My Kinda People

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The other day I was chatting with a co-worker who I don't interact with a whole lot and after the conversation I mentioned to a friend that "I wish I got to talk to co-worker #1 more because they seem like my kind of person.". Almost immediately my friend gave me a confused look and inquired what exactly I meant by "my kind of person". 

After much deliberation I determined that "my kind of person" is...

Someone who has long term goals and is working towards achieve them.

Someone who is kind towards others.

Someone who can form their own opinions on everything from nail polish or politics.

Someone who has their own opinions and respects others' opinions.

Someone who likes to eat snacks. 

Someone who isn't afraid to admit they still call their mom for advice.

Someone who strives to make the world a better place.

Someone who has a sense of faith.
Someone who isn't consumed by pop culture, but doesn't live under a rock either.
Someone who is hard working and not scared to get their hands dirty.
Someone who appreciates a quiet moment.
Someone who enjoys a good dance party.
Someone whose life doesn't revolve around drinking & partying.
Someone who has a sense of humour.
Someone who is non-judgemental.
Someone who is passionate about the things they love.
Someone who is supportive.

Now, I'm not saying that all of my friends and acquaintances fit into one box. They definitley do not. At the same time I do gravitate towards people who have similar interests and values and shared life experiences (I'm pretty sure that's human nature). You might notice that a lot of my 'requirements' are vague. Which was intentional. "Making the world a better place" can be done in so many different ways. I have friends who are occupational therapists, teachers and nurses who get paid to help. I also have friends that work in more corporate environments and donate money and others who volunteer a few hours a month. I'm a big believer in the idea people serve/give in different ways (that's probably a post for a different day).

What kind of people do you surround yourself with? 

Hurricanes & Dinner Dates

Before I launch into 1000 excuses about why I have failed so miserably at "Blogging Every Day in July" let me tell you about my week. 

This past session started off with a hurricane warning. So the day before the campers arrived the director and myself made an emergency trip to town to buy more rope/tarps/bungee cords to secure stuff down plus enough lanterns for each of the cabins to have one incase we lost power. While we were in town the counsellors back at camp filled all the bathtubs with water and took everything outside inside. You really don't realize just how many projectiles you have around until you're preparing for 100 km winds. 

Camper Drop Off was more chaotic than usual since a dozen or so campers decided to come the next day rather than drive in a hurricane to get to camp. Luckily the winds didn't really pick up until later on in the afternoon after the majority of the campers had arrived. I say luckily because this meant the counsellors were able to entertain the campers while the director & I dealt with the hurricane. 

At one point "dealing with the hurricane" meant standing on the start of our dock with a walkie-talkie watching for it to break loose while we waited for the maintenance guy to come over to do a quick repair job because the waves and wind were hitting at just the right angle to jiggle the bolts holding the dock together loose.  We weren't super worried about the dock because that's easy enough to replace…what we were concerned about was that attached to the dock is our boat so if the end of the dock was going to break lose and float away the boat was going along for the ride. 

The rest of the week followed suit and I don't think I've ever been happier for a Day 7 to come along so I can get my life in order again. Including getting back to blogging. 

The prompt for today is Five People (Dead or Alive) I would like to have dinner with. 

1.  Ellen DeGeneres: Not only is she hilarious but she has so much compassion for other people. I'd love to hang out with her for a few hours and listen to her talk. 
2. Shane Claiborne: This guy fascinates me. If you haven't heard about him before you need to google him right away. I love how passionate his is about his faith and how how intentional he is about doing what HE feels called to do even if it goes against the mainstream church. I'd love to share a meal with him and have some seriously deep discussion. 
3. Laura Ingalls Wilder: I will always love Little House on the Prairie. I have read the books thousands of times and I never get tired of the stories. I would love to meet her in person and hear her stories directly from her with added details and insight. 
4. Kelly Stamps: I don't think there are too many bloggers out there who aren't at least semi-familar with Kelly's blog Kelly's Korner, it's one of the first blogs I really started reading on a regular basis. I just think she is the sweetest and although she's perhaps a little more conservative than I am I would love to sit down with her and listen to her talk about her faith. She just seems like such a genuinely nice person who really desires to use her talents and gifts to make a difference.
5. Taylor Swift: This is my fun pick. T-Swift would probably be okay with just grabbing some fast food and eating it while laughing and giggling about life. And then we'd bake cookies for dessert and everything would be fun and sparkly. 

The People That You Meet

Apartment hunting on short notice has been an experience like none other. In university I lived in residence and then moved in with a friend when one of her roommates moved out. Totally bypassing the ridiculousness of e-mailing strangers on Kijiji and hoping for the best. The fact that I only have a week to find a place just adds to the craziness. I mean, worst case scenario I could stay with friends for a week or two while I find a place but I would rather move once and stay there and not have to move again in two weeks time. That being said I'm not about to settle for sketchy accommodations just because I'm on a time crunch. Some ads I've answered have quickly turned from good to bad with one reply. These are just a few of the delightful folks I've interacted with over the last 72 hours. 

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Hipster Girl

She was my first lead, the room seemed nice enough and with just one other person I thought I was home free. Then I creeped her on Facebook. The first red flag was we had some mutual friends. And by friends I mean casually acquaintances who I had either gone to high school with or worked with and are still kicking around my friend list but are super hippies/stoners. I'm a friend to hipsters, I can get on board with oversized/unnecessary glasses, fair trade coffee and plaid. The drug use not so much. Moving Along. 

Family Circus

I don't remember the exact wording of this ad but it went along the lines of "looking for a third roommate in two level townhouse close to downtown...both young professionals, non-smoking, no parties..." So I emailed to check it out and discovered that it wasn't so much they were looking for a roommate as much as they were looking to rent out a room in their house. This husband and wife team had at least two kids and were just looking to rent out a room (for a lot of money considering what was included) in their house with shared kitchen/bathroom/living space. No Thanks. 

Animal House

I'm still not convinced this one was real. And I didn't send an e-mail because there was no way I was ever going to move in with these people. But their ad contained such gems as "2.5 dogs live here, really just two but there's a third that is over a lot", "420 friendly", "Saturday night parties & jam sessions", "communal living", "co-operative environment" and "must not be uptight". If I was a producer looking to cast a reality show this bunch would have been my pick, but I'm not. I just want a place to live for 3.5 months. Keep Looking. 

Christian Girl

When I saw the ad 'female Christian roommate wanted" I was sold. I e-mailed the girl and she seemed really excited and lovely and I was really excited. Good location, no crazy parties or drug use, sign me up! And then I asked for photos of the place and if I would be able to Skype with the roommate (the girl I was talking to is the one subletting her room). Girl replied back that she wasn't willing to sublet her room to anyone without approval from the roommate. Understandable. I replied that I wasn't planning on making the five hour drive to the city before moving and was hoping that we could exchange some e-mails, set up a Skype meeting and decide if we'd be a good match. She stopped responding. I feel like I failed some sort of Christian Girl test. 

The Hippies
I love me some tie-dye. And I'm all about peace & love and all that good stuff. But there's a line. And these folks were past the line. They were looking for another roommate who would agree to attending regular meetings to discuss the atmosphere in the house, has an interest in poetry and foreign languages,  potlucks and highly active in environmental and social justice issues. #aintnobodygottimeforthat If I was embarking on some sort of spiritual journey this would be an experience, but I'm not. I have a job. The last thing I want to do after a day of work is come home to a meeting to discuss the atmosphere of the house with 8+ people who live there.

Big Bang Theory
At the moment this is my most promising situation. But again I'm waiting on pictures. These guys are looking for someone to take over a lease until April (perfect timing). There's a parking spot, it's within my budget, close to work, it's a lot of check marks! And bonus points for the room being furnished. I've got high hopes for this one. I'm referring to them as Big Bang Theory because it's 4 PhD students. Which is great because it means I won't be living with a bunch of undergrads who just discovered alcohol. Fingers Crossed!

Day of Acceptance

Today is being promoted as the International Day of Acceptance by an amazing grassroots company called 3E Love. So today I'm joining people around the world to embrace diversity, educate people about disabilities and empower each other.

Over the past few years I've gotten to meet so many wonderful people (mostly through camp) who have a range of disabilities. I've always known that people were more than their disabilities and not at all defined by the way in which they move or speak but I'm still learning. Each summer I get to interact with more and more campers who are continuously showing me new ways to do things and shattering any lingering stereotypes. 

To today I'm spreading the love and acceptance. Please take the time to get to know the people around you regardless of what they look like, how they speak, how they move (or don't move). Some of the funniest people I know are unable to communicate through speaking. They use spelling boards and their eyes to interact with the world around me, and trust me they interact. But you would probably never know that if you just passed them on the street. 

I don't think I've ever given blog homework before but this is a topic near and dear to my heart so I'm doing it anyway! In honour of International Day of Acceptance I'm going to encourage you all to take a few short minutes out of your day to read about Wheelchair Etiquette. Maybe you're already familiar with some of these things but maybe you'll learn something new. And a little common courtesy goes a long way towards inclusion, acceptance and making the world a better place!