PRgal

Okay people, I don't mean to shameless self-promote again, but it's official!! I'm told that it should be available in regular stores over the next few weeks.

Honestly, it was a mistake to set it in the same period as the OG series. I would loved to have seen one taking place in the early naughts. Hey, maybe even focusing on a middle eastern family and the aftermath of 9/11 (and a bit of Millennial/Xennial nostalgia (okay, we Xennials got it from This is Us).

This is why some people snowbird.

I agree. I’ve ranted about it here before - many years ago, I took a job (okay, it was an internship that paid very little. More like a stipend than a salary) because it was a family referral. Horrible experience and had job issues yes (shuffling from one short term position to another and then a job where the manager hated everyone and basically fired the whole team) before finding something I loved. And then leaving to blog for a few years before going into philanthropy

If I had a day all to myself, I’d order a pizza and watch all four new episodes of The Crown.

Hard rolls like a mini baguette? Ciabatta?

Me too. I've only made lasagna twice - once using oven-ready noodles and the other, using matzoh sheets during Passover. I'm too nervous that I'd fail. The oven-ready ones were okay, but not as good as restaurant or frozen.

I'm hoping to do bookstore, library and school appearances, both in-person and virtual. I haven't started gathering my list of local stores yet. I also think the Jewish side might be more willing to carry this than Chinese/Hong Kong shops - the vast majority still cater to the immigrant, non-Anglophone population and the book is completely in English (with some Cantonese, Hebrew and Yiddish terms spelled out phonetically). I will mostly be doing my own PR but will be paired with a marketing advisor from the publisher. I'll let everyone know when pre-orders start!! Famous novelist, huh? And Jewish-Italian/Irish intermarriages. That's a lot of carbs (I'm also trying to think of food that can incorporates all three cultures....ummmmm....soda bread challah paninis, maybe?)! And guilt. #sorrynotsorry

I kind of "found" her. I was at a holiday market and a woman was selling HER books. I asked her about her illustrator, followed the illustrator on Instagram and messaged her the following day.

My dad thinks the story is too niche. I told him that schools would love it since it adds to their “diversity” collection. I’ve already contacted my son’s school’s library, but have yet to hear back.

My upcoming kids’ book is now listed as “coming soon” on the publisher’s website! We’re looking at early 2024, (hopefully) in time for Lunar New Year. It’s going to be a little different from other Lunar New Year books, not only because it’s about an interfaith family, but because the (little) Chinese used in it is Cantonese. (Admin: feel free to move to Gratefulness and Smiles if you feel it’s more appropriate there)

And different people take offence differently. What one person considers "appropriation" is considered "respect" by another. Wearing a t-shirt with the Chinese word for "wood" may be be considered appropriation to some, but hey, if that's your element, then that's your element (if you believe in those things). I don't see it that way. I have a sweater that says "très bien" across the chest. I'm sure francophones would roll their eyes (I see it as a "proud to be part of the IBTC*" sweater). * Itty Bitty T****Y Club

I mean, I know non-South Asians who’ve been involved with their South Asian friends’ weddings who’ve had henna done. But I suppose that’s something different.

We had one for WWI. I remember learning about conscription in Canadian History.

We've had services as long as I remember. At least in Catholic schools (always at the church across the street) and at the private school I went to (in chapel, though during our regular service (but extended), so it wasn't exactly through 11 am). Does she go to a public or Catholic school? We only had the moment of silence in the public school I went to for one year. Public schools have a PD day next Friday in Toronto, but private schools have their traditional "half term" this weekend (Friday and Monday).

I don't think I've ever been preached AT other than crazy people handing out pamphlets on the street but I think I'm going to use the Hey-Zeus thing next time/if they ask me. Maybe I'll say "oh, Hey-Zeus? Yeah, he married a good friend of mine. They have two kids now." HAHAHA

I have an induction cooktop and what I do is I bring eggs straight from the fridge to a boil, cover and wait 12 minutes. I don’t move the pot to another burner. It usually turns out okay. I never eat hard boiled eggs the same day, usually the following day.

You sound like me! But KitKat and Coffee Crisp still have a special place in my heart.

I had Tootsie Rolls for the first time (yes, EVER) yesterday. Sorry, but it's NOT for me. I don't like anything that gets stuck on teeth. Give me a KitKat or a Coffee Crisp and I'm a happy camper.

Chips are okay. I consider that in the mid-range. I think my idea of "low" are those that my parents would have thrown out back in the days of "check your children's candy! There may be blades!" in the 80s and 90s. My husband's idea of low-tier are lollypops. Treat sized chocolate bars are perfectly fine!!! Back in the day, that was those sizes were the only ones I was allowed to eat whole. Shrinkflation has also gotten into the Halloween business. Halloween Aero bars (for example) used to be much bigger!

I was surprised at how mid-tier the candy my son got was. It's a fairly well-off area, but we got a lot of things that were, how shall I put it....low-tier. I was expecting better. We went to a different area last year, but we were invited by a friend and it was a long drive. Might go somewhere else next year. I think the mid-tierness of the selection was because half the homes were empty-nesters/boomers who now have a more limited budget.

We're not allowed to trick or treat in our building so we always have to go to a residential area with houses. We picked a decent neighbourhood, but the place we went to last year was way, way busier. We might have wrapped a bit too early though. We started around 6:30 pm and finished an hour later since it was getting close to his bedtime. But that was when the 8-12 year old kids started going out and things were getting busier...

Whoa...that's crazy. My parents had a dentist friend who'd do the toothbrush thing. Not kidding.

I had trouble controlling my little guy tonight. He was running all over the place and I was really concerned for his safety. He kept on wanting to walk across people's lawns and climbing over hedges to get to the next house. No. HE CANNOT DO THAT. We managed to go to, maybe 25-30 houses? Got a decent enough stash. Not as much as last year, but okay enough. It should last him for the next couple of weeks before he gets tired of them. By then we would have moved on to the holiday stuff anyway.

Some older gentleman side eyed me earlier. I'm not sure if it's because of my lame excuse of a "costume" (witch's hat/hair(head) band) or because I'm an adult in a costume. I didn't see too many adults who dressed up for work, but I DID see one woman in cat ears and Wednesday Addams.