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What I’m bringing from 2020 with me into the New Year

Most people agree that 2020 has been a sh*t show of a year. Like most, my goals for 2020 were wildly thrown off track; but there are three things I’ve learned in 2020 that I want to bring with me into the New Year.

I had so many goals for 2020. I had my beautiful new agenda (that went to waste) to keep track of my progress and everything I wanted to get done. My goals were mostly towards getting sh*t done that I have been sitting on for awhile and health goals. Consistently 2020 threw me for a loop in terms of what I had planned for myself.

1. Ability to fail with grace and forgiveness

I have always picked myself up after my failures… its just a minor set back until I succeed. I am a very goal oriented person, and I will always pick myself up after a failure and try again. BUT, I can be very hard on myself.

2020 gave me a reason to fail with grace and forgiveness. No one was expecting that everyone keep succeeding at the same pace they were before, we were all stressed out by the current world we live in.

So when I consistently fell off, tried again, fell off, decided to make baby (I mean BABY) steps… until i saw progress in ONE thing at a time. I always fell back to forgiving myself and trying again. I want to keep this grace moving into the New Year. Leave obsession behind and lead with grace.

2. Early Morning Intentions

A major factor that helped me keep trying last year was waking up early (I mean 5am, and I don’t have to log into work at home until 9am). Each morning I would wake up when my little family was still sleeping, make myself a coffee, reflect, listen to the news, and workout.

This had an amazing effect on my moods. I have never been a morning person. In fact, I would be the coworker that would ask why you were smiling in the morning (obviously only to people that “got me” and would just laugh like “oh, tash.”) Until I had my coffee, work and pleasantries had to wait.

When I had a morning to reflect and workout prior to speaking with anyone or starting work. I was smiling, I was extremely up beat and a ‘Morning Person’.

This took a tremendous amount of effort on my part, as it goes against my natural rhythm. If I went to bed when my body told me… I would go to bed around 2 and wake up at 10am.

But as a early riser, I was happier and more productive as I already got my workout in as the sun came up.

3. Reading

I started reading again. I found books on our book shelf that didn’t have a cracked spine, and blew threw them. I purchased a number of indigenous novels about the Indian Act and feminism. With all the racial tension that happened throughout 2020, I had a awakening inside to connect with my heritage. And I did this through reading, learned alot of history and had lots of discussions with my man on our shared experiences.

Since I started reading, a member of my team at work offered up a meditation novel to borrow. Previously, I might have passed but so many people of suggested that I would love meditation… so I gave it a shot. Although the language (based in love and religion) doesn’t suit me, I learned to read underneath the language to the principles of what was being taught. I realized that alot of the meditation techniques, I practiced myself in keeping up with my mental health.. naturally. I took what I hadn’t been practicing and added to my repertoire.

My reading this year definitely lead to an enlightenment of my spirit and mind and I want to continue this growth into the new year.

Thanks for reading, I hope that what 2020 has taught you will stay with you into the New Year!

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Wen Trial & Review

I decided to give Wen Hair Care a try.

and this is my first day review.

I will be using it for a month to see if I can get some genuine improvement in the life of my hair.

BUT. Wen does promise that you will see an improvement in one use.

So read below for what I noticed.

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Target Dressing Room

People are often surprised I shop at Target or any big departments

As a fashionista, I guess I am expected to shop where no one else does!

But I will admit that shopping at low-cost department stores often lead to trials and tribulations.

You have to go through a lot of:

“this looks awful”

To find that unexpected gem.

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Tights vs Naked

I feel naked without tights.

Is that stating the obvious or can that actually be a feeling? 🙂

Once I put on a pair of tights…I feel more sexy even compared to bare legs.

I recently reviewed some Tattoo’d Tights from a Canadian Company

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Workout Words of Encouragement

We all have those days when we want to say “F*** it” to the workout.

Take that one day off and just RELAX.

I mean we’ve already made so many results…we deserve it right?!

On those days, the guilt later almost seems worth the hour you get to be a couch potato!

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How to Thrift

I by no means consider myself a thrifting expert.

But I have been known to find some really great pieces.

And known for putting together some outfits that would make you look twice.. knowing most of it came from thrift stores.

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Before I even had my first adult experience thrifting- I researched….as I’ve been known to do.

I googled the wealthiest part of the city searched the nearby “good will.”

My logic being that the wealthiest can buy the best material, and best brands …and well donate them near their home.

Choosing the nearest thrift store to your home, although convenient, may not be the best strategy.

…

Once you’ve set your targets on the perfect location. How do you find the diamond in the rough?

Personally I take my time. I go through it all.

Although the employees try to keep the store organized either by size, colour, and type of clothing. The reality is stuff gets lost, misplaced, or even hidden-Yes hidden. People may find an item that they don’t want to purchase at that moment and will hide the item within a different section. Obviously this item was good enough to hide, meaning its good enough to take the time to find!

Sorry Ladies- You snooze you lose.

Now of course it would be mind numbingly long to inspect each item in the entire store.

So to speed up the process- learn to keep a keen eye.

If you don’t think you could spot that shining diamond in the rough.

Practice.

Go though your closet; take the time to really take a look.

Feel the material, notice the stitching, and how it falls off the hanger.

Once you know what you are looking for- it will stand out amongst the cotton oversized tee-shirts at the thrift store.

The trick is to scan the racks.

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Once you find something. Be sure to look it over.

Inspect for imperfections, tears, missing buttons, broken zippers, stains…yes I said it.

Some things people donate, maybe should have been donated to the garbage bin.

I once found a pair of bebe high-waisted shorts with the security tag still on it.

like really?

You know what- I bought them.

Doesn’t mean I’m a thief right.?!

I just went home and researched how to disassemble a magnetic security tag without ruining the item of clothing.

You really can find anything on youtube.

The point of this story?

Some items can be fixed.

Sure it may be missing a button…

but you can go out choose your own buttons and create a completely unique piece to your own design!

Also little fixes like stitching, and re-zippering all are very budget friendly.

….

But some things sometimes cannot be fixed- like fit.

I don’t know how many times I’ve found a great pair of heels only to be tragically disappointed when THIS  Cinderella wasn’t so lucky.

But that’s the game of thrifting.

You may be the ugly sister for one charming item…but then you look twelve o’clock and find the shoe that fits.

Did you love that labored metaphor? haha

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Lastly I’ve leave you with some of my recent thrifted outfits.

PicsArt_1406035597386[1] PicsArt_1405604267756[1]

Can you spot the thrifted items?

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My wife is not the same woman that I married | The Matt Walsh Blog

I came home today and came across this title for a blog article across my news feed.

Intrigued I took a read. It speaks about marriage and divorce. How the statement, “sometimes people change,”  is not a legitimate reason for ending a marriage. Let’s face it, you gave up. People are always changing, you didn’t choose to marry that person only for who they were that one day you married them. You choose to marry them and be united to them for the rest of your life and whoever they will be during that journey.

I think people have forgotten that marriage is about choosing a LIFE PARTNER. My grandmother, who was married to my grandfather since she was 19 to the day he passed, once told me: “love isn’t enough.” That’s because it’s much harder than that. It’s about always trying, always putting the relationship first. Your partner is always changing, so you should always be trying to learn more about your partner and how they’ve changed- never get complacent.  Sure you may know her “chapter 1” so well that you could tell it to her, but there are always new pages being written.

Marriage is just as much about the structure: sacrifice, compromise, struggle, and support as it is about the mushy-romantic centre: joy and love.

You can read Mark Walsh’s post below:

My wife is not the same woman that I married | The Matt Walsh Blog.

Ps. Here is a quote I loved from the blog:

“sometimes i can read her like a book, but sometimes she wears an expression I’ve never seen. Sometimes she smiles like the world is telling a joke that only she understands”

pss.

Like the “Matt Walsh Blogger” I may not be speaking from a point of experience like 30-40 years of marriage. But I have chosen my life partner, and we’ve been together for close to seven years and living together for over 5. We’ve made it through doing it long distance, through money struggles, through moving twice including to a new city, and what I’m most proud of is the “growing pains” of becoming adults as me and my man surprisingly met when I was 19. What comforts me is I know that we can change drastically as people and still hold onto each other through it all.

 

 

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