Latest news with #Mike
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- General
- Yahoo
Is your life not fair? Here's how to level-up when life's got you down
LIFE'S NOT FAIR! OK, I said it. A day after a celebration for Father's Day... Two days after my birthday... Come on Mike? You have a lot to be thankful for. How can you say that? Well, I'm not here to give a five-year synopsis of my life, but I am here to say we all have those feelings of hopelessness and fear. It's just all on different terms, measures and circumstances. Maybe you are not treated fairly at work and watch others make more than you and do less work. Maybe you are putting in the effort with your workouts and not seeing any change in the mirror. Maybe you eat "clean" and can't seem to lose an ounce on the scale and end up cringing everyday you step on or put food in your mouth, yet you see friends eat whatever they want and look amazing. Maybe you feel you are in a one-sided relationship and that you are the one sacrificing everything. You see, life is always full of unfairness and things that will test us mentally and physically to keep going the next step and mile for help and effort. We want to know that justice will be served. I know I'm not perfect. I know I was too young and had a gym grow too fast on me before I knew what was happening. I know I was blessed with two little beautiful babies at a chaotic time in life and struggled to figure out how to deal with the demands life throws. I know I had many personal things I loved stripped from my life that had me quick to say, "COME ON, WHAT GIVES!" And the more I bought into this, the more Satan fueled his fire stick to keep leveraging his power in my life to let everyone's beliefs, thoughts and my own circumstances be my very own prison. As Paul wrote in prison (you all should know this one): 'I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength,' Philippians 4:12-13 Why does this matter? Well, when you think you are going through things in life that are not fair, rather than soaking in the hardship (which I get and is what most do), I want you to ask yourself this instead: "What is God trying to STRENGTHEN me with by doing this?" "How can I serve someone ELSE in the midst of this pain?" "If I see into the future and God changes things, how will this CURRENT feeling help me know how to handle the blessing." No matter how change comes about, it usually brings discomfort. We were very comfortable. Now we're uncomfortable. And no one likes being uncomfortable but it's part of life. In fact, I'd argue it's necessary for growth. It's during seasons of discomfort that we learn, adapt, and grow. More from Mike Over: Always dieting but never losing weight? Here's why. More from Mike Over: Don't be so afraid of carbs, fitness coach says Well, let me clarify: discomfort can lead to growth if we choose to embrace change. If we resist it, if we get discouraged by it, if we feel helpless during it, discomfort can lead to despair instead of growth. The key is to embrace whatever change you're going through, even when it's uncomfortable. It's also important to look forward, not backward. Take memories with you as you move forward and do not carry the weight of the bad or you will have the load of an evil wrath weighing you down so you can never clear to the future YOU. When your vision for your future is greater than your discomfort, you adapt, grow, and find a way forward! Never let discomfort ruin you, let it GROW you and you will see the new plans you never thought possible. I pray this helps you as you fight your week! If you are looking for a coach to walk you through the things you need in life and health, wait no more, schedule a chat with me. God Bless. Mike Over is a fitness coach based in Chambersburg, Pa.. Email him at mike@ This article originally appeared on Chambersburg Public Opinion: Mike Over: When life feels unfair, it's time to level-up
Wales Online
20 hours ago
- Climate
- Wales Online
Met Office weather maps tip another heatwave and the hottest day of the year
Met Office weather maps tip another heatwave and the hottest day of the year The second official heatwave of the year looks a distinct possibility and the 30C high for 2025 looks set to be beaten within days Monday's weather across Wales. (Image: Met Office ) The hottest day of the year so far in Wales is on its way, according to the latest Met Office forecast. Despite the already hot weather the mercury is tipped to rise even further from the weekend and into the early part of next week. The hottest day of the year so far was on Thursday, June 19 with temperatures reaching 30C in Cardiff and at Trawscoed, Ceredigion. But forecaster are tipping that high to be beaten on Monday and it may even be officially classified as a heatwave with three days at 25C or higher. Starting on Sunday, June 29 we can expect to see the start, with highs of 27 degree Celsius in some parts of Wales, and the following day will be warmer again. Whether you're in south Wales or in the north, next week is looking like a warm one. For our free daily briefing on the biggest issues facing the nation, sign up to the Wales Matters newsletter here . Mike Silverstone, Deputy Chief Meteorologist at the Met Office has said: "Higher temperatures building over the weekend and into early next week will bring particularly warm, hot or even very hot conditions for some, especially in the southeast and East Anglia and more locally elsewhere in England and east Wales. Article continues below "This in part will be influenced by a heatwave developing across western Europe." Mike added: "By the weekend, an area of high pressure will be intensifying and dominating the UK forecast. Conditions will be hottest in the south and east while areas further north and northwest will be relatively cooler." So here is what we can expect from the heatwave: Sunday, June 29 Sunday's weather across Wales. (Image: Met Office ) On Sunday, we will see the start of some warmer weather across Wales as some areas will reach a high of 27C. The low will be at Holyhead, Anglesey at 18C. Monday, June 30 Get your sun cream ready because parts of Wales will reach over 30 this coming Monday. (Image: Met Office ) On Monday, we can expect Wales' hottest day of the year so far with highs of 32C Monmouth, 27C for Aberystwyth, 27C for Swansea, 29C for Cardiff and the lowest forecasted temperature is Holyhead at 20C. Tuesday, July 1 Tuesday's weather across Wales. (Image: Met Office ) There will be slight dip in weather on Tuesday, but it will still be extremely hot. With highs of 25C in Monmouth and lows of 17C, again on Anglesey. Article continues below So, with this in mind fetch some factor 50 SPF, purchase a fan and here is one tip on how to cool down in the hot weather.
Globe and Mail
a day ago
- General
- Globe and Mail
Her turn to play
Maven Maurer stood in front of the bathroom mirror at a friend's home in Jasper, Alta., early one morning this spring, staring intently at her own reflection. She wasn't nervous, not really. She'd stayed up late practising what she was going to say at the event, rewriting and reworking her speech, making sure everything was exactly how she wanted it to be. She'd told her story before, but only in bits and pieces. This would be the first time she'd share it all in public. She had chosen her outfit carefully – a new black blazer with wide-leg pants and a sunny yellow shirt – and she'd applied her makeup with precision, blending her foundation, curling her eyelashes, covering her scars. She thought about Mike. She knew some women in her position would try to forget him. Pretend he'd never existed, even. But Mike was so much a part of her that she didn't want to let him go. She was grateful to him for being so strong and fierce, for keeping her safe, for getting her to this place where she was finally ready to move on without him. 'So many people in the trans community kill off their former self, they erase any sort of history of their former life,' Maven said. She couldn't do that. Her past was too visible to leave behind completely, and she wouldn't want to even if she could. 'I had some of the most amazing experiences. I fathered three magnificent daughters, married an amazing woman, and we built a pretty incredible life,' she said. 'And I didn't want to wish it away or have it be any different.' Instead, Maven's therapist had suggested another way of looking at it that made sense to her: What if her body were a vehicle that Mike had been driving all this time? Now, with gratitude, it was Maven's turn to take the wheel. Sometimes it's described as an egg cracking open. The experience of realization that changes everything. For Maven, it happened when she was 44 years old and living as a man named Mike. It came in the wake of a near-death experience, and after a lifetime of trying unsuccessfully to make herself fit into her own life. It was 2020. Around her, the world itself was changing in ways that were previously unimaginable. Maven's transition felt equally unfathomable. It took her a whole year just to get her mind around it. Mike was an acclaimed professional football player who'd won two Grey Cups. An MMA fighter whose nickname was 'the Wolverine,' because of his ferocity. The very picture of a certain kind of masculinity, body roped thick with muscle, fashioned in the image of Conan the Barbarian, whom her father had once said was everything a man should be. No longer living as Mike could mean losing everything: wife, family, home, friends and all the privileges a man possesses in this world. She would be the first professional football player to come out as trans, and one of only a handful of players to come out as LGBTQ+. As a trans woman, Maven could face marginalization, scrutiny and threat, all for a chance at happiness. And maybe, one day, the contentment that had always eluded her. It was a gamble, but it wasn't a choice. It was a matter of survival. Maven grew up in Saskatoon as Mike Maurer, a scrawny kid who was bullied and always felt different than the other boys. She learned early that the only things that helped were to be strong enough to withstand as much pain as possible, and mean enough to fight back. In high school, she started playing football, where those qualities were admired and celebrated, and after graduation she did a stint with the army, aiming to go overseas on a peacekeeping mission. She came back to football almost by chance after a scrimmage with her unit at Taylor Field, where the Saskatchewan Roughriders played in Regina. She attended the Roughriders training camp in 1996 and joined the team the next year, forging an aggressive playing style that, as one former player described, 'wipes guys out all over the field.' Even before her first game, she got into a fight with another player. She broke her hand but never missed a practice and still suited up for the game. It was the kind of mettle coaches loved, and the story spread. 'It just exemplified, I guess my character,' Maven says. 'You knew that I wasn't going to take any shit.' She says that attitude left her on the outside of locker-room teasing and bonding, but that's how she liked it. 'I kind of excluded myself,' she says. 'That's where I was comfortable. That's where I was my whole life. I was always on the outside looking in.' She played 13 years in the CFL, a fullback and special teams player for the Saskatchewan Roughriders, the BC Lions, the Ottawa Renegades and the Edmonton Elks (then the Eskimos). In that time, she won two Grey Cups and gathered both accolades and injuries that come with that many seasons of serious football. As Mike, she fell in love, married and had three daughters. But no amount of success or praise was ever enough. She hated herself for every failure, and felt disconnected from how she appeared in the world. 'It's hard when you're not authentic, and you're always thinking about how you're going to be perceived,' Maven says. 'Does this align with my tough guy image? A lot of it was like, how am I supposed to act?' She thought of suicide, but she didn't want to put her wife and girls through that kind of loss. Instead, she fantasized about dying while saving someone else – the scenario that had drawn her to being a soldier and, later, led her to train to be an EMT and firefighter. Through accidents and acts of recklessness, Maven did come close to dying more than once. At some point, she started to think about why she'd always survived, to wonder what her life was for. 'When I opened that door, it all came flooding out,' Maven says. 'All the memories and all of the hurts.' She remembered playing with the girls when she was a child, laughing with them, sounding like them, and even feeling like them until the boys overheard and turned cruel. 'I wasn't allowed to cry,' Maven says. 'I had to toughen up. I wasn't allowed to grow my hair out.' Then there was the pep-rally drag show in high school, when, as Mike, she'd dressed in a bobbed wig and a long black dress. She remembered how one of the other football players said, 'Holy crap, Maurer, you're hot,' and how it felt so good to face the rest of the school like that, to hear the cheers and applause. Later, she knew it had felt too good, and told herself, 'I can't do that again.' Decades later, she put a photo of Mike into the Gender Swap app. She instantly thought: 'I love her.' Meditation, therapy and journaling brought her to the truth. She was a trans woman. The first person she told was her wife, Hayley. It was more than a year after her revelation that she ventured outside for the first time as a woman. There were three places she felt safe to go in Regina: a pot store, a board-game shop and Safeway, all within a few minutes from her house. People knew her in the city, and they had ideas and expectations of who Mike Maurer the football star was. After she began hormone treatment, Maven and her family decided she should move to Jasper, to start a new life surrounded by the water and trees and mountains, in a place that spoke directly to her soul. Her first day living full-time as a woman was when she started working as a train conductor in January of 2023. 'When you go through the whole hormone change, you almost go through another puberty,' she says. 'You're a trans baby at first, and everything is new.' Maven made friends, spent time in nature and worked at converting an old school bus into an off-grid home. She lived quietly and privately until last summer, when she was invited to Vancouver to celebrate the BC Lions 2000 Grey Cup team being inducted into the BC Place Wall of Fame. About half her old teammates would be in attendance. They would be honoured during a televised game, and Maven tried to imagine how it would go. How would she be announced? What would the other players think? How would fans and the media respond? She booked a plane ticket the day before the event. She was standing in the middle of the field with men all around her. Her hair was long and straight, and she wore a BC Lions bomber jacket over a silky orange shirt, her fingernails painted to match. She lit up when she heard her name, 'Maven Maurer.' Her Grey Cup ring glinted as she waved to the cheering crowd. 'My teammates welcomed me with open arms, and it turned out even better than I could have imagined,' she says. 'Them embracing me as Maven healed parts of me I didn't even know needed healing. Hearing my name being announced, my real name, while out on the field in front of the fans with my team present, was pure euphoria.' Maven Maurer strode into the Legion hall in Hinton, Alta., on a sunny spring morning, and picked up a name tag from the table at the door. She wrote down her name and pronouns – she/her – and adjusted the lanyard against her yellow shirt. She was one of the featured speakers at the Unity Summit, a gathering celebrating stories of inclusion, equity and resilience in the small Alberta community. Maven was still healing from a breast augmentation, but after all she'd been through – all the accidents, years of football – the recovery barely fazed her. It all felt natural and right, like when she started hormones. She felt strong and healthy and good. Her transition had revealed many things. She'd lost people close to her, but so many others had surprised her. Friends and football heroes had chosen to stand at her side. She tried to ignore the negative comments some people posted on social media, brushing off the hatred she saw and felt directed at her and the trans community. 'Do you know how much you have to love yourself to withstand that?' she said. It still surprised Maven that she could love herself so much. 'I want to be that person that uplifts people and spreads the joy and the love, because I was not that before,' she said. 'I was mean and snarling. I was the Wolverine, and it was all a projection ... because I had been bullied and I had been the outsider and I didn't belong.' Maven and her wife had decided to pursue the next chapter of their lives apart. But they remained best friends, and they'd been texting throughout the morning. Hayley had helped her choose the outfit for the speech, and had bought the gold chain Maven was wearing – a pendant that spelled out 'Maven' in script. Their divorce had recently become final, and even though it was raw and deeply painful, it felt like another form of love to let each other go. Maven's wedding band remained, tattooed on her left hand. Maven took a deep breath before walking onto the stage. 'My name is Maven Maurer, but that wasn't always my name,' she told the audience. Pictures played on a screen beside her. She liked to show people the two parts of her life side by side. Mike, rugged and scowling. Maven, smiling and joyful. 'I discovered myself at 44 and began my transition at 46, proving it's never too late to find your true self,' Maven said. 'Every day we get to decide to be the best version of ourselves. We can choose to remake ourselves – rebuild ourselves using the best parts that we want to keep and letting go of what no longer serves us.' The crowd rose to a standing ovation. Later, people flocked around Maven to share stories about trans people in their lives, or to talk about how much courage it takes to be who you are, whoever that is. 'You're really brave to do this,' said one woman, Deb Bird. 'And you're beautiful.' When Maven was asked how she chose her name, she said it was because it means 'one who understands,' and is a variation of Maeve, a powerful figure in Irish mythology. 'Queen Maeve was a warrior queen, and that's how I picture myself in my mind's eye,' Maven said. 'Warrior queen. Here I am.'
Metro
a day ago
- Climate
- Metro
Map shows how hot the weather has to be before it is a heatwave in the UK
It's time to dig out the SPF and stay hydrated as UK temperatures soar for the second time in two weeks. Forecasters predict London and the south of England could reach up to 28°C on Friday, before rising to 30°C on Saturday and 31°C on Sunday. It's all thanks to a heatwave which is already developing across western Europe. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has issued an amber heat health alert, which came into effect this morning and is in place until 6pm on Tuesday. While the word 'heatwave' can get bandied around as soon as the sun starts to come out in the UK, there are certain thresholds that must be met before a heatwave is actually declared. The temperature that must be reached for a heatwave to be announced is different depending on what area of the UK you're in, meaning parts of the country can be in a heatwave while others aren't. Some Britons are set to bask in a heatwave this week. The Met Office defines the weather event as when temperatures meet or exceed the threshold for a specific area for three consecutive days. As shown in the map above, in London, this is 28°C, whereas in cities including Bristol, Cardiff and Manchester, the threshold is 27°C, 26°C and 25°C, respectively. The Met Office is warning that this weekend and early next week are likely to bring the highest temperatures of 2025 so far. Deputy chief meteorologist Mike Silverstone said: 'Higher temperatures building over the weekend and into early next week will bring particularly warm, hot or even very hot conditions for some. 'By the weekend, an area of high pressure will be intensifying and dominating the UK forecast. 'Conditions will be hottest in the south and east while areas further north and northwest will be relatively cooler. 'Monday could see temperatures reach around 34°C in some parts, though we will be able to be more precise closer to the time.' The burst of heat is expected to peak this weekend before easing early next week. There is uncertainty in how quickly it will cool, with some models predicting temperatures in the mid-30s by Monday. Mike added: 'The heat is most likely to gradually relent from the west on Tuesday and into Wednesday, with a return towards more average temperatures for the second half of next week. The Met Office has warned the hottest temperatures across the weekend will be seen in the south east and East Anglia and more locally elsewhere in England and east Wales. The Met Office confirmed the UK's record high temperature was 40.3°C. The mercury hits those heights in Lincolnshire in July 2022. More Trending The extreme temperatures were recorded as the UK was sweltering in an unprecedented heatwave. In that time, the previous UK record temperature of 38.7°C was provisionally met or exceeded in 46 places across the UK, while seven areas saw temperatures above 40°C. Dr Mark McCarthy, from the National Climate Information Centre, told the Met Office in 2022 that without human-induced climate change, 'it would be virtually impossible for temperatures in the UK to reach 40°C.' Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: Boy, 12, and man, 59, killed after flash floods sweep through France MORE: Teenager shot dead in water gun fight during US heatwave MORE: 'We spent the hottest day of the year with no water – our landlords couldn't care less'
Wales Online
a day ago
- Climate
- Wales Online
Met Office predicts second UK heatwave but these areas to miss out
Met Office predicts second UK heatwave but these areas to miss out Some parts of the country will see highs of up to 34C. Parts of the UK are going to be hit by temperatures of up to 34C as part of another heatwave (Image: Getty ) Brits are being braced for more scorching temperatures as another heatwave is set to hit. The Met Office is predicting highs of 34C in the coming days with some areas worst hit than others. One weather expert explained that while this heatwave will be 'hotter' than the last, it won't be as widespread. In a post made to social media platform X, BBC meteorologist Matt Taylor shared more details. He said: 'Another heatwave! Just a week after the last This one hotter and more humid than last week but the heat wont be as widespread this time. Hottest areas come under an amber heat-health alert from Friday lunchtime.' He posted a map from the Met Office and UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) which highlighted the areas of England expected to see the hottest temperatures. This showed the south west, south east, London, East Anglia and east midlands to have an amber heat-health alert. The west midlands and north east were dedicated a yellow alert, while the rest of England had no alert. While not on his map, the Met Office has also said that east Wales could be hit by 'very hot conditions'. Content cannot be displayed without consent Article continues below Mike Silverstone, deputy chief meteorologist at the Met Office, said: 'Higher temperatures building over the weekend and into early next week will bring particularly warm, hot or even very hot conditions for some, especially in the southeast and East Anglia and more locally elsewhere in England and east Wales. This in part will be influenced by a heatwave developing across western Europe.' Mike added: 'By the weekend, an area of high pressure will be intensifying and dominating the UK forecast. Conditions will be hottest in the south and east while areas further north and northwest will be relatively cooler.' The Met Office reported that temperatures will generally rise through the weekend for those in the south, with in excess of 30C possible in the southeast or East Anglia on Sunday, and even higher than that on Monday, in what is currently likely to be the peak of this heatwave for many. Mike continued: 'Monday could see temperatures reach around 34°C in some parts, though we will be able to be more precise closer to the time. The heat is most likely to gradually relent from the west on Tuesday and into Wednesday, with a return towards more average temperatures for the second half of next week.' How to stay safe To help prevent heat exhaustion or heatstroke, the NHS recommends you: Drink more cold drinks, especially if you're active or exercising Wear light-coloured, loose clothing Avoid the sun between 11am and 3pm Avoid excess alcohol Avoid extreme exercise Article continues below It added: 'If you're inside on a very hot day, close curtains, close windows if it's hotter outside than in your home and turn off electrical equipment and lights that get hot.'
