Hollywood

Ok. We've moved. The place is great. The first picture is the a shot of our place. We are in one of the lower units. We are close to a lot of good places. So far we have been to Stout and to Bowery both good beer + food places.



Another great feature of the neighborhood is the drive-thru cigarette stand only a couple of blocks away. I love the large Marlborough Reds replica on the top.



We also have a great view of the Hollywood sign. This picture is not that clear but we're really close. It makes it easy to see home from the highway. Click on it to see full size.

Moving

Moving again in a couple of weeks. This time not so far. We've taken on a short least in Hollywood (near Sunset and Vine). Let's see how this neighborhood plays out. Also, we're saying some money on rent. The place is about the same size as the last. It is a 1+1 bedroom with 1.5 baths. It is in a fourplex with parking. Nothing fancy.

Honeymoon: Riviera Maya

Ahhh. Relaxing. It's nice to do nothing. Now, I know people will tell you that I am expert in this area but lately I've had to do things all the time. By the end of the wedding I was exhausted. Erin was even worse off because she did way more stuff than I. The guys beat me down pretty well in Vegas. So with that we were off to the Riviera Maya for a few days of sun and sleep.

There is not really much to tell. We didn't leave the resort. We had a nap every day before dinner. The place was really nice but not very active probably because it was off season.

Wee saw a monkey!

Wedding

So I guess I am married now.



It was a great day.

Wednesday. Arrived back from Las Vegas with the boys. We mostly kicked up our heels at the apartment and went for a soak in the hot tub.

Thursday. I did some airport shuffles as a lot of out of towners came in this day. The boys and I were able to get together with my brothers and my dad and we all went out for a few (too many) beers downtown before ending up at the Pantry for an amazing breakfast in the wee hours.

Friday. Hurting. I was experience a queer hangover of extreme hunger and no desire to eat. I was also a step slow all day. However, the rehearsal dinner was an absolute success. I managed to pull myself together for it. We had more of a social gather for the two families at Bottlerock with some great food and from what I here was excellent wine - I needed a break.

Saturday. Still feel terrible. I drag myself out to breakfast at Blu cafe with Terrence and Kerrence. I muscled down as much eggs as I could hoping for a miracle. We were about four hours from the ceremony and about 2 hours from activities. When we returned to the apartment the guys went up to the hot tub and I went for a miracle nap. 15 minutes later I was in great shape - a complete turnaround. Whew! The photographer showed up as we began getting ready and then we were off to the Disney Concert Hall for a few early pics then off to Union Station for the rest of the day.

Union Station. Picture, pictures. Help set up and then it's started. Lot's of early arrivals. We had a champagne cocktail hour as erin and i greeted everybody we could. Then it was on with the show. Yada, yada, yada we're married. Dinner, words, music. Time to cut a rug. In a blink it was over. We went back to the Hilton and had some drinks with my dad and siblings. After an exhausting day it was up to the suite and then off to Mexico.

Of course, a good time was had by all.

Las Vegas

So, it's been a while. Let's try to see if I can do a little better.

A week before the wedding the guys, Sean and the Wick came down from Toronto to party in Vegas for a few days. None of us are degenerate gamblers, Sean being the closest, it was just a good place to gather for some fun. I started out picking up Brent at LAX and drove to Las Vegas. Brent and I had huge suite at the Venetian which planned as the gathering place for everybody. We arrived and grabbed what we could out of the car and headed to the check-in counter. There was a huge line so I sent Brent back to the car for the last bag and waited to check in. The last bag was awkward and weighed about 100 pounds - all booze. I was glad I wasn't carrying it. Brent was not.

The room was really swanky with 3 TV's a nice living room and a couple of beds. We sent up the bar and the TV apparatus I brought and made ourselves a couple of frozen margaritas - yes, I brought a frozen margarita maker. Sunday was pretty mellow. We all met up in the evening, went for dinner and played a little blackjack at Harrah's.



Monday was the gong show day. We went to the pool at the Venetian around noon, lounged and had a couple of drinks. The day wore on and the drinks flowed easily, we lost Iain and Brent but the rest of us were on cruise control. Thanks to the Wick for picking up the pool tab which included a couple of orange jump suits seen in the picture. Back to the suite for more drinks. Rocover Iain and Brent. Kerry, The Wick and I take off and visit a couple we meet earlier in the day. They had an even swankier suite 2000 sqft. Terry and the rest of the guys come to meet us an hour later but have the wrong room number. Most of them take off to another bar, Iain heads home. Kerry, The Wick and I head off to Nine Fine Irishmen in NY which was great. The band was great. I averted a brawl by buying a couple of a-holes a round. After the bar closed we realized we were starving so we went for a slice. It was 3AM we had started drinking 15 hours earlier and had only a snack at the pool since. It was time for bed.

Tuesday. I was a tired and hungry when i got up. Brent and I met up with Iain at his hotel and went for the buffet at Treasure Island. We muscled down as much food as we could (not very much for me) and headed over to the slots where we got the idea to walk the entire strip, stop at every casino, throw in $20 each into the slots - Wheel of Fortune only. It took us about 6 hours and we lost heavily. I was wiped by the end of it and didn't do a lot of partying that night.

Wednesday. Departure. More buffet and then off for Los Angeles. We stopped out the outlet at the Neveda border. Big mistake. What I thought might take 30 minutes took about 2 hours - what a bunch of girls. Everybody trickled out to the cars individually. First me, then Kerry, Terry, Brent and Iain. Ughh. We arrived in Los Angeles around 5pm raring to go, more or less.

California Fires

The city is ablaze. There is no danger living downtown but the fires are not that far off either. Our problem is the air quality which is absolutely awful. As well, sometimes the city smells like a campfire which sounds good until you remember what you're breathing in. The view of the fires is in reach as well. On my way home from work last week I could see a huge dark cloud of smoke coming from behind the mountains and what I think was an occasional flash of the fire. On Saturday Erin and I were in Pasadena for a little Pie N' Burger when we took this picture from the car. If you click and open the larger image in the very top left you can see the red of the fire. We had some better views but all while the car was moving so we didn't capture any. Today, downtown is an awful dark gray color.

Seamus 1996 - 2009

Seamus, our much loved family pet, died Saturday from cancer. He suffered little as the end came quickly. Seamus entered our lives as a hyperactive puppy in the winter of 1997. As a puppy, he chewed everything from sandals to baseball caps, an acivity exacerbated by the lack of a steady supply of chew toys. What made him unique was an extremely happy attitude, his boundless energy and his love for snow. He played well with people and dogs and would knock over children in his excitement over seeing someone his own size. He would greet all who arrived with forceful enthusiasm.

One summer weekend, Seamus made his way up to a cottage in Muskoka. I was called up from the water to see if he was alright. Once I got up there I witnessed him running laps, full speed, around the cottage. This lasted for about 20 minutes. He wasn't chasing anything and wasn't being coaxed by anybody. He just loved to run.

On an extremely hot Saturday in Toronto, I took him to a local dog park. It must have been more than 30 degrees. There were probably 20 dogs in the park and he ran to join the fun. Over the course of an hour the other dogs took refuge in the shade and went on home. New dogs arrived. Seamus continued. The new dogs would tire. Seamus continued. Another set of dogs. Seamus stops to throw up from the heat. Then starts to run again immediately. There was no quit in him. People would ask "How old is your puppy?" and I would reply "7 years".

Seamus also liked to wrestle. He was game against Brian or myself. He knew not to bite. Brian taught him that when wearing gloves it was ok to go all out. He would bite and fight as hard as he could but when the gloves came off he would immediately stop.

Seamus had a bit of genius in him too. Once Christmas morning the family was settling around the tree preparing to open the sea of gifts in front of us. All of sudden, Seamus jumped into the gift pile and knocking gifts around. He then jumped out towing a gift bag with his name on it. Who had taught him to read his own name? (Perhaps it was the fragrance of the bone in the bag. Perhaps.)

When I lived with my mother in Toronto I would walk him each morning before work. I would take him to the park and leave him run and sniff. It was exciting for him and very meditative for me. When I moved on, I missed those walks. Today, I miss them even more.

Goooooooaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaal

I went to the Canada v Jamaica soccer game at the Home Depot Center in LA last weekend. Canada won 1 - 0 with a nice goal midway through the second half. The stadium is a great place to watch a game. Smallish and open, great seats and good setup in the concession. If only the people working there had an IQ over 8. The game had a great atmosphere. There were about 50 Canadian fans and maybe 30 Jamaican fans at the game. Thank goodness for the Costa Rica / El Salvador game that was following ours. There were another 50 - 100 Costa Rican fans and about 25,000 El Salvadorian fans there who were ready to cheer for anything exciting while they waited for their match. Lots of tailgating in the parking lots. El Salvador won there game in a big upset too but we didn't stay to watch since I had the bird flu and was a bit cold.

Tragically Hip at the Troubadour

Just got back home from the Tragically Hip concert. Dynamite. The last time I saw them was a few years ago at Fork York with about 14,000 people. Tonight it was me, erin and about 500 more Canadians. The crowd was great. The band was awesome. Downie was on. Even the new stuff sounded good. Highlights were Fiddler's Green, Courage, Poets, Music at Work and Little Bones to finish. Here is a tiny video I shot at the start of the second set. Up later this year we've got Green Day and U2 tickets. We might also look to go to something at the Greek Theatre. Elvis Costello perhaps?

Breakfast in Los Angeles

With the potential that a few visitors from outside of Los Angeles will be descending upon the area to witness the fall nuptials, I thought it might be helpful to give a few recommendations

of interest to travelers. This is the first. Here are my three favorite breakfast places in Los Angeles. These are listed in order but it really depends on the mood or what I feel like and how long I feel like waiting. For example, today's mood is 'Morning Mist' and I skipped breakfast. I should also note that I prefer the traditional breakfast rather than getting too fancy.

1. The Pantry, downtown. This place is an LA instution. (It's old). There will be a line for breakfast and lunch during the week and brunch on weekends. Go for the counter service if you want to get a seat faster. Table wait can be between 10 minutes and an hour depending on how close to prime time you go and how lucky you get. You might get to the counter right away. Food service is fast once you sit down and your meal decision is easy because it's just the basics. The pancakes are a must. They come plain and are really fluffy. It is a full meal. For the hungry and/or hung over go for the eggs, pancakes, potatoes, bacon (always crispy) combo (I think it's #3).


2. The Griddle Cafe, West Hollywood. You go hear for an adventure and are not in a particular hurry to eat. The earlier the better on the wekend. by 11am the line is at least 30 minutes long. Order quickly and then wait as it will take about 40 minutes for them to get your food out if the place is full. They just don't have enough kitchen space so your order is going to be queued. The speciality to here are the crazy pancakes that are crazy big. They have about 20 different types. I've had the pumpkin style, rasperry style and another. I am also interested in trying the Cheesecake pancakes but I haven't had the nerve yet. Prepare to waddle home. The non pancake items are also good and also huge. 


3. The Alcove Cafe, Los Feliz. Ah, something a little different. You shouldn't have much of a problem finding a table here but there's a good crowd. Order at the counter, they give you a number and you find a table outside. The place has a nice laid back atmosphere with lots of foliage and it also has outdoor heaters for the cooler days. The breakfast items are the same traditional items but are prepared with a limit more flair. You will also find some Mexican breakfast plates. It's been a while so I forget what I've eaten here but's all been good. I also saw Ed Helms here - star of 'The Hangover'.

Rocky v. Fountain

New video post of Rocky playing in the fountains is here. It is a part of the 20 minutes he was in the fountain.  Link

Also, new pics of erin and in Central Park during and after our engagement. Link

Earthquake

For the curious, I did feel the earthquake sort of. Actually, it was more like I heard it. There was definitely a rumble in the city but the building didn't budge. I heard it started in Long Beach which is about 25 miles from downtown.

Plans for the wedding are moving forward. I am supposed to make a site for it where you will be able to get even less info then you get here.

How long will the Blue Jays hang on?

Pics From NY

Here are the pics from our NY trip in April. the password is terhorst.

Tragically Hip

The Tragically Hip are coming to LA. I bought tickets last night. They are playing at the Troubadour which holds about 500! I've seen them in front 0f 20,000 before so this should be a little more intimate. About 12 years ago I saw them at the old Ontario Place Forum in front of about 3000 which is the previous smallest crowd. This one is going to be awesome. Who's interested?

PS they owe me for a bad show at Fort York a couple of years ago. Expectations are high.

The Bruce

Went to the Springsteen show a little while ago. Erin and I had general admission seats at the LA Sports Arena. So, the system is come early, get a wrist band with a number on it, one of the numbers is drawn and then that number goes in first - basically getting first crack at the best spot in the pit.

Erin and I got there around 4:30 and had wrist bands #574 and 575. About thirty minutes later they line us up by our number and about an hour later they pick a number. They told us only 600 get into the pit. They drew #2. So we would be nearly the last ones in. At least we weren't the 200 who came early and didn't get in.

The show was fantastic as usual. Tom Morello (Rage Against The Machine, The Night Watchman) played guitar on The Ghost of Tom Joad and was awesome. It was a repeat of the Anaheim show from last year and well worth it. We ended up really close to the stage but not crazy close. Only 4 songs from the new album made it in the set, only 2 of those were good and basically nothing from the last album. Still worth the ticket but I'm going to have a hard time convincing Erin to line up 4 hours early again.

New York

Returned to New York for a birthday weekend and it was a great weekend. After nearing dying on the cab ride to Brooklyn [worst NY cab ride ever and I've been in 2 taxi accidents there], Erin and I rested up before heading out. We were supposed to get some pre-wedding photographys done but it was raining and foggy out so we postponed for a day. We went for lunch at Lenny's, a place very much missed by me and then strolled around for a little while taking in a couple of old neighbourhoods. At the quitting hour we up met with Jibi, Cathy and Christine at the Houndstooth Pub (near Penn Station). We then moved on to Down the Hatch in the West Village to meet up with John and friends. Pitchers of beer were going for $6.50! Off to Rhong-Tiam for thai food. Then to Bua to meet up with some of Erin's friends from NYP. All in all, an excellent night.

On Saturday, we picked up our photo session at the brooklyn bridge and then headed to the seaport. The early pics look great. In the evening we went to dinner with Christine and John in the East Village called Lavagna which was excellent. The place was great and lively. Then to another bar in the East Village and back to Brooklyn to Harry's Pub where we met up with Jason and Katie. Another great night. Happy Birthday to me.

Sunday was lazy for me while Erin met some friends for brunch. My brunch plans fell through with a possibly still hungover Dan. We headed back to LA in the late afternoon.

What a great weekend.


Thanks to Christine & John for hosting us - very much appreciated!

Oct 10

The date is set. October 10 - also Jibi's birthday. It's going to be at Union Station.

In other news:

• We've got a dog. His name is Rocky. Here is a picture.

• We're headed to New York this week. First time back.

• Erin's golf game continues to deprove after a promising start

• Also, it's Colleen's birthday so if you know here send her a happy birthday.
  

New Clubs

I picked a nice set of Burner irons this weekend. Can't wait to hit them. I swung the demo club in the store pretty well. If past history with club upgrades from crummy to good is any indication there should be some modest improvement particularly in being able to hit it straighter. I also got some new golf shoes. Size 10!

Las Vegas

I recently went on a weekend trip to Las Vegas. It was one of erin's friends birthday and she was going to be there so we went to visit. Probably, the most memorable thing about the visit was the smoke. Every casino floor stank like a nightclub of 10 years ago. Not a great all day smell. Thankfully, it wasn't that hot so could get fresh itsead of walking out to 110 degree heat in the summer. Other than that it was a good trip. Lots of cake and what not. There was also some mild losses at the roulette table.

Engagement Party

A good time was had by ALL at the engagement party held for erin and I last week (pics). Champagne and cocktails started it off, followed by a big hunk of meat and a musical chairs 3 course dinner. A little bit of vino helped the talky-talk. I was given about a 5 minute heads up that I had to talk, so that was fun. Kudos to erin's folks for making it all happen. Off to Vegas tomorrow. I've already had to hear erin say 'Vegas baby Vegas'. I was hoping not to have that happen. I am attempting to put a ban on all Swingers references during the trip.

Bruce

Tickets to the Bruce are now mine. I think they are pretty good but the layout for the Sports Coliseum are not that detailed. I had 2 browsers open to speed up the refresh time so I could quickly grab tickets when they became available. I was working off the laptop so I was a bit slower without a mouse. I nabbed a good pair with IE first and then followed with Firefox (just to see how fast they were going). Firefox gave me a section that was not noted on the map. Not sure where they were. I fulfilled the order for the first pair and then tried for another set after. Sold out. Then ticketmaster brought me to a screen saying 'Buy here if sold out'. There were already a lot of seats available at a nicely marked up price - $160 to $960. I'm not sure if this is the best system

That Was a David Bowie Song

The teacher's thing reminded me of an event Erin and I attended. Pershing Square has an ice rink during December and January. Along with it on Friday nights they have a rock and roll show. Since the budget is fairly limited the acts are of varying quality. Erin and I saw one in December that was truely awful. We happened by a couple of weeks to find a David Bowie tribute band. They were very polished so we stayed to watch a bit. I taped a bit of it but Erin's camera ran out of memory or you would have a seen my great lip sync of Under Pressure.

Teacher's March

There was a bit of a hulabaloo outside our apartment today. The teacher's were marching to/around Pershing Square of which we have a partial view. The were quiet noisy. There was a good view from our apartment (look at picture). I guess they are part of the budget crisis in California. The prevailing opinion is that people like the inaction in Sacramento because nobody wants to be affected.

Terminal Part II and Other Stuff

So, I made it back. The story ends with a business class upgrade for unknown reasons. I wonder if someone helped me out a bit. I was thankful for the food and more booze on the plane. Arrived on time and erin picked me up and brought me home.

New Job

So, I've started the new job but I'm on the bench. I asked this week how many techies they have on the bench. It's me and 2 others. So, in the 2 weeks I will have been in the office 3 times I think. I took the train once and drove twice. The rest of the time I work from home. I am brushing up on some things while I wait. I am supposed to work towards taking my java architect certification with Sun.

Driver's Licence

So, California doesn't really recognize my Ontario driver's licence as a resident. Meaning I have to do a written test and driving test which I've done. I got 2 questions wrong on the written test. I didn't know what the legal alcohol limit for driving was. Turns out it's .08 just like everywhere else. Then I did the driving test. Wow, I was brutal. I drove over a double yellow amongst a myriad of errors. Still, I passed. I think it was because I was having a good conversion with the tester. That's the only thing that could have passed me.

Passport

So, my passport is about to expire. When I told erin about the driver's licence photo I took she said I should have grown a moustache for it. Damn it! She was right. I didn't get it on the licence but let's just say the passport photo looks pretty sweet.

The Terminal Part I

I am typing this at the Toronto's Pearson International Airport (YYZ). It is 4:30pm. I have been here since 7:15am.

6:45am wake up and head to airport

7:15am arrive at airport

7:18am help man in front of me get a boarding pass at self serve with moderate success

7:23am my turn. I get my boarding pass and proceed to the line of baggage tags. It is very long. They are calling out flights for the tardy but since mine isn't until 10am I wait in line.

7:45am not sure when i got to the front of the line but when it was awhile. When I do the attendant says I should have got in the incredibly short line for star alliance gold members. I said that would have been helpful if the lady who looked at my boarding pass at the head of the line had told me. Bag tagged, off to customs line.

8:00am I have to walk back because the line for customs stretches beyond the lines for baggage. This is a really, really long line. I explain my need for secondary screening to two attendants while I wait but they don't care. Others get pulled for flights soon to depart. I fill out my customs form and I-94 departure form.

8:44am I reach the customs desk and declare my need for a TN permit. I am sent to secondary screening. The room is pretty much full. I hand my yellow folder to the customs agent and I am fingerprinted and photo is taken. I am told to take a seat.

8:45am I take a seat. Lots of unhappy people waiting here. If I can get through in 45 minutes I can still make the plane.

10:00am Plane gone. My baggage ticket is taken. Me - waiting.

11:15am Get name called by customs. I go to counter and the customs agent tells me to pay the cashier $50 for the permit.

11:22am Cashier arrives. I pay. Cashier tells me Air Canada did not prepare customs for the volume saying that Air Canada supplies the data to customs on passengers so that they can staff their desks appropriately

11:25am Permit granted off to get rebooked. New line! Air Canada has no one rebooking passengers. There are about 25 people in front of me. There are 0 agents helping fix this. I mention this to an Air Canada employee who turns out to be in charge. He says "We are doing are best?" I ask if anybody will attend that counter. He gets snippy and says that normally it is dead at this hour and that the agents are walking people to customs. I am also told that it was customs fault for holding me so long. I decide not to mention US customs point of view (of which I am backing). This turns out to be false as the woman who comes to the counter appears to be coming back from a break, purse in hand.

12:00pm Finally get to counter. Turns out a flight to LA just left at that moment. This isn't my day.

12:15pm. Booked on next available flight - 7:45pm. Originally the agent says standby but her supervisor finds a seat. I give him the thumbs up. I'll take it. I inquire about earlier connecting flights but I am rebuffed. It turns out there are no good ones anyway. Supervisor says "At least you have the lounge". Turns out I flew enough last year for Star Alliance lounge access. A minor uplifting moment in an otherwise soul crushing day.

12:18pm. Send bags to baggage check and go through security.

12:22pm. Star Alliance lounge. Seems nice. I go to Internet to check flights and see only the 7:45pm to LAX for Air Canada. I make calls to my Colleen and erin. Then, it's off for a shower, then to the food station for some soup (soup was good) and some vino. Read paper. Commiserate with customs linemate. Watch "No Country For Old Men".

5:10pm. This is now. Surfing and blogging. A bit tired and bored. Want to get on the plane.

Will I write a part 2? Stay tuned.