One of the hardest things when you move from one place to another is that you lose your safety net. We were very lucky to have great friends and very supportive family close to us in B.C. For better or for worse, we knew someone would be happy and able to rescue us after a single phone call. I have said wonderful things about Toronto and our new life before, but when our beloved bulldog Ipanema became very sick with a potentially genetic disease, I realized that I just wanted to pack up and leave. Luckily, our local friends accepted the challenge to support us throughout Ipanema’s recovery and Dr. Markus Luckwaldt came to our rescue. On February 7th, we celebrate seven months in Toronto and I am happy to report that Ipanema is strong and well. The picture above captures a “Kodak moment” that for a while seemed impossible. Today, I decided to share the dogster’s posts with Ipanema’s story hoping that it can help someone going through the hard Masticular Muscle Myositis (MMM) diagnosis.

September 17th, 2011:

Last month, our English Bulldog Ipanema started showing signs of an auto-immune disease called Masticular Muscle Myositis (MMM). We ran a full blood test and the results were spotless. She has always been a very healthy dog, and despite the swollen jaw muscles and the right side of her face looking like she had a stoke, she was very healthy at the time.

We started treating the symptoms with 20mg of prednisone twice a day for a month (starting on August 9th). Since she was able to open her mouth fully again after four weeks of treatment, we decreased the daily dosage to 15mg (three pills) twice a day.

Yesterday, she started showing the symptoms again, this time a bit stronger than when it started. We took her to the vet and he gave her a shoot of flucort. Almost 24 hours later, she hasn’t improved much, but seems to be in less pain.

I’ve always treated my dogs with traditional medicine and I really don’t know where I should go from here. My online research has shown that I am doing everything by the book and there is nothing else I can do to improve her condition with the traditional approach. I was hoping the community could help me answer the following questions:

1) Is there another desease more common in Bulldogs that looks like MMM? Apparently, MMM is very common in larger breeds like Shepards and Labradors, but I haven’t found information regarding Bulldogs.

2) Can it be an allergic reaction? Am I missing anything?

3) Should I pursue a biopsy of her masticular tissue? Would the results help me to find a better treatment?

Thanks in advance for your help,

Veronica and Ipanema

Answering my own questions, we kept Ipanema on prednisone until the symptoms started to change. We learned very quickly that steroids are sometimes the best option to keep things under control. I kept track of every single sign that could be translated into a clinical diagnosis. Her mood, her skin, the colour of her gums, everything was promptly reported to her doctor and slowly we  started to understand her condition better. We didn’t pursue the biopsy because she responded to the medication as we expected. However, Ipanema’s MMM manifested differently in November and we started to think that the disease was being triggered by something else.

December 27th, 2011

We decided that we wouldn’t put Ipanema through a biopsy, so we will never know if she had MMM for sure. However, after four months of prednisone and noticeable muscle loss on top of her head, we are very confident that she had an atypical manifestation of the disease, since it only occurred on one side (MMM is commonly bilateral). We started treating her with 20mg of prednisone every 12 hours in August, we are now giving her 10mg every 24 hours, as per the weaning off schedule recommended by our vet.

While we were trying to find out what was causing her jaw pain, Ipanema would have MMM every three weeks, when we would try to wean her of the prednisone. we noticed that before she would present the jaw pain, her gums would bleed. We got several prescriptions to help her gums to heal, it would get better but once I’d tried to wean her off the prednisone, the MMM would come back.

About two months ago, Ipanema woke up with massive swelling on the MMM side, the bleeding was very intense and she was unable to open her mouth again. We took her to the vet on the same day and discovered that she had a bacterial infection. After starting on the antibacterial prescription, she got back to normal in two weeks, however, the infection pointed us in the right direction showing that there was an entry way in her immune system. We had her thyroid level checked, a full T4, not just the regular check up. Turned out that she has hypothyroidism. Ipanema’s disposition came back a week after we started her on the thyroid medication.

Two weeks after the run to the vet and after the bacterial infection was under control, her vet did a x-ray of the right side of her face (the MMM side) and turned out that she had an abscessed tooth. He decided to extract that along with another broken tooth and she has been on the road to recovery since then.

We are still very cautious with her. We think that one of the first signs of MMM was the excessive drooling over the summer that we just attributed to her getting older. We have no idea of how and when she broke her tooth, but it seems to be what was causing the MMM.

If you’re going through this terrible diagnosis now, my advice is:
- Work with a vet that you trust. If you’re in Toronto, ON, Canada, I highly recommend Dr. Markus Luckwaldt (Amherst Veterinary Hospital);
- Write down all the symptoms and discuss them with your vet;
- Don’t give up on your dog. Give them support and let them fight the disease;
- and, if your vet doesn’t give you hope, find a new professional to help you through this process!

I stand behind the recommendations above and would just add one more thing: contact your pet insurance company before making any decisions. Ipanema was able to receive the best treatment available because the insurance covered all expenses and paid the clinic for all the procedures directly. Having said that, if your current vet refuses to help you with the paperwork, find another clinic to treat your pooch. We pay insurance for a reason and it’s part of the veterinary business to process claims and get paid.

Hope our story helps you with finding answers to your own disgnosis. Don’t give up on your dog, I am not a vet, but Ipanema’s recovery has showed me that believing is better than giving up!

Earlier this semester, I came across a very interesting article entitled Learning from the Trickster: Classroom as Contested Terrain by UNBC Professor Fyre Jean Graveline. The idea of the Trickster has been haunting me for weeks now. For those who are not familiar with the figure of the Trickster, in aboriginal culture he is the spirit that motivates change. It’s still unclear if the Trickster has a defined code of conduct, however, I believe that this First Nations’ figure has a lot to do with the role of writers in our society.

“The Trickster is evident in some form in every Aboriginal culture and is responsible for the changes that took and are taking place in  the world,” says Professor Graveline. In western culture, journalists are required to perform exactly the function of the Trickster. As a society, we often expect that news reporters act on our behalf bringing to light accurate information that will move us in the right direction. That’s the reason why the term “investigative journalism” is one of my pet peeves. In this day and age, it’s hard to understand a “lazy” journalist who is satisfied with revamping a Reuters or AP article. Journalism in its essence is investigative and there is no need for rebranding. It’s impossible to keep Tricksters on track when they are more interested in promoting themselves or forget their role in our world. Some will blame the industry, some will blame the Trickster, but at the end, it’s a chicken and the egg discussion.

However, journalism school allowed me to meet some great Tricksters. Even though I didn’t pursue a career in journalism, Arthur Dapieve’s comment on his own role as a columnist at O Globo stayed with me. It was a end of the semester corridor type of conversation, I was about to graduate and was asking Dapieve about his weekly column. He interrupted me when I was about to complement him on his work and said:

You know, Veronica, I actually write for people who don’t like my work. I learn more from them!

After eight years of blogging, I agree with his statement. I’ve learned much more from readers who disagree with me and step on my toes. I feel like a real Trickster, hoping that my ideas will generate change sometime, somewhere…

Cineplex is currently experimenting with Toronto-based interactive mobile app TimePlay during its pre-show. Today was the first time that I had the chance to play with it. The app seems to be a great tool to make Cineplex’s pre-show more interesting to its audience and maybe get the movie-goers sitted earlier.

The hook is simple. During the pre-show the host invites the audience to connect to a wi-fi connection called TimePlay, open their browser and download the app. The good news is the app is available for iPhone, BlackBerry and Android devices, however, the host also provides a phone number that you can call if you can’t do the download. Once it gets close to the end of the pre-show, the host walks the audience through the app set-up and briefly explains how it works.

TimePlay is still in the testing phase here in the TGA and if it goes well, access will be extended to the rest of the country. Between the Ford Focus and the Canon Powershot ad, I’d pick the latter because a coupon seems more interesting than just picking a character. However, I’d be all over an ad that gives me both the interactive experience and a special deal

As an advertiser, I’d be interested in the backend data and how the audience is interacting with the ads. Moving forward, TimePlay could be a very interesting platform if it had the ability to connect to social platforms and be used to identify and reward brand ambassadors in the audience. I hope Cineplex is thinking about it as we speak

Learn more about TimePlay at Cineplex.com.

P.S.: Haywire is a great film. It’s awesome to see a female lead kicking some ass for a change!

First day off in a long time. Today I followed Arianna Huffington’s advice and gave myself a break. Sort of… I spent the whole day working on the new version of the blog designed by Marcio Bomfim.

Stay tuned!

1 – Be There To Be Free

The main difference between an undergrad and a master program is that you are in charge of your academic production. I mean, really in charge of it! Every single paper, every single idea that I have is meant to fit into the scope of my research. It’s great to have time to invest in my ideas and actually develop them. It’s a bitter sweet experience since failure is just around the corner and getting lost is part of the process. However, overall, it’s a very rewarding experience.

2 – Constant Feedback

Remember the time when your grade was all that mattered? Well, it’s quite different in grad school. I am getting used to receiving solid feedback for my intelectual production. Grad school is great to understand how your work is perceived and test your ideas. There is always space for improvement although it’s great to know that you have the support to get there!

3 – Poetry

Maybe this one only applies to me, but I love the fact that I can stop and observe people on my breaks. Poetry is everywhere on campus (and I know it sounds super cheesy!). I enjoy sitting around and observing stories unfolding. You have no idea how many love stories happen before my eyes every single day I am on campus. And yes, I see love triangles, and platonic relationships that wouldn’t be platonic at all if boy or girl would make the first move.

Don’t get me wrong, I am really looking forward getting back to work in August. I am enjoying by break though, and capturing as many stories as I can along the way…

Read more: An Introvert’s Guide to Networking (in case you’re back in the job market)

I don’t want to make this a shameless self-promotion type of blog post, but I just realized that I will be very busy in the next few months. I started saying yes to things and suddenly I am fully booked until May. If I was ever worried about the move to Toronto negatively affecting my social and professional life, the concern just vanished.

February will be a busy month. I signed up for a few Social Media Week (February 13th – 17th) sessions and I am really looking forward to meeting local social media and digital strategists. So far, I will be attending Pulse Check: SMWTO Official Launch Event, Digital Legacy: Raising a Social Generation and Project Butterfly: Escaping The Net. I am also excited to attend my first Podcamp Toronto on February 25th and 26th at Ryerson University. Admission to Podcamp Toronto is free and you can register here.

On March 1st, myself and fellow Ryerson University students Rob Heydari, Wil Noack, and Britney Elise Darmanin will discuss the future of media and content creation at CMPA’s Primetime Conference in Ottawa. Our panel is entitled “Are We There Yet? Media Consumers Today, Content Creators of Tomorrow” and Professor Charles Falzon will be the moderator of the session. If school permitted, I might go to SXSW as well, but that’s really up in the air right now…

However, I am heading to Las Vegas for the NABShow on April 15th. I confess that I am really looking forward to relaxing a little bit before the end of the semester. I am really looking forward to enjoying four days of conference and checking out the newest trends in North American content production and broadcast industries.

On May 30th, Professor Jeremy Shtern and I will be presenting at the Canadian Communication Association (CCA) Annual Conference in Waterloo. Our paper entitled “Mad Men in a Mad World: How Social Media Advertising Professionals Value Users” will discuss the initial findings of the commerce pillar of the “The Interactor Commodity: Social Media, UGC, Audiences and Advertising” research project.

That’s what I have programmed for the next few months so far. Did I miss anything? Should I add any local events to the list?

“Do you want to hear a story that my father used to tell me when I was little?,” asked Anne after she had me convinced that I was in fact a Rooster, not a Dog in the Chinese horoscope. “Of course,” I said. “Do you know why the Rooster crows every morning?,” she inquired. My blank stare said it all and the story went more or less like this:

“The Rooster used to have beautiful horns and receive complements from all the other animals for its beauty. One night, the Dragon noticed how beautiful the Rooster’s horns were and had the Rooster convinced that he would still be a handsome Rooster even without the horns. The Dragon really wanted to wear the Rooster’s horns for a party and since the Dragon was a good friend, the Rooster decided to lend his horns to the Dragon for one night. 

However, when the time to return the horns arrived, the Dragon realized that he was very fond of his new horns and refused to give them back. The Rooster caught up with the Dragon and demanded his horns back, but the Dragon just shook his head and flew away as fast as he could.

So, now, every morning, the Rooster wakes up early to yell ‘Give my horns back,’ in hopes that the Dragon will listen and return them.”

Through telling me a simple story, my friend Anne not only had me immersed in her culture, but created curiosity and a memory filled with meaning regarding my own identity as an honorary Rooster. As Dr. Pamela Rutledge says, powerful stories provide triggers for our memories, emotions, and experience and, in doing so, envelope us. It doesn’t matter if your story will be played throughout different platforms if you don’t have an interesting story to tell. Folklore and tales are powerful because they stimulate memories and emotions that are known to all of us. No matter if you’re a Rooster or Dragon, you’ll probably sympathize with the Rooster after reading how he lost his horns.

Kung Hei Fat Choy!

Do you know what your Chinese sign is? Have an interesting tale to share?

Read More:

All The World Is A Story

Be lucky: Millions of Chinese around the world welcome in the traditionally prosperous Year Of The Dragon

We have a great park close to home that Ipanema looooooves. In the summer, Sherwood Park is our favourite spot for hikes. They have a great off-leash trail that is challenging to both humans and dogs with stairs and creeks all the way. After two days of snow, going back to Sherwood Park seemed like the perfect idea for a sunny day.

Sure thing! The park turned out to be a winter wonderland. There were families everywhere enjoying the day sliding downhill right at the entrance and dogs were having a great time at the off leash areas. I collected some shots for your amusement during our walk, hope it proves that Toronto is a lot of fun in the winter.

Occupy the slopes!!!

Dogs everywhere…

Ipanema had a great time running after her toys and chasing us.

More families enjoying the sunny day and fresh snow…

… and that is what a very tired dog looks like!

Read more about Toronto Parks here.

As I said before, I have been thinking a lot about my legacy. So far, pursuing a Masters program has proved two things: I love creating and managing content, and I know a lot about what I love. Seven years working in three different industries has taught me a lot about audiences and the mechanics of the business. However, the most interesting part of not being a rookie anymore is that you actually have some something to share with the rookies And I love that! Undergrad students are the most interesting people in the world, it’s inspiring to see how eager and open they are to learn more about the industry and the trade. They are also bright. Gosh, they are bright! They always bring up new solutions with such passion. Industry veterans don’t need just career coaches to advance in their careers, they need to mentor undergrads and young professionals!

Like any person that has considered pursuing a PhD, developing research in the industry sounds like the best idea ever. It’s not easy, funding is scarce, but imagine a world where you can answer your question through a methodology that you developed yourself. Imagine being paid to write books and publish them. Doesn’t the life of a professor sound amazing?

Personally, I feel that the recent innovations in the industry and changes in the funding structure with incentives to new media development make going back to the job market very exciting. But, what would happen if I have decided to stay?

Read more:

The Disposable Academic

10 Myths About Immigration (see question 7)

As a content producer, I would need to be able to prove that the content that I publish here does not infringe any copyright laws. Even though the bills are being proposed in the USA, if my website is somehow identified as a threat to another registered IP the content would be immediately blocked and I would be responsible for proving authorship of my posts and pictures. For most bloggers and Internet users, an international law suit would require time and money that most of us don’t have to spare. SOPA and PIPA are not just a threat to our capacity to interact with each other and share ideas, but also a potential barrier to the maintenance of our cultural identity. From the transmedia storytelling point of view, both bills would also stop us from creating trends, fan sites and memes based on mainstream media IPs. Would you like to live in a world like that?

If you’re unsure about how SOPA and PIPA would affect your user experience, Professor Clark Sirky’s TED will probably help you understand the scope of both bills.

Read More:

Results of the Blackout and looking ahead

In Fight Over Piracy Bills, New Economy Rises Against Old

I almost forgot about it, but today is Blue Monday. It seems that most of us is dealing with unpaid Christmas bills, nasty weather and failed New Year’s resolutions on this third Monday of January, which makes it the unhappiest day of the year. Not for me though! The blog is going strong and actually helping me to get closer to be a better storyteller. This process is directly influencing the way that I see the world every single day and I am amazed by the great stories that I watched develop on a daily basis. In terms of New Year’s plans, the Blue Monday empowered me this year since I am keeping my commitment to blogging every day  and working out regularly in 2012.

In this very atypical Blue Monday, I also discovered an extra incentive to keeping a healthy lifestyle. Today, I picked up my first Good Food box at Ryerson and brought a bag full of fresh local produce home. The box is a FoodShare Toronto initiative and its main goal is to promote awareness that fresh whole foods play a pivotal role in preventing diseases and keeping a healthy lifestyle. The project is also important in creating awareness about food distribution and empowering individuals and local communities. The best part is that the box is extremely affordable! For $13, I got a full bag of fresh fruits and veggies, a direct investment in health and local farmers.

Does your community have a similar program? Want do you do to make sure that you’re eating locally and healthy?

Since I started this crazy quest for one post a day for 366 days, I’ve been thinking about this Harvard Business Review blog post. In suggesting five resolutions for aspiring leaders, Coleman and George left me thinking about the importance of having a peer support group. Ex-pat or not, friends, family and colleagues play a very important role in our success. But, how can you have a support network if you’re new to a city? Well, the Failure Club seems like a viable solution.

Founded in 2004 by a group of friends, the Failure Club is a place where people are free to commit to their most genuine dreams counting that the group will support each other throughout a year. In the Failure Club, people are encourage to fail and face their fears. Failing is seen as part of the process and members encourage each other to keep on pursuing their dreams. I know… it sounds a bit too self-help and cheesy to all of us, but if you think about it, you might realize that the Failure Club makes sense.

Supersize Me’s director Morgan Spurlock turned the concept into a Y!Screen show this year. The web series tracks the life of a group of New Yorkers who are pursuing dreams from starting a clothing line to becoming a stand-up comedian. I am seriously considering starting a club here in Toronto. Watch the welcome video to learn more about the group dynamics and send me an email through the contact form if you’re interested in starting a local pod. Let’s make this year our year!

Six months. Apparently, this is the time that it takes to start calling Toronto home. We already have our breakfast place, a favourite coffee shop, the neighbourhood feels cozy, and the TTC system and the PATH make completely sense to us now. The days that we would plan our trip on Google maps before leaving home are long gone. I finally understand that the CN Tower is south of almost everything. It took us six months, but Toronto finally feels like home to us.

I still don’t consider myself a Torontonian who knows everything about her city. We still have so many places to visit here. Casa Loma and the AGO are a few of the places that we still need to explore. We haven’t been to Niagara Falls nor have we visited Ottawa. And since we arrived here in July, we missed the Toronto Pride and the Summer WoofStock. I am really looking forward to the next six months and the lively atmosphere that Spring and Summer will bring to my city. Stay tunned!

Did I forget any important Toronto landmark or festival in this post? Please add your suggestion to the comments section.

You say I have an accent, but I don’t hear it. As far as I can tell, the English words that reverberate in my head are perfectly understandable and my pronunciation is spotless. I know that I mumble a word here and there, and sometimes replace common words for more elaborate ones that I can pronounce a little easier. However, if I can understand a variety of accents in Canada, dude, you should be able to understand mine. But, I don’t know how, sometimes you don’t, so I decided to write you three quick tips to help you communicate with me:

To start, my first language is Brazilian Portuguese. Unlike English, my mother tongue has pretty much only one way to enunciate vowels and weird structures such as ção and há. It’s like French, you learn the sounds, you know how to say any word. You won’t necessarily know what you’re saying, but at least you can say it! English, on the other hand, doesn’t make any sense. For example, you can participate in a contest, but you contest your grade. The potato is “load-ed” with good stuff, but it was baked, not “bake-ed.” I am progressively mastering these diferences, but please don’t make a weird face when I don’t stress the syllables the way you expect. If you live in Toronto, I kinda expect you to have a trained ear…

Secondly, I am not deaf. In all fairness, this is not an English-speaker thing. My Mom also insists on yelling at Mr. Ames in Portuguese thinking that it will help him understand what she is saying. However, if you are having a normal conversation with me and you suddenly raise your voice, chances are that you’re going to scare the hell out of me! I have never been in a situation that I had to literally run away from a conversation, but after five years in Canada, I am starting to think that this day will arrive soon. The problem here is not that I don’t understand you, YOU are the one who is having a hard time understanding what I am saying! Just take a deep breath and try again. I’ll do my best to use new words to help you understand what I am saying.

Finally, there is no problem in asking me to repeat what I just said or spell out the word that you can’t understand. I am a smart girl and would feel respected if you just asked for clarification. Because, you know, if you keep talking I will know that you didn’t understand a word of what I just said and are trying to be polite by carrying on with the conversation. Remember when I said that I hate to be patronized? Yeah… that’s exactly how I will feel about you.

Seriously, this can work! I have been here for five years and so far I’ve been successful in making myself understood while working in the communications industry. I sometimes have a hard time understanding you too, but I always try to give you a fighting chance. I know that there are days that I am tired or have been speaking Portuguese before I met with you and my accent is super thick. I will give you that! Give me a minute or two, it will get better…

Disclaimer: This blog post is not meant to attack anyone that I know. It’s just a collection of funny situations that I hope will make you laugh and inspire your future interactions in English.

If you want to expand on the multicultural discussion, you should check out the Coop Culture website.