New AGO

New AGO

The new Art Gallery of Ontario, recently re-opened with new architecture by Frank Gehry, is lovely inside. Granted, it looks like a giant shiny slug from the outside (especially on a rainy day), but the same tube-like structure forms a … [read more]

Van Morrison by Leo Reynolds

Van Morrison

I’ve been listening to Van Morrison for days now. He’s someone I had somehow ignored so far in my 25 years of listening and collecting music. In the 80s, when my listening habits were formed, Van was on a path … [read more]

Toronto Brickworks

The Don Valley Brick Works consists of 16 heritage buildings and an adjacent 16-hectaire public park that includes the Weston Quarry Garden, wetlands, hiking trails, and wildflower meadows. From 1889 to 1984, the site was one of Canada’s pre-eminent brickyards. … [read more]

Shuffle Icon

Random playlist fun

I don’t know why I hadn’t discovered this before. ‘Discovered’ may not be a particularly good word, actually. Of course, I knew about it. I just chose not to use it until now. I’m talking about my MP3 player’s ‘random … [read more]

Lego temple

Lego Chinese Buddhist Temple

I built a Chinese Buddhist temple out of Lego yesterday. It’s not based on an actual temple and it’s pretty free-form. It’s fun to see what you can make out of a limited assortment of bricks… I’m particularly fond of … [read more]

Blue and gold Macaws

Similarities

The New Yorker recently ran an article about American Idol in which its (very perceptive) rock critic, Sasha Frere-Jones, observes that “pop is too old to have a single, collective memory anymore.” He saw evidence of this during the show’s … [read more]

Microphone

Suspicious of people who don’t like music

Found this quote from Beverley Knight, while I’m on the topic of Beverley Knight. I’ve often thought that I don’t understand people who don’t like music. She’s talking about singing in front of the G8 leaders in 2006: “Wow! Now, … [read more]