I recently got 5 bins of stuff I’ve had in storage for years. What a time capsule! On Saturday night I had some drinks and opened them, going through all my books and writing. It was just as I imagined! I’d been thinking of doing that just that and I sprawled everything out on the floor feeling inspired with fond memories. It’s amazing how books can do that, I’ve read and collected so many poetry books. It was so nice to re-read things and see all the PostIt notes on pages. Glad I never got rid of them.

I love being up at the cottage and doing creative things. I really wanted to do some woodworking with the pieces in the garage but it’s still too cold. Finished my latest Kindle (The Perfect Roommate) on Saturday then took a thick nap in the sun. It was great.

Feeling ready for this week and tonight we’re going to Yayoi Kusama: Infinity Mirrors at the AGO‎.

Sending sunshine your way.

Here’s to a great week!

I haven’t written much in the last week. I’ve been busy but I’ve also been tired/lazy. Last week I directed a commercial, went to a conference, and had a press trip. It was non-stop go-go-go and although I relaxed over the weekend, come Monday I felt drained. I love my work and what I do but I am much more of a homebody and introvert than you might realize. I love staying home! Being a blogger (writer) means you spend a lot of time at home on your computer. 

I’m listening to the Call Me By Your Name Soundtrack, did you see that movie? It’s beautiful. I saw it on one of the flights I’ve taken since January. By the end of February, I’d seen almost every new movie on Air Canada. I was happy to see this one pop up, it’s good. After coming back from New Zealand I was pretty relaxed and ready to start 2018 business. But now, I can’t believe it’s April and I feel like the last two months have been a blur. I was super sick for half of February then I had a week in Vancouver, a week in San Francisco, a couple weekends at the cottage, and few days in Ottawa (Gatineau). Where did the time go?!

This weekend we are heading up to the cottage and I can’t wait. Before we head north, I’m attending a creativity workshop with FITC. I’m hoping for an electric charge that inspires me to make things. It’s easy to get caught up in the day-to-day routine, feeling tired but your creativity is always there, you just have to find it. I’m a very creative person but I go through waves of stopping and starting, staring at my computer, into hour-long blackholes of scrolling FB or IG.

It’s easy to get caught up in day-to-day routine, feeling tired, but your creativity is always there you, you just have to find it.  

You have to find something that inspires you every single day. I love going for walks, riding my bike, or calling someone (on the actual phone) to chat a few minutes. Workouts are good too if you’re into that haha.

Today I tweeted about the sunshine because this damn long ass winter seems to be never ending but you can’t let it get you down. Spring is around the corner, a time of renewal, growth, change. Take inventory of the things around you, make your bed, close your eyes and think for a minute, go outside, read your old journal, buy flowers, draw something. You control your thoughts and you are in charge of the way you feel. If you find the sunshine within, you can share it with the world.

I used to post a lot of collage photos of my faces, different faces, expressions. I mean, used to as in the ‘old days’ of social media, pre-Instagram, early Twitter. I love taking photos of myself and documenting them. I love myself and I want you to know that. You should love yourself too. What else can I say? You gotta love yourself first because the more love you have, the more love you can give to others. Love and kindness are infinite.

I always thought it was fun to take a million (ok, a hundred?) photos of my facial expressions and post them. As a kid, I spent heaps of time making faces in the mirror, ask mum. Honestly, I take about 50+ sometimes before I get one I want to post. I’ve always had an expressive face.

When I was a kid, I did a lot of dance competitions across Ontario, New York, Myrtle Beach. At one competition my adjudicator was Patsy Swayze, Patrick Swayze’s mum. She trained him for Dirty Dancing in 1987 when I was 5.

It was circa 1990 when she recorded a tape about me.  Back then, judges used to record their comments on tape while you were dancing and give it to you after the awards. I still have the tape of her talking about me. She said, “it’s too bad we don’t have lighting from the audience to show this child’s facial expression because she really does deserve it”. To this day, that is one of my proudest moments.

“it’s too bad we don’t have lighting from the audience to show this child’s facial expression because she really does deserve it”

I will never stop showing who I am. I’m too damn old to try and pretend to be someone else, gah, imagine how much work that would be? I am who I am and I’m proud of it. You really should be proud of who you are too. Just be, and be the most. Giver.

In a world where you can be anything, be yourself.

In other news, I was offered a spray tan from Bronzed by Emily Bloom. I obvs said YES because this winter is never ending and a tan makes my skin feel great and my mental health instantly better. Also, it wasn’t that hot in California (no tan ?) so I booked it for the day after I got back from San Francisco. Smart right?

Her tans are organic, vegan, gluten-free (not sure what this means for a tan?), and I am totally loving it. The studio is above Milagro on Queen West and the whole process was about 20min. I stripped down to my skivvies and she sprayed me by hand all over with a small machine. I highly recommend wearing sexy underwear bc I am a derp and was wearing full hipster panties so my tan lines aren’t cute. I feel great tho. It lasts about a week (7-10days). Emily also donates 5$ to the Melanoma Research Foundation for every bottle of Brazil Bronze purchased. ??

BEFORE TAN AT HOME: “Hi I take 100 photos of myself”

AFTER TAN AT HOME:  “Hi, my skin is flawless”

Ok, that’s all for now. Remember,  you will never be younger than you are RIGHT NOW, so make the most of it.