24 December 11

Baking all day, gift exchange with Tony, pork wellington and pumpkin pie at Yvonne's, awkward midnight mass in Maple Ridge followed by eggnog and How the Grinch Stole Christmas!

23 December 11

We had a few people over to exchange gifts and watch two different versions of A Christmas Carol: a musical version from the 70s, and the Muppets one.

22 December 11

Jeff and I had dinner at the Roundel and then tried to go to Van Dusen Gardens, but we got there at eight and the lineup was all the way out in the parking lot, so we didn't really feel like waiting out in the cold for half an hour just to pay $13 to go in and walk around in the cold for half an hour and then go home.

21 December 11

Jewellery supplies. I'm excited to turn these feathers into earrings, even if I can't wear them.

20 December 11

sedum morganianum.

19 December 11

High school journals. I can hardly bear to look at them, let alone read them, but I also can't bear the idea of getting rid of them.

18 December 11

vegan Nanaimo bars.

17 December 11

16 December 11

Jeff Downer had his going-away party (he will be in Boston for the next year or so). He was incredibly drunk and the party was thankfully much less insane than the dual birthday from a few weeks ago. This was Kaylie's goodbye message to him.

15 December 11

pinup.

14 December 11

My entry for our festive red & green cookoff: campari tomato halves with pesto, mozzarella Daiya, and mushrooms & onions fried in port. Check out the cookoff blog to see the rest of the entries and the winners!

13 December 11

12 December 11

I had to leave work after like an hour because my back was in so much pain I could barely think. Jeff picked me up and we went to the clinic where my doctor assured me it was muscular, and gave me a prescription for T3s and instructions to take it easy at work for the next week or so. We went over to the Indigo in North Van to look for a particular book I couldn't find at Chapters on the weekend, and afterwards had breakfast at Moodyville's. I filled my prescription and we came home, where Jeff got ready for work and I sat gingerly in a chair, in a daze watching episodes of Boardwalk Empire.

11 December 11

While we were having breakfast, there were a bunch of birds using our garage roof gutter to take a bath. I was afraid I'd scare them away if I went out back, so I took these through the kitchen window which produced some interesting results.

10 December 11

I lounged around for most of the day and then I went crazy preparing food for the party. It wasn't as populous as last year's birthday party, I think due to a lot of people's work Christmas parties being on the same day, but it was still a good time and I didn't get to bed until after three.

09 December 11

Jeff took me for a birthday dinner at Sip on Granville (because The Refinery was booked up). Afterwards we took pictures of pretty lights until my hands froze.

08 December 11

Playing dress-up.

07 December 11

Put up our Christmas lights & pathetically small tree.

06 December 11

05 December 11

It was my birthday. I became older. I was also still sick and had to go to work. I didn't mind just sitting at home and relaxing alone in the evening after an eventful weekend.

04 December 11

Ate breakfast at a nearby diner. Bought unreasonably inexpensive wine. Sat in the car forever. Laughed about how Riley thought he saying "bag of chips" in the song "Bandages". Ate pizza. Got home, drank tea, unpacked.

03 December 11

Slept late. Ate gigantic bagel sandwiches for breakfast at a cafe. Shopped until we got tired of shopping. Alice got her hair dyed at a nice salon on Morrison. We put on heels with our jeans and headed to an Italian restaurant called Mucca and ate a lot of cheese and pasta, and admired the handsome Italian chefs in the open kitchen. They sent us a free panna cotta for dessert (though Mom and I suspect it was because of Alice). The best part was when two ladies came in and sat at the table beside us, looked at the menu, and one of them said to the other, "I thought this was an Italian restaurant. I don't recognize any of this stuff," and then they left! Bitch, if you want lasagna, go to the goddamn Olive Garden.

02 December 11

Drove to Portland. Went to Powell's. Ate and drank at a Japanese tapas bar at the top of a hotel.

01 December 11

Jeff and I drove to my parents' place so that I could get up early to drive with Mom and Alice to Portland the following day. We went out for sushi, drank too much sake. I helped my mom drunkenly pack her bag. We all, upon arrival, realised we forgot something: me, a spare bra; Alice, toothbrush; Mom, a belt.

30 November 11

29 November 11

28 November 11

27 November 11

Vegan peanut butter marble brownies.

26 November 11

Boy, was I glad to see the end of Movember.

25 November 11

Jeff and I went to two house parties that could not have been more different: the first, a group of people laughing and chatting over wine, cheese, & homemade desserts; the second, a loud, dark house filled to bursting with people, many of whom I'd never seen before in my life. We had a great time at both.

24 November 11

To-do list.

23 November 11