Music Mondaze

Because today is Monday and maybe that's got me feeling like emotional hodge podge. Cue Queen Bey's power anthem-y healing. HECK OUI!

Hitting the road!

And we're off! Well, not yet. Tomorrow. After much (muuuuch) back-and-forth, it's settled: We're going to Boston! Josh has never been, and my ten-year old self only spent two days there, so there's plenty of Visiting Somewhere New Excitement in the air.

Did I mention the food? THE FOOD. Our trip is mapping out to resemble a milk run of Boston restaurants and bars. On the confirmed list: Abe and Louie's Steakhouse, Bukowski Tavern, Flour, Top of the Hub. For good measure, we also threw in a walking tour (SO ACTIVE) of Little Italy's best Italian food. A little birdy (the internet) also told us where to find the bar from Good Will Hunting. We've got this covered.

Confession: At the moment, I'm grappling with some mid-scale weird feelings re: not seeing my family on nye for the first time in, um, ever. I'm hoping sure these will pass after we've hit the road, made some ill-conceived Duty Free purchases, and filled our bellies with top of the line en-route Amurrican grub (read: Friendly's).

Mostly, I'm looking forward to road tripping with my favorite co-pilot -- the GPS! HA! Nah. Josh is my favorite co-pilot. He always let's me stop for a McGriddle before we even leave the neighborhood, and only complains a little when I skip through The Doves to listen to Beyonce.

In case we don't chat before then, HELLO 2015 & HAPPY NEW YEAR! Xx

Bragging Rights (Holiday Style)

Ho ho ho howdy! Can you believe the Official First Day Of Winter was only yesterday? I've been freezing my nuggets off since end-November, but anyway, let's welcome the change of season with a shitton of twinkly photos and such. Christmas! Hannukah! Excitement and cookies galore!

(Truly. There are cookies ALL OVER the apartment. I might have a problem -- The New York Times seems to think so.)

So here is the story and there’s not much to it. Last week, hopped up on holiday spirit (pine fumes), we bought ourselves a fine fir. It was heavy and sticky and smelly in that way you like about Christmas trees in theory but is actually worlds of annoying to deal with. Anyway. The lot's pickings were pretty sparse IMHO but picked a beaut we did and loaded her into the car.

Things quickly devolved. Once through the door, it was blaringly evident that our Brand New Tree was Way Too Fucking Big. Like, 7ft big. Like, cannot-fit-into-last-year's-tree-stand big. Then, my hunky fella props the tree against the wall, only to reveal a mosaic of tree sap all over his new winter coat. Fun times!

But we're troopers, we are! We named our tree Noëlla (good call, Pickle) and got her to stand right up (in a new stand... that cost six dollars more than the tree... and so it goes) and aren't we just the proudest!

MEANTIME, guys, don't forget we've got ourselves a multi-faith household (apartmenthold?) on our hands.

The bottom half is cropped, but yeah, our menorah the prettiest.

Noëlla turned out hella spiffy, too. :)

Good read

If my sixteen-year old self had her way and I became a writer for a ladymag (or nymag, I'm not picky), the link below would have been my dream assignment.

http://nymag.com/thecut/2014/12/how-i-tried-to-lose-a-guy-in-10-days.html

One tablespoon professional jealousy, two cups hilarious. Read on!

Because sometimes you go on sick leave and all your responsibilities are unofficially given to someone new (self-awarded A+ for the run-on sentence)

What’s a lady to do when there’s nothing to do (office edition)?

- Find new and exciting routes to the office washroom.

- Repeatedly ask coworkers if they need help until, eventually, they learn to hate the intake of breath that comes before you speak.

- Refresh manrepeller.com every thirty minutes. Other windows that are perennially open, minimized: Cup of Jo, DESIGN LOVE FEST, AV Club, Cinema Montreal, J. Crew (feed the fantasy), Gap (face the reality).

- Covertly check phone for new e-mails, exciting fb/insta updates, texts from mom, basically anything, but don't get caught.

- Snoop Browse through the communal disc drive for line sheets of seasons past and, maybe, last year’s drunken Christmas party photos.

- Reread the week’s lunch menu, then chew a fresh gum to suppress boredom-induced appetite – lunch is still two hours away.

Monday Morning Music

I wouldn't call this a full-fledged return to the internet... but maybe it's the start of something close. Stay tuned & shake it to Marky Mark in the meantime.

Skincare Emergency

Gruesome confession: Does anyone else's face blossom into a blemishy ecosystem if they don't wash their makeup off before bed? Well, mine does -- especially if, say, I get a wee bit sauced on Halloween and, come bedtime, crash face-first into my pillow.

Four days later and my skin is still rebelling. Gotta step up the skincare game.

Enter Body Shop's Warming Mineral Mask (suggested by a work pal). It feels like mushy clay and warms as your rub it against your skin, which is moderately exciting.

So I went and smeared that goo all over my face minus eyeballs and nostrils. Time to let science work its magic.

Attractive. You're welcome.

Do you have any miracle creams and potions? This one's the closest thing I've ever found to helpful and relatively fast-acting. I can also vouch for Clinique's Exfoliating Scrub, but usually just wait to get freebie sample-size tubes (hey there, you sexy gift-with-purchase) because that stuff is pricey. Pro tips galore!