The year end if almost with us. It doesn't feel that long ago since the last. I was with Tina in Cornwall dressed in a Tutu.

With the generous donations I recieved from the UK this Christmas I went to Henrys yesterday and purchased a shiny new Sigma 10-20mm lens. Seeing as the TV is so bad tonight and Tina and I have watched all our 'Lost' DVDs so I decided to have a play with the lens (See Right). I think its a pretty awesome piece of glass. Not sure what happens when you put this on a full frame sensor but I bet it looks awesome (and pretty dark at the edges!)

The TV is so bad tonight in fact that I am currently watching 'Perfect Storm' a film based on 'fact' where in fact nobody really knows what happened because all the fishing crew died - go figure.. Bad films generally can be fully understood by watching the trailer alone. Perfect Storm stands out as being remarkable as the entire story can be summarised by the poster. Last night I took Tina downtown and he watched 'Marley and Me'. Not a bad film but surely most of the people laughing in the audience that evening had dog not unlike Marley. I know we did.

So thats Xmas 2008 then. I spent most of the day with Tinas relatives. Usual mix of massive amounts of food and children running around and fighting over their toys.

I was super surprised to see that Tina and her family got me a fish tank. I used to have a tank when I was a kid and its was kinda fun. This time I mght try and manage a 'natural' tank. This means carefully choosing plants, fish and invertebrets to establish a natural balance. I'll let you know how that goes!

On boxing day Tina and I went downtown to check out the sales. Absolute madness! I was thinking of getting a new laptop (this ones beginning to die) or a wide lens for my Nikon. In the end we both got lunch (and I got my glasses cleaned at Blacks Photography) before we decided that the madness was too much and we retured home.

Yesterday was Denise's bithday. We all met up downtown for an Italian meal (See Right). It was a great evening but I am still feeling the effects!

A day of firsts. Today was my first ever day at work on Christmas eve and tonight is my first ever Christmas eve not spent in the 'Black Head'. I thought I might go to my local here but the rain and wind convinced me otherwise. I thought that Canadian TV might offer some good movies tonight but this is clearly not the case. I think Star Trek The Motion Picture is on at 9. From the writeup it seems that they might be doing battle with a large cloud of some sort- sigh! (See Right)

Tomorrow may well be a first also - my first white Christmas (for at least as long as I can remember!). Not sure exactly how thats going to work as its actually raining now but bearing in mind that there is about 1.5 feet of snow out there I think a little might be left over tomorrow. The forecast is too close to call (Chance of Flurries).

Oh, well. So Happy Holidays to all those out there in InternetLand.

Snow storm alert! 'Mad Dog' reported on Virgin Radio as I drove to work this morning.

Whilst I was busy at work the snow began to fall. At about 4pm Tina called me to say she could no longer see the steps to our house anymore. This was the point of no return and I fired up the mighty Mazda and moved from my parking space. Oh crap nothing, my car is blocked by a 2 foot deep drift! Gunning it didn't help much either (but was mighty fun). At this point I should have got out of my car and started digging (See 12/11/08). But, as you may recall the extent of my winter preparation was limited to an ice scraper, valve caps and a chocolate bar. Lucky for me the Mazda comes with a reverse gear fitted as standard.

Even by Canadian standards I think this is an 'event' and I was super happy to get my car safely back into its little hole (which I had to dig out with my landlords shovel. For the benefit of those in the UK I shot this video - the car in the foreground is a good indication of how much snow there is!

So this weekend Tina and I attended what, I think is my first ever work Xmas party. I have noticed generally in Canada that Xmas is nearly always preferred to as 'The Holidays' and whilst plastic Santa Clauses and Rudolfs are commonplace -Christian symbology does not seem to make an appearance. Christian symobology was also not evident at my works party but Salsa dancing girls it seems were (See Right with Mike).

Other 'culture shocks' include the fact that 'Baubols' are called 'Xmas Balls'.

I was all set for a rant about the economy and the environment and what not. Instead I downloaded 'Lift Up' - the latest mix from Steph and then uploaded to my phone and went shopping. Thanks Steph!

For a while now I have been toying with my next lens purchase and am pretty much set on the Sigma 10-20mm HSM. This would replace the Cosina 20mm from my old Olympus OM kit which consitently gave me the cheap thrill of wide angle shots. Some may remember my previous dilemma with respect to my Prime purchase. Happy to say that I didn't get the Sigma 30mm 1.4 as I notice thats its now $300 less.

All said, the LG Viewty mobile with its 5MP camera is seductively hard to find at the moment and - the thrill of the chase may be too much for me!

The good news is that Tina has finally decorated the Xmas tree and (as Kat would say) its beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

So the snow has come down and then it warmed up and rained and now we have that lovely grey slushy stuff that is a real bitch to walk through. However, this does vindicate my decision not to buy snow tyres for my car - a move which has helped preserve the earths precious resources and of course my pocket.

This weekend past Tina and I went to Canadian Tyre to purchase our Xmas tree. It was already in the car before I remembered a 'top tip' from 'CP24 Morning News' that you should always keep it in water and if it dries out then cut a slice of the bottom. So back I went to cut the bottom off the tree. Of course we got it home and quickly discovered that 35 lights is about 100 too short - so back I went. Still here is the tree (See Right) in its current (naked) state as Tina - my artistic director - cannot find time to apply carefully chosen baubles until Thursday! Still you might notice the trapeze fairy balanced on the top kindly sent by my mum - thanks mum!

You have to admire Canada, when the rest of the world is having an economic crisis we decide to have a politcal one instead (well perhaps 'as well as').

Dion, the Libral leader (Who, by the way doesn't even want to be the leader of his party anymore) doesn't like the president (Harper - Who I think has hair like a lego man) anymore because he's a big bully and doesn't share his toys (and now he wants to take everyones lunch money). So he makes friends with the Bloc Quebecois (The weird kids) - and the NDP (the fat kids) and they plan to 'get him' after school. Of course Harper doesn't fancy that and is hiding in the bathroom.

Who can help? The Queen of course, well her representative 'The Governor General' Michaëlle Jean who happens to be a Haitian. Her previous duties included straightening the Queens portrait and approving the font on the official stationary. So like any responsible person she sends them all home to 'think about what they have done'. And what they have done, in effect is possibly force another election only months after the last one.

Of course the most likely outcome is ... nothing (well this is Canadian politics!)

Its getting pretty chilly outside now and any snow thats left is frozen pretty hard to the pavement. Still I survived the trip to the Eaton centre where I planned to do some Xmas shopping. The Swarovski Cyrstal Xmas Tree (video coming when I can rotate the file) was up and furnished with thousands of tiny cut glass decorations that catch the light as the tree rotates. Although very stunning it detracted me from my Xmas shopping missions.

Also,on my wanderings around the street I came accross one of Torontos many 'hidden cameras' installed within a garbage can ('wheelie Bin') as part of the Civilian Reconissence and Management Program (CRAMP). I think you'll agree that they could be trying a little harder ;o)

Finally I met Tina for a tour of a local Gym. It was the usual rows of running machines and the like. Everyone their either being glued to Epsiodes of Friends on TV or listening to 'Eye of the Tiger' on their ipods. I was introduced to the 'Spinning Room' (???) where people go for spinning classes? I was asked if I enjoy 'spinning' - not really I gave it up at about age 10. However, it seems I might have got the wrong end of the stick on that one.

So my ankle has finally healed and I am back work. Also, it has finally started to snow (See Video of me and Tina returning home from the pub). At the moment it is a lot like UK snow,being a mixture of snow and sludge and generally very slippy. Unlike UK snow however there is a good chance that it will still be here tomorrow morning. I have already got my Mazda stuck and wheel spinning on the way home from work today and the opportunity to spin my wheels all the way up the street again tomorrow provides mixed feelings at the moment.

At this rate I shall be down at Canadian Tire begging for a set of 'winters' in no time. Tinas dad constructively suggest that a 4 wheel drive truck might do the trick but I dread to think how much damage I could do in that! Until then the little Mazda will have to pull its weight!

With a little luck I shall be able to take the camera for a spin this weekend and get some nice pics for all you guys!

Bummer, so I was out for a walk on Sunday and decided to catch a bus downtown to go for a walk on the Lakeshore. The pavements here are pretty bad and as I quickened my pace to catch the bus I managed to twist my ankle. Ouch indeed. So here I am during school hours watching daytime TV (See Right - I think I am watching some series on unsolved murders). Still I think its getting better so hopefully I'll be up and about soon! All Get Well Soon notifications can be placed in my Guestbook ;o)

So I am still waiting for the snow. This is actually the first time that I have lived here for the fall / early winter so I am in many respects - unprepared. Firstly I have to consider re-healing my ancient Mazda with winter tyres. These are by no means cheap, but then having an accident can be quite expensive. The guys at work were also suggesting that I get a shovel to help locate my vehicle after a particularly heavy snowfall. They also emphasised that there are few things worse than getting up earlier in the morning to dig your car out of a snow drift. Well, perhaps one thing - getting home only to find that you have to dig out your parking space. So I went to Canadian Tyre (Canadas answer to Halfords) to stock up. Well, in the end I got some dust caps for my tyre valves and a small brush (and an Oh'Henry! chocolate bar). All set then!

Last weekend was a good opportunity to catch up with friends for some downtown Sushi (All you can eat of course - See Right of me Tina and Amoll). I had Ed take this picture for me as Tina is always complaining that there are not enough pictures of me here on my blog so enjoy!

This weekend was Halloween - Oohhhh. On my way back from work I dropped into Walmart to pick up a couple of witches hats to permit me to mingle on Church Street that evening with Tina and Mike from work. Needn't have bothered as Walmart had been stripped and it was already Xmas as far as they were concerned. Altogether I was super impressed with North American Halloween. On my street hoards of little kids dressed as cute jungle animals roamed the street with plastic bags full of candy. This was in stark contrast to Church Street (which was closed to traffic for the occasion) where the trannies (especially) reduced regular Halloween costumes to the proverbial white sheet with holes. I was hoping that Tina would get a few good pics for my blog here but I think she was a) too short to see anything in the crowd and b) too distracted by the topless man with G cup chest nailed to a wooden cross! Still I managed to grab the camera from her shaking hands and get this shot (See Right).

On a different and altogether more bloggy note I was reading an editorial in 'Professional Engineer' regarding the immediate shadow cast on 'green' issues by the recent financial happenings. The editor is quite right to point out that despite being faced with potentially catastrophic climate change issues the total UK spending on such issues amounts to the GDP of one of the lesser known moons of Saturn. However, god forbid that something totally dumb happens in the global financial markets and all of sudden tonnes of cash are are discovered down the back of the sofa - phew. The point basically is what could be done by engineers should that kind of money be directed towards climate change? This answer was anything but 'Green'!

Wow, it certainly has been a while since I updated this blog! The more acute amongst you and those with RSS readers will have seen my vacation pics that I posted some time back. It seems like a distant memory now - a very nice one though!

Last weekend was pretty slow and I spent far to much of it in bed (or perhaps too little - depends on your point of view). On Saturday we met up with all the usual suspects for a Greek meal (See Right). It was good to see all the old faces again and catch up on everyone's doings!

So back to work and this week I achieved the IT milestone of 'twin monitor' setup, combined with my previous memory upgrade I am becoming a respected IT force in the office. The next logical acquisition must be the ubiquitous laptop. Despite the fact that I don't actually travel with work any more (thank god) I still feel the laptop is the quintessential status symbol that any self respecting (or long serving) worker should not be without.

Today also marks the first real snow fall in Toronto. Before all you Brits pipe up - yes - I am aware that you had some snow to! So everyone is happy and cold then! Looking forward to making a snowman and perhaps taking my skiing beyond the bunnyhill.

We are nearing the conclusion of our vacation now. In contrast to the hustle and bustle of Québec City and Ottawa (which was fantastic by the way) we are now installed into our cute lakeside residence overlooking Oxtongue Lake in Algonquin National Park. I admit this is not my first stay here - there was my camping expedition both last year and this year. However, this is the first 'Out of Season' experience. Although we timed it a little late to get the full effect of the Fall (Autumn) colours we have nevertheless managed to get some great views. Wildlife so far observed includes a Loon, Moose (Cow) and a Chipmunk. Mother also saw a Red Squirrel and green frog.

Tomorow we return to Toronto to enjoy the remainder of the weekend before the parents fly back to Blighty on Sunday. I too shall have to return to work. Somehow - as it seems my car might well be in pieces on a workshop floor someplace. Good news it should not cost too much - bad news is that nobody working there seemed to have a clue as to when it might be ready. Time to get a bass pass methinks.

My vacation continues apace as me and the folks take the car to Île d'Orléans just outside Quebec City in the St Lawrence Seaway.

At the moment all the trees are turning a mixture of deep red through yellow and the combined affect both at distance and up close if pretty spectacular (See Right). This island was the first place that the French settled on their route into Quebec proper. Today we toured the Manoir Mauvide-Genest - one of the earliest and most famous houses of the island. An aged and very characterful (my dad thinks scary) woman gave us an excellent tour and it really helped to understand how the first settlers lived - well more like survived really - during this period.

Anways, tomorrow we check out of this pretty fancy hotel and move on to Ottawa.

My fall vacation is underway as my folks and I jet off to Québec City. Just for Sams benefit I did not leave Tina behind - instead economic pressures forced her to persue a job offer.

Still, we landed last night and after a little false start with a flat tire on our SUV we arrived in our splendid and central hotel. First thing to note is that this place must be the most European city in North America (Take a look at my pics). Inside the walls of the old town the streets are narrow and often cobbled. To be honest I find that Québec seems to be trying so hard to be French that perhaps - at times - it seemed more French than Paris itself. Exceptions include the complete lack of the Tricolor and (for some reason) Croissants. My parents are generally behaving, but my father has latched onto the defeat of the French occupation of Québec in 1759 by James Wolfe and keeps trying to introduce this fact into general conversation with bar and resteraunt staff (Sigh).

If you will forgive me I now have to meet my folks for a dip in the pool before moving on to a nearby Irish Pub for dinner (we are British after all!)

Wow its been a few days since my last posting.

Currently my parents are here in Toronto and we have been doing all sorts of fun things. On Saturday we ventured to Markham Fair, an agricultural fair held on the Northern fringes of the city. We saw livestock (See Right), old farm machinery and a hypnotist. I unintentionally became part of the show when one of the contestants came to believe that I was George Clooney (I know the resemblance is striking).

That same evening we tried to experience as much of Toronto's Nuite Blanche as possible before tiredness got the better of us. I think the best installation was at the New City Hall where they turned the whole building into a massive matrix display. Very impressive indeed.

This coming week I shall be slaving away at work whilst my folks tour the city and area. However, next week we all (me, my folks and Tina) shall be flying to Quebec City and driving back to Toronto via Ottawa and Algonquin park. Prepare yourself for lots of Autumnal pictures of Maple Trees.

Whats that - I'm rich? Whoops no I am poor again. The current state of the worlds (read Americas) financial markets fill me with admiration that humans can create a system so unfounded on reality that nobody really knows what anything is worth anymore.

The weekend passes slowly as Tina is off visiting her sister in Waterloo. I am left with various hooky videos lent to me by Jen from her visits to China.

Still, this Friday signals the arrival of my lovely parents from the UK and (eventually) our holiday road trip from Quebec City back to Toronto. So I am saving my blogging until then.

Once again I get to live the (North) American dream and on Saturday we attend a baseball game at the Skydome (or Rogers centre - whichever you prefer). The roof was back (as the sun was shining) exposing a lovely view of the CN tower - a unique Torono scene!

This time the Toronto Blue Jays took on the formidable Boston Red Sox. Myself, Tina, Chunky and Jen were in attendance (See Right).. I must admit that this game is not a contest of the athletic elite. When running for first base it looks more like they are trying to catch a bus. Of course as soon as we arrived all scoring stopped and we were left with 'jumbo vision' and the occasional Mexican Wave to entertain us. Still a no-score draw was averted and the Jays took it and we all went our seperate ways.

This weekend I got a treat as the new Coen Brothers film 'Burn After Reading' opened in Toronto. Luckily I found Chris and Denise with nothing better to do and we went to see it (See Right).

I kinda like it when Brad Pitt is doing a more goofy thing (Think 12 Monkeys). George Clooney was inspiring as a smooth talking Lothario (Think O' Brother) and Malkovich was his usual edgy self (Think err .. Malkovich!)

On Sunday Tina and I went to Vaughan Mills shopping centre. This is a true Canadian affair including a large fish tank full of game fish otop of which various fishermen dangled various lures to demonstrate their effectiveness. Of course every shop was there and so were all the provinces unruley children!

As a P.S. I have to report that this website is upping sticks and will likely now be run from Ians bedroom (Thanks Dude!). Anyways, there maybe periods of 'downtime' or at least the sound of snoring in the background!

The weather has been pretty awesome recently, loads of sun but a nice breeze coming off the lake. I understand things in the UK are little more damp!

Yesterday,Tina and I met with Joan on Church Steet. This is Torontos 'Rainbow' district. So we went to a bar where there was some good music, friendly staff and a good mix of the sexes (altghough it was hard to tell of course). After a little boogy we went to another place where Joan and Tina danced a bit and I watched a good stand up act. All this got to Tina I think who I now have to call by the name of 'Trevor' (See Right)

Talking of trannys, mine seems to be making more noise (My Mazda). Referring back to my posting of the 24th July I am now moving into stage b). Sigh!

Another long weekend - this time the reason I forget.

This weekend is the anniversery of my leaving last year. Technically this is my first 31st Aug in Canada ever. In order to celebrate this tenious event I decided to have a party. Due to late planning and general lethargy on my part this event started as a garden BBQ, became a house party, then an meal and few beers. The meal was initially Czech, then briefly Korean before finally becoming Hungarian about 3 hours before we all met. Still, the usual suspects turned up and we all had a great night.

The following day we met with Tinas family to watch the airshow (See Right as Tina's dad and myself enjoy lunch). Making an appearance was the Snow Birds (The Canadian equivilent of the Red Arrows).

To further celebrate Ed and I took a test drive of the BMW 135i. A 3.5L twin turbo wedged into a little one series. Result = awesome drive! That evening Tina and I reanacted scnenes from Tom and Jerry cartoons as I 'hunted' our new uninvited mousey friend. He made the mistake of hiding in our gas oven - he made it almost until 300 faranheit until he scurried back into his little hole that Tina subsequently bloked up with some wire mesh.

A nice quiet weekend was just what I was looking for. On Friday Tina and I went for noodles in China town and then once more to the 'Village Idiot' pub for a couple of pints of Waterloo Dark (a good cheap ale).

On Saturday I must admit that I was beginning to despair with being stuck in the apartment. Tina had gone to see Nelson Mandella (or something) and I was stuck watching submarine movies. However, in the evening we visited Buskerfest. A free and enjoyable day of entertainment. It being free and me being vertically challenged meant that the crowds prevented me from getting a good spot and therefore a good shot of the action. The picture to the right is all I managed. These guys (Dream State Circus) were a married couple that show mutual affection by standing on each others heads. Also present was my good friend Elvis. Funny how he had hundreds of people crowded around him at Buskerfest but go to his usual spot on Queen Street on a weekday and nobody seems to care.

Today Tina and I went to her parents for some excellent (always is) BBQ. Austin (Tinas Dad) pumped me full with Bison Burgers after showing me his new (Gigantic) truck (The Silvarado - picture courtesy of Tinas Mum). In order to counter the negative influence of the burgers on my waistline Tina and I took a nice walk on the harbourfront and managed to catch a show by some visiting Tai musicans.

Not the best week ever in financial terms. I have refrained from political ranting in previous blog entries but I am now especially unhappy with Mr Gorden Brown. I could fill this site with reasons why but I think everyone is well aware.

On a more positive note this weekend Tina and I managed a visit to see the new Crystal Building at the ROM (Royal Ontario Museum) (See Right). Although the exhibits inside are still the same (and well worth a look) the building itself is new. Afterwards we met with Ed for a pint at the 'Village Idiot' pub. Very nice evening.

Yesterday Tina and I visited the Toronto islands to get some fresh air and escape city life. Some of the houses on these islands are very pretty and tucked away inside elaborate and beautiful gardens. I am sure there is a house there that is a Frank Lloyd Write place - but it is likely just a rip off. Will try and get a picture next time!

Slightly embarassing that I got the date wrong on my previous entry. Not actually the 8th but more like the 3rd. Sorry about that.

This weekend has been a little more quite than most which is a welcome change - oh, with the execption of the nearby Propane Facility Explosion (See Right at about 1:50) that got me and Tina out of bed last night and watching the news.

The weather recently has been pretty dire and almost non-stop rain has prevented us from doing anything exciting. Yesterday Tina and I made the best of a bad thing and went for a little shop in the Eaton Centre. I am trying to find a good case to purchase the IPhone 3G cos I think its really cool. Trouble is I want a decent camera phone and the IPhone isn't it.

This weekend marks the rememberance of John Simcoe one of Toronto's 'founding fathers' and an all round nice guy. We'll I'm not sure about the last bit - he may have killed a few Americans or something. Still the good news is that we all get a long weekend.

I decided to start mine by doing very little indeed. On Saturday I decided to go visit the Caribana Festival. I believe this used to be held within the city limits but I gather that the celebrations used to get out of control and now it is banished to the city limits. The festival itself spans the best part of the week but the the street parade is the climax - so to speak. I have a big bunch of pictures to post for this but I need some time to process them so in the meantime I give to you what will be the album cover shot.

Today Tina and I went to the Scarborough Bluffs which are a kind of small and dirtier version of the White Cliffs of Dover. They are however a lot more pleasant - with the exception of their Parking Wardon who I thought was a little heavy handed with this fine - which basically related to the fact my car didn't have a boat behind it.

Oh - my bestest thanks go to Sam who identified the book refered to in the post of 24/07/08 as that of 'Pedagogy of the Opressed' which I agree sounds boring.

Once again Toronto city spoils us with events and celebrations to keep Tina and myself amused. This is just a well because the TV is broken. To be honest all I ever watched on it was the Discovery Channel with 'Megabuilders', 'Really Big Things', Dave Roes 'Dirty Jobs' and of course my favourite 'Worlds Deadliest Catch'. As Tina will testify I did however watch quite a lot of the Discovery Channel my father has a similar problem with the 'History Channel'.

This weekend has been 'Just for Laughs' - a weekend of comedy. Yonge Street was closed and performers paraded the streets including a group of Deer, a praying mantis (See Right) and various mime artisits. The main stage included an amazing beatbox artist who could actually sing whilst producing the beats. The event culminated last night with the amazing 'mobile of drummers' (See Right) and of course some fireworks.

As usual the weather is bonkers (Toronto is about to set a rainfall record) and the humidity is way to high for me. So once the shadows lengthen a bit I shall venture outside to Chinatown for some tea and noodles :o)

Continuing the theme of things going wrong my TV just died. It was right in the middle of an excellent program about UFO's. Some man with a massive beard was explaining that 'Weather balloons don't move around the sky like that..' when a loud crackling noise was shortly followed by just the voice of the bearded man and no longer a picture. I imagine the cathode lamp has gone south. This is what happens when you buy a TV with a '30 days no money back warranty)

On the upside the car is still alive - just a bit noisier. It does however pass the 'curbside test'. Generally this test involves driving past an unsuspecting pedestrian whilst persuading your vehicle to misbehave. Should said pedestrian ....

a) Look around confused then you might have a problem in the making.

b) Stare at your car with a look like they just sucked a lemon then you should seek a garage at the earliest convenience

c) Cover their ears with their hands then you should likely stop and call the AA (CAA)

d) Laugh and point then - well lets be honest the worst is behind you and your best to just turn up the stereo and smile. (This also applies if they don't notice anything)

Oh - I also bought my lens ;o). The picture (Right) was not taken with this lens (rather my phone) in 'High Park' Toronto. It might amuse you for a while!

Cars, once again continue to make my life difficult. When I left the UK I had to sell my old BMW (See Right - sob) )but not before someone managed to put a key down the side of it.

Buying my current Mazda from 'Denis' in a dodgy garage uptown and having to 'convince' the insurance company the cars V.I.N. exists (Denis did this but to this day I do not wish to know how) was not a particularly plesasant experience. As the car had no history I had to have it pulled apart and patched up costing another few hunded bucks. All this is before I have to fork out nearly $4000 a year in insurance.

So I was non too pleased when my car started making noises not unlike a WWII tank on the way to work this morning. Of course at the garage it stopped making them. The guys there think it might be the clutch - hmmm - I imagaine not too different to shiny new one I put in the BMW before selling it.

Oh well ;o)

The weather had not changed much and the heat and humidity prevents me from getting the sleep I need. To escape the heat I joined some friends at the local IMax cinema to see the latest batman film (See Right). The film itself is pretty awesome but seeing it on the IMax screen (its is shot in the IMax format) was intense. Whenever Batman jumped off a building or something the camera would track him over the edge and this effect caused a few gasps in the auditorium. If I had to choose between this and the Tim Burton films it would a close call.

I also spend quite a few hours in Henrys camera shop discussing the pros and cons of prime lenses. Next week its likely I'll get my hands on a lovely 50mm 1.4 prime. You'll hopefully see some pics from this lens before long!

So I put this picture on my blog to illustrate how unsettled the weather is at the moment. As Tina and I walked to the park this cloud grew from an otherwise perfect evening and began rotating as it rose. Of couse I had to get a pic with my new camera! I processed this (RAW) file with Picassa - which I have to say is an awesome tool. I have already selected my next lens - but more of that later.

This week at work has bourne witness to my first accidental mass emailing - inviting half the office to join me for 3 hours on Friday morning in meeting rooms 1, 2,3.. in fact all the meeting rooms. I was actually surprised at how many people accepted this meeting without questions. In my defence someone else in the office sent a rather more explicit mass email by accident this afternoon. Stupid Lotus Notes.

Back to reality and the weekend draws ever nearer and already I am planning my next asian adventure (Korean this time).

Tomorrow marks the expiry date of my original Work Permit - issued way back in January last year - when I was in my 'salad days' (Late Twenties). This brought back memories of the Canadian winter - which I largely avoided this time.

Anyways - back to the summer and Toronto is - as Frank Drebbin says - very warm and awfully wet. So much so that fans are springing up around our lovely (un)air-conditioned apartment like daisies. I have just bought a large fan for the bedroom as last night was a little much and I had to take the cool packs from the freezer and stuff them into my pillow.

This weekend I decided to get my moneys worth from my new camera and took some shots around Kensington market and Chinatown. When I get some time I might expand my 'Toronto' album with these pics. In the meantime you'll have to be happy with a picture of our local moggy 'Ginger'. He is male and WLTM single F to share salmon treats and long sleeps in the sun (no smokers).

OK, lets be camera geeks for a second. I guess its like learning to ride a bike - once to you have learned then you decide that bikes are too slow and get a car instead. But then later in life you think 'you know - I had a lot of fun on that bike' so you decided to go back and buy a bike only to re-discover why it was you use a car. I am not sure where I am going with this - probably to the bike shop. errrr.

So in the end I decided to get a Nikon D60 over the Canon D450(Xsi) - technically - for all the reasons my lovely brother points out in the email he sent (Thanks dude!). As Andrew asserts the Canon D5 would be the 'best camera' to buy, but on the difference in price I could fly myself home to blighty and spend some quality time with my brother in a public establishment. One thing I will point out to everyone is how much fun these image stabalised lenses are. When you frame up the shot the camera 'locks on' to the image and gains you 3 stops worth of shutter speed. This is significantly cheaper than buying a 3 stops faster lens (especially at some focal lengths). So I am very happy with that!

Of course all this means that my lovely old Ricoh is demoted to 'Beach Duty'. In its honour I have constructed a Ricoh Memorial Page full of all the best images (I think) I got from that camera. Check it out as many of these pics have never seen the light of day.

Ricoh Tribute

As you might be able to gather from my (slightly) doctored image of fireworks (See Right) this weekend has seen quite a few festivals and celebrations in Toronto.

The city seems to come alive in the summer and there is something doin' every weekend. Tina and I started on Friday with a visit to go see WALL(E). Those with a keen eye may have spotted my take at re-creating Wally with parts of existing robots from the silver screen on my front page. Good film - go see if your into cartoon robots.

On Saturday we took a look around our local festival (Festival Corso Italia). Whilst there was nothing in particular that caught my eye I did manage to aquire a rather nice stove top espresso maker - so my weekend mornings are a little more jolly now. Afterwards we met some friends and went to sit at the lakeshore and get a free look at the fireworks. Whilst they were not particularly impressive by any means (I think Combe is better) you can't complain for the price!

On Sunday Tina and I went to Afrofest where I was tempted to buy Rasta hats and bits of black wood carved into either very tall thin women (sometimes with child) or just allegators. Afterwards we met up with some of Tinas ex-student buddies and went for a rather nice Ethiopian food (I know - I thought the same). Very nice it was and Tina particularly enjoyed the tripe.

All this convinced me to buy a new camera - so votes please Nikon D60 or Canon XSi!

So today my UK care package arrived (See Right). This was a gift from my former work buddies - thanks guys! You can get quite a bit of UK stuff here in Canada but some things are less in demand. Tina was particularly suspicious of the 'Mushy Peas' and 'Cheesy Wotsits'. It reminds me actually that I must put together a table of UK vs Canadian snacks and condiments. Some weeks ago I became addicted to 'Pirate Buscuits' but I have since moved on the Beef Jerky for a bit. I am sure you want to hear all about it.

So Tina and I made the best of the remainder of the long Canada Day weekend and loafed about the house before moving onto the Woodbine beaches for a spot of sunbathing and country music. We were hoping to catch a little of the celebratory fireworks - but tiredness got the better of us. Upside is that fireworks continue onto the coming weekend so we have another chance.

Right, well this weekend...

We had planned a nice long weekend of camping in Algonquin park. We arrived on Friday evening and put up the tents before retiring to a friends fire for some dinner and a few beverages. Tina is new to the camping game and I remember telling her as we retired that the joys of camping will become evident once we wake the following morning and are greeted by chipmunks and beavers offering fresh coffee and bagels. What we were greeted with was terrential rain. At one point I became concerned that the standing water alone might actually flood the tent. Karl and I tried to erect the tarp to keep the rain off but the sheer weight of water prevented us. In the end we all stood under the flacid tarp whilst Karl tried to make coffee. Of course Tina had done the wise thing and stayed in the tend and knew little of the chaos outside (wise girl!). We sat it out and stayed another (wet) night. When the following days rain continued we decided to call it a day and (as Karl put if) 'got the hell out 'o dodge). What little pictures I have will soon be uploaded - until this here is a picture of Tina, Karl and Wanda (See Right).

Still - I did take my first picture of a moose.

So the remainder of the weekend is free for Tina and I to enjoy Toronto on Canada Day. So with a little luck we should be able to witness the fireworks on the Ontario lake tomorrow!

This week has had a backdrop of continued variable weather constantly alternating between sun and thunder - always staying pretty warm though!

On Friday I was pretty keen to leave work and go play in the sun with Tina. But the weather turned sour again and we became stranded indoors with a copy of Atonement. I have to congratulate Keira on being able to act in such films and then go off to film Pirates of the Caribbean MCMLXXVII and remain creditble in both.

On saturday I uploaded my Glastonbury 2002 pictures and played with PicLens. Those liking this way of viewing pictures will be glad to hear that I will eventually include this feature on all my pages (once I write some code to generate the scripts for me.). After all this activity I took trip out to Scarborough to meet with some friends at 'All Star Wings'. This place has a menu of chicken wings running into 100s of flavours. Amongst the usual we experiemented with some (level 5) hot wings. The highest level of wings are designated 'E.LE (Extinction Level Event)' .I am sure that Dave M would appreciate those!

Today I finally peeled myself out of bed and went to see the Dragonboat racing on Toronto's Centre Island (Tina was studying). My good friend Denise was competing and should have been on the winning boat (See Right) - full of UfT Engineers (See the hard hat on the dragon). However, she was drumming on some other vessel - hence I took pictures of the wrong boat -sigh! Still the event was good fun until our old friend Mr Thunder and Mr Lightening came and pissed on our perade.

The last week has seen some seriously unsettled weather. It was pretty ususal to leave work on a close hot evening that was followed by intense rain and serious thunder. Despite all this Tina and I found a little time to sqeeze in a porch side BBQ on Thursday.

The working weeks are beoming more challenging and I had to release a meeting request to review a document I haven't finished yet - concurrent engineering indeed. Therefore the weekends are becoming very welcomed. I dedicated this one to mostly securing all the ingredients for our camping trip at the end of the month. I rented a tent, bought a serious cool box (enough to hold a good few bottles of suds) and a couple of folding chairs so Tina and I can relax and watch the Moose, Beavers and Loons go by.

The area in which we live seems to harbour a good few Portuguese and on Saturday they had some kinda music festival in our local park (See Right). So Tina and I spent an hour or so there. Tina commented that such lax dancing styles would only be acceptable in Europe.

As I write this we are waiting to go to Red Lobster (A seafood resteraunt) for some lovely nosh for Fathers Day. Tina is in the garden reading and I am writing this and watching Horsepower TV ;o)

Thats not bad facial hair its a shadow!

OK -so I was actually super happy to be back at work today owing to the overly fierce AC in the office (the same that made me ill a few weeks back).

After work I decided to get my eyes tested cos I was thinking that it was about time. I am not all that happy about getting my eyes tested - not just cos I seem to perpetually fail - no matter how hard I try and cheat. Today the optometrist (aka bastard) had an excellent array of tools to blast my eyes with stupid puffs of air and make my eyeballs glow yellow. I drew the line at the eyedrops that make your pupils dilate to the extent that I look like a stoned hippy for 'up to' four hours. After the physical torture comes the mental torture - 'Better with .... or ... without' 'Better with .... or ... without' 'Better with .... or ... without' 'Better with .... or ... without' 'Better with .... or ... without' etc. 'Look dude just stick them all in there we both know its gonna make things better.

Well, after all that I got the usual high score (see right) and I notied he ticked the 'Interested in contact lenses' box even though he never asked me.

I have decided to wait and write this blog entry until tomorrow (today) because I have absolutely no energy today (yesterday?) owing to the heat and to a larger extent the humidity.

On saturday Tina escorted me to a BBQ held by her faculty to celebrate the (almost) end of the semester and indeed the course. Tina is studying IPMP which basically translates to going to foreign places and helping people. Indeed I can honestly say that I have never been surrounded by so many charitable inividuals. I think they must have decided early on that I was in no danger of starvation as I had to fight my corner at the BBQ to secure a burger. See picture (Right) of all of us before I evaporated completely. Still that burger was worth the effort - good work guys!

Needless to say the lack of AC in my apartment led to an uncomfortable night. So much so Tina says that I was calling out to family members in my sleep. Well only one actually - my brother Andy ;o)

Man is it hot tonight. Recently the weather has become really thundery. Last night Tina and I went downtown for some wings and a few brewski's and the thunder and lightening were already under way. Today the weather people predicted a record breaking (For June 6th) of 30 degC. In actual fact it topped out at 33. Just to highlight how humid it is here there were still puddles in the parking lot next to my car as I left work.

This evening Tina tried to enthuse me with the idea of 'shooting some hoops' at the local park but yours truely was feeling the combined effects of the heat, humidity and a week of work. Sorry Tina!

I need to work out a game plan for this weekend as they are all quickly turning to crap as a result of poor time management - well that and the fact I can't get out of bed unless I am paid to do so!

Lastly, behold the awe of my RSS feed. Please let me know if your having troubles with it - or just don't have a clue what its for.

Pinch, Punch and all that...

This week at work was pretty 'full on'. As always deadlines seem to catch people out, no matter how long they have been known for. Still I seemed to survive intacted and ready for the weekend!

Friday was pretty relaxed, Tina and I went shopping after work and rented a video - Charley Wilsons War, I particulary like the performance of Philip Seymour Hoffman, who in general I think is a superb actor that seems to always get the underdog part in most films - so its good to see him play a strong character.

Saturday was a pretty slow day helping Tina buy some formal clothes in preparation for any upcoming job interviews. In the evening we attended a BBQ to celebrate the birthday of an old work buddy Rob (AKA The Big Lebowski). I took first shift on the BBQ (See Right with buddy Karl) and I continued into the evening until an unexpected headache got the better of me just before midnight. Many of the people attending will also be joining us at Algonquin park for our camping expedtion next month.

Today I spent the majority of my time in toy shops looking for a present for little Alex, a friends child. I spent far too long in the Lego department where I was pretty impressed with some of the latest technology being made available to youngesters between the ages of 8 and 14. I am sure I played with lego long after I was forteen.

Finally a little sun for the weekend. Tina and I did what all sane people should do when the sun comes out and sat in a darkened air-conditioned room. In fact we were watching the new Indiana Jones film - 'The Curse of the Crystal Head' or some such thing. At first I thought it was over reliant on CGI animals - this later proved to be the least of its problems. Oh well.

On Saturday I met with some of Tina's old friends and we all had lunch at the Eaton Centre. Shortly after this I left to go spend the evening celebrating Gilberts release from his previous employment and upcoming new job. We did this in the way that any mature and well balanced young men should - drinking beer and playing video games (See Right of us playing Mario Kart on the Wii). Jen also did an excellent 'F.O.P counting video thingy'

Tina it seems had a great weekend too although she has only just got back and jumped directly in the shower. With some luck I can convince her to join me at Hyde Park and finally we can make best use of the weather!

This was a long weekend in honor of Queen Victoria - appropriately called 'Victoria Day'.

Tina and I decided to take the Mazda to Ottawa. In part to see the sites and in part so Tina could see some old friends. Unfortunately the weather was crap and it rained for most of the weekend. Indeed as I write this Toronto is running about 20 degrees below the seasonal average!

I got a chance to visit an English Pub (Something I have always wanted to do), eat a Beaver Tail ;o) and see the famous parliament buildings. On Saturday we went up the Gatineau Hills for some gentle exercise and vigorous fly swatting! On the return journey I took the opportunity to see Hitlers car at the Ottawa War Museum - also got to see aT34 Russian Tank.

Now however, its all back to work - the up side being that this week should be a little shorter than most the the forecast is HOT HOT HOT!

A long week at work is rewarded by some sunshine on the weekend. On Friday I met with some friends and went to the 'Wing Shack'. Hundreds of favors of wings - super indeed ;o)

On Saturday I attended a family 'get together' with Tina. The food was great and the company entertaining. Afterwards I went to a furniture superstore and- after some bargaining - obtained a couple of loveseats for my front room. I have measured, and these guys should fit - so fingers crosssed.

Upon my return I noticed a large ugly truck had parked accross the entrance to my parking space (See Right). I had to leave the car on the street without a permit - and you guest it - I have another ticket.

Today is mothers day in Canada and Tina is preparing to go spend some time with hers. Seeing as mine is in the UK and mothers day here was in March - so I have decided to go to the mall - perhaps.

The Ugly Big Truck

This weekend was a mixture of tipping rain and sunshine. On friday we went to see Tinas friend Jen and her lovely dog 'Peanut' (See Tina and Peanut Right). Peanut was unrelenting in his desire to remove my socks so we went for Wings - my favourite. Even Tina partook of the avian entrée.

On Saturday the weather pinned us down again but in the evening we made it out so Tina could get another MRI and I could meet Ed in the Irish Embassy for a few beers.

Sunday was a great day and Tina and I were chilling in the sun, chatting to my folks, building furniture and playing with the neighbours cat when Tinas parents arrived with their redundant couch. Many of you will know that I am not having much luck with couches here in Canada and today was no exception - once again it became firmly lodged in the hallway :o(

So on Monday the kind guys at work decided to turn on the air conditioning even though its not really that hot yet. I'm not sure what was living in those murky ducts before the fat man turned the switch but for sure I am now ill. As soon as the cool dry air hit my lungs I couldn't stop sneezing. Coupled with what has so far been the busiest week ever and I am totally exhausted. To help me get my mojo back Tina kindly cooked me lovely chile (See Right).

Somewhere along the line I seem to have inherited a great deal of used IKEA furniture which is currently filling spare room - colloquially termed the 'Tinatorium'. Once again the screwdrive r and ridiculously small Allen key are put to good use.

However, all in all I can confirm that I am just now beginning to feel settled!

A super busy week at work is followed by a super busy weekend also. On Friday I was due to meet Tina downtown after work. However, a late panic with her assigment, a TTC strike (they finally got their way) and an MRI scan all got in the way. In the end I found mself building a kitchen table at about 3 in the morning. Saturday was pretty busy too with a trip to the local flea market and a IKEA (Last visit I promise to myself). I now have a TV cabinet and 'poof'. I don't think the Canadians have a word for a 'poof' so I just refer to it as a 'furnished box. Oh and a bedside lamp as I broke the last one I bought.

Today Tina and I met with Chris, Ed and Jen (See Right) to revive an old institution - the eat all you can Sushi. Tina and I continued to the harbour front where we chilled out in a nice little park.

I am finishing this weekend by watching 'Star Wars - Attack of the Clones' on 'Strike TV' one of my million channels.

The devil is in the detail and I was reminded this week that its important not to let that get the better of you.

As I write this I am watching the news to see if the TTC (Toronto Transit Commission) will be striking tomorrow. It seems not. Still, it reminds me of Paris and just how many strikes there was and probably still are! Anyways, the streetcars, subways and buses will all be running tomorrow.

What with the increasing price of gas, insurance and my propensity to aquire parking tickets (See Right) I perhaps should start considering public transport more seriously. I found this ticket particularly petty - although the fine was only $15.

Whenever I need to convince myself that leaving the UK might have been a good idea I just head to www.bbc.co.uk/weather. Today was super nice and as I wandered to my local pizzaria I enjoyed the heat from the street, the laughter of children and the unmistakbale smell of barbeque.

I must admit that despite the fact that my area is undergoing 'regeneration' (See Right) I am very much enjoying the ambience of Corso Italia. Just a second to explain that whilst Toronto is a capital city there are many central streets of detached wooden houses. Importantly each is different from the last and - I think - the overall effect is quite nice. Indeed this is why I became determined to live in one!

I also was approved for my first Canadian credit card. This might not seem like much to you or me - but my bank manager looked very uncomfortable when she pushed the 'Appove' button - geniune surprise when it said 'Yes'. I must admit that Canadians seem a lot more responsible when is comes to credit. An average Canadian must place about 20% deposit when getting a mortgage for example (and this has always been the case). Take heed Mr Brown - RESPONSIBLE LENDING!!!

Anyways, enough ranting about money (don't get me started on the price of HDMI cables). I need to enjoy my pizza now.

Always the way it goes when moving about - your often off-line for a couple of weeks. Kindly David from downstairs has let me use his WiFi so I am back online - for the time being at least.

In the meantime I have been pretty busy moving into my new place. A few runs to IKEA and a visit to my fav furniture shop 'Timbuktu' on Yonge St and I have once again achieved a level of minimal furnishing that (people who know me) will understand. Recliner, TV, Sat box (million channels), upscaling DVD and laptop all balanced on a fine coffee table crafted from Acacia wood in Jaipur (See Right).

Tax is the next issue as I restle with the pros and cons of managing tax returns in two countries simulataneously - mostly cons actually. Also I have submitted my application for permenant residency which should be fully resident this time next year - hopefully. Also today I got my driving license.

To celebrate all this achievement I got together with Chris and Denise - and eventually Tina to enjoy some Jazz at The Rex - my fav music venue in Toronto. Tonight I celebrate my arrival in Corso Italia with a spag bol - so my lovely new gas oven is now covered in tiny orange blobs of goo.

This weekend was pretty busy as I got my car and purchased, aquired and moved some furniture into my apartment. In order to move all this I rented the world lagest van (See right next to my Mazda). It had a million Litre V8 engine and handled like a total pig. I wanted to take a picture of me, Tina and Chris by the van in IKEA but was too busy man-handling bedroom furniture.

I say 'some' as 'all' of my furniture would not be a good summarisation. My duplex in midtown Toronto is pretty spacious but the stairs from the hallway are pretty narrow and include a rather nasty right angle bend halfway up. This prevented the couch kindly donated by Tina's parents and the box spring from making it into the apartment :o(

Still, thanks to the help of Chris we did get the mattress and reclining armchair in. Well, its something.

Today I went to The Bay (Department Store) to cheer myself up with the purchase of a 6-Point Hudson Bay blanket. In doing so I chatted to a rather nice chap who introduced me to the 'Split' box spring. So I got a couple of those and a bedframe for good measure.

This week has seen many finalisations. Firstly my dream car, the Mazda Protege (See 27/03/08) to which I am now fully insured and paid up. This Friday the car should be parked up outside my hotel room gleaming with its silver and rust coloration. The insurance guys deliberated and discussed amongst themselves and decided that I deserve to have a star (See Right). Most decent law abiding Canadians have 6 stars and appropriately low insurance. I have one. I am going to take a voluntary test and with the certificate I should get another 3 stars.

On Tuesday Tina and I went to collect the keys for the new apartment. It in an area called Corso Italia 'Italian Road'. This weekend I am planning to get a van and move a bed and some other stuff in. Perhaps even good buddy Dou.. err Chris will help me! Thanks dude.

Lastly, I had a very good haircut today from an Italian gentleman (Hence why I know what 'Corso Italia' means. He spent ages on my sparsely foliated noggin' bringing it to a state of tidy perfection not yet seen. Whilst I was there a couple of kids came in an asked for a lollipop each. In total gangster accent he said 'You kids realise that everyday you come here and take two of my lollipops - you know how many that is a week? eh , eh? Well its fourteen - thats how many'.

Tina and I went shopping in IKEA today (See Right) where we began to map out the various things we might need in the apartment. We trawled through the endless isles of inspired designs realised in cheap flimsy wood (although there are exceptions). What I really wanted to do was find a mattress that worked for us in both size and squidgyness. We settled on a Queen size Hasselhoff in the end.

Tina found a nice new hat (See Right).

Tonight seems to be the evening of flashing lights and sirens as firstly a speeding motorist is brought to justice outside my hotel window before the fire alarm is activated and three fire trucks are parked up outside filling the night air with a multitude of flashing colours. Once again I forget my camera so once again there is no exciting picture of an Ontario fire truck.

Today is the anniversary of the day I first met Tina at Einstein's bar on College St. Those interested can see my blog entry from this day and indeed a very blurry picture of me and my good lady here.

Tina had arranged a nice little party on Queen Street so we both got posh (I wore my new suit) and we ventured out into the cold evening air. Of course we had to swing by Einstein's once more where we gobbled up large portions of deep fried chicken (and a couple of Steam Whistles) before moving on to the main event. It was set in a large church complete with disco lightening and a dance DJ. I was introduced to some of Tinas friends from college and we had a little dance (See Right) before venturing once gain into the cold night air. Thanks honey bunny xxxx

Today I finally managed to get my drivers license back. I remember from last year that it can be difficult finding an agency that will do this. Despite many blind alleys and incorrect directions I find myself on Carl Hall Road in a queing system. When I finally get called I request to exchange my UK license for a Canadian G class (Lets me drink and drive on 400 series highways at night with friends) only to be told that I "already have one". It appears that when I returned to the UK last year and re-exchanged back my UK license that my old Canadian license was not returned to Canada - therefore they never knew I left.

Anyways - I got back my Canadian license in the end which lets me get insurance which lets me purchase my dream car (See Right) which lets me drink and drive on 400 series highways at night with friends.

Back to work again this week and it looks like things are starting to roll as I have been given my first real assignment. I must say that this job is a lot more 'systemsy' than my last job. Lots of great accronyms and VERY complicated looking schematics. Excellent.

Yesterday I went to a self proclaimed 'Fish & Chip' shop on Steeles. Well not entirely a taste of 'ol England because it was called the 'Trattoria Casareccia' (??). When I asked the lovely Chinese lady for Cod and Chips she had to confirm that in fact I wanted Cod and Fries (As 'chips' are 'crisps' of course). Despite all this they actually tasted pretty good.

This week I also discovered how ball breakingly expensive car insurance is. This was an inconvienience I was not exposed to last year thankfully. One thing I like is that you can decide how much liability you want to be covered for - and what you need depends on who you are intending to kill that year. Hit an out of work actor and you might be required to dry clean his clothes for the funeral. Run over the foot of a plastic surgeon and you could be sued for umpteen billion dollars.

The legal minimum is about $200'000 which covers you against striking and injuring a vacant English Immigrant who looked the wrong way when crossing the road. So in order to pay for my own insurance all I need is to be hit by some fully insured muppet and cash in!

The upshot of all this is that I can no longer afford to get my Mazda 3 back (See Right fo the car I was about to buy). Sigh!

I finished the long weekend by loafing about in my hotel room. On Saturday I blew the fuse in my room by plugging in my newly aquired technology from China Town. Despite the janitors best efforts he was unable to make the lights come back on - for some reason though the microwave still worked. So late on Saturday and coincident with the arrival of my deliery banquet from 'Mr Greek' and in the dark I had to move all my stuff down the corridor of the hotel.

I spent most of today listing all the things I left in my previous room and eventually peeled myself of the couch to go see Tina for dinner. Very nice.

I haven't quite managed to take any nice picures yet so today I include a picure of a kitchen (not mine)that some of you may find attractive and modern.

On Friday I met up with Gilbert, Chris, Jen and Ed for a nice few beers (Steam Whistles) at 'The Madison' - a great sprawling downtown pub. It was all very pleasing but left me with a bit of a headache for my subsequent house hunting.

On Saturday I finally secured myself accomodation in Midtown Toronto. Whilst not quite the central location of my former residence on Yonge Street it does offer the contrast of a more residental area and a very amenable landlord by the name of David. It also has a spare room - which I am sure some of you out there will come to enjoy. This was just as well because I was starting to loose hope a little bit. Especially after witnessing (I cannot use any other word to describe it) the 'Mansion' with lakeshore views that I saw on Friday. Replace 'Mansion' with 'Crap' and 'Lakeshore Views' with 'Hole' and you get the picture.

Finally Today I met up with Tina and Terry (Her Sister) and hit China Town (See Right) where I purchased various exciting technologies at knock down prices.

Bit of a theme developing with this blog as I post yet again a picure of a potential apartment. this one is victorian and totally cool. The whole place seemed to be subsiding into itself and nothing was quite square - there was noticable slant in the livingroom. However, being in he Annex is a nice area - unless you want to park a car it seems :o(

After this I realised I had the time to meet Tina for dinner. A quick call later and we were nicely settled in an Italian resteraunt near her college. I discussed my apartment hunting with her and have come to the conclusion that Ossingon might be for me (see below). It was too small to have guests really but otherwise its perfect. I'll give it some thought and see how it goes.

Tomorrow I am spared house hunting but have obligations with respect to exchanging my driving license. Argghhh - I am so looking forward to taking some time out this Easter Weekend!

Some days things just seem to go all wrong! This morning I was walking back to my desk when I stopped to look at a notice board. As I reached to turn a page a massive static shock made my arm involuntarily jerk and throw my coffee all over myself. Not to worry as I had to leave the office to go get my Social Insurance card anyways - so I made a detour by the hotel and changed shirt. This evening I took a look at two apartments on Ossington - West Toronto (See Right). They were both very nice but a little small. Parking is also a bit of premium in this area - especially when what little is left is half occupied by great piles of snow.

Apologies to all those who have been denied this blog in recent days - the source of the problem was way beyond me.

So finally it has happened and I am here! The last 6 months have been basically a big wait, firstly to get the job in Canada and then to get the Visa approved that would actually let me get here. However, it was also a good opportunity to spend some time with my folks in a little Cotswold village. When I get more time I might write a bit more about this time - but not now cos I can't be bothered.

Saturday was an emotional farewell form my parents followed 7 hours later by an equally emotional hello from Tina. As usual the immigration dudes were pretty efective and I had my new work permit in my hand as I waited for my luggage.

Yesterday was a chance to chill with Tina and get myself re-aquained with an old friend that is Toronto city. Although we didn't get a chance to spend much quality time together as I was madly shopping for a suite and some other bits and pieces.