At least I still have the empty can

As I write this I’m trapped in the den, as Nellie’s wrapping gifts in the living room. Luckily I have a TV in here and there’s a Canadiens game on, but I think I might’ve had a little too much Diet Pepsi, so it could get messy in here.

.:.

Last Friday night at Smokeless Joe was so enjoyable we returned again last night, looking for more Great Lakes Winter Ale. Unfortunately they were out, but we had some very tasty alternatives (Hacker-Pschorr Dunkle Weiss for me and some kind of Belgian Tripel for Nellie which she loved). No fear about not getting another taste of the winter ale, though: we bought a few bottles today at the LCBO.

We also got some treats for ourselves (Nellie got some Tedeschi Amarone at the LCBO, and I picked up some truffles at JS Bonbons) and for the cats (especially Sonny; his favourite toy is a little red ball that his Auntie Jenny got him years ago, and we’ve had trouble finding more of…until today and we bought five. Oh, and catnip, so they’ve been trying to crawl into their stocking all day).

.:.

I’ve never been in Toronto this close to Christmas before; it’s interesting. We went to St. Lawrence Market today to pick up a few things, and it was about six different kinds of crazy in there. It wasn’t even 10:00 yet and the crowds were so thick you’d think you were at a concert. I can’t wait to go grocery shopping tomorrow.

It’ll be really weird going to work on the 24th.

[tags]smokeless joe, great lakes winter ale, dunkle weiss, tripel, st. lawrence market, toronto[/tags]

Mmmmm…wintery…

We were supposed to go the Whippersnapper gallery tonight to see the photoblogger exhibit, but CB is under the weather and needs to regain her strength before getting on a plane. Really, I was rather wiped tonight so I used that as an excuse to recommend a more low-key plan — dinner at Smokeless Joe — and then chill.

When we got there the place was packed, so we took the last two seats next to the door. Still trying to get the chill off (we walked there) we ordered a 750mL bottle of the Great Lakes Winter Ale to share. Tasted like gingerbread! I skipped lunch today (except for a couple of pieces of cake that T-Bone was doling out) so I was starving. After some tasty bread to start my giant bowl of pesto pasta arrived. Damnation, that stuff is good. A glass of Black Katt Stout to go with it and I was a happy man.

Now we’re back home where it’s warm and we can chill, watch a movie or two. We have a busy-ass day tomorrow (well, Nellie does; I pretty much finished my shopping today) so we’ll be up early and need our energy.

[tags]smokeless joe, great lakes winter ale, black katt stout[/tags]