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Apr. 11th, 2005 12:53 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
listersgirlWeekend! Joy! Bliss!
There are times when I bemoan and whine about my single status, but beautiful weekends in spring are not among them. I love being able to wander about and do whatever I like on a whim.
Sunday morning I woke up, and since brunch wasn't going to happen, I decided to go for a run, my inaugural run of the...year. Wow, that's sad. Now, bear in mind that I'm in a new neighbourhood that I haven't fully explored, and I hadn't plotted out a route designed to keep my fragile self away from hills. Nope, I just strapped on my shoes, picked a direction (northwest, if you care) and started running. I ran* along a bunch of quiet residential streets, and then I followed someone with dogs down what looked like a dead end street and turned out to be a bridge over the park, so I was running over other runners. Then I found myself in the land of the fancy houses (but not the very fancy houses - that's in the other direction) and eventually back on to the main thoroughfare, which felt obnoxiously loud and full of traffic after the gentility of early Sunday morning residential neighbourhoods. While I was running I pondered the ability of Toronto to have visibly low-income and high-income neighbourhoods right next to each other. The street that I was initially running on was like a physical line between the two. It was interesting. I think next time I might try going down into the park and joining the other runners, assuming I can figure out how to actually get down there.
Yesterday was also the day when I realized that I have complete** faith in my ability to find my way to wherever I'm going without a map, even in twisty residential neighbourhoods. I took off running without knowing where I was going, and just followed streets that felt vaguely like they were taking me in a circle. I figure as long as I make it back to a street I recognize eventually, right? And then I did the same thing in the afternoon. While eating breakfast and reading NOW magazine, I read a review of a new bakery that looked really good and was within walking distance (1/2 hour or so). So I decided to wander down there and buy tarts. Why not? I was originally going to walk down Spadina, so that I could pass by Casa Loma, which I've never seen, but as I was walking that way I saw that the path through the ravine was clear, and there were people walking on it, and I decided to walk that instead. It didn't seem to matter that I had no idea where it was going to come out -- worst case scenario, I could turn around and come back the way I came. So I walked along the path, skirted some very muddy bits where the snow was still melting, avoided some very boisterous dogs, and generally had a great time. It was such a beautiful day -- I was wearing a tank-top and skirt*** (and lots of sunscreen, after Saturday's little adventure) and I felt like nothing could be wrong anywhere. And then eventually the park ended, and I was on a random residential street I'd never heard of, but I walked a bit more and found myself exactly where I had intended to be. Score. There was a cute little vegetarian cafe that I'd been intending to try for ages right across the street from the bakery (although I hadn't realized that was where it was), so I had some lunch -- spinach lentil wrap with lemon tahini sauce and a very tasty green salad -- then bought some tarts. Then I went home and lazed around reading my book while my lentil chili cooked. Later, there was exclaiming over and maligning of books, pizza and salad with, indulging a certain someone's baseball obsession, and sharing up of the tarts so that we could each taste them all. That, people, is what Sundays should be.
I don't remember what I did on Saturday, but it was all very lazy and unplanned. I'm pretty sure that it involved laundry, and not getting up in time for yoga. Also, lots of movie watching. Oh, right, and I wandered down to the other (slightly crazy) grocery store, exploring the street along the way, stopping in all the random stores**** and looking at menus for all the restaurants. I found a Middle Eastern restaurant with lots of tasty-sounding vegetarian food that I'm going to have to visit.
And then, excitement of excitement, I didn't have to walk to work this morning, because the transit strike was cancelled after all. Craziness. I suppose there's a chance it might reappear if they don't ratify on Thursday, but that's then and this is now.
Also, there is joy is listersland, because the Chicklit t-shirts have arrived! They are wonderful! In protest of not being able to just walk down the street and pick them up (Glarkware being in Toronto is such a tease), we are forming a Toronto ordering cabal to save on shipping. And then I will be proudly sickly looking in my fabulous lavender shirt. Whee!
*"Ran", meaning alternated very short amounts of running and walking, because I am lame and have lost any ability to run that I once had. Not that I had much, but I seem to remember being able to run for more than a minute at a time. Lame!
**If totally unwarrented. I mean, I can get lost trying to leave a subway station.
***Meanwhile, people around me were still wearing winter coats, scarves and gloves. I know I was being slightly overenthusiastic about the onset of warm, but it was hot out there! Freaks.
****I thought my last neighbourhood was heavy on the discount stores; this neighbourhood definitely wins, though. Or not, because they're all extremely random and somewhat scary-looking. Dollar Joint, I miss you!
There are times when I bemoan and whine about my single status, but beautiful weekends in spring are not among them. I love being able to wander about and do whatever I like on a whim.
Sunday morning I woke up, and since brunch wasn't going to happen, I decided to go for a run, my inaugural run of the...year. Wow, that's sad. Now, bear in mind that I'm in a new neighbourhood that I haven't fully explored, and I hadn't plotted out a route designed to keep my fragile self away from hills. Nope, I just strapped on my shoes, picked a direction (northwest, if you care) and started running. I ran* along a bunch of quiet residential streets, and then I followed someone with dogs down what looked like a dead end street and turned out to be a bridge over the park, so I was running over other runners. Then I found myself in the land of the fancy houses (but not the very fancy houses - that's in the other direction) and eventually back on to the main thoroughfare, which felt obnoxiously loud and full of traffic after the gentility of early Sunday morning residential neighbourhoods. While I was running I pondered the ability of Toronto to have visibly low-income and high-income neighbourhoods right next to each other. The street that I was initially running on was like a physical line between the two. It was interesting. I think next time I might try going down into the park and joining the other runners, assuming I can figure out how to actually get down there.
Yesterday was also the day when I realized that I have complete** faith in my ability to find my way to wherever I'm going without a map, even in twisty residential neighbourhoods. I took off running without knowing where I was going, and just followed streets that felt vaguely like they were taking me in a circle. I figure as long as I make it back to a street I recognize eventually, right? And then I did the same thing in the afternoon. While eating breakfast and reading NOW magazine, I read a review of a new bakery that looked really good and was within walking distance (1/2 hour or so). So I decided to wander down there and buy tarts. Why not? I was originally going to walk down Spadina, so that I could pass by Casa Loma, which I've never seen, but as I was walking that way I saw that the path through the ravine was clear, and there were people walking on it, and I decided to walk that instead. It didn't seem to matter that I had no idea where it was going to come out -- worst case scenario, I could turn around and come back the way I came. So I walked along the path, skirted some very muddy bits where the snow was still melting, avoided some very boisterous dogs, and generally had a great time. It was such a beautiful day -- I was wearing a tank-top and skirt*** (and lots of sunscreen, after Saturday's little adventure) and I felt like nothing could be wrong anywhere. And then eventually the park ended, and I was on a random residential street I'd never heard of, but I walked a bit more and found myself exactly where I had intended to be. Score. There was a cute little vegetarian cafe that I'd been intending to try for ages right across the street from the bakery (although I hadn't realized that was where it was), so I had some lunch -- spinach lentil wrap with lemon tahini sauce and a very tasty green salad -- then bought some tarts. Then I went home and lazed around reading my book while my lentil chili cooked. Later, there was exclaiming over and maligning of books, pizza and salad with, indulging a certain someone's baseball obsession, and sharing up of the tarts so that we could each taste them all. That, people, is what Sundays should be.
I don't remember what I did on Saturday, but it was all very lazy and unplanned. I'm pretty sure that it involved laundry, and not getting up in time for yoga. Also, lots of movie watching. Oh, right, and I wandered down to the other (slightly crazy) grocery store, exploring the street along the way, stopping in all the random stores**** and looking at menus for all the restaurants. I found a Middle Eastern restaurant with lots of tasty-sounding vegetarian food that I'm going to have to visit.
And then, excitement of excitement, I didn't have to walk to work this morning, because the transit strike was cancelled after all. Craziness. I suppose there's a chance it might reappear if they don't ratify on Thursday, but that's then and this is now.
Also, there is joy is listersland, because the Chicklit t-shirts have arrived! They are wonderful! In protest of not being able to just walk down the street and pick them up (Glarkware being in Toronto is such a tease), we are forming a Toronto ordering cabal to save on shipping. And then I will be proudly sickly looking in my fabulous lavender shirt. Whee!
*"Ran", meaning alternated very short amounts of running and walking, because I am lame and have lost any ability to run that I once had. Not that I had much, but I seem to remember being able to run for more than a minute at a time. Lame!
**If totally unwarrented. I mean, I can get lost trying to leave a subway station.
***Meanwhile, people around me were still wearing winter coats, scarves and gloves. I know I was being slightly overenthusiastic about the onset of warm, but it was hot out there! Freaks.
****I thought my last neighbourhood was heavy on the discount stores; this neighbourhood definitely wins, though. Or not, because they're all extremely random and somewhat scary-looking. Dollar Joint, I miss you!
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no subject
Date: 2005-04-11 05:43 pm (UTC)What bakery did you go to? I was just thinking on the weekend that I wished there was a nice bakery near by. (I've never been in "Da Best Pilipino Bakery", though, so maybe I'm missing out.)
no subject
Date: 2005-04-11 06:10 pm (UTC)The one I went to is at Spadina and Dupont, called Frangipane. It's a fancy pastry-type bakery. The Open Window at St. Clair and Raglan is pretty good for basic baked goods stuff - they have bread, buns, bagels, plus other stuff. And people have said great things about the French bakery farther west along St. Clair (Pain Perdu? something like that).
no subject
Date: 2005-04-11 06:35 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-04-11 06:37 pm (UTC)I am so jealous of where you live.
If I decided to randomly walk in the town I live in, I would NEVER run into cool places like that!
And if I walked around randomly in my nearest big city, I would find one. Or two, tops.
I need to live on the outskirts of some other town, in some other state!!
(P.S. The shirts are so cute!)
no subject
Date: 2005-04-11 06:44 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-04-11 06:50 pm (UTC)It sounds like a happy relaxing good weekend, it does.
no subject
Date: 2005-04-11 07:04 pm (UTC)Easiest food ever - saute an onion and a couple of cloves of garlic, then add 1 Tbsp flour, 1 Tbsp chili powder, 1 1/2 teaspons cumin, 1/4 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp cayenne and cook for a minute or so. Then add a tin of lentils, a tin of "mexican-spiced" tomatoes (or, if you're me, whatever random diced tomatoes you can find), a tin of mushrooms, and a diced-up jalepeno or some diced chilis of some sort, depending on how spicy you like it. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cook for 15 minutes, eat. I like it over polenta or couscous.
(That was out of my head, so I hope I haven't got any of the amounts wrong! I'll double check tonight.)