Fireball Island

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One of my fondest childhood memories is of the countless hours that my brother and I spent playing Fireball Island.  In the late 80’s, Milton Bradley had released a revolutionary (to me at least) board game.  No longer was there a flat two-dimensional board on which to play, but here was a three-dimensional island board, with rivers, bridges and caves.  At the centre of the island was the primitive idol Vul-Kar.  The objective of the game was to reach the idol at the top of the mountain, steal the jewel and escape the island. Continue reading “Fireball Island” →

Black Label Society – Grimmest Hits: A Quick Review

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One of my all-time favourite bands is Black Label Society.  Formed 20 years ago, Zakk Wylde had stepped away from his years as the guitarist for Ozzy Osbourne and formed his own heavy metal band.

Over the past few months, I had noticed a new BLS album on the shelves of our local record store, but when glancing at the cover and seeing the title Grimmest Hits, I dismissed it as a greatest hits compilation and didn’t give it a second look.  A few weeks ago, I was perusing the shelves, looking for some new music to bring with Isabelle and I on an up-coming road trip.  That’s when my eyes passed over this album cover again, but I noted a sticker saying “12 brand new tracks”.  So I immediately picked it up and headed home with it. Continue reading “Black Label Society – Grimmest Hits: A Quick Review” →

My Second Life Day: Divine Synchronicity

On By Mr. BoxheadIn General, Writing3 Comments

Conclusion of my Second Life Day saga.  Catch up to the previous post here, or start from the beginning.

As I take a step back and look at the entire scenario, I can see the Divine Intervention that was happening all around me.  Everything that happened to me over a period of at least six months was done to ensure that my journey here on Earth continued.  The synchronicity that became so prevalent could simply not be ignored.  Continue reading “My Second Life Day: Divine Synchronicity” →

My Second Life Day: The Shift

On By Mr. BoxheadIn General, Writing1 Comment

Continuation of my Second Life Day saga.  Catch up to the previous post here, or start from the beginning.

I awoke utterly disoriented.  My throat was on fire, raw as though I hadn’t had anything to drink in days.  The lights above my head were blinding me, forcing me to squint.  No matter where I looked, I couldn’t situate myself.  This wasn’t my bedroom.  It wasn’t my living room.  Where was I?  I remembered being at home and in bed, but this wasn’t my apartment.  I was beyond confused.  I was still extremely weak, and not able to move much, yet I tried to stir.

Continue reading “My Second Life Day: The Shift” →

My Second Life Day: A Call for Help

On By Mr. BoxheadIn General, Writing1 Comment

Continuation of my Second Life Day saga.  Catch up to the previous post here, or start from the beginning.

After purging my body of all its contents, I rightly proceeded to call in sick to the office and promptly went back to bed.  As I was carpooling with my mother at the time, I let her know that I was ill and not going to work.  Having seen my state over the weekend, Mom offered to call the after-hours clinic to see if they could take me, which I gladly accepted.

Continue reading “My Second Life Day: A Call for Help” →

My Second Life Day: An Awakening

On By Mr. BoxheadIn General, Writing1 Comment

Continuation of my Second Life Day saga.  Catch up to the previous post here, or start from the beginning.

Through it all, I was beginning to have an awakening, a shift.  I realized early on that I had no love for the contact centre.  I needed to get out, but I had no goals or dreams on which to set my sights.  It was through happenstance, and through my own excelling in my job, that a direction presented itself to me.  Having gone through 3-4 different training sessions and getting to know my trainer, Colin, I realized that this was something I would enjoy doing.  Plus, it would circle back on my plan to teach.  I may not have been accepted to the university program a few years earlier, but I could still wind up on the same path, taking a circuitous journey to get there.  This realization began to jolt me out of my routine.

Continue reading “My Second Life Day: An Awakening” →

My Second Life Day: Degeneration

On By Mr. BoxheadIn General, Writing1 Comment

Continuation of my Second Life Day saga.  Catch up to part 1 here.

For a few weeks, I had been feeling a bit off.  I was coming home from work and falling asleep on the couch by 7PM.  I would doze for an hour or two, and then sleep the night away.  But the next morning, I would still be tired.  Having just finished a year and a half of ridiculous hours and draining shifts at Chapters, it was easy to chalk this up to exhaustion.  I just needed to let my body rest.

Continue reading “My Second Life Day: Degeneration” →

My Second Life Day: The Prelude

On By Mr. BoxheadIn General, Writing6 Comments

This coming Saturday marks a milestone in my life.  I will celebrate the 10th anniversary of my Second Life Day.  While I’ve written about the events of this day in the past, this is the first time that I’ve ever attempted to document the entirety of the story. Over the next few days, I will be chronicling the saga that I went through.  What you will read was written over the course of a few days in the summer of 2017.  Some of you have heard the story, others lived through it with me.  But I don’t know that anyone has actually gotten the entire story – until now. 

I hope you will join me on this journey. 

On March 3rd, 2008, I was given a second chance at life.  Looking back now, 10 years later, I can see the miracle that occurred on that day.  But the journey to that realization took some time.  In order to truly understand the life-altering shift that occurred on my Second Life Day, you first need to understand the reality of my life.  Or at least reality as I perceived it. Continue reading “My Second Life Day: The Prelude” →

Detectorists – a review

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Over the past two weeks, I’ve binged two seasons of a delightfully fresh and fun britcom that I found on Netflix.  Detectorists is the story of two hobbyist metal detectorists (don’t call them metal detectors… those are the machines!) in a small rural community in England.  By times, laugh-out-loud funny,  and by others lovingly tender and sweet, it is a true tour de force put together by writer/director/star Mackenzie Crook.  While the two seasons on Netflix ares only 6 episodes in length each, they are all of high quality. Continue reading “Detectorists – a review” →

2018: A Trinity of Celebrations

On By Mr. BoxheadIn General, Writing4 Comments

2018 marks a big year for me on multiple fronts.  The first and most obvious is that I will be celebrating my 40th birthday on August 22.  I share this birthday with Mr. James Corden (we are birthday twins – both born August 22, 1978).  I’m hoping for an epic birthday extravaganza, but I’ll save that for another blog post. Continue reading “2018: A Trinity of Celebrations” →