11 THINGS

I am a bad blogger. I’ve had a few lovely people give me blog awards lately and have been meaning to respond so here goes. Months later…. 

Thank you to Cherie & Grace for the Leibster. Thank you to Sara for the Very Inspiring Blogger Award. Am I forgetting anyone? In the spirit of this generosity, I thought I would overshare some shit. So here are 11 things about me you didn't know before.

1. Nothing makes me happier than something good to read while drinking tea in the bathtub. I like treating the tub like an office. I even have a little ledge desk. I’ve been known to make phone calls, sketch ideas, eat dinner while soaking. Everything feels better in warm water.
2. Speaking of water. Quebec has the best outdoor spas west of Scandinavia. You start in something warm like a sauna or hot tub and then hop in a cooler temperature pool. They have less drastic options, but no matter how cold it is outside, I always jump in the river. Keeps the heart strong and makes you feel blindingly alive for a few seconds.
3. I have an absolutely filthy sense of humour and wicked trucker mouth that I try to keep under control for you, my delicate flower readers.
4. I don’t think I’ll ever want children (an afternoon with my friend’s amazing and hilarious but EFFING EXHAUSTING toddlers last weekend confirmed this) but I am basically the mum in my circle of friends. Nothing makes me happier than having pals over and then feeding them until they can’t walk. And then they have to sleepover and I make them breakfast in the morning. A strong nurturing instinct but no biological clock ticking. Although I am strangely fascinated by natural childbirth and breastfeeding – I just can’t imagine being 100% responsible for anyone but me for the next 30 years. I like being alone in the tub too much.
5. I’m a bit of control freak. I make a lot of lists and I have 5 year plans like Stalin. I also need things to be done certain ways, especially in the kitchen. I’m sure this is the result of having a pretty chaotic childhood. I tend to get anxious when things are out of my control. All impulses I try to be conscious of, but don’t you dare use a tiny pot to boil pasta in my kitchen. 
6. I’m always in the middle of a book. I have about an hour of commuting on the metro every day which means I can get through a book at least once every other week. I’ve been a voracious reader since I was in the third grade (I have report cards complaining that I hid books in text books during class, and at one point my mother had to confiscate every device in my bedroom that emitted light because I was staying up way too late reading by the glow of my alarm clock and then being totally useless in school the next day). The best things I read last year were Gone Girl, Thinking Fast & Slow, 11/22/63, 1Q84, The Marriage Plot, Why be Happy When You Could be Normal, How To Be A Woman and Tess of the D'Ubervilles. So far this year I LOVED Sex at Dawn (really a must read for anyone in a serious long-term relationship, of which I am not, but still a very insightful glimpse into how our sexuality has evolved) and am currently totally obsessed with Going Clear. I like a good mix of fiction & non. If they broke the internet tomorrow I would be totally fine as long as I had books.
7. Since moving into my new place, I have spent hours styling random corners of my apartment and basically gone broke this month fixing it up. My home is an integral part of my happiness and nothing makes me feel more safe and self-loved then a beautiful room I have spent a lot of time thinking about. My aesthetic is changing a bit – I will always love aged, imperfect, wabi sabi stuff but I am starting to appreciate a cleaner line and a more graphic approach to colour and design. I find the evolution of personal style and taste kind of fascinating….
8. For years I collected vintage photographs, especially of weddings. Which I’m sure made the boys I dated really uncomfortable when they came over and saw a wall of B&W photos of strangers getting married. There was something so sad and heartbreaking about seeing these important moments of people’s lives up for sale – I felt a weird sense of obligation to respect their memories. I’m not sure if I’m going to keep the collection up in the new place since I’m trying to be more minimal about what I put on the walls. And also I don't want boys to come over and just see a walking Pinterest Wedding Ideas! board. Not like there are any boys to speak of. But that is another 11 Things post altogether.
9. Food used to be my thing but has kind of been supplanted by sewing. Before I stared sewing I used to make elaborate 2 hour meals for myself that dirtied every pot I owned. I still like cooking like that for my friends but now when I come home I generally make very quick, easy suppers for myself so I can sew for a few hours before going to bed. My diet has actually suffered a bit since I started sewing. There has been more than a few nights where I just gussied up some ramen so I could get back to a project….
10. I am for the first time maybe ever, totally happy and content with my weight. I realized after losing a shit ton of pounds last year that I just look better with some curves and some tools in the shed. Being skinny means having no boobs. And I like my boobs.
11. I am often filled with a sense of gratitude that is so overwhelming I offer up thanks to the universe. I don’t believe in god per se (get a couple of glasses of wine in me and I may start talking a lot of disjointed hippie nonsense about “energy”, however) so I would not describe this behavior as praying as much as it is a recognition of my absolute privilege and good fortune to be who I am, where I am, with the friends and family that I have, in this time & place. Seems to me, counting your blessings seems like a very important part of being happy.

So, a few personal thoughts on this Friday afternoon when I should be working. The sewing studio is finally up and I hope to start sewing this weekend, of which I. CANNOT. WAIT. Oh my pretty little Singer, I am going to tire you right out with my busy little fingers (see point #3, above).