Exquisite Disaster

People seem to be so concerned with what others are thinking. They are consumed with the opinions of minions. Worrying over thoughts and ideas they can't change. What a waste of energy and life. A completely useless task - fretting. To squander the most precious gift of time by stressing on the conclusions those around you are drawing. Let them assume and ponder. Let them wonder and whisper.

Concern yourself with only the thoughts of one. Yourself.

This is a mad world and we are mere mortals sentenced to a lifetime here, whether it be a blink of an eye or one hundred years. As humans we are fallible. Broken. And lost. We are, as a unit and individuals, hopelessly trying to find our way through the darkness. Mistakes will happen. Indeed we will fuck up. Hearts will be broken and harsh words spoken. Tears will fall. Cruel streaks revealed. Some will revel in their wickedness. Other will be swallowed by guilt. We all do things we are ashamed of. We all fall down and scream and give up. There is no magic marker to erase the choices we've made or hurts we have caused. This fallibleness is our armour and we can wear it proudly and say, "Why yes, I did mess this all up, but alas I will try again tomorrow."

One day I hope you may wake up and realize the bullshit of others need not apply to you.

Shake the poison from your hair and expel the negativity from your lungs. Greet every morning with hope and allow contentment to seep in as you close your eyes each night. Take note of the stars. Listen to the gossip of your peers and know it comes from a place of curiosity and concern, then let it go and reassure the world there is a point to this exquisite mess. Don't be afraid. Be proud and broken and free. Evolve or devolve. Move backwards. Drink. Smoke. Stay up late and play Tom Waits. Red lipstick. High heels. Stop mincing your words. Play pretend. Wear black. Draw hearts on fogged windows. Dream big. Be nothing. Dance naked. Hold the moon in your hands. Sip water from the river. Dip your toes in the ocean. Eat sweets.

Own your mistakes. Forgive your trip ups, let downs and back stabbery. Work through your own drama. Rifle through the hectic chaos of your soul. Confront your fears, doubts and desires. Battle your own demons and shove the skeletons back in your own closet. Come to terms with the person you were, the one you are and who you are striving to be. Accept yourself, and set everyone else free.

And embrace the exquisite disaster that you are.

The Wacky Woods

Today I took a walk in the Wacky Woods. It's this hidden art installation in Fanny Bay, put together by a man named George Sawchuk. Not only did George turn his 4 acre backyard into an outdoor art exhibit, but it's free and interactive. What will you find in the Wacky Woods?

Motivational quotes, books hidden in nooks in trees, anti-political and government sculptures and a lot of radical ideologies that go against virtually everything we have been raised to think. The Wacky Woods is equal parts nature and creative spirit. If you choose to walk in the woods, don't go alone, bring someone along, and be prepared to think, pause, and chat about the things you see.

What I loved the most? How George managed to stress our responsibility to the Earth. There was an overwhelming theme of how drastic our behaviour has changed this world we live in. How we need to step up, band together, and not be afraid to resist and speak out. While I wandered through this AMAZING piece of history, I was in awe of this man who took the time to create such a magnificent place and opened it up for everyone. I couldn't think of one person who wouldn't be inspired by it.

And because I am a total picture whore, I tool plenty of them. I will only post my top ten here, though.

The Fabulousness Of Words

Tonight will be a quick post.

Just long enough for me to share this most wonderful link with you. 

These are words from other languages that are untranslatable into English. They are beautiful and precious.

Which one is your favourite?

Mine is:

27 Degrees

No, this isn't an all boy pop band. Although, I did just have this conversation with my Sidekick: 

Me: 98 Degrees ... that's insane. I mean, how hot is that.

He: No, you fool. Fahrenheit, not Celsius. 

Me: Oh. Did you just call me a fool?

I live in Canada. So, when I say it was twenty seven degrees, I mean it was in the eighties for you folks down in the United States of America. By the way, the metric system is grand and you all, or y'all, should hop on board, so I don't have to be called a fool anymore. Regardless, I am a bit foolish, and this whole scenario made me laugh. 

That being said, it was hot out today. It's the beginning of May, everything is in bloom, and I seriously regretted wearing tights to work. Thank goodness I had the foresight to leave my pants at home. No pants is always ideal when dealing with summer-like conditions. 

With the sun comes trips to the beach, higher levels of serotonin, skimpy clothes and shots of vitamin D. Depression goes out the window when you're speeding down the highway at 140 (kimometers, not miles), listening to catchy beats, and eating cherries. It is known. Unfortunately, down goes productivity on writing projects and the cleanliness of one's abode. 

Still, summer is around the corner and I live in a beautiful part of the world. And I feel like being happy about that. 

And here I am with another fool. 

Only Skin Deep

Truth be told, I never understood the saying, 'Beauty Is Only Skin Deep'. On a literal level, it isn't even true. Do people truly find what comprises the human body ugly? Because I think it is a most beautiful thing. Gorgeous. Complex. And stunning.

When people think of our insides blood comes to mind. But when did blood become such an ugly thing? Is blood not life? Technically, living without it would be fairly difficult. Here are some red blood cells. Now, tell me they aren't eyeball pleasing:

Break down the body and what do you have? A heart that pumps blood to all the organs. Lungs that keep cells alive with oxygen while releasing carbon monoxide. Organs that work harmoniously together. The brain that has a unique synergy with the rest of the body. All of this action happens inside us, ever minute of every day, and we don't even think about it. We draw a breath. Our hearts beat. Limbs move. And all without a second thought, but apparently, this isn't beautiful?

I beg to differ, check out this Fallopian tube.

And, if we look past the literalness of the saying and only consider it figuratively, then the statement is still false. Some of our most beautiful parts are below our skin. Compassion, forgiveness, hope, trust, understanding, peace, faith and love - are these all not beautiful things that exist inside us? Beneath our skin? Are they not comprise a beautiful human being?

I suppose not. In a broad sense, when we think about beauty we think about the lushness of one's hair, wideness of the eyes, fullness of lips and smoothness of complexion. Weight, height, breast size - these also go into making someone attractive. At least in magazines and movies. Could you imagine how different the world would be if we only based beauty on a person's ideas, thoughts, morals, and actions?

Random acts of kindness would triple. Or quadruple. Magazines would run articles about how to achieve people's moral compass instead of their bouncy hair.

Or what if we based if off how healthy their organs were?

Everyone would stop smoking.

In the end, beauty isn't only skin deep. In fact, it's not until you go past the skin that you really start to see the real beauty of most people. At least, that's why people are beautiful to me, their likes and dislikes, hopes and dreams, ability to love. I love debunking silly sayings. But really, Dwight said it better:

Let's Keep This Pinteresting

The Sidekick hates Pinterest.

Not because he isn't a fan of art and pictures and such, but because people print off grainy tattoos that a hundred million people have and want to put them on their bodies. When all he wants is to design something awesome and unique to the individual wanting to put something permanently on their body. I can see how this can be frustrating. Do you know how many people have an infinity symbol with the world 'love' in it? A gazbillion. And where do they put them? On their wrists. Upside down, of course. Because it's for them and they want to read it.

And I never really thought about upside down tattoos until Mr. Sidekick said, "What are you going to do, have a whole sleeve the wrong way on your arm?" Whatttt???? Yep. So here I am, with two upside down tattoos on my wrists (neither of which say love or have an infinity symbol in them) and knowing I have to cover them up because they are in fact UPSIDE DOWN. Then I ask the man, "Why didn't the guy tattooing them steer me right?"

Do you know what he replies?

Because people don't listen. What a sad state of affairs! I would have listened. As soon as Sidekick pointed out how if I wanted to build a sleeve it'd all be upside down I felt silly! Thank goodness for cover ups. And just the other day I ran into a girl with upside down tattoos on one arm. The word 'believe' on her wrist, I believe, but then she put two birds under it, which were upside down as well, then another tattoo under that, also upside down. It looked terrible.

So, I guess I understand why Sidekick dislikes Pinterest. It's detracts from originality and spreads poorly done work. It's great to have an idea for what you might like and using pictures as a stepping stone and jumping off point, but there's something to be said about being open minded enough to have an awesome piece of work designed specifically for you.  

On the other hand, I love Pinterest. Mostly because I do love art and pictures and weird things and it inspires me. I can create boards for my novels and give myself visuals of the characters and places inside my books and that's something to be grateful for. Also, it allows me to save awesome imagery! There are some really odd things on the internet. It's kind of nice to have one place where I can collect these wicked and weird and beautiful pictures.

That being said, only one of my pins has ever really gotten a lot of attention. A picture of Charlie Hunnam (Jax Teller from Sons of Anarchy). Goes to show you where most pinners minds are at.

Anyhow, this is my account over there.

But before you click the link, beware. I am a bit of an odd duck. And no, I don't have a tattoo board.

Winter Is Coming

Actually, it's here, as of December 21st.

It isn't in full force, though.

Weather is at a record low here on the West Coast. People freak out about this. Like it is so unnatural. But the thing is, it's only new in the last fifty years. This is the West Coast, it isn't supposed to have extreme weather conditions. It's supposed to be mild. Sure, that's sad news for snowboarders and skiers, and all the people who are going to be laid off if Mount Washington closes next week. Unfortunately, there are no chains on Mother Nature.

She's like any woman. She does what she wants. When she wants. How she wants.

We get used to how things are, expect them to be that way forever, but change happens. There are cycles that need to be taken into consideration. And temperatures have been this low before. Just because we bank on the arrival of snow doesn't actually mean it will be arriving.

That doesn't mean it isn't frosty out there. In fact, the frost is most pretty, especially early in the morning.

It's the frost that I am grateful this morning. Because it is beautiful. It is so intricate and complex. Have you ever looked at it? Talk about unique as a snowflake. And to think, snowmen are made entirely of this stuff.

Yesterday, I took a couple pictures of the frost. They might not capture the truly remarkableness of the cold weather or how amazing this form of nature is, but I want to post them because they are a reminder of how many breathtaking things exist in this world.

Upon review, I can see how some people might have thought this was going to be a Game of Thrones post. I apologize that it isn't and will try to refrain from tricking you in the future.