Why *I'm* excited about the Apple iPad

I was excited about the idea of an Apple tablet long before the hype began. I remained excited despite the build-up hype. And yes, I’m STILL excited now that the announcement’s been made and people are scrambling over each other to dissect, critique and mock. Here's why I'm excited about the Apple iPad.

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Waiting for the Apple tablet announcement...

For those interested, I've posted a list of sites where you can find live coverage of the Apple tablet announcement.

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De La Mer: friendly neighbourhood fresh fish market

Jeff and I went for a walk after he came home from work today, and we decided to check out De La Mer, a new fresh fish shop on Bayview Avenue. I have nothing against the bigger mega-grocery complexes, but I love the intimacy and cozy friendliness of independently owned places like De La Mer. De La Mer is run by Dave and Blake, two friendly guys who are pretty enthusiastic about their seafood. I asked Blake to come out of the back room where he was doing stuff with knives and seafood so I could take this photo with my iPhone: Dave showed Jeff how to shuck an oyster. Happily, Jeff managed to shuck the oyster without also shucking off any of his fingers: Dave gave us each a Beausoleil oyster....yum. We don't tend to eat much seafood but after visiting De La Mer, I'm thinking I may start experimenting some more. We ended up buying some seasoned salmon fillets, and here's Jeff's creation for dinner: Yum. Anyway, i's clear that both Dave and Blake know a ton about seafood (Blake is also a chef), so I'm also hoping to pick up some prep pointers. Anyway, if you're in the Bayview-Eglinton area and have a craving for something fishy, do check out De La Mer: 1543 Bayview Ave., Toronto, ON M4G 3B5 Phone: 647-350-3355 DeLaMer.ca

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What I found in my Memory Boxes

I used to keep a "memory box" every year, filling it with ticket stubs and other items that would help me remember some of the people, events and places that were important to me that year. This was fine in my teen years but as I got older, my boxes took up more and more space. Yesterday I decided to go through ALL of them and do a purge, keeping only a few things. Sometimes I'd pick up something I have absolutely no idea why I kept it, like this creepy little doll: It must have meant a great deal to me at some point in my childhood but now? Nothing. Where did those memories go? What else have I forgotten? I used to have a great memory but as I grew older, it almost seemed as if every time something new went in, my brain had to make room by throwing out something else. Sure wish I had control over what it threw out and what it kept! Something else that struck me as I did my Memory Box purge. Before e-mail, people spend a lot more time on correspondence. Some of the letters I received (and sent, I'm sure) were many pages long. HANDWRITTEN. How often do any of us do that now? Found (and threw out) my old scientific calculator. It had seemed SO high-tech back when I received it as a gift. Now an iPhone app can duplicate its functions and more. Found the receipt for my very first Macintosh computer, purchased when I was a student at the University of Toronto: A couple copies of TV Guide's Farewell To Star Trek, which contained a simplified version of my "Neurotic Love Song" lyrics, which Urban Tapestry went on to perform in concert: Breakfast orders scribbled on an envelope the morning of my wedding, when I stayed at the Millcroft Inn with my bridesmaids: My old roleplaying dice and a leather bag whose origin I forget: One of the hand-painted wedding program covers I made for Jim and Diane for their wedding: As you may have guessed by now, going through those memory boxes was an emotional rollercoaster for me as I came across reminders from almost every significant event in my life, from early childhood through to the present. Cried lots. Jeff was there throughout for hugs when I needed them, carting away stuff I wanted to throw out, packing up anything I wanted to keep, coming over when I wanted to show him something or just to talk. You can see some of the items I've found so far in my Flickr set. I'll be adding more over time. It feels good to be doing this. Cathartic, in a way, and giving me perspective. One of the high points: I was going through some of Jeff's old love letters and notes from nearly 25 years ago when he came over. He gave me a hug from behind and murmured in my ear: "I love you more -now-, you know." I adore that man. Above: photo by Jeff Kesner.

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Little Nightmares gallery

Thanks to my friend Scott Murray for sending me this photo of the home gallery he's created of my Little Nightmare prints. :-)

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