guilty pleasures no. 72 – Avocado Toast

My idea of breakfast of champions

I started mashing up a ripe avocado, spreading it on sprouted flax sourdough toast and topping it with an egg (runny yolk makes me happy) or scrambled eggs. I did this almost every day during our staycation.

And I’m still not sick of it!

It’s a pretty powerful breakfast – packed full of protein, vitamins and fiber. Keeps me full and it tastes great!

Here’s the thing, though – I think this is becoming an obsession. I’m now all about shopping for avocados. And you know how it is, for my fellow avocado-lovers, you have to buy ones that are green to ripe on their own, some that may ripen in a week, and others in two weeks. And then you have to find the ones that you can have RIGHT NOW! The black ones – that aren’t too squishy but a little squishy so you can mash it up.

And if I enter a store where all the avocados are bright green, I start to panic! I imagine myself standing there, holding my head with palms on either side of my face, screaming, “But how will I have my Saturday/Sunday brunch now???”

Eventually, this will creep into my nightmares. I just know it.

guilty pleasure no. 71 – bubble baths

Bubble Baths

Maybe a tad too much?

Okay – I don’t need the flowers or the candles. I certainly do not need that heart-thingy. Nor do I need to take my bath in such an ornate looking bathroom.

The champagne though (or red wine) would be nice. And bubbles. Nice smelling bubbles. Add a good book, dim lights and absolutely no interruptions and I’m good to go!

It’s what I’ve been doing – trying to do – on a weekly bases. Normally, once a weekend and recently once mid-week. Timing is crucial… on weekends, it’s nice to do it during the day where I have natural daylight. At night, though, it’s quiet and it’s then I have the better change of having no one barge in on me. Aside from my dog… who only comes to peek over the edge, sniff a bit and give me a bit of a concerned look that there’s water separating him from me. He’s gotten better, though. In the past, he use to jump up on the edge of the tub, sometimes even lying there just so he could be as close to me as possible. This, after he circles from the side to the back of the tub (we have a lot of space there), whimpering at how devastating the situation is to him. Now he just comes and goes.

The thing is I am a shower-person. It’s quick and in my honest opinion, the best way to clean myself. Lets face it – any filth that’s rinsed off actually goes down the drain during the cleansing process. In a tub, all that filth just sort of sits there. With me. Eww.

So I’ll always shower daily. The bath tub isn’t really for cleaning. It’s for soaking – it’s hydro-therapy. And that slightly buoyant feeling is very relaxing. Plus, it’s a great way to read a solid 30-minute block.

Okay – I need to stock up on my sparkling wine for more soaks to come!

guilty pleasures no. 70 – Christmas ornaments

Christmas Ornaments

I could actually write a post about Christmas decorations in general but I wanted to pay a special homage to ornaments.

I selected the above image because of my obsession with Disney World, but there lies another reason why I chose this particular ornament. We bought this the first time we took Chaeli to Disney World. And the two other times after that, we also bought different types of Christmas ornaments.

As we travel, we try to buy one when we can. With the additional childhood ones both Doug and I have added to our tree, we now not only have a very eclectic collection, but every year as we hang every single ornament two weeks before Christmas, we are reminded of all the memories – ones from our own childhood, ones of Doug and I as a couple under the same roof and ones we have shared with our child.

guilty pleasures no. 69 – steak

Steak – Medium Rare

I love nothing more than a good piece of steak! Striploin or Ribeye being my top favourite choices – but so long as it is tender and medium rare, I’m a happy camper.

Obviously, steaks cannot be indulged in often, especially Ribeye. The high saturated fat content isn’t friendly for the bad side of cholesterol but more importantly, it’s just not as special if had too often.

I would know. I’ve been there – when it’s just been had one too many times. And then that next time it’s just ‘meh’ not because it wasn’t grilled to perfection, but my body and taste buds have just put up the “I’ve had enough” sign.

When it’s spaced out, however, just at the right interval, it is then very good! And definitely a guilty pleasure!

And with that, I will be enjoying my steak tonight!

guilty pleasures no. 68 – pedicures

Pedicures

It’s been awhile since I’ve been posting here and I would hate to not get a chance to update my guilty pleasures during the summer – a time where guilty pleasures are everywhere!

I have been quite busy with work these past few months. I would say that work has take up 80%, if not more, of my waking hours. Yet, I try to steal time away from work and family to see friends (sometimes with or without my family) and as well, time on my own.

One of my best past times has been experiencing different colours on my finger and toe nails. I’ll reserve the talk about my shellac manicures for another post because it deserves, definitely, a post on its own.

But pedicures… it’s not just the pampering, though, yes, it is very much about the pampering of treating one’s feet well. It’s also summer time and what better way to wear sandals and open toes than to have those warm-weather footwear be graced with pretty, shiny colours?

I go alone or with a girlfriend. I have even gone with my husband who gets the full treatment without the polish, of course.

The above photo is of me with my feet up at Starbucks. I was having a coffee to pass time before my massage appointment and then a pedicure followed by a patio lunch with my girlfriend, B. We had a great time!

guilty pleasures no. 67 – coffee

coffee

it’s difficult for me to have a morning without my coffee.

am i an addict? perhaps a little. at least for the first cup – rarely do i have more that my 1 cup a day. and recently, i’ve discovered i’m not so much addicted to the caffeine as i am to the flavor. and warmth.

you have no idea how a hot cup of coffee has helped me through such a long and cold winter.

but getting back to the caffeine. i did some research about coffee (or more, caffeine) and diabetes. up until recently, the news boasted that coffee, within moderation, is great for cutting down the risks of developing diabetes type 2. and yet, my diabetes team, while assessing me, asked how much i drank a day. when i said normally i just have my cup-of-joe once a day, they gave me a satisfied, good! keep it that way.

so which is it? for diabetics, that is? yay or nay?

upon digging deeper into this mystery, i learned some studies have found that while coffee is good for cutting down the risk of developing diabetes type 2, for those who are already diabetics, the caffeine causes resistance to insulin.

ah – so that’s the difference.

and so, while i still allow myself to have caffeinated coffee, i’m also starting to have decaf or half-decaf.

i don’t notice ANY difference.

i have people at work who grumble that decaf is not the same – that it just doesn’t taste very good. well of course it doesn’t. when you go to a regular donut shop, or tim hortons (which is basically a donut shop), you’re not getting good coffee anyway.

which, now, leads me to a long, overdue rant.

i must to say, this drives me crazy. i’ve had enough with people who walk around with tim horton’s or mcdonald’s coffee, sprouting out things that makes them look like they understand what coffee is about. saying things like, “coffee is coffee. they’re all the same.”

THEY ARE SO NOT THE SAME!

news flash people – it’s okay if you like that low-grade coffee. it’s okay if you’re not picky. but you don’t know shit about coffee when you’re drinking coffee that’s shit!

mind you, i usually drink starbucks coffee mainly because it’s the only decent coffee-to-go when i’m heading into the office. and i’m not saying i’m a expert in coffee. but i can pick out certain dark roasts coffee beans from starbucks from it’s flavour (as i have my favourites) and i HAVE had good coffee, made properly, grounded from fresh beans, pressed, dripped and the whole professional barista way from different, actual, specialty espresso bars both out in the west coast (where they pride themselves for their knowledge of coffee – with good reason) and here in toronto. i do treat doug and i to rich and aromatic organic beans which we keep whole and cool, only grinding up what we need when we need it in order to keep the beans fresh (once they are not in their whole bean state, they start to loose the freshness within days).

yes – i believe i do know a think or two about coffee. and no, those k-cups are not real coffee. i’ll drink them but i prefer aeropress-ing my coffee one cup at a time, while at home.

anyway… the decaf variety. if it’s from quality beans, it tastes just as rich and bold as any of the regular coffee i usually take. in fact, my decaf-variety puts the tim hortons regular coffee to shame. it’s not even a fair contest.

so, deal with it.

guilty pleasures no. 66 – The Originals

the originals

awhile back, i posted vampire diaries as a definite guilty pleasure of mine.

it still is even though for the first half of the current season, i felt it lacked its usual luster. for whatever reason, the characters seemed to remain more interesting as high school students. watching them try to live a normal life in college wasn’t as much fun.

plus… the originals left the series (albeit returning here and there in some episodes) to form their own series. and perhaps that’s what made vampire diaries weak. the originals pulled them along the past season or two and we didn’t realize how much we enjoyed it because of the originals that made us keep tuning in to the vampire diaries week after week.

ah the originals.

who can deny them as being simply alluring with their deep history as being the first vampires ever to grace our earth! they are powerful but pained with so much black history of despair and heartache. they are lonely so they desperately cling to each other as family even after being deceived by each other over and over again.

it’s family drama at it’s best! and drama for anyone who has their lives intertwined with theirs – a little more deadly, actually, than just being married to the mob.

of course, i also admit that the character, elijah, is one of the main reasons i find myself tuning in to this series week after week. he talks like he’s thousands of years old (which he is) and he looks at you with those deep, penetrating dark eyes.

it’s enough for any woman to go weak in the knees.

guilty pleasures no. 65 – Breaking Bad

Breaking Bad

it only seems fitting to choose breaking bad as my 65th guilty pleasures after it won the g0lden globe award for best tv drama and best actor last night.

way to go bryan cranston! it’s surprising that this is his first win for role, walt white. seriously. very surprising.

yes, i am still a true fan of the walking dead. but i have to admit, breaking bad is a far better written storyline with phenomenal character development.

i actually have not seen the last 8 episodes just yet – they’re waiting for me on my PVR and you might say, i’m savoring it to the very end! i am going to miss the duo-team of jesse pinkman and walt white.

guilty pleasures no. 64 – Michonne

michonne – the walking dead

perhaps this is a noticeable trend. i promise i’ll get back to posting other things not related to the walking dead.

i just can’t help it. so far, i am loving season 4 after thinking it could not get better than season 3!

anyway, just one more character to include here. and that is the one and only, sword-wielding michonne.

she’s coming out of her shell but still maintaining that tough-gal image. she’s a true badass next to daryl – and the two make a mean duo as they set out to find ‘dem walkers.

i’m actually wondering if i could pull off dressing up as michonne next year for halloween. it may take a LOT of thrift shop shopping, though, to get something similar to her leather vest. her cape, i might be able to make, but i’m a bit lazy – i’m the kind that would rather buy than make.

guilty pleasures no. 63 – Daryl Dixon

daryl dixon

a guy you definitely want on your team

i know i already added the walking dead to my list of guilty pleasures, but i don’t think any fans would disagree that the character, daryl dixon, totally deserves his very own post here.

why?

well…

he’s a badass. but a badass with a good heart. daryl has what it takes to survive on his own. he doesn’t need the group for that. yet he’s never been part of a team before – he’ll defend those he’s loyal to because, whether he knows it or not, he likes being part of something good.

he’s honest. what you see is basically what you get. he’ll tell you straight up what he’s thinking though he does keep his thoughts to himself unless asked (or pushed). and he’s not looking for a medal for all the heroic actions he does. he makes his choices with clear intentions .

the man has super discipline in pretty much everything he does. we’re all waiting for him to hook up with some one but his focus is on survival right now. and protecting his group. nothing else matters. (though i can’t help it – i am dying to see him, at some point down the road, fall in love; but they have to hold out on that. keeps his mysteriousness interesting for the viewers).

he might seem rough around the edges but when he protects women and children like a true soldier, your heart will just melt. and you feel an uncontrollable urge to make babies with him.

sexiness, hotness and some more sexiness. at first, i thought daryl was just like his brother, merle. i made up my mind not to like him right from the get-go as i thought he was going to be trouble. and i certainly didn’t think he was attractive. now all of the sudden, his biceps are saying ‘hello’ to me every single time i watch another episode of the show. the dirtier he gets, the better too (i’ve seen his earlier photos during his model career – totally get why he was successful with the big fashion names out there but a bit too pretty-boy for me during those earlier years).

i think that about sums it up…