I live in a small town in central BC with my husband and my dogs. I love to get outside whether that is hiking, kayaking, taking the dogs for a walk, or spey fishing for steelhead. I have had the privilege to complete several backpacking trips from the historic gold rush Chilkoot trail in the north, the Brazeau Loop, to the West Coast Trail and many in between. I have also made the trip around the Bowron Lakes circuit a couple times and fully intend to go back.
When I am not escaping to the bush I am working as a Literary Intern, bookkeeper, social media advertising, and working on my own creative writing projects. I love learning about the publishing industry and the intricacies that work within it. I love working with agencies and being able to see the publishing world from their perspective. As might be assumed by now I am an avid bookworm and I am always working on building up my own collection. Some of my favourites include Suzanne by Anais Barbeau-Lavelette translated by Rhonda Mullins, Ru by Kim Thuy, The Vegetarian by Han Kang, and I could go on.
When I started my Bachelor of Arts degree I did so after being out of school for many years. This isn’t unusual, especially for students at Athabasca University. Making the decision came with a round of anxiety, and taking that first step in planning and ordering a course came with a second. I wasn’t sure… Read more »
A while back I wrote an article that outlined the odd way my educational journeys begin. When I started kindergarten, I did so with a broken leg. When I made the decision to go back to school for my Bachelor of Arts, I did so while laid up on the couch with a reconstructed ankle… Read more »
Success can be a funny thing. We tend to think, “Once I get to this specific point I will have succeeded, and then I will be happy.” But the idea of success tends to morph and change the closer we get to realizing one form of it. For example, success could have been starting university. … Read more »
There is a debate over whether or not writer’s block is a thing. To which I say, “Of course it is,” as I sit staring at a blank screen. The debate should not be whether or not it is a thing but what is the cause of it. Sometimes it is something simple, for fiction… Read more »
Sometimes the tasks we undertake seem impossible until they are done. Then the next step looks just as, or even more, daunting than the last, and we think “how will we ever accomplish that?” A habit I had with my courses at Athabasca University was flipping through to the end of the study guide and… Read more »
The history of Friday the 13th goes back, likely to the middle ages. There are all sorts of speculations about where this belief came from. But it is just that, a belief. The mind is a powerful thing and is something we don’t fully understand. It is entirely possible that this myth of Friday the… Read more »
Thanksgiving is just around the corner. It means gathering family, consuming too much food, and starting fall baking. It is a time of reflectiona time to be thankful for the things you have achieved and to those who have supported you. There are the big things to be thankful for, like the roof over your… Read more »
My husband shared a video with me this morning, one of the many that circulate Facebook. This one is of Steve Harvey, from Family Feud. I’m not sure what instigated the speech, you can see set people in the background getting things ready, so maybe he was just talking to the audience before the show… Read more »
We have a tendency to compare ourselves to others. Our failures to their successes. There is the adage that what we see is only the tip of the iceberg. We see overnight success, but never the years of unrecognized work that went in before that “overnight”. I think we tend to do this a lot… Read more »
September has struck. Which means cooler temperatures, getting back into routines, and some new seasonal outdoor activities. While the “back to school” feeling that September brings doesnt necessarily relate to Athabasca University students it still can bring a sense of calm. Everyone else around is getting back into schedules with their kids off to school… Read more »