HOly Overreaction Ottawa!

Ok, so I don’t know if any of you are following the contest that the New HOT 89.9 has going on, or shall I say the New HO 89.9, but it’s creating quite a stir in Ottawa. A creepy little thief has stolen their T, in their HOT 89.9 name, renaming it the NEW HO 89.9. The radio station has offered a $25,000 reward to find it, and helping Ottawa residents along by offering three clues as to its whereabouts each weekday. Personally, I think this is pure marketing genius!

Others, not so much. Some Ottawa residents are outraged that the radio station is using the word HO. It’s a contest for God sakes people! The Ottawa Citizen has been producing opinion piece after opinion piece of people who are really unhappy with HOT 89.9 because they are using this word. (This one cracks me up -If 89.9 were a boyfriend, I'd dump him fast)

People, the radio station is not using it as a derogatory term, it is merely a word. It is only derogatory when used in a sentence meant to insult. Santa says ho, a hoe (pronounced the same!) is a garden tool, I have friends with the last name Ho, does that make it a bad word?? Hell no! People need to calm down and get off their high horses. The radio station is merely saying a word, it is not targeted at anyone! And if you think that the radio station is calling you a ho, maybe you are!

I think that the people who are actually upset over this and take the time to write in to the Ottawa Citizen have nothing better going on in their lives, so they are creating drama for no reason other than the fact they are bored.

And for the parents who are telling their young children what the term ho means, that’s your own fault. You may have bigger problems. Tell them about the contest and that the radio station is missing the T in HOT. Get them involved in helping you to find the T to win the money. It’s not rocket science!

Get a life people, stop complaining about everything and go find that friggen T! I’m going to.

Rant complete.

Sisterhood of the Travelling Pink Gloves

At the end of March I decided to travel to Kitchener/Waterloo to visit my dear friend Robyn for her birthday shenanigans!

Side note: I also got an answer to a question I’ve had for a while but never asked…Why on earth don’t people just call it Kitchener or just Waterloo?? During my visit I realized exactly why this was – there is barely a distinction between the two cities. No division. One city ends then the other begins without warning. I think I even saw a house that half was in Kitchener and half was in Waterloo. I wondered what their address would be?

Ok, back to the original point of my story…Robyn’s birthday…there was a house party to be thrown in her honour. Friends travelled from near and far to be with this lovely lady on this special day. Many drinks were drunk, delicious food was eaten, and plenty of fun was had!

During the party, after having some kind of asthma attack and needing to take my inhaler – very similar to the reaction I get from being near cats, but there were no cats around…odd – I returned to my comfy seat on the couch to find that it had been stolen! Stolen!! The audacity! I quickly realized that I would need to be somewhat social and find another seat in the already crowded room before the show began again. Oh, did I forget to mention the show? Right. One of Robyn’s friends, Matt York (a recording artist – check him out, he’s awesome!) was playing a special acoustic show just for Robyn’s birthday! So I took a seat next to some lovely ladies that welcomed me into their sitting space on the floor. I was even allowed to stay after I spilled my martini on Julia (one of my new friends) :( I’m gonna go ahead and say that it was half my fault and half the fault of the martini glass creator. Whooo doesn’t spill when they are drinking from a martini glass?? Really?

Anyhoo, the story of the Sisterhood of the Travelling Pink Gloves came to be when I noticed an abandoned ticket stub on the floor. The ticket stub we all received when we paid our entrance fee for the party. Yes, it was a house party, but it was all very official because of the show! So we (Julia and I) stealthily grabbed the ticket stub and held on to it for safe keeping, as the stub could give us a chance to win a door prize at the end of the night.

We ended up winning with the ‘stolen’ ticket! So before opening our prize, we decided to share whatever it was. The prize – a brand new pair of beautiful pink gardening gloves!! Haha. So Julia and I each took a glove. This is where it gets a little blurry though (wine, martinis, etc). Throughout the night Julia and I had talked about all the travelling we had done over the past few years, so I guess this is where the brilliant idea came to be. We decided that we would take our pink glove on all the travels we do in the coming years and take a picture with it on in front of famous landmarks, buildings, whatever. Julia was the one with the brilliant idea to name it Sisterhood of the Travelling Pink Gloves and create a Facebook fan page of the same name.

These gloves won’t just be for Julia and I to use, but all of our wonderful friends on their travelling adventures. The fan page will document where the gloves have been and where they are going! Cheers to travelling and to new friends! :)

Become a fan of the Sisterhood of the Travelling Pink Gloves on Facebook!

Damn you Logan Huntzberger!

After watching way too many Gilmore Girls episodes for my own good lately, and pining over the oh-so-charming Logan Huntzberger, boyfriend to Rory Gilmore, I’m starting to wonder if these Hollywood ‘boyfriends’ are ruining our perceptions of what ‘real’ men are?

Logan is naturally the creation of a female mind – a fictional character. Of course he has his flaws, but he makes up for them times 10! He’s full of grand gestures, spontaneity, and surprises. What woman wouldn’t want him?

Unfortunately perfect characters like Logan Huntzberger are brought to us through TV screens and movie screens time and time again, causing us to measure our real relationships against these fictional ideals.

Although not everything we see in movies and TV shows have that perfect, happy ending, these are often the ones we remember, the ideals we may hold our own relationships to.

The stars of TV shows and movies we pine after often have the “full package” – good looks, great job, great personality, fill in the blank of anything you could ever want in a man. So we look for that in real life.

When we compare the men we know to the men in movies, it becomes extremely unfair to both parties. With such high expectations, real men can’t possibly be expected to actually ever live up to them. Consequently women are frequently disappointed because the men are not living up to these unfair expectations.

I’m in no way saying that you should not have expectations of your partner, because you most certainly should! But having expectations that are unrealistic may just end in disappointment.

While reading an article the other day on the book Marry Him: The Case for Settling for Mr. Good Enough by author Lori Gottlieb, it got me thinking more about relationships and expectations and the reason why controversy has surrounded this book. Critics have accused her of being anti-feminist because she uses the word ‘settling’ in the title. Gottlieb addresses this criticism by explaining that, “A lot of women took a you-can-have-it-all attitude and called that feminism, which it’s not. They confused feminism with you can have it all, and tried to apply you can have it all to dating.” When in fact her book says the opposite. She explains that at any age you need to look at what’s important and you should never settle for somebody that you don’t truly love. But in order to find that person you have to be more open-minded about who that person might be. So it’s not about lowering your standards. It’s about having really high standards, but only about the things that really matter.

I think Michelle Obama hit it right on the nose when talking about her husband in an interview. “He was special in terms of his honesty, his sincerity, his compassion for other people. Cute’s good. But cute only lasts for so long, and then it’s, Who are you as a person? That’s the advice I would give to women: Don’t look at the bankbook or the title. Look at the heart. Look at the soul. Look at how the guy treats his mother and what he says about women. How he acts with children he doesn’t know. And, more important, how does he treat you? When you’re dating a man, you should always feel good. You should never feel less than. You should never doubt yourself. You shouldn’t be in a relationship with somebody who doesn’t make you completely happy and make you feel whole.” Well said Mrs. Obama!

No one is perfect. Hell I’m not even close to being perfect, so why should the guy I date have to be perfect? ‘Perfect for me’ is what I will strive for. We shouldn’t focus on trivial things like height or movie star looks or how good they seem on paper, what matters is how you feel when you are with this person. Focus on things that will actually matter five to ten years down the road. And for God’s sake, keep movie romances in the fantasy world and don’t equate them with real life relationships!

Lotions, and sprays and candles, Oh my!

With the opening of Ottawa’s first Bath & Body Works, comes my continued obsession with all things scented. Whenever I journeyed to the Carousel Mall in Syracuse, New York with my friends, I would always make a beeline to Bath & Body Works and spend far too much time in there – so much time in fact that I would always be left alone to peruse on my own for a while. So now that we have our own B&BW, I find it rather thrilling that I can just stop in at any time! This is extremely lethal for both my wallet and my bathroom cabinets.

My first visit to B&BW in Ottawa brought on a new addiction. I smelled their Twilight Woods scent. I fell in love. I cannot describe it, all I know is that I love it and can’t get enough. I have a spray at home and at work, and would carry one around with me, except for the fact that the store in Ottawa does not seem to sell the travel size. Also, I recently purchased the Twilight Woods body lotion, and find that it complements the spray very nicely and as a bonus actually lasts all day!

I also bought a few items from the B&BW Aromatherapy Sleep collection. I’ve been having some problems sleeping for a while so I picked up the lotion, body wash and body spray (which I use as a pillow spray), all of which smell like deliciousness, or Warm Milk & Honey as it’s aptly named.

Other favourites include:

B&BW Signature Collection anti-bacterial soaps. There are soooo many to choose from that I always have a collection of them at home. Coconut Lime Verbena is one of my favourites.

The Wallflower scent diffuser in Warm Vanilla Sugar – perfect for smaller rooms because it’s not overpowering. But you can choose from any scent you’d like in the store.

Slatkin and Co. Scentportables for your car. Instead of hanging a pine tree from your rearview mirror, you can clip this on to your visor. It says it only last about three weeks, but I found it lasted over three months. There are many different B&BW scents to choose from.

Lastly, Bath & Body Works always seem to have some sort of deal or sale going on, which is horrible for me because I’m a HUGE sucker for coupons and really good deals! So I suggest signing up for their e-newsletter to reap the benefits!

Sooo… I joined a gym!

Hahaha it still makes me laugh a little, but seriously, it’s true, I joined a gym!

I’ve been a member of GoodLife Fitness for just over a week now, and I have to say that I actually enjoy it. I really had no idea of everything that a gym can offer. I thought it was all about treadmills, and bikes, and men pumping weights. But it’s not! They have classes, awesome leg lift machines, 20-minute Fit Fix Circuit workout, and even more classes! As you can probably tell I’m very excited about the classes. That is the selling point in getting a gym membership.

I’ve been thinking about taking up yoga for a while, but never really got my butt in gear to do it. GoodLife offers a class called BodyFlow that involves yoga, tai chi AND Pilates all wrapped into one class. SOLD!

So bright and early Sunday morning (ahem 11 a.m.) I headed on over to the gym to go to my very first BodyFlow class. I took a friend with me because it’s always better to have a friend to laugh with when you have no clue what you are doing. Overall, I think it went very well and we didn’t get too lost. I will definitely be going to this class once a week. :)

But classes aren’t all I’m gonna be doing. I enjoy the elliptical, and even though I have one that’s collecting dust in my basement, the gym setting is much more enjoyable for some reason. I push myself to stay on for a half-hour because people could be watching and think that I’m ‘giving up’ if I take mini-breaks in between like I do at home. Nope, not at the gym, I push on through the hurt! And soon I will try the 20-minute Fit Fix Circuit workout on my own. Yeah muscle strengthening!

I wanted to go to a gym to start feeling better. I should not feel like an 80 year old at 24. And even just after a week I’m starting to feel better. And whether I’m actually feeling more energized or it’s all in my head – I don’t care, because in the words of Michael Bublé, I’m feeeeeling gooooood!

So don’t be surprised if next time you see me I look like this, minus that face, and of course minus the fake tan.

101 Things to do in 1001 Days

The Mission: Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.

The Criteria: Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on my part).

Why 1001 Days? Many people have created lists in the past – frequently simple goals such as New Year’s resolutions. The key to beating procrastination is to set a deadline that is realistic. 1001 Days (about 2.75 years) is a better period of time than a year, because it allows you several seasons to complete the tasks, which is better for organising and timing some tasks such as overseas trips or outdoor activities.

Official Start: October 9, 2009
Finish: July 6, 2012

Coding Key:
To be done
In progress
Completed


For Myself
1. Create a budget and stick to it.
2. Take a bubble bath at least once a month.
3. Buy myself a bouquet of flowers.
4. Actually drive further than Ottawa and its surrounding areas.
5. Get my hair dyed professionally.
6. Update my resume and keep it updated.
7. Save up enough money for a down payment on a house.
8. Stop complaining so much. Think of something positive instead.
9. Buy a car.
10. Save up to buy a bottle of Patron tequila.
11. Update my blog more often, including product reviews.


Healthy Lifestyle
12. Do Lafleche ziplining again (preferably not in the rain).
13. Take an AquaFit class.
14. Attend a yoga class at least once.
15. Floss weekly.
16. Use my elliptical once a week. (I joined a gym and go at leat once a week...does that count?) Sooo I Joined a Gym
17. Rollerblade at least twice a month for each Spring and Summer. 18. Learn to play golf.

Education and Learning
19. Learn how to speak French (better).
20. Learn how to drive a standard car.
21. Take a photography class.
22. Learn to sew up my clothes that have holes in them.


Cooking and Eating
23. Learn how to make my mom’s pasta sauce.
24. Learn how to make my dad’s penne arribiata.
25. Go through all my moms’ recipes and copy the ones I want.
26. Take a cooking class.
27. Try 25 new recipes. (2/25)
28. Host a dinner party and do all the cooking myself.
29. Bake something yummy to share with my colleagues.
30. Dress up fancy and go to a fancy restaurant, my treat.
31. Make and share a candlelit dinner with someone special.
32. Cook dinner for my parents.
33. Go to a Japanese restaurant where they cook the food in front of you.
34. Eat a Beavertail in the Summer.
35. Make homemade bread from scratch.
36. Have a cookie baking day with Cassandra.
37. Make my moms’ cinnamon apple and pumpkin muffins.
38. Catch a fish and then eat it.

Just for Fun
39. Go to an IMAX movie.
40. Beat someone smart at Trivial Pursuit.
41. Host a game night.
42. Go skinny-dipping.
43. Take my own pictures and hang them up at my place.
44. Go to Little Ray’s Reptiles.
45. Have a picnic in Gatineau.
46. See a movie at the drive-in theatre.
47. Plant my own garden (mint, coriander, chives).
48. Ride Behemoth at Wonderland.
49. Make a whole batch of wine for myself.
50. Go to an Ottawa Senators game.
51. Go drunken tobogganing.
52. Go to Saunders Haunted Farm.
53. See a Cirque du Soleil show.
54. Watch every movie that people say “I can’t believe you haven’t seen that!”
55. Go to the Nordik Spa.
56. Wear my Louboutins somewhere other than my house.
57. Go to the Rideau Carleton Raceway and bet on the horse with the best name.
58. Attend the Ottawa Wine and Food show.
59. Go to the Butterfly exhibit at Carleton.
60. Read all the books I own.
61. Watch all Oscar nominated best picture awards for 2010, 2011 and 2012.
62. See Dane Cook again.
63. Build a snowman.
64. Spend a day at the beach.
65. Jump in puddles like I used to do all the time when I was younger.
66. Take a fun dance class, like belly dancing.
67. Participate in HOPE Beach Volleyball.
68. Go to the water park near Ottawa when it opens.
69. Ride a mechanical bull and try to stay on for longer than 5 seconds.
70. Go to Wonderland's Halloween Haunt.
71. Go snow tubing.

Travel
72. Go on a vineyard/wine tasting tour at Niagara on the Lake.
73. Go to New York City.
74. Attend the Calgary Stampede.
75. Travel somewhere, warm, sunny and all-inclusive.
76. Go whale watching.
77. Visit Emily in Nova Scotia with Robyn.
75. Visit my Nona and my relatives from Sudbury at least once a year.

For Others
79. Donate old textbooks to a library.
80. Donate a toy to Toy Mountain.
81. Buy my mom flowers just because.
82. Sponsor a child from World Vision.
83. Visit my grandparents just because 3 times a year. (2010 - 1/3)

Tourist in Ottawa
84. Skate on the canal.
85. Go on Ottawa’s haunted walk.
86. Go to the Tulip Festival.
87. Go to at least one concert at Bluesfest.
88. Visit Parliament and Peace Tower.
89. Go on the Wakefield Steam Train.
90. See the ice and snow sculptures at Winterlude.
91. Take a walk downtown when all the Christmas lights are lit up.
92. Take a tour on the Lady Dive Amphibus.

Organization
93. Organize stuff for moving and get rid of any crap I don't need and don't use.
94. Go through my filing cabinet and organize it.
95. Go through all my music files and get rid of songs I never listen to.
96. Organize my closet, shoes, clothes, purses, and all.
97. Organize my shot glass collection and showcase them nicely.
98. Organize my jewelry.

List Goals
99. Document completed items in my blog.
100. Have a party to celebrate my 101 accomplishments.
101. Donate $2 to a charity for every task not completed.

101 Things to do in 1001 Days - Help!?

I listen to Hot 89.9 on my way to work every morning, and for the past few weeks they have been talking about a project people are doing called 101 things to do in 1001 days. Basically, you make a list of 101 specific tasks or things you wish to complete in 1001. I've decided that I want to do this, but I need your help! I've come up with a list of 40 things so far, but need 61 more things to add to my list. The things on my list are in no specific order. I'd love to hear your idea's on more things I should add to my list.

See new list above!

Back from outerspace...

Hi all,

So I've been a little distracted...erm, very distracted, and busy lately...I apologize. I've been doing alot since the last time I wrote, including going to Niagara Falls, Wonderland, Marineland AND Montreal. I will tell you all about my exciting adventures in the following weeks. Aren't you excited!? :)

I just have to say though, that I am NOT enjoying this weather. I know, we Canadians complain about the weather all the time but really? Seriously? Does it need to be this frigid when fall just begun?? We barely had a summer and now winter decides to come early!! Not cool mother nature. Not cool.

So as I freeze away at my desk, I begin to think about all that has happened in my life in the past few months - the positives and the negatives - and I can't help but think that everything truly does happen for a reason. I force myself to think of only the positive things and everything that is good in my life. I don't want to get all sappy, but I'm going to. I am thankful for so much that is good in my life and need to stop concentrating on the bad. I will look to the future with optimism and an open mind. I DO have an amazing family and fantabulous friends (yes I used a non-existent word, deal with it), I DO have a really great job, and Deep River really isn't that far.


SN: As I am writing this I get a cheer up note from a friend who shall remain anonymous...
"This will cheer you up: I’m eating animal crackers (yes I know I’m 6) and I keep finding ones that are stuck together and look like they’re having sex! But they’re often different species doing it!!!!!" - Anonymous.

Thanks, that was the perfect thing to say. :)