Sunday, February 16, 2014

Movies by year: 1972

(Warning: here be spoilers, but seriously come on, this movie's 42 years old now!)

We're up to 1972! I thought about writing about Deliverance, which is hard to watch but has Burt Reynolds actually acting, or Everything You Always Wanted To Know About Sex* (*But Were Afraid To Ask), which served as a wacky anthology of stuff that made me laugh, but I didn't get until later in life (I first saw it when I was seven), but instead I decided to go the hippie route:

Sunday, February 09, 2014

Movies by year: 1971

(Warning: here be spoilers, but seriously come on, this movie's 43 years old now!)

Time for another movie! We're up to 1971, and there are plenty of excellent films we could discuss - The Andromeda Strain, Bananas, A Clockwork Orange, Harold and Maude, Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory - but instead I'm going to tell you about:

Sunday, February 02, 2014

Movies by year: 1970

(Warning: here be spoilers, but seriously come on, this movie's 44 years old now!)

My Life Songs project inspired me to do the same with movies. I'm going to pick a movie per year of my life and just introduce you to it briefly. Not necessarily my absolute favourite of the year (though it will be among them) or the smartest or the most poignant - just an interesting one. So let's start with 1970:

Friday, November 22, 2013

Happy Anniversary, Doctor Who!

Cinedork
It’s finally upon us, the day many of us doubted would ever happen – tomorrow marks the 50th anniversary of the first time we saw the strange man with the secret and that dimensionally-transcendent police box that took us away on so many adventures.

Doctor Who was first broadcast November 23, 1963, and in the decades since then it has survived replacement of its lead actor, changing heads of broadcasting, cancellation, film destruction and attempts at Americanization, to come out as one of the most popular shows ever created.

Saturday, November 02, 2013

50 years of awesome

50 years ago, on a stormy New Brunswick day, Arthur and Geneva said their vows and cut their cake.

Sunday, September 15, 2013

Life Songs: 2010–2012

I’ve been putting off writing about the more recent life songs because, to be honest, I don’t really listen to the radio anymore so I’m not as familiar with newer stuff. I know, I know, that makes me sound really old. Well I am, live with it.

That said, I can think of a few I’ve heard and like...

Tuesday, August 13, 2013

Love it: Shakespeare in the rough

So this evening Jennskoot and R and I went to see CanStage's latest summer Dream In The Park production: The Taming Of The Shrew.

Thursday, August 08, 2013

Seven years ago

Some things that happened up to today, seven years ago:

Monday, August 05, 2013

Jake

Jake in Killarney 2009 (mine)
So less than an hour after hearing the Peter Capaldi news, my excitement was completely dampened by awful news.

Sunday, August 04, 2013

Another day, another Doctor

Know what I like? Police officers who do their job without being a dick. Also veterinarians who are really nice to your pets (T and I are at one right now with Jake, it's not fair to get sick when you're on vacation, aaaw).

Thursday, August 01, 2013

Aaah...

T and I are all settled in at the cottage, the cats are meandering and all is well. The forecast for tomorrow is already 2 degrees warmer than it The Weather Network predicted this morning, so I have high hopes!

Apparently there was a big Dr Who-related announcement, I haven't gone online to find out what it is yet. And 12th DOCTOR ANNOUNCEMENT on Sunday, excited! Peter Capaldi has recently been getting bookie attention…

20° Sunny

---

later

So the announcement was that there was going to be an announcement on Sunday. Feh.


Saturday, July 27, 2013

Love it: WonderPens

A few days ago I stumbled across WonderPens online and let out a little squeal of delight – a fountain pen shop for everyday people, right here in Toronto! I feel uncomfortable when I visit most pen shops, underdressed and just not rich enough – but reading Jon and Liz Chan's blog (it's their store, a labour of love by the sound of it) I could tell that wouldn't be the case here.

Thursday, July 25, 2013

Visiting the vampires

Owie.
I'm at the blood clinic near my office, waiting for my turn to donate. I've been putting it off for a couple of weeks for no good reason, just too lazy to drag myself in here I suppose - I've already been poked in the finger and I'm good to go.

Wednesday, June 12, 2013

Classic Doctor Who — where to begin?

www.bbc.co.uk
Back in the summer of 2010 I was at a party, discussing Dr Who with a friend who was really getting into the new series. Turned out he hadn’t really watched the classic series at all and was curious as to where he should start. My gut reaction was to suggest ‘start at the beginning!’ but I realized that might be bad, so I told him I’d give it a think and get back to him.

Here’s what I sent him a couple of days later. These are not necessarily considered by all and sundry to be the most iconic, most pivotal, best stories or best performances for each of the Doctors, but they’re the ones I liked for this. Keep in mind, these were my thoughts in 2010…

Sunday, April 14, 2013

I always run into people I know at Ikea.

This weekend I ran into TWO people I know at Ikea. Sort of.

Sunday, March 31, 2013

Springtime with my folks

I spent this weekend with my parents, which is always nice.

Saturday, March 23, 2013

Life Songs: 2005-2009

Oops, been a while, hasn’t it? Okay, here’s the next list. I had a good long think about these...

Thursday, March 21, 2013

Daylight

Home from work. Sitting in a comfy chair. Reading a book. By SUNLIGHT.

Roll on Spring!

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Random observation.

There is never an appropriate time and place for a matching velour track suit. Seriously. They looked like trash in the '70s, and they still do.

Also, the idea of wearing expensive clothes that look cheap is the dumbest thing since the automatic spaghetti fork. The point is to wear cheap clothes that look expensive, people. Or, better yet, spend some real money on something that looks like you spent real money on it.

You have to be a whole new level of stupid to spend $800 on torn jeans or a lumberjack shirt.

That is all.

Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Love it: Banana Sticky Buns

When I was growing up I used to like to take things off the shelf that I already knew front to back and examine them again. One of those things was my Mum's Betty Crocker recipe card box. I would take it out, remove all the cards and them put them back one by one, pausing with each to read through the recipe, study the picture and try to imagine what it would actually taste like.

I recall a number of things that would never, ever get made (really, a baked alaskan?), but there were a few that were made over and over again - and one of those was for Banana Sticky Buns.

So simple, yet so awesome.