Posts Tagged ‘dogs’
January seems from its very position on the calendar to be a month where we are both reflective yet anxious to move forward and achieve new and exciting goals. One of the hardest things to do is to get rid of what is not working. Which is why this blog Life Deco is causing me some angst. Looking at the dates I don’t write in it as much as I should but then what is the rule there? Should I get rid of it? ………..No………. Where would I have put my tribute to my dog Duke, share books, websites or merely sounded off if it no longer existed?
It is also a part of my online portfolio. And therein lies some more areas which will need decisions in the next little while. For instance I have a personal Facebook page (who doesn’t) and I have done a good job of adding professional and personal posts but I don’t have a solely business page. Up to now my reasoning was having a coaching company and online magazine leaves little time to dedicate to a vibrant business page however Facebook has emerged as such a strong place to market I really cannot ignore the urgency there. So if I go ahead I have to decide what the marketing angle is going to be. I guess I am adding to my business side, not taking anything away.
I have added to my personal life also when we adopted a dog from a local humane society in November. Unfortunately things got complicated with his pre-existing leg injury and we had to have the front right leg amputated on December 21 and a bullet removed from his hip. Not to worry he spent the Holidays on a big bed being thoroughly catered to. Now the drains and stitches are out and his head cone is off he can lick his private parts again so he is feeling happier. We have to work on getting him back to a new physical normal which means building up the strength in the front leg and his overall muscle tone.
I do enjoy stopping here with my cup of tea or coffee so I will try and do so more often. I will share, vent and as I did today think out loud.
Happy 2012, Jill (and this would have been my father’s Birthday – still miss you after all these years)
Posted in 
The other day I looked out of the kitchen window and there was Duke trying to fit his big Labrador body on one small dry sunny spot in the snowy back garden. Here in Alberta winter is still clinging on for dear life; there were a few spring like days but this morning we woke up to more snow. The prolonged winter is why I have yet another book review; as the evenings are more about reading than being outside. I have started Roberta Rich’s The Midwife of Venice which I will probably have finished before I see any blades of grass on the lawn and here are my thoughts on the just finished Sarah’s Key by Tatiana de Rosnay -
I wasn’t sure if I wanted to read Sarah’s Key. Over the years I made sure that I was informed about the Holocaust; starting with the Diary of Anne Frank, onto Jean-Francois Steiner’s Treblinka and then Night by Elie Wiesel. I was also careful to watch shows that treated the subject with respect and truth; World at War, Schindler’s List and HBO’s 2001 undervalued Conspiracy come to mind.
From the first few pages I was soon to realize that like the main character Julia I knew nothing about the Vél d’Hiv roundup. As the book unfolds I found Sarah’s journey riveting and the modern day Julia’s story was well intertwined. Unfortunately when de Rosnay drops Sarah’s narrative and let’s the rest of it unfold through Julia’s research the book loses its substance. At that point Sarah’s Key takes on the veneer of a romance novel; the characters and scenes became banal. The last chapter was positively Danielle Steelesque, so much so that when Julia reveals the name of her baby it doesn’t read as poignant but trite.
I do recommend the book as the first half is well written and devoid of melodrama; as France is now willing to face and apologize for the Vél d’Hiv this event needs to take it place in our consciousness. Which further reinforces that if de Rosnay had continued to write Sarah’s character into the second half of the book this would have been a truly great novel from beginning to end.
As for Duke he is back in his cornor of the living room fast asleep on his big soft dog bed with an extra blanket for padding and probably dreaming about spring.
It seems as though we were just celebrating the arrival of a new century and here we are a decade into it.
In 2010 Jill Crossland Coaching grew in the way that I had engineered, veering away from life coaching and taking on more business clients, an unexpected plus was working with male entrepreneurs. This works well as not all women like my direct and down to earth coaching style. As I said to one female client last month ”You don’t pay me to agree with you.”
TimeFinders Magazine is looking for a new name that better encapsulates its broad demographic with the common denominators of being a woman with a business, family and personal life. Contest details can be found at the bottom of the home page.
In 2010 I became part of The Nuttermother online book club because I wanted to broaden my book choices; while I didn’t read every book the ones I choose took me away from my usual genres. If you haven’t done so already I recommend that you read Little Bee and The Help before taking on the latest crop of bestsellers. Little Bee brings you face to face with the question what would you do in a life and death moment. While also looking at the possible actions of a significant other if they were there beside you.
The Help should be read before the movie comes out in August of this year. I am not convinced that Hollywood will do justice to the subtle nuances of both the characters and the time in which they live. I would have preferred to see the story brought to life through an HBO or PBS”s Masterpiece Contemporary production. By the way if you were a fan of Upstairs, Downstairs new episodes are being broadcast in April.
Last years crop of mainstream TV shows had very few bright spots apart from The Good Wife and Blue Bloods; both shows have a strong cast and well written story lines. For me The Walking Dead was just another zombie show only with a better cast and script then usually accompanies this type of entertainment. Whatever your entertainment preference is it is important to carve out time to relax.
Every January I encourage clients to avoid the vicious circle of resolutions and instead we work on setting realistic goals and format a plan to find personalized solutions to problems. It is best to stay away from the one size fits all answers to life’s challenges. The National Post had another approach in their article “Instead of resolutions why not try solutions?”. The first thing that I have done was to purchase the new Blackberry Torch this weekend in the hopes of being a bit more efficient when out and about. Now to find the time to set it up to meet my specifications.
I haven’t mentioned the dogs in awhile. Mia is as lovely and easy going as always. She is enjoying the dog park that the town has finally opened. Neurotic Duke was really good at the park for a couple of weeks but then suddenly started to be grumpy with the others dogs so we had to make the decision to stop taking him. That’s my boy, always a challenge no matter how old he gets.
I hope that you continue to drop by Life Deco and I will endeavor to stay current in my writings. Happy New Year!
Funny how you can plan a week to go one way but life has a different plan. Just one of the unexpected bumps was chocolate lab Duke became ill. In spite of the amazing strides that we have made with this rescue dog his chronic anxiety is never far from the surface, that along with the fact that he is getting old led to a bad bout of acute gastritis. Translated this means a week of cleaning up dog vomit.
Anyway thanks to his amazing vet clinic we are on the road to recovery. I am grateful that the Animal Care Centre, here is Strathmore treats the whole dog – body, mind and spirit. As well as medications we went home on Friday with something called a D.A.P. Collar it releases pheromones which apparently produced wonderful results in helping to calm stressed dogs. We will see.
What I had planned to write about this week was India; a key part of President Obama’s 10 day Asia trip. The world is paying a lot of attention to this country and for more reasons than 
it being a source of call centers for overseas companies. The President has announced a 20 new trade deals that included such institutional companies as GE, Harley-Davidson and Boeing
This year the week of Diwali– the Hindu Festival of Lights falls from November 3rd to 7th. In the same way that Hollywood releases movies to coincide with the holiday season this is the week that Bollywood does the same. It has not been the banner year that India’s film makers had planned on so they are hoping that Bollywood can go global.
Keep an eye on this part of the world as globalization stands to not only improve the economy but will make us richer in our cultural perceptions.
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.
Yes, here it is the moment you have all been waiting for; a photograph of Duke, the neurotic chocolate lab. It is a far from perfect picture (I definitely didn’t photo-shop him in) I had to take it quickly before he realized that in exchange for the dog cookie the camera was going to take a piece of his soul.
My boy is not having the best of months, he was always a thin dog but his weight loss has recently become so severe we have had to subject him to numerous vet visits and medical tests including a somewhat costly ultrasound. Still not sure what is wrong with him. We are starting to wonder if it is psychosomatic……… and you wonder why I call him neurotic.
Mia is 10 months old now and since we got her in July I have been amazed to discover just how many new theories are out there on the right way to raise a puppy. From what to feed; raw, kibble or vegetarian, when, if and what to vaccinate, when to spay, rabies shot yes or no and how to train; clicker, treat, dog whispering. Last week I spend more time deciding on the right style & color of collar for her than I did buying a new blouse.
Somehow we are getting through the first year. I have a great vet clinic and her breeder to guide me and when all else fails I follow my instincts. She is loving and happy and I can live with the fact that getting her to sit or lie down on the first command well that is still a bit on and off.
Jill Crossland is the founder of Jill Crossland Coaching and TimeFinders Online Magazine; companies that offer multi level services and resources for today’s 40+ woman.
In her role as the editor of TimeFinders Online Magazine she works to ensure, that the content is always relevant and useful. The writers and contributors are not usually famous, they are women who can truly empathize with the readers; living in the real world of raising children, caregiving, running businesses, navigating (peri)menopause and trying to find time for that hair cut and manicure!
Jill has also created a place where women can find the help that they need in their personal or professional life, so be sure to check out the Create Your Team area of her website.
As a Life and Business Coach, Jill’s coaching style is down to earth and practical. She works with clients across North America and through Skype is able to provide international and video calls. All consultations are followed-up with emails that include detailed session notes, resources & subsequent ongoing support.
She is a regular contributor to The Best Kept Secret, writes a widely read blog and has been a guest on Jungle Red Writers and Pink Expertise. Jill is also a members of WHO, NABBW, Wheatland Business Women and Canadian Women Business Network. You can also visit her on Facebook, Linked In and Chapter’s online community.
Jill’s Personal Profile:
Jill was born in Nottingham, England. Her first job was as assistant to an antique dealer in Toronto’s Yorkville area. Growing up she lived in many different countries which has helped to develop a very balanced perspective and greater empathy for people and women in particular. Jill went on to earn a degree in Business Administration.
Her professional experiences reflect an ongoing commitment to helping women: from co-ordinating government training programs to her volunteer work in women’s shelters and teaching English in South Korea.
In her own words -
“I like to get an early start to the day by walking Mia, the Australian Shepherd & Duke, the ‘rather neurotic’ chocolate Lab. I am fascinated by what happens in the world from politics to pop culture so my evenings are usually spent with books, newspapers and magazines.
I love good food and am a fairly decent cook, but definitely self taught; as my mother never had the time or patience to teach me, but she did share the secrets of dressing and accessorizing well. My self-indulgences include fresh ground coffee, dark chocolate, red wine and pots of Earl Grey tea.”