Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Hi and welcome to episode 5 of the I Walk Toronto podcast. I’m Lorrie. Thank you for listening.
Introduction – what I’ve seen
I’m writing this podcast the week of January 27th. January is pretty well over and we’re a third of the way through winter. While there have been some ridiculously cold days, I’ve still been out and about, walking and running regularly. I think I’ve finally got a cold weather running outfit sorted – on Sunday’s 12 kilometers I was actually a bit too warm. My day to day walking gear could use a bit more help. I don’t know if anything will really keep my hands warm – I’m thinking about getting some chemical hand warmers and trying those. You know, the type in the package that you squeeze together, starting an exothermic reaction? You remember chemistry, right?
One thing that I’ve been seeing more and more of over the last few weeks are Lovebots. I love Lovebots! There are a few new paintings and of course Matt, the Lovebot designer, has recently collaborated with Nadege on a special macaron and macaron box, so the Lovebot is on the window of both locations.
Yes, I’ve tried the new flavour, brie and honey. I like it. Not as much as my favourite, vanilla, but it’s good all the same. If you’re at Yonge and Summerhill or Queen and Gore Vale, I recommend you stop in. Don’t buy a whole box, though, unless you’re sharing. Or want to catch the diabeetus.
What I’m listening to
Since the Sleater-Kinney reunion tour is kicking off shortly, I’ve decided to revisit their back catalogue, as well as pick up the new album, No Cities to Love. The new album is good – I recommend that you pick it up if you haven’t already, and get tickets to their March 2nd show at Sound Academy (ugh). But, it’s their third album, Dig Me Out, that I’ve been stuck on. Specifically, the song, One More Hour.
Okay, I really don’t know why I fixate on certain songs. All weekend I had PJ Harvey’s, Snake stuck in my head. Yesterday it was Pearl Jam’s Tremor Christ. But today, I know exactly why I have One More Hour in there. As far as breakup songs go, it’s one of the better ones, at least as far as I’m concerned. But that’s not it. It’s the chorus. When Corin Tucker sings, ‘Oh, you’ve got the darkest eyes’ in the chorus, it grabs my heart and won’t let go. Maybe I have a thing for brown eyes. Maybe it’s my not so secret crush on Carrie Brownstein – after all, the song is about Corin and Carrie’s breakup. Not sure. Anyway, here it is. Enjoy.
Since I’m some type of freak who can’t listen to music while running, I’ve found a new podcast to listen to instead. Canadaland. If you aren’t familiar with Canadaland, and there’s not really a reason why you would be, it’s a website and a podcast run by Toronto journalist, Jesse Brown.
Why do I like it? First, I like that Jesse is trying something new. He’s created an alternative news outlet and has been prominent in breaking the infamous Jian Ghomeshi story, as well as the lesser-known, lesser-cared-about Amanda Lang story. But more than that, he takes the mainstream media to task, which is something that I enjoy listening to. I’m a news junkie. I wake up to the news. I go to sleep to the news. I find it extremely interesting and while I may not agree with Jesse, I like listening to someone who is even more interested in the news than I am. So check it out.
Damn. Now that I’ve mentioned the PJ Harvey song, it’s stuck in my head again. Here it is. Snake, from her album, Rid of Me. If you don’t have it, you must buy it immediately. One minute and thirty-six seconds of awesome.
What I’ve been thinking about
Today I did something I can’t remember ever really doing. Faced with a bit of an unrealistic workload at the office, I asked for help.
I used to think that I could do anything. More work? Add it to the pile and I’ll get it done. And, you know, maybe that was something I could do when I was younger, but now that I have tasks that require more than just brute force and the ability to work all hours of the day and night, I needed help and I asked for it. And, I got it.
I realize that for most people, this is something you do. But for me, this is a bit of a breakthrough. Admitting that you can’t do something, that you aren’t perfect at something, has been extremely difficult for me – near impossible. To me, it was always a sign of weakness. But, it isn’t. It’s a sign of strength. A sign of maturity and it’s taking responsibility. Rather than letting the team down because of my inability to do something properly, I’m supporting the team by bringing in the right people necessary to move things along.
Admitting that I’m weak is a strength.
The other thing I’ve been thinking about this week is the Greek election. If you haven’t been paying attention, the far-left party, Syriza, nearly won a majority in Sunday’s election and it’s being heralded as a potential new dawn in European politics. Rather than go along with the austerity program they had been forced into in return for bailouts, the Greeks are threatening to pull out of the Euro. This may not mean much to you, but to me it’s fascinating theatre. A Greek withdrawal, or ‘Grexit’ as it’s been coined, could lead to other beleaguered countries like Spain and Italy withdrawing as well. What does that mean to you and me? Well, it would be a monumental failure of the Eurozone, which in and of itself is worth watching, but ultimately there would potentially be a period of global economic chaos. Our current economic system itself being thrown into question. And that can only be a good thing. At the very least, if you have a secure job and you’re holding off on buying a house because you’re worried that interest rates are going to go up, don’t be. They aren’t going any where for a long, long time.
Tips on staying healthy over the winter
So, this week they announced that this year’s flu shot has been a failure. I normally get one, but for some reason or other found myself too busy. There’s always a lot of discussion around whether to get the flu shot or not. My thought is this – why not take five minutes out of your day, get the shot and be done with it? Who cares if it only protects you against 40% of the strains? Isn’t that better than nothing?
Despite a lack of sleep so far this winter I’ve mostly avoided getting sick. I’m not really sure why. I’ve been around a lot of sick people. I think the key is while I’m tired a lot of the time, I haven’t really been run down. It’s when you’re run down that you’re vulnerable. So, if I have one tip for this week’s podcast, it’s to listen to your body. If you’re starting to feel a bit off, take care of yourself right away. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, they say. Also, an ounce of deception cures a pound of pain, so here you go.
Closing thoughts
Well, we’re a third of the way through winter. The days are at least getting longer, if not warmer. There’s a lot to look forward to this year. Trips planned. Concert tickets booked. And, there’s a lot to be thankful for. It’s easy to get down during the winter. A positive attitude can take you a long way. If that doesn’t work, book something that you can look forward to. It doesn’t have to be a trip or a show. A friend booked her first 10 kilometre race this week and that’s something to look forward to. Well…maybe not the training part.
Thanks for listening. If you want to get in touch, you can send me an email to iwalktoronto@gmail.com. Or follow me on twitter @iwalktoronto. The Facebook group, if you want to join, is iwalktoronto – one word. As is my instagram account. I have a blog to host the podcast, which is iwalktoronto.ca. And you can subscribe to the podcast on iTunes – search for I Walk Toronto, this time three words. If you enjoyed it, please rate the episode. If you have questions or comments, please get in touch.
Thanks again.
Bye for now, and remember, be awesome.
Leave a Reply