Girls' Night at Pudgy's Place

I held a mini girls' night at my place this weekend.  I supplied the wine and the place, the girls brought over food, snacks, and clothes! 

I cracked a bottle of Sterling Chardonnay to go with our appetizer of havarti cheese and crackers.  But the wine also paired very well with the salmon steaks for our main course.  The chardonnay worked very well because of the buttery/creamy havarti cheese.  The citrus notes went well with the salmon that was baked with lemon and dill. 

After dinner, it was time to colour Pudgy's hair.  I didn't colour it a few weeks ago because I was advised to do a skin allergy test before applying it to my hair.  But Mandy said I should be fine as long as I didn't have any skin conditions such as eczema or psoriasis.  The box said 20 minutes but I left it on for an hour.  Clem and Gigi said it was better to leave it on longer because Asian hair doesn't take colour that easily.  I think they were right.  My hair is a nice brown colour .. I think it has a hint of red in it.  :)

The night didn't end there.  Next weekend is the Ottawa Food and Wine show - Mandy and I are attending the Tasting Alley special event.  She brought over some of her dresses for me to try on so I had to model a bunch of dresses for the girls (and Clem .. ok, there was one guy in the group).  Maybe it's just me but I'm so modest when it comes to dresses.  There were strapless dresses in the selection and I didn't want to try those on.  I felt like it was missing something .. like a turtleneck! 

Anyway, we settled on a black dress with a yellow shrug for a punch of colour.  I've got heels to go with the dress.  My friends are hoping that I turn heads at the event.  I'm there for the wine.

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It's Friday!

The weekend is upon us .. what to do, what to do ..

1. Tonight, I have a hot yoga session.  I'm pretty excited about this.  I tried it last week and was hooked instantly.  It's not as uncomfortable as you'd think it would be.
2. There is a tournament over in Aylmer, QC that my friends are playing in.  They have asked if I could go 'cheer' them on.  It's the first tournament of the season.
3. HST Remittance is due so I really should work on my expenses.
4. Debt repayment - this is priority 1 as well.
5. I'm going to try and colour my hair over the weekend.  I've always wanted to do it but never had the guts to try. I'm looking for a change .. I think I'll colour it chestnut brown .. that way, if I do make a mistake, it won't be so noticeable.  :)

What about you?  What are your plans for the weekend?

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October 12th, 2011

October 12th, 2011 .. marks the end of an era for me .. we are no longer one.  The healing must begin.  Life will go on.

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The Price of Invulnerability

Recently was introduced to the talks of Brene Brown .. an interesting quote i want to share:

"We want more guarantees. We want to believe that we're not going to get hurt and that bad things aren't going to happen and they are, and there is a guarantee that nobody talks about and that is that if we don't allow ourselves to experience joy and love we will definitely miss out on filling our reservoir with what we need when those hard things happen."

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Time for a new look?

Hmm .. my blog is so due for a hair cut .. ;-)  Over the next few days, I'll re-work my blog to go with the season.  Sorry if it's under construction and looks a little 'off' for while. 

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September already?

Yikes!  It's been almost 3 months since my last post.  Sigh .. I've been neglecting my blog for a while.  I really need to get back to posting.  :P

The last few months have been busy.  Since moving to the new house, everything has been go go go.  Slowly but surely things are becoming more 'routine'.  Yay!  Now that autumn is upon us, it's time to prep the house for the cooler temperature.

Badminton season ended and school season has started.  I decided not to renew my badminton membership at the RA centre.  With school season beginning, I don't see myself going to the RA as much so there was no point in paying for a membership if I don't make use of it.  Instead I joined a half season membership at my old club for a whopping $50.  :)

Anyway, it may be September but I'm really looking forward to Christmas this year.  I can't wait to decorate the house and get my own Christmas tree.  I already have a spot for it in my living room.

I won't be able to make it back for Thanksgiving this year.  I have some business to take care of.

For those of you waiting for my wine picks, below is an excellent buy at the LCBO this weekend.  I'm working on perfecting my palate right now.  ;)  Right now, all I can say is .. sauvignon blanc is NOT my favorite white.

Torres Floralis Moscatel Oro (Spain) - it's a sweet dessert wine.  I tried this and I really liked it.  It's not too sweet and has a nice candied orange peel flavour to it.  Would pair really well with pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving.  Oh yeah, it only comes out once a year.  Get one while you can.

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A place of my own ...

Almost a year after I signed the agreement, my purchase finally arrived.  It has three bedrooms and a partially finished basement.  My favorite room in the house?  The kitchen, of course.  :)

I bought the home because I didn't want to continue wasting my money on rent.  The amount of rent I was paying, I could put it towards a mortgage and have a home of my own in the end.  So it was an investment of sorts.  The area is very nice and the homes tend to hold its value.  The value of my home had already appreciated a week after I bought it.  I'll post pictures next week when my appliances have been installed.

It was a long time coming but I'm happy with the end result.  I want to say thank you to everyone who helped me over the last year.  Listening, supporting, and simply being there on-demand.

I know I have said that I will move back to Toronto one day.  Unfortunately, I am tied to Ottawa for the time being.  When things have been settled, I will plan my journey home.

Love Always,
Pudgy

Note from Author:  Made a small edit to my post to correct my choice of words.

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