Find the original post & creator at @vibesofablackgirl on Instagram.

Today has been heavy. It’s hard to watch what’s going on in the world right now and not take action. I’ve hit pause on posting my own content to continue making space for POC creators and resources. If you are looking for resources on how you can help or show support see here.

I’m still keeping my daily diary, it’s my way to remember, and a time capsule to look back on in the future. I hope that by sharing a little bit of sunshine here on the blog it can bring a smile to at least one person. ?

We went to Beaverton in the afternoon and while Sean had a meeting, I got some groceries and called a friend. Today I made a delicious beet salad with leftover beets Sean BBQ’d the other day. I really love beets.

The afternoon was really nice, I took some time to plant the flowers we got for Sean’s mum. She’s not planning to be up here for a while but we wanted to fill her flower pots and tidy the garden. Tomorrow we’re putting up the hummingbird feeder, we’ve seen a bunch of the beautiful little birds buzzing around.

I think Sean’s parents have been keeping up with the blog so, “HI LORNA & KEITH, WE MISS YOU!”. ?

Sean got a new power washer last week and it was quite therapeutic to blast the stairs and wash outside. This thing is a beast, so powerful! I power washed my paddleboard and Sean’s mum’s kayak, can’t wait to get out on the water.

In other news, I beat yesterday’s 5K record on my run for Global Running Day. ?

This morning I felt like I needed meditation to start my day. To stop, pause. Think. Take a minute. I took a break from posting sunshiney selfies and cottage life to share content by black creators, friends, and use my platform to share their voices.

I did a morning meditation by Elaisha Jade and signed up for her 30-day daily course. I love her voice, it’s so soothing and you can head her smile. Elaisha started her company after working in tech for years and feeling the burn out all often go through. At Your Mindful, she focusses on bringing mindfulness and meditation in-person or online to people around the world. Thank you Elaisha!

If you want to book a private online session with her, book it here. She also has a self-guided silent retreat you can sign up for here. To sign up and join me for 30-days of meditation for free, scroll down!

30 Days of Meditation: Sign Up Here!

In other news, I broke my personal 5K record on Nike Training and have been officially running for 6 months! Extremely grateful to Amy Shio aka @lesbest for her monthly challenges, she’s really motivated me to get off my booty and hit the pavement. I ran 100Km last month!

P.S. If you are looking for anti-racism links, check this document or see these resources in Canada. You can also check the link in my Instagram bio here for a list of resources, places to donate, and petitions to sign! ?

This weekend I watched, I listened, I had conversations that were heartbreaking. This is a human issue and I can’t sit by and not say something. I acknowledge my privilege, I can speak up, I can do better. We all can do better.

A post & illustration by @mimimoffie has been running through my mind, “if you’re tired of hearing about racism, imagine how fucking exhausting it is living it”. BIPOC friends & I love you, I stand with you, I support you.

White friends, do your research, educate yourself, talk to the people you love. Acknowledge the role white privilege plays in racism.

??????????

My eye is starting to look less scary. The swelling has gone done after hours of ice, laying down, antihistamines, and CBD.

Today we took a long drive around Muskoka and stopped to get a few supplies. This sign was at a market in Port Carling. Most of the stores there have closed and it doesn’t look like they are reopening. ?

We picked up plants to put around the house for Sean’s mum. I hope it doesn’t rain tomorrow so I can get out in the garden. I will be wearing full body bug protection!

I also made a veg lasagna and it turned out so good. Emily has made a choice to be vegetarian so we’re all giving it a go. I don’t eat a lot of meat and hardly any dairy so it’s not much of a change. The lasagna was INCREDIBLE.

Sending you love today and everyday.

I woke up with a mosquito bite (bites?) on my eye. It’s swollen and uncomfortable. I have so many bites, this is definitely the worst of them all. They bit me in the night while I was peacefully sleeping. LITTLE BUGGERS! I will never sleep without an eye mask again. ?

Sean is going to the city to drop Emily off with her mum today. I had planned to go, but with my eye, I’m gonna take the day to rest. I really hate mosquitos but I keep reminding myself it could be worse.

Today I am taking a moment to think. To watch. To listen. There is so much going on in the world right now. I need to compose my thoughts before I write about it.

When we were on the boat I was taking photos and Emily said the sunset looked really cool through her glasses. This is her glasses as a filter.

Tell your friends & family you love them. We all need to stick together.

Yesterday my blog crashed! Thankfully I contacted my server host and their support team helped me out. I was stressed but calm. In times before now, I might have freaked out, got upset, or had a cry. Not this time, I kept my cool, knowing I have regular backups and that it will be ok.

Advice for other bloggers, update your plugins one at a time, update before you post new content, and make sure you have regular backups.

Feels good to be back to regularly scheduled blogging!

Today I did a writing workshop hosted by my friend Ama Scriver on the Addition Elle Instagram. Our internet has been quite slow today making to hard to watch the live video but I was able to catch the tail end that included a writing prompt. I was initially having trouble getting to work on a project so I decided to join in and I am so happy I did. This is my second writing workshop in a week and I am really loving this type of activity right now.

A lot of the writing I do never gets published. I think it’s important to write for yourself and write to remember. I started this blog 15 years ago as a way to keep more memories and it has served me well. I write a lot more than you see here though, sometimes long documents, others short verses of prose that nobody knows.

Journaling through this quarantine has helped me deal with feelings and get to know myself more. If you don’t have a journal, get one. Write notes to yourself and go back to them another day. Writing is such a therapeutic process. I love the sound of typing on keys. The scratch of pencil on paper. Bold Sharpie strokes in a notebook. I love it all.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by CASIE ☀️ (@casiestewart) on May 28, 2020 at 5:37am PDT

Over the past few months, I’ve been asked a couple of times “what are you working on” or about clients, brand partnerships, my job. Before COVID I was up for a FT gig I really wanted, and had met w/ a few people from the company. Since COVID, the job was put on hold and a couple of my brand partnerships have been cancelled.

TBH…idk what I want to do next. I’ve been feeling the need for change the last year. Since my broken bone accident at the end of 2018, I have worked on myself a lot and finally feel good, physically and mentally. (Most the time.)

Some days I feel excited with a childlike fancy, making things, creating, writing, sharing sunshine. Other days, I’m sad for reasons I can’t explain or scared for what the future holds. Despite the sunny photos, there have been a lot of clouds. And, co-parenting an almost 13yo young woman has its challenges.

Although I’m not working as much right now, I try to have some normalcy of computer time in the am (emails, blog) and in the afternoon, I make something. It could be art, photos, food, exercise, or upcycling something from my closet. Making space to relax and making time to unwind also count

One of my good friends and I have this thing where we text each other saying “what did you make today buddy?”. (We have been calling each other ‘buddy’ since we lived in Australia a lifetime ago!) I find her messages so great, asking this is kinda better than “how are you?” because it helps you think about your day differently.

So, what did you make?!

Photos @April Wozny last week on a social distance bike ride + coffee date ☀️??

Today Sean and Emily came to pick me up to go back to the cottage. The last few days alone in the city have been really nice. I’ve enjoyed seeing friends a safe distance and rediscovering the city’s beauty on my bike.

Looking forward to being back in the woods. Sean and I have been together 24hours a day since the start of March so after a few days apart, I can’t wait to hug him. He said the mosquitos are in full force which is a bit worrying but I’ll fight them the best I can. Little buggers!

This week, I’m hoping to get back into my creative groove and make some things. I hope the weather stays nice and I can get out for my first paddleboard session of the season. It looks like it might be a bit rainy which almost always makes me feel like writing or making something.

I’ve had a lot of anxiety about the pandemic over the past few days which I know is normal, but it doesn’t make it go away. Over the past few weeks, I’ve found happiness in simple things like drawing, embroidery, making clothes, or cut & paste. Each little activity helps to distract from the news and find a bit of joy. I hope you can find happiness in simple things and use what you have around you to inspire your creativity in new ways.

Please stay safe and wear a mask!

I woke up and did some work then set out in the afternoon on the bike. It felt so free to be riding in the sunshine again. I bought a sequin top from a friend on Facebook and when I passed by to pick it up, she tossed it over the balcony and I popped it in my basket. ?

I met April in her backyard to do Ryan Heffington’s workout together in the sun, at a distance. We danced in the grass with a couple more of the girls on Houseparty. We decided to wear matching outfits bc why not?!

We spent the afternoon biking around the city in the sun. So fun. It felt great to laugh together. Follow April on IG at @aprilwozny!

I spent most of the day working on that documentary submission w/ Sean then picked up some packages from the office. It’s been months since I went there.

Went for an evening walk in the neighbourhood and it’s so beautiful. After being in the woods for months I’m really noticing all the colour, street art, greenery. I love this area so much.

I love the cottage but it feels good to be home.

Raining. Long weekend. Quarantine. Guess this weather makes it easier to stay at home!? ?

This weekend I’m gonna do another round of tie-dye, finally got some colours. #Whatever shirt is from the gang at HideSeek, and these pants were V1 of my bleach dye. I tried to dye over another piece in The Recess Collection and ended up creating…a blank canvas! Whoops! ? I always did like things one of a kind! ??‍?

I was so happy to find this jumpsuit in my closet. I ordered it last summer but it was too small. Thankfully my hard work has paid off and it fits perfectly now. I am not going to tie-dye this one! ?

We picked up this beautiful big kale the garden centre last weekend and SHE IS THRIVING. Hoping to spend some time in the garden this weekend getting it ready for summer.

Hope you are doing ok. Reach out to me anytime. I’m around, in the woods, hoping for sunshine, and filling carts w/ things I probably won’t buy.

Something that has really been lifting me up is @Ryan Heffington’s Sweatfest dance class, it’s on Saturday at 3pm EST via IG Live. If you need a BOOST check out yesterday’s class on his IGTV. I’ve been having dance parties w/ Jen_kirsch & Jo on Houseparty and doing the class together. It fills me with so much love and light I just about float right off the ground. ☁️☁️☁️☀️?????

Please, if you are going out this weekend, stay safe. Miss you. ?

Right now, more than ever we need to support our friends! We are all in this together and we will get through it by being there for each other, at a distance!

Social media is an amazing tool to share the things you love, you like, and support others. This tweet has been pinned to the top of my Twitter profile for over a year!

Last night I joined in a pop-culture trivia game on Facebook hosted by my friend Alex. Follow her on IG @lexniko, I love the content she creates and she’s funny AF.

Today my friend Mariah sent me a message about her latest project, a film called Pamela & Ivy. I know I don’t do movies reviews often but today her message came just as I was about to have lunch. So, I watched it and put a few notes into a post here. You can also watch the full 16-minute film in the post or on YouTube.

Mariah and I had been internet friends for a little while and last year we met for a coffee date. It was so since to meet face-to-face! I am inspired by her work and how much she has accomplished at a young age. She founded GTE Productions at 21 and is an award-winning actress & filmmaker. Her talent is out of this world!

After lunch, I went to the post office to ship a wee package of a card & friendship bracelet + an item from Knixwear. I am so impressed with their customer service! A couple of weeks ago I placed an order from the warehouse sale and when the package arrived, the order wasn’t correct. That same afternoon I was refunded for the missing items and they asked that the wrong size item I received was gifted to a friend or Women’s Shelter. I loved that idea so I sent it to a friend!

If you love creating content and know someone who is making it, tell them, share their posts with your friends. We all need to stick together!