Hey Mom!

Hey Mom! So as a university student I tend to think of the new year starting in September but Facebook just told me I'm wrong.  So let's evaluate. This year has been a year of growth (not height wise because if it were, I might still be playing basketball).  Much like puberty, personal growth is awkward and painful. I find that I have emerged from the cocoon like an ugly duckling.  I'm sort of moulty and can't really fly but I'm alive and at least I'm not a stupid egg. So here is the highlight reel for 2014. Top Ten Best of 2014 1. I tried new things - I started making Youtube content, an Etsy page, I moved out of my parent's house,  I acted in a local web series (you're shaking your head, why does everyone shake their head when they hear that?), I started using hashtags ironically.  The whole world opened up for me, when I stepped out of my comfort zone. 2. I lived in 3 different cities in 2014 -Living in different cities really gives you a

Hey Mom! So it's 3 am and I thought it would be appropriate to talk about weird personal stuff on the internet! Just kidding!  We all know it's better to talk about weird personal stuff during peak social media use It's just been awhile since I've done a top ten list because I feel like it's not my thing anymore it's Buzzfeed's thing.  Also I think I've been taking myself too seriously on this blog lately.   Ever since I accidentally poisoned myself with coffee pot descaler, I've been grappling with my own mortality etc, etc. So here is a return to the absurd and fantastic and cartoonishly awkward misadventures of Mackenzie T Judd.... Top 10 Things I Am Maybe Probably Addicted To 1. Tetris.  I've mentioned it before but it's a legitimate problem.  I can't get past level ten and it affects my life. 2.  Minimized windows. Right now I have 26,  although I don't know if this is an addiction so much as a fear of commitment.

Hey Mom! So if you are feeling particularly offendable today, it is my suggestion that you don't read this.  I'm not judging, we all have days where our feelings are particularly easy to hurt and if you are having one of those days just click away. Ok this week I'm going to kick it old school and just go for it.  If you didn't have the misfortune of reading my old blog... just imagine a high-strung 18 year old who thought they knew how the world worked.  While I am not claiming to know how the world works,  I am just going to say exactly what I want to say because I already warned you about hurt feelings. Why do we suck at treating people like they have their own brain?  I've seen a lot of posts about fat-shaming, skinny-shaming, parenting styles shaming, food shaming, lifestyle shaming, for goodness sake I've even seen elf on the shelf shaming (and let me just say that I hate elf on the shelf with a fury second only to the fires of Mordor so I understa

Hey Mom! So it's that time of year again, finals are coming, life decisions are being made.  My life feels more and more like it's contained in a pressure cooker and someone keeps turning up the heat. And during these moments of seemingly infinite stress it's easy to let go.  I'm not talking about letting go of personal hygiene or normal eating patterns or the concept of sleep or any other standard you might hold yourself to (but I mean who hasn't worn the same pair of sweatpants a few days in a row during finals? Oh that's just me... ok well this is awkward).   I am talking about letting go of your happiness. It's easy to be unhappy, it's easy to find things to complain about, it's easy to wish that things were different.  It's hard to be happy.  Happiness goes against every fibre of my being.  My instincts say that nothing good ever stays good and if you are happy you are probably about to have your world ripped out from under your fee

I don't exactly have the words to describe how I feel today.  The sobriety that comes with Remembrance Day is also mixed with a degree of frustration.  I'm frustrated because I don't fully understand what it means to remember the fallen.  I can remember names and faces and stories but I have never been there.  I've never gotten a letter or a phone call or had to come to terms with the idea that someone I love is leaving and might not come back.  The sadness that I feel when I think about the lives cut short, the immense sacrifice made to provide my freedom, is nothing compared to the friends and family left to wonder What if....?  So if I haven't lived it what exactly am I remembering? I remember to live thankfully.  Thankful that I am not only entitled to but guaranteed a certain level of education.  Thankful that my voice means something in Canada. I also remember that freedom is not free.  Freedom has a cost. Freedom is not cheap or easy or permanent.  The

Hey Mom! You know what I just realized.  Things are good again.  I knew that someday things would be good again.  I knew that the way I felt this past year wouldn't last forever.  I knew I would recover and move on and heal.  I didn't know that all at once I'd realize things are good. I'm tutoring which I love. I'm in the middle of two big pieces of writing both of which bring me so much joy. I auditioned for a webseries and we start filming this week. I started my very own Etsy page and I get to create things which is something I've wanted to do for a very long time but never had the confidence or the time. I wrote an open letter Bob Saget and I didn't care that is was completely and utterly weird because it was funny and it was something I wanted to do so I did it. I rode my bike in a Thor costume and wasn't even mortified. I am so very fortunate to be able to do all these things.  Things I love doing, things that make me smile.  Things

Hey Mom! All I wanted to do was descale the coffee pot.  I followed the instructions on the package.  I rinsed the caffeine generating apparatus double the recommended amount.  I made a cup of descaled coffee.  I drank about half before I realized it tasted funny.  I drank some more just to make sure it wasn't all in my head.  I can now say with absolute certainty it was not in my head because it is now in my lower intestine. So the package warned me it was toxic.  The package warned me not to ingest its contents.  What the package did not warn me about was the inferno that would tear through my digestive system in the event that I did not rinse the coffee machine more than double the recommended amount. Is it too late to induce vomiting? All the pepto in the world can't save me now. That is all.

As you may know, a member of the Canadian Forces ( Cpl .  Nathan Cirillo )  was shot and killed this morning in front of the National War Memorial in Ottawa. Now this blog is not a news site so I am not going over the details (you can get more information here:  http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/ottawa-shooting-soldier-dies-of-injuries-gunman-also-shot-dead-1.2808710 ) I actually would like to talk about ignorance.  Specifically, I received a phone call today from someone who was upset about the shooting (rightfully so) and in one of their classes someone made the comment "Well this happens in other countries every day." So?  Why should that make this any less tragic?  Somebody has died.  I've talked about it before, this callous attitude is destroying us.  When we choose not to care, we choose breed ignorance. We lost something today.  We lost something more than a life.  Today we lost our freedom in the brief moments that we lost the right to choose.  Toda

Hey Mom! So for those of you who have heard me complain about how I have the worst luck ever and everything that can go wrong, always without fail will go wrong... Guess what?  Today everything went right!  You've read correctly, everything came up Mack and while I don't want to jinx it, I am going to elaborate. So this school started in a weird kind of mental hurry.  I decided at the beginning of June I couldn't continue playing basketball and I definitely couldn't survive another winter in Winnipeg.  I had a back injury that was causing pain to shoot down both my legs, I had a messy break up with basketball (Sorry have I mentioned it on this blog... only half a million times <--- hyperbole) AND I began to question whether the career path I am currently on is right for me any more. July and August was spent frantically applying and looking for some form of relatively cheap lodgings.  The weekend before school started I was in a car accident that left me with a n

Hey Mom! Well the month of September is over...  We did it kids!  Well not really because midterm marks haven't come out yet but we showed up and took notes and bought highlighters and liquid paper.... OK OK STOP GRILLING ME ALREADY... It's become clear to me that all the liquid paper in the world can't white out the lies.  I'm sorry Mom.  I'm sorry (not sorry) internet.  I've been cheating on you.  Cheating on you with a beautifully kindred spirit... my other blog. Now when I started the other blog, it was just a casual once a week thing.  So I didn't mention it or post the link to it.  But I can't hide it anymore.  You need to know.  Everything Thursday I post a short fictional piece on the internet.  Sometimes it's sheer brilliance and sometimes its the foulest of any literary work known to man.  But now people know, people know and they want the link.  So here it is: findingmywill.blogspot.ca Please note this blog contains themes such as

Hey Mom! So in the wee hours of the morning this morning I found myself hopelessly and utterly lost in my own head.  As you may know, this past year has been rough and as a result of that I've chosen to walk away from athletics and transfer schools (for the third flipping time).  And honestly, even though my situation changed, how I felt didn't.  I still need time to process and heal and decide what exactly it is I'm going to do with my life.  The problem is these past two weeks I've been allowing myself to do something that is counteractive to both those things.  I let myself get really bitter and the thing about being bitter is it only makes you feel worse, which makes you more bitter, which only makes you feel worse, which makes you more bitter, which only makes you feel worse, which makes you more bitter,  which only makes you feel worse, which makes you more bitter. <--- Do you see the circle? Do you see it's viciousness. So this morning at 4:44am I was

Hey Mom! So this is the first blog of #YearFour and while I have not blogged consistently, I've consistently blogged for three whole years! For those of you who don't know I started this blog (thanks to the encouragement of my Mom) after I graduated high school. I'm not entirely sure what my reasons were at the time but you'd think someone had suggested I shave my head and tattoo my skull.  But guess what?  I fell in love with blogging.  It was a great outlet for me, blah blah became who I am today, blah blah gave me a voice, blah mushy stuff, blah, blah bloggy stuff. S o with all that in mind, there are a three things I would like say... 1. Thanks for reading this (Mom I'm looking at you) 2. Semi-colons are a straight jacket to my genius 3. I hate polo shirts for no good reason 4. I was making numbered lists before Buzzfeed made it cool. What does this have to do with anything?  Well clearly I have wisdom to impart so obviously it would be a disservice t

Loss can seem unfair in so many ways.  It feels unfair when it seems too soon.  It feels unfair that some pass old and grey while others seem to live within the span of mere moments.  To me, the most unfair aspect of loss is that nothing stops.  Tomorrow will still come, the phone will still ring.  People will continue working and tweeting and texting as if all is well in the world.  The world should stop, everyone should stop. Why don't they stop? Richard Cross had an impact on the people that he met.  Richard Cross was a husband, a father, a brother, a friend.  Richard Cross was significant, and saw the significance of the people he interacted with. So why? Why during this time of loss is there still work and traffic and classes? How can the internet machine continue to churn out meaningless posts while we are faced with the daunting task of mixing joy and sorrow?  While we celebrate the life of Richard Cross and we accept the fact that our world is a little paler.  Why don&#

Hey Mom! As you may have heard, Robin Williams passed away this week.  After the initial shock, his death has sparked a lot of really important conversation topics like  What is depression? How did someone so good at making us laugh hide such unimaginable pain? Why does Mental Health  still  carry   such a social stigma? These are important and we need to talk about them more but I am not an expert.  I can't tell you anything other than my story: I am struggling with depression right now...today, in this moment.  Today is neither especially good nor especially bad. Today is one bead in a long string of bad days.  I had the will power to get out of bed today but that is just about it. I've sat down three or four times the past couple days trying to write this.  I stopped because I realized halfway through one draft that I didn't care.  I stopped because thinking about the person I used to be and who I am now is incredibly painful.  I stopped because I feel weak and embar

Hey Mom! Prepare to have your sensibilities offended. This week I have read three articles that have appeared on my newsfeed  that all pertained to my generation being selfish, ungrateful and just generally inconsiderate. To this my response is "Look in the mirror".  I'm tired of hearing about how my generation doesn't have old school values or understand the importance of hardwork.  Just because I own a cellphone and have a Facebook does not mean I am any less intelligent or capable.  So I am going to address all the problems my generation allegedly has in no particular order. Now these articles were written by parents so I'm directing most of these comments at parents. 1.  We never go outside. Yup because I never rode a bike or went to the park or had water fights with my friends growing up.... That was sarcasm in case you didn't realize. You want to know why kids don't stay out until dusk as much as they used to? Your generation. Yes, you. A combina

Hey Mom! I work at a gym: This morning at the gym I complained about this: Then this happened: This is the chair I sit on when I'm on break:  This is where people put on their runners. This is where my manager chats with customers.  This is where the trainer's daughter hangs out when she goes to work with her dad. That is all.

Hey Mom! Well first of all, I need to say a huge thank you for all the support and kind words I received after my l eaving the game  post went up.  As far as updates are concerned, I sort of feel like I'm in the middle of an awkward break-up.  Sometimes I am really excited for what's next and sometimes I sit on the couch in sweatpants and cry because I thought what we had was special and that we were going to be together forever <--- imagine a whiny voice with a few broken sobs.  Also for comedic purposes you could also imagine some heavy mascara running down my face and a five gallon bucket of ice cream, this is obviously not the reality because it's allergy season so I don't eat dairy or wear makeup. And in very slightly related news I got a job working at gym.  Which brings me to my next point... STOP PEEING ON EVERYTHING!  I don't know what is in their pre workout but I swear I find pee everywhere except in the toilet.  It's like working at a daycare

Hey Mom! So if you haven't read part one you can click here Last time I talked about getting to a place where I needed to decide if athletics were still for me, today is all about what governed my decision making. I would like to make a distinction between a choice and a decision.  I made the choice not to return to Manitoba.  I made the choice to transfer schools.  I made the choice to stop playing basketball.  I decided to be happy.  A decision encompasses a series of choices and accepting the consequences of those choices... I accept that it is for now It most likely means I'll never play for a university again.  It doesn't mean I'm done with the game, there is still lots of time for me to watch and play and coach.  I love basketball.  I love playing defence.  I love it when I shoot and just  know  it's going in.  I love it when the net curls in on itself for half a second when the ball swishes through it.  I love feeling like I'm flying when I go i

Hey Mom! Despite the fact that I have 3 seasons of eligibility left, I am no longer playing university basketball.  In my journey to decide what was right for me I noticed there is literature for parents whose kids want to quit sports but nothing for high level athletes wondering if it's time to walk away from their respective sport.  So here I am, an athlete, giving you all the reasons I have made this choice.  In this post all I want to talk about is how I got to the point where I needed to decide if I could keep playing. I was unhappy.  Over my basketball career, I've been a bench player, 6th man and starter.  I've had losing seasons, winning seasons and in between seasons.  I've had wonderful teammates and coaches as well as played on teams that well...weren't.  I've played in 3 different post-secondary conferences over three years.  All these changes, the extreme highs and lows, the fantastic people I've met and the people I wish I never had.  

Hey Mom! So ever since I made my Inked video, I've been throwing around the word betrayal a lot... as in quadruple the recommended dosage.   The truth is I've been betrayed and as much as I wish I could say this is a dramatization for the purpose of comedy, there is absolutely NOTHING funny about this: Top Ten Things That Have Betrayed Me: 1. Coffee: Basically I tripped down the stairs and then my coffee laughed in my face except coffee can't laugh so it just vomited lava humiliation into my face... and ruined the carpet. BETRAYAL! See my previous post for more details. 2. Cleaning Supplies: I was promised stain removal, I still only have stain... BETRAYAL! 3. Cribbage: I was on a killer hot streak and needed 3 points to win the game and then I had no points in my crib.... BETRAYAL! 4. Ya Mama: She yelled "19" right before I looked at my crib... BETRAYAL! 5. Reality: I am supposed to be in love, having the time of my life and dancing through life.

Hey Mom! There is coffee in my hair.  There is coffee on my face.  There is coffee on my arms.  My phone is coated with coffee.  A once white carpet has all the splatterings of a medium roast crime scene.  I have rug burns and regular burns.  Oh yeah, AND I BROKE EVERY BONE IN MY BODY <--- please note this is hyperbole for the purpose of comedy. What actually happened is I fell down the stairs, while I was falling down said stairs I threw the hot cup of coffee I was carrying into my OWN FACE.  Do you know what it's like to catch your own coffee in the face?  It's like my only true and constant friend betrayed me.  Twist the knife a little more my sweet love, long have I known your bitterness, long have I understood your dark powers, there is no sweetener to soften your edge.  Consequently, it looks like the walls are leaking dark ambrosia and I have been injured as well as insulted. I wish I was in a body cast because that would be less embarrassing that shuffling arou

Hey Mom! So if you know me at all, you know that I am one of the cheapest people alive today.  I make my home amongst coupon cutters, recyclers and handcrafters (please note these are not the crafters of hands but rather those who prefer cheaply homemade goods).  As you may imagine, I use the phrase "Too rich for my blood" more often than people post stupid things on Facebook (duh dum chee).  Yeah I didn't think it was that funny either... anywaaaaaaaaaaay Top Ten Things That Are Too Rich for My Blood 1. Sweet Potato Fries - Firstly they are gross, secondly you want to pay an extra dollar for fries that aren't even worth a dollar in the first place? 2. Brand Name School Supplies - The only difference between your cue cards and mine are the fact that I didn't need to take out a loan to be able to afford small rectangular paper. Nuff said 3. Condiments - Yes, it is weird to ask for ketchup when I buy a coffee but at least it's a free kind of weird.

Hey Mom! So I am upset today, there will be no youtube antics, the spring is noticeably absent from my step and I am not going to pretend to be alright.  Not for my friends or my family members and certainly not for complete strangers.  I feel beat up, I've spent so long just surviving, getting through the next day and on bad days just getting through the next hour. And today was no exception. Life is like that right?  It's like a foreign film without subtitles, right as you develop some form of understanding the plot twists.  If years were measured in plot twists this year has been a corkscrew.  And that is ok.   Things could be worse.  Things also have a chance to be better, which if I am honest is what keeps me holding on.  Everyday I survive is another chance future me will have to see a good day.  And for now, that is how I will survive this moment.  And this moment.  And the next few moments until the hurt stops long enough for me to start moving forward. That is al

Hey Mom! So today was my first exam! I don't want to jinx it so I won't say it went well.  Also because I may have made some additions to the french language (i.e. I made up some words) I won't say it went well.  Here's the thing when you are semi-fluent in a language sometimes you aren't sure if the french word is similar to the English word or your brain is just being lazy... Me: How do you say national? Brain: National Me: Yes, national Brain:  National Me:  Yes, can you translate the word national? Brain: I am.... it's national Me:  No into French you doof Brain: National is national...... Me: Oh national is national....  with an e on the end? Brain: No just spell it exactly like national.... Me: I'm going to add an e to make it look more french Brain: All you did was make it look more feminine just leave it alone! Me: Definitely looks better with the e.... Brain: You are everything I hate about human beings Me: Maybe an accent over the

Hey Mom! Wanna hear something cool and mildly disgusting? Of course you do... that's why you're here.  I have two zits that are symmetrically located on either side of my nose... pretty awesome eh?  These gemini zits are brought to you by your local final exams.  That's right folks just 3 back to back exams and I am home free! You may have noticed that this weekend is Easter.  There are so many things I love about Easter: time with family, a long weekend and the knowledge that the last few new years resolution survivors are being crushed under the temptation of creme eggs and chocolate bunnies so all the Facebook statuses about them being better than the rest of us is going to finally come to an end. There is one thing about Easter that I do have a bit of a struggle with... the fact that someone else had to die for me. It's not because it doesn't paint the perfect picture of love... it does.   It's not because I don't believe it happened... I do

Hey Mom! The past few months have been strange, if you had asked me in September how I though this year was going to turn out I would have painted a picture almost completely opposite to the one I see now.  And for the most part I think that's a good thing.   Truthfully this year has been really difficult in a lot of ways, aspects of my life I have never struggled with before I struggle with now.  Sometimes going for days at a time feeling nothing but the emptiness that has resonated with me.  I even began to embrace the hollow feeling because feeling nothing is easier than feeling a little bit of everything.  The problem with that mentality of course is that nothing means anything to you anymore, you become nothing more than a prop to the people living around you. Suddenly I found myself the understudy in my own life and I didn't know how to take back center stage. I realized that reentering the lead role takes time and just because you've had one good day doesn'

Hey Mom! Why do we blame ourselves for the things that are not our fault? What is it that makes us choose to hold on to shame that we don't own? Our hearts latch on and feed from the guilt as if it's keeping us alive.  Maybe it is.  Maybe taking the blame for something outside of our control gives us control.   Maybe feeling guilt is better than feeling helpless.  Perhaps the knowledge that terrible things happen and there is nothing we can do to alter the course is so frightening that we would rather live hating ourselves.  Hindsight is not always 20x20, hindsight is selective, it is guided by what we want to see.  And we want to see guilt, we want to see that we had a hand in what happened.  All the "if only"s and "I should have"s amount to us reaching for anything to slow our free fall. And perhaps this will keep us alive, for a time.  But guilt is a paramedic, it can patch us up for a little while but in the end what we need is a surgeon.  Someon

Hey Mom! Spring is finally here! Want to know how I know that? It's 2am and my lungs are on fire.  Spring is my fifth favourite season , the order goes winter, summer, winter, fall and then spring. But why? Spring is budding with new life and hope.  It is a symbol of rebirth and renewal. How could you possibly hate spring?  Well every year without fail spring has tried to kill me.  At first I thought it was a frenemies situation because let's be honest, the dandelion fuzz was cute.  But then came the poplar fluff and the snow mould and the street cleaners.  I have tried several times to forge an alliance with Jack Frost but he won't return my calls and has blocked me on Facebook.  I see how it is Jack, just because I dress appropriately for the weather which prevents any nose nipping that might occur you act like I don't exist. Quite frankly, it's rude and a little insensitive. And to make matters worse, Spring and I don't have anything in common.  Spring is

Hey Mom! All I want to do right now is purchase an orange VW van so I can traverse the arctic tundra and write a novella.  Why? Because right now the thought of reality is about as appealing a toilet seat made from cactus skin. This kids, is the part of the show where chasing your dreams isn't all sunshine and roses. Days like today are the ones where the hard work feels like it's never going to pay off.  Sometimes I feel like I'm chasing a future I don't even want anymore.  But the truth is before I can ever pursue a dream, I have to pursue a reality.   Sorry VW but you have to sit on the back burner, hopefully gas will still exist by the time I get around to having some disposable income. Why hello arctic tundra, please permit me to appreciate your majesty from a distance. Dear novella, I'm sorry but you are going to be nothing more than a word document I haphazardly update for the time being. Truthfully, it is not accurate that I am not chasing my dre

Hey Mom! So after taking some time  off for a back injury I have recently starting hitting the gym again.  Firstly let me just say I am typing this laying down because it hurts to sit up.  In fact it hurts to lift, extend, or  otherwise move my arms at all.  In a previous video blog ( Weighty Words)  I apologized to humanity for being a gym snob. Oh how far the mighty have fallen!  From my pedestal I gazed down upon mere mortals with their shape-ups and shake weights, laughing at their failing determination and flickering hope.  Now I lie in humble solitude, wishing only that the soreness in mine bones might ease with the sun's setting. Basically, what I am saying is "I'm a fool and I get it"  this is the most time I've taken off working out since I was 15 which basically means the last time I tried to get in shape I was young with relentless energy and no other obligations (I thought school was hard but then I went to university... haha oh high school).  Now

Hey Mom! So you may have noticed a new tab which leads you to my video blogs which I have been putting out every day (I'm not promising to put one out every day because as soon as I do, disaster will strike and the internet will break). Aaaaaaaand we are moving on... much like our wardrobe when I was six, my sister has decided to replicate my blog in the form of a response so: Step 1: Read  Your Inner Weirdness  from my blog Step 2: Read  My Inner Weirdness  from her blog Step 3: Proceed skimming the rest of this post Here is what I think about the things Taylor thinks about the weird things I think about: 1. I would never ever vandalize a bathroom stall because it's wrong and nasty.... And I would most definitely get caught because I wheeze when I feel too much adrenaline. 2. Rosie was a backstabbing harlot and I am proud of Taylor for cutting her loose.  Her imaginary friend was bringing her down. 3. WOW! Firstly I was not lying, it was sarcasm for the purp

Hey Mom! Is it as awkward for you as it is for me when I try to follow up an emotional blog post with the ramblings of a semi-sane individual? Yeah I thought so,  lets just get all the awkward out of the way by observing a long uncomfortable silence...... ....Ok now we can pursue new kinds of awkward!!!! So in keeping with the theme of authenticity I have come up with a top ten list of weird things I think about: 1. I really REALLY want to write "Who is nasty enough to bring a sharpie into a public bathroom" on the wall of a bathroom stall... Why? I would like to witness the ensuing chaos as vandals everywhere attempt to validate themselves while pointing how hypocritical that statement is. 2. Sometimes I give up on a story because I don't want anything bad to happen to my characters... which basically means I have imaginary friends 3. Sometimes when I'm talking to people I try to picture what kind of mythical creature they would be...

Hey Mom! So I've been trying to write about something else all week but this topic is not content to simply tumble around in my brain and has expressed this discontent in the form of writer's block.  So after facebooking and tweeting about it,  I have officially given in and will write a full length blog post.  In a previous post  I talked about the callousness of my generation and how we have the tendency to glaze over really horrific events in the world without feeling anything.  The more I think about it, the more I realize that is not isolated to historical events or things happening on the other side of the globe.  This aloofness is entrenched in everything we do.  Passionate people are obsessive.  Friendly people are overbearing.  Sad people are emotionally unstable.  We distance ourselves from any full expression of emotion outside the context of the Olympics.  We have traded authenticity and compassion for facades and sarcasm.   Does anyone know how dangerous this i

Hey Mom! If you ever feel like you are losing your sense of wonderment, you need to watch an animal documentary.  However, you must take heed and prepare yourself before you watch.  You could very well experience a whole spectrum of emotions, just remember that it's normal and if you need to talk to someone there is no shame in that.  So to guide you through your documentary I have come up with a list of stages to aid you in your journey.  I will be using a polar bear as an example but this applies to all animals. Step 1: Joy A polar bear mother has just given birth Even though they can't fend for themselves, they can tug on your heartstrings.  This is the part of the documentary where you say "Awwww babies" and for a moment however brief you would do anything to own one. Step 2: Fear Food is scarce this winter, in a pinch a male polar bear with find the mother and eat her young. Now you realize how truly helpless the animal is and how many die before they&#

Hey Mom! So as you may have noticed I am not a fan of my intro to psychology course. Let me be completely honest when I say that the material is very interesting right up until the point where my prof opens their mouth and tries to teach... Voila examples of things that my prof has said: "It's fun to hide stuff from babies" ....yep children crying is super fun "And that's why teens are so insufferable" You know most of the class is eigh teen and nine teen right?  Maybe they are so insufferable because they have to listen to you talk? "People are only afraid of death if they have regrets" ...Or you know if they don't know what's coming after they die, or if they are leaving family members who need them, or if they are really senile and don't know what's going on, or if they own a tiger named Death and they haven't fed it in awhile... just saying' We are also learning that no matter how normal you think you are,

Hey Mom! As you may know I am terrified of new things. Update my software? No thanks.  New shoes? Nope these only have four holes.  Try a new restaurant?  Get me some tums and a brown paper bag.  Most of the new things that freak me out crawl from the depths of the internet.  I am constantly bombarded with new updates, installations, cookies (not the delicious kind), new browsers and I don't know what half of it means.  What I do know is with every click I walk the razors edge, on one side I can play tetris online and over the brink lies computer terror waiting to swallow my identity as my laptop teems with viruses like the binary black plague.... or you know I might get a pop-up telling me I've won a million dollars. So anyway, on weekdays I watch this talk show called +Good Mythical Morning  which if you haven't seen it you should go watch it in fact I will include a link to the Ghost Pepper Challenge they did which is by far my favourite episode.  But recently I not