Tuesday, December 13, 2022

For Those Who Went To Work Today


For Those who got up from bed with their alarm today...rolled out ...grabbed a coffee, brushed your teeth and washed yourself before brushing the snow or sand or leaves off your car and made your way to work... I see you.

For Those who started the day´s tasks before the boss arrived, I see you.

For those who filed the papers in order and made sure they were stayed secure....I see you.

For those who watched the supervisor walk in late and didn´t mutter under their breath... I hear you. For those who did their job when no one was looking.....I see you.

For those who picked up the pieces when a colleague called in sick....I see you.

For those who covered for a colleague when their loved one passed away, I see you. For those who were given the privilege of handling a difficult client, and didn´t lose your cool and exceeded their expectations, I applaud you.

For those who shared their lunch with a colleague who forgot theirs, I see you.

For those who went to work, when you could have stayed home....I see you. 

The world is better because you chose to go to work today. Money flows better in our economy because you chose to go to work today. Your boss slept peacefully because of the work you went to go do, today.

Thank you for all you do in your work place. May the favour you have given to others flow freely back towards you and your family. May God bless the work of your hands.

Peace out,
Carla.








Sunday, November 6, 2022

You Got This


Friends....I want to have a chat with you today. In Northern Ontario the leaves have almost finished their falling. Suburbia is a flush with folks dragging out their favourite rakes or leaf blowers and the almighty extra large brown paper leaf bags to hoard the leaves until the next trash day.

Folks have been watching the news....perhaps still a little too much, but definitely not as much as during the onset of the pandemic just over 2 years ago.

Canadians struggled a lot with the strict measures that shut down major swaths of our vibrant economy. We take great pride in our national economy. We believe in hard work and earning your keep. 

And now, by God´s grace, the restrictions have lifted and wearing masks is optional in public. Only highly confined and vulnerable settings such as doctor offices still command adherence to a mask wearing policy.

Another big miracle of deliverance was the cancellation of the  app that was foisted upon Canadians to use whenever they tried to travel across a Canadian border. It was and is a welcome relief that this  computerized travel tracking application was scrapped. It was intrusive and very much too ¨big brother-ish¨.

Well, I myself, did go ahead and get more than one Covid 19 vaccine. 
The vaccines I took, made me feel horrible for 2 days or more, and then it was pretty much back to normal life. 

A lot of folks in my city got Covid19, and most did not wind up in the hospital. Most just felt like they had a bad cold, or flu and bounced back within a week or so.

There were a few people I heard of in our corner of town.... who were hospitalized with severe experiences with the virus, but gratefully, both recovered and were released.

The saddest part of the pandemic in our northern Ontario city, was the experience of the virus that blew through several of our city´s retirement facilities. The number of those who got very ill and succumbed to the illness was so high...... the numbers are too painful to dwell on at the moment.

But we must be able and willing to talk about these things at some point. I understand it is hard....heart wrenching and disturbing. But it is a part of our city now, and a part of our shared experience of community.

What have we learned from the lock downs? What have we learned from the vaccines and their effects? What have we learned about how these kind of viruses affect those of us considered in our ¨golden years¨?

What have we learned about the social needs of us all? How did the lock downs and economic stress affect us mentally and emotionally? 
How can we do things better if/and/or when there is ever another pandemic?

I am grateful to have made it through to the other side. I am free to go where I please and to wear a mask only when I choose. I am free to get whatever vaccine I choose to get as well. This is freedom of living and I give God the glory for this blessing. 

If you are reading this, you are blessed too. You have access to the internet and you have the ability to read or have access to a device/person that reads this for you. You are greatly blessed.

You will someday speak about this pandemic in hindsight too. You will explain to some youngster what it felt like to be told you couldn´t go to school or work of the store for weeks on end. You will help them understand  how and why......some folks didn´t make it.

As time and experience moves us forward in time and we put this global pandemic in the rear view mirror of our lives, we may just look upon one another with a sense of camaraderie and encouragement.

We have been there....in that fire...and we made it through.  We can be proud of one another. For some it is still too soon, to even speak of closure or ¨moving on¨. The experience is too fresh and painful. I feel for you. I feel your discomfort and also respect your need for silence. May no one force you to speak before you are ready. 

In closing, I just want to say this....that whatever challenges your life encounters, may the past 2 years remind you of just how strong and resilient we are. We can do anything. You got this.

Peace,

C.






Saturday, October 15, 2022

Cheapskate Hack to Avoid Buying Expensive Jam for Sandwiches

I don´t know about you...but I find these ¨ extreme cheapskate¨ shows to be great entertainment. Most of the tips are not practical and pretty dangerous....but I have not lost my appetite for a great frugal life hack.



So here goes. If you have a big family...or a small family with BIG appetites, then you may sometimes wondered why even the discount grocery stores still charge a handsome dime for any kind of red jam.
By "red" jam, I mean any kind of jam such as strawberry, raspberry etc....

So, the other day when I was preparing the Canadian Thanksgiving turkey dinner and I opened the can of jellied cranberry jelly, I thought to myself....hmm....I wonder how this would do as a frugal substitute for jam on a peanut butter & jelly sandwich. And so, I tried out the jellied cranberry sauce in every way that I normally use raspberry jam....and was pleasantly surprised.

How does the taste compare? Well, jellied cranberry sauce has a tartness to it, which adds a bit of a kick to it...but it still has enough sweetness to  balance it out. The tartness makes it quite refreshing.

So....if one were to use canned jellied cranberry sauce as a raspberry jam substitute, you could store it in the fridge once you open it and put it into a seal-able glass jar, such as a mason jar with a tight lid.

That´s it. Pretty simple huh? I have not done enough experiments using this to know how long it would stay fresh when stored in a glass jar in a refrigerator, but I have enjoyed trying it out for the first time. Does this sound like something you could see yourself or a family member trying out in the future? Or would you file this idea under something you would do only if you ¨had¨ to?

Well, that´s all for now. Enjoy your days and frugal ways, and not so frugal ways. It´s all good.

Peace,
Carla