I'm planning a picnic today. It is going to be a solitary excursion, as the people in my life all have important things to do today. I tend to avoid important things. Possibly a result of my Phlegmatic-Melancholic personality.

I'm thinking Guacamole, kettle chips, natural root beer, cold chicken, carrot sticks, and perhaps some peas from the garden...Anyone want to come along? Please say yes! I will read Farley Mowat aloud, and force you to listen! It's a steal of a deal.

If I were a tree

NOTE: To watch this video in its full capacity, you may want to watch it in Youtube by double clicking on the screen.

A little ditty by a fella named Will.


Wasn't Will Sturgeon the name of "The Fish" in the Gordan Korman McDonald Hall books? If you haven't read them (I recommend them), they are about two teenage boys, Bruno and Boots who live at a boarding school in Toronto and pretty much get into trouble every day by the principle, Mr. Sturgeon. Did you know Gordan Korman wrote his first novel when he was 16 for a creative writing assignment?

I digress...

According to the The Uniter: Winnipeg's Weekly Urban Journal (aka: the University of Winnipeg's student newspaper) "the class of 2010 might be in for the worst employment climate young people have seen since the Second World War." As silly and as heartless as it sounds, I find it comforting that I am not alone in this predicament.

At least I don't have to wear a dress. Some things have improved since the 1940's.

I feel like a Boylan's Creamy Red Birch Beer would be a satisfying conclusion to this day. There is a certain allure to drinking tree roots in the middle of a thunderstorm.
















"Many times around
I am lost and then I'm found
But i don't know who I am in this world."
-Nicole Reynolds

A mid-summer's eve.

Poetic lyrics anyone? I like this guy. Oh Jeff, come to Winnipeg and melt my cold heart like the sun melts snow in spring.



I was the grateful recipient of a free Cinnamon Dolce Latte at Starbucks tonight, and consequently have nervous energy radiating from my knee caps and oozing out of the strands of my hair.

Too. Much. Caffeine...

One day I plan to build up a sufficient tolerance.

I have participated slightly in Fringe-ing activities, but I do not think I can sufficiently give any kind of review, as I have only attended one show thus far, and hence have nothing to compare it to (save the few shows that I took in last summer). But I can say that I greatly enjoyed the one show I have seen: "The Plank", and recommend it to anyone who enjoys pirates, woman power, and aerial dancing.
*****FIVE STARS *****

Jennie's Current Events, etc.

*I went to camp.
*I touched the bosom of a Famous Five at the Legislative building.






















*I searched for jobs.

*I contemplated working at Subway.

*I read the news.

*I bought groceries and made a yummy salad.

*I got a book out of the library yesterday and read it this morning.

*I realized that indulging my reading habits is good for my soul, but bad for my to-do list.

My mom will chuckle at the eclectic nature of this young Irish chap. His hair sticks out and his eyes scrunch shut, but his music is genuine.


"All the words I mean to say they never come out the right way...there are sides that I could show you, but they'll never come out the right way, cause I've been in pieces."

Last Days

Last Days
Things are
changing; things are starting to
spin, snap, fly off into
the blue sleeve of the long afternoon. Oh and ooh
come whistling out of the perished mouth
of the grass, as things
turn soft, boil back
into substance and hue. As everything.
forgetting its own enchantment, whispers:
I too, love oblivion why not it is full
of second chances. Now,
hiss the bright curls of leaves. Now!
booms the muscle of the wind.
Mary Oliver

A little bit of everything....

I just have to say, I love this picture of my brother, despite the blurriness that is an iphone picture.














*I'm sniffing mucous and coughing up a persistent throat tickle.
*I had an emotional day yesterday. Damn you, feelings.
*I am a bad ass because I said "damn" and "ass".
*I went to St. Benedict's Table last night, and was uplifted.
*I got locked out of the house this morning at 7:30 in my pajamas and bedhead. I sat on the front steps for an hour and then I crawled in the kitchen window.
*I am going to be an aunty. And this pleases me very much.



"love!
not just some passing moment
a glance however open
but some deeper compassion
radiating permanency
not some morbid curiosity
some gushing pity
incompetent naivete

the cry of burnt out eyes
wounded bodies
addicted minds
cravings
can only be answered by some deeper love
in which is felt a strange presence of the eternal
a hope
a new security
not some passing glance
but deeper bonds
unbreakable."
-Jean Vanier

These Days

These days I have been floundering a little. Searching for a job has been causing me to search for my existential purpose in life, and I am unsure of the direction I am supposed to go. There has been no sign post, no audible voice, no words drawn in the sand directing me. What did I want to do with my life again? I forget.

Despite the lack of an occupation...and the subsequent worries that co-exist with this type of lifestyle, I have been keeping busy with little adventures that I have been longing to do the past two years and couldn't due to the daily horrors of studenthood.

Adventures:
1. Trips to the library...I like to sit at the tables in the back on the fourth floor. The sun streams in, and the smell of musty non-fiction is more enjoyable than I remember it being. Perhaps because the context is different.

2. Gardening. Aside from my daily garden adventures, which include pulling up dead Boxwood that has roots the size of a refrigerator, I have been to two gardening workshops at Sage Garden Herbs, a local greenhouse that is the delight of my heart. The last workshop I went to was called the Summer Solstice Workshop, and we learned about magical herbs, and danced around a bonfire of burning embers. I made a pot with a strawberry plant, marigolds, a sunflower, a pepper plant, a flower called Midnight Candy that blooms only at night and smells spicy sweet, and some other plants that I can't remember. Here is a picture of my pot. Please note that it is in cauldron. How else are magical plants to be grown?




















3. Reading. I just finished The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery. Here is a sampling of the poetic passages that are in this little gem of a book: "The woods will have their own way even with those obvious dandelions. In a little while all that obtrusive yellowness and complacency will be gone and we'll find here misty, phantom-like globes hovering over these long grasses in full harmony with the traditions of the forest."

4. Cooking/Baking...actually this is just a prelude to the actual action of cooking. Today I want to make The Best Coffee Cake EVER, and Macaroni and Cheese.

5. Doing the Bikini Blast Workout video with Kim. "Blast away that fat, and get ready to have a bikini body all year round." Oh yeah.

6. Dreaming about traveling to the East Coast. On a train.

7. Walking. Walking around the neighborhood. Walking and listening to the ol' Ipod. Walking and reflecting. Walking and swatting mosquitoes.

Evening News
I went for a walk this evening. The sun was setting. The clouds were flecked with gold and amber. The grass waved proudly in the breeze. Momma duck and her six ducklings swam around the neighborhood pond eating delicious bugs for dinner. The pavement stretched on in endearing patterns of possibilities....

...and then...

...To my great horror and dismay, a small bunny rabbit ran in front of me, bounded across the road, and was smushed beneath the wheels of a car. Smoosh. Squish. Squelch.

It was gross. Unfortunately I had forgotten my camera so I could not capture an image of the tragic aftermath. I know, I know. Next time. I promise.

Music News:
I recommend listening to the new Stars album, The Five Ghosts, being release June 22. It is lovely.

Today I went to the Farmer's Market. I drank a mug of tea. I listened to some good music. I checked out the progress of my little garden and discovered that two of my beans have popped out of the soil.

I think themes and motifs are fascinating...So I will subject you to my odd obsession of finding random connections. LOOK! Three bands that start with SEA and end with an animal.

Seabear


Sea Wolf


Seabird

My Little Brother

Please Note: My brother is wearing formal clothing...this is significant.


















Haagen Dazs: The breakfast of champions.


















William successfully ducked out of the classy robe shots.


















Cute. Just plain cute.

Almost there!

An update:
-It is raining tonight.
-One of my favourite things to do right now is mow the lawn...especially while listening to The Shins. Dunno why.
-Bethany and I are planning a trip to Home Outfitters to "buy wedding presents" but really we are going to try out their massage chairs.
-I can hear frogs.
-I love my green, fuzzy blanket.
-I miss being able to drive 10 minutes to get to the lake.
-I love worms.
-I am trying not to eat wheat or dairy right now...and failing miserably.
-I forget to take my Chinese medicine daily.

Because I can't convey my heart and soul in a musical confection...

...I would love to share some people who can.







Jordan Klassen
-Good music if you are in a contemplative mood, it is both relaxing and inspiring.

Zaac Pick
-A bit outdoorsy sounding. Makes me wanna go for a walk.

Pat Lepoidevin
-Music that makes me feel like I would like to be a man. Not really sure why.

The Good Lovelies
-Some really cool girls.

Corey Isenor
-I like him. Vulnerable and approachable. I feel as though could have a conversation with this person.

Dan Griffin
-I don't remember why I liked him.

Caracol
-Who doesn't like some good French music every now and again?

Michael Bernard Fitzgerald
-Ha! laughter and art coincide in a foot-stampin' good time.

Tilly and the Wall
-I am cute and vivacious music that lingers in your soul.

Land of Talk
-Occasionally melancholy. I needed a tissue.

Brag, Brag, Brag...

My mum has an artistic side and I love to brag about her abilities! Here is an Etsy page that features some of her art, along with the creations of her co-worker and co-worker's daughter. She made some of the felted figures and jingle balls.

Growth

"Sometimes our life reminds me
of a forest in which there is a graceful clearing
and in that opening a house,
an orchard and garden,
comfortable shades, and flowers
red and yellow in the sun, a pattern
made in the light for the sun to return to.
The forest is mostly dark, its ways
to be made anew day after day, the dark
richer than the light and more blessed,
provided we stay brave
enough to keep on going in."
-Wendell Berry

I hate to brag, but...

...I have good genetics.



My dad has to put the siding on his house in a month. By himself. Here is one corner he has started so far. Go dad, go!

I would just like to say that my parents have the busiest, craziest life ever, and they withstand the chaos with grace, patience, and much prayer.

My heroes.

Searching

I'm searching for a job. The past five years of post-secondary have been preparing me for this fateful day, and it is time to face the "real" world and begin to emerge from my warm, safe nest of studenthood. "I'm sorry I just messed up your life, its because I'm still a student, and I haven't learned how to help people yet" can no longer be uttered from my lips. Neither can the phrase, "I'm glad I could help you today, Mrs.so and so, I just started my practicum here and I am still learning...no need to thank me...competent, me? For a student? Really, you are very kind."

Gone are the days of encouragement and reflection as a student who has a reason for not knowing. Gone also are the months of hard work with no monetary compensation.

To fill in the rest of these long days of sweat inducing labour (aka emailing resumes), I am working in my garden, going for long neighborhood walks, and currently spending time with the ol' sister and brother in law in Otterburne. It is blissfully quiet in the country. The Rat River rolls by between green, waving grasses as birds dive bomb with ferocious whim.

Today I...

...walked in the rain.

...drank a chai latte and pretended to be trendy with my journal and reflective posture at Starbucks.

...cried some tears.

...felt alone.

...prayed that the story of my life could be one of love.

...felt the presence of God through the understanding and wisdom of my family.

...cried some more.

...remembered that there is a hormonal component for my emotional turmoil.

...read L.M. Montgomery and reflected upon the beauty in the world.

...felt blessed to walk beneath a canopy of green trees and damp clouds.

...curled up on the couch beneath a warm blanket.



“Let me be the one you’re running to.” The Acorn

"She wanted to be alone - to think things out - to adjust herself, if it were possible, to the new world in which she seemed to have been transplanted with a suddenness and completeness that left her half bewildered to her own identity."
— L.M. Montgomery