Rae Roy

Friday Two summers ago, I and some friends were able to participate in a movie scene in Ottawa's Strathcona Park. The location wasn't unknown to me. Steampunk Ottawa has fairly regular meetups near the ruins and I was a member for a time. They actually had one that day. We were there to film a fight scene for Enter the Drag Dragon. The task set before us was to run at the drag queen who would beat us up with phallic nunchuks. There is more than one drag queen in the story and they all play the same character, Crunch. Ours, Jade London, is in the middle section of the film. Jade is pictured below with the nunchuks in her left hand. One never knows if they will be seen in a movie when they aren't playing a big role, but I'm there. Twice! The second time I'm on-screen was from the filming session that happened in April 2022 at the Mayfair. It's a little harder to find me in that one, but I'm there.  Seeing my name in credits was a strange and wonder...

Dear Mom, It was a year ago that you were found barely breathing. You were rushed to the hospital and put on life support. It would be several hours before we'd find out that you were already gone. Sometimes people can come back from a ruptured aneurysm, but you weren't one of them.  There was a massive snowstorm in Ottawa that day. It was probably good that I had to stay put and try to pack because I wasn't in a state to drive safely. I couldn't figure out what clothing to bring. Eventually, I packed everything I had brought at Christmas, which was what I had with me when you were last alive. A friend came to sit with me despite the horrid weather just so I wouldn't be alone. I was spinning, and it was so helpful to be able to talk about it all. I can't remember the full timeline now, but there was a video call and my last image of you is one hooked to machines. We said goodbye, but you weren't there to hear it, so I don't know if it counts. The next da...

What a shitty day! So my bathtub got overrun with sewage from another unit. The toilet would gurgle, then stuff would flow into my tub when people above flushed. It seemed like it had resolved, so I had cleaned it up, took a shower, and went to bed. At 1:30 AM, I awoke to more gurgling and saw this: I rinsed that out and went back to sleep. When I got up in the morning there was this. So, I was heading out to Canadian Tire when I ran into the cleaning lady who lives two doors down. She had no issues, but we called the emergency line and then waited most of the day for a plumber to come. While waiting, it got worse. Much worse. Eventually, there was the superintendent, the cleaner who is also an owner, a board member, and the neighbour, who was also having the issue. The plumber had to take their toilet off to clear the blockage that may have been related to an adorable and mischievous toddler. His mom didn't speak much English, but was very kind ...

Meatless Bibimbap Rice Bowl on my chair because I'm still decluttering. It's taken me eleven years to figure out what my food issues are. Years ago, in 2013, I went to a nutritionist who put me on a gluten free diet. She also advised I change some things up. At the time, I was eating fewer grains, organic meats, salmon (yuck unless it's sushi), and some vegetarian meals. I felt better, but never fully. I still had discomfort in my abdomen, but it was better than pain throughout my entire body. So I did a low FODMAP thing for a long time thinking that it was IBS. It must be the onions and garlic in my food, right? They're known for causing issues and they're in all the things I'm eating, so why wouldn't it be that? Cutting them out helped very minimally. Somewhere along the way, I confirmed that I was having trouble with lactose. Not like most people do. I get itches in uncomfortable places and hives. Lactose free milks and cheeses entered my life...