2024 Sucked & How I Am Bouncing Back in 2025

I was looking at my blog the other day and felt an overwhelming sadness. In 2024, I published only a single blogpost. For me, blogging is a creative outlet and not to be that obnoxious person, but when I am not in the right mindset, I have zero desire to write. In fact, I completely stopped writing and reading for pleasure in 2024. It was a horrible year for me, and many others harbour the same feelings of frustration towards 2024. I strongly believe 2024 was a cursed year for the majority of us!

I am starting to feel some semblance of normal again, but it feels odd to jump back into my blog without acknowledging my absence for a year. It was a brutal time for me in multiple facets of my life: financial, health, and social. I will not be sharing any details of the struggles I went through because Pink Tea Latte is a space I use to celebrate fun and adventure. Additionally, I want to maintain a boundary between my personal life and my blog. 

Guys & Dolls Musical at the Stanley Theatre

I cannot recall the last time I watched a musical live. I fear it must have been in high school! It was about time I got out and watched a live production. Guys & Dolls has taken over the Stanley Theatre on South Granville and it was a magnificent performance. The Arts Club Theatre Company has brought the world of 1950s New York gangsters to Vancouver. Everything was perfect from the costumes to the stage sets, the vocals and the acting! I have never seen a production on the stages of Broadway in New York, but Vancouver brought the razzle-dazzle to the stage. I attended the Saturday, June 15, 2024, 8PM show which was sold out! When the venue is sold out, you know it is going to be an amazing show! Guys & Dolls has now entered its final week of shows, with the last show being Sunday, June 30th, so if you are considering watching the show, I strongly encourage you to do so soon!

This show was extra special for me because I got to sit front row, smack dab in the middle. These seats are considered the best in the house because you get an unobstructed view of the performance and if you so dare, you can practically reach out and touch the performers. Yet if I were to go again, I would probably pick a few rows back from the stage because I found my neck got sore having to constantly look up. 

IDS Vancouver 2023 | An Exhibition of Beautiful Objects

For most September is synonymous with the start of school, but I relate September with IDS Vancouver. The Interior Design Show (IDS) Vancouver celebrates craftsmanship and creativity. There is an emphasis on being bold with colour, shape and materials. There is nothing "basic bitch" about IDS Vancouver. In fact, you would be hard-pressed to find anything as boring as the Carrara marble or neutral white colour palette sofas. IDS Vancouver 2023 did not disappoint with its lineup of Canadian artisans, woodworkers, fabricators and designers. 

There were three Canadian Artisan brands which captivated me and I hope to someday own pieces by them. Man & Son Design (a lighting house), Le Tenon & La Mortaise (wood furniture), and Cory Michah Olsen (Stone nested wood objects).

The lighting fixture display by Man & Son Design was like a warm inviting hug which was hard not to be drawn to. Based out of Victoria, the female duo hand turns every piece of wood into gorgeous shapes for their various lighting fixtures. Their pieces are made from reclaimed wood making each grain and colour unique. They offer pendant lights, sconces and desk lamps.

Halal Guys is Not Worth the Hype

Vancouver always seems to gets missed by large popular brands. Vancouver is a major city on the west coast of Canada and often ranks as one of the most expensive cities to live in the world and yet we are never worthy of being a brands first location. Not to throw shade, but how is it that the prairie cities beat us out for iconic eateries time and time again? So when a popular chain decides to finally grace us with their presence, we embrace it with much fan fare and pomp and circumstance as possible. The anticipation of eating the much-touted Halal Guys meant my expectations were incredibly high. It pains me to say this, but The Halal Guys is a hard pass from me. 

For years I have heard stories of The Halal Guys being New York City's favourite Donair brand. With lines snaking around the block, hungry patrons are willing to wait for the perfect platter of meat, rice, and vegetables all doused in the Halal Guys' signature "White Sauce" and "Hot Sauce." A great Donair is defined by the protein which is often a juicy slowly roasted chicken or beef.   

Mental Health Break because Blogging is Hard

I am back! I have missed writing creatively and the enjoyment I get from expressing myself through words. Being away from my blog has left a huge void in my life. I took a few months break to focus on things happening in my personal life, but I also just needed a break. After all, Pink Tea Latte has been going steady for 7 years!

Blogging is something I do in my free time and has been a pure labour of love. Compensation for my blogposts has been few and far between, so I never really made any money from Pink Tea Latte. Instead, I invested a lot of my own money into this website. Most of the events, activities and restaurants I have visited are paid for completely by me. Needless to say, Pink Tea Latte is not a revenue stream for me and I do not anticipate it changing in the future. 

I blog simply because I enjoy it. I prefer to use my free time creating unique and original content versus mindlessly scrolling on my phone. I am proud of Pink Tea Latte, but in these past few years, traditional word-based bloggers have become overshadowed by social media influencers. In fact, nothing gets me more riled up and annoyed like seeing an Instagramer or TicToker call themselves a blogger. A picture or 15 second video does not make you blogger because to be a blogger, you need to WRITE original content or articles which are then published on a website. 

Content catering to short attention spans and delivering instant gratification has become the gold standard. Anything that requires more than 30 seconds of focus has become a tough sell. I never want to be chasing views, but it is hard not to feel discouraged when the numbers begin to drop. 

My inbox is no longer filled with exciting event opportunities as companies shift their marketing approach to focus on social media content creators. It is hard not to feel rejected. I was no longer excited to write because I was too worried about if the content is the "correct" content. 

Being a blogger for 7 years has taken a toll on me. In addition to financial, being a blogger is a massive time commitment. The words do not write theirselves. If I am not in the correct headspace, I find it incredibly difficult to write. Editing the pictures takes up the biggest amount of my time. I love my DSLR and taking pictures with it. What I do not like is editing the pictures because it requires a lot of focus and work from me. With the amount of time I need to commit to being a consistent blogger felt like I was working a part time job in addition to my full time job. I simply had become mentally and physically exhausted! 

Putting in so much time and effort compounded by the decrease in readers just had me feeling drained. I always told myself I would only blog if it is fun for me. I was no longer having fun and instead found myself stressing out about posting more captivating content. 

Taking these few months off from blogging and social media has been incredibly refreshing. I no longer feel compelled to pull out my camera at every restaurant I dine at or activity I do. Instead, I focus on being in the present and enjoying myself. It is embarrassing to admit that I did live the "Camera Eats First" lifestyle, but I am now a reformed blogger! 

I am excited to be writing on Pink Tea Latte again. I have had a lot of time to think during my months off. I am going to do a lot things differently. I am going to focus on having fun while blogging. 

BYES

Festa Della Polenta 2023 at Di Beppe Gastown

Italy is not going to happen for me anytime soon because European travel is not cheap! Flights, hotels and spending add up quick, so I have to live out my Italian food dreams in Vancouver. I already love dining at Di Beppe and constantly think about their carbonara with spaghetti because it is so good! This year, I thought I would check out their annual Festa della Polenta. 

Prior to this, I never paid much attention to polenta. Originating from Northern Italy, polenta is typically a coarsely ground cornmeal. Festa della Polenta dates back more than 400 years and continues to be celebrated across Italy each year! Polenta was offered by nobility to hungry townspeople during the famine and has become an annual event across Italy for friends and families come together around the table

To encourage conversation with other diners, Festa della Polenta at Di Beppe is served family style. My friend and I were seated with two other couples with whom we shared fabulous laughs and conversations a plenty all evening long. It was a refreshing change because it is no secret that Vancouverites are not the most approachable of people. In fact, it is a well known fact that making friends in Vancouver is TOUGH. Perhaps Vancouverites need to be pushed out of their comfort zone more and sadly we might need restaurant businesses facilitate it for us by doing communal table dinner services. 

I also loved my outfit from the night. I wore high-waisted black denim with black loafers, brown belt, green & white striped sweater and a lilac-coloured coat. Pulled half my hair back in a claw clip. Simple, easy and comfortable. 

The Body Shop Metrotown Changemakers' Workshop

The Body Shop is leading the conversation of sustainability, ethically sourced ingredients and waste reduction with its Changemakers' Workshop concept stores. The Metrotown Burnaby location has recently reopened as the newest Changemakers' Workshop concept shop. I had the opportunity for a 1 on 1 tour to learn more about the space and its products. 

I had no idea what a "Concept Store" was, so I turned to Google for answers: a selection of products, services and experiences encompassing a concept. My guess was a model store for what future retail spaces would look like, but eh, this is why we have Google! The Changemakers' Workshop concept stores are a space to foster a relationship with the community it serves in addition to continuing to educate consumers on sustainability. The Body Shop Burnaby team partnered with local eco-organization, PECO and together created an original piece of art from collected trash and empty product containers.