Vegas - Day 6

Leaving Las Vegas. Today was our last day in Las Vegas so we wanted to make the most of it. Our flight wasn't until 11:30 tonight, so we had no shortage of time to get everything in. Ever since our first morning, we have wanted to go to Paris - Le Village Buffet, so on this our last morning, we did just that. Luckily for us, our monorail passes were still valid, and we made it there in no time at all.

There was much less of a line up today, only half the size of what it was on our first morning, when it was out the door. We were seated in less than 5 minutes, after having purchased our dining tickets at the cashier. We were seated in a little room called Bourgogne, aptly named for one of the provinces in France. There were other rooms in the restaurant that shared the similar naming convention. We did not wait for the waitress to take our drink orders before we made our way to the buffet tables.

The was an abundance of selections to choose from, including but certainly not limited to: crêpes, pancakes, waffles, eggs, bacon, pâtisseries, cereal, cheese, fruit, and bread. We had samplings of all of these and more and we ended up eating two plates each along with orange juice, coffee, and tea. Although Karen was very impressed with the quality of the buffet, she was quite unimpressed with the quality of tea. We spent the rest of the day by the pool, walking around, and picking up a few things for the people back home.

We returned to the MGM Grand in the evening and fittingly had supper at The Rainforest Café, the same place we ate in our first night in Las Vegas. This time, we had a coupon that we had found in one of the many free guides, which provided us with a free appetizer. We decided on a spinach and artichoke dip. I ate an incredibly spicy seafood and sausage pasta dish and Karen ate at chicken wrap. We went back to our hotel to collect our bags that we had checked with the hotel staff that morning, we got changed into warmer clothing, and we waited until 9:00 for our shuttle to the airport.

The shuttle arrived and we got on board and made a few more stops on our way to the airport. Once again, we arrived well in advanced of our flight. As we were checking in for our flight, we saw Hogan et al. doing the same and exchanged a few words with them, who looked a little worse for wear. We weighed our bag, which came in at 41 lbs, which is considerably heavier than it was when we left Ottawa. We had an hour and a half wait before the boarding call finally came, which I mostly spent reading Live and Let Die. Our flight home had a connection through Washington and we made it back to Ottawa the following morning, in about the same time it took us to get to Las Vegas.

Vegas - Day 5

Mandy and Nick meet us at the Starbucks in the lobby of our hotel for breakfast this morning. We ate and talked about our trip and how much fun we had all had. Today was their last full day in Las Vegas as they were flying out tomorrow morning. After breakfast, we all went up to our room to study a map of the monorail that runs along The Strip. We decided that taking the monorail would be a better way to get around than walking, as the latter ate up a lot of our time. We went to the monorail station in the MGM Grand and bought day passes for $12 each, which allowed us to take the monorail as many times as we wanted in a 24-hour period.

We returned to Tickets 4 Less and we were able to secure passes to tonight's performance of Penn & Teller. They were on sale for half the regular price, which was a great deal. We spent the rest of the day walking around, visiting the many hotels and casinos on The Strip, and taking several pictures, and even stopping for lunch at a very nice indoor patio in the Venetian. We each returned to our rooms to get ready and met back up at the monorail station in the MGM Grand. We took the monorail half way up The Strip, go out, and jumped into a taxi and made our way to The Rio.

The World Series of Poker was underway at The Rio and in the hallway leading to the poker rooms, I caught of glimpse of Evander Holyfield walking in the opposite direction! We made our way to the theatre box office and redeemed our passes for tickets to the 9:00 show. Before going in, we had a bite to eat nearby. The theatre was very nice and had a very jazzy atmosphere. There were two performers on the stage, a jazz duet, a pianist and a bass player, who were warming up the audience for the show. I soon discovered that the bass player was Penn! They had an envelope on the stage for everyone to sign, which I did. They put on a great show, with comedy, magic, and many things to take away and think about, but I won't spoil it for anyone. Go and see them yourself!

After the show, we took a taxi back to The Strip, and caught a show of the fountain at The Bellagio, which I recorded on video, and for which Mandy was obsessed at finding the perfect viewing position. We were also entertained by a street performer who did some close up magic using elastic, foam balls, and a coin. We left Mandy and Nick soon afterwards and went back to our hotel for the night.

Vegas - Day 4

Happy birthday America! I woke up this morning with a massive headache (due to the activities of the night before) and generally feeling a bit off as Karen came back to our room with her Starbucks. She had purchased her favourite beverage in the whole world, café mocha, as well as a bagel with cream cheese. I had a few sips of her coffee and decided that I would go downstairs and get one for myself. I came back up moments later and we sat together and finished up our breakfast.

We met up with Nick and Mandy in the afternoon and went exploring a little bit. As part of that, we made an attempt to secure tickets to Penn & Teller for tomorrow night at one of the many Tickets 4 Less locations in Las Vegas. The premise here is that if you wait until the day before or the day of the performance, you can get a great deal on tickets (as much as 1/2 off in some cases). Unfortunately, tickets for Penn & Teller weren't being sold until the day of the performance, so we had to wait until the next day.

We left Mandy and Nick to explore on their own as we had to get ready for tonight's performance of Cirque du Soleil - Love at The Mirage at 7:00. We arrived at The Mirage well before and made our way to the theatre's box office. We explored the lobby and took several pictures as it was really quite a sight to see. We peeked into the gift shop without going inside, as it was already teeming with people. We purchased refreshments from the theatre's bar, a single bottle of water, which cost us $4.50! Outrageous! We made our way through the theatre's doors and located an usher, who upon looking at our tickets, upgraded our seats considerably from the 300 section to the 100 section. As a result, we were only one row back from the stage!

The performance ended at 9:00 and as we got up from our seats to leave, the crew were already frantically preparing the theatre for the following performance at 9:30. We poured out into the lobby along with everyone else and we made our way out onto the street. We were expecting for there to be some kind of fireworks display, but we didn't know when it would happen, and we didn't know where to be so as to get a good view. We decided to stay close to The Mirage, hugging up to the guard railing along with pond in front of the hotel.

As we were waiting for something to happen in the sky, a generously inebriated fellow decided to make something happen in the The Mirage's pond. Deciding it was a nice night for a swim, he drove straight into the pond, fully dressed with backpack and all, much to the delight of the crowd. He swam around for several minutes, making his way up onto the rocks. Somehow, he managed to get all of his clothes off, save for his tighty whities, which although soaking wet, allowed him to keep what little was left of his dignity.

While all this was going on, the volcano at The Mirage began to erupt, which I caught on video, and went on for a couple of minutes. Once the volcano show ended, everyone's attention focused back onto the inebriated fellow, who was slowly getting out of sight. Moments later, the sounds of sirens could be heard and an ambulance pulled into the entrance of The Mirage, undoubtedly here to collect a package. Soon after, fireworks lit up the sky and did so for several minutes.

Karen and I made our way back to our hotel, passing through the Miracle Mile Shops, in an effort to locate something edible as we were starving. We waited in line at one place for several minutes before finally being able to give our order, only to be told that it would take them 15 minutes to make it. We continued our search and we happened upon a Sbarro, truly a gift for above. Karen ordered a slice of cheese pizza, and I got two slices of meat lovers. Upon arriving in our room, we devoured our slices and went to bed almost immediately afterwards.

Vegas - Day 3

The promise of a new day in Las Vegas! Karen and I went down to the lobby and grabbed a quick breakfast at Starbucks before meeting up with Mandy and Nick in the MGM Grand. Before leaving the room, I tried without success to reach Hogan at his hotel and I ended up leaving a voice message on someone's mailbox, I'm not sure who's. We headed out in a taxi and we dropped Mandy and Karen off at an outlet mall before continuing onto the gun range.

According to Hogan's schedule, his group was supposed to be there at noon. Nick and I showed up right on time, but they didn't. We waited around for a while, then we spoke to one of the guys that worked there and saw that they had supposedly changed their time to 2:00! Nick and I made an executive decision and we went ahead without them. We watched as a 5 year old boy shot a handgun, being help by the range officer to pull the trigger, while his dad looked on. I was the first to shoot with a menacing looking shotgun, from which I shot 10 rounds and totally dismantled my target. Nick shot next with a selection of semi-automatic weapons, including an M16. He unleashed his two clips of ammunition on a t-shirt that he bought for the occasion.

We took a taxi back to the hotel and I went up to the room, only to discover that housekeeping was in there, so I waited in the hallway until they were done. Once I got in the room, I saw a note from Karen that said that she and Mandy went to the river pool in the MGM Grand. Before meeting up with them, I took a dip in the jacuzzi tub, and the we hung out at the river pool for the rest of the afternoon. The four of us met up again, after getting cleaned up, for dinner at Fiamma in the MGM Grand. We dined together in a lavish atmosphere and finished a bottle of Greek wine, which was brought to us by the resident Sommelier, who with much flare and spectacle, proceeded to take five minutes to open the bottle and pour the wine.

That evening, we threw caution to the wind and went to Coyote Ugly in the New York, New York hotel to see how they really do things here. We spent the remainder of the evening there, drinking, talking, and laughing. The night did not end too well for me as I had to be helped back to the room by Karen and I became much better acquainted with the bathroom.

Vegas - Day 2

Waking up in Vegas. We got up at a respectable time, despite the minor amount of jet lag that we were experiencing. For breakfast on our first morning in Las Vegas, Karen wanted to go to Paris - Le Village Buffet located in the Paris hotel. We took a long walk and made it there at 11:30 in the morning, only to be met with a lineup that was out the door of the restaurant. We decided that we would try our luck at Paris - Le Village Buffet on another day and we ate at a nearby restaurant named La Crêperie. Our crêpes were so good that we weren't too dishartened about our missed opportunity.

We walked back to our hotel through various shops and malls and met up with Mandy and Nick at the MGM Grand river pool. In the evening, we all had dinner at Pampas restaurant, located in the Miracle Mile Shops of Planet Hollywood. The speciality here was all things meat which they continuously brought to your table until you told them to stop. You did this using a coaster which was green on one side (bring us more meat!) and red on the other side (stop bringing us meat!). We packed in quite a bit before calling it quits. Karen and I went back to our room and Mandy and Nick went to go see the Chriss Angel show Cirque du Soleil - Believe.

Vegas - Day 1

Richard and Jean took us to the airport at 9:30 in the morning. Our flight wasn't until 12:10 in the afternoon, but we didn't want to take any chances. We arrived at the airport, and went through the usual procedures. First, we checked our bag. We only packed one suitcase for the two of us, because they charge for each checked bag ($25 for the first, $35 for the second, etc). Second, we had our carry-on luggage scanned. Third, we went through the metal detector. Finally, we were each questioned by U.S. customs agents. That whole process took us about an hour, leaving us with ample time to spare before our flight. We passed the time by checking our flight itinerary, buying overpriced snacks from the shops ($2 for a chocolate bar!), and listening to music.

The boarding call for our flight to Chicago finally came at 11:45 and we found our seats on the plane. When we booked the tickets, we were unable to get seats that were next to each other, so we had to settle instead for being one behind the other. The flight went well and lasted 4 hours. I passed the time by reading a book that Jeff and Namgyal had bought for me while they were in India, which was Roger Moore's own account of the filming of the James Bond movie Live and Let Die. Upon our arrival in Chicago, we checked the electronic board for our connecting flight to Las Vegas and made our way to that gate.

We boarded our flight almost immediately. Once again, we were not seated together, but across the aisle from each other. The flight went by rather quickly, only being 2 hours long. To add to the usual excitement of airline travel, we experienced quite a bit of turbulence upon our descent into Las Vegas, and we were in the presence of celebrities! Aboard our plane for the entire flight from Chicago to Las Vegas were Stefi Graf and Andre Agassi! They were on their way home with their two children.

We arrived in Las Vegas at McCarran International Airport at 4:30 in the afternoon, local time. If we had any doubts about where we were, it certainly wasn't due to all the slot machines that we passed on the way to the baggage claim area! There was confusion in the air when we arrived because an announcement was made that some of the luggage had arrived quite some time before, so people were being asked to check for their bags not only on the carousel, but in a special holding area as well. Needless to say, everyone was in a state of absolute panic! I stayed by the carousel while Karen took courage in her hands and went to look for our luggage in the holding area. Eventually, our luggage arrived via the carousel which we promptly claimed. We noticed that our hotel, the MGM Grand Signature, had a check-in desk nearby so we went there and got our room keys made, as well as purchased tickets for a shuttle to the hotel.

We boarded the shuttle and made our way to our home for the next 6 days. As we approached our destination, we could see The Strip from the windows of the car. It was quite impressive to see these gigantic structures with literally nothing but desert around them. We arrived at our hotel and made our way up to our room on the 28th floor. We wasted no time and we immediately began to check out our new digs. Among the features of our suite were a kitchen, a king size bed, a couch, a balcony, and an immense bathroom with a glass enclosed shower, a deep soaker jacuzzi tub, and double sinks.

After we settled in, we went down to the pool area, where we swum around, layed about, and each drank a Corona. Dinner time came and we decided to eat at The Rainforest Café, one of Las Vegas' famous theme restaurants. Located in the adjacent MGM Grand hotel, this restaurant was complete with animatronic creatures, giant fish tanks, and waiters and waitresses dressed up in safari gear. Once in a while, the entire restaurant would get dark, and thunder and lightning could be heard coming from the speakers. Despite our best efforts, we were unable the finish our meals because the portions were immense. Luckily, we had a fridge in our room! We capped off day one of our trip with a bottle of champagne and a relaxing dip in our jacuzzi tub.

Vegas tomorrow!

Karen and I were giddy with excitement and anticipation for this trip. We had bought 'Las Vegas for Dummies' months ago, and we had been reading it on an almost daily basis since. We visited websites and talked with and heard stories from friends and family who had already been to Las Vegas, and we were given suggestions and ideas on where to go and on what to do. The day finally came when our plane tickets were booked, our hotel reservations were made, our bags were packed, and we had a vague idea of what we were in for (based on the movie The Hangover) and what we were going to do when we got there. For all intensive purposes, we were ready to go to Las Vegas!

Chicken 'n Ribs

Impressed by our visit last year, we were eager to come again and enjoy the flavours, sights, and smells of the Ottawa International Chicken and Rib Festival. I met up with Karen after work at Bank and Sparks and we quickly took our place in line at Uncle Sam's (pictured left) from Albuquerque, New Mexico.

As we were waiting in line, we noticed that each time someone ordered a full rack of ribs, the guy manning the barbecue would slam his first into a cow bell above his head, proclaiming 'full rack' in the deepest and loudest voice he could muster. It was quite entertaining. Needless to say, when it was our turn to order, we got a full rack of ribs and our bell blast. The price had gone up to $22 this year (from $20 last year). We took our ribs and went and sat down at a patio table along Sparks Street. The ribs were excellent..

Next, we went to get some gelato on Elgin Street. We got a small cup of half chocolate Skor, half blackberry, which turned out to be a very nice combination. We went back to the festival and met up with friends. Our friend Dan, recently arrived from Toronto, parked his motorcycle right there on Sparks Street. With sustenance in hands, we went up to Parliament Hill and sat on the lawn, where preparations were already underway for Canada Day.

Montreal

While having breakfast, I got the idea for us to go to Montreal and quicker than you can say 'frivolous spending', we were on our way! We got there just a little after noon, and parked the car in the garage at the Palais des congrès. From there, we walked to our first destination, Carlos and Pepe's. It's a nice Mexican restaurant located on Peel Street that we have frequented many times before, and to which we keep coming back to again and again, mainly for their fajitas and margaritas.

Our next destination was H&M, conveniently located on St. Catherine's, Montreal's main shopping street. This store's first two floors are entirely comprised of women's clothes, and the third floor entirely comprised of menswear. We parted ways and I went all the way up to the top floor and looked around. I found a plaid shirt that looked nice on the hanger, but not on me. Karen came away with a nice red summer dress, for which I can't wait for her to premiere.

Our next stop was Simons, which only has stores in Quebec. We each wandered around in our respective areas, and once again, I came away empty handed, just like last time. It wasn't a total loss however as Karen found herself a nice top. Another staple of any shopping trip is RW & Co., which is where we headed next. Disappointment followed as neither of us were able to find anything we liked. Our last stop was Winners. Here, I was determined to find something. Last time, I was able to score a nice pair of black dress pants, but this time, it was not meant to be.

Thirtysomething

This post is not about the television drama about a group of baby boomers in their thirties that aired on ABC between 1987 and 1991. It's about a guy, let's call him Alex, taking his first steps into this new world. I am now thirtysomething. Your twenties are a blur. Your thirties, you raise your family, you make a little money and you think to yourself, "What happened to my twenties?". Bonus points to whomever knows what movie that line is from, and whom said it.

Today was a very busy day. It started at noon at the aerial park at Camp Fortune where seven brave individuals walked a very fine line between victory and disaster, all the while being supported by, a very fine line. We set out on their beginners course, aptly named The Explorer. Three hours of tempting fate while climbing ladders, walking across ropes, and cruising across the sky on a zip line. It was invigorating and definitely worth doing again. For pictures, go here.

Next, we went to the private room at Dooly's, situated in the back corner of the pool hall and featuring two pool tables, leather sofas, coffee tables, stone fireplace with heater, personal stereo system with multi CD player, 50 inch HD plasma screen, and hi-speed internet connection. We even had our own waitress who proceeded to card everyone in the room, even if our order solely consisted of an iced tea; they don't mess around. Lastly, we went to Tucker's to belly up to their fantastic buffet. 

Bluesfest Update!

Since my last posting, new bands have been added to the Bluesfest lineup, such as Hole, so check out the official website for an updated roster.

Karen and I will be going to see Great Big Sea on July 16 and Weezer on July 18. You're welcome to join us!

May long weekend recap

Karen and I spent Friday evening on Elgin Street. First, we stopped in at Pure Gelato for some decadence. I had a cup of dark chocolate gelato, with bits of Skor mixed in, and Karen had a cup of Toblerone chocolate gelato, infused with orange. Next, we walked up and down the street for a while before going into The Standard, where Karen had a glass of wine, and I had a pint of Steamwhistle. Next, we were off to our main destination which was Karen Fong's surprise birthday party at Woody's Pub, expertly organized and executed by her nearest and dearest friends. Many pictures were taken and lots of laughs were had.

Saturday. I went to the get some groceries after our pancake breakfast, while Karen stayed at the apartment to tackle the mountain of dishes we had built up. Upon my return, I was amazed at how much she had gotten done, and we continued together to finish them up. That afternoon, we set out to Clayton for the day to visit our friend Dew at her place for her birthday; she had no idea that we were coming to see her. We played a rousing game of Trivial Pursuit, took a trip out on the canoe, and feasted on what seemed to be an endless supply of food. The evening was topped off with a well executed fireworks display and two delectable birthday cakes.

Sunday. We cleaned up a bit around the apartment in the morning and then we went to see a couple of open houses in the early afternoon. Karen dropped me off at my mom's afterwards and she went to her parents' place. I went with my mom to Lowe's to pick up a patio table and a couple of chairs and we set it up when we got back. Karen and I stayed in for the evening, catching up on our TV shows courtesy of Rogers on Demand.

Monday. Karen and I went for a picnic in the morning, where we drank memosas and played Bocce. We installed the air conditioner in our bedroom window, which took a little more effort than last year's installation. We spent the afternoon at Mandy and Nick's lounging on their back patio, drinking, playing Euchre, eating BBQ'ed delicacies, and playing Bocce.

William Shatner for Governor General

Michaëlle Jean’s impending departure from Rideau Hall is generating a lot of talk (ie. buzz) as to who might replace her. The Mark, an on-line political publication, developed a poll suited to this purpose, asking readers to vote for who they thought would fit the bill.


Here are the top 5 candidates at present:

William Shatner     47%
Leonard Cohen     11%
Rick Hansen          10%
Preston Manning     5%
Phil Fontaine           4%

The remaining candidates, including Wayne Gretsky, Bobby Orr, and Kim Campbell, account for the rest.

Clearly, the readers of The Mark know who they want to fill Michaëlle Jean’s shoes (not literally, of course). In my opinion, they've made a fine choice.

William Shatner is an actor, recording artist, and author. He has played some of the most iconic characters on stage and screen: Captain James Tiberius Kirk, T.J Hooker, Denny Crane, and the Priceline guy. He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and on the Canadian Walk of Fame. He has a page on Wikipedia, IMDB, and Twitter, an official website, and a channel on YouTube.

Need more convincing. Watch his 'I am Canadian' speech from the closing ceremonies of the 2010 Olympic Games.

Sirloin Oscar

Take sirloin steak.

Add some sauteed mushrooms, boiled asparagus, fried shrimp and scallops.

Smother it all in Hollandaise sauce.

Every girl's crazy 'bout a sharp dressed man

You have all no doubt heard the song. A timeless classic by ZZ Top, circa 1983. It's as true today as it was back then. Sure, fashion may have changed, but looking good will never be out of style.

Clean shirt, new shoes
And I don't know where I am going to
Silk suit, black tie
I don't need a reason why

You don't need a special occasion to dress up. I wear a shirt and tie to work every now and then and I've had people come up to me and say that I look 'dapper' and 'posh'. Even though the people are all guys, it's still nice to hear.

Gold watch, diamond ring
I ain't missin' not a single thing
Cuff-links, stick pin

When I step out I'm gonna do you in

I'm not sure if many people still rock the gold watch, aside from Donald Trump and cartel drug lords. I've got a silver coloured Eddie Bauer watch that suits me just fine. I've never been a fan of cuff-links, but maybe I'll see the appeal when I get older. For now, I'm going with the buttons that are already on the dress shirt.

Top coat, top hat
And I don't worry cause my wallets fat
Black shades, white gloves
Lookin' sharp, lookin' for love

I've never worn a top coat or a top hat. I suppose that I've never had the occassion to, such as at a polo match, a $2,000 a plate charity dinner, or a Governor's ball. Shades are nice. I've got a pair of Oakley's that I bought several years ago that I hardly ever wear now since they're not prescription. White gloves? I am not a butler and my name is not Jeeves.

Bœuf Bourguignon

For supper, Karen decided to make this recipe, taken from the most famous of all cookbooks, Mastering the Art of French Cooking.

Karen was definitely up for the challenge, after all, she did train at the most prestigious of all cooking schools, the Cordon Bleue in France.

With the list of ingredients in hand, we went out to Loblaws and picked up what was needed: bacon, stewing beef, red wine, mushrooms, small white onions, bay leaves, beef stock, and tomato paste.

Our next stop was the Dornan family homestead to pick up a casserole dish, and then back home to get started on the recipe.

The process went something like this:

1. Cook up 4 pieces of bacon in frying pan

2. Take bacon out of the pan

3. Brown stewing beef in frying pan with bacon fat

4. Put in casserole dish with the bacon, add flour and toss mixture

5. Put mixture in oven at 450 degrees for 4 minutes

6. Toss mixture and return to oven for another 4 minutes

7. Stir fry chopped carrots and onions

8. Take mixture out of oven

9. Add carrots, onions, beef broth, and red wine

10. Add tomato paste, garlic, bay leaf, and thyme

11. Put mixture in oven at 325 degrees for 3 hours

12. Brown whole baby onions in butter

13. Add beef stock, and let simmer for 40 minutes

14. Brown mushrooms in butter for 5 minutes

15. Take casserole out of oven

16. Separate liquid from mixture and skim excess fat off liquid

17. Mix everything back together and let simmer for 5 minutes

Bluesfest

Bluesfest in Ottawa has been happening since 1994. The first act to take the stage was Clarence Clemons (saxophonist for the E Street Band). Ever since then, Bluesfest has welcomed thousands of bands and musicians, from blues to rock, soul to pop, rap to country, and everything else in between.

My first time at Bluesfest was in 2001, and I've been going almost every year since. Here's a list of who I have seen at Bluesfest so far, by year:

2001 - James Brown, Matthew Good Band
2002 - The Tragically Hip
2004 - Bryan Adams, Blue Rodeo
2007 - The Steve Miller Band
2009 - The Yardbirds, Sam Roberts, Our Lady Peace

This year, a whole mess of good bands are coming to town: Arcade Fire, The B-52s, The Flaming Lips, Foghat, Gord Downie, Great Big Sea, The Gypsy Kings, The Lost Fingers, Iron Maiden, Joan Jett, Matthew Good, The Moody Blues, Roger Hodgson, RUSH, Santana, Weezer and many, many, many more. Even Kevin Costner put a band together and is coming to Bluesfest!

It's all happening July 6-18 at Lebreton Flats. Tickets go on sale tomorrow!

Long weekend

Friday

Tennis in the morning. Visit from Peter in the afternoon. Dinner with the Dornans in the evening. New couch (a big hit with everyone), new coffee table (a big hit with Nathan), new TV (which we couldn't turn on). Great dinner, my very own baked potato, with desserts provided by Tom.

Saturday

More tennis. A trip to Loblaws for goat's milk. Sushi for dinner. Rum and cokes and 'Atonement'.

Sunday

Trip to Orleans to visit the cats. Washed my car. Picnic in the afternoon with leftover sushi and little cans of Coke. Played some frisbee. More tennis.


Monday

Trip to Orleans. Cards with mom and Karen. Clean up time. Steak dinner. Guitar Hero into the night.

U23D

On Saturday night, Karen and I finally went to go see U23D at the Museum of Civilizations. I say finally because Karen had initially suggested it 3 weeks ago. I have never been to see U2 in concert and I thought that this was probably the only chance that I would ever have to see them 'in concert'.



Even though we got to the museum well in advance of the 8:45pm start time, we were probably the 100th and 101st people in line. We waited for about half an hour before the finally let us in and then we were given a nifty pair on 3D sunglasses (modelled by Karen).

Among the songs featured in concert were Vertigo, Beautiful Day, New Year's Day, Sometimes You Can't Make It on Your Own, Sunday Bloody Sunday, Bullet the Blue Sky, Pride (In the Name of Love), Where the Streets Have No Name, One, and With or Without You.

Need more info?
http://www.u23dmovie.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U2_3D

And the Oscar goes to... Sandra Bullock?!?

I must admit, I was pretty excited about the Oscars this year. There were a lot of good films made in 2009, and for the first time, I had seen quite a few of the ones that were nominated. I was also looking forward to the hosting team of Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin, each hilarious in their own right, and put together, would undoubtedly prove to be comedic plutoneum.

Of course, before the Academy Awards could begin, they have to do the whole red carpet thing, which is an awards ceremony in itself. It seemed quite scaled down this year, no fans on the bleachers, less interviews, perhaps owing to the whole thing being held under a tent due to the rain. Anyway, instead of 'And the Oscar goes to...' it's 'Who are you wearing?'. Apparently, there is a lot of attention placed on 'who is wearing who' and they are an endless number of television shows (ET, eTalk, Extra!, The Insider, etc) that mercilessly dissect and rate these outfits. It makes me want to cringe.

The Oscars finally began at 8:30, with a song and dance number by Neil Patrick Harris. By far, one of my favourite actors, from his debut as the very young doctor on Doogie Howser M.D., to his current ironic role as the womanizing Barney on How I Met Your Mother. Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin took the stage next and they totally owned it. Calling out to celebrities in the audience and showing them no mercy. Saying to Woody Harrelson that he is "so high", staring down George Clooney, and picking on Meryl Streep and her record 16 Oscar nominations, or as they put it, the biggest loser in Academy Awards history. Also noteworthy was their comment that those wishing to obtain an official transcript of the evening should "Get a life". Click here to see the full video.

The awards then proceeded as they usually do. They get a pair of presenters up there, most of which have nothing in common, they set up the clips with some scripted banter, after which they announce the winner, the winner comes up to the stage from the audience to much cheer and applause, everyone else in their category tries to take the bad news with some form of humility, and the winner's speech is cut off by exit music after about 10 seconds.

The big winner of the night was 'The Hurt Locker' with film editing, sound editing, sound mixing, original screenplay, best director, and best picture. I agree with the Academy on this one. This film was ridiculously good. 'Avatar' picked up art direction, cinematography, and visual effects. This movie is basically just a big budget orgasm for your eyes. I was very happy that Christoph Waltz won best supporting actor for his role as Colonel Hans Landa in Inglourious Basterds. His performance was bone chillingly awesome. The best villain ever. Truly a guy you love to hate.

And Sandra Bullock won best actress for The Blind Side. I couldn't believe it. I thought that it was a mistake by the Academy. She was up against Helen Mirren and Meryl Streep! How could she win?!? No, I did not see the movie, based on the preview alone, and also on principle that I've seen this kind of movie before. One person doing their best to help out / inspire someone / a group of people that are struggling / have been cast aside without being given a chance. Wildcats, Dangerous Minds, Dead Poets Society, Coach Carter, Lean On Me, The Emperor's Club, Mr. Holland's Opus, Dance With Me,... the list goes on and on.

Go here for a complete list of all the nominees and winners.

Shopping in Montreal

Yesterday, Karen and I took a trip to Montreal.

We got up at 6:30am, something that I haven't done in a long time, but something that Karen does everyday of the week. She had a breakfast already made up for us: yoghurt, bananas, and blueberry muffins that she had made the day before.

We caught our train at 7:30am. While we were waiting in the train station, I had a coffee. My first of three for the day. We got on the train excited about the day to come. We ate our breakfast, listened to some music, read a bit, and before we knew it, we were there.

Our first destination after getting off the train was Tim Hortons, as the first cup of coffee that I had had was already starting too wear off. After that, we sat on a bench to relax a bit before we continued on with our day of shopping.

Our first shopping destination was RW & Co. In the past, this store had proved to be a virtual gold mine. There is one in the Rideau Centre which we go to quite often, but the one in Montreal is much bigger. I toured the store and jotted down some information on what I had seen. Karen tried some stuff on, and came away with a nice shirt.

Next, we went to Bleu Marine Co. where Karen was looking for the perfect pair of Silver Jeans, and then to The Gap, where neither of us found anything of interest.

We spent the rest of the morning at Simons, one of the bigger department stores, boasting three levels. Karen went her way and I went mine. I didn't find anything that I liked, but I did find a couple of things that were interesting.

How much would you pay for the jeans pictured here. $50? $100? $150? Well, the good people at Dolce & Gabbana would like you to pay $475 for these jeans. Wondering about that device to the right? There is a wire and a clip extending from the box and attached to the jeans that, if removed, will sound an alarm. By far, the ugliest jeans that I've ever seen.


What about this handsome blazer?
$100? $200? $500? Try $2,000.
I could imagine that they must have had a GPS tracking device on this thing. By far, the ugliest blazer that I've ever seen.

We went for lunch at a place called Carlos and Pepe's. We've been here several times before. One of the best mexican restaurants around. We had fajitas and sangria.

After lunch, we went to H&M, a three story mega store on St. Catherines. The first two stories are for women, the top story is for men. Karen says that this store is very hit or miss. Either you find a lot of nice stuff, or you don't find anything at all. This trip proved to be the latter of the two.

We spent the remainder of the afternoon going to Jacob, Winners, and Old Navy. Karen found a nice skirt and a top at Jacob, and I found a nice pair of black dress pants at Winners and a nice pair of jeans at Old Navy.

We caught our train back to Ottawa at 6:00pm.