New Hair! New Place! New Age!

Helloooo all

Sorry I have been behind on my postings. As most of you know I just moved and am still settling in getting my ish together! I have had the past few days off to recuperate and relax which was nice. Sometimes I don't do well with relaxing though. I always feel the need to be doing something, whether it's a task like washing dishes or making my bed or a project like finding a new coffee table for our place or researching different handbags to buy. Relaxation is almost like a lost art to me.

Anyways, in my days off I did a lot of thinking about changing my hair colour. Over the weekend my roomie and my sister almost begged me to dye my hair closer to my natural dark roots. Me, always the hilighted blonde, was doubtful. But staring at those black looking roots and ratty straw hair gave me an epiphany! Why am I wasting so much hard earned money on bleaching the crap outa my hair, only to have it look like a train wreck 2.5 months down the road.

So then began my search for new hair colours. Black, Brown, Golden Brown, Red, Auburn.....so many options!! I was so overwhelmed but decided I wanted a goldenish brown and red. So after that was decided, I needed a place to get this done. I am tired of paying top buck for hair! I mean it's just HAIR right?! I would do it myself if my hair wasn't so damaged and in need of colour correction, but I needed professional work at an affordable price! Enter: House of Lords on Yonge and Isabella Street in Toronto.

I have often walked past this place on numerous occasions on my way to acting class, but never thought much of it. It turns out they are a true gem! A little rough around the edges in regards to decor, but that's what I think gives it character. With rockbands and music paraphenalia plastered all over the walls and the funky beats belting from the stereo system, I felt right at home! Not to mention all the stylists had their own funky doo's going on....purple streaks, fringed bangs and the like....I was very intrigued to see what they could do for me.

I came in around lunch time to be greeted by a nice stylist. I explained that I wanted to tone down my blonde and go a little darker. Sometimes I hate going to salons and explaining what I want, because I know what I want is always so hard to do or achieve. But this lady was super nice and started consulting with me about colours and tones at once. We decided on a nice golden brown with a hint of red. Before I knew it my head was all dyed up and I was tapping my feet along to the poppunky beats playing in the background.

Once the dye was set, the lady took me to the sinks where she rinsed out my dye but also offered to put on a treatment for my oh so damaged hair. Once I was done, she did a nice blow dry style and I was good to go. She even reccommended good shampoos to use that I get at the drugstore.

And so I go to pay the cashier, expecting my bill to be around 150 dollars....but to my amazement...only $102!! I was shocked!! What an amazing price for an amazing colour, cut, treatement and style!!

All in all I had a great experience here. The only downside...they don't take debit...and only take Visa (sucks for Mastercard users like moi). But despite some of the crap reviews I have read, I have nothing but good things to say. It's a rock n rolling, funky sweet salon! Two thumbs up!! Check em out http://www.houseoflords.ca/

UPTOWN GIRL!

Holy eff! Where have I been? Out and about that's where!! And I am here to brag all about it. Hahaha.
BIG NEWS. I am officially MOVING! Yes people, after all this talk of moving out over the past year and a half, I am FINALLY doing it. Saturday July 24th! My best friend and I had an epiphany one night that we were simply wasting our lives living at home in a sheltered lifestyle. We wanted adventure...this is our prime. Twenty something professional girls seeking the city life. It all made too much sense, and long story short....we are moving to the Yonge and Sheppard area to a beautiful luxury condo, with a pool, sauna, billiard room, gym and an underground connection to the subway. It's a nice area with all ammenities in walking distance. I am sooo excited!!! We are painting everything this weekend and moving in the weekend after...just in time for my birthday!

I feel like this is the best point in my life to actually LIVE my life. Everyone always advises me to save my money, save my money. And I do save my money...but I want to enjoy life as well. What is the point of saving until I am 30? By then I will be married and have kids and not be able to enjoy a beautiful luxury condo in the city. Life is too short to worry about the future all the time. I know it's so cliche, but people really need to enjoy the present a lot more. Take a moment to think about your day...did you really enjoy it, or were you rushing through your work, thinking about what you were doing AFTER work or what you were doing this weekend? I am guilty of it too. But I am learning to just take everything in strides and appreciate every waking moment. Because you never know when you are going to go, or what's going to happen. Life is precious. Enjoy. Laugh. Love. And Just be HAPPY!

MMVA Madness

MMVA's!

Aloha!!

It's officially SUMMER! Time to bust out the bikinis and BBQ's! This is my favourite time of the year where I am an official social butterfly and barely have anytime to chill. I feel like I have something planned every weekend, and I like it. I love when I am busy and when I have plans...I love getting the most out of life and feel like when I sit around I am wasting time. It must sound crazy, but I am young and have lots of energy and want to experience life to the fullest.

This past weekend were the Much Music Video Awards which I got to help work. It was fun checking everyone in (including some celebs). Just having bands come up and show me their driver's license was kind of funny. It kind of makes you remember that celebrities are regular people too, who still pay taxes, who still go to the bathroom and who still need to follow the rules with the rest of society. I was most excited to see Katy Perry, Down With Webster, Hedley and The Stereos at this year's award show. Too bad my faves Billy Talent were not there, because I would have loved to see them at the after party!! Oh well, maybe next year :)

So what's on tap for the rest of the summer?? Well....as far as I am aware....I SHOULD be moving out in August! I know, finally! I won't reveal too much details yet as nothing is set in stone....but I will keep you posted.

I am still doing my acting classes, they finish up pretty soon. After I am finished I will be able to join the agency and start auditioning for commercials. I am a little concerned though, as I am not sure how many auditions I will actually be able to do seeing as how I work full time. And I will need to somehow come up with some extra cash in order to pay for headshots. They are not cheap!! I know I will for sure need to get some part time gigs, maybe doing more promos, to help pay for things like this when I move out.

Anyways, that's all from me for now.

Later Loves

xox

Summer in the City

Greetings!
So it's been awhile! Sorry I have been terribly busy this month with work, social events and family. It seems as though I am always very busy in the summer months. Every weekend I have something planned and while I enjoy being busy, sometimes I get very overwhelmed and all I really want to do is sleep!
This weather has been up and down, last week was very hot and this week has been rainy and cold. This past Sunday I did my Becel Ride for Heart! Unfortunately I didn't end up doing the full 50k, it was far too windy and rainy for me to continue. But I did 25k which I was really happy about! It wasn't that bad of a ride physically, just the rain ruined it for me. I mean, how often do you get to take your bike and ride along the Gardiner Expressway and DVP! Not everyday!! It was pretty incredible and I promise that I will ride again next year, raise even more money and finish the full 50k!!

In other news...I am hoping to move out this summer. I think it's time. I don't want to jinx it though. I know I've said in the past I was moving....but this time I feel it for real!!! If I can do a bike ride in the disgusting cold rain for 2 hours, I can move downtown. I think in my mind I am making it a bigger deal than it really is. Yes it will be challenging at first, but I will get the hang of it. Kind of the same thing as starting a new job....it's scary at first but once you get the hang of it, it becomes comfortable. I think I just need to dive in and do it. It will take a lot of discipline that's for sure. I may even need an extra side job to support my extravagant lifestyle!!

Anywho, that's all for this post. Gotta go get me some sleep!!

Peace Love and Cocoa Puffs!
xox

It's HOT!

Greetings!

I know I have been really bad at blogging this month, but I've been really busy!!! I promise I wasn't being neglectful. Today is the first day of June!!! And it's HOT! All week it's been scorching hot, in the 30 plus degrees! Last week I was in Vegas with some of my closest friends and we had the most amazing time. It was a great vacation that was definately needed. I love my friends more than anything, and I truly value their friendship. These are the friends I can talk to about anything, the friends that know me best and the friends that make me laugh until I cry. I took tons of pictures and am currently in the process of getting them all developed. We also did a cool video-blog while we were there with about 20 videos in total. Watching them after the trip was quite hilarious. I am hoping we can get it posted online sometime soon. I am really interested in getting a video camera now; they are so much cooler than regular cameras! A little machine that can document a piece of histroy, bit by bit, word for word, action by action....it's really one of the best inventions in my opinion and worth every penny.

I have posted a few of my photos from the trip here. While in Vegas we stayed at two hotels, MGM and Treasure Island. While MGM was really nice, I don't think I would stay there again. It was way too big (the 2nd largest hotel in the world might I add) and getting from Point A to Point B was such a mission. We could barely find seats by the pool it was that crazy.

Treasure Island was the best. I am biased though because of my fetish for pirates. There was an amazing Pirate show called "Sirens" that they perform 4 times a night!! It takes place on the pirate ship outside the hotel and includes singing and dancing from the pirates and wenches. What a cool job that must be!! I would love to do something like that for a living.

Since returning from Vegas, I've been hit with this nasty cold!! It's been awful, it's been a week and I am still sniffling! Who gets a cold in warm weather anyways?! Sheesh!!

All in all, Vegas was an amazing trip and I definately want to go back. There is so much to do and see that one trip is not enough, heck 3 trips aren't even enough! I think I will just keep visiting until I am old and wrinkled, still yanking on those slot machines. :)

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all the beautiful, loving Mothers out there, especially mine!!
Even though mothers should be thought of everyday, today is one of those Hallmark holidays where we can spoil our moms with fun presents and cards. Remember when you were little and just bringing home a handmade gift was enough? I miss those days because I used to love crafts. If I were a mom, I would want those handmade craft gifts over anything else. There's something special about homemade gifts, no one else will have them and they are personal.
This year I had a tough time deciding what to get my mom as I feel like I've gotten her everything already....pictures, flowers, spa packages...but in the end decided to go with a framed photo of Katrina, Beau, Mom and I, a cookbook, makeup and some cute salt and pepper shakers in the shape of Beau :)

I feel like MOTHER is a word that can be used to describe not only your biological mother, but the other mother figures in your life. A Mother is someone who cares for you, gives you advice, helps you when in need, lends an ear for listening, a shoulder to cry on. A Mother is someone you can trust and someone you can go to whenever you need. I feel like I have a lot of Mother like figures in my life and I am appreciative for each and every one of them.

I often wonder what it would be like to be a mother. Sometimes I feel like I am so darn selfish and would never be able to care for another human being. But I think once it does happen to you, you naturally become more selfless. Of all the moms I know, that is one word that can be used to describe them all. I hope one day I can be just as strong and wise as all of them.

My Buried Life List

Aloha friends, family and followers!
Hope you are all doing well. I think I am. And you know what? For once in my life, I don't care how "well" I am doing. Lately, I have been feeling a lot of pressure. Pressure that has accumulated over the past two years since graduating university...the pressure to succeed, the pressure to be somebody, the pressure to have my life figured out in one simple paragraph or less. This 1/4 life crisis has yet to cease, but I have decided to embrace it as opposed to fight it. Yes, the twenties are a stressful time in life because there are no guidelines or strict paths to follow in order to be "successful". I have come to realize that being successful is not determined by your title, your assets or your status in society. No, I truly believe that being successful is determined by how happy you are and by how much you get out of life.

I am sure you are all familiar with the MTV show, The Buried Life. A show about a group of guy friends who create a list of crazy things they want to accomplish before they die. Together they travel the country in a tour bus trying to accomplish the most craziest things ever known to man. It's quite hysterical and definately worth a watch.

Anyways, these boys have inspired me to reach beyond my limits! Sometimes I feel like I am so old and that my life needs to be figured out in every which way....I never feel totally fulfilled. While some aspects of my life seem to be figured out, there are huge gaps in others and then I begin to stress and dwell on them. This is NOT healthy. It's time for me to realize that having everything figured out doesn't make you more successful than someone who does. And figuring things out is part of the magical path that is life. In other words, it's not about the destination, it's about the journey. It's time for me to enjoy the journey of life and stop trying to rush through it.

So in reference to the Buried Life show, I have decided to make my own Buried Life List of things to do!! And I have already started a few!!!

1) Travel More (Vegas and Chicago trips lined up this spring/summer)
2) Learn to paint (I have started a few, but nothing too fancy. Want to sign up for lessons)
3) Get into acting (Joined an agency and am currently taking acting lessons)
4) Dance more
5) Get my own place (Eric and I are hoping to move in September)
6) Venture into new hair colours besides blonde!
7) Learn to cook
8) Have kids (not quite yet though!)
9) Swim with dolphins
10) Take more pictures and learn more about photography
11) Write a screenplay
12) Volunteer more with kids and the less fortunate
13) Get Married
14) Go to Europe

Those are just a few. But seriously this list gives me hope for the future. I hope I have maybe inspired you to get out of your shell and do something for YOU!!!!!!!!!! The best investment you will ever make will always be in yourself!!!