I sometimes introduce myself as YodaNinja. "Yoda on the outside, Ninja on the inside." Outside, I seem calm and composed. When I speak (or write), what I say can be profound, perplexing... or both. But my inner world is another story. Deep inside of me is a Ninja battleground where thoughts, emotions, ideas, and utter randomness all fight for my attention. Every once in a while, they actually cooperate and I have to say, I'm deadly. But then they go at it again... and "Everybody is Kung Fu fighting." I'm a dad, a husband and a guy whose mind has a mind of it's own. My recovery from my addiction to numbing myself (with pretty much anything I can get my hands on) is a lifelong journey. I live with depression, anxiety and adhd... and sometimes they don't get along very well with my family, or with the rest of my life. Professionaly, I make my living as a Counselling Therapist in Edmonton, Canada. I teach on addiction and psychopathology at City University, and I have a small counselling practice where I use superheroes and other geeky stuff to help people make peace with their own personal YodaNinja. This blog is part of my healing and writing keeps me grounded. I hope that something I have written may add a little bit to your journey. Keep it Real
How do people stay happy working a job they don’t love? ___ How do people stay happy in a job they don’t love for 20 years? Maybe the cynical will ask Why do people stay in a job they don’t love at all? These are important questions because by the time you retire, you have invested more time at work than any … More 13 Ways to Love Yourself When You Don’t Love Your Job
Tiny events add up: Recovery is one choice at a time ___ Tiny events. Small, minor stories. Events add up. Decisions matter. Do you want to make your days profound? I wrote about this in my journal the other day, “I try to make my day profound. I want it marked with excellence, exuberance and the … More Addiction: The Importance of Living Small
True freedom is not freedom from work, but freedom in our work. ___ I write about things that interest me. Work is one of them because I, like most of the world, work a job that helps me make a living. I’ve met lots of entrepreneurs and remote workers — myself included — who are … More Choose Yourself: Freedom is Found in Hard Work
10 Reasons you should be afraid when your teenager becomes one with their computer. ___ My teenager has bonded with his technology. In computer-speak, this is called HCI: Human Computer Interaction, the study of how humans interact with computers. I don’t know why they need a new term for it. In my world, HCI is called Parenting. AKA: How loud do I have … More Terminator: Adolescent Day
This is how Google is redefining maleness. ___ Everyone knows Google. Google is the source of Gmail, and Google is also redefining what it means to be a man. It used to be that men were men because of their tools, their sports or their cars. Google is giving the vast group of “other men,” … More Gmail, eMale and What It Means to be A Man
There are two ways two view your life. Which one do you subscribe to? ___ Epic fail or Epic food? Think of an epic fail that you were a part of. Does that fail define you or is it only one small part of you? The difference in these two perspectives may be subtle, but it can make … More What You Can Do if you Are Not Failing Well
Americans, Canada is your best Candidate for the next election! ___ Okay American friends, this video made me crack up. It’s funny and makes us laugh at ourselves. I had to write about it and post it… just because it is so well done. We know that America is a great country. We just want … More Canada for President
Happy, outgoing and funny. But he was depressed, and no one knew. ___ Money, hockey and the NHL. Christ Burns faced a devastating injury and overnight he went from elite to bed ridden. His career was over, but he lost more than a job. His life was on the line. His friends thought he was the … More One Man’s Hidden Struggle With Depression
For someone in your life, you are indispensable. If you doubt it, just pick up the phone. ___ One telephone pole. Is one telephone pole really neccessary? Who cares about one lousy telephone pole. I can just whip out my cell phone and instantly make connections across the world. Who needs landlines to connect the dots? … More 16 Men and a Telephone Pole
Maybe it’s time to give recovery the finger? ___ We have gotten the idea of recovery wrong. Wrong! Recovery is sometimes thought of the absence of an addiction and the replacement with something more healthy. But life is more than addition and absence, plus and minus. Your body is continually adding new cells and removing old, decaying … More Give Recovery the Finger
Getting High on Recovery 