Back to Life Back to Reality

I have finally finished school and I am so excited. It feels nice to be finished and to add that notch to my accomplishment belt. While I was in school my hobbies, home, and well being took a back seat as I doggedly pushed through the months. Now that I have graduated I can regain my life.

Hobbies:

There have been a few sewing projects that I have been wanting to dive into, as I wait to hear back from some jobs I decided to give them a go. My first project was my apron. I read and re-read those darn instructions and just couldn't seem to get what they meant. One evening, with google and youtube (which turned out to be useless) at my side I locked myself in the spare bedroom/craft room with a goal of figuring it out! I soon gave up on the instruction and just made it look like the picture. It turned out really cute and I can't wait to use it.
My quilt. I started this quilt when I was about 16 and haven't made much progress on it. Tonight I decided I was going to change that. Armed with an audiobook, sewing tools, and determination I began. So far...

Two things really helped me with this project and I feel need a special shout out: my seam ripper and the phrase "good enough", couldn't have done it without either one!

I have also been able to read things other than text books. So far I am right on target for my book goal for the year which is a little surprising because the series I am reading, the books are over 1,000 pages a piece.

Well-Being:

Remy and I got our gym passes last week and I have already been able to go a few times. It feels go good to be back and having the time and energy to do it. I have also tried a few new recipes lately and we have found a favourite that my mom used to make. Ham and Corn Chowder

Sooo yummy!

Home:

After our move we didn't have much time to unpack and settle in before Remy headed back to work and I went back to school. With a full day of work /school behind us the last thing we wanted to do is unpack so our guest bedroom/craft room went unattended. There were only a couple of boxes left and so could easily be put off. I was talking with my friend Laurie and we both challenged each other to something we had been meaning to do but put off. We made the deadline to have it done by Saturday. Well Saturday night at 10 pm I was working away in our spare bedroom/craft room unpacking those last few boxes.

The results...

Remy - No way! Am I really THAT old?

Hey everyone,

First, please feel free to nag Chelsea to write so I'm not the only one doing this thing, will you? Thanks. Anyway, on to the entry.

Holy crap, I don’t believe it … I’m old! When did that happen?

I was talking to a friend of mine today about all the crap that’s happened to the English language because of the internet. The bottom line running through my mind was “what the crap happened to real words”?

Basically I think Callifornication’s Hank Moody came really close to hitting the nail on the head when he said "People... they don't write anymore - they blog. Instead of talking, they text, no punctuation, no grammar: LOL this and LMFAO that. You know, it just seems to me it's just a bunch of stupid people pseudo-communicating with a bunch of other stupid people in a proto-language that resembles more what cavemen used to speak than the King's English."

Even though I think it’s actually the Queen’s English, I think he’s got a point. (Good job not hitting your thumb with that hammer, Hankie.) We’re basically faced with a flood of pseudo-slang which is totally killing the English language.

Now, By no means am I suggesting we common folk begin to palaver with the elaborate cadences and multi-syllabic stylings of a British aristocracy or philosophical circle junkie. Language changes. It’s an unavoidable reality. But I can’t imagine how “So went tad a bar w/meh dawg dis weekend lol man so fun awesome! LMAO” even begins to substitute for at least reasonably decent writing. (Just an aside, spell check rejected pretty much all of that example.)

Now, I respect the fact not everyone can construct a sentence. I can grudgingly even read a whole message typed by my friend who never even uses so much as a comma without wanting to tear my ears off. And yes, I can even deal with the sad reality that the every day Canadian teen thinks Ebonic slang is (wait for it) “sick”. But all this together in one single package, tied up with a nice pink ribbon of text and internet slang? That’s just too much, even for me.

“But Remy, it’s just so much faster to type this way on my phone.” Granted. But see, there’s this thing called a keyboard. And when even your shiny new (but already outdated) phone has one of these, your excuse loses merit.

SO what the heck does this have to do with me thinking I’m old? Oh boy, you’re not going to believe this. No matter how old you are my dear reader, you’ll probably remember when you absolutely loved something your parents thought was awful!

Case and point: If you’re around 50, you’ll probably recall sitting in your parents’ basement (or some such safe haven) in your late teens and early twenties (or later), smoking pot and listening to some of that awesome era of music that “will never die”. Maybe you were about to get laid like a champ, or even by a champ. Now the next generation? Totally not cool for them to do that in your eyes. And if you ARE that next generation, you might be shocked to learn that your strict, overbearing mom or dad used to be an unpaid porn star, high on life and all sorts of substances.

Is this an embellishment? Probably. But the fact is, the older you are, the less the younger generation seems to make sense, unless you’re progressive, or just trying to preserve your youth vicariously through the lives of your children.

My friends, I am actually at that stage of life, and I’m only twenty-seven. I even find myself using phrases like “back in the day”. Chelsea makes fun of me for being old, and I hate to say it, but I think she’s right!

Chelsea and I were having a discussion today about reality shows – specifically the teen pregnancy shows that seem to be cropping up everywhere. She really enjoys those. I think all reality TV is a ridiculous waste of time. It basically glorifies shenanigans people just wouldn’t do in the “real” real world. Now fiction glorifies some of those same shenanigans it’s true. But we KNOW it is fiction, and it doesn’t pretend to be anything else. Anyway, I sort of feel bad about my outlook on them because I think I really hurt her feelings. So if you’re reading this my love, again, I’m really sorry if I offended you.

I remember the good old days where TV existed for four purposes: To Experience awesome stories, watch sports, get your “live news when it happens” and dance to Indian music. (Another aside. I think only my brother Travis and maybe my dad will get the last one. Basically when I was six I loved dancing to Indian music in front of the TV for a few months. Travis still hasn’t stopped making fun of me for that one.) Oh there are still television shows that are pretty awesome. I don’t watch much TV anymore, but I know they still exist. The point is, I hate reality TV with a burning passion, and yet I know how insanely popular it is.

I already know while a part of me will always attempt to move forward with my entertainment, I will always be nostalgic for those good old days when TV wasn’t full of pseudo-realistic plastic people with pseudo-realistic drama, and POPULAR music wasn’t as full of “songs” about clubbing, getting drunk or seeing how many girls you’ve screwed in a week. Speaking of which, what’s with all this friggen rap, and rap with a few lines of a chorus calling it a “song”? It’s cool people like it and all, but can I please turn on my radio without hearing a deluge of that and various nickelback clones?

For the ones or twos of you still reading this, thank you for your indulgence. I’m completely aware I’ve been rather unfair to some of the reality shows and music that actually stand above the dribble. There are exceptions to every rule, yadda yadda yadda. I realize too one of the reasons I’m still a bit of a loser is because I’ve got such an eclectic taste in entertainment. This isn’t a personal attack on any of you. If you’re offended by my ranting at all, it must mean you obviously care enough about my words to be offended. Otherwise my opinion wouldn’t matter. SO thank you, and sorry if I offended you.

A long over-due update of sorts

Hey loyal followers, Remy here.

A couple of you have been asking what happened to this blog. Good question! It’s not like I haven’t had a lot of crap on my mind.

Let’s start with the biggest piece of breaking news, shall we? We’re not moving yet. Yep, you heard it right. Moving has officially been pushed back until perhaps February while Chelsea finishes her book keeping program at VIU. So I guess that means I’ll be doing my Digital Media class after all. That will certainly be an experience. I have to admit it’s kind of nice that a couple people are glad we’re staying. I hope that doesn’t make me selfish.

Now for something a little more somber. This is my last week of work. Hard to believe seven weeks has already gone past. I don’t feel like I accomplished nearly enough here. I’ve managed to write a few more articles which should be published very soon. I’m looking forward to that, both for my sake and for the farm’s. I won’t lie; the money has been nice too. It’s nice to feel like I’m not living from pay cheque to pay cheque. Of course it’ll mostly be going to our coming school semester, but for a brief moment, I can imagine that we’re doing well financially.

So much has changed around the farm since I’ve been here. The herbal healing garden has been completed and is now operational. It’s really nice. The main walkways are concrete for wheelchairs, and there are picnic tables with umbrellas dotted everywhere. The herb beds are raised to provide easy access, and there’s a rock garden with a fountain at the entrance. There are benches lining parts of the garden. They’ve got so many herbs I’m almost overwhelmed. They’ve really put a lot into it. Honestly my only regret with this job is that I haven’t really learned anything about herbs and spices and the like.

Two of our staff members resigned, one because of another job and the other for personal reasons. It’s certainly changed the atmosphere around here. I can’t quite explain it, but I do know Pauline (who I believe I mentioned) was someone I got along with quite well. It was unfortunate to se her go.

I’ve been working hard on this documentary for the last two weeks. Holy crap! I had no idea this was going to be so hard. I’ve done some interviews, but a few of the participants weren’t nearly forth-coming enough to be of much help. I did get a few great quotes though. This one guy Kevin had a stroke when he was sixteen. He suffered brain damage and was paralyzed. He was told he wasn’t ever going to walk again. Now he’s out here crushing rocks with a machine, gardening and doing other odd jobs. The man has an old movie quote for every situation. I got a lot of material from him. Almost too much. I find the documentary focuses on him too much. Maybe I’m doing way better than I think, I don’t know, but this thing seems to lack personality.

That brings me to a question. What the heck is wrong with my writing? It’s not that I can’t write well, I just can’t write much. I remember years ago when I was in my late teens and early twenties I constantly wrote. I have a two hundred page novel which is still sitting in my computer’s novels folder, uncomplete. I wrote a ton on that. Sure it needs work now. My writing has really grown since then, but I find myself sitting gazing at that insidious blinking cursor for ages, only to have a few paragraphs worth of material at the end of two hours … and that’s if I’m lucky! It’s like I have a mental block. The ideas are there, and they’re even pretty darn good I think, but they won’t appear in writing. I have a few projects going – a sci-fantasy, a fantasy, a sci-fi horror and a quirky comedic paranormal mystery. Each one of these have some pretty great ideas behind them. But it’s like writer’s block has become a sinister presence in my mind. If I write two paragraphs after three hours I consider that an accomplishment. So how the heck did I lose it? Better yet, what can I do about it? What’s the point of trying to be a writer if I can’t bloody write? If I didn’t have any ideas that would be one thing, but this is being unable to even put words down. I’ve tried that whole write for ten minutes thing, and I’ve tried outlining ideas. Each of these are great ideas, but when it comes to actually sitting down and writing the actual story it’s like there’s this mental block. I can feel it deep down in my chest, and clamping on my mind. Unfortunately it’s transferring itself to this documentary. I’ve got a whole three pages after three days. True, some of this is due to the fact that I have barely any idea what footage they’ve got, but the rest is all me.

I can write an entry like this fast. By no means is this even close to quality writing, but it’s writing. I’d rather be able to write a lot down, then edit, rather than write a little bit, edit it to great quality, then not be able to continue. I don’t need to be a speed writer. But is a page or so a day really so much to ask?

To end on a positive note though, while I haven’t been able to write much on it, the new story I’m working on is pretty awesome so far. Of course it’s only three pages, but they’re three good pages.

Remy's job - days 7, 8, 9 and 10

Wednesday July 21, 2010

Well yesterday was horrible. I felt like a Mac truck’s worth of dino duky hit me right in the face. No idea why that should be, but my lack of productivity yesterday was staggering.

But enough of that. Today was much better. The Take5 magazine feature which has been hounding my mind for the past week is pretty much all done. I’ll likely need to work on it a bit tomorrow, but I’m actually pretty darn happy with the finished product. No doubt the director will change a few things, but that’s just the way things go I suppose. At any rate, it’s done! Finished! It was interesting to do journalistic writing – something I haven’t done in years, and have never done professionally

One more development. I’m now a glorified receptionist. Whenever that phone rings (and it rings a lot) I’m the one responsible for answering it, no matter if anyone else is in the office.

Update – Thursday

Had my first staff meeting today. Boy was that a blast! Lots of ideas, lots of confusion (mostly from me since I’m new). It seems like as soon as I figure something out, they go and change it. At least they listened to my comments and suggestions, which is honestly more than I expected (only due to past experience). I get the impression everyone’s trying to do too much too quickly, but due to the confidentiality agreement I signed, I can’t go into too much detail. Suffice it to say there are more than two perspectives. I have confidence everything will get worked out.

Which brings me to my new assignments. I’m to write another feature for a magazine called Synergy, which deals with healthy living and social justice among other things. I also need to write up a general interest brochure to get people interested in what we do. Of course they want me to put a spin on it I hadn’t foreseen, but I’ll work with what I’m given.

I did get the Take5 article sent off to the magazine editor, and everyone who read it was really happy with it. There were only a couple minor edits made, which made me feel good.

I had a bit of an altercation with one of the staff members today about my confusion regarding one of the programs. It seems things are changing as I said, and I just couldn’t go on without knowing what was what. Luckily it was a civil discussion. I hadn’t wanted it to turn into a negative experience for anyone, and I don’t think it did. I tried really hard to be respectful and polite.

Update – Friday

Today the volatile paint fumes and renovation clutter outside the office mean I’m working from home. I honestly don’t like it. I prefer to be in the midst of everyone. Being here I’m left alone without any input or direction. I’ve managed to write up the brochure, but I can’t do much else with it until I know how Guy feels about it. Email helps, but he’s a busy man.

Remy's job - Day 6 - productivity and good results are AWESOME!

As I suspected, the weekend wasn’t long enough. Now it’s Monday, and I’m back to work to an increasing work load. On top of everything else, I’ve got yet another assignment, and this one seems somewhat urgent. Thankfully some of its information is already written, and all I need to do is edit it … at least I really hope that’s what I have to do. This material is necessary for the website. So, today, I must complete the following:

 *Complete* Edit/re-write a Bio of Guy and anyone else
 *Complete* Edit the existing Membership document and make sure it’s up to date.
 *Complete* Do the same for the volunteering doccumentation
 *CompleteEdit or write up information about the board members.

Update!
Well as can be seen, I actually got everything done! I’m sure I’ll have to make some changes, but for now it’s all been sent off for scrutiny. I’m so excited I got it all done! This is the first day where I actually felt like I made a really large dent in the work load. I even managed to write up quite a bit for the information to be sent for the Schizophrenia Society. Again, I’m sure I’ll have to do some editing, but for now it’s all close to completion, if not already done. Good times!

Final update:
There’s something quite satisfying about knowing you’re actually doing a good job. I got two of the pieces I sent to the Director back with very minor corrections (only a couple name issues). I’m amazed to be honest. It’s good to know all that work I put in today was well-received.

Remy's job - day 3 - accidents and progress

There’s a clear somber atmosphere on the farm today. There was a car accident last night in front of the farm. It’s a classic story – a teen couple out for a joy ride, going too fast after too much to drink on a road which was already dangerous enough. They rapped their car around a telephone pole. It’s believed the girl went through the windshield. Her face was all cut up. The boy though … Mike (one of the main staff members here) did what he could for the kid, but based on the gruesome scene he encountered in the car, I wouldn’t at all be surprised if the guy doesn’t make it. Apparently the two were both drunk. Everyone seems a bit shook up. Guy injured his leg, and I’m not really sure how Mike’s doing. He started talking about it in the car on the way here from South Gate. He was so nonchalant I wasn’t entirely sure I believed him. It was only when we arrived did I realize it was all quite serious. I feel bad for him. That couldn’t have been easy.

On a work-related note, Guy’s given me another task, and also cleared up some questions. Apparently the Take5 article is an expository feature about the farm as a whole, while a new article he wants me to write for the B.C. Schizophrenia Society deals more in-depth with the programs and their aims. I suppose it’ll be nice to be able to split the two. The email he sent me regarding the issue contained a forward from the Schizo society asking for information rather than an actual article though, so I’m not entirely sure if I need to write a whole article.

Some good news: I should finally get that interview with Guy, which would be really useful. If I don’t get it by lunch I might just have to write the articles without him. Maybe I’ll start on that anyway, just to have something constructive to do.

Update:

It’s the end of the day. I’ve begun writing the article, but there isn’t much to it so far. I finally got the interview finished. I’ll need to compile the information and make it cohesive. There’s never a shortage of stuff to do here, that’s for sure.

It sounds like Guy wants me to start interviewing the students next week for the documentary. In addition he might ask me to transcribe the audio of video footage they’ve taken of the farm so far (writing down what is said, and when it’s said and who is saying it). That is, of course on top of everything else. I also need to start writing web content next week, starting with a brief history of the farm. That, at least I have a fair bit of information about. They’ve had quite the past. I’m sure they’ll get me to start answering phones, too…

It’s hard to believe I’ve been here a week already. Over 36 hours, and I barely feel like I’m making a dent. I feel like that ox stuck in a whole who got dirt poured on it so it could climb up. I’m trying really hard to climb. Luckily a lot of this will just be writing up what I’ve already researched. My biggest concern is figuring out the format for each type of piece I’m writing. I don’t have a whole lot of experience in any of this. I’m really lucky to have this job. I only pray I’ll be worth the decent amount of money they’re paying me.

That reminds me, I got paid today! I’m so excited! Haven’t had a cheque of this amount in my hand ….probably ever. Too bad most of it will have to go towards saving up for the move.

I’m off now. Off to enjoy my weekend which suddenly doesn’t seem nearly long enough.

Remy-s job - Day 4

Today is the first day the students haven’t been here, and things are no less chaotic. So far I haven’t done a lot, despite having a number of goals I’d like to complete.

It occurs to me I haven’t really talked about the farm at all. The farm at Cedar woods grows organic fruits and vegetables, as well as medicinal, aromatic and culinary herbs. They also keep goats, sheep and chickens, all of which have ample space to move about. The goats are a rare species, and there are only 400 of them in the world. Cedar wood has over 30 of these.

The farm at Cedar woods is involved in three separate programs: The Farm Workers Program, the Kitchen Workers Program, and the Herbal Healing program.

The Farm Workers Program instructs persons with developmental and physical disabilities in the techniques of horticulture (gardening) and other farming activities in a low-stress and malleable environment. The goal is to provide self-esteem, employability and food-growing skills. There are currently four students enrolled in the program.

It’s quiet at the office today. There are no students, so it’ll be interesting to see the staff in their own world. They might be painting today, which would be very unpleasant for all of us in the office. The idea almost makes me want to go out to the greenhouse and plant more of those little soilie cubes.

So far today I’ve managed to gain access to the main server and database here at the office. I’m still not entirely sure how I pulled that off, but it led me to a wealth of information which will certainly do in a pinch – always assuming I can sift through and find the relevant information.) I put my own folder on the server and am updating it regularly so those who wish to can monitor my progress, but it seems nobody can see it. I can, and I can view everything on the server, but my folder’s nowhere to be found.

I’ve also compiled my interview questions into a better-constructed list. It should make the flow of the director’s interview more natural.

Update:

I’m still waiting to interview Guy. He hasn’t been seen all morning. My biggest problem right now is trying to figure out what kind of article Guy wants me to write. The magazine is lying right in front of me, but after someone helped me quickly go through it and explain its layout, I’m not altogether sure whether I’m writing a little blurb, or a full feature-length article. It would really be helpful to know this. If I knew, I could at least start outlining the bloody thing and maybe even write the lead. I did a little research about how to write features, which has been rather helpful. It’s nearly lunch time, and I feel I’ve barely gotten anything done today. When you have to wait for other people, you have to wait.

Update:

It’s nearly the end of my shift, and I still haven’t gotten the interview. I’m waiting, but he’s a busy man. I did find out that it’s a feature I’ll be writing, which means the research I did about how to write a feature wasn’t a waste of time. I’ve also tweaked the interview questions for the students. We’ve now got about fifteen of them. I think it’ll probably take a good few hours to interview everyone. It’ll depend on the amount of cooperation and rapore I get.

Paul, my case worker from Supporting Employment Transitions stopped by today. He was the one that’s been trying to get me a job for the past year or so. It was nice to meet with him on the job for once. Even if this is only temporary, it’s nice to have steady work for a while. I still have quite a bit of free time, all things considered. I just have to settle on something fun to do with it.

I contacted TD Canada Trust to see if I could make it possible to have Chelsea cash my cheque at her bank, since, now that I’m working I have no chance to get to the bank. They said we need to set up a joint account. I’m hoping I can just add my name to hers. We’ve got an appointment on Saturday to get that set up. I’ll be getting paid tomorrow after all, which is nice. My first pay cheque in over two years.