The Punch Line

Riding home on the Subway the other night, I was lost in my own little wonderland world when I was snapped back to present day by a sudden loud exclamation and shout from another passenger. I looked up just in time to see a guy on the platform flip “the bird” and a young girl shaking her fist at him as the train pulled out of the station. The girl was best described as Trailer Park Chic with a definitive early 90s theme to her clothing. I think she was still getting her fashion trends from 90201 episodes. Her partner was cross between a budding K-Fed (pre access to Britney’s money) and J-Roc (from Trailer Park Boys) with a temper like Tyson’s and a vocabulary that would make Howard Stern blush. Together they made a charming couple.

Girl: That was my ex. What an AHole he is. Beat me up all the time. But I got him good as well.
Boyfriend: Too bad I didn’t see him earlier – I’d have loved to punch him out.
Girl: Yeah, that would have been great.
*pause*
Girl: But maybe not. I suppose that would go against my parole. I’m not ready to go back to jail. Me and [insert friend’s name] are going shopping to Buffalo next weekend.

The Boys of Summer are back!

The weather is totally crap and un-spring like.
The last bits of hardened snow refuse to melt.
Wearing flip flops is still a vague and distant dream.
But then, baseball season begins and suddenly the storm clouds seem to roll away, we shed some of those winter layers and restaurants and pubs begin to clean out their patio spaces and we all roll out the red carpet to welcome back the "Boys of Summer".

The arrival of the baseball season is cause for celebration for both fans of the game and everyone else too. It does after all mean that soon, very soon we can finally pack away the parkas and welcome the sunshine and warmth back again. Of course, this is Toronto and that could mean that we play the Home Opener in -10 weather with an inch of snow on the ground. It's the thought that counts!

A team’s Home Opener is always a big deal. The game is usually sold out – or almost close to that. And that’s a whole lot of people for a 50,000 seat stadium as in the case of the Rogers Centre where the Jays play. Even if your team is at the very bottom of the standing, the Home Opener is the time when every fan can hope (even for a short while) that “this will be the year”.

The Rogers Centre - home of the Toronto Blue Jays, with the CN tower in the background

My very first home opener experience was back in 2002 when I was a rookie game day staffer at the Box Office. That day also marked the first time I was featured on the evening news. Yup, a truly heinous shot of me bravely trying to hold a smile and a “professional front” while a hoard of angry fans stormed the Box Office in protest of long lines and ticketing systems that didn't quite work like they should. Thankfully, most of the TV segment included my left arm and side and not a whole lot of recognizable features! Not surprisingly, more than 50% of the part time staff quite after that night.

In all my time working with the Jays, I never actually WATCHED a home opener game. It was by far the busiest day of the year and for the most part us staff were running around making sure that things were going the way they should, talking/meeting/greeting clients and the likes. If at all you were lucky enough to finish work at a “decent” hour you’d probably have missed most of the game anyway! But it was also one of the most exciting days of the entire season and the hard work and long hours were worth it. There is an electricity in the air at every game. At the Home Opener it is ten times that with the excitement and anticipation rising to a fever pitch.

Last year, I watched the Jays home opener online. I was in Tokyo and it was technically the next morning, but I was determined not to miss it.

This year, I went to the game and actually watched, cheered and participated in the experience from start to finish. I thought I'd miss being part of the "behind the scenes" experience. But it was not so. I was just as excited (if not more) to be there as a fan and be just one of the many who were thinking, "Perhaps this year is OUR year."

Culture Curry

Hosted a bunch of friends over at my place yesterday for a night of all things Bollywood. The "plan" was to have 3 or 4 people over. It ended up being 8 or 9! Thankfully the Mater was around to help with the cooking as gourmet chef I am NOT!

The menu:
Coconut shrimp curry
Beef kebabs
Masoor Daal
Green peppers and potatoes with Indian spices
AND
Mango chutney

We watched the 2006 remake of “Don” and were alternately thrilled by the spectacular action sequences and then seconds later were reduced to hapless laughter by the very BAD sub titles!

It really is quite difficult to keep a straight face when the arch villain is sneering “Don’t think you are so cleaver. I have my vision on you.”
Or when in a moment of tender passion, the hardy hero says to his lady love, “I cannot idolly sit by and watch this injustice take place.”

Bollywood movies have come a long way. Subtitling obviously hasn’t.


And yes, if you were keeping track; I did manage to go 2 hours back and forth across the city to get my hair cut AND cook dinner for 9 of my friends - all in one afternoon!

Quick Fix

The hair situation had gotten to a critical point. I was utterly miserable in the knowledge that I looked good.... but felt terrible! So I called my hairdresser and begged her to "fit it".

And the doll that she is she managed to find 10 minutes in her busy busy day today to squeeze me in and tame my locks.

I am now the proud owner of a brand new "do".

And I'm loving it!!!

Mirror Mirror.....

Had a session with my hairdresser last Saturday as split ends were rampant. Lamented the fact that my hair looks "Blah." She gave me a new cut and style that looked great as I left the salon. Two days later, as I left for work on Monday morning I was struggling to come to terms with new hair. I realised that there was not so much love happening any more. In fact, I rather hated it!

To my surprise,
My coworker Ms. Shopaholic: I LOVE your new look! So trendy!
My other coworker Ms. Fashioneesta: Amazing cut! Love the lines!

Neither of these girls would say something they don't mean. It's not in their nature. They both reacted with genuine delight to my new style. Problem is - I STILL hated it! Every time I look in the mirror (or any reflective surface for that matter) I see a girl with helmet head. A weirdo style that does not gel with the personality. I am no style queen. I am certainly no trend follower. My hair is currently incongruent with the rest of me, and I’m not quite sure what to do about it. I cannot chop off all my hair as I am supposed to be growing it out for the September wedding. So does this mean I have to go through summer with this miserable mop? I suppose I should be glad that at outwardly I (supposedly) look good. Inwardly, I’m not so sure.

In a Nut Shell....

Was tagged by Tim and have to describe my life in 6 words. Cripes! Might as well ask Einstein to explain his theory of relativity in one sentence!

After much pondering, here's what I came up with:

Blithe dancing on sun kissed streets

I now tag Curly Girlie and The Bride. As we used to say in grade school...."pass it on, no returns"

And we raise our glasses to......

One year ago I met some of the nicest people who through their words and ways had inspired my trip to Japan. 

Cheers to Blog buddies!