Brewery Bay Food Company, Orillia, ON

I felt like hitting a pub for supper so I headed to the Brewery Bay Food Company which is just a couple blocks from my hotel.

It's a cute place. There is a restaurant on one side and a bar on the other ... I sat on the bar side.

According to the menu, the wings are "terrific" ... I decided to check them out.

I ordered them with medium sauce ... Kira, my server, said she found medium too spicy. I usually like wings with hot sauce. For $11.97, it was a good portion.

The wings were fairly large, as promised.

The fries were good. The wings were okay. I don't like wings with breading so wouldn't consider them "terrific". Plus there wasn't a lot of sauce on them.

Kira was very friendly and took good care of me. The manager came by at one point and asked me how everything was.

Quality Hotel Champlain Waterfront, Orillia, ON

I have four enrolment seminars to conduct tomorrow for a client in Orillia. The first one is at 9am. Orillia is almost an two hour drive so I came up this afternoon and am staying the night.

Here's the outside of my hotel.

There's not a lot of choice of hotels in Orillia. I chose this one because it's just a couple blocks from the client's site.

The hotel only has a two star rating. I reserved a room with a king bed figuring it was worth the extra $20 and would be an upgrade.

When I walked in, my first reaction was "Whoa!" because as soon as I opened the door, there I was! I took this picture from the hallway with the door open. The bed is about three feet from the door.

Here's the desk where I have my latop. The TV is really old and small and the remote control doesn't work.

The "closet" is really small ... I've never seen a portable one before.

The back of the unit holding the TV is falling apart in the back.

Here's my view ... lovely!

You don't want to be too high up because there is no elevator. Parking is free and in the back of the hotel. A continental breakfast is included. WIFI is free. I was able to connect but couldn't get to any sites (so I'm using my Bell Internet stick instead). There is a strip mall next door (you can kind of see it from my window) and the liquor store is across the street.

This room is about $100 a night. Is it worth it? Um, no. Next time, I'd be inclined to stay at the hotel at the Casino Rama, spend the extra money and drive the extra 15 minutes to downtown.

Nov 8, 8am update: I had asked the receptionist to give me a wake up call at 7:30 this morning. I got one at 5:45am and 6:30am ... needless to say I wasn't happy! I am still waiting for the 7:30am one. Good thing I set the alarm on my cell phone (I've never done that before).

Book ~ "Barking!" (2002) Liz Evans

From Amazon ~ Stuart Roberts is a mild-mannered, shy accountant suffering from nightmares in which he remembers committing a violent murder and he wants to know if they really happened. Grace doesn't want to take the case on the grounds that murders tend to mean there's someone who is prepared to kill around and she'd rather pass, thanks very much. However, these are killings with a difference—they took place nearly 30 years before Stuart was born. During his dreams, Stuart becomes "Joe," and has vivid recollections of life as a hop farmer's son, a world Stuart swears he knows absolutely nothing about. Despite her scepticism, Grace has never been able to resist the lure of an unlimited expense account, so she takes the job. And then discovers that her client isn't quite what he appears to be.

I've read five of Evans' books with Grace Smith as the heroine and really enjoyed them. They were mysteries that were funny.

I found this one not funny at all and rather boring. There is some genealogy in it since she is trying to track "Joe" that I found interesting but that was about it.

The reason why it all happened and thus the ending were silly and I wasn't buying them.

I'm glad I never read this book first because I wouldn't have read any of her others.

Wvrst, Toronto, ON

After Gord and I saw Tower Heist, we walked to Wvrst on King Street W for supper.

It's the first time I've been there ... Gord's been a couple times.

There was hardly anyone when we got there about 5pm but it filled up rather quickly.

The layout is quite simple ... rows of long communal tables and chairs and seats at the bar.

It was quite busy. People would leave and be replaced with others.

They have a lot of interesting beers, both on tap and in a bottle. I had a couple Beau's Lug Tread Lagered Ale.

You have to go order your own supper at a separate counter and pay for it there. There is quite a choice of sausages ... traditional like beef, pork and chicken, to game like duck, wild boar, rabbit and kangaroo.

I ordered a Kranjska sausage (pork and garlic) in a bun ... it was $6. Gord ordered a duck sausage (maple and fois gras) sausage and onions in a bun ... it was $9. So sausages aren't cheap. We split an order of large fries ... we had curried dipping sauce (which I liked) and black pepper and onion dipper sauce (which I didn't like). At $5.50 for fries, they aren't cheap either.

That's my sausage in front. It was good ... really juicy.

Gord said his was okay, not great. He liked mine better.

They give everyone a couple raffle tickets. At 6:30pm, they give away a couple tickets for the Maple Leafs' hockey game ... alas, we didn't win.

I liked it there and would go back. My big complaint is that it's really LOUD there. Gord and I were sitting across from each other and we had to practically yell at each other to talk.

Tower Heist

Gord and I saw Tower Heist this afternoon.

Josh Kovaks (Ben Stiller) has managed one of the most luxurious and well-secured residences in New York City for more than a decade. In the swankiest unit atop Josh's building, Wall Street titan Arthur Shaw (Alan Alda) is under house arrest after being caught stealing two billion from his investors. The hardest hit among those he defrauded? The tower staffers whose pensions he was entrusted to manage. With only days before Arthur gets away with the perfect crime, Josh's crew turns to petty crook Slide (Eddie Murphy) to plan the nearly impossible ... to steal what they are sure is hidden in Arthur's guarded condo. Though amateurs, these rookie thieves know the building better than anyone. Turns out they've been casing the place for years, they just didn't know it.

I'd seen the trailer for this and it looked good ... and it was.

Yes, it's farfetched at times but it was entertaining. It was interesting to see Alan Alda as the bad guy. Eddie Murphy was back to playing Eddie Murphy, which was good to see.

I'd recommend this movie, either in the theatre or as a rental.

Gord and I fit in well, don't we?!

Here's the trailer:

Holy Chuck, Toronto, ON

I had read that Retro Burger, which was in the neighbourhood where I work (Yonge/St. Clair), was gone and Holy Chuck had taken its place. I'd only been to Retro Burger once (they weren't in the 'hood all that long) and I didn't think it was too bad.

I thought I'd check Holy Chuck out for lunch today.

What they emphasize is that they grind their burger in-house and it's never frozen ... sounded good to me!

I ordered a single burger, fries and a Diet Coke ... it came to just over $11.

I'd asked for mustard, ketchup, tomatoes and pickles on my burger. They forgot the tomatoes and pickles so I had to go back for them.

The burger was $5.49 ... not cheap for a single burger with no cheese or bacon. Here it is:

Considering the cost, it was small. The bun reminded me of a cheap generic grocery store bun. The burger was kind of tasteless and really greasy. The fries were a mixture of hot and cold fries, alas mostly cold ones.

Needless to say, I won't be back.

They have a challenge if you are up to it. If you can eat this monstrous burger (The Go Chuck Yourself - six patties, six cheese, triple bacon, caramelized onions and stacked between three grilled cheese sandwiches) and drink a milkshake within six minutes, you get it for free and go up on the hall of fame wall. The best time right now is three minutes. Ewwww!

I was the the 3,156,906,603rd person!

I saw this over at Lady Banana's ...

When I was born, I was the 3,156,906,603rd person alive on earth and the 76,916,305,937th person to have lived since history began.

Every hour in Canada, there are 42 births, 28 deaths and +25 immigrants
Average yearly growth: +1%

What are your stats? Check it out here.

East Side Mario's, Barrie, ON

I had three enrolment seminars to conduct this afternoon in Barrie.

I stopped at East Side Mario's beforehand for lunch which was about five minutes from the client's site.

I ordered Mario's Classic Chicken Parmigiana (a seasoned chicken breast, hand-breaded with herb breadcrumbs, topped with Napolitana sauce and baked with pizza mozzarella cheese; served with Penne Napolitana).

It came with herb garlic bread and salad or Italian Wedding Soup ... I went with the soup.

I love Italian Wedding Soup! It was okay ... there was a lot of bland broth and not a lot of meatballs or the little round pasta. Knowing I had the chicken parm coming, I poked around for the meatballs and left the broth. The bread was good!

Here's my chicken parm.

It was a hefty portion and looked good ... alas, it was also bland.

Nick was my server and he took good care of me ... he was friendly and quick. I thought the back of his teeshirt was a hoot!

BTW, if you bring a new unwrapped child's gift here, they will give you a free appetizer.

It's been a while since I've been to an East Side Mario's ... and I think it will be a while before I go back to one again.

Black cats down on their luck at shelters

There's an interesting story in today's Toronto Star about how black cats and dogs are adopted last.

Whispy slinks through the halls of the Toronto Humane Society, his dark figure jarring against the white floors and walls.

As its longest resident, Whispy has been living at the animal shelter since July 2010. It seems no one wants to adopt the 11-year-old cat because, workers say, he is black.

It’s a problem that plagues shelters everywhere: Ebony-coloured cats and dogs are often the last to be adopted, says Heidi Kulla, an adoption agent at the society.

“People just want that dog or that cat that looks really beautiful,” she said. “They don’t see black cats as beautiful. They just see them as plain.”

Black cats have the lowest adoption rates of all animals, said Kulla. After Whispy, the society’s second-longest resident is Lucky, another black cat who has lived at the shelter since January. The average length of stay for cats is 2½ weeks.

You can read the rest of the story here.

Really? I've had a couple black cats (Mama and Nikki) and they were very sweet and beautiful. Sister Sarah has a black cat named Shadow. That's a picture of Whispy ... isn't he adorable?!

Do you have anything against black cats and/or dogs?

Blind Great Dane and her guide dog need a new home

I read about these two dogs in today's Toronto Star.

Blind Great Dane Lily and her guide dog Madison are melting hearts around the world with their enduring tale of friendship that has seen its share of hardship.

Lily was only 18 months old when veterinarians removed both her eyes as she was suffering from entropion, a condition that caused her eyelashes to roll inward and scratch painfully against her eyeballs.

As Lily recuperated in darkness — too timid to move — her best friend Madison slowly began encouraging her sightless friend to start moving. Madison would lead the way — a guide dog for a dog, steering her pal, alerting her to danger in her path.

In time, with Madison at her side Lily regained the confidence to play outside the house. Now the pair — Lily is six years old now; Madison is seven — is facing its next challenge: finding a new home.

You can read the rest of the story here.

What great pals! I hope they find a home together.

Mucho Burrito, Barrie, ON

I conducted four enrolment seminars today.

I started at 9am and finished about 3pm ... the seminars were back-to-back so I had no opportunity for lunch. Knowing this would happen, I had a good breakfast about 8ish. But by the time I got on the road, though, I was hungry.

I stopped at Mucho Burrito just before I left Barrie (it's along the 400). I love burritos and had an excellent one at Mucho Burrito in Vancouver when Sister Sarah and I were there in May.

I got a chicken burrito with medium salsa sauce, a pop and a couple of cookies (I ended up bringing the cookies home).

The burrito was hearty and filling.

The medium sauce was hotter than I expected and there was a lot of rice ... so all I tasted was spicy rice. It would have been better had there been less rice because I could have experienced the rest of the ingredients more.

It was okay ... not as good as the one I had in Vancouver, though.

Holiday Inn Barrie Hotel & Conference Centre, Barrie, ON

I had four enrolment seminars to conduct today in Barrie. The first one was at 9am.

Rather than do the drive early this morning, I went up last evening and spent the night at the Holiday Inn which was near the client.

Here's my room ... yes, a comfy king bed all for me!!

My only complaint is that it wasn't very quiet. I could hear every thing that happened in the hallway ... talking, sneezing, doors closing, suitcases being dragged, etc.

This is minor but the curtain on the window didn't close all the way. The parking lot light was coming through the edge and reflecting off the mirror on the wall which reflected onto the bed (you can see what I mean in the second picture). So I had to make sure I didn't sleep in that spot and have the light in my eyes.

The staff at the front desk were friendly and helpful.

WIFI was free and fairly quick. Parking was free.

I had supper in the lounge last night and it was good. I had the buffet breakfast there this morning (just $10!) and there was lots of choice.

I'd stay here again.