Tried the Green Tea Sephora sleeping mask. It is advertised as mattifying and anti-blemish – and it actually is! It’s a light, clear gel, and I found that it helped with my oily areas, calming down the redness.

As you can see, I wrap it up in seran wrap because I can’t finish using the full thing all in one go. I usually get about 3 or 4 uses, so the tiny little capsule actually has quite a lot of volume.
I would take this travelling, maybe when I hit up SFO in February?

Tonight in the car, driving home from M’s birthday dinner at Yagger’s [crappy service, and worse food, but pretty potent alcohol and they have a back room that accepts reservations for large groups - we ordered a 4 appies (wings, poutine, chicken tenders, calamari) and I bought a round of shots = $50 that I could've used for makeup.]

Me: So… Where is Mike now?
R: Probably high somewhere.
Me: HAHAHAHA

A modification of Sugar and Soul's Earl Grey Cookie recipe.

Use as much tea as required to obtain the level of tea flavour you prefer. This takes a bit of trial and error, but I’ve found that the amount in the photo below creates a good balance.

Grind the tea using a paper towel and a bottle of Grey Goose (or wine bottle).

Sift the icing sugar first before measuring it out to get rid of any clumps that might’ve built up.

Salt to taste.

Lazy way to cut the cookies – roll into a log and cut into thin 1/4 inch slices.

Bake until golden brown, which is about 20-25 minutes.

They do expand, so make sure to leave enough room or freeze the dough beforehand to prevent excessive growth.



The past few days have been stressful, and I was exhausted yesterday after sitting for 4.5 hours at the salon to get my hair done (I don’t like it and I will not post photos until I get it fixed… Which is supposed to happen next next week), and going for Dine Out at the Flying Beaver with P+V, V+J, and S+J.

Today, I finally cancelled my Bikram pass, which expires near the end of February, and I can start using my Chopra 20 class pass that I purchased through Groupon (click here for link to the Groupon). I’ve always enjoyed Chopra a bit more, because it’s not as hot and the moves are more challenging.

February is already looking to be better than January.

Creative Thursday nights… I bought this Animorphia colouring book for H, but he only used it once (the critters near the bottom were coloured by him, and the rest by me). V at work saw me colouring, and she’s a very straightforward girl with no filters, so she just blurts out “Are you depressed?”

Yes, colouring is good for people with mood disorders, anxiety, stress, and I guess everybody feels moody sometimes. But no, I AM NOT DEPRESSED.

My desk is a mess - click to enlarge.

Today went well other than that I made a few mistakes at work, and it’s annoying me… Tomorrow is another day.

And tonight is a good night to try out a beauty product – the Sephora Lotus Sleeping Mask:


This is what it looks like:


Very moisturizing and soothing, which is what it’s advertised to do. I am going to try the rest of their Sleeping Mask line, but I would go back to this one again. $5.00CAD each. Portable for travel, which I hope will happen more often.

End of Day 2.5:
H has been sending me photos of his trip. I’m so glad the Internet exists.

Today, Day 1.5 without H, I continue to watch Claire Marshall’s YouTube videos for inspiration on makeup, food, style, girlie stuffs. H found wifi at the Hong Kong and Tokyo airport, and has made contact, so I feel slightly less worried about him. His snack (Earl Grey cookies) at the airport…

I had one too:


16 days left.

Coffee time, all the time. Went to Fresh Press in Richmond for the first time:

This is their brêvé, which is 2 ounces espresso and 2 ounces half and half (I think those were the volumes the barista told me she would use). It’s so much richer and smoother than using milk or cream, but I don’t think I would drink it in a larger volume than what Fresh Press offered (notice the tiny cup), just because of all the fat and calories in half and half. Adding half and half to my grocery list and opening up the Nespresso milk frother now.

Everybody calls this place a hidden gem. I would agree, and I’m coming back to read their copies of Drift, which I cannot afford to subscribe to. Drift is a magazine dedicated to coffee, describing coffee adventures around the world. Costs about $20 a copy.

Before he left for Asia, H’s car was entered and a few important things were taken, and we were both devastated… Shit happens, and we learn to lock our cars properly.
Now, I am devastated by myself (possibly he is too, how would I know, he’s halfway across the world). It feels like the end of the world again because H has just left for Asia today and I guess I should’ve gone with him when he told me to buy a ticket, but hey, the rule still applies! Don’t plan ahead for more than double the time that you’ve been together. 


End Day 0.5 of H in Asia.

Visited Fondway Cafe at Metrotown for the first time with A and P… H was too busy with work and his Scouts. For larger versions of the photos in the grid, please continue reading…

When’s the next adventure? February, at the latest. Today, earliest, cause everyday is an adventure, amirite?

BUT FIRST… COFFEE…

Working the Nespresso machine. It comes with about 24 capsules in different flavours, including decaff (ew), and I tried Kazaar this morning. I think this is one of the most intense at a level of 12. Beautiful crema… I love my Nespresso. Thanks again, H, for getting it for my 27th birthday.

Been listening to this Tydi mix for the last few days (4 days ago is when it came out). Turn it up!

Now that I’m in my late 20’s, I go skiing without a hangover. Whistler was beautiful this Saturday:



Then, we picked up a Nespresso on Saturday, and decorated my house with red and champagne (not white) roses:



This is the Inissia model, uses only the OriginalLine capsules. We took advantage of the $100 coffee credit to pick up about 14 boxes of capsules, including the limited edition Ciocco Ginger (intensity of 6, which is the middle).  When they run out, I’m going to scalp these on Craigslist. H laughed when I told him my plan.

It was difficult getting back to work on Monday.

I tried to bus to work today even though it was wet and miserable outside. I got as far as 9 blocks away, on foot, and the 99 bus never showed up, so I walked back home and drove to work.

I’ll give it one more try next week, but I am not impressed with Translink. The busses are either early or delayed, and this is making it impossible to plan ahead and be on time. People are hours late to work, bringing productivity down to and the city just stalls. How are we going to grow if people can’t get to their jobs? This is so inefficient; it’s a waste of my life to stand around waiting for a bus that never shows up and makes me late for appointments and meetings. Translink, please put our tax dollars to good use and get your shit together.

Good thing today was a soup day at work and at home:

I just want to go back to this…

Might as well just eat.

Look at all that butter. @Happy Date Bakery & Restaurant. Maybe I don’t exercise enough to have this, but we’re all going to die one day, and I’d rather eat this and be happy than deprive myself of all that fluffy bread with butter.

Reasons why I cannot sleep:

1. SimCity BuildIt is keeping me awake.
2. I dread transiting to work, but how else am I going to save some money?
3. Too much coffee today to stay awake.
4. Just not ready to sleep yet.

Waking up at 6AM tomorrow to bus to work when I could be riding comfortably in my Veloster. (Maybe not that comfortably, I get pretty nervous when I’m driving these days, probably because of all the previous accidents). It’ll be my first time using the monthly pass on the Compass card. I’ll let you know how it goes.

Cypress on the 30th. This is where I crashed and slid straight down the slope. Stupid moguls. I need a helmet.
It’s now 12:21AM, and I’m sorting through my photos from last year. What a tremendous year of changes – new job, new car, new hobbies, new relationships, new injuries, new prime minister. This year, I traveled mostly by car around BC and Alberta (Clearwater, Banff, Sunshine Coast, Whistler… I guess Whistler doesn’t really count). Horoscopes this year seem quite unreliable, but who cares what the feng shui masters say? I’m going to make 2016 great and full of more new things. Here’s a list of things I plan on doing:

• Travel to Iceland (tickets are already booked!)
• Travel to San Francisco (I should be going for work anyways)
• Ski on Mt. Baker
• Go snowshoeing
• Camp at Tin Hat Mountain
• Donate some money to a good cause
• Read at least 12 books (1 a month sounds reasonable)
• Invest in property (have you heard about the Vancouver housing market?)
• Protect the environment by using 0 disposable cups (this is going to be hard)
• Eat a lot and not gain weight  
• Blog more…

Yesterday, I made an egg boat for breakfast.

And now it’s 1:20AM, and I’m only halfway through the Gareth Emery Music That Made 2015 podcast. Listen to it here: