This just in: Lady Ties

With the new year/ apocalypse fast approaching, it's time to think about how you are going to achieve ultimate success in all your school and professional endeavors. If you're like me, you already think of yourself as a big shot, but how do you let everyone around you know that you're a big shot (aside from proclaiming it loudly every time you enter a room full of people)? You need to dress for success!

At the end of term Claire had a major presentation which she totally rocked. Did she kill because of her extensive preparation and well- honed public speaking skills? No- she killed it because of her lady tie.

These aren't your dad's ties (or Avril's ties...), this is a cute but professional look that also says, "I am probably going to be your boss one day."

These are all vintage silk scarves, but you can also find tops that already have silk ties such as this pretty one from Anthropologie

store website

Whitehorse

As Courtney and Claire can attest, I am an obsessive person when it comes to music. When I find a song or album I love I will listen to it over and over and over, then I will watch every live performance on youtube, I will sing it in the shower, in the kitchen, probably in my sleep too. So I’d like to share my current obsession with you, which is: Whitehorse.

Whitehorse is comprised of Luke Doucet and Melissa McClelland. Both musicians have had solo careers in Canada for quite some time and I am kicking myself for never having checked them out before. Doucet and McClelland are married, which accounts for their amazing chemistry on stage (based on what I’ve seen on youtube).

Claire and I got their album off of itunes and it is KILLER! The sound is dirty, sexy, gritty and would easily fit on the soundtrack of True Blood or any Tarantino film. I could gush on and on about how much I am loving Whitehorse, but instead I ask you to watch this performance below, which speaks for itself.

North Korea

I love receiving postcards. I collect them from the places I travel to and I bug all my globetrotting friends to send them to me when they are away. I’ve grown quite an impressive collection over the last five years from the far reaches of the globe, but my star postcard is the one sent from North Korea. My friend Polina travelled there with her mother in 2007. So few foreigners have been allowed into the country, that I imagine receiving a postcard from Pyongyang is a pretty rare thing.

The image on the front is apparently, “La fanfare feminine, un attrait du Festival de Pyongyang.” What is both hilarious about this postcard, but also deeply disturbing is the note written by my friend. Any foreign visitors to North Korea are closely watched, never left alone (even their hotel rooms are bugged) and all outgoing mail is, of course, read by the authorities. Polina’s message reads, “Angela! I am having such a great time here in North Korea! Pyongyang is unlike any other city in the world, and Korean people are incredibly welcoming. Today, we travelled into the countryside, where we visited mountain caves, and a Buddhist temple, both of which were visited by the Great Leader, King Il Sung, and the Dear Leader, King Jong Il, contributing to the site, Hope you’re well- love, Polina.”

This afternoon I watched a 2001 documentary about the North Korean dictatorship. It is seriously fascinating and disturbing. It is Orwell in real life. Once again, this is why I believe so strongly in the importance of exercising my right to vote in Canada. There are many things I dislike about Canadian politics, but I certainly value the fact that we can openly criticize our government without fear of being murdered, tortured or imprisoned.

I realize this is backwards, photobooth is stupid

Watch this documentary, thank your lucky stars you were born in a democratic country, vote in every election and lets all hope that one day North Koreans might enjoy the same freedom that we all take for granted.

Raising Brows

Men- all you need to know is: unibrows, NO.

Liz- the reigning Queen of brows

Ladies- eyebrows are an extremely important part of your visage. They are the window frames to the soul! As a student of Art History I am qualified to advise on matters of framing.

Caroline is not impressed with your low social standing

Without eyebrows you wouldn't be able to express some of your favourite emotions, surprise, skepticism, anger and most importantly disdain. You know how sometimes you want to seem sweet and docile but sometimes you want to lay down a judgemental stare that will crush someone's soul? Do you think Caroline Bingley would seem like such a snobbish B if she didn't have a powerful arch in her brow? And I know a lot of people are like "nooo judgement is baaadd." First of all, if anyone ever tells you that they are "non-judgemental" you should know that they are judging you for being judgemental so call that hypocrite out! or stare them down with your judging brow! Besides Jesus Christ is judgemental and I don't hear anyone complaining about that. At any rate, with the 2012 Zombie Apocalypse fast approaching, we can all expect to be experiencing a lot of judgement in the next year and by judgement I mean LAST JUDGEMENT.

I will smite you with my brooowwwww

Alright, back to eyebrows. I know many people who successfully pluck their own eyebrows at home and they look great. I, however, cannot pluck my eyebrows because it inevitably triggers a sneezing fit. It's called photic sneeze reflex and its the same thing as when you go out into bright light and sneeze. A quarter of people have this reaction. It is caused by mixed up signalling from the trigeminal nerve (the nerve responsible for sensation in the face.) Sensations get mixed up and your brain tells your nose to achooo. Another interesting sneeze fact- there is a condition called "honeymoon rhinitist' where a person experiences uncontrollable sneezing during sex. Scientists think this may be because the nose (and the ears) are the only parts of the body outside the reproductive system that have erectile tissue. WEIRD.

So eyebrows. If you decide not to pluck your eyebrows, its time to go see an esthetician. Home waxing kits are just crazy. Don't use them, spend $15 once a month and go see someone who knows what they're doing.

Now, I have done a pretty extensive study of what makes a great esthetician. And many of these lessons I've had to learn the hard way, so I pass them on to you, so you do not have to suffer as I did. If your esthetician was born in Canada, run away. The best estheticians are Eastern European. Almost every Canadian-born girl I've ever had has destroyed my face, I have literally left a salon bleeding, I have gritted my teeth through a 20min torture session, I have had one brow significantly more groomed than the other (giving me a semi-permanent look of skepticism), I've even lost an entire half of an eyebrow- she just went wax crazy!! OKAY these stories have probably terrified you so here is what you need to know to never experience this:

- only go to Eastern European women, preferably older
- never pay less that $15, you get what you pay for and every $12 wax I've ever had was HELL
- a good esthetician that you are seeing for the first time should ask you what want and they should take a few seconds to measure out your face (see vid below)
- it should be mostly pain free, if your experience is excruciating, that is not what it is supposed to be like
- it should be fast, like 10 min

The main point you should take away from all of this, is be judgemental, only go to Eastern European estheticians.

I highly recommend you go see Mary at Floka Salon at Bayview and Eglinton. She meets all of my criteria!

Caroline and I on Halloween- juuuddggeee

If you insist on DIY at least watch a tutorial.

Free Tunes

So apparently, the new thing for independent musicians is to give away their albums for free digital download. This is interesting to me because when Cory last visited Toronto we were talking at length about the end of the album sale. To be honest, now that I've given it some more thought, I think this is pretty much where the industry is going.

This is bad news for big time musicians and labels but kind of good news for independent musicians. The only real way to make money as an artist now is by touring or selling your music for corporate purposes (yucky). But the relative cheapness of digital download (once the music is recorded, it doesn't cost the artist any more money to give the tunes away online) means that many artists now are offering their albums for free download and in return asking simply that you share it on Facebook/Twitter etc. This way they get their music to a bigger audience and hopefully sell more tickets to their next show. HMMM, very interesting. I took grade 11 economics (which apparently nobody at any record company ever did) so I recognize the power of cost and demand, and lets be realistic, nobody is going to demand MP3s they have to pay for when you can download them for free (granted, illegally, but we all know there is no real retribution for illegal downloads, and I am just as guilty as the next person for taking advantage of this fact).

So, I thought I'd share with you some independent Canadian albums I've downloaded this week (legally!)

Old Man Luedecke -His latest EP "Sing all About it." I loooovveee him so much. In my eyes, he can do no wrong. He is easily one of the best banjo players in Canada and based on his immense talent for writing, I will even go so far as to say he is one of the best song writers in Canada too. I've listened to "Sing all about it" a couple times and so far I'd say its a little more country than his other stuff which is maybe more folky. Go download this album and then buy all his other albums. There is a reason why this guy won a Juno. He also puts on a thoroughly entertaining live show.

The Darcys These  guys are obviously awesome based on their name. I saw them play in Halifax (unfortunately at Gus' Pub, which has the worst sound in probably the whole of the Maritimes, plus it is like Mecca for Halifax Hipsters, ugghhhh) but they are pretty kick ass live. I went upto them after the show and I was all "I AM IN A BAND CALLED THE MISS BENNETS ISN'T THAT FANTASTIC?" They agreed.

Dan Griffin "Leave your Love" Definitely, definitely download this. If you don't know, Dan is the keys in the Arkells. If you don't know who the Arkells are... then I guess I should ask you how you are enjoying the hole you inhabit? We saw Dan play solo a million years ago, I think in like second year, so 2008? Emily was visiting Kingston and we went to a kegger at Sonia's brothers apartment down on Princess and there was this band there and it was Dan Griffin. Back then we didn't know who the Arkells were so we definitely didn't know that Dan was in the band. Anyways, his solo stuff is absolutely beautiful, well written solid tunes. One of my favourites is "East Coast" which unfortunately isn't on this album. "Stars and Satellites" is included though, and that is another favourite. I am also quickly falling for one of the new songs "Lorne Park".

So go on and download these free tunes and then pass it along to other music lovers with great taste :)

Sparkle and Shine

Alright so everyone has been all, "blah blah Angela write in your blog more blah blah blah" Um OK finish my final projects for me??!! But since you asked for it and since I need a break from designing the website for The Church of Transfiguration's stained glass (it is pretty though) >>
Here is a post about nails. As you probably know, Claire and I have entered the hell period of the school year. Consequently, we've taken the necessary precautions against losing our f-ing minds by stocking up on a) snacks b) assorted caffeinated beverages and c) pretty new nail polish !!

During busy periods of school, I particularly like sparkly/glittery polishes because when I lose track of what I'm trying to write I just kind of zone out and stare at my hands and wave my fingers around for 5...10 minutes or so.

So I went to the Trade Secrets on Bloor near the No Frills and I got the two pink polishes from Zoya's Gems and Jewels collection. OMG!! They are absolutely amazing. Izzy is really pretty on its own, but with Kissy on top, it is crazy fun. Kissy is described as "A glitter that combines red, pink, purple and hologram particles with unique bar glitter. A glitzy shade that can be worn alone or layered to add sparkle to your manicure." Yeah, you heard right, UNIQUE GLITTER BAR. Does your polish have glitter bars? No? Yeah I didn't think so.

Photo doesn't even do it justice

I also tried Teenage Dream from the Katy Perry OPI collection over two of my nails, which looks really neat too. And FYI on each nail I have one coat of Izzy and two coats of sparkle.

Find the rest of the collection on their web page  

I'm Back!

Hey all! I'm returning to the blogosphere after an unintentional hiatus due to the unfortunate accidental death of my macbook, who abruptly left this earth for the open arms of angel-Steve Jobs. That, and school has been kicking my ass. I'm finishing off my federal funding application and right now I just need to write something else that isn't self promoting, "please give me 17 000 dollars because I am a genius and sooo awesome, kay?"

Yesterday, turned into an unexpectedly awesome day. I had intended to spend way more time hitting the books but, for better or worse, my first love of music was calling to me and I just couldn't ignore it.

Since Cory was visiting from Halifax this week, him and Claire and I have been jamming a little bit and working on some covers for fun and we decided to go play the Saturday afternoon open mic at a pub called McKenzie's by High Park station. Cute little pub, nice owners and quite busy. The guy running the open mic ( I didn't catch his name) was really friendly, and quite a good performer as well. They run the open mic from 2-6 and they're pretty excited to see new performers. We only played three songs but you could definitely get away with 6 or more. As far as sound goes, they only had one mic set up, but since it was only Claire and I singing, that was fine and Claire's fiddle is loud enough that we didn't need to mic it.

We played three covers, The Ransom- Madison Violet, Landslide- Stevie Nicks and Wagon Wheel- Old Crow Medicine Show

It was the first time we've ever played Wagon Wheel live and it totally kicked ass! I can't get enough of that song, I've listened to it a hundred times and I'm still not sick of it. Its a total boot-stomping sing-a-long. My favourite version of it is by Matt Andersen, who is easily one of the best guitarists in Canada and has the most delicious deep bluesy voice.

I've watched a ton of his videos online and every time he blows my mind. He also inspired me to learn to play Bruce Springsteen's "I'm on fire" so thats the next thing we'll be performing I hope.

Anyways, its always a pleasure to play music with Cory, especially since he's such a great guitar player that nobody notices me fudging my way along on the acoustic. I'm so excited for Courtney's visit and we'll definitely organize some sort of TMB performance for our friends in Toronto. I'm incredibly happy that we've started making music again. I didn't have the heart to work on anything all summer cause I missed my bandmates too much and this fall has been so hectic we've barely been able to find the time.

After our performance we were all so riled up, that we decided to head to the Dakota Tavern.  The Dakota is a country bar, down at Ossington and Dundas. I've been wanting to check it out for the last four years and now that I finally live near to it, I can.

Dakota stage- Not my photo

We didn't even know who was playing, we just hoped we'd see/hear a good performance. Well we totally lucked out! The opener called Harlan Pepper, was a baby-faced band (they just turned 19) but they play country/rock/bluegrass like they are seasoned veterans of the road. Their live performance was the kind rip-roaring old time music that makes you start to dance whether you want to or not.

I seriously just want to pinch their cheeks pat them on the head and tell them to give me a call when they're old enough to grow beards.

Alright, back to my academic endeavours,
Cheers!
Ange

Service Industry Ninjas

 Last night we had an indulgent and delectable Indian meal at Kama Sutra to celebrate Dad's 65th birthday. We often go to this establishment for special occasions, and in 6 years, it has never disappointed. Our server last night was Tobias. He is truly extraordinary and I am convinced that he is, in fact, a ninja.

 from Wikipedia: A ninja (忍者^?) or shinobi (忍び^?) was a covert agent or mercenary of feudal Japan specializing in unorthodox arts of war. The functions of the ninja included espionage, sabotage, infiltration, and assassination, as well as open combat in certain situations.

A service industry ninja, like their military cousin, operates with stealth, quickness and deadly precision. Imagine, if you will, you are sitting, relaxed, at a restaurant, in flickering candlelight. You turn slightly in your seat to adjust your jacket on the back of your chair. When you look back up, your waiter-ninja has suddenly appeared in front of you. You swallow a surprised gasp. Before you are even aware it has happened he has already taken your drink order and vanished (fyi: you ordered the Sauvignon Blanc recommended to you by your waiter-ninja. You don't know it yet, but this crisp, dry white wine will pair perfectly with the dish you order in approximately 10 minutes. Waiter-ninja has already used his psychic powers to anticipate your dinner order.)

And so it goes...This is the magic of ninja-waiters. You check a text message. You look back up, your wine glass is miraculously full again. Is this a Harry Potter charm?? No! You've just been waiter-ninjaed! Your waiter-ninja will anticipate your every need and want. The exact moment you are ready to eat, your meal will arrive, all together, at the appropriate temperatures and beautifully arranged. Condiments will appear on the table the second you think, "oh this would taste great with a little..." Your plate will disappear from under your nose as soon as you slide your knife and fork into a parallel position. And then, after the offer of dessert and coffee, your bill for the evening will apparate onto the table just as you begin to think it is time to head out. AMAZING!

Ninja-waiters are a rare and fascinating breed that have received next to no real attention from the academic world. Where do these ninjas come from, where do they train? And what would we ever do if the ninja-waiters of the world decided to use their impressive skills for evil? How did a 30-something white male come to be employed as a ninja-waiter at an Indian restaurant? These are pressing questions which I believe need to be asked.

What's wrong with global warming?

This weekend has been insanely beautiful. I awoke from my food coma this morning and proceeded to re-fill my champion stomach with poached eggs and toast and coffee on the back deck whilst absorbing all the glorious vitamin D streaming down from the solar orb hanging in the true blue sky. Ahhh see? doesn't this nice weather make everything all poetic?

Unfortunately, the pursuit of higher education required me to spend most of the day indoors surrounded by books and paper. By late afternoon however, I could no longer ignore the beckoning of the beautiful day and I hopped on my bike and headed over to Sunnybrook.

Apparently, every other resident of Toronto had the same idea in mind and everywhere I rode through was packed. Busier than I saw it all summer, actually. But despite all the cars and picknickers and walkers/bikers who don't know how to share the public paths (stay right for Christ's sake,) it was lovely to get out and start burning off Sunday nights full-blown Turkey dinner, plus all the Ninjabread I've been snacking on. I rode quite far down the lower Don River and the trees are starting to change colour, so now I want to go back again in a week or two. After an hour and a half of cyling, I honestly don't think there is anything on earth more poorly designed than a bicycle seat. I guess I'll be sticking with my other preferred physical activities, the first is jogging the second is spontaneous dance parties with Claire and Caroline.

to find out more about the Don River trails >>> http://www.ontariotrails.on.ca/trails-a-z/don-river-trail/

The Silent Killer

You've all had gingerbread before, but have you ever had NINJABREAD?!

For my birthday my friend Emily gave me these amazing cookie cutters from Fred. I love everything from Fred. Their stuff is hilarious, cute but most importantly still really practical. They have lots of fantastic ice cube molds too, Emily also bought me the Space Ship ice cube maker. I also have the chopstick thingies and I really really want to get the mustache cookie cutters. Emily works at Miss. Tiggywinkle's in Ottawa, which is where she got them, but there are lots of places you can buy Fred products in Toronto. Urban Outfitters has their stuff but Bergo in the distillery district has the largest selection of their products that I've seen.

Emily's store in Ottawa: http://www.mrstiggywinkles.ca/

Fred Online: http://www.worldwidefred.com/fredkitchen.htm

Bergo: Bergo

And here are all the amazing things ninja cookies can do!!

masters of camouflage

Ninja vs. Robin Hood

A victim of the ninja

Ninja is not a fan of easy listening music

Breaking a stack of bricks!

Making these was crazy fun. Eating them was even more fun. Posting them in ridiculous positions was the most fun.

To find out how we made these, check out Caroline's blog http://scrambledeggsetc.blogspot.com/2011/10/gingerbread-cookies.html they really were delicious and Caroline's recipe made enough dough for us to create a veritable ninja army! Caroline also shares a very interesting story of the Molasses tragedy of 1919 where like 21 ppl died. Molasses and ninjas are serious stuff people, so be careful if you attempt these!

The Black Hoof

Thursday night was Alex's bday, so we went out for fancy pants cocktails at the fancy pants Black Hoof cocktail bar on Dundas West. http://theblackhoof.com/

I was a little leery because of the mixed reviews Claire and I read online, but the place was actually really cool.


location: bit of a hike for us from the bus stop and you have to walk past Christie Pitts Park, so maybe don't walk alone?

decor: the only outside signage was a small fluorescent "cocktail bar" sign in the bottom of a window so look out for that if you're trying to find it. Inside there was a hammered tin ceiling, romantic low lighting and painted white wood cupboards above the bar, housing the extensive glassware collection.

ambience: the lighting and the 1920s era playlist definitely created a chic and romantic mood, great place to bring a date if you are trying to impress (ie. go for the kill!)

service: I expected more snobbishness, but our bartender was fabulous. He was the only staff at the bar and he made each of our beverages exquisitely, didn't seem at all bothered that we were nursing our drinks for an exorbitantly long time and he constantly came by to refill our water glasses from a vintagey-looking glass water bottle. 10 out of 10!

drinks: the drinks were wonderful, delicious, unique etc. They are all served in the specific glass suited for the beverage, with the specific garnish to finish off (Ally had a drink that came with a rose petal on top) and they are really meant to sip and enjoy. I know very little about cocktails in general, my personal expertise extends as far as making a gin and tonic or a rum and coke. I found this blog review that has a great explanation of the drinks and how they are made etc. so check it out if you are interested. http://porkosity.blogspot.com/2011/07/black-hoof-cocktail-bar.html

price: so this the huge downside of the Black Hoof. Cocktails start at $9 for a 1oz drink. I had the "Martinez" a 2 1/2 oz Cocktail and that cost $12 and I delicately sipped at it for 2 hours. Also, many of the 2oz cocktails are about $16. I only ordered the Martinez because my thrifty mind calculated it to be the best deal on the menu.

Overall, it was a neat place, but don't plan on going there to get loaded unless you are loaded. The crowd there is definitely more of a 30+ demographic. Perhaps a place to hunt out sugar daddies/mommies??

En Francais

So, I recently had an urge to listen to French language pop music so I put out a poll on facebook and now I am steadily exploring all the suggestions from my lovely (and apparently francophile) friends. My mother suggest listening to Francoise Hardy a popular chanteuse from the 1960s. Since I'm already in a current obsession with early 1960s girl-pop, Francoise fits right into what I was craving. Watch this video and the many more on youtube and you will want nothing more than to be sucked into the screen so you can stroll around the streets of Paris in black and white singing about boys who broke your heart.

Favourite dessert

hey guys! last night I made one of my favourite dessert dishes: Nutella Jar and Spoon. Its super easy to make. I've included the recipe below.

Ingredients:
1 jar of Nutella (can be bought in any grocery store)
a spoon

put spoon into nutella jar, scoop nutella out, deposit nutella in mouth.

If you don't have a spoon handy, you can use your finger, just be sure to wash your hands first! This dish is great when paired with a cold glass of milk and a sappy rom com.

Trompe L'Oeil

I found this awesome artist today who creates visual illusions on city surfaces using brightly hued sticky tape. So simple yet so great!
http://www.aakashnihalani.com/

Kunstwollen

I spent a solid two hours today reading about "Kunstwollen," which, as I soon discovered, apparently has no clear translation into English. Reading all this German Aesthetic theory for Methods class is really tapping me out, that and the weather today = blah. On the bright side, in order to isolate myself from the lure of my internet connection and the thousands of cute cat videos waiting to be watched on youtube, I went to my local coffee shop, Cafe Novo at Bloor and Quebec Ave and had a superbly delicious scone and cup of coffee. The Baristas there are a little, shall we say, aloof, but every time I have been there the food and bev has been delectable.

I honestly don't know why I ever go to Starbucks since the concept of selling fresh baked goods seems to be beyond their capacity. Scones are meant to be buttery and light people! Starbucks scones are like muffins gone terribly wrong. Starbucks scones are like the coffee shop equivalent of Smeagol turned into Gollum. Also, did you know that a grande pumpkin spice latte has almost as much syrup as milk in it? A starbucks employee told me that the other day and I nearly vomited.

Now that it is undeniably autumn, it is time to switch to my fall nail laquer hues, yaaayyy!! Since I have triumphantly returned to the pursuit of higher education, it is more important than ever that I have pretty nails to stare at as they hover over the keys of my laptop trying to devise a thesis statement that is both epically brilliant and at least a little bit plausible.

French Quarter for your Thoughts

It's not secret that I am a sucker for OPI. My favourite fall colours are in their France collection: http://x.opi.com/France.asp

I also recently picked up a true gray colour from the, "Touring" collection. FYI- this image does not feature my own digits.

Oh, speaking of fall things, I recently tried Pumpkin Beer! I tried the Great Lakes Brewery ale http://www.greatlakesbeer.com/index.php/our-beers/brands/#pumpkin . It definitely tastes like pumpkin and festive fall-ness. I also want to try the St. Ambroise pumpkin ale http://mcauslan.com/en/produits/bieres-saisionnieres/citrouille-pumpki/ because I loooovvveeee their Apricot Wheat Ale. At this point, I'm just hoping that if I try enough pumpkin beers I will find what I always imagined Butter Beer in Harry Potter to taste like. Yummers!

Nuit Blanche

Gill came down from Kingston for a visit and as Kaili is leaving so soon for Oklahoma City, this was obviously the perfect excuse for a girls night out. WOOO! Unfortunately, we all forgot what cold feels like and I am definitely not prepared for this frosty weather! brrr.

Gill and I had gone for a long walk in High Park earlier and we visited the zoo. We were freezing cold and I was jealous of this Highland Cow and all his hair.

Anyhow, we had an extensive girl hangout at the condo before we finally got ourselves together and headed out the door at 11. We went to a place Kaili recommended called 7 West, down by Yonge and Bloor. Its a cool place, very mood-ish with twinkle lights and such. We sat on the small rooftop patio. It would be a fun date place, although its pretty pricey (my Martini was $10.) But its 24/7 which is neat, so if you're ever trying to plan a date for an awkward time like 4am, this is the place to go! its also near the strip club so you know, convenient for other occasions? I don't know. http://www.7westcafe.com/

We tried to venture out to some of the Nuit Blanche stuff, but it was soooooo cold. We made it to the ROM and saw the Bollywood Exhibit, which is awesome and you should all go because my friend Alex worked super hard on it and did a fabulous job contributing to the research. http://www.rom.on.ca/bollywood/ We also checked out the Gardner's Museum which was so awesome. I've never been in there before and I'm definitely going to go back when I'm sober and its not 3am.

Stained Glass

I think I may have been a magpie in a past life. Everything shiny and bright and colourful is completely mesmerizing to me. I found an old kaleidoscope recently and was just like "wooaahhhh" walking around my house staring at different things for like half an hour.

Saturday morning, I had a walking tour downtown with my stained glass course. I borrowed Claire's fancy camera so I could work on my photography skills. It took a bit of fooling around but I think I actually captured some nice images.

We visited The Church of the Holy Trinity first, which, if you didn't know, is in the courtyard off the Eaton's Centre. When they built the mall they wanted to bulldoze this building. Luckily, there were enough people with eyes who were like, "Umm, how about not flattening this beautiful structure?" and now it happily is still standing so we can all enjoy it!  The stained glass inside is really cool, so the next time you're shopping down there its worth taking a break from the crowds and gaggles of teenagers to pop into the church and take a look. http://www.holytrinitytoronto.org/wp/   

 

After Trinity, we went to Old Toronto City Hall, which is now the city courthouse. Unfortunately, because of security reasons, we weren't allowed to take photos of the massive stained glass window at the top of the (former) main entrance way. It was pretty funny all of us staring at this window while Dr. Brown lectured and a literal gang of criminals walked by and stared at us. So anyways, if you want to see this window head down to the courthouse, or if you happen to be at the courthouse for other reasons...... check it out!

Our last stop was at St. James Anglican Cathedral down on King Street. This place is of course much more grand than Trinity. We saw some different styles of glass including the Tiffany-style glass. I think at this point in the day I'd figured out how to work the camera somewhat so the photos seem pretty good to me! http://www.stjamescathedral.on.ca/HistorybrArchitecture/tabid/63/Default.aspx

If you are in Toronto and you go down to look at St. James, you might as well plan it around lunch time and go down to St. Lawrence Market for a back bacon on a bun! om nom nom nom! and no- this is not health food by any means. http://www.stlawrencemarket.com/shopping/vendors/carousel.html and if you want to see more stained glass http://www.flickr.com/photos/barroomphilosophy/sets/72157627680612087/ or Dr. Brown's website http://www.yorku.ca/rsgc/

Whiskey, Wine, Beer and Martinis

Really busy weekend! Friday night Claire and I ventured over to Roncesvalle for our friend Chance's goodbye party. Chance plays fiddle in one of the best bands to come out of Kingston, Free Whiskey. http://freewhiskeystringband.com/fr_home.cfm

Claire brought her fiddle and there was a fantastic living room jam. It made me severely homesick for our days at Queen's when we'd have 10 people playing guitar or fiddle or keys or drums, all packed into our kitchen and all our other friends enjoying the fiddle reels until everybody was well sauced and the music degenerated into Journey sing-a-longs (how every house party worth its salt should end.)

We also stopped by The Local for a nightcap on our way home, but sadly, Friday is the only night of the week they don't have live music. I guess a gal can only expect so much Bluegrass in one night anyways. Ha! Just kidding, you can never have enough Bluegrass. Fact.


http://thelocalpub.ca/home/

Commuting

In May 2009 I started a job as a grocery store cashier in Kingston. Conveniently, the wholesome family-run grocers was located directly across from the Saucy Minx Manor (my aptly named student home in Kingston during undergrad.) As any of my roommates current or former can tell you, I am incredibly absent minded. I spent a long time denying the fact (much to Courtney's frustration.) I have since come to terms with this character quirk and I have come out of the closet about it so to speak. I now identify as an, "absent-minded intellectual." As a graduate student, I now feel I have a little more validity when I argue that I am only forgetful because there are so many other important thoughts bonking around inside my skull ie. "omg, is Sookie going to date a vampire or a werewolf in the next season of True Blood?" or "should my next jean purchase be skinny jeans or boot-cut? and I don't care what people are saying I am not jumping on the fares trend again."


So anyways, here I am, in all my absent-mindedness, conveniently working across the street from my house. Forgot to wash my travel mug last night. Doesn't matter! I'll just walk across the street with my ceramic mug of tea! Feeling kind of chilly at work. Call Courtney at home to bring me a cardigan. Didn't plan anything for dinner. Call Gill, make her come to the store and buy chicken souvlaki supplies, kindly ask Gill to go home and make the chicken souvlaki so it will be ready when I finish work at 6. Promise to do dishes. Come up with great idea for a new song for The Miss Bennets. Sketch out some lyrics. When Claire comes over to buy candy, give her the lyrics so she can go home and start working on a melody. See?? SO CONVENIENT.

Flash forward to today and my commute is no longer 30 seconds (or 10 minutes to Queen's Campus.) Suddenly, I am faced with the epic cross- Toronto journey to YorkU. Perhaps this undertaking of public transit would be less aggravating if I hadn't spent the last 5 years living in quaint walkable places (rural England, Kingston and Halifax.) The thing is, I don't mind walking at all, there is fresh air, there are sights and sounds, there are no triggers for my claustrophobia. Oh yeah, and its free of charge.

From High Park to York takes approximately an hour on the TTC. Or, that's what the TTC website tells me. Sometimes it takes 50min, but to ensure you are punctual, add a buffer zone of at least half an hour. If you have an important meeting or exam make sure you have a full two hours to do the trip, just in case.

The return journey is less convenient. Expect a 40min wait for a bus if you are leaving York Campus around 5:30. The lines extend forever and then double back on themselves in a laughably horrifying way. You look at a depressingly long line for the "express" bus only to realize that what you thought was the end of a line for another bus is actually the line you need which has wound itself in several directions in a stupidly serpentine manner. At this point, you must decided if you will suppress your sobs or simply cry openly knowing that it could be almost two hours before you make it home. If it is raining and you forgot your umbrella (as I did today) feel free to cry openly and pretend it is just raining on your face.

However, it is not just sheer volume of transit users that slow your progress home. Any number of other delays can crop up. Construction for one (never take the 41 down Keele,) mechanical delays, mystery delays and raving lunatics.

Today at Bathurst our train sat for 20min because of a "security issue" with a passenger. We all stared at the raving lunatic as he was carried off by TTC officials. While we all gawked at him like he was a nut-job freak, secretly I thought, maybe he was just sick of commuting? The only difference between him and I, is that I just haven't started yelling out loud about it yet.

So, the conclusion is, I have been grossly spoiled by my previous commutes. Perhaps I need to purchase a kindle to pass the time. Perhaps I need to remember to charge my ipod. Perhaps I need to move to an olden time Wild West town where everything you need is located on one block. Perhaps I need to lower my expectations of convenience. Perhaps I need to get my driver's license. Regardless, you'll soon know if I've sorted out my extraordinary commuters rage. If I don't get over it, it will only be a matter of time before I am the screaming scene- maker who causes the huge delay that makes you late for that very important thing you had to get to.

Frustratedly Yours,
A.W.


ps. suggested reading to pass the time on an epic commute: Lord of the Rings Trilogy, The Canterbury Tales, The Odyssey, The Pilgrim's Progress, HP7 and A Journey to the Center of the Earth. These six should be enough to last your as far as YorkU if there are no lunatic delays.

Living the life?

It has recently come to my attention (well, brought to my attention this evening by a certain Ms. Caroline Rance) that as a  20-something young woman living in a major city, it is pretty much requisite now that I publish a blog. Upon reflection, actually, there was no reflection, this blog has been created with very little thought as to its purpose or intent. It appears that the realms of facebook, twitter and myspace (ha! jk nobody uses this relic) are insufficient venues for my random thoughts and opinions that I am constantly compelled to share with the world.

The title Barroom Philosophy- is a reference to those instances of inebriated discussion (drunken ranting) when you suddenly find that *gasp* you have just solved all the major questions that have plagued mankind forever. Now if you could only remember these brilliant ideas in the morning...

I anticipate that this blog will take a rambling course. Lets think of it as that walk you take on a sunny day when you have nothing important to do and no particular place to be and suddenly you end up somewhere completely new and unexpected and in fact, rather delightful. << Woah metaphor. This blog is faaaannncccy