1 February 2007, early morning
Carvill and I went to Banu for a late dinner last night. The restaurant is run by two sisters: one has long hair and wears black boots, the other has short hair and doesn’t wear black boots. They both sit down next to you when they take your orders, which gives the place a very casual vibe. It is easily my favourite kebab place in the city.
One of the sisters stumbled on my post about my first trip there, and left a comment. I didn’t say anything about it because, frankly, I had no idea they would even know what I’m talking about. Also, even if they did, I imagine we’d have a short and boring conversation about it:
“Hey, I’m Ram. You left a comment on my website.”
“Yes I did.”
“Cool…”
“Yeah…”
It is always strange when the real world and this virtual one overlap. I was of the opinion random people who stumble on the site don’t match my face to this website. You can figure it out easily enough, but it’s not so straightforward. There aren’t that many photos of me here. The last one was from September. I mean, when the site was profiled on BlogTO the picture that went with it was of Mezan and Patrick.
Carvill and I finished dinner, paid, put on our coats, and started to make our way to the door. As we were leaving, the short haired sister said, “Thanks for coming Ram, have a good night.”
[2] Life | Weblogs
1 December 2006, mid-morning
A biblical amount of rain is pouring down on Toronto. It’s days like this I wish I owned a good umbrella. Or any umbrella at all actually.
Life
21 November 2006, the wee hours
My mail.app inbox is empty once again. I’m going to try and keep it that way in a meagre attempt to stay organized. I read Getting Things Done a few weeks/months back, and my next plan is to start getting things done. I’m lazy though, so we’ll see what happens.
Life
20 November 2006, evening time
I just split some on my keyboard. I think since I’ve started using computers, this has to be the 4th of 5th time I’ve split a beverage on a keyboard. And it sucks every single time.
[2] Life
16 November 2006, lunch time
As of yesterday I am now the proud owner of a tiny-ass condo a little bit West of Downtown. It took an awfully long time for everything to close. I feel exactly the same as I did before. I don’t think the massive debt now on my shoulders has really sunk in yet. My first mortgage payment is tomorrow. Maybe i’ll feel like home owner then.
[5] Bloor and Lansdowne | Life
3 November 2006, lunch time
The Beaconsfield, has good burgers. Actually, most of the items on the menu looked pretty good, but Heather felt we should definitely get the burgers: she had heard good things about them. We both drank Amsterdam Blondes and talked, while waiting for Shima and Ali to arrive. Heather will be off in London soon, leaving Matt as the sole friend I stole from Tyler to remain in the city. I’d start singing All By Myself , but I’m not quite all alone just yet. Ali and Shima arrived a short while later, and not too long after that our food arrived. The burgers were really good; Heather had not been misinformed. Ali ordered a burger as well, though not before telling us about his new healthy life-style. The Beaconsfield started to fill up as we made out way out. We all walked over to the Gladstone to see a small art exhibit taking place on the second floor of the hotel. The Gladstone has changed a lot since the last time I was there. The interior is quite nice. We wandered around for a bit, enjoying the art. And then were back on the street. And then we were all home.
Life | Toronto
23 October 2006, early afternoon
Crumpler opened up a store in West Queen West, which I stumbled upon last time I was in the area. It was closed that day, so I decided to check it out this past Sunday, while I was in the area meeting up with Tyler. I wasn’t planning on going, especially since it was a dreary rainy day, but I’m not usually out in West Queen West so I felt it best to make the most of my time there.
The store is filled with bags on shelves, a giant piano, and not much else. It might look like a chic boutique if not for the fact the bags are so funky. The day I was there, two people were working, and the store was otherwise empty. Everyone was quite nice, but I knew what I wanted, so I didn’t really need their help picking something. I ended up leaving the store with a 5 Million Dollar Home bag. It was quite roomy, and felt it’d fit my camera and massive lens just fine, with room to spare for my other stuff. I trekked home in the rain.
Home again, I filled my new bag with my camera stuff. To say the bag was a bit too huge for my needs would be an understatement. I seemed to have greatly over estimated just how big my camera was. I called up Crumpler and explained I didn’t need such a giant bag. They said I could exchange it today, or during the week if I felt like it. I looked out my window; it was still raining. I sighed.
One subway and one street car later I was back on Queen, walking West. My 5 Million Dollar Home was filled with the camera gear I wanted my camera bag to hold. I got to the store and apologized for being such a flake while the fellow who sold me my bag went and grabbed me a 4 Million Dollar Home. I stuffed my gear into my new bag, and was back on my way. The people at the Crumpler store were still quite nice.
The bag is quite nice. It’s padded, which is a step up from the messenger bag stuffed with t-shirts which I was using since getting my new lens. It fits my camera with the Canon 17-40mm f/4 L lens just snuggly, with room for another stubby lens. (In my case, this lens is the Canon 50mm f/1.8.) You may be able to fit a lens slightly larger than this one. I can also fit the lens hood for the Canon 17-40mm f/4 L if need be, and my camera’s charger. I don’t normally carry those things around. There is a small pockets on the front of the camera, which would fit memory cards and what not nicely. There is also a mess pocket on the inside of the flap of the bag. In short, there is plenty of space to put stuff.
Its a comfortable bag, and if it lasts a long while, I’d say it is well worth the money. At $70, it is a bit pricey for a camera bag in my opinion, but I am happy with it so far. (All of one day!)
[4] Life | Photography
18 October 2006, lunch time
The fire alarm had been set off sometime in the evening where I lived. I arrived home to find people standing around outside. I chatted a bit, read a bit, and then decided to walk down Bloor and check out the shops where I live. There are a couple restaurants that looked promising, some Ethiopian places for example, but for the most part, from Lansdowne to Ossington that strip of Bloor is pretty sad. There are several boarded up shops on this part of Bloor, and those that aren’t boarded up just aren’t the sort of shop you pop into while walking down the road. There are lots of pubs and bars along this strip that might be cool. I’ll need to check them out next time I’m out with some people. Hanging out at a bar by yourself just isn’t that much fun. Some people in the area think Dufferin Mall sucked a lot of the life out of the strip. Not living in the area way back in the day, I can only imagine what it was like then. Zoinks has moved into the neighbourhood. It’s a used book and music shop. It has a pretty good selection of used books, but I am too used to paying bargain basement prices at U of T book sales. I don’t know if I can bring myself to pay $9 bucks for a beat up copy of Notes of a Native Son. (Actually, knowing me, I probably can.) I’m hoping more shops like it move into the area. I found a good Portages Chicken place right near the West most exit of Ossington Station. This was as far East as I walked; finding that shop made the whole trip worthwhile.
[1] Life | Bloor and Lansdowne
17 October 2006, the wee hours
I asked the people on the DigIn mailing list what used to be on the lot my condo was built on. The first response I got informed me that in recent years it was just an empty construction lot. Many years prior to that, it looks like there may have been a small factory here, as can be seen in the photo below.
The scary thing is, in the past 70 years, the area hasn’t changed that much. If anything, it looks worse for wear. The storage building on the right is very dilapidated now. The bridge is still pretty ugly. I’m not sure what you could do to liven it up.
Update: Here is a photo I took of the same strip of Bloor, which shows how little the area has changed.
[3] Life | Bloor and Lansdowne
16 October 2006, lunch time
To say this past weekend was busy would be an understatement. I’ll have to say more about how I spent my Saturday at some point in time. Sunday I spent all over town—once I woke up. Carvill, Patrick, Mezan and I had lunch at Maggie’s, which is a very good brunch place. Normally it is quite packed, but if you eat at 4:00 in the afternoon the lunch crowd really thins out. We followed that with a trip to Queen West to find a store called Grreat Stuff, which we never actually saw. (It turns out we stopped heading West just before reaching the shop.) We did see some cool, expensive-ass, clothes though, so it wasn’t all for naught. I saw a pea coat that fit quite nice, which is usually enough of a reason for me to buy it. I’m thinking hard about going back to get it some time this week. (My hope is that a coat that fits me so well can’t possibly fit anyone else in the city.) If this post about my Sunday is particularly boring, you can always look at photos of the day out.
Life
11 October 2006, early evening
You may recall I had long hair some time back in October. I actually got it trimmed shortly after posting that message, and it looked pretty dreadful; so dreadful in fact that I put off getting my hair cut for the next 10 to 11 months. I had a huge mane of hair that looked pretty ridiculous. To keep it all manageable, I started wearing my newsboy cap again. I’ve had it since I was in grade 11, and my dad owned it for 15 or so years before that. It is starting to show its age. Some of my friends think that cap is too beat up to be worn outside. I would disagree, I think it is very stylish—very derelict. (An aside: If you see people wearing beat up newsboy caps, I have been doing it for ages now, ergo they are poser-wannabes.) You can only go so long with really long hair before you need to make a decision to grow it out all the way, or to cut it short again.
I decided I needed a hair cut, and went about making arrangements to get one: basically I didn’t do anything but say I needed a hair cut for about 2-3 months. I asked one of my coworkers for her hair dressers number: she’s a bit of a fashionista, so I figured her hair dresser would be really good. “You still haven’t made an appointment!” was what she said to me in response to my query. She then got on her phone and called up the salon to make me an appointment. (She’s the executive assistant where I work, which is a job that requires you be a lot more proactive than I am it seems.) After some negotiating, it was decided I’d get my hair cut at 5:00 that day. The salon was downtown, so I would need to leave work an hour early—to get a hair cut.
I walked into my bosses office. “Is it OK if I leave early today?”
“Sure, sure. Go. Go Go.” I think he felt I just wanted to duck out for the long weekend. My boss is a very understanding sort of fellow.
I wanted to explain I wasn’t trying to get an early start on the long weekend. “I need to get a hair cut, and they can only fit me in at 5:00.”
My boss looked at my long ridiculous hair and laughed.
I have short hair now.
[3] Life
Dude with a plain white plastic bag: Hey, do you wanna buy a cellphone?
Me: No thanks, man.
—At the corner of Bloor and Lansdowne
21 September 2006, lunch time
People don’t line up while waiting for the 191 Rocket, the TTC bus route I love to hate; everyone just forms a sort of semi-circle around the area where the bus door should be. When the doors open, everyone tries to squeeze in at the same time. I’ve never seen people line up this way at the Scarborough Town Centre. Even the people waiting for the McCowan North, which gets quite packed, will form neat lines. Of course, some thug kid will shove his way to the front just as the doors open—punk bitches—but beyond that it’s all very orderly. Taking the Rocket 191 has given me this really bad impression of Humber College kids.
[2] Life
19 September 2006, lunch time
I have Rogers Extreme. It’s normally quite fast. Downloading files from fast servers is a pleasant experience. Using BitTorrent however is a whole other story. I’m downloading a file at 1.7 KB/sec 0 KB/sec. Rogers and I have different definitions of what EXTREME Internet should feel like.
Update: I should add that everything else is wicked fast. Wicked wicked fast. So I don’t hate Rogers that much.
Update: Various tricks get me up to about 50 KB/sec down now, sometimes closer to 80 KB/sec. For comparison, in my old neighbourhood I used to get closer to 200 KB/sec before, on their regular high-speed service.
Update: I’m finally getting speeds I expect. So this post has been renamed to “Rogers Extreme”.
Update Feb 12th 2007: And its slow once more. As such, I’ve renamed this post once again. What’s the point of “extreme” Internet if you can’t download huge files with Bittorrent?
Update Mar 7 2007: TekSavvy FTW!
[12] Life
18 September 2006, lunch time
I’ve been living in my new place for almost 2 weeks now, but I haven’t really settled in to the place yet. I have yet to cook anything there; i’m eating out constantly. Two weeks of this, and I think I’m getting scurvy. I must need some vitimin C. Or more calcium. Or something, because my gums feel like they are going to start bleeding any minute now. So children, drink your milk and eat your fruits and vegetables.
[3] Life
15 September 2006, lunch time
Standing outside the CIBC on College, Steph, Sharon and I were waiting for Patrick to grab some cash. I was on the phone with someone, probably Dave, explaining what we were up to. Suddenly Patrick started banging on the window of the bank and pointing off behind me. I turned to see what he was pointing at, but didn’t see anything of consequence. I thought I was missing out on a fight, or perhaps a movie-star—the film festival is taking place after all. I looked and looked, and then gave up.
Patrick wandered out of the bank, stuffing some money into his wallet, and said, “Your friend Jen just walked by.”
Jen? From Waterloo? I asked as much, “Jen? From Waterloo?”
“Yeah. The tall White girl.”
That didn’t sound right: Jen’s not tall. “Jen’s not tall. You mean Heather?”
“Yeah, her.”
I called Heather, and we met up with her at the Midtown on College. She was with her roommate Jen. They were coming from a Nouvelle Vague concert at the Mod Club; I was very jealous.
Dave and Linh showed up a little while later. I introduce Dave to Sharon. This was the 4th time they had met. You can never been too careful with introductions. I introduced Linh to Sharon. They had never met before.
“Hi, I’m Linh, Dave and I live together.” A short while later, with a little disdain in her voice, Linh clarified her earlier statement, “We’re roommates, but we’re not together.” This came up several times during the night.
We left the Midtown at around 11:30. I got home and climbed in to bed. Around 12:30, I got a call from Gary, who I had dinner with earlier.
“Hey, I’m free, what’s going on?”
[2] Life
13 September 2006, early afternoon
I’m online again. The cable guy showed up at my flat around 9:30; a short time later my iMac was downloading a weeks worth of email. What a nice feeling. Boy do I love the Internet.
[1] Life
8 September 2006, lunch time
Patrick, Sharron, Steph and I met at Metro Square to sample food at the Taste of Toronto. Most of the restaurants in the area (the Theater district) had set up shop. The food was quite good. We hung around till about eight before heading off to find a place to have a drink. An hour later, we were at the Tap, minus Sharron. The Tap is awesome. My friend Matt has got me totally hooked on that place. Juan showed up just before we left, and the two of us sneaked in to my old house to steal my iMac. I’m not sure how stealthy we actually were. Hopefully we didn’t wake anyone up. My condo still doesn’t feel like home, but I think that will change once I have Internet access.
[6] Life
6 September 2006, lunch time
There are several things I like about the ensuite laundry at my new place. First off, I don’t need to wheel the washing machine over to the sink. This is a big plus; a big big plus. This new washing machine also doesn’t sound like it’s going to fall through the floor. It must be a combination of the concrete floors and the fact the washing machine is firmly planted on the ground, underneath a dryer. My old washing machine would shake it like a salt-shaker. The new dryer actually vents hot air out in to a vent, which I assume carries the air up to the roof. My old dryer just spat the air out in to our Kitchen. If you like a warm humid apartment, this might be seen as a plus I suppose. I left my new dryer on as I slept; I trusted it not to burst in to flames while I was sleeping. My old dryer was a fire waiting to happen. These are just a few of the joys of ensuite laundry.
[2] Life
5 September 2006, late morning
And just like that the summer is over, my summer of t-shirts. The weather is cool outside, and has been for much of the weekend. Saturday was the first time in recent memory I had to wear a jacket out. I slept in the new place last night. It still smells of paint. I’m hoping breathing paint-fumes doesn’t cause brain damage or cancer. I suspect it doesn’t, but it can’t be good for you. I kept the patio door wide open to get some fresh air in to the place. The air was cool, but not unpleasant. In a few months we’ll have snow here. The very thought of it is depressing.
Life
31 August 2006, lunch time
I had a strange dream this morning, during that period of time after you first wake up, but before you really wake up. There is a room full of broken toys, mostly transformers. Someone opens the door and tosses more in. One transformer, Ultra Magnus, isn’t that broken, and starts looking for the car-carrying trailer portion of his body. He finds a trailer, but it isn’t the car-carrying trailer it is supposed to be, it’s a normal trailer — the sort of trailer you’d see on the back of Optimus Prime. Anyway, he puts it on his back and drives away. I don’t know why i’d dream about Ultra Magnus; he was such a lame ass.
Life
29 August 2006, lunch time
Any down time in my life is now spent playing World of Warcraft. This past week has been particularly bad since I don’t have Shima to keep my playing in check. Yesterday I must have played the game for something like 4 or 5 hours. I feel like I’ve become my 12 year old self, rushing home from school—now work—to play video games. Things are different now however. Final Fantasy you’d play to a conclusion. Super Mario you’d play to some conclusion. World of Warcraft has no end. The game keeps going even when you aren’t playing. It’s interesting and incredibly captivating, but also incredibly addictive. Still, I think it’s a better use of my time then surfing the Internet for 4 or 5 hours, which is probably how I spent much of my time before when I was home.
[3] World of Warcraft | Life
28 August 2006, lunch time
I was at Republic this weekend; it’s a night club in Toronto’s clubbing district. I haven’t been to a proper night club in ages. Most of the places I go to now don’t have any girls dressed all skankalicious, don’t play hip-hop, and aren’t packed to the brim with people: I don’t know how I managed to stay away for so long. Not much had changed in my absence. Booty shorts seem to be much more popular now—awesome. Otherwise I suppose girls were wearing the same sorts of outfits they always wear out. I’m always impressed by the creative ways young girls manage to show off their more tangible assets. There was a ton of music I had never heard before; seeing as how I don’t listen to the radio, this was to be expected. It’s strange watch everyone else go nuts over a song you have no clue about. I need to download some new music.
[1] Life
21 August 2006, lunch time
My cousin Abi was in town from Tokyo for a wedding, so my cousins and I got to spend some time with him. We loitered around in Scarborough for much of the day, before heading off to Duff’s for wings. Steph and Gary, who were in Japan with me, joined us. I tried an Armageddon chicken wing, which is the hottest type of chicken wing they sell at Duff’s. I didn’t finish it. I barely ate any of it. God damn it was hot. After finished up at Duff’s, we went to get Gelatos, which were amazing.
Life
16 August 2006, late morning
I met Rishi and Mezan downtown for dinner last night. I stopped in at HMV first, because I am a fan of buying music. A drum and bass CD was playing on the top floor of HMV. I wandered towards the sound. The first song was good, but not exceptional. I kept on browsing, while the second song started up. What a song. Midway through I walked over to find out what was playing. It was a Shy FX album. I didn’t realize he still made music. I walked over the the Electronica section to see how much the album was: thirty-two God damn dollars. I wanted to buy it, but that’s just too much for a 10-track LP. I had to leave the store though, because the music was great and I have very little will power. I started marching down Yonge, towards Queen, when I passed three black girls. Not just any three black girls, but the same three black girls I saw the day before with Shima, one of which was Namugenyi.
Life
