Getting friendly with the animals

While in the Okanagan on my work trip, I fed some BC wildlife and wrote about it for BCLiving online magazine.

Shardik the grizzly bear

Dharma the moose

Big-ass camel

Big-ass bull elk

Okanagan: Day one in photos

My digs at the Eldorado Hotel in Kelowna, a cosy, boutique-style inn.

It was a late harvest for wineries in the Okanagan this year, and many vines are still heavy with bunches of grapes.

Lunch at Quails' Gate Winery was decadent and memorable.

A behind-the-scenes look at the beer making process and bottling at Tree Brewery.

Tasting a little bit of everything.

Strolling through the vineyard overlooking Lake Okanagan at Tantalus.

Sampling juice from the vats before it becomes wine.

Lining up some light, young reds at Tantalus Vineyards.

Checking out the drying process at the Okanagan Lavender Farm.

Capping off the day with a delicious meal at the Eldorado on the waterfront.

The Okanagan: Day one

Day one of my trip in the Okanagan was fantastic - we visited 2 wineries, one brewery, and dined at the Eldorado Hotel where the Chef made up a custom menu for us. I posted a photo from Quails' Gate Winery on the BCBusiness Daily Photo blog, and you can check it out HERE.

Travel writing assignment

Tomorrow morning I'm hopping on a plane to Kelowna—I'll be on a 3-day tour of the Thompson Okanagan to write a travel guide for BCLiving.ca. I'll be in the company of four other local writers, none of whom I have met. We'll be drinking beer and wine, going to farmer's markets, museums and restaurants together. The publishing industry is notoriously small, so I'm looking forward to making some new writer friends and discovering the inevitable friends-of-friends connections and colleagues/former colleagues that we have in common. I always find those to be fun conversations.

Luc's already informed me that he's going to eat at Wendy's every night that I'm away—thank the lord it's only two.

Bon voyage, mes amis!

Last night we spent the evening with our best buds who are heading off to Europe for 5 weeks. We're going to miss them dearly, but I was so excited to hear that they're starting a travel blog! Kate just got a new DSLR camera (very jealous!) so I'm looking forward to seeing their amazing photos. They wanted me to make a banner for the new site, and I was more than happy to oblige:

Going on around the web

The trip home from work these days usually leaves me with my feathers a bit ruffled. It's a one hour and fifteen minute two-bus, bumpy journey that frequently involves running for and missing buses, suffering through stinky co-passengers, and coffee-umbrella-book-bag juggling acts. Today, however, was pleasant as can be and has left me in a great pre-long weekend mood. To put a cherry on top of the seamless bus ride home,  I stopped in at Cobbs for a butter croissant. I crossed paths with a friendly neighbour on my way into the apartment and had a great chat. I'm in such a great mood and wearing such a big smile, and I want to pass on the pleasantry with some fun stuff I've been enjoying this week from all over the web.

Baby portraits: the perfect balance of looking like an adult yet being a baby makes these both eerie, adorable and hilarious.

An amazing boutique hotel on a rock face in Jamaica.

The new Wintersleep album

The cool monthly market I'm going to visit this weekend.

Some priceless commentary and photos on the fashion-impaired citizens of Vancouver.

A super-dorky, yet somehow endearing kid whose photo I stumbled across at work while doing some image research for an article.

This ultra-quirky music video for Grizzly Bear's song "Two Weeks."

On my whereabouts

Luc and I jetted off to Saskatchewan on Friday to spend time with the family and celebrate his grandparents' 60th Wedding Anniversary. It's been nice to have some time to unwind after an intense school year. I'll be back to reality on Wednesday, but for now I'm quite enjoying my mental vacation.

Escaping the city for the weekend

I'm baaa-aaack

This morning I was wiping my eyes with makeup remover until I realized, oh, that's not smeared mascara, those are just tired bags, they're not going to rub off. I've just returned after a long weekend of "repose" (and by repose I just mean no school work or wedding planning) to my final two weeks of classes and two papers, a presentation and a final project.

The long weekend was anything but restful in the physical sense, but it was the longest mental vacation I've taken in a while. Every night was a late one, and every day was long and enjoyable one. I didn't have time to think about school, which was great. But I did have to get up at a decent hour every morning. But if you have to get up early, there's no better way to do so than having the cutest twin four-year-old girls jumping on your bed and giggling like wild hyenas. Luc and I spent the long weekend at West Edmonton Mall with his family; eating, drinking, swimming, shopping, amusement parking (yes, I'm making it a verb), and hanging out. And now it's back to writing, reading, busing, budgeting, and stressing out.

Up, up and away!

Flying is like a little escape where you're expected to do nothing more than read, watch movies, eat, drink and sleep. I like that. I like that order too. There's something calming about these mild expectations. To-do lists and stresses are checked with the luggage and carry-ons are providers of goodies to keep me entertained. Airplanes also feel like some parallel universe where I can eat a costco-sized bag of chocolate almonds in one hour and it doesn't count. I love flying.

On Thursday evening we're heading to West Edmonton Mall for a long-weekend getaway with Luc's family. We have parents to hang out with, nieces to spoil, a new boyfriend to meet, brothers and sisters to catch up with, and a sweet little baby nephew to play with....and a roller coaster that will all the while be beckoning for us to come ride it. The flight there will no doubt be grand, but the time spent with family will be priceless. And no, this is not a mastercard commercial.