I think I am a bit nature obsessed sometimes. Which actually puts me in my ‘happy place’. I would definitely consider myself an extrovert, although I didn’t always feel that way. My memories of my ‘youngen years’ is that when my parents took us to visit friends, I always preferred to hang out with the adults. I don’t know if I was dreaming about what it would be like to one day be one… or if I was just unimpressed uncomfortable getting to know their friend’s kids. I preferred sometimes to just observe; and sometimes I was just bored out of my mind, but none-the-less, when I think back to those moments in time I remember feeling like the ‘odd man out’ many times. So, it could be that I ‘matured’ into an extrovert or became conditioned into one, or innately maybe I always was one. I look back on all of the networking events I have gone to throughout my career, and I am usually quite ecstatic to just delve in there head on, make some connections, chat with people and find a common ground, but mostly, I just plain – find people fascinating. I love hearing their tales. I love learning about their lives; where they come from, where they’re going and what makes them tick. Typically an extrovert will become energized being around people… which makes perfect sense, because I do have difficulty winding down after a social event. But I have always craved the quiet contemplation that nature offers me. I love being surrounded by trees, the rhythmic rustling of their leaves, and listening to the water rush over the rocks; what an interesting dance it does over time as its gentle strength smooths away the rock’s hard rough edges. I love the peaceful tranquility my soul feels when the sun warms my face, and how the moon embraces me in the dark of night. That is powerful. I think what I have realized about myself is that a group dynamic gives me a temporary rush of adrenaline, which can be exhilarating (kind of like being on stage, which I enjoyed immensely before adulthood kicked in), but my mind and soul can only feel truly nourished and rejuvenated by nature. 
Photo Challenge Number 17, taken along the bike path on the Ottawa Rideau Canal in Ottawa.
April 2016
Tag Archives: childhood
Rascally Rabbits
My young work compadre & I, thought we’d try shaking things up a bit, so as 2015 drew to a close, we feverishly sat down to come up with some fun (and some not so fun) challenges for 2016. Each month, we draw a new dare ‘challenge’ from the Tim Hortons cup atop of the credenza (yes… the cup is clean). For April, we selected a “photo a day”; and so, here is my April 1st photo (yes… a bit late, but I was recently preoccupied blogging about a far heavier subject). This however, is a wee bit o’fun, as the Fromage (my nickname for her, because all those who are in my close circle seem to eventually get one from me) and I make an attempt to finally follow through on one of our challenges; though we are in fact ahead of the game as ‘blogging’ has been started again, but not yet drawn from the cup!
While chillaxin’ on April 1st with Tante Hosé… we popped over to Chapters, so she could get her Starbucks fix, and we meandered through the aisles… self-help, fiction, children’s literature, and the fun trinket section at the cash, of course. I came across the display of the very endearing book “Guess How Much I Love You”, which I read to Mouks nightly when he was just a wee lad. And it is a fitting title accurately depicting how much love there is between parent and child, and beautifully illustrates how much my heart overflows with love for my fella. I have the sweetest memories that I hold dear of the warm snuggles and animated words as I read this aloud to him. There is something so peaceful and mesmerizing about the story…. and it warms my heart how it’s not until Little Nutbrown Hair thinks he has stated that loving Big Nutbrown Hair “all the way to the moon” is as far as you can love someone, and he is satisfied, and lulls off into a contemplative sleep… that Big Nutbrown hair then quietly and gently whispers, “I love you all the way to the moon…. and back”. ❤
"smackiland" & beyond 