Who is Kim Siever?

My friend Andrew contacted me earlier in the week to see if I can help him out. He and his wife were married in April, but still had no photos of them in their wedding outfits. They had planned to do photos yesterday, but their photographer had to cancel at the last minute. They asked me if I could pinch hit for them, and since I am such a phenomenal friend, I said yes.

They were a great couple to photograph. I didn’t even have to come up with poses. They took care of everything themselves, I just did the shooting.

It was a nice experience, and I am glad I didn’t have to organize photos for an entire wedding party or the reception.

Check out the entire set on Flickr.

Mary and I have been married for over 15 years. Sure, it’s not 50 or 75 years, but I like to think we have a good marriage, and I like to think I have learned a thing or two about how to stay married.

I thought I would share what I have learned.

1. Every time you say goodnight or goodbye, make “I love you” be the last thing you say. If one of you die, there will be no regrets about what you said last to each other.
2. Boast about your spouse’s virtues, but keep their vices a secret.
3. You don’t always have to prove you’re right. Even if you are.
4. If your disagreement is getting cyclical (“Yes you did” “No I didn’t” “Yes you did”, etc), stop.
5. Don’t wait until Valentine’s Day or Mother’s/Father’s Day to show appreciation to your spouse.
6. Do things you know your spouse hates doing.
7. Every time you feel like criticizing your spouse, think of two positive things to share instead.

Something I have prided myself on over the last few years has been my non-partisan involvement in politics. I don”t adhere to a specific political party in provincial or federal politics, and I don’t put all my eggs in one municipal basket. Per se.

Well, I ruined that. Sort of.

This year, against my best judgement, I involved myself with campaigns for two different candidates at different times leading up to this year’s municipal election.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I’ve enjoyed helping them out and being a part of the process, and I believe I made positive contributions to both campaigns.

All that being said, I realized recently that working on specific campaigns means I cannot criticize freely. While I did my best to ensure all candidate were being held accountable, I felt while on these campaigns, I was trying to live two lives. In addition, any criticism I voiced to other candidates could be construed as being official statements from the candidates I was helping.

And I want to be objective.

As a result, today I announce publicly that I am not on any campaigns in this year’s municipal elections in Lethbridge. Any criticism or political commentary is made by me and me alone. It does not represent anyone else’s views.

Now, let the games begin.