Been a fairly active few days; I’ll try to catch up with a variety of things here…

The new Ignatieff ads

If these work, I’ll be terribly disappointed in my fellow Canadians.

Verses continues to excel

The new summer menu is out! The new herbed gnochi with wild mushroom appetizer is wonderful, and Jean declared the foie gras possibly the best ever. Anywhere. Also pretty cool: “The cocoa nib braised Belgium endive” on the duck breast main course.

Hannah’s doesn’t survive the loss of its chef

Website is still up, but Hannah’s Bistro restaurant is history. There’s a sign on the door saying they’ve vacated the premises with rent due.

West Side Story‘s a winner

We saw a preview performance with my parents at Stratford; it was excellent, with a really strong cast of young dancers and singers. And even though I knew perfectly well what would happen to Tony, it still made me cry.

Drowning in Riesling

Well, not really, but do have a good stock visiting four Beamsville-area wineries with the folks. At Angel’s Gate, besides the Riesling, I took a chance on a blend not available for tasting. At East Dell we didn’t do any sampling, but I do recommend the restaurant. Malivoire‘s Gamay and the Gerwurtz won me over, and Cave Spring I liked everything I tried, and took home the Estate Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, and Pinot Noir.

And we all gained appreciation for Jean’s GPS on the drive home.

Television finales

In the evenings, we caught up on some of these:

• Grey’s Anatomy: Now there are rumours that Izzy isn’t really dead. That would just be cruel. (Still liking Owen and Christina, Bailey, and little Gray + McSteamy. Whom Mom agreed really does look like my cat.)
• Bones: I enjoyed it, but it was an odd season finale. And amnesia? Seriously?
• Desperate Housewives: Bad news: Looks like Jackson (Gale Harold) won’t be on the show anymore. Good news? That means I no longer have to watch Desperate Housewives!
• American Idol: OK, I only read about (didn’t watch) the finale, just as I’ve only read about (never watched any of) the entire season, but I’m still surprised Adam didn’t win.
• 30 Rock. Funny.
• How I Met Your Mother. The goat! The jumping! Barney and Robin! Yay! And also very funny.

Still a bit over-ambitious

Oh, not in my career. I mean in my cooking. Hosted sister, brother-in-law, and kids over with the parents, and saying I said just make a simpler dinner. One main course, not three. Dessert made ahead. Simple appetizer. Yet somehow I still ended up peeling lima beans for the guacamole (don’t ask) and spending three hours on lasagna.

Everything was good, though.

By the time we got to Woodstock

It had been over for 40 years. So we had to make do with a symphonic makeover. Which frankly, was really enjoyable, and much more comfortable than sitting on a blanket in the mud while tripping on acid. (Oh dear. I’m old.) Highlights:

• Rik Emmett doing Hendrix (All Along the Watchtower) and Santana (Black Magic Woman) justice on the guitar.
• The rock chicks—Rique Franks letting loose on Joplin’s “Piece of my Heart”, Katalin Kiss on “White Rabbit”.
• Neil Donnell channeling Joe Cocker in the liveliest performance I’ve ever seen him give, totally capturing the gravely voice while still hitting every note perfectly (as he does). Fantastic orchestration on this one (With a Little Help From My Friends), too.

My one quibble, being me? Just talking about how great The Who were at Woodstock, but not performing any Who—”because we already did The Who this season.” Yes, like everyone in the audience would be so upset to hear symphonic “Pinball Wizard” again only nine months later! That’s way too soon!

Geek excitement–Tasks in Google calendar!

The one feature I like in Lotus Notes–the To Do lists–now finally available in the email program I otherwise prefer! A geeky thrill!