Uncorked

After a night of wine and conversation, I feel as though I've come undone. I can't seem to remember my dreams, but do recall splashes of colours, sound and desire - the raw poetics of living.

Lady Luck

Whenever someone mentions Lady Luck Boutique I can't help but hum a Sarah Harmer tune. Her song "Greeting Card Aisle," eloquently narrates a lost lover trying to lure an old flame into burning again, only to come up short.

"Were you standing in the greeting card aisle when you called me up, and held me to the end of your long line? Have you got me in your bleeding heart file next to lady luck? Well this light of your life has drawn the blind."

Antiquity

As this little birdbath on the stoop of Antique & Collectibles gathered water, I twirled with my old fashioned umbrella in imaginative hopes to some day be doing the same on Parisian streets.

Foreign adventures can be found in this old port town, just wander in a different direction than your usual daily route. Without my passport, I was whisked off to Europe, sort of.

Spree

Often it feels as though I'm walking around in a fog, though it may seem literal due to Nova Scotia's climate, it's more intellectual. These moments are tough to shake, but when I wandered into Spree Designer's Market above Steve-O-Reno's, my mind lifted.

Adrien Labrecque's apartment/boutique is a dip into yesteryear. If you don't visit for the vintage finds, just go to check out his grandmother's artwork displayed throughout the shop.

Some days it's nice just to stay indoors

The Market

What I miss most about working on Saturday's is the market. Sometimes a special someone bring chocolate peanut butter balls or a loaf of bread home, a treat on a Sunday.

Bubbles, bubbles bubbles

Ristorante A Mano

Sunshine inspires many summerish wonders. After a ferry boat ride from Halifax to Dartmouth and back, a scoop of mango gelato hit the spot.

Carlitos

Some days are tougher than others. Today I woke up on the wrong side of the proverbial bed. I found solace in Outside the Lines bookstore on Quinpool. After reading the bookjacket promising a female coming of age novel littered with sexual exploration unlike never before, I was sold on Charlotte Roche's "Wetlands." Let me tell you, I'll never look at avocados the same.

On the walk home from university

The Hydrostone

Just two days before Hamachi Kita, located in the heart of the Hydrostone Market, make their move next door a dear freind and I indulged in a sushi feast. In spite of the rainy weather we felt as though we were some place tropical feasting on Carribean maki.

Trident Booksellers & Cafe

What goes better than books and coffee? Well, mini-parasols are pretty wonderful too. These little gems hang above the washroom door at one of my favourite cafes in the country.

George Elliot Clarke

I was introduced to George Elliot Clarke's work in my first year of university. This rustic scultpure work outside of the North Memorial Library is one of my most beloved poems. It is true, each of our lives are poetry.

Gottingen Street

Gus' Pub

Ocean Mind/ Ocean Stories

Perspective is an incredible trick of the mind, especially when it comes to stars crawling across the floor. Perhaps they are dancing. Inspired by Salmon Rushdie's "Haroun and the Sea of Stories," artist John McEwen's latest show on display at Page and Strange Gallery, relays the the exploration of the ocean's fluidity and the sky's mystique.

Lost and Found

On my walk home up Agricola Street I spotted this fantastic Victorian couch in the window of Lost and Found. I recall finding a similar used version in a Goodwill downtown Toronto. I considered buying it so much that I called my dad (who was on top of a roof at the time) to plead with him to drive said couch to Halifax. He laughed and told me I was just like my mother.

The Wooden Monkey

Who can resist sharing a dessert? A spelt crust filled with apple and thyme, with a hint of rasberry swirl and ice cream. Delicious. Also, the recent relocation from Argyle to Grafton is for the best. As much as I loved the nook and crannie feel of the old place, a nice open space with lots of windows makes everything taste better.

Curiosities Antiques & Collectables

Confession: I have a bit of an obsession with gramophones. When I found out the Granville Street antique haven had one I rushed downtown with my camera in tow. These are the moments when I truly believe I was born in the wrong era.

We are stardust

This year's NSCAD graduating class is a cut-above. On my gallery wander I came across some stunning footwear. For some reason I imagine these were worn to a fairy ball in some enchanted forest on the outskirts of Ireland.

1520 Queen Street

The first time I had sushi I didn't really like it. I was spending the summer in Vancouver and sat with a take-out container on the English Bay watching the sunset. I couldn't finish my meal (a first, trust me), but woke up the next morning craving seaweed. Since then I've had sushi at least once a week. Minato Sushi is one of my favourite haunts in Halifax. The service is darling, but it's the dragon maki that is truly spectacular.

Birmingham Street

Love, Me Boutique is a mystical place. It's far more than a store, it's a dream-factory. And not just for me, but for everyone who comes through the door. Whether you take something home or you are the hands that created the item. It's an exchange that goes beyond time and space.

North Street

Conversation over a cappuccino with a poet friend on a damp Spring morning helps soothe the soul. Java Blend's barista's sure now how to make coffee meaningful.

Rain, rain go away

A rainy morning walk on the Halifax Common.

Agricola and North

What is better than a mid-afternoon glass of wine with an old friend at FRED Salon and Cafe?

Sugar and cream

Ciboulette Cafe and Catering is a Barrington Street gem. An Americano is delicious, a double is divine.

Somewhere else

One of my favourite things to do in Halifax is tour the galleries, especially Page and Strange and Anna Leonowens on Granville Street. When wanderlust tugs at my being I can pretend I'm wandering around somewhere in Europe.