May Roundup

Giving yourself a chance to audit your life often results in being reminded, again and again, how quickly it passes. How could I have gone from a to-do list for May, to four days into the next month, all the while wondering what I had even tasked myself with, in the first place? This realisation makes the very concept of our corporate ambitions seem drole and futile. How can it not? How do you form a five (or one, or ten) year plan when the non-linearity of life, coupled with its one non-stop-express-roll-onto-the-tracks-if-you-want-off speed are the conclusion you come to, month after month, hitting you over your stupid dunce head, again and again? Anyway, I had an eclair yesterday.

I got it from the bakery I mentioned a couple of months ago, Sceal Bakery. It was described as a fig leaf chocolate ganache topped eclair, and it tasted nothing of fig leaves, and frankly, Tesco does them better. I just want to be honest about this less-than-ethereal experience because lately I've noticed people talk things up so much on social media, and for people like me who fall for it every damn time, sometimes it helps to read an honest review.

So here's how May went, overall..

Something Productive

I wanted to redecorate the living room and the bedroom, and to come up with a colour scheme that went together somewhat better than the dinosaur/doll head/Santa sock scenario we had going on for a while. The problem is I am afraid of accents and colour and details, so it took me a very long time to even decide on the colour of the picture frame to go on the mantle. In the end, we went to Ikea, got frames, vases, and a cactus that seems to be growing some sort of monster of his own...(pics to come if I'm still alive next month), then I opened a Shutterstock account, found some pictures that matched the colour scheme I was looking for, had them blown up and printed, and framed them. Things are looking better, but I'm not yet done, so I'll have to share a photo next month.

My most romantic, thoughtful fiancé gave me these fluffy white peonies :O

Something Creative

If you're reading this, you probably know me. And if you know me, you already know just how much I love shawarma, and precisely the shawarmas you'd get in either Shawarma Prince, Shawarma King, Shawarma Palace, Shawarma Dynasty, Shawarma Monarchy, Shawarma I don't know, just all the royalty-themed shawarma joints in Ottawa. I haven't been back home in a while, and I really missed the unmistakeable zing of the pickled turnip, and the sharp HEY HOW ARE YA of the garlic sauce (made from pure garlic, not the diluted yellow-ish crap most fast food places buy in unmarked tubs). So, for something creative, and purely because I couldn't take another shawarma-less night, I decided to make my own shawarma.

I pickled turnip for 6 days..

I bought a little baby food processor to emulsify the garlic into a sauce..

I tracked down the proper pitas for the occasion (not the thick ones they use to wrap kebabs here but the thin stone-baked, drier ones), and I found a recipe for an amazing marinade for the chicken thighs.

It took a lot of time and a lot of effort, and I have so much respect for people who do this on a regular basis, who just pick out a recipe they want to make, and make it at all costs. Anyway, in the end, it was SO worth it. It was 95% close to the taste of the authentic ones from back home (or Lebanon I guess lol), and Jeff and I ended up eating shawarmas for a week straight because we couldn't get enough. This picture doesn't do it justice, and I'm already craving another one..

Learning Something

I've been reading a book called Shake It Off! Build Emotional Strength for Daily Happiness by Rafael Santandreu because it was recommended...on a random Reddit thread...by a random person...for random reasons. It's one of those books that draws on old parables that seem exaggerated and at times idiotic (And the master laughed at the pupil and said Simply by asking me to guide you to peace you have humiliated yourself and your family, and the pupil cried until his hair fell out and his face lit on fire and That is why we must never search for..) etc.

But the main lessons in each chapter have really helped push my mindset in the right direction, and confirm what I've been hoping to solidify in my perception of what is truly of value in life. I'd recommend this book to anyone who feels like their reaction to negative events overwhelms them, as it really helps ground your perception of what is truly 'bad', and what we should draw joy from.

Speaking of things that bring me joy...

Something New

This month felt a little more lively, and a few places opened up for outdoor takeaway food, so we walked to a neighbourhood called Portobello, and got dumplings and bao buns from Eatyard. I didn't take pictures of our lunch because I was so hungry that by the time it arrived I forgot what a photograph was. It was pretty good though! And also, here is a slender dog in a coat, waiting for his order.

Something Caring

This month, I sent my dad a letter with a list of my favourite memories of us through the years, and some photos I printed, which he will hopefully like looking at. My dad isn't very demanding of my attention unless he needs help resetting his bank password for the fucking trillionth time, so sometimes I wonder if he thinks of me in a non-functional/set-up-his-tablet way. I'm not sure what he'll think when he receives the letter, as we never, ever talk about anything heartfelt, and part of me wonders if, having read the first few lines, he'll automatically, through no volition of his own, fold the letter back into the envelope and flush it down his toilet. [Along with the photos] [Happy father's day to all the dads out there]

Fitness

Welp, an exercise in being thankful for being able to run at all, I suppose. This month I got to reach a new milestone: clearing out the last remaining funds in my bank account in exchange for several trips to an injury specialist and a couple of MRIs! Here's me in MRI pants! What I really love about them is the unforgiving material, which is sort of like the militant doppelganger of the Lululemon Align pant, except it sucks you in due to unaccommodating medical-grade polyester, as opposed to its Luon(TM) Technology.

Oh, I also tried a plank challenge for four days and somehow injured myself further by like..literally doing the plank for not even two minutes a day.

May Challenge

I wanted to finally highlight my hair, and to gather the courage to try a new toner formula because my beloved Wella Colour Charm (All my T11/T14 girls holla!!!!) is not available here. I watched literally all of YouTube and decided on the Redken Shades EQ range, which was actually so expensive, and in the end, while I did like the toning effect, it washed out in like four washes, so it definitely doesn't measure up to good ol' Wella. ALSO I tried new professional grade hair foils this time around (whereas I usually use kitchen foil) and the bleach bled SO much, I look like an absolute idiot underneath the top layer of my head. An idiot. Live and learn.

Here's the before..