October Occurrences 2019

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

Forgive the lateness of this post! It was an insanely busy month and I’ll try not to let this kind of delay happen again. SO MUCH HAPPENED! Details below.

  • I went on two trips this month! The first was to the Bahamas and it was so great. I stayed at Atlantis (because well, that’s where my parents were staying and they kindly let me stay with them, IF YOU MUST KNOW) and while Atlantis was super nice, it really felt like what I imagine a big cruise ship to feel like. I’m not meaning that as an insult at all - it just felt sort of stiff, well maintained, with a very controlled environment. I tried lionfish for the first time (very good), drank Bahama Mamas and slid down the shark-surrounded Leap of Faith (horrifying). We ate at Jose Andres’ restaurant Fish and it was absolutely unreal. The seafood was phenomenal.

Parents in the Bahamas

  • My second trip was to New Orleans for the week of Halloween! I’ll do a full post on this one because there’s too much to say. (Full post here!)

  • In some upsetting news, I accidentally “recovered” my phone and lost most of my Bahamas photos. I was so upset because it was completely my own fault. I hadn’t backed up my photos to my computer yet either, so it truly sucked. I do have iCloud but I never opted to pay for the extra space so it’s been full for about a year already. Enter my saviour Marla who told me about Google Photos (which is free) and I’ve already started using and backing up almost daily. I’ve moved on from losing the photos by rationalizing it in thinking that I wasn’t meant to have those photos, they were meant to be memories.

  • Remember when I told you to watch Tuca & Bertie because it’s so lovely? Well, if you did, this is a really great piece about Bertie’s boyfriend, Speckle.

  • Can’t get enough of the Pink Lady Apple flavour of Health-Ade. So goddam tasty.

  • Years ago, I watched and hated the second Sex & The City movie (too xenophobic, cliched and generally terrible) but I rewatched it on a plane recently and while it’s still a bad movie, I had completely forgotten about the storyline about Carrie and Big “defining the parameters of their own relationship.” Best part of the movie! I won’t give away too much, but you may want to rewatch this stinker if nothing better is on.

  • We rewatched all of the Sleepaway Camp movies and they really hold up well. Such a solid series.

  • I did two of Nathan’s podcasts this month: one where we talked about vaping and one where we talked about what annoys Nathan and my Joker thoughts! I had a lot of Joker thoughts. Quick summary? IT BLEW. I feel like the world grieves for broken men and I do not wish to.

  • I tried pumpkin-flavoured Kit Kats and although a little gross at first, they really do taste like pumpkin. And after two or three bites, become delicious.

  • In keeping with autumn flavours, I tried the pumpkin cream cold brew from Starbucks (I know, despite this one instance, I am still trying to stay away from the corporations that are slowly eating away at society as we know it). Anyway, the drink was only MEH. It’s wild how we’ve made milkshakes acceptable for adults to drink at 8am.

  • I’m not sure if I’ve already shared this tip, but I have THE greatest advice for someone who’s trying to avoid a cold from starting. You know that point right before you get a cold, when your throat feels a little tingly and sensitive? And you know that a cold is coming right around the corner? All you need to do to avoid this from happening is buy the blue Listerine and gargle with it once in the morning and once before bed and gargle for about 30 seconds each time. I SWEAR TO GOD THIS WORKS. But only with the blue Listerine. I’ve tested this theory twice now and it absolutely works, someone give me a medal for curing the common cold. (And if you really don’t believe me, buy the travel size before you commit to the larger bottle, geek.)

  • Riverdale is BACK! The season premiere episode dealing with Luke Perry’s death was so good and so sad and that’s all I have to say about that. This tweet sums it up.

  • As for the more recent episodes of Riverdale? The latest Halloween episode was pure and complete madness and I love how nuts it’s becoming. This tweet sums it up.

  • I started watching the new season of This Is Us and I think I figured out what’s wrong with this show: every character on it is almost TOO in love with their partner. It’s enough already, we get it, love exists. The show is so wildly saccharine now. Maybe it was always that way and I never noticed before? Either way, I might be passing on it this season.

  • I read and reviewed Abbi Jacobson’s newest book and you can see that full post over here.

  • I really hate cleaning shower curtains and the mold-free one that I got from The Container Store (only $10) has lasted me a full six months before getting gross. Highly recommend!

  • Cannot stop playing this song or this song.

  • J. Crew was having a pretty sweet sale and I bought this gorgeous-fitting underwire 90s swimsuit that I can’t stop praising. No one told me about underwire swimwear! So fucking flattering.

  • My absolute favourite place to get Halloween costume accessories is by far the Village Party Store in Manhattan. They somehow have every single thing you’d need for a costume, they’re super inexpensive and the staff is so helpful (eons better than any Spirit). I was talking about costume stuff with one of the guys who works there and he mentioned how a group of women had just come in to get stuff for their group costume: they all were going to be different Keanu Reeves characters. Is it just me or is that the greatest group costume you’ve ever heard of? He said they were definitely going to do Neo from The Matrix, Ted from Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure, Jack from Speed, Duke Kaboom from Toy Story 4 and Sad Keanu. PURE GENIUS.

  • My favourite SNL sketch of the season so far, for sure.

  • LOVED the new season of Big Mouth. But can we pleeeeease stop with the musical episodes? NOBODY LIKES THEM.

  • Speaking of Big Mouth, I watched the movie Disclosure and wowza. Great movie. Can’t believe I’d never even heard of it before. Just rewatched it again with Nathan this past week. So good.

  • Another great NYC Halloween store is Abracadabra on 21st street. It’s a more expensive place to shop, but if you just want to browse then definitely visit this place. There are tons of interactive displays and the whole basement has incredible costumes for rent.

  • You can see this year’s Halloween costume over here, if you so please. In other costume news, Baby Dog was a lion. Roar.

Lion!

  • I finally tried Mario Badescu’s Drying Lotion and whoa. I get the hype. It fucking obliterates pimples. It’s hard to sleep in since it goes on like calamine lotion and smudges everywhere if you lay face down (do people sleep like this? I sleep like I’m in a coffin & Nathan hates it because I look like a mental patient but it’s so fucking relaxing, I can’t stop), but it works really well if you can figure out a way to sleep without it rubbing off.

Some things that I’m looking forward to this month: celebrating American Thanksgiving since I missed the true (Canadian) one last month while I was in the Bahamas, introducing Nathan to the Momofuku Thanksgiving croissant, taking Baby Dog for autumn walks in Central Park, getting my copy of Lindy West’s new book that arrives in my mailbox tomorrow, still working on doing things off of my autumn list, reading Jenny Slate’s new book, if you find yourself always losing your poppy I find it helpful to attach mine to a safety pin rather than just the regular pin that comes with it, and I’ll probably definitely see A Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood even though I do think it’s unnecessary.

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

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.