Category / Traveling

by Lexine

Tuesday Random Thoughts

I had to move this little rant from my previous entry as I feel like it distracts from the poem, but I still stand by this:

I’m pretty disappointed over the absence of posts condemning the attacks from some so-called “pro-Democracy”/”anti-Trump” accounts on Bluesky. Not even a repost from those accounts that condemned the attacks! I work Sundays and had a long, busy AF day at work, yet I managed to repost some things (I legit didn’t have the words at the time), throw up this entry, and also check in on a very good friend of mine who happens to be Jewish. Those same accounts were more eager to repost about the hero of the shooting and the awful deaths of Rob Reiner and his wife. Reiner is a legendary director no question, and his death was horrific…but–and you’ll hate me for reminding you this awful truth–he also called for Biden to step down last year. (And Biden still gave him grace.) Those accounts can keep blabbering about how shitty Trump is (what’s new) and demand to “release the Epstein files now!”, but them staying silent on the latest antisemitic incident in Australia says a LOT. You cannot be “for peace” or “kindness” in your bios and straight-up ignore the senseless murders of a community that continues to go through more hell thanks to your blatant/low-key antisemitism.

***Not from the rant, but it’s a sad coincidence that the Democratic party’s two biggest voting blocs (black people and Jewish people) have also been two of the most-targeted communities this year, whether it’s in the job market, vile malpractice in healthcare, or from more violent attacks. Going into 2026 and the midterms, I’m making sure the candidate I vote for fully supports (among other things) the black and Jewish (and the LGBTQ+) communities.

*******

If I could give pop culture a New Year’s resolution for 2026, it’s to stop making Sydney Sweeney happen. She’s unapologetically MAGA and I hear she’s wooden in her acting. I am not surprised another mid AF blonde girl has gotten more shine than deserved, but couldn’t Hollywood hype up a boring blonde who’s not MAGA?

*******

It’s now less than 10 days till Christmas?!

One weird way I stay sane during the holidays: not listening to almost all Christmas songs! Having worked in retail a long time ago, an Xmas song during the holidays can be triggering. I feel for those who work in retail and have been subjected to non-stop Xmas-themed aural assaults since November (on top of dealing with rude/foolish customers and demanding bosses/supervisors and working long hours).

I say “almost all” as there are some Xmas songs I truly enjoy, but I’ll post them in another entry.

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Yes, I’ve been doing Duolingo for a year now, please clap. No, I doubt I’ll make it two years. My subscription ends in a few weeks, and with the app’s admitted use of AI and inconsistencies with translations, I’m most likely going to delete that damn owl off my phone. I originally used it to brush up on my Spanish that I thought I’d be using for a job opportunity I was interested a year ago, but those plans fell apart. Yet I still kept using the app–the game-ification of it can be addicting. While sé cómo hablar algo de español, it’s not something I need to use in my day job right now, and it’s also been cutting into my book-writing time.

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Speaking of my work, my eBook is still on sale at Smashwords! Now until Jan. 1st!

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Controversial opinion, but Sephora >>> Ulta because Ulta carries some brands associated with toxic, shitty celebs. I went to an Ulta yesterday and the very first things I saw were displays of perfumes featuring a plastic grifter and that groomer Drake. I ended up going to a Sephora (who have their own controversies, I know) for eye bleach. I saw on the Ulta app that I’m $80-something away from being a Platinum member, but after being reminded of the trash-ass celeb brands they sell, I’d rather keep my money.

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Of course I did not win Powerball’s billion-dollar jackpot yesterday. If I did, I wouldn’t be writing this entry, but in my 20th straight hour of doing this around my apartment:

I did win $4–got the Powerball number right. #blessed

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I got 17–I saw #2, #6, and #13 in my household and elsewhere as a wee one, but I never used them. I think us elder millennials were the very last group to have at least seen all these things and use most of them. *pops a Werthers* My childhood bestie had a waterbed and sleepovers were fun…until we jumped on her bed, of course.

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The last installment of my Toronto trip will be up…when I get to it and I’m aiming for it to be soon, I swear. In the meantime, here are some pics of my recent visit to the Bancroft Gardens’ “Garden of D’Lights” holiday event:

Lit-up trees and plants at the Bancroft Garden in Walnut Creek, CA
Plants basking in the holiday lighting at the Bancroft Garden in Walnut Creek, CA
Lights and more seen at the Bancroft Garden in Walnut Creek, CA
Rocks in holiday lights at the Bancroft Garden in Walnut Creek, CA
A garden pathway
Holiday palm tree

Going to Garden of D’Lights has been a holiday tradition of mine since 2022, and there’s always something new with every visit. For instance, this is the first time I’ve seen this there:

A poisonous grape plant at the Bancroft Garden in Walnut Creek, CA
close-up of the poisonous plant’s warning sign

TIL there’s a grape plant in existence that bites you back!

by Lexine

The Toronto Trip, Pt. 4 – “Falling For Niagara”

Part 1 here

Part 2 here

Part 3 here

On November 1st, I ventured out to a region that only the locals knew and was mostly free from tourists. On November 2nd, I would venture out to one of the biggest tourist traps in Canada that everyone and their grandparents knew: Niagara Falls!

This was one of the places I HAD to go to if I were to visit Toronto. And I couldn’t have picked a better day to go: the weather was clear, and I needed some major eye bleach after the mess that was Game 7 of that World Series from yesterday. Photo dump time!

Fall colors blooming at a nearby park
View of the Rainbow International Bridge that connects Canada to the US.

I was a bit tempted to cross that bridge step into New York state for the first time. But with border crossing comes the modern-day Gestapo border patrol, and with the last name and skin tone I have, some of those officers may see me as a target.

Another images of the Falls
Fall colors by the Falls!

A friend of mine who had visited Niagara Falls told me to stay in the area past sunset, as the falls do a “light show” at night. She didn’t lie!

The Falls shortly after sunset (with a near full moon in the sky)
Another view of the Falls at night
Rainbow falls!
A rainbow and a moon

What my friend didn’t tell me about Niagara, however, was this gaudy but intriguing strip right by the falls: Clifton Hill.

One view of Clifton Hill
Another view of Clifton Hill
If the gift shops by the Falls doesn’t rob you of your money, the casinos by the falls will.
A catch-and-release find at a local souvenir shop.
The Sky Wheel, part of the fun attractions found at Clifton Hill
View of Clifton Hill and beyond, from atop the Sky Wheel

I guess if one gets bored by the falls, they can always escape to the flashy lights, the casinos, and the uber-large Ferris wheel found at Clifton Hill. Not pictured are the miniature golf course and the go-kart speedway. I was a bit tempted to go go-kart racing, but I drive a shit-ton (whether for work or play) to begin with, so I watched a race instead. All I took part of was the Sky Wheel, as you can see. $15 CAD (or around $11 USD) to ride five cycles on the wheel. 

A little pro-tip: if you’re going souvenir shopping at the Falls, do so at one of those discount gift shops at Clifton Hill instead. I saw some shot glasses at a gift shop by the Falls and they were at least $9 CAD. The glasses I bought at Clifton Hill were only $2-$3 CAD.  

Loved my time there! Another trip I can now cross off my bucket list.

I got one more part left to my Toronto trip. Stay tuned…

by Lexine

The Toronto Trip, Pt. 3 (Halloween, Apples, and Baseball)

Part 1 here

Part 2 here

One nice thing about my birthday trips is that I get to celebrate two consecutive holidays: my birthday and Halloween! While I expected a place like Toronto to be full of Halloween activities, there was one event I looked forward to: Halloween On Church. 

It sounded similar to the West Hollywood Halloween Carnaval (an event I’ve gone to in the past), which meant I HAD to go to this. It had also been years since I’ve had some actual Halloween fun. Last year, my Halloween plans in Vegas had to be dropped, but for a good reason. This year, I made up for it. 

I thought about posting this on my Bluesky the day before Halloween, hinting at what my costume would be this year. But I had also brought another costume with me and mulled over which look to choose. In the end, Lily from Duolingo won. 

I had a purple wig, some purple clothes, a Duo plushie (albeit an imperfect one), and I nailed down her unamused look (though you can’t tell, I know). I also had four people compliment my costume, which I’ll take as a win because I rarely get compliments over my costumes! 

Now, for some really great costumes I saw at the event…

Someone dressed as mutant tic-tacs.
Another Tic-Tac costume!
A Borat sighting!
These masked party-goers
A guy in a blond wig holding a cutout sign that says “Coldplay Kiss Cam”
Doodlebob sighting!
The Smurfs
It’s Britney, bitch!
A fascist bitch
Dinosaurs roaming Toronto
Two cows and a pink shark
This person covered in crows…I think there’s a film reference to this?

However, Marge Simpson here wins it for the night!

This still has me in stitches. 

A barbershop/salon called Ho’s Place
A snippet of the crowd (it was HUGE!)
A damsel on the balcony

Though smaller than WeHo’s Halloween Carnaval (which encompasses one mile of Santa Monica Blvd compared to, oh, the half-mile party on Church Street), HoC gives WeHo competition with its eccentric costumes, festive atmosphere, and it being in Canada where (for the time being) people don’t have to worry about their human rights being violated or the costs of their health insurance. (I low-keyed envied all the locals because of those things!) 

The costumes weren’t the only things I had my eye on that day, however…

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by Lexine

The Toronto Trip, Pt 2 (The Birthday)

Part 1 here

As it has been every time I went on vacation, I post about it weeks after I finished my travels. Not the first time I’ve been late. Time for a photo dump of the day I turned 41, complete with my typical babble.

It had to rain on my party! Though it was cloudy when I took these pics from my rental condo, it would rain later in the day and into the night. Couple heavy rain with temps no hotter than the mid-40s (or at 7 Celsius since we’re in Canada) and you got me noping out on going out entire day. Which…actually worked fine for me. I have a birthday tradition where I choose not to go anywhere, whether I’m at home or on vacation. Last thing I want on my born day is for it to be ruined by stuff out of my control (traffic, people being pricks, etc.); at least when I stay home, most of the time, I can control my environment.

There’s no better food to have on a rainy day than sweets! Sugar-free sweets, in my case. What you see in the pics came from a sugar-free/Keto bakery called Yoona’s Kitchen in north Toronto. You may find this hard to believe, but this is the first birthday cake I’ve had since going low-carb. Cake is still something I’ve yet to bake, so I allowed them to bake it, complete with the Happy Birthday message (and my real name, which is why I had to censor that out). It’s carrot cake (my favorite cake flavor of them all), and it was muy delicioso! Those other sweets you see also came from Yoona’s. No, I didn’t eat them all that day. My favorite among them were the mini turtle cheesecake and nutella cupcake (the two sweets on the bottom right corner in the first pic).

My other birthday tradition that I started last year is watching birthday episodes of my favorite shows.

The End Credits version of Lisa’s birthday song with that sax solo still slaps to this day!

My birthday was the last full day at my lakeshore condo rental, and I made sure I enjoyed the rest of the amenities before I had to check out the next day.

If every birthday would involve staying home, admiring lovely city & lake views from my home, eating all the sweets I want & watching my favorite shows, and then have some pool-and-hot-tub time at night, that would be ideal!

I originally intended to post my Halloween here, but that will be in the next installment. Part 3 coming soon!

by Lexine

My Birthday Trip So Far

One of my long-time birthday traditions is staying home on my born day, whether I’m at home or vacationing somewhere. It’s currently showering here in Toronto *sobs*, and going out in the rain always blows, so it’s probably a good time to recap my birthday trip so far before I go back on the road tomorrow.

View of South San Francisco from my BART ride to SFO

View of San Francisco and Marin County from my plane ascending.

View of Lake Tahoe from my plane.

I don’t go fly that often, and I found myself looking out from my window seat during most of my plane ride instead of watching movies via the in-flight entertainment. I also finished up a chapter of my latest work-in-progress after stalling on it for days.

A sunset view from when the flight crossed the Canadian border. 

Touching down in Toronto!

Coming from Trumpistan, this was a welcome sight to see. 

Had a steak and poutine (omg carbs!) dinner at a place called Jack’s, courtesy of my auntie who picked me up from the airport. I’ve always wanted to try true poutine, and you may find this hard to believe, but I didn’t finish all that in one sitting. The steak stuffed me up.

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by Lexine

Forty-One

Hi, I’m Lexine, and I turn 41 today. Feeling fab (despite Toronto weather raining on my born day) and I know I look good. No filler (why bother) but I got some sugar-free birthday sweets (courtesy of Yoona’s Kitchen)! It’s also the first time having a low-carb birthday cake (I’ve yet to make one for myself), and it’s tastyyyyyy. 😋 (It’s also partially censored because my real name is on it.) 

And just like last year, I’m still not yet ready to show the rest of my face! 😜

by Lexine

A Passport Saga

My 1st ever adult passport. Guess how long I had to wait for it? 

Confession: I never had an adult passport until this year. I know I had one as a child since I remember taking trips to Canada, South Korea, and the Philippines then. As an adult, all my trips have been domestic, with only one trip done by flight, and I flew way before the Real ID requirement. While adult me has wanted to take international trips, they were never within my budget, and so I never bothered to get a passport. Until this year, and it’s not just for travel needs (I have plans on taking a birthday trip to Vancouver). As a Bi woman of color with a look and skin tone that may make “Border Patrol” curious, I felt like having a passport would also give me some peace of mind, whether to prove citizenship or to get TF outta here if I need to. Along with cuts to federal agencies thanks to evil broligarchs, I couldn’t have picked a worser year to apply for my first-ever passport! 😵‍💫

*Appointment Date: 5/12/2025*

Since my birthday is at the end of October, I had plenty of time to get myself a passport. I applied for Routine processing, booked my appointment in advance (I refused to take a chance with walk-ins), and had all the necessary documents and the $160 money order.  A pro-tip: if you need a birth certificate, it’s better to go to the office of vital records of the county you were born in and buy one (or multiple copies, if allowed) there instead of having it mailed to you from the state, if you can. It’s cheaper, no notary service necessary, and you get your birth certificate on the spot. I happen to live 40 minutes from the county I was born in, though I wish I knew this before I applied to get my birth certificate in the mail way back in February this year. (It arrived in the mail in late April; a two-month wait is typical.) I just went to the city hall of my birth county to get more copies, as I needed another one for my Real ID application. 

Anyway, back to my passport appointment: I had it at my local post office, and some crotchety old guy looked over my papers and also took my passport photos. We had to do a few takes because the first few photos came out blurry. There’s more on this that I’ll share later. The guy told me to visit travel.state.gov three weeks after my appointment to check the status of my passport application, which would be early June. 

So, early June arrived, and I checked the status of my application. I got this:

webpage of the US passport application status that reads: Not Available

(Note: this isn’t my pic, but the message was the same. *source*)

I didn’t sweat it. I had well over four months before my planned trip to Canada, and I also opted for Routine processing, so I figured I would see an update by the six-week mark at the soonest. That six-week mark was end of June, and here’s what I saw then:

webpage of the US passport application status that reads: Not Available

Same message. OK. I’m still within the 6-8 week processing timeframe. Maybe in the 7th week I’d get an update? 

It didn’t help that I was reading other people’s passport stories on Reddit and this site. Some, if not many, were getting theirs on time, if not sooner than me, and they too also applied for their 1st adult passport and used Routine service. When the 8-week mark arrived in mid-July, I found myself checking the status every day. And, I shit you not, I got the same “not available” status message every damn time. I checked to see if my money order got cashed (it did, a week after my appointment). I went to my local post office to see if my application got sent in (it was, to some office in Irving, Texas). I even contacted the offices of my local congressman to help me out (they tried but couldn’t). 

Though my travel plans were still over three months away, I began to fret. Did my application get lost? Or was it received but the agency is being lazy in processing it? Why didn’t I apply for a passport two years ago? 

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by Lexine

Scenes From Kylie’s Tension Tour!

Yesterday, I got to break some tension in San Francisco by attending the Tension Tour featuring pop icon Kylie Minogue! While I got to see her for the first time a year ago, it’s not every year she tours the States. Let’s get to it with the pics!

(Note: there are no pics of her opening act Rita Ora, but only because I was in a long-ass line for Kylie merch while she was performing. Sorry!) 

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by Lexine

The Vegas Trip, Pt. 4: Rocking The Vote

(Side note: I notice that many of my pics from past installments of this series is no longer showing up. I recently had an issue with the photo hosting site I uploaded my pics to (they blocked my account for no good reason and I still haven’t heard back from them), so I moved all my pics to a new site and y’all should see them now!) 

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I didn’t expect my Vegas trip to get political. I had already voted prior to my trip, and while I knew I couldn’t escape it  given that my trip occurred the week before Election Day, I thought my trip would involve politics, aside from flipping off all those unsightly Trump ads. I even had my Halloween plans set: go people-watching around the Strip and Fremont Street while dressed as Regina George from Mean Girls. 

Then I found out that thee VP herself Kamala Harris was going to appear at a rally in North Las Vegas. On Halloween. My janky Regina George can wait another year, for I wasn’t going to pass up on a historic opportunity! 

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by Lexine

The Vegas Trip, Pt. 3: The 40th

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I turned 10, 18, and 20 at home in the city I was born in. I celebrated my 21st at some waterfront restaurant in SF with my first-ever drink, my 25th in Santa Cruz, and my 30th in LA, trolling Dodger fans after another SF Giants World Series victory the day before. I had plans for my 40th since 2022, but none of them didn’t involve Vegas. I thought I’d go to Hawaii, or Europe on one of those seven-day European tour specials I’d see on Travelzoo. Some plans don’t come to fruition due to life’s curveballs hitting my head, however. (I felt like I’ve taken a lot of those curveballs to my head this year.) And then there are the rare times in life when I hit a grand slam. Finding a great place in Vegas at an amazing weekly rate on my exact travel dates was one of them. 

I usually stay home on my born days, simply to avoid my special day being potentially ruined by assholes being assholes. But I also have this thing where I need to get a massage wherever I travel. In-home massage is costly as hell, so I found a good deal via Groupon at a massage clinic in Summerlin. The soonest opening they had on their schedule was, yep, on my birthday, so I ended up going out. The drive wasn’t bad, I didn’t encounter any assholes, and the massage was amazing. 

I stayed home the rest of the time, though I took some time to explore the rest of the hotel. 

My suite is up there. No, UP there!

It looks like Vegas paradise, but trust me, it was coooooold that day. 

I had the option to go to LA again for my 40th, but there was that pesky blue baseball team and its fans. Naturally, there just had to be a World Series game on my born day, and a closeout game, too. Ten years ago, I sported my Giants hat while roaming the streets of LA, proud to be repping the winners. (Not once did I get jumped, if you can believe that.) I guess the evil gods of that blue baseball team must’ve remembered that because ten years later, guess who would win the World Series, and on my 40th, too? (And thus begins my revenge story!) 

I eased my nerves in my private, jacuzzi-style bathtub, and it was a huge bathtub. With actual jacuzzi jets! The lights were mine, by the way. 

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