Kimchi, Oh Yeah!

The kimchi is delicious! Fresh tasty! Can't wait to see what it's like in a few days, whoot!

Reminiscing

This reminded me of when I was still a student and D volunteered to be in my video. It was quite the memorable night :)

Homemade Dumplings Attempt #1

My first attempt and they are massive!!! Way delicious though and better than store bought packages! There was enough napa cabbage leftover to attempt making Kimchi :)

My Macarons Have Feet!

Attempt #2 is wonderfully successful!

1st Macarons Attempt: Chocolate with Chocolate Rose Ganache

This first batch took me over 5hours to prep and execute! The results were decent. I discovered a secret to awesome bittersweet chocolate ganache - rose water. I'd love to try more!

Fir & Lavender Diffuser, Lovely

My essential oil diffuser is a success, I'd have to say! The gorgeous scent of fir trees and lavender mingle and spread out into my home. So sweet and relaxing! This one should last until the holidays! Makes me feel like I'm outdoors all the time! Scent in love...

Wildflower Bunches

Here's a photo bunch to brighten your day.

Summer is winding down and the chill of Autumn's morning has sauntered into the dawn of the sun rising.

Crossing the rundown parking lot to my condo, there's a patch where wildflowers grow. Collecting these brought back memories of an open field where I used to live beside. There I would chance upon rare findings of wild strawberries and raspberries, I so delighted when I actually found one! Succulent sweet morsels had you pining for more.

The summers of childhood have passed. I must make an effort next summer to go berry picking.

This past weekend had me pulling the tender leaves of thyme off their sprigs to combine into a quinoa mushroom risotto recipe from the LCBO Food & Drink magazine. I made two versions, the original recipe and one where I substituted all mushrooms for a can of mushroom soup. Both were tasty!

Puffy Treats

This is what happens to bags of chips when you go up in an airplane. They're so cute and puffy!

My Favourite Scent

My mum has a flower pot with jasmine flowers. Delicate things but

Outside, outside! Sunshine!

Oh what a lovely day! It's bright and warm and what more can I say? Bright sun shiny day, you take my breath away!

Ferns, Moss and Gold Weave Bracelet with Magnetic Clasp - In Progress

Making a bracelet with basking sunshine and earthy greens to welcome the return of warm weather!

Earthy Vegetable Casserole

Diced eggplant, zucchini, and broccoli crowns, a healthy heaping of sunflower seeds, with a sprinkling of parsley, oregano, sea salt, and ground red peppercorns, tossed with shredded mozzarella and cheddar cheese, baked at 375 degrees ferenheit for 40 minutes.

Accompanied by a glass of Cuba Libre, hand pressed lime with both halves included, blue agave nectar, generous splashes of Santiago de Cuba ron blanco, and topped off with Coke Zero.

Tilapia en Papillote avec un Cuba Libre

A refreshing spring meal to ring in the long weekend.

Tilapia en Papillote:
Tilapia fillets sandwiching layes of fresh dill, fresh basil, tomatoes, with a sprinkling of oregano, parsley, salt and pepper.

Cuba Libre:
Hand squeezed full lime with both halves dropped in, a dallop of blue agave nectar, a generous amount of white Cubano rum, topped with Coke Zero.

Bon Appetit!

Blackberry Limeade

For the hot weather that has deliciously rolled in recently, here's a wonderful cool down beverage. Muddled blackberries and hand pressed limes with blue agave nectar for that maple fragranced sweetness without the sugar spike.

Salted Fresh Ginger for the Throat

This home remedy I got from my mum will cause spasmodic coughs from the zestiness of the fresh julienned ginger and the salt, I've added hand harvested french celtic salt - fine grain. This combination will actively seize your inflamed membranes inducing coughs but for some reason cools down the fire in the throat. Weird? Maybe. Works for me!

Treating My Cold

It's the first "hot" day and I've caught a cold. That's just not normal! Busting it up with some oils...

My New Feet

Grabbed some new shoes at MEC that should help to strengthen the feet.

The Lesson

Rise above and king yourself
Revere from within
Mirror from youth
Now painted with affectionate colours

Stand tall yet bow down
Learn from rejection
Refuse to stay down
The see-saw will become a roller coaster

Take it slow
Breathe air
The freshness remembered
Prized embarkment will soon arrive

The Discovery

Shy, quiet, contentment.
Raw, beautiful, yet perfection in its imperfection.
Reverberation of soft and subtlety.
Strength in sustaining stillness.
Flourish stringing from deeper roots.
Illustrious only as a sophomore.

The Look of Tired

The look of tired, is in my arms. The look of sleep in my eyes. *Read this along with the tune "The Look of Love" from Diana Krall*

Trussed up in backpacking boots, desert camouflage, a mish-mash vest system of ranger green, and my woodland camouflage helmet, I ran around Wasaga paintball fields all morning and afternoon playing Airsoft. It was exhilarating and gloriously fun! Tired as I was from watching several episodes of Drop Dead Diva, which reminded me of Ally McBeal, why? I don't know why, I was looking to watch something on Netflix, only because Glee's not yet available for the Canadian Netflix... argh... along with many other things. We left at 7:15am and got home at 6:30pm. It's been a long, long day. Now I'm waiting to eat some sushi and I'm famished! My order will be ready at 7:45pm from the awesome sushi man at the bottom of the building.

My Colourful Silk Bobbins and A Rewatch of "Stand By Me"

Building up my colourful silk bobbins and rewatched "Stand By Me", which I had remembered the leech scene differently. Strange how your memories plays tricks on you.

Felipe's Natalie - How Cute Is That!

The answer is very super cute!

Savoury Bread Pudding

This is so tasty!!!!

The Mist!

It's like a scene from The Mist! A very foggy 6:50am.

Homemade Venison Chilli and Limeade

Leftover venison chilli and my favourite and yet so simple limeade (my favourite is lemon but close enough!)

Slow Cooked Venison Chilli

Venison from Darren's brother, Ryan, yumm...

Darren: Eating dead deer, yum....

This Is The Cold...

Blustery Cold Outside!

This after I stepped out from work. It's late March and I thought we were overdue for some warm weather!

Flowers for Mumma!

What Do You See?

That's right, that thing called sunlight is back! Compared to the fog that blanketed my windows this morning, what a breath of fresh air!

My Eco-Conscious Takeout Meal at Work

It's overflowing with goodness!!

A Bookmarking Fanatic's Way to Happiness

Bookmarks. Browser bookmarks. They are the daily culmination of research, information finding, fact-finding, memorandums, productivity, forgetfulness, discovery and re-discovery, surprise, antiquated information, entertainment, and down to the bare bones they are my online lifeline.

It's easy to forget that this systematic process is one that I had initially set up to help me broaden my horizons. This practice that I engage in everyday binds me to a methodical thought process and has helped me to expand and grow but I've grown so much and feel that this continued growth has been stunted. This repository 'jar' that I set upon to fill is now over brimming with thoughts and ideas being lost in the overflow. I've outgrown this process and feel that it inhibits me from expanding further into the realm of happiness. The jar was a means of finding my professional career, of finding knowledge and skills that would help me to grow. It's time now that I find what truly makes me happy.

The bookmarks were a means, I know now, to expand professionally. The way the categories were positioned, work was placed in the top spot. Now that I'm satisfied with my professional life, I've now rearranged them to show what I find to be my new pursuits:

1. Finding Happiness
2. Fitness
3. Travel
4. Entertainment
5. Artistic

I have 19 categories in all, and now "Work" is in last place. Not because I care about it less but because I am not fraught with concern about it. Professionally, I'm in a happy place.

One inspiration to reach out and grab life by the horns came from a talk that I saw yesterday. The speaker was Marian Bantjes and by her definition for lack of better words she's a "graphic artist" but came to be one only when she realized she wanted to do what truly made her happy and to reject things that make her unhappy. I used to think that I was weak when I refused to cower to a client's demands and would instead turn away projects for the sake of not wanting to commit myself to something that I didn't feel passionate about. I now realize that you can turn away things that make you unhappy, so that your path to happiness is uncluttered. I knew this 'philosophy' all along, I just didn't know how to frame or justify my reasons.

It's time to find my feet again.

MyLy

Dodgeball Thumb Jam

I didn't dodge this one... Just didn't manage to block it right and it rolled on me...

Shoes!

After rifling through some books I found this. It was pretty awesome, love the designer. Shoes so pretty!

Haircutting and Kickboxing

Annie likes her haircut, I'm glad! We also went over to the Kickboxing gym and it was a pretty kick ass workout! It really got me in the end with the reps of sit-ups, leg lifts, bicycle kicks and squats. Tomorrow's going to be the day where I break in my trail running shoes! On the treadmill just to work them in a bit.

Just Us Girls and Dim Sum

Lunch was great! I got to hang with some awesome gals and we ate Dim Sum, with my favourite topper of Mango Pudding in Sweetened Milk (coconut milk? Not sure...) For some reason, having lunch seemed like the quiet eye of the storm. For some of us, the day started better than it ended but TGIF!

Tomorrow is another day! Although this day is not finished quite yet. My friend Annie is coming over for a hair cut by yours truly and then we're off to hit the kick-boxing gym. Got the deal off Wag Jag, deals are AWESOME!

The subway home is a bumpy ride, I just had a drink with the coworkers and some. They're great peoples (you know it if you're reading this!), pure awesome. My stomach is growly, I'm ready for some pizza and some cuddling. My soul needs some restoration, this week was definitely trying.

A Warm Winter Comfort

Tights. They're both friend and foe. I can't wear them all day, they start to cause a weird heat induced itch.

Long johns. They're aggressively warm once you've come inside from the cold. They're nice padding around outside in minus weather but getting to work and staying in them is absurd!

My happy medium. I found them in yoga pants, fit under a loose fitting pair of pants. They layer to create that barrier of warmth and cuts down the wind yet comfortable enough to sit in all day!

Lady Luck, Setting Goals and Plucking Them

Last week in a rush to head out to my ball hockey game, I'd lost the little treat I'd gifted to myself the day before. It was a small thing but an indulgence nonetheless, a lip pencil from Body Shop. I only noticed it missing when the game was over. Going from pocket over pocket in my purse I didn't find it, from bench to bench, steps to steps, I'd even retraced my steps in from the parking lot to no avail. Hoping that I had left it in my office, I searched but found nothing.

Half a year ago when the iPhone 4G came out, I was jealous. Everyone was getting one. I had wanted one since the 3G but chose my Blackberry instead, no 3G to my dismay and more recently a growing frustration with just operating the damned thing. The plan that I wound up with was also more costly and I set out to change my plan.

I sat on the plan change for a few months, despondent and feeling shafted. Calling my service provider just stirred up frustration and dissatisfaction. After 10 plus years of being with the same service provider, others I knew and my brother included got a better plan that I did.

Today seemed like it was time for a call for action. I felt ready and prepared, only after numerous bouts of coaching and pep talks from my coworker. I was going to do it, I had a spreadsheet and notes on approaches and other available plans before me.

Undertaking a long overdue goal is like climbing a mountain. Heart palpitations ensued and the anxiety with just the anticipation of talking to the service providers became overwhelming. My first call attempt of the day, resulted in me saying little and completely unsure of anything. I couldn't wrap my head around it. Three to four more pep talks later I tried again.

The results I got made me happy. I was able to lay out how I felt and what the situation was and it got me some progress! I feel like the anchor has lifted on my boat and I'm heading downstream towards the rising sun.

According to the some Lunar charts, my growth colours are red, orange, and pink. Those colours sit on my desk for inspiration and direction that I can set my mind to anything and get through. This feels like I'm cleaning house and getting rid of the old, material goods and mental junk. It didn't occur to me that I needed to clear out my mental space but it feels like that's exactly what I did today. Perhaps another dimension to the old adage for cleaning up before the New Year to make space for better luck. You also need to clear your mind.

Dodge ball and My Poor Thumb

My right thumb is sore from being jammed with a bad catch attempt at today's Monday night game of dodge ball. It's hard to type, the flexibility is not there. My legs are sore and I've pulled my left ab muscle in the same spot that I did last week. I also think I'm too old for this game but banish the thought, it's a lot of fun!

Exhausted and plain old fatigued, I'm dragging my butt home from the Dufferin and Bloor area. Three of my nails are also broken, they're still weak from the time I chipped my polish off a few weeks ago, a habit that hasn't died just yet and my nails don't grow in as quickly as I'd like them to.

The copy of 24 stuck in my purse is folded on the page with vacations. It's cold out, somewhere about minus twenty, but it has finally started to snow and I'm glad it has gotten warmer. My jaw is sore from grinding my teeth together, another habit that has only recently surfaced.

Looking forward to a nice bath with some epsom salts and lavender oils, it will be relaxing. Saw a rolling pin earlier at William Sonoma, an $80 massage device! If only...

Tet, Vietnamese Lunar New Year

The trip on the bus from St. Lawrence West subway station was lengthy and our winding trip through the TTC stops at Pearson Airport was oddly eerie. The emptiness was disquieting and I don't think I'd ever like to be there on my own. It conjured ideas of what a zombie attack would look like.

The day was bright, the sun was out but sitting inside the bus was warm and toasty, quite the opposite once we step out into the bitter cold. It was a clear day, let clear days be a warning to cold and frigid temperatures, it only snows when it's warm and it's warmer on snowy days.

The occasion for this trip today was to meet my mum at the International Convention Center. The Vietnamese Lunar New Year, Tet, was being celebrated with a cultural event.

Darren and I wound up getting off at the Hall 1 stop but headed inside to see if we could find our way around in the warmth. No way through, it didn't look connected. We looked for the closest signs of Hall 3 and found ourselves walking through the loading docks area. Upon getting to the an entrance we were told to go to entrance 18, to the left. We arrived but it was performers only and lucky for us the security guard was nice enough to escort us through rather than us having to walk a long ways around to the entrance. Thank goodness kind security guard man!

The shows reminded me of high school performances and after bearing one too many screams from little girls over a YouTube phenom rapper, I had to go. The other side of the building was the more popular Vietnamese singers, I should've spent a few hours there instead. One singer did impress me and he sang like he was rocking it with his sax.

Time to head home and it's blustery snowy outside. Quite the contrast from the morning. It's been a long day and I've vowed not to return next year. As I wait for my bus home, I type with my fingers starting to freeze over.

Canteen on King

Alex ate the chocolate brownie, it was moist, gooey and crisp all at once with real vanilla bean ice cream. I had the lemon posset, it was lemony, creamy, light, and just divine! Top both desserts with some Mill Street Wit, it was the most delicious dessert ever! Gonna try to replicate this in my home...

Tonight's Dinner - Thai, Japanese, Korean Mix

Made Thai Tom Yum style soup, with zucchini and king mushroom, spiced rice with star anise, turmeric, cumin, and cinnamon, two styles of cucumber, one in vinegar and the other with soy-sauce and ginger (Akira, I'm forever thankful for this recipe - LOVE IT!). That looks like one huge vegan meal and it was DELICIOUS! I'm stuffed. Now time to watch some Spartacus!