Addicted...

I am sitting here in a coffee shop, savoring every sip of the satisfying, yet sadistic drink that keeps me coming back for more. Half-caf one week, regular the next, and before you know it, you're onto the double espresso shots... The coffee bean truly is the most evil out of all the other beans!

Ok, ok, so I'm not in a coffee shop. I lied..I admit it! ~sigh~ I am sitting in a Cinnabon place eating a little chunk of Heaven itself. Try as a might, I just can't avoid some of my weaknesses. But I am drinking coffee, so it was only a half lie..

I can't help but notice how much people go out of their way to avoid being near anyone else. There are 2 other ladies enjoying a calorie-filled, guilt-free (maybe!) treat, and we have all strategically chosen to have our backs to one another. Coincidence? I think not!

Ever been standing in a line-up when a stranger randomly chooses to talk to you? What is your first reaction? Come on, be honest now...Your first thought was "Why me?" Then you became more comfortable and in the end, you found that the conversation made the line-up move faster.

Why do we go out of our way to be alone? Is talking to a stranger really so scary? (If you are a child, then the answer is definitely yes!) However, as adults, we shouldn't be so uncomfortable around people who are more than likely going through the same life issues as we are.

That man sitting across from you on the bus could be wondering how he is going to scrape enough money together to give his family a vacation this year because he didn't get the raise that was promised to him.

The girl riding the escalator ahead of you might be thinking about more than friends and clothes; she might be thinking about how much her parents have been fighting lately and wondering how close they are to divorcing.

The woman in the grocery aisle beside you just may be wondering how she is going to stretch her paycheck to feed her kids and pay her bills this month.

We all have something that we can offer to those around us. No, I'm not talking about money - money is only a temporary fix. Next week the same needs will be back again. What you can offer the stranger next to you is a friendly face, a smile, and, dare I say it? A random conversation that will let them know that they are not alone in their struggles!

Serenity Now!

I don't know where my brain is at today, but it certainly doesn't seem to be staying in one place! I can't keep on the same train of thought for more than 30 seconds, and even if I know what I'm talking about, it really doesn't sound like I do, because my words just come out in confusion.

I'm hoping that writing about it will calm my brain and help me to make more sense for the rest of day... We shall see if it works.

There is so much going on in my life right now - it is hard to keep track of everything I have to do. I have about a dozen people all needing and wanting things from me, and everyone seems to call on me at the same time, and I feel like pulling the hair out of my head!!! :s Some days I am fine, and can deal with the chaos that has replaced my life, but but there are days (like today!) when I want to dig a hole in the ground, get into it, cover myself up and hide from the world for a few days!

Serenity now indeed... Have you ever wished there were more days in a week or more hours in a day? I have - actually I've also wondered what it would be like to have more than 2 arms! However, if we got our wish, there would just be more things to do to fill up all that extra time, and we would be even more over-worked than we are now.

It is important to take time to relax regularly, even if you can only grab 10 minutes! Take some time, pull the car over and breathe for a few minutes, and remember that people can wait a little extra time for that paperwork, project or whatever it is that they are demanding of you.

Getting Fired is No Fun!

Well folks, I was fired recently from one of my 6 jobs... (Yes, 6 jobs!) I was the caretaker of a community centre, and it was the perfect job for me: right across the street from my house, I made my own hours, and I could clean it early in the morning, late at night, or any time in between.

However, this centre is also run by a few of the long-time residents of the community, aka: the old ladies of the neighborhood! They are nice ladies, but to quote the last caretaker, "They are stuck in the 1950's, and they don't like to pay for anything." (He said it, not me! I just repeated. ;)

I guess he didn't claim all the hours he was putting in for the job, and I certainly did not leave anything out when I made my invoices! Therefore, I had the job for 3 months, then they knocked on my door and fired me. Oh, they hemmed and hawed around the reasons for letting me go, but it was plain to see the real reason behind it - money.

I was let go once before from a job where money was the reason. Not that in either of these circumstances the employer didn't have enough money to pay - if that was the case, it wouldn't have upset me at all. No, with both jobs it was just that they found someone who would do it for cheaper.

I was upset, I'm not going to lie! I don't think I would have been so upset if they had just come out with it and told me the real reason though. Skirting around my questions is just not very professional - I would rather hear the truth any day than not very well thought out lies!

There...I vented. I feel better now - still a bit stressed about having to replace the income, but I'm trusting that this door closed so I better one could open up. Those old ladies were getting to be a pain to deal with anyways! ;)

YouTube Has Taken Over...

Anyone ever stop to think about how much we "depend" on YouTube? You can literally find anything on YouTube, from weird commercials, to the most random videos of people whom you don't know, doing things that are really not that safe! (See above video for proof of THAT! My favorite is the guy who forgot to let go of the bowling ball...)

Don't get me wrong here; I'm a fan of YouTube, and have been for a long time... Once I watched a whole season of Scrubs on YouTube - in the span of a couple of weeks! I came home from work, and went straight to the computer... Life felt a bit empty after I was all caught up!

Seriously though, you can watch almost anything on YouTube! I'm surprised MTV is still around. Who would wait for their favorite song to show up on TV when they can just type it in and watch it within seconds? (Note: I may be a fan of YouTube, but NOT of MTV!! ;)

Well, this has been the most random post ever! Stay tuned for more, and don't forget to tip your waiters and waitresses..

Retirement for Chickens?!

Everyone in Canada knows that Vancouver, BC has a thriving homelessness problem. However, not many may know about the growing homeless chicken population! Yes, apparently there are many homeless chickens wandering the streets in Vancouver. The city's bylaw states that residents can keep up to 4 egg laying chickens in their backyard, but it also states that they cannot kill the hens when they get too old to lay, or even if the owners get a hankering for some meat!

Hmmm, a law that allows people to keep chickens but not to kill them. Interesting, especially as the city is proposing spending $20,000 on a shelter - for CHICKENS!!! There are many in the city who are against it (the non bird-brained people - excuse the pun!)

The worst thing about this proposed shelter is the raging "human" homelessness problem in Vancouver. I can't believe the mayor and the city council would even think about proposing this shelter. If they are concerned about people killing their own chickens, they should open up a butcher shop on the outskirts of the town, or have a service that comes and picks up the chickens when they get too old to lay eggs. Then they can have a butcher kill the chickens and...problem solved - no abandoned chickens!

Once the city has a handle on their "human" homelessness problem, and Vancouver has some money available, then would be a good time to propose something like this. Although, I still wouldn't think it was a good idea! So ridiculous...

http://www.ctvbc.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20100409/bc_backyard_chickens_100409/20100410?hub=BritishColumbia

The Main Thing is not to Panic...

Are you as sick as I am of hearing about the swine flu? I usually watch the news every day, but I'm getting tired of H1N1 being headline news every night! I want to hear about something else people! I would even rather start hearing about America's health care reform again! Wow...I must be desperate - I never thought I wanted to hear about that again!

Although, some of the news about H1N1 is starting to make me laugh. A couple of days ago I was watching CTV News, and they reported that clinics were giving numbered bracelets to the people in line for the vaccine that needed to have the shot the most - the ones who are more at risk of contracting H1N1. The part that made me laugh was that people are actually scalping their bracelets! So panic has given way to money...isn't that always the way. Don't get any ideas though - health care workers say they will personally put the bracelet on for you if you are at risk of the virus, especially if you have brought your children to get the vaccine.

Does anyone remember SARS? It was only a few years ago, and everyone was in a panic over it, then it all died down, and now no one ever talks about it anymore. I can't help but think that the swine flu will eventually go away, then we will forget about it, just like SARS.

Why do we work ourselves into a panic over things like this? Does no one understand that worrying and being anxious doesn't help? Does this sound familiar to anyone - "Who among you can add a single day to his life by worrying?" Can worrying stop your child from getting sick? If you panic, will it make the line up at the clinic move faster? If you develop an ulcer will you and your family live longer? Sounds ridiculous, doesn't it? Yet, this is how we live. Not worrying doesn't mean that you don't care or aren't concerned about things - it just means that you know worrying is not going to help the situation. It means that you are rational.

I can't believe I missed so many days of blogging last month. I had forgotten how great it is to be able to voice my opinions about stuff like this without having anyone to argue with me. Although, sometimes I would welcome an opposing opinion...it adds spice to life! Get a blog people! It feels great!

New Post!!!

I can't believe I haven't posted anything since September the 9th! Life has been little crazy lately. but then, life is always crazy, so I guess I can't really use that as an excuse, now can I? Oh well, it's my blog, and its free, so no one can complain! ;) Ever notice how many times people do complain about stuff that they don't have to pay for? Ridiculous, isn't it...

While we are on the topic of things you have noticed, have you ever noticed how life seems to be all about waiting? It seems like we spend our whole lives waiting for things. We wait in line, we wait to get older (only when we are young, of course!) and we wait for things to happen. Sometimes we spend whole days wishing we were in next week or next month already.

Remember the story about the man who was given a spool of magical thread? All he had to do when he wanted to go to the future was pull the thread. If he pulled it out a little bit, he would skip a few hours or days, and if he pulled it a lot he could skip weeks, months or even years. So, every time he got impatient about something, he would pull the thread. For example, he couldn't wait for his daughter to be born, so he pulled the thread and skipped forward 9 months. He kept doing this all throughout his life, and when he came to end of his life, he realized that he had missed most of his life because he skipped over all of the waiting.

Instead of being impatient when you have to wait for something, try enjoying the wait. Waiting is a part of life, and here in North America, our culture hates waiting. They say that you can always tell when a North American is in a line up somewhere in Africa or the Caribbean. Line ups can go on for hours in these countries because the people don't mind waiting - they have all the patience in the world. Meanwhile, someone from North America gets in line and acts all jittery, sighing and fidgeting with impatience, and you can almost see the ulcer forming as he waits!