April Activities

by Liz Heather in , , , , , , , , , , , ,

April is one of the best months. It’s still cool enough to have my winter blanket on the bed, but warm enough to maybe go out without a coat. Nothing is better. Sorry about the weather-talk, but it’d be insane of me not to mention it’s so beautiful out. Onto this month’s happenings! So many things took place!

  • Firstly, the big news. We’ve moved! Only a few streets away, but into a waaaaay better apartment. It’s almost a joke how much better it is. We were coming from a basement apartment, so pretty much anything above ground floor would impress us, but there are a hundred little details about our new place that I’m in love with. So crazy thankful and happy with it all. We’re still getting settled into the place, but I’m planning on doing a post about all the little things I’m doing to it with the decor and storage and boring things (but oh so fun to me) like that, so keep an eye out for that post coming out most likely before the end of the month. So excited to get this place homey and lovely.

  • I went to a Rapters game at the Barclays Center and whoa, it was a dumb amount of fun. Nathan met someone in the audience at one of his shows who works at Barclays and got him a few VIP tickets (fifth row from court side!) and it was pretty incredible. There was tons of free food (shriiiiimp!) and soft serve ice cream and beef tenderloin and fancy water and free snacks, it was the best. I could list all the food specifics here, but I don’t want to seem like a dick who thinks she’s better than you (but might be?).

  • I went to the Glossier flagship store again to try this highlighter aaaaand it was pretty basic, so that was disappointing. I also tried their Boy Brow again and I think that yes, it is a good product. Although is it worth $16? Not sure. I’m still considering Benefit’s mini version for $12, so that’s likely the next eyebrow product I’ll buy/try.

  • I treated myself and bought the full size version of Laneige’s Lip Sleeping Mask (which is HUGE and should last me eight hundred years) as well as a new Fenty sponge because my old sponge was beginning to look nasty.

  • I tried the new basil foaming hand soap from Trader Joe’s because that’s an amazing idea for a scent. But the quality of the bottle itself is so cheap, it makes an awful squeaking sound when you use it. Don’t buy.

  • Loving these two songs lately.

  • Yes, I hate receiving foundation samples. You know this. That being said, I tried the one from Yves Saint Laurent and even though it was the wrong colour for me, it felt crazy nice and moisturizing on my skin. I can see why people go so crazy for this product. I still won’t buy it because I don’t really love wearing foundation, but maybe one day when I believe that foundation makes a difference?

  • I tried the Smile Foot Mask from The Face Shop and HOLY SHIT. It’s good enough that you can ignore the creepy baby feet on the packaging. And I mean, my feet are pretty well taken care of already, but this was some next-level shit. Definitely keeping this one in the rotation.

  • I know that I told you I was going to start taking collagen, but with the move I slacked a little so I don’t want to comment on it yet. I’m gonna start it again and take it on a daily basis starting tomorrow so I will definitely have thoughts on it this time next month.

  • Love this meme.

  • I went to Niagara Falls with my family and it was the best. Just a ton of fun.

That’s right

At the Healing Salt Caves with Mom

We’re missing Amanda & Tianna!

Camden’s first Shirley Temple!

Sweet Jesus

Mom & Dad

  • I started watching Schitt’s Creek and it’s pretty good so far. I only saw about five episodes, but that’s enough to have an opinion, yeah? I want to watch more, but those Frasier reruns aren’t gonna watch themselves.

  • Watched The Bye Bye Man and wooooooof, it was rough.

  • I also watched Crazy Rich Asians and it was great! I’d wanted to see it for awhile and it was just a fun movie. A friend of mine accidentally called it Crazy Sexy Asians and it made me laugh, but that’s a way better title. I love, love, love Elvis’ version of this song, so whenever it gets covered, I’ll love it to pieces. Also, the wedding scene? With the water? Jesus! So nice. Even watching it now makes me teary, it’s so beautiful.

  • Ate at The Cactus Club with the lovely Marla for her birthday (!) and it was goooood. The short rib pappardelle? Heavenly.

  • One of my favourite recipes that I haven’t been able to make for awhile since I used to live in a place WITH NO OVEN is this baked pickles one. Just made it last night and still holds up. So tasty.

  • There’s an upcoming lantern festival in Mississauga that I just heard about on August 10th that seems pretty lovely.

  • Have you ever tried chocolate mint coffee before? We just got some beans from a place near us and made some this morning and I was jacked for about three hours. Really tasty, I just don’t understand how a person could drink coffee every day.

  • I was in need of a fancy dress so I went to Burlington in Union Square and was shocked at how nice/inexpensive everything was. I got a Calvin Klein dress (that I later returned because I’m CLASSY) for $40! Such a great place. Easier to browse than Century 21, for SURE.

  • The reason I needed that fancy dress? I WENT TO THE OPENING NIGHT OF THE BEETLEJUICE MUSICAL! And it was incredible. I have a friend who’s in the ensemble and graciously invited me and it was everything. I’ve never been to an opening night before and the air was electric. Such a fun time. I met Richard Kind at the after party and gushed about Clifford for approx. two minutes before he ran away.

  • Really enjoyed the new Lizzo album, the best songs are definitely Like A Girl and Soulmate.

  • I tried the relatively new chicken pieces from Shake Shack and there’s literally NOTHING DANNY MEYER CAN DO WRONG. They’re delicious, obviously.

  • I had no idea that The Strand will buy your old books. Amazing.

  • There are no Home Sense stores in the States (as far as I know), which sucks. But I came across Home Goods on the Upper West Side (thank you for the suggestion Harmeet!) and even though it’s really not as good, it’s actually okay. I appreciate the attempt of them trying to be a Home Sense.

  • I went to the new Rec Room in Square One and it was pretty good, I thought. Obviously you need to walk in with a full wallet, but I mean… it’s something to do? It’s pretty much Playdium with better food.

And that was April! Some things to look out for in next month’s roundup: highlights from Tianna’s visit to NYC, I’m going to a screening of Booksmart, and I swear I’ll do that apartment post. Honestly that’s the only thing I’m really, really looking forward to - I love this new place so much. Thanks for reading!

(If you have any interest in past monthly roundups, they can be found here: March 2019, February 2019, January 2019, December 2018, November 2018, October 2018, September 2018, August 2018, July 2018, June 2018 & May 2018.)

Celebrating 29

by Liz Heather in , ,

Tomorrow I turn 30.

I know, I know - how could this youthful, ageless beauty be turning a fully functioning adult age? Beats me, but it's happening. And I think I'm kind of pumped about it. Why, you ask? 'Cause these past 29 years have been some of the most fortunate ones that any human could have asked for. Really. And I want to list some of the greatest things that I've experienced thus far. 

(If you judge me for making this list and/or being proud of it, then I think you might be missing my point here. In which case, skip the list altogether and proceed to the final two paragraphs.)

Highlights Of The Past 29 Years

  • I was a co-lead in my fifth grade musical production of Newsies (or the more accurately titled "Extra! Extra! Read All About It!")
  • I've learned to play the piano, alto saxophone and bass guitar.
  • I've never smoked a cigarette.
  • I'm bendy.
  • In London, I ate the worst fish and chips known to man.
  • In Portugal, I discovered Steak Diane in the Algarve and listened to Fado music in Lisbon.
  • A stuffed poodle has slept atop my bed for over 25 years.

Tianna & said poodle, early 2000s.

  • In Spain, my mother and I were chased by gypsies. (Is that a racial slur? I Googled it and opinions are mixed. I don't mean to be derogatory.)
  • In North Carolina, I saw a crab bite my dad and as a result - I stayed out of the ocean for the following 15 years.

North Carolina with Dad & Gary, right before he got bit.

  • In New Brunswick, I saw the tides change.
  • In California, I didn't trust how perfect it all seemed.
  • In New Hampshire, I flew a glider plane as a teenager.

A glider is a plane with no engine, 1997.

  • I went to a performing arts high school for vocal music.
  • I had the perfect childhood dog experience.
  • In Grenada, I witnessed some baby turtles hatch in the sand in the early morning sun.
  • In Belize, I innertubed through the jungle rivers.
  • I've been to Disney Land and to Disney World. (World's better.)
  • I've road-tripped to Detroit solely for a concert.
  • I've waded in a hotel fountain in New Jersey.
  • In The Cayman Islands, I went down into the sea in a submarine. 

The Cayman Islands, in the sub.

  • In The Bahamas, I was eaten alive by bugs and first saw a pink sand beach.
  • In Trinidad, I slept in my mom's childhood home.

Trinidad, the view from Ma's house.

  • In Tobago, I understood why someone would want to come to Trinidad & Tobago.
  • In Barbados, I watched my brother get married on a beach.
  • I've hitchhiked in Lake George.
  • One time I ate a mustard so spicy that my contact lens popped right out of my face and landed on the sidewalk.
  • I interned with my favourite childhood band The Strokes.
  • I've seen Bob Dylan in concert.
  • I lost my virginity because of the outcome of a World Cup final soccer match.
  • I've skydived.
  • I've seen a baby's birth firsthand.

Five minutes after Layla was born, October 2005.

Me & the babe.

  • I've undergone a successful cornea transplant surgery.
  • I've learned never to take my brothers for granted.
  • I met Mike Myers once and he was very nice.
  • I met someone who lives in Ireland in a Foo Fighters chatroom about 15 years ago and we still mail letters to keep in touch.
  • In Amsterdam, I fell hard for a Frenchman and followed him to Paris.
  • In Paris, I celebrated New Year's, ate crepes outside the Eiffel Tower, learned cooking techniques from a master French chef, walked to the top of the Arc de Triomphe, sailed across the river Seine and kissed Oscar Wilde's grave.
  • In Venice, I stole wine, rode in a gondola and had a brief (but memorable) Italian romance.
  • Acquired the entire Perfect Strangers series as Russian bootleg DVDs.
  • In New York City, I've had many midnight rooftop picnics on the Lower East Side, bench-side champagne dalliances in the rain under an umbrella in Central Park, met one of my best friends by picking her up at a bar, had a short play produced and performed in Hell's Kitchen, swam in freezing temperatures in a rooftop hotel pool, saw Woody Allen in his jazz band at The Carlyle, attended Derek Jeter's last Yankee home game and I've been inside the Statue of Liberty's crown.

Manhattan

Robbie in Chicago, 2009.

  • In Miami, I ate the finest steak of my life at (the now closed) Emeril's.
  • In St. Maarten, I went to a nude beach with my parents.
  • In Niagara Falls, I stayed in a vice presidential suite and won a ton at the casino.

Niagara Falls, June 2013.

  • In Las Vegas, I rode that roller coaster that Grissom loved.
  • In Costa Rica, I went canyoneering, ziplined through the rainforest and saw some sloths.

Canyoneering with Marla, Costa Rica 2010.

Ziplining in Costa Rica, 2010.

  • I've seen The Phantom of the Opera on Broadway over 10 times and will see it again.
  • I have buried time capsules with loved ones. 
  • In Aruba, I experienced my first all-inclusive vacation and vowed to never go all-inclusive again.

My parents in Aruba 2011.

  • I have broken both of my feet on separate occasions.
  • I've become proficient in pilates. 
  • In Atlantic City, I saw Lady Gaga perform and roamed the gorgeous boardwalk.
  • In Montreal, I listened to more jazz than ever before.

Montreal, 2011.

  • I have dined and dashed. 
  • I have never dyed my hair.
  • In Ontario, I've made out with strangers on dance floors, had hundreds of sleepovers at my brother's apartment, ate an abnormal amount of poutine, blown bubbles off balconies, learned how to play poker and swam in an infinity pool overlooking the city.

Toronto, 2012.

Poker night in Mississauga, 2015.

  • In Jamaica, I parasailed, helped Nathan learn how to swim and experienced the clearest sea water in the history of mankind.

The view from parasailing, Jamaica 2011.

In the sea, Jamaica 2011.

  • I've maintained a daily blog for two full years with some degree of success.
  • I'm a (magazine) published writer.
  • I became the type of person who enters a dog in a costume contest.

October 2013.

October 2014.

  • I've found work as an editor, greeting card store cashier, HMV seasonal employee, video store clerk, management assistant, daycare worker and part time nanny.
  • In Florida, I had numerous memorable family vacations.

Florida, 2014.

Florida, 1993.

  • I became a godmother.

With Camden, 2014.

  • For almost six years, I've been in love with a man who treats me so well and happens to be handsome as hell.

Nathan, 2014.

If this post seems boastful, I sincerely don't mean it to. I'm so proud of what's happened thus far - and don't think that I don't know for a goddam minute how lucky I am. Everything on this list was possible because of my family and friends. I know how fortunate I am. So what reason is there not to be excited about whatever happens after 30? 

If you're to take anything away from this post, I hope that you start to compile your own list, at whatever age you currently are. The bullet points won't all come to you at once, but they'll trickle in over weeks and you'll slowly start to see how fortunate you are in your own life, if you don't already know. It's important to look back on these things and realize we're all immensely lucky in more ways than we realize, I think.