It's all about me!

Saturday Photo Hunt

2009-11-21T10:24:00.004-05:00

Did you play?

The theme this week is bird(s).

Gord's aunt is getting close to 90 and is selling her house in the country. She wanted to get rid of some of her stuff so Gord's mom grabbed him some mementos.

Among the stuff she gave him were these birds ...

Um, we're not sure what to do with them so they are our spare room for now.

Camera Critters

2009-11-21T09:21:00.002-05:00

Did you play?

I spent the week in Ottawa and wandered over to see the Stray Cats of the Hill on Parliamentary Hill,

There are currently 11 cats being cared for by volunteers and funded by donations (I left some $$). They are all neutered and have their shots (a local vet donates their time).

I was there during the 5pm feeding.

They also leave the squirrels nuts.

I've never seen a fatter squirrel :)

My home-away-from-home

2009-11-20T13:00:00.000-05:00

This was my home-away-from-home this week ... I was staying at the Cartier Place Suites.

Gord and I had stayed here when we visited Ottawa in August 2006. He has since stayed here with friends.

It's a great deal! For $150 a night (compared to $300 at the Westin!), I had a one bedroom apartment along with housekeeping services. The kitchen has a large fridge, stove, microwave and dishwasher and is fully equipped with plates, silverware, glasses, pots 'n pans, etc. Plus I had a balcony. There was a pool and hot tub in the hotel.

There were lots of restaurants within a block or two. ByWard Market is within walking distance (I walked there twice).

This was my living room and dining room (from my kitchen) ...

This was my living room from the foyer ...
And here was my bedroom ...

If you are staying in Ottawa, I'd definitely recommend the Cartier Place!

Fox & Feather

2009-11-19T19:28:00.001-05:00

I conducted four retirement planning seminars today ... three in Ottawa and one in Cornwall.

That's 17 in four days ... one more day (and three more seminars) to go! And then I go home. Yay!

I felt like some pub grub for supper tonight so I went to the Fox & Feather.

Chia Kitty and I shared a pint of Keith's.

I ordered garlic bread with cheese and wings.

The garlic bread was very good ... hot, soft and cheesy!

The wings were ho-hum ... just deep-fried with hot sauce on the side. Yawn!

Gord would have liked them.

Mags & Fags

2009-11-19T18:11:00.000-05:00

I've run out of books to read ... I needed something to read!

So I bought a magazine at Mags & Fags ... interesting name for a store that mainly sells magazines and cigarettes, isn't it?

Book ~ "The Professional" (2009) Robert B. Parker

2009-11-18T19:20:00.003-05:00

From Amazon ~ Spenser agrees to help a quartet of married women fend off extortion demands from stud Gary Eisenhower, with whom each has had an affair. Meanwhile, the husband of one of the women under blackmail threat hires some thugs to deal with the matter. The action takes its time getting to a dead body, but, as usual, the smooth, entertaining prose more than compensates for any deficiencies of plot. The absence of major personal developments for Spenser or his associates marks this as a less memorable entry than others in this iconic series, but it remains a solid, enjoyable contemporary detective novel.

This was a really quick read ... I started it this morning and am finished. The pages are thick and the type is large.

It's not a great story.

Susan, Spenser's longtime girlfriend, is annoying as ever. I've never liked her character. There is too much dialogue between Susan and Spenser that has nothing to do with the story. And what was the point of them going to NYC?

Though I enjoy Spenser's sarcasm and Parker's writing style, it seems like Parker is getting tired of this character. Marry Spenser and Susan and retire him or bring back the energy.

If you are looking for a quick mindless read, you should check it out.

Johnny Farina

2009-11-18T18:47:00.000-05:00

I conducted four retirement planning seminars today ... that's 13 in three days. Two more days to go!

I was craving pasta so I went to Johnny Farina for supper. I love pasta!

Chia Kitty and I shared a glass of Chianti.

They started me with a bread basket with olive oil/balsamic vinegar.

I ordered the meaty lasagna special which was served with garlic toast. I love love love lasagna!

It was delicious and I ate it all!

Book ~ "Smash Cut" (2009) Sandra Brown

2009-11-17T18:29:00.000-05:00

From Amazon ~ This superlative romantic thriller from bestseller Brown features a particularly memorable villain, sociopath Creighton Wheeler, who's obsessed with re-enacting scenes from films like Strangers on a Train and Frenzy. When Creighton's wealthy uncle, Paul Wheeler, is shot dead in an apparent robbery at an Atlanta hotel, Paul's close friend, gallery owner Julie Rutledge, attempts to persuade the police that Creighton ordered the hit. Creighton's father asks Derek Mitchell, a criminal lawyer, to represent the accused Creighton but Derek declines because he had a plane tryst en route to Paris with Julie after Paul's murder. Angered by Derek's refusal, Creighton stalks Julie; targets Derek's dog, Maggie; and plots to kill the ex-girlfriend of his henchman, Billy Duke, after Billy has second thoughts about helping Creighton. Brown skillfully charts Julie and Derek's quest to catch the slippery fiend. Multiple smash cuts (abrupt scene shifts) lead to a wonderfully frenzied finish.

Not a great story ... kind of far fetched and ludicrous at times.

The ending has a twist that was silly and too compact ... but we're left with a happy ending. I thought the death of Maggie the dog was extreme.

But I enjoyed the writing style and that kept me going.

Aulde Dubliner

2009-11-17T18:12:00.002-05:00

I conducted four retirement planning seminars today.

When I was finished, I took a walk to ByWard Market and walked around a bit.

I had supper at the Aulde Dubliner.

Chia Kitty and I shared a Keith's.

I had a pork chop with apple butter along with pearl barley ... it was delicious!

Clock Tower Brew Pub

2009-11-16T17:50:00.000-05:00

Lord of the Wings had blogged about the Clock Tower Brew Pub in September ... Gord had been there last month.

So when I walked by it this evening in ByWard Market, I thought I'd try it for supper.

They make their own beer ... Chia Kitty and I enjoyed a Kölsch. It was yummy!

Appetizers are half price on Mondays so I ordered wings and fries. The wings were okay, not great.

Lots of fries ... I couldn't eat 'em all.

Stray Cats of the Hill

2009-11-16T17:11:00.002-05:00

While I was at Parliamentary Hill, I wandered over to see the Stray Cats of the Hill.

There are currently 11 cats being cared for by volunteers and funded by donations (I left some $$). They are all neutered and have their shots (a local vet donates their time).

I was lucky to be there during a feeding.

They also leave the squirrels nuts.

I've never seen a fatter squirrel :)

Parliament Hill

2009-11-16T16:45:00.000-05:00

I conducted five retirement planning seminars today.

After I was finished, Chia Kitty and I took a walk to Parliament Hill and around the grounds.

Quite an impressive building!

Mellow Yellow Mondays

2009-11-16T00:03:00.000-05:00

Did you play?

When you're waiting for the subway to arrive, make sure you stand on the other side of the yellow line until the subway arrives!

Ottawa

2009-11-15T19:11:00.000-05:00

I'm spending this week in Ottawa, our nation's capital.

The company I work for recently won a client with employees in Quebec and Ontario. The Ontario seminars are being held in Ottawa this week and next ... I'm conducting them this week.

I flew here on Porter Airlines. I've never flown Porter and wanted to check it out as I've heard good things. Rather than the 30 minute drive to Pearson Airport to fly via Air Canada, it's less than 10 minutes to drive to the Island Airport to fly via Porter. I liked it already!

Because it's a smaller airport, checking in and going through security was so much faster. In the lounge, the pop, water, coffee, cookies, WIFI, etc. is complementary. Wine and beer on the plane is also complementary. Plus they give you a snack (sandwich, crackers and cheese) on the plane. It's only an hour flight but they take good care of you.

I'll definitely be flying Porter again when I can.

Unicorn Pub

2009-11-14T20:42:00.000-05:00

On our way home from the Granite Brewery, Gord and I stopped at the Unicorn Pub, which was originally owned by the Irish Rovers, for a pint.

How could we resist posing with a unicorn?!

Granite Brewery

2009-11-14T20:30:00.001-05:00

Gord and I met his friends and their wives for supper tonight at the Granite Brewery. They've known each since they were about nine years old ... so 46 years! Wow! They get together a couple times a month for supper.

Here's Gord, me, Christine, Alfred on the left side ... and Kevin, Rosemary, Craig and Wendy on the right.

It was good to see them and catch up.

Saturday Photo Hunt

2009-11-14T09:32:00.004-05:00

Did you play?

The theme this week is music.

Gord and I both have ipods now ... the collection of music on mine is quite different from his.

Beer Can Chicken

2009-11-13T19:33:00.004-05:00

Gord made Beer Can Chicken for supper tonight. We haven't had it in a while.

We have a stand with a built-in reservoir to make this kind of chicken. He used Mill Street Belgium Wit beer. The idea is to fill the reservoir with beer, place the chicken over the funnel which sits over the beer and then season the chicken with the spice of your choice ... Gord used Irie Creole seasoning.

Ta-da!

Very tasty and juicy!

If you don't have the stand, you can prop the chicken up on a beer can (hence the name). Drink 1/4 of the beer and then jam the chicken onto the can (the chicken will look like it's running). If you don't drink beer, you can use pop.

Remembrance Day

2009-11-11T00:01:00.000-05:00

On Rememberance Day 1999, singer Terry Kelly was in a drugstore in Dartmouth, NS.

At 10:55am, an announcement came over the store's PA asking customers who would still be on the premises at 11:00am to give two minutes of silence in respect to the veterans who have sacrificed so much for us.

Terry was impressed with the store's leadership role in adopting the Legion's "two minutes of silence" initiative. He felt that the store's contribution of educating the public to the importance of remembering was commendable.

When 11:00 arrived, an announcement was again made asking for the "two minutes of silence" to commence. All customers, with the exception of a man who was accompanied by his young child, showed their respect.

Terry's anger towards the father for trying to engage the store's clerk in conversation and for setting a bad example for his child was later channeled into "A Pittance of Time".

Negotiation strategies workshop

2009-11-10T16:17:00.001-05:00

I spent the last two days in a negotiations strategies workshop at work. A company was brought in to train the seven Education Advisors and Account Managers.

... "WIN-WIN negotiation, reasoned negotiation and adult learning principles. Training is carried out with the help of our exclusive interactive computer tools, and using simulations with professionals recreating the stress-filled reality of difficult transactions.

We spent yesterday learning what to do and why.

A couple weeks ago, we each had to provide them with four scenarios we wanted to work on in the workshop. Yesterday afternoon we each did two of our scenarios. There were four "actors" giving us a hard time to make us use what we'd learned.

Today we did our other two scenarios with the actors pushing us again ... but we were videoed. Needless to say, that added an extra level of stress.

It turns out that I'm an Expressive Driver ... I like to talk and explain the steps to take. What I need to work on are:

Silence - not giving in the the urge to talk to fill in the silence because whoever I'm talking with isn't answering right away
Using monosyllabic words - answering "yes" or "no" and shutting up, rather than explaining something yet again

Book ~ "Before I Forget" (2009) Leonard Pitts Jr.

2009-11-08T23:20:00.001-05:00

From Amazon ~ In a seamless transition to fiction, Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Pitts Jr. delivers an unsettling, compelling first novel about secrets, illness and the role of African-American men in society and family life. His absorbing story centers on unmarried father of one Mo Johnson, a faded 1970s soul star living in Baltimore and diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer's at the age of 49. Overwhelmed with regrets, and unable to confess his diagnosis, he sets out to make things right with two men long absent in his life: his teenage son, Trey, an unwed father facing armed-robbery charges; and his father, Jack, now ravaged by cancer. Mo and Trey take a cross-country road trip to visit Jack in his final days, each character a simmering cauldron of secrets, grief, and recrimination about to boil over. The novel takes readers to rural 1940s Mississippi, South Central L.A. in the swingin' 1950s, and present-day Las Vegas with immersing dialog and vivid, powerful imagery. Bold in spirit and scope, this is a rare, memorable debut that should net Pitts a wide new expanse of fans.

What an excellent story!

I was drawn to Mo's story ... I'm just a couple years younger than him and I can't imagine finding out I had Alzheimer's and didn't have long to live.

There were lots of characters and you get to know the main ones really well and are cheering for them.

I'd never heard of Pitts Jr. ... I came across this book at the library and am glad I did.

I'd definitely recommend it!

Yardwork

2009-11-08T13:11:00.000-05:00

Like last week, there were lots of leaves on the terrace for us to track in.

So I swept again this morning. It was a great day (sunny and 14C) so it was a good excuse to be outside.

Nice and clean once again!

Here is the tree above our terrace where the leaves are coming from ... not too many left. Yay!

Looks like the landscapers came by during the week and took away the leaves that were on property ... I can see the ground again.

Sunday workout

2009-11-08T11:16:00.001-05:00

I went to the gym this morning.

I did a 30 minute boxing workout I have on my iPod.

Then I spent 30 minutes on the stationery bike ("hills" mode) while reading Before I Forget (fabulous book!).

Gord went to a yoga class. As I was heading for home (I had gone over before him), I found them on the patio of the gym stretching in the sun. Considering it was 14C today, it wasn't a bad place to have their class.

Saturday Photo Hunt

2009-11-07T10:24:00.002-05:00

Did you play?

The theme this week is veterans/military.

Gord and I went to the 1812 Great Canadian Victory Party last night.

Here are the guards at the door.

McVeigh's

2009-11-06T23:39:00.001-05:00

After we left the 1812 Great Canadian Victory Party, we had a couple drinks at McVeigh's Irish Pub.

We'd never been there before and it was on our list to check out.

It was quite crowded.

There was a singer.

I didn't catch his name but he was good! He played lots of different stuff ... Celtic, folk, etc. And he invited different people to take the stage including a fella from Japan and a mayor from someplace in Ontario (Sault St. Marie maybe?).