Manicures & High Heels

In advance of my upcoming review of "Sex and the City", the entire series, I wanted to write (as promised) of how manicures and high heels make me feel.

I was a tomboy for all of my early years.  You could maybe still consider me one, I don't know.  I was the only girl at the boys' birthday parties.  I played hockey.  I frowned when my first pair of underpants had flowers on them (true story).  I put up an enormous fuss when told to put on a dress.  You get the picture...

As a result, despite growing up with 4 sisters, I missed some so-called crucial steps to "being a girl".  I could barely put my hair up in a ponytail at 14, I got dresses only for occasions that required them, and I think I applied mascara for the first time at 18.  Once again, you get the picture...

When I was in Turkey in the summer of '09 (can't believe it's already been that long), I told my mom and sister, who I was travelling with, that I wanted to quit biting my nails.  I'd been biting them (as you might remember) for at least 14 years, I would guess, and so it was a big undertaking.  The goal was to not bite them on the trip and reward myself with a manicure on the second leg of the trip in Abu Dhabi.  After all, where else would I get my first manicure???

The experience was in a word - and I'm not really exaggerating here - profound.  I never really got it.  Why paint your nails?!  What's the point?!  Do people think of you differently?  Does it make any difference at all?

Well, I can only speak from my own perspective, but yes, yes, yes.  It does make a difference.

Somehow, it makes me feel prettier.  I look at my hands and rather than just various shades of pink, I see these colourful nails that stand out and transform my fingers.  I feel elegant.  I feel more grown-up and professional.  I feel like people might think differently of me; that I take care of myself and take pride in my appearance.  Superficial?  Maybe... but also not, because the prettiness I feel goes deep.  I don't mean pretty in the shallow sense; I mean a full-body feeling of confidence and power.

[And as a side benefit, getting manicures really helps maintain the health of my nails and keeps me from wanting to bite them... 'cuz they're so pretty.]

I experienced the same thing recently when I bought my first pair of real high heels.  By real, I mean an actual heel (not the hilarious kitten heel), and not just plain, but with a bow and other ornaments.  I put my feet in them, stood up from the bench at the shoe store, and pulled my pant leg up.  My leg was completely transformed.  It looked more muscular, more feminine, and more defined.  My posture was different.  I felt different.  When I walk around in heels I feel tall and powerful, elegant and poised.  Once again, I know it may sound superficial, but it doesn't feel superficial.  It feels real, the feeling has depth, but at the end of the day I don't need to qualify it, I just need to enjoy the transformation.

On the reading list -- Still finishing up When You Are Engulfed in Flames by David Sedaris (loving it!  15 pages to go), and then I think I'll follow that up with The Black Swan by Nassim Nicholas Taleb (which has nothing to do with the film).

Post to come -- My thoughts on the series "Sex and the City" in its entirety & What's the deal with rc-4?

Wonderful Weekend!

Man, I must be in a writin' mood.  Two posts in two days.  Oh well, when the muse is with you, the muse is with you...

First a little something fun:



What a sweetie!


I've been having a great weekend!  It's a long weekend here in Ontario (Family Day), so the usual luxury of the weekend is made that much more luxurious.  I've had a great mixture of chill times, time outdoors, movie-watching, friend-seeing, food-eating... the whole gamut.  In the food-eating arena, I went to Frida last night as I mentioned I would, and it was as delicious as I remembered.  Tasty margaritas, succulent jumbo shrimp, and the best guacamole I've ever had in my life!!!  On top of all that, I had with me some absolutely fabulous company.  Great evening!!!

Today was an adventure with my boy Waleed.  As his birthday present, I wanted to do something fun together.  W. and I are going to be friends forever, so buying expensive things isn't always necessary; I'd rather have a fun experience together, so that was the inspiration for this gift.  We started the day off with brunch.  We met at the Bloor Street Diner where I was having a coffee and thinking that the all-you-can-eat brunch sounded tantalizing.  When Wal arrived we asked how much the AYCE brunch cost and it was $25.95 each before tax.  That was a little too steep for the two of us, so we finished our coffees, paid for them, and headed east to Sunset Grill at Bloor & Church.  There we got 2 filling breakfasts for $20 TOTAL!!!  I'm glad we resisted brunch at BSD -- another time.

After a yummy breakfast at SG, we headed to surprise #1, which Wal had NO idea about.  Where did we go???  The Bata Shoe Museum!!!  I hadn't been there since I was 12 or so, and Wal had never been, and I thought it would be a fun experience.  We went to lots of museums together in Paris, but why not in the city where we both (kinda... sorta...) live?!  It was a lot of fun.  We started downstairs where the history of shoes is charted, and then we followed that up with the Roaring Twenties exhibit, which was really well done.  We also saw the Art in Shoes | Shoes in Art exhibit, which was cool, too.  We were there probably an hour or so in total, and then we headed to surprise #2.

Surprise #2: Seeing "The Iron Lady" at the Varsity Theatre in the VIP theatre!!!  Wow... what a movie.  It was really fantastic to see such a strong, powerful woman's journey.  It was also well-done; watching Margaret Thatcher's struggles with sanity/dementia.  Jim Broadbent acted well, as he always does.  But, let's get to the most important thing:

MERYL.  MERYL.  MERYL.
Meryl Streep... how do you do it?  She is, without a doubt, the greatest actress of our time.  For that matter, she may be the greatest actress of all time.  While watching the movie, you completely forget that it's Meryl.  That is definitely thanks to the talent of the make-up artist, too, but... oh Meryl... you really just nailed it.  You were Margaret Thatcher.  You were completely in the character.  The accent, the facial expressions, the voice...  You were absolutely flawless.  Win or lose the Oscar, there is no debate about your talent.  Congratulations on the performance of a lifetime!!!

Never mind the special treat of enjoying a movie in the VIP theatre.  It's not something you want to do every time you see a movie, but for a treat it's worth the extra bucks.  You've got a small, intimate theatre with a great view of the screen.  You've got extra comfy seats and a side table for your treats.  You can have beer while you watch your movie!  And, in my last experience in the theatre, I even had an employee serve me my treats!!!  It's a fun little treat.  (Say treat again... treat!)

So that was the birthday adventure with Waleed.  A lot of fun!

I also saw another great movie this weekend: "Beginners".  I'd been wanting to see this since I saw a preview for it; it seemed like a really new idea for a movie.  Beyond a fun story line, it also had a creative multimedia-esque approach.  The acting was also really good.  I loved Melanie Laurent, and Ewan was great, and Christopher Plummer was at his best.  It was a well-written movie and quite moving.  I loved it!



So, that was my weekend!  Lots of fun, and back to reality on Tuesday!

Viva México!!!

As I mentioned in my last post, I was just in Mexico City for my first international business trip.  I spent just barely 48 hours there, which I guess is the first thing of note.  What?!  Who spends 48 hours in Mexico City?!  I know.  I guess that's the thing about travelling on business: you go for the business and when it "runs dry", so to speak, you go home.  No dilly-dallying; just business. 

[SIDE NOTE: I don't think I've ever actually written the word "dilly-dallying".  Now I've written it twice.] 

That being said, it was a wonderful and successful trip, both professionally and personally.

We flew from Toronto to Mexico City direct on Air Canada.  The flight was nice n' easy: I finished What the Dog Saw, read some Toronto Life, did a little work, and watched some on-demand TV: "Portlandia".

[SIDE NOTE #2: I had seen a clip from this show, and had heard great things from my girl Sains, but had never seen it.  I've now seen all the episodes Air Canada has to offer (which I now realize is the entirety of season 1) and I can now say that this show is AMAZING!!!  Seriously.  Brilliant and extremely clever television.  Love it!]

Anyway, t'was a great flight! 

We arrived to a very clean and organized Mexico City airport.  Customs was quick n' easy, and guess what?!  We saw the one and only Margaret Atwood in line at customs.  Seriously.  She was looking very snazzy in a pink jacket. 

We then hopped into a cab to go to our hotel to check in, freshen up, and have our first meeting of the trip.  We stayed at the Hotel Galería Plaza in the Juárez district in Mexico City.  We stayed in the executive suites, and my experience at the hotel was really fantastic from beginning to end.  The staff were attentive, professional, hospitable, and all spoke fantastic English.  My room was great albeit a slightly firm bed (not my taste); clean, well-kept, and comfortable.  Since we stayed in the executive suites we had use of the executive lounge for a complimentary breakfast as well as wine and canapes in the evening.  I never had the wine and canapes but the continental breakfast was pretty good.  I say "pretty good" because continental breakfasts never fully satisfy me.  That being said, the woman who oversaw the breakfast made me a delicious coffee, so I was just fine.  The executive lounge itself was nice, too; there was the breakfast area and then a more loungey area where you could use the computer.  I was able to print some documents I really needed there, too, which was great.  The hotel also had a rooftop pool with a great view of the city, and an exercise room close by.  On my third and final morning I went for a quick dip early in the day and enjoyed the view.  That was a nice little touch.  In fact, there were lots of nice little touches -- fresh fruit and a card waiting in my room when I arrived, chocolates waiting on the bed and the sheets turned in the evening... that stuff definitely enhances my experience.  Finally, on our second night there we held a reception in one of the event rooms at the hotel.  Once again, fantastic service, great spot for a reception, good food, good wine, and a good experience.  Thank you, Galería Plaza!!!  

So, that's the hotel.  What else?!  Meeting #1 went very well, and when it was over my colleague asked the person we were meeting with where we should eat for dinner.  He suggested a restaurant called Anderson's.  We thought, that doesn't sound very Mexican, but as it turns out it's been around since the 1960s and has really authentic and delicious Mexican food, so we went for it!  [SIDE NOTE #3: Grupo Anderson also owns the very popular Senor Frog's restaurants and bars, that are located all over Mexico and elsewhere.]  Once again, the service was top-notch, and the food was delicious.  I can't remember exactly what I had, but there was lots of yummy spiciness, a little guacamole on the side, and the margaritas were delicious... and very strong.  I highly recommend. 

After our wonderful dinner, we headed out in search of drinks on a rooftop outside somewhere.  We tried the Four Seasons first but they didn't have what we were looking for, so someone recommended we go to the St. Regis hotel.  It was there that we found a beautiful 3rd floor patio where we could enjoy all the margaritas we wanted.  It was a slightly chilly night, but we stayed there until we were too tired to talk, and then headed back to the Galería Plaza. 

The next morning was a lazy one.  I enjoyed my breakfast with a side of Toronto Life, and then around 11:30am joined my colleagues for a walk along the Reforma (main street) for some sun and souvenir shopping.  We wandered around, stopped at a place called La Pescaderia (that's the only link I could find) for some fish tacos and a cervesa, and then searched for some authentic-looking sombreros for my colleague to bring back.  We found them, and I bought a few magnets for friends. 

Back to the hotel we went to freshen up again before meeting #2.  We held this meeting at a wonderful restaurant in the Polanco district (think Mexico City’s Yorkville) called Casa Anis.  It was on the second floor above another restaurant and was half outside, which made for a great (and breezy!) atmosphere.  I enjoyed a red snapper and it was absolutely delicious.  We also had an amazing Mexican wine there, which I was told was a mix of a chardonnay and something else... it was amazing! 

Then, once again, back to the hotel where we held our big reception, which as I said, was great!  It was about double the turn-out I'd expected, which was great news for me!  There was a wonderful vibe in the air, and it made it feel even more successful than the trip had already been. 

I was exhausted after the reception, went straight to sleep, woke up for a dip in the pool, tidied up, checked out, and headed to the airport.  There we had 2 last cervesas, and then were on our way!  YYZ followed by ZZZ. 

And that was Mexico City!!!

Then, of course, is the obligatory... 

10 things I learned while in Mexico City:

1. I've never been to the Southern United States, so I haven't experienced the famous "southern hospitality", but I have to say that Mexico has hospitality of its own.  Everyone we crossed paths with was helpful, kind, polite, and friendly; not an ounce of snarkiness.  Most people spoke fantastic English, and always made us feel comfortable and at home.  A delight!
2. The rumours I heard about Mexico City traffic were not a myth.  Something that could take 5 minutes to drive in Toronto (and 1.5 minutes in Port Hope) could take 20+ minutes in Mexico City.  Allow for lots of time to get from one place to another, and buckle up because the ride is often not smooth.
3. Being a wordsmith is fun.  My colleague and I played an unspoken game of figuring out what words meant by thinking critically (apparently I'm not the only geek in this way).  He figured out that "extranjero" meant "foreigner" because it looked like "stranger".  I figured out that the restaurant "La Pescaderia" was a fish restaurant, because people who eat no meat but fish are called "pescatarians".  POW!!!
4. Breakfast in Mexico might be at approximately the same time as we have it in North America, but lunch and dinner are a totally different story.  Lunch is usually eaten from/between 2:00-5:00pm, and dinner between 8:00-11:00pm.  We learned that this may have originally been inspired by the siesta style of living, where during the hottest part of the day workers would head inside for their biggest meal of the day, lunch, and then a rest because it was too hot to work.  Our friend told us that siestas don't happen now in quite the same way because most people work indoors, but the tradition continues.  Aside from the siesta, the other reason for meals being the way they are is the altitude of Mexico City (more on that in #4).  To eat your biggest meal of the day in the evening would be too much to digest overnight, so instead you have something light, later in the evening.  I'm sure that's not the most comprehensive explanation, but you get the idea...
5. The gentleman we met with on day 1, after mentioning the altitude in relation to meals, mentioned that we'd definitely feel the altitude change, and in particular on day 2.  I took this with a grain of salt, thinking: "how significant can the change be?"  Then on day 2 I felt nauseous all day - upset stomach and intense headache.  I figured it was because of the few too many margaritas I'd had the night before at the St. Regis, but it persisted in a way very different from a hangover.  My colleague reminded me of the altitude change and I thought, that's it!  Then again, I might be finding a scapegoat for my hangover...
6. This, as I said, was my first international business trip, and so therefore I learned a few non-specifically-Mexican-but-business-trip-related things.  One being this -- even as a woman, you don't have to pack heavily.  I made due on one shirt, a pashmina, a cardigan, a skirt with a matching blazer, a pair of casual shoes, a pair of heels, and a dress.  That being said, I would've done even better with the skirt and blazer, the dress (not mandatory, but necessary considering the reception we held), the cardigan, and three shirts.  I didn't mean to pack only one.  I improvised with the inclusion of the pashmina, but a shirt or two more would've done me good.  Anyway, what I'm saying is -- it's worth it to pack light so that you don't have to check a bag.
7. Margaritas are no joke in Mexico.  They're strong, tasty, and not to be taken lightly.
8. Green salsa is the hottest.  I have been slowly upping my tolerance for spice over the past 5 years or so since I met Waleed, so I can take quite a kick at this point in time, but I should refrain from telling less spice-tolerant colleagues that it's "not that spicy", because they'll hate me the next morning (TMI).
9. As ridiculous as this might sound, I'm going out for Mexican food in Toronto tonight at a great joint on Eglinton West called Frida.  I've been there once before, and this may sound like sacrilege, but after having visited Mexico, I still maintain that Frida serves the best guacamole I've ever had.  And I'll put this out there - I've had a lot of guacamole in my day, so I consider myself a bit of a pro.  Frida -- way to go!!!
10. Home is where the heart is.

What Sugar and Gravy Saw...

Greetings from Mexico City!  I'm here on business for barely 48 hours, but I'm loving what I've seen, including the inside of my beautiful hotel room.

I just finished reading my first book of 2012.  Not my speediest start, it's true, but it was a whopping 400 pages of some dense yet delightful Malcolm Gladwell: What The Dog Saw.  That's his fourth book and now I've read them all, and I loved every single one of them. 

What I love about Malcolm Gladwell is that he sparks two totally different notions in me: (1) That people are truly human.  That may sound stupid, but what I mean is that we're not just a skeleton and flesh.  We're individuals, we have personalities, we have strengths and weaknesses, quirks and edges... We're all different and in our own ways, wonderful. 

(2) That there is a science to us.  We are all those things I just mentioned, and there is a scientific reason why.  Whether physical or social science, there's a method to our madness so to speak.  When we make "snap judgments", as Gladwell discusses in Blink (and a story or two in WTDS, for that matter), there are in fact neurons firing, or whatever the case may be.  We may sift through our brain by using words that turn into thoughts that turn into ideas, but something is actually happening in our heads; something totally unbeknownst to us. 

If you've never read Gladwell, DO!  His books are so..... COOL!!! 


Next on the reading list -- When You Are Engulfed in Flames by David Sedaris, as well as the February and March Issues of Toronto Life 

Posts to come -- my thoughts on the series "Sex and the City" in its entirety, my experience in Mexico City, and what manicures and high heels make me feel.