The damage we do when we designate certain women as ‘strong’ — Apparently, I am a “strong” woman. This is ironic considering that after two years of consistent weightlifting, I still can’t do a single full-body pushup. I’m also incapable of reading the simplest academic article and remembering the premise five minutes later. I’m a sucker for my kids’ puppy-dog eyes when…

We lose more than convenience when a local business closes — Listen to my interview about this story on CJAD 800’s The Natasha Hall Show: At first I thought they’d taken an extended holiday. I assumed the letter-sized sheets taped to the inside of the front door would indicate the date they’d re-open. …

Here’s a meeting design (and script) to help you do it — Life is my corner of the world is slowly, slowly getting back to a sense that we can loosely term ‘normal’. We are adjusting to life as it has to be right now. I came face-to-face with my surprising new neighbour — a massive wild turkey — as I went…

The role social media plays in manipulating our souls (or at least mine) — “Is Medium your Horcrux?” my friend Meghan Gilmore asked me over a glass of wine a few months ago. She explained how she’d been equating social media to a Horcux based on the thrill she gets when she captures — and immediately posts to Instagram — an especially lively moment…

Is this really how I say goodbye to teaching? — Last week was the end of classes. The end of the university semester. The official end of my contract as a Limited Term Appointment (LTA) Lecturer is just a few weeks away. …

I think I’ve figured out what it’s not — It’s been a month. It’s been a month and I have nothing to show for this time. The first two weeks were filled with cancelling events, checking in on people, and managing expectations. …

We are losing more than the present moment together — The euphoria of the early weeks of “social distancing” has passed. For months, I’d been craving nothing more than solitude, time to think, time without pressure. I’d booked a one-week solo trip to Prague to walk and write and plan. …

Compassion is what will get us through this semester — In two short weeks, the university where I teach managed to put into place a comprehensive strategy to ensure that students complete their current semester, all while keeping students, staff, and faculty healthy and safe during the COVID-19 pandemic. This institution — which has the equivalent population of a small…

When will our collective imagination catch up to reality? — “Once there was a student…” This was the prompt we were given to collaboratively create a story, each person was to layer on an idea as we went around our small circle of five. …