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LIZ HEATHER

July 4, 2023

June Jaunts 2023

by Liz Heather in Best of NYC, Drinks, Family, Food, Ideas, Links, Movies, Personal, Products, Recipes, Television, Travel


Sometimes you need a mini day trip to see a horse in New Jersey

Sometimes you need a mini day trip to see a horse in New Jersey

June was so packed with stuff, I can’t believe it’s actually over. Here’s what went down!

  • I started a new series of posts I’ll do for the whole summer - Summer Saturdays, which is just a summary of what I do each week. Volume 1 posted over here.

  • I recapped how I did with my spring bucket list.

  • I wrote a brand new summer list of things I’d love to do.

  • I finally wrote about seeing the Karl Lagerfeld exhibit at The Met.

  • The best tweets of June can be read over here.

  • I made these strawberry cobbler bars that were pretty good, but I think I liked this strawberry crumble cake recipe a bit more.

Strawberry cobbler bars

  • I bought this Aritzia 1/2 zip sweatshirt in both white and black and I’m really considering getting the pink one now, too. I might have a problem.

  • If you like dark chocolate, then you must make this dark chocolate cake. It’s the absolute best recipe I’ve ever tried. And with this chocolate icing? Unreal. It’s heavenly. (Pro tip: don’t refrigerate it, it tastes incredible at room temperature, even days later.)

Dad’s 100th birthday cake

  • I was about to talk about how great my dad’s 100th birthday went, but there are so many details that I’ll just do a post about it this week instead.

  • I will never get over how incredible the frozen yogurt at Freshii is. Nobody talks about this enough.

Freshii frozen yogurt might even be better than TCBY

  • A great small batch pancake recipe I keep using.

  • I went to Activate and it was surprisingly really fun! It’s kind of like Squid Game but in real life and with less death.

  • I made this basil sangria during a blackout at my parent’s house and it was so strong and perfect.

Basil sangria

  • Did you know about the secret, unadvertised Baskin Robbins deal? On the 31st of every month (on months that have 31 days), they offer 31% of all scoops and pints. Pass it on.

  • I made a lemon blueberry layer cake that was such a great summer dessert, absolutely would make again.

Lemon blueberry cake

  • I ate at the S&P counter and it was only fine? NYC has so many options, I’m angry that anyone ever told me this place was anything special.

  • The duck confit spring rolls at Sojourn however are little bites of luxury. I will return.

  • Here’s one of the recent Zara dresses that I can’t stop wearing.

  • I’m so sick of pants without pockets, so I’m obviously in love with these green Halara bike shorts.

  • A great (updated often) list of carnivals in the NYC area.

  • Always gonna be excited when Trader Joe’s drops a new candle scent.

Trader Joe’s salted caramel and pistachio scented candle

  • I tried some curried fried rice at a friend’s house recently and I can’t stop thinking about it, such a genius way to do fried rice.

  • I’ve been eyeing mattress toppers for a few months now (my mattress is old and springy), but they’re always too expensive. So instead I bought a thick comforter for about $20 and spread that underneath my fitted sheet and it is now the most comfortable bed in this country. It’s a strange feeling to have all the answers and still not be ruler of the world?

  • Officially into rhubarb now since I was introduced to this rhubarb syrup, which is a phenomenal mixer for anything alcoholic.

Rhubarb syrup with club soda

  • Lays, I love you. Never stop with your insane flavours.

Lays Italian Red Meat Flavor

  • I was in Canada for a bit and good god, it was a perfect spring visit.

Dinner in the sunroom during a blackout

Nephews & Baby Dog

These only bloom on my dad’s birthday

Fully recommend having friends who just GET IT

  • I went to Canada’s Wonderland with my nieces and there is nothing more satisfying than the end-of-day funnel cake you’re legally required to have before leaving. Also loved the new(ish) Yukon Striker.

Funnel cake at Canada’s Wonderland

  • I stopped by the new reincarnation of Zellers (it’s in a weird, small section at the back of The Bay) and the deals are wild. Go. If they bring back those Zellers diners with that gravy, they will be unstoppable.

  • The Barbie section at Ulta is wild. I want it all?

  • Truly all the Barbie collaborations are wonderful.

  • I got a “root shadowing” done at Bloc + Mane in Etobicoke (by the lovely Amanda) and it was everything I needed. It’s a process that blends your hair colour if you’ve dyed it in the past year but you don’t want that aggressive grow-out line.

  • The USPS new stamps this year are insanely cool.

USPS Tomie dePaola stamps

  • A gentle reminder: your beach body is already here.

  • Some things I’ve watched & rewatched:

    • Since the new Indy was coming out, I rewatched Temple of Doom and wow is Kate Capshaw so unbelievably bad in it. Sure I’m no expert on great acting, but this is just torture to watch.

    • And Just Like That: I’ve said it before, but we’re in a hate/hate relationship. The dialogue is so horrid that it reinforces the idea that anyone can succeed in the entertainment business. Talent has zero to do with it.

    • The Bear (season two): absolutely LOVED it. Did they use an offensive amount of R.E.M. songs this season? Sure! But once you look past that, it’s a flawless season.

  • I bought these gorgeous olive coloured running shoes from Call It Spring that are beyond comfortable.

Men’s running shoes are eons prettier than women’s

  • I’d love to try any of these summer recipes:

    • Vietnamese Tomato Salad

    • Marinated Zucchini with Hazelnuts and Ricotta

    • Summer Coconut Chickpea Curry

    • Burger Au Poivre (everything should be au poivre, as far as I’m concerned)

Some things I’m looking forward to this month: are you aware that there’s a third My Big Fat Greek Wedding coming out?? And I can’t wait for some reason? Even I don’t really understand why, but I loved that first one so much when it came out. Other things: obviously excited for Barbie, my great friend Marla’s coming for a visit (!), I really want to find some good soft serve and I have a family trip to Scotland that I can’t wait for.

If you’ve got any interest in reading last month’s roundup, you can see what went down in May over here.

I just told her she isn’t coming to Scotland with me

TAGS: June, June Jaunts, June Jaunts 2023, Liz Heather, monthly post, monthly roundup, Baby Dog, strawberry cobbler bars, recipes, summer recipes, Aritzia, Aritzia sweatshirt, chocolate cake, best chocolate cake, best chocolate cake recipe, dark chocolate cake, dark chocolate cake recipe, dark chocolate icing, best dark chocolate icing, best cake recipe, Freshii, Freshii frozen yogurt, best frozen yogurt, small batch pancake recipe, Activate, Squid Game, basil sangria, basil sangria recipe, best sangria recipe, Canada, Baskin Robbins deal, Baskin Robbins, lemon blueberry cake, lemon blueberry layer cake, best summer recipes, S&P, NYC, best of NYC, Sojourn NYC, Sojourn, Zara, Zara dress, Zara polka dot dress, summer dress, summer dress Zara, Halara, Halara bike shorts, carnivals NYC, carnivals near NYC, carnival list NYC, Trader Joe's, Trader Joe's candles, salted caramel and pistachio candle, curry fried rice, curried fried rice, mattress topper, comfy bed, bed tips, rhubarb, rhubarb strawberry soda, Lays, Lays Italian Red Meat Flavor, June flowers, Clearly Canadian, Canada's Wonderland, funnel cake, Yukon Striker, Zellers, The Bay, Barbie, Barbie Ulta, Barbie collaborations, root shadow, root shadowing, Bloc + Mane, Etobicoke, Etobicoke hair salon, USPS stamps, Tomie dePaola stamps, beach body, beach body ready, The Bear, And Just Like That, Indiana Jones, Kate Capshaw, R.E.M., Call It Spring, green sneakers, green running shoes


November 2, 2022

October Occurrences 2022

by Liz Heather in Best of NYC, Family, Food, Halloween, Ideas, Links, Movies, Music, Personal, Recipes, Television, Travel


Ontario, Canada - October 2022

This might be the hardest week of the year because it’s officially the longest period of time until next Halloween. I tend to take a few days to decompress a bit, so by this coming weekend I’ll be fully ready for holiday-mode. That being said, October was such a great month that felt like almost a year long - in a good way. Here’s what went down.

  • You can find my favourite tweets of the month over here and here.

  • I think it’s clear that I watched every good 90s Halloween sitcom episode that I could find links for.

  • For Halloween, I dressed up as Tony Montana (Al Pacino) from Scarface and Baby Dog was, umm, my main accessory.

  • In love with this article, “The Secret To Marriage Is Never Getting Married.”

  • I’ve always wanted to make the Nestle Toll House chocolate chip oatmeal cookies recipe (on the back of the Toll House package) and they were really, really good. Might become a staple in my cookie repertoire.

  • I made these soft pumpkin cookies with salted maple icing again this year and they continue to be incredible - and that’s coming from someone who truly hates soft cookies.

  • I also made these garlic butter chicken meatballs with creamy orzo (in a slow cooker) and the meatballs were great, I’ll definitely make those again. But the orzo cooked in a crockpot? Hard pass. Pasta always tastes terrible from a crockpot, I knew this and still went ahead, so it’s my fault really.

  • I was in Canada for awhile, so I…

    • Went to the new(ish) Keg near Square One and it kind of sucked? What the hell? The meat was nowhere worth the price, which is weird because I remember that it used to be better. I’m trying to find my new Canyon Creek (since it closed) and it’s a hard task to undertake but I won’t give up.

    • I had the burger from Ozzy’s Burgers and the lamb was terrible, but the regular burgers were fantastic.

    • My niece Layla turned 17 (!) so thankfully we were able to get the Milk Bar birthday cake from the Toronto location. It’s such a shame that location is closing at the end of the year.

    • I also planted some bulbs in the garden with my mom, which makes me even more excited for spring to come next year to see if anything blooms.

    • I tried the new Lays flavour Fries & Gravy and good god I love this country.

    • I made the apple fritter cake (again) for (Canadian) (real) Thanksgiving and I. love. this. cake.

    • My dad put up his seasonal bird feeder and I think I’ve said this before, but the answer to life is getting a bird feeder and then sitting down to watch it. Nothing better.

Heaven on earth?

My dad & Baby Dog, October 2022

Mississauga, Ontario - October 2022

Fries & Gravy Lays

Oakville, Ontario - October 2022

  • I made my way to the Harvest Moon Farm & Orchard in North Salem, NY (with my friend Diana) where we had the best warm apple cider donuts and cider mimosas. Afterward we went for brunch at The Arch restaurant, which was beautiful & old, but nothing really spectacular food-wise.

Cider mimosa at Harvest Moon Farm & Orchard, North Salem, New York

Cider donuts at Harvest Moon Farm & Orchard, North Salem, New York

  • On Halloween, I took Baby Dog on our annual autumn visit to Central Park and it was bursting with beauty.

Central Park, October 2022

Central Park, October 2022

Central Park, October 2022

Baby Dog in Central Park, October 2022

Baby Dog in Central Park, October 2022

  • When it comes to all purpose cleaners, I’m in love with Mrs. Meyers. The snowdrop scent is my favourite one (which should be coming out again soon), but I just got the apple cider one and yikes. It’s perfect. Is it sad to have favourite seasonal all purpose cleaners? Absolutely. But here we are. Welcome to your late 30s.

Mrs. Meyer’s Apple Cider Limited Edition Scent

  • Now if we’re talking seasonal coffee drinks? The Starbucks pumpkin cream cold brew (only 1/2 shot of syrup, extra foam) makes me a little sick by the end of the drink, but I still love it. And the vanilla cream cold brew at Tim Hortons is also really good. Oooo and the Tim Hortons hazelnut cold brew with espresso foam? Get out of here, so good. I think I just like foam.

  • Loving the new Charlie Brown stamps from the USPS. Wait, who is in charge of deciding the new stamps? Oh god, have I discovered the greatest job on earth? I THINK I HAVE??

  • So I got a new Apple charger from The Apple Store, the one that apparently charges faster. Aaaaaand my battery dies even quicker now! Sweet!

  • I was scrambling to find a dress for a wedding this month and Bloomingdale’s saved me. How do I always forget about that place? I love an old, good department store. Yes they can be overwhelming, but they’re practically deserted. I have to remember this for the future. Oh! And Macy’s too! Such great dresses for special occasions.

  • So Nathan and I went to Los Angeles for a wedding (the dress code was “outdo us”) and we stayed at Citizen M hotel in downtown LA. Let me just say that this is not the type of hotel for two people to share a room, that’s the nicest way I can put it. It’s definitely clean and relatively nice, but the rooms are laughably small. The wedding was fun and I loved walking around downtown LA mostly because of the incredibly well preserved buildings. Sure, the area is pretty dicey but it’s beautifully ancient. We walked to Santee Alley (where I got my new favourite feather clutch) and three days was the perfect amount of time to stay in that area. And the baja tacos from Tocaya were insanely good. Also the Wolfgang Puck Express stand at LAX had really good food to take on the plane.

Citizen M hotel room, this bed is literally the width of the room

Baja taco from Tocaya, Downtown LA

Ummm, is Nathan somehow cooler in LA??

Okay hold up, are we BOTH COOLER IN LA??

WE BAD

California blonde dreams coming true

The Los Angeles Theatre opened in 1931 - Downtown LA

The Eastern Columbia Building opened in 1930 - Downtown LA

The Orpheum Theatre opened in 1926 - Downtown LA

  • Speaking of airports, the restaurant The Hearth by Lynn Crawford at Pearson in Terminal 1 in Toronto is great! Get the meatballs. Love it when airport food is above average.

  • Of course I listened to the new Taylor Swift album Midnights and the best songs are Question…?, Sweet Nothing, Anti-Hero, Bejeweled, Maroon and You’re On Your Own, Kid.

  • Some things I watched this month:

    • Smile: such a fun time. Love a fun horror movie.

    • I rewatched the first two Friday The 13th movies with Layla (her first time seeing them) and I’d forgotten how good they were. They really hold up well over time.

    • Recent SNLs: Nothing super noteworthy in any of the episodes, I like the new guys. I was introduced to that great Megan Thee Stallion song Anxiety, which I can’t stop playing. The worst sketch I’ve seen in years was that Jack Harlow one with the joker. Just awful. Oh, and Colin Farrell looks alarmingly good.

    • Celebrity Jeopardy: I solely watched because I love Ike Barinholtz (and he was great). But look, I know that Celebrity Jeopardy is, like, the easiest Jeopardy to exist. I understand that. But I had no idea how incredibly dumb most celebrities are. I mean, I know they’re not exactly known for their IQ levels but this was actually just wild to watch. Every single person on each episode I saw was a complete moron (with the exception of Ike and Simu Liu).

    • Barbarian: so great, loved every bit of it. Bill Skarsgård remains as hot as always. (Sidenote: I was gushing about Skarsgård later to Nathan before bed and he scoffed and dismissed it so I asked him, “You probably don’t even have an answer, but who would you consider an attractive celebrity man?” and without even a second of hesitation he goes, “Pierce Brosnan in ‘97.” Hahahahahah, god I died. He’s not wrong.)

Some things I’m looking forward to this month: I’ve already put my order in for this year’s bayberry candles, I’m finally going to read Dave Grohl’s book, of course I’ll get the Thanksgiving croissant from Milk Bar, I’m definitely gonna go to the NY postcard show, and I’ve already got my ticket to see the Thierry Mugler exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum which opens on the 18th. Oh! And a gentle reminder if you’ve started Christmas shopping: get the damn gift receipt.

If you have any interest in reading what went on in September, come on over here.

Ray of sunshine on my ray of sunshine

TAGS: October Occurences, October, October Occurrences 2022, Liz Heather, Halloween, leaves, autumn, autumn in NYC, autumn in New York, Canada autumn, best tweets, Halloween sitcom episodes, Tony Montana, Al Pacino, Scarface, Baby Dog, Nathan Macintosh, Los Angeles, LA, L.A., The Secret To Marriage Is Never Getting Married, marriage, married, Nestle, Toll House, toll house chocolate chip cookies, cookies, soft pumpkin cookies, salted maple icing, recipes, dessert recipe, garlic butter chicken meatballs creamy orzo, orzo, meatballs, chicken meatballs, crockpot, slow cooker, Canada, NY, NYC, New York City, The Keg, Square One, Canyon Creek, Ozzy's Burgers, Ozzy's Burgers Mississauga, burgers, burgers Mississauga, Layla Heather, Milk Bar, Milk Bar Toronto, Milk Bar birthday cake, spring flowers, bulbs, gardening, Hassina Heather, Lays, fries and gravy, fries and gravy potato chips, apple fritter cake, bird feeder, Stanley Heather, birds, bird watching, cardinal, Birds, backyard, changing leaves, autumn leaves, Harvest Moon farm and orchard, mimosa cider, north salem new york, apple cider donut, apple cider donut NY, cider mimosa new york, Central Park, Central Park foliage, leaves Central Park, Mrs. Meyers Clean Day, Mrs. Meyers, apple cider scent Mrs. Meyers, late 30s, late thirties, seasonal coffee drinks, autumn coffee drinks, Starbucks autumn drinks, Starbucks seasonal, Tim Hortons, foam, Charlie Brown, Charlie Brown stamps, USPS stamps, postage, USPS, Apple Store, Apple charger, Bloomingdale's, Macy's, formal dresses NYC, fancy dresses NYC, evening gown NYC, formal dresses NY, Citizen M hotel, downtown LA, Citizen M hotel downtown LA, wedding los angeles, santee alley LA, Tocaya Modern Mexican, fish tacos LA, best taco LA, Wolfgang Puck, Wolfgang Puck Express, LAX, food LAX, YYZ, food YYZ, Toronto, feather clutch, California, California blonde, downtown LA buildings, The Orpheum Theatre LA, Eastern Building LA, Los Angeles Theatre downtown LA, The Hearth by Lynn Crawford, Pearson airport, best food Toronto airport, Taylor Swift, Midnights, Question, Sweet Nothing, Anti-Hero, Bejeweled, Maroon, You're On Your Own Kid, best Midnights songs, Smile, Smile movie, Friday the 13th, SNL, Saturday Night Live, Megan Thee Stallion, Anxiety, Megan Thee Stallion Anxiety, Jack Harlow joker sketch, Colin Farrell, Ike Barinholtz, Celebrity Jeopardy, Simu Liu, Bill Skarsgard, Barbarian, Pierce Brosnan