, lol! 

We are known throughout the world as peacekeepers and are welcome everywhere we go.  I am very proud of my country’s reputation in international circles.  This doesn’t mean that I don’t recognize our weaknesses though.  Yes, we have stupid politicians just like anywhere else.  Yes, our medical and education systems are not perfect.  Yes, our government could use some streamlining.  All in all though, I’d rather be here than anywhere else. 

I’ll leave you with one of my favourite videos celebrating what makes us Canadian rather than just an extension of the US.  We tend to be the quiet neighbor to the north and get forgotten.  This was a commercial for Molson Canadian a while back that went absolutely viral.  Put your tongue firmly "in cheek" and enjoy  ;)

Happy Canada Day to my fellow Canadians and Happy July 4th to my American friends!

Kathy