Friday 30 November 2012

The Most Epic Of Mustaches

It is the very end of Movember and I want to finish with a photo of someone who really knows how to grow facial hair, Wes. He doesn't have a MoSpace page but still grows a 'stach and then donates to others - a great Mo Bro.
Wes Shows Us How It Is Done!

Growing Up, Again

Last night I bought a washing machine and dryer. I don't think I ever fully outlined the 'laundry process' at Rrunuv Bayit - I mentioned it briefly early on, before Kristen and I made arrangements with people upstairs.

At Rrunuv Bayit, the other two apartments in the building each have a washer and dryer in the furnace room. It took a while, but after a couple of months we were able to arrange with the nice couple on the top floor to use theirs on Tuesdays and Thursdays. There were some definite issues with this, not just that we only had two days to do laundry each week and that they were work days at that, but also that the way the wiring worked only one machine could be plugged in at the time (which means the people from the third apartment might be using their machines and we wouldn't be able to use the ones we had access to) and also the dryer is an 'apartment style' which means it has very little power and takes forever to dry things.

Anyway, the nice couple are moving out, which is sad because they were good neighbors. However, they offered to sell me their washer and dryer, so I bought them. Now I can do laundry any day of the week! Kristen was over and after scolding me for making such a big purchase when I have no money, she seemed impressed at my 'grown up' purchase. It wasn't that much money; I will definitely make it back when compared to using a landrymat. Using their machines thus far has more than saved me the amount they asked for. It did feel grown up - until I remembered I had bought a washing machine in a similar fashion before moving into Le Manoir, though that time it involved moving it too. So, I guess I am growing up - again.

Thursday 29 November 2012

Lovely Mushtashioed Men

It is almost the end of Movember and I wanted to remind everyone one last time to be sure to donate to this great cause! (Movember raises funds and awareness for prostate cancer, mental health, and other male health issues.) Jason has been participating, please see the picture on the right. These are my Mo Bros this year so please give generously on behalf of one of them or split your donation between them. Thank you so much!

2013 Mo Bros
- Jason Woods, my lovely boyfriend, Jason's MoSpace Page
- Drew Stewart, an Aussie friend of mine, Drew's MoSpace Page
- James Harris, long-time family friend, James' MoSpace Page

Tuesday 27 November 2012

Really Sims? Really?

I got the following email today:

This is for the Sims Social which is played on Facebook. I don't like it as much as the real Sims so stopped playing a long time ago - now they are trying to pull at my heartstrings. (I didn't like it because it often suggested paying money and you had to wait to do a lot of things because other Facebook people would need to give you items.) However, my sim looks totally different than the one above so it isn't really working. Though it is making me want to play the normal PC version, which I have yet to load on my laptop.

Monday 26 November 2012

Christmas Song Showdown

Every year, the WOTS office plays a game with Christmas songs - they listen to CHFI (an easy listening station in Toronto that plays exclusively Christmas songs around the holidays) and keep track of the number of times certain songs are played. If the song picked gets played the most over the duration of the season then that person is the winner; each empolyee has a dedicated song.

Last year was even more intense with a 'special work-out song' that when played the first person to jump up and start working out (lunges, squats, jumping jacks, etc.) got an extra point put on their song tally. Also the whole office would then work-out for the duration of that song. This year that isn't happening since the players are too scattered and some of us are in offices where jumping up randomly would not be as appropriate.

Other specific rules include a two person verification and a specific version of the song declared. Kristen, from her office downtown at her new job, and I are playing by proxy and just hoping that those in the WOTS office a properly keeping track.

Here are this year's songs:
Nicola - "Do They Know It's Christmas" by Band Aid
Cailin - "Jingle Bell Rock" by Bobby Helms
Kristen - "All I Want For Christmas Is You" by Mariah Carey
Me - "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town" by Bruce Springteen

Happy Holidays!
I hope you have started to listen to Christmas songs too...

Friday 23 November 2012

Dying The Hardest

Last night I went to play movie trivia. I recently because a member of The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) and part of that is access to a monthly trivia night. I brought Teri, Kristen, and K to be part of my team and we tried our hand at an evening of Action Movie themed trivia - we sucked. In fact, we got last place. The best part was that the lowest score gets a prize so we each got a free beer. The name of our group was also fitting - Dying The Hardest

Tuesday 20 November 2012

Great Fact Of The Day

78% of men would rather date a confident plus-size woman than an insecure supermodel.

This is from Glamour magazine's What Men Think About Women's Bodies article, which outlines the results of their survey of 1,000 men on the topic of what they find attractive. It then says, "Let that little nugget sink in for a minute - then allow over 1,000 men to remind you why they always want to leave the lights on."

Monday 19 November 2012

Top 10 Books Read In The World

---- From Twitter, By Jared Fanning


The Top 10 Books Read In The World

As you know, I love visual representation of data, but for those in a rush I will break down what the above says. Also, this shows once again what a terrible English Major I am. Only read 5 of the 10!!

The numbers are based on the number of books printed and sold over the last 50 years. (Some titles may have had more titles printed, but then they didn't sell so it can be assumed those weren't read.)

- Read - The Holy Bible  (3,900,000,000, almost 4 billion!) In Grade 6, I got the little red version from The Shiners and in the front it outlined a breakdown as to how to read it in a year. I am very glad I took the time each night to read it and got through the whole thing. I don't remember much but it is an excellent base to have when reading anything else.

- Quotations from Chairman Mao Tse-Tung by Mai Tse-Tung (820,000,000, also known as The Little Red Book)

- Read - Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling (400,000,000)

- Partially/Barely Read - The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien (103,000,000)

- The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho (65,000,000) I want to read this, planning on putting it on my Xmas list

- Read - The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown (57,000,000)

- The Twilight Saga Stephenie Meyer (43,000,000)

- Read - Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell (33,000,000)

- Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill (30,000,000) I have never even heard of this one

- The Diary of Anne Frank by Anne Frank (27,000,000) Keep meaning to read this, putting it on my Xmas list too

How many have you read?

Friday 16 November 2012

Bright Eyed And Bushy Tailed

----- Text from Jason

"When I was walking back from Tim Horton's, I saw a squirrel with a massive scone. I hope your day is as least as good as that squirrel's."

Tuesday 13 November 2012

CSOL November Presentation

I got to visit Ter's school again yesterday to give a presentation on Social Media Marketing. I last went in May and even though it wasn't necessary, I redid the whole presentation and branded it slightly with CSOL. I think I got some pretty good points across and got the students thinking about the roll social media plays in marketing, both for products and people. It was a large group of them and the presentation was over lunch hour - I was able to hold their attention. Part of my success in this is that the current curriculum does not really include much about social media so the topic is interesting and rare. I love presenting and working with the topic and teaching people - it was awesome!

Sunday 11 November 2012

A Smile For Your Sunday

Isn't Lochlan just the cutest? I love him!

Sunday Morning Smile!
By Taylor C.

Friday 9 November 2012

Three Months And Counting

I met someone on eHarmony back in July. We got coffee and had a couple of dates spread out over a few weeks. I kept quiet about it on Always Standing because I did not want to overwhelm him with public declarations. Well, I feel like enough time has passed and today we are celebrating our 3 month anniversary so it is time for a true and official mention on Always Standing.

So, I am dating an incredible guy, named Jason, and couldn't be happier. I could go on and on about how great he is but instead I thought I would share some texts I got from friends after they met him...

"I like your bf he's cute and seems nice" --Danielle

"I think Jason is great by the way, he really seems into you and he's handsome to boot!... He seems like he's just a really nice guy. He could be the one!" --ErinAH

"Jason was lovely!" --Anna
*Note, after being told that he had liked her pancakes she liked him even more.

"I really like Jason... Anyone that can make Lochlan stop crying is a yes in my book. But seriously, you have picked someone special... You guys balance each other. You seem really happy!" --Taylor

It is always nice to get the approval of friends and family. I am very glad that they think he is awesome too. Also, for someone who is fairly quiet he seems to do really well meeting new people.  

Happy Anniversary Jason 
I love you

Wednesday 7 November 2012

Word Of The Day

clowder (noun) :
a group or cluster of cats

I swear I am not becoming a crazy cat lady, any more than I already am. I just saw this as a trivia question on a dictionary site and thought it was interesting. I also like a Parliament of Owls, Aerie of Eagles, Gang of Weasels, Congregation of Alligators, the list goes on. 

Tuesday 6 November 2012

Brain Dead Tonight

There is a lot going on but I am struggling to find anything to write tonight, even though:
- it is election night in the US
- I have an amazing boyfriend that I haven't written about
- there was snow today
- I just got back from a trip to Ottawa and Montreal

Brain dead, uninspired, writer's block. Maybe tomorrow will be a better blog day.

Saturday 3 November 2012

Word Of The Day

ailurophile (noun) :
a cat fancier , a lover of cats

Friday 2 November 2012

About To Be The Laughing Stock Of TO

There is 'buzz' about this and I shouldn't be perpetuating it. I should be also sending you to a slightly more solid source, lots of different people, blogs, newspapers, etc. have written about it. The one I like the best so far is one connected to The Toronto Star - this article was posted on their New In Homes blog and it mirrors my recent statements about the issue.

The Issue: Another condo in Liberty Village.
A local developer, Lifetime, has submitted a proposal for a new 32-story tower on the site of the Liberty Market Building. The plans call for retail on the ground floor, and six storeys of office space, and a condo tower in the centre.

The Response: Opposition!!
Residents of Liberty Village started a social media campaign to attempt to have a potential condominium stopped, “saving” the Liberty Market Building.

The Ridiculousness: The blind and illogical hypocrisy.
Negative reactions are common when areas are facing the transition from low-rise too high-rise, but what makes the Liberty Village reaction so peculiar is the fact that the area itself is already a high-rise community. It seems somewhat odd for residents who purchased in an area that was built on condos to complain about…condos.

Final Statement: This is one of the most interesting proposals that has been seen in the area recently, and the developer appears to be trying to provide positive change and preserve the building's positive attributes, which makes the resistance all the more annoyingly insane.

Thursday 1 November 2012

Movember

It is back! I officially discovered Movember in 2010 and found people last year to support again. Well, it is that time of year again and my favourite charity campaign is here. What makes it even better this year is that on top of raising money and awareness for Prostate Cancer and men's health in general, Movember Canada has added a focus on Men's Mental Health to this year as well.

I am sure I will post about this again later in the month. In the meantime try to find someone to sponsor, and encourage the men in your life to participate. It is for an awesome cause and it is a very fun idea. Here is a bit of background from the website:

During November each year, Movember is responsible for the sprouting of moustaches on thousands of men’s faces, in Canada and around the world. With their “Mo’s”, these men raise vital funds and awareness for men's health, specifically prostate cancer and male mental health initiatives. 

On Movember 1st, guys register at Movember.com with a clean-shaven face. For the rest of the month, these selfless and generous men, known as Mo Bros, groom, trim and wax their way into fine moustachery. Movember Mo Bros raise funds by seeking out sponsorship for their Mo-growing efforts. Mo Bros effectively become walking, talking billboards. Through their actions and words, they raise awareness by prompting private and public conversation around the often ignored issue of men’s health. 

Also, this always makes me think of a great Canadian politican:
RIP Jack Layton - The man with the greatest Mo of all.