The Cannery

(image from trent_maynard on flickr)

Tonight, HonHon and I had dinner at The Cannery which is our first time ever at this restaurant. We had no idea how to get there but googled it for directions. What a drive we had, once we reached McGill, we needed to drive thru the Port Authority and check in/out at the security points, we almost thought we were at the wrong place. Driving down the quiet and small street for another minute or two, we nearly missed it cos I was driving a bit too fast, we found a full parking lot but lucky for us, we pulled in when someone was pulling out and we got a good spot right by the front door. Wow, the restaurant had amazing views and we could understand why it was a full house. This is one of the best restaurants to enjoy a seafood dinner and we couldn't wait to be seated. We started off with a Seafood Platter for two (which had a fresh selection of seafood), HonHon decided on a Swordfish entree while I opted to go with the Parsley Garlic Linguini (tossed with fresh chantrelle mushrooms, mussels, clams, smoked black cod and bay scallops, finished with Grana Padano Parmesan cheese) - boy it was super delish!! But I wish I chose the salmon chef special as I found the linguini a bit heavy (very creamy) but it was very yummy! It was a lovely night and we def enjoyed it, will have to come back!

Welcome Home!!

HonHon's plane arrived a bit later than expected and since I was earlier than expected, I ended up waiting almost 45 minutes for him!! Once I looked up from my ipod (watching a movie), I almost didn't recognize him cos he gained a little bit of weight. He says only about 5 pounds but I think he gained just a bit more than that! Which means there is just a bit more of him to love :) Of course, he never comes back empty handed and we got lots of great gifts! Kay got this awesome stuffie from Dubai, it's a huge camel with hair, so cute and I of course got my Hello Kitty items, not that I asked for a lot of HK stuff this time cos I had gotten so many in the past! But he did bring this one item back that is so cute and I didn't even ask for it :)

We decided to head back to my place since Kay would be excited to see her dad and when we got home, I noticed the vinyl in our bathroom / hallway was ripped out! I hope they were replacing it soon cos it's a bit of an inconvenience! The insurance people had come through the house earlier this week to look over the water damage from the leak and gosh, I didn't realize how badly the water damage was! The second floor, guest bedroom's ceiling had been opened up (due to the water sitting in the ceiling) so it could be aired dry, the second floor hallway was completely wet (large and LOUD fan dryers were sitting there blowing air towards the carpet), my gram's bedroom, bathroom and the common hallway was also soaked so there were 2 huge blowers up there. The house sounded like a factory cos there were so many blowers!! One leak could cause this much damage is insane. Once HonHon arrived, Kay and him were goofing around and I was getting super tired due to my sleepless night and very early morning wake up. After a few hours, it was time for HonHon to head back to Burnaby to his parent's condo cos I wasn't taking Thursday off, my vacation starts on Friday. It will be nice to have a week or so off to be a family :)

Going to San Fran, actually Oakland, CA!

How exciting! Jas and I just booked our flights to SFO to visit our dear friend, Freeman who moved to Oakland with his new wife! They eloped in Argentina and decided to throw a reception for their friends in their new loft. Jas and I found cheap tickets to SFO ($95 one way!!) and decided we needed to be there to congratulate them in person. We are so excited, we haven't seen him since the last time he was in Vancouver, a few years ago!!!

Bringing Home The Birkin

Bringing Home The Birkin by Michael Tonello

Wow, what an interesting book!! The story of how one man (gay of course!) was in hot pursuit of the world's most coveted handbags! How HE manage to unlock the secret of getting one of these handbags without having to put yourself on a two year waiting list! Very fun and light! Loved it!

Hello Kitty + MAC Cosmetics

What an amazing collaboration! The products are so cute and so very grown up! Of course, I was super excited when I received an email and a FB update about the new collection being launched today (apparently MAC Canada was suppose to be launched on Thursday)! At lunch, I quickly headed straight over to the MAC boutique on Robson street and picked up the following items:

Makeup Bag
A medium rectangular soft black vinyl makeup bag. Features pink and white Hello Kitty graphics on both sides and a circular silver metal Hello Kitty charm on the zip. $42 CDN

Plush Doll
Soft black pleather 8" Hello Kitty doll in a 60’s style black & white dress with pink trim and iconic pink bow. $50 CDN

Nail Lacquer in Something About Pink
Limited edition shades of Nail Lacquer in a bottle featuring Hello Kitty and M∙A∙C and Hello Kitty logos.$13 CDN Lipstick in Fresh Brew (wanted to buy a pink but knew I would never wear it!) Limited edition Hello Kitty Lipstick featuring shiny black casing with Hello Kitty figure on a pop art pattern background. Cap features the logos of both M∙A∙C and Hello Kitty in this collection’s signature pink. $16.50 CDN

Lipglass in Sweet Strawberry Limited edition Hello Kitty Lipglass featuring a shiny black cap with Hello Kitty figure on a pop art pattern background. The vial features the logos of both M∙A∙C and Hello Kitty in this collection’s signature pink. $16.50

Going back for the Brush Collection just cos it's so freakin cute!! I wanted to buy the mirror but I know I can get a much cuter one in Asia so I opted to not buy that one. Love the items, wish there was a bit more make up that I could pick up but I don't like MAC eyeshadows and the lip moisturizer is SPF 15 (which I am allergic to) and I don't use face powder :(

Where The Truth Lies

Where The Truth Lies

Synopsis: In the 50's, Lanny Morris (Kevin Bacon) and Vince Collins (Colin Firth) are the most beloved entertainers in America. A classic duo — Lanny is the manic comedian, while Vince is his cool and... In the 50's, Lanny Morris (Kevin Bacon) and Vince Collins (Colin Firth) are the most beloved entertainers in America. A classic duo — Lanny is the manic comedian, while Vince is his cool and collected straight man—the boys know how to make audiences roar with laughter at their jokes, or shed tears at one of their famous telethons. They are at the top of their game, wealthy, powerful, and enormously popular, when something terrible happens to threaten their success. Inexplicably, a dead beauty turns up in their hotel suite. Their reputations are sullied but, thanks to rock-solid alibis, neither is charged with the crime. Their partnership, on the other hand, is destroyed. Lanny and Vince manage to salvage separate careers, but years pass, with neither speaking to the other, or to anyone else, about the girl's death. The reason for the break-up of Morris and Collins becomes one of show business' greatest mysteries. Fifteen years later, in the 1970's, up and coming writer Karen O'Connor (Alison Lohman), decides to turn this cold case into a hot story. This includes the discovery of a kinky menage-a-trois that may have led to a murder, Karen unravels a serpentine, shocking tale of talent and treachery, love and lust, buried secrets and betrayed trust. WHERE THE TRUTH LIES is written and directed by Atom Egoyan, produced by Robert Lantos, and stars Kevin Bacon, Colin Firth, Alison Lohman and Rachel Blanchard.

Happy 1st Birthday!

Happy 1st Birthday Tristan!

Wow, I can't believe it's been a year! Time flies by so quickly and the babies are growing up way too fast! It was so nice to spend the afternoon with the babies and friends, they are such good people. The food (as always) so yummy and this year, they decided to pick up a birthday cake from Cupcakes - mmmm... cupcakes, I am so addicted to their cupcakes and cakes! It was lovely to see Grace, Isabella, Colin - can't believe the changes in his features,, he's looking very Chinese and very surprised to see Sheldon - Grace's husband! Overall, it was a great afternoon but my headache started to go from bad to worse and the pounding just go worse esp after the slice of cake the jello cheesecake! Time to take a nap. Photos to be posted, I didn't bring my camera.

Bright Shiny Morning.

Bright Shiny Morning by James Frey

Book Description

One of the most celebrated and controversial authors in America delivers his first novel—a sweeping chronicle of contemporary Los Angeles that is bold, exhilarating, and utterly original.

Dozens of characters pass across the reader's sight lines—some never to be seen again—but James Frey lingers on a handful of LA's lost souls and captures the dramatic narrative of their lives: a bright, ambitious young Mexican-American woman who allows her future to be undone by a moment of searing humiliation; a supremely narcissistic action-movie star whose passion for the unattainable object of his affection nearly destroys him; a couple, both nineteen years old, who flee their suffocating hometown and struggle to survive on the fringes of the great city; and an aging Venice Beach alcoholic whose life is turned upside down when a meth-addled teenage girl shows up half-dead outside the restroom he calls home.

Throughout this strikingly powerful novel there is the relentless drumbeat of the millions of other stories that, taken as a whole, describe a city, a culture, and an age. A dazzling tour de force, Bright Shiny Morning illuminates the joys, horrors, and unexpected fortunes of life and death in Los Angeles.

Very interesting novel, I enjoy his writing style and even though some may find it a bit choppy or all over the place but def an interesting read. I love the bits and pieces of history and info about Los Angeles itself. I now know that I could never ever live in LA!

Water Leak

What a morning! I was awoken at 2am by the sounds of rain drops in my suite! I feel terrible for my mom cos she had to stay up and clean the bathroom for my grams. The pipes broke under my gram's ensuite and the bathroom was flooded so much in fact that it started to overflow in the pipes causing the pipe in my suite to overflow. Thank goodness it wasn't a leak in my suite, that's what I was worried about. Since the pipe broke off, we had to shut down the entire water system and that means we had no running water this morning. Kay and I had to use the Brita water to brush our teeth and wash our face. I think she wanted to take a shower and wasn't too happy to hear that we had no running water. Thank goodness I'm going swimming after work, I can take a nice warm shower after my swim!

BJ Cocktail Dress

Today on my lunch break, I went over to Betsey Johnson boutique to exchange my black handbag cos the handle of the bag was starting to crack and the seams were coming apart. At the boutique, there was only one bag left on display and the bag looked a bit rugged and the handle was already looking like it had a tear. The SA said I could do a straight exchange on anything in the store but I wouldn't get any money back if I picked something less than what I paid for the handbag. I ended up trying on a few different cocktail dresses and ended up a very pretty purple cocktail dress for an extra $1.67. I decided I could use the dress for Jess's wedding in August cos a few days ago, she had mentioned that I should (or in her words "needed") pick up a new dress for her wedding. She was pretty adamant and convincing even though I didn't understand why I needed a new dress. I have a few pretty dresses that I could wear but I gave in and said I would look for something. I told Rhoda this and she found out why Jess wanted me to pick up a new dress, she is trying to include me in her wedding party! She really doesn't need to but feel very honoured that she is thinking of me and wants me to be apart of her wedding :)

Tinseltown, Downtown and Mosaic

Wow, what a day we had! First of all, we woke up to a bit of snow on the ground which I couldn't believe cos it was sunny and bright yesterday!! Luckily, we were staying indoors for most of the afternoon as we headed over to Tinseltown to check out the CNY festivities. It wasn't as busy as we thought it would be even tho it was still quite busy but today was Superbowl Sunday, I assume that many people were attending their own SS parties. We met up with Jes and Jas at Tinseltown and we walked around a bit but there wasn't much there, there were vendors all over the mall like the Chinese night market but not as many vendors nor the variety of vendors. After walking through and not finding much, we decided to head into downtown for some serious shopping. I did not expect to pick up as many items as I did! Wow! I got a lot of great "end of the season" deals, Kay got a pair of flats at UB for $5, I picked up a couple of winter jackets by ONLY for less than $100 each at Spank Clothing on Granville, a pair of Miss Sixty pants for $91 (reg $229) and a monk & lou skirt (in house label with classic and sophisticated pieces in neutral palettes) for $27 (reg $69) at Plenty! I know it seemed a little extreme that I picked up so many items but they all fit me perfectly and at such great prices, I could not resist or pass them up. At least I didn't buy any more shoes! After our shopping spree at PC, we decided to head over to Robson street and was shocked to feel how freezing cold it was outside. It seemed that downtown had their own Lunar Festival at the Vancouver Art Gallery, the Taiwanese Lantern Festival was being held there with their own mini night market and even tho it was still raining (freezing rain), there was quite a crowd and how could you pass up those lanterns? So pretty and bright. We took a few photos and looked at all the displays and didn't end up buying anything even tho the nite market food stalls were tempting. Jess and Kay decide to head back to B's condo while Rhoda, Jas and I headed towards Robson street. After walking down a couple of blocks and getting distracted at Plenty (picked up my monk & lou skirt), it was time to head over to Mosaic at the Hyatt Vancouver for dine out. The restaurant is quite nice with renovations done recently, the customer service was awesome, and the food was pretty good (except the steak was a bit dry). The staff was very tentative and came by to make sure we were doing alright and if we needed anything. By the end of our meal, the restaurant manager came by and ask how our experience was, I had to voice my concern over the steak as we had ordered it rare and when it came to us, it was rare but not juicy so that means the steak might have been previously frozen or it's not good quality beef. After we got our bill, she gave us a whole chocolate cake to take with us, oh no! A whole chocolate cake?? It is very rich and sweet but oh so yummy! Excellent customer service and I think I might consider dining there again but I probably will not order a steak again. It was a great dinner and it was so awesome to spend it with Rhoda and Jas. (more photos on flickr)

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson

What an incredible novel! I stayed up until 4am to finish it cos once I was close to the end, I could not put the book down. It's def a fave of mine and I can't wait to read his next novel released last month, The Girl Who Played with Fire.

Dinner and Dessert

Tonite, we headed out for dinner at a (supposedly) high end chinese restaurant called Kingford Seafood Restaurant in Richmond. Grams wanted to test the dishes out cos she still hadn't decided on where she wanted to hold her "big 90th" birthday. Mom and I had already made reservations at Imperial Chinese Seafood Restaurant located in downtown Vancouver for her birthday as she had somewhat decided on there a couple of weeks ago. For a mere $800 you can have the privacy of your own room with 2 or 3 tables. It's one of the BEST chinese seafood restaurants in Vancouver and it is def one of the most elegant and "high class" ones in the city. Altho she had somewhat made a tentative decision on having it there, a MJ friend mentioned KSR had really good seafood dishes so we thought we would test it out and see how the food and the restaurant was. OMG, we did not like it at all, we were not impressed with the food or presentation of the dishes, the ambiance nor the wait staff, customer service kinda lacked. Plus some of the dishes we order could have been ordered from a HK cafe! Not impressed at all. Def scratched off the list and onto the next unless of course, grams has decided on ICSR. After dinner, we decided to head over to this little dessert place on Kingsway cos I mentioned it to my mom once and she wanted to try it out to see if it was any good. My mom's friend, Auntie Cece is coming into town (again!) tomorrow and if it's any good, she thought Auntie Cece would probably like it. My aunt likes to eat and drink and eat while in Vancouver, oh yes and shop, shop until you drop! Once inside the dessert place, we sat down, made our choices, the girl took our orders and you wouldn't believe who walked in! Rhoda and Jess! How funny is that? We were talking about them and how the girls introduced me to this little place and now it's one of my fave places to go for dessert! Rhoda and Jess pulled up a table and a couple of chairs to join us and it was a really nice to see them.

Bogart's Chophouse

Tonite I had another Dine Out at Bogart's Chophouse on West Broadway with KD. I didn't have high expectations of this place cos last nite, BQ mentioned that he had gone to Bogart's last year for DO and he was not at all impressed. It seems that Bogart's had 2 DO menus, a $28 (on the vancouver tourism website) and a newly added $38 menu. Not much difference but I choose the $38 menu as there was a tenderloin on that menu. Once we had decided, we both order the seafood soup to start, we tried to order a couple of appetizers off their regular menu but they were not taking any orders from the regular menu, they were only doing DO menu for the nite. WTF? I couldn't believe it, you could not order from the regular menu? To me, I was not impressed, what does that say about the food and the chefs in the kitchen? Can't handle the DO menus and the regular menus??!!?? The soup wasn't too bad altho the one I had last nite was much better than tonite's esp since the one at HSG was a chowder and it was creamed based while the BC's seafood soup was a tomato based. I had the tenderloin (similar to the dish from HSG) but what a difference! My tenderloin was too burnt and crispy on the outside and way too salty. The veggies and the sides were lukewarm as if it could had been sitting for a while. The staff were not as attentive as I hoped for and I guess one reason could cos they were super busy??!!?? I don't know about it, I'm glad to say I've been to Bogart's but will not go back again. Not too impressed with the food nor the ambiance. More photos on my flickr account.

Hamilton Street Grill

Tonite, BQ and I headed over to Hamilton Street Grill for Dine Out. Our reservations were at 530pm cos we both worked downtown and could walk to Yaletown within 20 or 30 minutes. It was a cold night so the walk wasn't too pleasant but def worth the walk. Dinner was fabulous and it was def a great choice. Both of us really enjoyed our meals and every plate was just perfect. We both started off with the smoked seafood chowder (so good and the seafood was def fresh, fresh, fresh!), for the entree we both had filet migon wrapped in bacon served with bearnaise sauce, roasted garlic mash and veggies and for dessert, I went with the chocolate mousse (light dessert cos I knew I would be stuffed from the entree) while BQ went for the warm gingerbread pudding with caramel sauce and pumpkin and ginger gelato. Ohmygosh, the gelato was amazing and incredibly tasty, I would def go back for the ginger gelato, delish! I must send my cousin a FB msg and thank her for suggesting this place, it was def worth it and I would go back again for their regular menu. I should have brought my camera to take photos cos the food looked as amazing as it tasted, it was great to see BQ and I'm sure we'll have many more Dine Outs again next year! We both really enjoy food :)

Obama comes to Canada Feb 19

Last Updated: Wednesday, January 28, 2009 3:17 PM ET
CBC News

U.S. President Barack Obama will visit Canada on Feb. 19, the White House announced on Wednesday, his first official trip abroad.

"Canada is a vitally important ally," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs told reporters. "The president looks forward to the opportunity to speak with Prime Minister Harper and visit our neighbour to the north."

Obama had already pledged his first official foreign trip would be to Canada but had not specified a date.

No details of the visit were announced. Former president George W. Bush made his first foreign visit to Mexico.

Last week, Prime Minister Stephen Harper spoke with Obama following his inauguration and congratulated him.

The Prime Minister's Office said Harper and Obama discussed the economy, his upcoming trip to Canada, energy, environment and the war in Afghanistan.

A recent poll, conducted before Obama took the oath of office Jan. 20, showed large support for the new president, with 81 per cent of Canadians holding a positive view of him.

What??!!??

Click to enlarge

Saturday Shopping

What a day we had today! Rhoda and I decided to head over to Richmond to do some shopping but before that, we had to help out my brother cos he got his car towed the day before. We had to give him a ride to the towing company cos he woke up too late in the day and his friend could not pick him up. Gosh, the towing place was so far! All the way on the other side of Richmond and the tow guy was slow and a bit of an @ss so my brother was getting a bit pissed. But in the end, he got his car back and it actually started! After helping my brother out, we headed over to Lansdowne Centre cos I wanted to pick up a bagel slicer at Home Outfitters (yes I need one cos I almost sliced my hand the other day!) and Future Shop to check out the Acer Aspire in pink (of course!). Lucky for me, Rhoda found the last bagel slicer and only $3.99! It's just a small clear plastic container that holds your bagel and you use your knife (slots in the sides) to slice the bagel in half, perfect! After bagel slicer purchase, we headed over to FS to check out the Acer and it was as pretty as I thought it was plus, perfect for what I need it for and it can easily be carried in my purse. It was on sale for $399.99 and there were 3 left but we decided to head over to Aberdeen Centre first to pick up some stuff from Daiso and I could think about purchasing this item or not. It was so busy and the traffic was bumper to bumper, we decided to leave the car at Lansdowne and walk over to Aberdeen! It's not too far of a walk and only took us about 8 minutes! We realized it was the night before Chinese New Year Eve so everyone was out getting ready for the CNY. Once we arrived to Daiso, Rhoda picked up some stuff and then we decided to walk thru the centre cos there were tons of tables (like a sidewalk sale) with lots of Chinese New Year stuff. I ended up picking up some lucky red envelopes (for $1.00/pack) and a good luck paper for my desk at the office. I try to get one every year and my desk is decorated with a lot of personal items :) After our walk, I got a call from Vince cos he was at place setting up my cable and DVR. I decided to pick up the Acer before heading home and a notebook mouse by Logitech in PINK of course! It is so small and pretty and PINK. Before we got back to my place, we stopped by a Chinese restaurant to pick up some take out for dinner and when we arrived, Vince had finished setting up my TV and DVR. He didn't really know how to work this so hopefully, it's all hooked up correctly. After dinner, Vince and I decided to head over to Metrotown to watch Underworld: Rise of the Lycans. Rhoda decided to bail on the movie so it was just the two of us. I was afraid I really wouldn't understand the movie since I really hadn't watch the first two but apparently this is the prequel of the series. Perfect! The movie was quite interesting and it was def more mid evil than the first two (I've caught bits and pieces of the second one on TV). There was not a lot of special effects done in the movie which means it wasn't as gory as I thought it would be. After the movie, we both felt like some tea and dessert so we decided to stop off at this new asian dessert place that Rhoda introduced me to. It's super yummy and they have a lot of Hong Kony style desserts served with coconut milk, fresh fruit and sago. Super and oh so yummy! As we enjoyed our desserts, we chatted about his trip, his trippy dream and life without his wife (could be a reason why he's not sleeping too well) and general life topics, it's always nice to catch up with Vince - one on one. By 1:30 am, I was getting tired and we decided to call it a night. Overall, a very productive day and now I must get ready for CNY.

Salt Tasting Room

Tonight, I went out for another dine out vancouver at Salt Tasting Room ($28 menu) in gastown with my good friend, CJ. This place is a hidden gem in the grungy dingy and dark hidden alley called "Blood Alley". But if you are brave enough to venture out into the alley and check this place out, it's def worth it! The wine, food and atmosphere is dynamic and has a great vibe. It can get really busy by 8pm, usually a packed house so reservations are recommended. Love it, def one of my fave spots to relax, drink and eat with great company.

Aria at Westin

Tonight, I met up with my cousin Nadine at Aria at Westin on Robson street. It's terrible how often we see each other and I'm embarrassed to say, we only meet up once a year! Usually during this event and it's all about the food, we both really enjoy dining out and having a lovely glass of wine. We chose Aria cos it had a $28 menu and we both did not want to spend any amount more. She works right across the street from Aria, which is very convenient! We didn't have high expectations of the food due to last year's dine out at Zin on Robson. But surprisingly, the food was really good and portions were nice sized. I loved the dessert, it was their version of a ferreror rocher! Sooo yummy and delish, and dessert is my fave part of the meal. During our meal, we caught up on each other's lives and talked about what was going on with each other. We agreed that we must get together more often than once a year, it's funny and very strange how she only works 10 minutes from my office and we only see each other once or twice a year! It was a great night and we ended it with a promise to see each other next month cos I would love to drop by and see their not so new townhouse!

Axis

OMG! Just cut off 6 inches of hair and I feel so light and so short even though it's not that short cos I can put my hair in a ponytail and the hair is right at the collarbone. Wow, so much hair GONE but it feels good cos I don't feel the dry or see the split ends. I went to Jimmy (whom I've seen before), he's a bit more expensive than what I normally spend for a haircut but he's really good and within reason for what you could pay for a haircut downtown! Worth every single penny, my new cut is amazing and everyone in the office loves it. Plus taking off this much length has taken off a few years off my face! That is always a nice thing!

Baby Shower

Tonight, Rhoda and I headed over to Tim's house for a baby shower. I can't believe he's going to be a daddy! We are all very excited for him and we know he's going to make a great dad. Tonight, for me, this was many "firsts" like meeting his wife, visiting his not so new home and meeting his group of friends. Altho Rhoda knows some of his friends and I recognize a couple of people - guess we hung out at one time or another with them due to common friends in high school back in the days, it was def an interesting night. He and his wife live in a nice and new area, the townhouse was modern but a bit small (to my standards) and I didn't like how the garage was designed (tandem garage) but I guess with limited space and the desire (the builders) to build as much as they could, I can see why it was designed this way. A lot of wasted space as they only own one car but Tim has big plans to make half of the garage a "boys" room. But we had a good time and it was nice to catch up. Before we left, we got a very interesting party favour, baby Coronas with a drink umbrella! Such a Tim thing to do!

Vancouver

Wow, look at this!?! How cool is this? Picture taken early morning at Cypress Mountain.

Happy Birthday Jas!

Happy Birthday Jas!

Tonight, we celebrated Jas's birthday, her actual birthday is Monday but we are celebrating it early cos she will be taking the day off to spend it with her parents on Monday. As a tradition, we always book reservations at a restaurant with a Dine Out menu. This year, she chose to try Quattro on 4th and we were very excited to do so cos I heard some really great reviews about this place and the food. You have to book early (esp if you want to dine on a weekend) cos during Dine Out, all the good times/dates get reserved really quick, usually within a few days. We had a lovely meal and it was so nice to catch up with Vince. His significant other was still on holidays visiting her family so it was just the 3 of us and we haven't done that in a long time! After dinner, we headed back to Jas's place to cut the cake (I picked up a really cute and pretty cake from Cupcakes) and she opened her gift. We stayed a few hours longer just to catch up on life. I hope she had a splendid birthday and it's always so nice to get together with good friends!

Late Xmas Party

Tonight, I went to Rhoda's company "celebrate the beginnings of a new year" party at Baci's in Burnaby. It was a bit different from last year (and less people) but still very much a lot of fun. Germans know how to drink and can def handle their alcohol. I think Rhoda did a great job at planning the party and everyone had a great time!

Nikon D40 SLR

Kay has been wanting a digital SLR camera for herself for quite some time. She is an avid photographer (or as I would call her, a photo whore!) and she loves playing around with the camera, taking shots and loves to edit her photos with editing software. She's actually quite talented and has a pretty good eye behind the camera. As Rhoda was looking for the big prize for her company party, we noticed there was a dramatic price drop on the Nikon D40 SLR - a compact and lightweight SLR, great camera to learn as a beginner. Priced usually around $450 - $500, it was on sale at Future Shop for $399, it was an extended boxing day sale price! Wow, we couldn't believe it! We tried to get one for her party but it seemed FS only had stock in the Ontario warehouse and it would take a few days to ship but Rhoda needed it for Saturday night. We ended up at London Drugs and the best deal offered was $430, well we decided to call Broadway Camera and see if they had any in stock and what they were selling it. The SA was nice enough to offer us the same price as LD but not FS. Camera, lens, memory card and software at a total cost of $520. Not bad for a pretty nice camera! Kay was so excited, she started snapping pictures and I know it may seem biased but she really has a great eye and def with some nuturing, she could do really well. I am really happy to see her enjoy something so artistic and I def don't mind helping her in that direction. My parents never allowed me to purse my art dreams and aspirations which clearly made a negative impact on my life. I know Kay will take good care of this camera cos she PAID FOR IT. That's right, I used her savings and I and my mom (grams) gave her an early b'day gift to cover the rest. She is one LUCKY GIRL!

First LV

Jas finally did it! She picked up her very first Louis Vuitton and I am so proud. For the last 10 years, she has been wanting to buy a handbag and every time we go into the boutique, she cannot justify spending that amount of money on a handbag. But she can drop a few hundred dollars on a Coach bag here and there and I always say, why don't you save the money and pick up a LV instead? But she never listened and now after all this time, she finally decide to do it. All those Coach bags in her closet are now going to sit there as she won't use them again and haven't done so in quite some time. At first, she wanted to pick up the LV Monogram bucket bag and I didn't like that particular style but the petite bag was way too small for her frame. I told her that the Damier Canvas was much better suited for her and she should consider investing in that print. The print is classic, not too flashy or screaming a designer bag and even though this style only had the petite bucket, I thought she should go for another style. I told her to take a look at the handbags on the LV website and then go into the store to take a look at the pieces in person. I suggested the Hampstead MM in the damier print, Rhoda owns this one and it's perfect sized with lots of rom for everyday use. She didn't love it on the website but I told her she needed to go in and look at it. Today at lunch, we met up at the LV boutique to look over the monogram bucket bag again (still don't like it), finally she decided to take my advice and looked at the Hampstead. Once she had it on her shoulder and stood in front of the mirror, she realized it was the perfect bag! She bought it and the total was a bit more than she wanted to pay but I convinced her this was an investment and she would get many years out of this handbag. I hope she loves it, loves it when she gets home and won't return the handbag.

Specs:

Damier Canvas - Ebony

Tag No. N51204

Hampstead MM

$1290

White Weekend

What a white weekend we had! All weekend, the snow continued to fall over our city causing major traffic delays and transit/road chaos. Of course, mother nature did give us a few breaks in between, teasing us with rain and clouds but the white stuff always came back and sometimes with a vengeance! On Saturday, Rhoda and I decided to head out anyways and we were in luck, Jess is in Jamaica and we got to borrow her SUV to drive in the snow covered city. We had a bit of time before the Festival of Lights at VanDusen Gardens so we headed over to Richmond IKEA. I had a $10 GC which I thought I could use or find something on sale but nope, I didn't and there wasn't anything that I needed. After our short trip at IKEA, we decided to go shopping at Richmond Centre and of course, again, I did not leave empty handed :( I found a couple of great deals, picking up a pretty black leather jewelry case at Danier ($19.99) and a jersey shrug ($40.00) at Aritzia. After walking through the entire mall, we decided to make a quick stop at Starbucks for some coffee before heading over to the Festival of Lights. As soon as we drove into Vancouver, the snow had started to fall and quite heavily making the roads very WHITE. It was quite a beautiful sight at VanDusen with the lights and the snow but really really cold! My feet were freezing and I was wearing the wrong jacket for this festival as it didn't keep me warm plus I didn't have any gloves which means my hands were freezing and felt a bit frost bitten! It would have be nice to have stayed longer to enjoy all the beautiful lights but it was super cold and snowy! I didn't bring my camera so I didn't get to take any photos but Rhoda did and she got tons of great shots, will post them as soon as I get them from her. Once we finished looking at all the lights, we realized that Rhoda lost a set of keys attached to her sis's keychain, oops! There was no way we would find them and we obviously didn't hear them fall cos of the snow!!! But hopefully, someone will turn them in if they find them .... we were planning on stopping at Superstore before heading back to my place for dinner but we decided against it and I thought it was best if Rhoda went straight home since the roads were becoming icy and slippery and traffic was piling up on the main roads. After she dropped me off, I made a quick stiry fry with what I had left in the fridge. Since being snowed in and no access to my car, I didn't have much left in the fridge. It was a quiet night at home and I shoveled the driveway/sidwalks before calling it a nite. Sunday didn't seem so bad outside cos it had rained a bit over nite and washed most of the snow away. Mom and I decided to go over to Superstore cos we both needed to pick up groceries. We first stopped by Commercial drive so my mom could pick up some veggies and I grabbed my fave kind of yogurt, Fraser Meadow - Organic Plain Yogurt, 1.5% MF. Fraser Meadow, def one of the best yogurts made locally! We headed over to Superstore and as always it was CRAZY BUSY, I usually don't pick up too many veggies or fruits there but the Farmer's Market got cancelled cos of the snow so I had to pick up my veggies/fruits for the week. Mom and I decided to have something hot before heading over to Cheong Lee Market (where she gets her asian veggies/fruits) but that might have not been such a good idea cos it started to snow and hard. Not just lightly fluffy snow, hard icy bits that stuck to the car, ground, lights, street posts etc. We had only stopped in the cafe for about 40 minutes and when we went outside, we couldn't even see my mom's car cos it was covered in snow!!! We quickly picked up her asian veggies next door and started the drive home, gosh, it was a bit scary cos all you could see in front of you was WHITENESS, I kid you not, it was snowing so hard that it was difficult to see more than a block in front of you!! Lucky we weren't too far from home and I was glad to be back as there were tons of traffic jams and cars getting stuck on the slopes in our area. But I just heard on the news that it's gonna rain tonite and tomorrow, the temperatures are going to warm up which means we should all be weary of the future flooding!!! Better than snow I guess......

Dine Out Vancouver 2009

I am super excited about Dine Out Vancouver 2009! I have a list of restaurants that I can't wait to try and hoping they will be participating!

Quattro
CinCin

Not sure if any of the steakhouses will be in it this year but if so, would love to try Hy's or Bogart's or Morton's .....

Can't wait to book the reservations and that is one reason why I'm looking forward to Monday morning :)

MAC Cosmetics x Hello Kitty Collection

I am super excited about this collection which will be available soon into this new year! I will probably have to pick up most of this collection! So EXCITED!!!

From Nitrolicious

Rumors have been circulating the blogs about the MAC Cosmetics and Hello Kitty collaboration for a min already, finally the news was confirmed. The limited edition collection will be available at MAC’s website on February 10, 2009 and in MAC US stores on February 12, 2009 (just in time for Valentine’s Day too!) and overseas stores in March 2009- mark your calendars ladies this collection is going to fly off the counters! Not only did they create a range of cosmetics, there’s also a line of accessories: a Petite Makeup Bag ($22), a medium Makeup Bag ($35), a plush doll ($42), purse mirror ($22), three-brush collection ($49.50), a mirrored key clip ($16), beaded bracelet ($34), a tote ($45) and soft vanity kit ($55).

The Hello Kitty collection consists of two collections: the Hello Kitty Colour Collection and the more high-end Hello Kitty Kouture. The Hello Kitty Colour Collection includes “six shades of lipstick with names like Fashion Mews and Strayin’, each $14; six Lipglass shades, each $14; and two tinted lip conditioners, $14.50 each; two eye shadow palettes, which each contain four shades and retail for $38; two shades of pigment are $19.50 each, and two Reflects Glitter stockkeeping units — one blue, one pink — are $17.50 each. Four Glitter Eye Liners, each $16.50, two shades of Beauty Powder, each $22; three shades of nail polish, each $11; a black mascara, $12, and false lashes, $12, round out the color offerings. Shades range from pinks and turquoises to lavenders and greens.”

The Hello Kitty Kouture collection is more of a high-end line and great for collectors as well. The range consists of “two shades of Dazzleglass, each $28, each feature a reusable silver chain pendant with Hello Kitty outlined in white Swarovski crystals on black with a pink crystal bow. Sheer Mystery Powder, $90 and available in three shades, is packaged in a silver powder compact with Hello Kitty outlined in white Swarovski crystals with a pink crystal bow on a black background.”

Louis Vuitton

Ooh new colours (spring 09) are available in the vernis (my fave!) collection for their accessories! Must check out Louis Vuitton boutique on Monday :) Already a good start for the 2009!! Check out my blog for the new accessories that I must have!!!

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!

I rang in the new year with my bestest girlfriends and it's a great way to start 2009 since I am happy to see 2008 gone! Hopefully this year will bring me and everyone close to me prosperity, happiness and luck!

We started off dinner in Yaletown at a Mexican restaurant called Tequila Kitchen, Rhoda and I shared a NYE sampler set menu and it consisted of a bit of everything on their menu and an alcoholic drink. Since we were in a Mexican restaurant, I decided to try their house sangria with tequila, omg the tequila was STRONG! Since Rhoda is driving and isn't a drunkass drinker, she ordered me a red wine since I could not handle another one of those sangria! Food and company was FABulous and after dinner, we decided to head over to Jasmine's condo to ring in the new year and so we could drink some more! Rhoda and I brought some fruity liquer and cranberry juice but I think I had the most! About 1am, the snow had started to fall and by 3am, Rhoda and I decided to head home and let Jasmine sleep! It was a fun night and I'm so happy to have spent it with my girls! Wishing everyone a wonderful and happy new year!!

Late Boxing Day Shopping

Today, I went (late) boxing day shopping with Rhoda and Jess. Jess came by to pick me up and we headed downtown, we got lucky and got a parking spot right on the corner of Alberni and Thurlow. Wow, couldn't believe how busy it still was on the 3rd day of Boxing week! I was looking for the dark blue sapphire short sleeved blouse with ruffles in the front at Aritzia and hoping it was marked down, available in my size and yes it was on sale $55 from $75 but only one left and it was much too large. I did find another item that I had my eye on but didn't think it was going to be on sale, a Delphine 3/4 length black dress with cute mini ruffles in the front neckline, on sale for $60. I don't have a little black dress and I guess this could be it :) Rhoda and Jess wanted to go over to MAC Cosmetics and both picked up a few items, both bought an item from their new collection Dame Edna. Very cute and pretty make up! I didn't need any more make up, I have quite a collection at home! We didn't shop for very long, probably only about 1 1/2 hours and it didn't seem liked I picked up that many items but in the end, I spent quite a bit of money. Before calling it an end, our last stop was the Gucci boutique at Hotel Vancouver to see what they had on sale and there wasn't much left. I am looking for a new make up bag for my purse and I am thinking I might get one from Gucci. As we made our way back to the car, we did a quick stop at the Betsey Johnson boutique and that is where I spent the most money. I picked up a really nice black handbag by Bestey Johnson for only $219 and a beautifully tailored denim blazer (I don't own one) for $150!! I don't own any BJ items and I have been looking for a black handbag for quite some time so I thought what a great buy! The handbag was originally priced at $340 and the denim jacket $320. I had a great Boxing Day shopping and I really didn't think I would end up with ANYthing!! After shopping, Rhoda and I headed to Richmond cos Jess had to eat Xmas dinner with B's family and we were gonna wait for her so she could go home with Rhoda. Rhoda and I were not quite hungry yet so we did a bit more shopping at Daiso, Shoppers Drug Mart and then we headed over to a Congee Wonton House and I ordered the same dish I always order (Beef brisket and wontons with rice noodles) while we waited for Jess. We were almost finished when Jess was dropped off and we decided to go to LD so she could pick up a few gifts for a friend and we were in the beauty department for some time cos we love beauty products. After that, it was time to go home since Rhoda had to work on Monday and Jess was leaving for Jamaica on Tuesday! Lucky girl, she's spending the new years in Jamaica!! As always, it's so nice to spend the day with the girls!

Sick of Snow

Today, I had to clear the alley of SNOW and ICE in front of the garage for my mom cos she and grams were headed out to the shopping centre to see if grams could find some snow boots plus my mom's friend from Alaska, Cici will be coming in tonite. It took me 2 hours to clear the path for my mom's parking space and I ended up with two blisters and freezing feet in the process. I know for sure my back and neck will hurt for the next 2 days cos I haven't shoveled this intensely before. The previous snow days, I just shoveled the sidewalks and that had given me a few minor neck pains. I am so sick of the snow, I wish it would go away....

Xmas Week

Wow! What a week! I think I might be officially sick of turkey! Mmm... no, that's not true, I can eat turkey all the time but I am feeling like a stuffed turkey! hahaha... It's been a crazy busy week with the offices closing on Wednesday at noon (Dec. 24), the snow falling nonstop (and shoveling), more xmas shopping and xmas dinners/parties!

Monday and Tuesday, I was trying to finish off all the stuff I needed to do before the end of the year, mostly filing cos I leave it and when I do have time, I need to do it all but I can never get it all done before getting interrupted which means I rather not start! Most people were out of the office and so I got most of the filing done plus some miscellaneous items that needed my attention but had been put a side. Since I was pretty much done all my work stuff, I decided to take Wednesday off instead of coming in for half the day! Last week, I rec'd some lovely presents from my co-workers and my managers, as always my manager's wife put together a beautiful xmas gift that always included Belgium chocolate and the best wine ever! Another manager I work with gave me another bottle of lovely red wine and my good friend (and co worker) gave me a $50 Louis Vuitton GC which is so thoughtful since she knows how much I love my LVs.

On Wednesday, I decided I needed to pick up a few items from Costco and even though it was snowing heavily, I decided to venture out anyways. Boy what a mistake that was! The weather had caused some major delays in our transit system esp. the skytrain and I ended up walking home from Costco! I had waited at Stadium station for half an hour and decided I was never gonna get on a train so I started walking. Most of the route wasn't too bad until I got to Terminal Avenue and the snow was knee deep, in some parts I had to walk on the busy road cos I did not want to walk in knee deep snow. It took me about 35 minutes to walk from Stadium to Commercial drive and I decided to take a break at Blenz and Shoppers, I was thinking about training it home from Commercial but I had overheard people saying the skytrain had completely stopped and there were crowds of people at all the bus stops. I thought about taking the Victoria bus up to 28th but it seems there was a huge line up at the bus stop as well! I ended up walking home from Commercial to home and it wouldn't have taken me so long (another 30 minutes) except that I was pretty tired and Commercial / Victoria is a bit of hill on the way up and my coat was getting really heavy cos it was really wet from the snow. On a positive note, all this walking must have burned off all the calories and fat that I gained from all the holiday parties and chocolates!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!

On Thursday (Xmas Day), I met up with Rhoda, Jess, and G for dim sum at Fortune House at Metro and even though we had quite a bit of snow fall, we knew it wouldn't snow much more during the day and we didn't want to be at home the entire day. I hadn't been to FH in a long time and the last time I was there, I remembered it not being very good but it seems they are under new management and the restaurant had a make over. Food and decor was pretty good, I think I will suggest my mom look into this place for my gram's 90th birthday dinner. Since it was Xmas Day, most businesses were closed except Asian places! After dim sum, we decided to head over to Aberdeen Centre in Richmond cos we knew that place would be opened and gosh, was it ever busy when we got there!! We walked through the mall and I ended up picking a really cute Baby Phat top for only $27.50 reg $55.00!! I also picked up a "dan tat" egg custard tart key chain for Kay from a store called "Looks So Real" and it really does look like an egg custard tart that you can eat!! After walking around AC, Rhoda and Jess invited Kay and I over for Xmas dinner since our Xmas dinner wasn't until Boxing Day (mom and grams had other plans, church and dim sum). Jess went to pick up Kay while Rhoda and I dropped G off at home (his van was parked unintentionally in Metro's parking lot). G invited us both to his place after dinner for drinks and celebration. We had a lovely dinner at Rhoda's and the food was delicious! It is always nice to spend time with family and Kay and I both feel Rhoda, Jess and Auntie are family :) After dinner, we dropped Kay off at home and headed over to G's place to celebrate, drink and mingle with his friends. It was a really great way to end a fabulous day!

Boxing Day/Xmas Dinner - We had snow all day but that didn't stop us from having our Xmas dinner! But at one point, I didn't think my brother or Rhoda or my Aunt would make it to the dinner but we found out that the main roads were cleared and salted. My brother was going to park in the back alley and we had done some shoveling in trying to make a parking spot but it did no good and after 40 minutes of shoveling and getting his car out of the snow (he got stucked in the snow, three times!!), he decided to try to find parking on the main street. Rhoda was nice enough to pick up our Aunt on her way to our place and she found parking on Kingsway. Rhoda had no problem walking to our place but it seems that not everyone had shoveled their sidewalks and our aunt did not wear snow boots which caused her to KAPOOT into the snow (hehehe, no not funny!). It was nice to have everyone at our dinner and the food was awesome! My organic turkey was super tasty and of course, my mom did a great job roasting the turkey and making all the fixings. We had both done quite a bit of preparation during the day but ti was worth it. The meal was delicious! After dinner and dessert (mom had chocolate ice cream cake in the freezer), we opened our gifts and it was a great way to end the evening. By 10pm, most of us were worn out (well mom and I) and it was better that Rhoda and my brother get on the roads while it was still somewhat cleared as the snow did not stop falling! It was a great way to spent Xmas and I think next year, maybe Rhoda and I should consider doing one Xmas dinner with both of our families! Hehehe, we'll start a new tradition!

On another note.....

Finished "A Thousand Splendid Suns" by Khaled Hosseini - An emotional and beautiful story of two very different women living on the same street and how their lives eventually intertwine with each other. Stories of survival, love and what it takes to be a woman living under their circumstances. A very well written story and as always Khaled does not disappoint. A MUST READ.

Watched "Burns After Reading" - A humorous story that poked fun at the US government. A def. must watch!

Hello Kitty Diamond Ring

This is for the rich Hello Kitty fans, it’s a 18-karat yellow gold Hello Kitty Diamond Ring. This diamond ring will cost you a whopping $4,250.

• 18-karat yellow gold.

• Pavé diamond Hello Kitty®.

• Bow, pink pavé sapphires. Nose, yellow citrine. Eyes, onyx.

• 1.0 total carat weight.

• 1/2″H x 3/4″W.