Welcome To Just TypiKel
– kellylmckenzie.com –
That’s me, on the left, Kelly L McKenzie, the Canadian Quirk Magnet.
Why did I create Just TypiKel?
I blame Francine, my mother for leaving that online university course catalogue lying on her coffee table. The timing could NOT have been better. My youngest was about to head off to college 3000 miles away and I was looking for a diversion. The “Momoir Project”class sounded as if it was the perfect ticket. I’d be writing about something near and dear to my heart: my two children and how they managed to survive being raised by me.
Things kind of took off from there. After a couple of months, I began writing for an online newspaper and my quirky, rather atypical, indeed Just TypiKel stories were picked up across Canada. There was always something to share. You see, my husband unfortunately died when our two were wee, and bolstered by the knowledge that he’d expect nothing less, I was determined to not allow his early demise to define their lives. I threw them into everything. You name it, they pretty much tried it. Life was one big car ride from skating rinks to pools and soccer fields. Toss in the fact that I’m an outright quirk magnet and am constantly juggling the oddest situations imaginable, and well, it’s quite the miracle that our two managed to not only survive but thrive. After 15 years of parenting them solo, I had a wealth of material to write about.
Then the day arrived when I felt the need to have more control over the sharing of my stories and Just TypiKel was born. In addition to writing about my two, I began to share tidbits of our travels with my mother. It was illuminating to discover that the posts about this busier-than-me nonagenarian were quickly becoming the most popular. Readers clamored to know more about our relationship.
Cheers, Francine! Thanks for being patient with my baby steps.
Francine has been after me for years to write a book but I wasn’t ready until now. Thanks to her influence and the wonderful encouragement from my readers, in addition to sharing my quirky family stories on Just TypiKel, I’m also crafting a memoir about the impact of the ten years of working with this dynamo of a mom in her successful Vancouver Asian antiques store. The extraordinary adventures I encountered and the people I met there were also truly life changing.
Yours in quirkiness,
Kelly
