Even though I've been being a huge slacker around HERE, and I'm currently, for all intents and purposes..basically unemployed..it doesn't mean that I'm just sitting around doing NOTHING.
Take this morning for instance.
I was VERY productive. I watched Ellen. I ate toast..AND I let the dog out to pee.
Okay..and I did some accounting stuff. But that's boring. And frustrating. And I'm now updating here instead of pulling my hair out trying to figure out why cash register tapes from JULY don't correspond to the numbers they should and wondering how there can be so many screwed up things and why the heck asparagus was rung in as garlic. Those two things don't even come CLOSE to being the same...unless you make some garlic asparagus..mmm..yummah.
Now I'm dreaming of asparagus with a garlic butter sauce instead of doing anything productive..
Okay, I let the dog out to pee again..the productivity vs. lazy scales are balanced once again.
To be fair..I also signed up for a sweet seminar that's happening in December. All about organizing festivals and creating events...I'm such a huge dork..in the most AWESOME way.
I got super excited when reading the agenda which talked about developing networks, themes, leadership and success tips amongst other things! Life is a never ending exciting roller coaster of fun folks!
AND the email that said that while the public has to pay a grand sum of twenty-five dollahs..me, being the awesome specimen that I am...gets in free..SCORE! I'll just leave out the part where the business contributions made to the program last year by my dad MAY have had something to do with the free registration (AND LUNCH!)..and I will maintain that it's purely my awesome nature which granted me this glorious gift from the gods...I mean. Free lunch AND seminars on event planning? What more can you WANT IN LIFE?
Also. The guest speaker at the seminar? Her name is Mrs. Bonhomme. You know, kinda like the snowman at CARNIVAL. If that isn't a cherry on the cake of AWESOME..I don't know what is. Since reading the outline..I have not been able to think about the seminar without picturing a snow(wo)man being merry and jolly while speaking about events. Kind of fitting to be talking about events and festivals..when the Bonhomme de Neige is the mascott of the biggest festival in Quebec.
So you know that now..not only am I excited about a seminar for event and fesitval planning..but am basically counting down the days until I get to meet Mrs. Snowman and find out all of her insider tricks and tips.
It's going to be a holly jolly seminar. Details to follow...after I meet Mrs. Snowman herself. I just have to remind myself not to call her Mrs. Snowman to her face. Good thing I have 25 days, 14 hours and 26 minutes to prepare myself.
Not that I'm counting or anything.
Monday, November 9, 2009
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Hollywood Hopeful
Somebody stole my gig.
The jerks went and lived my life, read my mind, wrote a screenplay, convinced famous actors to do their job and made a movie of my life last year.
All before it even HAPPENED.
I spent the day being a bum and watching movies and willing myself to get out of bed..and it was desperately needed.
Then I watched the movie the Nanny Diaries..which I hadn't seen since I myself WAS a nanny...and as much as I had seen quite a few similarities between the movie and my life then...as I watched today...it was a little more then surreal and a little frightening just HOW similar my life last year was to the main characters.
Between the designer bags, the misbehaving children, the demanding employers...and the SHOES..(oh the shoes!)....it could have been my life. Well, if you switched The Hamptons with St. Tropez & St. Barth ...THEN it REALLY was my life. For real yo.
Brief tangent: Are things automatically better and more loved by the rich and fabulous if their names start with St? Maybe I should change my name to St. Erin? Not blasphomous at ALL or anything :P Although..do I really want them to love me? Because that might mean that I'm being their glorified slave again..uh oh!
ANYWAY. It was just such an eye opener..to watch my life in movie form. I mean, I had watched the film before. The first time I actually watched it..it was in Deutsch. And because my German is SO HORRIFIC the girls were all like HOW DO YOU KNOW WHAT IS HAPPENING every 2.5 miliseconds while we watched..and it took everything I had not scream back that I knew what was happening BECAUSE IT WAS THE SCRIPT FOR MY LIFE ON A DAILY BASIS.
I watched it later with the settings changed to English..and even more hit home..but today..it was just like..Whoa. When you're in this world..where everyone has a Nanny..and you're just a part of 'that group' of childcare providers..it's kind of a surreal sort of life. When you're the ones the kids say their goodnights and their I love you's to every night..When you're the one scraping nutella off of EVERYTHING, including the oh-so-impractical white couches.. When you're the only one that knows what vegetables they'll eat and which best friend is on the 'i'm not talking to you' list each week..and you put up the late nights, the kids crawling into your bed in the middle of the night and the way too early mornings to make cupcakes for birthdays at school. When you're doing all this...when they aren't even your own children...it's just..different. It's not like they were MY kids..and it's not like I know what it's like to raise my own children..but I do know what it's like to raise someone ELSES.
So as I watched..I sat there and thought to myself..how did I put UP with that for a WHOLE year? Seriously? I let myself BE THAT PERSON? That person that they make a movie of because it's so surreal that it's RIDICULOUS? Of course I know on some level..why I stuck it out. You see...I'm stubborn, I can't give up on things..and okay..yes...there were SOME good things to living in Zurich for a year. An entire city filled almost entirely with guys in suits? How could I POSSIBLY complain?
And yes, I loved the kids..there is a line where Scarlett Johansson says (and I'm paraphrasing here - because I can't remember the quote) something along the lines of the fact that no one would understand because they're not a part of it, and that she loves the child she's taking care of..and that's why she can't leave. Luckily for me, I had a contract and a visa that made it so that I couldn't stay. But the thing is..even though my contract was flimsy at best, and they didn't stick up to THEIR end of it...I did stick it out. Because I did (erm - do?) love them. Despite the headaches, hassle and high blood pressure that they often caused..I really do. I put my heart and soul into raising them...and even though it only was for a year..I couldn't just walk away from that in the middle of the year...despite ANYTHING and EVERYTHING that DID come along. I stayed because I knew they'd be even more screwed up when they grew up if yet another person in their life left them and disappointed them. I couldn't do that..despite so many msn conversations where people tried to convince me that it just wasn't worth it..aupair meetings where we spent our mornings comparing sick childrens symptoms and previous transgressions...and phone calls home crying at 4am that I was exhausted and just didn't know what to do anymore...I stayed.
There MAY have been other reasons why I stayed...but because this is MY blog and I control what's written here..it shall be noted that I did it because I loved the kids. Oh, and MAYBE those nine sweet sweet weeks of paid holidays to travel Europe. That was a slight perk, maybe a little bit of the reason I felt compelled to stay. But just a little one.
....Or maybe, just a LITTLE teensy bit..because I'm a sucker for torturing myself. But it was mostly the kids I'm telling ya.
ANYWAY. To get off the tangent truck....So now, not only are the aformentioned gig stealers now awesome and RICH, but they also have the ability to TRAVEL INTO THE FUTURE. I'm so tempted to stomp my feet and scream at the injustice of it all...money, power, sweet movie gigs...AND TIME TRAVEL. They leave NOTHING for me. Nothing. I spend the entire year researching..wiping runny noses, being verbally abused, having to watch high school musical on repeat..and what do I get? Nothing. Not even get one stinkin' little MOVIE DEAL? Not. Fair.
I was about throw in the towel and become that crazy lady who wanders around screaming about how life isn't fair...when I realized..that there is still the possibilty that I could write the sequel. Nobodys written 'Nanny Diaries: Abroad' yet...and I bet no one else has some of the stories I do...I mean..really..who else was in charge of three young girls who stole champagne to have a 'disco in a hottub on the roof'...and then proceeded to WASH THEIR HAIR WITH A FIVE HUNDRED DOLLAR BOTTLE OF BOOZE when it was too much for them to drink...throw the bottle over the roof of the hotel into the Rhine to hide all evidence and lied their faces off until the little one was given a plea bargin to give up the other girls for her freedom. And no punishments were put into place anyways.
Wow - I just made myself sound like the worst nanny EVAH. Let it also be noted that the aformentioned weekend was my weekend off - and they were in the charge of their mother - not me, the qualified and AWESOME nanny.
That is only ONE of my stories from THE FIRST WEEK I LIVED WITH THEM. I've got so much material to work with..I'll probably have to make at LEAST three movies.
I'd be a little worried about them claiming that I breached some sort of confidentiality and them sueing all of the mad cash that I will presumably make on said films..but seeing as though they saw no resemblence what-so-ever with themselves in the FIRST movie..I'm pretty sure that my future earnings are safe.
Score.
Screenplay writing commencing...now. That clearly follows my random career path of teacher --> nanny --> farmer. Might as WELL throw script writer in there too.
Hey Hollywood? Watch out! Here I come!
The jerks went and lived my life, read my mind, wrote a screenplay, convinced famous actors to do their job and made a movie of my life last year.
All before it even HAPPENED.
I spent the day being a bum and watching movies and willing myself to get out of bed..and it was desperately needed.
Then I watched the movie the Nanny Diaries..which I hadn't seen since I myself WAS a nanny...and as much as I had seen quite a few similarities between the movie and my life then...as I watched today...it was a little more then surreal and a little frightening just HOW similar my life last year was to the main characters.
Between the designer bags, the misbehaving children, the demanding employers...and the SHOES..(oh the shoes!)....it could have been my life. Well, if you switched The Hamptons with St. Tropez & St. Barth ...THEN it REALLY was my life. For real yo.
Brief tangent: Are things automatically better and more loved by the rich and fabulous if their names start with St? Maybe I should change my name to St. Erin? Not blasphomous at ALL or anything :P Although..do I really want them to love me? Because that might mean that I'm being their glorified slave again..uh oh!
ANYWAY. It was just such an eye opener..to watch my life in movie form. I mean, I had watched the film before. The first time I actually watched it..it was in Deutsch. And because my German is SO HORRIFIC the girls were all like HOW DO YOU KNOW WHAT IS HAPPENING every 2.5 miliseconds while we watched..and it took everything I had not scream back that I knew what was happening BECAUSE IT WAS THE SCRIPT FOR MY LIFE ON A DAILY BASIS.
I watched it later with the settings changed to English..and even more hit home..but today..it was just like..Whoa. When you're in this world..where everyone has a Nanny..and you're just a part of 'that group' of childcare providers..it's kind of a surreal sort of life. When you're the ones the kids say their goodnights and their I love you's to every night..When you're the one scraping nutella off of EVERYTHING, including the oh-so-impractical white couches.. When you're the only one that knows what vegetables they'll eat and which best friend is on the 'i'm not talking to you' list each week..and you put up the late nights, the kids crawling into your bed in the middle of the night and the way too early mornings to make cupcakes for birthdays at school. When you're doing all this...when they aren't even your own children...it's just..different. It's not like they were MY kids..and it's not like I know what it's like to raise my own children..but I do know what it's like to raise someone ELSES.
So as I watched..I sat there and thought to myself..how did I put UP with that for a WHOLE year? Seriously? I let myself BE THAT PERSON? That person that they make a movie of because it's so surreal that it's RIDICULOUS? Of course I know on some level..why I stuck it out. You see...I'm stubborn, I can't give up on things..and okay..yes...there were SOME good things to living in Zurich for a year. An entire city filled almost entirely with guys in suits? How could I POSSIBLY complain?
And yes, I loved the kids..there is a line where Scarlett Johansson says (and I'm paraphrasing here - because I can't remember the quote) something along the lines of the fact that no one would understand because they're not a part of it, and that she loves the child she's taking care of..and that's why she can't leave. Luckily for me, I had a contract and a visa that made it so that I couldn't stay. But the thing is..even though my contract was flimsy at best, and they didn't stick up to THEIR end of it...I did stick it out. Because I did (erm - do?) love them. Despite the headaches, hassle and high blood pressure that they often caused..I really do. I put my heart and soul into raising them...and even though it only was for a year..I couldn't just walk away from that in the middle of the year...despite ANYTHING and EVERYTHING that DID come along. I stayed because I knew they'd be even more screwed up when they grew up if yet another person in their life left them and disappointed them. I couldn't do that..despite so many msn conversations where people tried to convince me that it just wasn't worth it..aupair meetings where we spent our mornings comparing sick childrens symptoms and previous transgressions...and phone calls home crying at 4am that I was exhausted and just didn't know what to do anymore...I stayed.
There MAY have been other reasons why I stayed...but because this is MY blog and I control what's written here..it shall be noted that I did it because I loved the kids. Oh, and MAYBE those nine sweet sweet weeks of paid holidays to travel Europe. That was a slight perk, maybe a little bit of the reason I felt compelled to stay. But just a little one.
....Or maybe, just a LITTLE teensy bit..because I'm a sucker for torturing myself. But it was mostly the kids I'm telling ya.
ANYWAY. To get off the tangent truck....So now, not only are the aformentioned gig stealers now awesome and RICH, but they also have the ability to TRAVEL INTO THE FUTURE. I'm so tempted to stomp my feet and scream at the injustice of it all...money, power, sweet movie gigs...AND TIME TRAVEL. They leave NOTHING for me. Nothing. I spend the entire year researching..wiping runny noses, being verbally abused, having to watch high school musical on repeat..and what do I get? Nothing. Not even get one stinkin' little MOVIE DEAL? Not. Fair.
I was about throw in the towel and become that crazy lady who wanders around screaming about how life isn't fair...when I realized..that there is still the possibilty that I could write the sequel. Nobodys written 'Nanny Diaries: Abroad' yet...and I bet no one else has some of the stories I do...I mean..really..who else was in charge of three young girls who stole champagne to have a 'disco in a hottub on the roof'...and then proceeded to WASH THEIR HAIR WITH A FIVE HUNDRED DOLLAR BOTTLE OF BOOZE when it was too much for them to drink...throw the bottle over the roof of the hotel into the Rhine to hide all evidence and lied their faces off until the little one was given a plea bargin to give up the other girls for her freedom. And no punishments were put into place anyways.
Wow - I just made myself sound like the worst nanny EVAH. Let it also be noted that the aformentioned weekend was my weekend off - and they were in the charge of their mother - not me, the qualified and AWESOME nanny.
That is only ONE of my stories from THE FIRST WEEK I LIVED WITH THEM. I've got so much material to work with..I'll probably have to make at LEAST three movies.
I'd be a little worried about them claiming that I breached some sort of confidentiality and them sueing all of the mad cash that I will presumably make on said films..but seeing as though they saw no resemblence what-so-ever with themselves in the FIRST movie..I'm pretty sure that my future earnings are safe.
Score.
Screenplay writing commencing...now. That clearly follows my random career path of teacher --> nanny --> farmer. Might as WELL throw script writer in there too.
Hey Hollywood? Watch out! Here I come!
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Early Morning Ramblings
Lately, I've been plagued with thoughts of how I want to live my life. I'm finding that I have this internal struggle of how I'm living my life..versus how I WANT to live my life. I can see in my head, how I want it to go..but it doesn't correlate on paper quite as easily. I guess a lot of it is because I don't know exactly what I want..I haven't been able to properly put it into words, let alone know where I want to go and how to get there. It's all fine and wonderful in my head..but getting started, getting going and actually accomplishing things is another story. It's like I'm running a race..and I can picture myself running through the finish line victoriously..but I have no idea of the course I should take to actually run the race.
I guess that's just life though, because we never know the direction we will go..or what way we should take to get to the end..but we all have to get there anyway. The joy of life is though..that we do have that power and control..and has hard and difficult as it may be to TAKE it and actually USE it..we really are in control of our own lives..and can live them the way that we want to. Well, obviously, this is coming from a very middle class point of view..but that's my perspective that I happen to be living from..and as such, I feel like it's my duty to make sure that my life IS being lived in the way that I want it to be, because I am one of the lucky few who is given that chance and opportunity. I have plenty of education behind me, I have a good family, I have morals and values and beliefs...and I can do a lot of good for the world if I so choose to do it. It's amazing how many people I watch in my life..with the same things behind them...who I watch fall into patterns and traps and all of these things..without ever even glancing at the world around them..and it kind of breaks my heart. I'm no saint, I'm not even close..but I have a burning desire to do more and be more in my life...it's just a matter of finding out WHERE I want to go, then figuring out HOW to get there..and then getting up enough get up and go and motivation to get out the door and start running. Sometimes I think that what I need more than anything in life is a jump start. Something to boost my batteries and inspire me.
A while ago...I made myself a bucket list. You know, inspire from the movie about a man who is dying and makes a list of things he wants to do before he 'kicks the bucket'...and even though I have no plans of that happening ANYTIME soon...I thought..well..that's an interesting way to think about the things you want to do in life! And yes, I have been crossing things off of it. I thought that it was a good way to prioritize the things that I want in life, and then break it down so that I can attack the list one thing at a time...in hopes that doing these things, being involved in those things..I can make my life the life I want to live.
I've really realized in the last little while..that there is no point of living your life in a way that you don't want to. If you're not happy..what the hell is the point? This has become especially apparant in the last week with a lot of things that have been going on in my life. As you've probably all heard...none of us get out of this life alive...so, in a very morbid way..from the moment we are born..we are on the path to death. Of course, you can't live your life scared of death or scared of what could happen..but I've decided that in light of this realization..that it is necessary for me to live like I am dying..because really, that IS where we all end up in the grand scheme of things. Whether it be six days, six months, six years or sixty years..none of us get out of here alive. So I want to live my life as if I'm dying..regardless of whether it's actually soon or not. To embrace each moment like it's the best thing that has ever happened, to do things to make me happy, to smile more and criticize less..to travel, explore and dance. To do things which make ME happy, instead of always pleasing everyone else around me. To tell the people I love that I love them. To take pretty pictures. To try something new and exciting. To DO all of the things on my bucket list, and then have to go and find new things to add, so that my life continues to be an adventure that I want it to be...and to never want it to end...and so that I can I continue to love where I am and who I've become. There are silly things on there..like going for a ride on a hot air balloon..but there are also serious things...like volunteering with an organinzation that will make a life changing difference to someone, even if it's only one person. I have a lot on there..but I think that it's important to make that list, and to do the things ON that list...because I feel as though most people in life..all have a bucket list..whether or not they've written it down or thought about it is a different question..but we all have things that we want to do before we die..whether it be having children (on my list) or going to egypt (on my list too) or donating blood so that someone can have another chance to live, gets it..(yep, that one is there too) we all have things that float through our heads, that we say.."oooh..someday I want to DO that!"...but most people don't think about them and actively go out and DO them..because life gets too busy, too stressed, too whatever..and we all run around in circles, never doing what we want..not because we're lazy or apathetic..but a lot of the time..because we forget. Things happen..and we haven't made ourselves a list..so it floats off away into the distance, never gets done and becomes forgotten until it's too late, or when it's become 'a dream' that never happens. Sure, a lot of things on my list are off in the distant future, or they're things that I just can't do RIGHT now..but they're THERE, so that I don't forget, so that when I look at that list, I can say..oh right..but to DO that, I've gotta get myself over THERE, which, usually, is where I wanted to be in the first place..but I never had a motive or a reason for being there before..even though that's actually where I wanted to be. I've always found it important to write things down..whether it be through journaling, making lists or any other type of writing...it's a record, it's a way to remember..and this is no different. I feel that in creating a bucket list...by doing the things, and taking the steps it will take me to do a lot of them, it will mean that I can shape myself to be the person I want to be.
Man..life really should come with an operating mannual..sometimes it gets way too confusing..but I suppose, that would be the easy way out..and probably the boring way out too. So for now...I guess my bucket list will have to serve that purpose :)
I guess that's just life though, because we never know the direction we will go..or what way we should take to get to the end..but we all have to get there anyway. The joy of life is though..that we do have that power and control..and has hard and difficult as it may be to TAKE it and actually USE it..we really are in control of our own lives..and can live them the way that we want to. Well, obviously, this is coming from a very middle class point of view..but that's my perspective that I happen to be living from..and as such, I feel like it's my duty to make sure that my life IS being lived in the way that I want it to be, because I am one of the lucky few who is given that chance and opportunity. I have plenty of education behind me, I have a good family, I have morals and values and beliefs...and I can do a lot of good for the world if I so choose to do it. It's amazing how many people I watch in my life..with the same things behind them...who I watch fall into patterns and traps and all of these things..without ever even glancing at the world around them..and it kind of breaks my heart. I'm no saint, I'm not even close..but I have a burning desire to do more and be more in my life...it's just a matter of finding out WHERE I want to go, then figuring out HOW to get there..and then getting up enough get up and go and motivation to get out the door and start running. Sometimes I think that what I need more than anything in life is a jump start. Something to boost my batteries and inspire me.
A while ago...I made myself a bucket list. You know, inspire from the movie about a man who is dying and makes a list of things he wants to do before he 'kicks the bucket'...and even though I have no plans of that happening ANYTIME soon...I thought..well..that's an interesting way to think about the things you want to do in life! And yes, I have been crossing things off of it. I thought that it was a good way to prioritize the things that I want in life, and then break it down so that I can attack the list one thing at a time...in hopes that doing these things, being involved in those things..I can make my life the life I want to live.
I've really realized in the last little while..that there is no point of living your life in a way that you don't want to. If you're not happy..what the hell is the point? This has become especially apparant in the last week with a lot of things that have been going on in my life. As you've probably all heard...none of us get out of this life alive...so, in a very morbid way..from the moment we are born..we are on the path to death. Of course, you can't live your life scared of death or scared of what could happen..but I've decided that in light of this realization..that it is necessary for me to live like I am dying..because really, that IS where we all end up in the grand scheme of things. Whether it be six days, six months, six years or sixty years..none of us get out of here alive. So I want to live my life as if I'm dying..regardless of whether it's actually soon or not. To embrace each moment like it's the best thing that has ever happened, to do things to make me happy, to smile more and criticize less..to travel, explore and dance. To do things which make ME happy, instead of always pleasing everyone else around me. To tell the people I love that I love them. To take pretty pictures. To try something new and exciting. To DO all of the things on my bucket list, and then have to go and find new things to add, so that my life continues to be an adventure that I want it to be...and to never want it to end...and so that I can I continue to love where I am and who I've become. There are silly things on there..like going for a ride on a hot air balloon..but there are also serious things...like volunteering with an organinzation that will make a life changing difference to someone, even if it's only one person. I have a lot on there..but I think that it's important to make that list, and to do the things ON that list...because I feel as though most people in life..all have a bucket list..whether or not they've written it down or thought about it is a different question..but we all have things that we want to do before we die..whether it be having children (on my list) or going to egypt (on my list too) or donating blood so that someone can have another chance to live, gets it..(yep, that one is there too) we all have things that float through our heads, that we say.."oooh..someday I want to DO that!"...but most people don't think about them and actively go out and DO them..because life gets too busy, too stressed, too whatever..and we all run around in circles, never doing what we want..not because we're lazy or apathetic..but a lot of the time..because we forget. Things happen..and we haven't made ourselves a list..so it floats off away into the distance, never gets done and becomes forgotten until it's too late, or when it's become 'a dream' that never happens. Sure, a lot of things on my list are off in the distant future, or they're things that I just can't do RIGHT now..but they're THERE, so that I don't forget, so that when I look at that list, I can say..oh right..but to DO that, I've gotta get myself over THERE, which, usually, is where I wanted to be in the first place..but I never had a motive or a reason for being there before..even though that's actually where I wanted to be. I've always found it important to write things down..whether it be through journaling, making lists or any other type of writing...it's a record, it's a way to remember..and this is no different. I feel that in creating a bucket list...by doing the things, and taking the steps it will take me to do a lot of them, it will mean that I can shape myself to be the person I want to be.
Man..life really should come with an operating mannual..sometimes it gets way too confusing..but I suppose, that would be the easy way out..and probably the boring way out too. So for now...I guess my bucket list will have to serve that purpose :)
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Special Delivery
This morning, amid chaos and confusion and frantic emails back and forth trying to sort of a wide array of things...
I got a special delivery :)
My lovely friend Carly sent me flowers for my birthday...they had called my cell phone yesterday to make sure I was home for the delivery..but I missed the call because I was driving to Guelph to take my cousin's husband back to school...and not recognizing the number...I neglected to call them back. I missed the call by seconds again this morning, and then they called my home number and asked if I'd be home for the next few hours...because they had a delivery from the flower store for me!
It was quite possibly the cutest, most unexpected lovely thing :) Totally made my day!! Thanks Carly! xoxo
I got a special delivery :)
My lovely friend Carly sent me flowers for my birthday...they had called my cell phone yesterday to make sure I was home for the delivery..but I missed the call because I was driving to Guelph to take my cousin's husband back to school...and not recognizing the number...I neglected to call them back. I missed the call by seconds again this morning, and then they called my home number and asked if I'd be home for the next few hours...because they had a delivery from the flower store for me!
It was quite possibly the cutest, most unexpected lovely thing :) Totally made my day!! Thanks Carly! xoxo
Monday, October 12, 2009
Thanksirthday
This year was a year that thanksgiving also fell on my birthday..
And what a lovely birthday it was!
First off...I can't believe that I'm 24. I don't feel like 24..although I'm not really sure what 24 SHOULD feel LIKE. I feel like I should probably be more 'grownup' and what have you by the ripe old age that is almost a quarter of a century..and I feel like 24 is a lot older than 23. At twenty three I could still get away with saying things like 'Oh, I'm only 23!' and people would look at me with their mouths dropping and be like...oh of course it's okay to go and take off and travel for a year! Don't worry about finding a job or settling down or being responsible or any of that stuff...there is no need when you're you're twenty three! You've got your WHOLE life infront of you!" But...at 24..I feel like I should probably be more responsible..kind of like people expect me to be...Like I should actually be settling down and all over this grown up and/or growing up stuff. I'm actually quite content with where I am generally in my life right now. At least, in the way that my life is moving. Yes, there are a lot of things that I would like to change and do and be in my life..but it's a slow but steady process to get where I want to be...and with this birthday...I feel as though it's time for a fresh start..and I'm determined to make this year that fresh start. A year of doing things to make the world a better place, a year of doing what *I* love, a year doing what makes *me* happy..in hopes of making myself a better person that stays like that forever, instead of just a year....I firmly believe that if you're happy, and you're committed to making the world a better place..then the world will become a better place, and you will be happier for it. And we all know that happiness is infectious (or at least, I believe it is!) and I really want to make sure that each and every day, I'm part of that.
I've never really been that BIG on birthdays though...and although I've decided that this year I'm making a commitment to change and to living the life the way that I want to...it's not necessarily the BIRTHDAY that is the starting point...it's just the way I happen to be expressing it.
Birthdays have never actually been that big of a deal to me...I'm not that big on presents...I have enough stuff as it is..and anything I need or want, I'm usually able to get it for myself..I've always been rather independent...so I don't really enjoy having people buy me gifts..I just like spending time with ones that I love...and this year was exactly that.
It was so lovely to spend the entire day with family that I really and truly care about and love beyond belief. We ate good food, went for walks, laughed, chatted, carved pumpkins, were silly and were happy.
Really, what more of a birthday can you want? :)
And what a lovely birthday it was!
First off...I can't believe that I'm 24. I don't feel like 24..although I'm not really sure what 24 SHOULD feel LIKE. I feel like I should probably be more 'grownup' and what have you by the ripe old age that is almost a quarter of a century..and I feel like 24 is a lot older than 23. At twenty three I could still get away with saying things like 'Oh, I'm only 23!' and people would look at me with their mouths dropping and be like...oh of course it's okay to go and take off and travel for a year! Don't worry about finding a job or settling down or being responsible or any of that stuff...there is no need when you're you're twenty three! You've got your WHOLE life infront of you!" But...at 24..I feel like I should probably be more responsible..kind of like people expect me to be...Like I should actually be settling down and all over this grown up and/or growing up stuff. I'm actually quite content with where I am generally in my life right now. At least, in the way that my life is moving. Yes, there are a lot of things that I would like to change and do and be in my life..but it's a slow but steady process to get where I want to be...and with this birthday...I feel as though it's time for a fresh start..and I'm determined to make this year that fresh start. A year of doing things to make the world a better place, a year of doing what *I* love, a year doing what makes *me* happy..in hopes of making myself a better person that stays like that forever, instead of just a year....I firmly believe that if you're happy, and you're committed to making the world a better place..then the world will become a better place, and you will be happier for it. And we all know that happiness is infectious (or at least, I believe it is!) and I really want to make sure that each and every day, I'm part of that.
I've never really been that BIG on birthdays though...and although I've decided that this year I'm making a commitment to change and to living the life the way that I want to...it's not necessarily the BIRTHDAY that is the starting point...it's just the way I happen to be expressing it.
Birthdays have never actually been that big of a deal to me...I'm not that big on presents...I have enough stuff as it is..and anything I need or want, I'm usually able to get it for myself..I've always been rather independent...so I don't really enjoy having people buy me gifts..I just like spending time with ones that I love...and this year was exactly that.
It was so lovely to spend the entire day with family that I really and truly care about and love beyond belief. We ate good food, went for walks, laughed, chatted, carved pumpkins, were silly and were happy.
Really, what more of a birthday can you want? :)
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Mish Mash O Thanks
My family has arrived from Africa!!!
Well, one cousin and her Dad, the other cousin and their mom (my aunt) come in about 10 days!! I'm really excited that they're here for thanksgiving..even though I had to work all weekend, and am as per usual am throughly exhausted! It's just so nice to have them here...it really just puts a lot of things into perspective and gives me so much more to be thankful for.
Out of ALL of my cousins, they're definitely the ones that I'm closest with..even though we've actually never lived in the same city...It must have something to do with being close-ish in age, having very similar morals/beliefs/values and being the only girl cousins for SO long.
It's rather lovely that they're moving back! My cousin Roberta will be staying here a looong time as her and her husband just bought a house in town but unfortuantly my other cousin, Edana, will only be here until the beginning of January until she moves to Boston for a job she took here. As much as it's impressive to say 'Yeah, I have a cousin who does research at Harvard'...I'd still rather she stay HERE! Ah well...just a good excuse to visit Boston I suppose!
I'm so excited to spend more time with them and actually have a chance to REALLY get to know them..because as much as I love them and we always spend time together when we're in the same city/country/continent..but it'll be nice to spend a lot of real quality time with them :) Although I am a little worried about bombarding them with love and them becoming overwhelmed with family always wanting to spend time with them...so I'll do my best not to do that..but there is only so much that I can restrain myself...haha!
Anyways, I spent a lovely evening with them tonight, just sitting around in my grampa's basement..haha! Tomorrow they come out for thanksgiving dinner..where it's quite possible that we will all eat until we explode. I'm not even joking about how much food we have..it's kind of disgusting..in the completely, totally and utterly delicious sense of the word. We've been joking all week about how we all need to get 'Thanksgiving Pants' like Joey does in Friends.
Ha. I love that show. Classic Joey moment..right there.
So, that's basically what we'll all be doing tomorrow. You know, eating way too much and then complaining about how we ate so much, probably eating some more..and then falling asleep on the couch. At least that's my plan...I might take a little walk and take some pictures of the BEAAAAAUTIFUL fall pictures...but then..the couch *is* pretty darn comfy. We'll see how COLD it is tomorrow. Eck.
All things considering..there is a lot to be thankful for this year...I'm not scaling the Eiffel Tower like I was this weekend last year, but I am surrounded by a mass amounts of wonderful family and friends. We have far too much food...we're surrounded by the beauty that is Ontario in the fall (which by the way...is TOTALLY giving Paris in the fall a run for it's money...) ..we have our health and more often than not, smiles on our faces. It seems like the older I get..the more I realize how important it is to be thankful for the smaller things, the things that I use to take for granted..and take whatever simple pleasure I can from those :)
Oh, and speaking of getting older...there's also that pesky little thing about my 24th birthday. Which, I've decided that I'm a little bit in denial about. It's not ACTUALLY my birthday tomorrow. Nah. Buuut...more to come on that later...for today I'll be thankful that I'm still 23 for another couple hours, and not one step closer to being a quarter of a century old (AHH!)
Happy Thanksgiving Folks!
Well, one cousin and her Dad, the other cousin and their mom (my aunt) come in about 10 days!! I'm really excited that they're here for thanksgiving..even though I had to work all weekend, and am as per usual am throughly exhausted! It's just so nice to have them here...it really just puts a lot of things into perspective and gives me so much more to be thankful for.
Out of ALL of my cousins, they're definitely the ones that I'm closest with..even though we've actually never lived in the same city...It must have something to do with being close-ish in age, having very similar morals/beliefs/values and being the only girl cousins for SO long.
It's rather lovely that they're moving back! My cousin Roberta will be staying here a looong time as her and her husband just bought a house in town but unfortuantly my other cousin, Edana, will only be here until the beginning of January until she moves to Boston for a job she took here. As much as it's impressive to say 'Yeah, I have a cousin who does research at Harvard'...I'd still rather she stay HERE! Ah well...just a good excuse to visit Boston I suppose!
I'm so excited to spend more time with them and actually have a chance to REALLY get to know them..because as much as I love them and we always spend time together when we're in the same city/country/continent..but it'll be nice to spend a lot of real quality time with them :) Although I am a little worried about bombarding them with love and them becoming overwhelmed with family always wanting to spend time with them...so I'll do my best not to do that..but there is only so much that I can restrain myself...haha!
Anyways, I spent a lovely evening with them tonight, just sitting around in my grampa's basement..haha! Tomorrow they come out for thanksgiving dinner..where it's quite possible that we will all eat until we explode. I'm not even joking about how much food we have..it's kind of disgusting..in the completely, totally and utterly delicious sense of the word. We've been joking all week about how we all need to get 'Thanksgiving Pants' like Joey does in Friends.
Ha. I love that show. Classic Joey moment..right there.
So, that's basically what we'll all be doing tomorrow. You know, eating way too much and then complaining about how we ate so much, probably eating some more..and then falling asleep on the couch. At least that's my plan...I might take a little walk and take some pictures of the BEAAAAAUTIFUL fall pictures...but then..the couch *is* pretty darn comfy. We'll see how COLD it is tomorrow. Eck.
All things considering..there is a lot to be thankful for this year...I'm not scaling the Eiffel Tower like I was this weekend last year, but I am surrounded by a mass amounts of wonderful family and friends. We have far too much food...we're surrounded by the beauty that is Ontario in the fall (which by the way...is TOTALLY giving Paris in the fall a run for it's money...) ..we have our health and more often than not, smiles on our faces. It seems like the older I get..the more I realize how important it is to be thankful for the smaller things, the things that I use to take for granted..and take whatever simple pleasure I can from those :)
Oh, and speaking of getting older...there's also that pesky little thing about my 24th birthday. Which, I've decided that I'm a little bit in denial about. It's not ACTUALLY my birthday tomorrow. Nah. Buuut...more to come on that later...for today I'll be thankful that I'm still 23 for another couple hours, and not one step closer to being a quarter of a century old (AHH!)
Happy Thanksgiving Folks!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)