- Dinner with Andrew and Colin on Friday. Now that doesn’t happen much these days. Nice.
- Dinner at Tappo on Saturday with Greg and Maggie. No pictures I’m afraid, but a great meal and company nonetheless. Took a bottle of 2010 De Lancellotti from Bergstrom Winery that we picked up in Oregon over the summer. Good stuff; not as exceptional I as remembered, but definitely a quality wine.
- Took in Soulpepper’s The Crucible, which was exceptional. My expectations from Soulpepper are very high, and every now and then they really deliver, as they did here. And this, even though I had the worst seat in the house (front row, on-stage props obstructed my view during much of the 1st act).
- Later, dropped in on Michele for her “Goodbye Oakville” party. Had a nice time with Michele’s friends. Shared my dream about getting measured for a new suit, and being told by the tailor that their measurement system classified me as a “Paunch 1” body-style, presumably not a good as a “Paunch 0”, but still better than having a higher numbered Paunch.
- Journeyed back into Toronto for The Word on the Street on Sunday. Heidi was disappointed, but it was pretty much what I remembered. Lots of tents promoting work by small presses that have, to be kind, pretty narrow readership potential. I couldn’t help thinking that this event is rapidly becoming obsolete in the digital world. Still the bargain book tent was still busy…
. . . as was Stuart McLean’s talk (some things never change). The most bizarre thing, I thought, was folks lining up to get autographed free copies of self-published books.
- Walked to the Apple Store to buy Heidi a new Mac (her current one is on its last legs). Unfortunately the place was swamped with iPhone 5 marks. Took us about 15 minutes to gets a salesperson to help us, just to find out that the configuration we wanted wasn’t in stock. Ordered it online as soon as we got home.
New music I discovered this week:
Arvo Pärt: Creator Spiritus – still digesting
Firewater: International Orange – Disappointing compared to the glorious “The Golden Hour”
Loscil: Sketches from New Brighton – Jury’s still out. Some nice sections, but not sure if I like it like I liked Coast/Range/Arc or Endless Falls.
Simon Scott: Below Sea Level – I have a good reaction so far to this atmospheric, ambient effort.
Deadbeat: Eight – Yes!!!
Deadbeat: Drawn And Quartered – Yes!!!
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