Category: Annual report

2019 Annual Report: Body Blows

Dan DickinsonLeave a comment

After the stabilizing year that was 2018, 2019 continued in much the same vein…for the first half, at least. Things got bumpy in July. First Lindsay fell down our stairs and broke her ankle in three places. She spent the next several weeks in bed, while I played caretaker. Around the same time, I was reading texts and emails through sleep-deprived eyes about one of my oldest friends who died suddenly back home, and then about the sudden death of my cousin’s wife. It was a swirling haze for a month or so, followed by Lindsay starting her PhD program and me enduring an insanely busy work period through Thanksgiving and right into December. It’s only recently gotten back to some semblance of normalcy.

We did have to forego two trips — one back home to see family in August, the other a planned weekend trip to Niagara — due to the injury, but managed to fit in some good getaways in the first half of the year, like London for a work conference, a trip to Ottawa to testify before the senate, a drive to Ithaca to check out the Cornell campus, a long weekend in Washington DC built around a speaking gig for Lindsay, a long multi-city trip to Copenhagen, The Hague, and Amsterdam, and a serene & beautiful visit to Tofino and Vancouver. Once Lindsay was recovered enough for me to leave for a few days at a time I did squeeze in quick trips to Ottawa, Vancouver, Montreal for work, and Banff/Calgary for work, before Lindsay’s ankle got good enough to do a long weekend in Chicago and to go home to Nova Scotia at Christmas.

We did plenty back in Toronto too, like a gallery opening, an Anderson .Paak concert, two regular-season Raptors games, an epic Raptors playoff game six against Milwaukee, two TIFF films, a Sasha Velour show at the Danforth, and a Stars concert/play. There were great meals at new places in town too, like Wynona, Kojin, the revamped Carisma, Aloette, and ēst. And we got to hang out with friends a bunch, including Maeg & Britt, two wine tastings with Laura, a long weekend hangout with Lindsay’s brother, a weekend at Mike & Heather’s cottage, drinks with CBJ, dinner at Wynona with CBGB visiting from Ottawa, a meal with our friend Sarah at Ruby Watchco, and a bunch of others I didn’t think to write about. We even got some friend meetup time in Copenhagen with Tess, and with Maeg & Immony in Vancouver.

In between all that fun I observed a few consumption-related switches:

  1. I leaned away from movies (26 this year, way down from 36 last year) in favour of TV (finishing 26 seasons this year, way up from 12 last year);
  2. I’ve cut way back on beer in favour of wine, leading me to sign up for my first (and probably not last) wine course at George Brown;
  3. My reading continues to shift to online & bite-size (still in RSS form, but increasingly podcasts too) as I finished only one book this year versus seven last year;
  4. I am re-discovering my pursuit of music, buying 13 new albums this year vs. 11 last year, with quite a few more to follow based on the backlog in my “to-listen” playlist.

One other big shift: Kramer. Last year he tolerated us but was pretty standoffish and mostly hissed at us. Now he constantly wants to play, and has taken to rubbing affectionately on our legs — especially Lindsay’s. Still no petting per se, but he’s getting some contact, and we can feel his fuzzy little body from time to time, so we’re happy.

So 2019 was a tale of two half-years, more or less, different for reasons almost too numerous to catalog. In the end, though, I remain as lucky and privileged to be writing this I was twelve months ago.

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Annual reports from past years:

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[Cover photo by Dylan Nolte via Unsplash]

Cover photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash

The best of everything from 2019

Dan DickinsonLeave a comment

Another year, another list of the stuff I liked the best. All listed alphabetically, unless otherwise noted.

My favourite albums of 2019

While I’m behind and haven’t yet fully processed the latest releases from Amanda Palmer, Better Oblivion Community Center, Big Brave, Big Thief, Brittany Howard, FKA Twigs, Mark Lanegan, The National, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Pedro The Lion, Tallest Man On Earth, or Wilco, I could still put together a pretty solid list of new albums this year:

Schlagenheim by black midi

This band sounds unlike anything I’ve ever heard, any they look twelve years old. I don’t love all of the songs on this album, but what I love I love, and the rest I can just appreciate.

Destroyer by Black Mountain

Not quite as epic as IV, but as with all of their albums it gets better and better with each listen.

Norman Fucking Rockwell by Lana Del Ray

I was pretty sure I hated Lana Del Ray until I heard this. It’s so catchy and clever.

Are SING SINCK, SING by Kevin Doria & Efrim Menuck

This sounds a lot like Efrim Menuck’s last solo album and all his other work, so it wasn’t a long run for me to like this too.

No Home Record by Kim Gordon

I did not see this coming in Kim Gordon’s solo debut. It’s like someone laid her breathy Sonic Youth vocals laid over heavy trap beats. Actually, that’s exactly what it’s like. It misses almost as often as it hits, but when it hits, it hits big.

All Mirrors by Angel Olsen

An evolutionary step from Olsen’s torch-ish past to sweeping orchestral arrangements and soaring gut-punch vocals. Maybe the best album opener of the year too.

Act Surprised by Sebadoh

A throwback from an old favourite, Sebadoh came in hot with more of the same…and it was as good as always.

The Center Won’t Hold by Sleater-Kinney

Annie’s Clark’s production made this into something entirely unexpected, revealing that all band members are equal but some are more equal than others. It was the band’s biggest departure, and ultimately its undoing. But what a beautiful swan song it was.

Father Of The Bride by Vampire Weekend

Probably the most on-repeat album of 2019 for me, a low-key-romantic concept album with enough catchy hooks for two full releases.

Remind Me Tomorrow by Sharon Van Etten

An evolution like Angel Olsen’s in distance traveled, but unalike in method — this is stripped-down, electronic-tinged rawness.

Honourable mentions: Skylight by Pinegrove; In The Morse Code Of Brakelights by New Pornographers; Patience by Mannequin Pussy.

My favourite songs of 2019

  1. Angel Olsen . “Lark”
  2. Better Oblivion Community Center . “Dylan Thomas”
  3. Big Brave . “Holding Pattern”
  4. Big Thief . “Contact”
  5. black midi . “Western”
  6. Black Mountain . “High Rise”
  7. Bob Mould . “Send Me A Postcard”
  8. Bonnie Prince Billy . “Building A Fire”
  9. Corridor . “Domino”
  10. Jonathan Personne . “Comme Personne”
  11. Kevin Doria & Efrim Menuck . “Do The Police Embrace?”
  12. Kim Gordon . “Hungry Baby”
  13. Lana Del Ray . “Mariners Apartment Complex”
  14. Mannequin Pussy . “Drunk (Part 2)”
  15. New Pornographers . “Colossus Of Rhodes”
  16. Sebadoh . “Fool”
  17. Sharon Van Etten . “Seventeen”
  18. Sleater-Kinney . “The Dog / The Body”
  19. Vampire Weekend . “We Belong Together”
  20. Young Thug . “Sup Mate (feat. future)”

My favourite movies of 2019

Granted, I have not yet seen Us, Knives Out, Parasite, Booksmart, Marriage Story, Dolemite Is My Name, 1917, or Uncut Gems.

Ad Astra

I did myself a disservice watching this on a plane TV, but I still found myself lost in it. I plan to watch it on a bigger screen, but it still warrants inclusion here.

Avengers: Endgame

The big conclusion to the big Marvel franchise was every bit the spectacle promised. Also: Fat Thor.

Deadwood

A welcome return to an old TV favourite. It took me some time to get back into the rhythm of the dialogue, but god it was good to see those characters again.

The Friend

A lot of critics felt it lost the spirit of the original Esquire article from which it sprung, but speaking as someone who was in the debut audience at TIFF, it hit the emotional mark. No dry eyes.

The Irishman

The master. The masters. Avengers assemble, indeed.

John Wick 3: Parabellum

Nothing new or exceptional about this installment in the John Wick series, except maybe the ways in which people die. Still a ridiculously stylish, ridiculously entertaining two hours. I eagerly await #4.

Once Upon A Time In Hollywood

Tarantino flexes his muscle of texture and revisionist-history storytelling (amidst bursts of violence) once again.

Spider-Man: Far From Home

I liked Homecoming plenty, but this might have been even better. I was a fan of the Tobey Maguire version, but this is shaping up to be my favourite Spider-Man incarnation.

Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker

Not a critical favourite, and maybe one of the weakest of the back-six Star Wars films, but on sheer emotion alone, this lifelong fan rates it highly.

They Shall Not Grow Old

A stunning re-visualization of old WWI footage, first shown on the 100th anniversary of the end of the war but released widely this year, brought new life to an old story that must be understand anew.

My favourite TV shows of 2019

I still haven’t seen the latest seasons of Mr. Robot, The Man In The High Castle, Black Mirror, Barry, The Deuce, or The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, but with that said, here’s the best of what I did watch:

Big Mouth

On a matrix with sweetness on one axis and profanity in the other, Big Mouth is in the top right corner. And one of the funniest — probably produces more LOLs per minute than any other.

Chernobyl

Terrifying, gripping, enthralling, crazily true to reality. Maybe my favourite thing on TV this year.

The Good Place

As it heads toward its finale in 2020, this remains a cute, smart delight.

Killing Eve

Season two wasn’t quite as wonderful as season one, but it was still a treat. The two leads are just magical.

Last Week Tonight

Still, and always, the smartest and funniest show of its kind on TV right now.

Mindhunter

The yellowcake face makeup was entirely unnerving, but it didn’t change the texture, tension, or intrigue.

Russian Doll

From out of nowhere came this dark looping fiesta of weirdness, Natasha Lyonne’s charm, and perfect supporting characters.

Silicon Valley

Maybe a nostalgic entrant in the top ten as the final season wasn’t the strongest, but still — what a series.

Watchmen

I didn’t read the graphic novel. I did see the bad movie. This new show — set in an alternative current-day timeline and tackling white supremacy head-on — had me hooked.

When They See Us

I vaguely remember this story being in the news when I was a kid, but Ava DuVernay’s masterful telling of the Central Park Five’s story was intense and infuriating and heartbreaking.

Honourable mentions: True Detective; Stranger Things.

My favourite books of 2019

Embarrassingly, I read only one new book all year. I mean, I probably over-counted last year’s total in that I hadn’t finished the Michael Lewis book at the end of the year, so I could claim that one. But whatever. Life was busy and most of my reading is on screen, not paper.

Banker Builder Blockade Runner by Pat Lotz

This story of early Halifax and the Bank of Nova Scotia’s very first cashier, from a little independent NS press, was peak home province for me this year.

My favourite podcasts of 2019

99% Invisible

Come for the engaging, enlightening stories about design and architecture. Stay for Roman Mars’ voice.

Against The Rules

Michael Lewis’ podcast about the role of the referee in today’s society. Not just sports (though the series does start with a discussion about NBA referees) but language, law, and so on.

The Anthropocene Reviewed

In which author John Green reviews two things specifically related to our human-shaped epoch per episode and rates them, Amazon-like, on a scale of 1 to 5. Example episodes: “Teddy Bears + Penalty Shootouts”; “Tetris + Seed Potatoes Of Leningrad”; “Hawaiian Pizza + Viral Meningitis”.

The Office Ladies

Jenna Fischer and Angela Kinsey bring their goofily adorable friendship to a podcast with behind-the-scenes looks at each individual episode of the American Office series.

Oppo

My favourite Canadian politics podcast featured a foul-mouthed gay liberal journalist from Nova Scotia and a foul-mouthed pregnant conservative journalist from Alberta. Sadly Justin Ling is leaving the podcast so I’m not sure where it’ll go in 2020, but it sure was fun up ’til now.

Passenger List

A narrative podcast featuring Kelly Marie Tran which does an amazing amount of storytelling with script and soundtrack alone.

Reveal

Consistently my favourite investigative journalism podcast.

Revisionist History

As much as I poke at Malcolm Gladwell’s writing, this podcast remains one of the more entertaining things on my phone.

Slow Burn

The first two seasons (about the downfall of Richard Nixon and impeachment of Bill Clinton) were fantastic and instructive, but the third season took a left turn and told the story of Biggie Smalls and Tupac Shakur. Very different, but extremely interesting.

This American Life

Always, probably.

My favourite meals of 2019

In chronological order.

Hawksmoor, London

I’ve been to most of this London restaurant’s outposts now (two on this trip alone!) but this might have been my favourite, a solo climb up the face of a 14oz ribeye.

A Rake’s Progress, Washington, DC

Lindsay and I went to this restaurant in our DC hotel with her friend Shannon, and it killed. Food aside, our server was some sort of angelic being sent to help us eat.

Kojin, Toronto

There’s a reason Toronto Life rated this their favourite new restaurant in the city last year. It lived up to the hype: the steak was phenomenal, but the griddled corn flatbread floored us.

The Pointe, Tofino

I could point (get it?) to any one of many meals we ate at this restaurant in The Wick during our stay, but the one that stands out is the tasting menu on our final night.

Black + Blue Steakhouse, Vancouver

We were aiming for a simple meal but it turned out to be a pretty involved dinner with a mind-blowing Wagyu and a lobster pasta intermezzo just for shits and giggles.

Le Club Chasse et Peche, Montreal

I suggested this place for a group dinner in Montreal, and everyone now thinks I’m some kind of foodie savant.

Smyth, Chicago

This 2 Michelin star destination was impressive in every way. Almost overwhelmingly so, frankly, but definitely the kind of creative meal we won’t soon forget.

Cherry Circle Room, Chicago

Back in our Chicago hotel we had our second big meal in two nights, in a very cool room, with very cool cocktails, and very delicious food.

Est, Toronto

This place had been open down the street from us for a few months before we finally popped in. The tasting menu didn’t have a single weak point, and once again, a flatbread (bannock, this time) might have stolen the show.

The Ostrich Club, Halifax

An impromptu dinner out with the brother, at a place I’d never heard of in the Hydrostone. It ended up being fantastic. I even got to try a wine varietal I’d never heard of — Petite Arvine.

My favourite (new) beer of 2019

Listed in chronological order. I admit, my beer intake is falling off sharply as I prioritize wine more and more. I should probably have a favourite wine of the year list, but haven’t yet found a reasonable way to track + rate everything I consume. (I’m not sure such a beast even exists.)

Fairweather Brewing Beki

Eastbound always brings in guest taps, often sours, and this was the best of the lot.

Dark Revolution Black Magic + The Wild Beer Co Millionaire

Two absolutely standout stouts at a newish beer joint in London

Aslin Beer Company Sorbet

On a drop-in trip to The Partisan in Washington DC I had this milkshake IPA for lunch. Not normally the style that would show up on my best of the year list, but this one nailed it.

De Struise Black Damnation XXVI / Froggie

The next day I was back at The Partisan and had this insanely dark, heavy Russian Imperial stout. It took me about an hour to drink.

Mikkeller Recipe 1000 (Chardonnay)

A bottle of strong ale aged in Chardonnay barrels, shared with Lindsay and Tess at Mikkeller’s Øl & Brød restaurant in Copenhagen.

Bokke Vlierbloesem (2017)

A rare, special bottle of (unofficial) Lambic, again shared with Lindsay and Tess in Copenhagen.

BrewDog Abstrakt AB:20

An insanely strong, flavourful, barleywine we shared at BEER loves FOOD in Amsterdam

Rainhard Brewing Dark Fire

Part of the reason I love working at Boxcar Social is the random beers on their list, like this stellar stout.

Blood Brothers Captain Howdy

This was another crazily intense imperial stout that got better with a bit of age.

My favourite moments of 2019

  1. Finding a quiet little London wine bar for lunch in between conference sessions
  2. Appearing before the Canadian Senate
  3. Hanging out in the gorgeous Uris library at Cornell
  4. Shit-talking Malcolm Gladwell while he walked right behind us in Washington DC
  5. Sharing a bottle of Bokkeryeder with Lindsay & Tess in Copenhagen
  6. Watching the Raptors come back to win game six against Milwaukee, to reach the NBA finals for the first time
  7. Sitting in Riverdale Park on a perfect sunny day, eating a picnic and drinking beer with Lindsay’s brother
  8. Watching Anderson .Paak at Echo Beach just as a crazy fog bank roll in
  9. Watching the Raptors win their first NBA title
  10. Walking on the beach at the Wickaninnish Inn in Tofino
  11. Seeing grey whales, sea lions, otters, harbour porpoises, and a bald eagle in one afternoon in Tofino
  12. Enjoying the peace and reuniting with an old friend at Mike & Heather’s cottage
  13. The first time Kramer rubbed against my bare legs
  14. Tasting verticals of Hidden Bench reds with Laura
  15. An ever-so-brief lunch amidst the mountains afforded by a quick work trip to Banff
  16. Drinking vintage champagne and eating French fries in the middle of an afternoon in Chicago
  17. The first time I nailed the tasting portion of my intro wine course exams
  18. When Sasha Velour hand-jived to a Le Tigre song at the Danforth
  19. Semi-awkward musical confession time with Stars at the Crows theatre
  20. Singing a bunch of 80s songs (for some godforsaken reason) along with my brothers and their partners at the farm at Christmas time

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[Cover photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash]

2018 Annual Report: Stabilization

Dan Dickinson1 Comment

If 2016 was about chaos, and 2017 about the resulting fallout, then 2018 was more or less about the return to normalcy — whatever that means — and stability. No divorce proceedings. No moving house. No family members undergoing chemo. No new work challenges. OK, kidding, there were definitely those, but the expansion of my role was less dramatic than in the year before.

Now, 18 months into living in my loft, it feels like home. We’ve sunk more roots too: Lindsay more or less moved in last year; after a 4-month stint back in Montreal earlier this year, she moved to Toronto for good in June. We renovated the kitchen and bathroom. And we adopted a cat: Kramer. He’s a rescued feral cat, so he’s not exactly snuggly (read: we can’t touch him and he mostly just hisses at us) but we love him and we think he’s starting to like us too.

In between all the work we did find time to actually enjoy the loft, watching movies (36, up slightly from 34 last year) and TV shows (finishing 12 seasons this year), listening to music (11 new albums purchased this year, down from 13 last year), and reading books (7 this year, way up from 3 last year). I consumed more than media though; the weight gain continued unabated.

Outside of the loft but around Toronto, we did lots this year, like a couple of Raptors games, Torquil Campbell’s one-man play True Crime, a talk Lindsay gave at 401 Richmond, a Frightened Rabbit concert, Waxahatchee & Hurray For The Riff Raff at The Opera House, a Fran Lebovitz talk, a St. Vincent concert, a Godspeed You! Black Emperor concert, a cheese & beer tasting at Rorschach (where I met Nils from the Rural Alberta Advantage), a Beach House concert, a couple of TIFF films, Gertude & Alice at Buddies In Bad Times theatre, and a poetry reading (where I met a member of The Constantines).

We hung out with friends a bunch too, like Bina, Andrea, Sue, Tess & Kealin, Shannon, Mike & Heather, Joe & Sheila, Andrea again, Brock + Margaret, Amy, Shannon again, a bunch of people at Lob, Mike & Heather again, a 90s-themed party, and a bunch of others I probably didn’t blog about. We also had quick family visits from Tim (twice) and Mom.

I/we hit a few new restaurants around town too, like The Civic, The Hot Stove Club, Gare de L’Est, Yeah Yeahs, Birreira Volo (finally!), Bar Hop Danforth, Cider House, Le Select, Frankie’s Italian, Rorschach, Maple Leaf Tavern, East 36, Lena, Harbour 60, Katana on Bay, M’Eat, and Brassaii.

I/we only got out of Toronto to see the rest of Ontario a few times this year: dinner at Brian & Mandy’s place in NotL with Brock & Margaret, a quick down-and-back Niagara winery swing in August, and Ottawa for work (but with a quick side visit to CBGB’s place) in December.

I/we hit two other parts of Canada with regularity this year: Montreal (visiting four times for fun and two times for work) and Nova Scotia (once for a birthday/going away party and memorial for my aunt Anne, who passed away; once for a wedding; once for my parents’ 50th wedding anniversary; and once over the Christmas holidays).

As is often the case, many of our highlights came while abroad. After a couple of quick work trips to Miami and Orlando (frankly, I’d spent my life trying to avoid Florida, and here I was visiting twice in two weeks) we book-ended several days of fun around a spring work trip to Dublin, and spent a slightly-truncated week in Amsterdam and Sweden in the fall. In between those two I had another work trip in San Francisco, where I managed to squeeze in a bit of fun. (Read: beer & steak.)

So that’s 2018 in a nutshell: the velocity hasn’t slowed, but there are fewer speed wobbles. For that, and for a hundred other things — a healthy family, a brilliant partner who loves me, a job I might have custom-designed for myself, a beautiful home in a safe and growing city, friends forgiving of my schedule and inattention — I remain incredibly grateful.

Cover photo by David Stillman, used under Creative Commons license

The best of everything from 2018

Dan DickinsonLeave a comment

As is my annual wont, I’ve collected and curated lists of my favourite consumed media from the year. All listed alphabetically, unless otherwise specified.

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My favourite albums of 2018

Freedom by Amen Dunes

I guess I’ve been out of the loop by not listening to (or being aware of) Amen Dunes before, but this album grabbed me and kept twisting all year. Sounds desperate and struggle-y but joyful and determined at the same time.

7 by Beach House

Nothing new from Beach House here, but a standard-issue Beach House album is still miles better than almost everything else.

God’s Favorite Customer by Father John Misty

I’ve always been hit and miss(ty) with FJM, with the last album a few years ago only offering up a couple of songs I liked, but this one went a little beyond that and kept luring me back.

Nearer My God by Foxing

I went from feeling like I should like Foxing’s last album and not, to assuming I wouldn’t like this one but then totally getting into it.

With Animals by Duke Garwood & Mark Lanegan

I remain a sucker for Mark Lanegan’s voice no matter what he does (he also guested on Neko Case’s album below) but this dark, brooding, electronic-tinged collection des dirges became my go-to focus/chill music this year.

Pissing Stars by Efrim Manuel Menuck

Speaking of electronic-tinged, this dronier, lighter (in musician count, if not in subject matter) offering from the Godspeed You! Black Emperor member swings from soft to intense to nuts in the space of a song.

Kin by Mogwai

Because I’m Dan and this was Mogwai.

I’m Bad Now by Nap Eyes

Probably less catchy than their sophomore album, but also more mature. They continue to blend elements of bands I don’t really like into something I love.

Hell-On by Neko Case

Neko Case, goddamn hero. Putting out an album after all the personal trauma she went through is remarkable; that it’s this good is amazing. Or maybe that’s what made it possible? Either way, the chorus of “Winnie” might be the most thrilling few seconds of any album this year.

Messeducation by St. Vincent

When you’re an Annie Clark-level genius you can take one of the best rock albums of last year and turn it into an album of stripped-down piano renditions that often sound like they’re sung by an unstable cabaret singer, giving it this whole other layer of broken-down, surging fragility that maybe only her voice could manage.

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My favourite songs of 2018

  1. Amen Dunes . “Miki Dora”
  2. Beach House . “Pay No Mind”
  3. Boy Genius . “Souvenir”
  4. Car Seat Headrest . “Famous Prophets (Stars)”
  5. Neko Case . “Winnie”
  6. Father John Misty . “Mr. Tillman”
  7. Foxing . “Lich Prince”
  8. Duke Garwood & Mark Lanegan . “L.A. Blue”
  9. Albert Hammond Jr . “Dvsl”
  10. Laura Jean . “Girls On The TV”
  11. Efrim Menuck . “A Lamb In The Land Of Payday Loans”
  12. Mitski . “Washing Machine Heart”
  13. Mogwai . “Donuts”
  14. Nap Eyes . “White Disciple”
  15. Parquet Courts . “Total Football”
  16. Pusha T . “If You Know You Know”
  17. Saba . “BUSY / SIRENS”
  18. St. Vincent . “Pills (Piano version)”
  19. US Girls . “Incidental Boogie”
  20. Young Fathers . “Turn”

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My favourite movies of 2018

I have all but abandoned my film obsession of past years, and as such can only offer the following nine films (versus my usual ten) which I would even consider for barely scraped together a best-of list. Note that I haven’t yet seen The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, BlacKkKlansman, The Death of Stalin, A Fantastic Woman, Free Solo, The Hate U Give, Hereditary, If Beale Street Could Talk, Isle of Dogs, Mission: Impossible – Fallout, A Quiet Place, Roma, Shirkers, Sorry to Bother You, A Star Is Born, Three Identical Strangers, or a host of others.

22 July

I’m a sucker for Paul Greengrass’ style and have always admired how he handles volatile topics, but I still wasn’t sure how this one — about the slaughter of dozens of kids in Norway by a right-wing nutter a few years ago — would come off. I needn’t have worried though.

Avengers: Infinity War

It’s difficult to thread together story lines and characters from a dozen different superhero movies into a coherent, entertaining flick, but the Russo Brothers did it again. Even if it did take 2.5 hours.

Black Mirror: Bandersnatch

Almost as much gimmick as movie — choose-your-own-adventure is something Netflix can entertain where others can’t — but it works within the frame of Black Mirror’s underlying thread of technological dread. Great soundtrack too.

Black Panther

The hype was real. A vehicle for propelling ahead the MCU, but also a visually striking and clever extravaganza.

Call Me By Your Name

Such a lush, emotional, honest love story. It left Lindsay and I both very tingly afterward. It also made me want to move to Italy immediately.

First Man

A straight procedural with an ending we all know — Neil Armstrong, first man on the moon — that was somehow riveting, thrusting us right into these claustrophobic and disorienting compartments. Damien Chazelle is quickly becoming one of my favourite directors.

Girl

Our favourite film by far at this year’s TIFF, Girl was an intense examination of puberty, transition, and obsession. It was also a masterclass in performance by a first-time actor.

I, Tonya

Last year we watched an HBO miniseries that made us feel sorry for the Unabomber. This year we watched a movie that made us feel sad for Tonya Harding. Really good use of the present-day interview method, and some absolutely staggering performances from Margot Robbie and especially Allison Janney.

The Kindergarten Teacher

Still on the topic of obsession, Maggie Gyllenhaal nailed it in this small, quiet film about a teacher fascinated by the innate talent of a student, with threads of regret, maternalism, and ennui running throughout.

The Post

Again, no surprises with the story here, but gets bonus points for being extra-relevant in a time when the press is under direct attack by the sort of politicians who recognize it as a potent defense against totalitarianism.

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My favourite TV shows of 2018

Granted, we haven’t watched The Deuce season 2, Handmaids Tale season 2, or Mr. Robot season 3, nor any of Atlanta, Sharp Objects, Better Call Saul, or The Americans, and we barely started Barry.

Big Mouth

Maybe the best analysis of puberty, combined with the most LOL-worthy moments of any show I watched this year. Very extreme at times, but always kind of sweet and silly in the end.

Billions

Pulpy and over the top, but the pivot into an attack on Trump-style capitalism and cronyism is an interesting one. And anything with that cast, pulpy or otherwise, is worth watching.

The Good Place

Cleverly hilarious, but also a thoughtful examination of philosophy, humanity, good vs. evil, merit, attraction, the idea of soulmates, Ted Danson dancing, and Janets.

Homecoming

We watched the first four episodes of this at TIFF and got hooked on the story and Sam Esmail’s style. (So many staircases!) We signed up for Amazon Prime largely so we could finish watching the season when it came out.

Killing Eve

We just started watching this while on Christmas vacation. The characters, the dialog, the fashion, the style, the locales…we were captivated right from the get-go. Sandra Oh’s a national treasure.

Last Week Tonight

Consistently the funniest and most insightful show on TV.

Making A Murderer

Somehow I was just as sucked into season two as season one, even though nothing really happened. I figure it was force-of-nature Kathleen Zellner.

Silicon Valley

Still and always, a bundle of huge, uncomfortable laughs mixed in with tech/business stuff that hits a little too close to home sometimes. Jared is straight-up one of my favourite characters on television.

Wild Wild Country

An absolutely bonkers tale of a cult taking over a mass of land in Oregon, the townspeople who fight back (but who don’t come off nearly as well as they think they do) and a power-hungry second-in-command who sends the whole thing spinning off the rails. High, weird drama.

Wormwood

An blend of documentary and recreation of events stemming from CIA experiments with LSD in the 1950s. I don’t usually love it when shows blend the two styles but it worked here. Technically this aired in December last year but I didn’t see it until 2018, so.

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My favourite books of 2018

I definitely did better this year, reading seven books, vs. three last year (and none at all the year before). Listed in the order in which I read them.

Krakatoa: The Day The World Exploded by Simon Winchester

I’ve had a lifelong curiosity about massive disasters, so I picked this up at a used bookstore in Halifax last Christmas and read it in January. Can’t say it was a masterpiece but I learned a lot.

On Tyranny by Timothy Snyder

An impulse buy from Book City, I read this on one trip to Ottawa and back and felt better-armed for having done. It’s helpful and instructive to recognize the warning signs of encroaching tyranny — it’s not some well-marked monolith that appears suddenly — in these times. I’ve read too much about the rise of fascism in the 1930s to feel at ease right now.

October by China Miéville

It took me over a year to read this — I kept pausing to read other books — as it’s so dense, despite Miéville’s narrative skill. I can say this: it’s as gripping as the tale of ten months of hundred-year-old Russian political intrigue can be made to be.

Disrupted by Dan Lyons

The story of a late-career writer who got wrapped up in the latest tech boom (and called bullshit on the whole thing) this book reminded me of my own experience — albeit as a much younger employee — in the dot-com boom 18 years ago.

Child Of God by Cormac McCarthy

God, Cormac MCarthy books are bleak. But God, do I ever love them.

Around The World In 80 Wines by Mike Veseth

This was a gift from Lindsay that made me want to quit my job and become a wine + travel writer. I learned a bunch too, like why a lot of famous Port producers have British names.

The Fifth Risk by Michael Lewis

Any Americans who are actually concerned about the safety, soundness, and good functioning of their country and government shouldn’t read this book. Or, you know, maybe they should.

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My favourite meals of 2018

Man, we ate well this year, but surprisingly more so abroad than in Toronto.

Toqué, Montreal

One of the best tasting menus I’ve ever experienced, and maybe the best wine pairings too — there’s a reason why Toqué is one of the best restaurants in Canada.

Taste at Rustic, Dublin

One of a pile of amazing meals we had in Dublin, this Japanese-influenced place followed a visit to a lovely wine bar, and came out of nowhere with sticky pork and chicken karage and Wagyu beef and the like. There was also a cocktail called the Three Sisters so good I ordered it twice.

Chapter One, Dublin

We ducked into this Michelin-starred restaurant for lunch, and had one of the meals of our lives. The food was stellar, the wine pairings immaculate, and the service impeccable to the point of being absurd.

Maison Publique, Montreal

In what was effectively our goodbye to Montreal and Lindsay’s old neighbourhood, we made our final trip to this favourite restaurant. They sent us off with a bang, top bottles of Canadian wine, and ice cream with sparklers.

Alexander, San Francisco

After a conference in San Francisco I had a solo meal at the chef’s bar at Alexander’s in San Francisco. The kitchen kept sending over fun little treats like Hamachi and scallop crudo, the steak was phenomenal, and the Sommelier led me down more than a few intriguing paths.

Treadwell, Niagara on the Lake

On a quick jaunt down to Niagara I introduced Lindsay to this place, my favourite in the town. It was a spectacular meal; we had such trouble deciding between dishes we ordered extras, and my pork dish was mind-blowing.

M’eat, Toronto

A new addition to our neighbourhood this year, this place uses an entire animal at a time. They also, we learned on our first visit, prepare it perfectly: our steak was outrageous. So were the duck tataki, beef carpaccio, venison tartare…and on it went.

Taiko, Amsterdam

We spent a good chunk of our brief time in Amsterdam this year at this long, luxurious, Asian-inspired meal. There was a dish called a cappuccino of cepes (aka porcini mushrooms) that was absolutely otherworldly.

Ekstedt, Stockholm

The first Michelin-starred stop on our Scandinavian trip started with diced reindeer heart boiled in just-melted butter and poured into a taco, and it only got better from there. The hay-flamed beef was one of the best bites of anything I’ve ever had. All the wines were impeccable. Astonishing.

SK Mat, Gothenburg

After traveling west to Gothenburg we had a full eight-course tasting menu for Lindsay’s birthday, along with her dear friend Tess, at another Michelin-starred joint. We had the premium wine pairings too, obviously, so by the end of the meal things were a bit hazy, but I remember a particularly good Grenache Blanc.

Honourable mentions: a visit to Jacobs & Co. where I tried a 1929 Don PX; 400 Coups in Montreal where our adventurous wine orders led to the sommelier pouring us several bizarre digestifs; our second-to-last visit to Maison Publique in Montreal with Sara & Mark; an unreal breakfast at Meet Me In The Morning in Dublin; and Lindsay’s first visit to Patria.

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My favourite (new) beer of 2018

Listed in chronological order. To the great surprise of no one who knows me, my list was dominated by sours, porters, and stouts.

Le Trou du Diable Le Coq

Boxcar Social’s bottle list is always good for a few finds, and I’d somehow never tried this TDD sour before. Among all the other great beers we tried that night, this one stood out.

Burdock Auko

Lake Inez’s bottle list is similarly impressive, and this sour aged in cab franc barrels blew us away during an equally impressive LI meal, offsetting the spicy dishes perfectly.

Dieu du Ciel Péché Termopilas

As with last year, one of the best beers I drank all year came from a little grocery store in Montreal, in the annual Péché Mortel variety pack. This was like a lighter, more subtle version of the standard Péché, and almost as perfect.

Thornbridge Brewery Cocoa Wonderland

I tried this near-perfect porter whilst sitting in a little booth at Against The Grain in Dublin, noshing and playing board games with Lindsay after a museum adventure.

Oast House Toasted Walnut Bourbon Porter

I’ve always had a fondness for Oast House’s browns and porters, but this one was killer. The toastiness tamped down the bitterness of the walnuts which usually turns me off, and the bourbon barrels did the rest.

Blood Brothers Black Hand

I was kind of surprised I’d ever had this one before given how much I love Blood Brothers, but I guess maybe I’d tried all their other stouts while somehow missing this one? Regardless, this one’s an amazing example of a simple yet well-executed stout.

Rodenbach Caractère Rouge

Back on the topic of amazing bottle lists, we have The Wren and their deep, wide list. Lindsay and I often share bottles so we can sample more, and one of the best of the year was this special variant of her favourite, Rodenbach.

Gueuzerie Tilquin Stout Rullquin

And now, the ultimate beer list: at Akkurat in Stockholm they have a bottle list the size of a phone book. We delved deeply, and found an aged vintage of the original Gueuze Tilquin, but because it’s been one of my favourite beers for many years, I didn’t include it here. But almost as good was this sour stout collaboration between Tilquin and La Rulle.

AleSmith Hawaiian Speedway

Having travelled across Sweden to Gothenburg, we found ourselves at a cool little spot eating delicious doughy pizzas and picking beers off what might have been the best pound-for-pound draft list I’ve ever seen. This tropical stout was just the best of an amazing lineup I sampled over two days.

Four Winds Pomona

The list ends where the list began: the Boxcar Social Summerhill bottle list. Lindsay and I grabbed this big bottle of sour while we waited for some Yeah Yeahs pizza to come sliding through the wall. It was gorgeous.

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My favourite moments of 2018

  1. Seeing Frightened Rabbit with Mike & Heather on their 10th anniversary tour of The Midnight Organ Fight. Just months, it turns out, before singer Scott Hutchinson took his own life.
  2. Yelling “Pa’lante!” along with Hurray For The Riff Raff at the Opera House.
  3. Short rib and well-aged Ontario reds at Brian & Mandy’s place in Niagara.
  4. Celebrating my brother’s upcoming career move with Dom Perignon.
  5. Watching a play written, directed, and performed by women in Dublin the night before Ireland voted yes.
  6. Lying in the grass in St. Stephen’s Green with Lindsay on a perfect day.
  7. Walking the beach in Pugwash after T&K’s wedding, not knowing how badly my face was getting sunburned.
  8. Dinner with my mom and a bunch of extended family during a quick visit to Toronto.
  9. Celebrating my mom & dad’s 50th wedding anniversary at the farm, surrounded by friends & family.
  10. The day my contractor told me he was done renovating the kitchen and bathroom.
  11. Tasting whisky and artisanal chocolate outside on a patio at SF MOMA.
  12. Having my ass kicked by St. Vincent at the Sony Centre.
  13. Seeing GY!BE play the “Sad Mafioso” portion of “East Hastings” live at The Phoenix.
  14. Meeting Nils Edenloff from the Rural Alberta Advantage at a cheese & beer tasting.
  15. Slipping into a Beach House trance at the Sony Centre.
  16. Lunch on the patio at Two Sisters in Niagara on the Lake, the perfect remedy after a stressful drive.
  17. The day Kramer first came up the stairs to hang out with us.
  18. Every moment we spent in our suite at the Conservatorium hotel in Amsterdam.
  19. Lindsay, Tess, and I devouring Bubbies (mochi ice cream treats) in a loft in Gothenburg.
  20. Meeting a Constantine at a friend’s poetry reading.

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Cover photo by David Stillman, used under Creative Commons license

Cover photo by Thomas Hawk, used under Creative Commons license

2017 Annual Report: Fallout

Dan DickinsonLeave a comment

This write-up last year was about two big, seismic events: a hugely successful work launch in January, and my separation later in the year. There was a third event that came up so late in the year — on the day I was writing the blog post, in fact — that I couldn’t even process it. On December 28th last year my mother was diagnosed with cancer.

2017 was the year of dealing with the fallout — both good and bad — from those three events.

First, the success at work in 2016 translated into a bigger role early in 2017. It came with a pretty taxing workload, but I asked for it. Work continues to be one of the most interesting and exciting parts of my life, so too much of it is a good problem to have.

Second, the process of my separation continued, and added stress through most of the first half of the year. It involved many more lawyers and calculations than anyone could want, often right in the middle of work- and mom-related stress. It necessitated selling the condo and buying a new one, and all the pain in the ass that comes with moving, but I sold the condo at the perfect (read: craziest) time and I ended up in a real loft in a very cool new neighbourhood, where Lindsay and I live happily (when she’s not in Montreal). I’m glad the separation headache is over though.

Third, and dwarfing all that, was my mom’s fight with cancer. Luckily her health care was superb — she started treatment the same day she was diagnosed, and underwent chemotherapy and stem cell transplant procedures — and after pushing through all of that like a fucking warrior, she got news in early December that her cancer was in full remission. She’s not cured — her form of cancer can’t be cured — but it’s as good a result as can be imagined, and when I saw her this past week she was better than I’d seen her in eighteen months. Whatever else I did this year, whatever minor headaches I endured, all of the bad paled in comparison to what she went through, and none of the good could compare to when we got the news she was in remission.

So yeah, it was a challenging year. Especially the spring. I can look back at it now and say it was probably the busiest, and most stressed, I’ve ever been.

Still, I did all the usual stuff. I watched movies (34, down big from 47 the year before, probably because there was so much good TV to watch), bought new music (only 13 albums, way down from 20 the year before), and read a couple of books (2, versus three the year before). My weight went back up quite a bit, largely because I went back to working crazy hours which made it hard to eat right, but still not back to where it was a few years ago.

I did manage to escape work long enough to do a bunch of cool stuff around Toronto, like a round-the-world whisky tasting at Boxcar Social, a Le Vieux Pin wine club dinner at Canoe with T-Bone, a Japandroids concert, lots of exploration around my new neighbourhood, Bread & Circus at Inter/Access, visiting the Aquarium, seeing my friend perform at Comedy Kapow, a Raptors playoff game, the Session craft beer festival, the Vector festival, Chardonnay League at Skin+Bones, TIFF, a Stars concert, two exhibitions at 8eleven gallery, a Mogwai concert, and a Rural Alberta Advantage concert.

One of my favourite parts about the new neighbourhood was getting to visit all the brand new breweries in the east end, like Eastbound, Radical Road, Godspeed, and Saulter Street. I still haven’t tried Rorschach, and with Left Field already there I’m psyched about the east end becoming like the Junction was a few years back. There were also a ton of new restaurants to explore in the new neighbourhood, like Kaboom, Peasant Table, White Lily, Bonjour Brioche, Skin + Bones, Ascari Enoteca, Mean Bao, Tabule, Double D’s, Caribbean Sunset, the Broadview Hotel, and Lake Inez.

Obviously I tried new places elsewhere in Toronto as well, like La Carnita (the one on John Street, which we tried before the Riverside location became a mainstay), County General, Daisho, Actinolite, Gusto 101, Cherry Street BBQ, OMAW, King Taps, Grey Gardens, Ardo, Khao San Road, and Union.

We also got out of Toronto a few times this year, to Niagara, Prince Edward County, Hockley Valley, Niagara again for Pearl-Morissette‘s 10th anniversary, and Burlington.

We also got to hang out with friends & family a fair amount, like beers with CBJ+M at Monk’s Table, with Lindsay’s friends at Sin & Redemption and Museum Tavern, a brief visit from brother #1, a longer visit from brother #2 and his lovely wife, a quarter-centennial party with Lindsay’s friends, a beautiful dinner with MLK, a boozy hangout with Mike & Heather, a visit from Lindsay’s mom, and of course lots of family time at Christmas.

Throughout the year I managed to go further afield for work (London/Stockholm/Munich, Montreal, Philadelphia, and Ottawa), and both of us got away for fun (Nova Scotia, France, Nova Scotia again at Christmas), as well as for work and fun (Lisbon). I also got to Montreal to visit Lindsay four times, in January, February, March, and April.

So yeah, the year started in a rough way, and got more and more brutal as it went on, but ultimately the fallout was that which I asked for, or which only affected me indirectly, so compared to the years that others have had to face, I really can’t complain. And now, at the end of the year I can look at my life and say that I have a great new job, I have a cool loft in a cool neighbourhood, I’m in love, and my mom beat cancer. I guess fallout makes you stronger if you can hang in there.

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Cover photo by Thomas Hawk, used under Creative Commons license

Cover photo by David Stillman, used under Creative Commons license

The best of everything from 2017

Dan DickinsonLeave a comment

An annual tradition, in which I dump out my categorized & ranked consumption for all to see. Everything’s listed alphabetically unless otherwise noted.

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My favourite albums of 2017

Turn Out The Lights by Julien Baker

Even if it wasn’t quite as powerful as her first album – so much of that power came from how stark it was, whereas this has undergone more/slicker production – it’s still more intense and beautiful than most artists can manage.

Hug Of Thunder by Broken Social Scene

Ever the mixed bag of songs from the various members, it’s a typical BSS album (as much as there can be such a thing), which means it’s likely good enough to make my list.

Luciferian Towers by Godspeed You! Black Emperor

I’ve loved this band for a long time, and have adored all their albums, but this might be their best. It’s at least their best since the world-shaking Shake Yr Skinny Fists Like Antennas To Heaven. The multi-part “Bosses Hang” is a masterpiece.

Near To The Wild Heart Of Life by Japandroids

There’s something to be said for bands who can put out album after album after album of straight-ahead, high-energy, drum and guitar rock, and for it not to sound tired. Side note: it’s even better live.

DAMN by Kendrick Lamar

Me and everyone else, right? There’s a reason why so many people have this on, even atop, their year-end lists. Twenty years from now people will still be talking about this, and using the label classic. It was a classic the day it dropped.

Every Country’s Sun by Mogwai

Any year Mogwai releases an album will be a year they make my top ten. The best journeys are the ones you can’t predict, and I’m guessing no one in the band could have predicted what their music would sound like in 2017 (given how different it is than their earliest stuff), but it’s still rough and vital and intimidating.

S/T by Rainer Maria

Their last album – Disaster Keeps Us Together, which I really liked — came out in 2006, and the band broke up shortly after. I didn’t know they’d reformed until I heard this album had been released, and I honestly didn’t expect much…but it was tremendous. It is tremendous. I’ve listened to it, start to finish, a dozen times since it came out.

Hot Thoughts by Spoon

As relentlessly catchy as Spoon albums tend to be. Just writing that title track’s name has it stuck in my head completely.

Masseduction by St. Vincent

Somewhere there’s a bubble chart with “innovation” on one axis and “talent” on the other and the size of the bubble is “catchiness” and Annie Clark is a big fat circle in the top right corner.

Out In The Storm by Waxahatchee

In the same vein as the Rainer Maria album, I haven’t been able to stop listening to this one. There’s not a single bad song on the album. It’s a little crunchier than her last album, and I especially like the demo version of each song that comes with the deluxe version. A little less polish actually makes them each better, but whichever version you choose this was one of my favourite offerings of the year.

Honourable mentions: Feist, LCD Soundsystem, The National, The Rural Alberta Advantage, Wolf Alice.

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My favourite songs of 2017

  1. Julien Baker . “Turn Out The Lights”
  2. Big Thief . “Mary”
  3. The Black Angels . “Comanche Moon”
  4. Broken Social Scene . “Protest Song”
  5. Feist . “Any Party”
  6. Girlpool . “Soup”
  7. Godspeed You! Black Emperor . “Bosses Hang (parts I, II, and III)”
  8. Japandroids . “Arc Of Bar”
  9. Kendrick Lamar . “HUMBLE”
  10. Mogwai . “Don”t Believe The Fife”
  11. The National . “Carin At The Liquor Store”
  12. Rainer Maria . “Lower Worlds”
  13. Rural Alberta Advantage . “Wild Grin”
  14. Spoon . “Hot Thoughts”
  15. St. Vincent . “New York”
  16. Stars . “The Wanderers”
  17. Vagabon . “Alive And A Well”
  18. Waxahatchee . “Silver”
  19. Siobhan Wilson . “Whatever Works”
  20. Wolf Alice . “Don’t Delete The Kisses”

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My favourite movies of 2017

I’ve been SUPER slack on movies this year, which means I haven’t seen any of Blade Runner 2049, Call Me by Your Name, Florida Project, Jane, John Wick Chapter 2, The Meyerowitz Stories, Phantom Thread, The Shape of Water, or Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri yet. I would expect any number of those to penetrate this top ten, so consider this a temporary list.

Baby Driver

I really thought I’d hate this movie, given the trailer, but I ended up really liking it. Slick, entertaining, kind of sweet. Good soundtrack too.

The Big Sick

This was a surprise. I watched in on the flight home from Paris at Lindsay’s urging, expecting only light, cute comedy. I like Kumail Nanjiani from his role on Silicon Valley, but I didn’t know much about him, so this autobiographical story was interesting and poignant and funny and caught me off guard. Great chemistry with Zoe Kazan too.

Dunkirk

I hold Christopher Nolan in such high regard that I’ll watch anything he makes, and this one, while a big departure from his more sci-fi and effects-laden offerings of late, didn’t disappoint. Big, sweeping war epic, without very much combat at all – I don’t think we ever actually see the enemy fire a gun – with the now-well-known implications looming just out of sight.

Get Out

Mystery, family comedy, horror, biting social commentary… I expected a comedy from Jordan Peele, but not necessarily this. I hope Get Out ends up being a landmark movie that kicks off more of these, whatever they are.

I Am Not Your Negro

A documentary of sorts, assembled out of old footage of 60s/70s activist and intellectual James Baldwin interspersed with current-day footage, making it painfully and embarrassingly clear how the lessons he tried to impart 50 years ago still haven’t found enough ears.

Lady Bird

The coming-of-age genre is so tired, but this one – free of cliché, full of real drama and humour and friendship and difficult family relationships – felt so true and lovely I could hardly stand it. Remarkable that it came from a first-time director.

Logan

Taking a HARD turn from the other X-Men movies was a good choice. Marvel’s characters, and the X-Men especially, are compelling because they’re so flawed and vulnerable, and this movie played to that strength. A sick, run-down Wolverine. A senile Professor X. Dark, bloody violence, which was always missing from the X-Men movies. Rough, but worthwhile.

Logan Lucky

Big, dumb, fun movie from Steven Soderbergh, so it was infused with his famous style. As much style as there can be in a redneck heist flick, anyway. Adam Driver couldn’t quite manage a Virginia accent, but he was just great.

The Square

A Swedish import we saw at TIFF this year, The Square was a hard skewering of a bunch of things: postmodern art, marketing, empathy, and fundraising, for example. Ruben Ostling is making a real name out of making people feel uncomfortable.

Star Wars VIII: The Last Jedi

I don’t get why so many people are furious about it. It was as funny and impressive-looking as The Force Awakens, but had the darkness and overall plot thread of Empire. The Finn storyline was a little weak – I don’t think they quite knew what to do with him – but it was still one of the most entertaining things I saw this year.

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My favourite TV shows of 2017

I know I’m likely missing out by not watching Twin Peaks, Big Little Lies, Alias Grace, Dear White People, The Leftovers, The Good Place, Better Call Saul, Rick And Morty, The Americans, or Better Things, but I only have so many hours in the day.

Black Mirror

It’s hard to know whether the new episodes will live up to the other seasons — it dropped yesterday and I haven’t had a chance to watch them — but given the remarkable strength of the former episodes, I have no reason to think it won’t be among the best things I watched all year.

The Deuce

I had high hopes for this one given it’s directed by David Simon, and it didn’t disappoint. Long, slow builds. Deep looks. Texture, style. Rawness and grime, just like 42nd Street of that era really had.

Game Of Thrones

This shortest season so far felt rushed and clumsy compared to the others, but it’s still the one show I get psyched for watching in real time. And now I have Lindsay hooked.

Godless

A brutal western series (full of, oddly enough, a largely British cast) with a twist: a town populated mostly by women. Merritt Wever, long one of my favourites from her stint on Nurse Jackie, is exceptional here. The entire 7-episode season leads rather obviously to the climactic battle, but what a lead-up it is.

The Handmaid’s Tale

The series had a lot to live up to, given the source material, but I think they nailed it. In a horribly disturbing, this-seems-a-little-too-possible way. That horror was tough to square with the fact that it was shot in Toronto, including a short scene in Bonjour Brioche where we eat breakfast most weekends.

Last Week Tonight

Week after week John Oliver turns out irreverent, insightful commentary on a topic that needs investigating, even (especially?) if he does it with satire and extreme absurdity. He makes me not even miss Jon Stewart.

Manhunt: Unabomber

The second of two period pieces related to hunting serial killers we watched in the last few months. We’re not quite done this one yet, but any series that can make me feel empathy for the Unabomber must be doing something right.

Mindhunter

David Fincher + serial killers = sign me up, post haste. A genesis story for the behavioural sciences unit around which is centered my beloved Silence Of The Lambs, but also a style-heavy and engrossing string of procedurals.

Mr. Robot

I’ll be honest: I haven’t even watched the new season yet. I’m just assuming. Even if it’s bad it’s better than virtually everything else on TV.

Stranger Things

I didn’t think I’d like the first season but I did. I wasn’t sure I’d like the second season but I do. I still hate the 80s, but these kids somehow make it tolerable.

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My favourite books of 2017

Okay, fine, I only finished two, but October by China Miéville is a bit of a slow read. I can only remember so many Russian names at one time.

The Undoing Project by Michael Lewis

Probably my least favourite Michael Lewis book, but still interesting. It’s about two friends – Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky – who essentially invented the field of behavioural economics, and the dissolution of that friendship. Inspirational for its study of genius, but a touch sad for its reminder of how genius rarely gets along with other genius for long.

No Is Not Enough by Naomi Klein

This was rushed out in the wake of one Donald J Trump becoming president of the United States, as if to give voice to the collective Canadian wtf. I blazed through it in a few days, but even a month after its release it seemed woefully dated, as Trump and his clown car of a cabinet trundled, ablaze, down the road of absurdity.

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My favourite meals of 2017

Listed in chronological order. Note: I hit Maison Publique so many times in the winter that I can’t even distinguish my visits, so I’ve left them off, but not for lack of deliciousness.

Barrafina, London

I visited this killer tapas place with my CEO and a colleague during a short visit to London. I don’t even remember looking at a menu so much as just asking them to bring us what was good. They did, and we loved it all.

Le Filet, Montreal

On my last visit of the spring to Montreal we hit up Le Filet, in the shadow of Mont Royal, and ate a meal that had us freaking out the whole night: Hamachi, Wagyu, maple-glazed smoked duck, cavatelli w/ foie gras + veal cheek, and a transcendent bottle of Domaine Mugneret-Gibourg Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru Pinot Noir.

Enoteca De Belem, Lisbon

Our first dinner in Lisbon was a truly superb find: a cozy little spot (only 5-6 tables in the place) with a well-curated wine list, and a relaxed feel. The whole menu – tiger prawns, lamb, desserts, the various wines – was terrific, but the grouper was sublime.

A Cevicheria, Lisbon

While we sat in Lisbon’s best beer bar, we did a quick search on our phones to figure out where we should eat, and this place popped up. We’re glad it did too – after a short wait, which we spent outside drinking giant G&T’s and talking with another couple from Toronto – we had an utterly delicious tasting menu. I can’t even remember a single thing we ate. I just know it was incredible.

Tagide, Lisbon

Speaking of incredible, we splurged on this place for our last meal in Lisbon. By far our fanciest of the week, it was also probably our only real departure from seafood – we ordered foie gras, quail, veal & duck instead. The view of the river at night didn’t let us forget where we were though.

Actionolite, Toronto

We had only the briefest of visits here, on an odd weeknight, as we were on our way to see an exhibition nearby, but we had an exceptional meal. Actinolite isn’t about large portions or overdoing it – it’s small, simple, natural flavours, and they nailed it. We resolved to visit again.

OMAW, Toronto

This place had a slightly weird (read: Ossington) vibe and inattentive bar staff, but the food made up for it. Especially the jambalaya formed into little black balls, the scallops in coconut cream, and the Nashville hot chicken.

Lake Inez, Toronto

Lake Inez, on the other hand, has already seen a return visit, given its proximity to us, but mostly because of our standout first visit. We met CBGB here for dinner one evening, and left raving about the place. Starters, mains, the vibe, the beer list…honestly, I’ve never even looked at the wine list because we’ve found so many rare beer bottles that pair perfectly.

Buvette, Paris

Our first dinner in France ended up being pound for pound (Euro for Euro?) our best of the trip. We sat at the unassuming bar of a cramped, dark (read: Parisian) restaurant and shared a simple but beautiful meal, and settled into a week in France.

Les Crayeres, Reims

Our chateau in Champagne featured a (two) Michelin starred restaurant, but we didn’t eat there, opting instead for the more relaxed (but still spectacular) bistro down the hill. We did eat breakfast in the main building, however, and it might have been one of the best meals I’ve ever eaten. That’s right: breakfast. There weren’t even meat or eggs or vegetables of any kind, just fruit and pastries and preserves and so on. The food, the setting, the service: immaculate, all.

Honourable mentions: both visits to Jacobs & Co, dinners at Byblos and Opus, a work dinner at Daisho, and brunch at The Sparrow in Montreal

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My favourite (new) beer of 2017

My source for this list is Untappd, and I’m sure I forgot to log some, but that’s to be expected when you consume enough beer to make a top twenty list possible. Listed chronologically.

Dieu du Ciel! Péché Mortel Bourbon

Hard to believe, but one of the best beers I tasted all year was purchased at a tiny local grocery store in Montreal. All the deliciousness of Péché Mortel but with sweet, sweet bourbon.

Brasserie Dunham Oro Zuur (Batch 01 – Mosaic)

Lindsay and I shared a bottle of this sour at Vices & Versa in Montreal right before I had to fly back to Toronto. It’s nice to have easier access to Dunham’s stellar lineup when visiting Quebec.

Bellwoods Weft & Warp (2017)

We had this sour aged in Chardonnay barrels for the first time at The Wren, one of many outstanding bottles (mainly sours) we’ve shared there over burgers.

Cascade Brewing Noyaux

For my birthday Lindsay booked a table at King Taps, which turned out to be not at all the kind of place we were expecting, but the beer lineup made up for it. For a birthday treat she bought us this amazing bottle from Oregon’s Cascade.

À La Fût Co-Hop V – Rouge de Mékinac

A cold bottle on a sweltering day, put back in the tiny basement of Pub BreWskey in Montreal, this tasted like a local variant of Rodenbach. The bartender recommended this one, and she wasn’t wrong.

Russian River Brewing Consecration

Another bartender recommendation, this time in Philadelphia, in the back bar of Monk’s Café. I asked for a sour, and got a serious one in this Californian wild ale.

Founders Canadian Breakfast Stout

My first sip of this suggested that it was much too sweet. My second sip was better. My third, and every thereafter, slowly brought me around to realize that this was a stunning barrel aged stout.

Brouwerij Rodenbach Alexander

Also in Philadelphia, but an entirely different bar experience than Monk’s. Brü was loud, crowded, and mostly slinging crap beer, but if you dug down their list they had some tremendous stuff, like this one from Rodenbach. I drank it while drunk conference attendees bumped into me and spilled drinks on my menu and I didn’t even care that much.

Tatamagouche Brewing Jitney

A surprise late in the year, my brother had procured a few cans of this from a local NS brewery and kept them for me, and wow…a near-perfect dry-hopped sour.

Omnipollo Nua Pecan Mud

I usually publish this on Dec 30th assuming I won’t have any better beer in the final 36 hours of the year. This year I was wrong. Lindsay and I split a small bottle of this at Stillwell, and a small bottle was all we needed. It smelled and tasted like this incredibly rich chocolate/pecan cake. Absolutely stellar.

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My favourite moments of 2017

Tough to narrow it down this year, but here’s my best guess. In chronological order.

  1. Seeing Japandroids at Danforth Music Hall with Lindsay, one of the highest-energy shows I’ve ever witnessed
  2. After being shut out of Péché Day at the Dieu du Ciel brewpub, finding a special Péché Day 4-pack at – of all places – the Metro next to Lindsay’s Montreal apartment
  3. After eating lunch at Aqua Shard in London I used the facilities, and enjoyed the best view of London I’ve ever seen whilst standing at a urinal
  4. Being a proper German tourist, lifting a giant dunkel and eating apfelstrudel at Schneider Brauhaus in Munich
  5. Getting a fresh, warm pasteis from Pasteis de Belem, the original Portuguese custard tart, and finally understanding the hype
  6. Drinking 40-year-old port with the owner of Winebar do Castelo in Lisbon after an epic tasting session
  7. Hosting a friend’s quarter-centennial celebration in our building’s party room and, later, our loft
  8. Playing frisbee at Bramble Lane
  9. Tasting wine on a perfect summer day at Benjamin Bridge, looking out over the Gaspereau Valley
  10. Exploring the demoscene at Execute! From Scene To Screen, part of the Vector Festival
  11. Sitting on our balcony at the Hockley Valley Resort, celebrating our friends’ wedding and my 42nd birthday
  12. Eating and drinking on Pearl Morissette’s farm as they celebrated their tenth anniversary
  13. Ninja-ing our way out of a garden after being trapped outside of L’Orangerie museum in Liège, Belgium
  14. Standing in an ancient Roman cave, where Taittinger now ages their champagne
  15. Standing in front of Hanne Darboven’s work with Lindsay at the Centre Pompidou in Paris
  16. Singing along with Stars at The Great Hall
  17. Sitting in 8eleven Gallery after-hours, drinking Blood Brothers beer, talking about…everything
  18. Being beautifully destroyed, once again, by Mogwai
  19. Singing along to “Frank, AB” with the Rural Alberta Advantage and everyone else in the Danforth Music Hall
  20. Far and away the best moment of my whole year: getting the message from my brother letting me know my mom’s cancer was in remission

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Cover photo by David Stillman, used under Creative Commons license

2016 Annual Report: Antipodal

Dan DickinsonLeave a comment

Most of these annual wrap-up blog posts are about the incremental changes from the year before. Slight changes, evolutionary changes. This year the change was bigger and more drastic than that.

Sure, I still did a lot of the same things: watched movies (47, up from 44 in 2015) and bought new music (20, down from 22 in 2015), and I actually read a few books this year (3) unlike 2015 when I read a grand total of zero. My consumption continued to drop in another area: I lost even more weight, getting down to my lowest level since 2001. Low enough that I could, and did, break out some of my favourite old t-shirts.

Meanwhile, work continued to dominate the year, especially early on. The thing I’d been working on so hard in 2014 and 2015 launched in January, and through the end of March it consumed pretty much every waking hour I had. It was a huge success, though, so it all seemed worth it.

I somehow managed to escape the office long enough for vacations to Costa Rica and Rwanda (with a stop in Amsterdam), and work jaunts to Calgary, Montreal, Ottawa twice, and Vancouver. I got away to Montreal two more times in the fall as well.

Of course, there was also a lot going on right here at home in Toronto, like hosting a New Year’s Eve party, seeing Jane Goodall speak, a Jays game, the Session craft beer fest, watching The Hip’s final concert in friends’ backyard, TIFF, visits from brother #1 and brother #2, a frigid MLS Cup final, and some live music.

I tried some new restaurants too, both in Toronto (Batch, Bar Hop 2, Pukka, The Wren, Buca Yorkville, The Gabardine, Thirsty & Miserable, and Little AAA) and out (Modern Steak, Charcut, The Catch, and Beer Revolution in Calgary; Redstone in Beamsville; Heaven in Kigali; Little Collins in Amsterdam; Modavie, Bocata, Brouhaha, and Mamm Bolduc in Montreal; Maison Publique, L’Amère A Boire, Pullman, and Station Ho.st also in Montreal; Union 613 in Ottawa; Bières et Compagnie, Pub Pit Caribou, and Brasserie Boswell in Montreal; and Gotham in Vancouver.

I did manage to get outside the city a little bit too, to Bat Lake in March, Niagara with brother #2 and my sister-in-law in the summer, and Eigensinn Farm with friends. Nothing after the summer though. After the summer things got complicated.

Without getting into too much detail, Nellie and I separated in September after being married more than twelve years. That was a pretty big, jarring event which threw the rest of the year into some disarray — for the last four months or so it’s been moving and lawyers and finances and such. Again, I won’t get too into the details, but in a year where people were selling 2016 Sucked tshirts, this was one more very tough event close to home.

And so a year that started off with so much success and celebration ended in a lot of chaos, making the year feel very bipolar. But there were some very silver linings too, which I’ll talk about some other time. For now, I’m going to wave goodbye to 2016, and not be the least bit sad to see it go.

 

Cover photo by David Stillman, used under Creative Commons license

The best of everything from 2016

Dan DickinsonLeave a comment

As in previous years, I’ll just smash all these lists together for simplicity’s sake. All lists are in alphabetical order, unless otherwise noted.

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My favourite albums of 2016

I haven’t yet listened to the new ones from A Tribe Called Quest, Honeyblood, Kaytranada, Leonard Cohen, or Modern Baseball, but this is what I’ve liked so far this year. I’ll probably change my mind entirely by the spring.

My Woman by Angel Olsen

So much more mature and evolved than her last album, adding some fuzzy rock and punk to all that country torch, with the result feeling so much more plaintive and driven. Like Julien Baker last year, Angel Olsen sounds so much more beaten down by the world than you might expect.

IV by Black Mountain

Big, space-agey rock. It shares a number and name with Led Zeppelin’s biggest legacy album, and while it might not carry the weight to make it a similar classic, it was a largely overlooked powerhouse for 2016.

I Had A Dream That You Were Mine by Hamilton Leithauser w/ Rostam

While there’s a bit too much sameness as the album goes along, standouts like “A 1000 Times”, “The Morning Stars”, and “In A Black Out” are strong enough to outclimb most of the rest of the year’s offerings. I think I still prefer The Walkmen and Vampire Weekend as whole parts, but this is an interesting side/combo project.

iiidrops by Joey Purp

Usually taking a back seat to Chance The Rapper (who has the best guest spot on the album, name-dropping Ta-Nahisi Coates and lamenting dead iPhone batteries) but here using a killer combination of catchy melody, solid flow, soul samples, and thoughtful lyrics, Joey Purp had maybe the biggest surprise album of the year.

Thought Rock Fish Scale by Nap Eyes

These guys don’t sound like they’re from Halifax, really. They sound like they’re the reincarnation of Velvet Underground, if VU never got into the hard drugs and stayed a little more upbeat. And were from, you know, Halifax. I listened to this, and their previous album Whine Of The Mystic, heavily all year.

Skeleton Trees by Nick Cave

Sometimes raw emotion pours itself out into an album, and this is that. Written after (about? for?) the death of his son, the trademark Cave darkness takes on a new depth here. Still manages to be catchy/punchy though.

Positive Thinking by The Pack A.D.

I like that there are no surprises in a Pack A.D. album. You know what you’re getting. You still feel pummeled by it though. “Yes, I Know” is the standout here, but top to bottom it’s an enjoyable, solid album.

Cardinal by Pinegrove

Another surprise, this time swinging much more to the folk-ish side of things. Catchy, and the kind of thing you can listen to at home with your hipster friends (done) or in the car with your mother (also done). Side note: this is another one featuring pretty sharp lyrics…not a few minutes into the album the singer’s already referred to his “solipsistic moods.”

Ugly Cherries by PWR BTTM

Power-pop-punk played by a band who label themselves “aggressively queer” — this was the best straight (so to speak) up rock and roll album of the year. There are lots of great songs here, but “West Texas” has a special place in my heart. It makes me wish there’d been a gay storyline on Friday Night Lights.

Testarossa by Yoni & Geti

Maybe the most complex album on this list. It’s so thoughtful and earnest, but also feels slippery and hidden. I have a distinct memory of listening to it start to finish in the KLM lounge at Schipol airport in Amsterdam while waiting for a connection, and feeling more excited and at peace. Not many albums pull me back to a place like that.

Honourable mentions to the new ones from Danny Brown, Blonde Redhead, Joe Budden, Regina Spektor, and The Men.

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My favourite songs of 2016

  1. Adam Torres . “Juniper Arms”
  2. Alejandro Escovedo . “Horizontal”
  3. Black Mountain . “Space To Bakersfield”
  4. Dandy Warhols . “Doves”
  5. DTCV . “Histoire Seule”
  6. Frightened Rabbit . “A Lick Of Paint”
  7. Hamilton Leithauser . “In A Black Out”
  8. Joe Budden . “Uncle Joe”
  9. Joey Purp . “Girls@”
  10. Kendrick Lamar . “Untitled 02”
  11. Lucius . “Born Again Teen”
  12. Mitski . “Your Best American Girl”
  13. My Father’s Son . “Dying”
  14. Nap Eyes . “Lion In Chains”
  15. Pack AD . “Yes, I Know”
  16. Parquet Courts . “Dust”
  17. Pinegrove . “Old Friends”
  18. PWR BTTM . “West Texas”
  19. Radiohead . “True Love Waits”
  20. Rogue Wave . “Memento Mori”
  21. Schoolboy . “Ride Out”
  22. Seratones . “Choking On Your Spit”
  23. Tindersticks . “Hey Lucinda”
  24. Wye Oak . “Better (For Esther)”
  25. Yoni & Geti . “Allegheny”

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My favourite movies of 2016

This has been my least-busy movie year in some time, so I still haven’t seen Hell or High Water, Moonlight, Don’t Think Twice, Manchester by the Sea, The Nice Guys, Doctor Strange, Tower, The Witch, La La Land, The Fits, Green Room, 13th, Gimme Danger, Queen of Katwe, Paterson, Lo and Behold – Reveries of the Connected World, Hail, Caesar!, Loving, Midnight Special, Jackie, or The Witness. I can’t even make it a top ten list — these five are the only really good films I saw this year. Expect this list to be heavily altered by the spring.

The Arrival

So nice to have thoughtful, challenging sci-fi in theatres: an interesting look at language and memory, with overtones of militarism and geopolitics, all wrapped up in an alien story. Terrific performance from Amy Adams too.

Birth Of A Nation

Not without its flaws, not the least of which was the director’s past spilling out onto newspaper pages just before the film opened TIFF, but still a significant, important, fairly gripping epic story. Kind of like Braveheart set in the American south.

Captain America: Civil War

The Marvel universe keeps hitting semi-regular home runs with the Captain America and Avengers installments. This third Cap was no exception — essentially another Avengers film, with all the same quick dialogue and fun action, these are smarter than an action movie has a right to be.

Prevenge

My favourite from this year’s TIFF, this was the story of a woman whose fetus instructed her to murder people. Darkly funny, with brief moments of savage and disgusting violence…somehow this wasn’t part of the Midnight Madness program.

Rogue One

A worthy addition to the Star Wars set, Rogue One had great visuals, excellent action, funny droid dialogue, and enough tie-ins to episode IV to satisfy any Star Wars nerd. I’m glad they can continue telling this story in decent films.

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My favourite TV shows of 2016

I hereby acknowledge that I haven’t yet watched any of Westworld, Atlanta, Better Call Saul, Better Things, BoJack Horseman, Luke Cage, Documentary Now!, Rectify, or the latest season of The Fall but this is what I did watch and like:

Billions

Any chance to have Paul Giamatti, Damien Lewis, and Maggie Siff all in the same place is fine with me. Sometimes the drama gets wound a little too tight, and sometimes not enough actually happens in an episode, but it’s still enjoyable for all the masterful scenery-chewing.

Black Mirror

So amazing. So unsettling and captivating and cool and disturbing and thrilling and insightful. There’s a reason why TIFF screened a few new episodes of it at this year’s festival — it’s operating at the level of top cinema.

Game Of Thrones

Still my only must-see show. Still the one I get excited about weeks in advance. It’s the only show for which I watch the after-show. I have Game Of Thrones beer from Ommegang aging in my wine fridge right now. I get panicky at the idea that there are only a handful of episodes left. Please, please, please don’t go. Please. Arya forever.

Last Week Tonight

Just as Jon Stewart left us, John Oliver arrived. But he could curse, and suffers no commercials. Hallelujah. These long-form rants are funny, pointed, and so necessary in a Trump-ish world. Sorry Trevor Noah, but this is The Daily Show now.

Masters of Sex

Still somehow compelling despite its soapiness — I give credit to Lizzy Caplan. I keep getting sucked back into this time and again. Even sideline characters who should mean nothing to me at this point are interesting, and the set design makes me miss Mad Men.

Mr. Robot

Season 2 was kind of a mess after the bad-ass arc of season 1, but it was still excellent. The whole show behaves like a buggy, maybe-hacked piece of software. I’ll take a sub-par Mr. Robot over just about any other season of TV.

Stranger Things

Seriously, I hate the 80s. Like, so much. But I loved this show. The kids, the music, the ridiculousness of it all, the D&D…it was more fun than is reasonable to pack into eight episodes. Bravo, Netflix. More like this!

The Night Manager

I know I’m cheating here a bit with a miniseries, but suck it, it’s my list. This contained more action, intrigue, character development, and twists than most series twice the length. Tom Hiddleston was great, but so too the rest of the cast — especially Hugh Laurie, Olivia Colman, and Tom Hollander.

The Night Of

So much terrific substance here: John Turturro’s feet, the cat, Bill Camp’s Detective Box, and all of the Riz Ahmed. Seriously, get this guy in/on more stuff. But even outside of him, it was terrific stuff. I just wish James Gandolfini had lived to see it through.

Silicon Valley

Still the funniest show on TV. The RIGBY “dictionary patch” from episode one this year was brilliant, the kind of thing that just enters the zeitgeist. So many terrific comedic actors, and a seemingly endless supply of valley bullshit to draw from.

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The best books I read in 2016

Okay, so I only read three books this year — but that’s still three more than last year.

Flash Boys by Michael Lewis

Read in a single morning whilst lying in a hammock on a beach in Costa Rica. Surf, sand, and outrage at the unfairness of the financial system. Just the way vacations should be. I’ve already started his newest one.

Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer

I bought this within minutes of finishing the movie Everest, and read 2/3 of it that night, into the very wee hours. I wish I’d read it years ago when my dad first bought it. Gut-wrenching.

Tribe by Sebastian Junger

This was given to me partially as a joke, but I like Junger’s stuff so I didn’t mind. Wasn’t exactly memorable though. I read the whole thing on the flight to Kigali and gave it back to the original owner when I returned to Toronto.

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The best meals I ate in 2016

A bit more geographic variety in this year’s list. Listed in chronological order.

Alo, Toronto 

My second visit after a wine-tasting dinner, this was a full tasting menu affair, and confirmed for me that Alo is currently the best restaurant in Toronto. How something as simple as a bread course could be mind-blowing just shows the level at which they’re operating.

Breakfast at Kura, Costa Rica

It wasn’t fancy. It was just amazing. Fresh fruit, banana muffins, homemade bread with fresh jam, and coffee filtered through something that looked like a sock, old-school. That it was next to the most beautiful pool view I’d ever seen didn’t hurt.

Modern Steak, Calgary

Sitting by myself, at the bar, at this restaurant in a part of Calgary I’d never seen before (or since) while all the other conference attendees were at some rodeo, I had a tremendous bacon starter and an exceptional steak, and a hell of a quiet, good time.

Eigensinn Farm, Singhampton

It was transcendent the first time. It was even better the second time. Not enough words.

Heaven, Kigali

Truth be told, the food here — while slightly exotic — was only better-than-average (that said, my kuku paka was pretty damned tasty). But eating it overlooking the hills and lights of Kigali put it on this list.

Bocata, Montreal

Kind of a panicky, last-minute decision after flailing desperately for options over the course of an hour, this was a lucky stumble-in down in old Montreal. The kind of place where you occupy a teeny corner of a drafty old room, read the menu off a chalkboard, and then fall into course after delicious course and count your blessings as you rub your belly.

Buca Yorkville, Toronto

It’s been on everyone’s Toronto top-ten list for ages, but I’d just never made it there. And Christ, was I missing out. Definitely one of the best, and most adventurous, meals I’ve ever had in Toronto. Add to that the stunning room and ace service, and this has to be right up there with Alo for destination meals in the city.

Maison Publique, Montreal

Trip #2 to Montreal this year saw visit #1 to Maison Publique, a wonderfully cozy, friendly room with uber-French food and an uber-Canadian wine list. It’s since become a regular visit when in Montreal, and feels like my living room. God, I love it.

Carisma, Toronto

I’ve been here half a dozen times, but the last time might have been the best. The burrata and calamari (frequent orders) were somehow better, the pasta was tops, and the Sangiovese my guy recommended was mind-blowing. Sometimes the perfect comfort dinner makes the list, y’know?

Hawksworth, Vancouver

I stopped for lunch on my way to a meeting, sat at the bar, and ate a killer goddamn burger and fries with a glass of Freemark Abbey cab sauv and put the whole thing squarely in my lunch hall of fame.

Honourable mention: the garam masala duck breast at Pukka; the 1946 Don PX at Cava; the octopus starter from Charcut in Calgary; the bombas at Patria; the pork buns from some random dim sum food truck in Montreal while I’ll probably never find again.

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The best beer I drank in 2016

This is why I pay for an Untappd supporter membership: to be able to download my full beer consumption list. For the ones I remember to log, anyway.

Mackeson XXX Stout Milk Stout

No charming story, just a bottle I picked up at the LCBO and tried at home. Fantastic stuff though.

Trou du Diable L’Ours (#10) Sour Ale

One of a number of bottles (mostly sours) downed in an evening at Boxcar Social, which has become one of the more reliable bottled beer venues in Toronto.

Burdock BUMO Saison Farmhouse

A very special treat, Burdock’s first collaboration with Pearl Morissette winery, a saison/rosé hybrid brought over by friends before the latest Session beer festival.

Sawdust City 1606 Barrel-Aged Raspberry Stout

The best beer at this year’s Session festival, it was strong but well-balanced and well-integrated. Sawdust City killed it at Session.

Brauerei Fahr Fahr Away Hefeweizen

My favourite of the many beers I sampled in the warm sun on The National’s 8th Ave rooftop patio in Calgary: an out-freaking-standing hefeweizen.

Folly Flemish Cap Farmhouse Ale

My first visit to the new(ish) Bar Hop introduced me to an outstanding Folly flemish sour. I don’t know how Folly pulled this off…I wouldn’t have expected to find one of the best examples of this style I’ve ever encountered on Peter Street in Toronto.

Birrificio Del Ducato Mikkie = Cattivella Creme Brulee Stout

I had this during a quick stop at an old Amsterdam favourite, BeerTemple. As big and heavy and sweet as it sounds. As delicious too.

Brouwerij Van Honsebrouck Barista Belgian Chocolate Quad

Put down at the Café Gollem in Amsterdam whilst sharing the bar with a cat who lives there and drinks his water out of a Westmalle glass. It should have been overwhelmingly sweet, but it wasn’t.

Birrificio Del Ducato Chrysopolis Lambic

Yet another amazing beer sampled in Amsterdam, this time at Craft & Draft, and the second from this Italian brewery. It was one of the best sours I’ve ever tried. Incredibly strong and sour, but so so good.

Le Saint Bock Harvest Ghosts American Brown Ale w/ Bhut Jolokia Pepper

The second beer I’ve ever had with ghost pepper in it, and this one was almost as good. Such a well-balanced brown, and with all that heat in the back of the throat, just makes it a special combination. Granted, I tend not to log all the beers I drink when in Quebec, so this will have to represent la belle province on my list.

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My favourite moments of 2016

It feels a little weird to write this given a major event this year, which I’ll talk about in my next post, but here goes:

  1. The time in, on, and around the pool at Kura Design Villas in Costa Rica
  2. Spending an entire morning in the hammock on the beach at Latitude 10, also in Costa Rica
  3. Ziplining through the Costa Rican jungle canopy
  4. Sabering open my first bottle of sparkling at Bat Lake
  5. Cheering throughout the Raptors’ best-ever playoff run
  6. As is often the case, standing in the Session beer festival in the middle of Yonge/Dundas square with a killer beer and good friends
  7. Dodging the sun on the rooftop patio at the new(ish) Bar Hop with Andrew & Denise
  8. Visit #2 to Eigensinn Farm
  9. Coming face to face with two families of gorillas in Rwanda
  10. Watching the resident cat drink from a Westmalle beer goblet at Café Gollem in Amsterdam
  11. Seeing the brushwork in the Vermeers up-close at the Rijksmuseum
  12. Alex, the bartender at the impressive Craft & Draft in Amsterdam
  13. Watching The Hip’s final concert in our friends’ back yard
  14. Sitting on the Patria patio with my brother Tim in a t-shirt, even in early October
  15. The Jays sweeping the Rangers
  16. Finally returning to the Dieu Du Ciel brewpub
  17. Sitting in the tiny garage-like tasting room at Blood Brothers after hitting a bunch of art galleries
  18. Talking Canadian wine with the staff at Maison Publique in Montreal
  19. Stumbling upon both kinds of Gueuze Tilquin at Pub Pit Caribou
  20. Freezing my way through the MLS Cup final, even though Toronto FC lost

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Cover photo by David Stillman, used under Creative Commons license

Cover photo by Dani Ihtatho, used under Creative Commons license

2015 Annual Report: Hyper-focus

Dan DickinsonLeave a comment

If 2014 was the year when work became the primary focus of our lives, 2015 was the year where it more or less became the only focus. In short, this was the year in which we cut back on a lot of stuff we enjoy, either to focus on our jobs, or for other reasons entirely.

Which is not to say I/we didn’t consume a lot…but the volume seems to be continuing on a downward trend as work grows in importance. We watched just 44 new movies this year, down from 51 last year, and the fewest we’ve ever watched since I began tracking in 2004. I bought far more music though, partly because I’ve started listening to music at work more often and can evaluate more new stuff. I bought 22 new albums this year, up from 6 last year, and the most in any year since 2009.

What really suffered, though, was the reading. Books, especially — I can’t remember finishing a single new book this year. I started a few but never got more than a few dozen pages in. It wasn’t just books though: last year I ready eight books, blaming the low consumption on the time it took to read all my feeds, posts, and tweets. This year, though, I effectively stopped following Twitter sometime in the fall. Books, Twitter…one by one the distractions got eliminated.

It went further: we didn’t even bother booking Hot Docs tickets this year, for the first time since we started attending the festival. We didn’t get out to the wineries in Prince Edward County or in Niagara, except for a couple of stops on the way to our friends’ place. There were no summer trips up to Bat Lake, just a quick one in March. There wasn’t a big trip like in years past. No new continent explored. Not even a new city, except where work provided an excuse.

On the plus side, I also cut back in one other big area: my weight. As of this summer I started tracking what I ate, and I lost about 20 pounds. I’m not starving myself…I still eat and drink the same things. I just stopped eating the stuff I didn’t really want. I don’t even exercise. When could I? I’m working 70+ hours per week. [Note: I do not miss exercise and, on the whole, I enjoy my work, so…I’m good with this.]

Still, it’s not as if I’ve been living a secluded, monastic lifestyle. I mean, we traveled more than most people: New Orleans for Mardi Gras, Berlin (with Nellie, for work), Istanbul (without Nellie, also for work), an absolutely legendary 40th birthday trip to Quebec City and Montreal, and 18 hours to New York and back (again without Nellie, again for work).

We did a decent amount in Toronto too: the World Juniors, a Hip concert with CBGB, a beerworking event, the sixth Session beer festival, a Raptors game (which was unfortunately sullied by the presence of Stephen Harper), a Rush concert (one of their last, probably), a tiny bbq festival, the Rogers Cup final, a bourbon & chocolate tasting event, a craft beer boat cruise, a Rheostatics reunion performance, five TIFF screenings plus a gala, an epic Toronto sports evening, and Cask Days.

Trying new restaurants was still on the agenda too, like the newest location of Pizzeria Libretto, Rose & Sons, Roselle, Barberians, The Chase, the Every Time I… pop-up, Rasa, Alo, Rodneys, NAO Steakhouse, and Barque Butcher Bar for a wine(!) event.

We managed to get out of the city a little bit too, hitting Bat Lake with a crowd for the birth of 2015 and then again in March with a smaller crew; seeing friends in Barrie and going boating in Bolsover in the summer; and getting down to Niagara on the Lake with friends for a night.

So yeah, clearly it wasn’t a bad year. There were struggles and successes at work which I won’t talk about here, but which clearly put enormous demands on our time. Like I said last year, though: we chose these careers. And if working long hours* at a rewarding, high-paying job is my biggest complaint, then I’m doing just fine. The books can wait.

* I can’t say “working hard”; I grew up on a farm, so hard work means something different than sitting in an office or a meeting room

.:.

Cover photo by Dani Ihtatho, used under Creative Commons license

 

Cover photo by David Stillman, used under Creative Commons license

The best of everything from 2015

Dan DickinsonLeave a comment

As with last year, rather than write a bunch of separate posts I’m putting all these lists together. All are in alphabetical order unless otherwise noted.

.:.

MY FAVOURITE ALBUMS OF 2015

I haven’t listened to the new ones from Dead Weather, Unwound, Waxahatchee, or Wolf Alice yet, but as of right now this is my top ten. Be forewarned: I will almost certainly edit this list by April.

Sound & Color by Alabama Shakes

It took me a while to really warm up to this one — it carries more funk and soul than its predecessor. After a while I came around, and realized that Alabama Shakes might be investing a new little niche here.

Sprained Ankle by Julien Baker

No. No album by a 19-year-old should sound this broken, this world-weary, this real. This good. Just…no.

Depression Cherry by Beach House

Like all their albums, I couldn’t tell you the name of any one song, but the thing as a whole is like a beautiful (slightly) abstract painting. Also: amazing to listen to if you need to concentrate and zen out.

Asunder, Sweet And Other Distress by Godspeed You! Black Emperor

I listen to a lot of post-rock, but no one can touch GY!BE as king of the operatic, bombastic, crunching instrumental soundtrack of our impending doom and/or nirvana.

Art Angels by Grimes

I should not like this album as much as I do. The pitched-up vocals and Taiwanese rapping and drum machines and general dance-iness should drive me nuts. And yet I keep on listening to it, over and over and over and over and over.

Momentary Masters by Albert Hammond Jr

I never cared for The Strokes, nor most of the members’ solo projects, but this one is catchy from start to finish. Even the misbegotten Dylan cover somehow appeals.

How The Spark Loves The Tinder by Monk Parker

Stark. Tremulous. And…old-timey, I guess? I mean, c’mon…there’s more than one song featuring a musical saw. I feel like I’m in the Ozarks when I listen to this.

Summertime ’06 by Vince Staples

I know everyone was all about Kendrick Lamar this year, but I listened to both albums back-to-back and Summertime ’06 just felt so much more vital to me. I get that To Pimp A Butterfly is a good album, but in my mind it suffered for being directly compared to this underdog, and not showing well.

Carrie & Lowell by Sufjan Stevens

Beautiful, and thoroughly haunting, especially when you realize he’s singing about — and to — a dead parent.

The Most Lamentable Tragedy by Titus Andronicus

A rock opera crossed with an epic Hobbit-esque journey. This is almost too much of a slog, given the length and the raggedness of Titus’ music, but moments of brilliance and raw emotion save it.

Honorable mention: Painted Shut by Hop Along, Into The Air by Cold Beat, To Pimp A Butterfly by Kendrick Lamar, High by Royal Headache, No Cities To Love by Sleater-Kinney.

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MY FAVOURITE SONGS OF 2015

Offered without comment.

  1. Alabama Shakes . “Miss You”
  2. Albert Hammond Jr . “Side Boob”
  3. Beach House . “PPP”
  4. Dr Dre . “One Shot One Kill (feat. Snoop)”
  5. Godspeed You! Black Emperor . “Peasantry or ‘Light! Inside of Light!’”
  6. Grimes . “Scream”
  7. Heartless Bastards . “Tristessa”
  8. Julien Baker . “Rejoice”
  9. Kendrick Lamar . “How Much A Dollar Cost”
  10. Monk Parker . “Sadly Yes”
  11. Partner . “Hot Knives”
  12. Royal Headache . “My Own Fantasy”
  13. Sleater-Kinney . “No Cities To Love”
  14. Sufjan Stevens . “Fourth Of July”
  15. Titus Andronicus . “More Perfect Union”
  16. U.S. Girls . “Sororal Feelings”
  17. Vacation . “I Wish I Could Be Someone Else”
  18. Waxahatchee . “Breathless”
  19. Winter Passing . “Fruits Of Gloom”
  20. Wolf Alice . “Bros”

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MY FAVOURITE MOVIES OF 2015

As usual, we use the last few days of the year, and first few weeks of next year, to catch up on all the best movies. Blame Hollywood — they release everything critically-acclaimed after August. That means we haven’t yet watched ’71, 99 Homes, A Most Violent Year, Beasts of No Nation, The Big Short, The Diary Of A Teenage Girl, Bridge of Spies, Brooklyn, Carol, Creed, Dope, The Gift, Going Clear, The Hateful Eight, Inside Out, Kurt Cobain: Montage Of Heck, Mississippi Grind, Mommy, Phoenix, The Revenant, Room, Slow West, Spotlight, Spy, Steve Jobs, What We Do In The Shadows, or While We’re Young, so this list is woefully incomplete. That said, here’s the top ten as of right now:

Ant-Man

Marvel made a movie to match its hero: smaller, subtler. Paul Rudd and Michael Douglas were unlikely primary players in a superhero movie, but that just added to the off-kilterness of the movie. Plus: Michael Peña.

Ex Machina

A worthy addition to the robot-ethics, what-is-consciousness-anyway? pantheon of films. The interior of the set is so stark, so claustrophobic as to make the actual robots seem warm and soulful. And Oscar Isaac is quickly becoming one of my favourite actors.

It Follows

A clever, original horror movie which is also an allegory for promiscuity. But mainly a very creepy horror movie. Nellie couldn’t sleep for a few nights after this one, and looked very warily at anyone who appeared to be following her.

Mad Max: Fury Road

You wouldn’t think a Mad Max film would make this list, but wow…what a movie. Relentless action, a bold return to practical effects (with CGI supplements), welcome feminist themes throughout…a thinking person’s bad-ass action movie.

The Martian

Formulaic, sure, but it’s just done so well. Gripping, funny, engaging, charming, and a great escape for what’s a surprisingly long running time.

Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation

Again — not one I would’ve expected on the year-end top-ten list. There’s no secret weapon here; it’s a standard-issue M:I movie…which is to say, highly entertaining. At some point Cruise will have to stop making these, but for now: carry on, Mr. Hunt.

Sicario

The best of our TIFF selections this year. The back third suffers a little, but the first two acts are among the best I’d seen all year. The shootout scene at the border crossing was immaculately executed, Emily Blunt was outstanding, and the political undercurrents give it more depth than a standard procedural.

Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens

Getting over the bar set by the prequels wasn’t hard. This probably isn’t even a great movie, but it’s a great Star Wars movie, and Star Wars means a lot to me, so here it is on the list. Judging by the critical reviews, I don’t think I’m alone in my reasoning here. 38 years ago Episode IV sent Hollywood down a bad path by creating an over-reliance on special effects, which drifted too far into CGI at the cost of its own soul. Hopefully Episode VII manages to change how studios make big sweeping stories, and make them feel human again.

Trainwreck

Suffers a little from the Judd Apatow disease (that is: it runs about 20 minutes longer than it needs to) but Amy Schumer’s charisma and Bill Hader’s charm keep you right in this one. So does LeBron James, surprisingly.

Where To Invade Next

Not exactly great filmmaking — not Moore’s best, even — but so hopeful that I just had to like it. Plus, seeing a rough cut with the director (and several of the stars) in the crowd gave this one some added weight which might not carry into other venues, but it was one of the few highlights of our TIFF this year.

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MY FAVOURITE TV SHOWS OF 2015

Apparently we should be watching Better Call Saul, Bojack Horseman, Fargo, Master Of None, Nathan For You, Show Me A Hero, Transparent, and UnREAL, but we aren’t yet. And I just started on Sense8 so I haven’t formed an opinion quite yet. I did, however, form an opinion about season 2 of True Detective: that it sucked. It sucked even more in retrospect than it did in the moment. Here’s what I did like this year though:

Daredevil (Netflix)

This series, like the Affleck film, had all kinds of potential to go wrong. It didn’t. It found the dark edge it needed, it cast Matt Murdock perfectly, and the surrounding characters (especially Fisk) are all excellent.

Game Of Thrones (HBO)

Still the series I get more psyched about weeks in advance, and this year they strode ahead of the books into unfamiliar territory, which only makes me look forward to it that much more.

Hannibal (NBC)

Unlike last year my top ten list includes a show from a major American network. We came to Hannibal late, else it would have been on my list every year it aired: both leads were stellar, and it’s so visually stunning. Though how a show this violent could be shown on American network TV I’ll never understand.

Homeland (Showtime)

Season 5 got them back to the spy craft basics: subterfuge, politics, ambition, patriotism, leak morality, distrust, cold war echoes, and so on. It was all over the place, but expected us to keep up, and for the most part it was fun — not bludgeoning — to do so.

House Of Cards (Netflix)

The weakest of the three seasons, but still gripping and binge-worthy. I still clear a weekend for this show.

Jessica Jones (Netflix)

This one came out of nowhere. I like how Marvel, as with Daredevil, gives us characters more powerful than humans, but not near-god Avenger types. Jessica is so flawed and so vulnerable that her struggles seem more relate-able than, say, Iron Man’s.

Mad Men (AMC)

I know the final season dragged in parts, but that ending made it worth it. Funnily enough, though, the enduring final image of the series for me was of Peggy, strutting down the hall with a box of her stuff, pornographic octopus painting under her arm, sunglasses on, cigarette dangling from her mouth, with a fuck-you grin.

Making A Murderer (Netflix)

I’m barely a few episodes into this and I’m hooked. Don’t tell me what happens.

Mr. Robot (USA)

Another one that came out of nowhere. I had no idea what to expect, but the first five minutes of the series had me completely hooked. Strained the Mr. Robot plot device for too long, and got a little too out-there at times, but good twists and an excellent lead can take you a long way.

Walking Dead (AMC)

I’m certainly feeling less interested in this show each season, and they almost lost me a couple of times this year, but they still manage to pull me back in. Realistically, as long as Nellie’s obsessed with this show, I don’t think I could stop watching it if I tried.

Honorable mention: Narcos, Orange Is The New Black, Silicon Valley.

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THE BEST BOOKS I READ IN 2015

None. Not one. Isn’t that sad?

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THE BEST MEALS I ATE IN 2015

As with last year I haven’t bothered including anything home-cooked, even by friends who can cook the shit out of a meal. These are in chronological order.

Café Amelie, New Orleans

We ate very well on our trip to New Orleans (how could you not?) but my favourite meal was probably in this quiet courtyard, covered by trees, surrounded by happy Mardi Gras crowds, and featuring an absolutely outstanding shrimp, corn, and cajun spice penne.

Rose & Sons, Toronto

This had been on my to-try list forever, and it didn’t disappoint. Just high-concept comfort food: fried chicken, mac & cheese, onion rings, cornbread, and good wine.

Markthalle Neun, Berlin

Yeah, sure, while in Berlin we also ate at FACIL, which has two Michelin stars, but my most memorable meal was when we inadvertently stumbled into Markthalle Neun, which is kind of like St. Lawrence Market, in search of a small brewery. We found it, drank their tap list, and gathered food from around the market for our lunch. I bought something called Berlin Balls and ate them with Heidenpeters’ pale ale, and it was just the best.

Our friend Matt @ Maison Relaxio, St-Joseph-de-Sorel

I know I said I was leaving home-cooked meals off this list, but our friend Matt made this one, centered around burgers made of pork and beef and stuffed with motherfucking goose confit, at a big cottage north of Montreal. Paired with all the stellar wine and beer we had acquired in the previous 24 hours, it was a memorable meal in a birthday trip full of them.

Salle À Manger, Montreal

Speaking of that birthday trip, this meal was the following night. Our numbers had swelled from 10 to 16, and Nellie had arranged dinner at this cool spot in the Plateau. We ate family-style, and I lost track of the courses, though I do remember — and will never forget — the entire roasted suckling pig. I ate a lot of it, paired with an outstanding Loire cab franc our friend Kaylea had picked out. We destroyed some people that night, and our friend J-P ate the pig’s face. Epic.

The Chase, Toronto

I’m not really much of one for seafood, but this place does it right. I ate there on someone else’s dime, thank goodness, and was more than impressed with the octopus/chorizo appetizer and the halibut for two, not to mention the wine selection and the service.

Every Time I… pop-up, Toronto

Our friend Adam jointly held a pop-up dinner (he was the chef) on Dundas West back in August, with the pairing centered around cider. Cider’s not exactly my thing, but the food was good, and one course — the smoked perch croquette — was one of the very best things I ate all year, and was strong enough to make this list on its own.

Rasa, Toronto

Any time T-Bone and I get together for dinner, it’s going to be someplace good. She picked this one on Harbord, and every single dish was top-notch. I think I would have enjoyed it even more if they’d air-conditioned the place and I hadn’t sweat to death.

Alo, Toronto

I’d read good things about Alo, but hadn’t managed to get in until Pearl Morissette invited people to a tasting of their new California wines. The wines were, in fact, terrific, but so was the food. So much so that we’ve already made plans to go back in January.

NAO, Toronto

For years Jacobs & Co. has been the king of the steakhouse in Toronto, but after two visits to NAO we now see them as 1 and 1a. Our second time there, when we could try more variety in the menu and the sommelier (who remembered us) offered up three outstanding off-menu bottles for us to try, NAO was solidified as a new favourite in the city.

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THE BEST BEERS I DRANK IN 2015

Using Untappd makes it easy for me to look back and find the best (new) beers I try each year. I need a similar app for wine. And whisky. And maybe coffee. Anyway, these are the ten best, in the order I drank them:

Heidenpeters Pale Ale

In Heidenpeters’ little stall in the back corner of Berlin’s Markthalle Neun, I found my favourite pale of the year. Hopfenreich, which we visited later that day, was a cooler place with far more beer, but this was just such an unexpected surprise.

Oast House Coffee Milk Stout

I had this at C’est What right after we got off the plane from Berlin (it seems to be our go-to place, post-flight) and probably needed the coffee as much as I needed a beer. Coffee stouts and milk stouts are two of my favourite styles; Oast House pulled off the combo.

Black Oak Cinnamon, Rum Soaked Raisin Vanilla Nut Brown Ale

I drank this one sitting at Bar Volo, with Nellie and brother #2, watching the rain pour down around us. It sounds more like a cake than a beer, but Black Oak makes one of the more reliable nut browns out there, so layering in a few treats just put it over the top.

Sawdust City Until Tomorrow Ingrid

One of my two favourites at this year’s Session festival, this was a sour barrel-aged cranberry Saison. Better than it had any right to be. Pale red tint, hence the rather rude acronym. Added bonus: the Sawdust City guys there were hammered, and decided to sing “O Canada” on stage.

Side Launch Syrah Vice

My other favourite at Session, this was a hefeweizen aged in Tawse Syrah barrels. So Side Launch’s wheat (which I love) aged in barrels from Tawse (which I love)…pretty sure this one was destined to be on my year-end list.

Vanderghinste Oud Bruin

I honestly don’t even remember what brought me to Beerbistro on a Friday night — normally it would be too packed in there at 6pm. Looks like we were taking down some Belgians though, and this was one of the best sours (or, Flanders red, to be specific) I’d ever tried.

Oast House Biere De Mars

A bottle we’d brought home from Oast the weekend before, and a stellar farmhouse. Oast, by the way, is the only brewery to make my list twice this year.

Stone City Devil And the Deep

My favourite from this year’s Cask Days 2015. I ended up drinking a lot of sours (all the stouts and porters seemed to be sold out) but this was the best of the lot. Stone City has really impressed me so far.

Viven Smoked Porter

A random grab from the LCBO’s winter release, this one was a classic example of a porter. Very lightly smoked, despite the name.

Tatamagouche Dreadnot (Rum Barrel-Aged)

Shared this with both brothers at brother #2’s house last week. We tried a lot from Tatamagouche, one of the newer Nova Scotia craft breweries, but this imperial black IPA was the best of the bunch. I wish I’d had time to pick another one up to bring back to Toronto. It would age nicely, I imagine.

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MY FAVOURITE MOMENTS OF 2015

Obviously I can’t remember them all, but this is my best guess at my twenty favourite (non-work) moments from 2015, in chronological order.

  1. Standing on the frozen Bat Lake during a New Year’s Day snowstorm
  2. The gold medal game at the World Juniors
  3. Watching Lundi Gras parades from the Avenue Pub balcony
  4. Singing along with the Treme Brass Band at d.b.a. on Mardi Gras
  5. Watching The Hip play Fully Completely in its entirety at the ACC
  6. Sitting on the Bier Markt patio the day the no-smoking law took effect
  7. A black-tie dinner at the historic Tempelhof airport in Berlin
  8. Looking at Istanbul from a boat on the Bosphorus
  9. Discovering what kokorec is after I’d already eaten two of them
  10. Finally seeing Rush in concert, and especially seeing them play “Losing It” live for the first and only time
  11. Drinking a beer on my buddy Joe’s boat in the middle of a lake
  12. Watching Jon Stewart end his Daily Show show run, dancing with his crew to “Born To Run”
  13. One night at Maison Relaxio
  14. Going to church in Montreal (aka Dieu Du Ciel brewery on Sunday morning)
  15. Drinking craft beer on a tall ship in Toronto harbour
  16. Playing bocce by headlight
  17. Seeing the Rheostatics reunite to honor the Group Of Seven
  18. Jose Bautista’s homer and subsequent bat flip
  19. Drinking half a bottle of Crown Royal Northern Rye whiskey with my brothers sitting around brother #2’s kitchen
  20. New year’s eve. Hasn’t even happened yet, but I’m calling it.

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Cover photo by David Stillman, used under Creative Commons license