Les photos

I finally caved and got a Flickr Pro Account. Photos from the Festivus party last weekend are up here, as well as some other recent ones.

Today at work there is going to be a vote that will determine if all essential services run by municipalities in the province of Ontario will go on an illegal strike. Good times.

Reading Week

This was a fun weekend. Not only did it mark the beginning of Reading Week, but it also meant the end of midterms! Borrowing the idea slightly from Mattson, here's a breakdown of what I did over the weekend:

Friday: Edd and I went to Greektown for some truly authentic and rare to find outside of Greece treats. We both had our standard frappes (metrio and glyco, of course) although unlike the usual hot and sunny backdrop that we associate these drinks with, it was -15 with windchill and pitch black outside. Nonetheless, we indulged our imaginations and pretended we were indeed back in the Peliponisos in August. Edward also tried loukomades for the first time, and though they were cold and lacked the usual sesame seeds, they were still pretty damn good. I think we'll be returning to Greektown more frequently as the weather improves.

Saturday: The Colonel and I went on an impromptu jaunt around the city. We ended up having to go the vet's on the spur of the moment so I hauled the poor cat around in his pet carrier in very cold weather. I got lots of curious looks from fellow subwayers, but most people exchanged smiles. It's fun to see animals in transit. It reminds me of Richard Scary's Busy Little World. Anyway, Saturday evening was Edward and Jesse's corporate company party, which was held at a 'swanky' hotel. We were definitely the youngest people at the event, and likely the most subdued. I've never seen so many thirtysomethings 'let their hair down', but it's nice to see people having a good time, at a work function no less. After all, it sounds like Filogix is a crazy company. And I'm sure I made a great impression as Jesse's boss saw me stealing wine off of someone else's table. Discretion is not my forte. There are some photos of the night here (once I manage to upload them).

Sunday: We went to Hero Burger on Queen St. West for arguably the best burgers ever. Their Soul Burger (100% vegan) is the tastiest faux-burger I have ever eaten. I hear their Signature burget is pretty good too. More strolling was done along Queen West, but it was very cold so we retreated into a nearby Chapters and I bought the funniest book on a foreigner's experience living in France: A Year in the Merde. I was literally gasping for air from laughing so hard while reading it last night. All in all, it was a lovely weekend, the kind I hope to have more often once I am free of academic obligations for good!

On a more sombre note, Greig, I'm so happy you're safe! I can't believe how absolutely terrifying and I suppose life-affirming that experience must have been. Hands down, your Valentine's Day was worse than mine.

On a more upbeat note, Leonard is coming to visit in two weeks! Huzzah! It's only been five years of broken promises in this area, Lenny. Seriously though, I am very excited for his visit. It's also going to be Canadian Music Week so we'll probably take in some shows by fledgling bands. Sweet.

Midterms

The Legislative Assembly came back this week, just as midterms began. Thanks for the good timing, Dalton. There have been some scandals and emotional confessions in the chamber as of late, and I truly find it emotionaly exhasuting. I don't know how the politicos handle the constant bombardement.

Valentine's Day was no better. In fact, it was arguably the worst day I've had in ages, although entirely unrelated to my romantic life. You know those days when you wake up and everything just goes wrong? I wanted to just crawl back into bed and sleep. Thankfully midterms and work are over for the week, and I can focus on obsessivley playing flash games, which is my compulsion du jour.

Reading Week is next week, and beyond working and catching up on school, the options are few. I have been asked to go to London, Ontario next weekend, which I am contemplating although I have a dififcult time reconciling the idea of visting the very place I mock so often for its thieved name. But an opportunity to leave the downtown core is always welcome. As much as I adore my neighbourhood, and realize how very privileged I am to live in such an incredible location, in a top-floor apartment overlooking Yorkville, the university campus and with a prime view of Toronto's only castle, it gets tiring constantly being surrounded by city noise.

Oh, one last Ontario-politics reference... this MPP is the spitting image of my dad. "Daddy, is that you?"

EDIT: Photos are actually up now.

My fantastic friend Frank (nice alliteration, if I do say so) came to Toronto for a very brief visit this past weekend. That's right, he flew from Norway to spend 4 days in Toronto. It was a blast! For those of you who may not have been keeping up, Frank was one of my closest friends back in Dunedin, NZ. So it's been a long time since we've been able to get togther a wreak havoc.

We took some photos of our escapades, and you can find them here. I recommend looking at the sets, rather than the photostream, which makes no sense at the moment.