My sister leaves the Colony

We are on our way back from family dinner in my sister Emily’s car. Her financee Greg is in the front seat, trying to find “America Fuck Yeah” on a cd of novelty songs he keeps in the car. I haven’t sleep very much in a long time and they are giving me a pep [...]

Permission to Panic: Chaz Thorne’s Whirligig

At the age of 25, I had a nervous breakdown. A combination of a genetic predisposition to anxiety and a generational predisposition to getting an arts degree and believing a future would lie at the end of it, lead me to panic in a world where the Great Capitalist experiment is in the process of [...]

Necessary Evil

Vancouver-2006 A still smoking roach fills the room with gray smoke. On the table lies a hundred copies of “Call Me Evil”, Gaelan Bleasdale’s latest rap album. It’s been a month since he returned from tour. During the two months on the road he played fifty shows across the United States and didn’t hear his [...]

Cure#17: My best friend when I was 12 years old

“A Funeral” by Peter Diamond. Dressed in a perfectly pressed black suit I look like an emaciated super model before arriving for make up in the morning. I put on my most carefree smile and shake their hands with enthusiasm. Across the table are three incredibly sweet women who will decide whether I get the [...]

The Birds illustrated by Mike Holmes

Welcome to the Colony of Losers, a world of quarter life crises, anxiety, depression and the friends and the failures on the way to finding your future. This is the story of Michael Kimber’s panicked fall into adulthood. So I’m not the best at dealing with technological difficulties. So I noticed that the comic was [...]

About

Michael Kimber is a 26-year-old journalist who suffered a nervous breakdown on November 3rd, 2009. On March 28th, 2010 when he recovered from mental illness, he began writing a blog called Colony-of-losers. About falling on your face to figure out who you are and the hilarious antics of a blond jew. What began with a few friends and his mother reading has become a cult phenomenon, averaging 10,000 views a week, receiving praise from Commonwealth Award Winner Shandi Mitchell and many others. On, November 3rd, 2010, the one year anniversary of his mental breakdown he signed with Anne McDermid and Associates, the largest literary agency in Canada. In a year he went from wearing pajamas, making his couch depression HQ to leaving his hometown for the Toronto, where he exclusively wears business suits and the armor of ancient Greeks. Don't worry, he's still choking on the feet he contently sticks in his mouth and making moments awkward just by being part of them. During these struggles he met other talented bastards and drew them into his circle. Peter Diamond became his illustrator. Patrick Campbell his video editor and part time photographer. He recently added the incredibly talented John Packman as Colony of Losers Toronto photographer. Without the support of the Colony of Losers, Michael Kimber would be nothing. Welcome to the losers and the success that comes from utter and complete failure. You aren’t alone. Follow him on twitter.com/colonyoflosersand twitter.com/quimbo. If you’d like to hire him for a public speaking engagement for mental health events in Toronto, like to arrange an interview, offer millions to publish his book or for another reason contact Michael please email him. And join his facebook Colony of Losers.

Really obvious disclaimer:
I’m not a trained psychologist. Just a fellow traveler. If you need help seek it from the professionals. The Canadian Mental Health Association provides a help locator. You can find crisis resources provided by the Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention. If you are in the states check here. It will give you services by zip code. I’d also recommend checking out Mindyourmind.ca. I think they do great work and have been a help to me personally.