Bar Hop Brewco, Toronto, ON

Gord and I saw Deadpool this afternoon (it's fun!).

Afterwards we walked to Bar Hop Brewco (on Peter Street/south of Queen W) for supper.  It hasn't been open that long and I've been wanting to check it out.

Just the upstairs level was open

We ran into Kasie and Zeke there so we sat with them and got caught up on their news.

Topbox - February 2016

My February 2016 Topbox arrived this week.

For only $12 a month, you will receive a Topbox with 4 carefully selected, indulgent, beauty products. Then test the products in the comfort of your own home.

Here's what's inside ...

• Smashbox Photo Finish Classic Primer - 7.1ml - $4.84 value
• Morgan Taylor Professional Nail Lacquer (Later Alligator) - $15.83 value
• Bliss Fabulous Drench 'n Quench - 5ml - $4.80 value - feels and smells nice
• Nova Scotia Fisherman eXtreme Skin Care Sea Salt Soap - 28g -  $1.44 value - I've tried their lip balm and rescue balm and liked them

Total value = $26.91

Trius wine club - February 2016

Our February 2016 Trius wine club box arrived today.

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 Executive 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 Cabernet Sauvignon (2014) - $14.95 - the recipe included it's paired with is Beef Strip Loin
• Trius Sauvignon Blanc (2014) - $14.95 - $29.95 - the recipe included it's paired with is Salmon Fillet

Happy Family Day!

Today is Family Day, a statutory holiday here in Ontario.

Enjoy and spend some time with your family!

Book ~ "Everyone's Best Friend at Playboy" (2016) Malorie Mackey

From Goodreads ~ What is it like to go from the girl next door to super pin-up or going from the world of pageantry to the world of Playboy? Malorie provides an entertaining read with lots of personal first-hand accounts of what goes on behind the gates at the Playboy Mansion. "Everyone’s Best Friend at Playboy" follows Malorie’s personal journey as a young model through the politics, games, and joys of the Playboy Mansion. Malorie spent four years as Hugh Hefner’s guest at the Playboy Mansion and she has some stories to tell. 

Each day, after she came home from a new adventure, she would sit down and write. Malorie’s manuscript is the result of her diligent diary entries of each and every adventure she had or witnessed at Playboy! Her journey starts with corrupt casting directors, that indirectly got her invited to the Playboy Mansion. It shows the inner politics and daily routine of the Mansion itself, with everything inevitably leading to a falling out with the lady of the manor, Crystal Hefner. There is definitely a great story within those dusty old walls and Malorie does a great job of telling it all.

The author describes herself as "the girl next door" and her dream was to get to the Playboy Mansion.  She wasn't a playmate and had no desire to be one so she had to find someone of influence to get her to the mansion.  She eventually befriends a playmate and gets invited to a movie night in 2011 and spent the next four years as a "guest".  There were weekly movie nights she attended and she ended up befriending Hugh Hefner's wife, Crystal (this doesn't end well).

In the book she said she worked at Bench Warmer ... I'm assuming it's the company that produces trading cards with female models, including playmates.  She didn't say what she did there but whatever it was she had a lot of flexibility as she was able to spend two or three nights a week at the Playboy Mansion plus go to Disneyland often with Crystal.  According to her website, she is an actress and a model.

I found it odd that her dream was to get to the mansion.  From the sounds of it, a "guest" is a mooch or hanger-on.  She would go to the mansion and have supper and then hang around to watch a movie with Hef and the gang.  Where you sat was determined by what Hef and/or Crystal thought of you.  You had to stay in their favour or you would be dropped from the guest list.  This happened a couple times to the author and it was really stressful for her.

Apparently the author would record the events every night in a journal and that's exactly how the book seemed to me ... a diary written by an immature 16-year-old.  She should have had someone professional proofread it.  The writing could have been tighter as there was a lot of repetition of information, sometimes in the same paragraph.  Her use of exclamation points was excessive!!!!!  There were many typos ... here are some examples:  "hints" instead of "hence", "ally" instead of "alley", "quite" instead of "quiet" and "John Lovitz" instead of "Jon Lovitz".  Plus there were a lot of grammatical errors.

What kept me reading this book is (1) I was curious to see what it was like in the Playboy Mansion (the author made it sound very bland ... zzzzzz) and (2) it's a short book (135 pages on my iPad).

This is not a book I would recommend.

Live theatre ~ "Anything Goes", Lower Ossington Theatre, Toronto, ON

Gord and I saw Cole Porter's Anything Goes tonight.

Young Wall Street broker Billy Crocker arrives at the docks to bid adieu to his boss Elisha J. Whitney and nightclub singer, Reno Sweeney, as they board the London-bound S.S. American. 

For the second time, though, Billy unexpectedly crosses paths with the beautiful Hope Harcourt, whom he rode in a taxi with earlier. Determined to win her away from her fiancé, the stuffy Sir Evelyn Oakleigh, Billy gets the bright idea to stow away on the ship. Through a series of schemes concocted by Reno and hapless gangster “Moonface” Martin, Billy may just woo his lady love before the vessel reaches London, or he may end up in the brig.

With an original 1934 songbook constructed by beloved composer Cole Porter, Anything Goes introduced a slew of tunes still recognizable to this day. The jaunty score barrels through such standbys as “I Get a Kick Out of You” and “You’re the Top”—songs that have been recorded several times over by everyone from Frank Sinatra to Louis Armstrong and Barbra Streisand.

It's playing at the Lower Ossington Theatre (Ossington/north of Queen) until March 20.  I like this theatre because it's small (it holds about 140 people) so you're not too far from the actors.  Our seats were in the front row so the actors were inches in front of us.

This is the fourth play we've seen there.  They've all been excellent, including this one!  There was lots of singing and dancing ... there's humour ... and there's a happy ending.

At one point, Moonface Martin and Reno Sweeney, who are old friends, are singing and dancing.  The dress on Chelsey MacLean, who was playing Reno, came undone at the back.  As she was singing and dancing, she was trying to refasten her dress.  Thomas James Finn, who played Moonface, tried to help her to no avail and even made a comment about how she's falling apart.  It was funny, improvised and the audience loved it.  Ironically the song they were singing was called Friendship.

The actors, dancers and singers were all very good.  Chesley MacLean as Reno was seductive, as was Emma Gibney as Erma.  Standouts for me were Thomas James Finn as Moonface Martin and Kevin Doe as Lord Evelyn Oakleigh.

BQM Ossington, Toronto, ON

Gord and I had supper this evening at BQM Burger (Ossington/Dundas W).

We both ordered burgers.  I ordered the Riverside burger and fries.  The burger was delicious!  I ate the burger, which was really filling, and most of the fries.

Book ~ "No One Lives Twice" (2010) Julie Moffett

From Goodreads ~ I'm Lexi Carmichael, geek extraordinaire. I spend my days stopping computer hackers at the National Security Agency. My nights? Those I spend avoiding my mother and eating cereal for dinner. Even though I work for a top-secret agency, I've never been in an exciting car chase, sipped a stirred (not shaken) martini or shot a poison dart from an umbrella. 

Until today, that is, when two gun-toting thugs popped up in my life and my best friend disappeared. So, I've enlisted the help of the Zimmerman twins - the reclusive architects of America's most sensitive electronic networks - to help me navigate a bewildering maze of leads to find her. Along the way, my path collides with a sexy government agent and a rich, handsome lawyer, both of whom seem to have the hots for me. Hacking, espionage, sexy spy-men - it's a geek girl's dream come true. If it weren't for those gun-toting thugs.

Lexi is a computer geek who works for the National Security Agency (NSA) tracking and trying to stop computer hackers.  One night on her way to dinner at her parents', she is accosted by a thug with a gun demanding a package Basia, her best friend, had supposedly given her.  What package?  When she gets home that night, there is another thug in her apartment demanding the same package.  She discovers the package was delivered to her neighbour,  Inside the package is what looks like a basic contract so Lexi is confused as to what the big deal is.

Lexi enlists the help of computer geeks, the Zimmerman twins (Elvis and Xavier).  They eventually figure out that the contract isn't just a basic contract and Lexi tries to find and save her best friend who is in danger.  The Zimmerman twins ask an even smarter but mysterious computer geek named Slash for help and he becomes protective of Lexi.  Lexi is approached by a lawyer named Finn who also wants to find Basia because he said he had asked her to translate the contract and now she's disappeared.

This is the first book I've read by this author and I liked it.  I liked the writing style and found it amusing at times.  I thought the main plot was interesting but wasn't crazy about the terrorist angle.  It is written in first person perspective from Lexi's point of view.

I liked Lexi.  She is a 25-year-old socially-awkward computer geek whose mother is always trying to set her up with prospective husbands.  This why she doesn't have a cell phone ... she doesn't want her mother to be able to reach her all the time.  I found this to be unbelievable considering Lexi is 25, works with technology and everyone in that age range (even in 2010 when the book was written) has a cell phone.  When she is given one, she has no idea and has to ask someone how to use it.  There were lots of lively supporting characters and I was able to keep them all straight except for two ... because their names both started with "Al-", I had to keep pausing to remember which was the rich prince and which was the terrorist.

This is the first in the Lexi Carmichael series (there are currently seven in the series).  I like getting into series and enjoyed this one enough to want to check out the next one.

Boomerluxe Box - February 2016

My February Boomerluxe box arrived today.

A Boomerluxe subscription box is a package of unique, fun and quality retail products sent directly to you on a recurring, monthly basis. 

The value of your Boomerluxe box is a far greater value than the cost of your subscription. 

A Boomerluxe box will always include five products, one from each of their themed categories (a fashion gift, a beauty gift, a sexuality gift, a wellness gift and a technology gift).

Subscriptions are $34.99 for one month or $199 for six months.

Here's what was inside ...

Jeremy Hotz, Massey Theatre, Toronto, ON

Gord and I had tickets to see Canadian comedian Jeremy Hotz this evening ... he's touring Canada with his International Man of Misery show.  We last saw him in 2008.

He was at Massey Hall and it seemed to be sold out.

Even Hotz questioned why there was a piano on stage

Hotz pops up on The Comedy Network and I always watch.

He was hilarious tonight.   I thought was fun that he included the audience in his show.  When he talked about long distance relationships, he chatted with a couple who had been in the Canadian Army (she moved from Toronto to Petawawa to be with him).  He also chatted a lot with a 14-year-old boy named Amadeus and gave him lots of advice about women and relationships.  At the end, he brought out his dog ... so cute!

After the show, he offered to sign anything and everything for everyone for as long as it took.

Dublin Calling Party Pub & Kitchen, Toronto, ON

The Dublin Calling (on Colborne Street, west of Church) opened in November.  Gord and I had  supper there this evening before the Jeremy Hotz show.

There is a pool table on the main floor and dart boards downstairs

Gord ordered Crispy Mac 'n Cheese.  I had a piece and thought it was okay.  Gord, on the other hand, enjoyed them and would order them again.

Ipsy Glam Bag - February 2016

I received my February Ipsy Glam Bag today ... the theme is Pretty in #IpsyPink.

• 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
• Trust Fund Beauty Nail Polish in I'm Kind Of A Big Deal - $15 value
• BelláPierre Cosmetics Mineral Blush - 6grams - $30 value
• Paula Dorf Baby Eyes Enhancer - 0.02oz - $1 value
• Smashbox Cosmetics Photo Finish Primer Oil - 0.13oz - $5.46 value
• Jersey Shore Cosmetics Vanilla Bean Anti-aging Lip & Hand Polish - 1oz - $25 value

Total value: $76.46US

Book ~ "Do You Want To Know A Secret?" (1998) Mary Jane Clark

From Goodreads ~ Secrets can really kill your career. 

Beautiful New York TV anchorwoman Eliza Blake has a past to hide. Her popular co-anchor has a scandal he'd die to keep secret. The next President's pretty wife wants desperately to avoid indecent exposure. A parish priest knows a terrible truth. And a killer has a secret agenda that reaches from New York City's streets to the White House - it includes the time and place where Eliza Blake will have to die.

When popular news anchor, Bill, commits suicide, everyone is shocked.  As the book progress, we learn more about Bill and what drove him to kill himself.

There were a lot of characters in this book and you're not sure who to trust or who has something to hide or who is a murderer.  Eliza is the young widowed mother of a four-year-old daughter.  She works as an anchor at the KEY New and is thankful to have an elderly nanny.  She has a secret from her past that has been recently revealed in a scandal magazine (I didn't think it was that big of deal).  There is a charismatic front-running presidential candidate, his wife and his campaign manager who are all hiding secrets.  Bill and Eliza see the same psychiatrist.  There is a judge who has been making $5,000/month payments to Bill.  There is a homeless man who goes around stealing doorknockers.  Range is Bill's best friend and works at KEY News.  Yelena is the president of the network who is sleeping with Pete, Bill's replacement, and helping him get ahead but he's only using her.  There is the priest who Bill got close to a couple months before his death.  Louise is Bill's ex-wife, who is mourning like a widow even though they had split up years ago.

It is written in third person perspective with the focus on various characters.  I thought the writing style and pacing were okay.  I like the structure ... some of the chapters were longer and some were short.  We find out in the end who the murderer is and I thought who it was was absurd.  It was kind of a letdown to get to the end and find out "who dunnit".

This is the first in the KEY News series (there are currently 12 in the series) and the first one I've read.  I like getting into series and have read and liked other books by this author (the Piper Donovan series) so thought I'd check it out.  I thought this book was just okay and perhaps will read more in the series sometime.

Book ~ "Rogue Lawyer" (2015) John Grisham

From Goodreads ~ On the right side of the law. Sort of.

Sebastian Rudd is not your typical street lawyer. He works out of a customized bulletproof van, complete with WiFi, a bar, a small fridge, fine leather chairs, a hidden gun compartment and a heavily armed driver. He has no firm, no partners, no associates and only one employee, his driver, who’s also his bodyguard, law clerk, confidant and golf caddy. He lives alone in a small but extremely safe penthouse apartment and his primary piece of furniture is a vintage pool table. He drinks small-batch bourbon and carries a gun.

Sebastian defends people other lawyers won’t go near: a drug-addled tattooed kid rumored to be in a satanic cult, who is accused of molesting and murdering two little girls; a vicious crime lord on death row; a homeowner arrested for shooting at a SWAT team that mistakenly invaded his house. Why these clients? Because he believes everyone is entitled to a fair trial, even if he, Sebastian, has to cheat to secure one. He hates injustice, doesn’t like insurance companies, banks or big corporations; he distrusts all levels of government and laughs at the justice system’s notions of ethical behavior.

Sebastian Rudd is a lawyer who takes on cases that other lawyers won't.  The police are corrupt and cover up when they screw up and he doesn't think that's right.  Rudd doesn't have an office ... he operates out of the back of a van so he's always on the move and has just one assistant, Partner, who also doubles as a bodyguard.

Rudd's clients in this book include a guy who is accused of killing two young girls because he had tattoos and likes metal music, a crime lord who ends up on death row but escapes in the last hour and then wants his fees back from Rudd, an elderly man who was suspected of dealing drugs and his wife was killed by police officers when they invaded his house at 3am, a man who is suspected of kidnapping and murdering a young woman and then taunts Rudd, and a cage fighter, who Rudd owns a piece of, who is charged with murder when he beats up a ref after he loses a fight.

In addition to all that, Rudd's ex-wife is constantly challenging him about the visitation he has with his son, Starcher.

It's been a while since I've read a book by Grisham.  I liked this one.  I liked the writing style.  I found that it started off a bit weird ... it was more like a collection of short stories about Rudd's clients.  But it came together and seemed to become a novel.

Book ~ "Find it in Everything" (2014) Drew Barrymore

From Goodreads ~ "I have always loved hearts," writes acclaimed actress Drew Barrymore in the foreword to this heartwarming gift book. "The way that continuous line accomplishes the most extraordinary thing--it conveys love." 

In "Find It In Everything", Barrymore shares the photographs she has taken of heart-shaped objects and patterns she has come across over the past ten years. Some are obvious and others barely discernible. A discarded straw wrapper, a hole in a T-shirt, a scallion in a bowl of miso soup - seemingly everywhere she turns her lens a heart reveals itself. 

A very personal collection of images, many of them accompanied by brief captions that reflect on beauty in the everyday, "Find It In Everything" is a delightful book from the beloved actress and director, who now adds photographer to her list of credentials. 

I finished Barrymore's book, WildFlower, today so thought I'd check out this one.  I find it interesting to see what people take pictures of.

Barrymore has always loved hearts.  This is a short book (less than 100 pages) full of pictures that she has taken of hearts.  With some, there are some sentences of how she felt about the picture.

It was a fun book to look at but definitely one you would borrow from the library.

Here are some samples of her pictures.

Book ~ "Wildflower" (2015) Drew Barrymore

From Goodreads ~ Award-winning actress Drew Barrymore shares funny, insightful, and profound stories from her past and present told from the place of happiness she's achieved today. 

"Wildflower" is a portrait of Drew's life in stories as she looks back on the adventures, challenges, and incredible experiences of her earlier years. 

It includes tales of living on her own at 14 (and how laundry may have saved her life), getting stuck in a gas station overhang on a cross country road trip, saying goodbye to her father in a way only he could have understoo, and many more adventures and lessons that have led her to the successful, happy, and healthy place she is today.

Drew Barrymore has led an interesting life.  On her paternal side, she comes from a family of actors.  Her father and mother, both hippies, split up before she was born.  To help pay the bills, her mother got her acting jobs when she was young.  As a preteen, Drew was smoking, drinking and doing drugs.  She ended up spending 18 months in an institution for the mentally ill.  When she was 14, she petitioned for emancipation and was declared an adult.  As Drew got older, she became rebellious but was determined to be an actress and producer and eventually settled down.  She is now happily married to husband #3 and the mother of their two daughters.

This book is a collection of stories of her life and experiences, in no particular order.  Drew tells about having her children, meeting her husband and his family, taking care of her father when he was dying, her dogs, making movies with Adam Sandler, becoming an ambassador for the UN and building a school in Africa, learning how to do laundry and lots more.

I found the stories entertaining.  It was interesting to get an insight into different parts of her life.  There's no dirt or gossip.  I liked the writing style.  As a head's up, there is swearing.

Book ~ "Shift Work" (2015) Tie Domi and Jim Lang

From Goodreads ~ From hockey’s most prolific fighter comes a sports memoir unlike any other - passionate, funny, and candid, "Shift Work" chronicles Domi’s sixteen tumultuous seasons in the NHL.

Making it through a single fight as an enforcer in the NHL is a sign of toughness. Making it through 333 of them is a mark of greatness. Whether it was on the ice or off it, Tie Domi was driven to be the best at his job and was gifted with an extraordinary ability to withstand pain. He made a career out of protecting the people around him and became known as someone who would stand up for the people who needed it most.

Raised by immigrant parents in Belle River, ON, Domi found success from an early age on the field and the rink. A gifted athlete in whatever sport he played, Tie eventually focused his sights on hockey. As he moved up the junior ranks, he made a name for himself as a player who was always ready to take on anyone who dared to cross his teammates.

Tie’s reputation followed him into the NHL, and it wasn’t long before he ranked among the game’s most feared - and fearless - enforcers. From New York to Winnipeg to Toronto, Tie quickly became a fan favourite in whatever city he played. As he went about working his name into the record books, Tie surrounded himself with people from every walk of life, learning from each one as he evolved into a respected leader who was never afraid to tell it like it was.

In "Shift Work", Tie recounts the ups and downs of his life on and off the ice, showing what he has learned and how he has grown as both a player and a person. He offers insight into the most memorable points of his career, sharing his successes and mistakes with unparalleled honesty. Shift Work shows Tie Domi as he is - a devoted father and friend, a valued and loyal team player, a magnetic personality, and an athlete of immense skill and courage.

I'm not a big fan of hockey but I like reading bios and thought reading Tie Domi's story would be interesting.

Tie Domi is a retired Canadian professional hockey player.  Known for his role as an enforcer, he played for the Toronto Maple Leafs, New York Rangers and Winnipeg Jets over a sixteen-year NHL career. He has more penalty minutes than any other player in the history of the Maple Leafs and third overall in penalty minutes in NHL history.

In the book, Domi gives a high level description about his life, from his beginnings as the son of Albanian immigrants who moved to Canada and settled outside of Windsor.  He was very good in sports and eventually focused on hockey.  He spent most of his years in the NHL as a player of the Toronto Maple Leafs.

My favourite chapter was chapter 11, in which he talks about how important it is to treat people well, regardless of who they are or what their job is.

I enjoyed the writing style.  Obviously there is a lot about hockey and his interactions with other players in this book but I didn't find it boring even though I'm not not a big hockey fan.  You'll especially enjoy this book if you are a hockey fan.