Thursday, February 4, 2010

I'll Take a Side of SALT with that BURN, Please.

I got a beautiful envelope in the mail today. It was from one of my former places of employment, a government-run health & social services clinic. I used to work there as a receptionist, on and off since 2003. Long time, I know.

You would think that an organization that had employed me for say, 7 years, would have a good idea as to who I am.

WRONG - O.

You'd think that their human resources department would be able to differentiate between names typically given to men, versus names typically given to females, right?

NOPE. INCORRECT.


(I smudged out my address for privacy's sake... and plus, I'm not interested in invoking my mother's infamous "PRIVACY AND THE INTERNET" speech, TYVM. If you want to send me postcards, chain letters [REMEMBER THOSE?!] or packages, you may email me privately for my address. I like mail. NOT THIS KIND, BUT GENERALLY, YES.)

Sorry, okay. Do we see the problem here? MONSIEUR JACLYN. As in MISTER.

I understand that this is a French-speaking organization, and I understand that in the normal part of the world, "Jaclyn" is commonly spelled "Jacqueline" (or some variant of that). But really? This envelope contained a letter pretty much excommunicating me from this clinic (not in a bad way, I swear) and detailing when I worked there and for how long and informed me that I no longer work for them - AND I WON'T IN THE FUTURE. So not only did they CALL ME A MAN, but they ALSO reminded me that my tenure with them is O-V-E-R.

For the record, my name is spelled JACLYN because I was named after Jaclyn Smith, of Charlie's Angels & K-Mart sassy clothes collection fame. Clearly that HR rep never caught an episode of Charlie's Angels. You can't mistake Jaclyn Smith for a MAN.

Now, on the topic of BURNS, I guess I should share a funny/unfunny. It's a good news/bad news type of deal. I've been plagued, as I say, with mild psoriasis since as far back as I can remember. It's not always been a treat. Wearing pants in the summer or explaining why it looks like I have a bunch of mosquito bites on my knees was hardly ever fun. I'm lucky, in a sense, that it's always been fairly manageable. This year, for whatever reason, it started getting out of hand, and a new dermatologist recommended I start undergoing UVB treatment - which is essentially fake tanning, but healthy, covered by medicare and extremely beneficial for my skin.

I go 2-3 times a week, and I'm almost done my treatment and the results are just unreal. It's fantastic, which is good news. Because it's UVB lights, I also get a SLIGHT tan from my continued treatment - also good news.

Here's the bad news: too much exposure can cause a bit of a sunburn.

My entire body is sunburnt. My face has these fantastic marks from where my protective goggles lie. My arms are in this perma-Barbie arms position, straightening them out HURTS. My back? A MESS. My mother had to rub aloe on my back before. DIDN'T HELP. My nose hurts when I wrinkle it. Classic nose burn. I guess it's kind of funny, given that it's FEBRUARY and I did NOT spend my holidays down South.

BUT REALLY, IT'S NOT. I AM IN AN AWKWARD AMOUNT OF PAIN.

The fabulous part though, is that my skin isn't even red. It's just this heavenly deep tan. Guess I shouldn't complain much, right?


Friday, January 15, 2010

And on a SHOPPING Note...

I admittedly enjoy online shopping more than I should. It's just easy, you know? Click, buy, mail, package, FUN!! I have memberships at all the big online flash sale shops: Gilt/Fuse, Hautelook, RueLaLa (even though they don't ship to Canada, I like to look!!), Beyond the Rack. When I decided to curb my spending (unemployment does that to you), I deactivated all daily/weekly/monthly emails from all of the above sites, except BTR - they're Canadian, I couldn't - to resist temptation. The less I see, the less I buy, right?

Wrong.
I still totally order occasionally from BTR. I have some goodies from La Fee Verte hopefully coming next week. I had $10 credit AND they were selling bustiers for $22. That's beyond cheaper than even the plainest one at Victoria's Secret OR La Senza. AND I have a La Senza discount card. Still a better deal.

BTR is disappointing on most days. A J Brand denim sale sounds amazing, but it'll have 4 pairs of jeans - and priced at $129+. Not awesome, BTR. They had a "Designer Handbag Clearance". Mega SNORE. Miu Miu bags over $600. Ancient Balenciaga bags over $1000. Clearance? ON WHAT PLANET?!

I visited Hautelook 2 days ago, for the first time in months, just to have a peek at what I've been missing. THEY had a "Designer Handbag Clearance". (Click images to enlarge and to induce indigestion)








I visited it probably 12 hours too late. While I may NOT be in the market for a new Fendi purse, had I logged into Hautelook on time, I'd probably be having a GLORIOUS photoshoot involving me smooching a brand-spanking-new Fendi bag.

I guess it's all for the best, right? A Fendi would take my love away from every other materialistic/designer thing I own. My smooches should be reserved for my Prince.


WHO AM I KIDDING?


I'VE BEEN KICKING MYSELF IN THE SHINS EVER SINCE I SAW WHAT I'D MISSED.


And yes. Those ARE the real prices. $200 range. NOT. FAIR.

2010 - New Year/I'm Back?

So it's not exactly NEWS anymore that we've hit a new decade. WHOOPIE-DOO. Even though it's been two weeks since New Year's, I've been itching and trying to formulate a great 'Welcome Back to Blogging, Anecditz' post.

That's right. I'm back.

With 2009 over, and a new decade on the loose, I decided that I'd had enough of my own time-wasting. 2010, for me, is all about finishing what I've started, and taking on new challenges. I turned 26 at the end of 2009, and I looked around and realized that time isn't slowing down, and I've watched countless friends pass me by in their "success".

2009 wasn't a waste for me, don't get me wrong. I met my soul mate in 2008, and we cultivated our love in 2009. Now, in 2010, we anxiously await our next steps together. I finished my Certificate in Public Relations in 2009, making me "capable" of practicing PR. That's the first post-CEGEP academic accomplishment I can claim, and I am darn proud. 2009 marked my return to my undergrad. 2010 will mark my triumphant program switch, from Mathematics & Statistics (really? Yes.) to Journalism. Still debating between Broadcast and Print.

I paid a pretty penny in 2009 for the building and domain purchase of my other blog, Craft with Jackie, and I disappointed both myself AND readers by not posting aggressively or at all. I think I wrote 10 posts. (Okay, I checked - 21 posts. Still not impressive AT ALL.)

And so, for my own sanity's sake, my New Year's resolution/personal goal is to finish what I've started.

Things I need to finish/continue, in no particular order:

  • Blogs. Both of them.
  • Keeping my closets clean. Both of them.
  • Bachelor's Degree. Any discipline other than Math that drives my soul. That means Journalism. Or Culinary school. Or Clown College.
  • Being lazy and not taking care of my body. That means Wii Fit. Yoga. Treadmill. Whatever.
  • My love for the kitchen. Baking.
  • Get a job in my field. PR. Writing. Anything!

2010 marks a new beginning. Instead of this blog chronicling my bad-ass shopping addiction - that I am SLOWLY working on curbing - it'll follow my changes. Getting in shape. Finishing school. Feeding my Love baked treats.

Okay, and yes. Shopping.