Marvellous Creations from Cadbury Dairy Milk

How could I resist these exciting new flavors like Jelly Popping Candy and Cookie Nut Crunch?

maple French toast bagel

Forgot to bring lunch (that had been packed and waiting in the fridge) and just realizing that had made me that much more aware of my hunger so I hopped over to Timmy's and found my new favorite bagel... the maple French toast toasted with cream cheese

insalata caprese

Tried to hold onto the taste of summer for just a tad longer with a simple caprese salad - except the downpour this morning sort of killed our basil plant and I had to improvise with pesto - not quite the same but turned out nice enough

As it turns out, you can't really pack up in one night everything you've accumulated over 10 years - mementos of good times past, convenience of the lisent living arrangement plus knickknacks bought in anticipation of a shared future prove too heavy a burden to carry out the door in one go - and of course the tear-induced blurry vision doesn't help

detox

Always feel better after hot yoga - not sure if it's because of serene quiet as i lay in shavasana in the warmth or the fact that I sweat buckets - there's something satisfying about getting completely drenched from a workout, heat assisted or not, and all you can focus on is how it feels in the here and now.

I had almost forgotten how much I like it - it seems a waste to spend time in a heated room when it was gorgeous out there but then the gloomy rain has driven me back.  I'm a little rusty and had trouble with holding some poses, but hopefully as i get back into it in the colder months I will regain some ground.

And my fav instructor Matthew always have the best soundtrack - i love that it's not the kind of music that pops into mind when one thinks of yoga (instrumental sitar and all) but just a really relaxing mix of songs I've heard here and there.  I hope he will be sharing his playlist.

I wonder why it's so difficult to be honest to myself about myself... and why am I not the only one who has to pay the price for all the times I've buried my head in the sand...

moose's pick

Let's go to the ex!

I finally got to check out the CNE and literally spent the whole day there with awesome friends :)

Learned a couple things at the ex:

Always specify which entrance to meet at because we passed by at least 3 before we found our friends

Always bring cash so you can bargain - and yes - always bargain!  We scored a gorgeous statement ring for less than half of its listed price

Always leave the heavy purchases at the end so you don't have to walk around with it for the whole day

Always buy less food than you think you can stomach - because there's always something else that looks equally yummy than what you've gotten




And ramen at santouka was the perfect way to end the night

Irresistible find at WalMart

Is it weird that I hadn't been able to pay with this pack of brightly colored sharpies once I laid eye on it??  I don't know what I'm gonna do with all these markers yet but I'm sure to have fun experimenting!

Impulse buys from WalMart

Note to self - never go into a WalMart again when stressed out

Sunday afternoon treat

moose's pick

Not sure why they bothered with resealable bags since these are so addictive that there's really no chance of having any leftovers...

moose's pick

flavor of the week

28 cents noodles

I hope it's edible

Mini haul at Shoppers Drug Mart

There was an optimum point promo so of course I went to check out what deals I can find and didn't come home empty handed....

moose's pick

Where's my chauffeur?

Cinnamon rolls redux

Lisa's Warehouse Sale Spring 2014

haul from Lisa's Warehouse Sale in Markham, despite every intention to behave and not indulge myself with makeup products that I don't really need:

prices were so good that I really couldn't justify not picking up the stila "in the garden" eyeshadow palette; the Anna Sui fragrance called "Rock Me - Summer of Love" and Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in "Honey" and "Charm" - 70% off the retail price is simply too irresistible!

blush pretty

 L'Oreal Magic Smooth Souffle blush in Celestial - goes on almost invisible which is great because I tend to be a little too heavy-handed when it comes to applying blush - actually, going overboard may be a trend with everything else I do... but that's beside the point -  and the sheerness of this creamy blush prevents me from walking around with cheeks in the color of monkey-butts.

now I'm kicking myself for not having picked up the shade dubbed Angelic as well - Angelic is ever so slightly warmer in tone and would have been perfect for the summer!

black force one

this stout from Denmark definitely lived up to its claim of being strong - it's more bitter than sweet but mildly sweeter than Guinness, very slightly tangy and somewhat burnt - all in all, an okay stout but I'm not sure if I would have it again. 

Pretty happy about the windows phone update because the notification center does come in quite handy.  I had to tweak the settings a bit but this I can't figure out- apparently we need constant reminders every time my battery gets depleted by 1%?

breakfast for champions

Wrapped up a fun and delish weekend with a feast in the morning - homemade cinnamon rolls and banana pancakes with blueberry compote, bacon, sausage rounds and scrambled eggs, plus some clementines to round out the menu.

I'm so glad the griddler is getting coming in handy and is producing such delicious results - the pancakes were fluffy and the blueberries and chocolate chips in the batter almost negated the need for syrup, except the blueberry compote elevated the pancakes to a whole another level of yumminess.

The cinnamon rolls smelled heavenly fresh out of the oven with just the right touch of crustiness and soft tender middles - even B liked them despite his dislike of cinnamon and had more than two bites.  It's exactly the kind of breakfast I had been craving for since a couple of weeks ago and it really hit the spot - the only problem now is  that we'll have trouble settling for store-bought cinnamon rolls from now on.

bodega on baldwin

celebrated the long weekend with a fancy dinner at bodega with good friends and good food:

I liked the french onion soup, but B is convinced that the one from Creperie Catherine at Mont Tremblant was better

The pan-seared scallops were juicy, tendered and cooked just right, and the tangy fig and tomato relish perfectly complements the sweetness of the scallops.

I still can't pronounce "bouillabaisse" but I know now that I really like it - it's got the taste of a lobster bisque with the texture of a broth and it's full of treasures - meaty scallops, prawns and fish and my only complaint is not having enough crusty bread to soak up every glorious drop. 

Duck confit can only be ordered with seared duck breast which was tough and bland.  The fig, tomato and mushroom sauce made it tolerable on the palate but it's not something I would want to order again.  The leg confit was tender and fell right off the bone. The portion size was quite generous but I think I enjoyed the duck leg confit from The Explorer's Cafe much more.

Thank goodness for cup noodles

Chained to my desk, i  would have starved to death if it wasn't for cup noodles

What's keeping me sane this morning

Radioactive

Green goop my post-tactduo raw skin can't live without - what better time to pick it up than Sephora's VIB sale?

wooly bugger

Lofty head atop dark brown ale with creamy caramel notes with a smooth finish = a winner in my books

But first - let me take a selfie

Late night treat

Needed a quick treat while wrapping up some slides for tomorrow's meeting and this just hit the spot

Next time I will try to replace milk with vanilla ice cream

rich in spirit

metallic baby blue - almost like a silver with a tint of blue

Chicken noodle soup

It sucks to be sick on a day off, but since I'm home, I get to take my time and make soup the long way even though heating up a can would have been easier.  I am not sure if this is the proper way to make soup but here is what I did: sautéed chopped up veggies and chicken with oregano, then added water and after that boils,  added the star pasta.  Boiled for another 5 minutes or so then seasoned with salt and pepper.  Really wasn't that complicated, just time consuming.  But it's a nice distraction from my achy throat.

limited edition Peach Blossom Tea Latte

an earl grey tea topped with whipped cream and pink sugar - quite soothing and pretty to look at but why can't I taste any peachy/floral notes?

dipped in gold nails for CNY

It's all about the glam - nicole by OPI
A gold winter's night - nicole by opi
A cut above - essie

moose's pick

first time seeing a Lindt ball in coconut flavor - and the tropical taste is a great distraction from the harsh winter!!

random stuff on sale at Shopper's Drug Mart

pretty in pink

treatment update: Tactduo

So it's been about 3 months since I've been prescribed Tactduo with the instruction to apply to my face at bedtime - but I had since cut back to using it as a spot treatment when I feel little bumps coming up from underneath my skin because of sensitivity issues.

After using the gel religiously as instructed for the first week, my skin dried up considerably - to the point that my skin started flaking despite moisturizers and that it feels raw - and painful even.  My skin burns with pain whenever I try to sooth it with moisturizer - eventually I turned to moisture masks.  The one from Vichy burned the most, while the ones from Clinique and Clarins still mildly sting.  The only one that provides temporary relief is the cucumber aloe gel from Peter Thomas Roth - the radioactively green goop.

My acne didn't disappear despite the dryness - if anything, more little whiteheads had appeared in my trouble zones - especially on my chin.  Then most of them would eventually fade away but a few worsened to bigger zits than what I usually get.  The way they dry up also left some scarring/dark spots, but that's happened with other acne of comparable size prior to this medicated gel.

My girlfriend told me about using Tactduo as a spot treatment and I hesitated because the patient info leaflet specifically stated that it should NOT be used as a spot treatment - most likely because it could cause color blotches if not evenly applied to the face - but since the gel was causing my skin so much grief I decided to give it a try.  Since then my skin had been a lot more calm but still not acne-free, and occasionally I would get pretty bad breakouts.  But gradually it does feel like I'm not getting acne as often anymore, so maybe I'll keep using it.

I should really stop...

and this is only  the part of my collection that I keep at my place... I have another handful at B's

There should be enough to paint each of my nail (fingers and toes) a different color every day for a week

spanish coffee

was quite reluctant when dad insisted to have lunch at Keung's @ Peachtree centre in Markham since I wasn't their biggest fan - I mean, if I got to pick, we would have gone to Blue Ocean Cafe - but this spanish coffee might just have changed my mind about this restaurant