toronto, on/life update

This post is quite overdue. I’ve been trying to sit down and write about the experiences I’ve had this summer—from graduation, a short trip to Toronto with my family, driving across the country to move back in with my family, and now, starting to work full-time in something that could potentially become a career. There has just been SO much! So I’m going to start from the beginning.



Once the school term was finished, I spent my time working full time and volunteering. A lot of time spent with friends, enjoying the weather and the patios, as well as keeping a pretty full schedule with my usual commitments. In June, my parents flew out to Ottawa to attend my convocation. I graduated!!! I received my Bachelor’s degree and damn… it felt good. 5 years of hard work and a piece of paper with my name on it. Overall though, it felt good to have what is essentially a closing ceremony of my time at uOttawa and undergrad. My degree is now in a giant frame hanging on the wall. While some of this stuff may be cheesy for some (and trust me, the wall of my certificates and what not in my parents basement is sorta cheesy and hilarious to me!), I feel immensely proud for getting this degree and finishing school. It feels good.

During my parents visit to Ottawa, we decided to extend their visit and spent a week in Toronto. A short little trip that included walking around the city, going to the Royal Ontario Museum, eating, drinking and my favourite part—going to the Toronto Zoo! While there is a zoo in Calgary that I have been to many times in my life, the highlight of the Toronto Zoo was the pandas! Pandas are one of my favourite animals, and it felt pretty surreal to get to see them in real life. It seemed like they could just be people walking around in panda suits. I was so stoked to see them, and it felt like that could have been more of a highlight than walking the stage… ha!



After I returned to Ottawa, it was more of the same summer for me. Although it felt more as if I was tying up loose ends—seeing friends, and prepping for my big move. Well, that’s all for now! It was nice to write up a little update, and next time I’ll be sharing more about my cross country drive.

-g

seattle, wa


I've got a major crush on the Pacific Northwest. I went to Seattle for the first time in 2011 with my mama on a little weekend expedition when I was still living in Victoria, BC. I've been back three times now, and I still can not get enough. This summer, my boyfriend and I headed out on a road trip to both Seattle and Portland in late August, and we were not disappointed.

^^^ We brunched at Percy's and Co., and had the most amazing rum sticky bun.

^^^ Canon Whiskey and Bitters Emporium. This is the Negroni Experiment, which is three variations on the negroni. The boyfriend went with a Skull and Blackberries, which was made at the table and super cool.
^^^ Obligatory Pike Place photo, plus Analog Coffee.
^^^ We made two breakfast stops at Skillet Diner, and I got the same thing both times. That place is damn good. This is also my second time visiting Slate, albeit a year apart. It's my favourite stop for coffee in Seattle.

^^^ Bandera Mountain. We were not prepared for this hike at all, but it was well worth it for the views. We had dessert and a drink at Hot Cakes after dinner at Delancey. We opted for the smoked chocolate whiskey cake, which was quite possibly one of the best things I've ever had in my mouth. I've gotta learn how to recreate that one.

^^^ The EMP Museum for a visit to the Nirvana and Jimi Hendrix exhibits, plus breakfast pre-hike at The London Plane. We both went with the biscuit and friend egg with bacon, mustard greens, and salt, as seen below.
A few of our food favourites:

Revel. My second time back and still quite possibly my favourite meal of all time. Last year I got to experience it as a vegetarian and it was amazing, but the meat dishes are even better. Get one from every category and don't stinch on dessert.

Slate Coffee. The staff are knowledgeable as hell and also so friendly. We had the best iced coffee there, and I took a bag of the stuff home that I've been enjoying for weeks.

The Whale Wins. If the interiors of this place doesn't win your heart, the food certainly will. We had some pretty unreal roasted carrots here.

Skillet Diner. Like I said, we went back twice in the span of five days. Check out their Instagram for some major food porn.

Canon Whiskey & Bitters Emporium. If fancy ass drinks are your thing, Canon is the place for you. All we could keep saying is, "I wish we had a place like this in Calgary!"

- s

san francisco, ca

At the end of July, I took a long-planned trip out to San Francisco with a friend. By long planned, I mean years in the making, months in the planning. It was one of those sigh of relief, "we're finally doing this" moments, and for the most part, it lived up to the hype. The trip was definitely a short one—only four days—and we managed to cram one hell of a lot into the trip. A most-wise suggestion: Do not attempt to walk from Mission to Fisherman's Wharf, to the Golden Gate Bridge, and back. By the end of THAT day, all that was left were two very delirious, very exhausted girls. The trip was mostly food and shopping-centric, so here's some of our favourites.

flour + water. I think it's safe to say that this was both of our favourite dinner. The atmosphere of this place is really cool, and the food is amazing. We didn't do the full courses and opted just for an appetizer, pasta, and dessert, but it was all AMAZING. Get the budino for dessert.

Craftsman & Wolves. Three words: The Rebel Within.

Ritual Coffee Roasters. My somewhat surprising pick over the other coffee shops. The coffee was great, and we had some excellent pastries as well. Unfortunately, they're now undergoing renovations, but still one to keep on the list.

Bar Tartine. Brunch! Small plates! Bar Tartine has an ever-changing menu, but if you have a chance to try the smoked potatoes with black garlic, do it.

The Mill. The home of the $4 toast, and worth every penny.

Aesop. This place will bleed you dry, but the products are petty incredible and smell amazing.

- s.

freedom

Recently Samantha and I took a trip out to Canmore, AB to spend a weekend away, enjoy the mountains, play some cards, and get in a hike. We figured that we would take the opportunity when we were actually hanging out in person to brainstorm some ideas for our blog. Let's preface: this blog has been in the works for almost a year now, and until this trip we were quite unsure what sort of direction we wanted to take. As well, we typically spend the majority of the time apart (Sam in Calgary, Gabi in Ottawa) and it is hard to brainstorm through text message/email/Facetime.

Okay, so let's flash back to the car ride on our way to Canmore. It's lovely outside—sunny, not too cloudy—and we are about to approach that beautiful time of day where the sun is just about to set, and everything looks beautiful. Mountains straight ahead, fields to both our sides with horses and cows…the beauty that is driving into the mountains. If you have never been to the Rockies, I highly suggest you start planning your trip now. Pronto.

Sam starts the conversation off with, "Okay, so our blog?" and this is when the neurons started firing and the ideas started flowing, and I got down to business and talked her ear off for a solid couple hours. Essentially what was coming out of my mouth was the premise of our blog: thoughts on the twenty-something condition. Something that is written about consistently, depicted on television and books… but particularly within that "condition" were my thoughts on lifestyle. Both Samantha and I follow a myriad of blogs. Some food related, education related, but a grand majority of what we follow are particularly lifestyle blogs. Photo and stories of young women close to our age sharing their stories of work, school, love, friendship…. you name it. What I have begun to notice is an air of privilege associated with these posts. Or what I like to think of as an internet version of "keeping up with the Jones'". So-and-so has this bag, took a trip here, purchased this high quality item… the list goes on.  It's not an explicit statement, but from looking at the evolution of these blogs, it seems like the pressure is on. How I see it, it seems to resemble more of a life that seems typical in the 40+ crowd. Those that have had careers for some time now, not to mention families and things like vacation property—that are able to afford and live this lifestyle.

This is where I am beginning to feel a sense of duality within my own life. I follow these blogs and these people's lives and am encompassed by a world full of people who seemingly have (much) more of an income and stability than I do. Namely, I get to live this sort of aspirational lifestyle when spending time with my parents. I am privileged in a way where my parents invite me to vacation with them etc. even though I could technically be considered a grown-up; and get to wine taste, and eat at the "foodie restaurants" and get a taste of the stuff there is no way I could ever afford as a student. I live in a world where supposedly this is what we are working up towards. Getting the degree, the work experience, and ultimately getting the job and buying the house in the burbs. All whilst settling down with your significant other and then having 2.5 kids and a dog. And, like most 20-somethings, I am not sure this is necessarily what I want from my life.

Let's look at the flip side. On Facebook we have those "Friends" (or more like acquaintances you talked to 3 times in high school and are now networked on social media) that are posting these beautiful photos of their South American trip, or their recent backpacking excursion to Asia. Or talking to friends who plan to travel during their time off from school. Aspiring to this idea of freedom and the feeling that the world is our oyster, and if not now, then when? Now is the time for us to travel, make mistakes, and experience the world for what is worth. What I ask though, is how do we live in a world where we are encouraged to both be free and make mistakes, all while building up a career with networks and references?

Last summer I went on a backpacking trip with my ex-boyfriend. It was a fantastic experience. I got to sleep outdoors, couch surf, stay in hostels, and virtually live with the freedom of having no plan and the  choice to go where we pleased. I got a taste of travelling with no plan and no money. I loved it. I may not have said this upon immediate reaction to sleeping in a closet… but looking back, I want to do it again. Recently, when discussing travel with a family member of mine, I was expressing my jealousy over an amazing trip he just took. He told me, "But you had your trip!" My reaction was mostly just wondering why I would only get one trip like that in my lifetime? Is this part of the plan? Who decides this stuff anyway? The way I look at it, I am not tied down by anything right now; with the exception of the 5 courses I need to complete to receive my undergrad. But once that is complete, the world is my oyster. Yes, I have ideas of what I may like to do professionally, and yes, I am constantly doing things that would help me "network" and get there; but ultimately, I am free.

What I'd like to do here is explore the idea of freedom. What it means to be free, and what I am telling myself when I complain about my (very nice) life and say things like "all I want is to be free". Because seemingly, I am free—yet why is it I still feel trapped?

-- g

photos from our weekend