Fresh Year, Renewed Optimism, and Real Intentions

The New Year brings a sense of renewed optimism. Intentions are drawn, plans are hatched and an abundance of excitement fills the air. For 2019, I set some major intentions for myself that are focused on four pillars - Experiences, Relationships, Decluttering and Wellness. I’ll take you deeper through those four pillars and my journey into each of them over the course of this year.

Let’s start with Experiences. 

While a brand new handbag will give you a thrill as soon as you hand over your credit card and either bring it home with you or it arrives at your doorstep, that excitement is short lived. Believe me, I know. I’ve lived it time and time again. 

Experiences, on the other hand, will remain with you for years and become the subject of endless storytelling. From learning how to make croissants in a cooking school in Paris or dancing till the wee hours in Mykonos to meandering through the lemon trees in Amalfi and tasting phenomenal sashimi that’s only available in Tokyo. Experiences are what colour our view of the world, of cultures and have a lasting impact on us as human beings. The one major lesson from all this: empathy.

Travel, is of course, a big part of the Experience bucket. While you don’t have to get on a plane to have an experience, it’s always fun to do so. And even better if you’re going with a friend. 

For 2019, I’m going to kick things off in the Experience bucket with some fun travel ahead - to places I’ve been and to ones that are new. My itinerary will be revealed gradually throughout the year but I’m happy to announce my first trip will be to Austin, Texas - one of the fastest growing cities in the U.S. and built on the banks of the Colorado River. Home to the famous South by Southwest Conference & Festival, Austin has been described as a bit like Berlin in Germany. It’s a fascinating, quirky, outdoorsy, foodie town and a music destination. It’s not what you might imagine Texas to be. It’s also the headquarters of Whole Foods and Dell Computers. In fact, it’s got its own emerging Silicon Valley without the ridiculous house prices. I’m so excited to visit, I can’t wait to share my photos and stories with you!

I’m also headed in late February to London and Paris for nearly two weeks with my girlfriend, Lyndi Barrett, of Style Calling. It’s been exactly twenty years since I’ve been to London (yeah, I can’t believe it either!!!). Lyndi and I will spend the better part of a weekend there, wandering the various neighbourhoods, go for high tea, and hopefully taking part in some antiquing as well! After the weekend, we will hop on the Eurostar and head to Paris to catch the runway shows at Paris Fashion Week. 

This will be my eighth time to Paris Fashion Week and it never gets boring. When Keith used to live there, I always took it for granted as Paris became my second home. Now that he lives in Vancouver, I really miss the conveniences of our 3-bedroom Parisian apartment! That aside, I’m looking forward to catching up with my friends in the City of Light as I wasn’t there last year and checking out some of the newest hot spots that only the locals will tell you about. 

What will be even more fun this time around is that I will be doing all this with Lyndi. She and I have very similar styles when it comes to travelling and that’s so important, especially when we’ll have an extremely busy schedule. We’re both hyper organized and have similar objectives when we’re there - so we are really looking forward to spending the time together. While she can show me the fantastic places in London, I can’t wait to take her all over Paris - and we both can’t wait to share it with you all! It’s going to be an epic journey, this 2019, and it will start with some epic travel that will be nothing short of amazing. Stay tuned to my Instagram feed and to this blog for ongoing updates on my journey and adventures!