Fresh to Death

I’m constantly changing the look of my blog because I find myself bored and uninspired of the same old, same old. I want my blog to be exciting and fun and I want the material to interesting–something for everyone.

My friend has encouraged me to spice things up with this blog using other formats of communication. I usually find myself making excuses for not following his suggestions, but I think I’m ready to do something new. I know I have good ideas in my brain, but I have trouble getting them out.

My question is, what would you like to see more of?:

Vlogs (videos of me talking about things that I would normally be writing about)

Podcasts (essentially a radio show with me and a couple of my friends)

Tweeting (I have a twitter already but I don’t use it enough)

More Reviews (of Movies, TV shows, books, video games, music, restaurants, makeup products, etc.)

Travel Diaries (a record of where I venture to, what I do there, and where I want to go in the future)

Current Events (my random thoughts on news stories)

Giveaways (fun prizes and presents just for the fun of it!)

Crafty Posts (Where I try to make things…)

Poems (lolz)

Other Suggestions???

Or if you think my blog is just fine the way it is, that works too!

 

 

2012 In Review (How Precious. Thanks WordPress!)

The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2012 annual report for this blog.

Here’s an excerpt:

About 55,000 tourists visit Liechtenstein every year. This blog was viewed about 180,000 times in 2012. If it were Liechtenstein, it would take about 3 years for that many people to see it. Your blog had more visits than a small country in Europe!

Click here to see the complete report.

Chit Chat Catch-Up

I usually don’t do posts where I just ramble about what’s going on in my life. Mostly because it would consist of me talking about how I can’t feel my legs because I’ve been laying in bed for the past 6 hours. However, some new and interesting things have happened to me in the last week or two that might actually fill up a blog without me having to mention what I ate.

My mom and I decided to travel the world and go to Nashville to check out real estate. Why do they call it that? Couldn’t they just call it estates? Like, obviously they’re real. No one would look at fake estates. We spent a lot of time relaxing at our hotel mostly because it was awesome. The Gaylord Opryland reminded me of a Vegas hotel; there was so much to do inside the building, that you didn’t really have to leave to have a good time. It was decorated with sparkly Christmas lights and big wreaths.

I have two qualms about The Gaylord Opryland. The first one is having to say the name Gaylord. The second one is the word Opry. Where did the Grand Ole Opry get it’s name? I like to think the name originated when opera singers would travel to the south to perform and Tennessee natives would say, “Imma go see the dern Opry to-nite!”

My guess was actually kind of close. It does have to to with opera but I’m too lazy to read the paragraph that wikipedia has on it.

After our adventures there, we went onto Austin, TX. You know the saying, “Keep Austin Weird”? Well, I think Austin will always be weird whether or not people try to keep it that way. There are all walks of life there. Which is good. Prime people watching. While we were there we looked at some estates and met up with some of my mom’s cousins. It’s funny because whenever my mom meets up with them her southern drawl comes out and they all talk about how they’re “blood”.

While we were there we saw Anna Karenina at this cute theater called the Violet Crown. It was rad because it also served as a lounge/bar so you could really make a night of seeing a movie. The movie itself was pretty good.

After that we got fro-yo because why the hell not? It was yum but I couldn’t tell if our cashier was a boy or a girl for real. It was like, the hardest. I think she was a girl. Very Boys Don’t Cry. She was keeping Austin weird. She had also never heard of Anna Karenina.

For some reason I’m really attracted to Hil Swank in this movie. She looks better as a boy. There I said it.

Perhaps the best part of our trip to Texas was seeing our blogger friend Jell Jell! You can read all about our meetup here. I was on a blogging high after that and suggested that we do a blog tour and force meetups with every blogger we know.

After that, our trip ended and my mom and I went our separate ways. It was good seeing her and spending some quality mother/daughter time together. Don’t worry, we’ll be reunited at Christmas and I’ll get to show my brother around Victoria for the first time. Lots of special moments.

So that’s where I’ve been. What has everyone else been up to?

Guest Posts

I’ve never participated in a guest post before. That is, until today. My friend Abby started blogging and she asked me if I wanted to guest post on her blog. I mainly agreed for the attention that I would get and for the new experience. And because I love Abby. She’s one of the few people who actually thinks I’m funny. So she obviously has good taste.  And I can proudly say that she’s the only person that has seen me do the splits in skis, tumbling down the slopes.

If you want to read my post about our favorite city, Chicago, definitely do! And if you don’t want to read it, I understand. Reading is such hard work.

I’ve also never had someone guest post on my blog. The reason for that is mostly because my blog is sacred. But be on the lookout for a guest post from Abby in the future. It’s most likely going to be about our adventures skiing in Utah. Or about her just being genuinely better at everything and me failing at most things.

So check out Abby’s blog, Cozy in Chicago!

T-Give 2012

I wrote about Canadian Thanksgiving last year and I didn’t hold back on the insults. This year, I’m going to take some time to write about what I’m grateful for. Weird, I know. We can pretend that we’re sitting around the table saying what we’re thankful for except that it’s all about what I’m thankful for and you’re not really a part of it.

My family. They are the coolest. Most of you know mi madre. She’s pretty much WordPress famous. But not the kind of WordPress famous where you get Freshly Pressed. All the cool people haven’t been Freshly Pressed. It’s true! If you haven’t been Freshly Pressed, you must be pretty cool. And offensive. My brother is also cool. He’s a way better writer than I am. I don’t know why he doesn’t blog more. Or at all. And my dad is also, surprisingly, very cool. He does all the things. Each member of my family is located somewhere different, but we’re all still a perfect unit. I am pretty lucky that way.

Is it just me or is the black kid being segregated?

My husband. I still think it’s weird that I have a husband. It’s almost like I’m old or something. Without my husband I would be super sad. I tried being without him once after I met him and I didn’t like it one bit. He’s a hard worker and a kind fellow that takes care of me. It’s a big job, you know, taking care of me.

My friends. I really like my little groups of friends that I have all over the world. I am drawn to people that I don’t have to spend time with 24/7. I like being able to pick up right where I left off. My friends from Chicago were always so cool with me living in England and only seeing me during the holidays. I never felt pressure to stay anchored to one place.  I also like that my friends don’t take me too seriously and ignore me when I say dumb things and laugh at all of my jokes. I never wanted to have the most friends. I just wanted to have a few good ones.

Blogging. Blogging has opened up so much of the world to me. It’s weird because I never would’ve thought that writing could lead to friendships and learning and laughing. But I have so many people that can see who I truly am on here even when I say dumb things and offend everyone on the internet.

Diet Pepsi: You might be wondering why this is on my list. Diet Pepsi has been a part of my life since I can remember. Actually, I think my dad put some in my bottle once. So technically, it’ss been a part of my life since I can’t remember.

Laughing. Laughing and making people laugh are two of my favorite things ever. You can’t buy laughter. You can fake it, but true, genuine laughter is euphoric. I love being able to make any situation, no matter how serious or painful, funny. It’s a gift, really.

What are you thankful for this year?

The Benefits of Being Online

The world has changed incredibly in the span of twenty years. When I was little, my family didn’t have a computer. I don’t remember having one until I was at least 9. Even then I don’t think I ever went “online”. The only activity that I did on the computer was typing my name over and over again in different fonts. I still do that on occasion.

Now it seems that I can’t go a day without being online. I have to check my “stuff” which consists of email, twitter, blogs, facebook, tumblr, pinterest…the list goes on. Of course there are times when I’m away and can’t check my stuff. Those are the times when I’m sitting in a corner and rocking myself back and forth.

One might look at this scenario and think my online life is unhealthy. Fortunately, I’m one of the light cases. I know for a fact that teenagers stay online for hours and hours on end. Even if they aren’t physically at a computer, they can still go online with their phones. I know I’m painting an extreme picture, but the internet, despite being a big time-waster, is actually an amazing thing.

We are able to connect with people around the world without leaving our homes (or beds…in my case). We are able to meet friends, share stories, and fall in love online. Some would even say it’s easier to meet people online because no one is judging you by your appearance, just by what you say.

Personally, I am more relaxed when I’m talking to people online than in real-life. Online, you can choose to respond to a conversation whenever and however you want to. You can take the time to think about what you want to say before your say it. You can eloquently word your input instead of trying to come up with the right words in your head. Everything is smoother and thought out. We can really be our best selves online for that reason.

Will we turn into drones that don’t know how to talk in the future? Possibly. Will we go blind from the light of our computers constantly being shone into our eyes? Most likely. But we’ll have many more acquaintances than we ever could have met in our own day to day lives. We can relate to others and realize that others can relate to us. We can comfort and be comforted. We can laugh and share thought-provoking stories. And that might be worth something in the long run.

 

Everyday Annoyances

Whenever I meet someone and they only talk about themselves:

When I try to help someone who doesn’t know how to use a computer:

If someone is making me dinner:

When it’s time to do the dishes:

When I talk to myself about blogging:

If someone tries to censor what I say or do:

If someone tries to insult me:

When Paul asks me how my day was:

When I think about dieting and exercising:

When the woman at the insurance agency was giving me a hard time:

If I don’t have a comeback during an argument:

Catch Up Session

I know that most of you are probably wondering where I’ve been–continuously refreshing this page in hopes of a new post. At least that’s what I like to imagine. In reality, everyone has most likely forgotten about this blog. So maybe I’ll start over. Hi, I’m Lily.

Instead of writing with a purpose, as if I were writing a newspaper article, I’m going to just write what I feel. I usually try to have some direction in which my posts show go (funny, informative, opinionated, etc) but this one is just going to be my ramblings. And slightly boring. But it will be very me.

Even though my blog is titled Lily in Canada, I’m actually not in Canada at the moment. I’m back in Chi-town (Chicago). I stopped in Las Vegas for 3 days because I’d never been and well, why the hell not, right? It was fun to see the sights, walk through crazy hotels and get some hot hot heat to thaw my body from the Canadian weather.

I also committed a major crime-I forgot my camera. Sooo here’s a picture of me sitting at my computer.

Excuse my beauty.

Anyway now I’m home and it’s weird. Nothing has changed. I’ve written about this before. After you’re married or move out, your childhood home is still your home, but it’s also not. It’s such a weird feeling. You can’t get too attached because you know you have to leave eventually. So I guess it’s kind of sad too.

I haven’t been reading that many blogs lately. And by that I mean, I haven’t been reading any. It’s kind of freeing actually. I would stress out by telling myself that I had to read every single post by every single one of my followers. So yeah, it kind of became more of a drag than anything. Don’t get me wrong, I love everything that everyone writes. I love that all of the WordPress bloggers are unique and that everyone’s true self shines through in their writing. It just came to a point where I was spending so much time on my computer that I wasn’t spending any time doing the things I like. I would reading blogs instead of hanging out with friends or working out or playing video games (don’t judge). So forgive me for not commenting or writing, or whatevs. I’ve been busy livin’ life.

Anyway, now that you’ve caught up with me, what’s new with you?

Computer Lovin’

I don’t know about you guys, but I spend a lot of time on my computer. Whenever I’m babysitting or volunteering, I feel super detached. Like I’m missing out on all the fun stuff that’s happening online. But I also feel better about myself too–like I’m not completely dependent on my computer.

I have a strict computer routine. I always check my mail first. I’ve started to realize that I’m one of the only people left that uses an AOL account. Come on guys, tried and true! There’s something great about hearing “You’ve got mail!” when you wake up. It’s like I’m basically Meg Ryan. AOL has treated me well throughout the years. My screen name used to be Londonlady88. I was born in 87, but 88 just sounds better. AMIRITE?

Next I go on word press, read my comments, read other blogs, comment on other blogs, yadda yadda. You know the drill. This takes a while because I’m a slow reader and a long commenter. If I have something good to write about, I’ll write it in the morning, otherwise I’ll brainstorm and eventually ask someone what I should write about. I’m not creative at all.

Then I’ll go on facebook and poke around. Nothing new or cool happens there anymore. I used to be an avid facebook user. Not so much anymore. I’ve fought with myself about deleting it. The only reason I haven’t deleted it yet is because I want to get all of my pictures off of the site and onto my computer. Seems like so much work. I heard facebook won’t actually let anyone fully delete their account. Apparently you can only deactivate it. Mark Zuckerburg/Jessie Eisenberg is such a creep.

Twitter is a desperate attempt for online stimulation. There are some really funny people on there. So I like to read their 140 character quips. As you’ve probably already guessed, I’m pretty funny on twitter too, but I don’t have anywhere near the number of followers that I should. This is always depressing.

These guys usually make me laugh the most. I don't know any of them personally, but I wish I did.

Lastly, I’ll visit Pinterest so I can dream about what my life could be like. This is highly addictive. That’s why I save it for last, right when my computer is about to run out of battery. When this happens, I just give up on everything and go walk around outside.

There have been many times when Paul has come home and I have my computer on my lap. I look up and say, “Oh hey, how was work?!” and then I look down and start typing again. I’m pretty sure he loves this because he asked me if I love my computer more than him. I don’t think it’s fair to make me choose.