Random Channel Surfing

February 20, 2016 was a day of so much smiling my cheeks hurt. Of so many happy tears that I kept having to check my makeup. Of an overall awesome feeling of joy that was as infectious as it was instantaneous. My best friend married her best friend and to look at their beautiful shining faces, beaming with love and radiating elation, I couldn't help but believe that my own person is out there. Because a love shared between two people like Nicole and Rylan--two people who understand and complement one another to their very core--can't be as rare as I've made it out to be in my head. No; seeing them on their wedding day made me oh so hopeful that that kind of love is everywhere. You just have to know how to recognize it; you have to know how to tend to that love; you have to be willing to make small (and sometimes big) sacrifices; you have to be willing to commit to one person over and over and over again; you have to be willing to accept them, flaws and all; and you h...

As I mentioned in previous entries, Rylan's actual birthday is October 31st. To celebrate his lovely life, Nicole and Rylan always throw what is, in my opinion, the best party of the year.  There's yummy food, amazing people, tasty booze, bumpin' jams, and hilarious costumes. Really, I blame Rylan and Nicole for my new-found love and appreciation for Halloween. As is always the case with me, I took a buttload of pictures. I'm sharing a few of my favourites with you.  Hipster Ariel and (Ashley) Spinelli. Two Disney heroines who are out to fight the patriarchy. Beautiful Char - This girl is so amazing. Mary Poppins and "Chip On-his-shoulder". Swingers! Sch-wing! Professor Chaos and Spinelli. Two animated badasses.  I truly love Seth. Not only is he the kindest soul, but he's all kinds of fun!  Our lovely hosts: Grandma and Grandpa! (Side note: Don't my friends clean up well??? For senior citizens that is...) Grandma ...

  I'm feeling nostalgic.  This time last year, I was in Montreal with these good-lookin' kids. These pictures were taken on (what I think) was the best day we had there.  We started with some breakfast at a bistro a few blocks from our "apparte"; got caught in a storm; went shopping at Ste.-Catherine (where I bought us girls friendship rings); got loaded off $2 hi-balls at the world's cheapest sports bar; got more liquor at the dépanneur, which proved to be quite a fun experience for the boys; drank at Place Jacques-Cartier (just like the locals do!); watched the boats at the Vieux Port; had poutine at Nix and my old stompin' grounds, Montreal Poutine; and kicked off what was, without a doubt, the best holiday I've had to date.  Montreal is amazing, but being there with my gang made it SO MUCH BETTER.

Nicole sent out an email to all of us bridesmaids as a way of introducing us to one another. She wrote a paragraph on each of us and I just love what she wrote about me. The woman knows me very well. It's going to be so awesome sharing another adventure with her :) Gah! I'm so excited for Nicole and Rylan's wedding day!

Chantal married Ryan last night and it was a beautiful ceremony. They're so smitten with one another. Funny, but the first time she was engaged, I knew I wasn't going to be invited. Tarek never liked me (I am very aware of that) and she and I had grown so apart, that I kind of figured I wouldn't be there on her big day. Fast-forward to last night where I witnessed just how much she loves Ryan and how much he loves her. They're so adorable and they're so in love and it warms my heart. I fucked up, though. I won't document the reasons for said fuck-up or what it is I fucked up, but I will say that the shame I feel right now will likely persist for a long while and, well, that sooks. I'm updating this to include the only selfie Nix and I took. Look at me! I'm a highlighter!

Tonight's the night before I fly out to Montreal with the girls and their fellas. Half of me is restless and anxious and fighting the hiccups, while the other is blissfully aware of how blessed I am to be going on this mini vacation. Seven days of mischief and laughter. Seven days of music and feasting. Seven days in the one other place on the planet where I truly feel at home. I can already smell the rain on the pavement and I can already imagine how wonderful our time there will be. How did I ever get so lucky?

Tamara and Sean had a beautiful wedding yesterday. It was teeny tiny (we counted less than 50 people in attendance), intimate, sweet, loving, and unforgettable. And what struck me most is that my two friends are incredibly well-suited for one another. Like my other coupled friends, their temperaments complement and balance each other out. I loved being a part of this intimate affair and am so incredibly excited for the two of them. I hope their lives together are as full of love and happiness as their wedding day was.

Camping is not my first choice when I'm planning a short trip. No. I usually think about going to St. Louis to visit my sis and her family, or about going to Calgary to see a concert, or about going to see Mel in Toronto. Camping is never my go-to and it's especially not ever on my list of trips I'd like to take. Like, ever. And it's not that I don't like camping, or that I've never done it, but rather that when I think of taking trips, I envision myself touring museums, or seeing a band live. I never really think about campfire and woodsmoke. I never consider sleeping on the cold soil. I never think about spending an entire day in the sun. But this May long weekend, the three ladies, their fellas, Dustin, and I met at Pigeon Lake for one of the most loved-up weekends I've had in a long time. Our days consisted of snacking and chatting and we passed the time enjoying ourselves by the fire at night. Our last night, the coldest night, we picked each othe...

I didn't think I would celebrate my birthday this year. I thought March 4th would be a quiet day; no work, all sleep, some reading, a lot of vegging. I am happy to say that my expectations were 100% off. Originally, I thought I was meeting with Nicole, Rylan, and Char and her new guy for drinks after 7:00. That was the plan. Nicole would pick me up on her way home and we'd meet Char's new boo. So she picks me up and we meet with Rylan and all the while Nix is freaking out because we're late, but I keep reminding her that it will all be okay. That Char knew she had a late meeting. It never occurred to me that she was freaking out because of me. So we find parking and the three of us walk into the Pour House on Whyte and, lo and behold: My friends are all there! Jenn, Dave, Dustin, Wyatt, Janis, Tasha, and my dearest Char. When I turned around, Nix was smiling and it never once crossed my mind that my friends would go to all that trouble of throwing me a birthday ...

Every time my friends bring up Osheaga and Montreal and our upcoming trip in August, I feel as though I'm in a dream. The fact that these lovely six people are willing to go on a trip that means so much to me fills me with awe; I'm so lucky that my friends want what I want. Granted we've wanted to take a big trip somewhere together since Jenn and Dave were first engaged and Janis was with Joe (this was eons ago, obviously), but we could never settle on where we would go. Jenn suggested Cuba or Mexico, or hey! How about the Dominican? But it wasn't until August of this year when I went out with Nicole, Rylan, Janis, and Wyatt and we decided that a trip to Montreal's Osheaga would be amazing  as a group trip that anything concrete was decided on. When we mentioned it to Jenn, she was a little hesitant because it's pricey... But now Jenn and Dave have flight vouchers from West-Jet, so their trip to Montreal might be covered! Huzzah! I still feel like I need to ...

Last night was Rylan's 26th birthday party. I went as Rosie the Riveter and was joined by other feminist icons such as the Paper Bag Princess (Tamara), Cat Woman (Janis), Wendy Darling (Nicole) and Satan as Britney Spears (Seth). It was a grand old time and fun was had by all. Steph, Jenn, and Dave joined in the fun later that night and it was SOOOO MUCH fun to see the three of them! They even ended up staying well past 2:00 in the morning! Here we see two white boys gettin' down to some Biggie. n.b.d.

So Nicole moved into her own place on Sunday. Own as in she bought it. She owns  it. It's hers. Funny how us three (Jenn, Janis and me) live vicariously through her ;) The crew: