Tag: Blogging

F – Fantastic News

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You get some incredibly, amazingly, wonderfully fantastic news. What’s the first thing you do?

I am assuming from this prompt that the incredibly, amazingly, wonderful fantastic news is mine to tell—if not I would keep their secret.

If it is mine, initially I would say thank you to my angels and spend some time enjoying the moment—connecting with everything I was feeling in my body and head. The more exciting my news—the more I would plan my sharing. Super exciting news requires time for self rejoicing, planning, dreaming and working out what it means before sharing my news with the world including my immediate family.

Once I had worked through my news, I would plan a special dinner that evening for the family and share my news with them in person. I love to see the responses on their faces particularly if the news related to something I know they thought I truly was dreaming about. I tend to be the believer in the power of positive thinking and the law of attraction and not everyone shares my thoughts. I love examples of it working in my life.

Once we had celebrated—with a fancy champagne—my husband and I would work out a plan to share my news with the rest of the family—parents and siblings. This would mostly involve ringing them individually or sending a text if time poor although sometimes a road trip may be in order to tell them personally.

Only after all of these options had been completed and if I decided my news was suitable for a public billboard would I post a status update to Facebook. My personal boundaries stop me announcing anything and everything to the world without careful consideration.

Through blogging I have become more comfortable with my online presence however I don’t want any surprises. If appropriate, to complete my celebrations and take it to a new level I would write a blog post and see where that takes me.The advantage of celebrating through a blog post is that you get to celebrate many times over as people read the blog posts in their own time.

Bring on the fantastic news—I  love to celebrate.

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/supercalifragilisticexpialidocious/

#A-Z Challenge

Share Your World – 2015 Week 13

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What was your favorite subject in school?

I don’t remember having a favourite subject at school. School was school. How much I liked each class varied with regard to who was teaching it, the others students and the style of teaching used. In the end it was my life experiences more than my schooling that got me my job in psychiatric nursing all those years ago.

“Life is not measured by the number of breaths you take, but by the moments that take your breath away” (George Carlin). When have you had such a moment?

I am constantly living in the moment—enjoying what is happening around me. For me the last big moment was when we left Canada’s Parliament House and our first snow storm had begun while during our visit. The landscape was suddenly transformed and everything was blanketed in white—just beautiful.

What’s your choice: jigsaw, crossword, or numeric puzzles?

I am a visual person so love doing jigsaw puzzles. We have many in the garage but unfortunately no time to complete them. Like blogging you start them and suddenly realise that hours have flown by.

If you found an obviously abandoned car with $50,000 in the back seat, what would you do?

I would hand the money in to the police and hope nobody claimed it so I got to keep it. I would be to concerned if I didn’t that I would be found out and charged with something myself.

Bonus question:  What are you grateful for from last week, and what are you looking forward to in the week coming up?

Last week I was thankful for the four-day Easter break and the amount of editing I got done on my book. I majorly changed its order and feel that the flow is even better now. This week I am looking forward to getting back into routine and seeing where it takes me. I have no plans.

http://ceenphotography.com/2015/03/30/share-your-world-2015-week-13/

C – Casa Loma

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Casa Loma is a beautiful, ornate full size castle built by Sir Henry Pellant and completed in 1914.  Overlooking Toronto Canada—the castle is situated on 5 acres of  land— taking 300 men,  3 years to build. It was the largest private residence in Canada and it is steeped in history. Unfortunately due to changes in their financial circumstances Sir Henry and his lovely wife Lady Mary were only able to live in their spectacular home for 10 years.

Beauty, grandeur and opulence are displayed in every room. No expense was spared on the creation of this historic building and it is a true testament to its owner and Edwardian times. Our visit was at Christmas and they were celebrating 100 years of Christmas at Casa Loma—including traditional carolers. It is the most impressive home I have ever seen.

Possibly our favourite part of exploring this amazing castle complete with its secret tunnels was having traditional hot chocolate and our first s’mores on the balcony. We were in heaven. The only thing that would have improved our day was if there was snow on the ground. You win some, you lose some.

#AtoZChallenge

B – Beer Float

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Although Australian I choose to drink wine not beer. It wasn’t until our recent trip to Canada that I began to learn about beer. At lunchtime on New Years Eve in Montreal my husband and I had lunch at The 3 Brewers Microbrewery and decided to try a beer float.  Our beer float consisted of 6 beers all made on site:

  • White
  • Blonde
  • Amber
  • Brown
  • Christmas Beer—special beer of the month
  • Portobello

I was excited. This was a new experience for me, the beers were beautifully presented and looked appertising—something I would have never consider possible before. And now for the test—what were my thoughts. I tried all beers in order as they looked to get stronger as they went.

White – I enjoyed this unusual beer. It was light with a gingery feel and had a pleasant after taste. I could definitely trial a larger glass later.

Blonde – I had tried blonde beers before so the taste wasn’t unusual. It was wheaty and fruity and whilst pleasant it wasn’t my favourite.

Amber – Described by the microbrewery ” as a specialty found nowhere else” I did enjoy this beer. It had a light, caramel flavour that went particularly well with my lunch—Beef and Mushroom Poutine.

Brown – This was my least favourite beer. I found it a strong, malty flavour that I felt took over. It was interesting to try.

Christmas Cheer – Made only for the month of December this beer was very enjoyable. It had a fun, light, festive taste. The flavours did remind me of Christmas. It was one of my favourites.

Portobello – This beer was dark and strong. Surprisingly, I didn’t find it bitter like other strong beers so I did enjoy it although only in small quantities.

 It was a fun, practical learning experience and I am glad I took the risk. I will gaining more beer knowledge as the opportunity presents.

#AtoZChallenge

A – Australians

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Well I am a day late however I have decided to join the A – Z April Blogging Challenge. It involves writing a post a day for the month of April going through the letters of the alphabet. For most people this challenge started on April 1 with A and concludes on April 30th with Z. As Sunday is a free day I will catch up to everyone then.

I am Australian and proud of it. Australians are an eclectic mix with people from all corners of the globe now calling Australia home. Although affectionately called Down Under and along way from many countries—there are many reasons we are grateful to call Australia home. Some of which are described in my acrostic poem—Australians.

A – Amazing animals

U – Unique characters

S – Sydney Harbour Bridge and other famous icons

T – Temperate temperatures

R – Rugby League and Rugby Union—two of our favourite football codes

A – Art and culture

L – Lifestyle choices

I – Idyllic beaches

A – A friendly bunch of people

N – Nature

S – Surfing, swimming and sports

@inspiringmax1

10,000 Views

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Tell us about a time things came this close to working out… but didn’t. What happened next? Would you like the chance to try again, or are you happy with how things eventually worked out?

Inspiring Max was born on Mother’s day—12th May 2014. I knew nothing about blogging but thought I would give it a go anyway. As a self-hosted blog, I soon realised I had a lot to learn about how I was different to other WordPress.com sites. It was a very slow process. I was frustrated. In July, after  completing Blogging 101 I had—34 views, 13 visitors and only 1 follower. So I stopped blogging and prioritised other things.

In late August I was off work sick for a week. I had nothing to do so I popped back to my site. To my surprise I had a few followers, several more views and an Inspiring Blogger Award. I was humbled and excited. Suddenly I got it. Blogging is a long-term journey—a commitment not only to yourself, but also every one who reads you blog. We all grow together and allow each other to reach our own individual goals. By the end of December 2014, my goal was 100 followers. I ended the year with 110 followers and now I have 335. It may have been a slow start but Inspiring Max is on the move.

Somewhere around September I learnt not to focus on the followers but the views. If people were regularly viewing more than one page of my work I was happy. This usually meant they would come back again. The more I connect with my blogging community—the more they connect with me. I view 3 new blogs a day that I interact with. As a result, I am excited to have been viewed by people in 105 countries—many of whom I didn’t know existed. I love the coloured in world map of where Inspiring Max has been.

My advice to bloggers is make sure you have great content and keep going. When you are discouraged visit new blogs. Connect with your community at every opportunity and overtime—your community will connect with you. Blogging is a rewarding experience that has allowed me to grow in ways I would have never imagined possible before. Thank you for sharing my journey. I look forward to our future together. To celebrate I offer you a virtual glass champagne instead of a cigar.

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https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/but-no-cigar/

Poetry 101 Rehab: Thaw

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This week’s poetry challenge theme is THAW. In Australia this word doesn’t have the same power it holds in many parts of the Northern Hemisphere.

Using anaphora

I like the snow

I like the ice

To work yesterday I couldn’t go

And shoveling is such a chore

So today I like the thaw

 

Haiku

Come in and thaw out

Love will defeat the cold

Together we’ll grow old

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http://maraeastern.com/2015/03/22/poetry-101-rehab-thaw/

Pros And Cons List

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Write about a time you had a Goldilocks experience, exploring different choices and finally arriving at “just right.”

Our choices shape our lives. But how do we make the right choice—when so many are available. One helpful way I have found to make any decision is to draw up a pros and cons list for each choice.

Take a piece of paper and divide it in half. On one side write your reasons for doing the activity, behaviour or change (the pros) and on the other side write your reasons not to do it or why it won’t work (the cons). Be creative. Even ideas that seem silly or far-fetched can be helpful in the big picture when you make a plan around them.

Once you have your lists—see how balanced or unbalanced they are. Sometimes it may be immediately obvious which choice is right for you. On other occasions—you may find yourself more confused. No problem. Hang your lists in your room or somewhere you can see them regularly for a couple of days. Focus on each option. Does one draw you in more than the others?

If you struggle to choose which option is right for you—give yourself a challenge. Try the most positive one or the option that will give you the biggest reward on completion. Remember, if this choice don’t work—you can always adjust it slightly to make it more practical. Break it down into smaller steps if needed but keep moving forward with your choices. Sometimes— just right— takes a little while to feel comfortable, but when it does it fits beautifully.

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https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/daily-prompt-4/

Fly On The Wall

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If you could be a “fly on the wall” anywhere and at any time in history, where and when would you choose?

Owing to my curiosity I was unable to decide on just one moment to spy on—too many options.  Instead I choose an acrostic poem with my various ideas—some are a little out there but the knowledge gained from each experience would have been amazing.

Flying with Amelia Earhart across the Atlantic Ocean as the first woman to go solo

Landing on the moon

Yellowstone’s super-volcano last eruption in 1350 BC

Observing Michelangelo paint the Sistine Chapel

Normans adventures and conquests

Titanic’s last day

Historic occasion of the Berlin Wall coming down

End of World War II

Womans movement development in the 1970’s

At Gander, Canada the day all planes en route to USA were forced to land there because American airspace was closed as a response to 9/11

Listening to Martin Luthur Kings “I have a dream” speech

Lunch with the royal family just being themselves—no protocol or formalities

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/fly-on-the-wall/

Eclectic Corner: Street Life

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In regional China people seem to live life on the street. They cook, play and sleep in front of their homes or shops. I found it fascinating as it was so different to anywhere else I had ever been. Life is simple, colourful and it works.

http://eclecticoddsnsods.com/2015/02/24/eclectic-corner-7-street-life-photography-writing/