When we first started writing this blog, I started looking at the world from a different angle. I started looking around for inspiration; things in my life to blog about. I quickly realized however, that by doing this, my part of the blog wasn't reflecting my real life. I realized you can't do things to blog about, but rather blog about what you do. So I stopped looking and started doing and writing. Writing about experiences and my everyday life has been quite therapeutic; a creative outlet that does not otherwise exist for me. I am a math/logic/business type of girl and couldn't paint, dance or sing to save my life. Journals, other than the one I kept while living in Australia, always felt fake and forced. Blogging may be my creative calling. It may not make me rich and famous... But my sisters and I will be able to look back on all the memories we blogged about, no matter how big or how small, and that makes me smile. In a world where there aren’t enough hours in a day, I think this may be the best way for us to document what goes on in our lives. Days, heck weeks, go by in a flash and I sometimes can’t believe they flew by. But here we are, November 7th, and I can’t figure out how we got here.
I always feel funny this time of year and I can’t really understand why that is. I don’t have all that many good memories of the past few fall seasons, but every year I approach it with a positive attitude, hoping that it will prove me wrong. I am a big believer in the fact that we create much of our own destiny, but sometimes things aren’t within our control. What we can control is how we react to these tough times, and I plan on pushing through and making new memories. I hate that I hate fall, the same way I hate that I hate winter. So this year, I pledge to make the best of it. Instead of dreading the rain and the cold weather, I am going to do my best to look forward to the good… look forward to the memories my friends, family and I will create. Whether we choose to go skiing or sledding, or just sit by the fire with a glass of wine, I know we will have lots of laughs and lots of fun and for that I am thankful. We will turn lemons into lemonade and make the best of the next few months. Or at least try to.
One thing I find funny about this time of year are the clothes. Though not one to complain about having an excuse to shop, I find ‘fall fashion’ kind of an odd idea when living here in Montreal. The stores fill their shelves with shades of brown and maroon, and dress their mannequins in corduroys, flannel shirts and caramel-colored knee-high leather boots. Now, there are a few reasons why I find this so comical: First and foremost, none of the fabrics are thick enough to endure our fall weather. If you were to wear only that flannel top and a pair of jeans as they suggest, you would be freezing and would probably come down with pneumonia. Second, most of these clothes will be worn for a grand total of two weeks before you realize they are not practical and you will (hopefully) be sensible and pull out your warmer sweaters and Uggs. Lucky for the clothing companies, most of us get caught up in all the hype and forget about the cold when we are purchasing these items. We will buy the not-so-chunky-knits and the autumn red leather flats, forgetting that the store is heated and the outdoors are not. And lastly, comes the SNOW. Though temperatures in Montreal have been milder than usual this fall (I don’t think that combination of words has ever come out of my mouth before) we never know when it could snow. Though romantic and pretty in movies, snow, for the most part, is a nuisance. Especially if you’re out in said light shirt and thin leather boots. I have destroyed countless pairs of trendy boots because a snow/rain/hail storm hit when I least expected it, leaving my new ‘fall boots’ looking less than stellar. Now, I am sitting here laughing about this whole fall fashion thing, but let me tell you that I fall for it just like the rest of ‘em. I buy what we call ‘stupid boots’, and thin but ‘oh so pretty’ leather gloves and I pay for it. Boy do I pay for it! Every year I get caught up in all of the hype, and I end up either buying a second set of everything or I go crawling back to last year’s ‘practical buys’ that I purchased at the end of the season; a time when I am tired of freezing my butt off. Do any of you ever regret buying ‘fall fashions’?
What makes me laugh (and sort of cry) about the fall fashions are those that are displayed on the websites… Websites that are CLEARLY not based in Canada. I can promise you that here in Montreal we will not be wearing this:
Or this:
Or this!
(As a side note for those of you who watch 'The Jersey Shore'... this shirt is $210 and looks suspiciously like J-Woww's famous shirt that probably costs $20) * All styles curtosy of shopbop.com
I am kind of (ok very) envious of the people who live in places where this is considered ‘fall fashion’. I, however, most definitely do not. Despite this fall being not so bad, this can sometimes be the attire required at this time of year:
Nonetheless, I am proud to be a Canadian and proud to say I have braved dozens of Montreal winters only to come out of each of them alive. Ok, so we may find refuge in the Caribbean for a few weeks every winter, but I think that’s pretty darn good. All this to say that this fall/winter, I promise to make the best of it. I promise to go sledding, ice skating and skiing. I promise to sip hot chocolate while watching ‘The Holiday’ with a friend. I promise to sit by a fire and drink red wine. I promise to create new traditions while still staying true to old ones.
Happy Monday and Happy Fall!
Love,
S
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