Loulou's views

It's after midnight on Halloween Eve and here I sit, watching another episode of Criminal Minds, looking at pictures of The Grudge on the internet. (Later, I'll be wondering why I have a hard time falling asleep...) I'm easily spooked. I mean, everything scares me. Not just spiders and insects. Not just jumping out of a plane or running out of coffee. My fears and worries? They're never-ending, and they consume me all day long. Scary things have happened to me in real life, like almost getting kidnapped in D.C., having a strange man play with my hair on the subway in Queens, New York at 5 a.m after a night out, accidentally going down a black diamond ski hill, and having a gun pulled on me in the middle of winter. (That's a story for another blog post!) However, there is something that frightens me even more than all those things. Scary movies. Certain scary movies stay with me long after I've left the theatre. There are scary movies that I can watch

On Saturday, I was featured in The Ottawa Citizen newspaper, online and in print. The article was called Ottawa's Fashion Bloggers Extraordinaire: Meet six from the sisterhood of the travelling iPhones. One of the questions asked who my inspiration was. That was an easy answer—hands down, the person who I find most inspiring is my mother. My mom had a passion in life. Her passion was to be an artist. Although she grew up in a rather strict Greek household, in which education was the most important thing of all, (and the arts not highly valued as a 'real' career choice) she never gave up her dream to pursue her passion. She would hide her drawings in the middle of her school notebooks, so her father wouldn't see. Although she never went to school for art, she was born with talent, and a desire to paint. Every day people give up steady pay-cheques to chase their dream. My mom did this when she was 30, when my sister and I were both young. She quit a secure job

During the opening keynote that Catherine Connors so fabulously delivered at BlissDom Canada , she talked about her "five things". It got everyone thinking about what their "five things" were. The one I had most trouble with was "five things people don't know about me", since as a narcissistic blogger I tend to talk about myself—a lot. Not only that, but I've been blogging for almost five years, so it's hard to come up with new things that people do not already know about me. I worry, I love to shop, I multi-task, I love my children, I interned at some fabulous places, and I was almost kidnapped... yeah, yeah, Loukia, tell us something we don't already know! Well, here you go: Five things you don't know about me: 1. I have a bad case of FOMO. (Fear Of Missing Out.) I hate saying no because saying no means I'm going to miss out on something. Like when I left BlissDom Canada on Saturday at 6 p.m. only to find out that Jordan Knight w

I have so many things to think about every time I come home from a blogging conference. The things I am thinking about are never about what I wore, how my hair was, or what purchases I brought back with me. Heck, in New York City during BlogHer 2010 I never even once went shopping. That should tell you something, right there. For a girl who talks about shopping as much as I do, clearly there are other things that make me happy, make me feel fulfilled and purposeful, excited and determined. There is something (not including my children, of course) that leaves me feeling full of BLISS, and inspired. (I know, Tanis , but it's true!) BlissDom Canada . Man, do I ever feel motivated to become a better blogger and writer every time my BlissDom Canada weekend is over. I'm still on a conference high a few days later. Now, as someone who has been blogging for (almost) five years, I'm not really looking for ways to drastically improve my blog, since I've already been here a whi

With BlissDom Canada just days away, it's time to start thinking about what you need to bring to this totally awesome, totally Canadian blogging and social media conference. What I've learned from blogging conferences (having attended BlogHer twice already, and BlissDom Canada last year) is that no matter what you wear, you will most likely have a blast. If - and this is a big if - you're wearing the right attitude. The most important accessory, truly, is your personality - and attitude. It's also important to step out of your comfort zone and do things that might scare you. Like going up to that blogger you've always had a crush on and introducing yourself, even though you're usually not that brave. I did this at BlogHer in New York City with Miss Britt at the Nikon party, and we hit it off right away. I believe my first words to her were: "Oh my GOD! You're Miss Britt!" (And this was after we'd shared a few drinks together.) Nothing embar

One of the things I love the most about being a mom is playing with my children. Too often I'm busy rushing to finish the dishes, folding and putting the laundry away, and washing the floors while my children are asking for me to come play with them. While it's great to see independence in my children—to see them playing quietly alone, trying to finish a puzzle, or playing loudly together, building forts out of the couch pillows like brothers do—it's even more fun when I stop the work I'm doing and join in on the fun. The laughter and giggles and tickles? So worth a sink full of dirty dishes. (That I'll always return to after the children are alseep because I'm OCD like that!) Sometimes, we need to be reminded about the importance of play. And all the things that make play time so much fun. Things like... Getting our clothes wet. Playing in the sand for hours on end. Swimming on a hot summer day. And even enjoying the outdoors on a cold, cold afternoon. Digging

Last year, I felt a lump in my right breast. Being the worrier that I am, I couldn't put it out of my mind, and kept feeling it over and over again to make sure I wasn't just imagining what I was feeling. It wouldn't go away though, and it was more pronounced when I was lying down. It was definitely something to worry about. Even though I hate going to the doctor for fear of being diagnosed with some terrible disease, I braved it, and went to get the lump checked out. Right away, the doctor felt it, and she told me I probably shouldn't worry, but I was booked for a breast ultrasound and mammogram to be on the safe side. The very next day, I went for my first mammogram and breast ultrasound. And it was a very scary experience , a very scary day that had me reflecting on a lot of things. My mom was with me, and I had to take at Ativan to calm down my fears. Everyone at the clinic was friendly, and kind, and I remember the room being full of women of all ages. We were al

Eight months ago, I wrote a post about the things that totally annoy me . Of course, I couldn't list everything that annoyed me in one blog post, so I thought it would be fitting to do a part two. Because you know what? Every day, something annoys me! Like today, for instance. I had to go to WalMart to pick up a new hook for the back of my bathroom door. I thought I'd be five minutes, max, since I had only one thing to buy. An hour later, I was on my way home with a serious case of road rage because of my experience in WalMart. The store was crowded beyond belief and since I had only one item to pay for, I went to the express lane. The express lane, I repeat. I was in line behind 48 other people who had (I'm almost positive) passed the 12 items or less rule and had no right to be in that lane. I had one item to pay for. I realize I didn't have to stay and wait in line for a hook, but I'm hard-headed, and I stayed. The express lane? Should never have a line that