Another year, another Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibition. This year, we did the whole thing in one go - over 500 booths - very tired feet. I think it's cool most (if not all) artists are Canadian.

GAH! Mo & Katelyn.

Some examples (you can check the TOAE website):

by Jan Cyril Fundano

by Jason Edmiston

by Gosia

by Mike Parsons

by Amanda Arcuri

by Matthew Merrett

by Yue Heng Duan

by Meaghan Ogilvie

by Chi Nakajima. It was awesome seeing Chi again - she was a student of mine from way back at Humber.

by Chi Nakajima. Her work is amazing!

I decided at the last minute to go into TO and see a movie at the Cinematheque, Pier Paolo Pasolini's Teorema (Theorem).

It begins with reporters asking a man why he is giving away his factory, and political questions, about whether it's the beginning of a revolution (it was made in 1968), is it the end of the bourgeoisie (upper middle class) and so on. Then we jump back, finding ourselves with an upper midde class family, and a young man who wanders into their lives. He reads Rimbaud (not 'Rambo', a French poet, famous for his degenerate ways). One by one, each member of the household desires to be seduced by him: the religiously devout housekeeper, the studious son, the detached mother, the naive daughter, and finally the father. Then, the young man is mysteriously called away, but not before each of them has told the young man how he has transformed them, and they don't know how they can go on without him.

The son becomes an artist, seeking new methods of creating, ones that have never been done before (i'm not sure if throwing cans of paint and urinating on canvases was new even in 1968). The daughter runs around measuring things, and then becomes catatonic and hospitalized. The mother now has unquenchable passion (though she does her best with a string of young men). The maid goes to her home village, eats only nettles, and sits on a bench. She heals children, and then floats above the buildings, and finally buries herself, not to die to be transformed. Then the father, after ogling another young man and giving away his factory, strips naked and walks into a desolate landscape.

The director was arrested for obscenity, but there's hardly any nudity (tighty-whities, (very briefly) girl's bare chest), and much of the sex is actually alluded to. There's the religious aspect - aside from the miracles, the young man comes across as a Christ-like figure. It's an odd film - less than 1000 spoken words, not much in the way of explanation, or even story. The family doesn't seem particularly repressed, although maybe that's the point - we are all so rarely in touch with our true selves, that we don't know we are repressing until we are liberated. Perhaps the 'theorem' is that 'liberation' (the director was a 60s style Marxist) is less about class than personal revelation. At the same time, it's pretty funny, as their attractions and reactions are so over-the-top ridiculous.

You know you want him, because he's The (younger) Most Interesting Man In The World....

Friday was, of course, another movie. I took some manga to read at Lick's at lunch, and then saw Brüno. I was actually somewhat disappointed. I really enjoyed Borat, but just being gay and coming on to people, or having a fake Austrian accent, or continually referring to your anus as your 'Auschwitz', just isn't that funny. How many times can you wear a ridiculous costume in public and have people stair and still laugh?

I cringed through the first half hour. It did start getting better. There's a part where he's interviewing parents for a photo shoot, and he's asking them outrageous questions, whether their kids will drive dangerous equipment, lose weight, get liposuction - they would do anything. But most of it was just worth a chuckle.

"The baby is a dick magnet."

The velcro suit.

Hello?!

The evening started at home, doing laundry and such, and then i talked to Miah. We picked up a DVD (The Spirit, which was cheesy fun, but should've been better), and watched it at his place.

Today, i should've been going to an art show with friends, but they were late getting their act together. Bah! Phoned Lis, but they're busy with family stuff tonight.

I took a streetcar ride between the movies, and took some photos too. This is on the Spadina streetcar, north of College.

The second movie i saw was Et Dieu... Créa La Femme, (And God Created Woman), by Roger Vadim, the one that made Brigitte Bardot famous.

She plays Juliette, a 'wild girl', or at least kind of a free spirit (often no shoes, or any clothes at all), and rather available (ahem), on the French Riviera. A wealthy, charming, older man is interested in her (although a bit too fathery, and not the dancing type she wants), but she wants his business rival, young Antoine (whose interests are very short term). When threatened with being sent back to her orphanage by her guardians, tired of her attitude, she ends up accepting a marriage proposal from Antoine's earnest younger brother Michel, who adores her, but is pretty blind to things. Adapting to her new life becomes difficult (not that she really does any work). Light weight, even in the 60s, and i HOPE we've evolved since then. At least we now have robots with our (technologically-enhanced) sex kittens.

"You are at the point of falling for her."
"What makes you say that?"
"Whenever you look at her, you appear less intelligent."

The trouble with in-laws: "What are you doing in my bed?"

Thursday i went in to the city - a little late, but early enough to catch two movies.

The first movie i saw was Food, Inc., a documentary on the industrialization and corporatization of food. There may be images of old time farms on the boxes, but the chickens and cattle are crammed together, standing in their own crap, pumped full of anti-biotics and growth hormones, fed subsidized, pesticide-laden corn. Even if you decide to go vegetarian, food processing plants are so laden with bacteria, that you're more likely to get salmonella, E. coli or listeria from your salad (at least you can kill it by cooking your meat - counters might not be clean). Most of the processing is done by a few very large corporations - we have less choice than it looks, many farmers have none (only one compnay to sell to), and they even own the seeds, so now you can't save a portion of your grain for replanting like farmers have done for the past 10,000 years. And they also hire illegal immigrants on a large scale.

It was a good documentary, more of an introduction to the topic, because it was kind of shallow in places, and really could be a lot longer. The issue of subsidies and protectionism is an interesting one, because subsidies for American corn are so high - that is, it can be sold for less than it costs to make, it helps drive poor farmers in the third world out of business (so does food donations, but that's a whole other story). It's also part of the reason junk food is so cheap - corn is a very versatile product, and can make both the starchy bulk of junk food, and the sweetness (hi-fructose corn syrup), but in these forms, it's not very healthy. So, government is essentially subsidizing junk food.

It's cheaper to eat junk food - unless you count diabetes (which the man on the right has).

I couldn't find a shot of someone dragging dead animals out of the 'barn'.

A guy who does it the old-fashioned way.

Wednesday was sushi day, yet again, this time with Miah, and 5 (count'em) grads, of the female variety.

Meaghan and Torrie. Rockstar doesn't want to be photographed, lol.

Felicia and Caroline. Happy Birthday Felicia!

Miah and Morgan.

Miah went to the washroom just as i got up to take a pic, ha ha.

More rockstar attitude.

Afterwards it was comics day, and reading at home.

Tuesday i had to stay in town (for a BBQ that never materialized), surprise surprise, decided to give Public Enemies a chance, based on its generally good reviews.

"The Feds try to take down notorious American gangsters John Dillinger, Baby Face Nelson and Pretty Boy Floyd during a booming crime wave in the 1930s." The trailer sets it up as a showdown between Johnny Depp's Dillinger and Christian Bale's FBI agent Melvin Purvis, with Marion Cotillard as Dillinger's girlfriend Billie Frechette caught in-between. But Melvin Purvis hardly has a personality (and his death may have been an accident), Bille Frechette is missing inlarge chunks of the movie, and it's mainly about Dillinger. If you're going to focus on Dillinger, i woud've called it something like Bye Bye Blackbird, not Public Enemies. I didn't really enjoy it a lot - we didn't see any of his early life (no context), and it doesn't really show why he was a bigger than life celebrity (as much as i like Johnny Depp, i thought his character here was pretty flat).

Both Baby Face Nelson and Pretty Boy Floyd died after Dillinger, not before. I think the movie would've been more fun if it was a more general look at 30s gangsters "Public Enemy Era" culture. At least Billy Crudup got to do his 30s newsreel voice, ha ha. I'd say wait to rent it (or download).

I like baseball, movies, good clothes, whiskey, fast cars... and you. What else you need to know?

After the movie, i met up with Miah, Matt, Emma and John (with Jack) for wings, and then went to John's place (he cancelled the BBQ because there were agents showing his house - Miah wasn't feeling well so went home, but Chris came to replace him.

I found out that Martin Streek, long time DJ on CFNY killed himself the day before. I'd just realized Sunday i hadn't heard him on the radio lately, so i searched online, to find out he'd been let go in May after 25 years (i thought he was just replaced with guest hosts for vacation or something), along with Barry Taylor (whom i really enjoyed). Anyway, Streek's death was something of a shock.

On Monday, after tidying and sundry things, i went into the city to see a movie at the Cinematheque. I got there just before 6, for a 7 o'clock show, and i decided to rush down to the Queen Mother for a quick supper. I had their steak special, with hollandaise sauce (amazing!), salad greens, and some roasted veggies, and a Strongbow, and read a manga. I made it out of there by 6:33.

The movie i saw was The Sign of Leo (Le Signe Du Lion), by Eric Rohmer. A 40-year-old American living in Paris, sponging off his friends and acquaintances, finds out a rich aunt has died, throws a party for all his friends (borrowed money). But it turns out his aunt has disinherited him, so he ends up losing his apartment. All his friends are now away for the summer, and he descends into hard times. The wandering around Paris lasts quite a while - it's not a fast paced film, but it's not so grim as it sounds, although it make some good points about how we ignore street people, not knowing how they got there.

Accompanying the feature was a short (22 minutes) by Rohmer, The Girl At The Monceau Bakery (La Boulangère De Monceau, more literally, The Bakery-Girl of Monceau). It's about a man trying to pick up a young woman he sees near his university quite often - he looks for her in his neighbourhood during his lunch break, trying to seem casual, and ends up going to a bakery every day for a quick bite, and starts another flirtation. It's pretty funny, as we get to hear his internal monologue, shy, pompous, calculating and slightly delusional all at the same time (that's love for you, especially the French variety).

Sylvie

Jacqueline.

On Saturday, it was Russ's birthday party BBQ. His parents are here from England for a few weeks, plus Lisa's family was all there (except the ones in New Hampshire), plus the neighbours, Greg and Andi and one of their girls, and me. I drank a fair bit. One vodka cooler to start, and the rest was wine. There were various appetizers - Russ made bruschetta (his garlic toast is the best i've ever had). For supper, there was a ton of chicken, salmon steaks, and steak, and salads.

Today i went downtown to see a movie. I ate at Spring Rolls and had their brunch special - unfortunately, i didn't have my camera, lol. it started with a choice of dim sum - i got the chicken & veggie dumplings of course, and they were especially yummy. The main was essentially the same as the Vietnamese char-grilled style pork chop and spring roll (with rice and simple salad), except instead of a spring roll, it had a sunny-side up egg on top of the rice. Then dessert was 'coconut crepes', which were wrapped like springs rolls, with green coloured crepes - the filling was essentially toasted coconut flakes, and there was some sweet red sauce for dipping.

The movie i saw was Moon, starring Sam Rockwell, who was amazing. He stars as an astronaut about to finish his 3 year contract as the only worker at an energy mine on the moon (supplying 70% of the world's energy, in an essentially utopian future). His only company is Gerty, the Hal-like computer companion (Kevin Spacey), and messages from his wife and child (the direct satellite being down). Then he starts seeing other people... It's a kind of thriller, but more cerebral (no alien monsters), and very good.

After, i walked around Yonge & Dundas a bit, picked up the Yeah Yeah Yeahs' latest CD (which i thought i'd got on Friday - turned out to be the second CD, which i already had, ha ha). Then i drove to College Street to look at Soundscapes, where i got The D'Urbervilles' CD, and Lily Allen's latest. I had been looking for some other artists, but i had left my list at home.

Wednesday morning i didn't have anything planned for the day, and it was not a bad weather day, so when Torrie and i started chatting online, we hatched a hastily arranged sushi lunch. Miah couldn't make it (lazy?), and neither could Jackie (famil stuff), but we were able to steal Mel from the school. Good times were had - Torrie talked about the worn, hard, over-sized thong she found in her filing cabinet, and the 'lube sock' (dirty old sock with a bottle of lube in it) she found in her guest bed after the guests had left.

I got invited to see the 'fireworks at Harbourfront', which i assumed meant the Ontario Place fireworks at the waterfront. When i got there, around 8:20, they were at Harbourfront, where there were no fireworks. They were waiting for some people to show up, so i decided to wait - having already parked, i didn't want to spend the half hour it would for me to get to Harbourfront, only to have to come back. So, i waited... and waited... I called around 9:00, and they were wandering around Harbourfront, waiting for the others still. Ugh! Around 9:20, i got a text message saying they weren't coming. I found out later, that some of the new friends didn't want to go to Ontario Place (and apparently were told i went to the wrong place - the only one with fireworks). I was so pissed off, i didn't want to wait another hour by myself for fireworks, so i just left. Sucky evening.

Thursday, i went to get comics, what there was, and read them at Lick's. I saw Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, which is about what you expect. The bits with Sid, and with Scrat are the best parts, while Ray Romano and Queen Latifah deaden whenever they're on screen. It's not that you can't make an elephant exciting (see Horton Hears A Who). The Scrat-Scratte bits could be cut into a good short on its own. The ankylosaur was ridiculously oversized, and they were plant-eaters.

"It's a boy!" "That's a tail." "It's a girl!"

After the movie, i did some shopping - got Russ's birthday present (Future Shop Card), Lisa's (American money for her New York trip), some alcohol (wine for Saturday, couple of beers for Russ, cider for me). In the evening, i downloaded some music to make Russ a mix CD.

On Friday, i picked up Michelle and Courtney for lunch at Harveys (ha ha). Then i met up with Miah at the school, and he and i drove to TO so he could drop off a DVD with Jackie. Chatted a bit with her, and then drove back. We had supper at Montana's in Ajax while waiting for traffic to lighten.

The Friday Five for July 3rd, 2009

Randomosity!

1. It's the last night of the world, and you've only just found out. What five things will you do in these final hours?
Hmm - does everyone else know? Might make it easier to have sex, lol.
2. How do you feel about our American Flag's design?
First, not mine, second, take it or leave it.
3. What pets have you had?
Four cats and two gerbils.
4. What was the last activity you wore a wristband for?
When i went to the PEACE DOT LOVE concert..
5. What song changed your life?
I don't think any song has changed my life to a significant degree.

The Friday Five for June 26th, 2009

1. If you can only hear one song for the rest of your life, what would it be?
None - i would tire of it easily, and ruin it.
2. What one song would you like to be played on your funeral?
Cheap Tricks' I Want You To Want Me.
3. What one song that is best to describe your feeling right now?
Probably an instrumental, lol - just thinking about too many things.
4. What one song would you like to hear when you're sad and depressed?
None - i can't really listen to music then.
5. What one song that you wished you have written?
Anything by the Stone Roses.

The second movie i saw (at the Royal) was Tôkyô Sonata. It's about a family and their disintegration after the father loses his job (outsourced to China). Thing is, he doesn't tell anyone, and behaves as if he still does have one, though he beings to lash out at his family. The father is eventually forced to go to free food lines, gets humiliated in interviews, and ends up as a shopping mall janitor (he is told there is no hope of finding a decent paying office job). The older son rebels by deciding to join the US militar, and ends up being sent to Ira), the younger son wants to learn piano, secretly using his monthly lunch money to pay for lessons (and it turns out he's very good at it). The wife/mother tries to keep things together. Eventually, it everything comes to a head, and it explodes, the characters all wanting to run away from themselves. It sounds awful, but it's very good - the 'explosion' is more emotional than violent, and the movie is quite funny in places. The ending blew me away - a scene of calm and beauty.

Dinner consisted of popcorn at the movie (real butter), and then a hot dog while i waited for a streetcar back up to Bloor.

This is about 9:30 pm, at College and Bathurst.

Tuesday i just spent typing and cleaning stuff up - removed about 15 different tops from my closet for Goodwill, polished my boots and shoes.

The movie i saw was Victoria Day, set in Toronto in 1988. 16 year old Ben is a good hockey player, in the play offs, with teammate, former friend and current nemesis Jordan. Ben has a crush on Jordan's sister Cayla (and pursued by easier Melanie), but spends most of his time with his buddies Sammy and Noah. His life is thrown for a loop when Jordan disappears at a rock concert at Ontario Place, after Jordan begged some money off Ben to buy drugs (though Jordan hias disappeared for days before). It was very good, often funny, and felt very real - not melodramatic. Apparently, the disappearance is based on a kod who died at a Pink Floyd concert at the time, but eerily, a boy disappeared under similar circumstances around the same time this movie was released.

Field party.

Helping Cayla post signs for her missing brother.

I'm not sure how this helping...

After the movie, i subwayed back up to Mo's where i parked. I ended with going with Mo and Lindsey to Mountain Equipment Co-op before my next movie.

On Sunday, i did some shopping during the day - the beginning of a miserable cool wet period which has lasted nearly a week (isn't this the summer?). In the evening, Miah and i saw Up - hard to believe i kinda had to drag him to it, but he was blown away (and he's the trained animator).

Monday morning i did an all-day trip into TO, parking at Mo's.

First off, i went to the Dead Sea Scrolls exhibit at the ROM. It's actually part one (part two coming in the fall). Most of them were written in Hebrew (even though it wasn't the spoken language in the area at the time - 250 BCE to 68 CE), a few in Aramaic (which was), and a few in Greek (the common second language). It included parts of the Bible, such as Genesis, Psalms and Daniel, some psalms that aren't part of the current Bible, and other religious writings from the Qumran community. Included, but not actually a Dead Sea Scroll was a lease agreement. There is a lot of information about the period, showing vases, lamps and such of the area, historical-political background, video footage of the area and so on.

Very interesting. The scrolls themselves are hard to read - not that i can read Hebrew or Aramaic (i can read Greek letters, but only occasional words - 'kai' means 'and', ha ha ha). It was interesting to find out they actually scored the scrolls, creating horizontal lines to guide writing (much like 3 ring binder paper).

Big line-ups at the ROM after seeing the Dead Sea Scrolls.

I wandered along Bloor, and made my way to the nicest French restaurant, called Le Matignon. Instead of a main course i had a bunch of sides, including the soup of the day (mixed veggie, very nice). This is the toasted French bread with goat cheese, tomato and onion - i remembered halfway through i had my camera with me, lol.

I also got the romaine salad (more or less a Caesar), and what they call the best frites in TO (they are pretty darn good). You can also see the fresh warmed bread in the background, but only my glass of water, not the glass of chardonnay, lol.

And for dessert, fruit sorbets.

I walked down towards Yonge & Dundas. This is clubwear?

But it was humid and feeling like it might rain, so i jumped into the subway.

And it did rain - the sky opened right up while i was underground. I did a bit of shopping at the Eaton Centre before i went to see the first movie.

After the show, i picked up some food at Spring Rolls and made my way to Jackie's, for a good-bye BBQ party for Mel, who'd been staying their during her internship at Spin. Miah, Jenn, and some of Jackie's friends were there. We were on the rooftop late enough to catch some Ontario Place fireworks, and then went to the club Tattoo, where i got to see a master in action, lol.

( Jackie's Rooftop )

On Saturday, i went to the Japan Foundation to see the show Four Seasons of Gardens in Kyoto Photographs by Katsuhiko Mizuno. Excellent show - little images don't do them justice.

My new little camera doesn't do light as well as my other one...

(not my photo)

(not my photo)

(not my photo)

Friday night i ended up going to the show at MOCCA by myself. It was the opening night for Pulp Fiction, which "examines the work of a new generation of graphic artists, contextualizing their works..." which "tend to be loose, non-linear narratives that incorporate a comic-book like aesthetic and multiple references to popular culture. Strange characters float across the page or screen, seemingly disjointed scenes are found on the same page, and text is often present. Where there is a narrative it most often takes strange twists and turns that are darkly humorous or sometimes simply wry observations on the world around us."

It was interesting, although i can't say it totally grabbed me, in the way something more narrative, or simply beautiful, would. It featured drawing, painting, mixed media and animation works by Marc Bell, Tasha Brotherton, Mark DeLong, Barry Doupe, Shayne Ehman, Liz Garlicki, James Kirkpatrick, Amy Lockhart, Jason McLean, Jennie O'Keefe, Seth Scriver, The Lions, and Peter Thompson.

It was a fun event - the place was packed, and in the court yard, they were serving drinks and some foods (you had to pay of course, it's non-profit). Also, party way through the evening, a band played, Toronto "synth-rock-pop combo The D'Urbervilles," who were actually pretty cool.

After, i felt like a little, especially since i'd had a glass of wine, so i stopped at La Bréhandaise, "crêperie Bretonne", right next door. I ordered a galette, a Breton pancake made of buckwheat instead of wheat flour.

(not my photos)
I sat in the window, on the left, but i was the only customer at the time. My galette had cheese inside, and an egg and strips of very nice bacon on top. Half my salad was actually potato salad, and even though they serve cider, i just had an orangina. Yummy!

On Friday, Miah and i went to see Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. Admittedly, it wasn't designed to be about plot or character...

You can't even ride a motorcycle...

Do you learn nothing from Jar-Jar Binks?

Okay, it's 400 kilometres between the Pyramids at Giza and Petra in Jordan, and Israel is in the way.

 
"Is this movie playing yet?"
"I fear it soon will be..."

"A single IMAX shot in the movie (df250) would have taken almost 3 years to render on a top of the line home PC running nonstop. If you rendered the entire movie on a modern home PC, you would have had to start the renders 16,000 years ago to finish for this year's premiere."

Last week was the last week of school. Got my laptop reimaged (after a lot of rigamarole). Wednesday i met up with Torrie and Felicia - we were going to see Kung Fu Panda, which was playing for only a dollar, but the place was PACKED full of kids about to finish school (some teacher had 20 with him), so we saw Up again. After, we had sushi, and Chris joined us, with his kids, which made it hard for him to sit and enjoy it.

Thursday, Miah and i went into the city to see a couple of art shows, and hang out with some former students. After dropping the car off, the two of us went to see Junko Mizuno's Red Tresses And Freckles, her solo exhibit at Narhwal Art Projects, a small art gallery on Queen West. It was good, a little small. Her stuff was tame compared to some of her books - hardly any bleeding or limb loss.

After, Miah and i went to Jules for a drink and something to eat (i had the flank steak). We met Mo, Katelyn, Mark and Diego along the wayt to the other gallery.

When we got there, i realized i screwed up the date - the opening was Friday, not Thursday. Whoopsie! So, we went to Tortilla Flats for a drink, and/or food. I admit i had a second meal (enchilada), as well as a strawberry margarita.

Saturday i ran around getting stuff for Sunday, like alcohol, lol. Tried looking for a new bathing suit - no luck. Wandered around Queen Street a bit. I had supper at Jules (prix fixe!).

"This doll had almost been loved to death. You know, love inflicts the most terrible injuries on my small patients."

The movie i saw was Bunny Lake Is Missing, the first movie by Otto Preminger that i've seen. Comparisons were made to Blow-Up, but it's more straightforward than that, and not nearly so stylish.

"Having just arrived in London from Boston, single mother Ann Lake believes that she has dropped her four year old daughter off for her first day at her new school, but when she goes to pick her up, no one even remembers ever seeing Bunny. The further that the lead detective gets into the investigation, the more it seems like Bunny is a figment of Ann's imagination." I was a bit disappointed by it, especially the final act, in which one person's mental state came out of nowhere.

The mother, before things began to fall apart.

The nursery school staff - strangely unsympathetic.

The lead investigator - strangely casual.

The brother - strange.

The landlord - strangely coming on to a single mother whose child has gone missing, especially as he seems clearly gay.

On Sunday, i drove with my Dad up to my sister's cottage for Father's Day. First time i've been to it, actually - way in the middle of nowhere. Got there around 12:30. Too many bugs and dogs, lol. Lunch was various cold cuts and buns. Later, when it sprinkled on and off for a bit, a bunch of us played cards, while my sister made us snacks (cheese, crackers, fruit, kolbasa).

My brother and his family (excluding Katie in BC, but including Cheri's current BF) eventually arrived. Some people waterskied and boarded, while i read Yoshihiro Tatsumi's A Drifting Life. I didn't want to risk my fragile body, lol. It was amazing to see my brother-in-law skiing barefoot (right from the start), and three guys being pulled by one boat. Supper was BBQ chicken and steak, plus salads, potatoes, strawberry pie. After hanging about some more, we left around 8:30. Made a boo-boo turning right when i should've turned left - funny, because people were following me.

Somewhere around the red....

I had a meeting yesterday regarding my 'classroom observation' and student reviews, which were pretty awesome. I also had massage therapy yesterday, so my neck is kinda sore. I've done some light work, organizing files and such.

Friday we had our Convocation, first for the Games group, fourth for Animation (sixth if you include the Grad Certificate students). The ceremony (in which teachers take a very back seat) was from 2 to 4 (1:30 to 4:30 if you include all the farting around). The teachers went to one person's place (Dawn's), had a drink, while the students did family and whatever stuff.

Getting seated for the ceremony.

Animation students, gotta love'em...

Our school will be less pink...

You wish you had a teacher this hip.

After, we met up for some fun times bowling, and then to club for drinks, goofing around, and a bit of dancing.

The Friday Five for June 19th, 2009

1. If you could go back in time to change one choice in your life, what would it be?
Possibly take art in university/college. Make more friends in high school?
2. What would you like your dying words to be?
The Sun is gradually becoming more luminous (about 10% every 1 billion years), and its surface temperature is slowly rising, such that the surface of the Earth has become too hot for liquid water to exist - eurgh!
3. If you HAD to change bodies with someone you knew for 1 year, who would it be?
Maybe a very attractive female, and i'd gone on a lesbian binge.
4. Choose your favorite license plate combination. What does it read?
I prefer random, less memorable ones.
5. What fantasy world would you live in (i.e., movie, tv show, book)?
DC Universe? Although it might be kinda scary - only if i have some kick-ass superpowers.

Wednesday, i met up with Lisa and we had lunch together, and decided to go to the McLaughlin Gallery's restaurant. Unfortunately, it's under new management, and they haven't quite got their act together. The food was fine, although not quite as upscale as before (my chicken was a little on the boring side), and once she delivered the food, the waitress/hostess didn't visit our table again until we were done eating, so she never got the spoon she needed for her pasta. Not bad by any means, but kinda disappointing.

Thursday, i went to the Koolhaus for the PeaceDotLove festival, which had a pretty awesome line up:

Kool Haus Stage:
TMDP - 6:15
Stereos - 7:00
Rebel Emergency - 7:45
Down With Webster - 8 :45
Dragonette - 9:50
Ubiquitous Synergy Seeker - 11 :15

Orange Room Stage:
Anna Cyzon - 6:15
Rachel Goodrich - 6:40
The Jean Marie - 7:05
Mookie Morris - 7 :40
Blues In D - 8:15
Magneta Lane - 8:55
Sunriser - 9:35
Birds Of Wales - 10:15
We Are The Take - 11:00

I arrived a little late and missed the first few bands (argh!). When i got there The Jean Marie was playing, while the other stage was setting up for Rebel Emergency. The Orange Room has fewer gaps, i guess because smaller bands don't get to change the equipment as they feel like, ha ha. I wish clubs had Strongbow, although i'm kinda getting used to Rev, ha ha.

The Orange Room was pretty crowded, but the Kool Haus was not at all, which was too bad for an event promoting good causes:
"The first annual Peace Dot Love festival is inspired by Dylan Ellis and Oliver Martin who were senselessly taken from us in an act of random gun violence in June of 2008... Leave Out Violence, Peaceuilders International and D.O It! created Peace Dot Love to support national and local anti-violence initiatives through a music platform. Peace dot Love aims to educate, empower, inspire hope and make change in our community with an overall effort of raising youth awareness through the power of music and art."

I'd never heard of Mookie Morris before, but they were great!

Down With Webster.

Couldn't find an actual pic from the concert, but this is Magneta Lane - just colour it orange, not red, ha ha. One of my favourite bands.

The highlight was Dragonette.

She reminds me of Goldfrapp.

We Are The Take, the final band in the Orange Room.

Ubiquitous Synergy Seeker, the final band of the main stage.

Monday night i decided to take a chance on Drag Me To Hell. The reviews have been great, but it reminded me why i don't like horror movies. If you remember the Spider-Man movie where Dr Octopus' tentacles jump out at the screen, you get the idea of Sam Raimi's direction. It's more startling than scary, and really cheesy.

Just don't piss her off. She has a 30 year mortgage? Seriously, her house should've been paid off by now.

Really, Alison, he's pretty lame for a boyfriend.

Where's the other girl?

One of our part time art teachers, Geordie, has these hippie-ish get-togethers evenings once a month in the warm part of the year, in his old farmhouse backyard (now surrounded by suburban houses). There's a stage he's built, and people jam. This Sunday people played from 6 to 9, and a band was on from 9-11.

This is the stage.

Crazy!

On Sunday, i went back to TO to see the other Cirque performance. I stopped at Shadow Notes again to get some photos (i thought i'd find a decent selection online, but nope).

This is the first year i've done the Luminato Festival - a lot of art installations, food and Cirque Du Soleil.

That was all i could hack on Saturday - i wasn't expecting the Cirque show to last so long (or take 20 minutes to start, ha ha).

Friday night, after checking out some Luminato art installations, i went to see Departures at the Cumberland. It won the Best Foreign Language Oscar, and i can see why. It's a Japanese movie, about a man who has just lost his job as a cellist (the orchestra folded, but he doesn't believe he's good enough to get another position), and returns to his old town, to occupy the house his mother left him when she died a few years before. His father abandoned him when he was a small boy. He meets up with people who knew him many years ago, and he and his wife adapt to their new life, except for one thing. He ends up getting a job (without understanding what he was getting into) in an 'encoffinment' business. That is, their business is to prepare the body for being placed in the coffin, including washing, make up and proper attire.

It's something that shows Japanese society at its most contradictory. On the one hand, they show enormous respect and (low-key) ceremony in their job, and the appreciation of the deceased's family, but on the other, touching dead bodies is considered unclean in Buddhist and Japanese tradition (despite how necessary it is, since we all die). It also touches on the conflict between old and new Japan. Both funny and serious, descriptions can't do it justice.

Expect the unexpected...

The wife meets the old public bath owner.

Ha ha, he also has to play a corpse on a training video.

I worked a bit on Friday, then went to lunch with Torrie, Meaghan and John. Summer patio lunch, yes!

Afterwards, Meaghan, Torrie and i went to see Angels and Demons. It wasn't very good...

"...the antimatter is suspended, there, in an airtight nano-composite shell with electromagnets on each end. But if it were to fall out of suspension, and come into contact with matter, say with the bottom of the canister, the two opposing forces would annihilate one another. Violently."

CERN laboratory researcher: "If we could assemble all of the antimatter we've ever made at CERN and annihilate it with matter, we would have enough energy to light a single electric light bulb for a few minutes."

The predicted Higgs boson (not anti-matter) is sometimes referred to as 'the God particle' - the term mistakenly implies that the Higgs boson would complete our understanding of physics.

"Anyone see my contacts?"

"POINT!"

The Friday Five for June 12th, 2009

School Days, School Days

1. What was your favorite class/subject in school?
Art, i guess.
2. Who was your favorite teacher?
I dunno - when i was little i really liked Mrs Putnam.
3. Why was your favorite teacher your favorite?
I dunno! lol.
4. What would you have liked to major in in college/university? Or what will you major in if you go to college/university?
Art, especially drawing and printmaking
5. Would you rather go to a small, medium, or large college/university, if you had the money to go to any of the three?
Well, larger places have more choices, but it's really more about the quality of the program you choose.

Work has been a little slow, rigging and stuff - i may have to give up the thing i've spent the past 3 days on.

Yesterday, a handful of us (Miah, Matt and i) went over to Chris's, since he's home with the kids (who slept the afternoon away). I bought a little steak and new potatoes and Chris did the BBQing. I also brought some cider, beer, and gelato. Good times.

After, i went into the city, somewhat later than i had expected, so i went directly to College Street. I wasn't too hungry, and the trendy little bar i've sometimes stopped at (Mini-Market) is now closed (missed it by 5 weeks, it seems). So, i just wandered around the area a bit before the movie, then got popcorn at the movie.

The movie i saw was Tokyo!, which was three short films put together vaguely on the subject of the city, but it was really nothing like Paris Je T'Aime.

The first piece, Interior Design, was written and directed by Michel Gondry, and based on Gabrielle Bell graphic novel Cecil and Jordan in New York (although i didn't make the connection right away), which i just bought at the Toronto Comic Arts Festival in May. It's the most conventional piece, which is saying something, because in it a woman gradually turns into a chair. It makes light of the very small spaces the Japanese live in.

The second piece, Merde, was written and directed by Leos Carax. It's about the reaction to a monstrous caucasian man with a bent red beard and very long nails and speaks only in a bizarre language who crawls out of the sewer and starts harassing then harming people of Tokyo. It was my least favourite piece - i liked the start, but i thought the arrest and trial took too long. Demonstrators appear in the street both condemning him, and hailing him as an anarchic hero. Very weird.

The final piece, Shaking Tokyo, was written and directed by Joon-ho Bong. It's about a shut-in (hikikomori) who hasn't stepped foot outside of his apartment or looked anyone in the face in 10 years. He orders everything by phone (pizza every Saturday), and lives a very regimented, until the day the pizza deliverer turns out to be a girl, and when an earthquake strikes, she falls down unconscious in his doorway. He doesn't know what to do until he notices she's painted buttons and words on herself, and he presses the one that says 'coma', and she wakes up. It's followed by a bizarre odyssey through the empty streets of Tokyo. My favourite.

After the movie, i drove up to Mo's, to say i was still alive, lol - but he wasn't there, and everyone else was watching TV. I wandered over to Pizzaiolo and grabbed a slice (two really) of gourmet Sicilian (real bacon, Italian sausage, red onions, mozzarella).

Today Chris and i met with Torrie for sushi - Chris had been indecisive, so this was last minute, but it was good. Got back in time for our Game Development meeting.

Tonight i saw The Hangover, known as Lendemain De Veille (the day after the night before) in Quebec and (oddly) Very Bad Trip in France. Go figger. Anyway, it's the rare comedy which is actually funnier than the trailer. And smarter, even though it's kind if a gross out comedy. The premise is simple - four guys go to Vegas for a bachelor party. Where it's different is that it presents the trip as a mystery. First it starts off 2 days into the one day trip, then jumps back two days, and then jumps forward another day, ith one missing buddy, and everyone having no memory of the night.

"Who's baby is that?"
"We'll deal with the baby later."
"We're not gonna leave a baby in the room. There's a tiger in the bathroom!"

This year i decided to make sure i attend some Luminato Festival events. The first part of my plan was to photograph some of the art exhibits around the city, although that was thwarted by some rainy weather - i will get back to it (i did get a couple).

The Four Seasons Centre

The first event i attended, on Sunday, was the National Ballet's short programs of Skin Divers and Carmen.

Choreographer Dominique Dumais's Skin Divers, 'inspired by Anne Michaels' book of poetry of the same name, incorporates both spoken word and visual projections as complements to the choreography, and explores the concept of "the body as a living archive of experience, or a museum of memory." '

It was interesting to watch, though far too relaxing for someone coming off a major infection, ha ha. Though my seat had a clear view, it was so high, i felt emotionally disconnected (and the jumps seem less impressive than they are).

Carmen is a classic story of lust and jealousy, based on Bizet's opera (itself a variation on a book). Jose is bored with his wife (too nice), and is taken with the wanton gypsy Carmen. She accepts his advances, but won't be tied down. Jose ends up stabbing Carmen's man (bandit chief or pimp, depending on the version) in a jealous rage. Carmen fights Jose's attempts to control her - and into the arms of a bullfighter (or bull, practically, in this version), and in fact they make love right in the bull ring (it's a pretty raunchy version). Jose again tries to control her by threatening to stab her, but she impales herself on his knife, preferring death over losing her freedom. Jose grieves, rather physically.

It's definitely a modern take - the set looks as much like a nightclub as a bullring. The classic Bizet music is instantly recognizable (although unfortunately it reminds me of Gilligan's Island: "Neither a lender nor a borrower be. Do not forget: stay out of debt."), but it's also interspersed with much more modern takes, parts that seemed more like taiko drumming. I appreciated it for pushing the envelope, but i can't say it's one of my favourite ballets - i like a little more joy in the movement. I did like the fast pace - surprised it was only an hour, and not dragged out to a full ballet.

To break the mood there is a part, after the murder, before the bullfighting, when a bunch of transvestites dance the flamenco (yes, that's right).

The movie i saw Friday was Land Of The Lost. It marries the ambitious kids' sci-fi fantasy TV show from the 70s, with Will Farrell's typical vulgar schtick. It was okay - for a first draft. Not the least funny Will Ferrell movie i've seen. But still not very good.

The dinosaurs looked better than the rubbery peoples.

"Parody"?

Last Saturday, i saw Alice and Minerva in their year-end dance show. It was pretty good - the seniors were very impressive, more so than usual, and the little kids, more cute than good than usual, ha ha.

Sunday, i saw Up again.

On Monday night, i started shivering and getting sweaty, and very soon, i was all achy joints, and twisting and turning all night. Ugh.

I was still feeling crappy the next day, when i met Chris and kids at the zoo.

I left around noon, as they went to the kids' zoo. For some reason, i thought it would be a good idea to see Star Trek again. I was increasingly tired.

After supper, i slept most of the evening, waking up now and then. I woke up feeling a little better. Then i had trouble sleeping, more twisting and turning. Woke up at 2, feeling like it was time to get up. This kept repeating itself til 3:30 or so, and i slept solid until 6:30. I woke up with a bit of a sore neck, from all the twisting and turning.

I went to Toronto, leaving my car at Mo/Kate/Diego/Andrew's place. I had lunch with Ange, for her birthday. I started off feeling a little crappy, but was better by the end. We were at Jules from 2 to 3:30 or so. I had the beef sirloin special - the gorgonzola sauce was great, but i would've preferred steak. We both had some wine. After, we went shopping along Queen. I got a new belt, a pair of linen pants from Club Monaco, and picked up the docs i'd ordered at Neon. After, i went back and chatted with Mo and the others a while. I went to Yorkdale looking for a light jacket, something other than a hoodie.

Wednesday night i'd hoped to get a really peaceful sleep finally, but i woke up with a VERY PAINFUL neck - i must've held it in an odd position or something. It still hurts now, but it's hurt less each day. It also hurts more when i wake up than when i've been moving and stretching around.

I worked at school most of Thursday. I had lunch with Michelle & Courtney in the food court. Matt was at school - we had a drink with Dawn around 3 at Shoeless. Later, Michelle, Courtney and i saw Up again.

Friday i went to see a movie. I dropped by Lisa & Russ's, and they invited me for dinner.

Saturday, i was going into the city for Andrew P's surprise party, but he'd invited me to join them on their tour of the Steam Whistle Brewery. As it turned out, we (Andrew, Cindy, Ken, Diego, me) got their for the last tour, and it was sold out, ha ha. We went to Jack Astor's on Front (annoyingly sold out of Strongbow) and sat on their patio awhile. We made it back to their place around 7. I only drank ginger ale. Gina had made some sandwiches, fruit and other snacks. Kate was there of course, Mel and Justin showed up, as well as a bunch of their other friends.

The Friday Five for June 5th, 2009

1. What do you feel is the most important quality in a close friend?
Trustworthiness.
2. What is the one quality in a stranger you'd just met that would make you want to get to know them better?
Sense of humour.
3. What do you think is the most important quality in a good leader?
The ability to get people to want to follow.
4. What is the one thing that makes a child likable to you?
I smile at them.
5. What do you think is the one thing that makes a good parent (other than loving their children)?
Patience.

A bunch of us ended up meeting at Jack Astor's before the movie: Diego, Katelyn W, Mo, Andrew P, his gf Gina, Jackie and her bf Trevor.

Of course, the movie we all came to see was Up, Pixar's latest, about an old man who has lost the love of his life, and decides to finally make the big trip he and his wife had talked about all their lives, and accidentally brings along a little boyscout, and meets up with a talking dog, mysterious bird and his childhood hero. Very, very funny, and very touching. Another masterpiece by Pixar.

"My name is Dug. I have just met you and I love you."

The short before Up, Partly Cloudy was also very funny and sweet, and played on the cartoon convention of babies being delivered by storks.

On Friday, i took the day off (so to speak), and went to TO to fart around, and meet up with some people. I got to Mo's around 2, and we set off.

We went to MOCCA for their latest exhibit Still Revolution: Suspended in Time, part of Toronto's CONTACT photography festival, which i never see enough off. "With the development of photographic technologies in the late 19th century came the power to isolate the mechanics of movement." It's always a mix of what appeals and what doesn't, but it was a good show.

Idris Khan (referencing Muybridge)

Barbara Astman

Martha Rosler

Mat Collishaw

Mikhael Zubotsky

Mikhael Zubotsky

Stan Douglas

Trevor Paglen

Trevor Paglen

Walead Beshty

After, we walked down Queen. I stopped at Neon to get new shoes, but they were out of cherry red, so i ordered a pair. Then we went back to Mo's place to meet up with a bunch of otehr animators.

The Friday Five for May 29th, 2009

1. What bad habits do you have?
None really, just a lack of good habits.
2. What bad habit would you most like to break?
Getting older? lol.
3. Have you ever overcome any bad habits? What were they?
No, but i did start exercising...
4. Do you have any habits other people consider bad that you rather like about yourself? What are they?
Wearing colourful pants? lol.
5. What habit annoys you most in other people?
Smoking.

Lessee, work-social busy week. A small group of us (Matt, Miah, Angelina, me) had lunch at Shoeless after our meeting on Tuesday, then three of us (minus Angelina) had late lunch (at the Weasel) Wednesday. Yesterday, three of us (Chris, Matt and i) had a drink (at Kelsey's) before seeing a movie, then had wings and a drink (at the Tap) after, plus one more (Miah).

The movie we saw was Terminator Salvation. I was not expecting a good film, and i was not disappointed.

One has to conclude that Skynet and Terminators are just stupid - they can't see an enormous freaking military base, or use radar to scan for submarines, and they conveniently leave molten metal and liquid nitrogen nearby. I suggested that there needs to be a School for Terminators: "Don't not knock your opponent aside and allow them to scramble for safety and weapons. Simply grab, and tear. Grab, and tear. Grab.... and tear..."

A lot of the effects were pretty weak, except for the Schwarzenegger shots - much better than the de-aged Patrick Stewart from Wolverine or Bruce Willis in that crappy trailer we saw. To be honest, i enjoyed seeing it just to make fun of it.

"NO! NO! Don't shut me up! Why the **** are you walkin' right through? Ah da da dah da dah! What don't you ****ing understand? I'm in the middle of my ****in' overwrought actin' and predictable dialogue!"

"I had the weirdest dream last night... there were these sheep, except, they were electric..."

Another massage therapy session on Monday. After, i picked up a bunch of DVDs at Blockbuster.

The first one was Kung Fu Panda: Secrets of the Furious Five. It was pretty good, although a couple of the voices had different actors (thankfully not Po or Shifu). The frame, with Po and some young bunnies is done 3D style, while the stories are done 2D, like the original credits, or Samurai Jack. The rest of the DVD is filler.

I also saw Wonder Woman, the straight-to-DVD animation from DC Comics. It was okay - didn't grab me, and some of the changes they made to the story were mildly annoying. So was Steve Trevor's dickishness, and Wonder Woman's pricklishness. It was surprisingly violent.

"You seem as eager to meet me on the battlefield as you once did in the bedroom, Hippolyta."
"I only hope you prove more skilled in this arena, Ares."

Hippolyta: "Here the true nature of men is laid bare. What other depraved thoughts must you be thinking?"
Col. Steve Trevor: "God, your daughter's got a nice rack."

"Mr. President, the threat has been neutralized."
"How?"
"It seems by a group of armored supermodels."

The following evening i watched Tales of the Black Freighter, based on the comic-within-a-comic from Watchmen. Ostensibly a pirate story, though really a horror story, it was good - a straightforward adaptation of the story.

It also included Under The Hood, a TV version of Hollis Mason's book about being a superhero. It was considerably longer than the actual Tales of the Black Freighter, too long, and kinda boring.

That was followed by the latest (and last, for now) Futurama movie, Futurama: Into the Wild Green Yonder, some story about a eco-terrorists, "Mars Vegas', and wearing tinfoil on your head to stop people from reading your mind (or reading theirs). It was okay, but not the best Futurama there is. I think the story and jokes get stretched out to fill a whole movie. It will be cut up into 4 episodes, but should've been trimmed back to 2. Seth McFarlane sang the opening song.

The week was kinda busy, with ever more meetings, and getting ready for Anime North. Gah.

Thursday i met with Lisa and saw the girls in their school's production of Seussical (a 'junior' edition). Alice was the Mayor's wife, Minerva the Grinch.

On Friday, i loaded up a pile of stuff, and headed to Anime North. We got a table there, in exchange for some backpacks and art kits. We were there, obviously, to promote our Animation and Games programs to potential students, and just to get our name out there. Emma helped me set up. Matt came later to staff the booth with me between 6 and 10, and Jackie joined us just for the heck of it.

Saturday morning with Katelyn (ANIM class of 2008, currently at CORE Digital), Michelle (GDEV class of 2010, summer job at UOIT Multimedia Dep't), and Miah (one of our Professors, ANIM class of 2004). Saturday we were a little light on professors, since it was from 10 am to 8 pm, so i enlisted some students/grads to help. On the left, we're playing the Animation program showreel, on the right a playable game from a group of our second year Games students.

I only had my camera on Saturday and Sunday, and didn't take a ton of photos.

Victoria Day Weekend, i drove to visit friends in Paisley, near Lake Huron, in Bruce County.

On Monday we went to Folmer Botanical Gardens, a private botanical garden attached to a garden centre, which was actually pretty nice.

Impromptu picnic.

Work last week was a little crazy, all meetings and such. Friday i took a break, and took the GO Train into TO.

At the Royal Ontario Museum, there was a members preview for the new Schad Gallery of Biodiversity, which was kinda interesting.

The only live animals were in this aquarium. [not my photos]

The rest were a mix of models and stuffed animals, with video displays and such.

I also visited the Batcave, which was good, although the zoo spoils you for the real thing.

I finally made it into the Teck Suite of Galleries: Earth's Treasures, which was mainly rocks and minerals, which was actually pretty fascinating.

Displays being put into place.

In the same area was Light & Stone: Gems from the Collection of Michael Scott - as minerals go, gems are pretty darn neat, and beautiful.

Then it was pretty much a rush straight back - i caught the 12:13 train.

The Friday Five for May 15th, 2009

1. What is your favorite girl's name?
I dunno - it's more about the person - i like the name if i like the girl.
2. What is your favorite boy's name?
Mine's not bad, lol.
3. What is the weirdest/most obnoxious name you've ever given to a pet?
We had one that really never had a name - it was 'Baby' or 'Kitten'.
4. What is/was your favorite pet?
Pribably the last cat, Bootsie. She was ornery, but had a strong personality.
5. What is your most cherished dream for your future?
Immortality?

2009 April 16. I've taken some random outdoor shots lately. This is in a new subdivision on the edge of town - so much rain in April it made a lake.

2009 May 6.

2009 May 6. So many!

This weekend was the 2009 Toronto Comic Art Festival, held every two years.

( TCAF pics )

Bryan Lee O'Malley (from Scott Pilgrim)

The Friday Five for May 8th, 2009

1. If you could live in any period in history other than now, when would it be?
Does the future count as history? If in the past, do i get to be rich? no, i wanta computer and indoor plumbing.
2. What knowledge or skills do you think you'd have to learn to be able to fit in your chosen period of history?
Drawing ligers?
3. If you could take just one thing from the modern world back with you, what would it be?
Machine guns? Maybe i'd save the Library of Alexandria, and Constantinople.
4. What period in history would you hate to have lived in?
Pretty much all of them - pretty nasty, really.
5. What thing from the past would you like to see make a comeback?
Gaelic?