Book ~ "Home" (2015) Matt Dunn

From Goodreads ~ It’s been eighteen years since Josh Peters left dreary, dying Derton - the seaside town where he grew up - and headed for the bright lights of London. Now his dad is sick and his mum needs him, so he’s back - though he’s promised himself he won’t be staying for long.

Then Josh finds himself unexpectedly detained in Derton, living in his cramped teenage bedroom, with simmering family tensions a little too close for comfort. Back amongst the old friends, old enemies and old flames he left behind, he’s worried that some things may never change.

But is Derton the same place he couldn’t wait to escape from back then, full of failures and bitter memories, or has it been doing just fine without him? As Josh revisits his past, will he find that the only one who hasn’t moved on is him? 

His London life is calling him back - but sometimes there’s no place like home.

When Josh was young, he couldn't wait to escape Derton, the small seaside town he grew up in.  The first chance he got, he went to university and moved to London, only visiting Derton on occasion.  Now 36, he goes home for a day to take his parents to the doctor because his father is sick.  When they get the news that his father has cancer and doesn't have long to live, Josh moves back home to help out for as along as it takes.

While home, he reconnects with old friends and even the girl he coldly broke up with via a letter when he was in university.  He discovers that Derton has changed and it's not the depressing town of his youth.

This is the fifth book I've read by this author and I liked it.  I enjoyed the writing style and found it, despite the subject matter, amusing and a bit sarcastic (in a funny way).  It is written by an English author and set in England so their brand of humour was there, though I didn't get some of the references or sayings.  It was written in first person perspective from Josh's point of view.

I liked Josh and his parents.  At first his dad seems a crusty the way he criticizes Josh all the time and seems disappointed in him but we find that he means well.  It was nice to see Josh and his dad's relationship evolve.  His dad handled his impending death with humour and courage.

Holiday Inn Hotel & Suites London, London, ON

I have to spend today in St. Thomas so spent last night at the Holiday Inn Hotel & Suites London on Wellington Road (about a 25 minute drive from St. Thomas).  I'd stayed here last year and liked it.

Here is my room ...

A wet bar, including a mini fridge, is to the left when you walk in

Flavurs, London, ON

I had supper this evening at Flavurs (on Wellington Road S).  I'd eaten here last fall and it was delicious!

I sat in the dining room

Tonight's special was an 8oz steak, fries and coleslaw for $12.99 so that's what I ordered, exchanging the fries for mashed potatoes (for an extra $1) and not getting any coleslaw (I'm not a fan of cabbage).  When Lindsay, my server, asked how everything was, I let her know the steak was cold (it definitely wasn't cooked fresh-to-order).  So she took it back and had it heated up.  Garlic butter was added to it so it was warm, a bit greasy and gristly.  The mashed potatoes weren't buttery or creamy ... they tasted like the insides of a baked potato had been cleaned out and mashed (I didn't eat them all).  Not a satisfying meal.

Ipsy Glam Bag - November 2015

I received my November Ipsy Glam Bag today ... the theme is Beauty Blast.

• 4 to 5 beauty products in a collectible makeup bag 
• Monthly videos showing you how to get the Look 
• Win free products in contests and giveaways

Subscriptions are $10US a month or $110US for a year.  Shipping is free in the U.S. and $4.95US per month to Canada.  It works out to $212.85CN for the year ($17.74CN a month).

Here's what was in it:

• Make-up bag
• Coolway Stronghold Spray - 0.5oz - $3.02 value
• Smashbox Cosmetics Full Exposure Mascara (jet black) - 3ml - $10 value
• SinfulColors Nail Polish (Kissy) - $1.99 value
• tre'StiQue Mini Matte Lip Crayon (Florence Fig) - $8 value
• Beaute Basics Gel Eyeliner with Gel Eyeliner Brush - $?? value

Total value: $23.01US (excluding the bag and eye liner)

Trius wine club - November 2015

I picked up our November 2015 Trius wine club box today at the post office ... they'd tried to deliver it earlier this week but we weren't home.

Gord and I have been members of the Trius Wine Club for over ten years.

Every month, 2 bottles of our best wine will be delivered to your door along with Winemaker Craig McDonald’s tasting notes and Chef Frank Dodd’s recipes.

The cost is $46 a month and it's only available in Ontario.

The newsletter ...

Here's what we got ...

• Trius Sauvignon Blanc (2014) - $14.95 - the recipe included it's paired with is Three Pepper Crusted Shrimp Canapés with Peach Relish
• Trius Cabernet (2014) - $14.95 - the recipe included it's paired with is Red wine Marinated Chicken with Pancetta and Pearl Onions

Book ~ "Sudden Death" (2006) David Rosenfelt

From Goodreads ~ First at the crime scene, Andy Carpenter wishes he never saw the folded torso with the large red stain on its back. The victim is Troy Preston, wide receiver for the New York Jets, and the suspect is Kenny Schilling, the New York Giants’ star running back who is clamoring for Andy’s services. The upcoming high-profile murder case will be the benchwarming Andy’s chance to get back into the legal game. It will also prove a handy distraction from the awful possibility that Laurie Collins - the private investigator and living creature Andy adores most next to Tara, his cherished golden retriever - is about to leave Paterson forever. 

 Digging into the case, Andy stumbles onto some of the seamier undercurrents rushing beneath the large-guy camaraderie, big-buck cushiness and bone-mashing fun that is pro football. And he discovers that Preston’s death is similar to a series of other mysterious murders - all seemingly unrelated yet connected by a horrible secret from many years ago. Despite the crushing evidence, Andy begins to believe in his client’s innocence. 

 But when danger finds someone close to him, the unperturbed defender knows he’s attracted the attention of a powerful enemy - one who will do anything to take Andy permanently off the field…

A football player is found murdered and the suspect, Kenny, is asking for Andy.  Andy gathers his team together to start defending Kenny.  Was Troy killed because of a drug deal gone bad?  Or did it have something to do with a secret pact that Kenny, Troy and others made when they were in high school?

In the meantime, Hollywood wants to make a movie of Willie's story (he spent seven years in prison and was on death's row for a murder he didn't commit until Andy won his freedom in a retrial).  Adam, a writer, is assigned to shadow Andy to get the background story.  Andy's investigator and girlfriend, Laurie, went home for a high school reunion.  She came back homesick and with a job offer and is considering moving home.  Andy doesn't want her to go and it's breaking his heart.

This is the fourth book I've read by this author and I enjoyed it.  I liked the writing style as it was funny, sarcastic and amusing.  It was written in first person perspective in Andy's voice.  It is the fourth in the Andy Carpenter series (and the fourth I've read) and it works as a stand alone (so you don't need to have read the first one to know what is going on).

I like Andy.  He's smart and shifty and recognizes his weaknesses.  He loves his dog, Tara, and thinks she's the most wonderful dog in the whole wide world.   In addition to Laurie, Andy's team is made up of Kevin, his associate who also owns/runs a laundramat, and Marcus, an investigator with persuasive reasoning skills.  He calls in favours from his friends, Vince, the editor of the local newspaper, and Pete, a local police officer.

Remembrance Day

The federal department of Veterans Affairs Canada states that November 11 is of "remembrance for the men and women who have served, and continue to serve our country during times of war, conflict and peace"; specifically, the First and Second World Wars, the Korean War, and all conflicts since then in which members of the Canadian Forces have participated.

Remembering my father, Frank (1935 - 1971)

Honouring Gord's dad, Ken (1925 - 1971)

Honouring Gord's paternal
grandfather, Sid (1890 - 1963)

"Banana Boys", Factory Theatre, Toronto, ON

Larissa and I saw Banana Boys this evening at the Factory Theatre.

To a group of Asian-Canadian men in their twenties, a "banana boy" is a peculiar predicament; “growing up yellow on the outside and white on the inside.”

It is adapted from the book, Banana Boys, which was written by Terry Woo, who Larissa had once worked with.

Larissa

Larissa in the theatre with her book

Nina Lee Aquino revisits "Banana Boys", a seminal work of Asian-Canadian theatre in a powerful new production that examines the deep challenges of being torn between cultures and identities. Drawn together by the death of their friend and unofficial leader, five young Asian-Canadian men must confront unrealized potential, devastating loss and time travel ... all while trying not to punch too many white boys in the face.

The play runs for two hours and fifteen minutes, with a fifteen minute intermission.  It's a small theatre and holds about 100 people, which worked well for this play ... the actors took advantage of the smaller setting by not only using the minimalist stage but also using the stairs in the audience.

The actors were excellent and played such different characters ... from the Toronto Star (which gave it 3.5/4 stars):

• Darrel Gamotin - He plays Sheldon Kwan, the guy who’s says he’s willing to give up everything for the right girl but proves better at dumping them than keeping them. Warm-hearted, but kind of soft-headed, Gamotin has all the right feelings but all the wrong moves. A really touching job. 
• Matthew Gin - Gin has one of the toughest jobs, playing the author surrogate who grudgingly goes into medicine to keep his parents happy when he’d rather be an author. He looks like the preppiest of all the guys, but there’s some truly dark stuff bubbling underneath. He’s a multi-level performer. 
• Oliver Koomsatira - The character of Dave Lowe is the hardest to take in the play: sexist, racist, horribly violent and always in your face. Here’s the surprise, Koomsatira makes us understand and empathize with him without softening any of the hard edges. Frightening but magnetic. 
• Simu Liu - It’s Rick Wong’s funeral that frames the play. No spoiler here, you see his body as soon as you enter the theatre. Wong is the most seemingly successful one but driven by unspeakable demons. Liu lets us see the man’s power as well as his pain. A great juggling act. 
• Philip Nozuka - Luke Yeung is one of those Peter Pan boys who never commit and never grow up. Nozuka is perfect in the role, as charmingly playful as a puppy, but just as mischievous as well. Nozuka delivers all that with style but lifts the curtain to let us see the emptiness inside as well. He’s a fine young actor.

I'm looking forward to borrowing Larissa's book and reading it!

Tortilla Flats, Toronto, ON

Before Larissa and I saw Banana Boys this evening, we had supper nearby at Tortilla Flats (Queen W/Augusta).

Larissa ordered fish tacos with a Caesar salad.  She said the tacos were just okay.   The batter wasn't as light as she had expected and she said the oil they fish had been cooked in didn't seem fresh.

Book ~ "Those Girls" (2015) Chevy Stevens

From Goodreads ~ Life has never been easy for the three Campbell sisters. Jess, Courtney and Dani live on a remote ranch in Western Canada where they work hard and try to stay out of the way of their father’s fists. 

One night, a fight gets out of hand and the sisters are forced to go on the run, only to get caught in an even worse nightmare when their truck breaks down in a small town. Events spiral out of control and a chance encounter with the wrong people leaves them in a horrific and desperate situation. They are left with no choice but to change their names and create new lives.

 Eighteen years later, they are still trying to forget what happened that summer when one of the sisters goes missing and they are pulled back into their past. 

This time there’s nowhere left to run. 

It's 1997 and Dani, Courtney and Jess are teenage sisters living in rural British Columbia.  Their mother is dead and their father works three weeks away and is home for one.  When he is home, he is drunk and abusive.  Something happens one night that brings things to a head.  The girls, fearing they will be put in a foster home, they take off and head to Vancouver.  Along the way, their truck breaks down in a small town.  They hook up with the wrong people for help and things get a lot worse.

It's now 2015 and as Dallas, Crystal and Jamie, the sisters are living in Vancouver along with Jamie's teenage daughter, Skylar.  Dallas and Jamie have settled into steady jobs and Crystal flits from one job to another and from one man to another.  None of them have forgotten their life-changing experiences.  In fact, one of the sisters heads back to seek revenge which starts everything in motion again.

This is the fifth book I've read by this author and it was really intense.  It's written in first person perspective from Jess/Jamie's and Skylar's point of view ... it alternates by sections and chapters but they are labeled so you know whose voice it is.  As a head's up, there is swearing, graphic violence and sexual abuse ... I found it a bit too violent for my liking.  It was fairly predictable in some spots.

When they were young, the sisters were naïve and made some dumb mistakes that got them into a lot of trouble.  Eighteen years later, they are still making dumb and dangerous mistakes when they should know better since they knew what/who they were dealing with.  Though Skylar loves her mother and her aunts, she knows they are keeping things from her and she doesn't like it.  She too makes dumb mistakes ... I can't believe that she was as naïve as she was, especially considering she grew up around a boxing gym with some rough characters.

Book ~ "Never Knowing" (2011) Chevy Stevens

From Goodreads ~ At thirty-three Sara Gallagher is finally happy. Her antique furniture restoration business is taking off and she’s engaged to a wonderful man. But there’s one big question that still haunts her - who are her birth parents? Sara is finally ready to find out. 

Sara’s birth mother rejects her - again. Then she discovers her biological father is an infamous killer who’s been hunting women every summer for almost forty years. Sara tries to come to terms with her horrifying parentage - and her fears that she’s inherited more than his looks.  But soon Sara realizes the only thing worse than finding out your father is a killer is him inding out about you. 

 Some questions are better left unanswered. "Never knowing" is a complex and compelling portrayal of one woman’s quest to understand where she comes from. That is, if she can survive … 

Sara is 33 and about to get married to Evan.  She is the oldest of three girls and has always known she was adopted.  Growing up, her mother was great but her father didn't treat her as well as her treated his "real" daughters.  She always fantasized about finding her birth parents and everything would be okay.  She hires a detective to find her birth parents and he does.  Her birth mother wants nothing to do with her.  When she finds out that her birth father is a serial killer, she obviously wants nothing to do with him ... but he has other ideas and finds her and wants to be a dad.

Working with the police, she tries to draw her father in so he can be captured.  But in doing this, she puts her life and that of her family in danger.

This is the fourth book I've read by this author and I liked it.  It's written in first person perspective from Sara's point of view ... each chapter is a session she is having with her psychiatrist (interesting concept).  As a head's up, there is swearing and violence.

I liked Sara.  She has a lot going on with her business, planning a wedding and dealing with being adopted ... and then has to decide whether to help the police catch her serial killer father.  She knows that if she doesn't, he will kill again.  I don't usually like kids in books and wasn't a fan of Sara's six-year-old daughter, Ally.  When she didn't get her way, she would throw a huge fit and even got abusive with the dog at one point.  Sara's adoptive dad was a A-hole who was rude to everyone but his wife and Evan ... but no one ever stood up to him.  Maybe I missed it but I still don't know why he treated Sara so badly when she was growing up.  Evan was caring and supportive but his job took him out of town a lot so he wasn't physically there so support Sara so she came to depend on one of the police officers, Billy.

The Battered Fish, Toronto, ON (Liberty Village)

The Battered Fish opened a new location last week in Liberty Village ... I walked there for lunch today.  This is their tenth location ... two are in Toronto and the other eight are in Eastern Canada.

The signage isn't up yet

It's a small place ... there's just one table and six hightop chairs along the window, which is where I sat.  When I got there, one of the employees was using the table to do some bookkeeping/reconciliation.

You have a choice of fish (I had haddock), the amount of pieces (I had two), the kind of batter/breading (I had the light beer batter) and sides (I had fries).

Book ~ "X" (2015) Sue Grafton

From Goodreads ~ X: The number ten. An unknown quantity. A mistake. A cross. A kiss.

X: The shortest entry in Webster’s Unabridged. Derived from Greek and Latin and commonly found in science, medicine, and religion. The most graphically dramatic letter. Notoriously tricky to pronounce: think xylophone.

X: The twenty-fourth letter in the English alphabet.

It features a remorseless serial killer who leaves no trace of his crimes. Once again breaking the rules and establishing new paths, Grafton wastes little time identifying this sociopath. The test is whether Kinsey can prove her case against him before she becomes his next victim.

There are a couple mysteries going on in this book.  Kinsey is a private investigator in Santa Theresa, CA.  She is hired by a rich woman to find the adult son she gave up for adoption when she was young.  Kinsey gets the job done but her involvement doesn't end.

Kinsey's former colleague, Pete, was killed the previous summer.  His widow asked Kinsey to go through some of his personal effects.  She comes across a padded envelope full of mementos and a cryptic note.  She becomes involved with a not-so-nice person as she is determined to deliver the envelope to its owner 20+ years later.

In the meantime, Kinsey and Henry have new neighbours.  An older couple have moved in next door and are continually imposing on them for favours.

This is the 24rd in the "alphabet series" featuring Kinsey Millhone.  I discovered them in the mid-1990s and have been a fan since and have read them all ... the first one, A is for Alibi, was written in 1982.  They are all set in the 1980s (this one takes place in March 1989) before everyone had a computer, cell phone, etc.

I thought this book was okay.  I like the writing style ... it's like Kinsey was talking to me and telling me what's going on.  The writing could have been tighter, though, as there were a lot of details and descriptions.  As a head's up, there is some swearing.

During this time, there was a drought and everyone was asked to be diligent about water conservation.  Henry, Kinsey's landlord, was doing his part in cutting back and still found that his water bill was increasing, which was driving him crazy.  There was waaaaaay too much time spend with Henry going into great detail about irrigation, water usage, etc.

Beerbistro, Toronto, ON

I had supper tonight with my pals Franca, Liz and Rona ... we've been friends for about 20 years (we used to work together).  Since we met at the Beerbistro (King E/Yonge), which is one of Gord's favourite places to have a beer, he joined us.

Rona and Liz ordered mussels ... Liz got Belgian White and Rona got Provençal.