Viki Ackland Like, I am writing this like article like about the use of like What is it with our youth today and overuse of the word like? Sitting on the bus or subway I am privy to many a conversation that goes like this. (imagine the excitement, raised voices and youthful glee)

Viki Ackland We live in a world of Acronyms We live in a world of Acronyms. Most of us live online, but you can tell the real pro by the over use of acronyms they use in one given conversation. These people surely must be smart in order to remember even a few of these. Here are my favorites of a non-sexual nature.

Viki Ackland Coffee Time There is no decent coffee place in Woodbridge, decent perhaps being based on my unreal and biased idea of what a good cup of coffee really is. I am sure I have seen other coffee shops miles away but in this industrial area, this is it. It is not real coffee.

Viki Ackland

Sisters

was a sister reunion

and we must drink to remind ourselves

Viki Ackland Allergic To The Sun I woke up this morning and my angry red rash, that I hoped would have abated by now, was screaming even louder. My forehead and eyebrows are bright red, thank god for bangs. I feel my lip quiver and then chastise myself for being such a baby.

Viki Ackland A POEM

Viki Ackland Dear Lois: I know we talk on MSN and never in person, it's easier this way, even to talk about our Father, your ex-husband who may be dying, is not a topic of importance. I mean it's not as if he is actual dead, and we have heard rumors for years that he is sick and dying. And he screwed you around royally; I know there is no love lost there. Funny because lost love is essentially what our family is based on. We wonder how you feel about it. It's not as though we are any closer to you, unless you count proximity alone.

Viki Ackland Dear Lois: I know we talk on MSN and never in person, it's easier this way, even to talk about our Father, your ex-husband who may be dying, is not a topic of importance. I mean it's not as if he is actual dead, and we have heard rumors for years that he is sick and dying. And he screwed you around royally; I know there is no love lost there. Funny because lost love is essentially what our family is based on. We wonder how you feel about it. It's not as though we are any closer to you, unless you count proximity alone.

Viki Ackland Dear Bob: I heard from a friend of friend’s cousin three times removed that you were in poor health. I would like to say I was concerned when I heard this, or that I felt something but the truth is I did not. Perhaps that makes me truly your daughter, uncaring and self-centered, or could it possibly be that I do not care about you one way or another.

Viki Ackland Plastic Girls with Cardboard Curls I know I cannot change the world, or the perception engraved in the overall outlook and importance of beauty and fashion, in this media driven, beauty obsessed world we live in.

Viki Ackland My failing Libido When I had a hysterectomy 6 years ago, I was quite thrilled. Apparently, my insides were plagued with endometriosis and bad-uteroses and everything else you could think of. I thought, hey, this is great, no more periods, no more PMS and most importantly 6 weeks off work.

Viki Ackland Women and MarriageThose who know me can clearly attest to my abhorrence for the institution of marriage. I tried it twice, and it was honestly the most negative experiences of my life. I will NEVER do it again. I do not think that love and commitment need to be taken to that level.

Viki Ackland Gangster wear, Fashion Statement? I am currently commuting and the last leg of my journey takes me through a questionable area where there are quite a few shooting relating incidents. There was a shooting on the very bus I take now, a few years back in which a young girl was shot in the eye

Viki Ackland Thelonious I love my cat. I come in everyday from work and he is waiting on the stairs, somewhat shyly in case it is an intruder and not I, having not been blessed with the laid back gene my older cat, who I also love, seems to possess in abundance.

Viki Ackland Skipping Xmas I will be the first to admit I am a heathen when it comes to organized religion or organized occasions. I do not believe they are, or were intended to be the manner in which they have evolved. We are playing a game of civilization and often losing, and much of the time, I do not wish to play.

Viki Ackland Excerpts from Losing It I knew I was really losing my mind this time, in a subtle controllable way when I started drinking scalding hot coffee much too quickly and I enjoyed the feeling of it burning me and could not stop. This was different than the pretend to be crazy cause it makes you more artsy in the eyes of others.

Viki Ackland Redefine Enough ink has been wasted in the name of feminism. It is 2005 heading quickly into 2006, and those of us that refuse to be disrespected by men are quickly disposed of as feminists. I have a new word to define this group.

Viki Ackland

The obsolete male

my friends whisper
behind my back
"this disgust she has

Viki Ackland Role reversal I was out partying last Saturday night with some girl friends; we like to get out as often as we can and strut our stuff so to speak so we decided to go down to that Jaguar bar, you know the one, filled with all those older men desperate for some younger company.

Viki Ackland I Am Not a Raging Feminist... I am not a raging feminist nor am I a ball busting man hater, but I have to say I appear to dislike men, because most men actually really do annoy me. I try to not get that sneer on my face when watching a man do annoying things, come on ladies you know the sneer, and I try and disguise my look of contempt when approached by a man I clearly have no interest in.

Viki Ackland Mother resisting temptation, since my eyes could see

that sweetness on the lips she loathed

Viki Ackland Good Bye Danforth I am moving out of my beloved first Toronto apartment September 30^th. I recall three years ago after looking at a few disgusting dumps, my sister called me very excitedly about this cute apartment with its skylight and stained blue hardwood floors. Our new landlord seemed great. The liquor store was a block away. We were in heaven. Save the giant gaping hole in my wall that my sister referred to as a small opening, but I adjusted and then dry-walled.

Viki Ackland Women are from Venus, men are idiots It is official. Even the most intelligent male is predicable and uncannily like his counterpart, Joe blow down the street who appears to be in a totally different class. Men have one agenda, with various sidelines. They are as follows.

Viki Ackland Film Everyone who lives in Toronto is aware that the Film Festival is on, none more than myself, who has the misfortune in many ways of working a mere two blocks from Yorkville and the Four Seasons Hotel. Now I could say I have the great fortune of being able to attend the festival, as I have a love of Independent film, and more importantly talent, and the joy the great city brings us all in that regard.

Viki Ackland Breath

Sometimes
there is nothing
to write about

Viki Ackland World gone crazy or crazy still?I am quite overwhelmed with the world in general these days. Back in January I read an article where a 25-year-old waitress in Germany who turned down a job providing "sexual services'' at a brothel in Berlin faces possible cuts to her unemployment benefit under laws introduced this year. How sick is this? It is likely there is more to the story and this is sensationalism

Viki Ackland Summer is almost over? Say it isn’t so? I only yesterday dragged all of my shorts and summer tops out of storage. I finally found the right pair of comfy sandals to wear, and my bottle of self tanning lotion is still almost full. I just got an AC three weeks ago.

Viki Ackland Stressed Out This Week I am a little stressed out this week, and my mind is filled with too many jumbled patterns of light and sound to focus