Life In Pleasantville
Food, Travel, Life
I’ve lived in Ottawa for over twenty years and I have taken every single visitor I’ve ever had to Parliament Hill. Every one. It’s the Eiffel Tower problem. Parisians have been rolling their eyes at tourists with selfie sticks in front of an iron tower since 1889, and Ottawans have been doing the same quiet …
I don’t get out much in Ottawa, but when Parks Canada invited me to experience high tea at Laurier House Ottawa, I made an exception. Not because there’s nothing to do close to home, there’s plenty, but because when I embarrass myself here I risk running into those people again. My dad jokes have a …
Do you remember joy? It’s that elusive emotion that’s been in short supply these past few years but is now making, and overdue but well-deserved comeback. The thing about joy, though, is that it doesn’t just show up at your door, and it’s certainly not hiding in that endless scroll on social media. Joy requires …
This past weekend, I took my friends to Camp Fortune to zipline. I’m happy to report, we’re still friends. Last year, I started a new tradition with my girlfriends: once a year, they all make the trek to my house in Ottawa. As the host, I have three goals. One, spoil them with good food …
If there’s one thing I want you to know about planning a Le Boat girls trip on the Rideau Canal, it’s this: you can absolutely do it. Yes, you. If I — a vertically challenged woman who has actively avoided parallel parking for 36 years — can captain a 50-foot, five-bedroom Le Boat houseboat through …
I believe in love. I am fully, completely, and with a giddy, fluttery heart in love with love. It’s hard for me to explain how important it is for me to know that. My heart has been through a lot lately, and it would be easy to let cynicism guide me. It wasn’t a delivery …
This was supposed to be an article about skydiving in Ottawa but as often happens, the story I intend to write and the story that gets written is often wildly different. And oh my god, doesn’t that last sentence just sum up the last twenty years of my life. So, apologies in advance if you …
I’ve never really understood the concept of a staycation, going so far as to poo-poo the idea for years thinking they were rather lame. I always felt that in order to get the benefits of a vacation you must first travel some great distance that requires you to complain at length about the journey. Then, …
