life job

I have to tell you, since I have taken a bit of a step back from my party-all-the-time lifestyle I have a bit of a fear of being seen as a loser.
Does this stem from high-school when I had no friends? Probably.




Anyway, I want you all to know right now that I have PLENTY of opportunities to go out on the town and do billions of wonderful fanciful things and chat up 100 hunks/night but I am CHOOSING to be a bit more calm about things these days.



It has just occurred to me (yes, I am a bit slow, thank you) that I am not taking full advantage of my current situation.
What I mean is, when again in my life am I going to have jobs that take up so little of my time? When will there be another time when I have such few responsibilities?
Right now I work so few hours that I could be working another full time job on top of the jobs I already have. In fact, most people that I work with do have regular day jobs.




So, I'm trying to treat my life a bit more like a job. Use this opportunity to hopefully become more of a "regular man" (see also tworegularmen.blogspot.com for more on being a regular man from Accost and her bff). An upstanding citizen of society (haahahaaaa).
I may even do my taxes.



This summer was stupidly fun and fairly ridiculous but there's only so long that type of lifestyle can go on (no, actually it can go on forever, I've realized. It just probably shouldn't).
I'm not saying that I won't be right back to my party-all-the-time lifestyle 2 months from now (especially if some babe comes along and breaks my heart or something, that's always a good excuse for ridiculous behaviour) but I'm saying that today I'm giving something new a try.

The good news thus far is: I haven't been to a bar since Tuesday and I haven't had a cigarette since Monday. I've spent significantly less money and am feeling less bloated and sick from partying every night. I've completed one major craft project, several little ones, sewn 2 items, and I've been working quite hard on some (really wonderful) writing projects.



If I want to be a writer, and I think I'm concluding more and more that I do (since no one will just write my damn ideas out for me already), then I need to start actually writing. Treating writing like a job. I have to learn how to write even when I don't feel like it. I need to figure out how to keep going and how to work through things.
Right now I expect that I can just sit down and write something and it'll just come out genius. This is probably not true (and definitely not proven) so I need to do some actual work.




I'm 100% certain (yes, actually, technically 100%) that I have some genius ideas. But I bet most people do. It's only the ones who follow through on them, who are willing to keep going when it stops being fun that get anywhere.



And, MAN, do I ever stop when it stops being fun.
WORST CHARACTER TRAIT
along with laziness, of course.


I never go out onto the balcony on the 2nd floor. Though I could, in theory, the exit is off the hallway and my neighbour is never home, anyway.




It's a good thing it's lovely out these days and that Christmas is coming (two months until my birthday!) because it makes it way more possible for me to feel positive and hopeful.
Also, I really think keeping up with my vitamins is the best plan.

you aint heard got the word that I'm that I'm so sincere

(double exposure app so fun! lamp plus window) 
I've had a really really lovely day today. And productive.
Best kind of lovely days, really. Because you get to feel self-satisfied (best way to be. jk, gosh).



Mrs. and I worked very hard on our project all afternoon. We went to Kensington first, as mentioned, and I did indeed get a gluten-free treat at Wanda's Pie in the Sky. A caramel coconut cookie that was chewy and delicious.


(jean dress plus outside of window)


I think that our project is going to turn out super well, fingers crossed! We had a nice time working away wearing aprons making lots of terrible jokes and even watched an episode of 30 Rock and Jersey Shore.


This evening I worked on Christmas cards and gift tags and made some pretttty nice things. I listened to this American life and cuddled the cat. So cute!


This cat has been being so stupidly cute lately, it's pretty silly.
She just sits and cuddles me with a determined look on her face. 



I also started on a handbag for myself which is fake-suede and RED. oh jeez I love red. I'm hoping to get a red pashmina for Christmas but I'm wondering if I shouldn't just buy it for myself I want one so much. Yeah I bet I'll just get it... I also want pashminas in
blue
white
black
gold/brown
in case you were wondering. I could never have too many because you can decorate with them.
Also want a (fake) fur hat. I'm going to be so warm this winter with my borrowed parka and my cougar boots and I need that hat! With the ear flaps! Warmest head. 




(mrs.'s backyard plus mrs.'s clothesline)


(jealous of backyard!)



Then just now I went back over to Mrs. house to hang with her and her dude (what did I decide his nickname is? did I ever decide?).
They are totally my favourites.
They gave me scotch and gluten-free (chocolate almond) cookies and talked about good stuff.
Actually, spending time with those two is one of my favourite activities. I am legitimately friends with both of them on their own and so it's great and easy to hang out with them together. Plus they aren't an annoying couple -- no fighting and no constant making out. Yeah pretty much top notch I would say.

It's definitely starting to feel like Christmas is actually coming! Amazing, amazing. My cousin's been making candied cranberries and now I want to, too!
Mrs., other craft??

Had an argument last night with a babe about whether or not blog were worthwhile/valid passtimes. Now I feel pressure to write good blogs and I feel over-critical of the fact that this post isn't really about anything.
This feeling will probably last approximately 2 more hours and then I'll get over it.
Blogs have been so positive for me in so many ways over the past decade and I'm not going to go changing my mind now.

autumn, autumn, autumn!

Holy shit it's nice out! I mean, it's very cold but so bright and so perfectly, wonderfully fall.
okok I'll admit I've only had coffee and painkillers so far today. and I'm listening to a whole lot of Clipse and dancing a bit nutso around my house. But still.

Mrs. and I are going to do a big project today! Making things! We talk a lot about making things, today we walk the walk.
Hopefully I don't screw it up!

In honor of our home-making type activity (which is secret because hopefully it results in gifts) I am dressed like a mum and I'm bringing my moccasins to wear while we work. Hahaha ohhhh fun! 

Honestly it is so, so nice out and I'm planning on find a gluten-free treat in Kensington while we're picking up supplies!



I don't have work until Tuesday and I'm planning on enjoying the shit out of the next few days. BAM.

crisps and things

It's apple season and I had a bag of apples needing to be used up so I went ahead and made a crisp!
I had a bag of frozen berries in the freezer (I always buy these when they're on sale) so I added some of those to the mix and it turned out super good.
I like to cook my crisps until everything is right mushy. My mum likes her apples to have a bit of firmness left to them. Not me! Mushy all the way.

So I'm having crisp and a chai tea latte and that's making it pretty much the best morning ever. And it is still morning. Usually I am not even up until noon (hey, I'm usually awake until 4 a.m. so leave me alone it's not like I'm the laziest. Except I am kind of the laziest) but today for some reason I woke up at a reasonable time and fought the urge to go back to sleep. Maybe iron pills are working! 

Oh yeah, also I added ground chia seeds and flax seeds to my crisp topping and cut the butter with olive oil and it's pretty much the best. jfyi.

SNOWFLAKES

I DRAW SNOWFLAKES ALL DAY LONG NOT JOKING.

Also while I draw or work (waste time) on the computer usually this is going on on my lap:


I don't know when the last time I had a real lap cat was. I mean, she just hangs out on my lap all day. It doesn't really matter if I'm paying her attention or not, she just chills out. Pretty nice pretty nice.



I work well under deadlines, in case you were wondering. In fact, I won't actually get anything done until I actually have to. Therefore driving my own work on working on my own schedule is pretty much the worst. Getting better getting better.
Remember when I used to make zines of poetry and photos? I definitely never finished them until I had already planned and announced the get-together party to launch them. Ha, I like that I used to do that.

I used to have chai latte parties in high-school. Those were the best.
I love little get-togethers so very very much. We'd all pile into supertruck and go over to my mum's little house after school and I'd make chai lattes on the stove and we'd all sit around and chat. How fun!

Accidentally started watching Teen Mom on MTV last night at Dollface's while waiting for her to be done work so we could get to partying and, MAN, I would totally get addicted to that show. The sad truth is that I would probably get addicted to pretty much all reality TV if I gave myself the chance. Therefore I avoid it.
I would watch Teen Mom to perfect my middle-american accent though, that's for sure.

Oh yeah, here's a video where I officially introduce Lucinda Bright:

Plastic Bullet and TiltShift Generator

My friend was like, "Man, that's a big can of Sapporo!" and I was like "I know! Take my picture with it"
So now you know what's going on here.


Actually I can't really explain what that guy in the background is doing.
Just kidding, that's one of my favourite buds and believe it or not, he and I had a pretty good work meeting this morning.


Yeah, I wouldn't believe it either.



Okay let's talk photo-editing apps for iPhone for a quick sec.
Both of these two apps were suggested to me by a new bud who knows about iPhones. Or at least knows more than me (not hard).

#1 TiltShift Generator
Edited the middle two Sapporo pictures with this app, lets you change the point of focus and blur out from there also adjust the brightness/contract/saturation/vignetting very easily. A quick way to art-up iphone photes pretty simply. I should have desaturated them more, but still. Also the next two photos in this post are edited using this app. Very fun.





#2 Plastic Bullet Toy Camera
This one is a bit different. You select your picture (or take one) and then it generates four very different options and you can view them bigger and save them or not. When you've decided if you like those ones or not you can press the refresh type option to get another set of four options of prints. You can't go back though, so if you like one you should save it! You can pretty much refresh for new options into infinity? Probably. it's hard to choose just one but also such fun!  You can choose lots!
Okay for instance.
original photo (kind of terrible):


Plastic Bullet:

TiltShift Generator:

So Fun!

You have no idea how hard it is for me not to abandon the work I'm in the middle of to watch episodes of TV shows on the internet. The amount of willpower in me right now is astounding.
Except I guess I did just blow off the project I'm supposed to be working on to write this blog. But that's also a decent project to be working on. Making myself look prettier than I really am on the internet! Basically my life.

For someone completely unknown reason (coffee? the high I get when I'm doing good work on a good project?) I am in an awesome mood and I should get back to typing before I have another fit of wanting to lie around for a billion years and not talk to anyone (basically all of yesterday)!

If you have any tips/suggestions for iPhone apps, etc, or want to share the Android or other version of such games then you should let me know.
I'm still totally learning about my bestbud iPhone and am interested in using it to the fullest!

do it all up in cloisonne

I want these cloisonné owls SO MUCH!
I actually went into this store (Dundas just East of St. George) to buy one and then realized that I really could not justify spending $10 (more for the bigger ones) on a figurine for no reason.

this is what I want for Christmas, though. I am not joking around. Whoever gets this for me for Christmas will be my hero. Who wants to woo me?
Oh they are just too beautiful. I would like a couple, actually. And I think all of them are beautiful so don't be shy about picking them out. I bet other stores in Chinatown have them too. I'm not even that into owls but I do like these ones so much.



I did buy a couple of pairs of pearl earrings, though. Somehow I managed to justify that to myself? Who knows.


Brunch at Cafe La Gaffe in Baldwin Village. Baldwin Village, I always forget about you!
So lovely such a lovely fall day, unbelievably warm out we just basked in the sunlight.




Patio was complete with a cat!

It came around to say hello and then went to sleep right by the sidewalk. too cute.

I had the brown mushroom/swiss/spinach omelette with such good hashbrowns and a serious salad and pieces of fruit on the side. I'd just come from the most boring shift at work so brunch was an extra-special-treat, it seemed. Laid-back, friendly server, too, who was pretty lovely, he made a jam bowl and set it in the garden to try to lure the wasp away from us.
I hope that someone thought he was trying to feed that to the cat.

My skin's been super crazy lately in a bunch of different ways, it's nice when it looks soft and nice in photos. I wish I had a healthy body that worked in all the ways it's supposed to. I wish I had skin that healed easily.

And I wish I blushed less. Actually, maybe it counteracts my rudeness sometimes? 'Ah she can't be that mean, she's blushing..'


Less than two weeks until Christmas season (at least in terms of retail and planning stuff) is in full swing! I'm behind already! But still very excited at what's possible and what I'll get around to!
Such a lovely lovely little season.