Amanda Digs Dave (Brubeck, That Is)

There's a quite a bit on my plate right now – a few big work projects are wrapping up at the same time and I've got to keep a sprightly pace to keep on target. The solution? Simple. Brubeck.

I won't pretend to know much about jazz, but for a while now, I've been a big fan of the Dave Brubeck Quartet's masterpiece album from 1959, Time Out. It's got such a creeping coolness and directness about it – it's straightforward and surprising, shifting time signatures with ease and pulling you in with familiar melodies. You've definitely heard some of these before, such as the memorable "Take Five":

But what I've been listening to recently a lot is less ballsy, and a lot more like comfort food: Dave Digs Disney. Brubeck put his signature spin on some of Disney's standards in 1957, like "Heigh-Ho" and "Someday My Prince Will Come", without getting too literal about it at all. It embodies a sort of breeziness that feels entirely nostalgic and grownup at the same time. Sort of what visiting Disney World might be like if you were an Aristocat, maybe.

I really love the album as a whole (which you can download here), the way each number builds upon the last and wraps me in a dreamy world just tinged with Disney. You bet, I'm still coming down from the trip, but I think this drifts away from the source material enough to make it feel modern and adult.

If you've only got time for one, try "When You Wish Upon A Star":

Lightin' Up the Interwebs

A few things that have been on my radar of late:

– This great article on The Atlantic by Kate Bolick, All the Single Ladies. She looks into why women tend to remain single longer now, and how economic trends have radically changed social institutions like marriage. Seriously – it'll take you about a half hour to read, but you'll be at least three times more interesting at your next dinner party (all the better to hook one of those elusive "marriageable men," amirite?)

Kate Bolick, via

– I'm still in the middle of it, but this Walrus article on How Toronto Lost Its Groove has a lot of hard research and sad facts about the state of life in Toronto – rising costs of living, unemployment, congestion, and civic unrest plague a city that still offers some of Canada's best living opportunities. Let's get it together, guys!

– When I went to Target in Florida last month, I walked around with this totally sweet banana costume for Charlie in my cart for an hour and then at the last minute, I put it back. Why? Because I was dumb and cheap and "is it really worth $10?" YES. IT IS. YOU FOOL.

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– I am obsessed with cross-stitchable iPhone cases. No, really, they exist, and I need one in my life, stat.

via The Purl Bee

– Last week, Laura and I went to a crafting event at Bicyclette, co-hosted by Eat.Live.Shop., where we made bracelets and met some fellow bloggers, like Carlie of Friends in my Closet. There were cupcakes and many bottles of wine and lots of admiring Bicyclette's pretty baubles to be had. Below is a pic Carlie posted of my bracelet, which has yet to leave my wrist.

via Friends in my Closet

– I just discovered we have a George Foreman grill. We've had it at our house for months, and I didn't know because I'm still unpacking boxes (oops!). So far I've used it as a panini press and cooked a salmon steak on it – any other suggestions? This is a whole new glorious world of fast, healthy dinners!

– I've been dreaming of this Magic Sauce from 101 Cookbooks since I saw it on Pintrest. I want to cook all of my eggs in it. I want to put it on all my salads. I want to dip crusty bread in it. Let's live in bliss together.

via 101 Cookbooks

What's lighting your fire lately, buds?

Giving Thanks

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I really like the sentiment behind Thanksgiving. It's probably one of the most valuable holidays we've got, when taken as a moment to reflect on all that we're lucky enough to have (over a huge feast, no less!). It becomes hard to see sometimes, when you're in the thick of daily life, but if you're able to read this blog that I wrote as a luxury, when you have enough time to use the internet as a luxury, it's a testament to how good we've got it.

What am I thankful for today?

Turning 25
Sometime, maybe not far from now, I'll lament not being younger. (I know a lot of people, even at my age, do, which seems so bizarre – 25 is young!) But for now, it just feels like life is getting better with each passing year. I'm getting to know myself better, and I'm better honing the direction I'm taking my life. I'm growing more in tune with myself. Thank you for giving me the time to feel like my past is deep, and I have a future that (fingers crossed) is even deeper. And maybe that sounds cheesy, but it feels really good. It feels healthy and positive to like the age I am. I'm not always great about enjoying the moment, but this is one that feels really good.

The Internet
My companion, my omnipotent answer field, my creative outlet. You bring so many connections and ideas my way, and you ask nothing but a little power and whatever time I'll throw your way. Also, my life is increasingly interconnected with you, which feels weird, but it's really convenient, so thank you. As much as I love my dog, you truly are man's best friend.

People making cool shit and sharing it
Thank you for challenging me. Thank you for making me up my game. Thank you for showing me new and beautiful things and words that entertain me and inspire me to make cool shit myself. Even if I don't know your name because it's one of those nameless Tumblr photos that circulate, you rock my world, even if only for a moment. You help me feel inspired, and that is so generous.

My family and friends
An oldie, but with good reason. Thanks for fun times and great memories. Thanks for letting me be silly with you, and sad with you, and smart with you. Thanks for loving me as I am, and for having patience with me. Thanks for being there for me to love, and for me to practice being patient. For new friends, thank you for hanging out with me, because I think you're so cool and can't wait to get to know you better. For old friends, I don't see you enough, but thanks for not needing much maintenance, and thanks for being exactly the same when we do get to hang out – that's so refreshing.

Thank you for supporting my endeavors, thanks for collaborating with me, and thanks for reading this blog. Even if I don't know you, I consider you a friend for doing that. You'll never know how much it means to me.

Disney World
Thanks for being there when times get rough. It's nice to know there's a magical place where nothing goes wrong that's only a plane ride away. You are fantasy made true, and it's good to have dreams that attainable.

My roommates and partners-in-crime, Daniel and Charlie
You guys are the best, full stop. Thanks for making my home the place I most want to be in the world. Thank you for letting me give you belly rubs, and I love you both a million times over.

Even if you're not Canadian and celebrating a day off like us today,

take a moment to reflect on some of the things you're grateful for.

It's the cheapest thrill you'll find.

Beyonce and LV

Here are two videos that I can't stop watching this morning: so much fabulousness/style inspiration:

A slightly preggo B doing what she does best.



The breathtakingly beautiful LV spring collection. I haven't been able to stop thinking about this. The range that Jacob's has in his designs is stunning—these are perfectly ladylike, taking everything I loved about the Charles Anastase collection from last spring and making it even better.



Have a relaxing long weekend, and keep checking back for those photos that I'll start posting again next week!

A Moment of Quiet for Steve Jobs

I don't pretend to be a tech geek. I'm not. I'm not a luddite, but I definitely have to be spoon fed to be kept on the curve.

But I was on Twitter when the news hit of Steve Jobs's death. I saw how it trickled into the public consciousness, and then poured. I couldn't really think of anything to say then. I still don't really think I can now.

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And this morning, I woke up to a full-on monsoon. Feeds filled with quotes and pictures and videos and messages, people trying to grasp what they can out of this tragic loss. Stories of people going to Apple stores around the globe and leaving flowers and apples and candles.

I'm tired of writing these things. I'm tired of writing them because too many great people have been dying. But I guess that is the way of the world. I guess that what it means to grow older and to have heroes – it means having to outlive them.

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There is not much left to say but this: Here was a man who saw a vision of the future and had the talent to see it to fruition. Here was a man who believed so strongly in human life and ingenuity that he wanted our technology to reflect us, to intuit us, to help us create. Here was a man that didn't want to just give us the means to get things done, but who wanted to inspire us to do them, who wanted to make it easy and a joy to interact.

Perhaps the biggest testament to his work is in the collective outpouring of the global community, wanting to share everything from inspirational quotes to personal statements to "I hate cancer" to #iSad. People want to tell other people how this touches them, even if trivial, and they're doing it on the networks he helped facilitate, on devices he helped engineer. He pushed us further into the bold future of technology than perhaps anyone before him, in an all too brief 56 years.

So yes. I hate cancer, #iSad, RIP Steve Jobs. You were a visionary in a time when they feel in short supply, and you will be missed.

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Just to add: If you're an Ontario resident, don't forget to vote today! Info on the who, what, where, how can be found here.

31 Day Photo Challenge

After seeing this cute lil project on the Bicyclette blog, I decided to try my hand at it, even though I'm not very good at sticking to deadlines (and this is a daily deadline!) and even though I'm starting late it's a valiant try.

Self portraits are always the most difficult, I find. Even though my Photobooth is filled with pictures of me all made up and posing for the camera, the thought of sharing those with the world is terrifying! Here is a pretty tame one.

Check back every Wednesday and I'll update you with a week's worth of photos in a new post! The daily pic will be in the side bar of the main page of the blog. Enjoy them, and thanks Bicyclette for the great idea! If anyone else is tackling this project please let us know in the comments below!