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Tea, chocolate, and jewellery.

Tuesday, August 28th, 2012

It all started with a “Buy $10 worth at BulkBarn and get $3 off” coupon. I swear, these Bulk Barn people know exactly how to get me in the door. For those who are not familiar with the store, it’s everything in large bins, from flour and candy, to dog food. Do you know how challenging it is to load up on $10 worth of loose tea leaves? Seven different kinds later and a bar of organic white chocolate I was out of there, happy! I successfully avoided the gummy candy aisle, that had my name flashing on it with tacky Vegas light bulbs.

And would you just look at what else I found?!?! Imagine me doing a super fast clap and squealing with delight – that’s precisely what I did when I saw these lovelies. I adore crazy fashion jewellery, and appreciate it even more when it’s a good brand… and on sale. Good marketing, that’s how they always get me, tsk tsk. Today I’m a happy camper. Typing this with rings on my fingers, while having a nice cup of lavender black tea with white choco. Just perfect!

Olympics Hopeful

Wednesday, August 1st, 2012

With the Olympic games well underway, it got me thinking that Camera Lifting, and Gear Wrestling should definitely be included as Olympic sports. Did you see those sports photographers?!? Notice how they are all men with gigantic lenses and dressed in less-than-pretty vests? I guess none of the designers wanted to undertake the task of dressing the photo & video crews. But that’s beside the point. Last week I FINALLY got my Nikon D4, and my biggest worry was its size. Well, it’s big.  In fact it’s larger than my head! Which, by method of scientific deduction, can only mean that I have a tiny head. The camera is also fairly heavy. Pretty much the only reason I exercise is so I can survive 18h weddings with all that camera gear. “In the left corner, representing team Nikon is D4 with a 70-200mm lens and a flash.  In the right corner, representing women wedding photographers – a tiny girl with a tiny head”. Geez. So workouts it is!

The first time I heard about this Team Beach Body workout, I burst out laughing. “Brazil Butt Lift”. You’ve got to be kidding me! With workouts such as Bum Bum, High and Tight, Tummy Tuck and Cardio Axe I wonder who gets paid to name these routines. Alas, I’m second week into it and still laugh through a few of them, especially when I hear “Welcome to Boooooom Boooom”. These are very leg muscle oriented workouts, which is not exactly what I need for lifting the gear, but it’s a nice change from P90X and Insanity. I might actually stick with it for the whole 8 weeks. Next on my list is Tapout XT, and it really does not look like fun. But watching all these Olympic athletes makes me want to get off my soon-to-be Brazilian lifted butt more often.

Ireland

Thursday, July 5th, 2012

I opened my eyes this morning, wondering why it was so dark.  Turned out it was barely 4am and I was wide awake. This jet-lag is phenomenal. If only I could wake up this early every morning, I’d have plenty done by noon. I’m back from a great trip to Ireland, loved the country, not so much the weather.  Since I love making ‘observation lists’, here is one in no particular order.

  • There are many clocks, almost none of them show the correct time.
  • House doors are one brighter than the other. All painted in primary bold colours. Loved the ‘peacock windows’ above the doors.
  • Door knobs/handles are in the middle of the door. Lots of pretty door knockers.
  • Sunrise is at 5am and sunset is at 10pm, which makes  for one  gorgeous light-filled day.
  • Forecast always calls for RAIN, because it will rain at some point in the day
  • Amazing produce, especially milk products and bread
  • The whole country is green, no wonder with all that rain. Many fields with lots of cows, sheep, goats, and horses just outside the city borders.
  • They have soft water, which is great for my hair, but it’s a bit hard to wash the soap off your hands
  • Many pretty cast iron gates. Elaborate designs on the roofs and columns.
  • Ireland is a country of tea drinkers. I fit right in.
  • People consume a lot of bread with butter, and don’t shy away from desserts. Desserts are delicious and served in generous portions, just as the rest of the food.
  • Beer is cheap, and GOOD. I even visited the Guinness factory.
  • Stores and shops close early, and most people are home at a decent hour. The whole city goes ‘dead’ on a Sunday.
  • Lots of kids and dogs.
  • Umm… unusually high proportion of handsome men, with sexy Irish accents : )
  • Everywhere you go has a long history. Museums are free, beautiful, and with great exhibits.
  • Dublin has a nice and cozy feel of a small city.
  • I liked the absence of skyscrapers.
  • There is a church on every corner. Most of them look alike inside.
  • Lots of green space, and…stone. Everything is made from stone.

Here is part one of the photo series. These were taken in the city of Drogheda where I stayed.

Loved that empty industrial building on the side of the river.

Is it me being Torontonian that I want to buy this building and convert it into lofts?

The Norm

Wednesday, June 13th, 2012

I was trying to talk myself out of eating a poutine using every possible logical excuse I could come up with. Starting with “it’s fried, cheese doesn’t agree with me, and gravy is way too unhealthy” to “what if the oil is not hot enough and the fries are soggy”. Plus it was way too far to drive to NY Fries. Then I recalled seeing a new Potato restaurant close to my house. And with that, all excuses went out the window. Let’s just say that workouts, food, and I, have ‘complicated‘ written on our FB relationship status. But this is not a story about food, but a story of how my knee, after many years, was re-introduced to the pavement.

After satisfying my crazy food craving with a glorious poutine, or at least half of it, I was all ready to leave. With a summer dress and matching pretty shoes on, and a lovely beige purse in hand, the next few moments in my mind I’d like to think happened like this.  Me missing a step, twisting my ankle and doing a ‘fabulous’ rollout onto the main street. My first thought while still on the ground was “Gah, stupid karma! I shall never eat a poutine ever again.” A quick assessment of the damages revealed a scraped, bleeding knee, and cuts on my ankle. Fantastic! One good thing about living in the suburbs (in these situations) is that no one ever walks the streets. So, I got up and pretended that nothing ever happened, and that my bleeding knee was just the norm. Keeping it classy… as always. The moral of the story is… there is none. I’m just clumsy. But if you ask me what’s up with my knee, now you know.

And since pictures make everything better, here are the gorgeous lilacs that bloomed in my backyard.

It’s Gold!

Wednesday, June 6th, 2012

The excitement level was running high, first with a ‘free birthday drink’ and now this! I opened the envelope. “Congratulations” read the card with a glimmer of gold shining through a cutout star. I was the proud owner of a Starbucks gold card, with my name on it! I think it’s safe to say that I’m a huge sucker for good marketing. I even showed off the card to my mom, where she asked “What does the card give you?” … absolutely nothing. Yet it still makes me happy. Then for my ‘Birthday drink” I decided to live on the edge and ordered a venti earl grey tea with two tea bags. Take that Starbucks!

Hello, I’m sorry

Wednesday, May 30th, 2012

You know that feeling when you should be doing something, but you are not, and the longer you put it off the more nagging that feeling gets. That’s pretty much been my relationship with blogging in the last little while. I think we are past our fallout and will be back to regular hours starting Monday. I have a lot of new things to share, stories to tell, photos to show. For now, here is me smiling at you, apologizing for neglecting you all.

Valentine’s Day – 2012 Edition!

Tuesday, February 14th, 2012

For all who are in love, looking for love, been in love, lost love, for those who crave it, or even detest it, but most importantly know what love is Happy Valentine’s Day! You might hate this day, but you can’t deny that you’re a sucker for Love. I know, I am.

Home…sweet home!

Friday, February 10th, 2012

I love being home! That is all! Don’t get me wrong, I love to travel, see new places, enjoy the sun, skip the winter, but it feels like I haven’t been home in a while. I missed my oatmeal in the morning, endless cups of tea, my chair, laptop and most of all, my work! Shhhh I know… I’m a total nerd, but I truly love what I do, and when I can’t sit down and work for a while, I get all antsy and have withdrawals. Soooo, long story short, I’m home and super excited to get back into the swing of things, and start sharing all the projects from the past couple of months.

Not going to lie, I was very excited to find this tumbleweed in the middle of Arizona!

Travel Notice – Mexico

Saturday, January 21st, 2012

It’s time for Jena and Ashkan’s wedding down in Riviera Maya. Yay! I’ll be out of the ‘office’ with no internet or phone connection from today till the 30th. Will reply to all, once I’m back. Have a fantastic week, everyone!

Happy Holidays!

Saturday, December 24th, 2011

I’m not sure how Christmas always sneaks up on me each year, but it does! It’s here, and I even have a tree. Taaa- daaa! It’s been a fantabulous year, and I just wanted to thank everyone who made it so. Thank you, I appreciate it more than you will ever know. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you and your family!