34 questions

I’m all about “age is just a number” until I remembered I was in the 9th grade 20 years ago. TWENTY YEARS! I remember the first few months of grade 9 like they happened last year not two decades ago. Damn. 

Then again, I was asked for my ID at the LCBO last week because the cashier could tell I was over 19 but not how many years over. Bless your sweet heart, Janice. Moisturizer, SPF, and curl your eyelashes, friends! 

Anyway, here are 34 things on my 34th birthday. 

1. What’s your favorite movie? Movies? Sound of Music and GI Blues. 

2. A book you plan on reading? The book on my nightstand is We Were The Lucky Ones by Georgia Hunter.

3. Favorite TV show that’s currently on? Home Town. Or Younger. (Ok, ok, Canadian friends, Younger is very hard to watch – thanks to Chrissy for letting me use Hulu when I’m in the US – guuuuuys, if you see it when it’s back on MUCH or E! you’ve gotta watch. Team Josh all the way!) 

4. On a scale of one to ten how excited are you about life right now? 7.2

5. Twitter or Instagram? Both? Come find me: allisonbridgman on both.

6. What’s your favorite meal? Breakfast. 

7. Favorite Starbucks holiday drink? Chestnut praline latte. Getting my first one today and I am really looking forward to it. 

8. Dark chocolate or milk chocolate? Milk. 

9. Coffee or tea? By which you mean a delicious beverage or dirty leaf water? Definitely coffee. 

10. What’s your favorite band? Arkells! 

11. If you could sing a duet with anyone, who would it be? Max Kerman and we would sway and hug and jump around the entire time or Buddy Holly or young Elvis. (ps: I can’t sing) 

12. If you could master one instrument, what would it be? Acoustic guitar. 

13. If you had a tattoo, where would it be? On the inside of my finger. (No Laura, no)

14. Dogs or cats? I think cats. 

15. What did you have for lunch today? Today: BLT with avocado. Every other day this week: super buttery oven toast with a sliced apple and slice of 7 years aged white cheddar. 

16. What country do you wish to visit? Austria. 

17. What’s your favorite color? Blush pink. 

18. If you had one superpower, what would it be? Teleportation. 

19. Favourite words? Sojourn and hooligan. 

20. When was the last time you cried? Yesterday. 

21. Do you like your handwriting? Love it. 

22. Best thing you bake? Christmas bread. 

23. What are you listening to right now? Here’s a little playlist for you: Riptide by Vance Joy. Step Into The Darkness by Said The Whale. Real Love Baby by Father John Misty. Everything is Alright by The Glorious Sons. Scars by James Bay. And Then Some (acoustic) by Arkells. Good Old Days by Macklemore f. Kesha. Come A Little Bit Closer by Jay & The Americans. Heartbeat by Buddy Holly. Signed, Sealed, Delivered by Stevie Wonder. White Lightning by The Cadillac Three. And if you’re ready, Blue Christmas by Elvis Presley. 

24. Who was the last person you talked to on the phone? My Dad. He calls almost every day which is sweet until it isn’t. 

25. Who was the last person you sent a text to? Ma Pooks, Megan. 

26. Scary film or happy endings? Happy endings. Idyllic made-for-tv Christmas movies are my most favourite. 

27. Four people alive or dead that you would like to have dinner with? Obama, Max, sister, and my now-deceased adopted grandma Rosie. 

28. Hugs or kisses? Hugs!

29. Where were you born? Toronto General Hospital. Emergency C-Section, Thursday, November 10, 1983, 1:43am. 

30. What is the farthest you have been from home? Rome: 7,077 km away. 

31. Favorite childhood book? Corduroy.  

32. What would be the title of your autobiography? Tell me about the time you were broken. 

33. Favorite animal? bears! 

34. Mountain cabin or beach house? Can my mountain cabin be by a lake? I’d like that. Or a small beach bungalow in St. Simons. 

 

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Indulge me: what would be the title of your autobiography? 

ps: I’m trying to spread a little love today; join me in doing something nice for someone else. It would absolutely make my day to hear about it – tag me (@allisonbridgman) and use the hashtag #34LOVEballoons 

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happy birthday, sister

Is it completely selfish of me to be really excited to come to Alberta to celebrate sister’s birthday because it coincides with perfect fall temperatures, sunny days, and larch season? Let’s be honest, if her birthday was in July I’d probably be like “well, I hope it’s great, your card is in the mail*, enjoy Village, see you in September”.

I love this little muffin the most and when I’m in Ontario it sometimes doesn’t feel like we’re 3300km apart. We’ll text regularly, send one-liner all knowing emails, or numbered lists with all the pertinent information. And then I get here and I remember what it’s like to laugh at inside jokes while lounging on the couch or being starry-eyed over a certain few “rock stars” and chat about them like they’re our besties. 

We’re spending 3 days in Kananaskis and Banff making various stops at our favourite pretty places for photo shoots and 2 days hiking to see the larches. Hiking for me is incredibly enjoyable and incredibly difficult (ahem, Southern Ontario is not a place of high altitude and higher mountains to “practice” for hiking in the Rockies) and sister is the only person I can imagine spending a day with crawling, huffing, puffing, nearly crying, taking a lot of breaks as she calmly tells me I can do it and to keep going while we very slowly get to our destination. 

Experienced hiker I am not, but I can take a hella flattering photo of your best angles at the summit. 

It may be her day but I’m the luckiest one to have the best sister and spend this week in my favourite part of the country singing songs on the side of a mountain. 

 

*the card is awesome this year

friday, i’m in love

• how to move to a new place and not feel alone

• because you totally know my views on cake for breakfast: maple bacon cinnamon roll cake

• make yours days easier, not harder: simple hacks that’ll make your life run smoother

• working from home or an office, I always make sure to step away from everything for a bit each day: why you need to stop skipping your lunch break 

• “You don’t need more motivation or inspiration to create the life you want. You need less shame around the idea that you’re not doing your best.” read the whole story: to anyone who thinks they’re falling behind in life

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It’s sister’s birthday tomorrow! I wish there was a non-$500 travel machine (you know, something other than planes) where I could zip over to Calgary for a weekend of larches and ice cream and lattes and tacos and sunsets and warm sweaters. And maybe some netflix. Heck, we never relax when I visit. But mostly larches and lattes with my favourite person. Maybe some crying. It’s been an emotional week for both of us. 

You know the person, your person, when you can send snarky texts or emojis of crying cats or emails that ask “do you think they’re still on a break?” with the hope that the sexy vocalist might be single. When you can flop onto a bed and sigh. When you know all the inside jokes and they’re just as funny 10 years later. 

Somehow living thousands of kilometers apart made us closer. Maybe age did that, too. 

But seriously, where’s that travel machine? 

Happy (almost) birthday, sister! I hope your super awesome gift gets to you today and you have a fun weekend enjoying larches and lattes with people slightly less cool that I am but in slightly better shape so there’s no wheezing, dehydration, and ass-dragging up mountains. #bestdayever 

30 candles

 

Sister taught me how to say yes. 

And how to stand up for yourself. 

(ok, she’s trying on those last two, I’m just not very good at either)

And that yoga is not always the worst (but sometimes it can suck). 

And that road trips are best when listening to Mitch Hedberg. 

Or singing along to the Jersey Boys soundtrack. 

She has pointed out that the best pick-up line can be found in Jay and The American’s song Come a Little Bit Closer.

She introduced me to macarons. 

We’ve spent countless hours bopping to the oldies station in the back seat of Dad’s old Lincoln.

We made up a dance to Spanish Harlem. 

And knew all the moves to Everybody (Backstreet’s Back).

She has sent me every variation of the Remix to Ignition. (for the record, JGL probably does it best)

She’s called me and meowed. 

I call her when I need someone to tell me what to do. 

We’ve said the same sentence at the same time after spending months apart. 

We totally hate the same people. 

We know the only 2 acceptable words to follow “right now” are “teacup pig”.

3300km apart we go shopping together thanks to text messages. 

She always knows about the cool stuff first. 

She takes chances. 

Sister taught me about adventures. 

 

We’ve been unimpressed by Harvard. 

And sat through a rain delay – but loved every minute of it – at Fenway. 

And found the greatest wedding venue in Boston. 

We’ve opted for thin crust in Chicago. 

And taken selfies at The Bean. 

And found coconut twix at Walgreens across from Millennium Park. 

We’ve got lost in Stanley Park. 

And had burgers in Kits. 

And a picnic while watching the sun set over English Bay in Vancouver.

We’ve swooned over the flowers at Pike Place. 

And watched sailboats at Lake Union. 

And stuck gum to the wall in Seattle. 

We’ve driven to the West Coast. 

And have had so many Whole Foods picnics in the park. 

We’ve hiked mountains. 

And have seen bears! 

 

Today, to celebrate 30 we’re hiking in Alberta. We’re taking photos by majestic lakes with snow-capped mountains as our backdrop. We’re probably singing. And laughing. And stopping frequently to gawk at how beautiful this province is. 

It’s Laura’s celebration but I get to be with my favourite person in one of my favourite places. I’m the lucky one. 

 

Happy Birthday sister! 

28 + 1 candles

This isn’t a story about a little girl who refused to turn three. Or about how her grandma celebrated her sixth birthday twice with identical strawberry shortcake cards.

It isn’t about a girl who kicks and punches and flails in her sleep. Or about why she thought stapling her older sister (twice) would have been a good idea. Or what gymnastics is like when instructors don’t carry you around.  It isn’t about how she likes her hair stroked or how she flings herself onto your lap when she’s sad or how much she hates socks.

  

Instead why don’t I tell you about how Laura sweet talked her way into allowing a waitress to accept our food vouchers to pay for margaritas when our flight home was cancelled a few years ago. Or how she lets me cry on the phone when certain Saturdays seem particularly shitty. What about if I told you about how she greets me at the airport with Starbucks and the camera flipped to selfie mode.

Or that one time we sang Call Me Maybe and What Makes You Beautiful over and over again on Hwy 99 on the way back from Whistler?

What about that one time she stepped in a paint tray while simultaneously signing along to the Jersey Boys soundtrack and trying to do a long pole (lacrosse thing) demo with a shower curtain rod?

Want to hear about our yearly sister trips? The highlights include 6 hours at Fenway through 2 rain delays and boycotting deep dish (which, eww) in Chicago in favour of California Pizza Kitchen and finding an Olive Garden beside the Target and the soggiest shoes and the best burgers on the beach in Vancouver and the ferris wheel at dusk and the Jays beating up on the Mariners (and it not raining) in Seattle.

And then at the end of an impromptu beach photo shoot, we sat facing the ocean and she put her head on my shoulder and it was kind of the best moment ever.

All the stories end the same way: I kind of have the best sister in the whole world. She’s funny and a sweet girl and makes me do things I don’t want to and moved to Alberta just so we could climb mountains and eat Cactus Club and Jelly Modern.

And somehow, she’s not keen on being 29. I have a feeling she’s still down with us celebrating in BC in a few weeks….