You may have noticed that the banner of this article has changed from “coffees with angel” to “our café”. I’ll still be using the coffees with angel name here and there but I wanted our posts to reflect the feeling of community that I get from you. So don’t worry, nothing else has changed other than making this feel like more of a shared space <3
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April
I said I wouldn’t be traveling this year, in anticipation for my (hopeful) move to Europe later this year but when work gives you an opportunity to get out of town, you take it. In April, I got to work with a dream brand on a little getaway trip to Tofino, BC (more details in May!) The last time I visited was in 2023 and I’ve been thinking about revisiting prior to my move because it just wouldn’t be a place I prioritized travel to post-euro move.
Anyone who’s been to Tofino will tell you there’s something special to it. In Mexico, there are towns deemed “Pueblos Magicos” or magic towns—Tofino feels like that. Will be working on my Tofino city (town?) guide soon, so stay tuned <3
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April has felt like a month of noticing and breaking cycles. (I’ll admit, not every cycle was broken, but we tried.) In February, I started using an app called Macrofactor to track my meals while I was going through my 3 weeks of acupuncture and dieting. I’ve never tracked my food intake before and mainly I just wanted to learn what the foods I was putting in my body was actually doing for me. Was I getting enough protein? Meeting my daily calorie intake? Was I really eating healthy?
While I did fall off with tracking the majority of March and April, I restarted this month because as much as I believe in intuitive eating, I do also want to make sure I’m feeding my body what it needs to continue to be strong and fuelled.
I guess that’s a good segue into my current workout obsession which is running. Anyone that knows me personally would gasp reading that. I’ve been a cardio-hater since the first time I was forced to run the 1.2km run we all had to do every P.E. class. I swore running and I would never get along yet here I am with new running shoes, looking into running clothes and where to buy a running belt.
I’d be lying if I said turning 30 next month has nothing to do with this new interest in running. Yes I want to be healthier, fitter, and leaner but it’s also about taking on a new challenge and continuing to push my body and self to overcome and grow. If you start seeing more running recommendations in future posts, hopefully it means this habit is sticking.
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I’m slightly altering this month’s WRAPPED post by changing some of the categories. There are so many different ways to play with the R.E.P.O.R.T. format that we all know and love and I want to take advantage of that to talk about different things on my mind each month. So if you notice this WRAPPED being a tad different, that’s why.
Reading
I’m not too proud of my reading progress this month. I have countless excuses but the truth is I just didn’t prioritize it as much as I had hoped I would. On the bright side, usually when I travel I do end up getting more reading in just from being on planes and other longer transportation moments. May is destined to have more completed books that April has had.
Last Summer in the City by Gianfranco Calligarich - I honestly picked up this book because of it’s beautiful cover and setting in Italy, not knowing that it’s a cult classic in Italian literature. The story follows Leo, a lost and detached 30/yo boy, who can’t seem to get his life together or maybe just doesn’t care to. He can’t seem to put any effort into his relationships yet becomes increasingly aware of his loneliness and lack of connections. He ends up starting a passionate yet doomed relationship with Arianna, a troubled and mysterious woman who always seems to remain just out of grasp. The prose is lyrical and melancholic making it the perfect hot summer day kind of read.
Articles
Why you should work like it’s the 90s - I’ve been considering getting a work phone for YEARS feeling like I need some sort of physical separation from work. Both in marketing and content creation, so much of what I do is on my phone so having both my personal life and work life on one device can sometimes feel suffocating. This was a good reminder of why that separation is important so having two devices is something I’ll seriously consider once I move.
Eating
My meals were all over the place this month so coming back from Tofino and getting back onto clean eating has felt exceptionally good. April was filled with guilt-free treats but I definitely have started to notice how certain foods make me feel which is always a good lesson to learn.
All my favorite meals of the month were ones I had in Tofino. One night I made smash burgers from scratch down to the brioche bun that I baked before leaving on the trip. I’m not usually a burger girl but man, did this hit the spot.
The last time I was in Tofino, we also discovered two fish market shops that carry fresh shellfish daily. Since vongole is one of my favorite dishes, we ended up picking up some manilla clams and white wine and making the most delicious pasta meal.
And of course, I couldn’t leave Tofino without having Jeju. We also discovered this restaurant in 2023 and I’ve been thinking about it ever since. They’re a Korean restaurant with some of the freshest Korean food I’ve had. Everything on their menu is fantastic and it’s the one restaurant I’d recommend to anyone visiting Tofino.
Planning
My travel-style has changes so much over the year. I’ve floated from type-a, have every itinerary item down to the minute to traveling completely adhoc and just going with the flow. Most recently I’ve landed somewhere in betw3en—creating itineraries with what I want to do/see/eat but still keeping things pretty spontaneous when I’m actually at my destination.
It’s easy to go overboard with planning but all that really does is create extra stress around an even that’s meant to do the opposite. Now when I’m trip planning, I just focus on researching the “must-gos”, noting down all my travel details, making sure I’m set with packing, and off I go.
In May, I’ll be heading on short trips to Taipei and Tokyo, both places I’ve never been before. I’m super excited to explore new cities so if there’s anything specific you want me to talk about in the respective city guides, let me know and I’ll try to do some scoping while I’m there!
Obsessing
A313 + Blume Milky Fade - I don’t talk about beauty and skincare much here but I’m thinking of sharing more of my favorites. I’ve been struggling with acne for several years now and while yes, I’m learning that my health, diet, and stress levels definitely make the biggest difference when it comes to my skin there are some products that help with the process as well.
I was introduced to A313 by
(thank you!!). It’s a french pharmacy fave that’s a strong retinol in a ointment form. This has been a life saver when it comes to helping healing my skin, preventing new break outs, and just overall smoothing over some of the texture.I also recently added Blume’s Milky Fade into my routine which has niacinamide to fade my acne scarring and also prevent new acne from sprouting.
I’ve seriously paired down my skincare over the years so all I’m using currently are these two products, a good moisturizer, and SPF. That’s IT.
Reflections
Months feel so short nowadays but if I actually slow down and look back at each month, there are so many lessons and moments worth remembering. This month I learned:
Just because I have weak knees, doesn’t mean I can’t run. Weaknesses and pains in your body typically come from your muscles overcompensating in one way or another due to the lack of strength in the necessary muscles needed for that activity. Strengthen the right muscles and pains magically start to fade away.
Simple might actually always be best. I’ve had a tendency to overcomplicate everything ever since I was little so unlearning that is a part of my goals for this year.
Learning to communicate is an ongoing project. Like with everything else, there’s always room for improvement. More than just being a better communicator yourself, it’s also about understanding different people’s communication styles so that you can match their vibe.
Tools
The absolute stand out “tool” of the month was my Fujifilm X100VI. I ordered this in February of 2024 and only JUST received it. I honestly considered cancelling the order several times or just waiting for it to arrive and then flipping it. My techy curiosity got the best of me in the end but I’m SO glad I kept it. Of all the cameras I’ve ever owned (which embarrassingly is too many to count) this one by far is the easiest to use for travel photography.
The size and ease of use makes it a camera I actually want to bring around with me. I brought it to Tofino as a test, to see whether I’d actually use it and it came with me on every beach walk and hike we did.
Will report back after my Asia trip to let you know whether this habit continues but I’m super happy with it so far.
Snapping
