Twists and Turns

What is that saying? When it rains it pours? Never truer than in our misty coastal city, where winters consist of a string of overcast days dripping with Mother Nature’s tears. This winter, our mild climate was usurped by an unusual bout of bitter arctic air transforming our rain-soaked days into blasts of mini-snowstorms. Our...

A Late Harvest Restoration for RA

It is the 3rd week of the dark drizzly days of November, in the quiet lull between Thanksgiving and the upcoming holidays. I had just stepped out of the spotlight of a busy theatre season and my partner and I were trying to find our way back to a normal routine. In the chaos of...

No More Summertime Blues

It’s the time of year when the smell of coconut sunscreen perfumes the air, pants and shirts are replaced with tank tops and shorts, kids linger on the streets long after twilight, and people fall to the charms of a red sun sinking beyond the water’s edge. Everything slows, allowing us to hear the drone...

#Appreciation

Hundreds of people flowed through the narrow lanes of a local seaside market, bursting with buskers, art and variable visual enchantments. The soulful sound of jazz penetrates the air. People are dancing, a myriad of scents pour from the food trucks and cafes, awakening a wanton grumbling in my stomach. I am sitting on the...

Blooming Again

The haunting cry of a seagull mingles with soft music playing in the background. I inhale, reaching my arms skywards, my face turned towards the sun long enough to feel it’s welcoming kiss; I swoop forward, bending towards the cool earth, my hands dangling above whitewashed daisies rising up from the lush ground, lingering just...

Butterscotches, Shoelaces and Lettuce Heads

“I had sailed along in life believing I would always be able to rip open a bag of crackers without effort, or tear away the snug cling-wrap sealed around cheese, produce and other perishable items. Not once did it ever occur to me that I would go three rounds trying to remove a lettuce head...

Reclaiming My Morning

I was the ultimate morning person. Mornings belonged to me - they were the most peaceful and productive part of my day. There’s nothing else quite like waking to a red sky burning along the horizon, the staccato rhythm of rain drumming on the roof, the chipper melodies of the birds and whisper of light...

The First Days

The first skiff of snow-covered the ground, a light frosting on the desolate earth glittering beneath a cerulean sky. The dazzling sunlight penetrated the brisk air and stimulated the sleeping world around me. I woke with my brain buzzing with ideas, but my body was riddled with the notorious stiffness triggered by the moist cold...

A Rolling Stone, An Open Road

In the tranquil days between the winter solstice and the advent of a New Year, I can feel the events of the past crackling in the air, preparing to slip away into memory, only to be revived in wistful moments of reminiscence. Another year has passed, another year of grappling with RA, sometimes winning, sometimes...

Something to Smile About

For as long as I can remember, I’ve had this absurd fear about my losing my teeth. It was probably fueled in my early years by the pressure of embarking on the vain and competitive career of acting, feeding into the idea that the only way to succeed was to look perfect. After all, at...