Working it Out: Summer Days and RA

It was a long time coming – the sublime transition from cool spring days to sultry summer twilights’ was a stormy one, and not just for the weather but also for my joints. The air in recent weeks has been heavy and like a tropical rain forest – fantastic for keeping the yearly forest fires…

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The Burning Twilight (Summer Flares)

The new normal for our summers are forest fires. I call them Mother Nature’s Flares, because they are both unpredictable and uncontrollable. All it takes is a random lightening strike on a humid summer night or the careless flick of a cigarette out the window. Fire season has started early this year with a dry…

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The ARThritis Soiree: Arthritis Takes the Stage

A server hands me a glass of champagne and my partner and I peruse the silent auction items, the striking artwork made by and representing those living with arthritis, and the stage that will host this year’s entertainment and where the live auction will take place. The women are dressed in their evening gowns and…

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Buttons, Zippers, RA and a Cocktail Dress

The annual ARThritis Soiree was only a couple weeks away and I needed a new dress for the occasion. The ARThritis Soiree is an elegant inspirational evening hosted by Arthritis Research Canada that combines different forms of art in conjunction with supporting arthritis research and raising awareness of the many types of inflammatory arthritis thousands…

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Springing to Life

Spring has finally arrived on the west coast – cherry blossoms line the streets with their pink canopies, bright green shoots are pushing their way through the rich soil, it’s an awakening for the earth and my body. The damp chill winter was an orbiting repetition of flares and fatigue, and it was only when…

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RA Matters: At Work and in Life

The last several months of 2018 were quite eventful for me. I traveled, worked, prepared auditions for upcoming shows, and spent three months on an application for an exclusive Writer’s Studio Program at a local university. In November I received amazing news: I got cast into a new show, and I got accepted to the…

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When The Tide Turns

Winter in BC is usually not like winter in the rest of Canada. The coastal cities are spared the freezing temperatures and snowfall records. Our temperatures rarely dip below zero and rain keeps our forests and mountain trails lush and green. But like the tempestuous pull of the ocean and its changing tides, winter in…

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Self-Care: Make it Your Own

January is almost over, and the in the last couple of weeks, I’ve heard the melodic warble of the chickadee signaling a change in the air. The days are longer, warming up a little at a time, and even the though the first month has flown by, the year is just getting started. Just prior…

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Happy New Year 2019

I am counting down my last hours of 2018 in the tranquil days between the winter solstice and the advent of a New Year. The events of the past are crackling in the air, preparing to slip into memory, only to be revived in wistful moments of reminiscence. 2018 was a crazy spectacular year with…

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If You Like What You See

Some people have inquired if there’s a place to donate on my blog. This is for those who would like to offer extra support for my work and I thank you for this.

A bigger thank you to all my readers who offer ongoing support simply by stopping by for a visit. I enjoy writing and interacting with you.

About me

J.G. Chayko is a writer, actress, and international arthritis advocate who’s been involved in theatre for more than 30 years and has published poetry, fiction, and creative non-fiction.