150 Reasons Why I Love Canada

Hello my dear friends!

It would not be Canadian of me if I did not join in on all the celebrations of Canada's 150th birthday! So, I decided to share my list of 150 things I love about Canada. Enjoy!

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1. Diplomatic
2. Peaceful

3. Accepting
4. Beautiful
5. Caring
6. Democratic
7. Multicultural
8. Young
9. Open minded
10. Active
11. Tolerant
12. Sympathetic
13. Respectful
14. Supportive
15. Full of opportunities
16. Politically correct

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17. Creative
18. Innovative
19. Constantly growing
20. Crazy unpredictable weather
21. Loved around the world
22. Lakes
23. Forests
24. Rockies

25. Prairies
26. Maple Trees
27. Cottage (a little birdie reminded me about this beautiful way to get away from it all!)

Image credit www.macleans.ca

28. Eh!
29. Canadian Flag
30. Justin Trudeau (the hottest PM there is)
31. Sophie Gregoire Trudeau (the trend setter)
32. Pierre Trudeau (the father of the hottest PM there is)
33. Margaret Trudeau (the mother of the hottest PM there is and I promise we are done with Trudeau name for now)
34. Peter Mansbridge (did you know that he lent his voice to Peter Moosbridge in Zootopia; Happy retirement Peter!)
35. Hockey
36. Blackberry (yes, I used to call it berry as well, just gave it up and already miss it)
37. Zipper

Image credit www.blackberry.com

38. Penicillin
39. Wonderbra (a BIG THANK YOU Canada!!!!!)
40. Telephone
41. Light bulb
42. Pacemaker
43. Electric wheelchair
44. Canadarm
45. Java (not coffee people)
46. Alkaline battery
47. Paint roller
48. Radio-voice transmission
49. Instant replay
50. Goalie mask
51. Basketball

Image credit www.goodpitch.org

52. Walkie talkie
53. Snowblower
54. Greenpeace (yes, it was born in Vancouver, Canada)
55. Canadian Tire (it's not just tires!)
56. Tim Hortons
57. Beavertails
58. Poutine
59. Nanaimo bar
60. Montreal smoked meat (although I do not eat this stuff any longer, it was a tasty treat)
61. Maple Syrup (indigenous have created this delicious treat with the help of Mother Nature)
62. Butter tarts (YUMMMMMMMMMM!)

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63. Hawaiian pizza
64. Rick Hansen (amazing human power!)
65. Chris Hadfield (homegrown "David Bowie in space")
66. Jenny Sidie (one of our newest astronauts)
67. Rachel McAdams (hot Canadian "commodity")
68. Evangeline Lily
69. Kim Cattrall (dear Samantha Fox....)
70. Nina Dobrev (although not born in Canada..... oh forget it, she is our girl!)
71. Linda Evangelista (my favorite model)

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72. Carrie-Anne Moss (Matrix girl; perhaps best know as)
73. Sandra Oh (Ottawa girl!)
74. Ellen Page (Juno herself and X-Men participant)
75. Pamela Anderson (it's not just about Baywatch)
76. Celine Dion (I Drove All Niiiiiiight)
77. Buffy Sainte-Marie
78. K.D. Lang (Hallelujah)
79. Alanis Morissette (another Ottawa girl!)
80. Shania Twain (Man! I Fell Like A Woman!)
81. Avril Lavigne (remember skater girl signing about Sk8tr Boi?)
82. Doris Anderson
83. Emily Car (Canadian Van Gogh)
84. Kenojuak Ashevak
85. Mary Ann Shadd Cary (although not Canadian, moving here provided her with a great opportunity to help others)
86. Angelina Napolitano (first woman to bring domestic abuse as a legal matter to light)
87. Thanadelthur  (the great Hudson's Bay Company helper)

Image credit www.mhs.mb.ca

88. Caroline Rhea (aunt Hilda)
89. Joni Mitchell
90. Sarah McLachlan (In the Eyes of an Angel)
91. Nelly Furtado (I'm Like a Bird)
92. Diana Krall (The Look of Love)
93. Hayley Wickenheiser (amazing hockey girl!)
94. Chrstine Sinclair (WOW!)
95. Wayne Gretzky (well, I had to learn how to love him when I moved to Canada)
96. Terry Fox (what a young man!)
97. James Cameron (The Terminator, Aliens, Try Lies, Titanic, Avatar and who knows what the future holds)
98. Ivan Reitman (Animal House, Meatballs, Goastbusters, Twins, Kindergarten Cop, Junior, Space Jam; WOW!)
98. Jason Reitman (the son is well known as well: Juno, Up in the Air)

Image credit www.gq.com

99. Dan Aykroyd (no comments required)
100. Rick Moranis (one funny guy)
101. Ryan Reynolds (I am speechless....)
102. Ryan Gosling (our Justins and Ryans rock!)
103. William Shatner (I don't even know where to begin......)
104. Jim Carrey (there is no one like him!)
105. Michael J Fox (what a tremendous character!)
106. Mike Myers (okay, he might compare to Jim Carry)
107. Donald Sutherland (father)
108. Keifer Sutherland (son; could not think of a holy spirit)
109. Keanu Reeves (our Neo)
110. Mathew Perry (one friendly guy)
111. Will Arnett
112. Seth Rogen (I've yet to watch Sausage Party)
113. Hayden Christensen (young Darth Vader)
114. Jason Preistly (for those of you who were not around in '90s look up 90201, Brandon was an all around wonderful young man your parents would like)

Image credit www.stargate.wikia.com

115. Michael Cera (another Juno member)
116. Corey Monteith (sad storey)
117. Dwayne Johnson, aka The Rock (yes, his Dad is Canadian so it counts)
118. Joshua Jackson (where is he these days?)
119. Tom Green (Ottawa boy!)
120. Phil Hartman
121. David Foster (see if you can recognize some of these names: Celine Dion, Whitney Houston, Madonna, Dona Summer......)

122. Brian Adams (I received my first cassette of his music when I was leaving for permanent residence in Canada, it was a joke.... I think)

123. The Weeknd (had a dream about him last night, we were dating.... is there a message for me? Yes, I am a BIG fan)

Image credit www.last.fm

124. Drake (BIG fan)
125. Justin Bieber (one of famous Canadian Justins)
126. Neil Young (Hey Hey My My)
127. Michael Buble
128. Tragically Hip
129. Arcade Fire
130. Billy Talent
132. Rush
133. Nickelback
134. deadmau5
135. The Sheepdogs
136. Leonard Cohen (original Hallelujah)
137. Gordon Lightfoot
138. Paul Anka

Image credit www.jumaka.com

139. Jeff Healey (While My Guitar Gently Weeps, not his song but he does is so well)
140. Shawn Mendes
141. Stompin' Tom Connors (you did not think I'll forget this guy!!!)
142. Beaver
143. Moose
144. Bears
145. Canada Goose (yes, I know, their poop is not my favorite either)
146. Lynx
147. Wolverine (and no, not Huge Jackman type)
148. Beluga whale
149. Atlantic Puffin
149. Mukluks (I have a special relationship with these)
150. Proud of who we are and what we represent!!!!!!!

And here it is, my list. You might agree or disagree with some of the above but before you judge me, please remember this is my list.

A GREAT BIG thank you to WIKI! You are a great source for all I do!

Happy Canada Day my Canadian friends wherever you are in the world right now! And if you are not Canadian, know that you are always welcomed here. We will open our arms to you as long as you are not hear to threaten all of the things at the top of my list.

Go and celebrate, and while you at it,

Be Active! Be Involved! Be a Current Woman!

You've Been Judged!

Hello my dear readers,

My oh my! Where dose the time go? Yesterday we celebrated a great turn for Mother Earth - Summer Solstice. Although the hot summer days are on their way, the days will start getting shorter. So, let your hair loose, shed off those layers and enjoy summer days just the way you like it! And don't let anyone judge you!

Image credit www.awakeningmind.ca

Speaking of judging, as you might have noticed from the title of this post, our discussion will be about the judgements. It does not matter if it is you who is being judged by someone, or it is you who is being judgemental. We will have a look at both.

Where shall we start? Well, let's take a trip down memory lane and place yourself in the middle school. You are young, full of energy and wonder and starting to develop opinions about the world, people and yourself.

Few days from now, there is an opportunity to introduce yourself to the world in the best possible way (in your opinion of course) and you are very excited and putting a lot of time and effort to get ready. Can you guess what the opportunity is? Your first school dance of course! "Not to miss" social occasion that could set a path for your future life. Yes, that important of an event! You have been getting ready for months now: outfit, hair, friends and of course expectations of the event.

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The day is finally here! Your parents dropped you off at school where you reunited with your friends. You look beautiful, feeling fantastic and ready to have a good time. A little food, few cups of fruit punch (remember, you're in middle school), chats and laughs with your friends and of course lots of dancing. You are having a blast! Nothing can spoil the feeling!

And then something happens, you see a group of your peers looking at you and laughing. Of course, you get curious and now keep looking at this group to see if the stairs and laughs continue. They do. You starting to feel uncomfortable, you are not so sure in yourself anymore and suddenly you stop having fun. Why is this happening? The answer is - You've Been Judged!

Yes, the awful feeling of judgement. It does not make a difference how little or big. It is uncomfortable, it is hurtful and at times blood churning. It is tough to shake off and it can seep through into all of the areas of your life. All of sudden you start questioning everything you do and then spiral into depression because you think you don't fit and you are useless.

I am sure that this happened to you more than once. I am not talking about school dance specifically, I am referring to the feeling of being judged. You do not have to be young to feel badly about someone else's negative opinion of you or something that you do. We've all been there more than once. Not fun!

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And how about the other side - you being the "judge"? Do you recall how many times you made someone upset, disappointed or mad by your hurtful comments? I won't lie, I've been there and now feel badly. Did I think I was better than the person who was a victim of my words? Did I think my opinion was the right one (well, we know how I feel about this one)? Why did I do that? Why do we have a desire to push our negative energy onto people?

After the years of experience with people and simple observation of their behavior, I've come to conclusion that our need for judgement is brought by the lack of that something that we judge others for. Yes, I know, clear as mud!

So, let me explain. in the recent month I was judged. I found out about this from a colleague of mine. It was something rather silly, a pair of form fitting pants. I am still relatively new to the company I work with and some of the people do not know my name. And so, I was remembered as a "girl in tight pants". Hmmm...

What was my reaction? First I was rather confused, I could not quite understand why my pants that are part of the business suite I wore, got so much attention. Secondly, I could not understand why was I identified by my pants. Thirdly, I said to my colleague: "I am glad that my popularity is growing that even my pants get a notice!".

You see things like this do not bother me anymore. I am a very confident person, I know who I am and yes, I work very hard to stay in shape so I can wear form fitting clothes. It makes me feel good and I will not stop doing that.

Image credit www.thoughtcatalog.com

I suggested to my colleague that I feel sad for the person who made the comment and then found out that this person was not in the greatest shape and was simply jealous. I also found out that I was not the first victim. Simply sad!

The interesting outcome of this is that every time I go to the head office, I seriously consider my attire. I do! And it is not like me at all! I am strong, confident and I do not have time or space in my world for such people or their comments. I can happily meet with them and hear what they have to say and perhaps share with them my side of the story. Cowardly behaviour is not welcomed in my life.

So, why do I still think about this? Well, in my "past life" (before my spiritual awakening and full understanding of myself) I wanted everyone to like me and was willing to do anything for that to take place. So, perhaps that feeling is still somewhat present deep in my soul. Even with the understanding that it is practically impossible, it seem that "the little girl"  inside of me still wants to be liked. Work in progress!

But enough about me (did I just say that?). Let's get back to discussion about judgements. Yes, they are unpleasant and disrupt your life in a negative way. But they are a part of life. I would love to tell you that you will be okay, but it is not up to me. It is in your hands, it is your choice how you react to the situation or if you choose to be judgemental towards someone.

So next time someone passes judgment on you or you are about to judge someone, think about why this is happening and make a choice. Make a choice how you will react to someone's negative words about you or think about how your negative words might affect someone.

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The secret is to listen to your thoughts and pay attention to your feelings and emotions. It is easier said than done, But try it once and see how it feels. And then try it again. Next thing you know you are free of judgemental feelings and behaviour. And the world becomes a better place for everyone!

Yes, I am a strong believer that world will be a better place if there was less judgement. But this is a completely different discussion.

I hope you enjoyed reading this post and it is always my hope that it helped you in some way. Remember, we are here to experience life and have a journey. It is your life and your journey and you are the only one who decides what's best for you. No judgement of others should determine this. And please try to stay away form judging others.

Enjoy your summer and don't forget to

Be Active! Be Involved! Be a Current Woman!