moving day and more on baby Kintyre

2,000 some-odd lbs of books and furniture are now in a truck, on their way to Toronto. I spent much of the last couple weeks puttering around in a 5'6 crawl space (perfect for me! uncomfortable for Dean) re-boxing and consolidating all our worldly possessions. I am certainly excited to finally use all those wedding gifts I put in storage three years ago!

For those of you who are curious about the mysterious mummified baby who was discovered in our soon-to-be home, I stumbled across the libretto for the CBC radio opera that was based on the discovery. Our lovely friend Kelly heard it on the radio last night—just a couple hours after we'd been telling her about it! It's a quick read, broken into five parts, that offers an interesting perspective on how baby Kintyre may have found its grave in the floorboards of our attic.

Part one
Part two
Part three
Part four
Part five

Listen to the whole thing here.

Fitness Club Fiasco/Allosaurus

This time next week Dean and I will be in Saskatchewan loading up Karl (our Honda) for the big trip to Toronto.

Both of us have really warmed to the idea of living in Canada's mega-city—largely because we are sick of cross-Atlantic flights, but also because it will be so refreshing to live in a BIG city at last. Sure I was in London four days a week last year, but I didn't have the freedom to decide at 9pm (on a school night) that I wanted to go see a gig, knowing I could have a good night out and still be in bed by midnight.

Last week, on my first night in Toronto with Jess, we did just that. And if I were keeping score T.Sweet-style, I'd have to say: big point for Toronto.

From her King Street loft, 15 minutes and $5 landed Jess and me in the basement of Clinton's on College Street for sets from two killer Canadian bands that you should probably make a mental note of:

Fitness Club Fiasco - a cross between Death Cab and STARS, and maybe a bit of Mates of State thrown in. These Canadians have set up camp in Bristol and are already making a good impression on the Brits. They certainly made an impression on me. (woo, thanks Leah for letting me know that this is a TWU outpost! nice.)

Allosaurus - I can't remember what I did more of during this show: laugh or dance. I did a lot of both— Dancing because these techno beats were seriously fun, and laughing because of the most committed '80s get-ups I've seen since 1990, wickedly bad dance moves and because the two guys that make up Allosaurus obviously get a major kick out of each other.

29 Kintyre and the mystery baby

SUBTITLE: No Longer Homeless

good news kids! Dean and I have a new home!

I am always meeting new people, and have made numerous acquaintances this week in Toronto. When they invariably ask where I live, I've had to give a very long-winded answer about being FROM Vancouver, but most recently living in Oxford, and before that Aberdeen, but in 20 days (yep, less than three weeks), being a resident of Toronto.

But as of today, I can simply say I live in Riverside (and supposedly people in Toronto will know that I mean...). This evening I signed the lease on our new apartment in a little old house just off of Queen East, and I am chuffed. Queen East is in the midst of incredible gentrification, making it a lot like Main St in Vancouver — still a little edgy, but full of independent shops and restaurants.

As my new landlord took me through the space that she and her husband have lovingly restored, she explained that the house is actually famous and has secured it prime spot in Toronto lore.

Why? Three years ago, in the midst of renovations, the contractor found a bundled package in the rafters. He tossed the package down and peeled back the decaying blanket to discover a mummified baby! Read the story here.

no pants subway ride 2010

This story answers some major questions I had while waiting for a Toronto streetcar last night.

welcome to Toronto, Amanda. We go trouser-less in -10 degrees and you are complaining in your down jacket!

They breed 'em tough out east.

best of 2009

I'm in the midst of a rare treat: An evening all by myself in a sexy downtown Toronto loft. The perfect night to curl up with a new book :)

It's a weekend of apartment hunting. So far I've had 5 viewings—1 hit and 4 misses. There are three more to see tomorrow and then I'll make my final call. I'll give you a hint though: I discovered that I'm through with charm and character. I want something NEW, CLEAN and BRIGHT. Crown mouldings and fireplaces don't turn me on anymore unless they are accompanied by a dishwasher, a second bathroom and a 24 hour gym.

I am crashing for the weekend with an adorable young lady, who was once my 'youth group kid' and can now be certifiably called my friend (doncha love when that happens) and a really fantastic musician, and I need to shout out to her for her gracious hosting: Thanks Jess Janz!

But without further ado, I bring you my top ten reads of 2009:

1.    The Road by Cormac McCarthy

I read this book on a cross-Atlantic flight. I was riveted. I ignored the inflight entertainment and kept myself awake until I had finished it. No book of 2009 moved me like this. I went in with no preconceived notions of this book – I hadn’t even read the back cover – and relished pondering the mystery of what had caused this barren and burnt landscape and then discovering the answer for myself.

2.    American Wife by Curtis Sittenfeld

Based on the life of former first lady Laura Bush, this book is structured according to three major life incidents: accidentally killing a young friend in a high school car accident, becoming a librarian and meeting her future husband while in her 30s, and of course, being the wife of a doofus who becomes president. Sittenfeld actually gave me some sympathy for both George W and Laura. American Wife is not a short book, but if it were twice as long I wouldn’t have complained.

3.    The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga

I am a sucker for books about India. This one didn’t disappoint. It was witty, colourful, dealt with the class divide and all of India’s special quirks. It was really sad at times and laugh out loud hilarious at others.

4.    A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemmingway

This book totally exceeded my expectations and contained many of my favourite things: Paris, snobby literary circles, romance, celebrity gossip, trips through Europe, scandal etc etc. I have dreamed of books like this, then I found it.

5.    The End of the Affair by Graham Greene

I can’t pinpoint exactly why I loved this book. Indeed the language was beautiful, and it documents a tumultuous affair and loveable cuckold of a husband, but those aren’t why I love it. To me it was just this perfectly rounded, complete object that pulled me in and kept me in suspense even though, Green tells us exactly how the book would end in the first 20 pages. That takes skill.

6.    Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides

I bring this book up in conversations to sound wise and worldly, but also because I think everyone (especially Christians) should read it. It’s about a boy who was raised a girl (vague genitalia and a careless doctor) and finds out when she/he’s a teenager. It tackled lots of grey areas with eloquence… oh yah, and won a Pulitzer.

7.    Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi

This was my first graphic novel and it ruled. It’s about a progressive/communist family dealing with an oppressive Muslim Iranian government in the ’80s. It was especially poignant because my sister is in the Middle East right now – I can’t wait to loan it to her when she gets home!

8.    Microserfs by Douglas Coupland

This book is basically prophetic. Nobody knows modern culture like Coupland. I loved reading, from the present, his depiction of Microsoft/Silicon Valley in the 90s and seeing how his predictions have manifested themselves. He gets it dead on.

9.    Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K Jerome

Maybe this book was particularly special because it’s set on the stretch of the Thames between London and Oxford (hello, that’s a familiar commute!) but I don’t think you need to know England to find this book ridiculously funny. Read my previous review here.

10. The Secret Scripture by Sebastian Barry

Minorly predictable, but so wonderfully written that you excuse it. This is about the rise and fall of a crazy old lady in her youth, and the doctor who is treating her. I just got swept up in this book and couldn’t put it down. That makes a gooder in my books.

2009 books

Happy new year everyone!

2010 is going to be defined by major changes like a new city, new jobs and who knows what other surprises. 2009, on the other hand, was defined by books!

I crammed a lot of reading into my daily commute between Oxford and London. I don't miss that haul, but I do miss the hours I spent wrapped up in my scarf, forgetting the grumpy commuters around me while immersed in an awesome read. I read more books this year than any previous year and probably any future year. Here they are below - watch this space for my list of 2009 winners and losers (or in the meantime, read last year's).

2009 books

January

1.    Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert

2.    The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga

3.    STori Telling by Tori Spelling (oh yes I did)

4.    Love & Respect by Emmerson Eggerichs

5.    The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Arther Conan Doyle

February

6.    Microserfs by Douglas Coupland

7.    ‘Tis by Frank McCourt

8.    The Picture of Dorian Grey by Oscar Wilde

9.    Persuasion by Jane Austen

10.  Books vs Cigarettes by George Orwell

March

11.  Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides

12.  My Uncle Oswald by Roald Dahl

13.  The Mysterious Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson

April

14. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson

15. A Handful of Dust by Evelyn Waugh

16. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz

17. Tess of the D’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy

May

18. The Secret Scripture by Sebastian Barry

19. Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day by Winnifred Watson

20. Rumpole and the Penge Bungalow Murders by John Mortimer

21.  A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemmingway

22.  The Plague of Doves by Louise Erdrich

June

23. TM McSweeney’s issue no. 30 (short stories)

24. The End of the Affair by Graham Greene

July

25. Twilight by Stephenie Meyer

26.  Under the Net by Iris Murdoch

27. American Wife by Curtis Sittenfeld

August

28. New Moon by Stephenie Meyer

29. Making Conversation by Christine Longford

30. Saturday by Ian McEwan

31. Gilead by Marilynne Robinson

32. Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi

September

33. The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

34. The Road by Cormac McCarthy

35. Loving Frank by Nancy Horan

October

36. Keep the Aspidistra Flying by George Orwell

37. The Potato Factory by Bryce Courtenay

38. Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer

November

39. Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K Jerome

40. The Great Divorce by CS Lewis

41. The Almost Moon by Alice Sebold

December

42. Inspector Morse:The Wench is Dead by Colin Dexter

43. At the Back of the North Wind by George MacDonald

44. Jake’s Thing by Kingsley Amis

45. Christmas Stories by Charles Dickens

and books started but never finished:

The Sound of One Hand Clapping by Richard Flanagan (of the infamous book burning incident)

Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens (not recommended as beach reading!)