My new favourite game: Oprahland

Good.is released a new infographic on Thursday about 'The World of Winfrey".

It highlights her ""aha!" moments, guest appearances, and media acquisitions" from the last 40years.

...and it looks like a board game!! Complete with different character game pieces - Stedman, Gail, Dr. Phil, Dr. Oz... it is missing Nate though.

I want/need to make this into an actual game.
Perhaps a drinking game.
Maybe play it while watching the Oprah DVD.

Take a shot each time she: screams aloud, cries or causes the guest to cry, or mentions Gayle or Stedman.

hmm...to be continued...

The book that changed my life

A few weeks ago I read the book Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer.

And my life will never be the same. 

I've been a proud (?) meat-eater all my life. Haven't really ever considered not eating meat. 

In fact, when I first saw this book -  I picked up because I was attracted to the cover. ... yes, I'll admit I usually always judge books by their covers - I read a quote of praise on the back cover that said something along the lines of "If you continue to eat meat after reading this book, you are a horrible human being". 

And I was so offended! The audacity!

So, I snatched up the book and bought it out of spite. ("oh yeah? I'll show you! ...I'll read this book while eating plates of chicken and steak, and I'll continue to be an amazing, honorable person!")

About a fifth of the way through the book, I sent this text to my sister: "I'm reading this book about eating animals. I think I may become vegetarian."

And now, a few weeks later, I'm considering going vegan. 

(I'm having a hard time with the concept of giving up eggs (cake! cookies!!) ... not to mention cow's milk... (Starbucks' lattes!!))

Seriously though, I'm one of the last people I could have pictured forgoing meat. But in the end, after looking at factory farming practices, antibiotic use, environmental degradation... eating chicken for dinner tonight just isn't worth it for me.

Change your words, change your world

How to sleep at your desk, undisturbed

Yesterday, a co-worker suggested that we should all get Ostrich Pillows:

by kawamura-ganjavian.

A perfect way to bring the siesta to Toronto.

 

(via Geekologie)

Doodle Decor

I'm tempted to transform a wall of my kitchen into mindless doodles.

This stock image from iStockPhoto has tempted me to create elaborate flowcharts and diagrams.

And now Pikaland's fantastic new 100 Things to Draw list has sealed the deal!

I'm quite not hardcore enough to take a sharpie to the wall, but maybe I'll buy a huge whiteboard or something.

This calls for a trip to the art supply store...

I talk good French.

Fun with Groupon!

 

I  signed up today for 6weeks of French language classes.  By the end of June I'll be parle-ing en Francais with ease!

It's currently my favourite season in Toronto (patio season), so it's time to decide on some outdoor activities. Enter BlogTo's 'Best of Toronto' lists.

They're almost like a challenge - how many amazing Thai restaurants can you visit in one month?

Last year a friend and I took on the 'best ice cream in T.O' list. Sadly, we didn't get through all of it (I do have a waistline to think about!)

This year perhaps it'll be along a French theme - the best French restaurants, or the best French toast, or the best poutine!

Or maybe we'll just resort to the best new cafés. You can't go wrong there.

Plus cafés are French....right??

Yay or Nay? Running=Fun

Yesterday I completed my first 5k run. As a typically sedentary person, it is a pretty big accomplishment for me - from the process of training for the run (thanks Couchto5k!) and actually completing it!

Throughout the past month or so, my view of the run has been: 'I just have to do this one 5k, and then I'll never have to run again!'
But on the days leading up to the run, I started thinking about maybe doing a 10k at some point...then perhaps a half-marathon, and maybe even a full marathon in a few years.

One of the friends who I did the 5k with is now talking about signing up to do another 5k in June and/or September. And I'm conflicted about whether to join her or not.
On the one hand, I don't consider myself a 'runner', and I do enjoy being sedentary and lazy.

But on the other hand, there is something to say about setting a goal, and actually meeting it. If nothing else, this experience has shown me that I can do things that I didn't think were possible. (When I started, I struggled to jog for more than a minute without being terribly winded.)

And, if I'm being completely honest with myself, I do enjoy evening runs - uploading some new podcasts to my iPod and then listening to them while I jog through the neighborhood...

So I guess that's my answer.
Yes, running=fun.

Can Information Look any Cooler?

A quick Google search led me to the Cool Infographics website which houses a collection of some of the best infographics out there.

Infographics are awesome.

'nough said.

Music Videos at their best: La Blogotheque's Take Away Shows

Awhile ago I discovered La Blogotheque's Take Away Shows.

The Take Away Shows self-description:
"Every week, we invite an artist or a band to play in the streets, in a bar, a park, or even in a flat or in an elevator, and we film the whole session. Of course, what makes the beauty of it is all the little incidents, hesitations, and crazy stuff happening unexpectingly. Besides, we do not edit the videos so they look perfectly flawless, instead we keep the raw sound of the surroundings. Our goal is to try and capture instants, film the music just like it happens, without preparation, without tricks. Spontaneity is the keyword."

Some of the artists I've watched so far, include:
Villagers
Jamie Lidell (see below)
Jason Mraz
Mumford and Sons
Spoon

Here's Jamie Lidell. (He's my favourite.)

Jamie Lidell - A Take Away Show from La Blogotheque on Vimeo.

Discovering new bands in Toronto

On the 'Fun Quest', a friend and I tested out a new way to discover bands in the city.

• Pick the price.
• Pick the date.
• Pick the venue.

And then go see whoever is performing!

We ended up at the Horseshoe Tavern on April 30th, to see Malajube (who can resist French indie rock?).

Thankfully though, we arrived early enough to see Library Voices perform! (Who can resist Saskatchewaners?)
They were the highlight, in my opinion. The crowd loved them, and they genuinely seemed to be having a blast. I view them kind of like a bunch of close friends who enjoyed hanging out and making music and so decided to go on the road together.
Their group dynamic is evident in their Take Away Show:


Library Voices | Party Like It's 2012 | A Take Away Show from La Blogotheque on Vimeo.

The correct way to peel a banana

I only just recently discovered the Judge John Hodgman podcast.

It cracks.me.up.
Seriously - on multiple occasions I have I burst out in laughter while walking down the street.

One particularly fun episode is on the correct way to peel a banana. Is it the popular 'from the stem' method that most humans use? or is it the 'from the nub' method that monkeys tend to use?

Another of my favourite episodes is 'You Say Tomato, I say Justice'. It has me questioning many of my friends on how they say the word 'often'. Apparently we all say it incorrectly.

How HotDocs Works

Not having participated in a film festival before, I was a little confused about how HotDocs actually works, so here’s my little overview of how the process worked for me:

Step 1. Decide which film pass I want

My Festival Pass, a couple tickets and the Screening Schedule

The film passes range from single tickets ($14 each) to a 10-ticket pass ($100) to more hardcore passes (I think they go up to +$300).

There are also a bunch of other passes for students and seniors and amateur film-makers, etc, and a pass specifically for the late night screenings (after 11pm).

Note: There is an earlybird special, so if you buy your pass before a certain date (in March), you get more bang for your buck.

Step 2. Decide which films I want to watch

This is where it might start to get confusing.

I bought a 10-ticket pass, which gets me 10 tickets which I can use for any film. The pass is transferable, i.e. I could use the pass to watch 5 different films with a buddy, or I could watch 10 different films by myself, or I could grab 9 friends and we could all watch one film together, using the pass, etc.

I ended up doing a mix – I watched some films alone, and some with friends.

While the Festival Pass gives me hypothetical access to all the films, if you know which film(s) you want to see, it is best to arrange specific tickets beforehand, to guarantee your spot.

Here’s Situation A: I know what I want to watch

I know that I want to go with my friend Leah to see the film Mothers of Bedford on Friday at 9:30pm. (amazing film btw!) So I call up the HotDocs box office (or I could have gone online) and tell them my Festival Pass number and the number of tickets, and they mark down my order.

Then, sometime before the day of the screening, I head over to the Box Office and pick-up the tickets. (If I did this enough in advance, the tickets could be mailed to me.) At the Box Office, they mark the back of my Festival Pass to indicate that I have used up two of the 10 tickets that come with my pass.

Then, on Friday night, Leah and I head over to the screening and hand over our tickets! No waiting in line!

Situation B: I don’t know what I want to watch….until very late.

The film I want to  watch is showing at the Cumberland theatre in 45 minutes, so I head over there and approach the makeshift HotDocs desk and purchase a ticket. Since I already have bought a Festival Pass, they simply mark the back of my pass to indicate that I’ve used up another one of my ten tickets. There's no need for me to hand over any cash.

Now, if the film I wanted to see has already been ‘sold out’, then it becomes a different situation…

Situation C: The film I want to watch has already been ‘sold out’ and is in ‘RUSH’ status

At the last minute, I decided to watch Kumare on Sunday afternoon. (another great film!) I head over to the HotDocs desk at the theatre and am informed that the film has already gone ‘rush’. Basically what this means is that other, more organized, people have reserved/ordered their tickets in advance, so now I can’t order my ticket before the screening. Instead, I’ll have to stand in line and hope that the theatre doesn’t fill up before I get in.

So about 45 minutes before the screening, I join the rush line. They start to let us in 15 minutes before the film is supposed to start. We go to the HotDocs desk and purchase tickets (either via Festival Pass or cash), and then head into the theatre, grab any remaining extra seat, and then enjoy the film!

(note: try and avoid rush lines as much as possible. They kinda suck. But, HotDocs says that 80% of people waiting in rush lines do indeed get in to see the films, so at least there’s that.)

I think that explains the basic questions I had at the beginning of my HotDocs experience. There is a fair bit of planning involved - usually when I watch movies I check the times the day before - but it's all part of the fun. 

Next year I may upgrade to one of the hardcore Festival Passes and take a week off work to watch the films.

Long Live Documentaries!

Those who know me, know that I love documentaries.  So when I decided to add more fun into my life, I knew that HotDocs would somehow be included.

(HotDocs is North America’s largest documentary film festival, and it happens each year in Toronto, Ontario!)

This year was my first time participating in HotDocs – usually I become ‘aware’ of it too late, and am disappointed. This year though, I was completely on the ball, and enrolled friends to experience the docs with me.

Within the week of the festival, I ended up watching six full-length docs and three shorts, and I attended two panel discussions.

By far, the best part of the festival was the interaction with the directors after the screening. For the majority of the screenings, the directors were on-hand for Q&A after the films. This adds so much more depth and context to the films!

All the films I watched were great, each in their own way. Grande Hotel was one of my favourites. The cinematography was stunning, and the subject matter is fascinating.

The short that screened with Grande Hotel was also really unique: “Goodbye Mandima”.

 Overall, HotDocs was a blast! I can't wait to do it all again next year :)