It’s worth noting this represents my first annual report since 2019 that wasn’t written in the throes — or at least the wake — of COVID-19. And yet, the theme this year is sickness, since a ton of non-COVID situations really derailed us this year.

First, there’s how we became sick (in the figurative sense) of many aspects of living and commuting in Toronto. From the difficulties of moving around it, to housing prices and various other ills, the city is wearing on us — and on me especially since I’ve been living there 26 years.

Then there’s the literal sicknesses that disrupted a bunch of our plans this year:

• My reaction to a COVID booster flattened me such that I couldn’t go to a wine club event in May.
• I got sick immediately after leaving my job in August, just as I was about to begin a month of vacation.
• Lindsay and I both got sick at different times on a trip to New York, which caused us to miss a Pavement concert, a Broadway show, and a Janelle Monae concert (and skip the Philadelphia portion of the trip altogether, though Lindsay returned later).
• I got a 24-hour bug while in Moncton that delayed us driving to the farm.
• During our Christmas visit a norovirus ripped through me and half my family. I spent Christmas Day quarantined in bed.

Despite all this, we did get some modest trips in: New York two times; Nova Scotia in May for my dad’s 80th birthday and again for Christmas; Ottawa in June; and Prince Edward County in July. Still nothing off-continent, but we expect that to change next year.

We did also tack on a few weekends away at the nearby Stratford festival, our first time attending. In addition to discovering new favourite restaurants like Lovage (where are ate four times) and Bluebird, we saw four plays over three visits (Women of the Fur Trade, Richard II, Les Belles Soeurs, and the excellent Frankenstein Revived), while also seeing one in Toronto (the crushing Girls & Boys) and one on Broadway (the Tony-nominated revival of A Doll’s House). We seem to have swapped Niagara visits (only one this year, for a Leaning Post 10th birthday celebration) for drives to Stratford.

I also ended up travelling to the Maritimes several times for work in the fall. After leaving the wine industry in August and taking September off, in October I joined a Moncton-based company; not only am I enjoying the job, it’s given me a great opportunity to see my family more often.

We did also manage to enjoy ourselves in Toronto a bit, with dinners out at restaurants (Gare de l’Est, Richmond Station (twice), George, Greta Solomon, Carisma w/ MLK, Ascari, Ardo, Grey Gardens, and Blue Blood Steakhouse, the lone new Toronto restaurant I tried this year…sad), get-togethers with friends (Shannon & Dallas, CBGB for a couple of hours on Thanksgiving, brunch at White Lily with MLK, and Mike & Heather), and out-of-town visitors (Naakita, Patrick, Naakita + Jess, brother #2 and his wife), and a Jays game. No concerts, but we have two lined up in the first few months of 2024.

Our enjoyment of the year was tempered, though, by the worst sickness of all this year: at the end of February, Kramer suddenly fell ill and we lost him just hours later. It was a devastating blow for a still-young cat who’d come so far since we adopted him, and for Lindsay and I who loved him so dearly. It took weeks for the spontaneous tears to wind down; they still come now and then, even ten months later. That’s the sickness that’s reverberated the most throughout our year. Miss you, Kramer. (and Ayce & Aly too.)

As far as our own sicknesses, I recognize that if the worst that comes from them is a few missed concerts or interrupted vacations, then we have it pretty easy. There’s nothing debilitating or life-altering here. All in all, we continue to be safe, prosperous, and (largely) healthy. For that, we’re grateful.

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Annual reports from past years:

• 2022: Emergence
• 2021: Outbreak
• 2020: Containment
• 2019: Body Blows
• 2018: Stabilization
• 2017: Fallout
• 2016: Antipodal
• 2015: Hyper-focus
• 2014: Focus
• 2013: Adjustments
• 2012: Mobile
• 2011: Evolution
• 2010: Expansion
• 2009: Steady
• 2008: Lassitude

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[Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on Unsplash]

For this year’s lists, I’m continuing my recent pattern of including everything I consumed this year, not just what came out. And, as always, everything is listed alphabetically unless otherwise stated.

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My favourite albums

I am extremely behind on this front, not having gotten through new albums by ANOHNI & Antony and the Johnsons, Bass Drum of Death, Bonnie “Prince” Billy, Explosions In The Sky, Feist, Julie Byrne, Marnie Stern, Rural Alberta Advantage, Sigur Ros, or Yo La Tengo. So this is as far as I’ve gotten.

The Record by boygenius

Anytime three of the best working musicians out there join forces, you know it’s going to great. Fulfills the promise of the original EP, and them some.

Islands In The Sky by Death Valley Girls

I don’t even remember how I heard about this album, but it went into my regular play rotation and stayed there. If I didn’t have the unofficial rule about “only one song per artist” on my best-of songs list below, it’d probably contain 3 or 4 songs from this album.

I Inside The Old Year Dying by PJ Harvey

From the opening track this one feels haunting, as PJ Harvey albums tend to do, what with that voice of hers. That’s where the sameness stops, though. She never seems to release the same album twice, and that innovation is part of what’s so thrilling here.

The Land Is Inhospitable And So Are We by Mitski

Sameness isn’t always bad though — Mitski’s evolution from album to album is slower, but entirely noticeable. This album has made me very excited that we’ll see her on her 3-day stand at Massey Hall in the new year.

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My favourite songs

See caveat above.

• Alvvays . ‘Tom Verlaine’
• boygenius . ‘$20’
• Death Valley Girls . ‘Islands In The Sky’
• Lana Del Rey . ‘Did You Know That There’s A Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd’
• Bob Dylan . ‘Tombstone Blues’ (the version on Shadow Kingdom)
• PJ Harvey . ‘Prayer At The Gate’
• Mitski . ‘Bug Like An Angel’
• The New Pornographers . ‘Pontius Pilate’s Home Movies’
• U.S. Girls . ‘St. James Way’
• Youth Lagoon . ‘Rabbit’

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My favourite movies

Good gosh: I only watched seven movies that came out this year, and only four made this list. Lots of high quality, though, including some that just spilled over from late last year.

All Quiet On The Western Front (2022)

Not the first version of this, but maybe the best. A traumatic and traumatizing story of the last days of WWI.

Barbie (2023)

All the hype was deserved. A very funny, very textural, very scathing bit of moviemaking that seemed to make the right people uncomfortable, and made us (okay, me) listen a little more closely to some Matchbox Twenty lyrics.

Blue Jasmine (2013)

A film I’d been meaning to watch for…well, ten years. Entertaining enough, but worth the price of admission just to see Cate Blanchett’s stylish, frenetic meltdown. A masterclass in acting.

Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022)

As trippy and touching and innovative and fun as it gets. The inimitable Michelle Yeoh, the delightful Stephanie Hsu, the comeback kid Ke Huy Quan, the eternal James Hong, the powerhouse Jamie Lee Curtis…what a cast. What a concept. I want to watch it again right now.

The Killer (2023)

Any David Fincher film is a pretty safe bet to end up on my year-end list, and this one — while not his strongest — was more than good enough to make the cut.

May December (2023)

Charles Melton was subtly, heartbreakingly good. Julianne Moore was just unhinged enough. Natalie Portman bounced expertly between the two poles. Knowing it was closely based on a real story that I’m old enough to remember gave it the most unsettling veneer. Good, but I’m not sure I ever want to watch it again.

The Menu (2022)

We watched this at the very beginning of the year, still feeling gluttonous from our festive bingeing. Darkly funny and a great commentary on class & cultishness, but TBH it’s made me a little self-conscious about tasting menus. 😐

Nope (2022)

Typical Jordan Peele: smart, funny, scary, insightful. Probably my least favourite of his three feature films, but still better than just about everything else I saw this year.

Oppenheimer (2023)

Like David Fincher, it’s a pretty good bet Christopher Nolan will show up on this year-end list with just about anything he does. These talky epics have a tendency to be poorly paced, but Oppenheimer pulled it off so beautifully. I can’t wait to watch it again and again, as I do with all of Nolan’s films.

Tár (2022)

I don’t know why Todd Field has only made three movies in the last 22 years — all three (In The Bedroom, Little Children, and this one) were brilliant, and nominated for multiple Oscars. Or maybe that’s why he’s achieved such success? Anyway, as long as he turns out pieces like this, with performances like Cate Blanchett’s (two entries on the list this year!) he can work at whatever pace he likes.

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My favourite TV shows

I/we watched an incredible amount of TV this year. Setting aside all the re-watches, the ones we’re in the middle of watching (Silo S1, Borgen S4, Blue Eyed Samurai S1, Fargo S5, Lessons In Chemistry S1, and A League Of Their Own S1) and the vast pile we haven’t even started, here’s what stood out when we watched them this year.

Abbott Elementary (all)

We binged the entirety of this once we started it. The kind of funny and sweet that makes me laugh, but that I could also tell my parents to watch.

Better Call Saul (all)

I’d put off watching this for years, maybe so I could do it all at once. As big a fan as I was of Breaking Bad, this series might have been even better. Seeing the slow, bit-by-bit (d)evolution of Jimmy McGill was incredible; getting bonus storylines with Mike Ehrmantraut and Gus Fring made it that much better. It’s no wonder this show was nominated for as many Emmy awards as it was.

Black Mirror (S6)

Not the strongest season, but the first three episodes — “Joan Is Awful”, “Loch Henry”, “Beyond The Sea” — were so good that it deserved listing here. Parts of all three of those episodes will stick with me for a long, long time.

Borgen (S1-3)

I don’t know what compelled me to start watching this slow, talky Danish political drama, but once I started I was hooked. I burned through the first three seasons, and am making my way through the recently-released fourth.

The Diplomat (S1)

I didn’t expect much out of this — it seemed at the outset like a formulaic drama — but I was very wrong. Sure, it’s a little cliffhanger-y, but it’s often funny and always interesting in its gender dynamics.

The Last Of Us (S1)

What else to say about this series that hasn’t already been said? The near-perfect setup (the pre-credits scenes of the first two episodes gave me the willies), amazing star performances, emotionally wrenching episodes (“Long, Long Time” anyone?), and a GoT-like character mortality rate made it appointment TV for me.

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (S4+5)

We took a long pause after season 3, but I eventually restarted the series myself and watched the final two seasons in quick succession. Whatever else it was, it was funny…and a sweet testimonial to friendship. It also had that rarest of qualities for a high-calibre show: a near-perfect final episode.

Mythic Quest (all)

This time last year we’d just started watching this show. A few weeks later we’d watched all three seasons. With creators like that (all Always Sunny alumni) the show was bound to be funny, but it’s also remarkably sweet — especially the relationship between Ian and Poppy. Standalone episodes like “A Dark Quiet Death” and “Backstory!” are just the cherry on top of the sundae.

Party Down (S3)

I never thought we’d get a third season of this show, which flew so under the radar back when it came out. So fun to see most of the band back together, and still just as funny as ever. God, I missed it.

Succession (S4)

Not sure what else to say about this show. It was a phenomenon. We were sucked up in it.

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My favourite books

After burning through nine books last year (a serious step-up from previous years) I backslid to two this year.

Heat 2 By Michael Mann & Meg Gardiner

Given how much I love the movie, I was more than happy to revisit these characters. I’m so hopeful they make this into a movie, though I don’t know how they would handle the Chris-Shiherlis-in-the-immediate-aftermath-of-the-movie casting.

Fleishman Is In Trouble By Taffy Brodesser-Akner

We did a weird thing where we watched the show pretty much at the same time that we co-read the book. I can’t tell if it helped or hindered one or both. We really did like both, to be fair. Unreality alert though: if that was their attempt to make Lizzy Caplan look kind of dumpy (as the author described herself) it absolutely did not work.

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My favourite podcasts

Again, setting aside perennial favourites like 99% Invisible, Against The Rules, Dead Eyes, Office Ladies, Revisionist History, Scamfluencers, Somm TV, This American Life, The Wire: Way Down In The Hole, You Are Good, and You’re Wrong About, these were the new podcasts/variants I really liked this year.

Against The Rules: Judging Sam

Michael Lewis took this deep dive into the trial of Sam Bankman-Fried, with whom he’d been spending enormous amounts of time, going way into the minutiae of the trial. I’m sure it’ll be an interesting companion piece to the book I’ll inevitably read, though I did feel bad for his producer who had to line up outside the courtroom at ungodly hours.

Hard Fork

A very solid tech podcast from two knowledgeable and entertaining hosts. Sometimes a little overlong, but it has become a useful resource for keeping up with the paroxysms of the tech industry.

Serial: The Retrievals

A story ostensibly about a nurse stealing pain meds from IVF patients, but really about how the medical profession responds to women in pain. The strongest Serial in a while, IMO.

Smartless

This is only new to me — not sure how I hadn’t heard about it until this year, but I’ve been plowing through back episodes since. It’s become a staple for us on long road trips, though listening to the episodes with other comedians can make it hard to drive.

We’re Here To Help

This is as silly and light as it gets, with Jake Johnson and Gareth Reynolds giving simple life advice to callers, but something about the gentleness of it helps me fall asleep (and that’s, like, 20% of what podcasts are about, right?). Also, it’s nice to have a mini-New Girl reunion podcast

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My favourite meals

Half of these were in Ontario, and half away. As many in New York (over two trips) as in Toronto, probably indicative of how infrequently we go out for dinner anymore. In chronological order this time.

Richmond Station, Toronto

A special dinner with Bill Redelmeier, owner of Southbrook Vineyards. This was a Grapes For Humanity charity auction prize shared among a few friends, just like the one we did last year. Talking to Bill and drinking his wine was part of the treat, but the food was absolutely outstanding — as it often is at Richmond Station.

Kaia, New York City

In our first New York trip of the year we spent a lot of time on Upper East Side, and located this South African themed wine bar. We ate way, way too much. We drank some fantastic wines. We loved our server and the overall vibe (lots of pups eating outside with us). Overall the best meal of the trip.

Pastrami Queen, New York City

The opposite of fancy, but a quintessential NYC experience: a pastrami sandwich from a classic place not far from our hotel, and a favourite of the late Anthony Bourdain. My mouth is watering just thinking about that sandwich.

Betty’s at the Kitch, Mahone Bay NS

The great meals are always about the food, the drink, and the ambience, right? This cozy little spot in Mahone Bay delivered on all three, with their wood oven pizzas and local produce and Annapolis sparkling. So good we went back the next night.

Drake Devonshire, Wellington ON

There were a number of great meals to choose from on this birthday trip to PEC, but there was something about sitting by the lake on a perfect day, eating lobster rolls and fried chicken, and drinking Champagne.

Lovage, Stratford ON

Once we discovered Lovage early in the summer we made a point of returning over and over. So any of the meals could have taken the prize here, but this dinner in particular stood out…so much so that we canceled our lunch reservation for the next day and came back here.

Dirty French, New York City

The first of two outstanding hotel restaurants on our second NYC trip of the year. This one at the Ludlow was beyond decadent, with oysters and lamb carpaccio and some kind of bonkers deconstructed Montreal smoked meat sandwiches and a 22 year old bottle of Cab Franc.

Locanda Verde, New York City

Luckily our second standout dinner in NYC came the following night, in the lone window where neither of us felt terribly ill. The Greenwich Hotel’s resto was much buzzier, busier, and cramped, and the food and wine were even more spectacular.

Ascari Enoteca, Toronto

We’d been to Ascari many times before — it’s a neighbourhood fav — but this was probably the best meal we’d ever had there. Everything was very fall/harvest-themed, and every dish sang.

Grey Gardens, Toronto

In my one previous visit to Grey Gardens I’d left pretty disappointed. This time, with a colleague, I was pleasantly surprised. The smoked fish dip, the duck, the bottle of Bordeaux, the Don PX for dessert — everything hit the mark.

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My favourite (new) wines

I can’t swear this list is comprehensive, given how many bottles we drink through the year (and my desire not to document my meals when dining out), but this seems like a pretty representative top ten.

Blomidon Estate 2018 Chardonnay

From the NS wine & spirit store in the Halifax airport, of all places. Such a wonderful example of what NS Chardonnay has become; hopefully enough vinifera survived the frosts earlier this year to keep producing such lovely bottles.

Catherine & Pierre Breton 2001 “Les Perrieres” Bourgueil

From The Dirty French restaurant in New York. Not too much tannin or acid left in the bottle, but more than enough to hold the structure together while all the fruit and savoury character shone through. So delicious.

Château Suduiraut 2013 Sauternes

From my cellar. No special occasion: just opened a half-bottle of Sauternes and drank it over the course of…well, probably fewer days than it should have been.

Domaine Bart 2021 “La Montagne” Marsannay

From Chambers St Wines, New York. While Lindsay was sick in our hotel room, I walked a few blocks to this wine shop and picked up a bottle for dinner. Not the best Marsannay I’ve ever had, but there was something about eating a burger and drinking a bottle of wine in a fancy NYC hotel room that gave it a little extra something.

Hidden Bench 2012 Terroir Caché

From my cellar. This “second bottle” from my favourite Ontario winery in one of the best Ontario vintages ever was worth the wait. I’m probably breaking my own category rule in that I’ve almost certainly drunk this before, but I’m using the excuse that it was before I kept records. Either way, I’m glad I have verticals of this wine stacked up.

Kew Vineyards 2016 Marsanne

From the bar at the Prince Of Wales Hotel, Niagara on the Lake. While at a work offsite event, a colleague and I noticed they carried Kew, a winery our company had just acquired. The staff pulled this bottle from their cellar, and we made quick work of it.

Le Clos Jordanne 2020 Claystone Terrace Pinot Noir

From my cellar. One of my favourite grapes, harvested from one of my favourite vineyards, during another of Ontario’s classic vintages, and crafted by one of my favourite winemakers. It was a can’t-miss.

Le Vieux Pin 2015 Équinoxe Syrah

From my cellar. The Équinoxe Syrah is why I joined the LVP wine club in the first place. I’ve since left it, but have plenty of these (and similar treats) aging in the cellar. Can’t wait to uncork more of them.

Malatinszky 2013 “Villányi Kúria” Cabernet Franc

From my cellar. Cab Franc devotees know the grape can produce outstanding wine in many different locales; this Hungarian example proved the point.

Mason Vineyard 2018 “The Landed” Cabernet Franc

From my cellar. Ontario, of course, makes world-class Cab Franc, especially in the hands of a first-rate winemaker like Kelly Mason. The classic iron-fist-wrapped-in-velvet, not easy in a tricky vintage.

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Exeunt: beers

Last year was the death knell for this category, I think. I drink beer so rarely, and log it even more rarely still, that I couldn’t even assemble a partial list here. Cheers, beer.

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My favourite moments of this year

Listed chronologically.

1. Enjoying dinner at Richmond Station with a group of friends and one of the most interesting people in the Ontario wine industry, Bill Redelmeier.
2. Seeing Jessica Chastain on Broadway.
3. Lining up for arguably the best slice of pizza in New York: Scarr’s.
4. Getting home (barely) to help celebrate my dad’s 80th birthday.
5. Sitting on the balcony of our AirBnB, watching the fog clear on Mahone Bay.
6. Having quiet backyard drinks with friends and trying not to freak out because one of them was in one of my favourite bands of all time.
7. Spontaneously wandering into an art show in Ottawa, and suddenly realizing I was standing in Patterson Creek Park, a place that meant a lot to me when I lived there in the summer of 1996.
8. Taking advantage of our backyard, especially when big groups of friends come over for a bbq.
9. Finally attending the Stratford festival.
10. Savouring a peaceful long weekend in a bucolic Prince Edward County farmhouse.
11. Saying goodbye to wine industry colleagues at Chez Nous.
12. Taking the whole goddamn month of September off.
13. Enjoying drinks = perfect weather on our Lower East Side hotel rooftop terrace.
14. Finally trying Terroir wine bar in New York.
15. Sharing pizza & beer & unseasonably warm patio weather with brother #2 and his wife.
16. Seeing the incredible Frankenstein, Revived at Stratford.
17. Realizing I get to see my family way more often now that I work in Moncton part-time.
18. Seeing a murmuration of starlings in real life for the first time.
19. Having dogs & cats to play with at Christmas.
20. Celebrating our friend Tess’ engagement.

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[Cover photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash]