Collection of ‘Things’ from February 2026

What I read

Lies & Weddings: Kevin Kwan

This is like the follow-up to the Crazy Rich Asians trilogy, where you start to see the lives of the children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren… A nice read when you want something that is funny, interesting and not too heavy.

If you want more book recommendations, here are my 12 reads from February 2026..

A topic I am obsessed with

Subscription-based bullsh***

I am SICK of this BS where everything tries to push me towards a subscription program. I have to now pay to save PDFs in Adobe Acrobat? I also have “updates” to my Microsoft Office which mysteriously starts making my Excel sheets stop saving?

This is a scam. Enough of this crap.

I spent almost an hour one weekend trying to figure out and diagnose why my Excel files were not saving, only to come to the realization that they simply force you to “update” the program so that they can shove Microsoft 360 down your throat and make you pay MONTHLY for a piece of software that still works, but they want to try and squeeze money out of you forever.

I ended up switching completely over to OPEN OFFICE.

IDGAF.

It works quite well actually, I only need it for basic budgeting and documents, and I really am BEYOND fed up with Microsoft and their stupid games.

So far, it looks and works just like MS Office without the stupid BS around it.

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH.

What I have been watching

Knives Out Murder Mysteries

Benoit Blanc is perfection. Played by Daniel Craig, he is truly a marvellous creation… my favourite of the 3 movies so far is still The Glass Onion, but the latest one called Wake up Dead Man isn’t bad, but I didn’t quite get into it like I did with the first two.

Here they all are:

I really loved this one – Knives Out (#1)

This Glass Onion one – Knives Out (#2) was also fantastic…

This one .. not so much for me. I think it may be that the topic was a little “meh” for me, hence why I didn’t get into it. Not enough fashion for me either.

Kelly Rutherford’s IG

She always looks so good.

I like how she pairs items, and sort of just has her own vibe. I especially want this super cosy sweater but I am sure it costs a gazillion dollars and is made from some super rare cashmere only found in the Himalayas under a blood moon or something.

Bye Bye *STUDENT Loans..

Canadians in student debt, rejoice!! Canada has a wonderful Student Loan Forgiveness program (if you need any more proof that we are indeed, not American…)

There was a new change recently (I watch tax newsletter updates and such), and this one interested me enough to share.

The gist of it is that professions that were formally excluded from loan forgiveness are now allowed to apply for student loan relief from the FEDERAL government:

Examples of jobs that are now open to applications:

• Teachers
• Dentists
• Psychologists
• Midwives
• Dental hygienists

You can have anywhere from $15K – $60K forgiven upon application, spread out over 5 years. Enjoy!

Worth the Hype?

Manta Brush

I finally gave in to the realization that this is the best hair brush I have ever used. Forget the snobby expensive Mason Pearson brushes made from real boar bristle or whatever, this Manta Brush is soft enough for even the finest of hair, and is pretty gentle. I use it in the shower to scrub my scalp when I am shampooing, I use it to brush conditioner through my hair, and I use it to brush my hair when it is dry.

Learning another language

Subtitles are the key

I have been learning another language for a while now, and the real key… is to simply watch videos (that you can pause), that are in English, but with the language subtitles. What I do, is I pause when the subtitles appear, I try to understand what it means (and I say it out loud to practice), then when I think I got it, I listen to the English audio to see if it matches.

I write down the words I don’t know in my notebook (I use a Remarkble II by the way, as I am trying to go a paper-free a possible), and then I review them at the end of the episode or the film.

Then I try to use those words I learned IRL, by practicing, and thinking what I would say if I were to respond to things.

So far, I have made more progress with this approach than with Rosetta Stone, LingQ or any of the other apps out there.

It works for me because I am not yet advanced enough to read in the foreign language and not be frustrated at having to stop every other word or so… and it is watching episodes, films or videos where I REALLY want to know the storyline and am invested in the story as well, so I stay motivated and interested rather than having it be just a learning exercise.

A cleaning hack

Use super cheap vodka

Seriously.

The cheaper the better, you want it to be like turpentine to strip everything out.

Don’t buy the fancy stuff.

Spray it on, and let it dry, it will remove quite a lot of odours and perfumes. It may not work on very sticky odours like detergents (JFC, I wrote a whole rant about how everyone is using WAY too much detergent that stinks these days here), and in those cases, I have had to handwash items repeatedly (I am on my 10th wash now) to try and eliminate the stench, along with hanging it outside to air dry in the sun to try and remove the smell.

What I have been watching

Landman Season 2

I watched this clip of Demi Moore playing Cami Miller introducing herself at a luncheon and it was all I needed to decide I was invested in watching another season…

Sydney Swisher’s Art

Her work is really incredible in terms of inspiration and mixing media. I am inspired to do something similar, and now I am trying to figure out how and when!!! I don’t particularly feel connected to her topics, but her concepts are brilliant, this was really the only one of her paintings that I liked…

A cheap massage

Use a fascia ball massager

Don’t say it.

I know it looks phallic. I KNOW.

But this fascia massager is excellent at pinpointing the areas where it is deep into your shoulder or neck and you can’t quite get it without having to knead hard with an elbow or knuckle to release the pain and tension. This thing, is great. I stick it to the flat mirror, and then lean back against it and sort of let it angle and push into the deeper muscles that are hidden.

Newly discovered

Carolina Curado jewellery

Curado is based in Lisbon and her work is just so gothic and yet modern. I picked up her ‘Gladius’ earring (just one, mind..) and I didn’t buy a second one because her whole vibe is to have asymmetric earrings to mix and match, so I matched it with another earring I had.

Want more?

Here are all the previous months’ posts…