farewell gift.

This gorgeous clear crisp day is making me sad to leave Toronto, but oh! the west coast is calling. Dean and I are doing a pretty good job of crossing items off our TO to-do list (see update below).

We leave a week from today and will arrive in Seattle one more week after that. We're making the move into a wee holiday/adventure, taking the drive a little slower, with exciting stops at Mt. Rushmore and Yellowstone Park—two places I have always wanted to visit.

Normally the last week before a move is spent frantically tracking down boxes and stuffing them haphazardly to the gills. Instead I'm up to my ears in (really fun) work. One minute I'm trying to put beautiful folk music into words, the next I'm writing about the drizzle in Scotland, and still the next I'm describing one of coolest educational buildings I've ever seen. Freelancing was a great move. Not a minute of regret thus far! Also, we owe a HUGE debt of thanks to Dean's new employer, the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, for arranging our move for us and taking all the stress/work out of it.

And because I'm in a generally happy state of mind, here's a little gift, in the form of First Aid Kit, from me to you!

two week list

Forgive the cliche, but it really does feel like just yesterday we were packing up the Chapel and saying goodbye to Oxford. Now we're in the same spot again, wrapping up nine months in Toronto, and oh-so excited to start life on the West Coast.

It's around this time in any move when I start to get some early nostalgia for the place I'm living. Before we left the UK, I put together a one-month list—all the things I wanted to see and do in London/Oxford before we left for good. I'm two weeks behind on this (yes, we leave Toronto in two weeks, today), but nevertheless, I've put together a little list of things I'd be remiss to leave without doing in my last month in the T-dot. Notably, they mostly involve food! Three down, nine to go!


1. Visit the AOG and MOCCA

2. Eat Korean (and we both enjoyed it SO much we're going back for our last night in town!)

3. Purchase upholstery fabric at Designer Fabrics to re-cover the seat of my favourite armchair

4. Tour the Steamwhistle brewery

5. See a show (Circle Eloize at the Sony Centre - wonderful!)

6. Brunch at Bonjour Brioche

7. Brunch at Cafe Marmalade  (fruit and yogurt-filled buckwheat crepe and fresh OJ)

8. Lunch at the Drake Corner Cafe

9. Visit Union Station

10. Stroll through the leaves in High Park

11. Tour Casa Loma

12. Purchase item from 69 Vintage (or other fabulous TO vintage shop)  (lovely pleated navy polka dot skirt at Common Sort)

Strombo-thon

Like most Canadians, I have a love-hate relationship with Canadian broadcasting. I firmly believe Canada needs our own media and will defend the need for more funding and even for regulation... but (confession) I'd sooner watch Two and a Half Men (which, Dean will attest, I believe indicates the low American comedy has hit) than sit through any CTV-produced sitcom.

One thing we DO do well north of the border is current events, and no Canadian, regardless of their political leaning, will dispute that George Stroumboulopoulos sets the standard for great late night talk. We love him. He and Peter Mansbridge. They can do no wrong.

Yesterday Jess Janz and I scored ourselves front row seats at George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight (formerly The Hour). While Toronto is in the throes of TIFF and some people are cruising King Street hoping to brush up against celebrity outside the LightBox, I prefer to get all my fame in one place.

The epic six-hour multi-episode taping featured interviews with all of the following:
Paul Giamatti
Rosamund Pike
Jason Priestly
Zach Braff
Edward Norton (!!!)
Errol Morris
Gene Simmons + Shannon Tweed
Jill Hennesy

Holy cannoli! It was quite the lineup. The crew of Gene Simmons' Family Jewels were even on set, so be sure to watch for our chuckling mugs in a future episode.


[image via Toronto Star]

Only in Saskatchewan

Hand Santizer Linked to Public Intoxication

We had a good laugh chez-Regier on Saturday morning when Deano spotted this CBC article about recent thefts of bulk alcohol-based hand santizer from public buildings in Regina. His sister and brother-in-law are social workers in various communities in southern Saskatchewan, and these are the kinds of challenges they are up against.

I am a West Coaster through and through, but since marrying a Saskatchewan boy I have developed a soft spot for the Canadian prairies... in all her glue-sniffing glory.

cross stitch

This inspired me to put my knitting aside and pick up a new hobby for the winter.

[by chezsucrechez, via designsponge]

in which we make a big announcement

Since hubby and I got married four years ago we've lived in 6 different homes in 4 different cities (lost track? Vancouver, Aberdeen, Oxford, Toronto). While we both love the adventure, we also have longed to put down roots at some point. I, for one, knew I'd never truly be able to do that anywhere but North America's west coast. We always assumed that would mean a return to Vancouver. Our move to Toronto this year was the first step westward, and we expected to enjoy this fabulous city for a few years until a position opened up for Dean in BC.

By now, however, we're used to rolling with the unexpected... so we're thrilled to share with you that Dean has been offered an Assistant Professor post at the University of Washington and the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.

In other words, we're moving to Seattle!

We'll spend the next two months wrapping up our respective jobs here in Ontario and plan to reach the Pacific by November 1st.

Looking forward to spending lots of time with most of you then.

Yes, visitors, there will be a bed for you.

xo