Candyman: The David Klein Story

I decided to do Hot Docs this year on the cheap. As such, I was limited to films that were showing before 6pm. There were still tons of docs to choose from, but for some reason, there weren't as many sticking out to me for definite viewing. Nonetheless, there were enough docs to keep me busy.
The first doc that I saw was Candyman: The David Klein Story (official website here). It's the story of David Klein, the man who invented Jelly Bellys. The doc highlighted his journey in the candy industry as an entrepreneur and inventor and his unwavering loyalty to those whom he worked with. This quality, unfortunately, allowed others to take advantage of him or allowed others to prosper where he continued to face some struggles. The biggest scandale, basically being wiped out from Jelly Belly history and loosing out on a ton of profit money.
There was also a component with his son, Bert Klein which I enjoyed. It talked of their relationship and we were able to see the story from a different point of view.
There was a Q&A with Costa Botes (the director), and David and Bert Klein. The questions were fairly mundane and didn't really provide any great responses. Although Bert was wearing the famous sparkly shirt/coat and David danced in wearing the matching hat, the Q&A didn't provide as many fun lighthearted moments as their entrance and David's presence in the doc would suggest. As I was watching the documentary I thought that he would be a great guest speaker talking to youth about good values, creativity, living life to the fullest and so much more. I was actually surprised by David's seemingly snide quips about Jelly Belly and big corporations. I mean, his comments were justified, but I really thought that he would be the type would wouldn't use this opportunity to rant and just quietly project positive vibes no matter how frustrated and hurt he may have felt. Maybe I misread something.
Anyway, another nice touch at the screening was the little baggies of Jelly Bellys that audience members received on the way into the theatre. I would have liked the little legend to tell me the flavours, but thanks to the internet, I don't need a hard copy.
I have to admit, that probably about 45-60 minutes into the doc, I started to get bored. I hope that it wasn't an indication of the doc, as I can't remember the last film that I saw that I didn't feel the same way. Perhaps more of an indication of my attention span.
One doc down, a couple more to go!

- picture courtesy of hotdocs.ca

Fashionably Wrapped: The Influence of Kashmir Shawls

I've never been to the Textile Museum of Canada, but I should probably make a trip there sometime. I'm sure that I would enjoy it.
I've got another commitment Wednesday night that I can't get out of, but if you've got the chance, perhaps the Curator's Tour for this exhibit would be interesting to attend.

Glee

I'm not sure if I like or dislike Glee.
I like the musical numbers, but other than that, the show falls short on so many levels.
For instance, I love Kristin Chenoweth loads, and I'm glad to have heard her sing a bunch of songs on the most recent episode, but c'mon. The storyline was weak. It was like they desperately wanted to get her back on the show somehow and ended up creating a wacked out plotline in order to make it happen. I thought they needed her for sweeps, but it's too early.
So strange.
I'm waiting for Idina Menzel to sing. They've set up a great way for her to come back on the show, so they'd better make the most of it and create some crazy good numbers.

Green Living Show

I'm an over the top pack-rat. Today is proof.
The Green Living Show is in town, and I'd read about the free admission when you bring in a piece of electronic waste to be recycled.
I thought of two pieces that I didn't use that I would probably be okay to donate, but at the last moment, decided to bring one out of retirement and the other, well, it still works and it's super retro-looking, so perhaps one day I'll rock a yellow walkman yet again. Each of the pieces have great memories attached to them, but that's not my real pack-rat story.
I still wanted to go to the show for free, so I rummaged around my place looking for something that was broken. Surely, I would be able to part with something that I couldn't even use anymore. I found a digital camera that seemed to take pictures of a black screen, desperately tried to bring it back to life (at one point it was just temperamental, and if you pressed the on/off button just the right way, the black screen would be no longer). Nope. It didn't seem to work.
Even still, with this completely useless digital camera that has since been replaced by an even better and cooler digital camera, I struggled to put it in my bag and head out the door. This was my first digital camera. This was the camera that I took with me to my European adventure. I mean, I bought it for that purpose. I literally bought it 10 days before I left the country. It survived being dropped many times, the red sands of the safari in Kenya and the tiniest particles of sand in the Sahara desert. I'm sure all of those things actually contributed to its demise, but I loved that camera. I loved the flip screen on the back. I got so good at taking night pictures, and super bright pictures, and speedy motion pictures with it (I still haven't reached the same mastery level with my new camera).
Please, take a moment of silence for my dearly departed digital camera...
I hear you laughing. Fine. Be that way.
All those dents, scratches, bumps and bruises. You will be missed.
I finally pulled myself together, treated the moment as a step forward in my pack-rat illness and ventured to the Direct Energy Centre, where the Green Living Show was being held.
I dropped off my digital camera to the lovely Samsung people who absolutely humoured my trepidation for dropping my camera in the already full bin. I was reassured knowing that my precious camera would be made into something equally useful that someone else would love as much as I loved my camera (realistically though, maybe a little bit less. Don't worry, I admit I'm crazy.)
The show didn't really have much for me. It was a nice outing, but I have no plans at reno-ing my condo and I can't really do anything to the building anyway. I don't need any more clothing, even if it is made out of bamboo and while babies are in the air, I'm not ready to buy presents here. Also, I have no pets to feed organic pet food too and I'm already partway through my final degree, so I don't need to be recruited by a Holistic school of medicine, a university or Stanstead College (someone really needs to explain to me why they were there). I did sample some organic and other foods that made the Green Living radar. I had soy ice cream for the first time, and while it wasn't revolting, dairy ice cream tastes so much better. If you like the taste of soy over the taste of cream, then by all means, go for the soy stuff, but I found the soy taste was all I concentrated on. I could barely make out the maple taste that they were showing off.
I had already had lunch at home, or else I probably would have enjoyed sampling the Farm Fresh Fare. If wine didn't make me nauseous, I probably would have enjoyed the BioVino.
If you've got some time this weekend and would like a nice little outing, take a trip to the show. If you've got some electronic gadget sitting around and collecting dust, and you're not so pack-rat-esque, there really isn't any reason to go to the show.

Making the most of 344 square feet

This is craaazy! I don't know if I'd rather have everything crammed into a studio apartment or have 24 different rooms (but only one at a time).

The death of high end sneaker shops

This makes me sad. I think sneaker shops are super cool and every so often I want a pair of cool looking kicks. I don't think that they'd go with anything in my wardrobe, but they look so cool. I'm sure if I tried, I could rock the look.

Photos that changed the world

Here's a TED talk given by Jonathan Klein (Getty Images) about the impact of photos. I thought it was an effective talk. Concise and impactful with a clear message behind it.
I wonder if I can improve my presentation skills by watching good presentations?
Some people may not want to see some of the pictures used in the talk, so proceed with caution.

Top Chef Masters

Many TV shows are nearing the end of their seasons. I'm running out of things to watch. One that's still airing is Top Chef Masters 2. And Susur Lee's going to be on soon. Go Canada!

Perfect Cons?

I've been looking for the perfect pair of Converse shoes for quite some time now. It seems like I get on kicks to find the perfect ________. And when I get into the zone, I will go almost everywhere to find that elusive perfect thing. I'm convinced that I'll never find my perfect notebook and will probably end up buying something just so that I can start writing everything that needs to be written.
Of course, most of the time I don't know what the perfect _______ is in my head. I have a little bit of an inkling what I'm looking for, but until I see it, I can't give a full description of it.
Anyway, back to the Cons. I've been looking for a pair of Converse shoes. I found a pretty perfect pain in Manhattan, but didn't buy them at the time and of course haven't been able to find a similar pair (or better) since.
Maybe this is my chance at perfection?
Knowing me, I'll just end up not ever owning a pair of Cons, or buying the most generic pair in the world.

Time goes by...so slowly...

It's 10pm and I've been trying to kill time for the past two hours. Surprisingly, I'm exhausted and completely ready for bed...but I still have another two hours to go before I can take off the brown goopey stuff on my ankle.
I've read, I've streamed videos, I've surfed all of my regular websites. I've got a headache. I want to go to bed, but I can't fall asleep or else the brown goopey stuff will burn through my skin.
I haven't wanted to go to bed this early in awhile.
I should be excited that I'm actually tired and willing to go to bed at a decent hour, but I can't even take advantage of my exhaustion. I have until midnight before I can hit the hay.
This sucks.

Lulu's not as popular as I thought!

In a weird twist of events, in the past couple of weeks I've worn my lululemon pants more often than I would like to admit. Sure, I understand that they're comfy, blah blah blah, but they're still sweatpants and if you watch What Not To Wear, you'll know that it's possible to find fashionable clothes that are comfortable too.
Anyway, during this lulu-wearing stint, I've had so many people (strangers, acquaintances and friends alike) helpfully point out that I have a sticker stuck to the back of my leg. Up until this point, I thought everyone and their pint-sized yappy dogs knew about lulu. I'm happy that I was wrong.

31 cent ice cream

It's for a good cause, so it's worth the caloric intake.

Les secrets du sac

I happened to walk by the Chanel boutique on Bloor Street West and noticed that the touring exhibit about the making of their iconic 2.55 bags was in town. I prepared myself to be ignored (am I so clearly not a Chanel customer that every single time I enter, the staff ignore me?) and walked into the store.
On the main floor, I drooled all over their bags. There are some styles that I really don't like, but this time there were lots to swoon over. My eye, however, was drawn to one of the customers who was dressed incredibly schleppy. Rumpled, oversized no-name t-shirt matched with sad looking gym shorts. Juxtaposed with this look was his Chanel backpack and the limited edition Chanel bicycle. Da-amn!
I made my way up to the second floor and noticed a display set up outlining the process of making the 2.55. After wandering through the gorgeous clothing (if I wasn't so messy, I would love to own the white tweed jacket and linen pants...oh wait, I also need a gazillion dollars) I went back to the display and learn more about the making of this bag. There was a Chanel representative from Paris on hand (actually, there were a bunch milling around the store) to talk me through the process. The display included tactile representations as well as video vignettes. It was simple, clean and clearly produced.
I have never wanted to own Chanel more now than I have before.
The amount of detail and thought that has gone into the creation of this bag is incredible. Mlle Chanel included so many different references and ideas into her purse that she thought ladies would love. The 'Mona Lisa smile' poche on the back, the reflection of the smile in one of the pockets in the main compartment, the secret note letters poche hidden in the interior, the perfect alignment of the hardware, stitching, logo and quilting, the adjustable woven chain/leather strap...the list goes on.
The ambassadrice was dressed impeccably. I was jealous of her perfectly fitting jacket and appreciated the delicate chain hem to ensure that the jacket hangs perfectly. All of the French reps were dressed just that much better than the Toronto crew. Pretty easy task given the basic uniform of the regular sales team.
The boutique was closing up for 'by invitation only' viewing of the exhibit as I was on my way out. Boy oh boy were those folks dressed to the nines. Jea-lous.

Mmmmm, poutine

Ha ha ha ha ha.

Vintage Club Monaco

Club Monaco brought back their Crest Sweatshirts a little while back and although I've moved on from sweats, the hoodie is incredibly enticing. I've given away all of my sweatshirts, which is fine because I'm not interested in wearing an extra large anymore. Oh, the 90s.
The company has also created Sigg bottles emblazoned with the crest. Kind of wonderful, but I don't think I'll get one.
As the press release says, it's truly a symbol of Canadian childhood.

A different kind of rowdy crowd

For two and a half years, I had to deal with sloppy drunks in my building. It was terribly annoying. Today is the Blue Jays home opener and the streets are rampant with sports enthusiasts and mischief makers. I haven't watched baseball since the early 90s when they were superstars.
Anyway, I'm tempted to eat street meat for dinner.

Darn hipsters

I can't believe this happened just for some silly clothing at American Apparel. At least Toronto hipsters are more civilized.

Do The Math!

An initiative by The Stop. Written up here.
Take a look.

some sort of payoff

I spend a lot of time in a skating rink. This time, it came in handy.
After not getting my ankle checked out properly (well, I did have two doctors with me when I injured myself and I did go to an herbal specialist soon afterwards for the brown, smelly goopey stuff), I decided to take advantage of the athletic, medical specialist on site and got a thorough inspection of my ankle.
Not the best news. I mean, I kind of knew what to expect, but to hear that I really had to take it easy means that I'm outright defying someone's recommendations.
Anyway, I sprained it badly. Second degree. Hurt my second and third ligament, but I didn't fracture anything. Phew. I rolled my ankle to the outside badly enough though, that I bruised my ankle bone on in inside part of my foot. Bone on bone contact. Nice.
Minimum of 6 weeks.
That's a long time.

Random thoughts

- I'm looking for an 8.5x11inch, spiral bound, lined, non-Dollar Store looking notebook. This seems to be an impossible task. I have gone to big box office supply stores, specialty art stores, chic stationary stores...to no available. There are two main reasons why I think I'm having problems. The first is that I'm picky. The second is that all of the nice things come from Europe, so they're all A4 sized. I'm stumped as to where next to search.

- I saw a homeless man at the women's fragrance counter at a department store in a big shopping complex freshening up. I wondered if he was choosy in the type of perfume he spritzed with.

Looking for a home

Not me. As you know, I just got one.
The Toronto Humane Society is having a big adoption blitz this weekend and they've got a lot of cuties available to be loved and cared for.
I'm not ready to have a pet myself, but hopefully there are many people out there who are!

Wheee!

There's a pancake looking cloud hovering outside of my window. So this cloud is at an altitude of, umm, the 29th floor. I haven't been in (I'm not counting general fog) or above a cloud in many years. Tee hee. This is cool.

Noooooooooo!!!

My guess is that Survivor is going to be a lot less interesting after this past episode.

Porter isn't perfect

I was reminded of a major flaw in Porter's shiny exterior. Luggage takes way too long to come to carousel at the Island Airport.
YOW has a Porter lounge at Gate 18. It's a mini version of the one at the Island Airport and of course, it's lovely.
It was a beautiful weekend in Ottawa. +20degrees. And I was in a cold arena from dawn until dusk.
Oh, and I know that slow luggage has nothing to do with Porter itself. The Island Airport personnel need to step up their game, or I need to go the carry-on only, route.

Porter really is quite lovely

I'm sitting in the new and improved terminal/lounge of Porter and it really is quite impressive. It's a proper terminal, spacious, clean, modern, sleek...everything that you'd expect from Porter. All of the same goodies in the lounge, of course I'm taking advantage of the computer terminals and I'm sipping a complimentary tea. I'm not a National Post reader, however, so that's a bust, but I think I'm being a little bit too picky.
Regardless, I'm terribly impressed.
Well done, Porter. Well done.

Sprained ankle

I was out of town last weekend and had an amazing time (I'll be posting about my trip in due course). It was so good that I managed to sprain my ankle. With all of the activities, sports and shenanigans that I've subjected myself to in my lifetime, I'm surprised that I haven't injured myself more often.
Anyway, the injury didn't happen at the best time as I couldn't hit the dance floor the next night with the same vigour that I would have liked (my foot was so swollen, it was spilling out of my shoes). Nonetheless, it didn't stop me from shoving my swollen ankle into my skates to enjoy the frozen Lake Louise and ski the big mountains that we lack in Ontario. Actually, it might have done my ankle some good being locked in rock solid boots for a little while.
Anyway, I'm recuperating and completely frustrated that I'm forced to stroll at a leisurely pace when I'm trying to catch up on all the work that's been piling up. This one was a pretty bad sprain and I hate to admit it, but maybe it will take a little bit longer to heal because I'm just that wee bit older than the last time I hurt myself. I definitely didn't bruise like this the last time. It's kind of entertaining to look down and see little sausages for toes.
I've been going to a Chinese herbal guy who's been putting that brown pooey gunk on it. I love the smell and it seems to be working its magic. The swelling has gone down and the bruising is not quite as impressive as it was before. It did match my dress quite wonderfully, although I did put makeup on the matching bruised knee to mask the damage.
I'm going to start strengthening exercises to get my ankle back in tip-top shape as soon as possible. There are a couple events coming up for which I want to be in top form.
I had originally posted some pictures of my ankle on here, as I thought they were quite impressive, but have since taken them off because I figured that I'm the only one who really cares about how cool injuries look. I have to remind myself that I'm a little weird.

Completely sucked in

I'm watching the current season (20!!!) of Survivor. I'm in the middle of watching last night's episode and the voting on the Villans' side. Holy toledo. People are impressive.
Please don't judge me, but this reality TV show is amazing! It really is the best of the best going head to head on the Villain side.

Time change

I could have used an extra hour of sleep last night. It was tough getting up this morning and I had commitments which prevented me from being able to turn off the alarm.
Of course, I remembered that I needed to switch the clocks last night before I went to bed. That lost hour sucked.
This morning, on the subway, two separate girls standing beside me didn't realize that the time had changed. One was from out of town, so I can sort of sympathize. The other, well, her excuse was that she lived by herself. She seemed to say something about half of her gadgets changing their time automatically, and so she had been a little confused. But then she asked me a seemingly honest question of "how are you supposed to know to change the time?"
Being someone who doesn't really read the paper, nor watch TV, I still had many sources that told me about the time change. I guess some people really live in a bubble.

Happy Pi Day!

Wishing everyone a wonderful day filled with pie and irrational behaviour.
I picked up a mini peach blueberry pie at the market yesterday, so I'll have that for dessert tonight. Yum.

New York (September 3rd - 7th, 2009)

This was my second trip to Manhattan. I was hoping that this city would be my Paris of my Swiss experience, but I don't seem to make the trip out as much as I would like. Anyway, this time around, I didn't need to do the uber-touristy sites, as I'd taken care of those on the first trip, so it allowed for more important things. Like cupcake eating.



Other than that, here are some of the sights and sounds that we took advantage of in the city:

No, we didn't stay at The Standard Hotel, but we did have lunch at the restaurant. It was quite nice, although we seemed to be tucked into a strange corner. It was quite busy and we had demanded to be sat on the patio. The decor of the place (restaurant and hotel) was really nice. Trendy. I should have expected as much being in the Meatpacking District. The whole area is wonderful. A place to spend more money then I can part with at this time in my life, but it's still wonderful.
Since the last time that I went, they opened up The High Line. It's like it was made for me. People watching, relaxing, soaking up the sun. In my crazy travel sessions, I walk so much that I always need to find somewhere to sit to let my feet and back recouperate. The High Line is the perfect place for this. Some of the chairs were on wheels. On the
railroad, you know? So you could turn the loungers into couches and such. Everything about this place is great. Even a stadium seating set up to watch cars if you're tired of watching people. We also spotted a celeb here, but of course it wasn't me that did the spotting and I'd actually admired his suit jacket before being told that he was someone famous. Shows how much I know.

Following all other tourists in the city, we went into the M&M World. So many candies and I didn't buy any. How impressive. Needed to save my money and cavities for cupcakes. This city is



a commercial, money-making machine. That's all I have to say.
Another tourist trap, the Toys"R"Us. There's a massive ferris wheel in the store. For some reason it seems a whole lot more impressive than the Fantasy Fair at the Woodbine Centre


New York's finest hard at work? Times Square is is a busy busy place, so maybe they were just waiting for something to go wrong. As we were wandering around the area, we stumbled upon a little girl who was in tears. She was lost. In fighting the crowds, she got separated from her older brother and of course, in an area like that, what's a little girl to do, but cry? Luckily, through the help of good samaritans, some luck and a cell phone number the two siblings were reunited.

I knew that getting tickets for the opera at the Met would be impossible, but a night under the stars watching opera on the big screen is a close second. I can't beleive how busy it was. Have something like this in Toronto, and I'm not sure that the turn out would be so big. That's one thing that I love about Manhattanites. They really seem to appreciate the arts. This picture doesn't even begin to show you how many people were there. I'm pretty sure that they said that there were ~1000 seats, and then there was the large group of people who enjoyed the show from the comfort of the concrete floor. My tush was numb be the end. But it was worth it.



Seems like food was a theme on this trip. Dylan's Candy Bar was impressive, yet I still didn't spend a penny there. So much candy.




Continuing on the food theme, we went to Serendipity 3 for dessert. We were already stuffed from lunch, but I HAD to go so, in we went. The portions were so large, and when there's good food in front of me, I just can't say no.
It's a problem. I got the famous Frrrozen Hot Chocolate, which
overflowed in the cup/bowl. Does anyone finish that thing on their own? I had a little bit of lactose overload at that place and felt ill afterwards. I would have liked to see the $1000 sundae in person, but no one ordered it while we were there. The place was packed and we only got a chance to sit down after putting our name on the list an hour earlier. We had planned to eat lunch there, but ended up using the hour wait to eat somewhere else down the street to return for dessert. It's a really
cute restaurant, but maybe more of a tourist trap than I like to admit. It's not so over-laden with tourists that celebrities will still go there, but I wonder what the break down of the demographics of patrons is. There are some famous celebrity patrons who call themselves regulars. I want to find a restaurant in Toronto that I can be a regular at. I'll work on it.


One part of the city that I haven't discovered much is Central Park. This time, I found the Alice in Wonderland statue, another popular tourist site and spent awhile there waiting for a perfect picture opportunity. It was more amusing to watch the interactions
and personalities of the different people who were there and their conflicting priorities. I need to go back again next time to get a better shot of the statue. I should look into the new movie that came out and find out if it's worth seeing.


Wandering the city, we stumbled upon a huge Brazilian celebration. The set up reminded me of Fete and I thought about getting food there, but it was a big too crazy and nothign really stood out to me. There were so many people on the street and vendors everywhere. I guess there's always something going on in Manhattan. I'm looking forward to the summer in Toronto when there are festivals every weekend.

Another food stop on our trip was at Jacques Torres. I was reaching my sweet quota by this point, so I only has one little square. The Love Bug was a "key lime ganache kissed with white chocolate". How cute. It was tasty (of course). I didn't get any cavities on this trip, but I wouldn't have been surprised if I did.

West Side Story

While in New York, we went to see West Side Story. We were deciding between Billy Elliot and this one, but after many failed attempts and waiting and long line ups to get tickets to Billy Elliot, we decided to enjoy at least something and quickly got tickets for West Side Story before it was too late. As the show was quite popular, we didn't have the best seats in the house, but it worked out in the end.
Sitting the last row of the balcony, we realized that the section was only 1/2 full and so we tried to fanagle with the ushers to sit in the lower sections if no one was going to show up. They weren't biting.
Partway through Dance at the Gym, there was some strange technical glitch and all of the performers left the stage in varying amounts of character. Before the ushers knew what we up, I bolted to a lower section. The disruption was so long that everyone else got the hint and moved forward much to the ushers dismay. I don't blame them for trying to do their job, but we theatre goers want a good view!
Anyway, the show was great, of course. West Side Story is one of my favorite musicals, so just watching them go through the motions was enough for me. We weren't the biggest fans of the performer who played Tony, but the rest of the leads were well done. Anita was great.
I was intrigued by the choice to sing I Feel Pretty in Spanish. I wonder what the rationale behind it was.
Anyway, a good show, and I'm looking forward to my next trip out!

- header picture courtesy of www.broadwaywestsidestory.com

McQueen Fall 2010

Wowsa. RIP.

On the inside looking out

The traffic going west on the Gardiner is dreadful, but drivers can look at the beautiful colours of the sunset and admire the calm of Lake Ontario.
I'm slowly making progress on a mammoth paper and although I haven't been outside, feeling the warm sun shine through the windows has been a close second.
I've gone through lots and lots of orange juice today and hopefully shock of excessive vitamin C will kill this cold once and for all.
If I can just get through the next 40 hours (and do everything that needs to get done in a satisfactory manner), I will be a whole lot happier.

On a roll

Third day of 10+ hours of sleep.
I had pulled myself away from my computer, ready to do some reading, and then physically couldn't keep my head up so flopped onto the bed.
Thankfully, after about an hour of sleeping, I realized that I probably wouldn't be moving anytime soon and managed to get up to take my contacts out.
This cold is ruining me.
I was only awake for 7 hours yesterday. Most people don't even get that much sleep in a night.
I think I'm in for a rough rest of the week.

Slept in again

I can't even put the blame on the Olmypics anymore. I had planned to go to today's edition of the free concert series at the Four Seasons Centre, but I couldn't get myself together in time.
Well, I guess, technically, I could rush over there right now, but I'm so apathetic that it's not going to happen.
I hate being sick.
I really hope 2 days of 10 hours of sleep each night are working to battle this cold.
I have too much to do.

Blame it on the birthday boy

Is it acceptable that I started my day rather late because the radio station my alarm clock is tuned into is playing Chopin all day? It was almost three hours that I lazed around before forcing myself to get up. Chopin is so wonderful.

Soon it's back to normal

I've only really been watching the figure skating events during the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games, with a couple others thrown in for good measure.
In fact, I only clued into the fact that the Canadian Men won their gold medal because all of a sudden I heard yelling and cars honking from inside my condo. (I did instantly go online and watch the final minute of the game just to make sure I was in the look - thanks CTV online streaming.)
As I said in a previous post, I'm super impressed with CTV and their coverage of the games. Not having a TV, I was convinced that I'd miss out on everything, but it's been a wonderful experience.
In fact, I'm kind of bummed that it's over. I've enjoyed getting free Toronto Star newspapers and seeing Canadian spirit everywhere. The Olympics are a wonderful thing.
I even got choked up on a couple occasions. And I really hope that the winter Olympics come back to Canada again in my lifetime. The only problem is that I think we're running out of cities that can host it. There aren't too many mountains in our country. One can hope. And hopefully if they return, I will be able to go. Even if they don't come back, hopefully in the future, I'll be able to return to the Games. Just like a lot of other folks, I've been thinking about the different sports that I could take up and somehow hope that I have a gift and can manage to get to the Olympics. Sigh.
As per usual, I didn't buy any Canadian Olympic gear. I did buy a pair of those super selling mittens for a friend, and they were a lot easier to find than I had thought they'd be. There were a ton at the second location I went to, albeit, maybe I just got lucky because when I returned a couple days later, the stock was completely depleted.
I do regret not buying a Russian zip-up from Torino when I had the chance. It looks like the Russian Federation hasn't changed their design too much as I would have loved to have one of their pieces from these Games as well. Maybe in the future.
I'm obviously streaming the closing ceremonies right now, so it'll be another late night.
That's my only complaint about the Games this time around. Due to the time difference, it was possible to watch the events that I wanted live, but they made for very late nights, and I think my other commitments suffered because of it. I'm looking forward to getting back on a regular schedule because I haven't really been on one since December, and I'm about due.
Anyway, I'm not really concentrating on this post because I should get some dinner prepped so that I feel like at least I'm getting something accomplished while the ceremonies are going on. That's another bad thing. I've been spending more time in front of the computer with not necessarily anything to show for it.
Anyway, it's been fun. I still wish I could have been there, but what can you do. At least I had my internet and laptop.

Growth

I put mustard on my sandwich for lunch today. I liked it.
So, six years ago, when I made a conscious decision to force myself to eat this stuff that just tasted weird (I had the advantage that it way everywhere and on almost everything that I ate) in hopes that I would get used to the taste, little did I know how effective my actions would be.
Granted, I perhaps never liked mustard prior to my European adventure because I had only encountered the canary yellow French's variety. While abroad, I only had fancy mustards.
So what does that make me? A mustard snob?
Anyway, point is, perseverance pays off? It hasn't quite worked out so well with olives.

Bats!

The bat cave at the ROM is soon to be up and running again for the public. It's one of the major attractions at the museum and I remember enjoying going through the space as a child. Every group I take through the museum wants to visit it, and I love watching their reactions as they walk through the mock-up of the Jamaican cave.
Anyway, it's been a long time in the works, but they finally renovated the space and I'm impressed how quickly it got completed.
I haven't had the chance to walk through it yet, but I will be next week, for sure.
The ROM has declared March to be Bat Month to pump up the opening and hopefully draw more visitors to the museum. It's not-so-coincidentally planned so that March Break falls during the celebrations.

A sign?

Rykiel everywhere!
I was hoping to get a striped sweater from Rykiel's capsule collection for H&M, but when I finally showed up today, of course all of the good stuff was already gone.
Wandering The Room, it was clear that they were pushing the brand as well. Lots of accessories.
I was a little dismayed that The Room wasn't overflowing with PS1's. Actually, I was a little scared that they were all sold out, but there were still a couple specimens to drool over.
Do I regret not buying that voluminous Rykiel coat in 2008? No, I loved it, but I'm sure that I will find another lovely coat in the future when I'm ready to splurge.
Oh yeah, there are fashion shows going on all over the world right now. I didn't bother watching the live streams online, but in some of the pictures that I've seen, I've got to say that I love, love, love the Burberry Prorsum collection. Am I surprised? No.

Fashion is weird

Look at this bag from the Louis Vuitton Spring/Summer 2010 collection. It's a garbage bag. Okay, it's probably some sort of industrial strength vinyl thingy, but essentially it's a garbage bag with some hardware and a partially leather strap attached to it. Look, it even has a drawstring to tie up your stuff. Is this some sort of tongue-in-cheek effort to say that ladies have a bunch of junk in their bags? For ~$2000, I'd rather swath my 'junk' in something a little more demure. Styling this bag as a simple rectangular silhouette does make it look a bit cleaner, but just imagine the garbage ties pulled up and cinched in and, well, sitting like a bag of garbage on her hip.
Although, I have to admit that I hope it shows up in the Yorkville boutique. I want to see this bag in person.
Also, if I had a gazillion dollars, I would probably enjoy getting some outrageous bags too. Okay LV, you win this round.

- picture courtesy of vogue.com

Sad-face

How much do I miss skating right now?
Are you sure I shouldn't go back to it next year?
I can do it, really I can.
I'm sad. Very very sad. (This is probably why it's best that I'm watching the Games by myself. So I can wallow in self-pity.)

Tweet, tweet!

I feel like Twitter would have come in handy while watching live events like the Olympics. Especially when I'm watching them alone by starting at a little 3.5x6inch video feed on my Macbook.
Actually, I don't know. I do like my alone time. And Twitter sometimes makes me want to barf. Just like Facebook. (yes, I'm a hypocrite because I have an account)

Amelia?

Why does Liz Manley keep saying Amelia instead of Amelie?
Also, it's Saint-Saens, not Saint-Jean.
Otherwise, she's not too bad a commentator.

Olympics

They're happening. And I'm not there. I'm kind of sad.
Not having a TV, I thought that I would miss out on the whole thing, but this past weekend, I had the luxury of being at an event where they set up a hospitality room for us Olympic junkies. And then the whole weekend, we were pampered with leather couches and a TV hooked up just for us. Definitely not the regular treatment.
The opening ceremonies were wonderful. The only part that I had reservations about was the lighting of the torch. It had nothing to do with the malfunction with one of the arms, but I guess the rumor of the avatar of Terry Fox made me expect something pretty amazing.
Anyway, upon returning back to the city, I was worried that I'd be back in my non-TV bubble, but CTV is doing such a bang up job.
I've been able to watch complete events live and then go back and watch other events that I missed. Every so often the feed will freeze, but no major problems. I'm terribly impressed. So I can watch the events live with commentary, or later on with no talking. I'm glad that they show the entire event, right from the first skater to the last. Okay, it's just skating that I really care about. I'll watch highlights of the other events, but I guess I really only need to watch the skating events live. For us hard-core fans, they even have the detailed protocols for each of the skaters. So impressive.
Well done, CTV, well done.
I really hope that the Olympics will return to Canada again in my lifetime and I hope that I will have enough money lying around to go. I also hope that a miracle will happen and I'll be able to participate in the games as more than just a spectator.

Better late than never

Happy New Year folks. I hope the year will be grrrrreat!

Dedicated folks

I've recently been taking a circuitous route to get to school. I'll walk through the Skywalk to Union Station instead of hopping on the 510 up to Spadina. It's a nice little walk. I should try to make it a regular habit. Although it would mean being a little bit more organized in the morning.
As I've had a pretty relaxed schedule for the past little while, I've taken the stroll during regular 9-5ers lunch hour. I get a little amused at the folks who stroll along the walkway getting their midday workout in. And then I marvel at the power suits that carry their gym bags to the conveniently located GoodLife for their serious midday workout. That's commitment.
I hate working up a sweat. And I hate not being able to go home and recuperate in the comfort of my own home.

Text to landline service

This is weird.
I assume that this has something to do with this service, but I don't know for sure.
I got a "text message" on my land line in the form of a automated voice mail.
Unfortunately, I don't know who left it, because I haven't memorized anyone's phone numbers and I couldn't reach my cell phone fast enough to check who's number it belonged to. The crappy thing is that there's no way of listening to the number of who sent it again. Sure, I can listen to the message, but that wasn't going to help me.
Anyway, there's probably a big chance that the person that sent it will read this and tell me, because I would like to know to properly respond.
But yeah, the service is weird, because it forces me to listen to a creepy robotic lady's voice.
And this isn't the first time that I've gotten such a message either. Maybe I should tell more people my cell phone number?

Edit: Nevermind. I figured out who it was. I had the reverse whitepages website pulled up just in case it happened again tonight. I'm pretty sure in this case, they thought they were calling a cell phone.

Invisible City

I just got home from watching Invisible City. I had desperately wanted to see this film at Hot Docs 2009, but ended up going to Taiwan instead. Of course I was excited to go to Taiwan and a couple other places (written up here, here, here, here, and here), but I had this feeling that I would be missing out on a very special documentary.
Luckily, The Royal Cinema is screening the film for a week and TVO is screening it as well as hosting a discussion forum about the documentary.
Tonight was the premiere of the film at the Royale and Hubert Davis (director), Mehernaz Lentin (producer), and three of the cast members (Kendell, his mom - Sandy and Ainsworth Morgan) were in attendance.
In education, there's a lot of talk about defining moments. Could this have possibly been one of mine? Did I (re-)discover my passion through watching this film?
For fear of forgetting (I wish that my internal dialogue had an instant transcriber), I'm just going to write a couple words to come back to if I don't get around to flushing out my thoughts from tonight in a more productive space. Teacher identity. Creating a safe environment. Caring. Knowing your student. Taking care of the person before the student. Making learning meaningful. Relevant.
I feel like I've already forgotten about some of the things that this film made me think about.
Very quickly into the film, I asked myself yet again if I'm making as much of a difference as I can. I don't think I'm courageous enough to take the steps to reach my full potential on that front. Or perhaps, (to make myself feel better) I have just chosen a different path. A different outlet for change.
I'm not going to talk about all of the issues in the documentary because there are too many. And depending on the viewer's personal experiences, I'm sure different messages ring stronger than others.
Of course, even better than the amazing documentary, was the Q&A afterwards. It started off with a bang. Kendall's father was in the audience, seeing the film for the first time. It was moving and I heard many sniffles around me. I thought Sandy's voice rang through the strongest. To persevere as a parent, to maintain as much physical and mental presence as possible with your child, to love unconditionally and look for the light at the end of the tunnel. Kendall's story seems to be a successful one, although there were bumps along the way. No doubt, this has something to do with his mother's passion, but I'm sure some of the more tumultuous stories also have a parent/parents who are trying their best, so to a certain extent I take it with a grain of salt. There is no guidebook to parenting and most are doing the best they can, no matter the method.
Anyway, it's pretty clear that I loved this film. I'm sure that there are many other films like it out there, and I hope that this one along with all the rest get out to as many people as possible.
There are many things that I have experienced in my life which shape me or compel me to want to do something. I wonder if this will be one of the things that I act one.

Like a knife in my heart

Loewe has an e-shop. I've been looking for this bag since my hair appointment ran late that one summer's afternoon in July of 2008. The next year, I was told that the house was going back to its roots, especially as it's the 35th anniversary of the Amazona, and only selling this version. I could cry.
Okay people, stop rolling your eyes. At least I'm not being overly demanding and lusting over this one. I do have my limits, although, it's soooooo beautiful and I would be extremely happy if it showed up on my doorstep. Even better was the grey stingray version. Wowsa.
I want to cry myself to sleep now.
Stuart Vevers, I beg you...if you still are at the helm of the company (and if it's not you, then this is a plea to the next guru of the Spanish house) please, please, please keep these bags around until I can somehow scrounge up the cash to get one.

Wow

He's a little too showy for me, but this is great.

Winter coat

I think winter has finally hit. This week was the first time I pulled out the heavy duty winter garb. At some point I want to get a fab coat. It's gotta be a warm one, because I'm getting old and can't seem to deal with chilly weather as well anymore.
The city has jumped onto the Canada Goose bandwagon, which seems like a pretty expensive bandwagon for Torontonians to embrace. I'm not sure if people know any better. Those darn TNA parkas are still running rampant around the city. A more affordable choice by far.
I really hope that Moncler never hits it big in the city, because it's going to be awhile before I feel comfortable splurging on a nice coat. I don't know if I'm down the shininess of their parkas, but at least it's something that you don't usually see on the streets. The styles look pretty cute. Holts definitely doesn't have the entire collection, but at least it's nice to see a couple in person. Maybe I should try one one for torture's sake.

Scheisse

Excuse my German.
So, I lost another connection to practice my French (although maybe I can miraculously develop some schweizer deutsche skills) and I actually have make some sort of decision about grown-up things? I thought I was paying someone else to do that for me.
I have to admit, it was kind of nice to listen to a Swiss accent once again.

Ouchie

Is it feasible to think that my ankles and feet have been hurting because my place has hardwood flooring instead of carpet? I'm convinced this is so.

Goodbye, dirtpile

I'm going to miss my view of the dirt pile. Or maybe it's more of a ditch. I now have pretty much the same view as before, but better. Of course, I don't have the dirt pile. I got used to that pile of dirt with random trees and weeds growing in it. I would sometimes see the odd groundhog running around. Sometimes the ditch became more presentable. Sometimes a bulldozer would come to try to give it a facelift. Sometimes more dirt was added to the collection. It was a work of art.
I'm going to miss hanging out on my balcony and knowing that the only people that could easily see me were construction workers and those stuck in traffic on the Gardiner with superpower eyesight. That they'd wonder what kind of a weirdo would nap in the sun on her lounge chair. Sometimes I would pull down my Alinghi cap so low thinking that if I couldn't see anyone, no one would be able to see me. I never did end up sleeping overnight on my balcony. It wouldn't have really been an under-the-stars experience like I'd made it out to be in my head anyway. I did curl up under a blanket and let my mind wander on a couple chilly nights though.
The dirt pile was supposed to become a low-rise building. Containing two schools, some residential units and something else that I can't seem to remember. The condo corporation is now trying to swing putting in a 40-something floor high-rise. Unobstructed view, gone! The board is hoping to compromise with a 14 floor building.
It's nice to have a second space to hang out in. I kind of like the emptiness of it. No distractions except for the dirt pile and the rest of the view. And full amenities too. A girl could really get a lot accomplished here if she wanted. Much more enjoyable of a space compared to the no-windowed room in the ivory tower. One day I hope to move on to a room with a view. On top of that, perhaps I will become super rich and have a completely vacant unit to hang out in.

Another nod to a great busker

I've made a quick mention of this busker before, but this article gives a little bit more insight into who he is. I hadn't heard any updates about what he'd been up to recently, so it was great to read about some new adventures. It's kind of interesting. I mean, I know lots about his life and I'm sure he knows lots about mine, but I don't know if we've official met. We must have. As kids or something.

It's sale season

Although it seems like the city is perpetually on sale, we're now getting into the nitty gritty, end of season sales. They are everywhere, but I've been pretty good about staying away from shops so that I won't be tempted to buy anything. Last week, I did go window shopping just so that I could get out a bit. It was a pretty nerve wracking week.
I hadn't gone into Davids for quite some time and I was in the mood to pretend to be able to afford a new pair of shoes, so a little visit ensued. I had been eyeing the black suede Louboutin Globe booties for quite some time, so I decided to put them on in my moment of make-believe. They were splendid. I had thought that the detailing was all cutouts, but the gold made them better than I thought they would be. I also tried on another more sensible pair of shoes, which were also quite nice, but they were also part of my make believe romp. I would like a pair of booties, but all the ones I like seem to be insanely priced. How predictable.
I was also thinking that although I'd love to wear fabulous outfits everyday, I don't think I live in a world where those fabulous outfits exist. I'm not talking about the money aspect of it (for once), but I just think I live in a world where it doesn't makes sense to dress like a superstar. Not only do I not like to stand out in a crowd, but I don't know if it's appropriate for my life right now (or ever, I'm sure). Come to think of it, there's probably only a teenie weenie percentage of the Toronto population where these fabulous outfits would be deemed appropriate. Or maybe I'm just oversensitive and I should be glam regardless. Oh well, I'll never have to worry about it - shoes from Davids are part of my la la land collection.

Friends forever

Oh debt, you and I will be friends for many years to come. I will tend to you with bi-weekly payments and in 5 years you will probably try to screw me over by raising my interest rate. Thanks.

Adulthood

Tomorrow, unless something goes terribly wrong, I'll be holding the biggest cheque that I've ever held. It's strange how a little piece of paper can be worth so much. I still feel like it's all play money. Monopoly money, if you will, just not quite as colourful. I wonder when it's going to hit. Little things have made me slowly realize that I'm taking the next step towards adulthood, but when is this one really going to sink in. November was a terrifying month. I just wanted December to hurry up and be over. January has been a stressful time, but soon it should hit. At least, I sure hope so. I need to get back to my regular life. There's too many other things that I need to start concentrating on.

An anniversary of sorts

15 years ago, I officially quit figure skating. Since then, and probably due to that difficult decision, I went back on the ice to start my career, reclaimed my love for the sport and proceeded to skate more than I ever did as a young athlete. I found success in the sport like I never had, improved more than I could have imagined, became more involved in the figure skating community and ended up pushing myself to become an elite athlete. I'm sure that I would have never ventured down this path had I not decided to quit skating all those years ago. Perhaps my path would have led me to extraordinary experiences had I continued to skate, but my actual journey has been atypical and, well, interesting to say the least. In many ways, it's shaped me to be the person who I am today.
No matter how much skating I've done since then, I still consider 1995 the year that I quit figure skating. All of my on-ice adventures in the past little while have been...I'm not sure what I can call it. A hobby? A whim? A chance to strive for something that I never imagined possible?
Right now, I'm at a crossroads. There's nothing more that I can aim for. At this moment, there isn't an outlet for the type of skating that I wish to pursue or at the calibre that I need given where my life has taken me for the moment. In the summer, I may be able to get some ice time and work on my next goal (although, not quite at the same kind of level as my other most recent ones). The most plausible solution for the time being, which I've kind of ended up doing, is to stop skating altogether, but it's been difficult. I have managed to find another outlet to distract myself from the skating void and it was going pretty well until just recently, when I had to confront my demons. I still feel like there's more to accomplish, but I have to try to see the light at the end of the tunnel and focus on all the other wonderful things that I have due to my decision to, ummm, not quit (because that's what I did in 1995), but take a break from skating.
It's hard to stop altogether when you've got a lovely pair of skates in your closet with fancy blades that you invested in. I just got home from the rink. It's the second time that I've been skating since the big break up (that's what it feels like). Tonight was much better than the first time. I was so proud of myself. I did everything that I could do 15 years ago. I think it will help me to get over my break up by going back to the mindset that I'm a freeskater. I just happen to be a freeskater with dance blades. The sooner I forget about turns and footwork, the faster I can get over my sadness. I was so proud that I landed a bunch of 2Lo. I admit that I didn't try any combinations tonight, but I was so happy at everything else that I did do.
I am happy to still be involved in the sport, just at a different capacity - I guess it's only normal to go through a period of adjustment after you quit. Albeit 15 years after the fact. Maybe if I continue to focus on my off-ice skating goals, I'll start to forget about the on-ice ones that were out of my control. The only problem is that I'm not sure how much control I have over these goals either.
But the most important thing is that I can still jump! I can't believe it. After all this time...I've still got it!

I'm a Robarts Library user!

I probably could have gone through my entire university career without setting foot into a university library...and I've been a university student for many years. We're lucky these days to have so many resources online.
I did go into Robarts Library once before, but it was a quick in and out and I really had no idea what else was in there, let alone did I want to find out. For someone who loves walking through libraries (I like the architecture and the smell of books, even though I don't really like to read), I was pretty intimidated by that building.
Although many university libraries are beautiful on the inside, the atmosphere is totally different compared to other libraries with picture books and magazines. You see, they're usually filled with stressed out students. Students who are very studious, or, at least, much more studious than me. I get all anxious and filled with self-doubt. I usually like to live in a state of awesomeness.
Robarts is no exception and it's ginormous. I didn't even know how to begin to find the book that I needed. Luckily, the friendly information crew didn't laugh in my face and gave me a guide to the library. I get the feeling that I'm not the only one who's at a loss when entering the building. I had no idea that there are 14 (14!!!) floors to the building. You never would have guessed from its avian-looking exterior. I was thrown off by the guard that checked your ID before letting you into the elevator and then zoomed up to the 11th floor to find my book. I give the building props. It's a well run machine. I mean, there are different drop boxes for books depending on their call number. Everything is clearly marked, and there really is no reason to feel like you'll get lost in the place. It was pretty obvious where I needed go.
I quietly oooh-ed and aaah-ed the motion sensored light switched at the ends of each row in the stacks. I applaud their efforts at saving energy. I quickly found my book and used a footstool that was conveniently placed at the end of the row.
I was pretty sure that I wanted to wait in line to check out my book with a human when the info crew told me that I could go to a self check-out kiosk. More stuff aimed to intimidate. Of course, there was nothing to worry about. Having conquered finding my book, I figured that the self check-out might be just as fun as its counterpart in the grocery store (I love them). Sure enough, I had a ball of a time checking out my book.
I wouldn't be surprised if I never have to go to Robarts again (except to return my book), but if I do, I won't be so scared.
The only thing that could have made the experience more entertaining would have been if the stacks had those rolling shelves. I'm not talking about the ladders attached to the wall that roll around so you can reach the books at the top of the shelves built into the walls, I'm talking those crazy shelves with the big steering wheel attached to the end of the row and rows of shelves are all stuck together to save space. Now that would have been pretty awesome.

Mental note

Sobeys is having some crazy sale today. Maybe it's shipment day and they want to clear out stock. Mental note, check out the store next Tuesday to see if it's a weekly thing. If I can figure out when this overpriced store has some deals, I can be the ultimate lazybones.

Phew

Yesterday, I went skating for the first time in over six months. I've been keeping active since I took a break from the rink, yet, I felt so wobbly out there. And I won't even tell you about how out of breath I got just warming up.
My left leg has gotten so much weaker and I was struggling to do a series of turns and pulls on that foot. It was dreadful and demoralizing. I felt like I was just learning how to skate again. Strangely enough, however, I managed to haul my now, much larger bum into the air and land 2S and 2T. And they felt good. I'm so glad that I'm still able to freeskate with dance blades on my boots.
I was a little worried about how I feel going back on the ice, but luckily, it was okay. I only got depressed about my decline in skating ability, but not necessarily the circumstances that I was skating last year. I'll have to find some sort of venue which matched my skating goals. I think next summer, I might be able to take a step forward, we'll see how it goes. Hopefully, I'll be able to go back on the ice again soon so that I won't be so rusty...ever, again.
And I got a blister. Some things never change.

Robert Munsch

I don't know for sure if I loved to read Robert Munsch's books when I was a kid. I did love listening to them being read. Especially by him. I have no idea where my parents got these recordings, but even to this day, when I read his stories that I have the recordings of, I can still hear his voice.
Last night, I re-read some of his stories, and wondered how I could preserve those memories. Today, as I went to his website to do some research, I found out that you can download him telling his stories.
I'm listening to Mud Puddle as I type this. It's very similar, but not the same recording that I listened to as a child. Speaking of Mud Puddle, I'm still hoping to find a specific version of the story. When I think of the story and hear Robert's voice telling the story, I see pictures from the story. All of the books in the stores have a newer illustrator's version of the story and I really want a visual image to remind me of all of those great memories that I had as a child. Hopefully I'll find it in my lifetime. I'm sure it can't be too hard, if I actually made an effort.
I was also just thinking about how incredible he would be to have speak to teachers or soon-to-be-teachers about passion and engaging an audience.
Ha ha ha...now I'm listening to Mortimer.

Olympic tickets

Figure skating tickets to the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics are finally available again!!!
Don't get too excited, you need to be a millionaire to buy them. Tickets are going for 10 times the original price. It's absolutely ridiculous. At least it's so ridiculous that I'm not even tempted to buy the tickets anymore. Sure, I'd love to go, but these prices are so crazy. I can't afford to go to the Olympics this time around, but even if I could, I'd be tempted to use that money to buy bags. Many, many, bags! Ha ha.
I just can't figure out how people knew that these Olympics would sell out so quickly. Why didn't people go crazy like this over tickets for Torino? It's not like I bought tickets to make some extra cash, but when I found out that I couldn't attend a couple of the events, I was just happy to get some money back. Most of the events weren't sold out.
I guess as Canadians, we love our winter sports and Olympic events.
It'll be amusing to see how expensive these tickets get.

My Olympic moment. Sigh.

I'm impressed with myself. I've already been awake for an hour, and it's early (by my standards).
Yesterday, I was truly convinced that I would miss out on all of the Olympic fun. I didn't think that it was in the cards this time around. I should have known that I wouldn't be able to give up that easily.
Last night, I took another look at the Torch Relay Map and noticed that, this morning, the torch would be down the street from me, literally. I figured, a couple hours less sleep for one morning wouldn't be too big of a deal, so I set my alarm clock and hoped for the best.
Just over an hour ago, I bundled up and headed out to the cold outdoors. I had to do a little jogging to catch up (and pass - for photo ops) with the torch, but it was worth it. I'm such a suck. A nice, brisk, early morning run. I was due for one anyway. Even the CN tower was lit up to mark the occasion.
I marveled at the motorcade with coppers, Olympic people and the minibus for those finished their leg of the relay and needed a ride. I admired the sleek outfits and the torch. I was amazed at how short of a distance each carrier had. I could have jogged it no problem.
I did apply to be a torch bearer. I've come to realize that I didn't take the best route. Essentially, the way I applied was in a draw, but I probably would have had a better chance if I had applied in writing. On the way home from my outing this morning, I thought about all of the great things that I could have written. It would have been good. Then, I realized that, although it would have been cool to have been chosen
and to have that life experience, I'm okay with the fact that it didn't happen. I really don't need to be a torch bearer. I was happy to watch it go by. Also, it would have fed into my pack rat habits and I would have had an outfit that I would never wear again and a big torch that would clutter up my home. I swear, I'm not making up excuses to make myself feel better for not being in the relay. I was actually thinking that I would have tried to give away the items to some sort of charity or something. I even restrained myself from taking freebie giveaways from the relay. Like I said, I'm a terrible pack rat.
Anyway, I had my Olympic moment. I'm glad that I made the effort to see the flame go by. I might have regretted it otherwise.
I actually followed to torch further than I thought I would, and I wasn't the only one. And then there were the people who just happened to be in the area at the right time. Silly dog walkers, joggers and people who have to go to work way too early.
Now I'm trying to decide if I should go back to bed.

The Olympics are coming.

It's here. The flame is going through the city today. I'm probably not going to see it and I've decided to attend other commitments instead. I'll be missing out on all of the festivities. Oh well.
I'm sure I could have made an effort, but I'll just keep my fingers crossed that the Olympics will return to Canada again in my lifetime. I won't be going out west to watch the Olympics even though logistically, it would have been a lot easier than the last time. I still can't believe that all of the figure skating events are sold out. They did just release some relatively inexpensive practice session tickets. Those would be great as well - you see some crazy stuff on practice sessions.
As much as I would have loved to go to the Olympics again, I have my priorities and for the next little while, they don't involve spending copious amounts of money on tickets to sporting events. Hopefully I'll be able to watch the events on a big screen TV and enjoy the Olympics, just in a different way from the last time.

Cupcake tour of Manhattan

I went to New York at the beginning of September and still haven't written about it. I'm planning on doing so in the next little while.
As part of the trip, we decided to do a little tour of some of the cupcake vendors in the city.

1. Baked by Melissa
We had the best cupcakes first. These bite-sized cupcakes (which I forgot to take a picture of - I was too excited to eat them) were
delish. They were one-bite shots of flavour. My favorite was the peanut butter and jelly. I would have liked to try the mint chocolate chip and cinnamon flavours had they had them. The cupcakes were not too sweet and exactly what the write-ups described. Just like min-cookies, I could eat a ton of these things. I'm glad that we only bought a small box to split. Oh man, they were good.

2. Magnolia Bakery
I didn't take a picture of the cupcakes from Magnolia Bakery, but if you really want to see what they look like, you can see a previous post from my first trip to New York. I would say that although there are many many people (tourists and New Yorkers, alike) that flock to the bakery, they were probably my least favorite cupcake of the bunch. The one thing I do like about it is that it's across the street from the crazy Marc Jacobs stores with the ridiculous sales.

3. Crumbs Bake Shop
I really liked these cupcakes as well. They were massive (more like, big muffins) and came in some interesting flavours. It was hard to decide on just one. I think that's the great thing about mini-cupcakes. You can sample more. This cupcake was creamsicle flavoured and was quite good. My only complaint about their cupcakes was that the icing was too sweet. Other than that - yum.

4. Cupcake Cafe
Nothing too special about these cupcakes, but for aesthetic appeal, these ones are the definite winners (although, the mini-cupcakes were quite well done as well). They looked like oil paintings. I wonder how they got the petals to have different shades on them. They were, what I would call average cupcake size. They were tasty, but nothing super special.

5. Buttercup Bake Shop
These cupcakes were battling for last with those from Magnolia Bakery. In my mind, they were your average, run of the mill cupcake. They looked generic, and they tasted generic too. They were a smidge better than the Magnolia Bakery ones, but I think that's because they weren't as dry.

6. Kyotofu
The final stop on our cupcake tour. Their award winning Chocolate Souffle Cupcake was...ummm, okay. I don't think my opinion
about the cupcake was hampered by cupcake-fatigue, but I didn't find the cupcakes to be too spectacular. They were unique, so I'll give them points for that, but they weren't anything exciting. I'm not a big fan of Asian flavoured pastries, so that probably didn't help matters. I guess I'll say that there are more than enough cupcake shops in the city that I'd rather go somewhere else.

So - lots of sugar in a short amount of time. A cupcake for breakfast isn't a bad thing, is it? The clear winner in this tour was the mini-cupcakes, with the giganto-cupcakes coming in a relatively close second.

Oh my

Stumbled upon a website about Stephen Wiltshire.

Jealous

This is great.

One day

Okay, okay. Next time, I should just get over myself and go for it. I'm such a scaredy cat. This looked like it would have been fun. Maybe I shouldn't have bailed on the opportunity that I had available to me. Oh well.

Hello kitty!

I'm cat sitting for a week. It's been awhile since I've had a cat. I don't plan on owning any cats in the near future. I don't plan on owning any kind of pet in the near future, for that matter. But it'll be nice to have a cat for a week. He seem pretty personable (wait, should that be felinable?) so far. It will be a dandy time, I'm sure.

ADHD docs

In my search for online TV streaming, I came across a couple documentaries about ADHD on the TVO website.
I've only had an experience with one student who undoubtedly had ADHD. It was a fascinating learning experience. It made me feel inadequate as an educator. I know that there's only so much that can be done, with all of the other variables at play, challenges and pressures of the job, but that didn't stop me from wishing that I could do more. I know for a fact that I did more than some other teachers would have done, but I still felt like I should have been able to do more. That I could be better, somehow.
The documentaries didn't blow me over, and I didn't learn a lot from them, but it did give me more insight. I believe the more contexts that I can get, the more that I am informed, even if it's not a new infobit.
Educators have a tough job. There's a lot to know, and I don't think our education prepares us for our job adequately. I also don't think that this will change any time soon. This isn't a post to blame anyone by any means. It's not a pity party either. I love what I do. It's a wonderful profession and I think that there are great things about the system, but there are also areas in which it can be improved.
Teaching is complex. Students are complex.
I'm proud of some of the things that are happening in schools and our educational system. I'm also terribly embarrassed about others.
I feel like there's no much that I need to know. So much more that I need to know. Although it's sometimes demoralizing, I hope I continue to have these feelings and continue to learn.
Also, being a parent is hard. I guess being a kid is hard too.
Okay, I have no idea where this post is going. I do know that I'm happy that I found these videos.

Shopping

I haven't actually gone shopping in awhile, so today was nice. Really nice.
I got great use out of my Metropass and went all over.
My stint in Yorkville was the most entertaining of the day.
I finally ventured into the new Burberry boutique. I had made a conscious effort to stay away all this time, but you can only stay away for so long. I'm quite happy with the store. I made nice with a salesperson who kindly gave me a tour of the store, and pointing out key items from the different labels under the brand. To say I found a couple items that I wanted was an understatement. It was tough.
Hermes was kind enough to create a gift list (with pricing) for shoppers. They also had H shaped butter cookies with orange sprinkles on top. Yum. If you want to stock up on stationary, they have post-it notes for $50. I'm just saying. They also have a purple crocodile Lindy for $38,000 in stock. It's exquisite.
The new Teatro Verde on Yorkville is quite grand. It fits right into the neighbourhood.
On the same streets, I bypassed the shiny new Diesel on the way to Anthropologie. The fancy condo above looks great on the outside. I wonder what the units look like. Anyway, Anthropologie is also a perfect fit into the neighbourhood and I was surprised to find some things that I liked. They do stock some different stuff from the New York location, however, as I saw some cardigans from Preloved in the shop.
I also set foot into the flagship Harry Rosen on Bloor Street. Men must have a field day in there. The Armani section was the most enticing. The greys and purples were fantastic. I found lots of great stuff, but who do I have to buy for in that shop? Sorry friends, I'll have to win the lottery first. They also have felted rocks by Ronel Jordaan as part of their decor. I wonder if she came up with the idea before Stephanie Marin?
Of course I did go to a lot of other places to shop but I can't talk too much about those spots. Don't want to ruin any gift surprises. I didn't actually get any gifts, but the ideas are slowly developing. It was only the first day of shopping, afterall. In chatting with salespeople (some of them were so great!), I learned a lot about products, made some lists, did some price comparisons and will make my purchases in the weeks to come.
It was a nice day.

I'm free!

I'm going to go rancho relaxo for a little while until things get going again.
I've still got a big list of things that I can work on before the end of the holidays, but at least I'll have my nights back. Yet, I'm sure I'll still continue to sleep in somehow. This next little while will show how much of a self-starter I can be. A good test for my future, I suppose.
I'm also going to brave the shops tomorrow. It's time.

Also, completely unrelated, but I'm watching episodes of The Facts of Life. I've never seen it before. Now that I've got some time on my hands, I'm sure I'll be watching tons of mind numbing shows, especially since a bunch of season finales on my regular shows just happened.

Snow!

It snowed today! The first of the season! It was the lightest of flurries, but it was there.
Wheeeeeee!
I wonder when I'm going to succumb to switching to my winter coat?