Blog Summary #3

Looking back at older posts, of which I`m ashamed to say there aren`t many, I`m not sure if it is really obvious of how I`ve evolved, through my writing at least. However, I think I have changed, especially in the ways that I view leisure, and constraints that "appear" to stop me. To be perfectly honest, leisure was never something I thought of before as a concept...I just did it, most of the time not even thinking about what I was experiencing. As I mentioned in a prior post, I used to be really active, playing on sports teams and what not, and although I know I was experiencing leisure, I never thought of it then. It just wasn't a concept, or...a thought I applied to anything back then. It was only until I applied to Leisure Sciences that I began to understand there was more to think about. I am more aware now of how to leisure in a more effective way, of sorts. I think my biggest constraint has always been time when it came to leisuring, but now I`ve learned ways to work around that. I can multi-task! It is now possible for me to do something that I might not want to do because I feel forced, (but it`s something I have to do), and make it something more enjoyable, something I can even consider leisure. I also think that now that I`ve been exposed to the different ideas surrounding leisure and what it is, for example, that it is a state of mind, I find it easier to experience it. I do really believe that it is a state of mind. I have been paying more attention lately, and I find I`m able to experience leisure doing just about anything, at least for a while, as long as I am able to stay relaxed and stress free. This is a nice thing, especially at work. I like my job, and I don`t find it stressful, for the most part, and I love the people I work with, however sometimes I would feel annoyed with the fact that I had to go to, especially on a saturday morning. However! I can now say that I am able to experience more leisure at work because I`m aware that for me, its all in my mind.


I think I have evolved as a leisure educator, and although I haven`t really "educated" anyone yet, I feel more inclined to do so than before, and I have also been talking about leisure with my friends alot more, again, not something I ever talked or thought about before. It`s been really interesting learning everything that I have, and it has gotten me to thinking. I think now my next step will be venturing outside of my comfort zone and experiencing leisure in a new form. I don`t know how yet, but I feel like it may be time for me to go farther than just hanging out with friends. I know I`ve said it many times to myself during the semester, but I do miss being active like I used to be. I feel that it`s time for me to enroll in some kind of sport or art class. I also think it may be time to start looking for a job that has to do more with my field. I`m currently working at American Apparel, where I fold clothes, but I know that alot of people in Leisure Sciences or T.R are working at jobs where they are able to experience what we are taught, so I am thinking this may be a change I will make this year. I think, however, for this endeavour time won`t be my issue, motivation will be!

I have learned quite a bit this semester, in fact I would even dare to say I learned the most this semester than I have in my year and a half at Concordia so far! I have formed new opinions about leisure, I have begun the process of educating others, although I have plenty more to do, and I have come to the realization, along with most others in the class, that leisure is a state of mind. I have learned that I can achieve a state of leisure doing things I wouldn`t normally enjoy. I have learned that although time remains my biggest constraint, there are ways to work around it, and with it. I now need to find the motivation to go further, make changes in my life and leisure in different ways!

My New Leisure Experience

Here I am getting to know the little bike...

Here's my failed attempt at a "wheelie"...my feet are supposed to be on the pedals NOT on the ground...

I don't even know....all I can say is my pride wasn't the only thing that was bruised..

Recovery...

"Ooops...I hope I didn't break the bike..."

Here's my attempt at flipping the handle bars...

Safe to say, it was a failed attempt...

OH LOOK!! MY ONE ACTUAL "TRICK"!! It's not even reallllly a trick...but to me, it was.

I'm SUCH a Pro, I know...don't worry about it.

So, for the past few weeks I have been stressing about having a new leisure experience. No matter how hard I thought about it, I just couldn`t think of anything to do!! I mean, it`s not even like I have experienced everything I would like to in leisure...I just could not, for the life of me, think of anything new I wanted to experience. Well...I mean there were a few things I thought of, but they were WAY out of my budget, and I didn`t want to spend too much money (if anything at all) because I thought it might take away from the experience (especially if it turned out to be something I didn`t enjoy, and then, knowing i had spent money on it, I would end up forcing myself to try and like it...which would make it more stressful than leisurely!) Anyways!!
Finally, one of my friends, who just got really into BMXing this year, suggested I try that out. I thought about it for a while...I mean, I have always liked watching people BMX, but I had never tried it, nor had I ever thought of trying it really....I think mostly because I can be a bit clumsy when it comes to things with wheels (skateboards...regular bikes...to name a couple). After a few days of consideration I decided, why not? I mean if worse comes to worse, at least I'll be with my friends.

So this weekend, at the only time that was convenient (which was around 6:30 pm so it was already dark, and cold!!), I met with my friend so that he could try and teach me a bit about BMXing and possibly how to do some tricks (he kept it VERY basic for me of course, due to my clumsiness haha). I used to be a very sporty person, and Im an avid snowboarder, so the physical part of it all didn't phase me much, but it was a lot harder than I was expecting. I had ridden his bike once before, but just around in a circle, on a bike path, so it was a bit challenging to think about trying any tricks on something so small, but, I gave it a shot! I only really managed to do one "trick", if you could even call it that, which consisted of me standing with one foot on a peddle and one foot on a bar on the wheel...not very impressive to my friend, but it was a victory for me haha! I tried learning how to flip the handle bars, but I wasnt able to incorporate that while I was actually moving. I think the thing I enjoyed most was just being with my friends. I place alot of value on my friendships and in almost any case something will be enjoyable if my friends are around. I think I could be staring at an anthill, but if I'm with a friend I would consider it leisure!
I went into this new experience of trying to learn how to BMX with a positive attitude, and although it proved to be a lot more challenging than I thought it would be, I had a great time! My friends being there to laugh both with and at me....well, mostly at me...really made the experience more enjoyable for me. Even though I didn't walk away (or should I say ride away) from this experience an expert at this "sport" I do have a new appreciation for it, and I definetely experienced a great leisure activity!

(Above is the story of my experience...I may not have mastered any new skills, but hey, at least i look like I'm having fun riiiight??)

Stress Free Party Host.....?

So, I`ve been "house sitting" for my dad for the past few weeks while he`s away on a 2 month long trip through Vietnam and Thailand and a couple of weeks ago I had a house party. I`ve always LOVED going to parties but I`ve never felt the desire to host one, because...well, i never thought it would be AS fun. Maybe it`s just that the majority of the house parties I`ve gone to the person`s house has always ended up looking like a war zone than a home...(for example, one party I went to, 3 doors were ripped off their hinges!) Anyways, I always just thought I would be too worried about things being trashed to actually have fun, but I decided to give it a try! I had barely moved my stuff in when i found myself posting invites to this party, and soon enough Saturday rolled around and people were walking into the house ready to have fun lol. I knew most of the people that ended up coming but there were also a lot of randoms who were letting themselves in freely. Surprisingly, I ended up having a great time and even with the number of poeple that showed up, the clean up wasn`t even that bad! I`m still dealing with allll the empties that I`ve just been too lazy to do anything with, but other than that...everything ended up being fine! It really surprised me how much fun i was able to experience in a situation that I normally would have avoided (hosting a party).
I`m now planning on throwing another one in the next couple of weeks and Im keeping my fingers crossed that it`ll be even bigger and better than the last one...

Thanksgiving!

So, this weekend I went up to Ottawa to celebrate Thanksgiving with my family. I had been looking forward to it since like, last month, and so I was pretty excited when this weekend finally came!
Thanksgiving is the holiday we ALWAYS spend out at my Aunt and Uncle's house in Carleton Place which is about 30 minutes passed Ottawa, in the country. They have a gigantic property and my Uncle, being a mechanic, has tons of old cars, tractors, trailers, mini bikes and 4 wheelers for everyone to play with lol. They are surrounded by forest, they've got a pond (that, on numerous occasions, someone has drunkenly stumbled into haha), and man made waterfalls on either side of the house that give off that relaxing sound of running water. It's the perfect place for our family get togethers, since we have a pretty huge family, (on any given occasion there will be at least 20 people there)! I'm super close with my family so going to Ottawa to see them is always a highlight.
So anyways, we got out to Carleton Place in the afternoon and having a few hours to kill before dinner we filled our time with all the fun activities there are to do! It began with a semi drunken horse shoe tournament between a couple of cousins and a couple of Uncles. I sat around with some of my other cousins and watched as they basically threw huge horse shoes in eachothers directions, hoping that they would "score" on the other team (basically the point is to throw the horse shoe as close as you can, or around, a metal pole in the ground, and try not to hit anyone in its way!). Seeing as they were all pretty "happy" at this point they were getting pretty into the game, yelling at the dogs if they came close to the track, for fear that they might cramp their style and "throw their game off". Then, when the "tournament" ended, some retreated back to the house to switch up their empties for new beers, and the rest of us ran to shotgun ATV's. A bunch of us took off on the 4 wheelers racing eachother on the tracks, seeing who could go faster and what not. After deciding that I couldn't keep up with my insane cousins, AND after almost being driven OFF the track into the pond (and I wasn't EVEN drinking!), I decided to take a break and watch as the others tried to show off who was more "macho" and daring, and who could drive while standing on the seat on one foot the longest...all the while just WAITING for one of them to flip off and break an arm, this is usually how it goes, everytime. Anyways, then finally, dinner was ready! Everyone piled into the house, scrambling to grab a plate, AND a seat, before everything was all gone! Dinner was, to say the least, amazing. Turkey, gravy, potatoes, stuffing, buns, turnip puff, veggies, and....so much more....I ate so much I literally threw myself into a food coma. After we had all stuffed our faces, as it usually goes, we headed back outside to hang out some more before attempting to fit dessert in! And so, it was back on the ATV's, my Uncle busted out his 1929 Chevy Coach car, one of his many old jems he's been working on, to show it off and take it for a spin, while the rest of us, just sat around drinking and laughing, watching the youngest cousins run around, and just enjoying our time together. A little while later, one of my cousins was sent into the woods with a friend he'd brought along, to gather fire wood (we always make new guests work when they join us, it's like a sort of initiation, lol). Then we made them build the fire in the bonfire pit, which was quite enjoyable to watch. When we were all feeling a little less full we, again, piled back inside and grabbed dessert: pumpkin pie, topped with whipped cream, apple pie, ice cream, some caramel thing my cousin made, annnnd.....i think that was it...After, a bunch of us went back outside to sit by the fire and enjoy the fruits of our, well, my cousin and companies, labour.
It was as always an awesome day, and a perfect way to spend my time. I honestly can think of few things that I enjoy more than a day spent out at my Aunt and Uncle's with my whole family just hanging out, and having fun. I love that we all get along so well, and there are always a ton of things for us to do. Since the age range with my cousins alone runs from 30 to 2 years old being out in the country is the most awesome place to spend time since theres lots of room for the kids to run around playing with the dogs, and lots of space for the rest of us to just sit back and relax. Needless to say, I was sad to have to say goodbye to everyone and come back but I know I'll be makin that trip back up to see them all in no time....and I can't wait!

Summary #1

Although I haven't been very good at keeping a steady blog, over the past few weeks I have been thinking quite a bit about leisure. I've definetely come to some realizations. When I think about how I used to spend my time, I'm almost amazed that I ever got anything done. Up until a couple of years ago, I played a lot of sports, and went to acting school. My weeks were full with regular school, acting school, hockey practices, and games and tournaments, hockey camps and the list goes on...Not to mention I also played ringuette, soccer and was in competitive swimming, among other things! When I began those activities I tuly enjoyed each one of them and was intrinsically motivated to do them. However, as the years wore on and the competition increased, I began to feel more pressure and soon the activities I had onced loved became more and more like chores. Also, with school becoming more intense, I began to face constraints that were making it difficult for me to handle everything on my plate. When I made the decision to quit hockey, it wasn't so a much a decision that I would never return, just that I needed a break to focus on other things. However, about 4 years have passed, and...I'm still on that "break". After I quit hockey, which I had played for about 10 years, quitting everything else just seemed to follow. Suddenly I didn't always have a place to be, or a team that relied on me, and I think at first I was a little confused and maybe even lost. I had a lot more time to spend with friends, and watch TV, and go out, things I obviously had experienced, but it now seemed that I had an abundance of time to do them. I think that if I were still in that transition phase and writing this blog, I probably wouldn't be able to really say what I considered leisurely. However, now that time has passed, I have reorganized my priorities and I have seemingly found new sources for leisure.
These days I really feel as though, for me, leisure is all in my state of mind. My life is still filled with activities, and I do still face constraints, however they have changed. Since I don't play any team sports, I am under a lot less pressure to do things for other people, and almost all activities that I do are intinsically motivated. I have no obligations to "show up" to a game or practice, and I can make decisions about where I go, at what time, and so on. Mostly, I spend any "down time" I have with friends. Between work and school that sometimes pose as constraints, I don't always get to see my friends as often as I'd like, but even when I am alone, doing nothing, if I am relaxed, then I consider it leisure. Although going to work can often feel more like a burden than fun, I love the people I work with and will often find myself having a good time. I work at American Apparel, in the stock room, and for me, not having to deal with any whiny customers is a huge bonus. Although I'm at work, I'm also technically "hanging out" with my fellow stockees, whom I now consider more like friends than just plain co-workers. Obviously, if I had the choice between being at work or being on a mountain snowboarding with friends, I would choose the latter, but I really appreciate the fact that I have a job that I can experience leisure at.
As I said, all activities that I pursue now are intrinsically motivated, and although on occasion I have found myself going out places that I would not have chosen, if I am with the people I love, I usually end up having a great time. I am enjoying this type of leisure, and although I do still miss having a team to play for, I like the feeling that I can sort of control what I consider leisurely just with my state of mind...
Over the years my definition of leisure has changed and as time progresses, it will likely change again, however, I am able to say that at this point in my life I place less value on filling my life with scheduled leisure and I just roll with whatever comes my way. For me, I place the value on quality and not so much on quantity anymore.

Since it's getting colder out these days, I can't help but think how much longer will it be until we start getting snow? According to a friend...who reads the Farmers Almanac lol...we're looking at a possible 700 cm of snow this winter! That's ALOT of snow. To think we had almost 500 last winter and it was so hard to get around, I can only imagine what it's going to be like. On the positive side I sort of can't wait for the snow because it means one thing: boarding season! I've been snowboarding for about 9 years now, and for the past few seasons I've gotten a season's pass for nights at Bromont. Although at first I was a bit reluctant to get a night pass, now I love it. Although I love boarding during the day too, it's one of the best feelings I can think of, to be up on a mountain at night, with friends. The hill is so much less crowded at night too...fewer kids learning how to ski or snowboard...fewer people in general. The crowds at the hill are usually around the same age, and on Nuit Blanche nights (when the hill is open until 3 AM), it makes for an all around awesome time.
Snowboarding is definetely one of my major sources of leisure. It's more than just the activity itself too...I think I especially love the culture that comes with boarding...the people, the style, the parties...everything. I think this is one of the main reasons I really got into boarding...and for someone like me, that loves to be with friends, it's an amazing way to spend the time.

Since I can't seem to sleep, I've decided to take advantage of being awake to write a blog...
Lately, I've been thinking that I would love to get more involved in something...but I'm not sure what...I used to be an extremely active person, I played sports and went to acting school my entire life up until a couple of years ago. I think I felt I needed a break from always having something to do, only now that I've been "activity free" for a while, I'm beginning to miss having a hockey or soccer game to go to, or an acting workshop to help teach, or attend...The thing is, however, that now that I don't have any of those things to do, I feel as though I don't have any time to do them either! How did I ever manage to have such a full schedule all the time and still make it work?? I sort of wish I could figure it out, so I could have it back...

Bad Blogger..

I am realizing how bad I am at this whole blogging thing....I find it really REALLY difficult to write anything as I can never even think of a one liner that is the least bit interesting...I'm also not disciplined enough to remember to write lol. It's funny too because writing and keeping journals used to be one of my "hobbies". I used to love writing poetry, and stories, and keeping track of all my thoughts in a diary, I would get completely lost in my writing and hours would pass without me even realizing...but now I get bored with writing so easily...I wonder what happened?
I think I just got lazy... :)

After a long day of school and work, I would have to say my favourite part of my day was an equally as long walk home, in the rain, with my music.