The "C" Word

Is anyone else as confused as I am about the word

CURVY?

Who is curvy? What body shape is curvy?

Am I curvy? ARE YOU CURVY?

When you hear the word -

is it insulting? Or a fantastic compliment?

(Or, as my husband would say,

an Insompliment -

a la "you would be really pretty if you wore makeup",

or "your hair looks so much better than yesterday".

Not quite an insult, not quite a compliment.)

I recently read an article entitled

"Every woman in America is now 'Curvy"

(read it here)

and it echos my sentiments on this issue.

The jist of the article is that pretty much all women

are given the title "curvy",

from a stick thin Taylor Swift, to a much larger Gabrielle Siebe.

This is curvy? Or just a really beautiful thin woman?

This is curvy? Or just a really beautiful big woman?

I can see why I'm so confused.

I get called curvy All. The. Time.

But then I think -

wait? Am I Taylor Swift curvy to you, or

more of a Gabrielle Siebe curvy?

I don't want to be either.

Labels suck.

Being called curvy to one woman is a really great compliment.

To another woman? It's the worst.

The author of the article mentions that,

at one point, she described herself as curvy on her online dating profile.

A "gentleman" quickly replied to her with this:

“P.S. Dont say ur  ‘curvy’ cuz guys will think ur fat ;).”

(He did give a winky face - so he's not a total doucher?)

But really - can I blame him?

When we're told anything from a size 0 to a size 22+ can be

described as "curvy".... who really knows!?

I personally like being called curvy.

It's the truth - I do have curves.

Big hips, big boobs... definable waist.

But to some - I'm huge! 

Point is -

what is the point?

Love yourself? Lame.

Don't let labels get to you? Good luck.

Enjoy your body for what it is? Okay.

Do what makes you happy, let the rest take care of itself? Okay.

It's a struggle out there.

Maybe just see each girl for what she is -

good hair, nice rack, hot jeans, sweet lipstick...

the list goes on.

Or - go with the word "Bombshell".

Bombshell is good.

Side bar - trying to find a "curvy" quote on the internet

was ridiculous and almost made me want to chuck this blog post all together.

So instead, enjoy hearing my favourite song of the moment, which,

has, literally nothing to do with being fat, or thin, or curvy... thank God.

Stompa - Serena Ryder

"People, looking for the great escapeLooking for the greener sideTrying to find a better waySlow down; open up your big brown eyesFeel the rhythm in your heart"

Pumpkin Wagon

Alright, alright world - I'm giving in.

I am now officially on the "pumpkin" bandwagon. 

(This is not to say I'm not a pumpkin fan - in food. I just didn't think

it'd make a good drink flavour) 

Anyways.

We live down the street from a 7-11, and last night

my husband walked down to grab one of their "famous"

pumpkin spice lattes.

I didn't go, because I didn't think I'd be interested.

WRONG!

 He let me have a sip upon his return - Delicious.

I know what you're thinking - 7-11? For lattes?

Calm Down Starbucks snob - they are unbelievable!

And only 2 bucks.  

Trust me - try one.

And on the pumpkin subject,

we went out to one of our favourite pubs on the weekend

where Pumpkin Ale was on tap.

Again - I was on the fence.

NO LONGER! 

Mmm pumpkin - you've won me over.

No Guilt!

Yes.

 

 

Cheers to the enjoyment of life!

Home

I woke up this morning with an enormous sense of being home.

It's only been 2 days, but there's something about this new place.

It's warm.

It's cozy.

It's me. It's my husband. It's my dog...

and it feels so good.

There's nothing quite like feeling content.

 

 a glimpse.

a song.

"I don't like walking around this old and empty house.
So hold my hand, I'll walk with you my dear" - Of Monsters & Men

What's on Your Face?

A friend and fellow blogger of mine recently asked me to write a guest post on her blog 

about my make up and some of my favourites.  

Now that she has posted it, I thought I'd post it here as well.

 _____________________

 

When I was asked by the lovely and talented writer of this blog to guest post about what was in my make up bag, I was all in.  While I, like her, do not claim to be by any stretch a “girly girl”, my makeup bag and the contents therein are sacred to me, and while I don’t claim to be an expert, I do gots my fav brands, yo. (What?)

One (1) – The make up bag itself (Betseyville).  I’m not sure where my animal print obsession started, and don’t worry – I’m not a Snooki look alike, and I don’t wear animal print body suits or anything.  I have a few things – and my make up bag is one of those “ahhhh, I love me some animal print” items.  It’s a little gawdy, and a little trashy, and a lot bad ass.  It has a lightening bolt key pull.  It makes me happy. So get off my case already.

Two (2) – Annabelle Le Gloss in Liquid Honey.  I currently have 3 of these on the go.  It’s a little sparkly, and a whole lot sexy.  It gives your lips that “come hither” look, and I think it’s good for day or night.  Although – I do wear leopard print heels to the office, so take that as you will. 

Three (3) – Rimmel London Quad Eye Shadow in Smokey Noir.  Hello hotness – if you want the smokey eye, it makes the most sense to purchase a quad shadow with smokey in ITS NAME.  From my photo, you’ll notice that the top left square is the one I use most often.  That’s because it’s the darkest and my eye makeup is usually closer to that of a

 lady of the night than a Mary Poppins.

Four (4) – Ah, mascara, my one true love.  I do not have any ties to any particular brand of mascara.  From my photo you’ll notice I have displayed 4 types.  The one I’m most drawn to at the moment is The Falsies Volum’ Express by Maybelline New York .  I’m not overly impressed by Great Lash, also by Maybelline, but I bought it because Carmandy from What Not to Wear told me it was the best... but she lied to me, and I’ll forgive her sometime.  I am lucky in the fact that I have long, thick black lashes.  But don’t you worry! That doesn’t stop me from layering those puppies up with the darkest and most multiplying mascara there is – and don’t forget the curler.   (Heat it up for about 6 seconds with your hair dryer for a truly curl-rific experience!)

Five (5) – By far, the cheapest, most trashy item in my bag, and also, by far, my favourite.  Fantasy Makers lipstick by Wet n Wild in Geisha’s Kiss.  I bought this lipstick for Halloween 3 years ago at the dollar store.  I brought it out a year later when I thought I was cool enough to try a red lip out for realsies.  Turns out – I am soooo cool enough!  I’ve gotten so many compliments on my red lips, and I owe it all to this $1 tube of red gold.  Good find.  It’s not something I do often, and the red lip is not something I’m ready to try at the office or in the light of day.  But throw me some mood lighting, a nice bottle of wine, and some heels, and Geisha’s Kiss is bound to make an appearance.

Six (6) – This brush.  I believe the professionals call it an angle brush.  I use it to line my eyeballs with the above mentioned black eyeshadow, and I would be a lost kitten without this brush.  This one in particular is by Quo. Please do yourself a favour and buy an angle brush!

Seven (7) – And now, my piece de resistance.  Sometimes, it’s the only thing that gets me out of bed in the morning.  I own four of them, and I have been known to leave work when I once forgot to put in on (Shhhh.)  I think all girls should wear it, and I just don’t quite get it if you don’t. BLACK. EYE. LINER.  My absolute favourite kind is Almay blendable eye pencil in 01 Black.  I can’t say enough about black eye liner.  A few days ago, I thought I lost my “desk eye liner” (don’t judge me, it’s legit).  Turns out, I had put it in my pen stash, so all was restored, but for about 15 minutes – heart attack. You may think my obsession is a tad unhealthy – 

but listen, black eye liner is the bomb.

Alright girls (and boys?) that’s my little list of what I love.  You will notice I didn’t add any foundation or concealers – mostly because I am still completely in the dark as to how to tell the difference between the two.  I have about 5 different kinds that I use on any given day – but am not sold on any of them.  Happy Makeuping!

Cautious.

 I think, just maybe, the fog is starting to lift.

Cautiously Optimistic.

Perspective

I'm taking a breather,

and putting things into

perspective.

It's an anoying thing to do sometimes,

but completely a "must"

when your life throws you so

many lemons that you would rather

cut your own arm off than make any more

DAMN lemonade.

mmm, vodka.

So, I didn't get a picture perfect Thanksgiving.

SO WHAT.

Here is what I did have:

- A pretty amazing Thanksgiving lasagna with some

pretty fantastic family members.

- A lovely Saturday afternoon with my sister.

Yay sisters!

- A delicious sushi dinner with a friend.

(I got violently sick after, but that is definitely besides the point)

- A Sunday sleep in with my husband, something that for us and

our work schedules is extremely rare.

- Sunday night dinner with our little family of 3 (third being a dog, not a baby fetus,

in case you were getting ready to gasp)
- Good news that despite us leaving our 3 month old apartment,
we were approved for an even better (and slightly cheaper) one.

So... if I was on the outside looking in,

I'd be all

"what are you complaining about?

What a great weekend!

Really, no turkey? Too bad, so sad"

My quest to not compare my life to others,

for being grateful for what I have,

for looking more on the better side than the bad side

is a learning curve here.

Ah, perspective. 
Try it sometime!

Mr. Wilde always knows what to say...
one of my favourite quotes.

Thanksgiving?

So, today is Thanksgiving.

Is it? I'm not actually sure if Thanksgiving is Saturday, Sunday, or Monday.

Either way, it's here, or was here.

I'm feeling a bit "Grinch" like this Thanksgiving.

It came without turkey,

it came without stuffing...

it came without family,

it came with basically nothing!

(Rough Seuss rhyming there... on the spot, it's tough!)

I'm kind of a sucker for traditional,

over the top,

Thanksgiving with the Jones type stuff.

A la Rockwell if you will...

However, our Thanksgiving consisted of

my husband & I working, 

continuing our stressful housing situation,

and eating a makeshift chicken casserole 

with cranberry sauce late Sunday night.

It was maybe one of the most depressing weekends of my life!

(I have to apologize to a friend who I ate sushi with on 

Saturday night... I was not pleasant company. 

I'm sorry!)

I'm not even sure where this post is going...

if you are reading this, and you had a wonderful

time with family, ate lots of delicious food,

drank wine, relaxed, and had the smell of turkey 

consuming your house and giving you the warm & fuzzies inside,

enjoy it, and never take those moments for granted.

Be thankful.

xo.

Here's hoping to a better Christmas!

Burst?

Since moving, I've been trying to master the art of, what I call,

the photo burst.

I guess it might also be called a photo collage? Or collection?

I'm not entirely sure... burst works for me.

I've definitely jumped on the bandwagon of arranging 

my photos in fun, alternating, patterny (without looking patterny) way

on my walls.  And I'm a big fan!

Is there such a thing as too many photo bursts in your house?

That is the next decision I am tackling... not sure if I've overdone it.

Anyways, a little glimpse at what I'm talking about, 

and what I've done.

Right?

 

Also - for those of you out there without proper

photo hanging tools, I learned the Best. Trick. Ever.

(from a little website called "Pinterest"... not sure if you've heard of it?)

Ready for your mind to be blown?

To know where to put the nail in the wall so your photo hangs

exactly where you want it (trés important when making bursts)

simply dab a little toothpaste where the nail goes on the back of the photo,

find the sweet spot on the wall, and simply press the photo against the wall.

You are left with a minty fresh dallop to use as a precise guide for 

where to hammer home the nail!

(I'm a) GENIUS. 

I'm thinking one more burst oughta do it.

Cheers to home decorating!

What the?

What is Angelina Jolie wearing here?

And how is she somehow managing to pull off this

zippered garbage slash sleeping bag?

I don't know anyone who would look good in this.

But, basically, because she is Angelina Jolie,

she seems to be pulling off the

cape/flying squrrel/what you throw together when you don't have a halloween costume

so you rip up a garbage bag and say you are a black hole

look. 

Of course.

Kudos to you, AJ!

Fun. And so SMART!

I've mentioned them once already on my blog,

and Ima doin' it again!

 

I love these guys.

Their music makes me happy.

Their ethics make me even happier.

 

This is a shirt of theirs you can currently purchase:

 

buy it here!

 

Oh, this quote makes me so happy.

CLEVER, and true -

My favourite combination.

 

 

Leaving you with a Fun. tune

Some Nights

 

 

"I was never one to believe the hype - save that for the black and white
I try twice as hard and I'm half as liked, but here they come again to jack my style"



Dear Life...

Dear Life,

Sometimes, I need to take a break from you.

You get too difficult, too stressful… too needy.

I try to do too much, please too many, and almost always… fail.

So, I’m taking a break.

It doesn’t mean I don’t love you… you are very good to me.

But, sometimes, it feels like I’m not living you the way I want to,

And a divide is necessary.

Don’t take this morbidly, taking a break 

doesn’t mean I’m ending things!

It just means I’m taking a step back; a breather - 

a much needed mental (soulful?) vacation.

I’ll be revaluating, restructuring, and hopefully 

reconstructing a better you for myself.

Let me say this - I’m grateful for you.

You gave me an amazing partner to go through you with,

I have a cute dog, good friends, family that makes me smile.

I generally think I have a good grasp of you, 

I don’t think I take you too seriously,

But all of this doesn’t mean that I don’t need 

to separate myself sometimes.

I’ll be back soon, hopefully in better form than ever.

Ready to take you by the horns and live you

More fully,

More authentically,

More true.

With Great Respect,

Carling

 

...

Ever feel invisible?

(I tried to find a picture by googling "invisible",

and photos of people without heads creeped me out more 

than illustrated what I'm feeling, so I went with blank space).

One of those days...

 

source

Question

I feel like I'm questioning

everything these days.

It's annoying.

Not feeling confident about things is

not a place I enjoy being.

But, is questioning a bad thing?

The answer is yes AND no.

So - now, I'm questioning questioning?

I want to 

get away from 

here, 

there...

everywhere.

"Go to your bosom: Knock there, and ask your heart what it doth know"

William Shakespeare

Miley Cyrus, I'm sorry.

I heard a really unfortunate conversation yesterday.

Now, I know that in 2012 people talk about things like
celebrity break ups and "what is she wearing"
like their lives depend on it.

(Your life, by the way, does not depend on it.)

I've gotten used to this...

I check www.people.com like the rest of you

(and if you say you don't, I'm not sure I believe you).

However, what I over heard yesterday makes me 

rethink humanity as a whole.

I was in line at the grocery store, behind 

2 (what I thought) would be intelligent teenage girls.

Not the case.

The conversation started innocently enough, I guess,

discussing the latest on Miley Cyrus' hair cut.

She went from this:

 

To This:

(As if you didn't already know that)

Anyways, I was SO shocked about what the girl's had to say.

They reasoned why she would cut her hair,

and what would happen to her now that she had

apparently ruined her life.

Reason Why Miley Cut her Hair (According To today's Youth)

1 - She's a lesbian

What? Because a girl cut her long hair,

she is a lesbian?

That is so offensive!

(To lesbians AND to women with short hair)

What Will Happen To Miley Now (According to Today's Youth)

1 - Future marriage - over.

2 - Hot fiance - leaving her "skanky ass"

 

So, according to these super dumb teenagers,

because Miley is "so ugly" now, her fiance is going to 

come to his senses, and dump her.

 

UGH. I'm so sad for these girls.

They are under the assumption that

hair cuts change sexuality, and cause

fiance's to leave you.

 

This has proven to me that what I see on 

Pinterest, etc. about fluffy quotes on

loving yourself for who you are,

living your life to the fullest,

don't judge, be happy, you can do anything you want!

is crap.

 

Or, do all of those things,

just make sure you have long hair.

Or else, you'll die a lonley lesbian.

 

 SAD DAY.

ps - Miley Cyrus, I love your hair. Both ways.

 

Who Are You?

Do you think anyone really knows who you are?

Are you authentic? 

Do you show your true self to anyone?

Not to get all "Oprah" on you,

but I think true authenticity is a hard thing to do.

My husband and I are currently going through the TV series Dexter.

A brilliant show about a sociopathic serial killer, who feels nothing,

but has to pretend to get through life.

He has a girlfriend, a family, coworkers.

He pretends to smile, pretends to enjoy life,

makes love to his girlfriend, goes bowling...

but nobody knows who he really is.

(Well, his sociopathic serial killer brother does - but I don't want to spoil anything).

It's got me thinking since...

Who Are You?

When are you most real? Most truthful?

 Most honest about who you really are,

what you really believe,

what you REALLY think?

Things to think about.

"There are no secrets in life, just hidden truths that lie beneath the surface." 

- said by Dexter Morgan, from the TV show Dexter

 

Eyes Wide Open

I was asked recently, by a professional in the mental health industry,

if I always "say so much with my eyes".

I guess I have what you might call

expressive eyes. I say a lot with them,

and if you know me, (and even if you don't)

it's pretty easy to tell what I'm thinking/feeling/saying

with my big ol' eyes.

I roll them, bulge them, squint them, look disgusted with them,

laugh with them, smile with them. 

(And no, I do not use the term "Smize", 

get over yourself Tyra Banks).

 

 

My eyes are like an extension of my already

too honest personality. I wish I could change it,

but I can't! 

(Do I really wish I could change it? No.)

If I'm alarmed at what you're doing,

my eyes give me away every time.

 

Did you just say something dumb?

Oh, my eyes will let you know I think so.

So, now, I'm my attempt to keep my

mouth shut more,

my eyes are WIDE OPEN and letting you

know what's up.

Don't hate the player, hate the game!

"Beauty is how you feel inside, and it reflects in your eyes" - Sophia Loren

remember

Just a reminder.

All Hail The Bale.

 Let me start this post by reiterating that I love my husband

and I think he is a beautiful man.

Look at him! No complaints here.

Yum.

I saw Dark Knight Rises last night.

And now, let me say... Christian Bale...

is also a beautiful man.

I've been on the Christian Bale band wagon 

since I was in grade 6, and saw the movie, The Newsies.

It's in my top 5 movies of all time, and I have been

crushing HARD on CB since then.

 

circa 1992.

(As a side note, if you ever find the DVD

of this movie, please buy it for me immediately.

It's my Holy Grail.)

I like to think I was a Bale fan way before 

it was trendy to do so.

He is getting better and better with age.

He also happens to be a fantastic actor,

and he loves his wife and does the whole dad thing.

What a guy!

"I think trying too hard to be sexy is the worst thing in the world a woman can do." - Mr. Bale

He's perfect!

Chris, I love you.

Can I just add a "tian" to your name for a few days?

*wink*. 

You now have my permission to gush

about Kate Beckinsale for awhile.