Teena in Toronto

Saturday, 18 April 2026

Fox and John's Restaurant + Bar, Toronto, ON ( Liberty Village)

Gord and I had supper at Fox and John’s in Liberty Village, which open about a year ago and this is the first time we've been

Toronto Marlies vs Laval Rocket, Coca-Cola Coliseum, Toronto, ON

This afternoon the Toronto alumni chapter of the university I went to, St. Francis Xavier University (St. F.X.), hosted an event, a Toronto Marlies game at the Coca-Cola Coliseum, and Gord and I went.

I got artsy with my "X" ring and my beer.

Here we are:

Gord and I

The "X" group

The Marlies are the farm team for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Berczy Park, Toronto, ON

I wandered over to Berczy Park this afternoon (Wellington, Front and Scott streets, across the St. Lawrence Centre for the Arts). I hadn't been there since last year. The water in the dog fountain hasn’t been turned on yet.

Wrexham AFC Toronto Watch Party, Scotland Yard, Toronto, ON

Gord and I are fans of Welcome to Wrexham, a TV show about the Ryan Reynald/Rob McElhenney-owned Wrexham Association Football Club Welsh professional football club based in Wrexham, Wales. I'd joined a Facebook group for Wrexham AFC fans and saw they were having a watch party this morning. That sounded like fun so Gord and I went.

It was at Scotland Yard on the Esplanade for this morning's 10am game.

Most of us ordered the Classic Breakfast. I got mine with bacon. It was a good breakfast with a lot of food!

Here we are!

The others in the watch party were friendly and hard-core fans. It was a fun time and Wrexham won!

Friday, 17 April 2026

Speckled Rib Stitch Knitted Scarf

I knitted another scarf to donate. I used a speckled rib stitch I found on Snufflebean Yarn's website.

"right" side

"wrong side"

I used a Caron Anniversary Cake Special Edition (the colour is Merry Maximus) and 6.5mm needles.

I cast on 23 stitches.

Knit 4 rows in garter stitch
Row 1 (RS): k3, p2, *k3, p2* repeat from *to* last 3 stitches, k3.
Row 2 (WS): k3, k2, *p1, k1, p1, k2* repeat from *to* last 3 stitches, k3.
Repeat these 2 rows until the scarf is the desired length.
Knit 4 rows in garter stitch.
Bind off.

San Wich, Toronto, ON

Yelp Toronto was offering opportunities for a free meal at San Wich on Gladstone Avenue (just north of Bloor Street W) to elite Yelpers over the next week or so. I’ve been an elite Yelper for 17 years and happily was one of the ones chosen. I stopped in for lunch today. San Wich opened in 2024 and is owned by Gus Tacos.

Sir Casimir Gzowski Park, Toronto, ON

Driving home from Etobicoke, I was amazed at how foggy it was along the Lakeshore so I stopped at Sir Casimir Gzowski Park and check it out! The CN Tower and Sunnyside Pavilion are barely visible! Wow!

“The Book of Mormon”, Princess of Wales Theatre, Toronto, ON

Gord and I saw The Book of Mormon this evening at the Princess of Wales Theatre on King Street W. It was good. Sometimes when there was singing, the orchestra was louder so it was hard to make out the words. And the Ugandan accents were really strong.

This outrageous musical comedy follows the adventures of a mismatched pair of missionaries, sent halfway across the world to spread the Good Word. With standing room only productions in London, on Broadway, and across North America, THE BOOK OF MORMON has truly become an international sensation.

From Goodreads ~ Ex-CIA Agent turned small town Girl Scout leader, Merry Wrath, thinks she has her hands full getting her troop ready for the Mud Run out at scout camp. But a trip to the movies, where she sees her whole career played out on the big screen, turns her world from little girls to great big lies. Turns out her former handler, Riley, is hiding something and the Agency is on the warpath, thinking Merry has leaked classified intel.

Merry is a former CIA agent who loved her job and was very good at it. But when her identity is exposed, she’s forced into early retirement, given a severance package and told to start over somewhere new. After changing her appearance, she returns to her small hometown in Iowa, where her best friend, Kelly, still lives. Together they run a Girl Scout troop while Merry tries to adjust to a much quieter life.

When Merry goes to see a movie at a theatre, she stunned to realized that it's her life as a spy on the big screen. The movie shuts down abruptly during the viewing and across the country. Merry is concerned the CIA will think she was behind the movie, which it turns out is based on an yet-to-be published book, which will send them after her. So she starts digging to see who was behind it. In the meantime, her scout troup is excited about the upcoming mud run and training hard.

This is the fifth in the Merry Wrath mystery series (there are currently 36) and for the most part I liked it. It can be read as a stand alone but it's fun to read them in order. It's written in first person perspective in Merry's voice so we can to hear her thoughts (and she has a lot!). I liked the writing style ... it was conversational as if Merry was speaking to us. It was a quick fun read and I look forward to continuing on with the series.

I found the relationship between Merry and Rex, her boyfriend of a couple years, a bit unrealistic. I'm assuming they are in their mid to late thirties and have had sleepovers. But when Merry has to stay at Rex's, he puts her in the guest room? And she doesn't question that? In general, they tend to act like the neighbours they are rather than a couple.

Sunday, 12 April 2026

Book ~ "Strangers in the Villa" (2026) Robyn Harding

From Goodreads ~ Sydney Lowe’s life in New York is shattered when her husband, Curtis, admits to a meaningless affair with a client. Begging for forgiveness and vowing to prove his devotion, Curtis suggests the couple retreat to a remote hilltop house in Spain to repair their marriage.

High above the Mediterranean, Sydney and Curtis are working on the isolated property and their relationship when a pair of Australian travelers turns up at their door in dire need of help. Lonely for companionship and desperate for free labor, Sydney and Curtis invite the attractive young couple to stay. But as the days pass, dark secrets come to light, the Lowes’ bond is tested and not everyone will leave the villa alive.

Curtis had confessed to an affair and now he and his wife, Sydney, are trying to rebuild their relationship with a fresh start in Spain. Sydney is still feeling hurt and betrayed and is trying to trust Curtis again and Curtis is committed to earning that trust back. They’ve bought a run-down villa with dreams of transforming it into a winery, though the property requires a lot of repairs. A few months into their new life, Damien and Bianca, a young Australian couple, unexpectedly arrive after their van breaks down nearby. With the replacement part delayed, Sydney offers them a place to stay in exchange for helping with the renovations.

I thought the story was interesting but was disappointed with the ending. After all the stress and tension that had been built up, it was a letdown. The story is written in third person perspective with a focus on Sydney, Curtis, Damien and Bianca, which lets us get to know them and what their motives are. The pacing could have been better as it took a long time to find out what had really happened in the past, which explained why things were happening today. As a head's up, there is swearing.

Fan and Feather Knitted Scarf

I knitted another scarf to donate using my favourite pattern, fan and feather.

I used a Caron Anniversary Cake Special Edition (the colour is Merry Maximus) and 6.5mm needles.

I cast on 24 stitches (a multiple of 18 plus 6).

Knit 3 rows of garter stitch for the border
Row 4: Knit
Row 5: K 3, P to last 3 stitches K3
Row 6: K3, *(K2 tog) 3 times, (yo, K1) 6 times, (K2 tog) 3 times, rep from * to last 3 sts K3
Row 7: Knit
Repeat Rows 4 - 7, keeping first and last 3 stitches in garter stitch, until piece measures desired length
Knit 3 more rows of garter stitch to make the bottom border
Cast off and darn in ends