The Log for Monday September 25, 2017

September 25, 2017 | No Comments
Categories: 2017, Daily Log, and Personal.
Tags: 2017, Daily Activity, Exercise, Monday, Nutrition, Personal, and September.

What I Ate Breakfast: french toast; smoothie; glass of tea Morning: 2 glasses of tea; apple Lunch: 2 salami/ham, cheddar and tomato sandwiches; mayo and mustard Dinner: ribs; chorizo; tuna salad; glass of wine After dinner: half a can of hopped saison; half a can of sour hopped saison Dessert: probably some frozen yogurth or something What I Did for Exercise Completed a 30 minute YouTube video on the exercise bike Lifted weights Walked to Ossington, walked down the stairs at Ossington, jogged up the stairs at Sherbourne Walked down the stairs at Sherbourne, jogged up the stairs at Ossington, Read More

The Log for Sunday September 24, 2017

September 24, 2017 | No Comments
Categories: 2017, Daily Log, and Personal.
Tags: 2017, Daily Activity, Exercise, Nutrition, Personal, September, and Sunday.

Whate I Ate Brunch: fry up with tomatoes, eggs and ham; 2 glasses of tea; OJ Afternoon: a few pieces of bread, a few candies Dinner: a whole bunch of different tapas stuff (too much to remember); part of a pint of marzen; cocktail; glass or two of wine Dessert: mini donuts with maple curd and strawberries What I Did for Exercise 10 Squats Walked to Queen What I Did wiht My Life Nothing Read More

Brokeback Mountain (2005, Ang Lee)

September 24, 2017 | No Comments
Categories: 2005 and Movies.
Tags: 2005, Drama, LGBTQ, Movies, and Romance.

I think it’s probably hard to discuss Brokeback Mountain without talking about the hype: this film is considered by many to be a landmark either in Hollywood with regard to LGBTQ topics, or in LGBTQ cinema in general. Now, I don’t know much about the history of LGBTQ cinema – just what I got from a documentary I once watched in sociology class and one or two films – but I know that the reception which greeted Schindler’s List was somewhat overblown given the number of films which had already dealt with the holocaust. I suspect the same is probably true with Read More

2012 (2009, Roland Emmerich)

September 23, 2017 | No Comments
Categories: 2009 and Movies.
Tags: 2009, Action, Disaster, Environmental Disaster, and Movies.

It’s a testament to the endless credulity of human beings that this film got made as a blockbuster, with the budget that entails and the all-star cast. The Mayan Apocalypse thing was some the worst horse shit I’ve heard the intelligent people I know spew, and it drove me crazy that I knew people who claimed to be open to the possibility of it happening, as if being “open-minded” meant that you had to believe the stupid idea that the Mayans – the fucking Mayans, people – predicted the end of the world. Apparently enough people felt this way – Read More

The Log for Saturday September 23, 2017

September 23, 2017 | No Comments
Categories: 2017, Daily Log, and Personal.
Tags: 2017, Daily Activity, Exercise, Nutrition, Personal, Saturday, and September.

What I Ate Brunch: french toast; glass of tea; smoothie Afternoon: chips; half a bottle of IP; glass of wine Dinner: ribs, pasta salad; half a bottle of IPA Dessert: blondie; St. Germaine; Imperial Red Ale; probably some ice cream What I Did for Exercise Lifted weights What I Did with My Life Cleaned my house Read More

The Log for Friday September 22, 2017

September 23, 2017 | No Comments
Categories: 2017, Daily Log, and Personal.
Tags: 2017, Daily Activity, Exercise, Friday, Nutrition, Personal, and September.

What I Ate Breakfast: peanut butter and jam on toast; glass of tea Morning: 2 glasses of tea; banana muffin Lunch: 2 salami, cheese and tomato sandwiches; apple Afternoon: root beer Dinner: smoked meat sandwich, fries, coleslaw; pint of boneshaker Dessert: soursop ice cream What I Did for Exercise Completed a 30 minute YouTube video on the exercise bike 10 squats Walked to Ossington, walked down the stairs at Ossington, jogged up the stairs at Shebourne Walked to Museum, walked down the stairs at Museum, walked up the stairs at St Andrew, walked to Sky Dome, walked down the stairs Read More

The Log for Thursday September 21, 2017

September 21, 2017 | No Comments
Categories: 2017, Daily Log, and Personal.
Tags: 2017, Daily Activity, Exercise, Nutrition, Personal, September, and Thursday.

What I Ate Breakfast: yogurt with pomegranate and cactus pear; honey bunches of oats; glass of tea Morning: 2 glasses of tea; apple Early afternoon: iced tea; portuguese tart Lunch: 2 salami, cheese and tomato sandwiches with mayo and mustard What I Did for Exercise Completed a 30 minute YouTube video on the exercise bike Walked to Ossington, walked down the stairs at Ossington, jogged up the stairs at Sherbourne Carried a baby down the stairs at Sherbourne, walked up the stairs at Ossington, walked home What I Did with My Life Went to work for client Read More

Down Colorful Hill (1992) by Red House Painters

September 21, 2017 | No Comments
Categories: 1992 and Music.
Tags: 1992, Dream Pop, Folk Rock, Indie Rock, Music, Singer Songwriter, and Slowcore.

I do not know the history of slowcore, as I am only familiar with a few bands (5 or so tops) that would be considered slowcore and who existed in 1992. So I find myself unable to assess whether or not this is an important record in the development of the genre, given that lack of information. And, perhaps undermining to the degree to which I might rate this highly due to its influence/impact/what have you, I know for a fact that there were slowcore bands in existence 4-5 years earlier. Read More

The Log for Wednesday September 20, 2017

September 20, 2017 | No Comments
Categories: 2017, Daily Log, and Personal.
Tags: 2017, Daily Activity, Exercise, Nutrition, Personal, September, and Wednesday.

What I Ate Breakfast: Honey Bunches of Oats with pomegranate; glass of tea Morning: 2 glasses of tea; apple Lunch: pasta; salad Afternoon: banana muffin Dinner: cubano sandwich; asparagus; half an IPA; glass of wine Dessert: probably some ice cream and a muffin What I Did for Exercise Completed a 30 minute YouTube exercise on the exercise bike Walked to Ossington, walked down the stairs at Ossington, jogged up the stairs at Sherbourne Walked down the stairs at Sherbourne, walked up the stairs at Ossington, walked home What I Did with My Life Went to work for a client Did Read More

The Log for Tuesday September 19, 2017

September 20, 2017 | No Comments
Categories: 2017, Daily Log, and Personal.
Tags: 2017, Daily Activity, Exercise, Nutrition, Personal, September, and Tuesday.

What I Ate Breakfast: Honey Bunches of Oats; mango; glass of tea Morning: 2 glasses of tea; apple Lunch: 2 salami, cheddar and tomato sandwiches with mayo and mustard; apple Afternoon: banana muffin Dinner: daal, salad, butter chicken, lamb curry, naan, rice; ginger ale After dinner: Goose Island What I Did for Exercise Completed a 30 minute YouTube video on the exercise bike Lifted weights Walked to Ossington, walked down the stairs at Ossington, jogged up the stairs at Sherbourne Walked down the stairs at Sherbourne, jogged up half the stairs at Yonge, walked up many stairs at Union Walked Read More

The Log for Monday September 18, 2017

September 18, 2017 | No Comments
Categories: 2017, Daily Log, and Personal.
Tags: 2017, Daily Activity, Exercise, Monday, Nurition, Personal, and September.

What I Ate Breakfast: Pancakes; glass of tea Morning: 2 glasses of tea; apple Lunch: 2 salami, cheddar and tomato sandwiches on whole grain bread; grapes Dinner: pork; corn, bean and avocado salad; lemonade Dessert: not sure yet, possibly banana bread What I Did for Exercise Completed a 30 minute YouTube video on the exercise bike Walked to Ossington, walked down the stairs at Ossington, jogged up the stairs at Sherbourne Walked down the stairs at Sherbourne, jogged up the stairs at Bathurst, walked home from Bathurst and Queen What I Did with My Life Went to work for a Read More

The Log for Sunday September 17, 2017

September 18, 2017 | No Comments
Categories: 2017, Daily Log, and Personal.
Tags: 2017, Daily Activity, Exercise, Nutrition, Personal, September, and Sunday.

What I Ate Brunch: eggs Benedict with spinach and pea-meal; glass of tea Afternoon: ube ice cream Dinner: tomato soup, chorizo and pesto pasta; lemonade Dessert: potato chips; grapes What I Did for Exercise Walked to Scotiabank Theatre Walked to Osgoode, walked down the stairs at Osgoode, walked up half the stairs at St. George, jogged up the stairs at Bathurst, walked home from Bathurst Walked to and from Dufferin Mall, walked up and down the stairs at Dufferin Mall What I Did with My Life Does getting groceries count? Read More

TIFF 2017: One of Us (2017, Heidi Ewing, Rachel Grady)

September 17, 2017 | No Comments
Categories: 2017 and Movies.
Tags: 2017, Cults, Documentary, Hasidism, Movies, Religion, TIFF, and TIFF17.

I have seen a few Ewing-Grady documentaries so far and I have always found they tackle fascinating subjects but I have never loved the way in which they tackle them. Though I appreciate their attempts at breaking outside of documentary norms and customs (to a degree) I also sometimes find their attempts to do so a little too flashy, for lack of a better word. (What I am trying to say is that I find that their style often calls attention to itself, which is not always something I like in documentaries.) One of Us definitely contains stylistic flashes that call Read More

The Log for Saturday September 16, 2017

September 17, 2017 | No Comments
Categories: 2017, Daily Log, and Personal.
Tags: 2017, Daily Activity, Exercise, Nutrition, Personal, Saturday, and September.

What I Ate Breakfast: pancakes; glass of tea Lunch: pizza Afternoon: pint of Goose Island something or other Dinner: burger, fries, Big Rock IPA Later: half a Scotch flight; a few fried pickles; Rob Roy; pint of IPA What I Did for Exercise Walked to Ossington, walked down the stairs at Ossington, jogged up the stairs at Sherbourne Walked from Sherbourne and Bloor to Varsity Stadium Walked from Varsity Stadium to Madison, walked up the  stairs at Madison Mansion Walked down the stairs at Madison mansion, walked down half the stairs at Spadina Walked from King and Spadina to Queen Read More

The Log for Friday September 15, 2017

September 16, 2017 | No Comments
Categories: 2017, Daily Log, and Personal.
Tags: 2017, Exercise, Friday, Nutrition, Personal, and September.

What I Ate Breakfast: mango; eggs and toast; glass of tea Morning: 2 glasses of tea; apple Lunch: 2 cheddar and tomato sandwiches on multigrain with mayo and mustard; canteloupe Before: pint of Octopus Wants to fight Dinner: unknown number of slices of pizza (4? 5?); pint of Halo something or other; glass of Peche; pint of Octopus Dessert: teen burger, fries, rootbeer What I Did for Exercise Lifted weights Walked to Ossington, walked down the stairs at Ossington, walked up the stairs at Shebourne Walked down the stairs at Sherbourne, jogged up half the stairs at Spadina Walked home Read More

Secret Chiefs 3 Live at The Great Hall September 14, 2017

September 15, 2017 | No Comments
Categories: 2017 and Music.
Tags: 2017, Heavy Metal, Live Music, Metal, Middle Eastern Music, Music, and Surf Music.

This was my second Secret Chiefs 3 show, in a much better venue than the last time. It was also a very different experience and I’m not sure whether that’s because SC3 are doing something different on this tour (apparently they are here opening for Dead Cross) or whether the venue made them. Read More

The Log for Thursday September 14, 2017

September 15, 2017 | No Comments
Categories: 2017, Daily Log, and Personal.
Tags: 2017, Exercise, Nutrition, Personal, September, and Thursday.

What I Ate Breakfast: cheerios and yogurt; pancake; glass of tea Morning: 2 glasses of tea; apple Lunch: 2 salami or prosciutto and tomato and cheese sandwiches on whole wheat with mayo and mustard Dinner: two peameal and egg sandwiches; lemonad After dinner: too many beers (too many beers!), too many beers What I Did for Exercise Completed a 30 minute YouTube video on the exercise bike 10 squats Walked to Ossington, walked down the stairs at Ossington, jogged up the stairs at Sherbourne Walked down the stairs at Sherbourne, jogged up the stairs at Ossington, walked home from Dovercourt Read More

White Privilege

September 14, 2017 | No Comments
Categories: Society.
Tags: Class, Ethnicity, Racism, and White Privelege.

Yesterday on Quora, I found perhaps the best short summary of what white privilege is that I, as a white male Canadian, have ever read in my life. I have embedded it here for your perusal because I really do think it captures this concept better than anything else I’ve read on the subject. Also, speaking as a tall person, I can relate in more than one way. Read Omar Ismail‘s answer to I am white. That’s all you know about me. Am I privileged based on that alone and assuming I am, should I feel guilt and what should Read More

The Log for Wednesday September 13, 2017

September 13, 2017 | No Comments
Categories: 2017, Daily Log, and Personal.
Tags: 2017, Daily Activity, Exercise, Nutrition, Personal, September, and Wednesday.

What I Ate Breakfast: bowl of cereal, bowl of yogurt, figs and berries; glass of tea Morning: 2 glasses of tea; apple Lunch: 2 salami, tomato and cheddar sandwiches on whole wheat with mayo and mustard Dinner: slices of some weird curry pizza; cranberry juice Dessert: square What I Did for Exercise Completed a 30 minute Youtube video on the exercise bike Walked to Ossington, walked down the stairs at Ossington, jogged up the stairs at Sherbourne Walked from Sherbourne to Yonge and Bloor, walked up the steps at the Reference Library Walked down the steps at the Reference Library, Read More

TIFF 2017 Racer and the Jailbird (2017, Michaël R. Roskam)

September 13, 2017 | No Comments
Categories: 2017 and Movies.
Tags: 2017, Crime, Heist, Movies, Romance, Thriller, TIFF, and TIFF17.

This is an entertaining, albeit slight, amalgam of the bank heist genre with one of those romances where the two alpha leads, who do risky things in their professional lives, fall in love with each other, but which is pretty much entirely ruined by an absolutely bonkers left turn (well, a series of left turns) into Crazy with a capital C. MASSIVE SPOILERS! Read More

The Log for Tuesday September 12, 2017

September 13, 2017 | No Comments
Categories: 2017, Daily Log, and Personal.
Tags: 2017, Daily Activity, Exercise, Nutrition, Personal, September, and Tuesday.

What I Ate Breakfast: crepecakes/pancrepes with yogurt; glass of tea Morning: 2 glasses of tea; apple Lunch: 2 salami, cheddar and tomato sandwiches with mayo and mustard; apple Dinner: chicken pot pie, salad; Naughty Neighbour Dessert: ice cream cone What I Did for Exercise Completed a 30 minute YouTube video on the exercies bike 10 squats Walked to Ossington, walked down the stairs at Ossington, jogged up the stairs at Sherbourne Walked down the stairs at Sherbourne, jogged up half at the stairs at Yonge, jogged up the stairs at Dundas but took the escalator in the Eaton Centre Walked Read More

Strangeways, Here We Come

September 12, 2017 | No Comments
Categories: 1987 and Music.
Tags: 1987, Alternative, Alternative Rock, Indie Pop, Indie Rock, Jangle Pop, and Music.

To say I dislike The Smiths would be an understatement. I don’t hate them so much as I hate the aura around them and this idea that they somehow saved British music from itself (and synthesizers! don’t forget the synthesizers), almost like a younger, hipper Bruce Springsteen (because Springsteen saved rock music from disco, don’t you know). Read More

Music for the Masses (1987) by Depeche Mode

September 12, 2017 | No Comments
Categories: 1987 and Music.
Tags: 1987, Music, and Synthpop.

I agree with the general consensus that Martin Gore is perhaps synthpop’s best songwriter. At least at this “mature” stage of the band’s career Depeche Mode sound most like the band willing to leave the confines of their genre to serve his songs. I find his lyrics to be, on average, significantly better than the average synthpop lyrics. And he has strong melodies – though Depche Mode are sort of positioned as the least commercial of synthpop bands, they have always had catchy songs. Read More

The Log for Monday September 12, 2017

September 12, 2017 | No Comments
Categories: 2017, Daily Log, and Personal.
Tags: 2017, Daily Activity, Exercise, Monday, Nutrition, Personal, and September.

What I Ate Breakfast: Harvest Crunch with blackberries; glass of tea Morning: 2 glasses of tea; apple Lunch: 2 kielbasa/salami, cheddar and tomato sandwiches Dinner: prosciutto, fig, burrata, tomato and spinach salad; lemonade Dessert: pistachio gelato What I Did for Exercise Completed a 30 minute YouTube video on the exercise bike Lifted weights Walked to Ossington, walked down the stairs at Ossington, jogged up the stairs at Sherbourne Walked down the stairs at Sherbourne, jogged up the stairs at Ossington, walked home Walked to TIFF Bell Lightbox Walked down the stairs at St Andrew, walked up half the stairs at Read More

Earth Sun Moon (1987) by Love and Rockets

September 11, 2017 | No Comments
Categories: 1987 and Music.
Tags: 1987, Alternative, Alternative Rock, Goth Rock, Music, and Neo Psychedelia.

I love Bauhaus and, initially, I think I found it hard to get into these guys simply because they are not Bauhaus, which is unfair. It’s unfair because these guys are very much their own band, particularly with the wind instruments. (By the way, that flute solo is hilariously Ian Anderson, who I would have thought was super uncool in 1987.) Read More