I went out last night, and spent most of today napping between my bed and the couch. Confession time - I gave up drinking over ten years ago, so I couldn’t blame it on a hangover. Oh, and I also went home earlier than the others (I was in my snuggly PJs by 1am). I reheated my leftover nachos mince for lunch (my first meal of the day), and since I had no plans to move much today, I made the executive decision that I could procrastinate going to the supermarket for another day.

If my Mum is reading this, yes I did get out of bed long enough to feed the cat. Since no human life depended on me that warranted staying out of bed, I embraced the Italian philosophy of ‘Dolce far Niente’, which means ‘the sweetness of doing nothing’. It doesn’t mean being lazy, it refers to the pleasure you get from being idle.

You can say that this is an eclectic collection of thoughts and musings of what I’ve learned about life and love over the last two years. Here’s to the old me, who I am today, and the adventures yet to come...let’s drink to that!

Scooping Up The Last Poop: How It Feels To Rehome A Dog

How long before a dog realises that they’re not coming home? She had a goofy smile on her face as the car drove away, and it took all I had not to cry in front of her. I was naive to think it would be easier than this. I’m glad it was raining, because I was sitting in parking lot...bawling my eyes out. I don’t normally allow myself to be that openly emotional. That level of vulnerability is rare for me.

I realised that she was really gone...and it hurt so bad.

Life, FriendshipsRonna Grace Funtelar2 July 2018rehomingdog, doglife, JCthedog, whatmydogtaughtmeComment

A Life On Stage: In The Spectrum Of My Introvertedness

My friend Steph and I don’t see each other very often, in fact, it may have been a year since we last had lunch together. She was in town for a few weeks and as her time is always in demand, having her to myself for a whole hour is precious indeed. There’s a lot about her journey that walked through the same pot holes of uncertainty that I did, and having learned of her story before my own unfolded kept me hopeful that I too would come out the other side wiser and more resilient.

Whenever I say that there’s a big part of me that’s an introvert, people usually react in disbelief. How can someone who has lead such a public life in the performing arts be an introvert? Surely that confidence is in all aspects of my life, and my persona on stage is just an extension of that? Steph has heard this so often that she’s lost count. To her, that persona or “game face” as she called it, is the medium to deliver her message. Her personal life, the one where she is far more guarded, is reserved for her closest friends and family.

What My Dog Taught Me About Love And Belonging

There’s a line from one of poems which says, “My feet anchor me in the disconnect between two worlds: One, the motherland that gave me life, and the other that brought me love.” Even though I talked about falling in love when I wrote that line, now it has a different meaning. In fact, what I think about isn’t necessarily romantic love - it’s about love and belonging. Love and belonging, where what you seek and the answer is the same thing.

My dog has taught me a lot about the sense of belonging - after all dogs are pack animals, they need a leader, and as much as I loved her, I wasn’t always a great alpha for her. There were times I was uncertain of myself that she felt she had to take over and lead me out of that place of misery. She always gave me unconditional love, even more love than I gave myself.

Self Love, Life, FriendshipsRonna Grace Funtelar5 June 2018whatmydogtaughtme, loveandbelonging, doglife, rehomingdog, JCthedogComment

Positive Changes Don't Always Feel Good

In early January I wrote a poem called Summer Rain - the idea literally came to me as a sudden sun shower came out from nowhere. The first verse came quick, but the rest of the poem took over two weeks to write. Or maybe, I was just scared to write with so much honesty.

Who was the poem about? An unrequited love? Not quite. More like someone who was a band aid to the bouts of loneliness I go through. Which isn’t as often, or last as long as the early days. It’s one of the few poems where I had allowed myself to be truly vulnerable, and it takes a lot for me to keep my emotions from spilling over when I perform it.

Don't Make Loneliness Your Moat - Learning To Play With Others

I think there’s a big difference between being independent and wanting to do everything on your own. Being independent means, that yes, you are quite capable of doing things on your own (and probably kicking ass at that!), but you don’t assume that you’re the only person that can do those things, or that your way is the only way to do it. That’s your ego making you out to be a boss, when really, it just isolates you. There’s a great sense of pride to finish a project on your own, but you may be burned out at the end of it too! Help is all around you, it’s when we don’t allow others to give that goodness that we begin to feel isolated and lonely.