Weekend Musings | Fresh Beginnings

Hi!

My time in Ontario is over, and I've brought home so many wonderful memories and hundreds of photos from my time with friends and family. I've also brought home a considerable tan, some lingering bug bites and a happy contentment that can only come from seeing and catching up with loved ones :)

I'll admit, I was a little nervous about going back to Canada so early on into my time here in London. I was worried I'd feel extra homesick, that all the groundwork of getting settled in UK would have been for nothing. And, while Canada is home and I miss all my family and friends dearly, I found myself looking forward to getting back to London. The buzz of the city, all the new friends I've made, my boyfriend, our flat, these were all the things drawing me back to UK happily.

It feels like a fresh beginning, Part 2 of my stint living here. If Part 1 was all about finding a flat, finding friends, finding work, finding my way around the city, then Part 2 is kicking off from a decidedly more relaxed and comfortable beginning.

I've started a new job (which I already love!), I'm exploring more of the UK (A weekend in Manchester next month!), and I feel wholly confident in my decision to live in London.

And what better time for a Part 2 kick off than the start of back to school season? The summer in London (or what little summer we had in the past few weeks) is starting to wind down, evenings are cooler, the air is fresher and crisp, and I'm getting caught up in the swell of excitement as everyone takes a collective re-calibration around back to school/back to reality.

On this start of a fresh beginning, I'm feeling so excited to get some more adventures under my belt and share them with you over the coming months!

xoxoxo

Top 5 | Best Downtown Toronto Groupon Fitness Deals (Right Now)

This is for all you fitness fanatics who hate to pay full price to workout!

I am addicted to Groupon. And, since I am not so addicted to getting my workout on, sweet fitness deals certainly help me get (and stay) motivated.

Enter Groupon's January 2016 deals (as of January 7, 2016 - please don't hate me if these deals expire before you read this!!). Read on for 5 amazing deals that made my jaw drop (and had me pulling out my credit card lol).

Weekday Inspiration | Sunshine Mentality

I am not a morning person. For this reason, getting back to work this week has been especially difficult for me. After two weeks of hedonistic sleep patterns, my internal clock was not prepared for regular bedtimes and wake up calls.

However, when your morning view involves pinks, purples and oranges backdropped against the CN Tower, waking up early certainly seems like a small price.

Click through to see my view (once I stopped hitting snooze):

Top 5 | Resolutions 2016

Hi you guys!!!

I feel awful for such a long hiatus. The holidays snuck up on me, bringing with them a whirlwind of friends, family, travel, (much needed) sleep and, of course, a healthy dose of partying. But new year, new me, new blog...promise!

I've been known to make quite a few aggressive goals/resolutions in the past. 2016 is no different. However, this time, I'm breaking the year into mini steps, taking a moment at the beginning of each month to reflect on what's important to me.

Click the link to see the 5 key questions I asked myself on January 1:

Wilburrrrrrrrito

I have an obsession, an addiction, a constant craving like no other. There's no helping me, there's no way out. I am having a love affair with the Wilbur Mexicana Cali Burrito. 

Adios!

Job Love | Ten Thousand Villages

I feel strongly about the responsibility brands and companies have to spread goodwill and do their best to make the world a better place. In the case of a company that is built solely on the idea of improving the lives of others, pure magic can result.

Enter Ten Thousand Villages. A store that has been a mainstay in my life since childhood. Tiny Guatemalan worry dolls, embroidered keepsake boxes from India, incredibly detailed nativity sets carved out of Soapstone are all trinkets I remember admiring in the Stratford Ten Thousand Villages from a wee age. This company sells beautiful and ethical merchandise (including this stunning salt crystal cheese board - which is, heart-breakingly, an American-only piece)

All of this makes me extremely proud of Jackman Reinvents for partnering with Ten Thousand Villages on a pro bono project to redesign the store's look and feel. The new brand identity was featured on Marketing Mag, which reported "First week sales at the Bloor store were up 34% compared to the same period last year." (!!!!) Check out the before and after shots below.

Feeling extra love for my company today!

Today in Photos

Boss Babes & Books

Last night found me at the Toronto Club Monaco flagship store on Bloor Street, nervous out my mind, heart racing, palms sweating (though, to be fair, it was quite warm in there!), anxiously waiting my turn to bow down to the epic Garance Dore!

I’ve followed her for all of my blog-devouring days, I would put the start of those days back at 2008 –when half the blogs I followed used her photos with nary a credit (it was 2008, the blogosphere was basically the Wild West). I’ve enjoyed every moment of her blog’s evolution, and I would argue it’s at its most compelling state currently. Garance’s affable, self-deprecating narrative style shines, but so does her colleagues’. Every topic from quality of sleep, weekend escapes, and patent leather booties is covered swiftly and comprehensively and I love the long editorials and interviews – though I do wish the career story interviews were shared more frequently!

As you can imagine, years of reading Garance’s stories and obsessing over her photography and style, has turned her into a huge icon for me. I had no idea what to expect when I went to her Toronto book signing event. By the time I reached her she would be two hours into her 107^th book signing event (I exaggerate, slightly) and was sure to be exhausted, possibly even suffering from carpal tunnel. I decided it would be too rude to request a selfie with her (be still, my heart!) and was mentally prepared for a quick smile (with or without eye contact) and a signature to take home with me – which still had me quaking in my boots.

Instead, I was bowled over by the efficiency and strategic planning demonstrated by Garance’s team and Club Monaco: open bar with Cointreau, sticky notes with your name written on it to ensure proper spelling (gah! Can you imagine a worse fate??), a long but well organized line of fashionable women snaking through the retailer’s collection of Garance endorsed product. AND, to top it all off, a designated photo-taker who was snapping pics of each signee with Garance, using the signee’s phone – GENIUS! Selfie conundrum solved!

Two whole minutes with Garance is the equivalent of a year in heaven (umm, haven’t you seen Interstellar?? You know how these things work….). She was super smiley, kind, has this glow about her, and joked about the rainy awful weather in Toronto that day, everything about her was CHIC! And of course I don’t have to tell you she was the nicest person EVER!!

But I DO need to tell you about the other women in line. Suffering the pelting rain, spending two hours standing in heels, de-layering in the stuffy, humid heat can only be fun for so long. What made my night stellar was chatting with and getting to know the women in line with me. After a friend bailed, I had resigned myself to wasting time with candy crushing. Lucky for me (in what would become the start of a series of surprises that evening – free drinks! Photos with Garance!! Correctly spelled name!!!) I was given an opportunity to meet some fabulous boss babes, including a digital designer and a marketer for a fashion start up. After two hours of shared laugher (and anxiety-induced turmoil) we had basically become besties for life (If you’re reading this, new acquaintances who I barely know, I promise I’m not trying to scare you off!!!!). All in all, a seriously successful night in my books.

Happy Wednesday!

Snoozerella

Sleep was never a problem for me. Once night time hit, I was out like a light, sometimes even while in a movie theatre or dark car ride home (when I wasn’t the driver, of course J). I’m sure country air and the silent solemnness of living far from any ‘big’ city also played a part. It was so still at night that, while sitting on the porch while our dog was out for a final Frisbee / bathroom break, you could hear cars hit the ‘ba dum ba dum ba dum’ stop sign indicators on the road that was kilometres away!

But, in recent weeks, my talent for sleeping has slipped a little. I find myself waking up in the middle of the night, sometimes falling back asleep easily, other times tossing and turning for hours. Living on a hyper busy road in downtown Toronto certainly plays a large role, with rip roaring motors and streetcar honks punctuating an otherwise peaceful sleep. The effect a poor sleep has on me is astounding! Irritability, grogginess, ravenous hunger, dark circles under my eyes and lackluster skin – all incredibly uninspiring feelings as I get ready for work - when I can finally drag myself out of bed that is! A bad night sleep turns me into a snooze button zombie. 

I’ve tried a few things, albeit haphazardly: Melatonin, meditation, a sleep supplement that combines Catsnip, Tryptophyn, Valerian (among others), deep breathing, turning down the thermostat. The things that seem to have the greatest impact on my sleep are behavioral – and maybe this isn’t so surprising.

The body loves routine, and getting cues on what comes next from our actions and surroundings. Replacing my paper books for digital versions on my iPad haven’t helped my sleep. I’ve read more and more how the light emitted from the iPad can mess up your circadian rhythm and signal to the body that it’s time to be awake. Slipping up on my exercise routine also seems to be a sure fire way to sleep less and get hours of more poor quality snoozing.

Yes, of course I’d like a bit more time to devour my magazines on my iPad before sleep. And finding time for consistent exercise is HARD (and less appealing than scheduling after work drinks – let’s be honest!). But sleep is SO CRITICAL! Getting a good night sleep is linked to all kinds of things good, not to mention fun and zany dreams. 

What do you do to get better sleep?

Magazine Mania

I spent part of my deliciously hot summer weekend this week in the sand of a beach on the beautiful Bruce Peninsula. In addition to starting my work week off feeling refreshed and sun-kissed, I am feeling waves of gratitude for all the innovative, alternative and critical publications that exist.

Magazines hold a dear place in my heart, which has been true since I was 14 and first spotted Nylon in my small hometown’s 7/11. It seemed so different from the Cosmopolitans I was used to seeing. While my love for Nylon has waned some, I do appreciate a really great collage as a result of my teenage readership.  

It’s only recently I’m recognizing how magazine obsessed I am. For more than a decade I’ve shelled out anywhere from $5 - $50 per month on a random assortment of mags, primarily used as inspiration and arts and craft material rather than anything educational. I was talked into subscribing to Toronto Life back in November and became both surprised and delighted when the latest issue appeared in my mailbox each month. Beyond the excitement of actually seeing mail addressed to me, it was refreshing to read pieces that were well written, relevant and meaty. In January, I took my relationship with magazines to another level and tried out Next Issue – which has swiftly become a steadfast source of entertainment, competing with Netflix for my leisure time.

Finally, my journey has led me to the diversity of non-mainstream, unconventional publications. I received a subscription to the Smith Journal as a birthday present from my beloved – and boy does he know me well! The well curated collection of articles in my first issue has been incredibly pleasing to the mind. Yesterday, in between beach Frisbee and ice cream, a good friend let me peruse her edition of n+one….and I COULD not / WOULD not put it down – even with the prospect of a fresh water swim dangling before me. 

Perhaps one of the best things about magazines is the low commitment, bite size pieces of inspiration, information, humour and perspective. The wide range of topics available makes a 5 minute reading break feel diverse and intriguing. I often find myself googling a novelist, or perusing the site of a new designer as a result of the magazine’s content. In my pursuit to constantly widen my understanding of the world, magazines have proven themselves useful allies. 

Weekend Musings: Library Love

I'm not sure about you, but I have multiple wallets for multiple purposes. There is my Everyday wallet, containing a clean and edited* collection of my important cards for day to day stuff. Everything from credit cards to Bowler cards are kept within easy reach, lest I get into a pickle**. Then there is my VIC wallet, full of very important, government-issued cards, that will greatly inconvenience me if I lose any of them - I don't remember the last time this wallet was opened. Finally, there is the beloved, if somewhat irrelevant, Miscellaneous wallet.  Though small, this wallet carries the weight of past and present, infrequently used cards. I like this wallet, but rarely have a reason to engage with it. Until......

Actually, let's back up a moment, I've spent much time over the past few years with a creepy crawly concern for bed bugs. UGH, I hate even typing those two awful words! That topic had dominated many a conversations between random acquaintances at fun parties, between close friends at delicious brunches, and between roommates when all involved parties were (hopefully) out of bed, because such a discussion in the confines of sheets would never end well. In short, a strange sense of the sinister had lived in the back of my mind and, as a result, my library relationships had suffered.

Great news: My hysteria has died down! I've banned those two words from my (spoken) dialogue, and have chosen my love of books over any bug-related fear.

Casual conversations at work about the great new library at Fort York prompted me to dust off my Miscellaneous wallet, dig out my pretty blue and white Toronto Public Library card, and visit my old friend Library.

Here are some pics of the new location (so shiny! so new!).

It's basically inside a giant construction site, and the lines of Margaret Atwood's poetry that wraps around the building gives nod to its current surroundings.

A.

*Well, okay, more like busting at the seams
**Really great news, ramen lovers! Kinton will stamp your receipt and you may then bring said stamped receipt with you on the next visit to transfer stamp to your Bowler card.