It's like I never even left

I realise that maybe only one person (if I'm lucky) will understand my dilemma (or have even heard of either of these names for that matter, but this weekend I could get all the Canadiana that a girl (well, with my specific interests at heart) could want. This weekend...

I could:
Go to an ARP seminar led by Benoit Lavoie

Or:
Go to an ISU seminar led by Cathy Dalton

I'll be going to the latter. Although I'm kicking myself that I'm not going to learn from Benoit and wish that the two seminars didn't conflict with each other, there's nothing that I can do about it, and I'm excited for this weekend and what I'll get out of it.

...

Back in GMT+1:00.
I didn't succeed in getting up to date in my postings.
(Missing: Copenhagen, Helsinki and London.)
(More recently: review of Shakespeare in High Park and other Toronto randomness)
Alas...and it's going to be non-stop from here on in, just like the whole summer's been. Can I get a vacation yet? I arrived last night, and am back to the grind today.
Kidlets don't show up for another week, but still lots of work to be done.
Go go go...

I could never remember all of them anyway...

So, yesterday, pluto became an outcast. Not a "planet" anymore, but a "dwarf planet". Bring on the new editions to textbooks.
I never did learn a good memorization phrase to memorize the order of the planets, so to this day I still don't know them (I know, how embarrasing), but it doesn't matter, because it would be wrong now anyway.
I wonder what the new memorization tool will be. And I hope once it's created, someone will tell it to me pronto.

Waking City

Can someone in Toronto please do this and tell me all about it? I heard about it on CBC Radio One today, and it sounded really interesting.
I know that there are a bunch of different events similar to this one, so I don't really care which one you do, just do some sort of Scavenger/Puzzle/whatever event in Toronto and tell me all about it, kay?
Thanks!

Ha ha ha

Check this out. Ha ha ha. I wish I was there. I don't know if I'd have the guts to be a part of it though, although if there were lots of other people, maybe it would be better.
- Joe Blarnystone always has great links on his page.

I love "spottings"

Today was a fabulous day. I'm dead tired, because it was so darned long, but it was fabulous nonetheless. I spent my whole day in a skating rink watching and judging skating. It was fab.
As usual, I love "spottings". I still find it so cool when I see people that I've only seen on TV in person (well, sort of only when I see skaters or those related to skating). I think only one or two people will even know half of these names, and I'm only going to put first names, but they're in alphabetical order by last name if you can't tell by their first name. Seeing each person gives me a different feeling. Certain memories and such.

Ryan, Lee, Mark, Petra, Patrick, Shane, Meaghan, Maxim, Leif, Don, Siobhan, Annabelle, Jacinthe, Doug, Michelle, Josh, Chris, Dylan, Kyra, Robert, Ken, Joey, Lauren, Ashton, Dave, Tracy, Kris, Kristy, Hugh, Marina...I get the feeling I'm missing some.

And then there's the whole list of officials I can potentially schmooze with on a regular basis, but I'm just too intimidated by some of them.

There were a couple regular coaches who I didn't see around...they may be at NACS.

I remember some of these people being so little. The puberty fairy definitely came to visit a bunch of them.

I missed Tessa and Scott because I was on the other rink. Grrr.
Oh, and the Sr. Men's Long tomorrow is going to be CRAZY!!! I was on the other rink when Oda skated the short (heard that his 3A just floated, but I friggin won't miss it tomorrow). Chan...love him.

So Think You Can Dance (finale)

So, tonight was the So You Think You Can Dance finale. (If you don't know who won and/or don't want to, don't read the rest of this.)

I really enjoy the dancing of all of the top four dancers, but I was rooting for Travis. That guy can to the most amazing turns! His balance and control is amazing!
I thought that it would come down to the men being the top two, so I was right about that. I wonder if the fact that I'm sure the majority of the audience is female has anything to do with it. The ladies were both amazing as well, but the two guys just blew me away.
I didn't watch the finale of the first season, so I don't know if the format was the same, or if the dancers "drew" the order that the would perform their solos in (and subsequently the order that they would find out if they were "America's favorite dancer", but being the first two dancers to perform made it seem pretty obvious to me that they wouldn't win. It just wouldn't build the suspense properly.
I was and at the same time was not surprised that Benji won. I didn't watch the beginning of the series, but I'd heard about the emotional stuff that he'd been through before the show (not necessarily saying that's why he won). I don't know. He's a great performer, but to me, Travis has the whole package. The technique, along with the performance. I think Travis has it more.
I wish I knew a little bit more about the style of performance that will be required of the winner in the Celine Dion show. I know that America picked the winner, and not someone attached with the Celine Dion show, but I wonder how Benji will find the choreography. I'm sure he'll be fantastic. I wonder if he'll get relegated to some of the crappier parts of the show though. I only say that, because MTV Europe had a dance contest with Wade Robson (who created some great pieces for SYTYCD) called MTV Shakedown. Along with a contract with a dance agency, the winner of this show (the dancers were incredible) got a part in an Ashanti's "Only You" video. The girl who won really didn't get much screen time. Maybe the other dancers were legitimately better that she was, but who knows.
Oh, and host cat Deeley's dress looked strangely familiar. In case you're wondering, it's Gucci.

If they're so good at cheese...

You'd think that being famous for making cheese, Switzerland would be a natural at cheesecake right? Nope. That's too easy.
I don't think they know that it exists, because I haven't even seen somewhere with it on the menu. If I said gateau au fromage to someone there, they'd probably take it literally and get all weirded out. Other countries in Europe try to make cheesecake every so often, but with disappointing results.
Oh wait, there was one place in Switzerland that I remember seeing cheesecake on the menu. Starbucks. Sigh. Of course, I had to get it because I needed a fix so badly. It tasted horrible.
Anyway, so tonight, (well, I guess more accurately, it would be last night) I had the most fabulous cheesecake at bar_one. It was a plain cheesecake, but so rich and topped with peaches and the sweetest, yummiest caramel sauce ever. It was just what I needed. By the end of it, I almost couldn't finish it, because it was so rich, but of course, I took a deep breath and willed myself on. It really didn't take much convincing.

The Devil Wears Prada

This past week, I finally went to see The Devil Wears Prada. FABulous.
I'd read the book a couple years ago, near when it came out, and I never knew that the book had become so popular and that they were going to make a movie out of it (I haven't seen any commercials for it in Europe).
Of course, I was looking forward to seeing the fashion in the movie...I was looking forward to seeing the stock room. To have access to something like that...dreamy.
For a chick flick, I really liked it. Of course it was predictable, in every single aspect of the storyline (which had a little variation from the book).
Was it just me or did Anne Hathaway have the ability to look like different movie stars depending on how her make-up and hair was done.
There's so many different industries that I'd like to have experience in, just to see what it's like. To see if the stereotypes are true, and just for my own interest and experience. I still want to try my hand at waitressing sometime.
Anyway, I loved this movie. It was well cast, and I'd love to see it again, just because it's one of those "Hollywood" movies. Forget the whole moral of the story, I'm going to be blatantly materialistic and say that I loved looking at what everyone was wearing instead. For any fashion loving person in this movie, going to work everyday must have been like playing dressup!

-picture courtesy of www.devilwearspradamovie.com

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, by J.K. Rowling

I've finally gotten around to reading the most recent installment of the Harry Potter series. A good 600 and so pages long, it didn't actually take too long to read, considering it was a book that I would pick up every so often, or read for short stints on the subway and such. Also, much like the last Harry Potter book, I wasn't too impressed.
As usual, the book takes you through a whole year of Harry's life at Hogwarts (sixth book = sixth year at school) and his daily academic life, his raging hormones for a girl, the game of quidditch and last but not least, all that stuff about trying to kill Voldemort.
From the third book onwards, I've been thinking that the main storyline gets stuck in the very last little section of the book. There's a lot of lead up to it, but for how important all the hard-core stuff is, I'm surprised that Rowling always leaves it until the very very end. I do have to admit though, when I finally got to that point in this book I, couldn't put it down, and I did my best attempt to become a speed reader.
I found the bulk of the book which is a series of discoveries of the past to be a little boring. I guess Rowling's trying to get you the reader to piece along the puzzle at the same time as Dumbledore and Harry are, but I found them to be very dull, and not actually very pertinent to the interesting bits at the end.
I was not expecting the ending to go as it did, although I forget who, but someone spoiled a major event of the book for me beforehand. I was also totally off base with my guess as to who the Half-Blood Prince was the whole time. It was nice to be wrong and surprised when it finally came out.
I'm excited for the last book to come out, because for the first time, while I don't have any predications, there's something in this book which makes you think about the next one. Builds the excitement, you know.
All in all, a good book. They're really backlogged on the movie making, which is a little annoying, so I hope I don't forget everything that happened in the series before the next movie/book comes out.

-picture courtesy of www.chapters.indigo.ca

Celebrity Duets

I just saw a TV commercial for a show called Celebrity Duets (to be aired on Fox).
I thought it looked familiar.
Yup, it's yet another BBC knock off. I watched Just The Two of Us once, and quickly switched the channel out of boredom. I know Strictly Come Dancing (for you North American folks, read: Dancing with the Stars) uses sub B-list celebrities, but this is a new low. C'mon, an Atomic Kitten? An SClub7-er?
Leave it to good ole Simon Cowell bring another show to the States. I wonder what they'll bring over next.

Just call me bubble-girl

Huh. So yesterday, it was brought to my attention that GST is only 6% now. I gotta tell you, the view from the clouds is pretty nice though. I gotta try to be more aware.

[Flashback to just over a week ago, while in a jewellery store on Queen West, I remember a saleslady telling two tourist customers that they could get "tax-back" from their purchase. And that tax was 14%. at the time, I remember thinking, "hmmm...that's weird. Why's the saleslady saying 14% and not 15%?" But I didn't think anything more of it. Now I understand.]

All-American style

Since I'm in Europe for most of the year, my eye has become used to its fashion. I can't really describe it, but my brain now accepts it as the norm. So coming back to Toronto for the summer makes me really notice what Canadian mainstream fashion is.
I was at the Eaton's Centre yesterday and was introduced to Hollister. A store that didn't exist at the same time last year. It immediately made me think of Abercrombie which I'd also thought of the first time that I'd set foot into American Eagle. It's that Cali style that Canadians just seem to love. I also noticed that Abercrombie will have a store in the mall soon, and I'm surprised that it's taken this long. The number of people I know who order from the catalogues or go south of the border to get the stuff proved a long time ago that the demand in Canada was already there (sort of related, in Amsterdam, I was acutally surprised to see a store called America Today which sells Abercrombie stuff. I guess there's a little bit of a demand there too!)
Hollister just sold everything that I wouldn't see in Europe. The sweats, polos, and an excessive amount of jeans. Palm trees and beachy decor? The whole concept screams American-style.
I've noticed that Canadian men are quite preppy. The polos (with the upturned collar, of course). The khakis. The summer shorts and flip-flops.
The ladies are into booty shorts and flesh. It's a Lululemon bonanza (after much consideration, I've stuck to my veto-ing and have decided not to get a pair of their albeit, very comfortable and flattering pants - it would have been the Reverse Groove Pant). Lots of tight clothing, too short tops with love-handles and "muffin-tops" to match.
Now this is a huge generalization if I do say so myself. There are tons of people who don't wear anything I've mentioned above, but now I can understand why people in Neuch say that our students stand out so much. If you're used to seeing one thing, your eye immediately gravitates to those that are different.
I also have to say that teenie-boppers are out in full force in the summer - and I'm starting to feel old.
Sure, the recent emergence of Mango in Canada and the growth of Zara and craziness of H&M make me think that Canadians like to dabble in European fashion, but Canadians obviously still love to take trends south of the border, because that's what I've really noticed. Or maybe it just goes back to the fact that I'm used to European fashion so I've only noticed the American style because I haven't seen it for so long. Maybe there's just as many people out there who are wearing those European labels.
Though I live in a different fashion environment, I don't think that my taste has changed much. I still like the same stores. I'd say that I still dress quite bland. I've never been really daring. I still like wearing solid colours. Wearing an outfit without black scares me. I don't like to stand out in a crowd. Do I dress more "European" now? I doubt it, but when Abercrombie opens, don't expect me to be the first in line. Yes, I have some items from there...but I think I've hit my quota.

"Andy Warhol - Supernova" at the AGO

Yesterday, I went down to the Art Gallery of Ontario to check out the Andy Warhol - Supernova exhibit.
I'm not an art fanatic, but I do like to look at Warhol's stuff. I think the pop-ness is really cool. Bright colours and simplicity is fun. I'd seen some of his stuff in the Louisiana Modern Art Gallery (yes, I'll get around to writing about Copenhagen soon) and at the Tate Modern (yes, I'll get around to writing about London soon).
The exhibition was really well done. Included in the admission was an audioguide which told you more about the works and the background behind it all. Just looking at the 27 pieces of art, I would have never been able to make the link between "Stars, Death and Disaster", but it's so obviously there. Guest curator David Cronenberg did a great job.
I can't say that I have a favorite out of all of the Warhols I've seen. They're all neat in their own way.
The rest of the AGO was a disappointment, but only because there wasn't much to be seen. It seems as though nearly all of the cultural attractions in Toronto are, or have recently undergone a renovation and the AGO is no exception. What most people know of the main entrance of the AGO not in service right now, and only a small side door is where you have to go. The ROM also has relegated visitors to a side entrance. FYI, it's the "Loblaws" entrance. Barf. I'm also told by those on the inside that many people have actually walked in to the ROM asking for where the produce section is. Seriously. I'm sure those are the same people who used to go to the "Wonderbread" Discovery Gallery (now relegated to the CIBC Discovery Room - darn renovations) and ask for baked goodness. People are weird.

So yeah, while I was there, I witnessed an "incident". I was already in the second room when it started. I heard a man's voice making a lot of noise as well as a crowd's startled reaction. My first thought was that someone was having a seizure. That's what the noise made me think of for some reason.
I reacted slowly, because I thought that it would an incident that probably wouldn't want a crowd (especially if it was a medical emergency or something that could potentially be embarrassing to the people involved). I figured I would let the security deal with the situation, as museum/gallery staff are usually really well trained for this sort of thing. Eventually (maybe a minute later...not actually very long), I decided to see what the fuss was about since the commotion was obviously still taking place.
As I approached the room, I saw a confused crowd looking in the direction of the Red Disaster, 1963. In front of the piece were three completely naked men. Two were on the ground flipping from their backs to fronts, writhing around individually. The third was standing in front of the silkscreen facing the crowd and was putting a black stocking on his head, covering his face (to mask his identity?!?). He was holding a vial of fake blood (the colouring and consistency gave it away for me and later he had to step on the paste to smear it on the floor) which had partly been smeared on his torso and on the floor. At first, I thought the vial was a red Swiss Army knife or something and that's why the security were standing back. He also had something attached to his penis. All three men were muttering words that were unintelligible. A puddle of clothes were by a bench in the corner of the room. There was an unmistakable odour of "uncleanliness" coming from the room.
My mind immediately flashed back to noticing a specific man in the gallery while I was in the first room. He stuck out in my mind because of how he was dressed, dirty white sneakers, trackpants and ratty t-shirt (he contrasted against the rest of the visitors). He was alone, without an audioguide and looked as though he wasn't really looking at the art. He often sat in that corner bench and then would stand up and walk around quickly only to return to the bench.
The gallery wasn't very busy, so I could probably tell you about most of the people who were there at the time. I am a people watcher. I have always found that I don't remember faces very well, but I tend to remember reactions, mannerisms, and apparel/accessories.
I didn't understand what they were doing, I didn't know what their purpose was. Was it religious? Was it about the art? Was it about the artist? They were saying things, but I couldn't understand what they were saying. They were speaking in English, but the three voices clashed with each other, and they weren't articulating very well.
I turned my attention to the AGO staff, as I found it very interesting to see how they were trained and how they would react to this (don't forget my background in Museum work). I was disappointed to see how slowly they moved. It was a good amount of time before one of them stepped between the standing man and the Red Disaster, although before doing so, the lady had repeated asked the man to step forward, away from the piece of art. It didn't seem as though any of the art was in danger, which of course should have been the security's primary concern. The security told anyone (only a few) who tried to film or photograph the events to stop. This was prohibited in the gallery already. They quietly watched the proceedings from the back of the crowd and their faces almost looked as though they were unsure of what to do. I was very surprised at this. One did write something in his book. Every so often other staff members would come in to the exhibit to join the crowd and watch. Only the senior security staff quickly walked in and out of the room.
The door to enter the exhibit had been closed off, but there was no attempt to remove those who were already inside, which I was surprised by. Perhaps since it was thought there was no danger to anyone involved (including the art) that it didn't matter. I would have thought that they would want to clear the visitors to make the event as discreet as possible.
I scanned the crowd. Most were just watching in interest. Many were of an older generation and I was surprised that they were standing calmly watching the three men. I wanted to see if there was anyone in the crowd who may be associated with the three men. I quickly noticed a lady in the middle of the crowd (maybe 20-30 people). She was wearing what I associate as a communist military hat. The army green boxy brimmed baseball hat. And pencil jeans. The had a large "I'm into photography" camera slung over her shoulder and was one of the people trying to snap a shot. She was also holding a stack of white pieces of paper which I noticed her discreetly handing to those around her. The security only went up to her after she'd tried to take a picture to tell her to stop, but that's it. One lady was almost hysterical. She entered the room (she was in the same room as me when it began) and I guess didn't realize it was fake blood as she kept yelling: "call 911", "you need to go to a hospital" (to which one of the men on the ground responded "I'm trying") and "you're crazy". She echoed my sentiments asking the men "what are you protesting?" and saying "I don't understand what you're doing". She left the room screaming, "call 911" and "I can't believe it". Those around me were joking about "getting their money's worth" and kept asking what they were doing and why. No one seemed to understand what they were trying to do, which I'm not sure if it was intended that way.
I recall a lady (and what she was wearing, including the fact that she had a clear plastic "Hello my name is" type of thing "and I'm attending a conference" hanging around her neck. I tried to get a good look at what it said on it, but couldn't make it out) who entered the exhibition from the exit (strange), quickly walked to see what was happening, take out a "point and shoot" digital camera, flash a picture which was obstructed by an arm of a security man and quickly walk out again. No one stopped her.
I wasn't as disturbed at what the men were doing, as I was by how everyone was watching calmly. I have to admit that I got kind of bored by the whole thing, because I couldn't understand what they were saying, and they weren't really doing anything different. Just talking and writhing (2 men) or standing (the one man) legs and arms spread in front of the piece of art. I was surprised at how interested everyone else was, and just how few of them continued on to the other room to see the rest of the exhibit. I was surprised that more people didn't leave the room in disgust or in shock. If there was more variety in the "show" I would understand, but there was none.
Finally, at least a good 10 minutes later a senior security member yelled to clear the room. A partition was wheeled in to block the room from our sight. Most of the people became disinterested and continued on with the exhibit, some lingered to wait by the partition to see if anything would happen. I spoke with a docent who had been watching the proceedings, and she was just as confused as everyone else in terms of what was happening. I knew that she had received a copy of the flyer being handed out and had therefore thought she may have known what it was about. I was surprised to hear her say that she hadn't even looked at it. Yet, she was just standing there, the whole time...just watching. It was really strange. Why was everyone so interested at something they didn't understand? She showed me the flyer and I scanned it quickly.
The wording was complicated and coupled with my attempt to read it as quickly as possible, I still didn't understand the purpose of what they were doing. It referred to "neoism", but didn't explain it very well. A phrase that I remember was: "artists as pawns". For some reason I think of "commercialism". Or "the corporation". Don't forget that my vocabulary isn't the best, and maybe what I imagine these words to mean is completely incorrect, but after scanning the page, these are the two ideas that I came up with. It also referred specifically to the Red Disaster. The 2 panel piece that they were in front of. The left panel was a solid red and the right was a red background with a repeated black image (typical Warhol) of an electric chair. I didn't notice any names on the page other than Warhol himself.
I wonder why they picked that day to do this. It was midday, on a weekday. Did they want lots of attention? They could have picked a busier day.
The senior security staff asked to make sure that two women do not leave the exhibition. One was the lady with the hat and camera, another, that I did not notice had a video camera with her. She too was dressed the part though. Right down to the skinny jeans. Sure, sure, don't judge a book by its cover, but you know, often it works. The security asked for the camera and video and both resisted and actually walked away from the security trying to blend in to the crowd and used their audioguides. The "camera" lady hung around the partition quite a bit though and was chatting with some bewildered visitors saying that they shouldn't partition off the area, "the public should be allowed to see what's happening". Two other women visitors piped up out loud when the security were trying to corner the "video" lady to get her to turn over her camcorder saying "don't give in!" and "don't let them take it!". I flashed back to the lady with the badge around her neck. I wonder who she was and where she's from.
A couple minutes later, the police finally showed up and I noticed that the men were putting their clothes back on. The two women were asked to enter the partitioned off area as well. The "camera" lady went without hesitation (she actually had gone in again just after the are had been partitioned off - I almost thought it was because they wanted her to explain what the men were trying to do, because they weren't clear enough themselves) and the "video" lady when after much hesitation. She had actually sort of ran away from the security as they were walking towards her. The men were escorted out from the entrance to the exhibition so I did not see them walk by. Apparently the ladies were not escorted by the police. I do now know what happened to the footage and photos.
As I was leaving, I saw the "video" lady getting a refund for her ticket. I noticed that all the AGO staff were talking about the incident without much success, because a lot of them hadn't seen what had happened. I chatted with the lady who had given me my audioguide who had just finished telling her colleague that she'd thought it weird that three men didn't want the audioguide as they entered the exhibition. I saw the "badge" lady who was asking to get something from her bag at the coat check and asked her if she'd gotten a picture. She said no, but I got a really weird vibe from her.

It was really interesting. I still don't really understand what they were doing, but as usual, I was more interested in the other people who were involved and not the main stars themselves.

strangeness at the AGO

Go to http://www.torontoist.com/ and scroll down to read the story "Istvan Kantor + Warhol Show = Art Scene Hilarity". I witnessed it.
Will write about it tomorrow. I've got a horrible migraine right now (weather) and am going to bed.
It was so bizarro...and the police really didn't come as quickly as the e-mail makes it sound.