Sugar, Sugar

Leah's on St. Clair W. is the sweetest of cafe bakeries. It is worth the trip just to try her famous biscotti.

I was dressed in dorky business attire during the review, so there is no outfit post this week. Instead I leave you with some fun lollipop sugar cookies. Yum!

Check out my review & Cory's photos on BlogTO

[photo credit: Cory VanderPloeg]

 Happy Monday!

I'm a .com

My domain name is now officially *drum roll* please:

http://www.notamodelblog.com

It's all very legitimate.

CGIU

"The power is in your person. Nothing is going to happen to change your life unless you take action." -Dolores Huerta

Last weekend I went to the University of Miami to attend (CGIU) the Clinton Global Initiative University with three of my PR classmates. It was a three day conference where students went to different workshop and panel sessions on global issues, while brainstorming on their charity commitments.

I chose education and public health as my areas of interest, but really enjoyed attending all the panel discussions.  My favourite speakers included Robyn Allen founder of the vehicle design summit and Maude Barlow the national chairperson of the Council of Canadians. On the last day, we did a service project that included shoveling, digging and planting in the pouring rain (may I add) to help restore a lawn for homeless war veterans.

The president of the University of Miami, Donna Shalala says that real change has three ingredients:
1. A good idea 2. A great imagination and 3. A desire to make a difference.

A highlight for me was hearing former president Bill Clinton speak. When he enters a room, the energy just rises. One of my favourite quotes from him relates to charity work and trying to solve pressing issues. He states: "Your goal should be to work yourself out of a job until you are no longer needed."   

Pharrell Williams also said one of the most truthful quotes:"You are not what you say you are, it's what you do." I really took this quote to heart. There are many things I focus on, write down or speak about but I never really actually make the change. You can say you want to start a charity, volunteer or run 10K for cancer, but until you actually do something, it doesn't really become a part of you. 

I really liked how most of the people turned their passions into philanthropy. Survivor winner Ethan Zohn loved soccer, so he co-founded a grassroots soccer organization in Africa. There was a great focus on finding something you love and turning it into something that will help benefit other people. 

 

I was so grateful to have such a great group. From left to right Kat, Emily and Michelle really helped bring my spirits up this weekend. After the meeting, we brainstormed more ideas to raise money for our charity and help out in other ways like a clothing or book drive. I met students who are tackling so many issues from helping women in Tibet, to extracting natural dyes from plants to make eco- friendly clothing.

I urge everyone to get inspired and make some sort of positive change. Start planning some goals for the summer, it's never too late or too early to give back.

Today can be the day.

And *BAM* I'm 23

It's a new year for me.

A birthday isn't only a cause for celebration but a time of self- reflection on the days gone by and the moments ahead. At 23, I'm at a place that is completely different than where I was last year. I've learned a lot about myself this past year, probably more than I ever have and I'm ready to embark on a new adventure that I like to call "full-time-career-adulthood?" Well maybe not quite, oh the mid-twenties. 

My first real celebration was in Miami. We went to Devitos, Danny Devito's restaurant in South Beach. The food (Italian) was spectacular, and the service was amazing. We got free champagne, appetizers and the best birthday dessert ever. When I saw the giant cotton candy "cake" coming towards me, I almost burst into happiness flames.

Famjams as I like to call them, are also my favourite part of birthdays. This year I shared my birthday with a little special someone named Bailey. Bailey turned one (or seven in dog years) two days before my birthday. We even got him a cake (yup, we're one of those families). My sister also made me the most delicious red velvet cake with cream cheese icing as per my request. If I could, I would eat cream cheese icing on everything, every single day. But I won't, and you shouldn't either.

Lastly, I had a gathering Saturday night at the Drake Hotel. So many great people in my life attended and gave me the best night ever. This morning was not looking too great, but if you're feeling great post- birthday party, you probably didn't have enough fun.

Check out my best girl at the bottom left.

Lastly, I'd love to share my favourite birthday present ever from my amazing sister. She turned Not A Model into a book!!!

A big thanks to everyone who helped kick off 23. It's going to be a great one. xo

Just Enough Time for a Review

I'm back from Miami!

I had the most amazing experience and I'm back in great spirits. I will post a full article on my CGIU experience as well as a birthday update! Thanks to everyone for their well-wishes, tweets, messages and calls! Love you all.

While you wait, check out my latest blogTO review for Belljar cafe with photography by Stefania.

As for the fashion post, this photo isn't the greatest indication of what I'm wearing, but showcases the cafe nicely. My trench is Zara and I'm rocking my grandpa loafers (as I like to call them) that I bought at some department store awhile back.

Right now it's back to internship hunting and catching up on the surplus of assignments and tests I have this week. I have tons of updates and some extraordinary nail polish to review, I just need to get through my to-do list. Until then, enjoy the sunshine. xo

Be Back Soon!

I feel like a Charlie Brown raincloud is following me around these days.

School is wrapping up, I'm swamped with work and I'm still on an internship hunt. I've let myself get discouraged and I'm trying my best to stay on track despite the uncertainty ahead.

This is why I am excited to fly to Miami today to attend the CGIU (Clinton Global Initiative University) conference with three of my fellow PR classmates Michelle, Kat and Emily!

In order to be accepted to the conference, each group/individual must pledge a commitment. Our commitment is to raise $2000 for the Canopy Group, a not-for-profit organization that helps to support literacy in Tanzania, Africa. At the conference, I will hear from activists and world leaders, attend seminars and participate in a charity service project on the last day. 

It's time to get outside my own head. I am ready to learn about global challenges and meet fellow peers who believe they can change the world. It's also my *gasp* 23rd birthday on Sunday!!  Lastly, if I get a little sun along the way, I won't complain. :) 

I hope to be tweeting some updates (I definitely will have my phone on me) and post a full blog post when I return! If you're not doing so already, follow me on twitter at: @notamodelblog

See you in the sunshine state! Have a great weekend. xo 

Sidenote: I've also purchased a real official blog domain name, so I'll be a [.com] instead of [blogspot.com] It should be working in a few days, so apologies if some of the links don't work on my sidebar.

Cappuccinos & Boat Shoes

[photocredit: Cory VanderPloeg]

It's time for another behind-the-scenes cafe photo! I joked with Cory that I'm so pale in this photo I'm practically blending into the wall. I guess this picture was a foreshadowing of how sick I would become in the next couple of days, hence my delay in blogging. But as I previously stated, looking like a glamazon is not a requirement to be a writer, thank goodness! 

However, I am proud of my Sperry plaid boat shoes, they're just the perfect amount of prep meets nerd. Other items include: H&M shirt from The Garden Collection & jeans from Urban Outfitters. I'm thinking of combining these cafe posts each week with a fashion/outfit post. Thoughts?

Anyways, The Tampered Press (256 Crawford St) was my favourite cafe yet. They offer more than just coffee with a focus on health and wellness.

Check out the full review and more of Cory's photos on blogTO.

The Status Woe

I once dated a guy who owned a $700 belt.

While I couldn't fathom spending that much on an item to hold up my pantaloons, I don't knock people who can. It's more about what that belt symbolizes to the person. For some, it's just another investment piece to add to their wardrobe, while to others it can represent a certain realm of status and superiority over us common folk, who use the old-fashioned method of throwing pants in the wash to keep them up.

When casually meeting my sister for the first time, this boy said something ultra arrogant about the salesperson who sold him the damn belt and my sister nearly fell backwards off her chair. She was appalled at the snobbery that was committed in our backyard and her first impression of this guy was forever tarnished. To this day, my sister can't walk by the store, hear its name or see its logo without making a comment or a joke about that guy. Seriously.

When you make a purchase ask yourself these questions: Will this item make me feel happier? Part of something? Legitimate? Authentic? Why do I need this so badly? What does it represent?

While working part-time at the bank, I saw people come in who drove spiffy cars and sported designer threads only to pull up their accounts and see that they're living off credit cards and dirty debt. It seems some people don't care if the bag's fake and the credit card interest rate is up, it's all about who they are claiming to be. Let's call it the "new is better" syndrome where people can't seem to upgrade their phones, computers, cars and clothes fast enough.

What we wear, and how we communicate our image has a lot to say about how others perceive us.  Before you even open your mouth, someone can make 100 judgments about who you are and what you may be about. But people can also change their mind based on your personality. A slave-to-the-label-poser can be seen as graceful and kind once they start talking, and a seemingly sweet dirty haired hippie can spew pretentious fluff. I don't care if your watch is $5 or $5000 just don't be a jerk.

Don't get me wrong, I do have a dream car, dream house and a first pair of working girl dream shoes that I hope to purchase one day without having to live off Mr. Noodle. My hope is that when I do achieve those things, I will never look down at the intern beside me wearing Payless.

So what does the person who has nothing yearn for? Re-evaluate what you have and remember things are just things. 

[photo credit: shop window N.Y.C Oct. 2009] 

Sidenote: I will never reveal the identities of the people I blog about. That's not fair to them. So to all the boys I date in the future, don't worry just because I have a blog doesn't mean I'm going to blog about you. It's when you become an anecdote around my kitchen table, then it becomes fair game :)

Behind the Sugary Scenes

This picture is kind of funny and maybe a bit embarrassing.

Stefania and I got a behind the scenes look at the kitchen of Cafe Creme (705 College St, Toronto) when visiting for our latest review. While stuffing my face, chef Allan Davis showed me photos of his sugar-free creations. For all my non-tweeters who haven't read, check out the full blogTO review here.

All in a day's work folks, including that haphazard hair.