Granting Happiness

This week at work I got to be a part of so many truly amazing things. This time I am not talking about selfish awesome things, like hanging out backstage with rock stars, or getting free swag. These awesome things were about giving, and truthfully, those are much better.

I work in radio, and we almost always have giveaways and contests going on. Usually the prizes are things like concert tickets, CD’s and movies, and other fun but otherwise small prizes. As opposed to a stand alone company, I have the benefit of working at a company that owns 4 stations in the same city/ surrounding area so there are always things happening.

This week we had 3 exceptional prizes to give away. The first was mostly sentimental in value. It is called the Golden Smile Award, and it is given away monthly to someone in the listening area who is largely unrecognized, but who impacts a tremendous amount of lives for the better. This month it went to Robert Hajjar, a man born with Down’s Syndrome who works giving motivational speeches across North America about seeing the ability in disability. He works to end discrimination and to open people’s minds about people with an intellectual disabilities and their capabilities.

Next, we had a an all-expenses paid trip to Disney World. This is a pretty extravagant trip; one that many families could only dream about taking. Sometimes it is hard to remember, (especially for those who are unencumbered by children,) that the cost of ANY outing increases exponentially when you go from 1 or 2 people, up to a full family of 5, so a trip like this is out of the question for many. The family that won this trip could not have been any more perfect. When we went to their home to tell them they had won, they children answered the door carrying their own Micky or Minnie Mouse toys, and the parents were crying with pure, unfiltered joy. One doesn’t often get to see this kind of happiness but it is really special when you do.

The last prize we gave away was just purely unique and unforgettable. Imagine playing your favourite instrument, with your favourite band, on stage during soundcheck before they do a show in your hometown? And then on top of that, you get to hangout with them for a while and walk away with some signed gear? In conjunction with Billy Talent, we made that happen for someone and I have never in my life seen a teenage boy so happy about anything ever. That is something that really can’t be replicated and is definitely a story he’ll be telling for the rest of his life.

Sometimes, my job is all about fun, games, and good music but sometimes, when we all get together and work on something, we get to change people’s lives forever. When that happens, that is when I really, really love my job.

My Thoughts on Babies

Lately, my cousin has been on a baby bender. She wants, nay, NEEDS to have babies in her life as soon as possible. Ever since she was sixteen, she has wanted kids. Now that she is happily married, she is talking non-stop about them and honestly, it is driving me mad. Almost everyone in the world gushes around babies. They swoon over their tiny hands and little feet and that gross new-baby-smell. But I am not most people. I do not love little tiny infant humans.

This second one, this is how I feel about babies.

I have no maternal instincts. You hand me a baby, and I will hold it awkwardly until you take it back. If it cries around me and there are people around to witness, I will say “Oh, I’m just going to get its mom or dad….” as I walk away.

Now I don’t *hate* babies; they’re not the worst things in the world. (Spiders are much worse than babies. Tornados are worse than babies.) If I found a baby on my porch with a note saying “Please save me, I have no one left in the world and I need a good home,” I would take it to a local orphanage/ fire hall/ wherever so that it found a home with someone competent to care for it adequately.

I think most of my repulsion to babies comes from the fact that they need you to do absolutely everything for them. I get it, it is a baby and it doesn’t know better. But man, I can hardly take care of myself constantly, let alone another life form. Maybe one day in the distant future, my lady hormones will kick into gear and all of a sudden babies will seem to be the greatest things since sliced bread but that day is a long time off.

 

In other news, I’ve been away from blogging for a while because my life got a bit bananas. First off, I have started interning at DrawSplash.com which has been a surprisingly fun experience. I love the people that I get to hangout with all day, and the work is enjoyable so far. I am sure there will be stressful deadlines and other un-fun moments in the future, but for now it has been great. We have even made plans to all hangout outside of a work environment more. I am glad I got involved with this, even though it is unpaid. I have also interviewed at Corus Radio for their Summer Cruiser position. It has been an extremely intense and nerve wracking process and I have yet to hear of the decision. Along with that there have been plans to see people, do things, train for races, and sleep occasionally. Once I get into the rhythm of balancing working two jobs and finding time for real life, I’ll post regularly again. Pinky swear.

If 30 is the New 20, That Makes Me 13

Ladies magazines are ALWAYS saying 30 is the new 20, 40 is the new 30 etc. etc. etc. I assume this is to make old ladies feel better about themselves getting old and whatnot, but I also think that there is some genuine truth to it.

In general, more of us are staying in school longer (i.e. getting degrees/diplomas instead of peacing out after high school) and therefore delaying our foray into the “real world”.  I for one am absolutely guilty of this, considering that I currently am writing this from the kitchen table of my mom’s house. In my pajamas. At 2pm. Why? Well that could be chalked up to a number of things.

Firstly, I chose to get a degree in Philosophy which I think we can all agree, was a terrible life choice. I would ask why nobody stopped me ,but I assume that they tried and this is just another example of my strong-headedness where what I damn well please because I know better. It is the hair cutting incident all over again. (I’d put up a picture of the godforsaken shitshow that was my first short hair cut but thankfully I think I have destroyed all of the evidence. I looked like a boy for a very long time. 13 year old girls should try to retain some form of femininity unless they are prepared to be called “sir” frequently.)

Secondly, I live in a city with the one of the highest unemployment rate across this great country. (The city of opportunity indeed…) The last numbers I heard had us hovering at around 9 per cent. With that kind of competition it really is hard for a company to pick an inexperienced graduate over somebody who has a wealth of insider knowledge and 17 years of experience.

Thirdly, I am horrendously indecisive and unmotivated. I apply for jobs, but more often than not, I am terrible at the follow through calling which is to my great disadvantage. I apply and then hope that the job fairy makes things happen for me.

At times I do feel about 13 years old. I live with my mom, have minimal responsibilities, (essentially work at my part time job and pay my student debt among other bills,) and have a lot of spare time that I can’t seem to figure out how to fill productively. I can’t let other people take the blame entirely for my less than ideal situation, but I will not accept all the blame.

For young adults, it seems that everything is up in the air for longer than it ever was. We delay the pressures of adulthood, either by choice or inability. With the economy the way that it is, work is difficult to come by and when you find it, it is at best, part time. Education lasts longer than ever, even without professional degrees like Law and Medicine. Stuff is hard. I would say harder than ever, but that would just be personal opinion and bias. I think right now many 20 somethings have a bit of Peter-Pan-Syndrome aka the inability to grow up. And maybe it is just me. I have friends who are working at internships with a television company, who live with their wonderful boyfriends, and who are in general, much more successful than I am. Then there are others who find themselves in situations eerily similar to my own. Perhaps I am just the worst? Perhaps I need to find some sort of motivation to make things happen, since I can’t seem to find my own job fairy.

Anyway, these are just the ramblings of a broke girl. One day (hopefully sooner rather than later,) I will look back and read this post through my monocle and laugh while holding a crystal glass of high grade scotch thinking how foolish I was. Here are some other people who have written on the same subject from The Toronto Star The New York Times and some other people.

How Not To Find A Job

I am an expert at not finding a real big-girl job. I have a degree, (shocking as that may be to some) but now that it is time to put that impractical knowledge to work, I am terrible at life. And a bit SOL. So here are my tips for remaining as dependent and useless to society as possible.

1. Be a recent graduate of a useless liberal arts degree program.
   - Philosophy is the greatest program ever! University is about knowledge and growth, not a career. Philosophy and smart stuff! *crying into a sundae*
2. Lack any discernible skill to separate yourself from the crowd.
   - I once tried to learn knitting but that didn’t really pan out so now I watch a lot of HGTV. Also I am really bad at time management and computers are too hard to figure out, but I do make a damn fine cake from a box! So… you know…. talent?
3. Apply for jobs which you are by no means qualified for.
   - 17 years experience required? Done. Intelligence Agency? Don’t mind if I do! These places will all definitely realize what an asset it is to have someone like you working for them.
4. Be too lazy for persistent follow up calls.
   - I applied and thought about calling once, but it was late and I had to catch up on 2 Broke Girls and then I forgot about it for another week. What more do you want from me?!
5. Have a really shitty blog.
   - LIKE THIS ONE! 16 people will read it, you will get weird spam comments (perhaps about “hide-my-ass related proxy blogs” like I did), and at least one guy who thinks you are an angry feminist who should get preggo and bake him a pie. Its kinda funny so keep up the good work. But only if you post sporadically and about nonsense. We’re not grown ups around here. Keep it juvenile kids.
6. Panic more about Facebook and their Timeline thing than job opportunities.
   - Because what if there is a really unflattering photo of you that some boy you might someday meet sees and ohmigawd he’ll think you’re a fat delusional monstrosity and it is far too soon for him to know the truth!
7. Take a break from job searching.
   - It can be really tiresome to look for jobs in such a bleak market, so take some time off. Why the hell not? Don’t look up alternative options like school though, because it is kinda depressing.
8. Write letters to friends often.
   - This can be really fun if you crack open a cheap bottle of wine before hand. Paper, pen(s), envelopes, and stamps. Thats all you need. It is cheap entertainment that arrives in 2-4 business days. Prompt!
9. Be inconsistent.
   - Complain about being poor, write a blog about it, and don’t follow a pattern. See I started talking about myself (I do that a lot) but now I am just spewing out bad advice.
10. Lament about your situation and then try to make the best of it.
    - This usually means whine a lot while you hangout with people who are equally as poor. These people may be students and you may have to work around their exam schedule, but at least you won’t feel entirely useless and/or defeated.

On a totally unrelated note, I’ve been wathing a lot of My Drunk Kitchen (follow her on Twitter) and really want to be intoxicated whilst I make food products for my face hole. SO if you follow me on Twitter, I may document the experience. Or I might forget and I’ll take some photos and blog about it. Who knows. I might forget to do that too. Maybe I’ll just get drunk and eat poutine like I usually do. ITS A GOOD TIME AND IT TAKES NO EFFORT. That is enough of this.