Test Post - Paint Pot Decor Blog Post

Indoor Spring/Summer 2017 - Paint Pot Decor

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Become the artist of your own decor with these earthy marbles, bright florals and soothing watercolours. Indulge in European elegance, a bouquet of Spring colour or a comforting canvas to suit any room in your home.

The Things New York Taught Me

During my trip to NYC (Sept 30-Oct 7, 2012) I learned many things; listed below are some of them...

• The majority of New York smells like pee and/or garbage water.
• There really are rats in the subway tunnels.
• New Yorkers are not as unfriendly as they are made out to be. However, there are still some who will cut other people off when racing for a subway door.
• Nothing will compare to the size of New York. Toronto seems so small and tame now.
• Some subway station tunnels look like garbage dumps. This is probably heaven for the rats.
• If you don't need to ride the subway during rush hour...don't. I will never look at Toronto rush hour the same ever again.
• Harlem / Hamilton Heights / Washington Heights are not as bad/scary as they are made out to be.
• For $2 you can get the best coffee, toasted bagel with cream cheese and banana from any local bodega and it's the best breakfast you will ever have.
• Starbucks are EVERYWHERE and are a saving grace for a full bladder or technology in need of recharging.
• New York is always busy. Always.
• You can actually buy alcohol in pretty much every local/corner/major store. In DuaneReade (a Shoppers Drug Mart-esque store) you could fill your prescriptions, get a ready made pasta dish or salad, pickup up snack food, a frozen pizza, a pack of smokes, hairspray and some beer or a cooler.
• Be very specific with the taxi driver that is taking you to the airport or you could end up walking in the rain to the correct terminal.
• People from all over the world are in NYC; in any given spot at any given time. I thought Toronto was a melting pot of cultures...heh!
• You need to be very watchful of where you are on the bus as they don't call out stops unless you ask. On the subway it's a toss up for stop notifications. However, there are ALWAYS maps at every station and in every subway car.
• You can get cellphone reception on the subway.
• 4am garbage pickups and 6am store deliveries.
• There is a wide variety of street food vendors catering to everyone's needs and wants.
• Staying in people's homes might not be as private or swanky as a hotel, but it makes the whole experience more personable and welcoming.

There are more things I learned, for sure, but for now that is the list. My trip was excellent and really opened my eyes. I am so going again...hopefully soon!

Devouring Words

I spent my morning in bed and could not have been happier. Reading people! Clean minds everyone, clean minds. Reading? Maybe not quite strong enough wording. Devouring words; that's better. It's been a while since I've found a book that takes me away, completely cocoons me in its story. It's rare these days for me to find a good book that holds my attention. So, when I find one that I can't get enough of I am overjoyed. I've needed that reconnection, that re-balancing of life a good book can bring.

I'll admit, it's a little embarrassing that my current love of words comes from a teen fiction novel, but it's just so good! A little romance and little laughter and little thriller/drama and a little lose myself in the story. It's OK; I'm allowed to read it even though I'm an adult.

My adventures began about two weeks ago when I happened upon the first in the trilogy at a used bookstore. I am always looking on those discount carts at used bookstores never knowing what I'll find. The covers and titles are the things that usually catch my attention because it's rare an author's name will. For $1 I find a striking black cover with a purple tinged pillow and with a graphically striking title. I had no idea that it was a Young Adult novel until I brought it home.

All I was looking for was a "bedside reader"; something light that wouldn't drag me down, that wasn't something I had to read and that I could meander through a few pages or a chapter at a time before bed. It totally started that way until last Wednesday night when I went to bed way too early and was wide awake at 2:30am. I was about a quarter into the book by that time and figured a few pages might help me to relax enough to slip back into dreamland. I was wrong. Unannounced to me, I had just arrived at a part in the book that, within a page or two, had me hooked! I powered through all but 10 pages of the book before looking at the clock to see a blurry 4am staring back at me. Reluctantly, I put the book down and fell back to sleep for the few hours I had before my alarm went off for work.

10 pages. that was all this delicious book had left to give me. It gave me all 10 pages the next night.

At the end of the book is where I found out it was the first of three. Delight! They were even nice enough (teasing bastards) to preview a few pages of the next book in the trilogy. If I wasn't completely hooked before, now there was no turning back.

Used bookstore, library then full priced purchase. That was my mantra as I left work on Friday. Used bookstore, library then full priced purchase.

Used bookstore came up empty. No system to keep track of what's on their shelves made it more challenging. After coming up empty on the warm inside shelves, I dipped back outside to the street carts and flipped through tons of titles until my fingers were frozen numb. Desperate? Yup.

Used bookstore, library then full priced purchase. As mantras go it was a good one, until I set foot into Full Priced Book Kingdom and computer searched their stock for my title. *bing* One book left in stock of the second in the trilogy. Curious. *bing* One book left in stock of the third in the trilogy.

"Excuse me? Where is the Teen section?" The words escaped before I could stop them. "Upstairs and turn left, on the far side." Coordinates locked in.

You're only going to buy one. You're only going to buy one. Another good mantra that lasted about as long as it took to catch a glimpse - of both - on the shelf. "I'll take this one AND this one." I said aloud to no one in particular. Crazy? Probably.

Let's not talk about the Full Priced Book Kingdom price, shall we? My reasoning for the purchase, it cost only $1 for the first book. Hey, it's a good reason! How about current joy and pleasure of words? Another good reason.

Arriving home Friday night, even with the late hour, I sure gave it the ol' college try and got a few pages in before my eye got blurry and the book fell out of hands. Sleep, which brings us to this morning.

Sleeping in is delicious in itself, but knowing that when you finally wake up there is a book waiting to be devoured just makes it even better. A couple hours of reading started my Saturday off perfectly and has hopefully put me in a good frame of mind for the rest of the day. Yes, I would rather stay in and continue following the girl, now working undercover for the local police - along with her secret boyfriend who was part of an undercover drug bust in the first book, as she is pulled into people's dreams to find out if there is a sexual predator posing as one of her high school teachers and to find out if this girl is actually going to become blind like the old woman from the nursing home that died in the first book, but now visits the girl in her dreams to help her learn to be a better dream catcher.

You're hooked too, aren't you?

Taking More Risks -- Take A Class!

In my continuing effort to check something else off my list and take more risks in 2011, I have signed up for an 11-week Tai Chi course.

Starting tomorrow evening, I will be Tai Chi'ing it Yang style once a week for 11 weeks.

I signed up for this class because I wanted something that could help decrease the increasing stress I am feeling at my day job, which would in turn, hopefully, help improve my health (IE: weight loss, strengthen, self-preservation, etc.). Although, in the past two weeks I think kickboxing might have been a better choice. "I wanna beat the shit outta something!!"

I am not too sure what to expect, but I know people who swear by Tai Chi and both my parents have gone through many levels of Yang style and enjoyed it. I just keep picturing those groups of people who, early Sunday mornings at Christie Pits Park, gather to Tai Chi together in what seems like rhythmic and spiritually centered flocks. Just that image relaxes me...maybe Tai Chi is what I need.

Now where are those track pants...

Winnipeg Vacation Round Up

Due to my lack of posting early in my vacation, I now present a brief, and probably not as detailed, "Vacation Round Up" post of what happened for the remainder of my vacation in Winnipeg.

Wed May 4/11
A visit to Whitehorse Gift Emporium and Tea Room. They boast 10,000 unique items in the store (ranging from items you could find in a dollar store, beautiful wooden furniture, Christmas items, food products, beauty products, gag gifts, jewelery and more) and 30 different kinds of loose leaf to choose from in the Tea Room. This was the day where my cold was kicking my ass and during my wander around the "10,000 unique items" I had a dizzy spell and almost fell into some China. That probably would have cost a lot more than the $4 I spent on craft items.

After a relaxing lunch at the Tea Room (and a longing gaze at the good looking gardeners) our next stop was The Forks.

For those that have visited St Lawrence Market in Toronto, The Forks is similar, but less food market, more upscale and more tourist trap. There are many shops catering to many wants and there is a large outdoor area, with entertainment pavilions and such. However, on this day we didn't see too much of the outside except when running from one building to the next trying to stay dry.

Thurs May 5/11
This was a big day for us. No daycare for the girls and instead we took them to the Assiniboine Park Zoo ($5 for adults...hello, awesome!), then a brief romp at Assiniboine Park and across the big bridge to get some ice cream cones at Sargent Sundaes. This was also the day I received my first sunburn of the season. (Mature responsible Sara didn't even think that a week that started with snow could turn into a week that fries skin.) And what a sun burn it was...Aloe-Vera-slathering-Ibuprofen-popping joy. Ouchies! However, after all that and a quick dinner at home, Angela and I still had the energy for $3 movies at the theatre. Yay, movie popcorn!

Fri May 6/11
With the girls back at daycare, Angela and I visited The Winnipeg Mint - a branch of the Royal Canadian Mint. We had booked spots on the tour, but arrived late ("How did I think the Tax Centre was The Mint...?"), which actually worked out well because we were able to do a self-guided tour and NOT pay the $5.

Incoming joke:
Woman: So, you work at The Mint?
Man: Yup.
Woman: What do you do there?
Man: I make money.

After a quick McLunch we treated ourselves to the oh-so-good, but oh-so-expensive Marble Slab Creamery ice cream. If you're wondering, yes, it's the same idea as Cold Stone Creamery. Marble Slab vs. Cold Stone.

After dinner that night, we enjoyed a fire in the backyard and I got to roast marshmallows for the girls...OK, and for me too. Once the kids were in bed, the grownups feasted on nachos and watched a movie before passing out themselves.

Sat May 7/11
Today I did not rise from slumber until 10am. Even though I was yet again awaken by the loving chirps of young balls of energy before 7am, I decided, with my cold and wicked sunburn, to sleep as much as I could -- 10am was the best I could do. No matter though because today was a relaxing day of PJ's and doing nothing, except packing, before heading back to Toronto.

Side note about my flight back: Our attempt to depart early was foiled by an over emotional woman at the front of the plane who, I thought was laughing at first, cried hysterically promising to calm down because she "need[ed] to get back home to [her] husband." Reason for hysterics? Unknown. I looked down to get a magazine, looked up and she was gone -- along with the security officer. Ah, the entertaining joys of travel.

Also, one travel tip: If you have a cold, particularly in the sinus region, don't fly. Descent and landing are a bitch.

Well, that was my vacation; first one in many years. Here's hoping there aren't that many years between now and my next vacation...or my next trip to Winnipeg!

The Soup Kitchen

Today was another relaxing day and the last day before my friend, Angela, gets three days off work. Quality friend time!!

I made a large pot of homemade veggie soup in the morning and both Angela and her husband, Dennis, came home from work to enjoy lunch with me. There was enough soup left so that the girls had some for dinner with the sitter and I put some in the freezer for everyone to enjoy later.

The afternoon consisted of some web surfing and a delicious nap before prepping for a dinner out. We decided on sushi and had a pleasant meal at Tokyo Sushi located conveniently close to the house. For dessert, although so not needed, we headed to Bellbottoms, the restaurant at the Holiday Inn. Angela and Dennis recommended it from past visits. Brownie. Ice cream. Cookie. Whip cream. Many calories. So yum.

This required a walk. After getting home, sending the sitter on her way and putting the girls to bed, Angela joined me and Jake, aka the snoring dog, for a walk around the block and to the park.

This brings us to now: sitting on the couch, watching "Sixteen Candles" on Netflix, and dealing with my runny nose. Yup; hoping for allergies and not a cold, but the sore throat is leaning me towards a cold. We'll see.

Plans for tomorrow: lunch at Whitehorse Tea Room (30 different loose leaf teas) which also happens to have the largest gift emporium on the planet. Well, maybe not the planet, but 10,000 items...

Epic energy in the form of two little girls

Here I sit, at the dining room table, basking in the glow of warm morning sunlight. It's just before 10am. It's silent.

Why would I mention silence? Due to the fact it's a change, a BIG change, from yesterday. Lily (4) and Ruby (3), my friend's two little girls, who are the cutest and sweetest little girls, are also the most epic balls of energy EVER!

Although I went to bed well after 1am on the night of my arrival (April 30/11), I was up before 8am. Why? Two very active little girls. My first duty as guest in the house was an 8am colouring session that lasted at least two hours for all of us and pretty much the entire morning for the girls. I have a stack of about 20 colouring book pages, gifted to me by the two little cuties, to prove it.

They never stop. The running. The jumping. The talking. The colouring. The playing. It's fantastical. I am in awe of their unstoppable energy level. If we could harness the energy of these two we could totally power a small country. I was awake this morning (Mon May 2/11) at 6:30am, but forced myself to sleep a little more. My alarm clock NEVER works this well...

This morning the girls are back in daycare and the house is silent, except for the ticking clock and the snoring dog. My friend Angela has to work today and tomorrow so I need to find stuff to keep me busy. I am glad the warm sun is melting away the snow that fell, but am pretty sure today will be an relaxing inside kinda day.

Yesterday I picked up some brushes, acrylic paint and little canvases at the local Dollarama and have already sketched out two images which I shall start painting after breakfast.