unsolicited opinions on random things
What a great idea for a cafe – don’t offer WiFi, ban computers, and encourage your patrons to play board games! Next time I’m in the Annex, I’m going to check out Snakes and Lattes, a board-game cafe featuring over 1500 different games. Sounds like a great way to spend a lazy afternoon.
[image via Torontoist]
It’s the last weekend of summer folks, so make it count! Here’s a good roundup of “16 Things To Do in Toronto Before Summer’s Over”, courtesy of Toronto Life. One thing I’d like to do is check out Sugar Beach (pictured above) – the new tiny public park next to the giant Redpath Sugar Factory. I don’t recommend the hedge maze on Centre Island – Ansley and I took our cousin Jennifer through it back in July, and we got lost and dizzy. I still think it’s cool that there’s a maze there at all though.
Whatever you do this weekend, enjoy!
[Sugar Beach photo via blogTO]
For the new Chillout Sessions album (version 12), Australia-based Collider created a tiny super awesome model that they call “a homage to Frank Lloyd Wright and Neutra and the lifestyles their buildings accommodated, Chillout Sessions XII takes us to a fusion of time periods somewhere between the 50s and the 80s in the filtered light of California.”
I want to play with it. And live inside it.
Do you have trouble remembering where the fork goes when you set the table? What about the dessert spoon? These cheet sheet placemats should help…
[via ReadyMade]
Check out this photo by Andrew (aka Cuba Gallery) that I saw on Living Design. Isn’t it striking? You can see more of his work here.
Ian has been asking for a Union Jack pillow for a while. I think he saw the one in Joanna and Alex’s apartment in NYC, and decided he had to have his own. I don’t think Ian will like this, but how cute is this quilted Union Jack pillow?
I saw this new comic on the Oatmeal and thought it was entertaining. And pretty true – the “fewer interruptions” is one of the best parts of my job, but the “distractions” and “loss of regimen” get me from time to time…. Enjoy!
I’ve been reading a lot of about Raveable lately. Supposedly, it’s a good alternative to TripAdvisor. I use TripAdvisor all the time, but I’m a bit baffled sometimes by the seemingly polarized reviews of a hotel – some people seem to love it, and some people seem to outright hate it. So what will I think?
Raveable indexes hotel reviews from TripAdvisor, Expedia, Travelocity, and MyTravelGuide, plus some other “lesser known sites such as individual travel bloggers”. They immediately state the pros and cons, so you don’t have to sift through paragraphs and paragraphs of some wacko complaining about every little thing.
Compare the two screen shots above – they’re both for the Casa Laguna Inn in Laguna Beach, California (where I’m thinking about visiting on our trip to Cali next month). The top screen shot is from TripAdvisor. Not bad, but a bit cluttered. The bottom screenshot is from Raveable. Clear and easy to read. I think I just found my new favourite hotel review website.
Someone gave me a set of magnetic bookmarks as a stocking stuffer last Christmas, and I think they’re the coolest. I was using one yesterday in the book I’m reading (Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro) and I thought about how easy it would be to make your own.
And then, bang, I see this post on one of the ReadyMade blogs, with a link to DIY instructions for creating your own cute magnetic bookmarks. The instructions come with a PDF download of the five designs (bacon, pencil, pickle, bandage and ruler). Don’t you love the band-aid one?
In just over 4 weeks we head out on our home exchange in Palm Springs, California. I’m getting so excited – it’s been a long time since our last holiday (summer long weekends don’t count, but they’re still lovely).
I’ve been doing Google Image searches for photos of Palm Springs when I need a break from work. Those are some of my favourites up there… I can’t wait to ride the Palm Springs Aerial Tram, relax by the pool, see some of the best mid-century modern architecture anywhere, and go for a hike in Joshua Tree National Park.
