Wednesday Things

Good Morning World,

Here’s a mish mash of thoughts for the day.

Equality will not happen in this world until we, as a collective society, agree that inequality is our present reality and has been for a long time. If you’re marching, if you’re writing letters, if you’re making phone calls, if you’re having awkward conversations, keep going. It’s a worthwhile battle to fight. And in the end, we should all want to be better. Also, we should all treat each other fairly and equally. Be an ally. Keep the fight going. Make change.

I reckon that there are some wealthy elites who will be knocked down a few pegs in the coming months/years. With the arrest of Ghislaine Maxwell by the FBI, there are likely a lot of very powerful people who are scrambling to cover their tracks and hide their heinous crimes and friendship with Geoffrey Epstein right now. The skeletons were hidden so long as she was in hiding… now that she’s in custody, I could be years of unfolding the horror and indecency that Epstein and his powerful friends thrust on the world. Human trafficking, sex trafficking, sexual assault of underaged victims, oh the list is a lengthy one and I bet the public doesn’t even know the half of it. You know shit’s going to go down when even the Royal Family of one of the oldest monarchies on earth is doing damage control.

Canadian actor and extremely talented Broadway star, Nick Cordero, has passed away from complications brought on by Corona Virus. At just 41 years old, he leaves behind a wife and a son (who turned one and learned to walk whilst he was in the hospital). Over the past three months that he was in hospital, he’s suffered from strokes, been in a coma, had his leg amputated, dealt with serious blood clots and, at one point in time he was even going to be put on the transplant list. 41 years old and this virus left him in hospital for three months fighting for his life until he eventually succumbed to it. His wife is now a widow and his son will never know, or remember, his dad. It’s something I say a lot to everyone in my life, but if you’re not wearing a mask… please put one on. You really do not know who you could infect with this virus. Whomever it was that infected Nick Cordero… well it lead to his death. Even if you’re healthy, even if you ‘don’t go around that many people’, please just put on a damn mask. Don’t be responsible for someone else contracting a deadly virus… because honestly, you don’t know whether or not it’ll kill them. Corona Virus is not gone. Nor is this ‘the second wave’… we’re still in the first wave, ladies and gentlemen.

Alright, it’s pouring rain and I’ve got to make myself some breakfast before my next meeting. Working from home is convenient in that sense.

Make smart choices today. And also, have a good day.

That’s all for now.

New life, who dis?

I woke up this morning at peace… with myself, with the universe, with life. It seems like things might actually be turning around for me. (Knocks on wood) It seems like maybe what I’ve wanted for so long might actually be attainable. It seems like things are good, for a change. (Again, knocking on wood)

It feels a bit like I’ve won the lottery in a sense. I’ve never needed a lot to make me happy and now that I feel like I might actually get all of it, I don’t know how to accept it. Is that weird? I feel like I don’t deserve it.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m thankful. I’m counting my lucky stars. I’m so, so, so grateful. I’m just worried the other shoe is going to drop.

For now, though… I’m just going to enjoy it, appreciate it and soak it all in. Loving my life and the people who are in it.

Feels like a Monday

I recently found out that I have a savings account that was opened in 2009 that has been sitting dormant since 2009… because I genuinely did not set it up and did not know it existed. There is $111.13 in the account.

Can I close the account (since I haven’t used it in 11 years because I didn’t know it existed) and take the money out of it?

Nope. Apparently the bank puts rules on savings accounts. That’s fine. I plan on switching banks next month anyway, so I guess they can keep this mysterious $111.

Its 9:10 am and I’m on my third cup of coffee. I’ve also done two video interviews and spent forty minutes waiting on hold with the city. Man oh man, I seriously hate when someone asks you to call them and they then proceed to make you wait on hold. “Just call whenever” would be so much easier if they could provide a time where they’d be near their phone and willing to answer.

Oh and two of my coworkers tested positive for Corona Virus on Friday. So… I’m in no rush to get to that office.

Why is it that Friday is so far away from Monday but Monday is so close to Friday?

I found a house

I found a house to move into.

I filled out a rental application and I was accepted.

I’m moving.

It’s surreal to say that. I’ve wanted this for what feels like a lifetime. Now that it’s finally happening, part of me is waiting for the shoe to drop. Part of me thinks it’s too good to be true and something has to go wrong.

I’m trying not to jinx it. But, big news… I FOUND A HOUSE! It’s a beautiful house in a really nice neighbourhood. It has air conditioning! (If anyone who’s reading this is from a country where air conditioning is normal, it’s really more of a luxury and a rarity in homes in Canada) It also has a really beautiful kitchen that’ll allow me to reclaim my love of cooking. And, something I’ve never had before in my life, it has a walk in closet. A walk in closet! I’ll have felt like I’ve officially arrived when I have a closet so large that I can change in my closet each day.

Could it be true? Could things be really falling into place? Could I really luck out and get everything I’ve ever seen for my future? My office is in the city, in a skyscraper, on the 20th floor. Now I’ve got a perfect place just outside of downtown and it’s gorgeous and it’s close enough to the office that I won’t get stuck in traffic, but far enough from downtown that rent is fucking amazing.

How did I get this lucky?

For so long now I’ve been really down-and-out, so to speak. I’ve felt as though there’s nothing left for me, there’s nowhere to go and I’d be stuck in mediocrity and hell for the rest of my days. It’s weird to have hope again. This isn’t a familiar feeling to me. Finding a job during a global pandemic? Four leaf clovers… Finding a gorgeous new build home with rent the same as any apartment and older home in the city? Freaking pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, it feels like.

Now I just need to pack.

AND PLAN.

For a new life in a new city.

I’m trying to do things right this time… take things slow… savour the victories. Since you can’t get these moments back, I want to remember the feeling I felt when things finally started turning around for me.

I’m beyond excited to move into this home and start making it mine. I’m also looking forward to what comes through this road ahead. I’m hoping it breeds a lot of contentment. Perhaps, if I’m really lucky, a little adventure.

Time to pack my bags…

Do dreams mean anything?

For a few weeks now I’ve been dreaming, every night, that someone is trying to murder me. Whomever it is, they are never identified in any of my dreams, I just catch glimpses of the back of a head as they run, bike or drive away from the scene of the attempted murder…

Every dream I somehow manage to escape a tragic fate. I would suggest almost as though I’ve got nine lives but there’s definitely been more than nine dreams at this point.

Do I just watch too many cop shows? Are my dreams telling me I should open my eyes in case someone around me is trying to harm me? I’m really just speaking out loud here but it has been so bizarre. I don’t know. Maybe I’m just not handling stress well and this is my body telling me…

If I ever go on a world tour…

I’m going to make it a point to prank call my enemy from every town that I visit in every country that I go to. That way the creepy phone calls with bizarre messaging or heavy breathing to try and scare them, well they can block the number but I’ll have already moved onto the next.

It’s like the perfect plan to exact my revenge. Torment them and they can’t do anything about it. Unless they change their phone number… in which case I’d just start calling their husband… lol, he’s an asshole too. (Shocker! Assholes usually come in pairs.)

Then when I return from my world tour I will write a book about how I exacted my revenge on those who wronged me and it will be a best seller that will inevitably get turned into a TV show. Okay, there was already a show called Revenge, but this one would be different. Better. Like Jason Bourne with a hint of angry five foot blonde who never forgets.

Inset evil laugh here…

Be kind to one another, please

I would be remiss if I didn’t tell each and every one of you to please be kind to one another. This is a tough time for the world over and the last thing we need to do is turn on each other.

Show compassion, empathy and care. Ask someone how their day was and genuinely listen for the answer. Call your mom and dad or grandma and grandpa just to tell them you love them. If you’re financially able, buy the next person in line their morning coffee. Kindness goes a long way in this world and we desperately need more of it. So give kindness. Spread love, not hate. And please, please, please do it from a safe social distance.

Remember: you cannot do all of the good that this world needs but this world needs all of the good that you’re able to do.

Quarantine day: I’ve lost count

I dyed my hair today. It looks absolutely terrible. That’s okay though. We’re trying to accept change for what it is and move forward, even if the top of our head resembles that of a fire hydrant. Yes, we’re referring to ourself in third person now. Ourselves?

I mentioned a few weeks back that I was considering cutting my hair myself. Well, I never really gathered the guts to do that, so I decided that dying it was a much better idea instead.

Perhaps I’ll dye it again? I’m good at a lot of things in this life but logic is definitely one of my strong suits.

It’s been an eventful week. The tectonic plates beneath my feet have shifted and life will no longer be the same. As I stare at the chaos around me, waiting for the dust to settle, I realize that I have a choice to make. Do I live in the wreckage and pretend that it’s the home I remember, or do I crawl from the rubble and slowly rebuild elsewhere? I’ll have to get back to you on that one because I really don’t have any answers. At least not right now. That seems to be par for the course in my life, though.

I’m beating up on myself tonight. I don’t want to be, it’s just the mood that I’m in. I was in this exact same room ten years ago today. Ten years ago. It’s crazy to me that, as much as has changed over the past ten years, nothing has seemingly changed. Did I really accomplish anything at all? Not likely. Time plays tricks on us. It really does. One minute your whole life is in front of you and the next minute it’s ten years later and you’re in the exact same place. Sure people have grown, some have even gone grey. But, for the most part, nothing has really changed. Everyone’s still the same they’ve always been. I guess I shouldn’t really judge. I’m not exactly the poster child of accomplishment. I always just assumed I was meant for so much more.

Perhaps it’s the quarantine talking… whatever it is, though, maybe it’s time I start adjusting to the world and stop waiting for it to adjust to what I desire. Because if the past is any indication of the future, I’m definitely not going to get what I want and hard-work plays absolutely zero factor in that.

Rainy days and Sundays

I’ve sat down to write this a few times this weekend. Each time I’m hit with a ‘you can’t talk about that’ frame of mind. So, I end up deleting it and closing my computer. Alas, here we are. I’m still not sure what I’m gong to say.

Things are changing swiftly around here. So swiftly that I am having a hard time keeping up. I genuinely was hoping that people would be more excited than they have been. But hey, I guess it’s my life, not their’s. So, what matters most is finding my own happiness. After all, we’re the only one’s responsible for our own lives.

To anyone who remembers my posting that I was going to give the website Medium a try, I have just over six in earnings so far. Not too bad, really. That’s six more dollars than I expected to make. Consider me pleasantly surprised.

I’ve noticed a distinct difference between Medium and WordPress. WordPress is the kind of place where I, and many others, dump out their thoughts. There are no rules, it’s more like the Wild West of writing platforms. Medium is very structured and very in-tune with rules. If you’re not going to follow the guidelines, you might as well not even hit publish.

That being said, I do believe that everyone is welcome on Medium. Don’t let the paywall intimidate you. If you want to write there, you’re welcome to write there.

In other news, I’ve been suffering from what I would consider to be extreme exhaustion as of late. I’m struggling to function, my headaches are such that it’s hard to be in a room with the lights on and my body aches. My body aches so badly.

The last time that I was dealing with these extreme of symptoms, I had some blood work done and that’s what started my journey towards discovering that I have celiac disease, a plethora of allergies to different foods and, extreme levels of malabsorption. I truly believe that I’m dealing with malabsorption right now and that it’s wreaking havoc on my body. Unfortunately, it sucks to deal with. That being said, it’s not exactly something pressing that needs to take up space at the doctor’s office. Doctor’s are inundated enough already with things that are far more pressing than mine.

Once things calm down and health care services are running normally again, that’s when I’ll seek out to see if I can get some blood work done. Until then, I’ll continue to take my supplements and eat the right foods in hopes that it gets better.

Speaking of getting better, British Columbia has started it’s ‘reopening’ process this weekend. Slowly but surely businesses that have been closed since late February are turning their lights back on, or will be soon.

I think it’ll be a while… at least a few weeks or more, before I venture into any place that I don’t deem absolutely necessary for me to be at. I’m still a little weary about being around people right now. B.C.’s provincial health officer is still urging people to proceed with caution. I’m really, really hoping that people will listen to her and won’t just crowd themselves into the closest bar, or restaurant or nail salon they can find. The last thing I want to see is a ‘wave two’ striking this province.

Tomorrow is Victoria Day here in Canada. If you’re celebrating the long weekend (silly suggestion, I know… every day is a long weekend right now) I hope that you’re doing it from six feet apart.

Stay sane, stay healthy and stay safe, please.

Testing medium.com

Recently I’ve done some research about medium.com. If you haven’t heard of it, it’s an online publishing platform created by the founders of Twitter as a way for people to share their thoughts, outlooks, perspectives and views when they aren’t bound by 140 characters.

Medium has a partner program in which people can sign up, for free, and submit their writing to the website giving them the opportunity to earn money for their contribution.

Medium operates much like a subscription service. Hundreds of thousands of people have signed up for the website to have access to the content of all of these individual creators submitting their written work. Each subscriber pays $5 a month to have access to unlimited content. If a paid subscriber reads an article that was submitted by one of the partner writers, the writer gets a portion of the subscriber’s monthly fee. From what I’ve read, this translates to different amounts depending on the how many articles a subscriber reads in a month.

For example: If a subscriber reads only two articles in a single month, $2.50 will go towards each article. If a subscriber reads 100 articles in a month then 5 cents will go towards each article written.

People are using Medium as a side-hustle to earn hundreds, and in some cases, thousands of extra dollars each month by sharing their writing with the platform.

If you’ve been around #MillennialLifeCrisis for any length of time, you know that I’m an advocate for the notion that if you write good content, people will find your content. So, when I started learning about Medium I thought that this sounded like the ultimate test. Can the simple act of writing great content be enough to make you money on Medium? Or, are you a small fish in a big pond of thousands of talented writers. I want to know.

I’ve told myself that I’m going to test out this website for two months. I published my first piece to Medium a little over 36 hours ago and it’s been met with mediocre stats so far. Definitely nothing to write home about (pun intended)! That being said, I’m committed to testing this for at least two months. I really want to contribute genuine effort to this and find out what are the possibilities with a little extra effort put towards it.

If anything happens along the way, I’ll be sure to update this blog. I know that many people who read my blog are, themselves, looking for ways to make money from home. So, if there are any interesting revelations, I will be sure to share. Otherwise, I’ll post an update as to how it went in two months time. I’m sharing this here as a measure to hold myself accountable to stick with it.

As of right now, all I that can report is that it’s EXTREMELY easy to sign up and that it seems to be an extremely organized and well thought out platform. Oh, that and that I really suck at editing my own work so posting to Medium will be good for me because I’m going to have to spend a lot more time editing.

Is there room for a girl like me over on Medium? I guess we’ll find out over the next two months.