Help me fund a project!

All the traveling!

Planning my adventure to Ireland sparked a particularly fierce travel itch that led me to take a semester off school after Christmas in order to continue seeing the world. That being said, I figured I'd give myself a purpose for these adventures, and I decided to apply for a volunteer abroad project. Within a week of submitting my application, I received a phone call, had an hour-long interview over the phone, and was accepted to the program!

So in March, I'll be taking the plane to Madagascar, where I'll teach English and do wildlife conservation for just under a month. 

There are no words for how excited I am. I study Teaching English as a Second Language in Montreal, and although I love it, I can't see myself conforming to the North American education system for any extended period of time. I was lucky enough to be required to teach adult immigrants during the first year of my program, and it was such an enriching experience for me. Talking with people with different native languages, different backgrounds and different views on the world made me feel like I had a patchwork quilt of stories in front of me. I believe teaching is more of an exchange of information than a one-way transmission, and my passion for people and the world in general made teaching adult immigrants an incredible learning experience. 

That being said, teaching students abroad will not only help me gain practical experience in my field, but give me a taste of what I hope to do once I've graduated (if I haven't started ten other degrees by then). Teaching in a strict school setting is not an attractive lifestyle for me, and although the security that comes with it is ideal in terms of lifelong planning, the constrictions, guidelines and curriculum restraining me would drive me insane. Teaching English is a one-way ticket to the entire world, and the entire world is just waiting for me to see and experience it.

So, yes, come March, I'll be teaching English in Madagascar - but (this is where things get weird) I need to fund this incredible project of mine.

At the end of August I opened a small shop on Etsy, to give me some motivation to indulge in another hobby of mine which combines gemology and jewelry making. Here be the link to said shop: https://www.etsy.com/ca/shop/EarthboundAdornment?ref=si_shop
Do have a look if you're interested. The stones I use are hand picked by a world-class gemologist, who has become a dear friend of mine and who has taught me so very much (not only about gems).

So in the end, it'll be another exchange - you won't get nothing for helping me fund my project. Wow...I'm reaching. Sorry.

In November I'll also be opening a Fund My Travel campaign, so if you know anyone who enjoys giving money away at Christmas time, send them my way!

So, a huge thank-you in advance to anyone who checks out my creations, and for putting up with my shenanigans in the first place. 'Tis greatly appreciated! ^_^

If you or anyone you know is interested, this is the program I will be working with:
http://www.frontiergap.com/
They're a really lovely team of people and they have beautiful projects all over the world - if you're looking for something to get involved in, I highly recommend them!

Hakuna matata as always!
xxx

Céad Míle Fáilte!

Orientation week began yesterday at Maynooth University for the International and ERASMUS students. It's been fairly low-key, actually - for me, anyway. But in that respect, my entire life is low-key, because I make it happen that way.

The list of classes I want to take is flat out ridiculous, and I'm honestly considering returning to Ireland to actually finish the degree in Early Irish and Medieval Celtic Studies, because let's be honest - it's got my name written all over it in big, bold, stinky red Sharpie. For the curious, some of the classes include The Ancient Celts, Early Irish Myths and Sagas, The Celtic Heroic Age, Old Irish, Middle Welsh Grammar and Readings (*drool*), Basic Medieval Latin and Ireland Encounters Scandinavia.
That should give you an idea of what I'm getting myself into here. 

I'll be auditing more than just a few of these....

Anyway, back to the beginning here. Something stood out quite prominently to me during the talks and welcome speeches and guided tours, and it began when the president of the University stood up to formally welcome us internationals to his school: he began speaking Irish. 

Now, to most (if not all) international students, he was speaking utter gibberish - this is where I have to extend a massive heartfelt go raibh maith agat to my Irish professor Seaghan, who is the best language teacher I've ever had - because yes, I understood most of what he was saying. But that's not what made me smile. You see, during my Irish lessons over the past year, I learned much about the status of the Irish language in Ireland, and it isn't as well thought-of as it should be. Additionally, I discovered, through discussions and debates with friends and acquaintances, that Irish is considered by many to be a dead or dying language - and that's if they even know of its existence. I encountered many people who genuinely thought I was learning to speak English with an Irish accent. So when the president stood up and proceeded to warmly welcome us to his school in the Irish language, I smiled because I was shown clear evidence that Irish is not dying - it is far from dead, and many people are very proud to have it. Almost every teacher and student union member who stood up to speak to us yesterday and today said a few words in Irish, if not a fair few sentences. The Irish language teacher very wisely encouraged us internationals to learn some Irish while studying here in Ireland, because it is part of the culture, and it is a major part of Irish identity and history.
So I started my day smiling from ear to ear because Ireland and Irish identity were given a boost in awareness through the medium of the native language - and I won't lie, I was pretty damn smug that I understood the president's speech.  

On another note, I found out that I am the ONLY Canadian exchange student this semester at Maynooth University - and I'm pretty damn proud. I've been fiercely correcting people who've asked where in America I'm from (yes, yes, Canada is in North America, but North America and America aren't the same thing. I wouldn't ask a Brazilian or Costa Rican where they're from in America) and I've been enjoying the looks on people's faces when I tell them I'm from Québec - the French-speaking part! *Gasp!*

Anywhoodles, all this to say that Maynooth University is utterly fantastic, Ireland is magnificent and I honestly don't think I'm going to want to come home this December....sorry, Mum.

Hakuna matata from the Emerald Isle!

xxx

Ethics in my Kitchen

Before you read this, please remember that what follows is a bit of a rant.
Being vegan is something I believe in for multiple reasons, the most prominent being health and the environment. I am very aware that many people make their livelihood by farming. I come from a farming village and yes, I worked on a farm for a few summers (and absolutely loved it). My father is a hunter, and many people I know are hunters.

This post is not meant to hurt, insult or degrade anybody. I have my reasons for eating the way I do, but I will not sit behind a computer and insult the people who rely on farming to make a living.
I disagree with the systems that produce the animal products we eat, but that doesn't mean I hate the people I know who are farmers or hunters.

So please remember that when reading the following, and if you disagree with veganism, then by all means, don't read on. That simple.



During my third week in Ireland and UK I was lucky enough to couchsurf with a beautiful group of vegans - and I learned so much.

I've drifted to and from veganism, unintentionally really, for the past couple of years. I switched to the Paleo diet when I moved to Montreal for purely health-related reasons (also known as the Caveman diet, this is more of a lifestyle than a "diet", and excludes all processed food, grains, legumes and dairy, focusing on food from the earth: vegetables, fruits, nuts, meat and eggs). But, as a student in a new city paying her own way, I avoided buying the most expensive food: bread, meat and dairy - being Paleo. Yes, laziness also enters into it. I much preferred to grab a piece of fruit or some carrots instead of cooking meat. Bonus! So, for over a year and a half, I ate fresh fruits, vegetables and raw nuts - and raw cacao....SO MUCH RAW CACAO. And yep, believe it or not, cacao is immensely beneficial to your health.

Anyway, back to the topic here. I spent little under two years eating Paleo, but more on the Vegan side due to my budget. Yes, I felt different. I felt clean, like a brand new stainless steel machine. No sugar, no heavy bread, little to no difficult to digest meat...it was kind of eye-opening.

When I temporarily moved in with my vegan hosts, it wasn't any kind of shock for me to exclude animal products from my diet. The only difference was the presence of legumes and the absence of eggs - I normally eat eggs at home, and the only reason I do is because we own the chickens that produce them, and I know exactly what it is they eat and in what conditions they are kept.

So one day where I had nothing particularly planned, my host asked me if I wanted to watch a video about veganism, and I happily agreed. I was more than eager to learn about the philosophy behind being vegan, as I tend to avoid jumping blindly into something most would call radical.

This is the video I watched. I strongly suggest you watch it as well. It is a lecture, so it's a bit long, but it's well worth the time to listen to a man who has undergone jail time for his beliefs.

https://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Des6U00LMmC4&h=VAQFttXOZ

I won't lie - some of the things he showed brought me to tears. As someone who has always loved animals, I was utterly disgusted by the things I was witness to. I won't jump into preaching - I don't like being preached to, and I generally don't like doing it. But I truly think it's worth it to look into veganism. Not only because it's healthier for us, but because we are on the verge of environmental collapse and the systems that provide people with the animal products they eat are terribly detrimental to this planet.


We don't need to eat meat - red meat tends to rot in our intestines before we expel it anyway, and for those who don't know, we absorb our nutrients from our intestines. I'm not keen on absorbing whatever comes from rotten meat. We get more protein from dark greens and legumes. We don't need dairy. We're the only species of mammal that drinks milk after weaning and it isn't even milk from our own species. I will advocate the consumption of milk when it is from a human woman's breasts, not otherwise.

And I refuse to pay for torture, rape and murder.

The thing that eludes many people, including me until recently, is the cruelty that takes place in the factory farming industry. I specify "factory farming" here, because if you own a hobby farm and your animals are content and well cared for, I can sympathize to a certain point.
One would imagine that dairy farms and egg farms aren't cruel, seeing as the animals aren't killed. Although this is true to a certain point, one has to look beyond the simple fact that the animals are kept alive. Milking cows are kept in utterly horrible conditions, restricted from movement and force-fed genetically modified crops (which aren't part of their natural diet - cows are grazers and not meant to consume soy or wheat, the mass production of which continually exhausts the earth of its nutrients), injected with hormones to make them produce more milk than they normally would, and, most horrifying of all, are promptly led to the "rape-rack", as it is referred to by some. Female mammals produce milk when they are pregnant. This goes for hamsters as well as humans. In order for a cow to produce milk, she must be impregnated, and this is done by artificial insemination - carried out by the farmers. As soon as she begins to lactate, she is plugged into a milking machine and literally dehydrated day after day as she struggles to develop a healthy calf - as every female mammal's body naturally does when she is pregnant. As soon as her calf is born, he is removed from his mother's care, as he would (as nature dictates) drink the milk that is "meant for us". This newborn calf, who should be receiving his mother's nutrient-rich milk (and TLC, let's be honest), is sent to a different farm where he can grow for a few months before being sent to the slaughterhouse. The cow, traumatized by the immediate loss of her calf (as any mother would be - I will have heated words with the person who claims that animals other than humans are psychologically incapable of emotion), is soon re-impregnated so that she can continue to produce milk. This cycle continues until the cow can no longer take the physical strain, and she dies after a mere 5 years (on average) as opposed to her normal lifespan of up to and above 15.
Egg farms aren't too different. Yes, hens lay eggs daily, but the population of egg-laying birds must be up-kept if the farm is to be prosperous long-term. Therefore, hens are impregnated through artificial insemination and lay fertilized eggs. This is the ugly part - when they hatch, the male chicks, as they do not produce eggs, are sent promptly to something that resembles a VitaMix blender, and soon turned into the Chicken McNuggets in your child's Happy Meal.

I used to see grey areas in this topic...I used to think that if the animal whose flesh is on my dinner plate was born in the wild and contributed to the ecosystem on some level, then I would consume it. But I don't see it that way anymore. What right do we have to extinguish a complex, emotional life - to snatch it out of existence? What right do we have to the lives of any animal? None. None whatsoever.
There is no life on this planet worth more dead than alive.

I'm not an expert. I haven't always been vegan, and preaching it now is plain hypocritical - I know that. I've spent most of my life eating according to the society-approved "food pyramid", which includes meat products and dairy. But when I realized how the system works, the effects it has on the environment and our health as well as the health of the animals being used, my view was radically changed.

I will not judge someone for not being vegan, and I will not try to persuade someone to be vegan if they aren't interested. In this society, becoming a vegan is a radical and very foreign concept. It wasn't easy for me to abandon the staples that I grew up with and was taught were healthy, but my particular values helped me make that change. Being vegan is an entirely personal choice, but I think it's well worth it to inform yourself about exactly what you are eating and the things you are paying for when you buy animals products from the supermarket.

I value life in all its forms, and I do not believe that human life is in any way more valuable than other animal life. As I said, I am not willing to give my money to the system that promotes and practices the systematic torture, rape and murder of animals in order to feed us "superior beings".

Scotland...

Oh, Scotland.

The greenery, the stunning coastline, the accents, the warmest welcomes I've ever received, the energy, the accents, the food...did I mention the accents?

Yes, I'm biased, but I can't shake the feeling that I come from this land. The connection I've felt when wandering, driving and taking the train around this country has been nothing short of breathtaking. I even visited the city where my great-grandfather was born and raised, and was quite close to meeting a distant cousin.

It is a truly magical place, and the fantasy / fairytale lover in me got a hearty dose of magic as I wandered through forests and castles with a dear friend and tour guide. She complimented me deeply when she told me that I steadily renewed her own sense of wonder in her country - being the newly registered driver, she leveled up a fair few times driving me around Scotland (roundabouts every four and a half feet, really?!), and I think my frequent exclamations of admiration and wonder gave her new eyes through which to see her ethereally stunning country. We took the scenic route a fair few times, and it was only fitting that we blast the soundtrack from The Lord of the Rings trilogy during such long drives. I won't lie - the music from those films coupled with the breathtaking scenery of Scotland did make my eyes water just a wee bit...on multiple occasions.

We visited ruins, beaches and castles. We attended a gig, and I met people who made me feel like I've been their friend forever. We went to a Viking festival, and yep, we were asked if we were witches. And no, it wasn't a sarcastic question. We visited some of the areas that gave JK. Rowling her inspiration for the Harry Potter books and had tea in the café where she wrote most of books 2, 3 and 4.

The other major thing about Scotland was the impending referendum, and the energy and tension that created. Now, those who know me well know that I am against Québec separation. But that doesn't mean I'm against ALL sovereignty movements. That being said, I came to Scotland with an open mind, and after a mere week of listening to debates, conversations and passionate speeches, I'm returning to Ireland a "yes". Alba gu bràth!

I am definitely planning to return to Scotland before Christmas. I've made some magnificent friends, seen breathtaking scenery and felt a soul-deep connection to which words simply cannot do justice. What's not to return to?

Hakuna matata!! xx

Yep, more picspam. Most of these photos are from Edinburgh and Edinburgh Castle. Enjoy!

I love jellyfish. I especially love picking them up. They're so pretty!!! ^_^ 

View of Edinburgh from the castle window...breathtaking.