Procrastinating Much?

Borrowed photo

 

Boy! I see now that I haven’t been blogging much! Not this year anyway.

 

At the rate I am going (I spurt out 2 posts a month), my posts counter tells me that I won’t even make it to 50 posts this year, which is worse than I expected. Not unless I started shooting posts every single day or twice a day. What does that say about me as a blogger? Waaah! Now I know what a factory worker feels like when they don’t reach their production targets. Not that I ever had a target in the first place, but the count of 25 posts for 2013 is dismal.

 

Plus it’s not gonna help that November is coming up. I take my sabbaticals then.

 

I guess I could pre-schedule a lot of my posts (which I had been doing since the start of the year) but this is also why I’ve found myself in this position of blog doldrums.

 

Don’t get me wrong, it’s not as if nothing’s been happening. I’ve still got much stories to tell, but time just haven’t been on my side starting when we made the move late 2012. Been busy with emigrating and the whole stress-load psyche that goes with it. I’m slowly getting myself back into a routine but it has really taken a lot out of me. In turn, perhaps, I did procrastinate a wee bit too much.

 

In typical procrastinator style, I can only say that there’s not much I can do about it now but only to promise to do better next time. I’ll be back after November and I hope to slowly gear up to my norm of 1 post a week….at least. I have been thinking of changing my blog template (yet once again) and maybe I will use the time in December to re-arrange everything.

 

Got my new life sorta sorted, got my house semi in order…now to zap my blog back to life.

Newcomer Stories: More Job Hunting Experiences Within Canada

Didn't quite realise that by the time I posted part 1 of my job hunting experiences within Canada, I'll be finished with my second job hunt.

 

It's a shame that most newcomers encounter the problem of not having Canadian experience to be on the same playing field as the rest of the job force. I think I've mentioned that unless you're some kind of wonderful in your line of work, that the competition is stiff and fierce. Not to say, of course, that you should just give up and go home. It's more to say that you need to double your hard work and perseverance.

I did just that. Or I think I did.

After getting my first Canadian job at the start of the year and starting my Canadian experience meter, it didn't take me long to figure out that I've become marketable as soon as I got off the unemployment line. I wasn't in the best of jobs but being a newcomer, getting paid sure beats getting nothing. I continued giving my best to my company although I was on the prowl for a more suitable job.

And what do you know? I found an ad listed on LinkedIn. Now you will remember that I've had a previous slightly hit-and-miss experience with LinkedIn. But I still had faith. I surged on. I emailed my resume off to the address mentioned. There was nothing to lose on my part.

And by the next few weeks, I had a phone interview, 2 face-to-face interviews and a job offer at the end of it all. I was thrilled and happy. It was another adventure waiting for me.

Cherry Blossoms At High Park, Toronto

Blooming Sakura

According to its website, High Park is famous for being “Toronto’s largest public park that features many hiking trails, sports facilities, diverse vegetation, a beautiful lakefront, convenient parking, easy public transit access, a dog park, a zoo, playgrounds for children, a couple of eateries, greenhouses, picnic areas, a bunch of squirrels and various events throughout the year”.

High Park is also known for its authentic Sakura cherry trees, which were planted here in 1959. The trees were a present from the residents of Tokyo. The Sakura cherry blossoms are identifiable by their pinkish-whitish flowers. Unfortunately, the blooming period for these cherry trees don’t last very long. At the most, they probably last a week.

Hence the reason for our impromptu visit to High Park one spring day. Spring finally came out of hibernation.

Sakura trees in High Park

The family and I were experiencing our first spring in Canada. After being holed up the whole winter, we were eager to get out of the house. We’ve heard that week that the cherry blossoms were blooming in High Park and of course, it was simply an event not to be missed.

We made our way to the park but arrived a bit late in the day and so we got stuck looking for parking. It was almost like being stuck in traffic on a traffic circle.

However, once we started walking around, it was pure magic. The whole scenery was stunning and the cherry blossoms did not disappoint. The park was well-maintained and had other views to enjoy as well.

I made a mental note to come back here in the fall. Preferably early in the morning or on a weekday to avoid the parking frenzy.