My puppy turned a year old yesterday. Please indulge me while I take this one post to talk about my dog and how he has changed my life. Not dramatically. Not ideologically. I have not found religion or quit my job to dedicate my life to PETA (though I am fully in favour of theContinue reading “On My Life With a Dog”
Author Archives: linabranter
On Writer’s week: Lessons Learned
I have been in several writer groups in my life. All of the members of these groups (with the exception of my current one—but give it time—these ladies can write!) have been published, some several times and by major publishing houses. Some were published authors before they joined the writers’ group, while some had theirContinue reading “On Writer’s week: Lessons Learned”
Anatomy of self-sabotage: How to be artist-adjacent but never the artist
When I was in high school, I stopped writing. I had the mistaken notion I had to be canon-worthy right from the get go, an Amadeus-like figure whose brain bloomed a garden of perfect sentences ready to be plucked and neatly arranged like a bouquet. So when I did go to write something down andContinue reading “Anatomy of self-sabotage: How to be artist-adjacent but never the artist”
Staycation Writer’s Retreat
A few weeks ago, I had a drink with a friend. She is my age, 46, two young kids and is in the middle of studying for her LSATs. She’s decided she’s going to law school, come hell or high water and fulfill a lifelong dream of hers. What triggered this sudden fire under herContinue reading “Staycation Writer’s Retreat”
On my Ongoing Journey to Dismantle my Own Racism
I just finished reading a book called White Fragility: Why it’s so Hard for White People to Talk about Racism when all hell broke loose last week. I was reading this as part of an Indigenous Reads book club at work, where each month I get together with some of my colleagues and try toContinue reading “On my Ongoing Journey to Dismantle my Own Racism”
Why all the Bloody Selfies? An Explanation
Some of you may have noticed that I have been bombarding my social media with daily pictures of myself, after many years of rarely posting anything, let alone my own face. Why? Why am I doing this deeply uncomfortable thing? Here is my best attempt at an explanation. On a whim—seriously, the thought poppedContinue reading “Why all the Bloody Selfies? An Explanation”
Honouring: An Exploration in Five Parts
I During my morning commute in Montreal, a homeless man regularly stood sentry at the bottom of the escalators in the metro station. Technically I guess he was begging, but he had such a genteel air about him, it felt more like he was graciously inviting us to donate. Whether I had change or not,Continue reading “Honouring: An Exploration in Five Parts”
On the 38th Anniversary of my Father’s Death
Today is the anniversary of my dad’s death. He died at the age of 38 which means he has been dead as long as he was alive. A whole lifetime has gone by and yet somehow it seems like yesterday. That’s grief for you though—it refuses to obey the dictates of time. Here’s a pieceContinue reading “On the 38th Anniversary of my Father’s Death”
Notes from the Pandemic: There is only the present
Time has expanded into an eternal present, engulfing the past and the future like a large two-way tsunami. I guess that’s how it always is, really, but mostly, when I’m bustling about going from work to more work to making dinner to worrying about bills/upcoming taxes/my disengaged daughter [insert frantic worry here] it seems likeContinue reading “Notes from the Pandemic: There is only the present”
Silver Lining: Productive Isn’t Always What We Think It Is
Transcript A whole lot of time and space have suddenly been dumped on my lap as if all my backorders for my entire life have been filled all at once and honestly, I don’t quite know what to do with it. No, that’s not quite right. It is not that I don’t know what toContinue reading “Silver Lining: Productive Isn’t Always What We Think It Is”
