GreeNER

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Recently (more and more!) it seems like I am being reminded daily, by the Universe, that what we do, how we choose to live our lives each day has an effect on our land and world. Yeah, I don't want to be preachy, but lately all the signs being thrown in my direction are "be better to the planet"  and, in turn, "be better to ourselves." My guess is that we aren't being forced to learn about the Environment in school and instead it's an elective? In my experience, I never knew ANYTHING about it when I was growing up. I used to think that throwing a cigarette butt out the window was totally okay! I never felt an ounce of guilt about flicking that toxic P.O.S to the ground (I know better now, also, I don't smoke anymore.) But it never mattered to me, and now, as "Future Lindsay" I am astonished at myself for the lack of care, which is, inevitably tied into the lack of education. I mean the amounts of chlorine I used to swim in daily, the amount of 'OFF' bug spray I would let seep into my pores on a daily (Summer) basis. It is unimaginable now that I think of it.

The sunscreen we smear all over our kids is also crazy (zinc aside, HERE is an awesome article) All the tests they do which connect cancers to the shit in that cream that go directly into our bloodstream... and from the get go! Right from birth! Bug Spray, Sun Screen, Hair Spray, Anti-Perspirant... what we do to our food! Processed, frozen, canned, greased. What are we like?? We are bombarded daily with facts, lies and opposites. Do this, don't do this!! How are we supposed to make healthy, right choices when there are so many options tugging us in various directions. What is right, what is wrong? (I read once that 'there is no right,  there is no wrong but YOU know what is right, and you know what is wrong.) I get that somehow, and I have really made a conscious effort follow my gut instinct more. The way I see it, is, our instinctive nature is really a super power that we all have. So let us be more aware of this super power, listen to it, USE it!  

After watching the Documentary "COWSPIRACY" (and being a meat Lover) I realized that it will take a LOT more than flicking off a light in a room that we are not using, picking up (and disposing of) the garbage we find in nature (though, that DOES help, check out the initiative my friend in Thailand has started,  he is a 'Trash Hero' check out his site HERE.)  or turning off the tap when you are soap-sudding up in the shower/brushing your teeth... Yes, SO much more MOSTLY in the form of cutting back on our meat intake  (which we are now doing in our house-hold.) Creating a new habit in your life, in those "small" ways of recycling, composting, gardening, walking more, using public transit... eating less meat... They all seem like easy enough ways to help out ourselves, our planet, our land, our life, yet so many folks out there must be unaware! I see more Tim Horton coffee cups discarded on the side of the road, dotting farmer's fields, scattered in ditches and it's 2016. I mean, again, what are we like??  Is it lack of education? We must be more vocal about teaching our children and our friends how to dispose of garbage and how to use less plastic (without seeming so preachy or snobby.) I am not a snob, but I feel so passionate about this subject and I get so heated about it that I am sure you can "hear" it in the tone of this essay. Sorry to make you feel uncomfortable, eh?? Here is a link to my friends website where your WHOLE LIFE can be transformed... "Life Without Plastic" is amazing. I bought a glass straw for my nephew, and it DOES crash to the ground and NOT smash into a million pieces. The bamboo toothbrush works wonders as well.

Yes, EVERY little bit helps, and starting this new HABIT for ourselves is what is going to help us in the end. A little extra discipline can and will lead to bettering ourselves and our environment. Do not be afraid to stand up for our Mother Earth (in turn, standing up for our Life longing for itself!)

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It goes without saying that eating local based and seasonal based foods is also something we could do more of. For years, it never once occurred to me to read the labels. The other day even, the sight of Asparagus had my mouth watering so I grabbed a bunch... then I saw it was from Mexico so I put it back, deciding that SOON it will be in season, and I can wait. It came a LONG way to Europe and who knows if the standards used to grow food in Mexico (or China for that matter) would be legal in Switzerland (or Canada for that matter.) If we read labels and start buying more local food, we would be doing what is right. Plus, helping out a local farmer is BIG time awesome. So to sum it up, buy local, eat less meat and try to use less plastic. Tuck a bag in your purse or in your car and use IT instead of another plastic bag that will never ever compost. The world does not need more plastic... 

END RANT.

A Grüningen Session

Hello and Happy Wednesday to all of you readers out there!

Thanks for stopping by for your weekly dose of the happenings in the "Land of Lindsay"

Perhaps this is your first visit? Glad to have you and I hope you will return! I am just a girl who likes to write; blogs, songs, letters and more, and here, you will find a little of life insights, from my point of view or sometimes something akin to a diary entry! If you are looking for MUSIC; you can find LOTS of that here too. Just head over to the LISTEN tab and you can listen away...

In the meantime, people often ask me what it's like playing in Switzerland! Well, some gigs are, of course better than others, just like anywhere else, but this past weekend, it was quite a Lovely and unique place that we played in, and I thought I would share some photos.

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This is Timo, a.k.a Timothy Jaromir. He is a Swiss Singer & Songwriter who has some great tunes! Check him out! He asked me to sing with him this past weekend in the small and Lovely town of Grüningen. I was amazed at the sights of this town! Quaint would be a good word for it!  Here are a couple of photos of some of the houses around..... Quite "typical" to what we North Americans would envision when thinking of the Lovely country of Switzerland.

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I was lucky to arrive at the right time, when the "Schloss (castle) Museum" was still open. I had a gander and was easily amused at what I found!

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Eventually it was time to play some music! We had a wonderful time playing as part of the "Grüningen Sessions" which is a night of music that happens about eight or nine times a year. The session of sounds takes place in various settings around the sweet town and on this particular night, it was in the Wy Galerie, and we were surrounded by wine! And no, the wine did not stop flowing! Thanks, Susan! Haa. And a big thanks goes out to Caroline Edwards, a brit who decided to bring music and culture to this little town, a few years back. We musicians LOVE people like you! It is always great to play to a town of music Lovers. And thanks to Timo for asking me to sing along. It is always a pleasure.

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Thanks for having us and this will most certainly NOT be the last visit to Grüningen :)

-one weeks later- 

Yesterday I found out that I WILL be returning, to the Wy Galerie as part of Grüningen Sessions on Saturday October 1st, 2016!! Right on, eh??)

xoxo

Ten Life Hacks

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1) If you want to do something new in your life, do it. Stop listening to that little voice inside your head that says "NO! You will fail!!" Fight that voice, go learn the mandolin or train yourself to get fit, or take a cooking course. Go out and be YOU. You can always change into something that you never were! Who says one has to do one thing their whole lives. With change being the 'one true constant' why not go out and try some new stuff on for size??? Who says?? The only one getting in the way of you, is you. Go out and hunt for life, for LIFE!

2) There are always two sides to every story. You can pick one side, for sure, but you have to be open to the fact that there IS another side. It IS there. Don't discount others because they don't choose the same side as you. Unless they are sociopaths or murderers. Then you are right. But only then. 

3) Be nice to people. If you don't want to be nice to people, fine, that is your choice. BUT don't be mean, being mean serves no one. Even if you are right to say mean things, because you are RIGHT, it won't change things. Telling someone who is over-weight NOT to eat the bag of cheezies will make the person feel worse than they already do, but it won't stop them from eating the cheezies, unless they don't want to eat the cheezies, then they will stop. Giving shit to someone because they smoke... There is no point. Everyone who smokes (or over-eats) knows what they are doing might not be the best thing for them, but we all have choices, and we will make wrong choices and right choices. That is life. We are human.

4) Go outside and take a deep breath (preferably not around a smoker, or on the busiest city street with bus fumes etc) But when you get home, stand there for a second, inhale deeply. Put some new air into your lungs. Shallow breaths only get you so far. Deep breathing can really give you a sense of something better, deeper,  and can calm you. Also, stopping to really breathe it all in means you are stopping. They didn't come up with the cliché "Stop and Smell the Roses" for nothing. It is okay to press pause for a moment. Pressing pause can also be like a reset button. 

5) If you are REALLY REALLY angry, take a second to breathe. If you swear and yell and accuse and blaim and be angry at someone right when you are angry, you won't get it right. Things won't come out right and no one likes to be yelled at so pretty much your emotions will fall on deaf ears. So, press pause and then get back to whatever it is 'eating you' and talk about it when you are calm, like the next day. Plus, all that waiting will put stuff into perspective a little, and you might just be able to make your point. A screaming match can feel great from time to time, but never, ever does all that yelling change things. Calm and Peace change things.

6) If it looks like someone is being an asshole, i.e cutting you off while you are driving, or letting a door slam in your face while entering a restaurant or shop or whatever... There might be a good reason. They MIGHT be pregnant and racing to the hospital or they might be rushing through the door racing after their three year old. Look, there is always another side to things. Unless they are just being an asshole, then it is still not your problem, unless they are holding a knife up to your throat, then yeah, it's your problem.

7) Don't marry someone unless you feel it deep in your bones that it is a good choice. If you have serious doubts, then LISTEN to those serious doubts. Before I got married, I asked around to folks who had been married for years and years (out of curiosity people!) What are the most important things/advice you can say to a gal who is just about to tie the knot? The one that sticks out the most is that you have to be okay with the things you don't like about the person. They will, most likely never change. So (as an example) if you are marrying an addict, they will most likely fight those addiction demons for a huge part of their life. Are you ready to help? Because only you can change YOU. When you know who you want to marry, you KNOW. There are no doubts. When there are doubts, don't do it. This goes with all things 'relationship' just give it time, time will always tell.. Of all the people I know who had doubts before marriage, they are all either a) divorced/separated or b) unhappy. Seriously listen to your GUT right from the start.

8) Get outside. Move your body. Your body will carry you to every single concert, family dinner, movie, meeting, dance, restaurant, bedroom, back yard BBQ that you will ever go to. It is not just a thing, it is your entire life. Do you want to be able to continue to do such things?? Go outside. Or, okay,  buy a treadmill, but move. Move your body. Stretch, move. Breathe. Getting out, moving, stretching, breathing etc etc WILL change your negative perspective on life to positive. When you get your blood pumping, you will be amazed at how you are able to resolve those pesky little problems. This stuff will also, and here's the kicker, PREVENT problems from happening as well!!

9) Suss out a room when you walk in to it. If you are not the Birthday Boy or Honoured Guest, then walk around and get to know who the folks are before you make an arse of yourself.  Look around, suss it out before you howl at the moon because it's full. No one likes a loud mouth or a perceived attention seeker. First impressions last a long time. No, it isn't important to worry about what people think, but there might be someone of importance in there that could help you in the future. Oh and here's another kicker; don't burn bridges because of alcohol. 

10) Nothing is 100% unless the person is a socio-path or murderer. Then some things are 100% but only then. Be open. Don't be closed. Life is long, things are gonna come, things are gonna happen! Unless life ends tragically, then life is short, but then and only then, life is short. For all others, who live for 80 or more years, it is LONG!! Put some stuff in there, some stuff your friends and family will remember you for. Be the dude who howls at the full moon at a party. Remember, nothing is 100% and there is an exception to every rule.

"Apologies" The Truth Behind the Tune

Good day all! Thanks for stopping by for today's read! It means a lot to me to be able to write freely, about whatever I want and whenever I want (I pick Wednesday's to write, seems like a good day??) The ability to have my very own platform for sharing thoughts, ideas, photos, links, dreams and song, how wonderful! Today I thought I would talk about the song I have entered into CBC's Searchlight music competition "Apologies." I don't always like explain what a song means to me, as the most important thing (after I have written it and put it out there) is to let YOU, the listener, explore your own feelings and take your own meaning from the music. But since this song is being featured, and hopefully being listened to, I thought I would share it's story.

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Every song that I write has my own personal truth behind it. I use my life experiences to create the right "feel" or story to the song in question, but it is not always my very own story. "Apologies" was written about two Lovers ending their relationship (neither of whom were me!) Of course we have all been through break-ups and heart break, and this particular theme for a song, might be the most popular thing EVER written about, anywhere! In this version of an unrequited Love song, it is the tale told through the eyes of the 'breaker-upper.' In this case, the girl has broken the boys heart. Some weeks ago, I wrote a post about the meaning behind this song, and I thought I would share it here, today! But first, have a listen to the songs itself... Introducing "Apologies"

"Largely, the problem lies within ourselves, hiding in some deep dark cavern; the will to remain unloveable. What or who makes us think we are unloveable, when it is the one thing we need most and the thing that feels the best to do? Why do we hold onto this darkness as if it can help in any way? And while we are wavering between the search for someone else's Love and the acceptance of our own Love , we continue to date and try to find a willing partner, which, inevitably ends in disaster and heart break. Clichés ring true, in that, when we eventually find Self Love, only then can we find True Love. 
Featuring the lyric "How could you believe in me when I couldn't even swallow the truth, how could you have those stars in your eyes when I couldn't even see them myself." Only when we can see the stars in our own eyes and only when we can face the truth, can we begin to understand and realize Love and know that Love IS possible."

So there it is. The truth behind the tune! I would like to say that this story DOES have a happy ending, in that both people featured in this song, have moved on to find True Love in other places. So there IS a happy ending after all!

In the meantime... SEARCHLIGHT!! Yes, I decided to enter music into a music competition. I believe getting a good song out there is important, and if it has to be done in such a way, where we Canadian Musicians are competing against each other, then so be it. In actual fact, everyone is a winner if their song gets heard, even by ONE MORE person!! So, should you like to take a moment out of your day to vote for my song, please head over and vote for APOLOGIES by clicking HERE!

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