Archive for the ‘Seasonal’ Category
I looked pretty good at the beginning of winter; everything was new and colour coordinated right down to my gloves and hat. It is now May and oh my god it snowed yesterday morning. So when I dressed to walk the dogs there was very little enthusiasm which may have been a mistake. I ended up wearing the old winter jacket that Chris and I both use when we take out the garbage, gloves were those $1- ones that you get at the grocery store and my thumb was coming through and to complete the ensemble my favourite Victoria’s Secret yoga pants that have seen a few too many washes. And I hadn’t even matched the right coloured leases to the dog’s collars.
Perhaps the standards have slipped somewhat but I must defend myself and say that it is May 29th. What was that? You saw me out walking this morning. No, that was another woman with a chocolate lab and Australian Shepherd – couldn’t have been me!
With Your Biscotti & Coffee
1) An Interesting Woman: India Hicks
She was recently intervewed by Nathalie Atkinson when she presented at the Canadian Fragrance Awards in Toronto.
Her website: http://www.indiahicks.com/
2) Lambeth Palace Library
If you are in England between now and July 23rd set aside some time to visit the Lambeth Palace Library. In celebration of its 400th anniversary in 2010, the Library is showing its diverse collections of manuscripts, archives and books, some of which will be on display for the first time. Lambeth Palace is the official London residence of the Archbishop of Canterbury.
3) BP Oil Spill
LA GULF RESPONSE: “In the wake of the BP Oil Spill that is threatening our coast, local, regional and national conservation organizations are coordinating volunteers to assist in local, state and federal recovery efforts in Louisiana.
Our organizations – including the Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program, the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana, the National Audubon Society, the National Wildlife Federation and The Nature Conservancy – are established, active advocates for the preservation and restoration of coastal Louisiana ………..’”
Please visit http://lagulfresponse.org/home.html to volunteer or make a donation.
Posted in 
This past Sunday morning I enjoyed what I like to call the running of the Australian Shepherds. Periodically Mia’s breeder Theresa invites the dog owners out to her farm. It really is quite a sight to see all them bounding around the fields; different coat colors, ages, generations and personalities. While the dogs are chasing one another, we the doggy moms (and occasional dads) get to catch up and compare notes on all things, Aussie! Mia will be two in May; she has gone from puppy to adult and Duke is now a senior dog, how quickly that time went.
Winter is slowly starting to wane in Alberta but the landscape has a dull, muddy look to it. Is it a midlife thing when we start to measure our life by the seasons? I know that I need to break the brown monotony, with some flowers. This is actually my favorite time of year for flowers. In my dating prime I always thought that the man who really got me would have come to the door with spring flowers instead of those expensive roses. A bouquet of daffodils, some vivid iris and tulips, the scent of jasmine or a beautiful bowl of hyacinths would have delighted me. Add to this offering a leather bound copy of one of my favorite books and I would have ……… (insert own words).
Another measurable part of my time is the chunks of it that I spend R&Ring or doing Reading & Research. Finding information & resources for clients and my writing has me uncovering all sorts of interesting material. I therefore thought that I would start to share with you some of the websites and articles that I come across in that process. Some engaging bits and pieces from around the world that will go well With Your Biscotti & Coffee
This week we have; ladies only trains, why acquiring water is still such a challenge in may parts of the world and an article on what may be happening between you and your best friend. Enjoy
1) Ladies Special
In countries where women are breaking with tradition and becoming the bread winners we are seeing some unexpected outcomes. India is now running women only trains. This came about because the women are tired of being verbally and physically abused on the regular trains. Another offshoot is women vendors who sell everything from earrings to hairpins to frozen yogurt to the female passengers.
BBC News: Joy of India’s women only trains
2) Water.org: Women Can’t Do Everything Campaign
Searching for water takes hours out of the day for women around the world.
3) The Myth of the BFF by Kate Fillion
Irene S Levine has a PDF version of this really interesting article that was published in Chatelaine Magazine, January 2010.
It was a cold Christmas and New Years’ here in Alberta with temperatures often in the -20’s. We however were comfortably ensconced at home having made a decision to have a quiet holiday season; wanting to relax, regroup and restore.
Needless to say this was not ideal dog walking weather so I stretched my imagination to keep them amused with indoor activities. Duke who is known to many of you as the neurotic chocolate lab recently turned nine and his long legs are showing the early onset of arthritis. His vet has just started him on a course of Cartrophen Vet which is of plant origin and not a steroidal anti-inflammatory. There are four shots so we will see if it helps. Mia, his 18 month old Australian Shepherd sister has no sympathy and continues to bug the hell out of him until he plays with her so he needs something!
The weather is particularly hard on the two feral cats who have adopted me or vice versa. I have my quota of indoor cats; anymore and I will be close to ‘cat lady’ status. So we built them a shelter and ensure that they receive dry bedding, regular fresh water and food. No matter how cold and hungry it is my voice that they wait for first when I go outside. When I speak to them their bodies relax and ears perk up, next they want the fresh water and then finally they eat.
Whether soothing a frightened animal, talking to a friend or writing an article it is our voice and the words that we choose that carries the message.
Blogs are all about our voice, the words that we type convey the nature and style of the blog. One of the first things I ask my clients. What do you want to achieve with your blog? Do you want to post about business, life, lifestyle, travels, writing? The range is vast so in order to stand out you have to have a clear vision and goals for your blog.
So with that in mind we have changed the look of this blog to reflect more of what we are about. Imagine that you are sitting in a café with friends discussing movies, politics, books, food and life in general. Life Deco is a blog where we aim to capture that same atmosphere. Drop by anytime all you need to bring is your favorite beverage. We hope that you will leave a comment for that will keep the conversations stimulating.
Thank you to Alanna Morley of Alanna Inc for designing the Life Deco blog.
1. Buy really smelly cheese.
2. Replace your laptop on the dining table with a place setting for a person
3. Attempt to write something dazzling in cards to clients but end up with ‘best wishes’
4. Slip into your office to catch up on work and don’t answer the phone
5. Wonder why you keep buying boxes of crackers
6. Go to farmers markets and expensive bakeries for your ‘homemade’ baking
7. Curl up at 2pm with a book, hot cocoa and no guilt
8. Carry on whole conversations without any interruption
9. Feel like a kid again and actually enjoy the snow
10. Stop planning everything with military precision
…………. remember that the best moments are spontaneous.
For many of us the book that we choose to read at any given time is determined by any number of factors.
It could be seasonal. Summer is the time for the blended and frothy type of book. In the spring and fall I tend to be restless so I like the story to take place somewhere other than North America. Winter is for those big cozy works of historical fiction and memoirs
Then we check our mood, do I need to find myself or lose myself?
Finally, there is the time of day; business books and research are great for day time but by the evening I want something with which to as Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot might say “turn off the little grey cells”.
Age doesn’t really enter into the equation; think of the number of adults reading Harry Potter.
So here we are the summer of ‘09. My Amazon book wish list is pages long and I have groaning piles of yet to be read books, newspaper business sections, Time, Vogue, Marie Claire, O and More magazines in the living room, office and bedroom.
I have just finished My Sister’s Keeper which was no great feat; it is to literature what The Young and the Restless is to PBS. I will say though that the ending was unexpected. Next on my pureed summer book diet is Julie & Julia which led me to Julie Powell’s blog What Could Happen.
In the way of a little brain fiber I am reading three business books that have been recommended to me -
“Coolhunting: Chasing Down the Next Big Thing” Peter Gloor
“Tribes” Seth Godin
“Change Your Questions, Change Your Life: 7 Powerful Tools for Life and Work”
Marilee G. Adams Ph.D.
I cannot end this post on books without mentioning the one literary genre for all seasons and that is a good murder mystery. This past week coincidentally I was exchanging emails with mystery writer Roberta Isleib, who is currently on the other end of the equation in that she is spending her summer putting the finishing touches on a new book.
No matter what the month is, all that you need to truly enjoy a mystery is a comfortable chair, no one home, a dark night, some fog rolling in, the sound of dogs howling over the moors ……………
It is difficult these days not to see Elizabeth Edwards when we turn on the television. The interviewer is reading an excerpt from her book “Resilience” with that tone of voice reserved for the sick person in hospital, asking gently worded questions and providing the viewer with a soapy interview.
I know she is the victim of an extra marital affair and I know that she is ill with breast cancer. I cannot nor do not judge how she handles these things. In these matters my affiliation is firmly with the ‘what goes on behind closed doors’ party.
What is perturbing is why she supported and campaigned for John Edwards to be President of the United States after he told her about the affair. Why, in spite of this knowledge did she sally forth, endorsing her husband as the right man for the job. Why did she cast herself as the loyal wife in the tableau of the wholesome American family?
By making the decision to submit herself and her family to this renewed public scrutiny, she should be accountable for that period in time. As Roger Simons asks in his article “Did Elizabeth Edwards want to get into the White House as badly as John Edwards did?”
I counter that with this question “Is Elizabeth Edwards again using the American public this time to garner book sales?”
Caryl Rivers in her Huffington Post article writes that she should be allowed to tell her story, to “have her say”. Funny that she has so much to say now but the truth was oddly silent during the ‘08 Presidential campaign.
When I am remiss in connecting with someone I dash of an email with the subject line - ‘Catching Up’ so here I go.
In 2008, Nov 4th was noteworthy not only because Barack Obama won the election but also because that was the day when I broke my foot. Sorry, Barack but my tears during your acceptance speech were 44% happiness over your win and 56% PAIN!
This is the first time that I have ever broken anything so I was fascinating by the whole process from my foot becoming a grotesque size and one big multi-colored bruise. By the way, whoever designed the walking cast should be given some sort of prize. To the shoe area of my bedroom which took on a somewhat macabre look as it became home to one dress shoe, one boot, one sneaker and one slipper. Sadly, even though it was the holiday season my high heel shoes just gathered dust.
When out and about you are more reliant on the kindness of strangers. Those who took the time to hold open the door for a few minutes longer as you hobble over, people who kept up their snow and ice removal and even the cab drivers who yes, open the car door and were extra helpful getting groceries to the door. Speaking of shopping not sure what to say about the grocery staff who were restocking shelves and pretend not to notice me struggling to get an 8KG bag of kitty litter into the shopping cart.
Anyway, foot is basically healed now and it is a brand New Year. I don’t believe in New Years Resolutions but I do have a few things that I would like to work on.
1. Drink less coffee. Drink more green tea.
2. Learn how to make an omelet
3. Find more time to read and write.
4. Be the kind of Life & Business Coach who really helps their clients in these tough economical times.
5. Take Mia to the next level of obedience classes. The time together and the interaction with others will be good for both of us.
6. Stay in touch with friends & family so I don’t have to send those catching up emails.
7. Have massages and manicures on a regular basis.
8. Finish that pile of partially read books besides my bed.
9. Podcast & Twitter
It is really going to bother me that I couldn’t come up with an even ten.
………………….10. Work on an apparent latent tendency towards perfectionism.
What I would buy me for Valentine’s Day?
1. No red roses, I would choose a bouquet of spring flowers with lots of daffodils and colorful tulips . Then buy myself some ripe, juicy strawberries and a really good bottle of Pouilly Fuisse. That should satisfy most of my senses.
2. Books are always a favorite gift for me but for this list, no business, self-help or generally mind expanding books. I would pick five well written, full bodied works of fiction.
3. A rich chocolate brown (not black) leather jacket
4. A new, sexy, sleek laptop
5. First class ticket for a trip home to England. Once there I would slowly travel from Dover to Scotland by train. stopping at historical hotels along the way. Of course I would be traveling with my leather jacket, five must read books and new laptop so that I could record my journey.
NB: No spouses’ feelings were hurt in the making of this post.
