Here's a poem I found in a notebook from 2006... I don't even remember writing it.
With a newcomer's eye The city looks beautiful And unclean And Unseen Looking up to see the tops of sky-coloured towers and down to see homeless feet sticking out from beneath pavement-coloured blankets The Attractions and Distractions The city's full of them The ride on the streetcar Jolting and cramped Wonderful Not annoying as it is to all the regular riders Getting a crick in the neck from looking out But not a pain in the neck The city remains interesting No matter if seen with fresh or old, rotten eyes And the inspiration (the gentleman one seat ahead) Dismounts at Portland Have a nice night
LOLOL... man, what a difference two years can make.
... and it feels like it's been a month! Seriously. This past week has been so busy, but I managed not to go to work for a full five days... which was nice! Not that I don't like my job... 'cause I do. But not working is nice, too.
Things kicked off with a trip to Lot 16 to celebrate James' good news (he's having surgery by the end of the summer, which will be absolutely, splenderifically, awesome) and Raul's birthday. I haven't been to Lot 16 in a while, and I always forget how much I like that place. The music is always good (albeit a bit loud for normal conversation), and it's got a chill feel to it. Raul says it's mostly overflow from The Drake, but I think it's just all the cooler cats that go to Lot 16.
Saturday I went to my first MLB game ever, with my brother Derek, his wife Karie, and my nephew Evan. I don't know why I've never been to a baseball game. I grew up half an hour from where the Tigers play, and I've been in Toronto for five years. Just never had the opportunity, I guess! It was cool. It was even cooler that I had a monster telephoto zoom lens to shoot the game with. See the pics here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ravenswift/sets/72157605878659400/
(Photo stolen from Bex's FB)
Stacey joined us for dinner after the game, and she stayed until Monday afternoon. There was a lot of chilling going on, PLUS we went to see Sex and The City. Finally! I love love loved it. Stacey said it was very satisfying, and I agree. Oh, and a fat sushi lunch at Sushi Island. MMMmmm.
Monday I was gearing up for the Canada Day BBQ Blowout, which was a huge success. A tonne of people showed up, and I'm pretty sure everyone had a good time. There are broken chairs to prove it. Yes, plural. Two chairs met their fate, as Gab put it. LOL. Craploads of photos can be seen here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ravenswift/sets/72157605937894858/
(Decorations)
After meats, salads, fuchsia-coloured cake (it was supposed to be red, with white icing of course) and sparklers, we headed down to the lake to watch the fireworks, which were good. Not amazing, like the Freedom Festival works in Windsor/Detroit, but good. It probably would've been better if there weren't so many trees in the way. Damn nature. LOL. You know I'm kidding. Maria's right... it's silly that you have to pay admission to Ontario Place to get a good view. Ah well.
(Here's a video I found of this year's finale at the Freedom Fest. It's nucking futs.)
And yesterday, my dad and his wife Shirley stopped here on their way home from Montreal, and we went for dinner (Elephant & Castle) and a show. We went to see Dirty Dancing, which was good, but not amazing. LOL. Do I hear an echo in here? I haven't been to a show since Miss Saigon back in high school, and I think it's one of those "things seemed bigger and better when you were smaller" kind of deals. I remember having my breathe taken away by Miss Saigon, Les Mis, Phantom... this was just, fun to watch. That being said, it was really fun to watch- the music was awesome (pretty much the soundtrack to the movie, but it was cool to know a live band was playing it all), fantastic dancing (especially the girl who played Penny), and excellent vocals. I say excellent, cause it was, but I think it could've been better. IMHO.
And that brings us to today. I went to work. And now I'm here. I'm glad things are starting to slow down a bit. And this has been a much longer entry than I intended to post. Sorry 'bout that.
There's a new show on the CW based on this young adult sci-fi - I enjoy the show and couldn't pass up the opportunity to learn more about the characters.
