Dracula

I would ordinarily wait to finish reading a book before writing an opinion about it but it's been 3 months and I still have 30-odd pages to go and I'm starting to believe that I will never finish this book. If and when I do, I don't think my thoughts on Bram Stoker's Dracula will have changed at all.

I wanted to like this book, I really did. As a fan of practically every vampire movie, book and show I've ever come across I felt the need to read the book that started it all. The beginning was really good. You can feel the sense of foreboding as Harker makes his way to Dracula's castle. I especially loved the scene in the carriage in the forest with the blue flame and the wolves just before they get to the castle...but nothing ever seems to come of all the suspense.

The story slowly gets worse from there. The characters are flat and Dracula is simply, sadly uncompelling. I thought the book was about Dracula and his pain at being alone and immortal and simply misunderstood.

Perhaps I missed something and I feel like I did after reading the reviews on Amazon.ca. Most people seem to love it. I have considered the possibility that television has ruined my ability to appreciate the true classics (as my lit. teacher would most probably say)...but then again, I really enjoyed Paradise Lost by John Milton. I don't know if that has any bearing, but there it is.

Something's Rising in Niagara Falls

The Christmas frenzy is over, let the New Year celebrations begin!

I’m very excited about our plans this year. We had initially planned to have our very good friends from Ontario stay with us for a couple of days. The bad news: they can’t make in to Montreal. The good news: we can and will make it to Toronto. After a day there, we are heading to Niagara Falls for a New Year’s Eve hotel party! I’m really excited to see what the “Honeymoon Capital” of the world has to offer. The Boy would like to go to one of the haunted houses, which are rumoured to be crazy-scary and I also hear something about the Falls being some kind of big deal. BUT we’re only going to be there for a day, so I’m expecting to just stay in and around the hotel, which is fine..., there’s never a dull moment when we all get together.

Little Things that Make Me Smile

Finding something I was eyeing on sale...Like this picture frame from Bouclair that was -get this- 3.99!!

My Froggé piggy-bank

This Mor Cosmetics soap that smells heavenly. And the box it comes in is just so pretty!! This particular soap bar is called Flower of Narcissus and is made in Australia (it's so refreshing when I find stuff that isn't made in China).

I had never heard of this company, but their website is really impressive, very feminine and soft. Everything's so sophisticated and decadent.

And finally on my list of things that make me smile these super-duper comfy socks. It's like walking on a cloud! I usually don't buy anything clothing-related from Costco, but these socks are great! Warm but not hot (both physically and temperature-wise) and oh so soft! (I realize I sound like a dork, but I don't care).

These definitely cancel out the chicness of my Mor soap.

Gift Box Ideas (that come a little late)

I love this idea for gift boxes!

And I love how sparkly this one is! I got this from The Boy’s sister. Unfortunately I cannot for the life of me remember where she said she found this. But here is a website that teaches you how to make your own. You can download the patterns and print them, but you could also just use them as a stencil on craft paper of your own choosing.

You can also find gift boxes that look like Tim Hortons' Timbits boxes (which, I just found out, are called gable boxes).

Joyeux Noël!!

Christmas is here!

Well the gift giving started a couple of days ago, but it's here OFFICIALLY!

It's been a busy, busy holiday this year but we made it. I just finished making my second batch of brownies and that was the last thing on my list. Now I just have to sit back and enjoy the food and presents!

There's nothing like...

Coming home with a brand new piece of clothing that The Cat immediatly decides will become her bed 3 minutes after taking said item out of the bag. In this case, my new Blondie t-shirt from Old Navy.

Bama looking indignant at the prospect of giving up her new bed

En ville

Yesterday was the perfect Christmas shopping day! and by that I mean claustrophobic, uncomfortable and aggravating. It was glorious! Okay, it actually wasn't so bad. Yes, it was really busy and the queues were ridiculous –in Chapters and Indigo especially, but they really did a good (and fast) job despite the chaos– but through it all I managed to keep my cool (I don't handle crowds well). We did really well, considering. The Boy's family Christmas is going to be especially crowded this year. Aunts, uncles, cousins and some friends of the family are either flying or driving in from every which way. The Boy is not one to skimp at Christmas and he felt that everyone should have something to open. We even managed to squeeze in time for a Starbucks latte and a jaunt to H&M. It's utterly ridiculous to think that I can walk by an H&M and not pop in.

Le butin...

We caught the 8 o’clock showing of James Cameron’s Avatar in 3D. I hadn’t seen a single trailer for this movie, just a poster. I didn’t know what to expect. All I knew was that Weta Digital (the geniuses that brought Middle-Earth alive) had signed on to produce the movie, and instantly my expectations got higher. They did not disappoint! No one who was part of this movie did! The planet, Pandora, where the story takes place is beautiful and the Na’vi look awesome. I had to keep reminding myself that I was watching a CGI-created world. The Official Avatar Movie Website looks very cool and is definitely worth a look.

As I've already mentioned, I love Montreal at Christmas especially at night... After the movie, the streets were quiet, the air was crisp and the lights looked lovely...

'Tis the season!

Sad News

Wow. Brittany Murphy dies at 32 of cardiac arrest according to TMZ. I'm shocked by the news of her death, not to mention the cause! Cardiac arrest at 32 is truly tragic. I have a feeling that in the days to follow I'll be re-watching Little Black Book, Clueless and one of my favourites, Sin City. 

Rest In Peace

Our Very Own

The Boy and I have been getting into Boston Legal in a big way. I know the show finished a year ago, but we only started watching it recently.

And I have to admit that I've developed a teeny tiny crush on Alan Shore (played by James Spader).Weird, I know. But the guy’s a genius!

While watching the show I did get reacquainted with William Shatner, who plays the one and only Denny Crane. I always knew that William Shatner was Canadian, it was one those celebrity tidbits filed away in the back of my mind. But as we got more and more into the show, that tidbit had me wondering what province he was from. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that the original Captain James T. Kirk was born and raised right here in Montreal!

I’m pretty surprised that I didn’t know this until just yesterday.

I got to say, William Shatner just got a whole lot cooler in my books.

For all the pack rats out there...

It's hard to get rid of stuff. Consequently my apartment has turned into quite a medley of memories.I’ve decided it is time to cut ties with many, many knick-knacks that I have collected over the years. The seemingly meaningless stuff I’ve been hoarding all this time all have a special place in my heart, but enough is enough. People who walk into the living room are instantly overwhelmed with all the pictures, stuffed animals, candles, books and all kinds of random other things like a parking meter, a vase of beer caps and a crying Buddha...I think it’s time to say goodbye to some of my least treasured memories...

These, however, I will never get rid of

The black leather horse my dad got me when I was a kid with an acute love for "horseys!"

But then I ask myself, isn't it the sheer amount of stuff in the apartment that give it character? Perhaps people are overwhelemed at first, but friends that have been over a couple of times still haven't seen all there is to see. It's cool to see them just stand there for a few minutes taking it all in.
The truth is I doubt I'll be able to give up more than a couple of things...I'll probably just end up moving everything around, decide that it's just too painful to be parted with my cherished junk and give up...baby steps.

Le Ménage

During this past semester, I didn’t really make the time for any kind of serious cleaning. The last few weeks were especially brutal, what with a ridiculously long essay and a crazy terminology project on top of all the standard end-of-semester running around...not to mention the ill-advised vacation time I took during the last week. But it’s done and over now and it’s time to face the music –the dusty, messy music.

Back for a couple of weeks and our luggage is still just lying around

The problem with cleaning the apartment top to bottom is that I always get a hankering to revamp the place. So I spent the day pushing furniture around, trying to make everything fit –quite the challenge given the giant Christmas tree and the Rockband drum set. I managed a bit of a change which should tide me over for a couple of weeks at least. And with all the dusting and cleaning my allergies have acted up as if we were right in the middle of hay fever season. I should definitely stop procrastinating my household chores...but I'm so good at it!

Christmas Time

Despite having decorated the apartment a couple of weeks ago and bought and wrapped all my Christmas presents, I have yet to feel that oh-my-God-it’s-Christmas excitement. But yesterday, The Boy and I decided to head downtown on Monday for his Christmas shopping (well, actually our first stop is Carrefour Laval. We’re only really going downtown to watch Avatar in 3D, but I’m fairly confident that I’ll be able to do the rounds of all my favourite stores and get a Caramel Brûlé Latte from Starbucks out of it). It’s silly that I haven’t made the time to go downtown yet, given how much I LOVE Montreal at Christmas. I am anxiously awaiting Monday... and there’s that twinge of excitement. By Monday, I’ll probably be pink with glee.

...Maybe I can even talk him into ice-skating at the Old Port.

My Turn

I'm curious. I want to find out what this whole blog phenomenon is about. Right now I don't feel up to it. My turn to say something and my mind has conveniently taken a day off. I could swear I had plenty of ideas yesterday.
I guess the beauty of a blog is that there's always tomorrow.