This Man Created an Orchard

It's not news anymore. It's been over 12 hours since Steve Jobs' death was announced. I found out on Twitter. I thought it was a hoax. Today is one of those days where I didn't have a blog planned...okay, most days are like that. That's the beauty of how I approach this - I let the universe provide the content and I just figure out the words.

Chances are, you've used an Apple product. You own an iPhone or iPod. You've waited in line for an iPad. As a loyal BlackBerry user (holla CANADA), the only Apple product I have is a first generation iPod Mini. It's pink. It was a present for my 23rd birthday. My boyfriend at the time had it engraved. Newer models are slick, bigger, smaller, have coloured screens and pictures but my wee mini has travelled to beaches with me. It's been on planes, on boats. It's been to university and back. It's been my deejay in two of my cars. It's been the soundtrack to my runs (back when I used to crave running outside). It's been a part of my life for quite a while. Thanks Mr. Jobs.

Jobs has been quoted endlessly and for good reason. He was a visionary. He lived an authentic life. If things didn't feel right to him, he made changes. He shaped his own destiny. Let's try to be more like Jobs today and for the rest of our lives. That's a legacy he would be proud of.

How inspires you? Are you doing enough to inspire yourself?

This is What Dreams are Made of

It's here friends. Summer is finally here and my hair being looped into a bun for the next three months is proof. You'd think maybe I'd chop my hair since it's long and thick and I'm always hot, but oh no...been there, done that, bought the tshirt and spilled the tears of hair regret. I have a new rule for myself: my hair must always be at a minimum, able to get picked up into a pony. Any shorter is too short and I'm so dang lazy about styling it, that short, chic 'dos are just too much maintenance for me. And just so you know, all those celebs rocking the ombre (dark roots fading to lighter ends) got that style from me. I've been doing it for years.

Anyway know you're all really interested in my hair, but since this is people/relationships Tuesday, I thought I'd stick to the plan...except as I type this I have no idea what I actually want to write about. I'm not a blogger who writes drafts and does a lot of planning. Although I'm very organized in life, writing is something that just happens for me. As a wee girl I was always writing stories, reading books and dreaming of being a writer when I grew up. I also wanted to be a ballerina, star on Full House, live in Palm Springs (because they talked about it on 90210)and be rich. Here's what I've accomplished to date: I graduated from the University of Toronto with a writing degree and I spend my days writing training for a financial institution. Not exactly the glamorous stuff I dreamed of years ago, but it's still writing. So, let's talk about going after your dreams.

A while back I wrote about the stuff I dream about for my life. Now, have I gone after my dreams since then? Nope. Do I still wonder if I'm headed down the right path? Certainly. Am I happy? Yes. I'm really happy in fact and I'm blessed to work in a place I'm actually happy to drive to each day. My team is fantastic and I have room to be creative each day. I do wonder though if there's a career out there for me that I haven't searched for yet. Oprah talks about this stuff all the time and it's not a big secret. You'll find peace and happiness when you're doing what you're sent to earth to do. I'm not talking alien missions or anything, but the stuff we're blessed to be able to share. Right now, I think I'm in exactly the right place. I have a fulfilling job, a blog where I'm able to flex my creative writing skills and the opportunity to spread happiness and cheer. I don't want to gag you all with happy faces and smileys and cheerleader stuff, but I do feel I can offer you a glimpse into how I'm able to find the happy in each day. Hopefully, you take something away from this blog and if not, I'm thrilled you stopped by.

I want to send you over to a place that makes me happy and always gives me a laugh, my sweet blogger friend Ashley's space at Run With Me. Her "I must confess" post from yesterday made me laugh and I asked her to move from Atlanta to Toronto to be my friend. In fact, it made me think maybe I could add a similar thing to my blog. I'm always out here having a freggin' happiness parade when sometimes I'm glum and I feel like a fraud. Yes, my goal is to share my life with you guys and show you that we can make ourselves happy if we try, but sometimes I'm sitting behind the computer doing my best Oscar the Grouch. It's true. Major Gal gets sad from time to time and has some confessions about NOT loving things (pretty much the opposite of my "This is making me happy Wednesdays").

Here's my first confession: I used to bite my nails. I currently pick on my left pinkie finger. The nail is so short I often bandage it up to hide it from myself and other people. When my hands aren't doing something else, I'm usually picking at my nails. See? I'm not perfect and ugly fingernails make me unhappy. To cheer myself up though, I bought three new polishes and a nail art pen at the dollar store yesterday. I'll spruce these babies up and give myself happy hands again!

What do you have to confess to Major Gal?

This Animal Happiness

What can't we learn about loving life and being happy from our animal friends? It's no secret that I'm an animal lover and adore my fur baby, Gigi. She's one of the best things in my life and she makes me happy every single day. Dogs generally make me happy. I can be the most put-together powerful woman, owning my intelligence and beauty and then I'll see a dog on a walk and I start shrieking and talking to the dog who may or may not be able to hear me. And, I'm thrilled to do it.



Lately I've seen a few great emails and slide shows about pets and animals. Last week I posted a video to my Facebook about a dog the SPCA rehabilitated.

Honestly, if you need a push to get out of the bed in the morning and sometimes suffer from "Woe is me" syndrome, watch this video and think about how good you have it. Lucky, the star of this video doesn't complain. More of us should be like Lucky.




Dogs have such a wonderful way of looking at the world around them. The water dish is always half full for dogs and when the bowl is empty, they don't bitch and whine. Instead they're so elated when you fill it back up again. Let's do more to be like our furry friends. Last summer I was out of work for a bit and one day I walked my three dogs down to the park. We sprawled out on the grass and it's still one of the most peaceful and joyous moments I can remember having in ages. We weren't doing a thing. I wasn't on my BlackBerry. The dogs weren't munching on treats. We just enjoyed the bliss of the grass against our bodies and the sunshine on our faces. It was fantastic and I learned something really important from my dogs that day...happiness shouldn't be a goal. I found happiness in those few minutes when I let myself slow down and stop stressing about a job and money. I just took the moment in and looked at my dogs. They're my happiness gurus.

This Nagging Question

Do you ever wonder if you're really doing what you're supposed to be doing on this earth? I often wonder how long I'll stay in the industry I just fell in to from university. Yes, I studied writing in university and the goal my entire life has been to write, but compliance training for a bank wasn't exactly what I dreamed of. Certainly pays for the manicures and puppy spa visits for Gigi and the Starbucks addiction, but what is it feeding my soul?

I spend five days a week at a computer for at least eight hours straight. Sometimes I eat my lunch in the dining hall, but usually I'm grabbing bites of cold rice and wilted salad an hour after I brought lunch to my desk. It's not because I'm so in love with my work that I can't pull myself away, it's because there's always work to be done. Don't get me wrong, I'm lucky to have this job and any job really, but I continually ask myself when I'm going to make that leap and put all my money on ME.

I've had a couple of dream career ideas and they're always in the back of my mind, I've just got to decide when I'll be brave enough to go after one of them. My pal Shannon was a victim of the economy and turned her life around. She loves animals - hence the friendship - so she started a dog walking business downtown. Gigi was her second client. In under six months she was pulling in more dough walking dogs than she had been as a marketing manager in the biz for ten years. And she's HAPPY. Like capital "h" happy. Start-up costs were minimal and each day when I leave for work I envy her. I know she gets to spend the day with furry people, including my fur baby and I wish I had the guts to do what she does.

What's your dream? Are you living it? Are you going after it? Are you in a career that you didn't plan for and think one day you'll quit and do what you really want to be doing? That's me. It's not a matter of if, it's only a matter of when. Bet on yourself and go after those dreams.

This Stuff that I Adore

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens... Except, if we're changing this to a few of MY favourite things, I would have hydrangeas and puppies. I do love kittens and some types of roses, but we're getting off track here.

When I finally decided on a pair of shoes to wear to work this morning, I came up with this post idea: the stuff I love. I'm wearing a pair of three and a half year old gold ballet flats. I got them at a Target (Boutique Tarjay) in Florida for twelve bucks. They go with everything, are really comfortable and I haven't worn them since spring. Hence, my favourite thing about this morning.

This list is in no particular order and is truly another one of my ploys to get you guys to think about the stuff you really can't live without, and therefore makes you happy.
Here's my list:
1) My dogs, all three of them. Gigi Baby, Lily Flower and Roxy Girl - yes they have middle names - make me smile each and every day, even when they're being bad, wrapping their leashes around my legs and almost tripping me, shredding every scrap of paper they can find or barking incessantly for no reason. They're still three of my favourite things.
2) The smell of Hawaiian Tropic tanning oil. I'm a beach fanatic and truly should not have been born in Ontario. When I went to California a few years ago I though, "Hey! This is where I was supposed to be all these years!" Anything associated with the beach is my favourite. Lotions, sand, saltwater, swimming, getting a tan, bikinis, tan lines. All faves.
3) BBM. BlackBerry Messenger is a daily piece of heaven. I dislike texting now. I feel like it takes too long. the iPhone is pretty, but I'm a slave to BBM.
4) The flowers Ryan had delivered to me on my first day in the new condo. They're blush and beautiful and sitting in a crystal water jug on a pedestal table by my windows. Gorgeous.
5) Katy Perry. She's my girl crush these days. I could stare at that flawless skin and rockin' bod all day. And like, who doesn't love fun wigs? Pink hair? I'll take it!
6) My friend Shannon's design blog, www.whatsupwhimsy.com. It's my go-to creativity inspiration each morning. She has a baby, a husband, a job and she still blogs constantly and adds pictures. It really is a thing of beauty. She inspires me which brings me to my next favourite thing...
7) Inspiration. Let it grab you anywhere. Find it in the supermarket. Read it in a card. Catch a glimpse of it in a painting. Hear it in a song. Never stop wanting to do more and be better. You've gotta keep growing and for spiritual, intellectual, emotional and creative growth, we need inspiration.
8) The Elvis Presley station on satellite radio. I give $17.95 to Sirius each month and I never regret a penny of it. The Elvis channel, live from Graceland, bumped a house station out of the number two preset and man, do I SING those Elvis tunes. If I were alive when he was in his prime, I would have been all over that.
9) This organic risotto Ryan and I had the other night. I saved part of the label so I can buy it again. I made the garlic primavera version this week (which was super easy) and we inhaled it. Well, first we pretended like we would save the leftovers and then I said, "Ryan, you might as well finish the risotto. There's hardly enough to save..." He replied with enthusiasm and faster than I expected and we both ate from the same plate. It was good.
10) Fall. Yes, I love summer and September is my least favourite month of the year, but I get a bit excited when autumn rolls in again and I can wear jackets and boots, or is it that I can buy jackets and boots? Tough call. Anyhow, seeing the leaves change colour is truly amazing. Drive north on the 400 at King City Sideroad and look at those trees in a couple of weeks. Truly a marvel of this universe.
11) The way all the colours in my condo are coming together so beautifully. My gray shag rug, my impulse purchase chair, my massive mixed media California-themed piece of art, my pillows from Walmart and the shelf I put together - by myself I might add - from Ikea that only cost $29.00 and the fact that I finally have places to display my books according to the colour of their jackets and/or spines. I saw it in InStyle a couple of years ago and have been waiting for a space to use the technique since then. Okay, I might need three more bookshelves to fit them all, but it will be worth it.
12) Knowing that Christmas is coming and I can put up all my girlie decorations!!!!!! I've already moved them in to the storage locker in my condo. I haven't moved my coats or jackets in yet, but I've got stuff ready for December. Priorities.
13) The movie Up In The Air. I watched it the other night and I liked it. I stayed awake past ten which means I REALLY liked it. When George gives one guy the speech with the line, "How much did they pay you to first give up on your dream?" I felt smacked in the face, in a good way! Why aren't I going after my dreams? I'm in a career that pays well and I'm happy, but it's not part of my dream. It's sort of woken my up a bit and inspired me.

There you have it friends. This is the stuff I really dig these days.