I heard this quote in today’s ‘Daily Calm’ in the Calm app and it stuck with me. I got out of bed went right to my computer looked it up, found the author, and got his book on Audible. Finished my latest read yesterday and wasn’t sure what to read next but usually, when I least expect it, something happens to inspire my next read or listen. “When you press the pause button on a machine, it stops. But when you press the pause button on human beings they start,” argues my friend and teacher Dov Seidman, CEO of LRN, which advises global businesses on ethics and leadership. “You start to reflect, you start to rethink your assumptions, you start to reimagine what is possible and, most importantly, you start to reconnect with” ― Thomas L. Friedman, Thank You for Being Late: An Optimist’s Guide to Thriving in the Age of Accelerations I’ve been working on more of a slow-living type of life and honestly, it’s bringing me so much joy. Exercise, more sleep, good food, less drinking, and lots of time with my thoughts. Slow living means going through your life in a more thoughtful, meaningful way. Before the pandemic, I was always on the go, for like, my entire life. That 2-year pause we all went through + living up north in the woods, taught me so much about myself. I am resilient, creative, and determined. I’m thankful for each day and there is so much happiness to be found in what you already have, who you are, and the people around you. In other news, today I signed up for a course starting in January that I am so excited about. I’ll share what it is soon. If you can guess I’ll give you a prize. Until…

Ran for the first time in ages and I missed this feeling. Next, I got ready for the day and went to the polls just before they opened. I was the first person my elections attendant had for the day so there was a little learning curve but everyone was nice. Was back home in 30 min including the walk & wait time. I’m excited about this week. We’re recording two exciting episodes of Cast of Creators and there’s a new episode out on Wednesday. We also have an Instagram for Funday now, follow @fundayagency. In other news, John Tory is Mayor again.

Went to the Geary Art Crawl with Sean this weekend. Had a nice walk taking it all in. Good vibe and cool things to buy/look at.

Sean and I went to stay with our friend Jake at a cottage in Stoney Lake for a week and it was lovely. I honestly, can’t remember a time in my life when I didn’t have to work on ‘vacation‘. A career in social means you are kinda ‘on’ 24-7′. I’ve never had a job like Funday/Hvr, where they actually value a break.👏 Grateful to work with such awesome people! This is the first time in my life my work was like ‘no, you’re on vacation‘ and didn’t reach out or ask me to do stuff. It was absolutely glorious! I took naps, read my book, listened to a whole novel on Audible and did next to nothing. Highly recommend Wrong Place Wrong Time by Gillian McAllister, get the audiobook, great story. My sister and I listened at the same time and texted about it non-stop. Sean also rented a sea doo (that he later purchased!) and we cruised the lake together in the sunshine. It was magical. I left the cottage feeling relaxed and refreshed. 😎

Where did the last month go? Summer is passing by too fast and I wish time would slow down! Last weekend I went I took the train to Chatham to visit my family in Kingsville, Ontario. It was so great! I hadn’t seen them in ages and we had the most relaxing time. We’ve not really been up at the cottage much this summer so getting out of a city was just what I needed. Got my hair done yesterday at Sasson and feel like a new woman. It’s so much blonder and shorter than it was this time last year. Remember my long pandemic hair? Been pretty busy the last couple of weeks with work and am looking forward to a little break. Next week we’re going to a friend’s cottage for five days. I can’t wait to float in the lake, ride the sea doo with Sean, and work on my tan. In other news, we’ve released a bunch of new podcast episodes and you can watch them all right here on YouTube or listen on Apple or wherever you get your podcasts. New episodes come out weekly on Wednesday! This one with friend Brigitte is one of my favs! She’s got such a great attitude and cracks me up. You’ll enjoy learning about her life and career path in television.

THE TIME HAS COME! Cast of Creators IS LIVE! I’ve wanted to do a podcast for ages and creating this with Nelson & the Hvr Team has been a dream. I have truly never had so much fun ‘working’ in my entire life. Nelson & I have spent our careers in media and publishing now we’re setting the stage for industry leaders, bloggers, creators and more to share their passions & perspectives. Each week, guests join us at Hvr Studios for a conversation about their lives, content creation, and business. We’ve had incredible conversations with inspiring people and laughed so much while doing it. Cast of Creators is presented by Hvr, our new social browser, if you don’t have Hvr yet, download it here! If you’d like a little more info about Hvr, read this blog post. Our initial guests include Raine Maida of Our Lady Peace, performance artist DevoDLive, multimedia host & producer Brigitte Truong, and more. For a peek at other upcoming guests, read our release on Financial Times here. Hvr, developer of the first social-forward web browser, today announced the launch of the Cast of Creators podcast, hosted by its CEO Nelson B. Thall and award-winning blogger Casie Stewart. The video and audio podcast features perspectives on innovation and the future of content with notable guests including Our Lady Peace frontman Raine Maida, performance artist, DevoDLive, and multimedia host & producer, Brigitte Truong, and is available for download wherever you consume podcasts. You can subscribe to the podcast at castofcreators.com. Hvr is available on the Apple App Store and Google Play. Financial Post, June 20,2022 Please subscribe/follow on Youtube, Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Listen to our first episode with Jules Mercanti here or scroll down to watch the first three episodes on YouTube. If you like the show, please follow,…

I took myself on a beach date yesterday and it was lovely! It’s been years since I went to the beaches, and I don’t know why I haven’t done this sooner! Found a nice little spot on the beach and started a great new book by one of my fav authors, Lisa Jewel. Felt like I needed a little escape, found out yesterday that my grandma in New Zealand passed away. She was my last living grandparent. It’s always hard when someone passes but this hits right in the heart and really makes me miss my family in New Zealand. I walked around the neighbourhood and was reminded how cute The Beaches are. I used to live in the East End years ago. Stopped into the store my sister works at, Charming Parrot. They have so many nice things in there! Resort wear, cute tops, beautiful silk dresses, and accessories. Say hi if you see her! I’m planning to get back to the beach more this summer. I want to visit the island too!