Jack Astor's Bar & Grill, Toronto, ON (Bloor/Yonge)

I had four enrolment seminars to conduct today in the Yonge/Bloor Street area.

For lunch, I went to Jack Astor's.

I got there about 12:30pm and it was busy.  There were no tables available so I sat at the bar.

I ordered what I always order at Jack Astor's ... Chicken Parmigiana.  I really like it.

Duggan’s Brewery Parkdale, Toronto, ON

Duggan's had their grand opening this evening ... they are at Queen Street W/Brock.  Gord fences with Kayla, one of the bartenders, so we checked it out.

Turtle Jack's Muskoka Grill, Guelph, ON

I had lunch today at Turtle Jack's in Guelph.

I sat on the dining room side

I ordered Chicken Parmesan and it was good.

The chicken was tender and moist

Shae was my server and took excellent care of me.

Book ~ "Boo: The Life of the World's Cutest Dog" (2011) J.H. Lee

From Goodreads ~ Everyone loves Boo! 

His signature fluffy head and teddy bear like persona are irresistibly adorable. With nearly a million Facebook fans, and adding more each day, Boo is poised to become an international superstar. 

This charming book features exclusive new photographs of Boo doing all his favorite things: lounging around, playing with friends, exploring the whole wide world, and making those famous puppy-dog eyes. To know Boo is to love him, and this book is for anyone who loves the cutest dog ever. 

I've never heard of Boo but what caught my eye was that it was a book about a dog ... and I love dogs!

Boo is a Pomeranian that became an Internet sensation. Known for his short haircut, he has a popular Facebook page and is the subject of four photo books (including this one).  He belongs to a San Francisco-based Facebook employee who created a Facebook page for the dog with a statement "My name is Boo. I am a dog. Life is good." He became popular in October 2010 after singer Ke$ha sent a tweet that she had a new boyfriend, linking to the page, and Khloé Kardashian called him the "cutest dog on the planet".

It's a cute book.  The pictures are great and show Boo and his life.

Hampton Inn & Suites, Guelph, ON

I had four seminars to conduct today in Guelph and the first one was at 6am so I had to be at the client site at 5:30am.  Because it was so early (and I'm so not a morning person), I headed to Guelph last night and spent the night at the Hampton Inn & Suites.

Here was my room ...

The bed was really comfy ... and I liked that it
faced the window rather than in the usual spot parallel to it

Boston Pizza, Mississauga, ON

I had two seminars to conduct this evening in Mississauga.   I headed out early and had supper at Boston Pizza on Financial Drive.  I've been there before and it was okay.

I sat on the bar side as there was no one on the dining room side

I ordered Chicken Parmesan with no veggies so Samira, my server, asked for extra spaghetti with Alfredo sauce for me.  The chicken was okay ... it had a herb (rosemary maybe?) that I found a bit overpowering, though.

Samira was friendly and took good care of me.

Book ~ "Meow: I Love Cats" (2011) Rachael Hale McKenna, Catherine Ledner and Gandee Vasan

From Goodreads ~ This ultimate celebration of the cat features witty quotes about felines and images by three of the world's most beloved animal photographers. 

Whether playing, pouncing, or just purring contentedly, these are some of the most adorable kittens and cats ever to grace the printed page.

I love reading books about cats so that's why this one caught my eye.  How cute is that kitty on the cover?!

It is made up of quotes.  Here is one:

To bathe a cat takes brute force, perseverance, courage of conviction - and a cat.  The last ingredient is usually the hardest to come by.  Stephen Baker

The quotes are accompanied by beautiful pictures by Rachael Hale McKenna, Catherine Ledner and Gandee Vasan.

Cat lovers will enjoy it.

Book ~ "Cat Capers: Catitude for Cat Lovers" (2008) Gandee Vasan

From Goodreads ~ America's 70 million cat owners will rejoice in finding a captivating coffee table book that is as purr-fect as their beloved feline companion.

Forty-seven percent of cat owners confess that they have more photos of their beloved Morris than of their spouse or significant other. Looking through the pages and portraits of Gandee Vasan's "Cat Capers", this doesn't seem far-fetched.

Scaredy cats, cat burglars and mystery cats inhabit Vasan's pictorials and are presented alongside humorous cat-classifieds, interesting trivia, and delightful musings on all things feline.

Vasan's work has been exhibited at The National Portrait Gallery in London and has garnered numerous awards. He finds his inspiration in absorbing what he sees around him and transforming it into what he wants others to see. 

I enjoy reading books about cats.  This is a cute one that has a variety of short stories, sayings, poems, definitions and lots of beautiful pictures of cats.

Here's a poem by Eleanor Farjeon

Cats sleep ...
Anywhere, Any table,
Any chair, Top of piano,
Window-ledge, in the middle,
On the edge, Open drawer,
Empty shoe,
Anybody's lap will do,
Filling in a cardboard box,
In the cupboard,
With the frocks - anywhere!
They don't care!
Cats sleep anywhere!

Politically correct cat definitions ...

• The cat is not far; he is mass enhanced.
• The cat is not lazy; he is motivationally challenged.

A couple of the pictures:

St. Louis Bar and Grill, Mississauga, ON

I had three seminars to conduct this afternoon and this evening in Mississauga.  I headed out early so I could have a late lunch (since I knew I wouldn't be having supper). 

St. Louis was around the corner from where my seminars were.  I like their wings and it's been a while since I've had them. I'd been to this location in March and had a nice experience.

I ordered medium saucy wings and fries. 

A pound (10 wings) is usually $12.99 but the lunch special was $10.99

Book ~ "Falling Backwards" (2011) Jann Arden

From Goodreads ~ This long-time darling of the music industry and singer-songwriter of international renown will capture your heart - and keep you in stitches - with her powerful stories about coming of age as an artist and as a human being. 

 Jann's legions of fans are drawn to her sincerity, wit, humour and that infectious sparkle she brings to everything she does. Oh, and did we mention her sense of humour? Jann's natural comedic talents translate seamlessly into her writing, and her dedicated fans will delight in the details of this memoir--where there is no such thing as too much information. 

Readers will learn about how her brother used to steal her maxi pads to repurpose as GI Joe bunk beds and how she once got gum stuck in her hair so badly that when she woke up her head was glued to the pillow. But with the good times come the bad and Jann opens up about the darker side of her so-called prairie-perfect nuclear family and the first signs that her brother was a uniquely troubled young man. Jann's readable prose keeps the reader tuned in as she reminds us of the inestimable value of having a teacher who believes in you, wide-open spaces to play and be a child and a good mother. 

Though I like Jann Arden's music, I was drawn to read her book because of her appearances on the Rick Mercer Report.  I liked her interactions with Rick Mercer and she's seemed like a hoot.  I enjoyed this book and her personality comes through.

Jann tells her story of the family's beginnings in Calgary and her early years there.  The family moved outside Calgary to the country when she was young.  While initially devastated, she quickly adapted by becoming friends with Leonard and Dale who taught her how to shoot a gun and a bow and arrow and they would take rides around the countryside on Snoopy, their big horse.

She tells of trying to figure out what she wanted to do with her life.  She realized that she wanted to be a singer and moved to Vancouver to make that happen.  Except it didn't and she ended up working a variety of jobs including busking in a touristy part of Vancouver and on a salmon fishing boat.  Miserable she moved back home a couple years later and eventually made the right connections and became the recording artist she is today.

I liked the writing style ... it was funny and sarcastic.  But it was also honest as she talks about her older brother's problems with the law, her father's alcoholism, the abuse she put herself through as she was trying to find herself, etc.

Jann and I were born the same year so I could relate to a lot of what she talked about.  Like Jann, we thought nothing of riding our bikes wherever we wanted and be gone all day, walking to school on our own, etc.  She tells the story of her mom making lunches for school.  She opened her thermos one day and there was a cooked wiener inside.  Because it had sat in hot water all morning, it was huge.  I can dig it as my mother did that when I was a kid too ... I thought I was the only one!  My mother would also wrap up a bun or a piece of bread with ketchup and mustard to make it a hot dog ... except the ketchup and mustard became glue and I wouldn't be able to pry it apart so I'd eat them separately.

Bâton Rouge Steakhouse & Bar, Ottawa, ON

I had lunch today at Bâton Rouge (on Albert Street).

I ordered the Chicken Tenders Platter with garlic mashed potatoes and honey mustard dipping sauce.  I've had them lots of times before (in Toronto and Montreal) and like them.

When the plate arrived, I thought, "WOW!" because they looked amazing.

Book ~ "Does This Collar Make My Butt Look Big? A Diet Book for Cats" (2013) Dena Harris

From Goodreads ~ This diet-guide parody shows "extra furry" cats how to get svelte with kitty-specific versions of popular weight-loss and fitness regimes like the Zone, South Beach, Mayo Clinic, and French Women Don't Get Fat (But Their Cats Do). 

Americans own more than 86 million cats and the wild popularity of cat videos - from YouTube to the Internet Cat Video Film Festival - proves that cat-lovers can't get enough kitty humor. This book pokes fun at tubby tabbies - the world's cutest (and surliest) fat creatures - with laugh-out-loud details that will tickle the funnybone of anyone "owned" by a cat. 

Lampooning trendy weight-loss regimes and health gurus, this book will also make people feel better about their own battle of the bulge in comparison to cats' insatiable appetites and lazy lifestyles. By eating right for their blood type, sourcing raw and living foods, joining Weight Stalkers, avoiding toxic treats, and exercising while lying down, felines of every shape (round) and size (round) will soon be motivated to ditch the fifth serving of Beef Morsels in Gravy for fresh, local options like that vole in the backyard.

This book is directed to the less than svelte kitty.  It starts with an introduction of taking stock of where your kitty is now (whether he is plump, stocky, obese or big boned) followed by a review of the feline food pyramid. 

Then comes the quiz with 20 questions to determine what kind of a dieter your cat is ... comatose, OCD, ADD, chronic dieter or combination.  Recommended diets are then suggested for each kind of dieter include the South Beach Diet, Eat Right for Your Blood Type, Catty Craig, Weight Stalkers and more.  For example, Weight Stalkers is for your kitty if their goal is a healthy relationship with food instead of the meaningless one-night stands with rotisserie chicken they have been having  It's not for your kitty if they don't like dealing with paid consultants whose job it is to be thinner and prettier than your kitty in hopes of luring them into buying two-for-one frozen mouse meal delivery packages.

Through the book, there are helpful hints and information such as the three simple ways to cut calories:

1. Eat less.  (Ha ha - kidding!)
2. Break food ito small pieces - crumbs don't have calories
3. Eat with a friend.  If you both eat the same amount, the calories each other out.

There is a bonus section in the back for cat owners on putting a cat on a diet in 21 easy steps and an "Ask Flabby Tabby" advice section.

Written with sarcasm and humour, it's a fun read!

Ottawa Marriott Hotel, Ottawa, ON

I had some seminars to conduct in Ottawa today and I spent last night at the Ottawa Marriott Hotel on Kent Street.

Here's my room ...

The bed was comfy!