Working in Marketing and Communications for the better half of my time, as well as on the web team here at the Gallery, I recently decided that it was important for me to brush up on my social marketing skills. I started a Twitter account a while ago but let it fall by the wayside (much like my little blog here). I will be updating regularly again, so please ch-ch-check it out if you tweet, too :) @jamiemcglashan
I'm also going to try and be really really good with my blog posts from now on. Fall will mean (a little) less time outside and more time for sitting down and letting my words flow out freely :) My 101 Things in 1001 days project will not work on itself.
Monday, August 24, 2009
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
A bit of a stretch
I feel like after reading the entire Twilight saga in a week that I went through a reading detox. Things got so busy with the weeks leading up to our surf trip, and even after coming home it was always something every week. Either a birthday, an amazing day out in the country taking pretty pictures, random (crazyfun) roadtrips, or another birthday here and there, and reading just didn't factor in. I have honestly had very little "me" time lately. Summer has been a blast but sometimes we just need to decompress.
In June, while on our trip, we had a fair amount of down time. Surfing was both physically and mentally exhausting and on occaisions we'd take a couple hours out - pretty much a necessity - and nap, play cards, or read. I brought along with me one of the 3 novels Shawn had lent me. Two of these are James Rollins, his favourite author. I had never read or heard of him but they are comparable to the Dan Brown novels (also whom I have not read but thanks to Hollywood, he's on my radar). Shawn insisted it might be something I'd enjoy at least to try it on for size. So I chose The Judas Strain to start.
Now...I have always been someone with a very active imagination. I can spend hours a day dreaming coming up with various plots or scenarios on pretty much anything in my life or stemming from pure fantasy. Well, this book ceretainly awakened that active imagination subconsioucly, and after a few days of reading, the suspense and action started top seep into my dreams at night. I was always running from something, or looking for something, and it was always a dire situation.
The Judas Strain is the first action/suspense/mystery novel I have ever read. Its brilliant. However...it was almost too much for me. There is so much going on in every page, I felt like I was watching a movie unfold infront of my eyes. So many details, so many key players, and several locations. My brain often felt in overdrive! I think this is why it took me nearly 2 months to finish this novel. I could only ever get through a handful of pages before I would feel like I needed to put it down, breath, and move on to something else before I went crazy.
I read the last quarter of the book in the span of 2 days while I was sick from work. I thought, ok here comes the end of July, and I have definitely..shamefully...dropped my 2 books a month quota, so lets at least get this under my belt. Reading something so far out of my realm was a challenge but also thoroughly satisfying. After a few fluffy books I think I'll be ready to take on the next James Rollins sitting on my book shelf. I have picked up one of the books Kate lent me months ago to start on. Bitter is the New Black. Its a 'chick-lit'. And I have no doubt I will devour it in a matter of days. Might meet my monthly quota afterall!!
If you want to learn more about James Rollins and his novels, you can check out his web site here http://www.jamesrollins.com/.
In June, while on our trip, we had a fair amount of down time. Surfing was both physically and mentally exhausting and on occaisions we'd take a couple hours out - pretty much a necessity - and nap, play cards, or read. I brought along with me one of the 3 novels Shawn had lent me. Two of these are James Rollins, his favourite author. I had never read or heard of him but they are comparable to the Dan Brown novels (also whom I have not read but thanks to Hollywood, he's on my radar). Shawn insisted it might be something I'd enjoy at least to try it on for size. So I chose The Judas Strain to start.
Now...I have always been someone with a very active imagination. I can spend hours a day dreaming coming up with various plots or scenarios on pretty much anything in my life or stemming from pure fantasy. Well, this book ceretainly awakened that active imagination subconsioucly, and after a few days of reading, the suspense and action started top seep into my dreams at night. I was always running from something, or looking for something, and it was always a dire situation.
The Judas Strain is the first action/suspense/mystery novel I have ever read. Its brilliant. However...it was almost too much for me. There is so much going on in every page, I felt like I was watching a movie unfold infront of my eyes. So many details, so many key players, and several locations. My brain often felt in overdrive! I think this is why it took me nearly 2 months to finish this novel. I could only ever get through a handful of pages before I would feel like I needed to put it down, breath, and move on to something else before I went crazy.
I read the last quarter of the book in the span of 2 days while I was sick from work. I thought, ok here comes the end of July, and I have definitely..shamefully...dropped my 2 books a month quota, so lets at least get this under my belt. Reading something so far out of my realm was a challenge but also thoroughly satisfying. After a few fluffy books I think I'll be ready to take on the next James Rollins sitting on my book shelf. I have picked up one of the books Kate lent me months ago to start on. Bitter is the New Black. Its a 'chick-lit'. And I have no doubt I will devour it in a matter of days. Might meet my monthly quota afterall!!
If you want to learn more about James Rollins and his novels, you can check out his web site here http://www.jamesrollins.com/.
Monday, June 29, 2009
A few things ticked off the list...
I recently updated my first post with some things I've been able to cross off my list in the past month.
- I learned how to surf on my holiday in North Carolina, where I also camped for the entire week. Thats two birds with one stone, woot!!
- I have recently picked up a new sport. Shawn is teaching me how to play tennis (not so much teaching as he has sorta thrown me into it saying "you can do it!" and me hoping I don't hit myself in the face with my racket)
- I saw a couple of shooting stars while star gazing at Pam's during her graduation party in early June.
- I went to a favourite band, No Doubt, in concert in Montreal on June 17th.
:) You can check out my progress with my day zero project by checking back to that first post every now and then.
This weekend I will be doing some more camping for my birthday!! I'll also soon be able to check-off my outdoor concert goal with Bluesfest starting here in Ottawa next week!! I am very excited to see Our Lady Peace!! Um..and Ice Cube?!? For real??? haha. I have the amazing opportunity to see all of the shows this year thanks to a very generous birthday gift :) This will not be wasted, I can't wait!!! :D
- I learned how to surf on my holiday in North Carolina, where I also camped for the entire week. Thats two birds with one stone, woot!!
- I have recently picked up a new sport. Shawn is teaching me how to play tennis (not so much teaching as he has sorta thrown me into it saying "you can do it!" and me hoping I don't hit myself in the face with my racket)
- I saw a couple of shooting stars while star gazing at Pam's during her graduation party in early June.
- I went to a favourite band, No Doubt, in concert in Montreal on June 17th.
:) You can check out my progress with my day zero project by checking back to that first post every now and then.
This weekend I will be doing some more camping for my birthday!! I'll also soon be able to check-off my outdoor concert goal with Bluesfest starting here in Ottawa next week!! I am very excited to see Our Lady Peace!! Um..and Ice Cube?!? For real??? haha. I have the amazing opportunity to see all of the shows this year thanks to a very generous birthday gift :) This will not be wasted, I can't wait!!! :D
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Coming soon...
Just a quick note to say I am, in fact, still alive. I have been explaining to Gen that for some reason unknown to me, everytime I come to do a proper update, words seem to escape me and they just aren't flowing out the way I want them to. I have started about 4 entries that are all sitting untouched on my desktop.
You can expect a handful of entries in the next week, I have much to update you on. Like my surfing trip with Steph and Brad, and how amazing it was and how wonderful they are. Like my mid-week break with my sister to Montreal last week to see No Doubt (another thing to cross off my list!), and how amazing the show was, and how good it is to have our quality time.
I am also dying to tell you about how fun it was working with Gen on the design(s) for her Fifteen:Fifty-one Photography (http://www.fifteenfiftyone.ca/) logo and business card, and how much fun it is to play model for her from time to time. We recently had a great weekend in Vars on a farm, and I got to bring two of my favourite people with me. In addition to her personal blog here, you can also check out her 15:51 blog here!
So that is just a teaser as I am not feeling the words coming the way I want them to. But I know there are some of you who are waiting to have something to read. I promise - it will come soon. Am waiting to find the words, though I feel like maybe its the words that are waiting to find me.
It is not a lack of inspiration. Far from it as I am surrounded by individuals who continue to amaze me with their talents, passions, and everyday brilliance. It is simply what feels like a lack of time to put things down, and missing the right voice. I know I will soon hit my stride again. Thanks for following in my journey :)
And since pictures can sometimes speak louder than words...in the meantime......
You can expect a handful of entries in the next week, I have much to update you on. Like my surfing trip with Steph and Brad, and how amazing it was and how wonderful they are. Like my mid-week break with my sister to Montreal last week to see No Doubt (another thing to cross off my list!), and how amazing the show was, and how good it is to have our quality time.
I am also dying to tell you about how fun it was working with Gen on the design(s) for her Fifteen:Fifty-one Photography (http://www.fifteenfiftyone.ca/) logo and business card, and how much fun it is to play model for her from time to time. We recently had a great weekend in Vars on a farm, and I got to bring two of my favourite people with me. In addition to her personal blog here, you can also check out her 15:51 blog here!
So that is just a teaser as I am not feeling the words coming the way I want them to. But I know there are some of you who are waiting to have something to read. I promise - it will come soon. Am waiting to find the words, though I feel like maybe its the words that are waiting to find me.
It is not a lack of inspiration. Far from it as I am surrounded by individuals who continue to amaze me with their talents, passions, and everyday brilliance. It is simply what feels like a lack of time to put things down, and missing the right voice. I know I will soon hit my stride again. Thanks for following in my journey :)
And since pictures can sometimes speak louder than words...in the meantime......
Friday, May 29, 2009
Aloha!
13 hours....and I will be packing myself into Brad's already packed-to-the-hilt Vibe and setting off on a 15-hour (potentially longer) drive to North Carolina. That's right....my surfing trip has finally arrived :) Steph, Brad and myself are heading down to catch some waves for a few days next week.
I am:
hoping I don't drown;
hoping I don't get eaten by a shark;
hoping I don't break something;
getting nervous butterflies;
sooooo freakin' excited I can't sit still.
I know:
that this is going to be THE best trip ever, with two of my best friends;
that surfing will be a fun and - something tells me - a humbling experience;
that I can't wait to sit on the beach and soak up some rays;
that I am looking forward to the campfire dinners and toasting marshmallows;
that I really should have started packing last night....
This is the first full-on long distance road trip I am taking with friends and not my family, so I think this ads to the bubbles of excitement in my stomach right now. A little backstory: While I wasn't in on the conversation initially, what I remember is that it occured at the Honest Lawyer here in Ottawa in November over one of our happy hour get togethers. Brad and Steph must have been talking about Australia and surfing (as my flatmate had lived there for a year and had taken it upon herself to learn how to surf, smart girl) and both agreed they wanted to do a surfing trip in the near future. Why not? Locations were discussed and a few options were singled out but nothing concrete was made, other than a promise that they would indeed follow through.
Some of us throw these suggestions out with no follow through but this, this is not characteristic of either of them. I know both of them are the types when if they've set their mind to something, then its going to be done, somehow, someway, eventually. Indeed, this idea would turn out to be more than just happy hour talk, more than just a pipe dream (ba-dum-bum!) :) Surely enough, a few weeks later Steph suggested I should join them as well in planning the trip. That was all I needed :) Planning began - magazines were bought, websites consulted (a favourite being this fun jem: www.riptionary.com), stories with friends who share a passion for surfing were heard (special thanks on my end to Krysia for her lovely words of encouragement and reminder that surfing is about the journey, and about respect, for the people and the ocean) - and Steph came up with a beautiful plan to hit up the east coast, close to home, not gonna break the bank per se. And so we were NC bound as a few months ago.
Which is why I can't believe we are leaving tonight. Its finally here. The email from the surf camp this morning requesting my age, height and weight to ensure they prepare the right equipment for me added just that extra jolt of excitment to my morning. Honey, Zimzala and Brosef (that's right..I picked out our surf names...) are south bound as of midnight tonight. Thanks to everyone who have left me friendly send-of messages for a safe and happy trip. Trust: there will be many many many photos. I will do my best to not disappoint on that front.
Aloha!
I am:
hoping I don't drown;
hoping I don't get eaten by a shark;
hoping I don't break something;
getting nervous butterflies;
sooooo freakin' excited I can't sit still.
I know:
that this is going to be THE best trip ever, with two of my best friends;
that surfing will be a fun and - something tells me - a humbling experience;
that I can't wait to sit on the beach and soak up some rays;
that I am looking forward to the campfire dinners and toasting marshmallows;
that I really should have started packing last night....
This is the first full-on long distance road trip I am taking with friends and not my family, so I think this ads to the bubbles of excitement in my stomach right now. A little backstory: While I wasn't in on the conversation initially, what I remember is that it occured at the Honest Lawyer here in Ottawa in November over one of our happy hour get togethers. Brad and Steph must have been talking about Australia and surfing (as my flatmate had lived there for a year and had taken it upon herself to learn how to surf, smart girl) and both agreed they wanted to do a surfing trip in the near future. Why not? Locations were discussed and a few options were singled out but nothing concrete was made, other than a promise that they would indeed follow through.
Some of us throw these suggestions out with no follow through but this, this is not characteristic of either of them. I know both of them are the types when if they've set their mind to something, then its going to be done, somehow, someway, eventually. Indeed, this idea would turn out to be more than just happy hour talk, more than just a pipe dream (ba-dum-bum!) :) Surely enough, a few weeks later Steph suggested I should join them as well in planning the trip. That was all I needed :) Planning began - magazines were bought, websites consulted (a favourite being this fun jem: www.riptionary.com), stories with friends who share a passion for surfing were heard (special thanks on my end to Krysia for her lovely words of encouragement and reminder that surfing is about the journey, and about respect, for the people and the ocean) - and Steph came up with a beautiful plan to hit up the east coast, close to home, not gonna break the bank per se. And so we were NC bound as a few months ago.
Which is why I can't believe we are leaving tonight. Its finally here. The email from the surf camp this morning requesting my age, height and weight to ensure they prepare the right equipment for me added just that extra jolt of excitment to my morning. Honey, Zimzala and Brosef (that's right..I picked out our surf names...) are south bound as of midnight tonight. Thanks to everyone who have left me friendly send-of messages for a safe and happy trip. Trust: there will be many many many photos. I will do my best to not disappoint on that front.
Aloha!
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
My week with Edward Cullen
So... I said that they would make it into the reading list. Eventually. Well that happened much sonner than anticipated! Not only did I pick up Twilight last week, but I also ended up going through it so fast I found myself picking up New Moon, Eclipse and the final book of the saga, Breaking Dawn, by Wednesday afternoon.
This world that Stephenie Meyer has created was just that irresistible.
I had never heard of the books till the movie for the first book of the series, Twilight, started being promoted last summer. From the previews it looked like it might be interesting but as it was I never saw the movie. 2 weeks ago on a quiet night Steph and I decided to watch it. It was cute, fantastic soundtrack!, and overloaded with teen angst, but the love story between Edward and Bella was hard to not fall in love with. The movie intrigued me enough to read the books that I had long avoided because it seemed all a little crazy to me!
I have not read a series like this in a long time that literaly had me reading non-stop. I never put the books down when I was at home. House work be damned, if I was home I was sitting on the couch or in bed reading. My entire week was filled with these characters and their secret worlds. Vampires who attend high school and who don't spontaneously combust in the day light. Werewolves who don't need a full moon to go on the hunt. And enough teen angst to last me a lifetime, thank you very much! There were parts for me that were difficult/painful to read, particularly Bella's self deprecating over and over (gag) and many parts where Jacob was just being the biggest jerk (the kid seriously drove me nuts after the 2nd book). While I won't divulge the ending for those who don't know it and want to read it, what I will say is that I found the ending thoroughly satisfying. Almost so to the point of it being too convenient... but still, satisfying.
I just love a good story and Twilight seriously delivered on that. I'm already looking forward to seeing the adaptation of New Moon onto film which is due out this fall, with the girls who I place full blame on for making me want to pick up the books in first place!! (I love you!)
This world that Stephenie Meyer has created was just that irresistible.
I had never heard of the books till the movie for the first book of the series, Twilight, started being promoted last summer. From the previews it looked like it might be interesting but as it was I never saw the movie. 2 weeks ago on a quiet night Steph and I decided to watch it. It was cute, fantastic soundtrack!, and overloaded with teen angst, but the love story between Edward and Bella was hard to not fall in love with. The movie intrigued me enough to read the books that I had long avoided because it seemed all a little crazy to me!
I have not read a series like this in a long time that literaly had me reading non-stop. I never put the books down when I was at home. House work be damned, if I was home I was sitting on the couch or in bed reading. My entire week was filled with these characters and their secret worlds. Vampires who attend high school and who don't spontaneously combust in the day light. Werewolves who don't need a full moon to go on the hunt. And enough teen angst to last me a lifetime, thank you very much! There were parts for me that were difficult/painful to read, particularly Bella's self deprecating over and over (gag) and many parts where Jacob was just being the biggest jerk (the kid seriously drove me nuts after the 2nd book). While I won't divulge the ending for those who don't know it and want to read it, what I will say is that I found the ending thoroughly satisfying. Almost so to the point of it being too convenient... but still, satisfying.
I just love a good story and Twilight seriously delivered on that. I'm already looking forward to seeing the adaptation of New Moon onto film which is due out this fall, with the girls who I place full blame on for making me want to pick up the books in first place!! (I love you!)
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