Blerg and blarg. So if I haven’t told you directly, school is really, really, really, really BUSY! Really. I am writing this bleary eyed before bed, because I could not go straight from a Friday night paper writing session into a Friday night sleep. I had to mix it up and do a WEE bit of Friday night blogging.
*deep sigh*
I just need to remember this mantra though, and everything will be alright.
Lumos out.
Finally!!! A real recipe for Butterbeer. Happy Holiday Drink Making!!!
via 12 Bottle Bar
I have just recently stumbled upon something called PINTEREST and I am officially smitten. Love-sick. Can’t stop thinking about how great it is. I haven’t fallen this hard since the launch of Facebook!!!
Pinterest is still in the “beta” stage, so I had to be invited to join. Not sure how many more people they are taking, so this whole post could be a big tease… But basically Pinterest allows you to create a pinboard (or multiple pinboards) for images that you see and want to remember (or get back to), from anywhere on the internet. It’s like a visual “page marker” for the internet!!
Some of my newly created boards include:
-Beautiful homes and furniture.
You can also follow other users, comment on their “pins”, re-pin their images, “like” their images, and so on. To me it is a combination of Facebook, Delicious, and Twitter… but for all you visual people out there, this is the BEST of all worlds.
I should stop now… but one final thought… it’s like having a LIVING and growing vision board (and I LOVE vision boards!).
Did I mention I just signed up yesterday!?
We have been pretty busy lately, despite the drastic drop in temperature and loss of daylight here in Toronto. NOT that I’m complaining, because I hear it is a lot colder in Calgary (and even in VANCOUVER) than it is here. Weird.
Of course, one of the most exciting events lately has been the midnight premiere of HARRY POTTER 7!!! We started the night with bibimbop in Blythe and Darryl’s hood, and ended it with a 3am walk back from the theatre. What a trooper Nick is, coming out to see the midnight show with me. Here is a direct quote from the night:
Nick: “We are the oldest people here.”
Me: “No way – these people are definitely the same size as us.”
Nick: “WHAT!? That doesn’t mean anything. Put on your glasses.”
Me (with my glasses on): “Oh.”
One particularly great night out included drinks at the trendy “Painted Lady” and dinner at the tapas restaurant “Foxley” in little Italy. We tried to go to a famous pizza place called Pizzeria Libretto, but it was actually a TWO HOUR wait. Yizaa. Best part of this night? Following it up the next morning with a tour through Kensington Market… brunch at Bellevue Cafe, spur of the moment haircut at “Curl Up and Dye” (with a hairdresser who had met Ryan Reynolds… the first ever Canadian ‘sexiest man alive’!), and of course some indulgence at Cheese Magic. The fun just doesn’t seem to stop out east…
I’ve also been surprised a couple of times lately by my lovely man! Once with my favourite board game (Pirate’s Cove – going out of print soon!) and then again when he took me to the Sarah Harmer concert at Massey Hall. Heart. Our knees may have been jammed against the back of the seats in front of us, but the acoustics were actually UNREAL.
In what is left of our “spare time” we’ve been hitting up Bikram yoga, skyping with west coasters, managing our fantasy (but it feels so real) hockey teams, and enjoying local Ontario brews.
This is the east coast life! And it is really good.
I fell in love with Montreal this past weekend, and it ignited some crazy proud Canadian feelings inside me! The weekend started with stepping off the train and hearing someone say (in a beautiful French Canadian accent) “Ahh… ‘ome sweet ‘ome” and finished with a lavish spending spree at some unique Montreal boutiques. You may have heard of them… Club Monaco? Levis? Keihls? I know.. I am so cultured and fashion savvy.
In the middle of all of that, we explored Old Montreal, wandered into Art Galleries and Christmas stores (where we discovered some eccentric French Christmas ornaments – see photos!), ate poutine and Montreal Smoked Meat (of course – see photos!), saw a magnificant (albeit cheesy) light show at the Notre Dame, and did our own Montreal restaurant tour, including stops at Le Local (sooo wonderful) and Garde Manger (where the Dalziel’s actually knew the owners!! oh la la!)
Here’s a glimpse into our whirlwind weekend….warning: Nick has a moustache for Mo’vember… I tried to shave it off in the night, but alas, he sleeps too lightly. Also, there is a special something for Cariann and Shari in these photos… hope you both read this post! 
Chalk it up to that old Fall magic (what the heck is old fall magic?) but I’ve had another AMAAZING week here in Toronto. Maybe it’s the sunshine. (I don’t think I’m used to having vitamin D in the fall). Or maybe it’s the colours. The reds and oranges are calling to me. (I blend right in, after all). Whatever it is, I’m loving it.
MONDAY: Taught our roommate Drew to play ‘Ticket to Ride’ while we drank local Ontario micro-brews. We’re developing quite the club (well, Drew, Nick and I at least) of people who are extremely selective and discerning about beer. Wine drinkers, watch out. The new snobs are in town, and they don’t like Coors Light.
This was also the night that we watched a touch of “Delirious” (Eddie Murphey), and although I admit the red leather suit is classic, I couldn’t BELIEVE the jokes he was making. Homophobic jokes? Check. Slapping women around jokes? Check. Cruelty towards unfortunate kids in your neighbourhood who can’t afford ice cream jokes? Check. (ok ok, I admit the last one was kind of funny). The funniest moment of all was probably when I asked Drew if he had ever gone to “Circuit City” to see a comedy show.
Drew: “Ummm… Are you sure you mean Circuit City? That’s like Radio Shack.”
Me: *out of control blushing*
Had I said “Second City” I might have been able to keep the illusion of “cool” going for a little while longer. But it’s ok… I kicked his a$s at ‘Ticket to Ride’. (Cool people use dollar signs to hide profanities, don’t they?)
TUESDAY: This was the eve of our Fantasy Hockey Draft. We had a really enthusiastic level of interest from our friends to make this draft happen. So enthusiastic that we have FIVE teams in our league…… that’s right. Best part of this night was when everyone (except for me) was present to hear Chris say “if anyone chooses McCabe they can leave now”… 2 seconds later, who do I choose? I don’t think I need to finish this story…
WEDNESDAY: The LOVELY Virginie, my newest (and only) friend from France, noticed that I wanted to eat Italian in Little Italy, so she made it happen! Huzzah for Virginie!!! We had a delicious meal with her and Tom at Kalendar. That’s Calendar, but with a K. Everything is kooler with a K. We enjoyed playing “would you rather” over our meal (turns out Nick would rather be able to ski than almost anything) and we had some fun with Tom’s iphone apps… mostly Hipstamatic and Photobooth. I smiled on the outside, but cried on the inside. I am full of blackberry regret.
Best moment of this night was when we saw a stray cat (you might even say “street cat”) on the road, and Virginie said “Oh yes, there are so many cat streets around here!”… Amazing. Did I mention she is French? So cute. Once while we were playing board games she counted out loud in French by accident, and I think I screamed with delight. This is an appropriate reaction, right?
THURSDAY: ANOTHER incredible dinner at Blythe and Daryl’s. I don’t know how we are ever going to repay them for all this hostfulness. That’s a real word. Look it up if you don’t believe me.
FRIDAY: Hasn’t happened yet. (Well the work part has, but notice how that doesn’t make it into the highlights?) We are going to Canada’s Wonderland for the Halloween Haunt tonight and there is just no chance of anything going wrong. Well, other than the possibility of nightmares, falling out of rides, eating too much candy and/or throwing up everywhere. I can’t wait.
I realized this past weekend that I am already halfway through my time here in Toronto!!! How did that happen? It seems like only yesterday I was going in for my first day of work, with butterflies in my stomach and my lululemon pants neatly tucked away on the shelf. I have seen and done so many things since I’ve been here, but I realized that I am going to have to get a bit more focused if I want to check off all my “To-Do’s” while I still have time in T-O.
This past weekend included:
-Wine, cheese and dinner with a Canadian Olympic Gold Medalist, Adam Kreek – no big deal. Ok, the real thanks goes to Blythe and Darryl for knowing name-drop worthy people and for inviting us for yet another delicious dinner!
-Double brunch weekend @ Frankly Eatery (again! I couldn’t help myself!) and Joy Bistro
-Exploring the enchanting Distillery District (dare I say, better than Granville Island?) with NDL. Go here and you are automatically transformed into an amateur photographer. It’s just so picture perfect! I fell in love with the brick buildings, the old breweries and industrial equipment – turned art and theatre district, the antique shops, the local artisans. Oh my. Top moments were when a cute little French band started playing outside and nestling in for a Spicy Mayan Dark Hot Chocolate from SOMA. Hello!
-Canada’s Wonderland (Halloween Haunt preferably)
-Greek on the Danforth
-Italian in Little Italy
-Montreal (ok… this isn’t Toronto per se… but it’s much more feasible to see it for the first time while living in Toronto!)
-Quebec City (same)
-Casa Loma
-Steam Whistle Brewery tour (I love the beer… now I need to see where it all started!)
-Second City (comedy show)
Whew! SEE! It’s a lot to squish into two more months… but just because I like to be ambitious, any Torontonians out there with additions to this list?
Almost a year ago a lovely woman (Steph Corker Irwin) suggested that I create a “gratitude journal”, where I could record my most beloved and awe filled moment from the day… any day…. even the really sh*tty ones.
It just happens that I was glancing through the last few weeks and I was seriously gobsmacked by all the joy and laughter in my life. Whether it be teaching Lauren to stick out her tongue, only to accidentally cause her to look like a bit of a pervert (now she does it all the time, with a bit of an insinuating “tongue flicker”), or the ritual Sunday night board games / dinners that we’ve started with our pals in the Beaches!
This particularly awesome weekend (that’s not even over yet) started out with a bang. And by bang, I mean going over to Nick’s sister’s house and watching photo slide shows. I know how that sounds, but the truth is, it was great. Amazing even. And not only because I love to talk about myself.
The three couples involved were Nick & I, Blythe & Darryl (newly married and freshly back from Peru) and Bryan & Sandra (Nick’s Dad and his wife, who had a trip to Baffin Island they were dying to share with us). We each brought our photos and something edible from our respective trips. Nick and I kind of forgot this little food detail, so we scrambled and brought a baguette (France!), Wine (Italy), and Irn Bru (SCOTLAND!!!). Pretty good save, if you ask me. Blythe made quinoa and ceviche, and Bryan brought smoked trout and gouda cheese. We also were treated to home made chocolate cake to celebrate Sandra’s Birthday. It was my SECOND birthday cake of the day. NBD.
Today we kept the family lovefest alive, and took Blythe and Darryl on a real estate exploration tour of Leslieville (the irony of this being that Nick and I have only lived here one month, and truly know nothing at all.)
We started the tour at Frankly Eatery. Two weekends ago I went on a breakfast sensory ride at Leslieville’s famous brunch joint, Lady Marmalade, and I fell in love. HARD. However, we had to wait about 45 minutes to get in, and that left something to be desired. Frankly, however (that sounds weird) had no line up, but was just as exceptionally delish. I just realized maybe I shouldn’t be saying these things. I don’t want to give Frankly so much praise that they too become a line up breakfast destination (who am I kidding… how many people do I think even read this blog? Especially those who live in Toronto.)
Me, NDL and the Watson's at Frankly Eatery.
Then, since it was such a gorgeous and sunny day, we walked through the neighbourhood and went to a number of open houses. Some exquisite. Some terrifying. One of the terrifying ones used to be a porn editing studio, I’m quite sure (because I snooped some disks in this editing room… again, not exactly sure why I didn’t become a private eye, or join the CIA… or did I? dun dun dun.)
Beetlejuice lives here.
Creeeeeeepy.
But Leslieville always redeems itself. Whether it be with it’s unique coffee shops, interesting antique stores, massive mature trees (turning delightful fall colours) or dogs who hilariously sit on steps and watch the Queen street passerby-ers.
Stairs or pooch seat? You decide.
This tree makes me want to immediately start carving pumpkins and drinking apple cider.
I also saw my dream house today *clutches heart*. WHY does it have to be in Toronto? WHYYY? It was a heritage building with high ceilings, exposed brick, original hardwood floors, huge walk-in closet, HUGE jet bathtub, cutey little backyard (no grass, which is good for those who kill all plant life in the immediate vicinity) etc etc. I actually made Nick take a pic of me in the bedroom, so that I can gaze at it with longing. Oh unrequited house love.
I wish.
We ended the tour with a MASSIVE ice cream cone from my favourite video store, Film Buff. Oh that’s right. It’s a video store / ice cream parlour. Aka. Heaven.
I like Toronto. A lot. I think I’ll go jot that down in my gratitude journal…
My Nanny is seriously wonderful. She is, in many ways, the last thing you’d expect from a Grandma. She is sharp tongued, hilarious and not the least bit sentimental (she famously threw out a whole box of old family photos and movies because she thought no one would want them!). She’s also laid back, understanding, open minded, fantastically smart… and a great many other things.
Recently, she moved to Kelowna and I’ve had the lucky opportunity to see her more frequently! Here are a couple things she’s said / done recently that not only bowl me over with laughter, but they also fill my heart with love.
Nanny-ism… Scenario 1:
At the hospital, with a horrible nose bleed. My mom comes into the emergency room and there is Nanny, lying with blood all over her face. And she says:
“Getting old is not for sissies.”
Nanny-ism… Scenario 2:
A neighbour, who also grew up in Winnipeg, decides to tell Nanny that friends of his, whose last named (tragically) is “Hooker”, are moving to town. He wonders if she might know them. So he says:
“Did you hear the Hooker’s from Winnipeg are coming to town? You’ll have to meet them!”
And my Nanny, assuming he is speaking about the prostitutes from Winnipeg, says:
“Oh really? They are? They must be having a convention!”
Nanny-ism… Scenario 3:
My Mom, Dad, Nanny and I are sitting at dinner, talking about kids and babies. My mom’s name is Leslie (essential to this story). Somewhere along the way Nanny must have gotten confused and thought she was talking to her other daughter (named Shelley), because all of the sudden she says:
“You know… Leslie spent so much time sitting on that little rocking horse in front of the TV…… I really think that is why her hips spread.”
Confused and slightly mortified silence from everyone.
Nanny: “It’s true… I think she sat on it so much, and watched so much tv, and that’s why her hips are so wide now.”
My Mom: “Ummm… I AM Leslie.”
Nanny: “Oh dear. I thought I was talking to Shelley!!! But…. your hips aren’t wide… are they Leslie?”
*extreme and amazingly hilarious back peddling*
I'm thankful for hilarious and unconventional Nanny!
