As I mentioned in my previous post, I want to start document some of my adventures in video format. I’m going to do this Vlog style, so it isn’t going to be anything fancy and time consuming. Straight cuts of brief moments in hope to share some of the more interesting tidbits of life with you.
The video was filmed with a GoPro. I didn’t realize it was so small and versatile. I totally want to buy one now.
Whenever I’m at shows, I am usually photographing or reviewing them. For once it was nice to relax, watch the show and have a couple of drinks!
We got a bit spoiled with backstage access, which included the catering tent with this snazzy ready-to-order pasta bar thing.
So, uh, funny story.. I went backstage to find somewhere to charge my phone. Before I knew it, I was on stage dancing with Girl Talk!
Also, I met Phoenix. They were very very French and super nice guys!
This adventure made me realize that I have a damn cool life for an underemployed person and that I should document some of these in video format. It’s an idea that is still on brainstorming mode but hope to have more videos for you guys soon!
Nash and I love adventure and for our anniversary we decided to dine in the dark at O.Noir. The restaurant, located at the corner of Church and Charles has two dinner services 5:45pm and 8:30pm. Dinner is a prix fixe with 2 courses at $32 and 3 courses at $39.
After placing our orders in a small lit bar area, we were led by our server into the pitch-black dining room. All the servers are legally blind. Our server guided us to the table with a hands-on-shoulder method. It was scary at first to rely only on another person’s voice, but I learnt to put my trust in our guide and found my way to the table. We were seated at the end of a row of tables beside a wall.
We began with some Long Island iced teas, which I made a conscious effort not to knock over. We were also brought bread which I failed to butter. It’s hard to judge how much butter I scooped on my knife in the dark, so there were blobs of it everywhere! I ordered the Surprises for three of my courses. Nash ordered from the menu for his appetizer and main dish. I think my appetizer was a salad with avocado, feta cheese, tomatoes and cranberries, at least I think they were cranberries. Nash had a grilled octopus salad. The octopus was very tender and not chewy.
I’m still trying to figure out what my surprise main was (I forgot to ask). There was green beans, mashed potatoes and what I think is steak in a mushroom sauce. Nash thinks it was pork. It was very flavourful. He ordered the shrimp and sun-dried tomato risotto. I had one of his shrimp and it was well seasoned and felt very large. We both had the surprise dessert which was a cheesecake, served on its side. Not sure what sort of cheesecake but I did taste coconut and pineapple. Maybe pina colada.
The whole experience was a lot of fun. Our appetizers and mains were served in plates that had edges like a bowl, so accidentally pushing the food off the plate wasn’t a concern. I did end up using my hands to help get food on my fork, and to feel if I was actually done each course. Technically I could have licked the plate and nobody would have noticed. It was interesting to have to rely on other senses to gauge our way in the dark. We could hear conversations around us and tried to figure out how close they were. I think there was one table separating us and the people beside us. There was a lot of accidental eye-poking to try to see how far away we were from each other.
During our entire meal, everybody kept up with the rules. Nobody pulled out a smartphone or let in any light. Conversations was plenty and it was definitely a memorable way to spend an anniversary!
I was spoiled with lobster last week at Rock Lobster, so I thought I’d give the McLobster a try for fun. At $6.95 it wouldn’t be too bad of a price if it happened to be sub-par, right?
Except it was pretty un-lobstery. All I could taste was celery, chives and salt. I could see lobster (sort of) but it was covered in a thick salad dressing. It reminded me of a saltier version of a crab meat salad. I do question if it has imitation crab meat, but I failed to find the ingredients listed online. I thought legally they were required to do so, just in case someone has allergies.
Anyways, I also found myself quite thirsty after the roll. I ate that thing at 6. It’s now midnight and I still want to drink my sink.
I think I’ll redeem lobster again by going back to Rock Lobster and having their rolls.
I get excited every month when my Loot Crate arrives. It will be the closest thing I’ll ever have to Christmas in July (or every month for that matter). This month’s theme was Varsity
Star Wars headphones from Jazwares came at random. I got Darth Maul but other characters included Darth Vader, Yoda, and C3PO. Let’s be thankful Jar Jar wasn’t an option.
This month’s crate was in partnership with Video Game Highschool. Therefore, it was quite appropriate to include the 2 disc DVD of Season 1 and a pencil for back to school sake.
There was also this VGHS button set.
The stickers this month included a storm trooper + VGHS mashup and the Rocket Jump logo.
I totally forgot PEZ existed. What a blast from the past! Loot Crate randomized the MARVEL edition of the PEZ dispensers. I got Thor. Anybody want to trade for Wolverine?
Lastly there was this Sonic air freshener with a smell appropriately labelled “Sonic Breeze”.
Loot Crate is like a nerdy box of stuff delivered to your mail box every month. I do buy all my crates and it’s a little bit pricier in Canada ($29.99) as opposed to the US price of $19 (shipping included). If you’d like to sign up for Loot Crate, please use the referrer link below:
http://mbsy.co/lootcrate/176357
Last week before the El Catrin launch party (I didn’t think there would be so much food) I had dinner with my blogger friend, Melody at Rock Lobster on Queen West where Shanghai Cowgirl used to be.
The Lobster Poutine ($13) had a lobster bisque gravy, fresh lobster and of course cheese curds and fries.
Melody had the Lobster Taco ($5). I assume it was delicious because she ordered a second serving.
We also shared these Bacon Wrapped Corn Dogs served with mustard and a sort of hot sauce. I can’t refuse bacon wrapped things. It wasn’t too heavy either.
By far my favourite thing was the Rock Lobster Ceasar ($12). I regularly hate ceasars but this one was perfectly seasoned and spiced. Oh and of course the fact there was a lobster tail in it, which I dipped in the drink for extra deliciousness.
I’m already thinking of going back just for the drink…
*Update*
Me and Nash went back to Rock Lobster and had these delicious scallops on the house! We originally ordered Devilled Eggs and I guess they ran out and forgot to tell us. So we were rewarded with these divine scallops instead. We didn’t even complain or anything. This is customer service at its finest.
I first learned of the Konstruktor’s existence via Laughing Squid. The idea of a DIY camera was so cool so I ordered myself one from Lomography.
It’s basically like the IKEA version of a camera. The camera light chamber comes premade but there are instructions on how to build it if you ever feel like taking it apart. The body is plastic and most of the parts you have to twist from the plastic moulding. It also came with a screwdriver and stickers for customers to add their own personalizations.
The box claims that the camera can be built in 1-2 hours. However, it took me 15 minutes to distinguish the screws the first time I built it.
The instructions for the most part are pretty clear. The diagrams are easy to follow but must be looked at carefully. The first time I missed an arrow pointing from end of a spring to a little nook.
The reason I had trouble building it the first time was a defective light chamber. The springs were not strong enough to activate the shutter. I spent 6 hours thinking I built it wrong before considering that it was defective. Luckily Toronto has a Lomography store and I ended up exchanging it. It was a little bit of a hassle to do that though because in-store they claim their inventory doesn’t have any affiliation with the online (even if it was shipped from there).
Anyways, the second time around I built it in 45 minutes.
Here is the camera decorated! I was a bit sticker happy…
I’ve never really owned an analogue camera so the thought of not being able to see photos until later is so nerve racking. I bought some ISO 800 film from Lomography but right now I’m purposely experimenting with (unopened) expired film I found around the house. I made a couple of film winding mistakes in the beginning so it will be interesting to see how those turn out. I’m hoping that having to think more about composition will make me a better overall photographer!
Despite the weird mishap, I do recommend the Konstruktor if you’re interested at learning how cameras work. The top placement of the viewfinder is a cool experience. I can’t vouch for the quality of photos though because I have no idea yet! Don’t worry. I’ll definitely be posting some scans when I get the film developed.
Thanks to The Mint Agency, I attended El Catrin‘s media launch party.The Mexican restaurant, which is located at the heart of the Distillery District (where Boiler House used to be), has one of the most beautiful patios I have ever seen. The new renovations also made it appear more welcoming to a wide variety of patrons. Inside it was colourful and inviting.
We were treated with an endless supply of margaritas. I usually think margaritas have way too much salt, but these were perfectly balanced!
Various hors d’oeuvres were served. There was enough that I wish I had not eaten dinner before hand. One of my favourites were the fried fish tacos with salsa roja. There was another taco with shaved pork, axiote, pineapple, cilantro and onion that was also quite good.
Other samplings included tamatillo and cilantro marinated shrimp; seafood ceviche; pastor pork quaesadillas with pineapple and gouda cheese; and more. Dessert included a mexican take on crème brûlée and a bacon topped fudge, which was like heaven in my mouth.
Everything I sampled was full of flavour. I looked into their menu just now and it looks reasonably priced. I will definitely come back to eat the full-sized versions!
This year for my sister’s birthday dinner we celebrated at Brampton’s Spoonful, a buffet owned by Imperial Buffet.
There was a huge selection of food including a raw seafood bar, dessert tables, soft-serve ice cream, made to order pasta and kalbi ribs. The food was decent but occasionally I’d pick up something pretty and find there was too much wasabi in it.
The best part was definitely the dessert tables. There was a donut fryer, cakes, cupcakes, brownies, a chocolate fountain and more. If you’re looking for something slightly more up-scale than Mandarin, Spoonful is a good place to go.
Tiana Feng 