As the summer draws to a close, I thought I’d share with you some of the things that have made this summer memorable for me.
Book
In the Skin of a Lion by Michael Ondaatje.
I’ve lived on the West Coast for fourteen years now, but I still get homesick for Toronto. (I can hear the collective groans of my Vancouver friends now). It’s a love story that precedes another of Ondaatje’s famous novels, later made into a film, The English Patient. In the Skin of a Lion depicts the building of some of Toronto’s most notable structures, including the Prince Edward Viaduct, and the **R.C. Harris Water Filtration Plant, in my old neighbourhood, the Beaches. It also weaves in the untold story of new Canadian immigrants in Toronto, and the integral, yet unrecognized role they played in building that city’s history.
**A little know fact about the R.C. Harris Water Filtration Plant is that it served as the Melonville Maximum Security Prison in an episode of SCTV where they visit the prison on Mrs. Falbo’s Tiny Town.
Drink
Strongbow Cider – Sweet Jesus, this stuff is good. Not all sweet and fruity. It’s crisp, and the perfect beverage for a hot summer afternoon. Drink it cold.
Getaway – The Sunshine Coast, BC
Fun Website
Style Rookie. Now I’m not much of fashionista, but twelve-year-old Tavi sure makes looking at fashion fun. She’s got an interesting site, and I get to see what the kids are wearing these days, plus she makes me feel nostalgic for my childhood because she reminds me of my old friend, Chase. When we were twelve, we’d dress up all crazy, put on the Rocky Horror Picture Show, and let loose. Where were our parents when we were proclaiming that we were “Sweet Transvestites from Transexual, Translyvania“? Anyways, Tavi is an original. She’s quirky and fun, and has taken the fashion blogging world by storm, though not without controversy. Some doubt that she’s doing her site on her own. Indeed, her sharp wit, and writing style may seem wise beyond her years, but really, people, lay off. She’s twelve.
Music
In Rainbows by Radiohead. If you ever get a chance to see them, go for it. If I was 20 years younger and devoid of responsibility, I might drop everything and follow them around a bit. Not like a stalker, like a Deadhead, but I’d be a Radioheadhead.
House of Cards by Radiohead
Actor
Robert Downey Jr. Le sigh. Great in Iron Man and Tropic Thunder.