Weekend Review: Waffles, Cushions, and a Duffel Bag

We've made it halfway through November with no snow on the ground, which is just wonderful. Snow or no snow, the city is beginning to feel festive -- the City Hall Christmas tree in Churchill Square was officially lit up last night and over on the Legislature grounds the lights are going up for their annual display. I've had my Christmas studying-depression-prophylaxis lights up for two weeks now; although Christmas isn't a big deal to me, I do appreciate the lights on these 4:36-pm sunset days.

Edmonton -- grey, but dry (https://uofa.ualberta.ca/earth-atmospheric-sciences/facilities/eas-cameras)

Here are some other things I've appreciated in the past seven days:

1. provincial residents' association meeting -- On Monday I joined the twenty or so Edmonton assembly members to take the bus down to Calgary for our quarterly residents' association meeting; the three-hour drive felt like nothing, with coffee and muffin in hand and someone else driving. We had a productive and interesting meeting, which was also a nice opportunity to catch up with Calgary friends and appreciate the fact that Calgary has snow and Edmonton doesn't.

   

   and we had a really great catered lunch

2. waffles -- A friend and I spent Tuesday night in Houston to write an exam on Wednesday. I was secretly happy when the restaurant we had planned to have dinner at was closed and we ended up at Waffle House. For one, waffles are delicious for any meal.

   

   just ask Leslie Knope
   (http://giphy.com/gifs/parks-and-recreation-eating-amy-poehler-ZjZvbEhZ4UO4w)

   And I'm a sucker for diner-style restaurants.

   

   with all the butter and maple syrup; plus overflowing hot chocolate with whipped cream

3. cushions -- I'd been on the lookout for couch cushions for a year now but had been waiting for something to catch my eye (picky, I know). I stopped by Walmart yesterday to pick up a light tube -- they didn't have the light tube, but I happened upon two cushions that I really liked.

   

   reading LiveLoveDIY has inspired such attempts at making my apartment look marginally nicer

4. light bulb -- After using a string of Christmas lights to light my kitchen for longer than I'm willing to admit, I finally replaced the overhead fluorescent light tube. (Admittedly I had attempted in previous weeks to buy a bulb, but couldn't find the right one.)

   

   this is so wonderful (funny what we take for-granted!)

5. duffel bag -- I stopped by Purolator to pick up this National Geographic duffel bag yesterday. I'd been looking for a nondescript practical carry-on bag for a while now and am super happy to have gotten this one for $2.50 thanks to a voucher that came with my TD credit card.

   

   and it has super cute map print on the inside :)