Posts tagged "love"
January 31, 2020
Office romances happen. Quite often, they lead to long-term relationships and sometimes marriage. But starting a romance with a co-worker can have unforeseen consequences. In the worst-case scenario, your office romance can lead to uncomfortable situations and unplanned or forced resignations. Before you make the leap into an office romance, consider these tips:
Check the Rulebook
Find out what your employer’s policies are on the topic of office relationships before you start the romance. Some companies are more traditional and have zero tolerance when it comes to office romances, whereas other companies are more accepting. If you’ve already been dating, disclose your office romance to your HR person as soon as possible. Some firms require you to follow certain guidelines or inform other staff members.
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Posted by Margaret Page in Valentines Day, Business, Business Etiquette, Everyday Etiquette, Wedding Etiquette and tagged love, Office love, office romance, workplace romance, romance, office etiquette, relationships, couples
May 29, 2019
Today’s bride and groom are defining their special day in a way that reflects their style and interests in a much more personalized manner than ever before. Blinged-out sneakers instead of white pumps, receptions at micro breweries, and saying ‘I Do’ while wearing flip flops on a Hawaiian beach.
My best friends in the whole world are the four I graduated from high school with in 1980. We got our drivers licenses together, shared our boy crushes and snuck away to concerts together before we received our Dogwood diploma. We never gave much thought about who we would marry, let alone thinking about children’s weddings. That was for when we were old; certainly not now!
Well, fast forward 40 years and guess what? Yup – I am attending a destination wedding in France. Not my friend’s, but her daughter Meaghan’s and her fiancé, Arnaud. And not in a church, but a chateau that has been in the family for centuries. Back in 1980, most of my high school contemporaries were getting married at the local community centre, let alone somewhere outside of town. Meaghan was my flower girl, so I was super happy and excited to attend. Who wouldn’t want to attend a wedding in a French chateau?
As romantic as a French chateau wedding sounds, I can’t help but think the logistics could be a royal nightmare (pun intended). Who makes sure the chateau isn’t full of cobwebs? Is the local priest a 97-year old that doesn’t speak English? Is the local wine any good or should we be using it as red wine vinegar to pour over the fig salad? How does one know this when you live 8300 km away?
I caught up with Meaghan yesterday to get some answers. Apparently, the most challenging thing is that you don’t know what you don’t know. What does that mean exactly? Well, take catering for example. In North America, we’ve come to expect custom service levels that resemble à la carte. The French caterer was quite amused when asked if plates and cutlery were included. Her response? “Well, what else would you eat on?”
Local etiquette and business customs also came into play when thinking about a destination wedding. Apparently asking a wedding expert to make all kinds of changes was a major faux pas. She is the expert, right? Isn’t that why the bride and groom hired them? Deferring to her expertise was something Meaghan and Arnaud had to learn along the way. No problem! Well, except for the fish. Fish you ask? When the wedding couple requested three vegan dishes, they were told, “No problem, we’ll serve local fish.” When the bride went on to explain that local fish would not work either, the caterer said she would be able to work around it. Thank goodness she was able to serve the three vegans some lovely salmon filets instead. Oops!
Navigating foreign paperwork has its own challenges as well. If a non-French citizen wants to get married in France, paperwork needs completing to determine if they are eligible to marry there. Arnaud, having been born in France, happily translated all the documents into English. Turns out all Meaghan needed to provide was a “Certificate of Celibacy”. Wait…what? How on earth was the Federal Department of Global Affairs Canada going to be able to provide that kind of certificate, never mind validating the claim? Awkward!! In the end Arnaud’s translating needed some tweaking. Turns out all they required was proof she was single (célibataire) and had no plans on being a polygamist. Talk about lost in translation!
Lessons to take away? If planning a destination wedding, keep local customs in mind (tipping included), double check your language translations and always, always keep your sense of humour because cobwebs in the chateau are probably the least of your concerns. And really, have you ever tasted bad French wine?
Karen Taipalus lives and works in Delta, BC and enjoys writing short stories and articles based on every-day life events. She likes travelling with her family, wine tasting with girlfriends, bookclub and pickleball. Karen works in business development and social media.
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Posted by Margaret Page in Uncategorized and tagged etiquette tips, bride, travel, love, weddings, destination weddings, groom
February 17, 2019
What is the first thing that comes to mind when someone says the word ‘family’? Consulting a dictionary tells us that the definition of family is, “a group consisting of parents and children living together in a household”. A second definition is, “all the descendants of a common ancestor”. However, as our we enter the 21st century, the definition starts to take on a much broader scope.
The Modern Family
Families today come in a variety of shapes, sizes, ethnicities and genders. Perhaps it’s time to re-engineer what the word means. As per the TV show ‘Modern Family’, today’s family truly defies the traditional meaning. Today it could mean single parent households, multi-generational, a child-less couple, same-gender couples with children, and couples with adopted children to name a few. Gone are the days of ‘Leave it to Beaver’ where the only concept of family is a mother and father with two children. Today’s meaning is much more open and inclusive.
Sometimes though, the bonds you create with people in your life can be just as important as blood relatives. Families can be chosen too. We all know the saying, “you can choose your friends, but you can’t choose your family”. But I think you can. Your family can be the people in your life that you want to consider as family.
Human beings are social creatures and families are very important to our social structure. They add stability, financial security, happiness, emotional security and a general feeling of belonging and well being. Communities benefit from the family unit as it is relieved of the burden of supporting people who need the extra help.
Let’s look at the 2nd definition of family. Our prehistoric ancestors were also very social. The caveman version of family was a tribal unit. They lived in a very communal setting and quite often traveled together as a unit to seek alternative living areas when the seasons dictated. Research indicates that these ancient tribal communities were polygamous, and children were raised in a much more communal-style setting. Some social anthropologists would agree that human beings as a species are not meant to be monogamous.
The Mother of everyone Alive Today
Ever heard of “Mitochondrial Eve”? Anthropological scientists believe all humans alive share a common ancestry. We carry evidence of this ancestry in our DNA. We all carry a 47th chromosome that resides in the mitochondria which is also found in an unbroken line of matriarchal ancestors stretching back to Africa. Scientists have identified this ancestor from 150,000 years ago as being related to all of us. She is the mother of everyone alive today. This woman is Mitochondrial Eve. In the truest scientific sense, we are truly all family.
Some of you are lucky enough to be living in a country or provinces/states that have a designated national Family Day like in Canada, South Africa, Vietnam and Uruguay to name a few. No matter what your definition of family is, make the time to spend it with the people you love and care about. What could you be doing with your family? Skiing and snowboarding at your local ski resort? Sleeping in and enjoying a nice brunch? Spending time together hiking a local trail with your family members and family pet? Whatever it is you choose to do, no matter who you do it with, you will be spending it with family. Guaranteed.
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Posted by Margaret Page in A Page of Insight, Just for Fun and tagged Family, families, love
