Mamalegato's Marathon

Mama to six, PhD student, theatre artist, voice teacher, early riser, trying to get 'er done.

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Summer Inspirations Part 5

My Summer Playlist! So, a bit of a confession here– every summer I eagerly await Barack Obama’s Summer Playlist and Reading List—Somehow, I get pretty excited when I see some overlap (“Hey, I love that book/song too!” I am a bit of a fan of these kinds of lists in general because I am always looking for new and inspiring music and books. So as Part 5 of my summer inspiration series, I offer my…

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Summer Inspirations Part 4: Debbie Millman's "The Remarkable Life Deck"

Goal setting has long been a practice that I have used in my creative and academic careers as well as my personal life—I have big goals, little goals and all sorts in between. I write them down, I revise them regularly and I break them down into actionable tasks, (Thanks to skills I learned in James Clear’s Atomic Habits). Alongside my goal-setting practice I use affirmations (every single day!)…

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Summer Inspirations Part 3

Yoga Practice Elevation In the spirit of my Summer Inspiration “series,” I am reflecting on my yoga journey and how it inspires and supports me as an artist (particularly a voice-centric artist), an academic and just a regular ol’ human. Above is a photo of me practicing yoga on the beach… Just kidding, it’s freakin’ Eartha Kitt!! I have practiced yoga regularly for quite some time now (10, 15…

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Summer is for Exploring

At the end of the Winter semester, I often have students ask me what they can be doing over the summer to keep their artistic practice growing and moving forward and besides the obvious advice to try and keep their vocal and physical practices consistent, I always encourage folks to get out and see/experience as much as they can- go to galleries, walk in nature, read, read, read! Be open to new…

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“How we, spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives.” ~Annie Dillard, The Writing Life I think about this quote all. the. time. It makes sense to me in so many contexts. I share it with my students when emphasizing that what we are exploring in class are not just skills you learn and then put into your back pocket only to whip out when needed. What we are learning and exploring in…

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I love Birthdays (hold the parties)

I love not only that April Fools’ Day is my actual birthday but that it usually falls on or around Easter—because Lord knows,  I love a good resurrection—(the whole rebirth, rise from the dead theme is right on brand for me) but then pair that with the whole day of foolishness theme?  Give me a break! I could not ask for a better day on which to celebrate the day I first appeared on Earth. I…

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Never Too Late

I received these two postcards from my 93-year-old dad this week, one for St Patrick’s Day- on which he had written “Enjoy St Paddy Day Regards Dad”(sic) and the other for my birthday (that is still a little over a week away) reading “Have a Good Day Love-Dad”. Finding these in my mailbox was such an unexpected but beautiful surprise. My Dad never wrote cards or bought gifts—that was my Mum’s…

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Breaking The Habit of Being Yourself...(but what if I think I am kinda okay?)

I am currently reading Breaking The Habit of Being Yourself: How to Lose Your Mind and Create a New One by Dr. .Joe Dispenza, and as a dedicated meditator and someone who is pretty committed to working on my mindset (as well as an unabashed self-help book junkie), I have to say that I am finding that it is giving me a deepened perspective and understanding of how our thoughts create our reality…

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In Search of My Mother's Garden

In Search of My Mother’s Garden

Backyard April 24, 2022, Regina SK I am patiently planning a vegetable garden. I genuinely don’t know what I am doing, but the anticipation to get on with it is killing me- Having lived the past seven years in Quebec, you would think I would be used to long winters. Still, Eastern Canadian winters have nothing on a Prairie winter, and I am, after all, a west coast gal through and through, so I…

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THIS IS 55

This is 55. Yesterday was my birthday. April 1. (A new moon!) I am happy…. I am happy despite. Despite the fact that my ol’man and more than half my kids are not here in the same city as me. Despite the guilt I feel over being far away from my elderly parents. Despite the sadness I feel over the strife in our extended family—fractured by conflicting ideologies and resentment. Despite the…

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No Instructions Needed

I came across Lalah Delia’s book Vibrate Higher Daily after reading an article on her in Yoga Journal. I liked the whole message of identifying the things in your life that raise you up to be a better self and exploring ways of nurturing these energies over the negative ones that always seem to find a way of taking us over. The overarching message is that we must develop methods to open ourselves…

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That's Dr. Bad*ss to you...

That’s Dr. Bad*ss to you…

I somehow managed to resist Jen Sincero’s Badass books for a considerable time— (You Are a Badass: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life was published in 2013, You are A Badass at Making Money: Master the Mindset of Wealth in 2017, You Are a Badass Everyday: How to Keep Your Motivation Strong, Your Vibe High, and Your Quest for Transformation Unstoppable in 2018 and…

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Guilty as Charged

I am not a big fan of the whole “guilty pleasure” trope- I have come to this conclusion, I am certain, with age, maturity, and just the whole “feeling comfortable in my own skin” that living for 50+ years may have gifted me. I have no problem declaring my love for nerdy past times like reading and birdwatching (although I am pretty sure it is ‘hip to be square’ these days and if you don’t get…

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Bring it.

I’m back at the blog- due in part to having a bit of space to write (Hello global pandemic! Hello quarantine!) but also because I was feeling the urge to start documenting, for myself, some big shifts coming down the pipe.

On February 26, 2020, I passed my Viva (Dr Holmes IN THE HOUSE!) — AND, on that very same day, I signed an offer for a Tenure Track Professor job. It is still unbelievable to…

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Writing Retreat- Day 3 Writing Retreat Day 3 - I am back from my walk and settling into another day of just getting it done, plain and simple.

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Day One- Writing Retreat Day 1 down- hunkering down for day 2. I managed to get a fair chunk of work done- even though I had hoped to get a little further ahead.

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Do or Die Writing Retreat Writing retreat on the eve of day one. The family has just left and I am setting up my workspace before I head to bed so it is all ready for me when I wake.