I’ve been going through my gmail inbox, trying to get rid of the backlog, and it’s so overwhelming I had to figure out a way to proceed. One idea I had was to search for certain senders and then delete most (or all) of the emails from them. I started with easy ones, like my old Hydro bills, but then it occurred to me that I could search for emails from my Mom, so I did. The first ones that came up were from the last few weeks of her life and were not from her, but they were about...
A look back at 2019…January that is.
February 20, 2019June 5, 2023By Vivian Lee
I’m sitting here on February 20th thinking, where did the first 12th of the year go?? What did I accomplish? How is my 19 for 2019 list going? I don’t want the year to disappear on me without any of the changes I was hoping for, so I think a frequent look behind and ahead of me, will be worthwhile. First thing I want to do is revamp my list, because I’m realizing that the list as written has too many things that I can’t really cross off until Dec. 31st, if then! There are a lot of behavioral changes...
The Diversity Dance
February 12, 2019June 5, 2023By Vivian Lee
I went to Zumba class this morning, and, not for the first time, I found myself puzzled by the lopsided numbers in the class. Out of forty people (approximately), only two are men and only a handful are from visible minority groups, the rest are all white women between 18-65. The previous teacher, who quit back in September, was a young man from Mexico, and his replacement is a tall, gangly, white guy, who doesn’t look like a Zumba teacher, in the stereotypical sense. I had my doubts about him, therefore, (sorry, but it’s true!) but he turned out to...
My Beautiful Birkin
January 30, 2019June 5, 2023By Vivian Lee
My Birkin Sweater If you follow me on IG, you know I’ve recently completed my Birkin sweater, by Caitlin Hunter of Boyland Knitworks. Caitlin Hunter is a prolific and beloved designer, currently in vogue among hand knitters. I’m not the hugest fan of her designs, but then, I often don’t jump on the bandwagon at the first pass. It often takes me awhile to warm up to a designer’s aesthetic. I tend to see whether it grows on me and sometimes it does, but often it doesn’t. However, I loved the Birkin right away. I’m a sucker for flowers so...
Season of Sacrifice
January 23, 2019June 5, 2023By Vivian Lee
I’m not sure who coined the phrase, ” Season of Sacrifice” but I first heard it I believe, from Liz Craft on the podcast, Happier in Hollywood, to describe the period during which she and her partner, Sarah Fain, are writing screenplays. I loved the term because it applies so aptly to the period of intense practicing that a musician has to endure before an audition or recital, or any unusually demanding concert. I know I said I would be going back to my usual subjects this week, but I still have so much to say about the recent CWBC...
The Afterglow
January 21, 2019June 5, 2023By Vivian Lee
I just returned from a great few days in Toronto at the first ever Canadian Women’s Brass Collective event, nicknamed, “That’s What she Said”. It was, especially for an inaugural effort, an incredible experience. It was well organized, well-run and it brought people from all over the country together to play and give lectures, workshops and masterclasses. I was happy and honoured to be asked by Karen Donnelly, principal trumpet extraordinaire of the NACO (who had the idea for the event), to participate, although I must say my first reaction to being asked to give a masterclass was a major...
2019 for the Win
January 13, 2019June 5, 2023By Vivian Lee
It’s January and I’ve decided to follow my guru, Gretchen Rubin, and make a “19 for 2019” list. It’s like I’m making 19 resolutions, except I don’t have to throw my hands up at the end of January if I haven’t done them yet, because I have the WHOLE year to put them in place. For some reason, instead of the horrible oppressive feeling I get when I make a New Year’s resolution, I’m feeling inspired by this process. Also, the 19 things can be anything, hard or easy, the only criteria being they have to be things I really...
I Push On
December 3, 2018June 5, 2023By Vivian Lee
I have a favourite song from my daughter, Erica Lee Martin’s album, Out of The Playground. It’s called I Push On and it just gets me. It’s poignant and haunting and it speaks about facing challenges and finding inspiration to keep going. I just love it. For those of us who aren’t blessed with an always positive spirit, that describes how we manage life. It can be wonderful, but mostly in fleeting moments. I don’t exactly know why, but my spirit has been low for many months, maybe years. If you were to think of me as a globe, my...
November white
November 16, 2018June 5, 2023By Vivian Lee
I was feeling the greyness of November very heavily on my psyche the other day, when I wrote the post, November Blues. I don’t think I really believed that it was only the dreariness of the weather that was making me feel so down, but when I woke up this morning and the world was white and the light coming in reflected that, I could feel my spirits rising. I know the people who hate winter, such as my husband, Dave, will be groaning as they read this, but I can’t help thinking that winter is not my least favourite...
November Blues
November 13, 2018June 5, 2023By Vivian Lee
It’s a dreary month, no question, but the Nordic countries have something they call “hygge”, a Danish word defined in English as “A quality of cosiness and comfortable conviviality that engenders a feeling of contentment or well-being.” (thank you, Oxford Living Dictionary) I think the idea is to make up for the lack of light outdoors by creating light and warmth indoors. Candlelight, firelight (where available) and Christmas lights help create hygge. Also, the enticing smells of baking, spices, lavender sachets, scented candles, chicken soup on the stove or any other smells you enjoy can help create that cosiness. A...