Titled "Stolen Moments of Peace"

This is a photo from April 7, 2016. I'm not entirely sure if it has already been featured on this blog. I can tell you that the similarities between this photo two years ago and now are frighteningly similar. I still eat almond butter and banana on toast. I still have that MacBook Pro. I'm typing on it right now. I still use that NYX brush with another bottle of that NARS foundation. I still have that plastic tumbler from Starbucks and it's still what I use to drink water. I still use that coffee mug. We still have that plate.

It is alarming to me because I am frightened. I finished school last Friday. I'm looking for an internship right now. I've had two phone interviews and two in-person interviews. I walk away from every single one not knowing how I did. I tell the boy I am seeing that I do not think I make great first impressions. I'm not that charming. I think I am mostly shy and awkward around new people - but not in a cute Zooey Deschanel way. Just an awkward maybe-Aubrey Plaza way.

I'm worried that after a year of school, I am still not going to find a job. I am tired and so eager for a change of pace. I am ready for a change in my life. I want to try new things. I want new challenges. I have felt very stagnant the past three years since I finished my undergraduate degree. I'm concerned that I never feel confident after my interviews. I think I'm a hard worker and I become a very caring, sweet, considerate and friendly person. I'm worried that isn't capable of being shown in the little time interviews offer.

I don't know what I'm going to do. I am hoping for the best. I know I have people who believe in me. I know I have good work. It's just hard to convince myself not to be so scared. I emailed my professor after the interview a little freaked out. She replied, "Hang in there" and "If it's not meant to be, it's not meant to be (for now)."

What will be, will be. 

(They are some differences. I no longer use that makeup bag. I don't use that Too Faced powder anymore. I killed that succulent. I don't know what happened to that plush. The snowglobe is put away somewhere. Same with the notepad. I have a different MetroPass.)

Convocation nearly three years ago, June 2015

DRAFT

Below is the first draft of a piece of long copy. I really liked the imagery and the voice of this piece. Being able to write stuff like this, is kind of the reason why I went into copywriting. I want to be able to tell stories - powerful, moving and beautiful stories.

Describe your last experience of falling in love.  

You met your husband at age 22. It was a Saturday night outside of the university pub. You bumped into him because you weren’t paying attention and had one too many. You looked at him to say sorry. He smiled and then you lost your words. You fell in love. It was the first time.  

You lost your first job at age 24. You drove an hour and a half to sit at the beach and cry. You sat right by the water. Waves licked your toes. Sand tickled your skin. You watched the sun set. It hugged you as it left. You fell in love.  

You had your daughter at age 30. She wrapped her little hand around your finger. You whispered hello. You fell in love.  

You started painting again at age 40. You fell in love.  

Through a lifetime of falling in love, stumble into it again.

 My final submission did not look like this or sound quite the same. But I wanted to keep the first draft.

Dear Reader, let me know what you think. This is my favourite part of writing. I love creating imagery and feeling. How did I do? Can I sell you not just a product, but a lifestyle? The near-perfect life? A dream?

September Favourites

Two Dope Queens - I now spend a lot of time on public transit getting to and from school. It is roughly about an hour each way.

My yoga practice - As my schedule crams up with so much to do between school and work, I am falling back into my yoga practice. I am finding solace and comfort in my practice. It is so good to have an hour where I am not thinking of anything else. No other commitments, nowhere else to be but these four walls and only the bodies in this room. Only my body and its movement at present. For once, nothing else exists in the world. This is an addictive feeling - to feel actually present instead of stretched between here and there, now and three weeks from now, now and a year from now. We spend too much time existing where we do not. It is refreshing and so necessary to for once be where I am.

Uncle Tetsu cheese tarts - I am trying not to indulge in these too much but it is hard. They are sweet but with a saltiness to them. Creamy and rich. It is something that engulfs your whole mouth, your whole palette. A single tart will be enough for one sitting. I usually slice it in half to split between two as to not overindulge. It is hard not to constantly go back for more. I prefer the original.

September has been a month of trying to land on my feet. After being away from any kind of school environment for two years, I've been trying really hard to hit the ground running. I'm trying really hard to stay on top of all my work. Some days are more successful than others. Some days, I run to my friend Ellen and Will nearly crying. Or sometimes, crying. It hasn't been easy finding that balance but I am trying. I think it has been OK so far. September is for starting anew.