humanity
The real lives of businessmen, professionals, the everyday man, stay at home parent, healthy lifestyle influencers, and general feel good human stories.
Even First Responders Need Help Too!
Mere minutes from her home, Andrea simultaneously noticed the early morning lineup outside the local grocery store and the bumpiness of the road. She was on her way to The Hospital for Sick Children where she worked in the emergency department some weekends when she wasn’t straddling her full-time job as a pediatric nurse practitioner at Barrie’s Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre and Orillia’s Soldiers’ Memorial Hospital. I don’t remember the road being this uneven, she thought as this single mom chatted hands-free with her son Colby, “Good morning, bud.”
By Heather Down6 years ago in Journal
Villa Kawayan: One Bamboo Hut Built, One Community Uplifted
On a tiny island called Siquijor, in the heart of the Philippines, there is a small village called Tambisan where locals get their daily sustenance from nature. The forest that embraces the island on the mystical mountain of Bandilaan is dotted with bamboo or kawayan in Filipino. Bamboo provides livelihood to the farmers that harvest it, the artisans and craftsmen that build homes with it, the market vendors and the weavers that make crafts and baskets with it. Bamboo supports the local community in Tambisan and a small bamboo enclave in this community called Villa Kawayan is starting a small movement in empowering people with this valued gift from nature.
By Villa Kawayan6 years ago in Journal
My First Week
Now that I think about it, I actually quit 2 jobs in the same year. Yikes! In 2018 I wanted out of my position as a Real Property Assessor. From 2014 to 2018 I learned so much about myself career wise. I knew that I no longer wanted the low salary & job security that my government position provided. An IT job was what I needed for me to grow in my career. I truly missed my calling By not pursuing a degree in technology. IT support was my passion. The Marketing degree I earned was someone else’s dream for me. It wasn’t even the career path I took after graduating. Landing a marketing job has been the biggest obstacle in my career. {Stick around, I’ll share more of that with you later} Spreading my wings was what was needed for me at that time. Finding my dream job was the goal. Indeed was indeed my best friend. After months or searching I landed a job that I thought was going to be perfect. I shortly quit what I thought was suppose to be the right job for me. I finally landed a job back in the IT field. It was just a few minutes from home and it was in an area that I really liked. It was a much needed pick-me-up. Everything seemed perfect during the interviews. Then came the real on day 1. I gave it a try for a month and decided it wasn't the right work/office culture for me. My new office was the size of a closet. It held 5 desk. You cannot tell me it wasn't a fire hazard. It wasn’t safe at all. 5 people, 5 desk, 5 chairs, 5 computers and a dog. I couldn’t believe it. The setup prevented me from even being able to focus on the fact that I was there to work. On boarding sucked. I hated it there! On most days the lights were off. Not only am I working in a closet but I was working in a dark closet. It was weird to me that I was the only one who saw the issue. To solve that problem I told the CEO that it wasn’t a conducive workspace for me and he moved me upstairs to his office suite. It was night and day! The modern 12th floor office space was an office dream. The open floor plan, the kitchen, the aquarium and the people were the opposite of the “Closet Folk” downstairs on the 9th floor. It was amazing to say the least. I still can’t believe they tried to stick me in a damn closet with 4 other people. Well my supervisor was not happy with my move upstairs. She was rude and to settle the score I quit. Rather then fight with her over I left. I didn’t give a 2 weeks notice. I have an effective immediately I will not return. To make ends meet I became a full-time delivery driver. At this point I had worked as a customer support contractor for a few years. That position is why I trusted the journey of becoming a full-time delivery driver. Driving people was not the ideal path. Driving food seemed way more appealing. Here's how my first week went. I literally ran in the back of someone on day 3. I went from a road master to a road liability real quick. The good that came out of the accident was the replacement vehicle. My rental was a hybrid that I only filled up twice during my 2 month rental. I saved so much on gas and even wanted to explore a trade for the baby mama mobile. When it came time to return the rental it was bitter sweet. That first week set back was just a learning curve. Safety first. A few more bumps and bruises later my ride went from a safe carriage for my family to a bumper car that wanted all the smoke. No regrets! I'm doing just fine now. A partially missing bumper, cracked side view mirrors and all we are still rolling. It’s my ride and I love her! I’m not sure that she loves me at this point of our relationship, but we all we got for now. In the meantime I’ll treat her to some details and keep her up with regular maintenance so she can be my forever car. We have history and great memories. As a delivery driver you learn to love and appreciate your vehicle more and more, mile for mile. Lol {LIFE}
By Terri Michelle6 years ago in Journal
The Household of Everyday Heroes: An Open Letter
I live in a household of five. One out of the five is a student, while the remaining four are employed. Out of the four of us, three people are what the UK government deemed as "essential workers", myself included. That means three out of the five people in my family step outside of our house everyday to risk our lives and keep society going. It's difficult, and we're all working really hard. Here are my thoughts on the situation.
By Leigh Hooper6 years ago in Journal
I Don't Even Know Her Name
A few months ago, a young whimper snapper dared to give me a senior discount. It was an innocent mistake, maybe a kind gesture, but, at 45 years old, I was indignant. I didn’t yell but my sneer was heard by her manager. I didn’t mean to make her cry.
By Michel Schwartz6 years ago in Journal
Thank You To All Essential Workers
We're used to thanking the usual front-line workers such as: doctors, paramedics, firemen, policemen, nurses, scientists and engineers. COVID-19 has removed our blinders. There are other front-line essential workers out there. Many of these workers have helped us in our daily lives before the pandemic and we never paid much attention to it either.
By Brian Anonymous6 years ago in Journal
Escape Covid-19 at Escapology
I know what you are thinking, we are in the middle of a worldwide pandemic, who in their sane mind can think about "entertainment" right now? Well, I can, for starters. You see, once this brutal virus begins to dissolve and the curve begins to flatten, we will be able to embrace life again and I don't know about you but I am going to embrace the freaking heck out of it! Aside from seeing my friends and family and sending my children back to school (and get my full body touch up from eyebrows to a pedicure, of course) I cannot wait to indulge in some fun again. With my husband, children, and even complete strangers, I get giddy with hope when I envision all the things I will get to do again. Things I never thought I would be UNABLE to do. However, with such a immeasurable blow to the economy and society, I do wonder how many of my past pleasures will still be open for business. Of course, the movie theaters will prevail and the local mall's and Targets will be be booming with business once again, but how many of the small-businesses that I adore so much will be able to open their doors again? Que in, Escapology, that's right Escapology the number one escape room game in the world! Sure, this is a globally known franchise, but when it comes to each location, these venues are run by everyday people, locals, who, in this example took a chance by starting a business and bringing a new outlet of fun to our community. Despite their household name, they are indeed still a small businesses facing very large challenges due to Covid-19.
By Jus L'amore6 years ago in Journal
