The #Cherished #Blogfest

Directive for the CHERISHED Blogfest, we invite you to talk to us about one of your cherished objects. Tell us what it is, post a picture of it if you like, and tell us why you cherish it.

Keep your post to 500 words. Place the Cherished badge on your sidebar, and help us spread the word on social media. Above all, join us in making new connections, and renewing old ones: visit each other and leave comments, try and follow your co-participants on your blogs and social media so they can follow you back.

Add your name and blog link in this Linky List, sign up for the Cherished Blogfest, and share your cherished memories on 24th, 25th and 26th of July 2015.
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Since others aren't writing about an object necessarily, I will choose not to either. Otherwise, you can read about that in an earlier blog post of mine. I actually need not take a(nother) photo or write as it is all here: http://xpressyouressence.blogspot.ca/2015/02/nablopomo-makean-inspired-dance.html in black and white and colour, photos in colour that is!

It took me a few minutes to think about what I most cherish. Objects provide temporary pleasure, but something more of a lasting nature is what I was considering. And then it came to me: But of course! (http://xpressyouressence.blogspot.ca/2012/02/communications-from-my-dead-twin.html)

Heart mandala (I made from stones & shells)

When it comes to something precious, one thing I most value is the size of a person's heart (http://xpressyouressence.blogspot.ca/2012/03/perhaps-analogous-to-heart-shaped.html), and yes, mine included! ;)

In keeping with that, friendships are very important to me as friends can be there for me at times when I need support that I think I won't get from my family. Also it's fun to enjoy community events and activities with friends.

Furthermore, I have come to realize the value of friendships having had none at one point in my life. This occurred when I left my entire support system behind, shortly after moving to British Columbia from Ontario. And having no friends is like a vacant room: bare, empty, and boring, lonely even!

I have felt lonely a big part of my life - distant past - and still do occasionally at times, though rather rarely as of late. Loneliness hasn't been an issue for me the past few years for the most part, and in particular this year with new people I have encountered in various networks.

Lucky me, this year it seems that I have been blessed with more friends than usual as I usually have had only one or two close friends at a time in past.

A number of people, primarily friends and some acquaintances live in my neighbourhood and surrounding area. A few in fact moved a few blocks below the highway, whereas I live a few blocks above it.

I am so grateful for that as I cherish their friendships. Hopefully they do likewise! ;)

Introducing Tag: You're it!

I was tagged by Carol Graham of Battered Hope on Monday, April 6th to play "I Must Ask You Some Questions."

I will answer her questions here and then appoint four other bloggers to continue the game. HOWEVER... what I would really like to do is have each one of you send me your answers to these questions and I will do a post highlighting your funniest or best answers.

READY? Let's play. It will be a great way to get to know more about each of you.

1) FOUR THINGS PEOPLE CALL ME OTHER THAN MY NAME
El or Ell or Elle; Miss Elly (from Dallas); Elly Mae (from Beverly Hillbillies); ‘Ells Bells

2) FOUR JOBS I'VE HAD
Medical Secretary, Administrative Assistant, part-time Jewellery sales clerk, Information and Referral Specialist

3) FOUR MOVIES I HAVE WATCHED MORE THAN ONCE Les Miserables (two nights in a row) and about four different movie versions, 2 variations of musicals; ET; Tootsie; ...?

4) FOUR PLACES I HAVE LIVED
Toronto and Brampton in Ontario; Vancouver and North Vancouver in British Columbia, Canada

5) FOUR PLACES I'VE BEEN
The Netherlands (aka Holland), Austria, Calgary (in Canada), and Utah in the U.S.A.

6) FOUR PLACES I WOULD RATHER BE
Nelson BC (for arts and hippievilleness); in a forest; in a park full of trees I can hug; by a waterfall

7) FOUR THINGS I WILL NOT EAT
Soybeans including edamame; shark soup; cottage cheese, frogs legs or any pets, reptiles and insects

8) FOUR FAVORITE FOODS
Pizza (thin crust, spinach feta; sweets (cookies and dark chocolate); Thai and Indian (but not too spicy)

9) FOUR TV SHOWS I WATCH
I haven’t watched TV in years; however, used to love ER (because of Noah Wyle), Picket Fences (years ago), Lonesome Dove (due to gorgeous Erik McCormack, Ally McBeal (my laughter therapy show)

10) FOUR THINGS I AM LOOKING FORWARD TO THIS YEAR
My new home (I just moved!); downsizing my home; downsizing me!; my new choir (the one I currently sing with) and our upcoming performances

11) FOUR THINGS I AM ALWAYS SAYING
"Who invented this?!" or "Who invented this?! I could have done better (than that)!"; "My intuition is ALWAYS right!"; "Where are you from?"; "There’s no such thing as common sense!"

PLEASE ANSWER ANY OR ALL THESE QUESTIONS AND I WILL DO A FUN POST WITH YOUR ANSWERS.

NOW, I am going to nominate FOUR BLOGGERS to write a post answering these questions and they are in no particular order (1) Aathira Jim at https://embarkwithmythoughts.wordpress.com (2) Debbie D. the "Doglady at http://thedogladysden.com/ (3) Shantala at http://www.shanayatales.com and (4) Cathy Graham or 'Cat' for short at http://cattitudeandgratitude.blogspot.ca

Do YOURSELF A FAVOUR and follow these blogs -- you will be wonderfully delighted!

Waiting (with baited breath) for your answers to my questions...

Last Day: Whew! (July 31st)

Photo credit: Roberto Kaplan, Roberts Creek (Sunshine Coast), BC

WOWWWWWWWWWWWWW! Finally! It's the last day of the Ultimate Blog/ging Challenge (UBC) and I am home free - thank goodness! - at last, in more ways than one! ;) (Imagine me wiping the sweat from my brow due to not only hot weather, but also finishing the UBC of blogging every day this month, for 31 days: WOW! I can't believe I did it!)

You see, even though I enjoy, actually love creative writing and reading and researching affiliated with it, I think it highly impractical, at least for me, to blog on a daily basis.

For one, it's challenging on my body. My body is meant to move, not sit or stand while typing, reading/researching online for hours on end at times. It's also not a great idea for the eyes: my eyes seem to dry out even though I attempt to blink consciously, never seemingly enough. And my body. I have been avoiding eating decent meals or eating late sometimes due to this...am I crazy or what? Don't answer that: that's a rhetorical question!

And secondly, it's summer! What am I doing spending time indoors (except keeping cool on hot days)?

Am I or was I rather crazy then to participate in this? Yes for the reasons above and no.

No 'cause I challenged my mind, my writing, and in the process, met and gained some wonderful international bloggers and friendships, not to mention read a lot of great blog posts. There are a lot of good bloggers out there! :)

Now, question is: what will I (or you if you are a UBC blogger) do with all that free time? You know, the time you used to spend reading/researching/typing/looking for and downloading pictures? I know what I will be doing based in part on my blogging and that of my fellow UBC bloggers:

*enjoy summer what's left of it(!) including in no particular order:
*attend my favourite Harmony Arts Festival by the ocean
*finish reading a fascinating (spiritually-based) book, Michael Jackson: Man Behind the Mirror by a man I know named Raamayan Ananda
*"catch up" (st least some) on reading blogs including UBC bloggers with honourable mentions to some of my newfound friends in India: Vinodini Iyer who deserves an award for her compelling and brilliant story writing/telling - love it! - and sweet Asma Ferdoes (aka Asiya)with her sensitivity shining through brilliantly in her delicate stories and poems (that I can so relate to it seems)
*listen to free live bands outside in the sun
*dance outdoors including salsa lessons

*go for walks and hug trees in the process
*attend free community events and festivals
*watch beautiful sunsets
*hoola hoop with my sturdy portable (and foldable) hoop
*sing and sun doing a vision therapy exercise
*look at the supermoon (maybe practicing trataka (something I learned while blogging)
*learn Zentangle (thanks to bloggers Minette Riordan and Laura Regan)
*clean my pile of dishes and cooking/preparing meals which I neglected most of this month (oops!)
*tidy/clean what has become my messy home (also neglected after so many days)

*hang out with my friends over iced tea or iced espresso drinks
*visit farmers markets and listen to the free outdoor entertainment
*AND hang out more on my patio whether eating, reading, zero gravity chairing! (now, that's poetic license!) ;)
*read and write my blog posts at my leisure (usually about every two weeks with my busy schedule, thank you very much)

Thank you to the organizers including Michelle Shaeffer and Kathy Hadley as well as all of you UBC members and readers. Know that I appreciate you whether I have (had the time to) read your blog or not. I hope to read more of your posts next month in between everything else! ;)

I look forward to keeping in touch with some of you through your blogs and/or social media. I already have some ideas brewing for future posts such as performance poetry, and a tribute to a woman who healed herself of cancer. ;)

How will you dear reader spend/enjoy your summer or free time (depending when you read this!)>