Off to Sin City!!

I am taking a hiatus this week (sorry I dont blog on vaca)..for a trip to Vegas. I've been there a couple times already but I am due for some hot sun, gambling, and debauchery! I will have my full review when I return...blog ya later xoxo

Can you make that with Bacon?

Everyone seems to be obsessed with Bacon flavoured foods and drinks these days. The latest...chocolate bacon muffins..sounds kinda gross eh? Im not even sure I want to try to bake these at home. The muffins may go in the trash AND stink up my house with a mixture of bacon and chocolate smells....hmmm. Then again, I am intrigued to see what they would taste like..maybe something for when I get the munchies? The muffins are only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to bacon esque foods. There's Bakon Vodka, even websites on how to make your own bacon infused vodka lol. The kicker? Bacon Foods..a whole website completely obsessed with bacon which includes membership fees ranked on how obsessed you are with bacon!! So much for people eating healthy these days right? I personally love bacon....but I prefer my vodka with a lime or cucumber...not pig fat~~

Making Something from Nothing

In our celebrity obsessed world, it is hard to stay on top of the headlines and capitalize on your 15 minutes of fame. There a hundred of talented singers, actors and athletes that are famous for a reason. It helps if they are good looking and funny or interesting as well. They make their $ doing their craft and the publicity and perks that come with being famous, are added bonuses. But how can you become famous if you dont have talent? A new wave of desperate celebrities have made something (fame) from nothing. Enter Paris Hilton, Kim Kardashian, Speidi and now Paulina Gretzky. If you aren't smart, funny or talented, then you better be sleazy, trashy and slutty to get attention. From sex tapes to scandalous photos, these chics will stop at nothing for attention. I guess they are a little bored living off of Daddy's money. Anyway, its really sad that they crave media and public attention and will stop at nothing to get it. Probably weren't hugged enough as children..sigh! What message is this sending young girls though? Take your clothes off and be a whore to get what you want? At least Hilton and Kardashian ended up building their brand and businesses off their sex tape fame. But was it really worth it? Their children and grandchildren will see intimate sex videos of them that were supposedly "leaked" online. I dont feel sorry for them...they capitalized on the opportunity when they saw it. No matter what all  these ladies do in their careers, 20 years from now their name will always appear on Google along with sex tape, scandal and trashy...at least they will have money to wipe away the tears lol.

Outsourcing our lives

As we get busier and busier, we are spending more and more cash on hiring people to do mundane things. I am always telling my friends that I need an assistant to deal with my nonsense on a regular basis. We continue to take on more and more, extending our work hours and social obligations. When do we have time to do laundry? mail thank you cards? schedule appts? pick up dry cleaning? The list goes on and on. Technology was supposed to make our lives easier..but has it? How did our parents do all of this and make it look so easy? My parents both worked, raised two children, had a dog, social obligations, a big extended family to visit, skiing, swimming and music lessons to shuttle us to AND they did it all with no help. I never had a nanny, a grandma to watch me or a cleaning lady. They didnt have blackberrys or laptops to email friends. They saw people face to face and chatted on the phone with friends all the time. Sure they were busy and tired..but I never saw them stressed out. I guess we do work longer hours than our parents did as we are always expected to be "on call" answering our blackberrys during evenings and weekends. But still..an email here or a call there shouldn't cause us to be so far behind on daily tasks..but we are. We are now hiring people to not just watch our kids, mow our lawns or clean our houses. People are now hiring glorified errand boys to do their bidding. Its not unusual now for a family to have a cleaning lady, nanny/babysitter, dog walker and lawn care worker. Some households add chauffeur, cook or assistant to the list. We pay people to cut our hair, paint our nails, wash our dogs, make our meals,  drive our kids..leaving us with more free time right? If hiring people so we can have "less" to do and more "time" isnt working..then either we suck at time management or are too busy and need to trim the fat out of our lives. If you are too busy for your friends and family..then you are TOO busy. Starting saying NO or do you need to hire someone to do that for you?

Tea From David

There has been a lot of progress in the coffee world in terms of new beverages and cafes thanks to Starbucks, Second Cup and the like. Tea aficionados were forced to buy tea from mainstream coffee shops and only had a couple flavours to choose from. They were second class citizens vs. the posh coffee drinkers who had plenty of beverages to fight over. David's Tea has filled that gap in the market offering a wild array of teas for the pickiest of tea drinkers. The small retail shops serve tea, have seats for customers and allow buyers to smell and sample their teas before purchasing. Yes, as one may think, the tea ain't cheap. You are paying for the experience as well as the bright modern decor. But the bang is worth the buck so to speak. The teas are flavourful and refreshing with cute accessories to boot. I was never a tea fan, but David turned me into one. My current fav is Jessie's tea...mmmmm! David hasn't travelled to the states yet, but his teas are available for purchase online and if all goes well, he will be expanding beyond Canada soon. The brand is backed by the Segal name (Le Chateau etc) so its not likely to close up shop anytime soon.

A Pinning Monster

Pinterest is addictive..yes I am finally on the website and loving it! Its so cool...but I must say it is quite a time waster. Make sure its not linked to your facebook acct (check settings) as your friends on facebook will know exactly when/what you were doing on pinterest as it is added to your fbook news feed/timeline. Anyway, Ive created boards about what I love, what I like to read, as well as a board called ninjawesome (cause I am a tad obsessed with ninjas! lol). Warning: you may become a consumer whore after one week of pinning. Its so easy to see things you want (but dont actually need) as well as things other people like and you desperately want to copy. As if we werent already a consumer driven society already..pinterest is certainly capitalizing on it!!

What to Get MoM??

She's overworked and under appreciated. You never seem to have enough time for her in your life. She nags, you complain and you take things out on her all the time. What can you do to make up for this? Its been a while since you did anything really nice for her or bought her something just for her. But flowers and a card just aren't enough and neither is a loud brunch out with all the other unappreciated moms in town...hmmmm what to get her:

1. Spa day - treat her to a spa day or a day at body blitz (therapeutic waters), or purchase a spa gift card and make sure she uses it!!!

2.  An Ipad, E reader or an electronic device to bring her into the 21st century and ease her workload/give her a way to look up recipes on line (lol).

3. Magazine Subscription - get her one or more (dont be a cheapo) subscriptions to her fav magazines or newspapers. Something she wouldnt do for herself

4. DIY - download and burn her some dvds, cds or ebooks...or go buy some for her with your hard earned cash!!

5. Give her $ toward a trip/weekend getaway or another large purchase she has been putting off

6. She really just wants to spend time with you, so order in some good take out (her fav), crack a bottle of wine and spend some quality time

Whatever you do, dont buy her something for the home/kitchen!! BRUTAL!! Also, dont buy her some cheap scarf you saw in passing that you thought she might like. Put some thought into it and show the woman who carried you around for 9 months a little love and respect!!

Like a BOSS!!

This show is pretty cool. It debuted last fall and is starting its second season in August 2012. I am really not a fan of Kelsey Grammer, but his performance in Boss has come a long way from his Frasier days. The show centers around Grammer who is the mayor of Chicago. There are plenty of interesting characters and twisting plots that are an accurate portrayal of real political life. Last season was only 8 episodes..but it left me wanting more. Backstabbing, affairs and estranged family members are just some of the drama in Season one's plot. The show has received rave reviews and accolades including Grammer's Golden Globe Award in 2011. Watch a couple episodes and you will get pulled into the shady lives of Chicago's political elite.

The Return of the Ring?

Spoiler alert!! Did you watch GG this week? I am pretty sure as the season wraps, the Harry Winston ring Chuck gave to Blair will make a return. After all, the season finale is entitled, "The Return of the Ring". I know..I am soo perceptive! lol. Anyway, given that Blair has concerns about going to Rome with Dan and helped Chuck free his father last night, it is safe to say her heart still lies with Chuck. Long live Chair!! I wouldnt be surprised if Chuck busted out the ring again and gave us what we all wanted..a season 6 wedding uniting the Waldorf and Bass families...woohhoo! I guess we will all find out on May 14th when the show wraps until fall...sigh...a long summer in GG withdrawal!!

NYC population: Pippa?

Fresh from quitting her job and hiding from the UK social scene after her Paris gun scandal, Pippa is looking to make a change. She is considering the move to NYC since she will already be in the city for her book engagements this fall. It doesnt take a rocket scientist to figure out that the press and paps will be almost as bad as the UK in NYC..hello Pippa! Next to Hollywood, NYC is full of cameras and gossip pages..just ask TMZ and Page 6! Anyway, maybe she wants to leave the UK spotlight but NYC offers the next best place for this attention whore. She obviously doesnt want to fall off the map completely, maybe this is a stint to increase her popularity in the USA. If she wanted to keep a low profile, she could move to many other cities..NYC isnt called the Big Apple for no reason girl! Geez!! I guess we will have to wait to see what happens. In the meantime all single NYC bachelors are holding their breath waiting for a glimpse of her Royal Hotness!!