Incognito: Costumes and other Disguises

It wouldn't be a Halloween without doing the time warp! Friday, at the Lower Ossington Theatre, the Rocky Horror Picture Show was in full tilt. The audience was on- never missing a beat. The shout-outs kept coming and the cast kept going as they interacted with a rowdy and playful crowd.

The timeless value of Rocky Horror lives on year after year, bringing out the freaks and geeks to have a good time in the spirit of... well... whatever. The spirit of Halloween, the spirit of fun and fantasy, or even in the spirit of being individual amidst the other freaks around you. From a sweet transvestite to little ol' Janet and Brad and Riff Raff the maid, everyone in the mansion was unique by appearance but ultimately made up the mosaic of this mad-house.

From the west side to the east side, the next night would be just as playful and full of more disguises and appearances. Over the course of the night, I ran into a Greek Goddess, the Black Swan, Wolverine, Freddy Mercury, Rob Ford, a Steam Punk, even a ketchup packet and a bowl of alphabet soup, just to name a few. My costume was a costume itself- dressed as Clark Kent, but Superman in disguise.

Whether it's Halloween of not, it seems we're constantly in disguise to make a good first impression, look presentable for work, or to look hot for a night out. When are we just dressing to be ourselves?

I think all of the costumes and facades we present day after day are all representations of the multi-faceted and unique individuals that we are.

The greatest thing about partying with friends on Halloween is that no matter who you are dressed as, or who you're trying to be, it is never so apparent that you are who you are regardless, and no costume can take that away.

Just maybe instead of hiding, our costumes are really displaying aspects of ourselves; a sneak peek to the layers that make us unique. Is your costume a disguise or a reveal? A trick or a treat? Whatever is it, have fun! And don't forget to grab some brownies along the way ;)

Re- Read What's Possible

The past year for me has been filled with messages of freedom, release, and finding one's true self, to then to honour that self. This message has been in experiences had, movies watched, but most significant of all... books read.

Side note: When was the last time a book was meaningful and inspired you? I suggest finding one that you think will speak to you, no matter how embarrassing the subject matter. Who cares if you're a macho Bay Street banker reading a biography of Margaret Thatcher on the streetcar. Read it in the privacy of your home if you need to. We all should find our inspiration somewhere, and sometimes we need to pick up a book and risk going outside of our ominous "comfort zone".

Some of the meaningful titles I recently enjoyed include 'The Alchemist', 'Rebel Buddha', 'The Ghost Brush', 'Moving Toward Stillness, 'Room', 'The Help', and 'A Separate Reality'. Every one of these books includes a message of being true to yourself and self-actualizing that self into reality (wow, that's a lot of "self"s).

The above titles were, however, missing one key element. Though the are fantastic books that contain moving messages, none of them spoke to the experiences of an urban dweller, the city slicker, to cosmopolitan.

Until recently, I came upon a few titles that drove the message home for me. These were 'The Happiness Project' (written by a New York lawyer, turned writer), and 'Normal Gets You Nowhere' (written by a New York Fashion Publicist, Kelly Cutrone).

Maybe it's the New York vibe that kicked my butt. These books had a deliberate city voice that spoke to me. From Gretchen Rubin's clear and organized lists of ways to instill greater happiness into one's life, to Kelly Cutrone's hold-no-punches approach to motivation, each of these New Yorkers were able to get their messages across to me.

Something most of us do all to often is go through the motions of our lives and routines, without giving much consideration to what else is possible, what else could we be doing, what other ideas or experiences are out there for us to explore. 

Seek out the other possibilities in your life. While you're at it, pick up a new thought-provoking book. Maybe you already have the book you need. You read it years ago and now it's collecting dust on your bookshelf. I encourage you to dust off your old copy of 'The Art of Happiness' and re-read what's possible!

Finding Thoughts

Sitting at my desk, wanting to write, looking out my window at the leaves blowing in the autumn breeze and the bicyclists trying to get in one more ride before the season changes to too cold, I'm attempting to get some inspiration.

Though ideas of what to write about are plentiful in this metropolis, sometimes discerning one idea from another can be more difficult than it seems.

A friend of mine recently suggested I get an Ideas Journal. She uses one to jot personal reminders and thesis ideas for her latest research projects. I, on the other hand, thought I would find one useful to record ideas and observations that could later be developed into a blog post, poem, story, or in rare cases, my own research paper.

In the kerfuffle of city living, it can sometimes be hard to hold onto an idea long enough before it gets replaced by another. With the thought of someone bumping into you on the subway, or how you just smelled the sweet smell of street meet, you can imagine how attainable many ideas can be, but also often quite forgettable. Though not all ideas are important to note, it's easy to misplace the ones that are!

With an Ideas Journal, I will be able to quickly note what I thought was so novel at that exact point in time. The trick will be to remember I've got my journal and that I should actually write in it. It's just big enough to write full sentences, but small and light enough to throw in my bag for convenience.

Finding thoughts will be much easier since all I'll have to do is flip the pages of my journal and then decipher what I meant, or why I wrote what I did. In actuality, finding thoughts is not the challenge. The difficult part is finding ones that are meaningful.

I wonder what thoughts my journal will hold. But perhaps more interestingly, I wonder what yours will unfold.

~ Fall Highlights ~

Sitting outside Heart House at the University of Toronto, surrounded by amber autumn leaves, enjoying a warm latte with my sister! (c. 2009, archives)

Joie de Vivre

When was the last time you just explored your city and embraced it for all its character and charm?

For me, it was this past week. I visited places that I would normally ignored, or go unnoticed. From Centre Island, Bier Markt, to the Distillery District, Yorkville and the Harbourfront, Toronto has so much to experience.

Just the other day, on a very warm fall afternoon, I found myself sitting on a small strip of beach by the Lakeshore, in a Muskoka chair, wearing my suede autumn boots, no less.

The French have a saying that I've come to embrace. Joie de Vivre. I have on good authority from a French friend of mine that my French accent is actually quite good; if you care to imagine me saying this phrase!

This sentiment is explained as the carefree enjoyment of life, the joy of living. Most of us could benefit from embracing this outlook in our lives; to live for happiness. Buy a ticket and take a ferry to a distant island, or pull up a seat and order a pint of the best lemon tea beer in the city at a well known brewery. Whatever it is you choose to discover, do it with the spirit of living freely. You may even decide to talk to strangers and make new friends in the process.

In fact, this all started for me when I was sitting in a coffee shop, reading. A new traveller turned to me with his British/ French accent, map in hand, and asked what there is to do here. He got me to thinking in a way I haven't thought for quite some time... and the rest is history.

If city-dwellers were to have this open way of living, I'm sure they would lead lives with more internalized happiness. They may even care less about the little things (like slow walkers) that tend to get under their skin.

So, even if you're wearing the wrong footwear, live life, take a chance, get some sand in your brown suede shoes- joie de vivre! The city is waiting for you.

Cheers!