#crecomm

The day is here. The end of an era. The end of CreComm.

It seems crazy that a day that felt lightyears away just a few months ago is here. Right here in front of me, but it is. It's all done. We did it.

I had a post written a couple weeks ago that talked about this day, but it doesn't quite encompass what it feels like today. I wrote about all the time I spent doing homework, stressing out, and staying up too late. I wrote about all the weekends I spent doing homework, all the outings I missed because I was too busy, and all frantic text messages I sent because, of course, I couldn't find my notes on some specific due date. I wrote about all of that and in a huge way that is a large part of what CreComm meant to me, but today feels different. Today I see CreComm for what it really is: a program that not only changed my educational and professional life, but changed my personal life in a way that I'll never forget.

I sat in a dark photo studio today watching my friends take pictures and laugh at each other and I realized that even though I've been saying for months that I'm going to miss school when it's over, I'm really, really going to miss school when it's over.

I'm going to go to work every morning and be happy because that is what I've been working towards for the last five years, but I'm not looking forward to spending my lunches without Kailey and I'm not excited to go to Tim Hortons every morning without Meghan. I'm definitely going to miss my Monday/Tuesday drives to school with Taylor and I'm going to miss my chit chats and frantic texts with Bre.

Picture by Bre Hearsum

I'm going to miss seeing the same people every day and miss being able to relate to everyone around me because through better or worse, we're all in the same situation.

I can honestly say that CreComm was the best two years of my life and though I'm very excited for the future, I'm going to miss to CreComm like crazy (I kind of already do).

Congratulations, CreComm class 2014! We did it!

M

Love

"To love is to give away a piece of oneself and to hope to never get that piece back."

M

#beautiful

The no-makeup selfie.

Yeah, apparently it's a thing.

This ain't it!

You can ask any of my friends and they'll tell you I love taking selfies. I just do. I don't know why. It's silly and immature and fun... and you know what? That's exactly why I like them. But I normally take them when I'm feeling good and pretty - i.e. when my makeup and hair looks good and pretty.

So last week, a picture was posted on my wall. My beautiful friend Kailey nominated me for a makeup-less picture. I guess it's part of a "love yourself" on social media thing. So I posted a picture of myself (below) and then promptly put on "my face" and went on with my day.

#nakedface

I didn't realize until today that even though I wear minimalistic makeup every day I'm really not OK with not having "my face" on in public.

Well, that kind of made me sad. I'm always telling my family and friends that they're beautiful inside and out, with or without makeup (because they are) and I started to wonder why I couldn't look at myself the same way.

Well, today I decided to change. I woke up this morning, took a shower, put on my moisturizer, put my hair in a pony-tail and went out the door. It felt good. It felt natural. And I didn't care that my naked face was on display.

I'm still not sure why it feels weird to not put makeup on before leaving the house, but I'm going to try to do it more often. Why not, right?!

Anyway, everyone should know that if you're a good person, you're a beautiful person.

Makeup doesn't make the difference, you do.

M

March 17 🍀

Happy St. Paddy's Day from Rusty and me! 🍀

Don't you just love March 17th? I sure do. 

Normally this is the first day of the year where I notice everyone dressing a little brighter, a little more spring-y, a little more green. It's the first time throughout the long winter months that I actually believe spring is coming. I can feel spring coming today and I cannot wait. And neither can Rusty.

Happy St. Patrick's Day and happy, happy Monday! 🍀

1001 Donations

This weekend is IAMS' 1001 Donations in support of the Winnipeg Humane Society.

Here's the poster I made for one of the Telethon's fund-raisers. The fund-raising team (Janessa Wirth, Bethany Giroux, Amanda Trunzo, and I) have worked very hard to raise money for this amazing cause (we've raised over $1,500 so far). 

The Telethon is this Sunday so please donate if you can (info below)!

The Winnipeg Humane Society's webpage

M

Monday

Oh Monday, the cruelest day of the week.

Pinterest

I never used to mind Mondays; I've always loved school and haven't really ever minded going to work, but lately Mondays are just hard and depressing. Even today, when I didn't officially have classes, was hard. My mind was in a daze, my thoughts were stuck on the weekend, and procrastination kicked into full blast and decided that today was not the day for homework and productiveness, no, today was the day to do nothing and be proud of it.

So I went to school for 8 am, dropped off an assignment that was due by 9 am, got coffee with my awesome friend Kailey, set up some homework on my laptop and talked to Kailey for three hours while giving my screen guilty looks, had a meeting with the Creative Arts assistant, ate lunch (leftover spaghetti), talked to Kailey for a little while longer, applied for two jobs, had a meeting with Melanie, went shopping at St. Vital mall, came home, cleaned up the kitchen with my mom, made my own dinner, set up my laptop to work on my IPP presentation, watched an hour of Homeland off of our PVR, closed my laptop, watched the new episode of Bates Motel, opened my laptop again, decided a shower was more important than doing any homework, got into bed, set up my laptop to work on my IPP presentation again, painted my nails, talked to my sister, and now I'm writing this. I know, that was the most interesting thing you've read all day, right?

Anyway, if any future employer is reading this they've probably decided that I'm a huge slacker, and if today was any indication of how I usually am then they would be right. But the thing is, I (maybe all CreComms) have been so busy for so long without so much as a second to do my own thing that not being all-consuming, Amazing Race-style busy as left me feeling more lost than anything. What do you do when you only have one semi-pressing assignment? What do you mean I can't jump between assignments all night long? You're joking, right?

Now if that isn't the nerdiest thing I've ever said (typed), then I truly don't know what is - and that says a lot considering a wear a ring that says "mischief managed" on it.

I know that come tomorrow I'll be working on my semi-completed presentation like a cat on catnip, so tonight I'm not even going to bother opening my presentation for the fifth time today. No, tonight, right now, I am just going to sit here and stare at my newly painted nails and browse Pinterest. Tonight, I'm going to embrace procrastination.

Pinterest

M

The Dog Days are Over

We did it!

Pardon my French, but HELL YES WE DID!

We made it through our IPPs - well just about, I guess. We still have those presentations, but at this point, what's a presentation when you have a 40-page marketing report? Nothing. It's nothing.

I can breathe again. I can think again. I can watch TV without feeling guilty. AND  I can go out and enjoy myself without, again, feeling guilty.

I haven't really talked about my IPP much on this blog (aside from shamelessly plugging it), so I thought I would take this time to share a couple photos and let you know how it went!

The event was very successful. Overall Play for Paws raised over $2,900 for the Winnipeg Humane Society.

If you would like to donate to the Winnipeg Humane Society, please visit www.winnipeghumanesociety.ca

Thanks!

M

Just dance

Lately I've been trying to be more active than usual. It's almost bikini season, after all! I've been doing different things - squats, weights, biking, etc. -- the thing I like to do the most is dance. I've been hanging out in my room and dancing around to the Glee soundtrack or Justin Timberlake or Lady Gaga. It's such a rush and so much fun! 

This week I want to dedicate my blog to fitness and give some cool exercising tips I found on, you guessed it, Pinterest. 

Pinterest

Pinterest

Pinterest

Pinterest

Pinterest

And finally - just in case you need some inspiration.... 

Pinterest

Hubba hubba!

M

Hiatus

I'm not going to lie. The last couple weeks have been hard for me. I've been so busy, I've hardly slept, I've been fighting off a cold that comes and goes every other day, my room's a mess, I have way more work than I do time, and more than any of that, I need to get my hair done. I know, #princessproblems.

Why am I writing all this?

Well, I haven't blogged in a while. Two-weeks to be exact. Blogging is a weekly assignment that I have never missed up until this point. I never miss assignments or hand them in late (knock on wood). I always get sh*t done when I'm supposed to. Always.

So the fact that I've been really busy is not an excuse for neglecting my blogging, it's not. The absolute truth is, I just have nothing to say.

I don't have much to say about anything lately. Even when my friends come to me for advice, I have nothing to say to them. I have no advice. That's a huge change for  me. I usually have an opinion about everything (just ask my mother) and can talk for hours about nothing.

So I'm writing this boring post about nothing hoping that it will get me out of my writing rut.

I leave you with these pictures from my Play for Paws event.

Rusty not wanting to give anymore kisses

"Ok, just one more for my auntie Lisa."

M

Play for Paws Part II

Hi there, 

*Shameless plug alert*

This week I wanted to be sure that I got some info out about my IPP - Play for Paws a fund-raoser in support of the Winnipeg Humane Society.

Below is an interview I did with CJOB all about the event. Please check it out!

https://soundcloud.com/megandouglas1/interview-with-cjob-1

I hope to see you all at the Play for Paws fund-raiser February 1, 2014 from noon-4 pm at the Heritage Victoria Community Centre (950 Sturgeon Rd).

M

Play for Paws

Shameless plug alert!

Play for Paws in support of the Winnipeg Humane Society is coming up fast! Fourteen days fast!

Do you like animals? Do you like to ensure that animals are taken care of and healthy? Do you like to help the community? Of course you do. So you should definitely come to the Play for Paws fund-raiser.

The fund-raiser is set-up as a family-friendly activity day where children can decorate cookies and pet treats, win a cake in the cake walk, and you (they're lovely parents/sister/brother/grandma/etc.) can come win some awesome silent auction prizes from companies all over Winnipeg. Not to name drop, but there are some awesome prizes from Kitchen & Bath Classics, a Wolseley Company, Petland, Lotto 649, Pawsh Dog, St. Boniface Golf Course, It Works!, and more.

Play for Paws - February 1, 2014 noon-4PM at the Heritage Victoria Community Centre (950 Sturgeon Road). Hope to see you there!

End of shameless plug.

This event is a long time coming and I'm so proud of the work that has been put into it. I'm happy that so far everything is coming together (knock on wood), and I'm so happy and in complete awe of the people who have been helping me along the way.

My amazing (truly amazing) parents who have helped with everything from sponsorships to promotion, and building to editing, my sister who has become very good at talking me off the figurative ledge (like I've said before, it's been stressful), my boyfriend who is letting me use him as an idea board, sounding board, and a pick-up chauffeur, and my friends (both in CreComm and in life outside of CreComm) who have been so supportive and wonderful about this whole stressful project.

Anyway before I get all sentimental again, I'll just say this: I really hope this event does some good for the Winnipeg Humane Society. They really do deserve all the help they get because they are truly an amazing organization.

M

New year, new world

Happy New Year!

2013 was a big year. Probably the biggest one yet, but it doesn't even compare to how big (and hopefully wonderful) as this coming year will be.

In 2014 I will (hopefully) graduate from both Red River College and The University of Winnipeg, get a "big girl" job, have a real disposable income (what is that anyway?!), start saving for a house, get a manicure (I can't tell you how long I've been telling myself that I going to get get one... sigh...), and you know just do some fun things that have nothing to do with school because I can and finally don't have to worry about school (again, hopefully).

I keep thinking about all of these wonderful things and getting so excited because life is finally going to take off and everything that I've worked so hard for in the last six years will finally be more than a hope or dream...

I have a tendency to get get way ahead of myself and this posting is no exception. Life in the last six years has been pretty amazing and I really have to give all of that time more credit.

I graduated high school with honours, made great friends (in addition to the amazing friends that I already had), got into university, got a scholarship to go to university, got some jobs, quit some jobs, bought a car, met my soul mate, bought another car, adopted the best little furbaby I could ever have adopted, went on some amazing trips with my family, fell in love with a lot of different things, got a tattoo, got into Creative Communications (which I hear isn't the easiest thing to do), I've laughed, I've cried, I've danced, I've shopped, life is amazing.

So today I just want to take a few minutes and thank all the wonderful people I've had the privilege to live with, work with, laugh with, and experience things with. I'm so fortunate to have such an amazing circle of family and friends.

In 2014 my "resolution" of sorts is to just live in the moment.

Pinterest

M :)

Light, meet tunnel

The countdown is ON!

Nine more days of school, 11 more days total until I'll walk on out of here and... well, I'll probably just go home and go to bed, but I'll be doing with a big smile on my face because school will be done for the semester! Heck yeah!

Yeah, yeah there's the work placement and I'm really excited for that, but I won't have to go home and bust my butt to get some homework done for the next morning, go to bed at a God-awful hour, wake up, go to school, go to work, and then go home just to do it all over again. Cray-cray!

Life is just so much better when you can see the light at the end of the tunnel! Nine days, we can do this!

Chugga-chugga-chugga-chugga-chou-chou!!!!

Pinterest

M

Starbucks

Now here's a topic every 20-something can relate to... CAFFEINE.

Mmmmmm...caffeine.**

For me, the best part about a busy homework load is having the excuse to indulge in any and all caffeine-filled drinks.

It wasn't always like this... I held out on coffee of any sort for years. I never drank coffee when it was becoming "cool" with my 16-year-old friends, I drank decaffeinated Earl Grey and Orange Pekoe with my mom because, again, to me that was just about the best thing out there.

But in recent years I've had to literally throw myself away from the Tim Hortons/Starbucks counter to stop myself from buying a coffee. I'm finding more and more that I NEED one in the morning.

Take, for example, this morning. I was running late for school (but I wasn't late for class - phew) and I couldn't stop to get a Tim's before my 8 AM class. "No problem, I'll go on break," I told myself. So I did, but the line was about a mile long and I only had ten minutes so I returned to class empty handed. "That's alright you have a 3-hour spare in an hour, you can make it."

Physically, I did make it, but I felt an angry spell coming on and I knew it was because my brain wasn't fully there without its friend caffeine. My friend Taylor and I watched the Tim Hortons line continue to get longer until about 11:30 and that's when I finally got my coffee. Well - heaven on earth, I'll tell ya! - my headache went away and suddenly I was nice again. It's a miracle!

So anyway, back to my main point. In the past 2 weeks I have been treating myself to Starbucks because that's what I do when I'm too busy to have a real dinner and have to stay up until 2 AM finishing all the homework I should have done last weekend... I've had Starbucks four times in the last two weeks - $20 worth of coffee just from Starbucks in the last 2 weeks. It's so awful, but I don't care. It's amazing.

My new favourite coffee (I've given up my teenage/20/21 love of Grande Soy Tazo Chai Lattes) is a Grande Soy Gingerbread Latte - no whip. Seriously if you haven't had one I HIGHLY recommend you go to Starbucks right now and get one. I made my boyfriend drive me in from Stony Mountain on Sunday solely to get one - yeah it's that good!

As I said this is the high point of my educational life right now. Starting November 22 I will be cutting everything and cleansing, but until then Starbucks is my BFF.

Anyway folks, I have about 4 hours of homework ahead of me tonight so I'll leave you there. Make sure to try a Gingerbreak Latte soon!

M

**If you can't relate to my obvious love of caffeine (or maybe it's just a love of delicious drinks... hmmm....) then I would like to speak with you and learn all of your secrets.

Google images

The Hallowe'en post

Well, it's that time of year again. The time where little girls dress up as princesses and witches; little boys dress as transformers and monsters; and aging women grab their most revealing garments and call it a Hallowe'en outfit to make themselves feel just a little bit more youthful. That's cool.

Also particular to this time of year is the weather. Oh glorious fall weather, I really do miss you through all the other seasons. There just isn't anything that quite compares to how fall feels. It's cold, sure and it's not all that pretty once all the leaves have fallen, but I just love fall.

Anyway, I'm not going to talk about fall, I'm talking about Hallowe'en.

I don't really do anything for Hallowe'en, but I love seeing all the kids in my neighbourhood dress up and go trick-o'-treating. It's just adorable. Until a tall, beard-man shows up at your door with a cape on and an open pillow case waiting for some free candy. Yeah, no. I don't give those people candies. If you're taller than me and have your own beard you can go get your own candy.

I stopped trick-o'-treating when I was 12, an acceptable age, I think, and I stopped going partying for Hallowe'en when I went to a bar and women my mom's age were dressed at "sexy" kitties and "sexy" rag-dolls and "sexy" She-rahs. Yeah no, that's just not cool. I wrote about this last year, but it's the same every year. Why do women do that?! Just why? It's not cool. It's not attractive. They just look sad.

But whatever - I'm in a sharing mood so I'm going to put up some Hallowe'en-themed pictures and continue on with my homework.

The last time I dressed up and did anything
for Hallowe'en - it's cute, right?!

Rusty and I handed out candy as a pirate and a masked-person

Where's Rusty?!

This year's outfits - prisoner, Hallowe'en festive "scarf"
and the candy corn hat my Gramma made 

Happy Hallowe'en folks - dress appropriately.
M

Kimye

It looks like this blog is turning into a celebrity-themed blog... I promise you, it's not. The thing is, us 20-somethings are interested in what's happening in the world around us, and unfortunately information about celebrities and Hollywood is the most accessible and most frequently talked about.

So this week the topic de jour is also the first thing I heard about when I woke up this morning and the first thing I talked to anyone about in class and the first thing my sister texted me about when she was still half asleep - sheesh news travels fast! What is it? As if the title of this blog doesn't say it all.... Kim and Kanye are getting hitched!

I don't know why this is so surprising to me, they do have a baby together and live together and have been together for the last year and a bit... but still when I heard the news I was a little shocked. Maybe I didn't think she would get married again. Maybe I didn't think he ever would. I don't know what I thought, but I certainly didn't see this coming!

I hope that the third time is a charm for her, and that for the sake of her (their) baby they've thought everything through and will be happy together forever (real world forever, not Hollywood forever).

Here are some pictures just in case you've somehow forgotten what Kim looks like (is that even possible these days? No, it isn't).

Google images

Google images

Google images

Google images

Google images

Google images

Google images

 Such a cutie! 

Anyway, I've done my part of keeping the world informed. 

Congrats Kim and Kanye - and little North West. 

M

Miley Cyrus

20-something's topic of the day... Ms. Miley Cyrus.

I'm not saying I understand her, I'm just saying that I love her.

Google

This post is long overdue, but I've finally come to a decision on how I feel about Miley Cyrus. I LOVE Miley Cyrus. I don't know exactly what's going through her big beautiful, but whatever it is, it's working.

My thoughts are this. The Miley Cyrus movement as she calls it, is an amazing way to keep the attention she's had for such a long time as she transitions into her adult image. She doesn't have an adult image right now, she has a young adult screaming for attention image, but that will soon fade and the world will start to see her as the brilliant adult superstar that she deserves to be.

Ok maybe I'm being a little overdramatic, I'm just so tired about all the Miley Cyrus drama. She's a young girl (sounds funny coming from me... someone who's only a couple years older than her) who's experimenting with all the things a young girl should experiment with. Hair styles, make up, clothes, boys, friends, blah blah blah. Why not?!

This morning I woke up and trimmed a section of my hair just cause it was bugging me.... Does that mean I'm going loopy? A couple days ago I gave Twerking my best shot... it's not something I'll ever do again, but does that make me crazy? I have SO many pictures with my tongue out. I LOVE TONGUE-OUT PICTURES! So sue me.

All I can say is Miley is a gem and though she's no longer the squeaky clean role model that mother's love for their pre-teen children, she's still an interesting (more so now than ever) and creative person who's not afraid to take risks and kick some serious musical butt.

Google

Google 

Google

Happy weekend!
M

20-somethings

Ok, I've done it again. I'm going to change my blog theme. It's hard to look for unfortunate downtown stories when you're trying to be a more positive and well-rounded person. I'm still not a fan of the downtown scene, but I'm trying to be nicer about it and, at the very least, not freak out every time a stranger happens to look my way.

So I've moved on; gone are the days when I would post about the travesties that are downtown experiences and here are the days where I write about the important things. The life related things. The 20-something posts, if you will.

Earlier this week I was looknig through Pinterest (go figure) when I came across this blog called GenTwenty. It's a blog that gives advice on how to be twenty, live through your twenties, etc. I started to read this one post titled 11 Quotes for you 20s and it got me thinking.

For years I've been waiting to get older. I've been waiting to graduate. Waiting to have money. Waiting to fall in love. Waiting to get married and buy a big beautiful house and have babies and wear "mom jeans" and get the cool "mom haircut"... and I've sort of forgotten that there's all of this life that's happening in the mean time that's just being wasted on me. I'm too consumed with school to do anything during the week. I'm too busy with homework and catching up with all the things I didn't have time to do during the week to do anything on the weekend. And all the while I'm too broke to do any of the "fun things" my 12-year-old self thought 22-year-olds were supposed to do because I'm too busy with school and homework.

I assume it's the same (or at the very least, I hope it's similar) for every other student so I thought instead of giving advice on how to be a 20-something, which I obviously know nothing about, I'll talk about what other people advise us 20-somethings do with our lives. It's nice to be reminded that life doesn't revolve around school and it's good for you to step away from the computer and just live. So that's what I'll be writing about from now on. I hope it inspires you to do something out of the ordinary like it did for me.

Here's an inspiring quote to leave you with for the week:

“It’s never too late to be who you might have been.” – George Eliot

M

A little bit of funny & something for my mommy

Ok,

I'm going to take a break from my topic and do something fun. This week has not been all that fun, so I'm going to make a little of my own and call it a week, literally.

I assume everyone needs a laugh every once in a while so that's what this post is all about; laughs! As most of my friends know I'm a huge Pinterest addict and that's where I'm going to look for these laughs.

Ok, let's do this!

Pinterest

Pinterest

Pinterest

Pinterest

Pinterest

As you can see my thoughts are all over the place, but that's Friday for ya! My favourite is the first one... I know so many people who have Facebook accounts like that... and to be honest for some of them I would much rather see a picture of an evil cat than their face... Ooops! Did I say that out loud?!

Moving on.... This one's for my mom... I saw it and thought of her instantly becaue this is my life pretty much every day... lol! Love my mom!



Pinterest

I think we all can relate to that... I can now that I'm older and wiser, and I don't know what I would do without her (and my dad, of course) more than ever. They are the type of people that superheroes are based off of; no cape, no flying power, no superhuman strength, just a heart full of love, a head full of advice, and the patience and kindness to make sure that that their kids have everything they need to grow and learn. I am very fortunate to them, I hope they know that.

Anyway, before I get too mushy and heartfelt for the Internet, I'll call it a day.

I hope you all have wonderful, stress free weekends.

Megan