hello world, welcome to canada

today marks the opening day of the vancouver 2010 winter olympic games and i am psyched! i'm definitely not an athlete nor a sports-addict by any means, but even i get excited and watch sport after sport during the olympics - and that's saying a lot.

go canada go! :)

p.s. i love how quatchi has a tattoo of the olympic logo on his right arm, haha.

sleepy and dopey

the toronto star has some amazing readers.

every so often i'll scan through the online comments that are left in response to particular articles, and while most of the time people just whine and complain, sometimes i come across comments that are just plain gold. today was no exception - here's an excerpt of one that actually made me laugh out loud:

"Everything was going according to plan until last week. He [Giambrone] had a cushy job, nice home and partner and was getting some on the side. Then the fit hit the shan at the TTC with Sleepy and Dopey making the news and suddenly along comes a lady with a story..."

bahaha, sleepy and dopey. if anyone has been following the news in toronto as of late re: the TTC, you'll know exactly who those two names are referring to. so clever!

cooking corner: pasta bake

i'm no chef, but i think i'm *slowly* getting better at cooking. :)

i had things all planned out for this week's dinner (i switched nights for this week so i was in charge of making dinner yesterday), but unfortunately i forgot the food i was going to make at home! that was quite problematic since i didn't have a clue what to make anymore, but instead of panicking i just went with it. after class i stopped by a grocery store to pick up a few things (i.e. ground beef, mozzarella cheese, rotini, and a cucumber) and then i was ready.

i boiled the pasta in one pot and cooked the beef with onions, and garlic in a separate pot (our pans are super horrible here so i try to stay away from those as much as possible). i combined everything together when the meat was cooked (i already drained the pasta) and added pasta sauce and cucumbers to the mix. then i tossed everything into a casserole dish, sprinkled a healthy dose (read: thick layer) of grated cheese on top, and threw everything into the oven at 350 degrees for 10 mins. the result? one yummy pasta bake. :d

i think the best part for me was that i didn't follow a recipe...and it didn't turn out to be a total disaster, haha. chef michael smith (a.k.a. "chef at home") would have been proud.

unfortunately i didn't take any pictures but believe you me, it was quite good. :)

p.s. when cooking the onions, garlic, and beef i added in salt, oregano, basil, and a few shakes of worcestershire sauce - no measuring, i just kind of (literally) threw them in - but i think those things were good for my pasta.

t-minus 6 months

can you believe it? i'm getting married in exactly half a year from today.

sweet. :)
...
for more details and updates, check out our wedding page.

crunch time

for all of january i dreaded february...and now it's here. *sobs* everything for me this term is due sometime this month and things are going to be ugly. first up, my scholarly paper due monday (good lord, i wish i had more done by now.) i think the following picture depicts my present feelings beautifully:



you said it kid. ok, back to writing - wish me luck!

book nook: the luxe series

the luxe series
anna godbersen

oh man, it's been a long time since i've written a book review...or read a book for that matter. so sad. :( anyway, i finished the last of these books back in december during my christmas vacation when i still had time to read, but i just never got around to writing about it until now.

this book series is basically gossip girl set in late nineteeth-century manhattan. (read: drama, backstabbing, betrayal, love triangles, and more drama...this is why it's teen fiction, haha.) the story follows a bunch of socialites on their path towards adulthood...or something rather, with each book being a new year. also weaved throughout the series are 'newspaper clippings' from this time period which start off each chapter and help to set the mood and reinforce the time period.

all in all i thought it was a pretty good series although some of the storylines were kind of ehh and others were just weird. overall, the start of the series was strong, but the fourth book made for a bad ending. i gotta admit though, it was pretty entertaining at times (so much drama!) and godbersen succeeded in making you really like some characters and really hate others.

bottom line: if you're really into gossip girl-type stuff and you're looking for an easy read, then these books could work for you. :)

my favourites of me and my favourite

we got all of our engagement photos from our afternoon of taking pictures and i love them! they're all great, but here are a few of my favourites. enjoy!


^ pictures taken by the talented glendon tang - thanks dude, you're awesome! :)
...
for more details and updates, check out our wedding page.

into the woods

i took a detour on the way home from school today and ended up on a hiking trail somewhere between the university and my house. it was quiet, serene, and really beautiful, and i had never gone down that path before so i was curious to see where it went. i took some pictures with my phone and while they really don't do the trail any justice, here's a little glimpse of what i saw today:



even though i doubt i'd go again any time soon, i'm really glad that i tried it out and that i went (even though in retrospect it probably wasn't the smartest or safest thing to do.) there's just something super peaceful about being surrounded by huge trees that remind you of how small you are, and the sound of snow crunching beneath your feet reminding you of how small you once were. :)

snowboarding fail

what do you get when you have an unathletic girl, a snowboard, and a big hill mountain which is clearly too difficult for a first-time snowboarder? my first snowboarding experience. granted in the beginning it was actually quite fun, but after some bad decisions the day ended with me and two friends having to walk down the mountain. we literally walked down at least 3/4 of mont tremblant with no one around (the slopes had already closed because it took us that long to get down the first 1/4) as it slowly got darker and darker. there was other stuff that just compounded the crappiness of the situation, but on the whole it was really scary and totally traumatizing.

yah, i'm so done with snowboarding.

p.s. mont tremblant is beautiful! but if i ever go again i will give skiing another try. or just walk around the village.
...
edit: apparently my experience happened to another friend of mine, only she was alone on the mountain (read: she had it worse). she's a trooper though as she has gone snowboarding two more times since then. as for me? yah i think i'm still out, haha.

i love you, montreal.

despite the biting cold, ridiculous amounts of snow, and crazy streets and drivers, montreal has got to be one of my favourite canadian cities. we spent new years there this year and seriously, every time i go i just end up liking the city more and more. too bad my french is atrocious. makes me wish i paid more attention during high school french.

well, almost.