life – Page 11 – Seclusion 101 with AnneMarie

Angry & Frustrated

January 7, 2020January 7, 2020 by annemariedemyen, posted in life

Genie was not really upset or angry – she was just slightly indignant that her mother stole the cherry out of her milkshake (she got over it).

There are, however, a number of people in Saskatchewan who are truly angry and frustrated since our federal election last fall.

While I understand that they feel their livelihood and lifestyle is at stake, I do not agree with their attitude. Anger and frustration may give people the motivation to step up and take effective action in some situations but I do not see that happening here.

I just see a lot of angry, frustrated people. I see people call friends, family and neighbours derogatory names for not using their vote to support their cause. I see people being rude in service stations, banks and stores, elbowing their way past others or deliberately smashing their cart into someone else’s to pass them. I see people cutting others off in traffic and in parking lots. I see people on social media posting or sharing false ‘news’ to make ‘others’ look bad. I see people trash talking ‘others’ for being different. I just see way too much rude and ignorant behaviour and I see way too many who justify this behaviour because they are angry and frustrated.

I do not see how this type of behaviour helps anyone. I do not see how this encourages others to support our cause. I certainly do not see how this type of behaviour encourages other industries to look to Saskatchewan as a place to expand their businesses, which would help our economy to move forward.

We live in a province with a lot of potential. Our ancestors always worked together through difficult times and made it work – across our province and across our country. Now we are facing a time of economic versus environmental challenges in Saskatchewan and across Canada. We need to calm down and work together to resolve these issues – maturely and responsibly.

Saskatchewan

January 5, 2020January 5, 2020 by annemariedemyen, posted in family, life

My family moved to Saskatchewan when I was three. The province had, and continues to have, plenty to offer. Our air is clear, our water is clean. We have lakes and forests which offer summer and winter activities. We have small cities that are reasonably easy to navigate, while offering a variety of services one would expect from a larger centre.

Lunching at one of our many favourite restaurants

Our weather varies from one extreme to the other throughout the year, but overall it is predictable.

We have our share of social issues, but for the most part it is a relatively secure place to live. We have a number of industries – mining, agriculture, oil & gas, construction, to name a few – that offer a reasonable level of employment.

We have international airports in Saskatoon and Regina that offer us access to the rest of the world as well as local airports in smaller centres.

I would like to move back to Manitoba one day, but for now, Saskatchewan is home. 💖

Own It

January 4, 2020January 4, 2020 by annemariedemyen, posted in career, life

I have been working for over five decades now and have decided to share some thoughts on problem resolution in the workplace (or in life in general). There seems to be a need these days🙂

The most successful and effective people I have known are the ones who recognize an issue, give it some serious consideration, and deal with it.

There are several ineffective ways to deal with an issue and I am pretty sure I have seen them all.

1. Blame someone else – This does nothing to address the issue and abdicates any power one has to deal with the issue. If you are absolutely responsible for causing an issue and you try to blame others, it will be obvious. 😐

2. Make excuses – Nobody cares and it does not resolve the issue. You may have to explain how the issue arose but that must be followed by a resolution or at least a commitment to find a resolution to the issue. 👍

3. Ignore the issue and expect it to go away. If it is your issue to address, it will not go away. It certainly will not go away without causing further damage. If there is truly nothing you can do to address an issue, you can still choose an effective way to react to it. 🙂

4. Allowing yourself to be the helpless victim. It is all there. Victims are helpless. Even if you were totally innocent and have been hurt deliberately in the worst possible way by someone, do not allow yourself to be victimized. Even if the only thing you can do is work on resolving your own pain and suffering, do that. If you wait for someone else to resolve a situation or repair the damage it has done to you, it will never happen.

Acting the helpless victim at work is particularly non-helpful. Employers, employees, co-workers, customers, suppliers and other business contacts are looking for you to be competent and effective. If you are looking to succeed in your position, that is the face you need to show. 🙂

5. Lie, cheat or steal. Any negative response to an issue is not going to have a positive result – ever! 🙁

6. Act oblivious and clueless. Seriously, is that how you want people to see you? If you want to be treated as a professional, act like one. 🤔

7. Scream, swear, throw things, kick things. None are mature. None are helpful. None are professional. 🤯

8. Avoid the issue. If there is work to be done, or an issue to be addressed just do it. This is not the time to take a week off.

One final thought. Accept that some situations are hopeless. If there are ongoing issues that you do not have the power or authority to deal with, work towards a viable exit plan. There are options but think them through and ensure you are not leaving one bad situation for another.

Top Stories of 2019

January 3, 2020January 3, 2020 by annemariedemyen, posted in life, Uncategorized

Tonight I watched the news with my husband. I generally avoid watching our news as it tends to focus on politicians, social issues that are never resolved and news that never happened. Our newscasters once interviewed a golfer who did not get hit by lightning during a storm. That was special. We also heard of Regina’s connection to the Concord that crashed years ago. Fyi – there was no connection. That was the story. 🙄

One of our news segments tonight was looking back at the top five news stories in Saskatchewan in 2019. I do not know who chose these stories but for what it is worth, here we go.

1. Fighting the federal carbon tax. For the record, our premier argues against anything the federal government proposes. Personally, if the carbon tax cost us anything this past year, it was not noticeable and we got a rebate of about $750.00 on our taxes last year to cover it. We spent it on a new patio set.

FYI we have a real patio – the grandkid’s pool is on it🙄

2. Federal Election. It was painful to watch but ultimately hardly newsworthy.

3. Saskatchewan farmers terrible season. I don’t remember a year when that one did not make the top five news stories for the year.

4. Regina Bypass Opens. Government spends billions to solve a problem that could have been solved with a couple of traffic lights – but it would not have been nearly as impressive. 🤷

5. Mac the Moose from Moose Jaw received a new rack to regain his title as tallest moose in the world after a moose sculpture from Norway took him down.

Personally, I would not have rated all, or probably any, of these stories as top newsmakers in 2019. Regardless, I do think these choices reveal something. In Saskatchewan we are blessed. We see news from around the globe – news of devastating floods, fires, famine and violence and it is unimaginable to us .

In Saskatchewan, we have social issues and there are personal tragedies that affect families and communities, but as a whole, we live in relative peace and security. That should be noted this year and every year – noted and appreciated.

Happy New Year

January 1, 2020 by annemariedemyen, posted in life

Wishing everyone a Happy New Year and all the best for this brand new decade. No one knows what lays before us but I have never felt better about a decade. Good, bad or ugly, whatever 2020 and the next decade throws at us, I know I am ready. I honestly feel strong and confident enough to handle whatever comes our way. 🕊️