Starbucks Canada
Sunday, September 15, 2013
Thursday, April 25, 2013
Rage Against The Dying, Becky Masterman - review
A "can't put this book down" thriller.Rage was awesome.
Once I started it, I wanted to delay finishing it quickly.
Starting off in a climactic way then flashing back to how it led up to that moment...then it takes a whole new turn.
Just as you think you've figured it out, the end makes you want to turn back to see where the turn was.
Awesome. A must read.
Thank you
Penguin Books
Rachel Geertsema
@penguincanada
Local Radio Yummy Mommy -- originally posted on: http://www.ottawamommyclub.com
One hot and yummy local radio mommy!
Consuelo Bernardi (or Connie B. as some of you may know her as from Majic100) is one busy mom. Being a mom, then add in being a radio jock in the evenings and weekends and of course her blogging (“The Bsides” for The Yummy Mummy Club), her days are always full.
In an average day, when asked what an “average” day consists of the following:
--kids wakeup, coffee, breakfast, dressed, showprep, etc...weekends? family functions, quality family time with kids and hubby (the one and only Stuntman Stu), sports, work..life never stops!
--kids wakeup, coffee, breakfast, dressed, showprep, etc...weekends? family functions, quality family time with kids and hubby (the one and only Stuntman Stu), sports, work..life never stops!
But as far as her career goes, she was lucky. Starting her career in her second year at Algonquin College’s Radio Broadcasting program, at CHEZ 106 here in Ottawa doing the overnights shift, she worked her way up the ranks. She was given amazing opportunities and even made her own. Once she became a mom, she never went back to work after her maternity leave, finding the schedule to insane for a new mom, especially seeing her husband had crazy work hours and schedule as well. After 6 years and 2 kids, she received an amazing opportunity to write for Erica Ehm’s Yummy Mummy Club – a music blog called
the Bsides, and jumped at it. Then “the perfect job” opening came along, allowing her to stay at home with her kids during the week and working weekends on Majic 100. Which is the “perfect balance”.
the Bsides, and jumped at it. Then “the perfect job” opening came along, allowing her to stay at home with her kids during the week and working weekends on Majic 100. Which is the “perfect balance”.
5 Questions I got to ask her, which the only way to correctly prove how awesome she is, is to post them:
1) With your kids being older, do you find it trying at times to balance both?
–Older kids means more activities. But it also means that they can play independently and not need me 24-7. It just means planning everything out and knowing the schedule weeks ahead of time. Lots of planning – did I mention that?
2) Who is your support system with both you and Stu always on the go?
–We rely on my parents and sister for babysitting but we finally found two amazing
babysitters that my kids love. They should have a day dedicated to babysitters. They are
amazing. I can’t imagine my life without them.
amazing. I can’t imagine my life without them.
3) What do you do in your free time? What are your splurges?
–Listen to music. I am a slave to my iPod, iTunes, Soundcloud and Grooveshark. I love reading. Watching movies (but that happens rarely but I do watch ‘The Notebook’ every time it’s on TV. Hello Ryan Gosling. Perfection!) My splurges? Spring/Summery dresses and shoes. I love my shoes.
(AND BOY SHE LOVES HER SHOES!!)
4) Name 5 MUST HAVE items in your purse right now
–(my wallet and car keys don’t count because they are a given)
1. Rimmel lipgloss ‘Eastend Snob’ (the colour is my all time fave),
2. my iPhone/iPod
3. Revolution Organics all-over body balm
4. Polysporin Poly-To-Go First Aid Spray
5. My ‘Material Girl’ 80s retro sunglasses – a steal at $14.99 at The Bay)
and finally
5) Your favorite beauty products:
–Hair: Davines Alchemic Shampoo for red & Davines Alchemic Conditioner for red.
–Lipstick: Rimmel lipgloss. Any colour. Lasts forever and not tacky.
–Eyes: Rimmel Glam Eyes Liquid Liner. Cover Girl Simply Ageless Eye Concealer. Sally
Hanson Natural Beauty: The Storm Eye Palette.
Hanson Natural Beauty: The Storm Eye Palette.
–Makeup: I mix it up between Mitsura and Almay Smart Shade liquid make up. Sally
Hanson Natural Beauty Rosy Sheerest Cream Blush. Dalton Mirage Blending Powder.
Hanson Natural Beauty Rosy Sheerest Cream Blush. Dalton Mirage Blending Powder.
–Nails: Sally Hanson Snappy Sorbet. Sally Hanson Lively Lilac. Revlon Quick Dry in
Stormy.
Stormy.
–Skin: Glysomed Face Moisturizer, Neutrogena Ageless Intensives Tone Correcting
Concentrated Serum. Kiss My Face Jojoba & Mont Facial Scrub. CyberDerm AM Hydrating Whip. 100% pure jojoba oil (amazing as a toner). Nip + Fab Facial Scrub Fix. AND Suncreen always!
–Perfume: I have two faves: CK Shock and Beckham Signature
If she had a week or two to herself, without kids, what would she do with her time? “Travel and go check out new and up and coming bands. Cross off some of my concert bucket lists artists/bands. NYC. Los Angeles and Nashville. Throw in room service, shoe shopping and a few visits at a spa and hair salon and I would be in heaven.”
Even with her seemingly “rock star” life, she lives a semi-”normal” life in the ‘burbs without any regret, telling me: “I love the radio and music business. I can’t imagine doing anything else.”
This woman is probably one of the coolest and nicest people out there. I met her years ago in college and have run into her at Yummy Mummy events (as well as online) and every time, the most sincere person, she is exactly what you hear over your radio.. With AMAZING shoes!
Originally posted Jun 4, 2012, 4:40 PM by Jennifer Buttler on the old Ottawa Mommy Club website.
Chance of a Lifetime...originally posted on: http://www.ottawamommyclub.com
The Chance of a Lifetime for a mom that NEVER gets out!
On May 19th, 2012, I had the opportunity (and have to say THRILL) to see Tyler Hilton perform an amazing acoustic show at Cafe Dekcuf, headlining his first show in Ottawa, where an overwhelming demand decided a second show was in order the following night, an “All Ages” evening for the younger fans who were unable to get into the Saturday show at Mavericks just downstairs.
Tyler and me!
A lot of you may be trying to figure out who Tyler Hilton is and why his name sounds familiar, you may recognize him from the CW Network’s One Tree Hill, which has recently wrapped up its series (after nine seasons) earlier this month.
He played Chris Keller, an arrogant musician who first arrived in the 2004-2007 seasons. He set out to cause as much trouble as he could and continually referring to himself in the third person. He returned for the final season, where he was still arrogant at times and still referred to himself in the third person, but this time around there was more to him: he ran a record label, got to sing more, did some action scenes (which he very much enjoyed), and earned quite a few laughs, and even helped out another character deal with domestic abuse.
Since wrapping the series, he (Tyler, not Chris) has set out on an international tour with stops all over the United States and a few stops in eastern Canada, and more added, it seems, every other day, after which, he’ll be heading to Europe as the summer progresses. I had the opportunity to speak with Tyler before the show.
Growing up in a musical family, his parents were completely behind their son setting off to Nashville to embark on a career in music. Along the way snagging roles in movies including a part in the movie ‘Walk the Line’ playing a young Elvis Presley and playing a drug dealer named Murphy Bevins in ‘Charlie Bartlett’.
Since his first albums in 2000 and 2004, which focussed more on romantic themes, his latest album Forget The Storm seems darker, edgier but more fun and personal. He spent five years working on this album, much of the time spent in Wilmington North Carolina, while filming One Tree Hill.
Hilton has also recently started his own label, Hooptie Tune Records. He said that he enjoys having the freedom to write his own material, without having someone else telling him what direction he should be going. He finds a lot of new talent over popular social media websites Facebook (where he has a fan page, of course), Twitter ( @tylerhilton ) and YouTube (which hosts all of his latest material).
Tyler and Dion Roy, his manager.
 |
| Tyler and Dion Roy |
In face, Hooptie Tune and Tyler were quite busy before coming back for One Tree Hill’s final season. When asked if series Creator Mark Schwahn knew about his record label, he wasn’t quite sure, but being able to draw from his real life experiences to fill the role allowed him to have a whole lot of fun along the way.
When asked about his girlfriend of almost five years, Megan
Park, whom he met while filming Charlie Bartlett, he said it’s been amazing having someone who is so at ease at the idea that there is going to be long distance to the relationship, though they try to see each other as much as possible in between. She happens to also be from Lindsay, Ontario, Canada!
Tyler plans to remain in the music industry for a long time, so he is focussed on remaining healthy and to avoid burnout. Does he still want to still act? He’s open to anything, from comedy to action, whatever he happens to land in the meantime would be fun.
I have to say, Tyler Hilton has to be the most down to earth nicest guy I have met. I walked in there nervous to meet him (I was let down meeting another “celebrity” years ago), but as soon as I shook his hand, yes the nerves were still there, but he’s the kind of guy that you want to hang out with.
Tyler Hilton’s “Forget the Storm” is available in stores and for download on iTunes. http://www.tylerhilton.com
Special thanks to the following people for making this amazing night happen:
- Haley Melikian, Emblum Music in Calabasas California
- Dion Roy, Singer/Songwriter and Tour Manager, based out of New York City @dionroy
on Twitter- Tyler Hilton, Singer/Songwriter/Actor @tylerhilton on Twitter tylerhilton.com
Monday, February 18, 2013
Bully - review
The opportunity to review the movie Bully presented itself last week. I put it off, due to apprehension. Not because I wasn't sure about the move, but because the topic itself presented longstanding issues with me.
I was thrown into lockers, called names, attacked, chased home, shoved into corners/walls, yelled at, belittled, told I was ugly, mentally tortured, among other things growing up. Continually. Until I left high school.
I was bullied.
This is a hard film not to watch without your kids with you. If your kid(s) thinks it's funny to pick on their sibling(s), mouth off, thinks detention is funny? Then your kid needs to see this film. If you get phone calls from teachers or other parents about your child's behavior? Then your child needs to watch this film. If your child hates school, and its a struggle getting them to go? (Yet they refuse to talk to you about it?) Then your child needs to watch this film.
Wrapped into about 90 minutes, the films shows real life vignettes of life. From 2 families dealing with the aftermath of their children having being bullied, then resorting to suicide. Another has a daughter, having recently come out of the closet, dealing with being bullied. Yet another family that has no idea how bad their son is being bullied. Or the little girl serving time in a juvenile detention center after pulling a gun on her bus.
Every part of it is important to watch. For someone like myself, who was treated like dirt in every school I attended while growing up? This film made me want to scream at my television at the sheer ignorance of the school principal who thinks shaking hands is the resolution to these scenarios.
A must watch for every family.
For another point of view and review check out http://ottawamommyclub.ca/everything-starts-with-one/
http://www.thebullyproject.com/
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0059XTUJU/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0059XTUJU&linkCode=as2&tag=bully0b-20
I was thrown into lockers, called names, attacked, chased home, shoved into corners/walls, yelled at, belittled, told I was ugly, mentally tortured, among other things growing up. Continually. Until I left high school.
I was bullied.
This is a hard film not to watch without your kids with you. If your kid(s) thinks it's funny to pick on their sibling(s), mouth off, thinks detention is funny? Then your kid needs to see this film. If you get phone calls from teachers or other parents about your child's behavior? Then your child needs to watch this film. If your child hates school, and its a struggle getting them to go? (Yet they refuse to talk to you about it?) Then your child needs to watch this film.
Wrapped into about 90 minutes, the films shows real life vignettes of life. From 2 families dealing with the aftermath of their children having being bullied, then resorting to suicide. Another has a daughter, having recently come out of the closet, dealing with being bullied. Yet another family that has no idea how bad their son is being bullied. Or the little girl serving time in a juvenile detention center after pulling a gun on her bus.
Every part of it is important to watch. For someone like myself, who was treated like dirt in every school I attended while growing up? This film made me want to scream at my television at the sheer ignorance of the school principal who thinks shaking hands is the resolution to these scenarios.
A must watch for every family.
For another point of view and review check out http://ottawamommyclub.ca/everything-starts-with-one/
http://www.thebullyproject.com/
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0059XTUJU/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0059XTUJU&linkCode=as2&tag=bully0b-20
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