I wasn’t feeling great today. Kept waking up in the night thinking someone was walking through the cottage. Woke up with serious anxiety, went for a run, did a meditation, took a nap. Called mum when after my rest and talked it out. Had a cry, felt a bit better. Mum has a magical way of calming me down, looking at things rationally, and helping me see clearly. A nap always helps too, everything seems more intense when you’re tired. Today, Toronto announced new ‘red zone’ restrictions as cases keep rising in the GTA. Ontario is now seeing over 1,000 cases/day which is kinda scary. As of Saturday, restaurants can no longer have indoor dining, gyms can’t hold fitness classes, no indoor meeting spaces, and bars have 9pm last call. They’re also encouraged people not to hang out with anyone who doesn’t live in their household. It’s crazy we are living through this right now. Being at the cottage feels like we’re escaping and sometimes I start doing something where I forget what’s going on, then I remember. It’s normal to have anxiety, especially now, I’ve found that exercise and meditation have been really helpful. A couple of years ago I was gifted a membership to the Calm app and really got into guided meditation. I found that I really missed using the app and purchased a new membership in the summer. I love the sleep stories by Matthew McConaughey or Harry Stiles. I swear I’ve never heard the end of the story, I always fall asleep! Their website is offering a free week if you’d like to give it a try. If you’re feeling pandemic anxiety, it’s normal, take some deep breaths, go outside for as walk, call a friend, or do something that makes you feel happy. We’ll…

The sky is grey and it’s raining, again. We’ve hardly had any sun over the last week, today is a gloomy Monday in the woods. Friday was beautiful and over 20 degrees, but I was inside working the whole day. We had a really relaxing weekend, I swear I could have used another two days to charge my batteries. I did nothing but watch Netflix all day on Saturday and it was glorious. I’m on S3 of Gossip Girl now. Yesterday I did a bunch of food prep and then took I nap. Things are really exciting these days lol. Sunday afternoon, we met up with Emily’s mum in Gravenhurst to do the switchover. This morning, ‘Stage 2’ is trending on Twitter and Ontario is seeing the highest Corona cases since the start of the pandemic. Sean and I are thinking to stay up here in the woods for most of the week. The cottage isn’t fully winterized but I would be happy to stay up here as long as we can. Please stay safe and wear a mask. We’re all dreaming of the day this is over. I hope you have a great week.

It was absolutely gorgeous today! The sun was shining and it was over 20 degrees. I spent most of the day working but got out for a run in the am and gazed out at the lake from my desk. The air was warm and it felt like summer. At 4 pm we got alerts about a tornado warning as the sky turned from bright blue to dark and grey. We got hit with some pretty insane hail that ranged from tiny bits to about the size of a quarter. Sean and Em went out to get a some stuff in town and the cottage power went out for a few minutes. They were in Bracebridge when the whole city turned black from a power outage. Crazy!

This week has been really busy. Come Friday, I’ll be taking my business head off and retreating to the cottage from some much-needed creative time. I feel like each day lately has so many ups and downs from work, personal, and everything going on in the world around us. Trying to maintain an equilibrium can be a real challenge. I think we need to ride the rollercoaster and feel this wave out. Stay home, wear a mask. Take breaks. I’m so looking forward to being back in the woods tomorrow, sitting down with my sewing machine, and curling up beside the fire w/ Kindle.

For the last few years, Sean and I have spent Thanksgiving at the cottage. We’ve been getting the Swiss Chalet ‘festive special’ for about four years now. This year we couldn’t dine-in so we got takeout and went down to Muskoka Beach Road to watch the sunset. Thanksgiving 2020 ftw. This year I’m thankful for Sean and my family, how close we’ve all gotten the last few months through the pandemic. I’ve also really become close with a bunch of friends and somehow, even though we’ve not seen each other much in person, we talk more than ever. I am also very thankful for the internet, for keeping us all connected. To the internet for hosting my blog diary that’s helped me build a career and document my memories. I can’t imagine trying to remember everything I’ve done over the last week, 6 months, or 15 years without having it written down. Around this time last year, I decided to make a change in my life and start working out. I’m grateful that I stuck with it, that I didn’t give up, that I changed my eating habits, and learned to love myself more. I remember seeing this Nike ad years ago, the message stuck with me. Why put off until tomorrow something you could check off your list today? If you want to make a change in your life, start now. Start today. By tomorrow, you’ll already be on day 2. Sending you love, hope you had a nice wekeend.

Drove up to the cottage last night and got in just before the sun went down. Woke up and went for a nice run in the woods today. The trees have all started changing and it was so beautiful. It feels good to be back running again! Dad & his wife arrived just after lunch. I made black bean brownies and sweet potato soup before they got in. We went into town for a little tour and to pick up some supplies. I’m so glad to have them here! Looking forward to a relaxing weekend.