Photo-a-Day - 6: transport

It just so happens that on the day that the June: Photo-A-Day prompt is "transport", Farmer Joe and I attended a car show...and a global market...and an art gallery opening, but most fitting is, of course, the car show. The first Thursday of every month in Brandon just happens to be Cruise Night! Four blocks of downtown are sanctioned off and lined with classic and modern modes of transportation (mostly cars, but trucks and motorbikes too).

I snapped a few shots and then decided to play around with them in an editing program. These are my results:

Which one's your favourite?

On another transport related note, I started up my running blog again: Running for Refugees. I hope you'll stop on over and read about the crazy things I do for a cause!

Photo-a-Day - 5: environment

Today is World Environment Day. It is also charity prompt day in Fat Mum Slim's June: Photo-A-Day challenge.

Now, I have two confessions to make.

1. I am really not much of an environmentalist. I recycle, but that's about it. I tend to catch a lot of flack when I admit that the environment is quite low on the list of things I care about, but haters gonna hate and I'm going to continue caring about things that I deem more important.

2. I didn't take this photo today and although I have noticed that a lot of the photos being posted by other participants are old photos, I wanted to do this challenge right and take a new photo-a-day throughout June. Then life got in the way and that didn't happen. It feels somewhat odd to post this photo today since it was so beautifully warm and sunny here, but it's one of the best photos of the "environment" that I have on my computer right now and I wanted to post something.

Photo-a-Day - 4: after dark

One of the reasons I love Manitoba summers is the fact that is stays light outside until 10:00 p.m. Today's June: Photo-a-Day entry was taken shortly after dusk on my farm.

By the end of June, I'll be moved into the city and no longer have these beautiful country skies to admire. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad we're moving (our basement floods, we have yellowy-brownish water, our cold water tap in the shower is temperamental , our kitchen sink is constantly plugging, our lawn mower is broken, and our landlord isn't the best at getting things fixed in a timely manner), but I will miss the peaceful serenity of this place.

In other news, this is a typical scene on our couch after dark:

Winston, Chewie, Joe

Blog Hopper Marathon Scavenger Hunt

I'm participating in another one of M.J. Joachim's Blog Hopper Marathon events. This one is a scavenger hunt that involves finding at least 5 bloggers who maintain 3 or more blogs, commenting on each of their blogs, and then highlighting one special blogger.

I'll push off from the starting blocks with M.J. herself, well, because she's the genius leading this hunt!
Here are M.J.'s 3 blogs:
M.J. Joachim's Writing Tips
Being Catholic by M.J. Joachim
Effectively Human

Rounding out the second lap is Kirsten Hart who manages to update 3 blogs regularly:
Just Ermie
Black Coffee and Cigarettes
Short Story Ideas

A third time around the track brings me to Sandy who maintains a whopping 5 blogs (I think she may have super powers):
Sandy's Space --Stories, Stitches, and sometimes Silliness
Flat Stanley and Friends
Oozing out my Ears
Bridge and Beyond
Traveling Suitcase

Coming up on the last lap is Bill Nicholls who I discovered because he promoted his multi-blogging skills on M.J.'s post:
Spud's Daily Photo
Spud's Rural Explorations
A Grave Place
Cholsey New Pavilion
Forgotten Fairmile

I'm crossing the finishing line and giving big ups to Laeli:
Travel with her: Into The Great Wide Open
Live life with her: Words To Live By
Run with her: The Super Shiny Amazing Real Life Adventures Of A Fat Runner
From the first time I stumbled on to her three blogs, I felt that we were cyber-soul mates. She loves travel. I love travel. She loves life. I love life. She's a fat runner. I am a fat runner. We belong together! Laeli's birthday is in June and she has renamed it Lune (because she's a bit of a loon - her words, not mine). The celebrations she has in store for her birthday month are outdone by no one. Take a peek at her blogs and you're sure to love her as much as I do!

Laeli's "Lune" Cake

Photo-a-Day - 3: on my table

In addition to providing you lovelies with today's June: Photo-A-Day, I'm going to tell you about my day. Here's my photo first:

On my table at any particular moment of any particular day you'll find a collection that looks something like this: my laptop with a bursary application form open, a scholarship application, forms to confirm my attendance at a meeting, always a notebook, and always a pack of coloured pens. I'm a busy person...

...which leads me to the events that occurred throughout my day today (and most days). Keep in mind that while all of the upcoming things are happening, I am also at my full-time day job as an Office Assistant at Brandon University.

One of the WUSC students comes into my office and needs help printing off some resumes. At the same time he tells me that his brother who I am helping to put through Kenyan boarding school because he cannot get a decent education in the refugee camp where he lives, wants to fast track his education and attend a British boarding school (still in Kenya). The cost is about three times as much, but if he can fast track his high school education, he'll be able to apply to WUSC's Student Refugee Program and hopefully come to Canada (just like his brother who is sitting in my office). If he can't fast track his education, he'll be too old to meet the requirements for the program. He needs 2100 CAD. I currently have 700 CAD set aside for him. Like I said, three times as much. I'm going to be a broke ass graduate student in a few short months; how can I provide someone with what is likely the only chance he has to better his life? How can I not?

As I am packing up text books to send to schools, orphanages, community groups in Africa through Better World Books and Books For Africa (This shipment will contain approximately 25 boxes of approximately 20 books each. I do this at least once every two months.), another WUSC student comes to me because he needs my help finding the book he requires for the Spring Session class he just started. At around the same time, another friend of mine comes to my office because she needs help printing her thesis. I tell her to hold on a minute while I go with him to get his books. I help him find the textbooks. I print her thesis. I continue packing textbooks...

...and that, my lovelies is #justadayinmylife.

Photo-a-Day - 2: a moment

Fat Mum Slim holds a Photo A Day challenge every month and I'm finally taking part in one!

This moment occurs daily, often multiple times a day. My Winston loves to cuddle, but more specifically, he loves to rest his chin on the couch or my arm or my leg in anticipation of a rub or a scratch. Just look at that face, so full of the love that only a dog has for its owner. He's stolen my heart. Just one of those looks and I forget all of the shoes, socks, etc. that he has destroyed!

Blog Hopper Marathon Weekend Triathlon

M.J. over at M.J. Joachim's Writing Tips holds these super swell blog love challenges themed mostly around track and field events (marathons, triathlons, long jumps, sprints, to name a few). I'm participating in her latest endurance event: Blog Hopper Marathon Weekend Triathlon.
Here's what I had to do:

Part 1: Visit and Comment on 25 blogs...DONE! (I didn't actually have to list and link to all 25 blogs, but I needed to keep track anyway so I figured, why not?!)

Laeli from The Super Shiny Amazing Real Life Adventures of a Fat Runner
Me from Scribblings
The Ramblings of a Multi-Tasking Mama
Mel from The Drafty Garret
Julie from Julie You Jest
Suzanne Lucas from Times Squared
Debra Giuffrida from The Reluctant Author
Thoughts and Ideas from Deanie Humphrys-Dunne
Rhonda from Laugh Quotes
Fe at Felicity Writing Away
Ellen from Bad Word Mama!
VikLit from Scribblings of an Aspirting Author
Sherry Ellis from Mama Diaries
M.J. Joachim from Effectively Human
Rebeccah Giltrow from Rebecca Writes
Melanie Schulz
Marjorie McAtee from Don't Call Me Marge
Kirsten from Black Coffee and Cigarettes
Tonya Kuper's post from YA Stands
A month of....Blog
Starr Bryson from The Insomniac's Dream
Laeli at Words to Live By
Barbara Mizzoni-Young from all my lives now...ChChChChanges
Mark Craddock from Cross Planes
Barbara from March House Books Blog

Part 2: Promote 15 blogs via social media (cannot be the same blogs as Part 1)...DONE! (Again, the listing and the linking was not required, but again I figured why not?!)

Pinned Fat Mum Slim's June Photo-a-Day Challenge.
Shared Bridge and Beyond's facebook group on my profile.
Shared Kevin's Day 152 post from 365 Random Acts of Kindness on facebook.
Posted Kate's Reading Outside The Box challenge from ..... Musings of a Book Lover to facebook.
Tweeting Ida Chiavaro's blog link: Reflex Reactions.
Posted Kirsten's Short Story Ideas blog to facebook.
Tweeted Alana's writercize blog.
Pinned vvb32 reads' review of Bright Young Things.
Tweeted Rebecca's How to Put Links in Blogger Comments post from The Bexter Review.
Pinned the Dream Office photo and post from Shayla's TeaGarden.
Tweeted Jenn's Some Friendly Advice for Amanda Bynes.
Pinned Letters to my Someone.
Pinned King James Moneego.
Posted Maria Garcia's My Jane Austen Book Club to facebook.
Tweeted Suzy Turner's free offer of her novel Raven.

Part 3: Write a brief paragraph about any 1 blog and link to it in your post...DONE! (This is the required part!)

I stole this photo of Skip from Zoe's blog.

For the home stretch of M.J. Joachim's Blog Hopper Marathon Weekend Triathlon I am showcasing the lovely and talented Zoe from rewritten. I met Zoe through the A-Z Challenge in April and we've been frequent visitors to each others blogs since then. I actually think, Zoe may very well have commented on every one of my posts since she found my blog. Those comments wouldn't be a huge deal if I hadn't blogged almost every day in May. As I move on to a new challenge for June, I am sure I'll be able to count on Zoe's wise and witty words in the comments of most, if not all, of my posts. She blogs about her abundance of animals, namely her adorable poodle, Skip. She's working on a miraculous book that I cannot wait to read in its entirety. Did I mention she's sending me (or so she says) a copy of her brother's graphic novel, King James Moneego?!

...and FINALLY, that's it that's all folks! Triathlon complete!