Archives for category: Random Thoughts

Home?

July 29, 2020 //

Where to call home?

I pretty much always “feel at home” wherever I am. I’ve always thought this to be a good thing, and it is. It also makes picking an actual “home city” a bit of a challenge.

Here’s the thing. I’ve been lucky that work has allowed me to go to other countries and cities and discover more about what this awesome planet has to offer. That means I am also fortunate enough to have amazing friends all over the place. So if “home” equals being surrounded by friends and family…well…I’m not sure that narrows the question down for me!

Sometimes I think “I’ll meet a guy, and that will decide where I live”. Or “Work…I’ll find work that excites me and means I have to live in a certain place (for more than a year…), and that will decide where I live”. So far, neither of those “plans” have worked out very well.

So…I keep going back to places that really feel like home for me, and that is:

1.Vancouver – I have called this city home for over 20 years now. I have amazing friends and people I consider family there. I know who my “maintenance team” (doctor, dentist, TCM, chiropractor, massage therapist, workout trainer, etc. etc. etc.) are. I know where my gym is (kick-ass boxing workouts at Contenders…ouch…and so good!), and I know where my pools are (Kits in the summer and Hillcrest in winter). These are people that can not be “replaced” and who make time for me when I get back to Vancouver – no matter how long I’ve been gone.

The beauty of this city is undeniable – where the mountains meet the water.
Kits pool – my happy place!
Walking the sea wall around False Creek on a sunny day is always worthwhile.
The Richmond dike is one of my favourite places to run – I love the scent of the salty air, watching airplanes and seaplanes come and go, and the view of the mountains.

2.Montreal – well, Montreal and the Eastern Townships, to be precise. This is where I grew up. I have tons of family here, and I have some pretty amazing friends here as well. Having moved away when I was 16, my time spent in this part of my country has recently increased, and as I get to know it more, I love it more.

I love this old water bottle – amongst downtown high-rises, a sign of what used to be
Brrrr….I love the snow though!
I do enjoy seeing the lights adorning the city in winter.

3.Germany (my brother’s house, to be specific). Definitely a home away from home – with the added bonus of spending time with my brother and his family. You spend that much time with little ones and its harder and harder to leave. Doesn’t hurt that they live in a beautiful little village, and it’s easy to get to.

Schwäbisch Hall – I mean really…..beautiful!

Always a treat to go to the city centre for a stroll.

4.Istanbul….you didn’t think I’d forget about my beloved Istanbul did you??? I’m not sure how to describe my love for this city. I also have some amazing friends who live there and who welcome me back every time I visit. Last year ago I spent 6 weeks in Istanbul. Glorious. When I do that again I really need to take some intensive Turkish lessons. The little I know gets me by, but it isn’t enough.

Meandering through Istanbul’s neighbourhood streets early on a Sunday morning.

The name of the boat says it all.

Kahvalti – Turkish breakfast – my absolute fave! Especially the menemen (eggs scrambled in tomatoes with peppers) and bal kaymak (heavy cream drowned in honey) – delicious!

I spent much of the past year in Tokyo – getting to know another city, another culture. So in my little head, Tokyo was “home” for a little while (cut off short by the Covid-19 pandemic and an early end/postponement of the project I was working on there).

My Tokyo abode – At just under 400 square feet – no waste of space in this apartment! All of it very cleverly thought out.

This space quickly became my little sanctuary. And then…believe it or not, two of us worked at that table for a few months. Good thing we know each other and like working together!

I loved discovering “little streets” away from the high rises and main avenues.

Which brings me to now….I find myself back in the Montreal/Eastern Townships area with time on my hands and thoughts in my head about “home”, and the desire to take what little I own out of storage. I don’t have a ton of possessions, but I do have some and for the most part they have been stored in Vancouver for the past seven years.

Church Steeples, green leaves and lilacs
Downtown Granby. I love the old buildings

Given the current Covid-19 realities, Montreal is my pick for now. Making the move into the city next weekend, and looking forward to discovering more about what the city has to offer and creating my home base. Then the unpacking and rediscovering of the items I put into storage will come. Fun times ahead!

Montreal’s Atwater Market – soon to be my neighbourhood.

PS: while looking back through photos and picking those to go with this post I am reminded of what a charmed life I lead. Massive smiles on my face and gratitude in my heart!

Blessed to be on the Bosphorus – for work. Seriously!

Tags Germany, Home, Istanbul, Montreal, Schwäbisch Hall, Vancouver

Categories Health & Wellbeing, Random Thoughts

Ladies Who Dine

April 30, 2017 //

Ladies Who Dine – in the Okanagan

It all started the summer of 2005. For over a year I had been spending a fair amount of my evenings out at the Lumière Tasting Bar in Vancouver (sadly, it no longer exists). After hearing about one of my evenings there with some friends, two of my newest (and soon to be closest) friends decided they wanted to go as well. That first evening at Lumière started something that the three of us had never imagined. Twelve years later we still get together regularly for dinner, drinks, heartfelt conversations, laughter and the love that three close friends share.

Oh how I wish I had written all of it down. I can see it so clearly. When we started on this road we had three rules:

We do this once a month (at a minimum)
We go to a different restaurant every time (what a great excuse to experience Vancouver’s immensely diverse and wonderful food scene)
NOBODY ELSE JOINS. Admittedly we did have a couple of ‘guest appearances’ in the early goings, but we quickly decided against those. It completely changes the dynamics of the evening. So it’s a protected evening (or lunch, or tea) now. Nobody else is allowed in.

And eventually we started calling ourselves The Ladies Who Dine.

What I should have done from the outset was document the restaurant, the food, the wine (or other drinks) and the conversation. Looking back now I believe all of this would make for a great read. Each evening its own chapter. We’ve covered just about every topic over the years.

There have been tears shed over a multitude of life’s challenges: relationship issues; we all lost our mothers; one of us lost our father; fertility issues; the agonizing decision of whether or not to have children; being told that bearing children is not something you will ever be able to do; being a busy mum of a beautiful little autistic girl; health scares (thankfully nothing serious); you name it.

There have also been many a celebration of life’s achievements: new jobs; travels to various parts of the globe; anniversaries; birthdays; books we have enjoyed; new discoveries that put smiles on our faces; again, you name it.

There are increasingly discussions on the state of the world and what we want for our lives – not only for ourselves, but for everyone and for the planet.

And there has been laughter. Oh so much laughter!

We even took the Ladies out on the road. Our first trip was to BC’s Okanagan region, for some wine tasting. Our first weekend away gave us an even deeper glimpse into each other’s little idiosyncracies – one of us travels with our own blanket and pillow; one of us is a very light sleeper; one of us occasionally snores; one of us sleeps with earplugs; one of us doesn’t care about showering and walking around the rented apartment naked. And the best part is, we are comfortable being ourselves because we know there’s no judgement, just acceptance. Well…with a well-timed joke here and there!

That first road trip ended up with my little Escape blowing up on the highway in the middle of nowhere, on our trip home. After what felt like an eternity on the side of the highway with cars speeding past us, the tow truck showed up and the 3 of us huddled into the front seat with the driver. We asked for the finest hotel Merritt had to offer (it was the closest town) and we were taken to a motel where the morning breakfast area was also a pizza joint by day/night. It’s the only time in my life I have seen a hotel room with 3 queen beds…all lined up in a row. After asking the tow truck driver which hotel was the best in town, Lady1 asked him “and does it have a spa?”. We broke down laughing, but the driver, not so much. It remains to this day my only “trip to Merritt”. I don’t think I could top it! And I certainly couldn’t top our rescue. I am extremely lucky to have many wonderful people in my life. Two I call my “surrogate parents”. They allowed an 18-year old university student to live with their family as a live-in babysitter my last year of university, and they remain my second family to this day. I’m a wimp when it comes to car trouble. I don’t know the first thing about mechanics and I always think it’s obvious and I’m being taken advantage of. One call to David and he offered to come and pick us up – that is a 4 hour drive to get us, help me sort out getting my car back to my trusted mechanic in Vancouver, and drive us home. He was our knight in shining armour that day, we told him so and we still refer to him as such.

On our second road trip we discovered that we need more than one room in a hotel – after one of us spent much of the night sleeping in the bathroom tub (she insists it was quite comfortable) while another snored away. Suffice it to say that we booked a second room for the following night.

Over the last 5 years this lady has spent much of her time working internationally. So our Ladies Who Dine evenings have become less frequent. We get as much time as we can when I am in Vancouver – it could be dinner, lunch, tea, even a movie. The LWD outings are one of the first things I schedule when I book my trips back to Vancouver.

And now we approach road trip #3! The Ladies are Dining in New York City! Next week we take on NYC for four nights. One of us has put together a spreadsheet outlining our daily itinerary. There is, of course, a broadway show. There is a comedy club night. There are dinners with friends (it is a welcome exception for someone two of us know, and don’t get to see very often – and well, over 4 days we can include a guest or two to some of the outings). And there will certainly be stories to tell (hmmm, and quite possibly some to keep secret). Stay tuned!

SO MUCH LOVE FOR MY LADIES WHO DINE!

Tags Friends for life, Ladies Who Dine

Categories Health & Wellbeing, Random Thoughts

Flying…a means to an end

March 27, 2016 //

On my way to Stuttgart to spend time with family.

It may surprise those who know me to find out that I am not a big fan of flying. I much prefer to have my feet firmly planted on mother earth. But…I also love discovering new places, meeting new people and seeing the friends I have made around the world. So flying becomes something to be endured, if not enjoyed…a means to an end.

Over the past 3 1/2 years I have done a lot of flying. With my home base in Vancouver, Canada and working in Istanbul, Baku and Abu Dhabi, this has meant numerous long-haul flights. I’ve also managed to do a fair amount of vacation travel, including 17 flights in 46 days last summer (most of them being about 1 hour in length). You would think that meant I got used to it. In many ways I have, but in others….not so much.

Flying out of Vancouver on a beautiful sunny day.

Take-offs. This is the part I like least. I’m not sure when it started, but for years now I have a ritual for dealing with take-offs. As the plane speeds up and the wheels come off the ground I speak to my dad (who passed away many years ago). I visualize his big, strong, loving hands taking us safely up out of whatever city we are leaving; I picture the route on the world map; and then his hands taking us down safe and sound in our destination city. Lately I also add the universe, mother nature, my spirit guides and God to the conversation – but it is always dad’s hands that I picture. It helps get me through the ascent to cruising altitude. Speaking of cruising…I still don’t like it when the engines cut back from the power required to take off. There’s something about that cut in power that always throws me off. I remind myself every time that this is ‘normal’, that you don’t need as much power when you’ve done the climb and are coasting. Sometimes the cut in engine power is barely felt, sometimes it is more pronounced – I guess it depends on the pilot and air traffic.

Once we’re cruising I relax, and at times I even really enjoy it. When I think of all the flying experiences, there are some highlights that come to mind (not all of them good).

While working for an art gallery I used to fly to France 2-3 times a year. On one of the flights from Vancouver to London I got really lucky. I couldn’t sleep, so I asked to go speak to the pilot (clearly this was before 9-11…). This particular aircraft (a Lockheed 1011) had a jumper seat behind the captain’s seat, and I sat there for a while, chatting with the pilot and co-pilot. About 90 minutes before landing the flight attendant came to get me because they were about to serve breakfast. I said my good-byes and the Captain said ‘maybe see you on your flight home’. I joked that I’d like to sit in the cockpit for take-off and landing. After breakfast was done, the flight attendant asked me if I wanted to go back into the cockpit for landing…Um, YES! It was great. We flew in right over Buckingham Palace. The view of the city was amazing. Now that doesn’t happen every day, and certainly not any more.
On another flight from Vancouver to London the pilot came on the speaker system to tell us to look out to the left of the airplane as the northern lights were putting on quite a show. They were. Beautiful.
Then there’s flying back to Canada from Europe, and seeing the sun set on the right of the plane, and darkness on the left side of the plane.
There are times when you look out the window and it is simply beautiful. It could be blue skies and puffy white clouds. Or flying over the Rocky Mountains on a clear day. Flying over the desert and seeing a pop of green every now again as mother nature finds a way for trees to grow in the middle of the desert.
Flying over the Canadian Rockies is always a favourite.

It’s almost like fluffy marshmallows – flying over Europe.
Or flying at night and seeing lights below.
Arriving into Montreal.
That one time I was bumped up to First Class by Lufthansa on a flight from Frankfurt to Muscat. A girl could get used to that kind of pampering!
I loved seeing an animated safety video on Fly Dubai – and a curvy flight attendant at that!
And then there are experiences one doesn’t need to repeat – like an aborted landing. I’ve been through one. Not so much fun. We were flying into Istanbul. This is a city I have flown into many, many times, so I know the approach well. I see the mosque and the homes, and I know when we are about to touch down, I’m excited and happy to be back. I swear, the wheels were almost on the ground and the next thing I knew the airplane picked up speed and then gunned it. It was very dramatic – particularly given that there was sunshine behind us and we were heading into a dark rain cloud. After what felt like an eternity (and was likely only about 3 minutes) the captain came on to tell us that we were circling around to get a better approach. A better approach? The approach was fine, we were almost on the ground. I suspect there was another airplane in the way and the captain figured out that we’d run into it. Everything else felt the same as it always did. I have to say though, what I felt was the perfect combination of being completely freaked out, and completely calm – knowing that it was not my day to die. No. Don’t need to go through another aborted landing again…ever… Don’t get me wrong, if there was something off and the pilot knew that we wouldn’t have a safe landing, I’m happy he circled and came back again for a safe landing. It’s just freaky, that’s all.

I admit to self-medicating to help calm the nerves, and to help me sleep on long-haul flights. But really, it’s mind over matter and remembering to breathe. And as someone who is used to a minimum 5-hour flight (years of traveling between Vancouver and Montreal), I still find short flights “odd”. We’re already there? Oh, right, we are. Shortest flight so far was a 20-minute flight from Athens to Mykonos. That’s just crazy.

All the above said….I’ve now been in Vancouver for a month and a half…and I have itchy feet. It feels like it’s time to head out again, to take a deep breath and get back on an airplane. How fortunate I am that I can. Grateful!

Cheers. Santé. Serefe. Saluti. Prost. Bon voyage!

Tags Airplanes, Flying, Travel

Categories Random Thoughts, Travel

The Important Stuff. The Really, Really, Really Important Stuff…

October 19, 2014 //

Silliness at your 70th birthday.

The important stuff. The really, really, really important stuff.

Maman.

So hard to believe you are gone, and I will never, ever, be able to wrap my arms around you again. When I left Vancouver for Baku 2 weeks ago, I did not want to get on the plane. It felt like another farewell, a final good-bye. The return to “normal”. But it isn’t “normal”. In my definition of “normal” you are home, we Skype on Saturdays, and I get to come home and see you. It is purely selfish, I know. For if this were the case you would still be struggling with an illness that is relentless in its taking over of your body. And I do not want that for you. You deserve better. You deserve to be free. To sing, to play with your grandchildren, to lead the choir, to never be home, to dance, to run along the hills of Ireland, to eat as much chocolate as you want, and to light up every room you enter. Hopefully you are now doing all of that…and more.

Our last night in Dublin – after a 10-day trip through Ireland. When we started out to see the Irish Dancers you said “do we have to stay all evening?” Yvon and I assured you we could leave whenever you wanted. Then we got there and you made your way to the front of the stage, and lit up the dance floor. So much for leaving early!

Smooching with Noah – always ready for a hug and kiss, especially when it came to your grandchildren! And who could blame you, they are all pretty darn cute.

I’ve been told that this is not an end, but a new beginning – a new relationship with you. I suppose it’s true. That’s pretty much what happened with dad. So I will fumble my way and figure out what this looks like. Meanwhile, I will keep thanking you. You have been my anchor – allowing me to run free and go do whatever it is I do, always there with a smile and the words “gros hug”. You have been an incredible role model teaching us all about patience, strength, unconditional love, generosity, laughter, determination, being calm, faith and grace. As you slipped away, this didn’t end…it got stronger. I can only hope that when my time comes I can be as beautiful and serene.

I was watching a documentary on Queen Elizabeth a while back, and when she spoke about Lady Diana’s death she said “to grieve means you have loved deeply”. She was right. So I will take the pain, the mourning. For without it I would never have felt the love, the warmth, the joy, the laughter, the intense happiness.

Although the pain never really goes away, the grief is less intense. Already feelings of warmth and love sit beside it as memories come back of time spent with you. It is those memories, those feelings, I will treasure and forever be grateful for. How lucky am I that I get to call you “Maman”.

A few more treasured moments from a life well lived – proof that a “rich” life has nothing to do with money, and everything to do with the love and joy you brought to all of us. You are, and will remain, deeply loved and missed by us all.

Always full of surprises. An unlikely Halloween costume for you. Not sure why we didn’t colour your hair like this more often!

Aaahh, such a sense of humour. Not a bad pose for a staunch Catholic!

Stylin’ – with your mum.

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Yvon said it best.

Playful on your way to Germany.

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Love this pic. Another shining example of how much we all love you.

Cologne_Mum_shot full swing_April 2008 003

Um, yes. That is my mum shooting tequila! For someone who didn’t drink…that was impressive.

Hard to believe this was just a month before you left us.

The start of an amazing family.

Years and 10 children later…you still fit into your wedding dress. Crazy.

My mum, the activist! What an amazing night, watching you up on stage delivering a beautiful and powerful speech on why Quebec should not separate.

Foot loose and fancy free!

Ah, such a young lady!

Too cute!

Is that you running the train station?

7 kids, and a visit to the zoo. Or wait, was the zoo our house?

I just love this photo of you. That look on your face really says it all.

Still my all-time fave of you and dad. Moving into your first apartment together.

Are we boring you? )

Have another…

Seriously...who said you could wear such a sexy dress?

Seriously…how can you eat all that dessert and still look so damn good?

Our first night in Ireland. Yvon – thank you again for coming up with that idea, and for letting me parachute in on it!

So darn cute.

Tending bar at The Spaniard, in county Cork.

Thank you Dan for taking mum back to Winnipeg. I know she loved that trip.

Christmas 2013. Thank you for creating such an amazing family. Hard to believe there are 5 grandchildren and 1 child missing from this photo…

LOVE.

Categories Random Thoughts

Baja Beauty #1 – La Huerta

October 24, 2012 //

One of the best things about traveling is discovering local hidden gems. What do the locals do? Where do they go? Give me something outside the normal tourist experience, please.

May I introduce you to La Huerta Sport Club.

I have a friend who lives in San Jose del Cabo, Mexico. I came down for a long overdue visit and to scope the area out as I’m considering a career/life change. My friend has been living here for about a year and a half now and has often spoken about the gym he works out at and the personal trainer he’s working with. Mostly he just likes sending me photos of their outdoor pool when Vancouver’s outdoor pools are closed.

Now that I am here, I wanted to see it all for myself. I love this place. It’s a gym in the middle of farmland and is surrounded by corn fields, mango fields, and every now and again some cows. Another bonus is that it’s about a 4-minute walk from my friend’s place. The club includes a full gym, another workout room used for classes, 4 tennis courts, a soccer field and the previously mentioned pool.

The road to La Huerta is just off one of the main roads. It’s looking a little worse for wear as this was taken 2 days after a tropical storm hit, but it’s always a dirt road.

Take the 2nd dirt road to your right off the main dirt road….

Being a local gym, it’s also nicely affordable. As is Jorge, the personal trainer. So I signed on pretty quickly upon arriving. I work out in the morning and go back for a swim in the afternoon when I’m not beaching it. Jorge is fantastic. After assessing my fitness level and asking me what my goal is (one must have a goal so he can help you achieve it) my workouts alternate between 20-minute circuit/cardio training one day and strictly cardio the next day. Trust me, that 20-minute circuit is tough. Jorge is very attentive, making sure my form/posture is correct, frequently shouting “you can do it Lise” in my ear and even telling me he can see all the crap in my body leaving. Oh yes, he says that. He also says we need to get all the grease out of my body. I’m assuming by ‘grease’ he means ‘fat’, and I have to admit I prefer ‘grease’. It’s easier to visualize and my immediate reaction is ‘gross, get that crap out of me!’.

Looking back at the gym from the pool.

View from the elliptical machine – makes working out on it much more enjoyable.

Today I told Jorge I have to leave tomorrow because I got the call and need to get back to work. He was genuinely disappointed and said he is going to miss seeing all my faces (I have tendency to give him a funny/I’m going to die look when he asks me how I’m doing). He also told me that I need to keep doing this and to not ‘cheat myself’. Awesome.

I said goodbye to Jorge today as he leaves tomorrow for Mexico City. You see, Jorge is competing in the Mexican Jiu-Jitsu national championships this weekend. Go get’em!

Tomorrow I will say goodbye to La Huerta after a cardio workout and a last swim in the pool. Muchas gracias Jorge and La Huerta. Until we meet again.

Aaaahhh, the pool.

Categories Health & Wellbeing, Random Thoughts, Travel

I LOVE Summers Off…

October 15, 2012 //

It is true. I LOVE me a summer off. Not being in an industry where summers off are the norm, it doesn’t happen all that often. But I’ve been lucky enough to have it happen three times…

1) Summer of 2004. To be precise (and if you know me you know I am annoyingly precise…) I was actually off from end of January to end of July. “Summer” that year officially started on the May long weekend. It was the first of many sunny and hot days spent at Kits pool. I think it was the sunniest and hottest summer I’ve ever had in Vancouver and I definitely got my money’s worth out of my pass for the pool. Highlights of that summer include:

– Endless days spent at Kits pool – literally until it shut down every day

– Going to my friend Sherri’s art gallery and helping out before heading to the pool

– Hanging out with my friend Stu, who also had the summer off. We swam, watched the summer Olympics, house sat in Dunbar, went to the fireworks, went sailing, BBQ’s at Stu’s place every Friday, and generally laughed at everyone who was working (I know, I’ll pay for that on a karma level)

– Numerous evenings spent at the Lumiere Tasting Bar – oh Neil, where did you go? You kept me well fed and tipsy, and wouldn’t charge me for much more than one drink, and you took care of the friends I brought with me

– A particularly epic July 1st day/evening/night – and a very rock July 2nd….

– Some other things that well…shouldn’t be published….but definitely put a smile on my face

– And at the end of it all I started working at Chalk Media and met some incredible people – two of whom are amongst my very best of friends – long live Ladies Who Dine! Love you Vicky and Laura.

Kits Pool. One of my favourite places ever.

2) Summer of 2010. Preceded by 3 1/2 glorious and insanely busy years with the Vancouver 2010 Organizing Committee for the Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games —- so you guessed it, I slept a lot! Time off that year started in early April, post the Para Games. Highlights of that summer off:

– My idea for the beginning of my recovery was to go to Mexico — to a bikini bootcamp in Tulum. What better way to rest up and recover than with a bootcamp!?!?! Oy… But it was the best thing for me. Up at 7am for a run/walk for an hour, followed by a 30-minute ‘beach blast’ cardio workout – yummy granola and fresh fruit for breakfast – an outing of some sort – a work out at 11am, lunch and beach time from 12:30-4:30, a couple of massages, healthy fresh food for lunch and dinner, and oh yes, a few mint margaritas and a crazy good salsa dance with a salsa teacher, skinny dipping in the Caribbean at 3:00am, and some wonderful new friends – one even from Montreal! (Love you Nat!)

– After bootcamp Nat and I headed to Playa del Carmen for a night and then I headed to Mexico City for a week to visit…Stu, who had moved down there. After all, what’s a summer off without some time hanging out with Stu?

– You guessed it – days spent at the pool, although that summer it was mostly at Brighton pool as I was house-sitting in North Vancouver.

– Daily workouts and a local bootcamp.

– Generally just hanging out with friends and sleeping a lot.

– At the end of that summer I started what turned out to be an 18-month contract with the Vancouver Canucks. Not a bad way to follow up working on the Olympic Games! This included the run to the Stanley Cup finals, which didn’t end the way I had so hoped. But the ride was fantastic, so no complaints from me.

My favourite spot at Amansala in Tulum.

I do love the beach and the water here.

Julie and I in Trevor Linden’s locker. Of all the people I brought to games, we consistently won when Julie came. She become known as our lucky charm.

3) Summer of 2012. You’ve seen some of my blog posts about this summer. It’s been amazing. Officially started June 16th when my contract with the Canucks ended. Some highlights from a summer filled with highlights:

– 3 weeks in Europe in which every moment was a highlight: A week in London catching up with great friends and a city I love and have been lucky enough to spend a good amount of time in. If you get a chance, you have to go see the play One Man, Two Guvnors – hysterical. Right Tina?; Rome – finally getting to discover Rome. I need to go back; Bologna with Jacques, and then having Yvon and Amanda join us, and then having Emily join us; Two nights on the beach in Cinque Terre; The food in Italy; The hotel at the Frankfurt airport. And oh so much more.

– Watching the summer Olympics – glued to that every day.

– Hanging out at Kits pool – Stu was back for August so we got to hang out there again. Seriously, can’t have a summer off without that!

– 5 days in Montreal for mum’s birthday. Hanging out with family. Catching up with Nat.

– Taking advantage of what turned out to be a lovely summer and fall, and hanging out with friends.

So now I guess it’s that time again where I need to get back to work. What wonderful adventure awaits me on that front this time round? There are a couple of options, and soon it’ll get sorted. But before that….time to bugger off to Mexico! So that’s what I’ve done. Stay tuned for some thoughts from San Jose del Cabo!

What can I say, I just love this photo. London.

As much as I loved discovering Rome, Bologna was a wonderful surprise. It is a very pretty city.

Kits Pool happiness winds down for another winter.

Categories Random Thoughts

Anyone Want Great Wine And Food?

July 18, 2012 //

My arrival in Bologna could not have been any better. I arrived by train from Rome and was met by my brother Jacques at the train station. We went to his place, changed and headed for a local vineyard called Podere Riost0. You see, Jacques took some sommelier classes a while back and has been enjoying Italian wines – particularly northern Italian wines.

Let me introduce you to Podere Riosto.

The owners of the vineyard decided they wanted to build a restaurant where they could provide a set meal once a week – Thursdays. I could try to explain all the dishes and how good they were, but…

Thursday dinner – course 1 – the most delicious pasta salad I’ve ever eaten. Wish I knew what they put in it, simple, but incredible. Black rice salad, equally as wonderful, and crostini – yum.

Cucumber, cheese, red pepper, and veal in a tuna sauce – a standard dish here and utterly delicious.

Add some turkey to the veggies and cheese.

And of course some wild boar.
PS: all these dishes were cold – likely due to the 35+ degree weather here.

A meal is not a meal without dessert. Bring on the various biscotti and cake.

It was an incredible meal in an incredible setting. Those who come simply sit around the tables, talk, eat and drink a number of different wines served at different stages of dinner. And then, when I thought I could fit nothing more in…came the grappa. Goodness me, grappa…

This is where we mingled, talked, ate and drank.

I love the tables made of reclaimed wood.
The woman you see on the left is the owner.

I know I say this a lot on this trip…but a girl could really get used to this! When we heard that they were doing a special meal on Sunday around truffles, we thought “why not?”. A meal where every dish includes truffles in some way shape or form sounded good to us. So at 1:30pm Sunday we were back at Riosto and thoroughly enjoyed this fine meal:

World’s. Best. Risotto. Ever. I don’t eat risotto a lot, but man, this one was outstanding.
Somehow I forgot to photograph the crostini that came before this – little pieces of garlic/truffle bread – fantastic.

Pasta. Simple and delicious. Pasta + olive oil + cheese + truffles + spices = yummy.

Veal and scalloped potatoes. Seriously. I love this country and the food – risotto, pasta and potatoes all served up in the same meal. But I am seriously going to have to cleanse when I get home (thank goodness I did before coming here!).
I also thought I’d give you a glimpse at the various wine glasses… And there’s a water glass there too. Plenty of water was drunk as well.

I don’t know where they get their pineapple from, but it is juicy and sweet – you’d think it was grown locally. And the melon is also fresher and sweeter than I’m used to.

Just in case, like me, you thought the fruit was dessert – no. Gelato and cake, with local blackberries.
I thought I was going to burst. But every mouthful was fantastic.

No trip to a vineyard is complete without coming home with a selection of its wines. Now, we’re just outside of Tuscany here and if this vineyard was in Tuscany the prices for its wines would be triple what they are. But, luckily for us, they are not quite in Tuscany. Their wines go from 6 – 10 Euros per bottle. That’s crazy when you think that a comparable bottle of BC wine runs $20-$40 at the very least, some more.

The front desk inside, with the wines lining the shelves.

The dining room inside, where we ate on Sunday because although it was beautiful and sunny out it was also very windy. The building is a fairly industrial building, but the owners wanted to make sure they gave it warmth and character and therefore brought in reclaimed wood. They definitely succeeded.

Jacques and the owner as we were chatting outside post Sunday’s meal. We were the last ones to leave. This time I said no to the grappa and the scotch, but yes to his homemade lemon/basil liquor, which was actually very tasty.

I will leave you with more photos of the area. It’s only 10-15 minutes away from Bologna, so close to the city but still out in the countryside. Tranquility.

They also have rooms/apartments you can rent in the middle of the vineyard. You follow the winding road in this photo into the valley. As they are not set up with a restaurant that does regular meals, the units have full kitchens so you can grocery shop and bring your food with you. Next time. It would be great to spend a couple of days there.

Take care little grapes. You will be harvested and made into delicious wine soon!

Merci Jacques! I’m so pleased you discovered this place and that I got to experience it.

Categories Food and Beverage, Random Thoughts, Travel

Love, Love, Love

July 15, 2012 //

Pizza Margherita

When I had lunch with my friend Sarah in London, she told me that if I wanted to taste the best pizza in Rome I needed to go to Baffeto’s. Given that Sarah grew up in Rome, I took her word for it and on my second night there decided it was time to sample Baffeto’s pizza. As Sarah mentioned, it’s a small place and people line up for it (locals and visitors alike). When I told the owner that I was looking for a table for one he exclaimed ‘mi amici!’ gave me a great big hug, took my hand and told me to follow him. Next thing I knew I was sat at a table for 4, along with an Italian couple. When in Rome….

This is one busy pizza joint. And I now know why. The food, along with the service is fantastic. I kept my order simple – a salad, pizza margherita, and some white wine. I’ll let the photos do the talking…

Insalata mista

And while I ate what was a very tasty salad I watched many a pizza be prepped, cooked and then sent off to its table.

One of the two people prepping pizzas essentially spends all his time rolling dough.

The other man adds the sauce….

…adds the toppings…

..and pops them into the oven. When ready, he lets people know orders are up. He’s a very busy man, and honestly sounded like he belonged in a Godfather movie – raspy voice, might be missing a vocal cord or two.

I have no idea how many pizzas they make in one evening, but the lineup of orders looked like this most of the evening.

That’s quite a stash of orders to be fulfilled, and each slip corresponds to a table so there’s no telling how many pizzas are on each piece of paper.

Yes, it’s a wood oven. I even saw the pizza guy put in more wood.

I’m not sure how I found room for dessert, but I did. Besides, sorbetto al limone isn’t particularly filling!

It’s even served in a hollowed out lemon. Pretty and delicious.

It is a very good thing that there is a lot to see in Rome and a lot of walking to be done, or else I’d be hard pressed to do anything but sit in Baffeto’s and eat pizza all day long.

When in Rome….go to Baffeto’s! Grazie mille Baffeto, grazie mille.

PS: yes, I know…my first blog about Rome is about a pizza joint – but it’s not just any pizza joint! And in fairness, everything else about Rome is a little overwhelming – it’s beauty, the Coliseum, the Vatican, etc. I’m still sorting through all that, so stay tuned, more to come.

Categories Food and Beverage, Random Thoughts, Travel

Wimbledon!

July 15, 2012 //

I have been a tennis fanatic forever. In fact, it was while watching John McEnroe play a US Open final that I decided I was going to go into the sport industry – sport reporting to be exact. That led me to Carleton University’s journalism program and 3 years of radio sports broadcasting while in school. Life has a way of changing directions and after time spent in London, then in the art world, then in corporate storytelling I found my way back to the world of sport. Full circle – although my role in the sport world is different than that originally envisioned (which to be honest was to be the first woman on Hockey Night In Canada – me and Don Cherry, now what would he do with that?).

But back to tennis. I made sure that my trip to London would coincide with Wimbledon. With all the time I’ve spent in London over the years, I’d never actually been there when Wimbledon was on. I could hardly wait. So upon arrival I made my way to Tina’s, showered, changed and headed to Wimbledon. I landed at 7am and was there by noon. I was expecting to simply scope it out and see what it is I would need to do to get on the grounds later in the week, however as I made my way around the site to where “The Queue” starts I was told there was no queue, nobody lining up, and I could pay my 20 GBP and walk right in. Hells yes! It must have been the cloudy weather. Why else would there be no queue on manic Monday? Monday of week two everyone remaining in the tournament plays, it’s a very, very full day. Djokovic, Roger, Murray, and countless others were all playing that day.

I walked the grounds, stopping to watch matches on the outer courts – men’s double, women’s doubles, mixed doubles, boys, girls, etc. I sat on Henman Hill and caught some of Roger’s match on the big screen. Then the screen flipped over to Murray’s match. I even headed to one of the restaurants for tea – at that point I’d been there 4 hours and was a little on the cold side. Besides, high tea at Wimbledon seemed like the thing to do.

It was a great way to ‘arrive’ in London. Apologies for the lack of photos, I blame the overnight flight from Vancouver….well it’s either that or the fact that I was walking around stunned and in awe.

As much as I thought I’d return later in the week – a week in London isn’t a long time and I got busy. Although I toyed with the idea of joining the Queue for the finals, there was really no way I was going to spend a night out in the line-up – see earlier post about meeting Ketut in Bali if you want to know why this woman doesn’t do line-ups.

I can confidently say that I will return to Wimbledon. I’ll be entering the lottery for tickets or accepting an invite to the Royal Box.

Aaahhh Roger…

Categories Random Thoughts, Travel

Murphy’s Law

April 29, 2012 //

I am not talking about your run of the mill Murphy’s Law. No. No. No. I am talking about Murphy. Here she is…

If you’ve been to my house within the last 14 years you will have seen glimpses of her – and when I say glimpses, I mean glimpses. Murphy is shy and does not particularly like to be touched – let alone picked up. When guests come over she hides…eventually she comes out, but mostly, she hides. If you are lucky, she will have rubbed her head on your feet. Hopefully you didn’t take that to be an invitation to pet her.

I got Murphy from the SPCA 14 years ago. And when I say “I got her” I mean “my ex-husband got her”. I didn’t want her – didn’t want a cat. But I got home after work one day and there she was. 7 weeks old, tiny, shaking because she was scared, and cute as a button. I still didn’t want her. The next day my ex calls me at work to say he’s home and Murphy’s eye is huge and infected. He took her to the vet who said he needed to sedate her and take a closer look. If surgery was required it would cost $400 or more. My reaction to that was “if it requires surgery, tell him to put her down, I’m not paying that much on a cat I don’t want”. Nice huh? Luckily for all (especially me) Murphy didn’t need surgery. It was a simple infection and not uncommon in SPCA cats. Some eye drops and a little lamp shade was all she needed. When I got home that evening there she was, still groggy from being sedated, sporting her lamp shade. Remember, she was 7 weeks old, and still pretty tiny. One look at her half-sedated walk across the living room, her lamp shade getting caught in the carpet…and I was hooked.

14 years later, Murphy and I have been through a lot. She’s seen me through a divorce, the regular ups and downs of daily life, a couple of career moves, 3 1/2 years at the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games, a very long distance relationship, a complete purge of everything post Vancouver 2010, a few moves, the 2011 Canucks run to the Stanley Cup finals, and countless other life moments – not the least of which are the many nights on the couch watching tv.

Have another look – this is Murphy…

There she is, sitting on the bed. For 14 years she has slept beside me every night – it’s the only time she likes to cuddle. Don’t get me wrong though, it’s still on her terms. When she feels like it she’ll head butt my hand until she can lie down between my body and arm, with her head nestled in the palm of my hand. And if my arms are both beneath the covers….she swipes at me until I take an arm out for her.

At the time these photos were taken, Murphy was 14 years old – equivalent to about 98 in human years – and riddled with cancer. I know I am biased, but when I look at the photos I find it hard to believe. She looks too pretty and young to be 98 and ill. On March 26th I got the word – cancer. Devastating. I found myself numb, trying to take in all the information about what options were available. Chemo…really? Chemo for pets? Who knew. When I was told the best case scenario was likely a few more weeks-months, the decision was easy. Murphy was always clear about what she wanted and didn’t want. Even when perfectly healthy a trip to the vet was traumatic – I’d have to chase her around the house to catch her, and she’d be stressed and scared until we got back home and she could run out of her carrying case. No way was I going to do that to her once a week so she could go through chemo and feel sick from that on the off-chance that we might have a few more weeks/months together. I wasn’t going to put her through that. So keeping her as comfortable as possible became my goal.

On April 22nd at about 7pm, Murphy passed away. Luckily I was home with her at the time. Hopefully it wasn’t too painful for her. She died at the beginning of the 3rd period in game 5 of the Canucks/Kings playoff series – moments after the Kings scored to tie the game at 1. Poetic? Definitely. Prophetic? Possibly. I am currently on contract with the Canucks – and that contract is “until June 15, 2012 or the end of the playoffs, whichever occurs first”. I am still with them, but who knows for how long. The thought did occur that this was the universe at work – giving me a swift kick in the butt, telling me it’s time to move on. That it is time for new beginnings. Time will tell if this is indeed the case.

Meanwhile, I am astounded by the depth of sadness and how ’empty’ home feels without her here. For a small animal, her energy sure filled up a lot of space. And I still talk to her like she’s here. According to my friend Dene, you have to have a cat so you don’t look crazy talking to yourself. Hmmm, how crazy am I for talking to a dead cat like she’s still here? I’m sure it won’t last. It’s all still pretty new. I sometimes wonder if I’ve turned into “crazy cat lady”, but I don’t think so. My friend Emily had a good point. Her take on it was that with pets you only have positive, comfort feelings. So when you lose them, it’s all about losing that source of comfort. Thank you for that piece of wisdom Emily.

And that is Murphy. I like to think she both lived and died the way she wanted. No poking, prodding, needles. At home, where she felt safe, secure and knew she was loved. Murphy’s Law = unconditional, no excuses, love.

As I make my way through the sadness I am left with immense gratitude. Gratitude for 14 years with a pretty, and complicated, companion. Gratitude for my many friends who have been supportive and put up with my tears and relative craziness the past month – in particular Julie (don’t know many people who drop everything to run to a friend’s when they find out their pet is dying and again when the pet dies…), Carla, Ali, Dene, Emily, Keema, Michelle, Vicky, Laura, Amanda, Yvon, Dan, Helene, Marilyn, David, Erin, Tmo, Mike, Sherri (a huge help to me and Murphy) Dr. Haseltine who delivered the news to me and didn’t try to convince me to have Murphy put under, the Vancouver Emergency Pet Clinic for their compassion and care in having her cremated and returned to me, and a slew of others.

Last, but certainly not least, I am grateful that Carl (my ex) brought Murphy home from the SPCA. Seems you knew better than I. Ummm…don’t let it get to your head…

One of her favourite hiding places – in the box spring under the bed. I liked referring to it has her ‘hammock’. Look closely, she’s hiding in there.

PS: don’t worry, her ashes will not live on my mantle forever. I’m not quite that crazy a cat lady. In fact, early this morning I went down to Kits Beach and spread her ashes in the ocean. Back in the hands of the universe she is – body and soul.

Categories Random Thoughts