This Shit is Bananas, B-A-N-A-N-A-S...

Apparently I think Facebook was invented by a bunch of apes, because I happened to speak my point of view (I know eh, what was I thinking?!) in response to a biblical interpretation note...which may or may not have been, at least partially, influenced by an earlier status I had posted up there: "Jesus called, he wants his religion back". It was on a bumper sticker and c'mon now, tell me that isn't funny. I guess I have a sick sense of humour. Surprise, surprise.

Anyways, this note was all about interpreting people's status's, how people may read into it and completely miss what the person is actually referring to. She went on to reference the holy biblical book himself, and how we all interpret it differently. But really, the biblical authors had "one purpose in what they wrote, and no matter what I think about it, their purpose won't change". No matter what one may think. Hmm. Think being the keyword here.

I'm sorry but I just could not resist this temptation. (I'm a Sinner!) So I threw my few cents "out there". It wasn't an insult, more a point of view - you know, there are more than one of those these days. And hey, I like to spur on religious discussion once in a while because I actually do find it interesting. Just let's converse about it on a respectable level. Maybe I need to work on this, so I don't go ruffling your shiny feathers. Maybe not.

Whatever.

I've had more than my share of force-fed religion and I'm full. I can't help it anymore. I cannot, for the life of me, listen in silence, dumbfounded, to your self-righteous, all-knowing, all-forseeing nonsense, like the naive little girl I once was. Fear, guilt and manipulation does not do your religion justice. To hell with that noise.

I have a voice now and it's all mine.

I am finally free.

Well, at least getting there. It will be final when I can sit and read or hear your fantastical nonsense without my stomach doing catapults, when I can resist the urge to scream every profanity known to woman, when I no longer spew up into my mouth. It's still raw, all the damage you caused. But I am working on it. I am in control now. I will get there. In the meantime, expect to hear from me, because I will probably be throwing my few cents your way. And I will quite possibly, most likely enjoy it.

Sick, twisted. Call it what you will.

Dazed and Confused

"If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion"

Sometimes, dealing with people is downright draining. (And it kinda makes you want to just throw in the towel and say alright, you asked for it). Not all people mind you, but the ones who are just full of that negative energy, walking around with a giant stump up their ass. Get over it. Get on with it. Life's passing you by and you're missing out. In fact, we all are, aren't we? At least, sometimes? I fight negativity every day, and yes, of course I've had that stump up my own ass. But I don't really like it up there. It doesn't feel quite right.

I was at superstore today. It was busy. People everywhere. No surprise, being a Saturday. I wasn't in a rush and was in a pretty good mood, so I figured I was up for the challenge.

What I don't get, is why it has to be such a sideshow? It's like people become these psychotic, robotic beings that you just want to whack out of whatever daze they've put themselves in. Of course, I'd never whack anyone, but the imagery is sometimes enough of a release. Stress relief. Gotta have it.

I'm just blown away by the lack of consideration for other people, the impatience, the rudeness, the selfishness, the attitude. Manners are becoming obsolete. And it's not just the grocery store, it's the workplace, the gym, the road...and well it's pretty much everywhere.

What is up people?

Is life so, so bad that you have to treat other people like shit because you're choosing not to act, but instead react to things that aren't the way you want them, things that may be going wrong for you? Things go wrong for all of us, regularily. We're all in this together, whether we like it or not. It's a fact of life. There's ups and downs, good days and bad days and here's a newsflash for you: not everything is going to be peachy every single moment of every single day.

Why not put it all aside for a moment. Take a moment. Breathe. Look around. See. Feel. Try smiling at the person next to you. Try letting someone else go first. Try words of kindness. Try to think beyond yourself. Beyond your problems. Try to think of others. It's not that hard, and you might just find that it's actually kind of easy once you get the hang of it. You might even find yourself feeling pretty good. And what's wrong with that?

I do recall a near collision today, in which two people stood standing there between mountains of bread and other baked goodies, staring at each other. With a twinkle in each eye, the older gentleman said kindly: "Ladies first". I grinned on the way by, with an appreciative: "Thank you"... and we both carried on... It was lovely.

We all have alot of work to do but it is not impossible...
And it starts with you and I.

Love and compassion are necessitites, not luxuries. Without them, humanity cannot survive.

It is not enough to be compassionate. You must act. There are two aspects to action. One is to overcome the distortions and afflictions of your own mind, that is, in terms of calming and eventually dispelling anger. This is action out of compassion. The other is more social, more public. When something needs to be done in the world to rectify the wrongs, if one is really concerned with benefitting others, one needs to be engaged, involved.

When you think everything is someone else´s fault, you will suffer a lot. When you realize that everything springs only from yourself, you will learn both peace and joy.

~ Wise thoughts from the Dalai Lama

Her Morning Elegance

Isn't that just great?!

Through The Looking Glass

You know, I have to say - having an office like this would pretty much make my entire working career. Nothing beats being in the middle of nature on a clear day, even if you are "working"....

You'd really need to ♥ and get along with your colleagues...


It's bright, it's clean, it's uber-modern... the exotic colours would make me want to sip margaritas (Starbucks when the boss is looking. Oh wait, the boss is drinking margaritas too!) and listen to Marley or Bedouin Soundclash on my iPod all day. I'd definitely have a Mac.


Maybe it really, really appeals to me because my current office is.... well, not that. In fact, it's pretty much polar opposite. Grey walls. Fluorescent lighting. A window that looks out into a beautiful and scenic...hallway. Now that I recall, I did wet wipe my desk today, so I suppose it's clean-er. That's gotta count for something. Right?! Not that I'm a disgruntled employee or anything like THAT, but when you happen to cross paths with something like THIS...

I guess for now, I'll have to use my ever-expanding imagination, and just visualize my fluorescent grey office lemon-lime with little birds serenading me in the background....

See more of the Office Selgas Cano (in Spain) and other architectural photos by Iwan Baan

What Else Does The Bible Say, Je-Suz?

I was reading an article about Prop 8, and yesterday's court ruling...I know, I know - I'm Canadian, but it's a big world out there y'all. Besides, it's a planetwide issue. Think Canada's bill C-38. Lucky for some, that was on the opposite end of the spectrum. Anyways, it reminded me of this funny lil performance:



Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere...
Martin Luther King, Letter from Birmingham Jail, 1963

Ebbs & Flows

Why do we feel the need to justify ourselves to others with some elaborate reason or excuse for not doing something, for the plain and simple reason of not wanting to do it?

Today was just another example of this ridiculous and tiring notion. This time, however, I did not cave. I said a simple No. (Gasp!) When asked why, despite the fact that my stomach was gnawing at my ribcage, skeletal sinews strewn about, promising to glue my ribs back together upon giving in just one more time, I replied plainly and simply: I just don’t want to.

For me, these words are huge. Hugely satisfying, freeing, shiny new. Despite all my people-pleasin’ habits, I knew I still had it in me. I just had to dig deeper to find it, grab it and yank it up out of the dusty pit of my soul and spit the sucker out.

Everyone’s different. It’s not some strange and newfangled idea. We all have our wants and needs and shouldn’t need to justify them to anyone. We shouldn’t have to make up some lame excuse and lie to each other’s faces because we don’t have the guts to stand up for what we really want. We shouldn’t have to worry about offending each other. Walking around on eggshells just isn’t foot-friendly. We don’t need to make assumptions and hallucinate absurd scenarios. We don’t need to feel guilt or fear or be judged and belittled or be written up in some little black book, because seriously now, who really cares?

Whether you’re with the tide, or against it: the wave is yours to ride...

“Be who you are, and say what you feel… because those who mind, don’t matter. And those who matter, don’t mind…” ~ Dr. Seuss

Filthy Rats

Spiders. You know, I really don't mind them. In fact, I could watch one for hours and hours spinning a beautiful filigree of silk or the flawless slaughter of an unsuspecting morsel. Just stay the hell out of my house and don't you try and get fresh with me. Seriously. If you do, I'm going to atomize the life out of you.

Today was the little buggers day. He wasn't anywhere near me. I just happened to see him while taking out the catbox. I'm not sure what he was doing hangin' around in there, but okay. Everyone has their quirks.

Happened to see him, yeah, what I meant, was he was soooooo unbelievably colossal that I thought for a split second he was actually a rat. I exagerate, I know. But still. Bigger than I've ever, EVER seen in my lifetime. And in my house. Freaky. I couldn't even bring myself to zoom in on him with my camera lens because surely he would jump up and bite my mug off.

"He would never actually bite me"... YEAH. RIGHT. (He sure looks like he's gonna). "It's not poisonous"... UM. REALLY. (Whatever you say). Just stay the hell out of my house, build your web above the door and we can be friends.

All I can say, is I am praisin' Jebus you didn't have your Afghani cousin with you...

Oh Look, Summer's Here

And last year’s capris are a wee bit snug! Hmmmmm… Two options. No wait, three: either 1) Wear them 2) Buy some or 3) Lose the extra baggage. I'm doing myself a favour for once and choosing door number three.

I know it is going to be a battle, it always is…what else is new right? But I want to be on the winning side this time. I am going to be. I am going to fit those capris and soon. Not only that, I am going to fit the other lost and forgotten dusty items in my closet… Even if I have to tape them to the wall and stare at them all day as constant reminders. Wouldn’t that be nice décor for my office!

My current diet habits are not working. I have known this for a long time, just chose not to fight those temptations… Last week, while on a walk with a lovely friend, she inspired me to just take some small steps, you know, find a few things here and there to improve on…don’t just change everything altogether all at once, because historically speaking, that definitely does not work (trust me, i've tried that one too) and life is meant to be enjoyed!

I did go to Starbucks yesterday morning and I thoroughly enjoyed my no whip grande iced mocha that, despite my obviously very firm and demanding request, did actually come with a pile of creamy and delicious whip on top, oh well might as well…… succumb.

Later on, in light of the Capri incident, I found myself on Starbucks perusing it’s highly frightening "nutritional" page…. Yikes is what I said. What I did, was fall off my chair.

Mr. Wonderful no whip, whipped right up grande iced mocha is not so wonderful after all. His hidden agenda boasts a whopping 330 calories, 19g of fat, 10g of saturated fat, 0.5g trans fat, 28g sugar…..well you get the point…not good. Not good at all…I did know this, sort of, kind of, in a know secretly but not admit it to yourself kind of way…Too bad because I’m really going to miss you Mr. Ex-Wonderful…You’ll move on, I know, some other sucka will fall madly in love and commit her whole self to you not knowing your true intentions…

However, some habits are hard to break, and since life is meant to be enjoyed (you've just gotta have it some days) – I have found a way to still have Mr. Wonderful on the side, when I want him. Just more of a quickie here and there: a tall, skim milk, no whipped cream iced mocha…. And in case you were wondering, it’s only 130 calories, 2g fat, 7g protein, 27g carbs, 1g fibre, 20g sugars and no saturated or trans fat. Yippeeeee!

With small changes like these, I’ll have an apple bottom in no time.

Concrete Bliss

It’s time for a road trip.

Time to get away...

exit life, for a while.

Breath...Feel...See...

I want to just wake up, pack up and go. Drive. All day. All night. Sunrise. Sunset. Somewhere. Anywhere. Nowhere. Alone...Alive....

I want to see skies blue for miles and miles and feel sweltering heat intensified through the windshield while the wind teases my sticky skin.

I want to drive that open road and not knowing where it leads, only that it leads me…

Wherever I want to go…