the days are just packed

about twenty minutes ago, i handed in my last paper as a grad student and in just a few days, i'll be singing the alma mater while wearing a cap and gown at my graduation!! who could believe seven years of post-secondary education would just fly by?

i've been a little behind on the blogging lately (ahem - too much brunch - cough). my days have been filled with holy week singing, operas, recitals, competitions and as always, lots of auditions. BUT in the mean time, i have made some delicious concoctions!

for starters, chocolate caramel matzah proved the best passover treat in the world! i'd make it year round. i got the recipe from the chicago tribune which i pour over every morning while drinking my coffee and eating my oatmeal. check it out here!

today also marks the birthday of my little sister (turning 20!), my boyfriend drew! (27!), grandpa harry (would've been 94!), and little cousin charlie (turning 1!). 

though sadly my sister is far away, i've made drew a deliiiiicious hummingbird cake with zoo animals from whole foods ontop. he may by 27 but he's perpetually five. (recipe here!)

happy birthday loves!!

readings lately :)

cold cold winter, aka the perfect time to do some reading :) here are a few of my recent reads and recommendations:

this is the story of a happy marriage by ann patchett 

in high school i became particularly fond of bel canto and its opera singing heroine. i was happy to realize that ann patchett's strengths extend well beyond her ability to write a thrilling and accessible novel. this novel was filled with truthful, beautiful sharing about life and loss and love. she articulates her ideas so beautifully, especially in one poignant essay about the power of education and forming your own opinions, as well as one about her divorce as a 25-year-old leading to her happy marriage more than twenty years later. 

almost english by charlotte mendelson was a fun, british read set in a girls' boarding school. perfectly riveting and well-written for the holidays.

the unbearable lightness of being was a particularly poignant read about relationships and love and growing as people... not the happiest read i've experienced but certainly a beautiful one filled with thoughts that have stayed with me since reading them. this book has been around for a while and its stood the test of time for a reason. (also i want to go to prague.)

i've read a few other books lately - the alchemist, a gift from my sweet boyfriend, which was inspirational and lovely to read. we're also reading the hen who dreamed she could fly by sun-mi hwang which is the perfect bedtime read. also my friend charlotte gave me a hilarious (and helpful!) book called adulting which i highly recommend to anyone in their twenties. :) :) next up i'm thinking of reading the hours or maybe some dickens.... this nytimes article really got me thinking about the importance of delving into things with some depth in our age of instant access and bitesize thoughts all over the internet. i was sick yesterday and watched les enfants du paradis as suggested by my coach as inspiration for my debussy set on my upcoming recital. three hours of black and white stylized french film... but you know what? by the end of the three hours, i loved it. 

have you read anything delicious lately? i used to have a russian friend who would skip lunch in order to read... he told me that a good book filled you up like a meal. :) :)

buddha bowls

over in good ol' toronto, there is an incredible chain of restaurants called fresh. it's all vegetarian, all beautifully presented and hip and absolutely delicious. i've had one of their cookbooks for a few years and although their recipes can be a bit time consuming, they are totally worth it.

last night i made buddha bowls (recipe here).

my cookbook....

this peanut sauce is delish - i added extra cayenne pepper in honour of the extreme cold chicago's been having lately!

i took one little short cut - trader joe's brown rice - ready in three mins instead of an hour! 

normally it would be cucumber circling the bowl with the tomato, but i have a soft spot for avocado (i found out that apparently highly sensitive people like high in healthy fats foods... explains my weakness for avocado, almonds, etc)...

how delish. 

PS: banana bread beer? sounds weird but it's kind of the most delicious thing in the world. these americans are onto something.

PPS: speaking of buddha, my friend posted this inspiring article on facebook yesterday about finding strength when you feel like you're not good enough (especially helpful for someone pursuing a hyper-competitive, extremely subjective career like me!).

reflections on her

with award season on our hands and a particularly bountiful crop of great movies out this year, i've had no shortage of entertainment during this snowy winter. my favourite movies of the season have included twelve years a slave, which stayed with me to the point that i could barely speak after leaving the theatre i was so moved, saving mister banks (adorable as they come), and her, which i saw last night. 

i had resisted seeing her at first, thinking the technological aspects would depress me, yet it turned out to be a beautiful movie much more about life than about technology. joaquin phoenix turned in a gorgeous performance (is he really crazy? because he's exactly my type... i have a thing for sensitive guys ;) ), the cinematography was visually stunning, and the screenplay at times made me wish i had a copy for re-reading. i loved how it justified his love for an operating system with the idea that love is a form of "socially acceptable insanity" anyway and that life is short - we may as well have some joy in it, despite social conventions and what people may think. i was moved and it made me think about my own heartbreaks and experiences and how they are a part of life and make you a more rounded, full human being.... also it made me think of this einstein quotation: 

"Strange is our situation here upon earth. Each of us comes for a short visit, not knowing why, yet sometimes seeming to divine a purpose. From the standpoint of daily life, however, there is one thing we do know: that man is here for the sake of other men-above all for those upon whose smile and well-being our own happiness depends, and also for the countless unknown souls with whose fate we are connected by a bond of sympathy. Many times a day I realize how much my own outer and inner life is built upon the labors of my fellow men, both living and dead, and how earnestly I must exert myself in order to give in return as much as I have received."

happy chrimbo one and all!

tis the season! toronto is covered with snow and ice (the ice isn't so funny - over 250,000 people have been without power after a giant ice storm!), but at least it sure is pretty! here are a few things i've been up to lately...

checking out the lincoln park zoo lights!!! it was magical.

lugging a suitcase around the upper west side of NYC in search of auditions

making coconut pancakes!

checking out the magical canadian decorations at the toronto eaton centre...

obviously trying on bear cloaks...

sharing caesars with besties

colour-coding book shelves

decorating my room in my parents' new house

spending the extra few bucks on adorable rifle paper company wrapping paper

cuddling babies

making homemade shortbread, orangettes and truffles as christmas pressies

and getting excited to start distributing!

merry chrimbo and happy holidays, everybody!

PS: thanks to allegra for publishing this piece i wrote for sharing notes, a music organization i've been volunteering for for a while. it's called "why i sing"

halloween 2013: magic school bus edition

this halloween, my silly, fabulous roommate and i found ourselves in our normal fix - what to be for hallow's eve! we had originally planned on being the three witches from hocus pocus (my roommates made me watch it - somehow that movie is not part of pop culture in canada the way it is in the states!), but when one roommate had to go home for the weekend, we were back to the drawing board.

luckily, i randomly had the brainwave - ms frizzle!! and who to go with? the lizard? one of the kids? nah... i am a firm anti-sexy halloween costume believer (isn't that what the rest of life is for?) - i'd much rather be silly and funny. so, i went as the bus.

readings lately...

i've been spending a lot of time lately buried in fiction :) serious, interesting, silly, sad, you name it - i'm there! here have been a few favourites lately.