My favorite stapler and other random thoughts

Did I ever tell you the story of my legendary Milton stapler?




Long ago I used to have this really really crappy stapler at work.  Our part-time receptionist, who orders the supplies at work, (though not Lisa!) always orders the cheapest crap and every special request (otherwise known as a quality item a little more expensive) would be talked down with a scorned look and a dismissive wave of the hand.  You'd think she was paying for the supplies out of her own pocket.

So the stapler she ordered for me was one of those chintzy plastic stand-up staplers that doesn't even fit an entire row of staples in it.  Every time I would carefully open the stapler to put a new row in, the last few remaining staples would bunch up and shoot across the room. 

After 7 months of this, I had enough one day. 

Inspired by Officespace (one of my favorite movies), I stated my case and got approval from two partners to order a GOOD stapler for myself.  

Of course, I ordered the Milton Red Swingline stapler.  Still works brilliantly 6 years later!

I nearly caused an office scandal when the receptionist found out.  And there was nothing she could do about it ... though of course she complained to everyone (but not to my face).  Women in the workplace, I tell ya. 

Anyway.... I think these two people would be a fantastic addition to Dancing with the Stars:

Stefano and Marlena from Days of our Lives. 

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Brilliant and Hilarious.  Wouldn't that be something if they made it to the Final 2?  Do some sort of possessed routine for a tango or freestyle?

Hubs and I scored tix to the Paul McCartney concert in August.  I am more of a John Lennon girl myself but I do like me some Paul songs.  Better brush up on the tunes!  (Your favorite Beatle?)

Last Sunday's Mad Men episode - definitely the best this season and really, the best episode in years.  I laughed and laughed.  Especially at Pete.  I could spend an hour watching this. 


Happy Mother's Day weekend to all mothers, hope it is lovely!

Gardening Plans

Now that the snow has now melted from our backyard (yes, shockingly), it's time to plan the backyard overhaul that we didn't get to last summer. 

So my musts are:

1.  Privacy from kids, dogs, cats and neighbours who can see into our backyard if they are outside on their decks.  We are surrounded, and I can't stand it.  Ever since our crappy cabana blew down during one particularly nasty summer storm in July 2011, we haven't bothered to put up a new one.  So we are done with that nonsense, and I have to now find a way to create 'visually appealing' privacy around the hot tub without resorting to severe tactics.

2.  Minimal maintenance.  No mowing the lawn as the backyard has been a breeding ground for weeds in the past.  We are done with that too.   I need easy to maintain plants, perennials and trees that won't shed and won't damage the fence. (I live in a Zone 2B).  Our yard gets mostly full sun during the day.

3.  Use our planters for growing vegetables and herbs.  Easy enough.

4.  Get rid of the grass and perhaps use concrete blocks for a path and use something else for ground cover.

5.  Have built-in seating installed on our deck or find furniture that can hold up to severe climate changes (we are talking hot summers to hail to snow and -40C in winter, wind, etc) as we don't have room in the garage to store bulky patio furniture.

6.  Find a good stain for our deck that we don't have to reapply every year! 

7.  Implement some nooks and crannies to make the yard interesting and inviting.

8.  Nothing fussy or cutesy.

Our backyard isn't that big, most of the space is taken up with the higher/lower deck/hot-tub.  One of my co-workers suggested going to Dutch Growers (a local gardening centre here) to see if they will draw up a plan for the yard and make suggestions.  My sister, who is more gardening-inclined than I am (and who is also planning to establish her backyard this year) suggested installing grape vines, which are apparently quite hardy and will stand up to severe varying weather conditions.

Pinterest has some good finds, I like these ideas:

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                                         this is what I'm thinking of, but no grass

Any yard & gardening successes for you?

Mad Men Style

I received my new Banana Republic scarf and clutch purse last Thursday from the recent Mad Men Collection line.  Already worn the scarf twice since then.

See?  The lining of the clutch calls back to my dress!  Very snazzy.

I used to be a Joan Holloway girl and copy her early 1960s style (I still do, at times)

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Loved her Air France outfit:

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I agree with bloggers Tom and Lorenzo who stated that Christina Hendricks should dress like this all the time on the red carpet.  She looks phenomenal here!

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I used this Joan outfit as a style inspiration for our first Mad Men party:

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I have adored Megan Draper's workplace and party styles during the last few years on Mad Men.   I've always had a thing for certain prints, bright colours, a little drama and attention to the little details.  Megan's style is very similar to what I naturally gravitate to:

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                                                        Credit:  AMC

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See, Megan has a dress just like mine! 

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I even love the Welcome, 1968 pantsuit and Megan's metallics:  (people will be divided over this. I know.)

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Janie Bryant, the costume designer on Mad Men, has done wonders with each character's 'look' over the years.  I love reading Tom and Lorenzo's Mad Style series after each episode (they post on Wednesdays), these two hit it out of the park and explain how clothes & style tie into the storytelling.   Fascinating.

Other Mad styles I liked throughout the series (so far):

Trudy Campbell:

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Rachel Menken:

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Helen Bishop:

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And of course, the biggest ice queen of them all, Betty Draper Francis:

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Shopping in the USA is the best.

If you are a Canadian, it really is.  For the most part, you can really see the difference for what you are being charged for items. 

Canadians have been screwed over for a long time by being charged inflated prices at home for everything ...  from clothing to groceries to liquor to gas ... and inflated conversion prices if you are buying online -- and then paying the duty charges and shipping charges on top of that.  That is, if you can find something online that will ship here.  It is better than how it used to be, more stores do ship to Canada now but there are still many products that I like that cannot be shipped to Canada or the product is still cheaper to buy it in the US, so it makes sense to just wait and buy it on one of our trips.

So it's no wonder I do the majority of my personal shopping directly in the US.  We also buy groceries in the US when we can, as the savings do make a difference.  The US has different products than we do and the variety is wonderful.  (I also like that you can buy your groceries and liquor in the same store in the US).  There are no such stores as Macys, Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, CVS, etc where I live, so I usually save up big-time once we decide to go on a vacation.   I generally make it worth my while and stock up on what I like.  Thank goodness the duty limit has gone up!

As always, I buy my Laura Mercier tinted moisturizers in Porcelain (LM does not ship to Canada and the US/Can conversion is ridiculous - Sephora in Canada charges $13-15 more per moisturizer than buying it in the US.)  I also bought my Bobbi Brown gel eyeliners and a cream eyeshadow after getting a makeover done at Macys.  I was impressed with the cream eyeshadow - it stays put all day.  I bought the gel eyeliners in Black Ink and Chocolate Shimmer Ink and the creme eyeshadow in Galaxy.

I love my Molton Brown shower gels, this time they did not get confiscated at the airport!  Yippee!

I went to CVS Pharmacy to get some toiletries, I usually just buy shampoo & conditioner minis whenever I go somewhere.  CVS has the best products, I could spend hours perusing the aisles.  Many of the products they have are far less expensive than here, or they have products that we don't have at all.   I tried the Salma Hayek Nuance Raw Honey Shampoo and Conditioner minis and loved them so much that I went back and bought the bigger sizes.  Don't think I can buy these in Canada.

I LOVE Henri Bendel.  The NYC flagship is one of my most favorite stores ever and those iconic stripes make me happy.  I was delighted to discover the Henri Bendel store in Chicago.  I was in need of a jewelry case and a makeup bag, so I bought those, together with a pearl bracelet as a gift to myself.

Here's a better photo of the bracelet:

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I also discovered the joy of Jo Malone perfume.  I had received some samples when I bought some makeup one day and I loved the Blackberry & Bay scent so much that I went back and bought a big bottle of it.  Again, another product that does not ship to Canada!  Arrghh.  Hopefully this bottle lasts awhile!

Hubs bought me this Dooney and Bourke wallet from Macy's as a 10th anniversary present.  Goes with my tote.  He is the best!

Rubber boots are mandatory this spring, even just to walk on our slushy street.  So it was off to Nordstrom to buy a pair of Hunters.

I did very well at Banana Republic, I loved the dresses from the latest Mad Men Collection and bought two of them.  I also ordered one of the scarves and a clutch after I got home as those items weren't available in the store (and they are actually now on sale!  Yay!)

Went to Topshop and bought a bodycon dress that I actually feel comfortable wearing, the green jacket is from Nordstrom Rack, I also bought one in black.  (The green jacket looks brighter here but it is actually more of a darker aqua).

I was very pleased with my finds!   The next round of savings has begun.  

Do you shop on vacation?

Sights and Sounds of Chicago

I am back home in chilly Canada, the weather (and street ruts) are pretty much the same as how we had left it.   C O L D.   But I am glad we are back safe. 

Chicago is a wonderful city to visit.  In some ways, I found it similar to NYC, but Chicago definitely has its own flavour.   We are definitely going back!

Cloud Gate: 

                                There's me!

Uptown Theater:

 Apparently the inside of the theater was used to film the interiors of "Duncan's Toy Chest" (from Home Alone 2)

Oriental Theater (where we saw Big Fish, highly recommended):

Fog:

View One Day...

View the Next Day...

Other cool photos of Fog:

                                  Marina Towers

Speaking of the Marina Towers, check out the Parking Situation. You have to back up into your stall.....no thanks.

Louis Vuitton Office Purse in the same place everyday:

Our hotel room looked into this office floor in the next building over (we were on the 32nd floor, so fairly high up), every day this same purse was hung in the same place.  (We're not stalkers, seriously!)  Is this Louis Vuitton?  I dunno. 

Rainforest Cafe:

Cool Buildings, Heads and Details:

The Chicago Hilton, located on Michigan Avenue across the street from Grant Park, where the riots took place during the tumultuous 1968 Democratic National Convention (another link here)

The Cubs game at Wrigley was great.  I'm normally not into baseball (or most sports) but the game was very fun and the Cubs won that one.

                                           Those Marina Towers again!

                              I would never walk across that pedway.  Never. 

Merchandise Mart:

                                     Huge space-age espresso machine

                                          Huge whisk!

America Loves Eggs!

I Love Marianos Fresh Market. (also seen in the Eggy's photo above)  Best market ever. 

The Tin-Man in Oz Park:

and on the way to O'Hare Airport...

A Hooters next door to an Evangelical Church.