Euro2008

The last time I was in Zurich when I lived in Europe I snapped this photo. People were starting to talk about how Euro2008 was coming and even in the three years I was in Neuch a huge football stadium appeared out of nowhere. I never imagined that I would be in the country when the tournament was on. Never. One year seemed too soon to be back to Europe. Luckily for me, everything works out for a reason and I happened to be back in Switzerland from the quarterfinals onwards.
I'm so lucky.
The country was alive and soaking in the vibe of Euro.
Where the countdown sign was in the Zurich HB was this:
Yup. Wicked. Totally wicked. Amazing wicked.





Zurich even dolled up the Grossmunster:












Euro2008 was definitely here.
Neuch hosted the Portuguese team. They stayed at the Hotel Beau Rivage and the area was sectioned off. Police roamed around. They set up fences around the place and put up barbed wire too. The underground parking by the hotel had serious security.
This was serious stuff. They practiced at the new stadium in town and requested that real grass be brought in to practice on as opposed to astroturf. So the stadium charged 25CHF for spectators during practices to compensate. Nice.





Bern hosted a couple of the earlier games in their new stadium. The Dutch took over the city and when they lost the city mourned. So many cities in the country (and I'm sure in Austria
too) fully embraced the tournament. People lined up to get into the FanZones hours before matches and security was serious stuff.




I watched the Turkey/Germany semi-final game from the Zurich FanZone. The vibe was AMAZING.
They closed off most of the major streets. Stopped the tram routes (but had shuttle buses instead). Set up food/bar/club/pub/drink/souvenir stalls throughout the streets. It was a little Fete des Vendanges-esque.

Objects of my affection

I didn't splurge during my trip to Europe. I went with complete intentions of getting something in Paris that I didn't have the guts to buy last time, but it didn't happen because of a haircut. I kid you not.
Anyway, I'm not completely devastated that I didn't get anything, because I've made myself feel better setting up a dream/reward system. I am one of those people who is able to justify (ridiculous) purchases in their head. I'm not at the completely bonkers end of the spectrum, but ask me about any "extravagant" purchases that I've made and I can give you the back story. There's always a back story.

Anyway, my list includes:
- Loewe Amazona bag in black nappa leather. No weirdly coloured trim. Just the classic black model. Although for FW08-09 there's a beautiful eggplant (I'm sooooooo looking forward to all of the purple hues this fall/winter) patent version (swoon) and a limited edition charcoal blowfish leather one (SWOON). I guess I wouldn't mind the black croc version either.
- The new Goyard clutch in black. At first I thought that Goyard was absolutely tacky because I'd only really seen the totes that people seem to love for some reason, but this clutch is stunning. The trunks are nice as well (especially once they've been worn in), but let's be honest, I'm not going to get much use out of them. The fact that they're made out of canvas still irks me (especially for the price point). On the clutch, the hand-painted detailing just stands out even more...something about the size highlights the intricacy of it and the writing, but lends itself to being tasteful instead of tacky from afar.
- I ventured into the Sonia Rykiel boutique in the 6th by accident. Up until this point I had no interest whatsoever in this designers, but minds can always be changed. The boutique was stunning and so were many of the pieces from the FW08-09 collection. If my dream ever comes true, the coat that I love will be long gone, but I still love this coat and hope that there will be an equally beautiful one awaiting me in the future.
- Hmmm...I just realized that I have two rewards aligned with one dream. I didn't think I'd done that. I'll have to re-organize in my head somehow. Anyway, it's another clutch but this time by Smythson. I don't like the croc print though. I'm not a fan of embossing. I like the real deal.

That's my superficial dreamy dreams post of the day.

Water at Lake Side

The restaurant at the Hotel Beaulac in Neuch recently underwent a reno and the result was the Lake Side restaurant.
It's beautifully situated with the terrasse overlooking the lake and interestingly enough boasts a sushi menu. This is interesting. Sushi seems to be the new "hot thing" in Neuch. It's so much the trend that there's a sushi restaurant in the gare. This is weird.
Anyway, for some reason, I didn't get the sushi (I think because it was so overpriced, and I figured that I could get better stuff in Toronto and also the regular menu sounded very pretentious so I needed to test it out). This turned out to be a mistake because the sushi looked really good and my entree was lackluster. VERY lackluster.
Amour de « short-ribs » de bœuf braisés aux épices, achards de mangue en écumes, mousseline de céleri rave sounds good, doesn't it? Nevermind.
Anyway, the point of the post isn't to knock the food, but to gush about the water menu. I have a weird thing with water. I've got a bunch of beautiful bottles of water from various locations around the world (mainly European continent). The water menu reminded me of the time I was at Epic way back when and started my foray into fine water. We'd ordered a sparkling Voss and a still Gleneagles at the time.
Anyway, I didn't sample anything, but I enjoyed looking through the menu and seeing the descriptions of each of the waters. Nice touch to split them up by continent.

From Europe:



























Here's one from Africa.









There were three from the Americas.






One water from Asia and the other a
fruit juice that made the cut.









And finally, three waters from the Australia-region.

New York (March 11th - 16th, 2008)

New York was a wonderful trip. I can't believe that it took this long for me to get to visit the Big Apple and it was everything and more than I expected.
I did all the touristy things that I wanted to do (well, there are still a couple things that didn't get a chance to cross off my list, but it was a list that was growing longer every day) and went to see a Broadway show pretty much almost every night. I've already posted about the shows (here, here and here).
Here's just a couple snapshots from the trip...my goal is to get up-to-date on this blog, so I'm just posting basics and maybe details will come!
Anyway, it was a fantastic trip.




Trump Tower, of course. It was pretty bling-ing. I went into the lobby, but for some reason, didn't get the courage to go much further than that.





Times Square. For some reason, I was expecting a square. Like an area that was pretty much enclosed by buildings. I guess it sorta was, but not as square-esque as I thought it would be. why I would make such an assumption? Well, because I'm ignorant of many many things. Flashback to not knowing geographically where the heck Belgium was circa 2004. Wonderful memories.


I didn't get to tour Radio City, but hopefully I will next trip. I will also need to consider how much I want to see the Rockettes.








I have no idea why I didn't get on the ice at Rockefeller Plaza. I will. One day. It would have been perfect...I don't know what was stopping me.

The piano in FAO Schwartz is for sale. Feel free to buy it for me. I wasn't bold enough to play by myself, but luckily my travelling companion would play with me. It was so much fun and we re-enacted the scene from Big. Although, I have to admit we forgot about the Chopsticks part at the end. Oh, and I needed help from the attendant about the accompanying part of the piece. Tricksters - no triads when playing with two feet.






The Flatiron building.









Empire State Building. I must have gone at the perfect time - no line up. The view was amazing. I can't believe the skyline of the city. It's like looking down at legoland.





Looking south towards the bottom tip of Manhattan. I little smoggy, but what can you do?






I thought it was kind of funny how along the way to the elevator (quite the trek) to get to the top of the building, there we so many attempts on the part of the staff to get you to blow your hard earned tourist cash. Tours, photos, audioguides, souvenirs, simulators. It was pretty ridiculous. Lots of wasted paper on flyers. I suppose it might have been a little bit more successful if there was a long line and I wanted a little bit of reading to pass the time.

Oh, the shopping. Surprisingly, I didn't go nuts on this trip. Actually, I only bought one thing and it wasn't a splurge. I surprised myself! I have to say that I didn't see anything which really blew me away. It was all stuff I'd seen before, or stuff that I wasn't ready to spend the money on anyway. I did like going into different stores and areas to get the vibe and appreciate the displays. Quick synopsis. Bloomingdales was generic and I wanted a paper brown bag as a souvenir, but of course I didn't buy anything, so that didn't happen. Barneys was impressive. Very impressive. The stark white walls and minimal displays was incredibly well done. This was the most impressed I've been with visual display (and then I went back to Paris and saw Colette again). Soho seemed nice but filled with tourists and people who were trying too hard to be stylish, although I would have liked more time to wander around the many interesting shops they had there. The Meatpacking District was my favorite and I could have spent a lot of time there. It just had this really cool vibe and of course amazing boutiques. The Yohji Yamamoto boutique had the best location ever. I saw some pretty cool stuff at Y3 after learning about what the heck it was. The Christian Laboutin store made me drool. The collection at Theory seemed like it was made just for me. Stella McCartney was disappointing. I really wish Earnest Sewn jeans fit me, because I would love a customized pair, but I forgive them because they supply Repettos. I just loved the Meatpacking District. Loved it. Madison Avenue was as expected. A pretty sterile feel. I went into Tom Ford and still love men in suits. Bonus points if you have effortless style. Went into Prada and got up close and personal with a Fairy bag. Frig, if you can't carry it in the rain, why bother getting it? The waiting list was too long anyway. They were shooting the Shopaholic movie while I was on Madison. Tiffany - sigh. I mean, it was a beautiful store and I enjoyed looking at the items, but I wasn't blown away when I first went in. I mean, I thought it would be bigger...and then was advised to take the elevator to the different floors. Ooops...ignorance once again. Tee hee - the busiest floor is the cheapest floor. I guess people want to say they bought something there, but can't always afford their favorite item. I left empty-handed so I can't even be snobby about it. One of the floors is dedicated to engagement/wedding rings. Marc Jacobs was nice. I saw some of the crazy accessories that I loved from the SS08 RTW collection and was surprised at how I'm starting to love the Stam bag. They were having a crazy sale at the Grenwich Village shop, but again, I couldn't bring myself to buy anything. It was really weird. The stuff was dirt cheap, but because I didn't really need it, I didn't get anything. How sensible of me. I don't know if I got depressed on this trip because I saw such wonderful stuff but didn't indulge. I hope it's not superficial of me to feel that way - I like to think that I just appreciate design. No, not really depressed. That's not the right word, but I don't know what is. I think I'm done my bit about shopping.




Grand Central Station. I wish I was there for an Improv sketch. Any of them for that matter.






Museum of Natural History.









The dinos were nice, everything else was kind of lackluster.






Zabars. Food = yum. Fun experience. Was too embarrased to take pictures inside the store.




Walked across the Brooklyn Bridge. That was nice. Real nice. I think I would have liked to sit there for awhile and watch the world go by. If I could bring a nice soft blanket with me, that would be even better.


There's the lady. Ellis Island was neat as well. I thought the museum was very well done.








More Times Square. I like big buildings. I like bright lights. I like lots of people. New York is perfect for me.



Oh yes, can't forget that I love subways. The NY subway system is fun. Lots of fun.







I like modern art, so I like the MOMA.







This makes me think of Grade 6 and art camp. Well, it doesn't really. It makes me think about how much I like pop art.





I considering using this as my desktop.








Just a couple pictures from The Metropolitan Museum of Art












It's simple and I like it. There was a special exhibit on colour. I wonder how much this piece would fetch at an auction.







Hard day at work it seems.





So pretty much, it was a good trip.

Back in Toronto

I'm back in Toronto after being in Europe for two weeks. It happened too quickly. The past year happened too quickly.
I didn't end up making another investment purchase as I had planned - in large part due to a haircut which went overtime. Doesn't mean it won't happen in the future. I've added a couple more items to the wishlist, but have set up a "reward" system to placate my conscience. Whatever works, right?
More post to follow once I get back into TO mode.

This is nice

There have been lots of broken promises regarding intended post on this blog, but I hope that I can get my act in gear and go back and post some pictures from trips from way back and definitely write about what's been going on this past little while.
I'm back to where this all started. My second home - Neuch. I haven't jumped ship, just in the area for (yet) another wedding.
The internet is slow, so I while I have so much to say, this is not the right time.
I will say that I am happy. Life is wonderful.

Three years in Europe is good, but this is better

Somewhere in a not-so-distant location, a fine, young gentleman is going about his last day as a free-agent. This weekend will be epic.
I'm glad to be in Canada.

The mole

YESSSSSSS!!!
It's back. Thanks to youtube I can keep up to date with the best reality show ever...The Mole!
I was so sad when they stopped making this show. Also, the celebrity version of it was sub-par...I never thought them make it again but they did!

(I am also back up-to-date with Grey's Anatomy. Sweet.)

Luminato

So I ended up seeing it. Well, not as much as I would have liked, but I got a glimpse of Luminato.
I portioned off a section of my day for this festival an found out that there aren't a lot of free events to participate it. That's unfortunate.
I did make my way to Dundas Square, which I think has a fancier name now. I guess this is Toronto's version of Times Square. Anyway, there was lots going on there...lots of people milling about too. The "white orbs" that I'd read about weren't as exciting as I had hoped, but I'm sure they would be more impressive later at night when it's darker.

Oh, completely unrelated - I finally went to the Dairy Queen across the street from where I live. Got a Blizzard. Crap. Now that I've started, I probably won't be able to stop.

Oh well

Unless I become incredibly efficient (track record says, "no"), I will be missing out on Luminato. This is a shame because I know that it is/will be wicked.
I just have too much stuff to do in the next little while to be able to go out and enjoy the festivities.
If you have a chance, please go out and partake in the event on my behalf.
Sigh.
At least I know that there's always next year. I hope I don't say the same thing in 2009.

...

This makes me smile. I do miss it. I miss being free.

Sex and the City

Last night, I went to see the Sex and the City movie.
It was exactly what I expected. Nothing more, nothing less.
The fashion of course was wonderful. There was more high-end designer label name dropping than in TV show episodes...I could have done without that. It didn't seem natural. I don't know if it was "product placement" or an intentional decision the part of the movie directors/producers. Eitherway, I didn't like that part of it. I think part of the beauty of the show is Patricia Field's ability to make the characters in the show look effortlessly put together. Most of the time wearing those high-end labels, but without necessarily flaunting it (shoes are an exception).
Speaking of shoes, I was surprised at the number of shoes that were re-worn in different shots of the film. I would have thought that costuming would have kept the girls wearing different pieces all of the time. Same thing for the belts. There was some variety in the bag department - I'm a little miffed at the idea that Carrie has an Hermes. I wouldn't think that's as much her style - I suppose she has matured a bit.
A lot of the characters looked quite a lot older. I suppose being in the limelight for a certain period of your life and people watching DVDs of the series freezes them at a moment in their life. Carrie and Smith Jared in particular looked much older in the movie. The rest of the girls looked fabulous as did Chris Noth.
There were quite a few effective one-liners in the movie. The plotline was predictable (definitely had my own sarcastic one-liner moment towards the end of the film), bu again, what else would you expect?
I thought the film was effective in taking a TV show to the big screen. Having a complete "episode" play out. You would enjoy the movie even if you had never watched the series although there was a really great recap at the beginning done in a very witty manner.
Thumbs up for this movie. A fun night out. The cinema was packed and one of the earlier shows that we'd planned on seeing was sold out. I would have thought the die hards had already seen the movie by now and it wouldn't be as packed. Some intense fans - getting dressed up to the nines. A whole lot of estrogen in one room.
Again, it's exactly what you'd expect out of Sex and the City, so if that's what you like - go watch the movie. If you like fashion...watch the movie. Picking out items and labels is fun. So it picking out NYC locations. What a city.

-picture courtesy of www.sexandthecitymovie.com

I think it's a compliment

Someone that I'm starting to get to know said to me that I'm very politically correct and that I'm diplomatic.
I remember a very dear family friend stressing the importance of being diplomatic. I have no idea if it's because of him that I've developed this trait, nor am I really sure that I am.
I know when to turn it on when it's definitely needed, but I never thought of myself as being careful in my speech in general.
I wonder if it's my experiences and/or my future goals, but I can see how diplomacy has trickled into my existence.
I'm not really sure why I found this important enough to write a post about it - but I just did.

You don't realize

This morning, when I woke up, something felt different. I can't really explain it, but something was up.
It was only until I walked out onto the balcony that I realized that there was a calm flow across the Gardiner. Yep, the bikers were out in bull force and it created such a nice atmosphere and reduced the noise pollution by a lot!

Planet B-Boy

I watched Planet B-Boy.
It was on my list of movies to see during Hot Docs, but the timing didn't work out right. It ended up getting 2nd place in the Audience Choice Award, so it must have been good.
I found out that it was playing in the city, so I immediate made plans to see it. I didn't want to miss it the second time around.
The trailer looked awesome.
I have to say, while the movie was good, it wasn't compelling.
I could follow that the director wanted to create a little bit of a storyline on top of the fact that there were crews gunning to be the best in the world, but it was very minimally flushed out. For full props, I would have wanted not only crazy-cool breaking (OMG - I was flipping out...these people were sick!) but also that extra oomph. The background of the genre was sufficient, but more about the journey and impetus for each of the crews and their members would make it worthy of the hype.
Still a nice way to see some high-calibre breaking. I forgot how much I love watching this art-form.

-picture courtesy of www.planetbboy.com

It's a beautiful day

Having a day off is great.
Having errands to do is better, because it forces me to leave my place. A "day off" means I'm not scheduled to work somewhere else but that doesn't mean that I don't have work that I could (should?) be doing at home.
Anyway, after a little sleep in which my body has been desperately begging for (I think my body is past the fitness testing pain, but now it's in the we-had-circuit-training-at-the-gym-yesterday-pain phase) I got my stuff together and ventured out into the sunlight.
It was wonderful.
I walked. I people watched. I window shopped.
I walked through Nathan Phillips Square (the sound of the water fountain was calming) and noticed a photo exhibition. I thought it was related to the current CONTACT exhibition that's going on in the city, but it was a separate exhibition about those touched by cancer. I thought it was quite well done, each photo accompanied by a blurb linking the photograph to cancer in some way. I think it was the first time that I can remember that I stared at a woman who'd had a mastectomy for a long time. I appreciate the chance to see things up close and personal that many people fear or don't like to talk about.
I walked west on Queen Street West and ventured into the CONTACT exhibition at Red Bull 381 Projects. I suppose I understand the appeal of the 1st Place Winner of the HP Jury Prize, but I personally liked the 2nd and 3rd Place Winners better. There are some other nice photos on display as well. At this venue, HP is also providing a free print of one of your digital photos (bring on CD or USB). Tomorrow is the last day...hours are 11.00-16.00. Hopefully I will be able to narrow down my huge pile of favs to get my own print!

Fitness testing

Tonight I did my first full scale fitness test. I have subsequently developed a low self-esteem.
I should remind myself that some of the other people who I am being ranked against have been doing this for 6-15 years whereas I have been gymless for over a quarter of a century. Regardless, I'm sure glad that I invested in Lavender L'Occitane bath products to relax me into a state of apathy.
After getting the basics (height and weight - the depression commences) the calipers come out and my fat is pulled from 4 or 5 different areas. Great.
Now the true fun begins. The bane of my existence. Push ups. We have a minute to complete as many push-ups as possible and no resting is allowed. Only "proper" push-ups are counted. Proper = full out (not on the knees) push-ups low enough that your chest hits a target. So shorties and big boobied girls have an advantage. I fall under neither of those categories. I suck.
Old-school sit ups are next and I match my push-up count. I used to be proud of my abs, so the depression sinks in further.
Vertical jump tests. I need to hit up the gym some more. I do learn something of interest - a figure skater's landing leg is typically stronger than their take-off leg. I am no exception.
It is finally here. The VO2 max test. The moment that I have been dreading for a whole year. I have a mental block against running. Being strapped in wearing a headpiece, nose plug, and a mouthpiece which was uncomfortable and forced me to not be able to swallow my own saliva doesn't make the experience any more pleasant. Being asked every two minutes to tap a board which shows a scale from extremely easy to extremely hard while they keep speeding up the treadmill pisses me off. Of course this is extremely hard you fools. I want to die. After an eternity (which was depressingly nowhere near close to that) I was onto my next challenge.
Various flexibility tests follow and luckily, I have one strength. Thanks to a little obsession as a 12 year old, my spine continues to bend in mysterious ways.
And just when I was starting to think that there was hope for me, I get bashed back down to reality and complete the last portion of the test. Wingate. I remind my tester that yelling at me during my 45 seconds of pain doesn't inspire me in any way. Rather, it makes me want to climb off the bike and slap the man. I was happy to find out that slapping was not on the agenda for today. It was a lot harder that I remembered it to be (I had the pleasure of doing the wingate once before and felt decent afterwards) and the downward spiral continued.
I was exhausted, in pain, but done. The VO2 max test was just as scary as I had built up in my head. I get my results as some point and have the pleasure of finding out just how crappy I am compared to others. Yeah, so much for working to your own capacity and concentrating on improving your own results. We are obviously in direct competition.
And after sitting through a nutrition talk last week, I won't even feel good drowning my sorrows in a big bowl of ice cream. The motto of "if it tastes good, it's probably bad for you" has ruined my life. Thank goodness I'm so cynical that I will soon block this talk out of my memory and be back to eating everything that life has to offer.
Guess what. I get to do the darn test again at the end of the summer. Kill me now.

Only because I spend a lot of time with teenagers

I can't believe it. I'm fallen off the deep end. I've joined facebook.
It seems complicated so far. There's so many things that can be done, yet I have no desire to do them.
Trust me when I say that the only reason I've joined is because I realize it's importance to this little thing that I've become a part of.
Anyway, please don't consider me a sellout. This is the worst.

Ri-di-cu-lous, non?

Don't take it as me being obsessed with Project Runway, but in Season 3, Episode 10 where the contestants are in Paris (I'm getting so excited for the end of June, by the way) there was music that was completely ripped off. It's Yann Tiersen all the way. Inversions and variations don't trick me. I suppose mimicry is the highest form of flattery.

Brice de Nice

Two days ago, I heard a song that reminded me of Brice de Nice which made me very nostalgic. So, in an attempt to explain the significance of the song, I tried to explain the premise of the movie. It can't be done. Well, it can, but not to an extent where it makes any sense. The best correlation I could make was to Mr. Bean, but it's not the best link.
This is the original sketch...this an educational bit...and this is your musical fix for the day. If you aren't laughing (potentially out of bewilderment), well, I'm sorry.

- picture courtesy of www.bricedenice.com

WHAT?!?

After the judging...I started rooting for Daniel. Based on what I've learned about fashion, I understand why Chloe would win. It would have been nice to see them nurture the young talent which could propel him to greatness, but Chloe's work was fantastic and she had the right tools to succeed. I have no idea if she's hoping to go somewhere with it or not, but regardless, I'm sure that each of the finalists (and others who participated in the show) have their pick of job opportunities. If they don't end up starting their own lines, it would be great to see them designing at a major fashion house.

Okay - back to work.

Who who who?!?

OMG - I'm dying! The final runway shows were amazing! It's like a whole other level those shows. I guess when you've got more than two days to complete an outfit, you really can show what you're capable of. I don't know who's going to win! I've put my marking on hold because I want to pay attention to the final moments of the show. I think it'll be one of the boys that wins. This is ridiculous - I can't believe how many talented designers are out there. It's a shame that they can't all have enough funding to merchandise their own lines. Just 15 more minutes of this and then it's back to work for me. The first couple of episode are just background noise - gotta be productive!

This is the problem with reality TV

OMG - I'm watching the final episode of Season 2 of Project Runway. I have no idea who's going to win. I'm hooked. I'm addicted. And there's two more seasons that I can watch after this. OMG. It's nice to have in the background as I do my marking, so it's not completely taking over my life. I miss having TV on the the background. This is great.
Oh, and I freaked out when they cut Nick Verreos. What a shame. I haven't googled him yet because I don't want any spoilers, but I hope he goes far. I like his sense of style too.

Being productive

So what does two days off give you a chance to do?
Watch Season 1 of Project Runway. A lot of the outfits didn't blow me away, but there sure was an interesting cast of characters. And then all of a sudden the final three come out with amazing collections. The soundtrack for the shows were great as well.
Season 2 is coming up.
The internet is a wonderful thing.

(don't worry - I did other things too)

Ballers in da house

Seems there are some footballers staying in my building. Toronto FC...go go go!

Woot woot for Toronto!

I remember walking by filming of The Incredible Hulk this past summer after I got back from Europe, so it's kind of fun to look for our fab city in the background of the movie. Even in the trailer it's quite clear that Toronto makes its presence known. UofT is everywhere. Yonge St. Oh and Sam the Record Man too!

Ho hum

I have a day off tomorrow. Ho hum. Whatever should I do? Such a lovely dilemma.

Please go and call me

Someone please go to:
The Spring Thing Trunk Show
co-presented by City of Craft & the workroom
Sunday May 4, 2008
Noon-5pm
the workroom
1340 Queen Street West

And if there's fabulousness there that you think I would like - call me. Friggin work. I thought freeing up my Saturdays would be good, but it turns out cool stuff happens Sunday afternoons too. Boo-urns.

Why the strike was good...

Since it's hard to know exactly how long it'll take to walk to work, I left a little earlier than usual this morning. Turns out I was powerwalking, because I ended up in the area a lot earlier than I'd expected. Thankfully, there are a couple stores that open at 11am, so I can waste an hour quite easily. If it weren't for the strike, I would have never known that Brown's opened their Bloor St. location and carries the Car Shoe brand. SWOON! Also, I bumped into a small lilac crocodile Hermes Birkin in Williams and Sonoma. SWOON!

They're baaaaaaack!

After a particularly boring day at work, I was dreading the hour long walk home, so I thought that going to Greg's for some ice cream would make the walk a little bit more bearable. Boy did it ever. Not only did I get some roasted marshmallow and ginger ice cream, but I also started walking down Spadina (instead of taking all of these random small streets) which conveniently had a bazillion streetcars running.
Strike = OVER!!!
And, I love Toronto for so many reasons. My ride home consisted of a conversation between three passengers (including myself) and the driver about how wonderful the TTC is and how useless, horrible and ridiculous the union and their cronies are. It may be a generalization, but often union people are wingnuts. I'm glad that there are so many drivers who truly love their job.

Fine dining

Check it out.
I'm special. I've eaten at number 27 and 45.

vie de merde

If you want to brush up on your French and react to some of the things that the French think is la merde visit this site.
Some stuff does make you laugh out loud, but others are kind of ho hum.

Thanks to CBC Radio 1, As It Happens for the tip.

Eleven Minutes

Eleven Minutes (official site) is a documentary about the lead up to Jay McCarroll's debut fashion show. Known for being the first winner of Project Runway (I only watched Project Runway Canada, so I have no background on this guy) he made the big leap to Bryant Park (albeit the smallest tent) for September 2006.
Clearly a man who loves attention, but has a wavering self-esteem - as demonstrated by his animated introduction to the screening, Jay was open and honest throughout the documentary. So candid in fact that the audience was privy to an odd story about Kelly Cutrone of People's Revolution.
Walking out of the screening, I overheard one lady say to her companion, "It was fun, but you couldn't have been expecting anything insightful." Strangely enough, I was. Maybe I take everything too seriously, and assume that anything as such a wonderful festival such as HotDocs would be just as deep, even if on a light subject matter.
The audience seemed like a much different crowd than other shows that I've been to. Lots of whispering during the documentary, laughter (some of which was warranted, but others a little superficial) and the questions after the movie for Jay and directors, Michael Selditch and Rob Tate were just as shallow as the film that was presented. I guess the subject matter draws a different crowd than the other shows that I've seen.
Not to say I didn't appreciate learning more about the fashion industry and what goes into producing a fashion show. I also appreciated Jay's sweet nature, but unless you want a really light movie, I'm not sure this movie is the most stellar.
The documentary was shot quite casually. Sometimes the cameraman (often one of the directors) could be heard casually asking questions to the subjects, other times shots went in and out of focus. The film was even a little grainy, not that super saturated colour and picture perfect quality stuff.
I thought his collection was very nice. There were pieces that even I'd be interested in wearing. It was really colourful, but I still liked it. I'm sure if I really tried, I could get some pieces, but I'm not ready to dish out that cash and really go out there to seek it out. Unfortunately, there were no distributors that picked up his line. I love watching designers sketch. The colours and fabrics that he chose were yummy. Even the jewellery and shoes and he partly designed were very nice.
Oh, and I still really want to go to a fashion show. A big, legit one. I think it would be fascinating to see what's on the runway, feel the vibe of the crowd and people watch.

I think this may have been my last documentary for the festival. I might look into something for the weekend, but I'm not sure if it'll happen. I had a great time and got to see some wonderful documentaries. I will definitely participate in the festival again next year. Conveniently timed with the arrival of spring weather, it was nice to be downtown and visiting other theatres in the city. It was also nice to see crowds of people out and about. I enjoyed picking up the free Toronto Star newspapers as well. I've sure missed those crosswords.

Memory Books

It's almost over, but is it too late to spread the word that daytime shows are free for students and seniors? Way to go HotDocs!

I suppose they figure that the daytime shows will be sorta empty - which this one was. Too bad, because it was a great topic to have a documentary about.

Memory Books takes a look at the program initiated by the National Community of Women Living with HIV/AIDS (NACWOLA) where infected mothers have the opportunity to purchase a memory book (director, Christa Graf was on had to answer questions and mentioned that each book cost the equivalent of 10euros!!! That's huge!!!) to create with their children.
The books are intended to be for one child, so there may be more than one book per household. Mothers are encouraged to engage in discussions with their child and write in the books (or have a scribe if they are unable themselves) in Ugandan or English (whichever they prefer). On each page, short headings are given to prompt mothers on what to write about...family history, the beginnings of the child's life, goals for their child, etc. Pictures can be drawn, photos can be pasted
The cinematography and score for the documentary was wonderful.
We met a variety of characters. Mothers, nurses, children and orphans. We were privileged to sit in on writing sessions, hospital visits, times to reminisce.
One criticism for the documentary is that it didn't really flow well. Sometimes it seemed disjointed and jumped from idea to idea. Also, I felt that certain moments were scripted, which is horrible to say based on the topic of the piece. I doubt that it was, but some moments just seemed crafted for the screen. I will be optimistic and hope that someone was just really good at piecing together all of the "best" parts.
It is such a wonderful idea. Many Ugandans have embraced the program, mostly in the rural villages. HIV/AIDS is a horrible epidemic and while citizens of all ages are being educated more and more about the illness there is still a slight sense of embarrassment and restraint when dealing with the topic. This program gives women an opportunity to feel empowered and take their destiny into their own hands. Increased morale, acceptance, time with family, discussions about heritage and history, there are so many ideas that are raised from this program. One could even say that in a community with an oral tradition, this not only keeps memories alive longer, but encourages literacy in Ugandan youth.
I'm still disappointed that a book costs so much to purchase and I hope that other countries adopt this idea and run with it.
Want to read about it the initiative? I Die, But The Memory Lives On, by Henning Mankell may touch you in some way. It touched the director of the documentary enough to have her create this film.
This was a moving documentary that makes me want to do more in life.

Letter to Myself and Bevel Up: Drugs, Users and Outreach Nursing

Another rush line...another double billing.

Letter to Myself was short and it seems that I don't really like short documentaries. I mean, it was okay, but similarly to Kids&Money I thought that this documentary just skimmed the surface. Both movies had a lot of potential, both failed in my mind. The title and the description of the documentary lend itself to be a great production. It ended up being a short glimpse into the lives of two drug addicts and their attempt at coming clean. Simple insight into the life of an addict and signs that everything is going wrong were explored, but that's about it. The deeper meaning behind the whys and next steps were missed. In the end, this movie ended much earlier than it should have and became a teaser for the documentary to follow.

Bevel Up: Drugs, Users and Outreach Nursing (official site)...now this was GOOD. This documentary was created to be part of a interactive DVD that could be used as a educational tool. Apparently there are no classes about this topic in nursing programs in the country.
The documentary follows the street nurses of Vancouver and some of the people that they watch over.
At first I was a little confused. Why were these nurses providing users with needles and mouthpieces? Weren't they encouraging drug use this way? They were also giving out condoms and conducting blood tests, but providing users with the tools they needed to get high confused me. I suppose it's still a common cause of discussion, but I get it now. I'm still not really sure how I feel about it, but I get it. They were providing a safe and sterile environment to continue their lifestyle. They were educating how to continue their lifestyle in the most healthy manner possible. If the user themself wasn't ready for a lifestyle change, there was nothing that these nurses could do to get them to that position. In the event that they did want to clean up, they would have someone whom they trusted to help them down that pathway. And bottom line, they were providing health-care. Health-care and a safe lifestyle, whatever that may be. In the post-screening Q&A with superstar street nurse Caroline Brunt, she stressed that she had nothing to do with the illegal drugs. One may find it confusing that she encouraged a user to get their next fix, but in the short window of time that the nurses have to deal with users and decide what's best for them, sometimes getting them to be where they're most comfortable gets better results. She did ask the user to exit her van however before shooting up.
The street nurses work together with the police. Apparently they work very well together, although I'm not really sure how the dynamic works. These nurses see illegal things happening, but I guess they turn a blind eye to it? That, I'm not really sure how it works out.
It was interesting to see the different people that the street nurses work with. The mixture of characters. I don't know how it works. What do they do? How does time pass for them? They seem so matter of fact about their lifestyle and are completely aware of the risks and dangers. They seem very open and wiling to take advice from the street nurses (everyone is on a first name basis, phone numbers and contact information is given out...you can imagine the trust level that's been built over time). I'm not really confused about it all, but intrigued.
Lots to think about of course.
As I mentioned before, Caroline Brunt was on hand to answer questions and talk about the DVD. Director, Nettie Wild was also there to chat. They showed us some of the features of the DVD and I agree that instead of creating a 5 hour documentary which could cover all of the important issues, the current documentary which provided a great overview and provided enough insight to get you going for a night of thinking was a sufficient length. The extras on the DVD were an excellent was of providing more background and interviews with experts in the field. They were both very passionate about their work and the audience was eager and engaged in the discussion. It's too bad that we had to get out of the theatre as there was another documentary about to play. I wanted the discussion to go on all night.
I hope to read more about these nurses in Vancouver and their successes. I'm not sure where I stand on some of the issues that arise in their line of work, but I still support them whole-heartedly.
And I feel like I can't do this documentary justice. Especially since I'm exhausted and I can't keep track of my thoughts anymore.

That wasn't so bad

I don't know what made me do it, but I ended up walking home from school/work/life. It took 45minutes. Not bad at all. I could have used an i-pod or something, but the random street noise wasn't bad. It was a good chance to completely clear my head. I have this weird ability to let my mind go completely blank. It's like I black out for awhile because sometimes when I clue back in, I have no recollection of what just happened moments earlier. Is that odd? There's not too much scenery on the walk home - probably because I stare at the same thing on streetcar. I almost stopped to get some food, but didn't see anything that stuck out. So now I'm eating a bagel. Boring. I did notice a Dairy Queen across the street from me - this could be problematic.

Green Porno

I forgot to mention that as a little added bonus, the folks at Hot Docs screened Isabella Rossellini's, Green Porno before All Together Now.
These short little vignettes about bugs were hilarious and educational at the same time. I heard someone comment that maybe the shorts were produced for educational purposes, but I'm not sure if some of the content is appropriate for children. For example, the earthworm short talked about the 69 position. Hmmm. Other than specific terminology, they would be a great way to learn more about insects.
I really liked them. Alight way to gain a better understanding of insects. If someone wants to educate adults about a topic in a way that they'll never forget - this would be a great way to do it.

Nursery University

Nursery University is a documentary about the "battle" in Manhattan to get toddlers into the best nursery schools.
I was a little concerned about how it would play out in the first couple of minutes because of the selection of music and the style of the production, but it toned down and I LOVED it!
The documentary follows a couple kids who's parents are going through the grind of how to get them into the best (or any for that matter) pre-schools. It's perfect documentary characters - different backgrounds...racially, socially, financially, blah blah blah. And the best part is that there are different endings too.
The toddlers were really sweet and the parents...colourful. The directors dealt with a sensational topic in a very thought provoking manner. The main issues and timeline of the application process were outlined but the stars of the show were the characters. The parents and what they brought to the table.
I just can't believe how competitive it is for these parents. I don't think it's the same situation here in Toronto. Maybe there's a little bit of competition to get into the best private schools, but I don't think it's to the extent of what's going on in Manhattan and the rest of the States. I suppose we're lucky that even though certain areas have better schools than others, the tiers aren't as distinct as it is in the States. Good schooling is absolutely important for a child's development, but the part about how the right nursery school can get your kid into Harvard is a little far fetched in my mind. I still don't know where I stand on the whole private vs. public school thing in here in Toronto.
The directors, Marc Simon and Matt Makar were on hand to answer questions which as you all know, I love. Apparently last night, head of the Mandell School, Gabriella Rowe was also on hand for the first screening. Cool.
Another movie - two thumbs up!

All Together Now

So the story goes...George Harrison and Guy Laliberte both rolled in the Formula 1 circle. Schmoozing ensued and LOVE was born.
All Together Now is the documentary (worldwide premiere - yippee Hot Docs!) about the creation of this Cirque du Soleil show.
WATCH THIS FILM.
I don't know much about the Beatles. Seriously, I starting thinking that the documentary was a nice tribute to George Harrison with all the insightful interviews they had with him and then flipping to moments where it was just Olivia Harrison...well, the interviewee was actually Ringo Starr - who is hilarious by the way. Yikes. But I do know a fair number of their songs. And I can appreciate good music.
I love Cirque du Soleil. I'm always on the edge of my seat watching them. I love the drama, the music, the costumes, the talent. There were lots of great shots of rehearsals and the production itself.
The audience had the pleasure of watching the creative process happen. The "tampering" of the Beatles' music and the potential backlash (which turned out to be less of a deal than one would think). The constant tiptoeing with the Apple Corps Ltd. (which also turned out to be less of a deal than one would think).
Only a small part of the documentary followed the path of a performer, and I feel that while it was a nice idea, either they needed to flush it out more or just leave it out completely. There were enough other plotlines to keep the audience entertained.
There was a strong sense of family and relationships in this documentary. Wives, husbands, fathers, sons (Dhani Harrison is a splitting image of his dad) - it was a touching idea.
Each member of the group was well represented. Two by wives (Olivia and Yoko) and two by themselves. It seemed as though the wives really wanted the legacy of the their husbands to ring loud and clear. They had a vested interest in the show and often made their strong opinions known. I don't know if it was the case, but the documentary made it seem like these two voices rang louder and more critically than those of Ringo and Paul. It was very nice to hear the supportive nature of the living members and the happiness etched on their faces throughout the premier of the show. Both Ringo and Paul had very memorable words describing the show and their experiences. You'll have to see it for yourself.
Dominic Champagne had the difficult task to create the show and make everyone happy. He did a wonderful job.
The best part of film festivals is the chance to hear people associated with the film speak. We were all delighted to have the filmmaker, Adrian Wills and Giles Martin (great accent - yum), son of Sir George Martin chat and answer questions.
I hope that the documentary will show up on the TV, but if not, it'll be available on DVD June 24th.

Kids & Money and Emoticons

First movie of Hot Docs...rush seats! All three of the showings of this double bill about our youth were rush, and so I pressed my luck (does anyone else remember that TV show and also has this blur of how the show actually worked?) and got lucky!

Kids & Money takes a look at teens and pre-teens living in Los Angeles and their take on fashion, fortune and fitting in. Maybe it's because of my experiences and the line of work that I'm in, but nothing in the movie surprised me. The documentary felt a little short and just scratched the surface of many issues that teens face these days. I wanted to hear so much more about what the kids had to say. What their parents had to say. Watch more of their lives and analyze their every waking hour. While some kids were completely off base with reality, many others were very insightful for their age. Being a kids these days is difficult. And depending on where you live and where you're from, it can be even harder. Mind you, being an adult can provide for many of the same problems - I'm not sure if we're better equipped to deal with the issues and/or if we're more immune to the effects of society. Based on the description of the movie and some of the reviews that I've read, along with the fact that all of the shows were sold out, I was expecting a lot more out of this film. It provided for a lot of laughs (although I'm not sure what was so funny. I get that some of the comments were funny because they seem so off-base, but that doesn't mean that it's not true or isn't prevalent) but It really was just superficial (no pun intended). I really wanted further investigation into the issues and I didn't get that. It was quite limited. I would recommend watching this if it you happened to flip by it on your TV and you want a smidge of insight into the lives of some of our youth, but other than that, it's no big deal. Unfortunately.

Emoticons followed six young ladies and their involvement with the online world. For communication, for comfort, for advice for friendship, the internet is a powerful tool. This Dutch movie (I do like the sound of the Dutch language. It rolls off the tongue.) was not a light hearted romp like the first feature. Many of the girls turned to the internet in difficult times but after awhile, I felt like the movie was starting to drag. Again, it was a great movie and I got the point of the documentary quite quickly, but it was like something was missing. The a-ha moment. The breakthrough. something. It's fascinating how powerful of a tool the internet is, but, I don't know...this movie was also kind of ______. Maybe it's because I"m starting to get tired, and lazy to type, but although each film wasn't bad - it wasn't stellar.

I was hoping that someone from each of the productions would be on hand to give a little speech and provide a little bit more insight into the film, but unfortunately it was not meant to be. Maybe if I had heard them speak more about what they were trying to get out of the film, their experiences working on the production or even to hear some of the questions being asked I would have a better sense of satisfaction, but no such luck.
Anyway, I'm still happy that I went to the film. It did get me thinking about some of the issues that students go through. Even though nothing new came to the surface (at least to me) it was still a chance to think a little bit about the issues and many just having this extra chance to think about them will help me in the future in a couple different facets of my life.
I'm intrigued to read more reviews of the films now that I've seen them for myself.

Oh, I spoke with a member of the press today and was told that Air India 182 is fantastic, but (even better) it will be playing on CBC television towards the end of June.

Hot Docs

The fun has begun!
The documentary version of the TIFF is upon us and I'm looking forward to being a part of Hot Docs.
I've bought a couple tickets already and need to go rush for a couple more. No prob - I'm a seasoned pro with the rush situation. And to end a weirdo day on a high, I got into my first rush movie - review coming up!

And slightly related, I have recently made a conscious decision to get out there more often. Take advantage of what's going on in the city. I think back to everything that I did on my travels, even if I was by myself and it was in a foreign language. Why, all of a sudden, now that I'm back in Toronto do I need to give all of that great stuff up? It seems silly. I had such a great time out there, why would I stop it. And this city has so much to take advantage of too. Anyway, I digress. Bottom line, I'm going to live it up!

It was bound to happen

I've been soaring ever since October-ish. It was a learning experience coming back from Europe and there were a couple really low points, but I thought I was adjusting quite well and a lot of wonderful things happened after I got home that I really embraced being back and enjoying everything that I had going on. Great opportunities arose and I got to do things that I couldn't do while I was away. I got to see and spend time with people that I'd missed so much and I got to move forward with some of the things that I'd put on hold. When I first came home there were a couple things that didn't work out as planned, but everything always happens for a reason, and it quickly became clear what my path for the year would be and it was better than I could have ever imagined. Everything seemed to be moving in the right direction, smooth sailing so to speak and then BAM! There's a wrench in my plans, and I'm not sure what to do. It's thrown me for a loop. I'm going through the stages of mourning/grief. Today I woke up and was a mixture of anger and depression. It was the weirdest thing. I felt stupid. With the great weather and everything else going me way, why was I letting this one little thing get to me? Luckily, my day ended wonderfully, but I've still got this lingering feeling that something's not right. I mean, things aren't going according to my plans. Frig, isn't everything supposed to go according to my plans? Jeez people, work with me here!

Wonderful weather

Goodbye winter, hello...summer?!?
I guess I'd put away my super-winter coat a month or so ago, but was still wearing a wool/cashmere coat up until two days ago. Yesterday I'd switched to my fall/spring (not really sure how to classify it) coat, but still complete with a cashmere scarf (my neck seems to be more sensitive to cold than I remember it) and today, no coat needed at all (but still wore an uber-warm authentic pashmina).
The weather was fantastic. For most of the day I was bare-legged under my skirt (my pale legs were glowing) but super-prepared me, I had leggings for when it started to get colder at night.
I could have used a coat as well, but I was just happy to be out and about. Walking made me warm enough.
I see that Saskatoon (I think that's what I read) is getting 40cm of snow this weekend? That sucks.
I'm hoping that this weather is here to say, although I do have a fair number of coats that I'd like to get some use out of before +30 degree weather or fall.
I really have nothing to complain about. It's wonderful weather and the sun is fantastic. The past couple of days, I've been sitting in my bowl chair in the sun and lazing around cat-napping or standing and staring on my balcony. I even broke open the tub of ice cream I have in my freezer for special occasions.
I even rotated my shelves to put away my winter clothes and bring out my spring/summer attire.

O-M-G

Phew, just got off the streetcar and my head is pounding. From Spadina station to Front Street, the passengers on the streetcar were subject to screaming (worse for me because I was surrounded by them) university students. I was going to guess that they were teenagers based on how they were acting, but they could have been in their early 20s. Nope, I would guess that maybe they just finished first or second year of university. They were talking about Waterloo and Schulich.
I wanted to die.
They were literally screaming. Ironic how they were complaining about how they always seem to lose their voice after a night of clubbing. They really didn't need to talk that loudly. The rest of the passengers were quite subdued and the car was only noisy because of them.
There were about 10 of them altogether. Friends from high school and university. I guess I missed out of that part of my life. I went out while I was in university at Queen's, but never really did the Toronto scene.
My head felt like it was going to explode.
They were dressed to the nines of course. That's what you do. It's a (special) night on the town, so you want to look your best. One particular outfit of mention was the young lady who was wearing a top as a dress. It did not cover her, errr...curves. I think I saw her *ahem*. Yikes. Each member of the group was holding a water/soda bottle filled with a mixture of various substances. One boasted that she had "sparkling cider" - oh, how fabulous, dah-ling.
Oh, but of course I don't judge any of them.
After they got off, you could feel a collective exhale of the passengers remaining on the streetcar. We all looked at each other and laughed out loud. It was kind of nice.

Wow

I just realized that Ivanka Trump is my age. Actually, she's a couple months younger than me. Wow. I know she had a whole different upbringing and a whole bunch of things working in her favour (probably some things against her too) but I'm so impressed with her. Seems to have a level head. Highly successful. Does her rounds as a young philanthropist. Not one of those loony heiresses.