Sweater Weather's Over

   

   You're like that old sweater at the back of my closet. You know, the type that's all fuzzy and warm when I first buy it. Trying it on in the store is like a dream. Buying it is exciting and I look forward to wearing it in the fall. Holding a mug of tea, watching the leaves turn brown.

     I wear it lots. It goes with everything. My jeans, my leggings, every pair of shoes I own. It sees the rain, the sun, the windy, everything. And I wonder how a sweater could ever be so perfect.

     But then one day, it comes out of the wash and as I put it on, it scratches my arm. Not a lot, but enough that I'm aware of it. Two washes later and I can't wear it without wearing a shirt underneath. And I realize just how blistering hot it is. The weather gets colder and I begin to wonder just what I saw in that sweater.

     Soon you're not even in my set of drawers. No, you've been banished to the closet and occasionally, whilst digging for something, I'll see you and put you on. Just for a little while. And I remember why it was I put you in the back of my closet in the first place. You've got a hole in your sleeve. I'm pretty sure that blotch is actually a stain. And you're so itchy and scratchy that you poke through every shirt I wear you with.

     Now you just sit there. I know I should probably get rid of you. You've been in the back for ages and you're doing nothing but collecting dust. But sometimes, I miss the comfort and the warmth and I long for the days when you didn't scratch my arms, or make me overheat, or rip so easily.

     And one day, I decide that I am tired of you taking up room in my closet. So sick of it that I decide you have to go. The sun is shining, the flowers are beginning to sprout and all you do is remind me of the cold winter. So I take a pair of scissors and go out to the backyard and cut you up until you are nothing but little strings.

     Birds and squirrels collect the pieces. Some get carried away in the wind and every once in a while when I take a walk, I can see bits of your string in the nests in the trees. And it makes me smile. Just a little. The sort of smile that just has a little hint of sadness. But just a bit. After all, I think to myself, it was time for the sweater to go.

You Make Me Wanna Roll My Windows Down and Cruise

Hello Lovelies!

Envy over at Picking up the Pieces recently did a blog post on her favourite songs to listen to while driving. And I thought that was such a brilliant idea that I've decided to do the same. So without further babblement, here's a list of my favourite driving songs!

Just kidding, I just remembered there's something else I was going to say. If you look at the side, underneath my profile picture, I've made myself a button! So if you click on that, you go to my button swap page and you can grab mine, I'll add yours and we'll do a swappy thing. Okay, for real this time, here we go.

Obviously, when on a road trip or any sort of long drive, you want to start off with some pretty awesome upbeat songs.

Somewhere in Neverland - All Time Low
Not only is this one of my favourite driving songs, but it's one of my all time favourites. When the lyrics "Wendy, run away with me" come on, I'm rolling down the windows and letting the wind blow my hair. Perfect road trip song. Perfect song for the beginning of an adventure.

Jet Lag - Simple Plan feat. Natasha Bedingfield 
My favourite thing about this song is the drum beat in the chorus. It feels like it's going twice as fast as the rest of the song. My brother thought the chorus said "my fart is so jet-lagged" and we had to spend a few minutes explaining to him that the word was actually "heart" and that a fart couldn't be jet-lagged.

Ever After - Marianas Trench
Do you ever listen to one of the those songs that just leaves you feeling super satisfied at the end. It starts off slow and builds and you wait in anticipation and then it resolves beautifully? This is one of those songs. It's so beautiful and I love listening to it build in the car as we drive.

Ready to Run - One Direction
Honestly, I feel like this song doesn't even need a explanation. "This time I'm ready to run, escape from the city and follow the sun". Perfect song for a road trip. And the beat is pretty awesome too.

Waiting for Superman - Daughtry
Gosh, I love this song. Again, it's one of those songs that just builds and builds. It's perfect for driving on the emptier roads with the windows down. Definitely recommended for singing loudly and off-key.

And then there's the less upbeat songs that are cool for when you've been in the car for a few hours and are just chilling...

Wild Life - Hedley
I really like the lyrics in this song and the rhyming sequence. And it's so chill and beautiful and really nice for relaxing. My sister Rebecca was actually the one who showed this song to me and it took me months to realize that I liked it.

Banana Pancakes - Jack Johnson 
Ahh, a classic. Moment of shame here, I only heard this song like a year and a half ago for the first time *runs and hides under a table*. And it wasn't even the recording! My friend played on it on his guitar and I went home and looked it up. But it's super catchy and chill and I love the minimalistic approach to the instruments. Definitely good for summer driving. Particularly near beaches.

The Last Goodbye - Billy Boyd
Despite the fact this song makes me cry almost every time I hear it, it's actually an incredible driving song. Especially night time driving. Soft, meaningful, beautiful and the perfect type of song to stare out the window all tumblr-y like.

Vienna - Billy Joel
Oldie, but a goldie. I think this one is particularly good for road trip driving. I don't know why, I just do. DON'T QUESTION THE LIST MAKER.

There are so many other songs that I love. I have a playlist of 64 of my favourite songs I listen to in the car. But these are the top songs at the moment.

Oh! And if you look at the side, underneath the profile picture, I've made myself a button! So if you click on that, you can grab mine and I'll add yours and we'll do a swappy thing.

Song of the Day - Celebrity Status by Marianas Trench

It only seems appropriate to a song after a post like this. So here, have an awesome song with a funny music video.

Couldn't Have Been Better

Hello Lovelies,

Do you ever have one of those days that just goes so perfectly that you can't imagine how it could have gone any better? Last wednesday was one of those rare beautiful days. I'd been volunteering at a theatre camp for kids aged 8-13 the previous week and then that week from 9-4 every day, so my perfect day started with sleeping in until 10:30.

Around noon, my mum and I got on a bus to go down to Toronto, an agenda for the day in our minds. First, we'd look at where I'd be going to film camp/school in August, then look at my top University choice, Ryerson. After, we'd spend the afternoon walking around downtown Toronto, go out for dinner and then go to see Marianas Trench at Nathan Philips Square.

We started at this place called Honest Ed's because being the snowman I am, I needed sunscreen if I didn't want to resemble a tomato lobster at the end of the day. Two warehouses long and three floors tall, it was like a giant flea market/dollar store. The whole time we were in there I just thought, "I'm definitely coming back here when I need to go dorm/apartment shopping."

They had pictures of celebrities who'd visited this place
all over the walls.

After Honest Ed's, we subway-ed over to Ryerson to look at the campus, which I thought was pretty cool. We stopped for coffee in one of their little cafes.

One of the campus entrances is right on a main street in
Toronto, but when you walk in, it's like stepping
into a whole other world. 

Om nom.

The coffee shop we stopped at was connected
to the school I'm hoping to study at.

After we left Ryerson, we had most of the afternoon to just hang out, walk around and take in the city.

Pretty. ^^

And it just so happened that whilst walking down a wonderful, blessed street called Queen's street, I see two people casually eating sushi outside the restaurant. I pause. Gee, they look awfully familiar. My heart stops when I realize who they are. Mike and Ian from Marianas Trench. Sitting there, eating sushi. In the middle of the afternoon. Casually, as if they have no idea they are part of one of the coolest bands in the world.

"Mum, those guys are from Marianas Trench," I nudge her.

"What? Really? Where?" She begins to look around.

"Behind us."

"Do you want to go say hi and ask them for a picture?"

"Yeah."

Slowly and fairly nervously, I approach them. We meet them and talk for a few minutes. We talk about Pop 101, one of their songs that we love. They ask where we're from and we tell them. Miraculously, they actually know where it is. My town's pretty small. I ask for a picture and they oblige happily.

 And I shook wildly for the next hour as I tried to regain any sense of sanity still left in my brain. They were so nice!

Next, we went to have dinner at this place called Marche's, which is kind of like an indoor supermarket of restaurants. That's the only way I can think of to describe it.

I could have gone much more fancy with my food,
but I wasn't super hungry, as any appetite had disappeared
after meeting Mike and Ian.

Then we walked over to Nathan Philips Square to get standing space so the band didn't look like ants.

This is what the square looked like three hours before the concert.

Finally in our spots.

In the end, I was super happy with where we were and as you'll see in the pictures below, we were pretty close. I have like over 150 pictures, so it was pretty hard to narrow it down to nine. ;) They were incredible and I would definitely go to see them again. In fact, I am in October!

During Ever After.

Mike rocking out.

Josh's facial expressions were the best. I have a collection
of my favourites in my photo library.

The whole stage.

During the first couple of songs the hat, scarf and jacket
were lost.

Then a bra was generously donated by a screaming female
fan. Pants a little low there, Josh?

They stopped in the middle of the concert to do a
four part a cappella song, which was beautiful. They
got the crowd to be completely quiet and it was amazing.

Love this picture.

Yes Josh, reppin' the home
country.

It was such an incredible day. One of those days when you're just super happy to be alive and here on the planet. Ooh! And bonus, I didn't get sunburnt. Not even a little.

I'll be there for youuuu...

Hello Lovelies!!

*SPOILER ALERT*

I've just reached the end of Friends for the first time and I refuse to believe that there was actually an end. It can't just end. It couldn't have just ended! I need to see Chandler and Monica's babies grow up! I need to see if Ross and Rachel get married (again)! I need to see if Joey ends up with anyone besides his chick and duck! Aghhhhhh!

So, in the spirit of stubbornly refusing to believe that this show is over, this post is dedicated to all things Friends. A collective of GIFS and my favourite moments and pictures, etc. And if you never read My Life In Gifs post, you should know that Rachel Green and I are kinda kindred spirits.

And you can't tell me that part of you didn't squeal just a bit inside when this happened...

And I love this line...

Let's not forget the brilliantness of Pheebs

The show was amazing and brilliant and if you haven't watched it, what are you doing with your life? I love the characters and the writing was genius and I don't want it to be over. Even though it ended like ten years ago. Yes, I'm slightly behind on the times. 

We Made It

School. Co-op. Drama. Tears. Laughter. Late night bonfires. Exams. Parents. Stressing over the little things. Fighting. Games. Movies.

High school.

Guys, we made it.

We made it through what people say are some of the hardest years of our lives.

We made it.

We made it through the exams. The pressures. The seemingly constant drama.

And I'm so proud of you both.

I'm proud and honoured to have been your friends. To watch you grow and turn into awesome people. To get to know you as you changed and grew. You're both amazing. You're both gifted in different ways. You're both kind and I'm so happy to have had you both in my life.

And I'm excited to see what's in store for you next. Whether you're off to a different country or just to a different city, I have no doubt you're going to have an impact.

We have our lives ahead of us, like a blank slate, like a winding road, like a clear blue sky. Let's go do something with it. Let's go make something of ourselves. Let's go make a difference. Let's be the best we can be.

I'll miss you both. I'll miss seeing you at Co-op and having the ability to get together so easily. And I hope that this isn't the end of our friendship, but just another step of the journey.

Good luck in the future. Go live an amazing life.

Nostalgic Maps CD Artwork

Hello Lovelies!!

So it's done! My music is completed. My album booklet and artwork stuff is all done. YAAAYYYYY!!!!!

Anyways, here's the artworky stuff.

The cover... oooh, ahhh.

The little thank you, speech-y thing on the inside of the cover.

Le picture of me opposite the speech-y thing.

Le track list one.

The picture behind the CD.

And the back! :D

So I'm kind of like uberly excited here and cannot wait to actually release this. You guys are getting like a sneak peak here. I haven't burned the CDs yet. :)

You think you're really clever, don't you?

Hello Lovelies,

You know what are really funny things? Truly, really, weirdly funny? Personalized license plates. And over the past couple of months, I have taken the task upon myself to photograph the ones I've seen in the hopes of putting together a blog post so we can all bask in the stupid, weird and funny license plates together.

Yeah, well my punky DON'T.

HUFF le PUFF. 

Please don't.

Niall Horan, you forgot your car. 

You forgot your 'l'.

Oh, I'm imagining it.

More like MISTAKE.

Remind me never to ride in your car.

Please stay away from my future children,
Vob.

4 bad bois? That car seats five...

Meanwhile in Canada...

Add caption

Kay, this one wasn't a license plate, but
I thought it was cute, so I included it.

If you're advertising it on your car,
it's probably not that much of a misterri.

Runner girl is driving a car. Something does not add up here.

June, July, August...

Pronounced "Nico-LAY"

Not quite.

What?

2be safe, buy a mini
van.

You sure?