Category Archives: education

Oh! those summer nights

14 Sunday Aug 2022

Posted by in Art, education, Health, photography, therapy

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This post contains scenes of nature therapy, art therapy and memories of teenage love.

First, let’s pay tribute to a talented actress and songbird, Olivia Newton-John who recently passed away at the age of 73 after a long battle with cancer.

The summer of 1978 was one of adventure and romance for me and my best friend. We met cute boys whose families owned cottages on Georgian Bay. The days and nights were full of giggles, kisses and hopes. I remember exchanging letters and pining for my American boyfriend months after his family returned home and everyone fell back into weekly routines. I held onto the sweet memories for months until they were buried and cooled by the winter’s snow. We saw each other the following summer, only in passing, exchanging polite greetings.

Olivia Newton-John sings Hopelessly Devoted from that cult classic, Grease

Fast forward to summer nights occupied with glamorous household chores, mellowing out with TV sitcoms, and adjusting fans to cool off my sweaty, menopausal body. Some of the perspiration is caused by frustrations with a geriatric Cat.

Closing off a well-appreciated vacation week, I recently joined members of my Rotary club and a dear friend for a forest therapy guided tour of nearby woods. It was refreshing to get outdoors plus meet people whose faces I had only seen on the screen during Zoom meetings.

One tree endured ten minutes of my sensory attention during a forest therapy exercise
The author appreciates the sights, sounds, and aromas during a forest therapy guided tour

I admit to hugging a tree during this event. I struggled to quiet my busy mind that constantly needs to identify and classify my surroundings.

You can learn more about this forest therapy practice at https://www.foresttherapyottawa.ca/.

One daily activity this past week was to evolve a piece of art as homage to one of my favourite, underappreciated artists. It also provided me with mindless dotting of colours while watching TV or listening to music with a really good beat.

Night forest – a study in pointillism, markers, August 2022 TAJ

I think one can appreciate the final result after viewing the progress. Let me know what you think: https://photos.app.goo.gl/5ZQ2dW3kx5P7FhX99 .

Now it is Sunday, a day of reflection, household chores and preparing for the return to the downtown workplace. Let us pray that the Busing Gods will be kind.

Thank you for dropping by, especially if you are a real person and not the creator of a made-up blog.

T

Using humour to get through the rough times

12 Saturday Sep 2020

Posted by in education, Health, pets, therapy

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First, I hope followers and readers are safe and healthy.

I am thinking of folks adapting to pandemic protocols, political uncertainty in the south, forest fires in the west, tornadoes in the middle and hurricanes in the east.

Then there’s the rest of the world where I feel I have little control of events except through donations to humanitarian causes.

Doodle – I accept that I don’t have control of everything

When you’re surrounded by chaos and uncertainty, it helps to take a few minutes a day to sit in quiet, to meditate and if anything, just count the breaths.

I am still grateful to have a job and flexibility to work from home. I am still hopeful for a future career by starting school last week, now as an online course in the part-time program. It’s nice to hear familiar voices, to see familiar faces although pixelated, and to discipline myself into focused learning again.

I am grateful to see one of my offspring in person every few weeks. I feel satisfied to hear and see other loved ones over the phone, video chats and during physically distanced picnics in the park. It has been over a year since I have travelled to visit my grandchildren. Heartbroken, I still compensate by sending them birthday cards and small gifts through the mail. My heart skips a happy beat when their parents send me an email or text message. It seems like so long since I have received a barely legible letter from my oldest granddaughter.

The used bookshop where I would volunteer on weekends has been closed since March. I miss it. I think about the library staff, the regular patrons, the Seniors, the socially and economically challenged who rely on these services.

I spend my lonely nights watching TV, movies and doodling. I seek out comedies to help with the release of belly laughs.

COVIDdoodle One Day at a Time

Hop on over to the Tabby Cat’s blog to see some doodles I did to get me through the blur of days and weeks in the past six months.

Pushing for Friday

I invite you to read this quickly sketched comic, a humorous depiction of a typical day working from home.

Humour: Going through the motions of remote work during isolation

Thanks for dropping by. What are you doing to cope during these trying times?

COVIDdoodle – This too shall pass

Otherwise, stay safe. Take care of yourself and each other.

T

Toxic beauty

06 Saturday Jun 2020

Posted by in education, Health, writing

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I watched this documentary on CBC TV the other night. It scared the sh*t out of me.

I’m not a extensive cosmetics user so I allow myself some relief that I may not be exposed to a lot of the harmful substances.

The cosmetics industry is the new tobacco, the new sugar – filled with lies and dark advertising to tell us how to look beautiful, how they sell things using made-up and air-brushed models.

I’ll have none of it and I struggle in resisting judgement of friends and colleagues who are obviously slaves to this deception.

Being a natural blonde with a peaches and cream complexion, I feel smug that I don’t have to submit myself to all those toxins just to look “beautiful”. I’m also older now, becoming more comfortable in my skin and frankly, don’t give a rat’s ass.

What is beauty anyway?

Surviving the last three months of this pandemic in isolation, I have less need for mascara, lipstick and deodorant (it’s just me and the cat in the home office these days).

I HAVE taken to other harmful habits like drinking homemade rum punches on the weekends and sitting in the sun for longer than recommended now that the weather is nice – on my balcony. I also don’t wear sunscreen. I’m a rebel.

Thanks for dropping by. What are you doing to lessen your exposure to harmful toxins these days?

Stay well. Stay safe.

T

Drop by my pen name’s blog to see what she’s writing about these days, while surviving the pandemic.