All posts tagged: life

I JUST TOOK A DNA TEST – 23ANDME RESULTS

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I was born mixed race, my father is Chinese and my mother is French. There are tales of someone on my dad’s side being Portuguese.. maybe? As the story goes, my great-grandfather was born in Macau (a Portuguese settlement of China), but he was adopted so it’s unclear who his birth parents were.. perhaps one of them had a little Portuguese in them? That would make sense. Sometimes people get confused about what my background is, “I can’t pinpoint exactly where you’re from, but it’s exotic.” Ok well, I’m from Canada and it’s cool to be curious but def don’t call me exotic (that’s a whole other rant I won’t get into today). Without a doubt I always get, “you’re some type of Asian but mixed with something else.” I wrote about this topic back in 2012, which you can read here. About a month ago I decided to try out 23andMe (receive 10% off your own kit using my discount code here). If you’re unfamiliar, 23andMe is a decently comprehensive ancestry breakdown that tracks …

I’M OFFICIALLY 30 – HERE’S EVERYTHING I WANT TO ACCOMPLISH THIS YEAR

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I haven’t written a blog post in almost three months. So, hello, how are you? How’s your mental health? Have you drank enough water today? Nothing is really new with me. I’m still isolated at Mark’s place trying to keep sane because, pandemic. COVID-19 numbers are the highest they have ever been in Ontario so I am stirring in my isolation bubble, wearing a mask when I need to go outside, and WILL NEVER TAKE FOR GRANTED TRAVELLING, GOING TO RESTAURANTS, OR HUGGING EVER AGAIN! This past year has been a shit show, to say the least. I turned 30 back in October and had a fantastic birthday despite the tumultuous year. If you’ve been around for awhile you know that for every birthday I list out goals for myself, except last year. The last time I made birthday goals was when I turned 28. During my 29th year of life, things were fuzzy. I was let go from an incredible job due to COVID-19 and saw myself back at square one, navigating next steps …

SUMMER LIST 2020 | ACCOMPLISHED GOALS

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It’s the end of warm weather season and the beginning of pumpkin spice everyyythinggg. Back in April I set goals for summer 2020 and created two editions; one regular and one in case I was stuck in social isolation. Since there’s still a pandemic out there (please wear a damn mask) I won’t be too harsh on myself on the uncompleted goals but let’s see how I did: 2020 Summer Goals (social isolation edition) Learn how to make gnocchi  Yum! Gnocchi was way easier to make than expected. It’s perfect if you have leftover mashed potatoes and only requires 4 ingredients: Potatoes, flour, salt, and eggs. Here’s an easy recipe to follow if you want to try it for yourself. Learn the first 50 elements of the periodic table According to my boyfriend I completed this goal. I practiced a lot with him during social isolation (lol, poor guy) but don’t remember getting to 50. I’ll take his word for it sooooo I’m CROSSING IT OFF! Paint something I got very into line drawings and …

MY SUMMER GOALS 2020

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We don’t know what the world is going to be like tomorrow but I’d like to be optimistic. If you’re a long time reader you know that every year I write a list of summer goals (check out my 2019 edition here). For 2020 I’m creating two lists, one social isolation related and one not. Safety procedures will determine which list I will work off of, perhaps I’ll complete one list or a mix of both. I guess we’ll see what happens. 2020 Summer Goals (social isolation edition) Learn how to make gnocchi  Learn the first 50 elements of the periodic table Paint something Watch all seasons of Seinfeld (except the first season because apparently it’s not worth it) Creatively celebrate the one year anniversary of Mark and I 2020 Summer Goals  Book trip to India/Nepal Buy a bouquet of fresh flowers every month Go thrift shopping and post a haul on YouTube Attend a concert, festival, fair.. literally anything that will get me outside and social again Go on a romantic weekend getaway with …

A LITTLE BIT OF INSPIRATION

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I’ve been following artist/author Adam J. Kurtz on Instagram for quite some time and love that his work is simple, yet powerful. His words make you feel not so alone, especially in quarantine as you bake your fifth banana bread, finish your umpteenth Netflix original series, and wait for this dreadful COVID-19 to just GO AWAY! Today in Adam’s newsletter he included printable quotes and worksheets you can fill out. Since I have nothing else going on I decided to participate. If you’ve seen my apartment tour you will recognize the first quote below as I have it hanging in my bathroom, above the toilet (it’s a good daily reminder). If you want in on more inspirational worksheet fun, you can check it all out here.

WTF I’VE BEEN DOING DURING SOCIAL ISOLATION

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Hello friends, how are you? ❤️ It’s been a tough time over the past few weeks, COVID-19 has literally put the whole world on pause. Nothing feels normal and there’s nothing normal about this situation (this is a daily reminder to myself, wanted to remind you too). It’s wild to think that we’re living in history and everyday people have been losing their lives, jobs, and.. well.. their sanity from social isolation. Before I get into it, below is a creative I think is important to share from @bethdrawsthings. I’ve been staying inside, trying to keep busy as much as I can but also giving myself permission to just chill TF out. Twice a week I’ll go for a run in the morning and that usually makes me feel accomplished and starts my day off on a good note. I’ve been staying with Mark at his place (my boyfriend) for the past week or so and it’s nice to have the company. We just finished watching McMillions which is a documentary series about the McDonald’s …

SUMMER LIST 2019 | ACCOMPLISHED GOALS

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Monday was the first day of fall. AKA I’m late on this post, I get it, I know. *eye roll* Every summer I set goals. I try to accomplish them but sometimes life gets in the way and you lose motivation so you end up just feeling like a huge failure but what else is new (LOL, my mental state right now like, am I ok???). In this case I didn’t complete 1.5 of the goals I set out for myself, which isn’t THAT bad. You can read my initial Summer List 2019 post here but don’t bother because they’re also listed below (I need to drop this attitude asap)*. ANYWAY, let’s see how I did… 1. Be able to do the splits. Not exactly. I took yoga classes for a month to start myself off and learned a bunch of great stretch moves to help me out so I’m half crossing this off. 2. Film an apartment tour. As of today it has 700+ views, baby! 3. Go rock climbing. Nope, didn’t have the time but …

WHEN I FEEL MOST LIKE MYSELF

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Below is a list I put together during one of my “off” days to remind myself that sometimes when I’m thrown into situations where I’m uncomfortable or unfamiliar, it’s ok to not feel like, me. Forcing a smile sucks and shitty situations happen, but no matter what I (or you) go through, it will pass. For days when I feel like I don’t belong, below are situations when I feel like I do. When I travel Exploring and going on adventures make my soul smile. When I’m with family or close friends I can eat like a slob and not shower for three days and they will still look at me in the eyes. When it’s late at night and I’m watching Netflix, reading, or writing in my journal Bliss. When I spend time with kiddies All barriers and insecurities are let down because kids don’t care what you look like, what you do for work, or how many Instagram followers you have. They just want to hold your hand as you walk to the …

MILA TURNS TWO

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My wonderful niece Mila turned two years old this month! I swear yesterday she was learning how to roll on her belly and now I see her running, singing, eating an entire cob of corn (she can do this now because she has all her teeth), watering plants, and saying how much she loves you! I’m proud of this little firecracker and how kind and fearless she has become, except when it comes to airplanes.. and spiders.. and waterslides (lol, k but same). Below is a little weekend vlog I put together and it includes Mila’s super fun over the top backyard B-DAY PAR-TAY! Thanks for watching, love you more than Mila loves bubbles.

MY SUMMER GOALS 2019

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If you’ve been living under a rock and/or don’t follow me on Instagram (how dare you), I officially bought a condo in Toronto and it’s.. a fuckin’ lot to digest. I’ve been here for two weeks and today is the first time I’ve had quality time in it without putting furniture together or tiptoeing over thingamajigs that don’t quite have a place yet. It’s still not 100% put together but it will be, eventually. But we’re not here to talk about new digs but rather my summer goals for 2019! Wait, hold on. Can I interrupt that point and let you know I’m currently watching Beyonce’s HOMECOMING on Netflix and this is literally me… IZZ SEW GEWD! Ok back on topic. You can read last years summer goals here. This year I’m going to keep it at five again because that’s a manageable number and now that I’m older, shit gets in the way more often. Here we go: Be able to do the splits. Film an apartment tour. Go rock climbing. Order a burger …

I’M OFFICIALLY 28 – HERE’S EVERYTHING I WANT TO ACCOMPLISH THIS YEAR

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It’s six days past my birthday (whoops) but I have to admit, turning 28 was the absolute BEST! Here are a few reasons why my b-day was incredible: It was on a Saturday which means I got to sleep in! When I woke up my mom made a cute little breakfast and even put a candle in my eggs (lol, it’s the little things). I hosted my first Get Up & Go Girl workshop which was such a dream come true. I bid on my first place in Toronto! I lost, but still, it was my first one and I’m moving in the right direction of finding my home. Went out to dinner with my best friends and then to a couple fun bars afterwards. My cousin Melissa baked me raspberry chocolate cupcakes and they were DIVINE! 💋😏 (hehe). As you know, I had goals I wanted to accomplish for my 27th year of life. Let’s see how I did.. 1. Start a career in a creative field I have the best job at rock-it promotions. So …

10 INSTAGRAM ACCOUNTS I LOVE

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Instagram is how I draw inspiration from every aspect of my life. What should I eat? Open Insta. What should I wear? Open Insta. How should I do my makeup tonight? Open Insta. How should I decorate this room? Open Insta. I had a bad day and need to escape. Open Insta. I wanted to break down my favourite Instagram accounts because I spend enough time on the damn app to know what I love, and maybe you’ll like them too? Sharing is caring. Here we go! @laura_made_it Laura makes bad ass art and I’m a huge fan of everything she creates. @society6 Some more art inspo because, I’m obsessed. Artists from around the world can sell their work though Society6 and there are a ton of art and home products (pillows, rugs, shower curtains, etc) that will soon fill my future condo. @wetheurban Social commentary at its best. @patrickta One of my fav makeup artists. He’s so talented and his creations are usually glowy, natural, and goddamn flawless. He’s also just a cool guy too. Be my friend plz, Pat? @streetartglobe I …

SUMMER LIST 2018 | ACCOMPLISHED GOALS

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How is it September already?! Fall is around the corner and on my street the schools (yes, plural) are testing their recess bells so, I guess the deadline has arrived to accomplish my Summer goals for 2018. I kept them short and manageable this year because I knew this Summer I needed to get my shit together, in pretty much all aspects of my life. I still don’t even have my health card back but, I’M WORKING ON IT OK! Living away from Canada for so long leaves you a little behind compared to others but it’s a slow and steady climb. Alright, summer goals, let’s see how I did.. JESSICA’S SUMMER GOALS 2018 1. Learn the flag of every country. Technically I didn’t memorize EVERY flag, but out of 195 country flags I know 173. In my world, that’s a pretty solid amount. To practice I used an app called Name The Flag, which gave me something to do when commuting to and from work. I have a 88.75% success rate so, I’M COUNTING IT! The flags that …