Monday, January 29, 2007

A bit of a pickle

Fact One: Camera Obscura are playing at the Opera House on Wednesday night.

Fact Two: I haven't been able to get tickets. I left it too late.

Fact Three: Gav's gonna put me on the guest list, but that's just one, which leaves L with no ticket.

I've checked everywhere, no one seems to have any. I might have just found someone though, just waiting to hear back from them - but I'm not getting my hopes up, as these things have a habit of just not working out for me *sigh*

My living room, btw, is neat and tidy, and I have a brand new Ikea CD Shelf to put up - I'm going to purge a bunch and get rid of my current storage, L says he'll take them off my hands though, isn't he sweet?

Triple bill night tonight - Dr Who's not going to be the next one in the series though; instead they'll be playing the season opener, but that's okay as I think Xog hasn't seen it yet, and to be honest I prefer it to the episode they're supposed to be running *grin*

Saturday, January 27, 2007

2006 Roundup

2006 was quite a year! I went on two vacations (possible because I've passed the five-year mark at work and got an extra week of holiday time!), one to the sunny south and one to the UK. I made some new friends, my roomie moved out, I joined a Stitch & Bitch group and the Queen Street Darts League, participated in the Knitting Olympics (the whole reason I started this blog in the first place), took a digital photography class (which was only half worth it), bought a new computer (The Metatron™) and a new printer and a carpet shampooer (ooh, big ticket items!), had foreign visitors, started dating someone awfully sweet, Dad had hernia surgery and then went through cancer treatments (all looks well - don't smoke kids!), and had three deaths in the family (it always seems to come in threes, doesn't it?). All in all, a pretty eventful year.

Where did my money go this year, otherwise?

Movies:
  • An Inconvenient Truth - it's obvious that this is what Gore really wants to do with his life, he's very engaging.
  • Brick - oooh, film noir coolness
  • Casino Royale - Best Bond Movie ever. No question.
  • Crank - like a giant video game, fun!
  • The DaVinci Code - I liked it better than most of the critics did, but it wasn't fabulous, just well adapted I think.
  • The Descent - scariest movie of the year. My heart didn't stop pounding until I'd been home for two hours.
  • The Devil Wears Prada - fluff
  • Flushed Away - goofy and fun!
  • The Fountain - hrm. It was beautiful, well-acted, looked fantastic, sounded fantastic... and left the entire audience wondering what the hell that was.
  • Good Night And Good Luck - beautiful
  • The Hills Have Eyes - taught me many things about what not to do in the desert
  • The Holiday - fluff, yes, but Jack Black was surprisingly good and Jude Law wasn't creepy!
  • The Illusionist - beautiful, Ed Norton is so engaging
  • The Lake House - less chick-flick-y than I expected, nice - but obvious that the original film was written after having read the Griffin & Sabine stories.
  • The Libertine - you'd have to be a Depp fan to enjoy it. Which I am.
  • Lucky Number Slevin - better than expected - but a stupid title
  • Man Of The Year - hrm. Interesting. Kinda what would happen if Jon Stewart really ran for president.
  • The Matador - hilarious, and Pierce Brosnan was so not hot...
  • Night Watch - odd, and not for everyone, but I liked it. I want to see pt 2
  • Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest - fun! Not as fun as the first one, but still fun!
  • The Prestige - also good, but of the two I preferred The Illusionist. But it gets extra points for having Nicola Tesla as a character. And more for having Bowie in that role.
  • Tristram Shandy: A Cock & Bull Story - a lot of fun, weird too
  • Silent Hill - very much a video game in a movie format. But fun!
  • Superman Returns - hmm, well done!
  • Syriana - convoluted, but in a good way
  • Thank You For Smoking - SO FUNNY!
  • V For Vendetta - uneven but enjoyable
  • X-Men III - okay I guess, but it didn't grab me
  • Young Triffie's Been Made Away With - I haven't seen it on wide release yet, very Canadian
Gigs:
  • Belle & Sebastian with New Pornographers at The Docks - Great show. Horrible venue. I'll never see another show there again
  • The Dears and Jason Collett at Harbourfront - Went for The Dears, but it was Jason Collett who really impressed me.
  • The Editors with Tin Bangs and Lake Trout at the Opera House - Tin Bangs were so-so, Lake Trout were quite good, but The Editors were fantastic! Great show!
  • Spamalot - Fun! But there was a jerk sitting in front of me who seemed to think that laughing shouldn't be allowed, grr...
  • The Bowlie All-Dayer at Buffalo Bar in London, England - so many bands! I'd say Gresham Flyers and My Favourite Dress were my favourites though.
  • Regina Spektor with Only Son at The Phoenix - What a fun show! She's really cute...
  • Billy Connolly at Massey Hall - He sounded great at least - I had really sucky seats and couldn't see him at all...
  • Sloan at Koolhaus - An inconsistent show, sometimes fabulous and sometimes boring...
  • The Raging Butanes at the Black Swan - mmm, blues...
  • Ron James at the Convention Centre - what a funny little man!
CDs:
  • Beatles (1)
  • Belle & Sebastian (Tigermilk; If You're Feeling Sinister; Fold Your Hands Child, You Walk Like A Peasant; The Life Pursuit - that's right, I'm stocking up)
  • Concrete Blonde (Walking In London)
  • Broken Social Scene (Feel Good Lost; Broken Social Scene)
  • Bruford (The Bruford Tapes)
  • Kate Bush (Kick Inside)
  • Captain (This Is Hazelville)
  • Dalbello (whomanfoursays; She; Whore)
  • Dead Can Dance (Serpent's Egg; Within The Realm Of A Dying Sun)
  • Death Cab For Cutie (We Have The Facts And We're Voting Yes; You Can Play These Songs With Chords; Plans)
  • Delgados (Hate)
  • Neil Diamond (Gold)
  • Bob Dylan (Greatest Hits Vol 1)
  • Fiery Furnaces (EP)
  • Frausdots (Couture, Couture, Couture)
  • Futureheads (Futureheads)
  • Helio Sequence (Love And Distance)
  • Hidden Cameras (The Smell Of Our Own)
  • Iron & Wine (Our Endless Numbered Days)
  • Eddie Izzard (Definite Article)
  • Japan (Souvenir From Japan)
  • Mick Karn (The Tooth Mother)
  • King Crimson (Compact King Crimson)
  • Sondre Lerche and the Faces Down Quartet (Duper Sessions)
  • John Linnell (State Songs)
  • The Magnetic Fields (I)
  • Mono Puff (It's Fun To Steal; Unsupervised)
  • Van Morrison (Moondance)
  • Negativland (No Business)
  • Florent Pagny (Bienvenue Chez Moi)
  • John Peel's Festive 15
  • Postal Service (Such Great Heights EP)
  • Propaganda (A Secret Wish)
  • Pulp (Different Class)
  • Leon Redbone (Live 1992)
  • Rough Trade Shops (Indie Pop 1)
  • Rush (Gold)
  • Sigur Rós (Agaetis Byrjun; ())
  • Sing Sing (The Joy of Sing Sing)
  • Sisters Of Mercy (Floodland)
  • Skaface (Mamooska)
  • Skinny Puppy (12" Anthology)
  • Sloan (Never Hear The End Of It)
  • Sparks (Gratuitous Sax And Senseless Violins)
  • Cat Stevens (Gold)
  • Sting (Nothing Like The Sun)
  • They Might Be Giants (The Spine)
  • Throwing Muses (The Real Ramona)
  • Ultra-Lounge (Cocktail Capers)
  • Various (Choice Cuts; Now Hear This)
  • Wall Of Voodoo (Happy Planet)
  • Wings (Greatest)
DVDs:
Music:
  • Acquired Taste (sub-pop video collection)
Movies:
  • Afraid Of The Dark
  • Astronaut's Wife
  • Bollywood Hollywood
  • The Bourne Supremacy
  • The Call Of Cthulhu
  • Charlie & The Chocolate Factory (the new one)
  • The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe
  • Cool Runnings: The Reggae Movie
  • The DaVinci Code
  • Dick Van Dyke episodes
  • Don Juan Demarco
  • Lynch's Dune (collector tin)
  • Empire Of The Wolves
  • Flightplan
  • Gothic/Chiller
  • A History Of Violence
  • Johnny English
  • Lie With Me
  • Mambo Italiano
  • Monty Python’s Flying Circus: The Life Of Brian
  • My Kingdom
  • Pink Panther Film Collection
  • The Professional
  • Snakes On A Plane preview disc
  • A Touch Of Pink
  • Undercover Brother
  • War Of The Worlds
  • Yellowbeard
TV:
  • Alexei Sayle seasons 1-3
  • 'Allo 'Allo seasons 1-4
  • The Avengers Set 2
  • Dr Who: Pyramids Of Mars
  • Dr Who 1996 telefilm
  • Dr Who Series 1 (with Mr Ecclesbum)
  • Family Guy Presents Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story
  • Little Britain Season 2
  • Lost Seasons 1&2
  • Space Above And Beyond
  • Star Trek: The Animated Series
  • Titus Volumes 1&2
  • Twin Peaks Season 1
  • West Wing Season 5

And now, I need to purge...

Friday, January 26, 2007

My life is a whirlwind!

First of all – cutting myself off from the world a couple of weeks ago (so I could get my bedroom clean) was a success! It did, indeed, take an entire weekend, but the results are fabulous! Tonight I’m going to try to tackle my living room – I want the tidy trend to extend!

Xog and I have picked up our triple-bill nights again – Dr Who followed by Heroes followed by time-shifted 24, now that Life On Mars is finished – and oooh, Mr Ecclesbum is on Heroes now! Can’t wait to see how this pans out!

The ArcherWhat else. Lessee, had dinner with friends a few times this month, went to the AGO (almost everything’s closed right now though, disappointing) and the Bata Shoe Museum (pretty cool for $8), got back to my Stitch & Bitch group (I’ve started the Clapotis hat!) and darts too (I still suck, but by less and less every week).

And a couple more movies!

Pan’s Labyrinth – the English language can be a tricky one, but honestly folks, just because it’s a “fantasy” doesn’t mean it’s for kids. Leave them at home, unless you want them scarred for life – this movie was fantastic from beginning to end, but be warned – it’s violent. Really violent. Violent and creepy. Which, as you all know, I love.

Night At The Museum – just saw this one lastnight, and it was fun. How could it not be? Um, don’t know what else to say about that. Oh, it was on the IMAX screen, that’s always fun!

Okay, now we’re all caught up. Let’s see if I can keep it up!

Oh, and I’ve decided to change the bottom quote again - replacing the following from Keen Eddie, as delivered by Monty Pippin (Julian Rhind-Tutt):

You have to be careful though, mate. I can’t handle these intense inter-personal things like that, you know? I’m English. I need to try and keep it down, keep it locked, inside, like we do. I mean, how else are you going to develop cancer?

Friday, January 12, 2007

On the eve of sequesterment...? Sequestering? Sequestion?

Lewis BlackPostal ServiceOkay, the month’s slipping by. So here’s the quick skinny:

Tavern night went well, I made out like a bandit at Sonic Boom again - Lewis Black (The Carnegie Hall Performance), Postal Service (We Will Become Silhouettes ep), Kate Bush (The Kick Inside - which is already in my collection damnit, I'll have to find a good home for it...), They Might Be Giants (Holidayland), 808 State (ex:el) and an Ultra-Lounge collection (Space Capades)!

holidaylandCB and CR have started coming to Tavern regularly, which makes me happy. Also I didn't have to pay for my drinks or dinner, as it was my birthday at midnight and folks generally paid for my stuff. That's right, they paid - I didn't do a runner! And honestly, I've never done that on purpose anyway - I just have a terrible memory *grin* I've taken to paying for stuff the moment I get it, just in case...

space capadesMy actual birthday was great too, L gave me nice things (DVDs and a CD and some nice earrings) and took me for dinner (we were going to go to Le Papillon but decided we weren't as upscale as the menu, so we went to HotHouse and had something we both liked) and spent the weekend making me happy (mmm, cheesecake!)...

fujifilm finepix F31fdI bought a new camera! Yep, the FujiFilm FinePix f31FD, it’s got crazy low-light performance and it’s light and small and sexy and quick and has a huge lcd screen and, oh, everything – I just can’t stop raving about it! I’m slowly putting pix up on my flickr page from the new camera, and leaving the exif information intact for those geeks who must know about such things *grin*

And now, we have snow! Yep, finally there's snow on the ground. It's kinda wussy snow, but it's something at least...

A sad thing happened though, L’s paternal grandmother passed away so I went to the service with him, which was a big meeting of so many people on his father’s side of the family. I think they were all just happy to celebrate her life, L’s uncle led some prayers and such. Oh, and I’ve finally met his big brother, so that’s all of ’em – sad to have taken an occasion like that, but it’s done now. Poor little man *hugs*

Lastnight the usual suspects – plus some, there were nine of us in the end! – saw Children Of Men – okay, this film just blew me away. It was so powerful, filmed in an almost documentary-style, Clive Owen was fantastic. Such a bleak image for the future. We all thought when it came out ‘this will win the oscar for direction’ – and I’ve since seen the nominations, and it’s only on the list in the artsy categories, what’s up with that?

Had dinner with L and G tonight, but that’s it for the weekend – I’ve set myself a goal, and that is to have my bedroom clean enough that people can actually SEE it…

rescued from Draft purgatory

Monday, January 01, 2007

Happy New Year!

Good lord, time’s got away with me again! Happy new year all, by the way! So, since we saw each other last, what’s happened?

Well, I renewed my passport so I’d be ready for Los Angeles in February (quick tip: fill out your forms online, print them and bring them – they’ll give you a special turbo number that’ll get you out in fifteen minutes!) and it’s since arrived in the mail, so I’m all set! I don’t mind the photo either, they print them directly on now rather than laminating them in, so it’s harder to forge I suppose – they really made my head BIG though!

Went home for the holidays, which was nice – got to see my family and some friends from near and far and L came home for a few days too so he got to meet the locals (they seem to approve). J* et al came in to shanghai me as per usual, we went to Niagara Falls and spent the afternoon shopping (oooh, new suit, makeup and socks!) with W4tM, who came up to spend the day with us, and we all went to dinner. Of course, the two of us had cheesecake on a stick first. Yep, before dinner – I’m an adult, I can eat stuff in whatever order I want, nyah!

Anyway, from there I was hiked back to Kitchener to spend the rest of the holidays, which was also great – got lots of cuddles in with my godson, visited with lots of friends, went shopping (good lord, did I go shopping! Let’s see – socks, shoes, ELEVEN tops, pants, black velvet jacket, coat, necklace, hat, skirt), had an early birthday dinner and two parties at new year’s eve (drunken Trivial Pursuit until 3am is a great way to spend it, btw!), and then we all had dessert downtown this afternoon before L and I came back to town. What a great holiday!

rescued from Draft purgatory