Weekend Adventures - September 5 - 7, 2014

This weekend was full of lovely little adventures around my beautiful city of Saskatoon. After my love letter on Friday it just seems fitting that I would get to enjoy what may have been the last warm weekend we will have this season while taking in some of the wonderful things Saskatoon has to offer.

On Friday I got up as usual but instead of heading to work I had my day off, so I drove my roommate to work on campus then went shopping for the morning before heading home to wait for the delivery of my couch. I had to be home for noon, but I had a little time on my way, so I stopped in at Starbucks (I’m trying to only treat myself to Starbucks on my EDOs, to be a little more frugal) before heading home. My favourite drink is the Salted Caramel Mocha and it is back!

I got home and started moving a few pieces of furniture to make room for my couch, and the delivery guys arrived right away. I have been so spoiled with every single delivery or scheduled visit during this move and setting up this place... The longest I have had to wait after the start of the time frame given to me was fifteen minutes, so instead of having to stick around my house for 3-6 hours, they were all over and done with in less than an hour.  

After the delivery guys left, I spent the afternoon getting the living room set up and cleaning a little bit and then I just sat on my couch and read – something I haven’t been able to do all summer. It’s one of those little luxuries for me. Later in the evening my parents stopped by (on their 27^th Wedding Anniversary!) to drop off a dresser my dad had painted for me to use as our TV stand. Our living room is finally starting to resemble a living room; there are a few things I’d like to get (a tray for the ottoman to make it double as a coffee table, a little table for under the window, a basket for blankets), but it’s absolutely functional exactly as is, and I am more than happy with how it has come together.

Saturday morning (nearly afternoon) found us at The Local Coffee Bar on 3^rd Ave, where we ended up each having one of their fancy grilled cheese sandwiches for lunch in addition to our intended coffee and latte, before wandering around downtown and along the river. It was one of those perfectly adventurous while still relaxing afternoons. On Sunday we were back downtown for Mass at the Co-Cathedral with some friends before wandering along the river again and then heading to Hudson’s for lunch. The weather was perfectly beautiful for a September day, with the warm sun shining from a clear blue sky.

What did you get up to this weekend?

A Love Letter to Saskatoon

I had the day off today and as I drove across the University Bridge I realized that I have fallen in love with my city. It wasn't a quick thing, rather a slow, gradual process. I have always had an attitude of gratitude towards Saskatoon, but I never really loved it. I was always thinking about where to go next, and while I still enjoy traveling and look forward to my next big adventure, I finally know that this is absolutely the place for me. It wasn't an instant love, like the love that I have for Rome or Halifax, but a slowly building, deeply rooted love of my city.

My heart has a softness for the sights along the river, the new coffee shops popping up constantly, the unique restaurants that could seriously rival those of much larger cities, and the wonderful abundance of sun. While we certainly experience extremes in our weather, especially in the winter, we do not experience any shortage in sun. Even when it's -30 degrees Celsius, you can find our city drenched in sunlight.

There is much, much more that draws me in about Saskatoon, but I'll share about that another time. Right now I want to hear about your cities! What do you love about the place that you call home?

Currently Reading (And Listening!)

I tend to read more than one book at a time. Sometimes it's because I start one book and get bored so I start another, but I wasn't actually bored enough to completely ditch the first book, so I read them both until I am so engrossed in each story that I cannot choose one to commit to so I just don't choose. Phew! All that being said, sometimes it's because I like to have different styles for different moods, or sometimes it's different types of books. Right now I am reading a physical book and listening to a different audiobook. The audiobook is what I read (listen to) while cooking, tidying, or painting my nails, while the physical book is what I read in bed right before turning out the light. Different forms for different circumstances.

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The book I am reading before bed right now is Revenge Wears Prada: The Devil Returns by Lauren Weisberger. Andy Sachs is back in the sequel to The Devil Wears Prada and even though it's almost ten years after her time at Runway magazine, she just can't seem to get Miranda Priestly out of her life completely. I'm about a third of the way through this book and I am really enjoying it. The Devil Wears Prada was an enjoyable book and I really like the movie too, so I'm hoping this sequel turns out to be just as great.

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My audiobook of the moment is Tina Fey's Bossypants. I'm enjoying the humour, but I'm finding nothing can make me laugh quite as much as Mindy Kaling's audiobook. Nonetheless, I am realizing I really like audiobooks in place of music at times. If you have any suggestions for future books to listen to, please let me know!

What are you reading right now? I love learning about new books, so please share.