I didn't sleep much last night. I woke up at 6 this morning without an alarm and with more excitement than my last 10 Christmases bundled together.
Today we fly to Tokyo!
I'm going to see my friend Kyoko for the first time in a decade, take a million photographs, spend much too much money on pretty paper and craft supplies and for the next 11 days visit some of the most interesting places on earth!
You can have a peek at the wish list/to do list on my pinterest board here:
http://pinterest.com/melanieg/japan/
I'm sure I'll have loads of photos to share in a couple weeks!
I think I already want to go back again.
See you later!
Thursday, April 11, 2013
Monday, March 25, 2013
Overworked.
The past month has had me feeling swamped.
I've been working a LOT to try to have some extra cash for Japan (16 days to go!!) and haven't really had much of a life. Literally a good chunk of my social time has been with friends who come to my workplace to visit or meet me for a quick coffee before or between shifts.
However! I know it will all pay off soon, when I am in Tokyo and can buy an extra something cute.
Speaking of buying, my 40 shopping-less days are coming to an end soon. Which is great, because I need a few things for the trip.
It's been hard in some ways and not in others. The toughest thing to not buy has been spring clothes. This is by far my favourite time of year to shop - teals, corals, floral prints and pretty dresses! Gah!
But I haven't caved.
I have been doing an exercise that a friend suggested - A Photo Safari - you walk around and take pictures of things that you love, and in the end have a collection of photos that define your style.
Here are a few of my favourite things.
I love spring!
When I was a kid my grandma & I would go and pick some of these, they'll always remind me of her and her surefire sign that spring was on the way :)
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Free David's Tea for wearing green on St Patrick's Day. The cup is my fave colour.
Toronto has a Macaron Day! Free macarons around the city in support of charity. Fantastic! And delicious.
This giant poster at Indigo has the prettiest pillows I've ever seen. But no, they don't sell them...?
It makes me want to take up watercolour painting, they're so beautiful!
Speaking of beautiful...
Happy Spring All!
I hope you're getting lots of extra sunshine and melting snow :)
I've been working a LOT to try to have some extra cash for Japan (16 days to go!!) and haven't really had much of a life. Literally a good chunk of my social time has been with friends who come to my workplace to visit or meet me for a quick coffee before or between shifts.
However! I know it will all pay off soon, when I am in Tokyo and can buy an extra something cute.
Speaking of buying, my 40 shopping-less days are coming to an end soon. Which is great, because I need a few things for the trip.
It's been hard in some ways and not in others. The toughest thing to not buy has been spring clothes. This is by far my favourite time of year to shop - teals, corals, floral prints and pretty dresses! Gah!
But I haven't caved.
I have been doing an exercise that a friend suggested - A Photo Safari - you walk around and take pictures of things that you love, and in the end have a collection of photos that define your style.
Here are a few of my favourite things.
I love spring!
.jpg)
It makes me want to take up watercolour painting, they're so beautiful!
Happy Spring All!
I hope you're getting lots of extra sunshine and melting snow :)
Sunday, February 24, 2013
The Oldies Dance
A couple weekends ago now, some friends + Steve & I went to an Oldies Dance put on by a radio station in Hamilton. We were the youngest of the crowd by a couple decades, but it was a blast!
And you know how much I love to dress up!
I found my dress for $35 at a shop on Queen called Tribal Rhythm, which I always forget about/can't remember where on Queen it actually is. But I won't forget now - the dress had never been worn! And in a nearly impossible situation, I actually had multiple vintage dresses that fit me to decide between.
The dance was in a massive warehouse and had seats at tables for 1000 people, a silent auction of musical memorabilia, carnival rides including a merry-go-round, a fun house, games, and my fave a photobooth!
Enough telling - I can show you!
I knew we would have a good time, but I had no idea how much of a good time it would be. Next year I want all of my friends to make the trek to Hamilton too!
Also - I want a photobooth in the hallway of my apartment. I need to work on it.
And you know how much I love to dress up!
I found my dress for $35 at a shop on Queen called Tribal Rhythm, which I always forget about/can't remember where on Queen it actually is. But I won't forget now - the dress had never been worn! And in a nearly impossible situation, I actually had multiple vintage dresses that fit me to decide between.
The dance was in a massive warehouse and had seats at tables for 1000 people, a silent auction of musical memorabilia, carnival rides including a merry-go-round, a fun house, games, and my fave a photobooth!
Enough telling - I can show you!
 |
| This part of the fun house was spinning, fyi. :) |
I knew we would have a good time, but I had no idea how much of a good time it would be. Next year I want all of my friends to make the trek to Hamilton too!
Also - I want a photobooth in the hallway of my apartment. I need to work on it.
Thursday, February 14, 2013
To less.
I mentioned a few posts ago that my motto for 2013 is "All you need is Less."
As a part of that idea, I decided yesterday that I would give up shopping for lent.
It's not that I'm religious these days (tho I was raised Catholic) but yesterday I was thinking about how as a kid we would give up something for lent. Lent is 40 days long and ends at Easter.
So essentially, I'm giving up shopping for the next 40 days.
Not buying anything that isn't going to keep me alive.
Food is okay.
But stopping in at Forever 21 or Winners on the way home from work to see what's new, picking up a new cute shade of nail polish, thrifting a new vintage pin, buying a magazine because I'm bored - those are not going to happen for 40 days.
Maybe to you this doesn't seem difficult at all, but I personally identify a bit too much with the main character from the Shopaholic novels. Even today, as I have the day off and try to decide what to do, the first things that pop into my head are strolling down cool streets in the city and shopping.
Already my email inbox has been filled with multiple coupons and announcements of sales this weekend.
Instead, I'm going to spend time sorting through the things in my apartment and getting rid of what I don't need. I'm going to:
- try on all the items in my closet and get rid the ones that don't make me feel fantastic.
- tackle the bathroom cabinets and give away all of the soaps, gels & creams that I don't like.
- donate the books that are collecting dust
- throw out worn out socks
- copy my cds to itunes and trade the discs in
- sort through craft supplies and keep only what I'll use
- and sort through whatever else comes up
I am excited to beat this challenge. I'm excited that it will help me save money for my trip to Japan in April, and that in general it will help me gain perspective and become less of a consumer.
I plan to fill the shopping-less void with more crafts, homemade foods, and adventures in the city.
Are you giving anything up in the next while? Have any goals that you're trying to beat?
As a part of that idea, I decided yesterday that I would give up shopping for lent.
It's not that I'm religious these days (tho I was raised Catholic) but yesterday I was thinking about how as a kid we would give up something for lent. Lent is 40 days long and ends at Easter.
So essentially, I'm giving up shopping for the next 40 days.
Not buying anything that isn't going to keep me alive.
Food is okay.
But stopping in at Forever 21 or Winners on the way home from work to see what's new, picking up a new cute shade of nail polish, thrifting a new vintage pin, buying a magazine because I'm bored - those are not going to happen for 40 days.
Maybe to you this doesn't seem difficult at all, but I personally identify a bit too much with the main character from the Shopaholic novels. Even today, as I have the day off and try to decide what to do, the first things that pop into my head are strolling down cool streets in the city and shopping.
Already my email inbox has been filled with multiple coupons and announcements of sales this weekend.
Instead, I'm going to spend time sorting through the things in my apartment and getting rid of what I don't need. I'm going to:
- try on all the items in my closet and get rid the ones that don't make me feel fantastic.
- tackle the bathroom cabinets and give away all of the soaps, gels & creams that I don't like.
- donate the books that are collecting dust
- throw out worn out socks
- copy my cds to itunes and trade the discs in
- sort through craft supplies and keep only what I'll use
- and sort through whatever else comes up
I am excited to beat this challenge. I'm excited that it will help me save money for my trip to Japan in April, and that in general it will help me gain perspective and become less of a consumer.
I plan to fill the shopping-less void with more crafts, homemade foods, and adventures in the city.
Are you giving anything up in the next while? Have any goals that you're trying to beat?
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