Inspired by a couple in the province who, along with another family, recently won $43 million, I got to thinking... what would I do if I won the "big one?"
I guess my very first reaction would be to keep the win secret. I have heard so much about people's lives being ruined by big lotto wins - NOT, mind you, by the money itself - but by the way family, friends and anyone you ever knew, no matter how fleetingly, come out of the woodwork with their hands out.
Now I know the whole secrecy thing would be very difficult if not impossible as the lotto people would be shouting your name (and your winnings!) from the rooftops, so complete confidence would never occur. But put it this way... I personally wouldn't volunteer the information to anyone - and I mean ANYONE.
From there, I would pay off my mortgage and, if at all possible, become a kind of Secret Santa by anonymously paying off the mortgages of all my family. (As they don't access my site or blog, I am safe to declare this without giving away my identity if and when this happens :)
Next, I would pick a couple of charities close to my heart and make a very healthy donation to each one.
From there, I think I would finally allow myself some fun money - setting aside a few hundred thousand for travel, clothing and other items that routinely get bumped to the bottom of my priority list.
Finding a reputable investor and investing well over half of my winnings would be the next step. They say that a person can live on the interest of a million dollars on a yearly basis - just think what you could do with five or ten or twenty times that amount? Obviously getting the ball rolling ASAP in that department would be part of the plan too.
But the one question that arises most frequently in regards to this topic is: would you keep working?
Well, as at at-home editor and writer, my answer, of course, would be "yes!" Why give up something I love doing in the comfort of my home just because I've suddenly become independently wealthy?
So now over to you...what would YOU do if you won the big one?
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Friday, January 25, 2008
10 Things I Liked About You
Shocked, saddened and still teetering on the edge of disbelief, I join so many people around the world in mourning the death of Heath Ledger.
While I never knew him personally, for all intents and purposes, he appeared to be a honest, sincere and down to earth person whose primary goals in life were progressing in and perfecting his role as an actor and father.
Echoing the sentiments of countless others, I extend my deepest sympathies to his family and friends, especially his parents and sister and of course, ex-fiancee Michelle Williams and their daughter Matilda.
As an affectionate nod to the first film I ever saw Heath in - the teen romance 10 Things I Hate About You - I'd like to offer the following tribute of sorts to him entitled 10 THINGS I LIKED ABOUT YOU, written in the style of the poem read in the movie.
10 THINGS I LIKED ABOUT YOU
I liked the way your sunny smile always made me smile too.
I liked the way your intense gaze burned bright with brown not blue.
I liked the way you shunned the glitz and glamour of your work.
I liked the way despite hard times you seldom played the jerk.
I liked the way you spoke of what's important in your life.
I liked the way you chose those roles that caused you the most strife.
I liked the way you looked each time you talked about your "girls."
I liked the way your hair when long turned into tousled curls.
I liked the way you stayed on track and danced to your own drum.
But most of all I liked you 'cause the best was yet to come.
While I never knew him personally, for all intents and purposes, he appeared to be a honest, sincere and down to earth person whose primary goals in life were progressing in and perfecting his role as an actor and father.
Echoing the sentiments of countless others, I extend my deepest sympathies to his family and friends, especially his parents and sister and of course, ex-fiancee Michelle Williams and their daughter Matilda.
As an affectionate nod to the first film I ever saw Heath in - the teen romance 10 Things I Hate About You - I'd like to offer the following tribute of sorts to him entitled 10 THINGS I LIKED ABOUT YOU, written in the style of the poem read in the movie.
10 THINGS I LIKED ABOUT YOU
I liked the way your sunny smile always made me smile too.
I liked the way your intense gaze burned bright with brown not blue.
I liked the way you shunned the glitz and glamour of your work.
I liked the way despite hard times you seldom played the jerk.
I liked the way you spoke of what's important in your life.
I liked the way you chose those roles that caused you the most strife.
I liked the way you looked each time you talked about your "girls."
I liked the way your hair when long turned into tousled curls.
I liked the way you stayed on track and danced to your own drum.
But most of all I liked you 'cause the best was yet to come.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Making Time to Write
In reference to, not only, my last blog entry but also my "sub" profession as a writer, I would like to address one of the most common questions I am asked: when do you get time to write?
The short answer is I don't GET time... I MAKE time.
Most writers, with the exception of bestsellers and those married to rich spouses, have to work at a job other than writing on a full-time basis to pay bills.
As full-time generally refers to a 7.5-hour shift somewhere within a 24-hour cycle, five days a week, on top of other responsibilities and necessities including travel time, eating, housecleaning, familial commitments and sleeping, to name a few, 'time for writing' is routinely shuffled onto the back burner or off the stove altogether.
That having been said, I am of the mind that setting aside even a modicum of time on a regular basis is important. While I DETEST routine strictly on principle, I have to admit I am generally more productive if I write daily at a set time.
But when is the best time?
That's a very individual question. If you're a morning person, hop up even 40 minutes earlier, grab a java and squeeze in a half hour every day before you go in. By the end of the week, you will have written three and a half hours more than if you rely on the old "I'll do it when I have time" plan of attack.
I know some writers who jot down notes throughout the day, on their coffee breaks and even during their lunch hour employing a kind of accumulative strategy... by the time they get home, they have written for an hour every day. This one would never work for me personally as I hate the stop-and-start manic feel of it, but hey, to each their own.
Post-supper pennings are common amongst many authors who view the time after dinner when the kids are either in bed or firmly anchored in front of the tube for a few hours their sacred scribbling time. While this is not too bad from an energy standpoint, I find the act of writing hypes me up too much and therefore doing so that late in the day interferes with my sleep. But if it works for you, more power to ya!
If I had my druthers, I would go with the early afternoon. By then, I would have gotten all the morning mental and physical cobwebs out of my system. After a light lunch, a brisk walk and a strong cup of tea, I'd be ready to give 'er pretty solid for a good three to four hours.
That's if I wasn't working full-time. :)
Given that consideration, I have pretty much settled into jumping onto the computer as soon as I get home - PRE supper. While the dog is running around outside and supper is simmering on the stove, I furiously try to get down as much as I possibly can within my standard 1.5 hour span. Going this route, I work until 7:00, before tossing in the towel for the night. From there I can have supper, play with my furry kids and thoroughly unwind before bed.
In the end, and I'm sure you've all heard it before, choose a time that makes the most sense with your existing schedule and true personality but write EVERY DAY.
And while it's not a bad idea to set a goal, be it a certain word or page count for the day, don't get too focused on that... on those "bad" days when your creative wordsmithing is limited to the likes of "See Spot run", you'll just end up filling the page with crap to meet your quota, only to delete it all the next day.
Oh and one last thing... write down your REALISTIC writing goals i.e. I'm going to write 1,000 words today (NOT I'm going to write 25,000 words today!)
Why?
'Cause there really is power in the written word.
Happy writing,
Susan
The short answer is I don't GET time... I MAKE time.
Most writers, with the exception of bestsellers and those married to rich spouses, have to work at a job other than writing on a full-time basis to pay bills.
As full-time generally refers to a 7.5-hour shift somewhere within a 24-hour cycle, five days a week, on top of other responsibilities and necessities including travel time, eating, housecleaning, familial commitments and sleeping, to name a few, 'time for writing' is routinely shuffled onto the back burner or off the stove altogether.
That having been said, I am of the mind that setting aside even a modicum of time on a regular basis is important. While I DETEST routine strictly on principle, I have to admit I am generally more productive if I write daily at a set time.
But when is the best time?
That's a very individual question. If you're a morning person, hop up even 40 minutes earlier, grab a java and squeeze in a half hour every day before you go in. By the end of the week, you will have written three and a half hours more than if you rely on the old "I'll do it when I have time" plan of attack.
I know some writers who jot down notes throughout the day, on their coffee breaks and even during their lunch hour employing a kind of accumulative strategy... by the time they get home, they have written for an hour every day. This one would never work for me personally as I hate the stop-and-start manic feel of it, but hey, to each their own.
Post-supper pennings are common amongst many authors who view the time after dinner when the kids are either in bed or firmly anchored in front of the tube for a few hours their sacred scribbling time. While this is not too bad from an energy standpoint, I find the act of writing hypes me up too much and therefore doing so that late in the day interferes with my sleep. But if it works for you, more power to ya!
If I had my druthers, I would go with the early afternoon. By then, I would have gotten all the morning mental and physical cobwebs out of my system. After a light lunch, a brisk walk and a strong cup of tea, I'd be ready to give 'er pretty solid for a good three to four hours.
That's if I wasn't working full-time. :)
Given that consideration, I have pretty much settled into jumping onto the computer as soon as I get home - PRE supper. While the dog is running around outside and supper is simmering on the stove, I furiously try to get down as much as I possibly can within my standard 1.5 hour span. Going this route, I work until 7:00, before tossing in the towel for the night. From there I can have supper, play with my furry kids and thoroughly unwind before bed.
In the end, and I'm sure you've all heard it before, choose a time that makes the most sense with your existing schedule and true personality but write EVERY DAY.
And while it's not a bad idea to set a goal, be it a certain word or page count for the day, don't get too focused on that... on those "bad" days when your creative wordsmithing is limited to the likes of "See Spot run", you'll just end up filling the page with crap to meet your quota, only to delete it all the next day.
Oh and one last thing... write down your REALISTIC writing goals i.e. I'm going to write 1,000 words today (NOT I'm going to write 25,000 words today!)
Why?
'Cause there really is power in the written word.
Happy writing,
Susan
Thursday, January 3, 2008
New Year, "New" Direction
Every January people struggle with what to declare as their New Year's resolution. Maybe you yourself have announced that you will quit smoking, exercise more, love more, eat better... you know the drill. I do too as, for so many previous December 31sts, I have likewise resolved to do one or all of the above.
But not this year.
This year I have only one goal... to move in a new direction; or more accurately, move more agressively in the direction that I have been baby-stepping towards for the past couple of years.
Sound mysterious? It's not really.
Needless to say, I am a published writer who has enjoyed some success - a miracle in itself given the challenges and constraints of the past couple of years. Like most if not all writers, I have dreamed of writing "full-time" as opposed to squeezing in paragraphs and if lucky, chapters here and there in the evenings and on weekends. But I have to admit that my writing is routinely sacrificed in the name of work and other obligations.
Well ... "not no more." (dig that groovy grammar! ;)
From here on in, I intend to make my writing and career a priority in my life. In fact I began this "new" and assertive approach prior to the holidays by contacting and sending off a package for one of my as-yet-to-be-published books to a New York literary agent. I hope they will be pleased with my work and offer to represent me, but if not, I will not be deterred. I will try elsewhere until I succeed. The good Lord willing, 2008 will have me embark on a mutually satisfying and lucrative relationship with an established agent who, in turn, will secure a couple of new book deals for us with a major publishing house, as well as sell the film rights to my existing novels to a major production company.
That's the ultimate aspiration but for now, it starts with one 'new direction'... making my writing and my career as a writer a top priority. It's my firm belief that tiny but vastly important shift in perception will accelerate the success I have enjoyed to date and propel me forward.
So here's to moving ahead. Hope all your resolutions and new directions materialize for you this year!
Have a great 2008,
Susan
But not this year.
This year I have only one goal... to move in a new direction; or more accurately, move more agressively in the direction that I have been baby-stepping towards for the past couple of years.
Sound mysterious? It's not really.
Needless to say, I am a published writer who has enjoyed some success - a miracle in itself given the challenges and constraints of the past couple of years. Like most if not all writers, I have dreamed of writing "full-time" as opposed to squeezing in paragraphs and if lucky, chapters here and there in the evenings and on weekends. But I have to admit that my writing is routinely sacrificed in the name of work and other obligations.
Well ... "not no more." (dig that groovy grammar! ;)
From here on in, I intend to make my writing and career a priority in my life. In fact I began this "new" and assertive approach prior to the holidays by contacting and sending off a package for one of my as-yet-to-be-published books to a New York literary agent. I hope they will be pleased with my work and offer to represent me, but if not, I will not be deterred. I will try elsewhere until I succeed. The good Lord willing, 2008 will have me embark on a mutually satisfying and lucrative relationship with an established agent who, in turn, will secure a couple of new book deals for us with a major publishing house, as well as sell the film rights to my existing novels to a major production company.
That's the ultimate aspiration but for now, it starts with one 'new direction'... making my writing and my career as a writer a top priority. It's my firm belief that tiny but vastly important shift in perception will accelerate the success I have enjoyed to date and propel me forward.
So here's to moving ahead. Hope all your resolutions and new directions materialize for you this year!
Have a great 2008,
Susan
Sunday, December 30, 2007
What did you like best?
Hello everyone!
Having survived yet another Christmas, I'm borrowing the line featured in this entry's title from the movie City of Angels to appropriately redirect it to all of you and ask "What did you like best" about the holiday season, now nearly completed for another year? As for me,I'm finding it quite hard to narrow it down to just one thing.
Right off the bat, I have to say that I LOVE (yes, love) the copious amount of fluffy white stuff that has been falling, pretty much non-stop, for the past several weeks. Yes, I know it's a pain in the neck to do all that shovelling (well, I don't actually do it - I have a fella who does) but for those who do, it would be a pain. And true, the driving can be a bit challenging over all the ice and snow but as far as I'm concerned, nothing says Christmas like a White Christmas. So I'm happy - never more so than yesterday when this winter's first frost turned all the trees and bushes in the city into lacy beautiful white works of art. It's just gorgeous.
Another thing that I liked best was the time and energy I was able to devote to my family during the season - in particular my parents. With both of my brothers not in attendance this Christmas, I went all out to plan extra events, little special touches like securing our long-lost family wine from France, chauffeur them around to their various social functions and in general, work hard to ensure they had a very nice Christmas.
Like many others, I REALLY liked having some time off. Taking eleven glorious days away from the office - a chunk of time that I haven't had off in over two and a half years - enabled me to get some things done, celebrate Christmas with family as mentioned and the biggie, get some desperately needed down time for myself. I even managed to get a couple of "junk" drawers cleaned out!
But perhaps most of all, I liked my reflections on the past year as well as my aspirations for the one that lies ahead. Reviewing 2007 and looking ahead to 2008 has given me strong senses of accomplishment, gratitude, joy and hope. After some thought and relaxation, I now feel I can begin a new year on a better, more resolved foot, and despite all the great food, gifts, good times and great scenery that came my way during the holidays, acquiring enthusiasm over the future is what I liked best.
Having survived yet another Christmas, I'm borrowing the line featured in this entry's title from the movie City of Angels to appropriately redirect it to all of you and ask "What did you like best" about the holiday season, now nearly completed for another year? As for me,I'm finding it quite hard to narrow it down to just one thing.
Right off the bat, I have to say that I LOVE (yes, love) the copious amount of fluffy white stuff that has been falling, pretty much non-stop, for the past several weeks. Yes, I know it's a pain in the neck to do all that shovelling (well, I don't actually do it - I have a fella who does) but for those who do, it would be a pain. And true, the driving can be a bit challenging over all the ice and snow but as far as I'm concerned, nothing says Christmas like a White Christmas. So I'm happy - never more so than yesterday when this winter's first frost turned all the trees and bushes in the city into lacy beautiful white works of art. It's just gorgeous.
Another thing that I liked best was the time and energy I was able to devote to my family during the season - in particular my parents. With both of my brothers not in attendance this Christmas, I went all out to plan extra events, little special touches like securing our long-lost family wine from France, chauffeur them around to their various social functions and in general, work hard to ensure they had a very nice Christmas.
Like many others, I REALLY liked having some time off. Taking eleven glorious days away from the office - a chunk of time that I haven't had off in over two and a half years - enabled me to get some things done, celebrate Christmas with family as mentioned and the biggie, get some desperately needed down time for myself. I even managed to get a couple of "junk" drawers cleaned out!
But perhaps most of all, I liked my reflections on the past year as well as my aspirations for the one that lies ahead. Reviewing 2007 and looking ahead to 2008 has given me strong senses of accomplishment, gratitude, joy and hope. After some thought and relaxation, I now feel I can begin a new year on a better, more resolved foot, and despite all the great food, gifts, good times and great scenery that came my way during the holidays, acquiring enthusiasm over the future is what I liked best.
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Holiday Reflections for us 'Grownups'
Only seven more sleeps until you know when!
Actually I'm faking it.
As much as I like the lights,the snow, of course the food and the holiday music, I haven't really been enthused about Christmas for a few years - certainly not like when I was a kid - and that fact/realization got me thinking... what exactly is it that morphs one's childhood excited anticipation for the big day into one of resigned dread?
Is it simply the fact that we know there's no Santa Claus (oh-oh... should I have put a spoiler heading on this?); that we're overwhelmed with adult responsibilities and obligations including seasonal bills, or is it something more?
I have often wondered about this late-breaking change in perspection. Maybe it is simply that as children our take on the magic of Christmas is primarily a selfish albeit innocent one - what is Santa going to bring me? How many gifts will I get? Will that Lite Brite be in there? Conversely as adults, we think of (or should think of) the real meaning and magic of Christmas and New Years Eve, reach out to others, be thankful for what we have, and use the season as an excuse to mend fences and start again.
I mentioned earlier that I enjoy the holiday music - and I do - right from Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and Jingle Bells to such beloved classics as White Christmas and The Christmas Song. But I find as I've gotten older, I am especially touched by those Christmas songs that remind us of something beyond the frost and mistletoe and gift-giving. Tunes like So This Is Christmas by John Lennon has been a longtime favorite of mine for this very reason. More recently, I have fallen in love with a tune that has been done by several different artists including Amy Grant. It's called simply My Grownup Christmas List. Like John Lennon's song of the season, I adore what this song says and how it delicately works to remind us of what's really important. Below are the lyrics. If you get a chance, find it and give it a listen.
Do you remember me?
I sat upon your knee;
I wrote to you
With childhood fantasies.
Well, I'm all grown-up now,
And still need help somehow.
I'm not a child,
But my heart still can dream.
So here's my lifelong wish,
My grown-up Christmas list.
Not for myself,
But for a world in need.
No more lives torn apart,
That wars would never start,
And time would heal all hearts.
And everyone would have a friend,
And right would always win,
And love would never end.
This is my grown-up Christmas list.
As children we believed
The grandest sight to see
Was something lovely
Wrapped beneath our tree.
Well Heaven surely knows
That packages and bows
Can never heal
A hurting human soul.
No more lives torn apart,
That wars would never start,
And time would heal all hearts.
And everyone would have a friend,
And right would always win,
And love would never end.
This is my grown-up Christmas list.
What is this illusion called the innocence of youth?
Maybe only in our blind belief can we ever find the truth.
No more lives torn apart,
That wars would never start,
And time would heal all hearts.
And everyone would have a friend,
And right would always win,
And love would never end, oh.
This is my grown-up Christmas list.
This is my grown-up Christmas list.
MERRY CHRISTMAS everybody and all the best in 2008!
Actually I'm faking it.
As much as I like the lights,the snow, of course the food and the holiday music, I haven't really been enthused about Christmas for a few years - certainly not like when I was a kid - and that fact/realization got me thinking... what exactly is it that morphs one's childhood excited anticipation for the big day into one of resigned dread?
Is it simply the fact that we know there's no Santa Claus (oh-oh... should I have put a spoiler heading on this?); that we're overwhelmed with adult responsibilities and obligations including seasonal bills, or is it something more?
I have often wondered about this late-breaking change in perspection. Maybe it is simply that as children our take on the magic of Christmas is primarily a selfish albeit innocent one - what is Santa going to bring me? How many gifts will I get? Will that Lite Brite be in there? Conversely as adults, we think of (or should think of) the real meaning and magic of Christmas and New Years Eve, reach out to others, be thankful for what we have, and use the season as an excuse to mend fences and start again.
I mentioned earlier that I enjoy the holiday music - and I do - right from Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and Jingle Bells to such beloved classics as White Christmas and The Christmas Song. But I find as I've gotten older, I am especially touched by those Christmas songs that remind us of something beyond the frost and mistletoe and gift-giving. Tunes like So This Is Christmas by John Lennon has been a longtime favorite of mine for this very reason. More recently, I have fallen in love with a tune that has been done by several different artists including Amy Grant. It's called simply My Grownup Christmas List. Like John Lennon's song of the season, I adore what this song says and how it delicately works to remind us of what's really important. Below are the lyrics. If you get a chance, find it and give it a listen.
Do you remember me?
I sat upon your knee;
I wrote to you
With childhood fantasies.
Well, I'm all grown-up now,
And still need help somehow.
I'm not a child,
But my heart still can dream.
So here's my lifelong wish,
My grown-up Christmas list.
Not for myself,
But for a world in need.
No more lives torn apart,
That wars would never start,
And time would heal all hearts.
And everyone would have a friend,
And right would always win,
And love would never end.
This is my grown-up Christmas list.
As children we believed
The grandest sight to see
Was something lovely
Wrapped beneath our tree.
Well Heaven surely knows
That packages and bows
Can never heal
A hurting human soul.
No more lives torn apart,
That wars would never start,
And time would heal all hearts.
And everyone would have a friend,
And right would always win,
And love would never end.
This is my grown-up Christmas list.
What is this illusion called the innocence of youth?
Maybe only in our blind belief can we ever find the truth.
No more lives torn apart,
That wars would never start,
And time would heal all hearts.
And everyone would have a friend,
And right would always win,
And love would never end, oh.
This is my grown-up Christmas list.
This is my grown-up Christmas list.
MERRY CHRISTMAS everybody and all the best in 2008!
Thursday, November 22, 2007
Viva Las Vegas
Today marks the one-week-away-from date of my upcoming trip to Las Vegas.
It's been close to 10 years since I was last there so I am certain there are plenty of new things to see.
One thing that is different is the Bellagio. I saw it showcased in Ocean's Eleven the other night (yeah, I had seen the movie before but had forgotten about which casinos were featured) and now am eager to see the dancing waters for myself.
Got any recommendations for what to see and do in the big LV?
Susan
It's been close to 10 years since I was last there so I am certain there are plenty of new things to see.
One thing that is different is the Bellagio. I saw it showcased in Ocean's Eleven the other night (yeah, I had seen the movie before but had forgotten about which casinos were featured) and now am eager to see the dancing waters for myself.
Got any recommendations for what to see and do in the big LV?
Susan
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