picture my realia

wallpaper, sunday dinner and streetcar home on a mild evening

 

A wall waiting for some decoration.

Two strips up. Mia on cutting duty.

Second room, bathroom. This picture doesn't come close to conveying how beautiful this lillies of the valley print looks on the wall. We were going to put up one strip before dinner. Then just had to see two. Then decided we must finish that wall. Great choice Meem.

I always enjoy the 504 King car ride home from Mia's. Tonight it's especially pleasant because it's so mild I can open the window.

Another blurry King Street at night image from the window of the streetcar.

I spend the morning doing some spring cleaning at home, getting rid of some piles of clutter.  After lunch, Mia picks me up and we go to her place to wallpaper her living room wall, and if there's time, do some of the bathroom.  I've always enjoyed wallpapering because the change happens quickly - with each strip hung, the impact is big.

Later, we have dinner of Asian flavour marinated ribs, asparagus risotto and salad.  It's a later dinner and we're hungry from our labours.

I enjoy the evening on my way home - first streetcar, then walking the last bit.  It's quite mild, still 18°C. 

Easter

 

 

Omelette and baked pancetta made by Ceri for breakfast.

 

A market vendor was selling two bunches of freesia for $10. Of course I had to.

Easter Sunday we wake up to another beauty day, though clouds roll in later in the afternoon.  I edit pictures and do Friday's blog post and edit more pictures.  Ceri makes breakfast.  Later we walk back to my place.  Kelsey and Jared come over for dinner.  I make pasta with asparagus, peas, pancetta, parmesan, fresh basil and parsley, with salad.  It's delicious, and the company great, though we missed Carly.

 

sunday: daytime, dinnertime, nighttime

Is anything as beautiful as a bird's nest harbouring eggs?  Mourning Dove nest in my sister's pine tree. Mississauga.

 

Five girls and a boy. Or, the next generation. (Missing the littlest guy.) (F) Carly, Sydney, Elaine, Paige, Kelsey (R) Chris.  Mississauga.  Photo attributed to guest photographer of the day - Catherine Morrison!

Home again home again jiggedy jig. Walking home from Union Station; streetcars and a bike. Queens Quay, Toronto

Family dinner at Cathy's today.  My girls, Ceri and I catch the GO train and Stan picks us up at Port Credit.  Dad, Julie, Jeff and his girls arrive soon after we do.  Wonderful dinner of perch (caught on the Manitoulin by Dad last summer, frozen for a special occasion), cole slaw, baked beans, broccoli salad, green salad and potatoes.  Even more wonderful company.  Arrive back in the city, tired and content.

 

eight o'clock and 8:00

 

My kitchen as I was leaving for work around 8:00 this morning. Know what I see in that light? SPRING! Only thing missing is tulips on my table. I miss the green grocers of my previous neighbourhoods.  When I had green grocers, I had tulips all the time.

 

Eight O'Clock this evening. I threw together Italian Wedding soup with sauted onion and garlic, freezer meatballs, chicken stock, spinach (picked out of the box of mixed greens in my fridge) and barley (because I thought I had orzo but I didn't). We agreed - it was delicious.

 

breakfast, love, light, windows

 

Tugs (another astern) maneuvering ship into the sugar factory. Vantage point: Sugar Beach. I love that Toronto made a beach in this industrial spot.

A window at the Distillery District. I know, you've seen it before. I can't help myself, they're so pretty, no?

Lantern, railing, windows, sky - the Distillery District.

Windows reflecting. Distillery District, Toronto.

Windows, tree and sky, over the Jason George. Front Street, Toronto.

Brick and sunlight. Front Street, Toronto.

Happy, happy patio dwellers. Vitamin D rocks. From left: me, Ceri, Carly, Stan, Cathy. (Picture by nice lady on Cathy's phone.)

 

A Sunday turned out free for Cathy and Stan and Carly so we planned brunch in the city.  Carly hooked up with Cathy and Stan at Union Station and then they all met Ceri and me at our favourite brunch place near Sugar Beach.

It's gorgeous and sunny - the first real spring day.  A stroke of luck for our family-hanging-about-date, and damn we're all in need of some warm sunshine.  It hasn't been a bad winter, but a dreary one.  We need sun.  I needed some sun bad.

I'm sure we were the only ones in the restaurant who were so taken with the sight of the ship being towed by a tug (and followed by another) across our southerly view as we ate.  Might be because we're partial to a coupla' sailors.  As we left the restaurant, we see the tugs maneuvering the ship into the slip at the sugar factory.

We take a walk through the Distillery District.  Cathy buys Elaine some macaroons at the bakery there.  I take pictures of [more] windows.  There is a lineup at the Mill St. Brew Pub, so we wander back toward the Market neighbourhood and find a table at the Jason George.  We enjoy beers and sunshine and each others' company, laughing a lot.  The sun might have had something to do with that, but mostly it was the company.

Out Walking: Front Street

 

BIG salads at Fran's, Front Street, Toronto.

 

Beardmore Building, Front Street, Toronto.

 

Cute little "Meet me at the Market" signs, Front Street, Toronto.

 

A quick search tells me these buildings were built somewhere around 1872.

 

Walkin' shoes.

 

Ceri playing piano.

Bright and sunny today, but blustery still.  Made breakfast then Ceri went off to the office and I had to work for awhile too.  Do NOT like giving up any part of a weekend to work, but the upcoming week will be a challenge, so want to prepare for that.  Later I met Ceri at Fran's on Front Street for late lunch of big salads, then we did some errands and groceries and went back to his place.  Talked.  He played piano.  Had leftover lasagna he had frozen from last week and salad for supper. Listened to music.  Had wine.  Tried to catch part of SNL but conked out, feeling happy.

Sunday, Rockabilly Brunch, Queen Street, Jarvis Street and Dinner

 

St. Paul Church, Queen Street, Toronto

 

Door Detail, Dominion on Queen, Queen Street, Toronto

 

Rockabilly Brunch at Dominion on Queen, Queen Street, Toronto. We skipped the brunch but had a side order of Rockabilly.

 

Dominion on Queen, Queen Street, Toronto

 

Berkeley Church, Queen Street, Toronto. While I was trying to capture the pretty gate and windows, there was a guy over to the right, sitting on the church steps saying, "Get the f*** out of here." Pretty sure he wasn't affiliated with the place.

 

Tall Brick Fella, Condo Art, Jarvis Street, Toronto

 

Indonesian Consulate, Jarvis Street, Toronto

 

Me photographing dinner made by Ceri while I napped. Unfortunately my photo didn't do that lasagna and broccoli salad justice. Photo by Ceri. I have to admit, his lasagna is as good as mine.  Better maybe.  I have been skeptical about that claim for the past six months or so.

 

Out Walking: Queens Quay, Distillery District and Brunch

 

Captain John's Seafood, Queens Quay at Yonge, Toronto. This is not where we had brunch. For some reason Ceri doesn't find this place appealing.

 

Brunch at Against the Grain, Queens Quay at Lower Jarvis (Corus Quay), Toronto

 

Beautiful brick at the Distillery District, Toronto

 

Window and brick detail, Distillery District, Toronto

 

Window and brick detail, Distillery District, Toronto

 

Ceri and building, Distillery District, Toronto

Sunday, Deb and I wake up and have coffee and fruit and her homemade breakfast bars, then we go out to meet Ceri at Against the Grain off Sugar Beach for their beautiful brunch.  Their beautiful brunch may or may not have something to do with their beautiful $3 Caesars.  We may or may not have had two of those.

After, we walked to Ceri's place and looked at the view, then walked over to the Distillery District to look around.  On the way back to my place we picked up groceries for dinner later with Kelsey and Jared - homemade gourmet pizza and salad.

A really good day.  Glad to have Debbie in town.

Sunday Stuff

Pretty red door of the pub. Ceri and me in the reflection!

Cathy and Ceri, chatting.

Sunday, cold again.  Cooked more.  Went over to the pub to meet up with my sister after her shift.  Had some pints and shared a potato, bacon and onion flatbread, watched the snow and a parade of cars being driven into the convention centre for the auto show. 

Later, did Sunday kind of stuff - laundry, cleaning up the kitchen, getting lunch ready for tomorrow.  Always wish Sundays were longer.

winter and food

Winter came back today, and considering the -10°C temps, what does one do?  Eat!  After Saturday breakfast of scrambled eggs, peameal bacon, toast and fruit, I made a double batch of baked quinoa patties.  

Later we went to Mia's for an outstanding meal of Pad Thai and Gado Gado salad (hers inspired by Bamboo, a locally famous restaurant that once lived on Queen Street West).  I didn't think to take a picture of it (only thought of diving in), so you're just going to have to imagine how good it was.