“He takes a whiskey drink, he takes a vodka drink…”
-Tubthumping, Chumbawumba (aka “Oasis”…inside joke)

The weekend brought lots of fun at my cottage for Dirk, Nayeli, Shane, Natalie, and myself, involving copious amounts of booze, steamrolling, spoons, Fuck You, and encroaching on rafts.


Nat made her way down from O-town in the afternoon before we embarked on our 2 hour drive up north, after brief stops at a coffee shop, Subway, Mr. Sub, the LCBO (twice), and Baskin Robbins (which yielded nothing). With the CD player in the car unfortunately broken, we crossed our fingers for some Bon Jovi, but alas, were ultimately disappointed. We did however, hear some Dire Straits, Kim Mitchell, and Bryan Adams over the course of the weekend. It’s no Bon Jovi, but then, who is?

“He takes a lager drink, he takes a cider drink.”

Made it to the cottage at night only to discover that my old Nintendo was still in operating condition, thus beginning the continuous Super Mario 3 playing. Eventually, it was time to move on to more serious card drinking games. Nayeli, being quite sick, did shots of Neo-Citran, a challenge in and of itself. She also chased it down with milk, which made me kinda sick after all the rum/Boone’s/beer consumption. Dirk was in full force with his falsetto singing and 2 of us narrowly avoided spewing off the deck. Eventually Nat and I made it to our own beds around 5:15am or so, followed by the boys sometime after 6am.

“I get knocked down, but I get up again”

The next day brought a really burnt pizza, adventures in the lake, and a trip to both the Beer Store and the grocery store. Our lake fun was hampered by our “encroaching” on a lunatics raft in the middle of the lake and the discovery of the goose-friendly “poop deck” to which we had to clean off to go swimming. And somehow my shirt ended up sinking in the lake to become another mystery of the deep. Also a lot of accidental flashing on the part of poorly made bathing suits.

Proving that we actually can take car of ourselves, we made an awesome BBQ dinner. The only casualties were two unfortunate hot dogs and their hamburger brothers which ended up either on the deck floor, or lost in the barbeque flames. Eurotrip and s’mores followed along with one of the best few games of spoons that I’ve played in 4 years. The fight to the death rule for spoons was obvious as there were several spoon related mishaps and injuries. The downside was that we somehow had managed to drain the well of water and were forced to lug buckets of lake water up to the cottage.

“You’re never gonna keep me down”


The game of Fuck You was in full effect with such awesome rules as we must only speak in gansta, yo! As well as William Shatner speaking when it was your turn, only to later become William Shatner as gangsta speak, and a quick game of spoons every time a King was pulled from the deck.

After a feast of bacon (“You call this bacon?”) we made it back to Toronto, a little more tired than we had left. Nayeli and I chose to do our weekend recovery during a screening of Flightplan. The movie is okay, but who am I kidding? I was only there for Peter Sarsgaard, rendering all else useless.


Word.

“He sings the songs that remind him of the good times, He sings a song that reminds him of the better times”

OVERRATED: Lunatics who try to force us off their raft in the middle of the lake for fear that we are keeping “others” in his area off of the raft. In the middle of September. With no other boats around. While the water is cold.
UNDERRATED: Running water. You don’t know what you’ve got til it’s gone.

“We'll be singing, When we're winning we'll be singing”

“Talk about...pop muzik”
-Pop Muzik, M (also great U2 cover)

I have the feeling that this will be a long post.

First things first, the end of the film festival (might as well do this in chronological order).

Friday, September 16, 2005:

Films screened:
Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-rabbit

Celebs spotted:
Helena Bonham-Carter
Nick Park

Went to the gala premiere of Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-rabbit. Ralph Fiennes was a no-show although creator Nick Park and Helena Bonham-Carter were there. Park brought actual figurines used in the film. The film itself wasn’t bad. I still prefer the short The Wrong Trousers and a Close Shave. I think they’re funnier. But the film was good. Everyone in the audience got Gromit masks. All in all, the film was enjoyable with the traditional werewolf theme transformed into a wererabbit theme with the wererabbit terrorizing the town on the eve of the giant vegetable competition.

“You're living in a disco, Forget about the rat race”

Saturday, September 17, 2005:
U2 (on stage at the ACC)
Eli Roth
Some unknown stars of Hostel

Saturday proved much more exciting. Nayeli and I had a 9am screening of Winter Passing, which was only okay. Seeing as I was sick and still got out of bed earlier than I do on a normal weekday I still liked the movie. Zooey Deschanel is alright, but she always has this vacant, detached look about her in all her roles. I guess it’s her thing. Will Ferrell is also in the film playing a toned down version of himself. Not laugh out loud hysterical, but some comic bits to an otherwise depressing film. Ed Harris plays Deschanel’s recluse writer father but he never seems to fully capture the tormented part. You leave the theatre feeling that nothing really happened. Or you just could care less.

We followed up Winter Passing with one of the worst brunches ever. I was trying to make my 1245pm screening of Hostel and had an hour and a half to kill so Nayeli and I stopped at over Easy in Yorkville for breakfast. They were busy, but not htat busy. Our waiter was so lousy, we didn’t tip and I always leave a tip. Having waited tables, I know what you’re capable of, and this guy was an idiot. He only had 4 tables, all at different stages of ordering/eating, but was doing other things instead of paying attention. Dude must have made nothing in tips because the 3 tables around us were overheard complaing about poor service. That and the food sucked. I’ll never turn my back on Eggspectations after Saturday’s fiasco. I actually had to run to make my movie since out breakfast that should have taken an hour, tops, took an hour and a half and then some. I arrived late to Hostel, but luckily the film was being intro’d by the director and I managed a seat before it started.

Hostel is best described as a B horror flick that has pretty much be done before, except this time it’s set in “exotic” Bratislava instead of a cabin in the woods/abandoned house/middle America. Blood and gore for the sake of grossing out the audience, but at this point, it’s all been done before so it’s really not that shocking…except maybe when this guy cuts off a girl’s eye as it hangs out of the socket…gross. But other than that, it’s not that great, and doesn’t even have a lot of suspense. Eli Roth, the director, also directed/wrote Cabin Fever, which, isn’t a great film, but it’s better than Hostel.

As a film Festival wrap-up, there were some really good movies, a few that I doubt I'll watch again, and one that I hope I don't have to watch again.

The best remain Thank You for Smoking and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, both of which I would watch again, sooner rather than later.

Everything is Illuminated was good. I would watch it again. But it's Schindler's List good. Meaning that it is kind of depressing to watch as it deals with death and the holocaust, but it is a good story with great acting.

Breakfast on Pluto was another good film, I'd recommend it, depending on if you like things that are a littel far out or off of the normal Hollywood path. I did enjoy the performances a lot, even if it reminded me a bit too much of Velvet Goldmine. But Cillian Murphy is fantastic in it.

Neverwas was enjoyable, but a little disappointing, as was Wallace and Gromit. All in all, I probably would watch them again the next time they were on TV, although I don't think I'd go out of my way to rent them.

I hated Elizabethtown. It had so much promise. If Cameron Crowe is going to cut at least 20 minutes out of the film for it's October release, it makes me wonder if there will even be 20 minutes left that are actually good. Orlando Bloom is okay, but it's nothing special. You can exchang ehim for anyother young actor and have the same results. Things are best left unsaid about Kirsten Dunst, other than I often wanted to scratch my eyes out when she was on screen.

Thumbsucker was disappointing because I thought it woul dbe good, but it veered so far off the path of what I hoped it would be that I didn't enjoy it. Some of my friends did, however, who went into the film without any background on it.

I won't bother with Hostel again. There are too many similar films that deliver better scares. Same goes for Winter Passing. It was just bland. Not bad, but bland. And I had the odd feeling that it reminded me too much of several other films. It was as if the films of my conscious had mated and produced a boring offspring.

And as for the several that I didn't get into, I'm still looking forward to Brokeback Mountain, Proof (although not as much as before), and Corpse Bride. For word of mouth ones that I heard were good or sparked my interest: North Country, Trust the Man, Romance & Cigarettes, and a few more.

“Dance to the Pop Mart, Top of food chain”

A short nap followed by my 6th U2 concert was the highlight of the weekend.

This was U2 at their best. At least the best I’ve ever seen them. They’ve only gotten mediocre reviews on their stay in Toronto, but I cant really see why after Saturday’s show. Saturday kicked Wednesday’s ass. It was so much better for their 4th and final show that the ACC. The set list rocked. The crowd was fantastic. Everyone was hyped up and sang the entire intro to Elevation. It seemed to surprise Bono that the crowd was so loud for that part. Bono’s voice seemed strained towards the end of the show, but his energy level was high as he was jumping up and down and dancing on the stage. Bono remarked that Eddie Vedder was in the house to thunderous applause, only to have Eddie trot out later in the show to sing Old Man River at the end of One, along with Daniel Lanois who returned again (seems he has nothing better to do, but I give the guy props for being an awesome local).

“Listen to the countdown, They're playing our song again”

At the first encore, where Zoo Station/The Fly had previously been played, the screen started showing images from the 1997 Popmart tour. The crowd, including myself, went hysterical. The band came out to the familiar sound of M’s Pop Muzik, a Popmart staple, and then launched into the best live rendition of Discotheque I’ve ever heard. Everyone was going nuts and jumping/screaming. They finished the night off with 40, done in the traditional style of the band leaving the stage one by one until only Larry remains. The chorus was carried on by the crowd as everyone exited the ACC. The band played The Ocean, a 1980 track as well as Fast Cars, the special track from their last album that didn’t make it to North American CDs, only special editions and European ones. The highlight was Discotheque and Love and Peace for me, along with another great version on Bullet the Blue Sky. Bono also bucked tradition and didn’t bring a girl up on stage for With or Without You. I managed to get some video and lots of pictures.

“If you wanna be a gun slinger, Don't be a rock singer”

The people behind me, and on either side were the only ones in my section who sat for most of the show. I’m sure I ruined it for them because I was dancing and clapping and singing along to every song. Who goes to a concert and sits the entire time? When the guy next to me did stand, he had his arms folded across his chest. He only clapped for the encores. Why waste your money when a real fan can’t get tickets?

U2 setlist:

1. City of Blinding Lights

2. Vertigo -snippet Rockaway Beach

3. Elevation

4. Electric Co

5. The Ocean

6. Beautiful Day-Snippet of SGT Pepper

7. Miracle Drug

8. Sometimes You Can't Make it Own Your Own - Snippet, Dirty Old Town

9. Love and Peace or Else

10. Sunday Bloody Sunday

11. Bullet in the Blue Sky Snippet Hands That Built America and Johnny Comes Marching Home

12. Miss Sarajevo/Human Rights Video

13. Pride (In the Name of Love)

14. Where the Streets Have No Name

15. One - Daniel Lanois playing the Irish Falcon - Old Man River Snippet Eddie Vedder on Stage!!

Pop Muzik interlude

16. Discotheque

17. The Fly

18. With or Without You

19. All Because of You

20. Fast Cars

21. Yahweh

22. 40

All in all a fantastic show. I can’t wait for my 7th U2 concert…

OVERRATED: Where the Streets Have No Name. Okay, I admit it, it’s not my fave U2 song, and I’m getting a little tired of hearing it live. I would trade it in for something rarer, but we all know, it’s a huge hit and it will never happen.
UNDERRATED: Discotheque. It’s an awesome song that doesn’t get the credit it deserves, along with the Pop album. It’s one of my favourites and Saturday’s show proved it can rock and get the crowd going.

“Anyway you want to go”

“Even Better than the real thing”
-Even Better than the Real Thing, U2

Where do I begin?

U2 concert Wednesday, Sept. 14 at the ACC. Not bad. Not utterly fantastic, but not their worst either.

Don’t get me wrong, I really enjoyed it. What happens when you have seen a band like U2 multiple times (Wednesday was my 5th) you have a number of other live experiences to compare them too. The couple I had sat next to had never seen the band before and were therefore overjoyed while I was more picky, stating that I’ve seen them perform certain songs better. My mom, for whom it was her third U2 show, agreed. I really loved Miss Sarajevo and Love and Peace. They were definite show highlights.

“Give me one more chance, Let me be your lover tonight”

The other thing that is good is that now with newer digital cameras, you can take video along with pictures, so I took some clips of the show. Not bad to watch on the computer and I’ll upload them sometime in the future.

“We're free to fly the crimson sky, The sun won't melt our wings tonight”

I was really excited before and after the show, but now as I’ve had time to mull it over and yes, even compare it to their Monday performance (which one of my friends went to along with Wednesday and he preferred the first show) set list and set lists from other shows, it is a little lackluster and disappointing. Where was I Will Follow and Out of Control? Did they forget about the Pop album? Zooropa? No Stay and no Running to Stand Still? What gives? Caro is going to tonight’s show so we can compare on Monday. I know someone at each of the 4 shows, so we’ll have a round table discussion group on it.

“Give me one last chance, And I'm gonna make you sing, Give me half a chance, To ride on the waves that you bring”

I can only say that I will have to wait and see until Saturday’s concert.

I’m also very sick so my U2 freak-out factor is low this week.

But tonight I have the Gala premiere of Wallace and Gromit and the Curse of the Were-Rabbit. Hoping to see Ralph Fiennes there.

U2 Setlist:
Vertigo
Electric Co.
Elevation
Beautiful Day
Still Haven’t Found
City of Blinding Lights
Miracle Drug
Sometimes You Can’t Make It On Your Own
Love and Peace
Sunday Bloody Sunday
Bullet The Blue Sky
Miss Sarajevo
PrideWhere the Streets have no name
One
The Fly
With or Without
YouAll Because of You
Yahweh
Bad

“We'll slide down the surface of things”

“I’m at a place called vertigo”
-Vertigo, U2

I’m also very sick. It’s all catching up to me now. The lack of sleep, fast food diet, and way too much excitement. But nothing can stop me for U2 day and the rest of the fest. Sunday is the day of rest.

I really am quite sick and if this had been a normal week where nothing was happening in the city, then I would have stayed home in bed watching TV and bemoaned my illness to anyone who would listen. Instead, I must keep going! It is U2 Day part 1. I also think I may have overdosed on expired Sudafed, but that’s a problem for another day.

I’m actually not that excited about the concert right now. I think it’s the illness that’s clouding my judgment. I down some more Red Bull later. I’m just not at fever pitch mode (although I do have a fever) like I was for the last concert in Montreal in Oct. 2001. And we all know the best concert is always the last one, so I’ll get excited for Saturday. But the show sounds/looks good from what I’ve heard so far. I never doubt the lads anyway.

Now for the festival recap:

Tuesday, September 13, 2005:

Films Screened:
Thumbsucker

Celebs spotted:
Keanu Reeves
Mike Mills (director, not the guy from REM)
Lou Pucci (star of Thumbsucker)
2 girls in the film whose names I didn’t catch.

I was disappointed with this one. It wasn’t that great. It wasn’t bad either, mind you, but I don’t think I would see it again. The central character, Justin, the thumbsucker, is well acted by Lou Pucci but I found the story never really went anywhere and was a predictable teen drama at certain points. It started out promising with a few comic bits, but I felt that Tilda Swinton and Vincent D’Onofrio’s characters ran out of things to do and their story arcs were never really completed- like D’Onofrio’s character never confronts his wife or follows up to see if she is in fact hooking up with patient Benjamin (I don’t like him) Bratt (we know she’s not, but that means taking a drug addict’s words as the truth), and Swinton’s character never actually evolves. Bratt’s participation is basically a glorified cameo. Keanu is the comic centre of the film and the one who got the most laughs. He’s also much more attractive in person than on screen. And no, he didn’t say “whoa.”

It’s the middle of the festival, and I only have 4 more films to see, one of which I may skip (The Cabin Movie) if I don’t feel better tomorrow. The ones I was most excited to see are now over and done with, so we’ll have to see how promising the rest are.

I also met some very nice Irish guys on the street across from the Elgin theatre who stopped to ask me what was going on (they had just arrived in the city). Then they asked if I heard of Neil Jordan because he was here at the festival. He was delighted when I told him I had already seen the movie (Breakfast on Pluto) and Cillian Murphy, Bono, and Liam Neeson. Now they think that all Canadians love Ireland, and that there are always celebrities here.

"Swinging to the music"

Everything is Illuminated (and all because of Peter Sarsgaard)

New Mission also accomplished: I saw Peter Sarsgaard, a mere 4 hours after setting the mandate to find him. I’m getting good at this….now it’s time to apply myself to “real” goals (ie. Save some money, buy a house, buy a car…but that’s so not me)

Film Festival Fun continues:
Monday, September 12, 2005:

Films Screened:
Everything is Illuminated

Celebrities spotted:
Peter Sarsgaard
Maggie Gyllenhaal
Jake the Jerk Gyllenhaal
Miss Universe (hey, she’s from TO…)
Jane Seymour (not to be confused with Roma Downey, whom I often think is the same person as Jane Seymour)
David Duchovny
Julianne Moore
Bart Freundlich (director)
Claire Danes
Billy Crudup
Eva Mendes
Elijah Wood
Live Schreiber
Eugene Hutz

First things first, red carpet re-cap.

My co-worker Caroline and I decided to go scope out the red carpet for the Trust the Man premiere (would have seen the movie but I had to meet people for the later showing of Illuminated but it does sound good). Hung out right by the barrier for a good view of everyone exiting the limos and talking to the press. It became apparent that I:
a) pretty much was the first person to see stars exit their cars from my vantage point
b) seemed to be the only person who knew absolutely everyone getting out of the cars (amid questions of “Who is that? Is that the mom from Smallville?”)
c) put my BA in Film Studies to good use not once but twice in the evening, as well as my vast knowledge of pop culture
d) feel smugly superior to everyone else this week (save for Shane and the other knowledgeable people I’ve met)
First up was Miss Universe, whom the girls next to us, in French said, “She's Miss Universe? She’s not that pretty. She was on waaaay too much makeup. And she has fat ankles.” For the record, I thought she was good looking. She is Miss U afterall.

Next up, Jane Seymour. For me, she’ll always be Dr. Quinn: Medicine Woman. She smiled and waved and did the press thing. Very nice.

Then there was Jerk Gyllenhaal, whom is no long my favourite Gyllenhaal. In fact, I’m going to shun my Jake collection (with the exception of Donnie Darko. That one I’ll keep for the Swayze). Goodbye October Sky. So Long The Good Girl. I feel bad that I actually wasted my time watching Bubble Boy on TV the night before. So why the sudden anger against a man that I previously liked? I mean, I do own The Day After Tomorrow and not for the special effects.

Jerk, as he will now be forever known, sauntered onto the carpet as the first “major” (sorry Jane) star to arrive. He stopped in front of us and talked with other industry people. That’s all fine and dandy. Fans were calling his name, POLITELY asking him to pose for a picture and merely turn his head towards them, while telling him that they love his films, saw Brokeback Mountain the other night and he’s awesome, etc. Not only did he flat out ignore everyone comepletly except for his industry posse, he actually held up his hand and pointed his finger in the “One Minute. Get out of my face bitch” Way. His manager/assistant/random woman pal turned to the crowd and said the he would pose in minute. Not only did that not happen, but Jerk practically stormed up the red carpet into the theatre, bypassing not only his fans, but also the media including Entertainment Tonight and eTalk Daily. He’s not even in the film! It’s his sister’s movie! (and Kirsten Dunst wasn’t there either). And apparently he did sign autographs at an earlier film. He also missed the press conference for his own film, Proof. And I hear that he reiterated over and over again at the Brokeback Mountain press conf that he, repeat, does not dig dudes, but is a hetero, much to some ridicule later in the press. I haven’t seen anyone so upset about being labeled homosexual as if it’s the worst possible thing imaginable since Tom Cruise. (Val Kilmer and Robert Downey Jr joked about their kiss and how fun it all was, so give me a break Jerk. Your co-star didn’t seem to mind.)

And then the parade of Duchovny, Eva Mendes (whose autograph I scored), Julianne Moore, Claire Danes, Crudup and Freundlich descended. Eva and the Duchov took the most time talking to fans and signing autographs and posing for pictures (take that Jerk Gyllenhaal). They were really nice and genuinely seemed to be appreciative of the fans. And then my heart stopped beating as I saw Peter Sarsgaard emerge of a car with his girlfriend Maggie “The Good” Gyllenhaal.

At this point I freaked out. This was it. The reason I was there. And by freak out, I don’t mean I scream or cry, just get unbelieveable hyper and excited and talk in a higher pitch and really fast. Snapped pictures like mad of everyone, especially the Sars. Good shots too which I will add after the fest is over and I have 5 minutes to think. No one is paying the Sarsgaard any attention. It is afterall, not his film, and the majority of the people don’t know him unless its like, “That rapist in Boys Don’t Cry/ The cemetery dude in Garden State/ the Naked guy in Kinsey & The Centre of the World/Dude with the mullet in The Salton Sea/The guy who isn't Hayden Christensen in Shattered Glass, etc.” As he got closer I yelled, “Peter!” trying to get his attention. So I had Caro call him too. Maggie nudged him, smiled, pointed in our direction as she said something to him (I’d like to think she said, “Those attractive girls are trying to get your attention. Perhaps you should go over there and make out with them”). He then looked, I waved, he smiled and winked at me. I took a picture. It was awesome! I was in such a good mood that later when a dude on the street was all like, “hey baby” to me, I didn’t even give him the finger. That’s powerful stuff, man.

Afterwards in line for Everything is Illuminated, to which I brought my VHS copy of the movie North (shut up. It's funny) for Elijah Wood to sign, much to the amusement of Shane and his brother Ryan (plan is to try and get entire cast of North to sign the cover, except for the dearly departed John Ritter to which we will ceremoniously cross off his face with an X). I also won a free crappy CD for answering some pop culture trivia (before the chick even finished the question) and M&M’s for myself and Shane for correctly identifying a picture of Bono (to which, according to Shane, I said, in a high pitched squeal, “Oooooooh! That’s Bono!!!!!)

Onto the film. I sat across from Live Schreiber who was a row behind me and across the aisle. He appeared to be almost drunk at times and laughed at parts that weren’t funny. He was the only one laughing. Maybe good memories attached to filming that scene? Got a good pic of Elijah as he walked by me to his seat, too. The film was very good and much better than Elizabethtown. The film got a partial standing ovation at the end (I didn’t stand. It was good, but it wasn’t that good). Some of the funniest parts of the film are actually in Ukrainian. And of course, there are a lot of jokes based on mistranslation and the adaptation of Western culture by Eastern European countries that are behind the times (Alex loves Michael Jackson as he is, to him, the epitome of cool).

The Q&A was great. I think it lasted 20 minutes as the audience was treated to anecdotes on the process of filming and casting. Elijah Wood was funny as he interrupted this guy who asked a question comparing his performance in Illuminated to Sin City, to state that those two films are do far different. And then it turned out dude had a legit question so Elijah was like, “I’m so sorry…etc.” Really funny. Bonus points for Eugene Hutz who was ina Ukranian rock band and was sporting one kick-ass mustache.

Up tonight:
Thumbsucker

Hoping to see Keanu Reeves and Vince Vaughn. I don’t know if either are in town. Maybe Peter Sarsgaard again? He likes movies. And I like him.

The best week of my life continues as I gear up for the big U2 concert tomorrow (1 of 2 I’ll be attending). My pal Tony (not to be confused with my cat Tony or Tony Danza) saw it last night and said it rocked. He’ll be there again tomorrow.

And I’m really trying to stay awake as the lack of sleep is cathing up. That and I’m not wearing any shoes at work.

Thank You For Smoking
-Today’s edition is super-long and covers 3 days of TIFF-ing-

I did it…Mission accomplished. I saw Bono. For a brief and fleeting moment I was in his presence at the Breakfast on Pluto screening. But more on that later.

Film Festival recap:

Friday, September 9, 2005:

Films seen:
Thank You for Smoking
Neverwas

Celebrities Spotted:
Aaron Eckhart (at both screenings)
Maria Bello
William H. Macy
Jason Reitman (director)
David Koechner
Adam Brody
Rachel McAdams
Alan Cumming
Nick Nolte (yup, he really is that haggard and crazy)
Joshua Michael Stern (director)
Cameron Bright

I started the evening at the Ryerson Theatre, my new home away from home with the Thank You for Smoking preview. I showed up about an hour early and was about 30th in line. Not bad. Got a choice seat in my fave spot on the aisle. Waiting for the movie to start as people were filing in, I looked to my right and Rachel McAdams was walking down the aisle, talking to people with Maria Bello behind her. I didn’t recognize Rachel at first and not many people did. Maria Bello sat across the aisle from me and Aaron Eckhart followed her and sat in front of her, also across from me. We were separated by about 3 feet. William H. Macy came in next and sat in front of Aaron, so I was diagonally from him too. A lot of fun watching their reactions to the films, especially Aaron Eckhart’s during his sex scene with Katie Holmes (who wasn’t there but people booed and hissed at her name in the credits)- Aaron had slumped in his seat and covered his face with his hand.

The movie itself was great. Right up my alley. Filled with black humour (see Friday’s post with link to film descriptions). Laugh out loud funny. Eckhart was great at playing a loveable slimeball. Maria Bello had a minimal role and looked quite aged on screen. She was much more attractive in person. I thought that Adam Brody really stole the show. Having never been subjected to his show, The OC (out of principal and because of Peter Gallagher), I was surprised by his fast-talking and comical performance. The young star of the film, Cameron Bright, was also exceptional as his role featured long bouts of dialogue delivered in mostly long monologues.

There was a Q & A after the film and everyone but Maria Bello stuck around and came up on stage.

My second film, Neverwas, also starring Aaron Eckhart, was up next. I wasn’t as impressed with this film. It’s kind of a fairytale that can’t decide if it wants to be dark (there is a mystery to be solved!) or not and just comes off kind of messy. Still enjoyable, but I don’t know if I care to see it again. Sir Ian McKellen, who wasn’t in attendance gave a great performance as a mental patient who believes he is the king of a make-believe (or is it?) land called Neverwas. Brittany Murphy doesn’t really do much. At all. And Alan Cumming is barely there, which I guess is why he showed up in a red plaid suit so at elast someone would pay attention to him.

Again, a Q&A followed with the cast coming up on stage. God bless Nick Nolte. The man adds that certain something to Q&A’s. Wearing black, baggy pants, and an oversized black shirt and coat with a man purse, his hair wildy unkempt, he spoke into the microphone, contradicting everything the director had just said and sounding as if he had just smoked an entire pack of cigarettes. I will upload the pictures later….

Saturday, September 10, 2005:

Films screened:
Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang
Breakfast on Pluto

Celebrities spotted:
Bryce Dallas Howard
Bono
Liam Neeson
Neil Jordan (director)
Cillian Murphy
Shane Black (director)
Piers Handling (TIFF director, author of film books on horror, required reading at Carleton U)

Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang is in the early running for my favourite film at the festival with Thank You for Smoking. It’s filmed like a modern film noir with Val Kilmer and Robert Downey Jr. who both give the best performances I’ve seen them give in a while (Kilmer and The Salton Sea notwithstanding). This isn’t Val Kilmer from The Real McCoy, this is Val Kilmer in The Doors quality acting. Both actors are hilarious and the guys are great as a mismatched odd couple detective/actor duo. The film manages to encompass a mystery, murder, humour, and action all in one. Highly recommended. Because it was the second screening of this film, the actors had already shown up for the premiere but the director Shane Black was on hand to intro the film.

After a much needed nap, I went back out to see Breakfast on Pluto.

Got there early, got a good seat. Caught a glimpse of Bono on the red carpet. It was over before I knew what happened, but good. Short and sweet. The way I like it. Sigh. Counting down the hours until Wednesday’s concert… Saw sooo many talented Irish people whom I love.

Also good: Liam Neeson. Now, unlike most teenaged girls, I also had a crush on Liam Neeson (see previous posts re: high school crushes on Ralph Fiennes and Bono). He came up on stage with Neil Jordan (Michael Collins, Interview with the Vampire) who is one of my fave directors. And Cillian Murphy was there too, who I can’t decide if he is good looking or ugly. Like handsome in anugly way. Not really in an ugly way but in a more or less unusal way. not so much of the "Brad Pitt" type, but I never go for those anyway. Yeah. It's decided. I love Cillian Murphy.

The film itself wasn’t bad, per se. Cillian does a great job as a cross dressing man in Ireland in the 1970s and it is well directed. But I felt like it had been done before with Velvet Goldmine (although more the story of musicians, but from the glam rock, boys dressing as girls era). Pluto has a good soundtrack and Neeson is good as always (yes, even better than Krull). The film is depressing and Jordan returns to some of his old IRA issues. But I still really liked it, although I'm obviously biased, and will see it again.

Cillian Murphy hung around outside the theatre after the screening to pose for pictures and sign autographs. He was virtually ignored on the red carpet earlier because he is still somewhat of an unknown. The woman I sat next to said she had talked to him and told he had nice eyes because no one was talking to him. I think I love him. He was soooo nice. And quite pretty as a woman in the film.
And then that was followed by The Mod Club for a night of boozing in celebration of Leanne’s birthday and my Bono/the Men of Ireland sighting.

Saturday, September 11, 2005:

Films screened:
Elizabethtown

Celebrities spotted:
None. But I ran into Shane so I didn't have to see the movie alone. We also saw a "Peter Jackson" hairy usher.

Now I like Cameron Crowe. I enjoy the work of Orlando Bloom when he is not dressed as an elf. Kirsten Dunst- I don’t have anything nice to say so I won’t say it at all (except an anagram for her name is “Dr. Sunken Tits” {I learned that from Go Fug Yourself} and it is apt. Apt!). Elizabethtown is no Almost Famous. It’s certainly not Say Anything. In fact, it’s not even Vanilla Sky. It is however, very long. Much longer than needed. It’s already on the list of things to skip along with Breakfast on Pluto and Tideland according to the newspapers.

It’s not Orlando Bloom’s fault. In fact, he’s good. I started off thinking that the film would have been better off if his character had been played by Peter Sarsgaard and Dunst’s character played by someone who can act. And the inclusion of Danny DeVito never hurt anyone. But in the end, the actors all worked well. Susan Sarandon has been relegated to the “mom” role now and shoved in the corner of the film. Everyone knows Crowe movies have a good soundtrack. It’s what they’re there for. Sometimes they are better than the films themselves. 2/3 of the music fit in with the theme and Kentucky setting of the film. Lynard Skynard works here. What doesn’t work and comes off as “soundtrack stuffing” is the “road trip” sequence at the end of the film. It’s almost an excuse to put in as many culturally significant and driving songs (a la “Free Falling” in Jerry Maguire) that Crowe can come up with to fill up his soundtrack. I thought the movie just went on too long. It should have ended 3 times. And of course, the excuse given to us before the film started was that this is a special festival cut and not the ultimate final version….Which you know means if people hate it then it’s an excuse to re-cut and merely say that they didn’t like it because it wasn’t the final product.

Again, a much needed nap, a quick recharge with a DVD, and thus concludes Sunday.

Up for tonight:
Everything is Illuminated- I’m going to try to get Elijah Wood to sign my VHS copy of North, and Liev Schreiber to sign Scream 2.
…and maybe Trust the Man (we’ll see). I might just go for red carpet, Peter Sarsgaard/David Duchovny spotting God willing.

And bonus points to Nayeli who saw (after I grilled her and showed her pictures because she doesn’t know who some people are being a Mexican from Mexico, she only knows Mexicans but not the movie The Mexican):
Bryce Dallas Howard (with me)
Jake Gyllenhaal (damn her!)
Maggie Gyllenhaal (she’s not sure if bf Sarsgaard was there)
Richard Gere (who is short apparently. Shorter than you’d think)
Steve Martin
Claire Danes
Terry Gilliam
Jason Schwartzman

This is turning out so much better than that time I ran into Ricki Lake in NYC.

“Meet me in the morning when you wake up, Meet me in the morning then you'll wake up”
-Bend & Break, Keane

Welcome to my idea of Heaven. First day of the film festival for me…gearing up for two screenings tonight.


Tonight I nabbed tickets for Thank You for Smoking and Neverwas. I don’t know which one I am more excited for. In order to plan for my big day out today- 8 hours of work, plus 2 films back to back, plus an evening of drinking, dancing, and general debauchery to follow at Lee’s Palace means that I’m going to be exhausted come my 10am screening of Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang tomorrow. I hear it’s funny and I’ll get up early for Robert Downey Jr. and Val Kilmer. My feet are already hurting so I think I many change my plans of running over to the Ryerson theatre after work. Although, it’s only a 10 minute walk away anyway.

“If only I don't suffocate, I'll meet you in the morning when you wake”

In order to prepare I’ve stocked up on munchies and other goodies. Like bottled water, cheese sticks (probably the only time in my life I’d ever actually eat these), gum, candy, carrots, and granola bars. And lots of really strong caffeinated tea. Like 6 cups before 5pm.


“Aching waiting for night waiting for life to start”


And I have a new mission: Find Bono. He’s in the city. He was spotted last night in Yorkville at Hemingway’s drinking beer at 230am. Silly me, I was fast asleep at that time. Now I know better. But I’ll track him down hopefully. And Nayeli may have spotted Gael Garcia Bernal or his doppelganger because we’re not sure if he’s in town. It’s very exciting if you are Mexican like Nayeli. Hell, I’m excited. I’d like to find somebody anyway just to add to my autograph collection. I hope I see Nick Nolte so I can get him to sign this: (It's not letting me add an image so I'll come back later)



The other non-TIFF news is that I just found out this morning the details of the contest that I won. I’m going to Paris to meet Coldplay and see their concert November 29th. Sounds exciting. If only I had known all of this when Eve and I tried to track down scalpers tickets…

“If only I don't bend and break, I'll meet you on the other side”

OVERRATED: Athletes. They get all the glory.
UNDERRATED: Film fanatics and the amount of prep work that goes into this whole festival-thing from an average film viewer’s perspective. I’ve trained hard and I’ve trained long. Like the planning on how to make it from one theatre to the next for back to back screenings, how to get all the recommended nutrients out of snacks that will become your 3 main meals for the next 9 days. My target date for my next full, actual meal (as in not fast food, theatre snacks, or things I find) will be Wednesday night, pre-U2 concert, and that’s only because my Mom is taking me out for dinner. Not to mention all the pre-festival warm-ups featuring marathon movie watching…This is the life.


“I'll meet you in the light”

“Oh it's the same old plot these days”
-Lost in the Plot, The Dears

I had a bad dream last night. A bad dream about Burt Reynolds. And his mustache.

How can a dream about Burt Reynolds be bad you might ask? Because the star of the dream was Burt freakin’ Reynolds. And his hideous mustache. Actually, I think it may have been Norm MacDonald in his SNL Burt Reynolds costume. Also featuring a scary mustache. But I don’t want to relive the horror so I won’t dwell.


“Take me for drive to the coastline, Pull me to the depths of the sea”

Started a debate yesterday about families of actors in honour of the first day of the Toronto International Film Festival. Basically it comes down to the dynasties that are The Bridges vs. The Quaids vs. The Baldwins.

Ignoring the weaker sibling sets like the Afflecks (no one really cares), the Duffs (for the love of God, put Haylie away), the Spears (that other one doesn’t even count really), the Arquettes (I like Patricia, David can get on my nerves after a while, and I don’t even know if Rosanna does anything anymore…anything good that is) and the Phoenixes (River’s gone, Joaquin is really good, but the rest of them are just faces in the crowd). I also left the Wilsons off the list because they’re good and not retro-good the way the Bridges are, or laughable like the Baldwins (remember when beings a “Baldwin” was a compliment? Now it’s just sad), or polar opposites like the Quaids.

“Leave me in the middle of the ocean, I can walk the rest of the way”

Which brings me back to my make believe battle. The Baldwins win the numbers game on the sheer volume of them, both in terms of size and numbers. Chances are, if you’re casting a movie, one of the Bladwins can be interchanged for the next. Not that I haven’t enjoyed and of Alec Baldwin’s movies- I do like “Malice.” I know it’s bad. He knows it’s bad. Nicole Kidman knows it wasn’t a great move, but neither was marrying that crazy guy of the year, Tom Cruise (to her credit, he didn’t seem to be such the crazy cult leader back in the day, but I’ve never fully liked him).

Off topic- Once Katie Holmes exchanges vows with the cult leader she will become “Kate Cruise” according to the rumours. But I digress…

“But I promised not to cry anymore, 'cause it's the same old plot these days”

Back to the Bridges. I enjoy Jeff a great deal. So does my Nana (seriously). I have his autograph. Come to think of it I have Alec Baldwin’s too, but that’s neither here nor there. I also occasionally enjoy the work of Beau Bridges, when he is working, which doesn’t seem to happen that often. I saw “The Wizard.” Jeff is just one of those guys that I really like, no matter how bad the movies are. I really like “The Vanishing,” even if Sandra Bullock is in it and it is a remake of a really good film. He seems like a nice guy, and together with Beau, they could rule the world if it weren’t for those pesky Quaids.

“And I promise not to cry anymore, All the reasons beat the crap out of me, Everyday when I wake up they are waiting”

Dennis Quiad…how I love and admire thee. Hugely popular in the wonder years that were the 1980’s, Dennis kinda faded away. I blame Meg Ryan. I blame her for all of life’s woes. I especially blame her for “When Harry Met Sally”- which I actually STUDIED in film class, thus forcing me to finally watch the entire thing while trying not to vomit (someone told me that was the story of my life, to which I replied, “You mean I end up with Billy Crystal?” and then I shuddered. And I just shuddered again reliving that moment and also thinking of Burt Reynolds)- and every other horrible movie she’s ever been in and I’ve been subjected to. A lot of Tom Hanks films come to mind. Shudder. Anyway, once Quaid ditched her after the Russell Crowe incident, like a vampire, he has risen from the ashes and resurrected himself as a stellar actor and once again handsome dude. “In Good Company,” “Traffic,” “Frequency” (the one starring “Jesus”), and even “The Rookie” were rocked by DQ.

Onto his other half, Randy. Randy, God bless him, is unattractive. He’s everything DQ isn’t, but he’s hilarious. All those Vacation movies wouldn’t be the same without him. He’s in “Brokeback Mountain.” He was even in a movie called “The Magical Legend of the Leprechauns.” You know it’s gotta be good because it’s also starring Whoopi Goldberg. IMDB says he’s in 105 movies. And I find it hard to even name 10 of them.

Therefore, the winner in the Brother Battle has got to be the Quaids. Hands down. No contest. All hail the Quaids.

“Our love, don't mess with our love, Our love is so much stronger”

OVERRATED: Nepotism. Without it, we wouldn’t have Haylie Duff, or that younger Spears.
UNDERRATED: Nepotism. Without it, at least half of the brothers on the list wouldn’t have had any jobs.

Optimists will read that as a win-win situation. Pessimists will see it as lose-lose. With the good comes the bad.

“Same old plot these days”

“I ran my mouth off a bit too much, Oh what did I say, Well you just laughed it off it was all ok”
-Float On, Modest Mouse

My TIFF film festival picks are in!

I ended up with 9/10 of my first choice films. Not bad since my 2nd choice film was basically a toss up anyway.

I have tickets for:

Thank You For Smoking (premiere)
Neverwas (premiere)
Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang
Breakfast on Pluto (premiere)
Elizabethtown
Everything is Illuminated (premiere)
Thumbsucker (premiere)
The Cabin Movie (my second choice pick)
Wallace and Gromit: the Curse of the Were-Rabbit (Gala)
Hostel
Winter Passing

Not bad…cram into that schedule one birthday/house party (at my own house which I probably won’t even make it to because of the film fest) and two U2 concerts.

And of course, as it always happens, after I get my selection there are films that I wished I would have picked instead but somehow overlooked them. But either way, I’m a movie fan and (relatively) easy to please. The only one I have severe doubts about is The Cabin Movie. Meh.

“Bad news comes don't you worry even when it lands, Good news will work its way to all them plans”

OVERRATED: “Customer service representatives.” Often rude and frequently uninformed. They don’t care if they help you or not, as long as they get paid. I worked in the customer service department. What angry people hate most of all is syrupy, faux, niceness. It’s how I used to get my aggression out.
UNDERRATED: People who actually know what they’re talking about. More importantly, people who know what you are talking about.

“And we'll all float on ok, And we'll all float on anyway”

“For what it's worth , It was worth all the while"
- Good Riddance (Time of Your Life), Green Day...this song reminds me of the last episode of Seinfeld....

If you ever have the chance to see Green Day live in concert, do it!

Saw Green Day in Montreal over the weekend. It was fantastic. Best Non-U2 concert ever! (At least I am stating my biases). I thought I would mildly enjoy, it seeing as it was a birthday present for the bf Rusty and not specifically for me. But I was so impressed, that I will not hesitate the next time they come to Toronto to see them. I actually turned down tickets to their show about 3 years ago in Toronto. But they were playing with Blink-182, so I stand my decision to boycott…. Out of the 20+ concerts I have seen, they are definitely at the top. Like everyone else in my grade 7 class, I too bought their CD Dookie, and then abandoned the band once their songs became overplayed on the radio and Much Music, returning only occasionally to listen to the latest single. And then I bought American Idiot and love it.

“Another turning point , A fork stuck in the road”

They played all of their old hits, plus a good portion of American Idiot. Billie Joe Armstrong is hilarious and quite the showman, so much so that he even rivals Bono. The show included fireworks and flames on stage, plus cool covers of “Shout” and “Stand By Me” and “We are the Champions.” They also gave away a guitar to a girl who came up on stage to play in an impromptu band. (They do this at every show on this tour so get near the stage and claim you too can play the guitar).

“Time grabs you by the wrist, Directs you where to go”

Downside: some horrible band called Anti-Flag opened with Jimmy Eat World. I don’t think that Anti-Flag realized that they were in fact in Canada and there’s a whole dictionary out there that contains words and phrases other than, “Fuck You George Bush.” Jimmy Eat World, was okay, although I’m not a fan of their music, other than “The Middle.” But Rusty likes them and thought they were good.

Very exciting, and well worth the $50. Even if we were in a sand pit.

Up next:
U2, Sept. 14th.
U2, Sept. 17th.
Rolling Stones, Sept. 28th (if I can get a good deal on eBay and someone to go with)
Franz Ferdinand, October 18th.

“So make the best of this test , And don't ask why , It's not a question But a lesson I learned in time”

OVERRATED: Glow sticks. I really don’t see the point unless you’re at a Backstreet Boys concert and/or a 13 year old girl.
UNDERRATED: Finding a decent opening act for your concert. I’m glad I only caught the tail end of Anti Flag at the Green Day show. U2 doesn’t need Dashboard Confessional. It’s actually quite disappointing when the lineup featured The Killers, Franz, Keane, Ash, Snow Patrol, Razorlight, The Arcade Fire, elsewhere. The only good news is it’s not Kings of Leon. Or Third Eye Blind.

“It's something unpredictable , But in the end it's right , I hope you had the time of your life”

“And I lost my head, and thought of all the stupid things I'd said”
-Trouble, Coldplay

Well, I’m heading off to Montreal this weekend, as soon as the workday is done.

And because I’ve gotten into the bad habit of leaving my MSN messenger on when I’m nowhere near the computer (or not even in my house) I woke up this morning to an onslaught of messages from dear old friends asking me:

a) Am I lying about winning a trip to Europe to meet Coldplay
b) No, seriously, you’re joking right?
c) Can I come too? (Yes, Tony P. I'm sure your wife won't mind...)
d) Why do you win everything? (See Sno-Cone Maker, keychain, movie passes, cookbook from the National Pork Council, and step counter)

I don’t have any more details (“early next week”) was the quote. And I think it’s probably best if I take the old boyfriend with me, especially because wherever this mysterious European destination is, if we go together we can now cross it off of our ever growing Backpack Europe 2006 list.

“So I turned to run, and thought of all the stupid things I'd done”

I also won a step counter in the mail yesterday. It was waiting for me when I got home from my daily job as a slave driver/dog catcher….okay, I’m neither, but it’s how I entertain myself in cubical world, aside from spelling things out fone-et-i-calli (love those office Mem O’s). That and I’ve had too much free candy today.

“So I twist and turn, but here am I in my little bubble”

This is a message for Eve & Nayeli now: You’re not to have too much fun this weekend because I’m not in town. I’ll audit your adventures upon my return and discuss your level of amusement in a comparative report featuring charts and graphs. I’m kidding. No, actually I’m not. I hate being left of the fun and left out in the cold. But I digress…

“Singing and I never meant to cause you trouble, and I never meant to do you wrong”

And now my reality TV rant of the day.
First we start with the exciting news (or not so new news anyway) that The Amazing Race is soon to return.
Downside: The teams are made of families. Families of 4. Now as an only child, had I met the requirements to participate (ie. Be a US citizen), then I ask you, how would I manage a team of 4 with only 2 parents? No one else is able and willing in my family. I’d have to adopt a brother as a ringer for the Race, then dump him on the highway when I had finished with him (as an orphan adoptee, he would get no share of my prize money), or if, Heaven forbid, we were to lose the Race, then we could just leave him in whatever country we were in.
RockStar: INXS. I like INXS. I like Canada. I also like jerks. Therefore, I wish for JD to win, even though he’s full of himself. Or Suzie can win and I’ll also be happy.

Surivior starts Sept. 15th (???). That’s not good because it’s soon, and bad because it’s during Film Fest/U2 week.

Big Brother: The show ended for me when Kaysar was voted out (again). Screw everyone. I hope Janelle wins.

That’s all I gots on that. But I usually feel creative on train rides so hopefully I’ll be back Tuesday with something more interesting to my everyday ramblings.

“Oh no, what's this? A spiderweb and I'm caught in the middle”

(Because neither of these things have anything to do with eachother)-

OVERRATED: Coffee Crisp. Ugh. Coffee and Chocolate. Two of my least favourite things (next to spiders, flying, gremlins, and small children)…On second thought, gremlins aren’t so bad.
UNDERRATED: Gremilns. Who knew? I do have a “gremlins” sleeping bag from the 1980’s film. Gotta love that. Upon comparison with other people, I had several weird things as I child, including said sleeping bag and a fondness for leprechauns that no one else shared, thus further developing my abstract personality.


And because I can:
The FUNDERBOLTS! Complete with our 1-13 record in softball. Terrible picture of everyone involved. We’re all really tall and gorgeous in real life. And clean. And some are missing.

"Ah, well if I ever caused you trouble, oh no I never meant to do you harm”

I'm just as excited as Puivis is to be wearing his chicken:

PUIVIS

BREAKING NEWS!

I JUST WON A TRIP TO EUROPE TO MEET COLDPLAY!

No deatils as of yet, but exciting nonetheless....

EVERYTHING'S COMING UP MILHOUSE

“Think I'll go home and mull this over, before I cram it down my throat, at long last it's crashed, the colossal mass has broken up into bits in my moat”
-Caring is Creepy, The Shins


Ralph Fiennes: Why do I love thee? Let me count the ways…

It seems my high school crush on Ralph Fiennes has not totally worn off, but then, they never really do, do they? (Actually I guess they do in real life when I think back to ex boyfriends and such.)

Went to see The Constant Gardener last night (also reading the book, but I’m only about 30 pages in). I thought it was amazing. Every time I see Ralph Fiennes I just stare in awe at the talent this man possesses. Incredible film to watch on all fronts: story, acting, cinematography. Really, the only bad thing I can say is that Ralph wears the same washed out pink shirt a tad too much, but that’s not much of a complaint (He wear leather pants for the majority of Strange Days but you don’t hear me complaining). The Constant Gardener is one of the best movies I’ve seen this year. It’s up there in my top five list of the year with Million Dollar Baby, Kinsey, The 40 Year Old Virgin (yeah I know it doesn’t really fit given the other choices), The Island (just kidding), and I can’t really think of anything else to add to the list….

“Hold you glass up, hold it in, never betray the way you've always known it is”

But going back to elementary/high school celeb crushes, I definitely have to say that the feelings for Christian Slater (what have you done to yourself man! You were good once!), Jonathan Taylor Thomas (I was young and foolish), and Mark Paul Gosselaar (Zack Morris on Saved by the Bell…I was attracted to characters who were jerks even back then). And I care less for Jake Gyllenhaal than I used to. But I will always love Bono, mullet and all!

“On rocks I dreamt of where we'd stepped, and of the whole mess of roads we're now on”

Under my guise of cynicism, absurdity, and witty humour, I am also very sad today because Eve is leaving for Japan for a year on Monday. And also because the Garden State soundtrack makes me extra weepy. Today is the last time I will see her for a year (unless I scrape the funds to go and visit which isn’t an unheard of possibility). So we will feast tonight at dinner and I will try not to cry in a public setting as we say our goodbyes. And she promises to upload pictures of us and send them to me so I can post them here….Everyone is leaving me!

“One day I'll be wondering how, I got so old just wondering how, I never got cold wearing nothing in the snow”

Doubly sad is that Kate is also leaving me for Ottawa to start law school (it seems she doesn’t want to work for Famous People Players after all). Now I will have no one to laugh at famous people with, no one to amuse with my rampant fist-shaking, or hilarious proclamations. Example: Last night at the theatre, we spotted a tent to which I heartily exclaimed, “I love tents!” On further inspection it turned out to be a free Frutopia sampling tent to which I then stated that I would dance for free Frutopia samples. I then backed out of that deal because they try to get you hooked on the juice and then they reel you in. Next thing you know, you’re addicted to Frutopia and living on Church street like my friend the crazy homeless guy who loves my shoes.

“Lift the mattress off the floor, walk the cramps off, go meander in the cold”


The good news is that Nayeli is moving in to physically replace Kate in the house, so we will embark on new adventures, just like in the Back to the Future sequel (but not counting the horrid Back to the Future 3 where they go into the Old West).



OVERRATED: Leaving Toronto. I just got here. What gives?
UNDERRATED: Staying in the city to play. I’m an only child who needs attention. And gifts.


“Far above our heads are the icy heights that contain all reason”


Okay, in all seriousness, I’m really happy for my friends who are moving onwards and upwards into new things. And it gives me someone to visit abroad while planning a backpacking trip in Europe/visiting the old ‘hood in Ottawa/maybe I’ll just go to Japan trip.


“This is the way beyond my remote concern of being condescending”