winter is coming ...

Actually, as I live in Calgary, winter has been here for awhile.  Seriously, the snow has been on the ground for a solid month.   Seeing as we never had an actual fall season, I won't dwell on that but let's discuss what I miss most about summer.  It will also give you an idea of what I've been doing since my last post, which I recognize was basically 4 months ago.  It's a short list - one thing for every month that I've been gone.  Here you go:

1. Topsiders:  I know this is a random one, but I love that they made a comeback this year.  I love preppy boys, so the summer uniform of long shorts, cardigans and topsiders made me very happy.  I do love a good peacoat and scarf combo too, so now that it's winter I can't complain too much, but I will miss the boat shoes that were all over town this summer.

2. Orcas: I went to a wedding this summer on beautiful Galiano island.  On Friday afternoon we went for a sail and came across a few pods of orcas.  While it was not quite this close, if you want to see how many there were and how awesome they are, check out this video from Outside Mag - it was in the same area and the same time. Oh and the wedding was fun too.  CG married her man Bill on a beautiful day overlooking the ocean.  We drank, we danced, we made wished on Thai lanterns and there was a risque photo shoot that is still being talked about.

3. Patios: It really goes without saying, but I had quite a few great afternoons on the various patios around town this summer.  A special shoutout to National, the Ship and Local 510.  Great places to drink beer and watch the world go by.

4. Bronze medals: I spent a lot of time watching the London Olympics.  Not a surprise really if you look back at some of my posts from February 2010 (here, here and here).  Canadians didn't do quite as well as expected and there were a lot of jokes about how many bronzes we won.  The bronze we lost in the men's 4X100 was particularly heartbreaking.  Listening to my father explain the rules of tae-kwon-do was particularly hilarious.  Watching the Brits cheer on that Mo guy to the 5,000 and 10,000 was awesome.  But most of all, watching the Canadian women lose so unfairly to the Americans in the soccer semi-finals and then squeak out a victory in the bronze medal game was amazing.  I played soccer all summer on an absolutely horrible team - we barely ever scored, but when we did, this is the face I was making.

my famous friends

Remember Lily? Well, not only does she look good in hats, she also does good deeds. And now she's famous! Check it out:

http://change.outpostmagazine.com/2010/11/16/mans-best-friend-strikes-again/

aloha

My apologies loyal reader(s), I have been out of the loop. First because I was in TO at a wedding (more on that to come) and now because I am in Hawaii. Through a variety of circumstances, the main one being the direct result of this event, I am sitting pretty in Waikiki. The weather has not been fabulous, but the beaches are awesome, the company is great and the maitais are tasty. So that's what counts, non?

thanks again

Another thing I am thankful for = frequent flyer miles.

Thanks to aeroplan and my numerous flights to visit friends and family, I now have enough points to fly to Hawaii for free in 3 weeks. Let the countdown begin. Aloha!

brilliance

Just got back from the Arcade Fire show. So amazing. Words can't really describe it.

it's the little things pt. 2

This is my friend Lily. She is wearing my fedora. She is super cool. Sadly she is not my dog. But we've had some good times together. Right now we are driving from Calgary to an unnamed island on the coast. Summer is coming to an end and this makes me sad. And so I look at this picture of Lily and I smile. It really is the little things.

things that are cheaper than the chair

Add this to the list of things that makes me happy - Mark Ruffalo. After my depressing trip to Crate & Barrel yesterday, CG and I went to see The Kids Are Alright. Great movie. It's been universally praised by critics, so I don't have much to add, but needless to say it made me laugh, it made me cry, it made me think, the acting was fabulous, it had a great soundtrack and it made me lust for Mark Ruffalo. Both his character and him as a person, because, not only is he easy to look at, I feel like is just a cool guy. Not sure if this is true or not, but according to Lainey he is great. So I'll just go with that. Plus it only cost 12 bucks! Much more reasonable than a $1400 chair. Oh and we went to Farm for dinner first. Dinner (including wine) for 3 was $156. Also much cheaper than the chair. Cheese also makes me very happy. And then, we got pre-sale seats to Arcade Fire at the end of September. At $58, also cheaper than the chair. All told, these 3 things add up to only 8.7% of the cost of the chair. And they brought me much satisfaction. So all in all, a successful 24 hours.

to help me host

So it's been over a month since my fortune cookie told me I was going to get lucky. It was wrong. I have nothing to report. I did however find this awesome chair at Crate and Barrel. I feel like it will make me happy, and help me be a better hostess (in a totally non-sexual way ... it would just fit into the decor of my condo and my guests would have a more comfortable place to sit than the current chair that barely gets used). Sadly, it is priced at $1,399. This does not make me happy. It's too much for a chair, right?