Author: Maeg

The Worst Year Ever: The End of 2020

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Australia bush fires, COVID-19 Pandemic, Kobe Bryant’s death, George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter movement, Murder Hornets, Beirut explosion, Chadwick Boseman’s death, West Coast Wildfires, Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death, Donald Trump and the election, and Joe Biden Wins.

What a shitshow.

March 18th, 2020 (212 cases in Ontario) was the last day I worked before being told to stay home until further notice due to Corona Virus. On March 19th, 2020 I applied for EI (CERB didn’t excist yet), application took 4 hours to complete due to EVERYONE attempting to do the same thing. Over the next 3 months I panicked of not knowing what was happening with EI/CERB. No one knew what to do and there was rumors everyday of having to pay it back, have to pay the taxes, having to reapply every month and much more.
Like most people we panic shopped, we didn’t know what was going to stay open or if there would be enough food for everyone. We spent $800-$1000 on groceries in one month. Going to the grocery store was scary as you didn’t know who had the virus, masks were not mandatory and there was 100’s of people in the store at once. Eventually as things went on we figured out we had to wear masks and line up in order to get into the store and wash your hands as soon as you walked into your house. My hands have never been so dry in their life and I’m a hairstylist. My lockdown lasted 92 days before we were told we could go back to work. June 19th, 2020 was my first day back at work and I felt like I didn’t know how to do hair anymore. Masks became normal and being scared wasn’t a thing anymore – we just wanted to work.

September 26th, 2020 was my last day working at my first salon as I decided to move on to a new salon to further my career. On October 5th was my first day at my new job – it goes okay. On October 7th I get fired because the owner has a bad vibe from me. I go home dumbfounded that I just lost my job and we are still in the middle of a pandemic. Don’t change jobs in the middle of the pandemic! Over the next 45 days I job search and panic. I once again apply for EI and panic as the place that just fired me refused to give me a ROE, which you need in order to get money from the government. Eventually things get worked out (at least that’s what I think happened) and I get paid a month later from EI.

On November 21st, 2020 I accept a job at a hair salon in Maple. Panic because Ford was announcing if we were going into lockdown again. Fortunely York Region didn’t go into lockdown and I could work – I started December 1st, 2020. I get happy as I have found a job and the year finally seems to be turing around!

December 11th, 2020 the news announced York Region is going into lockdown. Work turned into an shitshow and hours got extended – I worked 11 hours.
Saturday due to too many workers and not enough room for guest I worked 5 hours.
Sunday, our last day, I worked 11 hours with no breaks. We ate when we could and sat for a 5 mins if we had time. We fit one weeks worth of clients into 2 days. I got home sore AF.

December 14th – Lockdown 1,940 cases
December 15th – 2,275 cases
December 16th – 2,139 cases
December 17th – 2,432 cases
December 18th – 2,290 cases
December 19th – 2,357 cases
December 20th – 2,316 cases
December 21st – 2,123 cases

On December 21st, 2020 Ford announces that all of Ontario will be entering a province wide lockdown starting December 26th, 2020 for a minimum of 28 days. As Toronto, Peel and York have already been in lockdown, this means that I will be sitting at home for a minimum of 42 days.

December 22nd – 2,202 cases
December 23rd – 2,408 cases
December 24th – 2,447 cases
December 25th – they didn’t post the numbers due to Christmas
December 26th – Provincial lockdown 4301 cases (this includes Christmas numbers)

Somewhere in between the 14th and now the UK has report a new strain of the virus that is worse and on December 27th two cases of the UK strain has been reported in Ontario.

This year seems to be never ending with bad news and it’s taking a toll on most people. I have officially been off for 5 months in 2020 and come January it will be a month off. I hope this lockdown gets us where we need to be to have a semi-normal life again. I haven’t seen friends, my dog has separation anxiety with me and people are getting tired of it. People don’t care anymore because it’s been a year long thing, humans adapt to whatever we need to and if the governament doesn’t figure it out this is just going to be something we live with for the rest of our lives.

This has officially been the most depressing blog I’ve ever written. This is just my verison of my year and the small amount I’ve dealt with. There are a lot of others who had it WAY worse and I’m thankfully the only issue I’ve had is to sit at home.

Thanks for reading,

Maeg.

December Favourites 2020!

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Tub Shroom

Normally I do not buy these sort of things, you know the as seen on tv things, but I randomly saw this in Walmart as I was shopping and decided to grab it. I did need something to catch all the hair going into our drain as it was a lot – mine, boyfriends, and my dogs. This is the best drain catcher I have ever bought. I was extremely surprised by this as it was cheap and easy to use, most of time these things suck, lets me honest! Naturally I ended up buying one for my Mum to use! I got this at Walmart for I think aroun $5-$8.

Eucalyptus Mint Single Wick Candle

I asked for some candles for Christmas that would help make my apartment less of a drag since I’m in lockdown (again). Usually I get the big 3 wick candles but this one is so cute! It’s small but it strong with a kick. The smell stay around in your place ever after you blow it out. It’s soy base wax and a slow burn candle! You can get this at Bath & Body Works for $14.50.

DKNY Tilly Zip Top Crossbody Bag

Anyone who knows me knows I love me a DKNY purse. My second bag I got I had it for one day then my dog somehow clawed it and scratched it. I was upset but got over it real quick; I’d had that bag for a year and bit now and it’s still in good condition (besides the claw mark) and was in the starting moods of getting a new purse. To my surprise I got a purse for Christmas and I love it. It’s similar to the one I have now but it’s slightly bigger and it has an extra zipper pocket! As this was a gift I’m not sure of where it was bought or how much but I know you can get DKNY at multiple stores like the Bay, DKNY actual stores, and many other department stores.

Thanks for reading,

Maeg

Maeg’s View Book Review: Coming January 2021!

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Most people know that I am a lover of books and try to read often. This past Christmas I ended up getting 12 books and was pretty excited about it since we’re in lockdown and need something to pass the time.

Therefore, I decided to do a mini, kinda, sorta, book club or rather a book review, however you would like interpret it.

I’ll answer some questions about the book and I invite you to answer the same questions in the comments so others can see your opinion of the book as well! I look forward to this journey and bare with me as life will eventually get busy again and it will take me longer to read the books!

Thanks for reading,

Maeg.

November Favourites 2020!

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The Conqueror Virtual Fitness Challenges

I have seen this on instagram from time and time and always wanted to do it but thought it was sketchy. Then I saw one of my friends tried it and got their medal sent to them, I figured why not then? I decided to try one of the easy ones to see how it goes and if it went well I would try harder ones. Needless to say I attempted a super easy one, finished it in a week and sent my address for the medal. I got the medal a couple weeks later and was very impressed! The medal quality is amazing! They didn’t cheap out and all and have extremely cool designs for whereever they’re from. They had a deal of getting 5 challenges for 15% off so I decided to do that in order to save some money. I’m currently working on the 5 challenges all with different end dates so I’ve been busy with those. I suggest you try it out and see if it helps motivate you!

Ikea Standmon Armchair

As you all know I’ve been slowly working on getting my apartment designed to the way I want it. I have a lot of grey happening in my apartment so now I’ve been working on getting some colour in there. The colour I picked is green and I’m excited. I asked for this chair for Christmas and I did get it for Christmas but I just got it early – thanks Mum! It got delivered to me and I put it together with the help of my mum and I love it. I’m waiting for my boyfriend to get rid of his old man chair so I can move it to the spot it should be in but we all know how men are! LOL. It’s super cute and comfortable. I got it at Ikea for $350.

Thanks for reading,

Maeg

October Favourites 2020!

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Photo taken from Google, before COVID-19

Springridge Farm

October was a hard month for me (switch I will explain in another post) but I had time with a friend to head to this farm. It was the cutiest farm I’ve been to in awhile and was excited. Most of the things were closed due to COVID but the store was open so I supported them a great deal! I got muffins, donuts, apple cider, candy and more. My friend also spent some money there in order to help a small business. It was so cute and extremely nice to get out of the house. Springridge Farm is located in Milton (7256 Bell School Line, Milton, ON L9E 0N7) so if you’re in the area go check it out!

HP Pavillion X360

I’m sure I’ve already written about this in previous posts but for this month I was thankfull for my laptop because I was using it A LOT. It’s been clutch for me and I try to take care of it as much as I can. I got this a couple years ago at Best Buy during back to school so there was a sale. It was still expensive but I love HP’s and they’re worth it. If you need a laptop in these crazy times hit up Best Buy! Especially with boxing day coming up!

Thanks for reading,

Maeg.

September Favourites 2020!

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Camelia Grey Rug

As most of you know I’ve been slowly buying things for our apartment and am pretty close to having everything for the livingroom. One of the things I needed was a rug. Everywhere I looked rugs were so expensive so I finally looked at structube and found one for $89. I thought that was a decent price for the size I got and it’s a great quality rug, even my dog loves it! The ordering process was easy, we went into a store, asked to order it and once it was back in stock they would call me and I can pick it up. The day I got the call I had to be at work so my boyfriend picked it up for me. Simple. Structube is the best store when it comes to getting simple pieces for your house for cheaper then bigger box stores.

Majesty Palm

This tree falls in line with things that I wanted for our apartment, we have a pretty big balcony and I wanted to have nice plants for the summer. I’ve tried planting things because of the quarantine but they either did their things or just didn’t work because I don’t have a green thumb. I went to Rona to see what they had and sure enough I got this tree for $15! I was in shock since it was already kinda big but I’ll take it! Now it’s inside since it’s -5 outside and it won’t stop growing. Next summer I think I’ll move it to a bigger pot and see how much that grows since it has to come inside every winter. I wanted more green around the house so the plant worked out perfectly! Plus having a plant around to care for keeps the mind at ease with all this COVID bullshit going around!

Thanks for reading,

Maeg.

August Favourites 2020

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National Geographic CF 70mm Carbon Fiber Telescope

For the entire lockdown in Canada (3 months) I spent my nights saying I wish I had a telescope since there was nothing to do and I thought looking at the moon would be amazing! My amazing boyfreind got me a telescope for my birthday and I’m obsessed. The first few nights I had it it was pure clouds so I couldn’t use it but eventually I got to and man was I excited! There is a phone attachment so I can take photos with my phone, looking back my first photos were awful but I’ve gotten much better. There’s too much light pollution in the city so at Christmas when I got up to my dads I’m going to take it with me and hopefully be able to look at some stars and planets!

Oxo Good Grips Pop Containers

If you know me well you know I love to organise. It’s the most satisfying thing anyone can do and it just looks good! Over the lockdown I started to organize my pantry and curb side pick up these pop containers. Before I ordered them I had to see what was in my cupboard and figure out which container would hold the products I had. It was work but I had nothing but time on my hands. Half my pantry is done and I’m slowly working on getting more and planning the next part. You can get these at Kitchen Stuff Plus for different prices depending on the size you get.

Thanks for reading,

Maeg.

July Favourites 2020!

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Swiffer WetJet Hardwood Floor Spray Mop Starter Kit

Does anyone else hate mop and buckets? They’re awful, you literally just push around dirty water thinking you’re cleaning but when you wipe the floor with a wet paper towel it’s brown! Ew! Everyone who knows me knows I have a dog, a big dog, who I love very much but he’s very dirty! I walk him five times a day so he’s paws make my floors so dirty. My Mum picked this up for me at Walmart for $29.97, when I used it for the first time I mopped maybe the week before thinking my floor was semi-clean. Oh boy, was I wrong! The pad was brown, like the empty pad, not just at the edges. I couldn’t believe how dirty my floors were, even after using it once we noticed our feet and socks were cleaner because it was actually cleaning my floor. Stop using a mop and bucket (unless you spilled alot of water and you’re going to use the Swiffer after to clean the floor), go get yourself one of these and your life will be easier. Now keep in mind, I do only live in a one bedroom apartment, if you live in a 3 bedroom house this may not be the option for you!

Natural Dog Company Paw Soother

My poor dog started to get painful sores in between his toes, we took him to the vet to see what it was. They thought it was a chicken allergy so we switched his food and took antibiotics. The antibiotics were not a guarantee it would clear it up and there was a side effect that made him pee A LOT. Only one mishap inside and the sores cleared up until they came back. They vet gave us medicated wipes that should have helped but his paws just seem to be getting worse. I saw Natural Dog Company on instagram which posted about a dog that looked like was going through the same thing. I instantly bought it and tried it right away. This has been the best product ever as my dogs paws are much better! I use it once a night and it’s been working great. You can get this and other products like it from different stores if you go on their website or you can order online. They have different sizes 1 oz tin for $19, 2 oz tin for $24, 2oz stick for $24, 4oz tin for $36. Check them out!

Thanks for reading,

Maeg.

June Favourites 2020!

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Gymshark Leggings

For years I have tried to find leggings that don’t fall when I simply walk let alone run or do anything else! I’ve tried Lulelemon, underarmour, creap walmart leggings and nothing. Everytime I’d buy them they would be super tight but once I started to move they would fall, it was the most annoying thing. I saw Gymshark from YouTubers that I follow and loved how they looked so I decided to grab a pair along with some other small things. Once I got them and tried them on I wasn’t so sure because they were tight but I gave them a try. That day I decided to run the stairs in my apartment just to get a quick workout in and test them. I didn’t have to pull the leggings up once, it was amazing! They’re actually so comfortable and look great. You can get them at Gymsharks website, they were $90 but they’re so worth it!

MASK CANADA

In June I offically went back to work but only had 2 masks to wear that my boss provided. Wearing the same two masks for a week straight wasn’t going to be fun or clean so I decided to order more of the masks. They’re pretty comfortble and fit most, I did have to sew mine to make it fit better but they fit perfectly. I liked this company because it’s Canadian, they shipped within the week and they’re good quality. I recently just ordered Christmas masks since masks aren’t going away so I might as well get festive! Usually each mask is $15 or they have a pack of 3 for $45 (which they always have a sale!)

Thanks for reading,

Maeg.

May Favourites 2020!

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Singer Sewing Machine

I had gotten this sewing machine awhile back as I was attempting to learn. Little did I know that I would need this to make masks! Now sewing machines and I don’t have a good relationship, nothing seems to work for me, I fix it then it works for maybe five mintues and then I have the same issue all over again. I made two masks with this, I was proud of myself but the anger that came with it was not fun. Singer is a great brand when it comes to sewing machines, my best friends Mum had one for 30 years. They are built to last and are good working machines – needless to say when I use it it’s user error. With anything though it takes practice, you’re not going to be a pro the moment you open the box that’s for sure. It takes me a lot of reading and watching youtube videos to figure some things out! I got this at Canadian Tire for roughly $150. You can get them at lots of stores, just look around and do your research to see what is best for you!

Yoga Mat

I bought my yoga mat YEARS ago at Walmart for maybe $20, now they’re everywhere. Most stores have their own verisons and colours so it all depends on what you like. I’ve decided I need to start working out because I was getting quarantine-15! As gyms were closed and I was bored out of my mind anyways, I got some weights and found a workout plan and got to it. Boy, was I out of shape and I still am. I remember when I was younger playing baseball and working out like it was nothing, now doing squats makes me break a sweat! My yoga mat was handy as I live in a one bedroom apartment with my boyfriend and dog so that’s not much space to do a full workout. At least the mat made me have a space, preventing noise going to the person below me and saved my knees from the hard floor. Now gyms are open, that that I have gone as the virus is still going around but I want to so the yoga mat is coming back out! You can get yours at most stores and you don’t need to spend a lot of them.

Thanks for reading,

Maeg.