2010 : A Retrospective

I had a good year. It's not often I get to say that, but looking back, it was definitely memorable.



The 2010 Olympics in Vancouver was an amazing time last February. It was great having the city so alive, and participating in such a historic and international event, whether it was lining up to go see the numerous country pavilions or actually attending an Olympic event! Oh and let's not forget the pin collecting!



As if the Olympics weren't enough to make the year one for the books, the following month, my mother and I went back to England to visit family I had never met before. I also got to see my place of birth, eat fish and chips and curry, reconnect with an old friend I had previously divorced, meet up with new friends, eat meat pies and Marks and Spencer goodies, take my mom to Paris, and ride coaches throughout the English countryside. It was an important journey for me to make, as I got to glue in pieces of my family tree on my father's side, that I had no knowledge of before. It was also pretty amazing to be able to spend a night in the fish and chip shop that my parents used to own and where I was raised for the first five years of my life.



In the Spring when I returned from my trip, an important development took place at work: I became a permanent government employee!!! It had taken 2.5 years but it was worth the wait.

There are two concerts that I attended that stick out in my mind from last year.

Florence and the Machine


And more recently, Robyn.


In June, I finished writing my edits for the children's book that I have coming out in 2012. The illustrator is now having a go at it and she gets a year to come through with the pictures, so hopefully it'll turn out.



Summer was a teenage dream, thanks to alcohol and Katy Perry. I house sat downtown for a friend, partied with Alexis who lived down the street, and welcomed friends visiting from Ontario. It was probably the best summer ever by far, on record.



Autumn saw me embrace the whole Eat Pray Love philosophy. I traveled to San Francisco at the end of September to attend my very first Folsom Street Fair, a leather and fetish event that is legendary and something I have been wanting to attend for years.
Add in an amazing production of Broadway's Dreamgirls, and it was another perfect trip.



October I found myself in the hustle and bustle of New York City! You can't go wrong with NYC and I had a terrific time, especially since I got to see some of my Ontario friends again! Though I didn't quite make it to the Tiffany concert, I did see amazing Broadway shows including one starring the iconic Pee Wee Herman.



Then of course on Halloween, The Guy told me he loved me too. It was a big moment since I've only been waiting a few years for him to say something like that. No developments and maybe there won't be, but finally hearing those words from him were pretty frickin' amazing.

There were mini trips scattered throughout the year as well, namely to Portland and to Victoria. Both were gorge-fests as all I did was eat my way through those cities, and boy do they have some good eats!

I've been celebrating Christmas and going hardcore with the festivities this Winter and now that it's coming to a close, I wonder what I'll do for the next few wintery months? Hopefully the weather will stay as mild as it is right now, as I don't want anything near what other parts of Canada and the US are currently going through.

These were just things off the top of my head, I'm sure I've left out some other things which I'll have to look back on my blog to rediscover.

Plans for tonight include take-out Indian food and watching movie after movie on my Mac. I'm avoiding the crowds, the public, the fanfare, and cozying up at home to relax and rejuvenate for the year ahead.

Hope you all have a great time, whatever you decide to do. Happy New Year!

Whitney + Robyn + Taylor Swift + La Roux = Brilliance

Somewhere

I cannot appreciate Sophia Coppola.

The only film I've seen of hers that I liked was Marie Antoinette. Momma and I walked out of Lost in Translation cause we were bored to tears, but maybe I wasn't in the right mood and might have to revisit that film.

As for her latest offering, Somewhere, it is unbelievably slow in typical Sophia Coppola fashion. I couldn't handle it. Unless you're a superfan, you can definitely

SKIP THIS

and go play Plants Vs Zombies instead!

How Do You Measure a Year in the Life?

With New Year's right around the corner, it's soon time to reflect on the past 12 months and reminisce....

I Think We're Alone Now

This documentary was fascinating and hilarious and sad. It focuses on two people who are official stalkers of the singer, Tiffany. Yes, Tiffany. I almost saw her in New York back in October and now I wish I did! I had no idea she had such a fan base like the two fans who are as crazed and obsessed as the two in this film!



Entertaining and amusing!!!

Rent It!

The Fighter

Yes I am going nuts with the movies lately. I'm just prepping for New Year's Eve, which I INTEND to spend indoors with some good ol' junk food, a plate of cheese, and movies galore.

However I did make it out today to the theatre to catch a showing of The Fighter, starring Mark Wahlberg and Christian Bale. Mark Wahlberg looks hot in it, as he's on screen most of the time with his shirt off. Christian Bale is amazing at becoming a character and looking completely horrible doing it (The Machinist, anyone?).

I don't know why people are talking nominations for Wahlberg, when the real star performer here is Christian Bale and his turn as the crack-addicted older brother boxing has-been. Amy Adams shows up as the bar waitress turned boxing champion girlfriend. She's definitely come a long way since annoying me in Enchanted.

Based on a true story, this is the touching tale of two brothers, boxing, and family.

See It

A Video Game Christmas

Okay, so I stayed up till 3am last night playing a video game on my iPhone. The culprit in question is NOT Angry Birds, but a game that I was introduced to by my niece.

Plants Vs Zombies!!!!



Seriously, I am addicted. All I want to do is stay home and play it all day long. And then all night long. And then maybe go to bed so I can wake up and start playing again.

Tron Legacy 3D

Well it's a yearly tradition now. Christmas Day, I go to the movies. Emily and I were hoping to catch Country Strong, since we try to take in a musical movie on this day. In the past, we've done Chicago, Dreamgirls, and even Phantom of the Opera, which sucked horribly despite a singing Patrick Wilson.

This year, she refused Burlesque and sadly, Country Strong is not released yet. So instead, we strapped on our 3D glasses and sat back for a Disney ride known as Tron Legacy.

And what a ride it was! Though it wasn't necessary to be in 3D, the effects were definitely cool. The story was exciting and took you on an adventure into another world. Plus, the lead, Garrett Hedlund, was nice to watch. He coincidentally also appears in Country Strong! And how the heck did they make Jeff Bridges look so young?



If you want a fun, thrill ride to another dimension, then yes, this is your ticket.

See It!

Brotherhood

Nothing says like Christmas like a movie about gay Neo Nazis. For a gay movie, it was pretty decent and watchable, though the subject matter is somewhat troubling. The movie begins with a gay bashing, for starters, but I guess it goes with the territory if I'm going to sit and watch a movie about skinheads.

Set in Denmark, the film is in Danish and centers around a group of skins who run around beating up gay people and immigrants. Of course, it turns out that two of their own are actually gay themselves and wind up in a torrid affair. This is not going to go well, is it?

For gay cinema buffs, Rent It.

12 Men of Christmas

A Rom-Com meets Christmas?

DONE.

It was sweet and simple, nothing fantastic, nothing horrendous. A tried and true story of a girl from the big city who goes to smalltown Montana, brings people together, turns the town around, and of course, discovers love. All with the backdrop of Christmas.

Top up that egg nog and settle into your Snuggie.

For most people, you can probably Skip This, but for people with nothing else to do on Christmas Eve, then by all means See This.

The King's Speech

OMG. Seriously. Movie of the Year. This will win Best Film at the Academy Awards.


SEE IT!!!!!!

Black Swan

I was extremely afraid of watching this film, because I had seen a friend's update on Facebook proclaiming it a borderline horror movie and saying it was not worth watching and that it used cheap scare tactics.

Then a group of other friends told me how amazing the film was and that I simply HAD to see it and that the scary parts aren't really that scary.

Fine, so I bit the bullet and watched it. And who was right? They both kinda were.

I mean, yes there are some scenes that make it sort of maybe possibly a horror movie, but overall, it was magnificent and beautiful and tragic. A gorgeous film about the insanity that a dancer spirals into while trying to perfect the role of the Swan Queen in the classic ballet Swan Lake. It really is quite brilliant and a must-see.

SEE IT

All Good Things

I took a dark turn last night and watched too eerie and creepy movies - not very festive of me! However, I am gearing up for Oscar season so I guess it's still somewhat appropriate.

I began with All Good Things, starring Ryan Gosling and Kirsten Dunst. This is really just foreplay until I get to see Blue Valentine, but it'll do. It's based on true events involving the story of the heir of a real estate empire and his relationship with a young woman who eventually goes missing. He has mental issues and is borderline psychotic, but it was never proven that he was responsible for his wife's disappearance, nor for the execution style murder of his best friend.

It's not a great film, but Ryan Gosling is always wonderful to watch and Kirsten Dunst has definitely come into her own and puts in a great performance here. However, unless you're super bored some evening or you're a super Gosling fan, then I would advise you to pass on this.

SKIP IT

Eating: Oru All You Can Eat Christmas Lunch!!

Had a great lunch on Friday over at the Fairmont Pacific Hotel, at their restaurant Oru, with Philip.



If you get a chance this week to check out their Christmas all you can eat buffet lunch, then do so before it ends! Alongside their spread of cheeses, cold cuts, sushi, butter chicken, dim sum, and salmon, there's also festive foods like turkey, egg nog cheesecake (!!), gingerbread, and shortbread cookies.

Philip and I toasted the season with a glass of Riesling and it was the perfect way to cap off a week of work and festivities last week!

Scissor Sisters - Invisible Light

This is the new video from Scissor Sisters for their single Invisible Light. I love the erotic vintage look of this video. It is not safe for work!!

Festivities!

Last week I attended a Singing Christmas Tree performance. Do you know about these things? It's an annual tradition of the church, and the one in Vancouver just happens to be the biggest one in Canada and has been running for 43 years! Who knew!?

Tickets are free, but they go fast and furious in November. However, for johnny come latelys like myself, there is a stand-by line one can stand in to try to get in on the festive production. It features a little play that tells the story of family and coming together during the holidays, sprinkled with songs and hymns sung by the pastor, professional singers, and of course the 85-person chorus that make up the giant Christmas tree in the centre of the stage. It's preachy at parts, but hey it's in a church and it's Christmas, what do you expect? The church we were at was huge, as well. Like mecca-church. As big as a Broadway theatre, in fact. And that's how Alexis and I went to see this - as a theatre production more than anything else. On that level, it was perfect - free and festive, what more could we ask for?

We had our work Christmas party last Monday, as well. That was pretty fun, as everyone got all boozy at work and loosened up some.

Tuesday I had more drinks after work with some colleagues, which I never do. It was a spur of the moment thing and two glasses of wine later, I was glad I did. It is the holidays after all!

Wednesday, Alexis and I checked out the movie Burlesque, but not before having dinner and drinks first.



The movie was all kinds of terrible, but in essence, all kinds of amazing. Christina Aguilera's horrific acting/dancing was balanced with her superb singing and the musical numbers. The lines were cheesey, Cher played Cher, and it was all a rip off of Chicago/Cabaret/Showgirls/every dance movie you've ever seen. That said, it was purely enjoyable and we were glad to have seen it. Of course, we needed to head straight for more drinks afterwards! Verdict on the movie: Download It



Thursday I finally took a day to dry up and rest. Though I did get together with the Ex, and Chris and Calvin, to check out dinner at the new restaurant Bob Likes Thai Food over on Main street. Billed as "home style Thai food", the place was simple and cute, nothing pretentious or trendy about it. You can eat in or take out, and the food was delicious. We didn't specify that we wanted mild, so we were all sweating bullets from all the hot spices. My friend Jill had reported to me that they had "the best pad thai ever!" and even The Ex proclaimed afterward that it was "the best Thai food he's had in the city!" Looks like it's not just Bob who likes Thai food!



Friday, I found myself at my friend Amy's watching her Eclipse DVD. I swore I would never see it - having already seen the first two Twilight movies and finding them unbearable. Yet here I was nodding off to Edward, Bella, and Jacob in the third installment of the series. Verdict on the movie: SKIP IT

Saturday. The Saturday before Christmas. This is prime time. And I gave it up to my Debbie Downer coworker who corralled me into having dinner with him before he went back home to the prairies for the holidays. I haven't really talked about him on here much. He's my only friend at work, and I've gotten to know him over the past year and it turns out, he's Mr Negativity! I don't know if I can or want to handle that. It's a bit toxic to be around him because everything he says is so negative or he just likes to contradict you and disagree. Sometimes you just want a friend to be agreeable and get alone, yes? And of course it doesn't work the other way around. If he likes something or wants to do something, I don't have it in me to give him a dose of his own medicine. It's just not me to be like that. I'd rather be positive and encouraging than how he behaves.

Anyhow, dinner with him was fine, quick, and painless. He gave me a Christmas gift even though I had specified that I don't really exchange gifts with friends these days. So, I ended up paying for dinner and calling it a day.

Afterwards, Alexis and I checked out the Bright Nights at Stanley Park. If you get a chance to go to this, do so. It's a magical place, and if you have kids, they'll love it! Best of all, it's free, and if you drive, there's actually free parking! We capped off the night with some hot toddies over at the Four Seasons Hotel.

Yesterday I had brunch with The Guy. It was lovely. I still love him a great deal. That is all.

Last night Chris and Calvin had their annual holiday bash! It was filled with wine, cheese, desserts and goodies, and good friends. The food was of course amazing since Chris is the genius behind Bake Sale. I was hella drunk by the end of the night, and made it home around midnight.

Christmas is this week!! Can't wait!

A Gaga Christmas

Rabbit Hole

I was really looking forward to seeing the latest film from director John Cameron Mitchell (Shortbus, Hedwig and the Angry Inch). I was also excited to hear that he would be directing the movie adaptation of the play Rabbit Hole, which was a piece I'd been wanting to see on stage.

And here it is, starring Nicole Kidman and Aaron Eckhart, who play two parents who have lost a child. It's slow, sombre, and delicate. I'm not sure if you should rush to the theatre to see this, but it's a good film and the performances are good. I don't think it will win any awards, but it's definitely a good try.

Download It

Howl

Even though it has the draw of seeing James Franco and Aaron Tveit play lovers, this movie about beat poet Allen Ginsberg and his poem Howl is way too art house to be enjoyed by the general public. I found it difficult to follow, boring at times, and just not engaging in the way it was shot or put together. Courtroom scenes are spliced with interview clips and then sprinkled with animated stanzas of the verbose poem.

Unless you're a huge fan of the Beat Generation, you should probably pass on this film.

SKIP IT

Happy Holidays!

The death of a blog can be slow and painful. I'm not sure if that's what's happening here, but I just haven't felt like blogging much in the past while. That's not to say I haven't felt like writing. In fact, I've YEARNED to write, but of course, I end up on the couch watching episodes of Drop Dead Diva instead.



I spent last weekend drinking from Friday until Sunday. Friday began at the Vancouver Christmas Market, in its first year here and based on the 700-year-old German tradition of outdoor Christmas markets.

It's only $2 if you go during the work week before 2pm. Otherwise, it's $5 and not really worth that admission price. It's small inside and the food is a bit pricey. However, it's a fun way to get into the festive spirit. There's a gazebo in the middle that features musicians or singers, and of course there is Bratwurst. We had a cup of hot mulled wine, which warmed us up immediately. Then we checked out all the pretty decorations they had for sale, including the beautiful German christmas carousels, which range from $50 to $200. I of course bragged that I already had one, courtesy of the Salvation Army thrift shop, for a mere $2!



Afterwards, I found myself at the only country bar in downtown Vancouver, with a group of mostly gay guys who wanted to go there to celebrate a birthday. I line danced, watched people get thrown off the mechanical bull, and then two-stepped my way out of there by midnight.

On Saturday, I hung out with my coworker at his place watching old Christmas specials. We also made a batch of German buns/rolls. (Germany seems to be the theme this year for Christmas, it seems! I noticed a lot of "Stollen" bread around town, at the Thomas Haas shop, at the Bakers' Market, and at the Christmas market.)

Speaking of the Bakers' Market, this weekend looks to be the last weekend they will be open, so it's your final chance this year to get down there and grab some locally made goodies for the holiday season!

On Sunday, I went over to Alexis' place for a festive get together that included cheese, wine, and spiked egg nog.

Other than that, I've been taking it easy. I watched the movie Easy A, and it was actually quite funny and entertaining. If you want something light without your intelligence being insulted, check it out!



If you want something more Oscar-worthy, then The Social Network was rather good. I mean, it's getting a lot of talk about being the best film of the year. I'm not sure I agree with that completely, but it is a good movie.



If you're into more of an artsy vibe, then I would recommend the Italian film I Am Love, starring Tilda Swinton. How amazing is she? She rocks the Italian (at least, she comes across like she does) and puts in a powerful performance as a bored housewife having a mid-life crisis. If that's not enough, the movie itself is as gorgeous and beautiful to look at, as the language is to listen to.



I've put up the Christmas tree, done some shopping, sent out some cards, and made numerous playlists. We're getting soaked with rain here in Vancouver, i.e. it sounds like someone is spraying a garden house on my window when I wake up in the morning. However, it could be worse - I could be beneath a bank of snow in Montreal or Toronto or London (both Ontario, and the UK).

Speaking of playlists, I've been trying to find songs that aren't the typical Christmas fare, just to mix it up and make it a bit more fun. I'll post some up here, starting with the now classic, Dick In a Box:



Do you have any suggestions for new holiday/Christmas songs?

Hope everyone is having a great December!!