I had a good time writing about the life’s lessons I learned in 2009. 2010 has been a really good year, and once more I thought I’d share what I’ve learned, which has so far has been invaluable.
Be assertive in finding love Early this year, I found someone who’s been a really positive force in my life so far. We were both shy at the start, and if I hadn’t made the first move, we may have not even met.
Tannis and I went for an evening walk through City Centre, and on Stephen Avenue came across some wonderful ice sculptures.
Tannis told me that they did this last year as well, but some d-bags knocked them over. It looks like right now the only enemy of these sculptures is the unusually warm weather.
The ice has an odd slick texture, so we think they mixed something in with the water, perhaps so that the ice will stay longer in warm weather.
This year I took another stab at National Novel Writing Month, determined to finish after last year’s poor performance. 50,123 words later, I’ve written down some personal good practices that I’ve discovered along the way.
Your working conditions and lifestyle will be key to finishing a novel. You’ll need to find your productivity hotspot during the day and guard it - mine is the morning before work, so I try to get all of my serious thinking and writing done then.
The Calgary municipal election is today, and it got me nostalgic of the class elections I used to take part in. Mocking school authorities, running a banana tree for class president (and nearly winning), and the shit-show campaigning were great experiences. However, by the end of high school, I didn’t have a single win to show for all the effort, and looking at my old speech, it was obvious that my back was against the wall.
As a New Englander, summer means a variety of things. Beaches, tourists, heat and humidity that borders on oppressive. It also means baseball is in full swing.
As a child, it was natural that I was signed up to play baseball with the community league. However, being a child prone to spastic outbursts and more energy than control, I was a coach’s nightmare. I was doomed to playing outfield (when I was playing at all), and it was the rare kid who ever knocked it my way.
I’m working on another book (two, actually), and it’s sort of been chewing up my free writing time (which includes blog-writing time). Here’s a few of the little tricks I’ve picked up while writing that make the entire process easy and enjoyable.
Write it all down When you write, write as uninhibited as possible. You can spend a week on a sentence, or you can spend 30 seconds. Just remember that your first draft is just that: a draft.
I listened to Public Enemy a lot in high school, so when the opportunity came up to see them at the Whiskey, I was there in a flash.
They let Flavor Flav into Canada this time, but Terminator X wasn’t able to cross the border. Fortunately, they had Keith Shocklee of the Bomb Squad on hand to DJ.
Flavor appeared to have a keeper on stage who kept him from leaping off, which may have been for the best - the bouncers at the Whiskey had no sense of humour.
Hidden away near Sunnyside is a bistro with fantastic food, innovative menus, and arguably one of the best views of the Calgary downtown.
Unfortunately, unless you know the right people, getting in is pretty much impossible. But here’s the thing: a bistro of your own is attainable if you’re willing to put in the effort. My friend Graham started ‘The Whistlestop Bistro’ on a whim, and it’s now a culinary destination within the growing DIY food scene.
When someone tells you that there are no beaches in Calgary, laugh. They are there, and we’re not talking tiny little spots of pebbles. As summer approaches, now is the time to acquaint yourself with the awesomeness that is the Glenmore Resevoir.
Having fond memories of playing at the beach as a child, moving to Calgary seemed like a bummer - I figured the only way of getting my beach fix was to hop a jet to the BC coast.
While looking for an indoor lunch retreat, I stumbled upon the Western Canadian Place, a building that happens to have a great indoor garden and lunch area. Attached to the Centennial Parkade via the Plus 15, this building has an abundance of art, plant life, and sunlight.
The gardens are very well tended, and as you can see in the picture above the gardeners have added quite a bit of colour to the greenery.