Todd's Old Blog

Tag: diary

  • Favourite Socks

    These are my 4-year-old’s favourite socks — black, red and orange, emblazoned with flaming skulls. If there is a drawer full of anything, they are guaranteed to be the first ones selected for that day’s outfit. Some of you may be thinking, “Cool!” or “Weird!” or “Boys will be boys”, except my 4-year-old isn’t a…

  • I Always Feel Like Somebody’s Watching Me…

    At my workplace, people will periodically upload snapshots of their workspace to allow remote co-workers a virtual visit via Twitter.  I was asked to contribute this photo on Friday. Visible are: An obviously fake Master of Locksmithing degree from Yale University, a Doctor of Esotericism degree from Billy Bo Bob University, Opus the penguin, a…

  • Too Stubborn to Die

    I first saw Brandywyn in November 2000, I think.  She was on a poster in the stairwell of a building on campus, where my wife was studying.  It read “Beautiful Yellow Labrador Found Wandering Fall Creek Park”, or something to that effect, and I knew that I wanted this dog. She was three years old at the time…

  • Lateral Epicondylitis? It’s the New (Unimproved) Me.

    Since late February I’ve been coping with pain in my right forearm.  At first I thought I’d just temporarily strained something—reached too far too fast—but the pain just got worse over time. This past Monday I reached my breaking point and saw a doctor.  The diagnosis was Right Lateral Epicondylitis, a repetitive strain injury (RSI).  Even though…

  • We Miss You, Murph

    It was one year ago today that our beloved Golden Retriever passed away from cancer.  We still think of her often…  Several times a week —  sometimes even daily — her antics and indelible personality are an element of  our conversation.  While her presence is still greatly missed, thankfully we are now able to focus…

  • On Parental Leave

    When my wife became pregnant with our third child, I’d just ‘officially’ graduated with my Master’s degree and was working on casual contract for the Government of Canada.  A few months later, I became a permanent (‘indeterminate’) and among the benefits I was eligible to receive was Parental Leave Without Pay.  Admittedly, this sounds like…

  • On My Transformation from Social Worker to Public Servant

    I read somewhere that the (median) average age of entry into the Canadian federal public service is 34 years old.  That fits me reasonably well; this is my second career.  For my first 10 years of “professional” employment I was a social worker, and my speciality was child and adolescent mental health.  It was the…

  • Embracing Serendipity

    I came to work for the Government by accident, or so it would seem. Failure to earn a livable wage as a social worker with a growing family was what drove me from full-time employment and part-time Master’s courses (whenever I could balance them), and into full-time education and voluntary unemployment.  Leaving employment had obvious repercussions,…

  • We Love You Murphy (1999-2009)

    Murphy was born on Thursday Sept 23, 1999 in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA, and on died Wednesday March 4, 2009, (9 AM EST) in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. In her early life, Murphy was a therapy dog, providing company to the ill and elderly. However, due to an unfortunate tendency to chew on medical tubes, she was…