The last day of the summer months....

I thought I was inspired to write something
but it turns out not to be the case.
For the moment.

Inspiration for Creative Writing Exercise

To my all readers(ha!ha!ha!)-----

The following outline will be your
inspiration for a short story.
I have given you the setting and the characters involved.
The rest is up to you.
Create a short story about the people in the bistro.
Have fun!

--------------------------------------------

The luncheon crowd has long gone back to work.
And the "Happy Hour" has yet to begin.
The waitresses have all left and the only person 
on staff is the young man behind the bar.
The bistro is nearly empty save for three occupied tables.

At a table in the rear of the bistro sits an older man with gray hair. 
Though very distinguished looking he must be about 70 yrs. old.
He is fiddling with his Blackberry. 

Towards the centre of the bistro, along the left wall
sits a couple who look to be in their late fifties.
They are leaning in towards each other while quietly
dicussing something that leaves them both with serious expressions. 

And finally, the third table is occupied 
by a man in his late thirties to early forties.
He sits at a table looking onto the sidewalk and busy downtown street.
He keeps checking his watch.

A young, attractive woman breezes through the door of the bistro.
She seems to be late for an appointment.
As her eyes adjust to the change in light,
she unbuttons the top button of her coat.
Then she smiles in recognition.

At which table does she go and sit down?
What is her connection to the person(s)
at the table at which she sits?
What are their stories?

I Once Knew A Girl Named Irene - Creative Writing

I once knew a girl named Irene.
I thought she was my friend despite her stormy personality.
In fact, we were friends up until today.
But today was the last straw.
Now I see that I was her friend but to her I was just another port of calm.

You see, 
Irene seemed to surround herself with people of a calm nature.
Everyone around her was so down-to-earth.
I was one of those people.
But the moment Irene would spiral into a party
or a conversation,
all hell would break loose, litterally.
Once Irene had forced herself into a given social interaction,
there would, inevitably, be fists or beer glasses or worse,
furniture flying in her wake.
She was that kind of girl.
Always at the centre of any drama.
Irene LOVED drama.
And she loved to be the centre of attention.
Mostly negative attention.
She was like an attention-starved child,
always striving for negative feedback,
needing to be noticed.
And Irene got noticed everywhere she went.

She was a very slim girl.
A wisp of a girl.
But she took up so much psychological space
that her presence was like an orb.
She'd plough into the centre of a conversation
and people would scatter.
Words like a flood.
Windows shattering.
Chairs flying through the air with centrifugal force.
Amazing.

Sometimes I would ask myself 
how one person could do so much damage.
I always tried to see the good in Irene.
I would justify her tempestuous nature.
She doesn't mean to reek such havok.
She is just a small girl with a big personality.
All of her friends are very calm people.
At her centre she is a calm person too.

I fooled myself for a long time.
I thought she would change.
I thought she would let go of her disastrous ways.

But not Irene.
Irene without chaos
is like a boat without water.
Totally irrelevant
Without chaos, Irene would cease to exist.
Like a hurricane, she would downgrade to a tropical storm.
And then eventually peter out to a summer shower. 
She would just disappear.

Knowing this,
I actually felt sorry for her.
Can you imagine?
And so I took a lot of crap from Irene
and her temperamental ways. 
I was always ready for things to fall in around her.
But today was the last straw. 

Today Irene and I had made plans to get together.
I was thinking we'd celebrate 
the last sunny days of August together.
But it was not to be.
Today even I was left broken in the wake of Irene.

She called me early,
howling into the phone like a gale force wind.
I knew she was upset
but I could not understand a word she was saying.
And she left no space for me to reply.
Then she proceeded to cry:
a torrent of emotions about what, I do not know.
Believe it or not,
I stayed on the phone with her ALL day.
She was so twisted up in her emotional drama
that I dared not interrupt her.
On and on she cried,
never stopping to let me speak.
To offer a few words.
To breathe.

She went on for HOURS.
I have NEVER stayed on the phone for that long with anyone.
No-one.
Except Irene.
She just wouldn't let up.

Until finally she did.
Just like that.
Her tears transformed into snuffles
and like that, she hung up.

I never did find out what her torrential tears were about.
But by that time I was so emotionally exhausted,
that I did not care.
I was drained of all energy
like someone had turned off the power source to my body.
And in that moment of emptiness
came total clarity.
A voice inside my head said, "Be done with her!
She is a hurricane disrupting your peaceful existence".
Suddenly I was freed.

No longer shall I weather the storm,
that is Irene.

Jack Layton's last message to Canadians

August 20, 2011

Toronto, Ontario

Dear Friends,

Tens of thousands of Canadians have written to me in recent weeks to wish me well. I want to thank each and every one of you for your thoughtful, inspiring and often beautiful notes, cards and gifts. Your spirit and love have lit up my home, my spirit, and my determination.

Unfortunately my treatment has not worked out as I hoped. So I am giving this letter to my partner Olivia to share with you in the circumstance in which I cannot continue.

I recommend that Hull-Aylmer MP Nycole Turmel continue her work as our interim leader until a permanent successor is elected.

I recommend the party hold a leadership vote as early as possible in the New Year, on approximately the same timelines as in 2003, so that our new leader has ample time to reconsolidate our team, renew our party and our program, and move forward towards the next election.

A few additional thoughts:

To other Canadians who are on journeys to defeat cancer and to live their lives, I say this: please don’t be discouraged that my own journey hasn’t gone as well as I had hoped. You must not lose your own hope. Treatments and therapies have never been better in the face of this disease. You have every reason to be optimistic, determined, and focused on the future. My only other advice is to cherish every moment with those you love at every stage of your journey, as I have done this summer.

To the members of my party: we’ve done remarkable things together in the past eight years. It has been a privilege to lead the New Democratic Party and I am most grateful for your confidence, your support, and the endless hours of volunteer commitment you have devoted to our cause. There will be those who will try to persuade you to give up our cause. But that cause is much bigger than any one leader. Answer them by recommitting with energy and determination to our work. Remember our proud history of social justice, universal health care, public pensions and making sure no one is left behind. Let’s continue to move forward. Let’s demonstrate in everything we do in the four years before us that we are ready to serve our beloved Canada as its next government.

To the members of our parliamentary caucus: I have been privileged to work with each and every one of you. Our caucus meetings were always the highlight of my week. It has been my role to ask a great deal from you. And now I am going to do so again. Canadians will be closely watching you in the months to come. Colleagues, I know you will make the tens of thousands of members of our party proud of you by demonstrating the same seamless teamwork and solidarity that has earned us the confidence of millions of Canadians in the recent election.

To my fellow Quebecers: On May 2nd, you made an historic decision. You decided that the way to replace Canada’s Conservative federal government with something better was by working together in partnership with progressive-minded Canadians across the country. You made the right decision then; it is still the right decision today; and it will be the right decision right through to the next election, when we will succeed, together. You have elected a superb team of New Democrats to Parliament. They are going to be doing remarkable things in the years to come to make this country better for us all.

To young Canadians: All my life I have worked to make things better. Hope and optimism have defined my political career, and I continue to be hopeful and optimistic about Canada. Young people have been a great source of inspiration for me. I have met and talked with so many of you about your dreams, your frustrations, and your ideas for change. More and more, you are engaging in politics because you want to change things for the better. Many of you have placed your trust in our party. As my time in political life draws to a close I want to share with you my belief in your power to change this country and this world. There are great challenges before you, from the overwhelming nature of climate change to the unfairness of an economy that excludes so many from our collective wealth, and the changes necessary to build a more inclusive and generous Canada. I believe in you. Your energy, your vision, your passion for justice are exactly what this country needs today. You need to be at the heart of our economy, our political life, and our plans for the present and the future.

And finally, to all Canadians: Canada is a great country, one of the hopes of the world. We can be a better one – a country of greater equality, justice, and opportunity. We can build a prosperous economy and a society that shares its benefits more fairly. We can look after our seniors. We can offer better futures for our children. We can do our part to save the world’s environment. We can restore our good name in the world. We can do all of these things because we finally have a party system at the national level where there are real choices; where your vote matters; where working for change can actually bring about change. In the months and years to come, New Democrats will put a compelling new alternative to you. My colleagues in our party are an impressive, committed team. Give them a careful hearing; consider the alternatives; and consider that we can be a better, fairer, more equal country by working together. Don’t let them tell you it can’t be done.

My friends, love is better than anger. Hope is better than fear. Optimism is better than despair. So let us be loving, hopeful and optimistic. And we’ll change the world.

All my very best,

Jack Layton


----------I am very saddened by his death.
His humanity will be missed in Canadian politics.
Thanks! Jack.....for the light you brought to our country.
Rest in peace.

A sore throat and the throat chakra

Because of this sore throat thing
I have been researching the chakras again
to realign myself with what I need to do to get rid of this blockage.

The colour of the throat chakra is royal blue.
In the physical body it represents the thyroid glands.
In the mental body it represents Listening and Communication.
And in the emotional body it represents Self-Expression and Truth.

If I were to follow the symbolism of my "mal-aise"
there is something that is caught in my throat.
Something that I feel the need to say that I am not communicating.
And so my body is reflecting this information for me
in an effort to help me figure it out.
I need to listen to the message that my body is sending me.

At my core I already know what it is that I have not properly communicated.
I also know to whom I must communicate this personal truth.
But I am not sure if I am ready to do it.

At least I now know the reason for my "mal-aise" so I can let it go.
Beautiful!

An extra posting....life themes.

There are a several things that
I would like to write about in the future.
They are life lessons or themes that
repeat themselves throughout our life.
I am going to write them down here just so that I don't forget
that I want to look at them at some time or other.
Here it goes:

-the art of letting go.
-the art of mono-tasking (life as meditation)
-learning not to take things personally.
-learning one's limits(and that they can be flexible).
-respecting one's limits.
-making your limits known to other's.
-what do I do when my limits have not been respected?
-learning to be a warrior in the urban jungle.
-learning to be my own best friend (cheezy but necessary)
-when/how to walk away.
-when to stay and invest time, energy and love.
-learning one's needs(and that they can be flexible).
-leaving other people to their own drama (take it to the curb, my friend)
-what brings me joy? and laughter?
-whose energy brings me light? and who is just sucking up my life source.
-how do I live my life at the level of my creativity? every day......

So that sums it up......
To be discussed at another time. :)

-

What is in a title?

Is it just me or
or are my blog-post titles of late
pulling me back to my childhood?

Alice in Wonderland

Oh My God!!!
My massage was wonderful.
And inexpensive.
And I did not have to travel far to get it.
WOW! Alice is a real healer.

Now I feel all loose and BENDY-BENDY....
I will definitely be a return customer.
And my throat feels better too.
But I think I will have to go see my Dr. for my sore throat.
'Cause I still have an infection.
And it is slowing me down.

Feeling like a Pooh!

I really feel like whining today.
I feel like a Pooh!
Whine, whine, whine......
My throat hurts soooooo much.

I barely did anything today.
No gym. No energy.

I cancelled my plans for this evening.
I was supposed to go and see GATINEAU with Janie tonight.
Instead I will just stay in the 'hood and take it easy.

Thank God I go for acupressure tomorrow.
Hopefully she can drain my lymph nodes.
They are swollen and hurt like hell.
Whine, whine, whine......

The Red Handbag II - Creative Writing

The Red Handbag II

The crowd descends the staircase in silence.
At this early hour, many are still half asleep.
They all quicken their pace
as the vibration of the approaching train can be felt underfoot.
Time is precious.
And the morning passengers are the worst pressed for time.

An old man descends the stairs one at a time
on his way to the embarkment.
In his right hand he holds his cane
while his left hand grips onto the central bannister.
Despite his fragile appearance, life is good.
He is returning home from a sleepover 
at his girlfriend's house.
Margaret is ten years younger than him
which makes her seventy-nine years old.
He's an old goat but he can still keep up with her in the bedroom.
He whistles to himself as he slowly continues down the stairs,
lost in his reverie.

Behind the old man, 
a young woman with an enormous red handbag 
is sighing loudly in exasperation.
She is late. 
Again.
That makes three times this week alone.
Her supervisor warned her that the next time she was late,
there would be an interview with the big boss.
Shit! That's all she needs.
An interview with the company's CEO, Ross Desmarais.
There were rumors running through the office that
she had been sleeping with him.
Given that the rumors were true,
she would probably get fired. Again.
"No favoritism for the office slut",
would be the verdict.
And what did she get out of it?
Well, this gorgeous, red Prada bag, for one.
Sex with Ross was definately mediocre.
But this red, Prada handbag that he gave her
was absolutely delicious.

Her dreams of life as a fashion Diva are interrupted
when she hears the sound of the train doors opening, 
The young woman passes the old man.
In her haste she bangs into the old man with her big, red handbag.
She feels badly about it
but continues on to catch the train.
She is really late.
And her feet are already killing her in these shoes.
Her heels are high enough to cause a sprain 
should she take a misstep 
so she moves towards the train doors
with little baby steps.
"Why did I have to wear these bloody shoes?", she asks herself.
Despite the shoes,
she manages to slip into the subway just in time.

The subway is so packed that she is barely in the train.
Nobody moves aside to give her some space.
The crowded train resists her efforts
to move deeper into the subway car.
Great!
That is all she needs.
"It is probably my karma for bumping into that old man on the stairs," she thinks.
"Now it's my turn."

Half of her big, red Prada bag is hanging out of the train.
The train doors close.
Most of the big, red handbag is caught outside of the doors.

As she turns around to struggle with the doors,
trying in vain to get them to open,
she sees the old man that she passed on the staircase.
He is on his hands and knees 
at the foot of the stairs.
"Oh! my God!", she gasps outloud. "What have I done?"
She pushes again to seperate the doors:
a final attempt to rescue her handbag
and run to help the old man.
One last push and the doors reopen.

She clutches her bag to her chest
But her heels prevent her from moving quickly.
The doors open and close with such speed.
She is caught on the train,
unable to repair the damage she has done.
The train starts to move away.
Her last view is that of the old man struggling to get up.

Her bag is safe
but she feels like hell.
"I am a selfish monster", she concludes.
"When am I going to get my shit together?"
As she continues on her way to work,
she feels the weight of the world on her right shoulder.
And on her left one,
she feels the weight of her big, red Prada bag. 



I really got into this writing exercise.
The possibilities are infinite.

The Red Handbag - Creative Writing

Here is a little story I wrote last night.
I could not sleep so I started writing.
My story is in response to a paragraph written by a girlfriend of mine.
Here it goes....


The Red Handbag

The crowd descends the staircase in silence.
All that can be heard is the shuffle of sleepy feet.
Left-right-left 
All are prisonners in the hell that is 9 to 5.

They all quicken their pace 
as the vibration of the approaching train can be felt underfoot.
Everyone is in a hurry to arrive at their destination.
Being late means there is no time 
to stop at Tim Horton's before work.
"I'll take a double-double, please."

An old man descends the stairs one at a time
on his way to the embarkment.
In his right hand he holds his cane
while his left hand grips onto the central bannister.
In his younger days he used to run marathons
but today he is going nowhere fast.
He is tired.
He is tired of life.
And some days he daydreams about when he will rejoin his beautiful Doris
in the sweet hereafter.

Behind the old man is a young woman in a hurry.
She is so young that she is in a hurry to get on with her life.
Reflexively she starts to sigh loudly in exasperation.
Her most prominent feature is her handbag.
It is big and red.

When she hears the sound of the train doors opening,
the young woman passes the old man.
In her haste she bangs into the old man with her big, red handbag.
There is no time to slow down.
Slowing down means that life,
like the train, 
will leave her behind.

With little Geisha steps she moves towards the train doors.
Her heels are high enough to cause a sprain 
should she take a misstep: to her beauty is about pain and sacrifice.
Despite the pain and the sacrifice and the high-heeled shoes,
she manages to slip into the subway just in time.
Destiny is on her side.
She will have time to stop at Starbucks
for her extra hot soy-latte.

The subway is so packed that she is barely in the train.
Nobody moves aside to give her some space.
The crowded train resists her efforts
to move deeper into the subway car.
Fuck!
Half of her big, red handbag is hanging out of the train.
Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!
She knows that she cannot get off 
and wait for the next train.
If she does her life will pass her by.

The train doors close.
Most of the big, red handbag is hanging outside the doors.
She feels close to tears.
She loves that big, red bag.

As she turns around to struggle with the doors,
trying in vain to get them to open,
she sees the old man that she passed on the staircase.
He is on his hands and knees 
at the foot of the stairs.
Serves him right, she thinks, for being so slow.
She pushes again to seperate the doors:
a final attempt to rescue her handbag.
One last push and the doors reopen.
An invible hand pushes her off the train.
The doors close.
The train starts to move away.

Her bag is safe
and now
she has no choice but to wait for the next train.
Well, she thinks, might as well kill some time.

With little Geisha steps she moves towards the old man.

Well that is my post for today....

 

Printed shelter magazines make me happy

what a gorgeous afternoon.

just doing some research on the net
and reading Canadian House&Home in printed medium.
i love that magazine.
i always find ideas to inspire me.
and i like holding the mag. in my hands, old school.
i get a real satisfaction from flipping the pages,touching the paper.

i keep a resource library from photos in different magazines.
i will always buy actual magazines
as opposed to netmags (sorry! trees)'cause they fill a creatve need
that is not satisfied by viewing things on my iPad.
i love my iPad.
but for Interior Design inspiration
i will always give priority to real magazines

well gotta go and walk Miko the dog.

Looking for inspiration

i wrote an earlier posting today but it somehow got erased.
these things happen....

my intention for my blog was to use it to record
the way in which i use my creativity to resource my life.
in everyday life.
nothing monumental,
just the everyday workings of a life,
my life.
i am all about finding ways to resource myself.
just in the small things that i do everyday.
it took me years to want
serenity more than happiness or pleasure.
before i used to heavily pursue pleasure.
but now i like quiet moments.
by myself.
reading, writing, knitting,
sometimes cooking or other creative pursuits.
basically just puttering around.
and that is how i resource myself.
now.

i would like to bring even more creativity
into my life,
my everyday.
i believe that everyday creativity
(not just in the fine arts sense)
is the healthiest way to resource oneself.
well, i speak for myself.

so i guess i want to get creative
on ways to live life creatively.
and share it on my blog
with whomever stops in for a quick read.

all this is to say.....
i am a work in progress
and so too is my blog.

how do you get creative in your everyday life?
does anyone have any ideas to share?

I had a good day

i had a good day.
i had coffee with Peter.
i walked to my psych appointment.
i walked the dog.
i bought some lingerie.
i talked to my Mom.
and i just finished dinner with Janie.
we shared a pitcher of sangria
and laughed a lot.

i had a good day.

It is a good SUN-day

so it is sunday.
i started the day as i usually do by speaking with my mom.
after that i went out to brunch with peter.
we went to a new place here in the hood.
the place was packed, the food was good but the service was a little long.
good thing we always have lots to talk about.
no shortage of conversations with us.

after brunch we went to peter's place and ate the gauffre
that i had picked up for our desert.
i left at about three o'clock as he had to go to work.
i went home to chill with the pussycats
but i did not feel like staying in.
so i called janie to see if she wanted to go and play urban petanque.
no go.
on my own again.

so here i am at the cafe, writing.
i was knitting for awhile.
then i wrote to my cousin on my mother's side.
and now, the blog.
so overall it has been a good day.
it would have been nice to have a little more company but....
so be it.
i am having a good day.
right now it is raining.
that makes me happy to watch the rain.
plus it cools things down a bit.

i do not know what i shall do this evening.
but hey!
maybe i will make some salads so that i have healthy food for the week.
tomorrow is my first day back at the gym.
ABSOLUTELY! so i will need FOOD!

anywho.....c'est ça!

Looking for JOY....

i am at the cafe waiting for janie.
i do not know what we shall do this evening but
at least the company will be nice.
and she is fun and funny.
and it is a beautiful evening out.

i am still in my funk and feeling pissy about it.
maybe i will run away and join the circus.
or move to the forest and live with the animals.

or maybe i'll just suck it up
and be where i am.
because wherever you go, there you are anyways.
soooooo......

where did i leave my JOY?
in my jeans' pocket?
up my sleeve?
in a hole in the bottom of the sea?

JOY, JOY...
come out, come out
wherever you are.
i need you JOY,
to get rid of my funk.

Q:did you know that arm&hammer now sells kitty litter?
i see the link but still....
what a leap!
now that is vision.

just a thought....

Knitt, pearl, knitt, pearl

So i am hopping from activity to activity.
First some knitting.
Now some writing for my blog.
And then I want to study my totem animal medicine cards.

Find a solution to this funk

i did some more knitting on one of my various projects already started.
two scarves and two baby blankets.
those are my current projects.
oh!
and a throw.
not one of which is yet finished.
no matter.

i thought the creativity of my knitting would get me out of my funk.
but it didn't.
so i knit for a while on my balcony and then i moved on to other things.
i gotta find a solution to this funk 'cause
it is really a pain in the ass.
feeling like this.
there are so many things that are bigger than my funk
and yet i am stuck here.
blah!blah!blah!

Where do I start?

I am feeling a little off these days.
I do not know what I need to change in order to feel better.
???
I know that something has got to change.....but what?
I think that I need to get more into the world.
If that makes any sense.
I do different activities, but always alone.
almost, always.
I think I need more intimacy.
Not in the sexual/romantic sense.
Just in the human sense.
I need more interaction with new people and new activities.
maybe I need to be challenged.
Expand my comfort zone.
Push my limits.
Get creative in some new way.
Resource my vital energy.

Where do I start?

Refreshing rain and totem bears

it is pouring rain outside.
and i love it.
even though i don't currently have an umbrella.
who cares?
the rain is so cleansing.
it seems to release all the negative energy in the air.
it is like pressing "refresh".
so lovely.

yesterday i went to the cafe near my house to do some research.
and there was a guy there that i know from the cafe.
he is a superb artist.
and he drew me a bear.
i called the bear Rudi because he looks Russian.
like a circus bear.
so i hung up the drawing on my fridge.
bears are my main totem animal.
so i feel good when their images surround me.
protected.

i am still feeling sad about having put Miss Petunia down on Friday.
she was such a good cat, a pretty girl.
i just could no longer give her the level of care that she needed
with her diabetes and all.
i just could not handle it anymore.
i miss her so much.