I was recently on vacation to one of my favourite cities and on the Sunday afternoon I decided to visit downtown. As I was wandering around the pretty streets, window shopping in the rain (which isn't that pleasant in the first place) I had the brilliant thought of finding myself a decent cup of coffee. Since I live in a town where half the population doesn't even know what a latte is, getting specialty espresso drinks can be more of a challenge than it should be. And despite the fact that I was in a city where there's a Starbucks on every corner, it proved to be no different of an experience.

I have a bit of a problem with Starbucks in the first place. I prefer to find a small, locally owned coffee shop rather than a huge corporate company's creation. Partly because I work for a small business myself and secondly because I enjoy the discovery and ambiance smaller cafes offer. And frankly, I can get a cheaper, often better cup of joe.

Unfortunately my hipster mindset became the start of this story. Since I frowned upon the idea at first of getting Starbucks I tried to find a little coffee shop. I went passed one that was open and almost went in but decided not to as I had never heard of this place before (darn small town mindset). So, I continued on my way, by this point, itching to get out of the rain and into a warm place filled with delicious coffee. I walked a few more blocks when I saw my family's favourite bakery on the horizon. "Oh, I'll just go in there. Their baked goods are delightful, I'm sure their coffee will be just as amazing, even if I am unable to get a latte or mocha." But sadly, it was closed. I was a little frustrated by this point, not to mention cold and wet as well. So I continued on my way, knowing there will just be another coffee shop on the horizon. I promised myself that I would go into the next place I found no matter what. And you know what that next place was? Starbucks. Grrr. I went in and was happy to see that line was not too long. Unfortunately, I ended up in line behind an over-intrusive, over-talkative, middle-aged man. "I should have gone into that first place I walked past," I thought.

I got my peppermint mocha, which was mediocre and continued onto some much needed retail-therapy with my festive, red cup in hand. As I walked in the direction of my next destination I ran into an old acquaintance who was getting coffee with his friends at an independently owned coffee shop. WHY DID I GIVE IN SO EARLY!? To add to my kick-in-the-butt feeling, my favourite tea room was across the street and was open. Ugh.

So, the moral of the story is sometimes you end up with a red cup in your hand and you'll still be okay. As well, realize your opportunities when you see them. And if all else fails, a friendly acquaintance, a cute coffee shop and maybe even the best tea room ever are probably in your near future.

Cheers!

Today I will be writing about something a little different than what I usually write about. I've been meaning to do a writing prompt for awhile but it just hasn't been on my mind, so here it goes. I will be writing about an object that represents me.

I am like a cup of coffee. How, you ask. Simple. I am full of life, energy and always in a sunshine-y, bubbly mood. I love to make people smile. But I am human and I do get grumpy, tired and annoyed. Sometimes my facial expression confuses others. Sometimes things come out of my mouth that I don't mean to or people (usually those that don't have a sense of humour or don't understand my sense of humour) get mad at me. But usually, I believe people are happy to see me. Sometimes I want to put care and effort into my looks. Other times I do not give a crap. Sometimes I feel cute and sweet and ready to take on the world. Other times, I just want to get through the day and not necessarily be the kindest person, but still end up making it through the day without gritting my teeth (too much). I'm not a crazy hyper, bouncing off the walls, ADHD, always talking loony-tune. I have energy and am cheerful, but I like to relax, take my time, be mellow and on the rare occasion, somewhat quiet. I like the simple life and taking time to smell the roses.

How does this relate to coffee, you're probably asking by now. Well, let me tell you:
Like a cup of coffee, I have energy and exude smiles, as does coffee. Some (crazy) people think coffee is too bitter or too strong and not worth the bad taste to get the energy they need, just like sometimes my facial expressions confuse people often. But coffee can be surprisingly good and you can always add sugar, just like people think I'm really upset or confused when, really I'm just trying to absorb what the other person is saying. Or people just don't get my sense of humour like some people really need to alter the taste of their coffee to drink it. (That's how diabetes happens my friends.) Sometimes coffee is really good tasting and it's made just to your liking, whereas other times you will drink five espresso shots just to get through the day. Similar to how I sometimes care what I look like, other times, I don't. Coffee can be relaxing. Though it is often drank first thing when you get up or throughout the day while you stress at work. Just like I have the energy of coffee (on some days) but I like to take my time, relax and smell the roses. Just like coffee should be drank.

It's the end of October. For me it signifies the end of fall. I love October. There's Halloween, candy, pumpkins, lots of yummy food, beautiful autumn days and colours. It's wonderful. But then November comes and it brings the "aww crap, it's cold again... again. Ugh." This month there were definitely some ups and downs this month with pop culture but the change of more fall-y weather brought me cozier, more stylish days.

Things I Like/Love:
One of the things I love most about colder weather (and truly, one of the few) is the fact that I can be so comfy and still look uber-cute. A big sweater, leggings or jeans, boots or flats, a scarf or pearl-y bracelets, a beanie and some red lipstick and I'm done. Whereas in summer, I can't exactly wear my pajama shirt and spandex out in public.

For cosmetics, I have loved these things, which also happen to be some of my fall essentials:

(From left to right)

Ginger Sparkle Hand Cream from Body Shop. My hands are starting to feel the grief of the colder weather and I've been stealing this from my mom. Not only does it help my hands, but it smells like premature Christmas baking...mmmm.





Bodycology Enchanted Forest Fragrance Mist. Such a good scent for this time of the year.







NYC New York Color City Duel 2-in-1 Lip Color in #422 Cherry Blossoms. Yes. Two-in-one lip colour. On one side it is a frosted pink shade and on the other it has a lovely, rosy, bright pink that just lights up my face.  I've been using this lipstick for awhile now and I adore it.  I tend to use the brighter colour more. I first bought it because I had never tried a brighter lip colour and thought it would be a good baby step into red lips (which I have yet to try.)





Hard Candy Baked Eyeshadow in #718 Pink Interlude. I've just been using this in the last month and I love it! The shades are nice, more neutral colours and are excellent for everyday wear. They are quite pearly and sparkly which give my eyes a nice glow. I like contouring the two pink shades. I also like the other two colours just on their own. I highly recommend this one.

Darker Nail Colours. These are my personal favourites from my collection.





















Some actually decent pop music (kind of). I'm not really a big fan of pop music in general, but I'm liking Katy Perry's Roar and Britney Spear's Work B****. They send some decent messages that I think are very important for the world to hear right now.

The fact that it is officially Sweater weather.

SNL has been amazing so far this season. I don't usually watch it, but cable has started sucking on Saturday nights this fall, so I've had no choice but to watch it, which is fine with me. Tina Fey and Miley Cyrus were both awesome hosts. Tina Fey's 'Girls' parody was the most hilarious thing. And all of Miley Cyrus' sketches were hilarious and able to bring a fun, light-hearted sense of humour to herself and things like America's government shutting down.

Long, lazy walks. 

'Nuf said.

Zoella. Oh no, I'm getting addicted to another Youtuber, and one who's videos are like ten minutes long on average to top it off. Sigh. Plus she's a very inspiring style blogger, which has been helpful to this thing. By this thing I mean this thing you're reading. As in my blog, Amateur Aglow.

Scentsy. I was recently introduced to it and I was amazed that a space could ever smell that good without someone baking in it. They have a large variety of scents, but I especially love their autumn and winter scents like Central Park Pralines, Manadarin Moon, Perk Me Up, Dulce de Leche, Honey Pear Cider and Frosted Ginger Cookie.

Caspar Lee. Yes, another Youtuber. He's adorable and funny and South African, which are some of my favourite traits (seriously).

Garnier Fructis Curl Sculpting Cream Gel. Last month I talked about how I couldn't find it anywhere. Well guess what!? I found some again and I am so excited to use it. Hallelujah!

Things I'm excited for coming in November: My vacation. I'm going for a short vacation and I'm so excited just to have a fun break in the city, visit some family, shop, relax and drink a decent vanilla latte. Don't get me wrong, I love my small town and have so much pride in it, but I do love cities. And sometimes I do need a break from my typical life at home.

Thing I disliked passionately/caused me grief and angst: This article. There is no need for me to rant about it now as I already did.

I hope you all had a wonderful October, as did I . Cheers!

I don't have anything against Halloween. Not the least bit. Why would I complain about a holiday where I get to look ridiculous, get free candy without stealing and am allowed to eat a crap load of candy and no one questions me? But along with those wonderful things of Halloween comes the sadness of no longer being a child. Long since past has my opportunity to cuddle up in a furry lion costume and get extra candy because I'm so darn cute come and gone.

Let's face it, being a teenager on Halloween sucks, unless you're vandalizing your community, toilet paper-ing or egging houses or setting off fireworks, it's lame. Teenagers are left with the question of, "What are we gonna do on Halloween?" The thrill of dressing up has kind of passed or you're just too cool to dress up. And while the thrill of free candy is still present, adults are more reluctant to give out candy to barely dressed up, too old teenagers that might blow up their neighbourhood with fireworks in a few hours. As Eric Forman of That 70s Show once said, "We're too old to trick or treat and too young to die."

Along with the conflict of what to do on Halloween, also comes the conflict of whether your parents and your friends' parents will let you all trick or treat. Some think by the time you're eleven you're too old to while others think eighteen is a perfectly fine age to stop.

That said, the last two years have been pretty good. I have more freedom of where I want to go and what I want to do. Usually I end up at one of my friend's houses and help hand out candy then go trick or treating. And the truth is, I've discovered that the people Halloween really sucks for is adults who have to lug around their cute kids that get all this candy while the parents stand there absent-mindedly and get a package of rockets if they're lucky. Yeah, sucks for you.