[sunnykerr]

Well, that's part of why I have trouble adapting. My apartment doesn't understand that it's cooler outside at the moment. It always takes a while to adapt to the new temperatures. And you're right, our weather makes dramatic changes all the time.

Thanks for the suggestion on egg substitutes. I'll remember those.

Butter Chicken was awesome and I will always love it, but I swear they used 35% cream in the sauce so, after a week of it... My liver wasn't happy, even if my tastebuds were in ecstasy.

Funnily enough, of course, my grocery store run with Annie was also at a Maxi. I mostly got lunch stuff and frozen vegetables for suppers, but I also love how Maxi does that 30% reduction on productions nearing their "sell by" date, so I got some plums, brownies and yogourt on sale as well. Then we went next door to the Dollar store and I got some things I needed for home (like salt) and some presents for the nephews. I'm lucky they're still at an age where Dollar-store toys impress them.

[MsPerfectionist]

yep as transition temperature is almost inexistent, the clothes associated to those temperatures are also limited. it's a huge contrast to irish weather. i had to readjust about seasons over there. i have this fluffy white jacket that was perfect for their weather and almost useless in Canada.

occasionally i'd run out of eggs and want to make pancakes. that's how i found these hacks.

heavy cream, so rich and creamy.

ohh yeah i like those 30% reductions as well. a lot of time, i get reduced bread and freeze them. Some Provigo do 50% off. it gives me meal ideas and invites me to try new things

haha glad ur nephew still likes those toys what did u get him?

[canflam]

People are quite pissed at Trudeau. Yikes. Well, if they are registered to vote they can vote him out of office, but the safety of his rallies have come into question after a black man on his security detail was called a racial slur, a woman officer was called misogonistic slurs. Plus Trudeau has had recent death threats against him. He spoke today in Cambridge, ON I saw a clip of on YouTube. Sad stuff. Disappointing.

[sunnykerr]

Trudeau's been a meh candidate since the start, really. But at least he's pissing off the "right" people, meaning people who were never gonna vote for him anyway. I think his camp are probably more worried about the moderates who are being taken in by O'Toole NuConservative/OldConservative schpeel.

Today was a bracing reminder of what our "between seasons" weather is like, wasn't it? I woke up to a rainstorm only for the sun to come baking the living daylights out of us by noon and the clouds were back at the end of the afternoon. It's still so bloody hot, though. Bleh.

I haven't been inside a Provigo in an age. Back home, the one grocery store within an hour's drive was an IGA. When I moved to Montreal (we're talking actual decades ago), I went inside one once or twice and both times, the smell made me lurch. It must have been a total fluke, but basically that was the end of it after that. Also, I think the Provigo location I went to those two times closed... There's one near-ish here (meaning, a bus ride away), so maybe I'll go there at some point.

Oh, I got the boys car stuff. Some day, I'm sure, their interests will diversify, but right now, it's all cars, all the time, I mean, they'll expand to trucks because trucks are bigger. But, you know, that's pretty much the extent of it. Well, trains, too. Basically, anything that has wheels on it, but it needs to have at least four wheels. Bicycles need not apply. I got the oldest one of those books with an "invisible ink" marker that reveals the colours in the drawings... he liked the superhero one I got him last year and Halloween's coming up again.

[MsPerfectionist]

what a mess!

haha yeah what a day. rain and then sun.

these days Provigo are quite fancy. it's not the image of the small and old decor Provigo that we might remember.

aww cool

[sunnykerr]

I guess I need to revisit Provigo, but that's easier to do when you have wheels, which I don't. Again, the one near-ish here isn't that far away, but the IGA is much closer and, if I'm gonna take the bus, it feels like I might as well make it to the Maxi.

Speaking of having wheels in relation to grocery shopping, though, I need to remind myself to ask Annie to go to Walmart one of these days. I may feel like an heel for shopping there, but I need to have a closer look at what it has to offer if it's gonna be that much cheaper than everywhere else.

I've done my first official load of laundry since the drying officially died and the drying rack came in... I really don't hate this drying rack business. I mean, it takes an age for anything to dry, but that was always going to be the takeaway. After that, it gives the room a lovely laundry smell and my clothes don't stay all wrinkly, like I was afraid they would. It's a bit odd to have my underwear hanging out for the whole world to see... but then this is also why I live alone. So it works out.

[MsPerfectionist]

yeah i know what u mean. Maxi does the job really. i do like some of the fancy stuff from Provigo though.

yeah i heard Walmart's prices are quite competitive in terms of grocery .

haha yeah it's a weird to see them hanging there. true the fresh clothes smell. when i had roomate in Ireland, i had to hang dry my clothes behind my door since space was limited and i didn't want to hang it in the living room or the second balcony. My roomate's room had a balcony. things still dry quickly thanks to the heating.

[sunnykerr]

I have to be really careful around fancy grocery products. I like to spend money, and because I do cook, I'm easily tempted at the grocery store. It actually doesn't even have to be fancy, but it is worse when it's fancy because that usually means a higher pricetag.

Right now, I'm trying to be careful with my expenses through Christmas. I think I make a resolution to be careful with my spending once a month, so we'll see how long this one lasts... but there's so much coming up. My mother's birthday, my dad's birthday, the older nephew's birthday, Christmas for everyone, a possible shopping trip to the U.S. in November, and I need a new dryer (eventually, anyway) and bras.

I mean, I'll get there. I always do.

I have super vague memories of my mother hanging clothes out to dry back when my parents were still together. We lived in the country, so the odds were low on anyone seeing any of it. I also remember the clothes being kinda overdry? Like, they felt a bit like sanding paper? I mean, I'm exagerating, but you get the idea... Could have been the well water, of course, and not the result of hang-drying. And, it's so long ago, I could be remembering it wrong.

[MsPerfectionist]

i'm the same.

yeah gotta save up. i can't believe christmas is coming in a few months.

ohhh hmm could be the water.

good news this week, my contract will be renewed. next week, we'll get our evaluation and we'll know more about how long the new contract will be. at this time, i'm still preparing myself to be transferred. we have the budget for 13 people and with the mat leaves returning, we'll be 14.

[sunnykerr]

I'm glad if you are that your contract's being renewed. Even gladder if you're looking at a transfer... assuming, as I am, that it's towards things you'll enjoy doing more. I really hope this past... has it really been a year already?... has only been a stepping stone for you.

For myself, I'm trying to look at things on as small a scale as I can afford to. I intend to enjoy my three-day weekend. Not sure doing what, so probably not much. But, you know, freedom.

I have this vague-ish project of going through all of my crap, mainly my clothes, and to get rid of... stuff. I've always gotten rid of clothes I don't wear, but I've come to realize that I wear a lot of crap just because it's there to be worn. It won't do for me to make shopping plans because, again, finances, Christmas, yada yada... but since we're only ever going back to the office two days a week a the most, I can afford to get rid of plenty of the crap taking up space around here...

[MsPerfectionist]

i don't know if i'll enjoy it more if transferred. i think it's all the same. the job does help me focus on something and distract from the chaos out there. i want to be writing and do just that. i'm afraid it isn't the best timing. yep it's been a year.

just simply enjoying the time off

it's great to declutter even if u won't be replacing them yet. clear up some space indeed

[sunnykerr]

That's the problem with switching jobs. You can't tell if you'd like the new job, even if the present one isn't the best. I go through the same thing every time I get a job "offer" on LinkedIn. (Obviously, it's not offers so much as inquiries as to whether I'd like to interview for job openings.)

Yeah, I'm not a minimalist person. I like to have stuff around. But I do hit these moments a couple of times a year where I want to purge... and I'm there at the moment. Maybe it's a fall cleaning bug or something. Time for a new beginning. And, of course, the thing with keeping stuff around is that there's always room to purge without getting anywhere near a danger of running out of anything.

The next order of priority right now, though, is to go make myself a waffle.

[MsPerfectionist]

when leaving a job, we know what we left behind and don't know what we're get into. it's always great to keep an eye on what's out there. sometimes it's also about testing the market.

yeah fall cleaning

enjoy ur waffle. i need to get a waffle maker for my birthday

[sunnykerr]

I'm just so tired all the time. It's hard to imagine trying to learn something new...

It's been fall sleeping mostly so far. But, with me, ideas sometimes have to germinate a lot before I get going. Which is usually the part where my mother will start going without me because I'm not starting quickly enough for her. Fortunately, this is not one of those instances where she's involved or gets to dictate anything.

The waffles continue to be very basic, but gorgeous. I highly recommend getting a basic waffle iron. They're just too cheap to go without and highly worth it for the funsies.

And now I need to go to bed. I was getting up to go when I remembered to poke my head in here... my brain is properly fried at this point.

[MsPerfectionist]

i should go to bed too

i ended up buying a waffle maker and a baby succulent today. sales at Canadian tire. i guess it'll be an early birthday gift from me to me