8 days before Christmas...

...and I'm all done shopping baby!
All the presents are wrapped, tagged and ready to go! I think this is the first time in my whole life I've been done this early.

Whoo-hooooo!
Now I can relax and make fun of all the last-minute shoppers! hehe

Poutine!

As you know, Québec is known for its poutine. Everyone has told me that La Belle Provence has the best poutine here! I've been living in Montreal now for 1-year and 9 months, and I've yet to try it.

As I was shopping today, I stopped off for gas, and whaddaya know...right beside the gas station was a La Belle Provence! I decided to finally try it.

The verdict: it was only okay. I honestly didn't see what the big deal was! I think I've had better elsewhere actually. Anyway, there ya' go...one thing less to check off my list of Montreal-things-to-do!

Lemon chicken lunch!

A co-worker told me about a lunch for Mitch's birthday today. She's a freelancer, and was going to be working at the Rogers Montreal office downtown today, and was meeting up with Mitch, Julie, Imelda and Miette for lunch (they're all old Spafax co-workers)...and all work downtown!

I wasn't going to go...just didn't feel like hopping into a cab and back for lunch, ya' know? BUT then all of a sudden, the fire alarm goes off at work! Everyone had to evacuate. Where's a girl to go?

I hopped into a cab and met them all for lunch at Soupe Bowl in downtown Montreal. They had pancit on their menu! But I decided to order the Crispy Lemon Chicken instead...just to see how it compares to a place in Toronto that I love! It was close. The chicken was almost the same, but the rice is better at Peter Street Deli (that's the one in Toronto).

See, I go to social functions here! :P

Ron's moving day!

I went over to Ron's new condo in the afternoon (cause I went shopping with Ev in the morning... hehhe) ...just in time for the pizza and beer! It turns out all his boyz moved all of his stuff in one trip! Diana and Gerwyn came around the same time as me to help... or eat that is. Di was excited that our dudes now both lived in the same neighbourhood!

After everyone left, Ron and I went to Wal-Mart to do some shopping! We then met up with Di and Gerwyn for dinner at Sushi Fun, the all-you-can-eat sushi restaurant these two have been raving about! It was pretty good, actually. We were so stuffed by the end of it!

We then all headed to Ron's new home... we needed help bringing all the bags up, and with unpacking Ron's brand-spankin' new 47" flat-screen TV! :)
After the TV was unpacked, and checked to make sure it was working, we played a "friendly" game of Taboo!

Diana & Gerwyn vs. Sally & Ron

Who do YOU think won?? Well, Gerwyn had never played this game before, so you know what they say: beginner's luck! THAT'S what it must have been. You won't be so lucky next time my friends! CHALLENGE! :P

Company Christmas Party!

So tonight was our Christmas Party, held at L'Atelier Restaurant. The food consisted of Bambi and his friends: deer, rabbit, and lamb. I thought that was kinda weird...but that's my company for you.

It was fun, actually...by the end of the night, our Montreal office consumed quite a bit of alcohol (see below for the number of bottles we drank!)...so good times were had by all! :)

My photography debut...

A little while back, Di was looking for photos from all across Canada for a website her company was working on. Well, I just checked out this new website, and it turns out..they actually used a lot of the photos I took! Check it out:

http://www.canadianhotelguide.com

You'll have to go into the photo credits section to see which photos are mine (they're near the end of the list).

our Lotto lunch!

When I worked at Rogers, there was a group of us that decided to all go into a Lottery pool! Wouldn't it be great if we had won millions, and all left the company to retire at the same time?? We each had our own dream of what we'd do...but alas, the dream is over...

We decided not to renew our numbers this time (I'll kick myself in the you-know-what if those numbers show up this weekend!).

We took our winnings, and decided to go for lunch at Thai Princess (what used to be our favourite Thai restaurant in our old Richmond Street neighbourhood). The food was exactly as I remembered. The crispy cashew chicken there is the best I've ever had! mmmmm....

After lunch, I decided to visit the ol' building and the ol' co-workers (the TPG gang, and my glow ho's!). I made my way around, and also bumped into many acquaintances: Jason B. (from highschool), Nancy (Di's new sis' n' law), Laurie (Randy's old coworker), Maria (a girl I used to work with, but only ever spoke to on the phone), and Joan (Jaime's younger sister). It felt weird to walk the halls of Rogers again...like I never left! I almost went back to my old desk to do some work!

a day with the kids...

I met up with Ev and Mel for brunch at Le Petit Déjeuner...they really do have the best waffles...mmmm! Mel told us all about her trip to Vancouver, and Ev shared details of her future trip to Hong Kong...uh HUH. I then went to Ev's work to do some printing (thanks EV!), and then met up with Di to hear about HER trip in Miami (do you all see a theme here?)...I want a vacation too!

After that, I had a date with 4 kids: Matthew, Justin, Jaylene and Aleenah. We went to see the movie: Happy Feet! I liked it, but I could tell the kids were getting a bit antsy in their seats by the end of it. We then all went to Swiss Chalet for dinner with my sister and her husband since it was Matthew's actual birthday. I had a fun time, and it was good to spend some "bonding" time with the kiddies!

Matthew's birthday party!

I drove from Montreal straight to Pickering, where my nephew was having his 9th Birthday party! He had all his classmates with him, along with the rest of my nieces and nephews. After getting my a*ss kicked by my brother at Air Hockey, I went home.

I then met up with Quel and Rox for dinner at Mr. Greek's...and then we headed over to see Mike D. sing at his Christmas concert! What a great way to get you into the Christmas spirit! (Di: Oliver I. from highschool was part of the choir, can you believe that?) I dropped off the girls at Starbucks, and then headed to Mississauga to see Ron with coffee in hand. He was studying for his upcoming exam on Tuesday.

Crazy Montreal weather!

Yes, it started snowing this morning. At least that's what I thought it was from my nice warm living room when I looked outside the window. When I got out, it was a different story. The snow was actually freezing rain, or hail. And it hurt!

It continued between rain/hail all day here in Montreal. By the time I got home, everything was covered with ice! As a matter of fact, one of the trees just outside my building had all the branches frozen, it tilted over and broke! Crazy! After I saw that, I went back to my car (which was parked right under a tree), and drove it to beside a building, with no trees around!

On my way home, the power was out for a few blocks (no traffic lights, no street lights) so I was worried that there wasn't gonna be any power here, but there was (thank goodness!).

What's with the weather here?!!?

First snowfall in Montreal...

It's December 1st, and what a better way to start the month than with snow?!?
I looked out my window this morning, and there it was. It's just starting, and I'm not sure if it will continue throughout the day, but there was my car...just outside my building, getting piled up with it this morning.

Should be fun driving to Toronto this weekend!
:|

dinner at Vella restaurant...

Tonight I had a work dinner to go to. I REALLY didn't want to go (considering THE boss was gonna be there, and I wasn't quite over being angry at him yet).

But I had to go. There were about 7 of us there, and we went to an Italian restaurant called Vella, which was just around the corner from where I live....sweet! The General Manager ordered bottles of wine to start... just what I needed to get me through this dinner! And then my boss came, who knew the owner, so our menu was set!

The food was amazing! Instead of ordering from the menu, they gave us mini portions of all their specials that night...which is just what I enjoy, trying a little bit of everything...starting with all the appetizers, then the main courses, and then all the desserts! To end the evening, they gave us a complimentary bottle of Grappa.

Now I've never had Grappa before. They told me that the first one is disgusting. The second one's not bad, and the third one's delicious! The trick is to try and get to that 3rd one! Alcoholic or not, I couldn't do it! The thing smelled like pure fuel! I tried a sip and just couldn't go on...

See, I'm not as much of an alcoholic as you all think. I have my limits! :P

my Sunday...

Dave and I headed out to Ville de Saint-Eustache this morning to do some Christmas shopping. When he told me this place was out in the country, I thought it'd be 1- 2 hours away. It turns out country-land here in Quebec is only 40 minutes away. The place we went to was like a flea-market, so you could bargain prices and things like that. I didn't really find anything though.

We stopped off at Wal-Mart on the way back to Montreal, and then I dropped Dave off at work while I went home to do my laundry. When I got home, the phone rang and it was Mahi wondering what I was up to. This is Mahi's last Sunday in Montreal, and then he heads back for Toronto on Thursday.

I invited him to come over since he hadn't seen my neighbourhood yet. We watched the "I do, let's eat!" tape while he was here, and laughed so hard at Di's "maybe it's a sign" comment.

We then walked around the neighbourhood, and I gave him a small tour of my area...and then we had dinner at Chez Van. We had the spring rolls, imperial rolls, beef brochette, and chicken with vegetables...not bad! We ate it all!

On my walk back home from the restaurant, I passed by a café that had all these Chrismas lights out...pretty!
And that was my Sunday...

NO transfer to Toronto...

I finally had that meeting with my boss to ask for that transfer to the Toronto office. Here's how the conversation went:

boss: What do you want to ask me?
me: Can I transfer to the Toronto office?
boss: NO
me: Just like that?
boss: I've given it a lot of thought, and your position is required here in this office. I totally sympathize with your situation, and I'd hate to lose you, but you're not the first person in this office who's had to make that kind of decision.

I was shocked (not to mention PMS'ing). I could feel the tears coming...and the last thing I wanted to do was cry in front of my boss! I left his office and went straight to the bathroom, then home for lunch when I realized the tears weren't stopping. I called Ron when I got home and told him. Then I called Tanaz since I knew she'd be home.

I guess it's good to know THAT option is hopeless. And I think it upset me so much because I really thought that this was gonna be my ticket back...it was my most ideal situation. Oh well, onward and upward....

a pit stop in Napanee...

Ron's parents told me about this place they go to every now and then to pick up these frozen "Boneless Southwest BBQ Chicken Breasts" (that's the full name, I kid you not!).

It's located in Napanee, ON....just off of the highway. Because Ron loves this chicken so much, and I pass by Napanee on my drive back to Toronto...I decided to stop by to bring him some! Now y'all know I'm a little bit "directionally-challenged". Ron provided me with a map, and driving directions...so I didn't think there'd be a problem!

I thought wrong. I DID get lost...but after 1/2 hour of driving around....I found it! :)

I got Ron and his family 3 bags of the chicken they like....but I also ended up shopping for myself:

10 chicken breasts
15 large scallops
a bag of jumbo shrimps
a bag of stuffed sole
a bag of perogies
6 filet mignons (wrapped in bacon)
sheppard's pie
2 packages of ground beef
2 mini pizzas
2 mini cheesecakes
= all for $60!

I thought that was pretty good considering how many lunches and dinners that would be for me! I guess we'll see....

I'm trying the Filet mignon and the Stuffed Sole for dinner tonight....if it's any good, I MAY just have to make Napanee a regular pit stop! :)

eating, eating, and MORE eating!

I was in Toronto this weekend, and all I can remember from the weekend was all the food I had!

Saturday: Lunch with Quel at Tako Sushi. She told me all about her new job! She's so excited about it you can't help but be happy for her! Then met up with Ron to go furniture shopping. He got his permanent handicap permit in the mail...the laminated kind! This one, however, expires in October 2007! whoo-hoo! We took some of his stuff over to his new condo and had dinner at Swiss Chalet. The chicken was actually really fresh and juicy, and the fries were exactly the way I like them: crispy!

Sunday: Ron and I met up with his Chinese Rye Crew for dim sum at Century Palace Chinese Restaurant. I had never met this group of friends before (except one girl named Minnie, who I apparently sat beside with at Ron's B-day party 7 years ago!). Another girl knew the owner of the restaurant so we got the "good" table at the back, and a discount...sweet! They were all pretty funny, actually. Weird how I don't remember seeing ay of them with Ron during Ryerson days. We then went Toy Christmas shopping (gotta take advantage of that parking spot baby!)...and then Ron's leg started hurting so we went home. I then picked Di up and we headed for dinner at Wah Sing! umm ummm good! There was only the two of us, yet we still felt the need to get all the same dishes that we normally order when we're with the whole gang! hehe.

Monday: I met up with the old coworkers for lunch at Green Mango. I had the usual Garlic Shrimp with Pineapple Fried Rice...never disappointed, I tell ya'! It took me back to the old days when we would come here for lunch. It actually felt kinda weird not to go back to the office with them! Then I met up with Saads and Di briefly. Saads just got back from her honeymoon, and she had a great tan! After that, it was a stop at Tanaz's house to see her and baby...although, not so baby anymore! He's so big now, he looks like he's over a year old! (he's only 10 months). And then I drove back to Montreal....just in time to catch "I do, let's eat!" on the Food network to see Di's brother's wedding! If you looked really closely, you could catch me in the background 2x taking photos during the tea ceremony! :)

My kinda Wednesday!

Every month, after the magazine issue is out, six of us from the company go out for lunch to have a "post-mortem" meeting of the issue. We normally discuss what worked, what didn't work, etc.

This month, we all went to the Grand Bayou restaurant just across the street from our office...I had never been, but I was told the wings were good here.

My bosses ordered 2 pitchers of beer, a plate of wings for the table to start...and then we each ordered our lunch (I had the clubhouse sandwich!). I normally don't drink beer, but I figured I'd try it here. I'm starting to realize that beer goes well with wings! After a few more pitchers, we finally have our meeting. Suddenly, a round of tequila shots came out for the table, again and again! 3-1/2 hours later, we head back to the office. I think the funniest part was trying to pretend to be sober for the remainder of the day!

To sum it up:

3 pints of beer + 3 shots of tequila = my kinda Wednesday! :)

back to the ol' Ron...

Last Wednesday, Ron went to the doctor, and the cast was REMOVED! Yay! Finally...it only took 96 days!

And so, with the removal of the cast, comes the removal of the facial hair. I dunno, I didn't like the facial hair, but it "grew" on me...now he looks so different! Although, it was the way he had looked 96 days ago, so I guess it shouldn't shock me too much.

The bone hasn't completely fused together, but they took the cast off anyway...and Ron's doing physiotherapy a few times a week to help him get back to his old strong self! :)

For all of you reading this, I believe he's planning on finally moving into his condo on Dec. 9th...so any help would be appreciated! (uh-hmm....Gerwyn?!?!)

a movie with my NEW friend!

At Saads and Raju's wedding last weekend, I met a guy named Mahi. He went to my highschool, but we never really spoke (I hung out with the "cool" kids). Di's good friends with him, actually.

It turns out Mahi lives in Montreal...well, until the end of the month anyway. I actually ended up driving him back on the Monday coming back to Montreal. When I thought about it, I wasn't sure I did the right thing by offering him a ride (Ok, I admit...I was a bit intoxicated at the wedding when I offered)...I didn't know this guy. This dude could have been some kind of "psycho" and I was gonna be in a car with him for 5 hours! Ron called me in the middle of the ride just to make sure he didn't kidnap me...hehe.

It turns out, he's a pretty good guy. We talked for the full 5-hour ride and I didn't see any signs of any kind of psychologically disturbing behaviour (does it come out later? hehe). We met up tonight to watch the movie: The Departed (starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Jack Nicholson and Matt Damon). He had watched it already, but in French (apparently, he didn't know the movies here are dubbed in French)...so he wanted to go see it again....in English, so that he could understand it this time around. My critique of the movie? It was messed up! But great action!

Babies R Us!

Ron and I headed over to Markham for Jared's 2nd Birthday party! Geez, that house was PACKED full of people....and BABIES! They were everywhere (and we were just in the living room)! It seems all of Mary Ann and Glenn's friends have children! And I didn't even check out the basement, where all the kids were playing!

I finally got a chance to meet Kirin (Francis and Sherri's baby girl), Neil Patrick (Bruce and Harita's baby boy), and Kahlua (Ev's new puppy)! The food was pretty good, and I managed to get my favourite cheesecake (Mae's mom's specialty)!

After the party, Ron, Gerwyn, Di and I headed over to Ron's new condo. The couple wanted to see it, and since it was right by Gerwyn's house, we stopped by...Ron's first visitors! How exciting! They didn't stay too long, since there wasn't much to do there (he still has no furniture)...except for the "chair" that Di enjoyed sitting on...right Di? ;)

Ron and I drove around the neighbourhood to see what kind of restaurants were nearby (I have a feeling we'll need to know this, since I doubt Ron will cook all that much...hehe). We finally decided to check out a Sushi restaurant at a plaza on the corner. It wasn't bad, but I wouldn't say it was "crave-worthy".

Saadia & Raju's Wedding Day!

I woke up this morning to get ready for Saads' big day! The wedding ceremony was at 10:30am, and since I didn't get into town until 1am last night, I was a bit tired. AND, I couldn't find the pants I was going to wear for the ceremony! I must have forgotten them in Montreal...so I had to wear a skirt, with my high boots. But of course, we had to take off our shoes when we got to the temple, so I was left with walking around in my ankle-length white sport socks!! How embarrassing! It was a beautiful wedding nonetheless. Saads was gorgeous in her Indian outfit! And I thought Raju looked like Aladdin! hehe

After the ceremony, I ran some errands and then got ready at Di's place before heading to the reception. Our table consisted of Kim & her hubby, Ev (my date for the night!) & I, Susie & Josh, Gerwyn & Di, and finally, Trish & Greg (photo above).

Overall, the wedding was GREAT! Di's speech she gave was really nice (one of the best I've heard, actually), and the music was a mix of ol' skool House, R&B, 80's and Indian tunes (great DJ)! The dance floor was always packed (mind you, there were 500 people there), and the food was pretty good! I normally don't eat Indian food (the spicy stuff is just too much for me), but the food here wasn't bad! The butter chicken was the best I'd ever had!

drinks with ol' co-workers...

Tonight I met up with some ex-Spafaxians after work. I think I was the only one there that still works at Spafax, actually. I didn't really wanna go out...as you know, I'm not much of a socialite over here, but I decided maybe it'd be good for me.

So I did.

Outcome? .... eh. I could have just stayed home. Don't get me wrong, it was good to see everyone again, but I think I really do prefer to stay home here. Besides, all I could think about all night was all the stuff I had to do at home! (like pack for Toronto!) hehe.

Russell Peters - Outsourced!

Ron surprised me with a special DVD last weekend when I was in Toronto! He gave me the new Russell Peters - Outsourced DVD...and y'all know how much I luv this guy!

My friend Dave (my one & only friend left here in Montreal), called me to go for dinner tonight, since we hadn't met up in almost a month! I didn't want to go out, since I had loads of laundry to do, so I invited him over instead. Because I was busy doing my laundry, Dave actually ended up "cooking" the dinner (hehe, just as I planned). And then while we were eating, I popped in my Russell Peters DVD!

Dave almost choked on his food laughing all the time. He hasn't seen Russell Peters do a show before (because if you can recall, he FORGOT to get the tickets when Russell was here in Montreal), so I've converted him into being a fan! :)

Ron's blog story...

I created a blog for Ron since he was at home after he broke his leg. He gave the address to all his friends and co-workers, so they would know how he was doing while he had his cast.

Ron's most recent blog (photo to your right) had a photo of the two of us. Let me just say that I did NOT like this photo (I didn't have any makeup on, and it wasn't a good hair day...you're with me on that one, right ladies?).

Anyway, apparently...one of Ron's co-workers saw the blog, and told another co-worker of Ron's, who then told Ron, who then told me (cause Ron found it oh so amusing!) what she said: "Is that Ron's girlfriend? I didn't know he was dating an OLDER woman!"

As Gerwyn would say: How DARE she! HOW DARE SHE! :P

I'm determined to have lunch with Ron the next time I have a day off so this "co-worker" of his can see the REAL me...in which I'm sure she'll be shocked at how YOUNG I really look! :)

In my defense, this photo was taken after a long 5-hour drive from Montreal...that's bound to age ANY woman! ;)

I got a SHOUT-OUT!

Too funny....I was online, and my old co-worker logged in. We started chatting...you know 'shooting the shit'. I ask him what he's up to, and he tells me he's doing his live radio show at the moment!

Of course, I'm intrigued...so eventually, he tells me that he and his friends have started up a radio show, available on some open stream in i-Tunes. He gives me the address, so I go and listen to it.

And there he is, commenting on something he read in the newspaper, and announcing what the next song he's going to play will be. So then I asked him for a 'shout-out'...just for fun! And sure enough, after the next song...he goes back on and says "I'd like to send a shout-out to Sally, an old-coworker of mine. This song's for you!" It was hilarious! I of course, didn't recognize the song (it was "Real Nigga Roll Call" - by Lil' Jon & The East Side Boyz...what's THAT about?!?). Not the kind of music I would listen to (his radio-show), but I got my SHOUT-OUT baby! :)

Harley Pasternak

At around 3pm at work today....Harley Pasternak walked into our office! For those of you that don't know who he is, he's one of the most popular trainers out there among celebrities (he's worked with Alicia Keyes, Halle Berry, Eva Mendes, Kanye West, Orlando Bloom, Mandy Moore, Rachel Weisz, Val Kilmer, Rick Fox, Nia Long, Vanessa Williams - just to name a few!)... Oh, and he writes for enRoute magazine (in the Health & Fitness section). I have his book (although I have to admit, it's still sitting by my bed waiting to be read). He was in town and wanted to stop by, I guess...and meet with my boss.

Sad to say...but that was the highlight of my day. What a life I lead here...

hangin' out with Derek...

My friend Derek was in Toronto this weekend (he lives in San Francisco), so he picked me up from the airport on Friday night!

We grabbed a quick bite to eat, and then headed over to Acrobat lounge for some salsa dancing. Derek has been taking lessons, so he wanted to show me what he's learned. Unfortunately, I was wearing my new boots that I bought in NYC, and I hadn't broken them in yet, so by the time we got to the club, my feet were killing me! I danced one dance with him, and then he was off on his own. I did, however, pick the women for him to dance with (that's just the kind of friend I am).

Saturday, I brought my car in for a check-up and then Derek came to pick me up. We went to play squash! It was fun...I always enjoy a good game of squash....and I even managed to beat him twice! (the score was was 5-2). We then grabbed a bite to eat before he dropped me off to pick up my car.

I showered, changed, and then headed off to Ron's place! We had dinner and then I ended up falling asleep. hehe

Sunday was spent with the kids...and then I left early to go back to Montreal. It's been an exhausting week, and I'm so tired! Off to bed I go! (yes, I realize it's only 9pm).

Last day in NYC!

My conference ended at about 12:30pm today...and then the rest of the day's theme was GO-GO-GO...typical New Yorker! I quickly had to go back to the hotel to check out, and then leave our bags at reception...and then we were off!

We took the subway Metro system, and headed to Soho. There we went shopping at Strawberry, and Bath & Body Works! Soho has actually gotten really commercial with their stores since I was there last.

We got back on the subway to head over to see the Statue of Liberty (Quel's never seen it in real life before since she's a "virgin" to the Big Apple city). The subway apparently has different express trains, which means it doesn't stop in all the subway stations...we, apparently, were in one of those trains. Sooo, we missed our stop, and ended up having to go back (typical Sally day).

We then headed over to the financial district to pay respect to those remembered on 9/11...including one of Karen's cousins.

Then it was back to the hotel, then to the airport, and now...back in Montreal. What a day! I'm exhausted...but at least I get a chance to rest up a bit before heading to Toronto on Friday!

oh...the life of a New Yorker!

As I walked from my hotel to the conference this morning, I realized...when those TV shows and movies portray NYC the way they do...it really IS that way! The sidewalks were full of people, the streets were full of traffic, and the conversations I heard passing by these New Yorkers were right out of a movie! Weird.

Highlights today:

• I saw a car accident (and no one seemed to care or stop, they just kept walking and went about their business like this was a normal thing for them)

• I spotted a celebrity (Carson Kressly...the fashion dude from Queer Eye for the Straight Guy)

• I spotted a half-naked man in Times Square!
  

• I had lunch at Bubba Gumps! I had no idea there was one of these here in NYC. Di and I used to go here everytime we visited San Francisco. It was one of our "crave worthy" restaurants. Don't worry Di, it wasn't the same without you...but my craving for shrimp was certainly satisfied!

• I met up with Quel and Karen after my conference (they did their own thang today), and they got tickets to the Broadway musical: Hairspray! So we went and watched that! The cast included Diana DeGarmo (from American Idol), and Tevin Campbell! (remember HIM?!?!)
  

• After the show, Karen's friend Vanessa met up with us back at our hotel...and we headed to a Japanese restaurant near Soho...the food and environment was very authentic...it almost felt like I was in Tokyo! And when they gave us the bill, it came with this pink powder in a small cup...to use for the cotton candy machine by the door before you head out.

Sex in the City, Will Smith and Avenue Q!

I only had a 1-hour conference to go to today, so after that...I met up with Quel and Karen (they were still at the hotel getting ready since THEY were able to sleep in!).

We walked outside and went to a diner for lunch (the portions were huge...no wonder Americans are obese)! After lunch, we walked over to Herald's Square, where there were a bunch of shops we stopped at: Victoria's Secret, Forever 21, and Macy's! We then grabbed a cab to take us at the corner of 5th and 58th Streets, where there was a bus waiting to take us on our Sex in the City tour! haha

It was fun! They took us to all the spots where they filmed the show: the store where Charlotte bought her pink rabbit; the Magnolia Bakery for some cupcakes; the restaurant where Carrie and Miranda bumped into both their EX's; the bar that Steve and Aidan owned where we had Cosmopolitans (called Scout in the show, but really called O'Nieal's)...AND, the actual stoop where Carrie lived! To those that know me...you know I LUV that kinda stuff!! :)

Actually, during our bus tour, we passed by a church where they were filming a movie called "Last Man Standing" starring Will Smith...and we all saw him!! whoo-hoo! :) He even waved hello to all of us! Ah, gotta love New York!

And, it didn't stop there! After our 3-1/2 hour tour bus ride, we went to the theatre district and managed to get tickets to a Broadway show: Avenue Q! It was really good...funny, and the music was great! Sally gives it a 2-thumbs UP! ;)

Royalton Hotel!

Sooky dropped me off at the train station, and I met up with Quel at Grand Central Station. We went to a small diner for a snack before checking into our hotel, the Royalton! It's fairly small, but nice! After checking in, we walked around. We went to Times Square, and Rockefeller Centre..there's so much to do and see! Quel bought a ticket to see a show (I Love You, You're Perfect...Now Change!), since I had to go meet my bosses to go to the Folio: Eddies and Ozzies Awards Show, held at Cipriani on 42nd Street (near Grand Central station)!

Our magazines actually did well! We came out with 3 Golds, 2 Silvers and a Bronze in the 6 nominations we had! Of course, after the ceremony, the bosses wanted to go out and celebrate, so after dinner filled with drinks, we went out for more drinks!

Hangin' out at YUL airport!

My flight to New York this morning was at 8:45am. Did you know that when travelling to the United States, you have to be at the airport 2 hours prior to your flight?!?!!?

I DIDN’T KNOW THAT!

I was there an hour prior, and by the time I got to a desk for someone to check me in (I was originally at the wrong desk, I had to go to another area, and then line up at THAT desk)…they said it was too late. Oh boy!

So, basically, my only option was to grab the next flight out…which wasn’t until 1:45pm! It was only 8:30am. What’s a girl to do to kill 5 hours at the airport?

1st – I called Ron. He just woke up. I had a whole itinerary planned for today, and now that was all messed up. He was able to check the internet for the train schedules at Grand Central Station, so that I would have an idea as to what time I would arrive in Stamford, CT (which is where Diana’s sister, Sooky is to pick me up). I’m staying at her place tonight.

2nd – I called Raquel. She was already on a train headed for New York. We’re meeting up tomorrow.

3rd – I called Sooky to let her know that I missed my flight, and that I would probably arrive in Connecticut at about 5-5:30pm.

Great…that killed about an hour of time. 4 hours to go.

I went through Customs, so I could go and hang out on the “American side”. They took away my big bottle of lotion (geez! How am I to moisturize now?!?) due to the new “airport rules”. I then went to Burger King for breakfast…I ordered a big breakfast since I had time: Bacon & Egg croissanwich, coffee, taters, and French Toast sticks for dessert! ☺

3-1/2 hours to go. I checked out the shops at the airport. There I found a sale on DVD’s!! Ron actually gave me the idea earlier…to watch a movie since I had a laptop with me! He’s so smart! I bought a movie called “IQ” starring Meg Ryan, Tim Robbins, and Walter Matthau…it wasn’t bad! A good chick flick…just what I like. That killed about 2 hours, and then I had time to write up this blog! Check out my bum dent I left on my seat after sitting on it for 3 hours!! hehe. Ok, have just enough time to go to the bathroom, and then go in!! New York City…here I come! Oh I’m takin’ a big bite outta the big apple baby!

a little bit closer...

My HR girl came up to me today and wanted to "discuss" my request to transfer to the Toronto office. She said she spoke to the General Manager, and she said she didn't have a problem with that! YAY! There's lots of room in the new Toronto office, so it's not a big deal.

BUT (you know there had to be a BUT), she said that my 2 bosses have to OK me working from the Toronto office. Which basically means that I have to prove that I can still do my job from there. Oh boy! That might be a little bit harder...

To be continued...

Funny kid stories...

My flight wasn't until 9pm, and all the kids came over to my parents' house after school. I actually hadn't seen them all weekend, so it was good to spend some time with them! Here are some funny moments that I thought I'd share:

Justin (left photo) wanted to draw me a picture, so he asks me: "What do you like Tita?" Aleenah (right photo), who was sitting on my lap says "Diamonds!" I was quite shocked at her answer, I thought that was hilarious! I asked her why she said that, and she said "That's what I like, Tita...you should like them too!" Diamonds ARE a girl's best friend....even at 5 years old!! :)

Melia (middle photo, 3 years old) was eating those Pocky chocolate sticks, and I asked her if I could have one. She said yes, so I grab one. I finish it right away, and I grab another one from the package. Melia looks at me and says: "That's enough, ok Tita?"

Aleenah was drawing a picture beside me when all of a sudden, out of the blue, I hear her say the word "circumcise".
I asked her, "What did you say?"
She said "circumcise."
I say "Do you know what that word means?"
She sits up and says (word-for-word) "It's when you take the boy's pee pee, and take out the skin on top!" (and there were actions with that! She used her finger as her model!)

I was cracking up! Kids DO say the funniest things....ya' gotta luv em'!!

Happy Birthday Menalle!

After a night of dancing and drinking, Di woke me up to head on out to Scarborough. I was still a bit dizzy, but I had a squash game scheduled for 7am...but of course, I didn't get there til' about 8:30am. John, Steve, Jerome, and Mossimo were already there when I arrived. We played until about 11am...and then with all of us nice and sweaty, we headed out to eat! We went to the new Jesse Jr. Filipino restaurant that just opened on Brimley and Sheppard...yummy traditional filipino breakfast! :)

After going home and showering, I then headed over to Tanaz's house to visit with Zarius! Geez, this kid is getting big! He looks like such a little man, and I expect him to be walking already cause he's so big...but he's only 9 months!! He's so cute!
I then headed over to Ron's place to pick him up! He was going to grace us with his presence for Mel's birthday! I was so glad that he could join us after 2-1/2 months of being stuck at home! AND, we had his "special" parking permit, so we could park wherever we wanted...sweet! We met up with the gang at Big Daddy's on King Street to celebrate Mel's special day! Mel, Norm, Di, Gerwyn, Ev, Mae, Glenn and Jared were all there clapping their hands when Ron and I walked in! For me?!!?...oh stop! ;)

The food was good...Ron and I shared the Big Daddy's Crab Shack Boil! A pot full of king crab, snow crab, shrimp, mussels, crawfish, and sausauge in a white wine and garlic sauce! YUM! It's always so nice to get together with everyone, because there are always so many stories and jokes that go around the table! AND, Mel had a special "baon" for each of us before we left....Norm's mom's special coffee cake! It was soooo good, I kept it all for myself (sorry Ron!).

Tangerine nightclub!

Mel's sister Hannah was in town for the weekend. She lives in Vancouver, and she's getting married in November! Mel thought it would be nice for all of us to go out and celebrate (like a Stagette of some sort) Saturday night since she was in the T dot!

It was decided that we would all go to Tangerine. I had never been there before, but I was told that they played house music all night long (say what?). Di, Gerwyn, Ev, Mel, Norm, Karen and I all decided to go! Except Hannah decided she was way too tired to come out that night! hehe. That didn't stop the rest of us from going and dancing all night though! It wasn't bad...except that the DJ (Starting from Scratch), was having technical difficulties throughout the night, so we all got a free cd to make up for it! whoo-hoo!

Hotel le Germain

One of my bosses asked me to come to a meeting in Toronto at the very last minute...and I wanted my car for the weekend, so I ended up driving right after work Wednesday night to make it for a meeting on Thursday.

After work, there was a going-away party they were holding for the VP (he's being transferred to the L.A. office), so we all headed over to Doku, a restaurant/bar at the Cosmopolitan Hotel. The beef tenderloin was to die for! A co-worker and I ended up eating an entire platter of it, before anyone else at our table knew! :)

Anyway, because it was late (and I was quite intoxicated), I ended up spending a night at Hotel le Germain! What a beautiful hotel! The lobby was gorgeous, and my room had the shower right beside the bed, with a glass wall separating it! And the shower head...it was like a rainfall...(like when I was a kid in the Philippines, and showered outside in the rain! haha). I woke up the next morning watching BT while I showered, and then had their continental breakfast! What a great way to start the day!

I did IT!

Dirty birdys...I know what you were all thinking with "IT". (get your mind outta the gutter!)

Yesterday, I went to our HR person, and told her that I wanted to transfer to the Spafax Toronto office! She completely understood. As a matter of fact, she didn't know why I hadn't asked until now! Our Toronto office is actually moving locations. They're moving into a bigger office (but they haven't found a place to move into yet), and I thought now would be a good time to ask for the transfer since they could accomodate for lil' ol' me in that new office too! She's going to speak to the General Manager about it and get back to me....

And so it begins...will keep you posted!
:)

Justin Timberlake's new album!

I'm secretly inlove with Justin Timberlake....I think he's HOT! I actually went to his "Justified" concert when he came to Toronto years ago with Tanaz (she's inlove with him too!). There were a bunch of kids and teenagers with their moms around us...but we didn't care! We were yelling and cheering for him just as loud as those kids, if not louder! (sad, I know)

Ron gave me his new album over the weekend, and tonight...I listened to it! Not as good as his Justified album, but it was still OK. I think my favourite song out of the whole album is called: All Over Again.
It's a slow song...but I'm a sap like that.

Traffic SUCKS during a long weekend!

One of the things I hate the most when I do these 5-hour drives is TRAFFIC! Normally, I am actually on the opposite side of the traffic, since most people head out East on a long weekend when I'm heading West to Toronto, and vice versa on the way back.

But this weekend, I got stuck in it! Arrrrrgh! What's a girl to do while she's not moving?? I busted out the camera of course!

Oh look, here's a photo of the construction that caused the traffic.

And the fall leaves all around me during my drive.

There's the stereo of my car.

There's the key to the ignition, and my foot on the brake.

And there's my Winnie-the-Pooh hanging from my rearview mirror.

Oh, and finally, there's my gear handle. (is that what it's even called?!?!)

Anyway, these are things you're forced to do to pass the time when you're freakin' BORED out of your mind! Ok, just felt the need to vent...thanks.

Thanksgiving weekend...

I drove into Toronto Saturday afternoon, by 2pm. By the time I got there, most of the moving was done at my parents' place (just as I had planned...hehe). I only had time to help pack up the rest of the stuff that I had in my parents' home, and managed to fill my car up with it.

My cousins were all at the new house when I got there. After the moving truck was returned, and everything was at the new house...we all ate and relaxed. We ended up playing the game, Cranium after eating. It was a lot of fun, actually! We had 2 teams: me, Ryan, and Matthew vs. Sarah, Lorna and Sam...the winner/game to be continued (at Christmas time!). My sister had to go, and I had to go cause I promised to bring Ron dinner, and he was starving by 7pm! (which is what time I ended up leaving Scarbs)....oops!

Sunday afternoon, I met up with Quel. It was a beautiful sunny afternoon! We had lunch at Tako Sushi....ummmm! I think Quel and I are the only ones that get excited about this place. It's "our" place! Maybe cause we get the exact same thing every time we go, and we're never disappointed. We always share the Vancouver special, and a Spider roll! Sooooo good!

After lunch, we didn't know what to do, so we walked around downtown a bit, and decided to get manicures and pedicures! We figured, it was so nice out....why not show off those toes while we still can? Quel and I haven't had a pedicure together since I introduced her to it while we were in the Philippines! I had so much fun, and it's always great to catch up with Quel!

We went to a Starbucks after and I grabbed Ron the coffee he was craving for (tall Vanilla Latté, lactose free), and then I headed over to his place. We played the Scene-It movie game for the rest of the evening. Yes, I will admit he beat me TWICE at this game (I know, I can't believe it myself!), but I really think it all had to do with the roll of the dice...and everyone knows...that just requires LUCK! :P

Monday, I went to the Soriano household for Thanksgiving Lunch! We had turkey, pancit, vegetables, and some other filipino dishes of which I don't know the name of. I was stuffed! Everyone seemed to enjoy the apple pie I brought (from the Big Apple!) for dessert. The rest of the afternoon was spent playing video games with Ron's nephew and godson. We played the James Bond 007 shooting game, and then a game called Halo...let's just say I lost. My player ended up committing suicide (who knew it could even do that?!!?). The score was double digits for Ron, his nephew and godson....Sally had a -1. (geez!)

I then drove back to Montreal....but not before Ron's mom gave me some "baon" (translation: care package)! whoo-hoo! :)