Didn’t Feel Like it This Weekend

So I didn’t.

Shut my phone off, and drank beer in the country all weekend.

Isn’t that #NoFilter

Can you tell I don’t feel like being on camera?

Drove through some crazy weather Friday to get there, including a rainbow.

Esoterically, a rainbow is considered to represent enlightenment. Imagine if I was.

It was nice to disconnect, and it’s nice to be back online.  It’s also nice to re-affirm you never really miss much when you disconnect, but the benefits are so worth it.

What I’m driving – on Friday I picked up a car I’d been dreaming to have for 14 months.

2013 Honda Accord HFP. It will be documented in its own post.

I’m quite comfortable with it.

It’s on my “Top 5 Favourite Cars” list.

The rest of the list is detailed on my half-finished, “About Cars” page.

I have to finish that about page this week, along with ones for “Blogging about Food”; “Smarten Up, Internet”; “Things I Found Going about Life”; “Now this is more for me than you”; “This is my Hack”; think that’s it.

Then I have to re-direct my URL collection, to which I added to Thursday night:

AnAppropriateAmountOfAggression.com comeON that’s a movie title.

Drove east many kilometres in the afternoon sun, having forgotten to apply sunscreen to my neck because lately I am a super-spaz, and now I am literally a red neck.

Came home late today, laundry and #SundayCleaning, then a walk deep into downtown to reacquaint to the city’s pace; 2 hours and probably 8km.

These flowers are in season.

Same flowers from my intro.

Haven’t re-embedded this in a while, from summer 2007, ‘The Canadian Explorer’ intro:

Filmed almost to-the-week from now.

That’s part of where it comes from, when I don’t document or publish for a few days… I’m like meh, 6 years of archives.

Where this post came from.

Stella while I blog. Remember that time I hosted that Stella party? Seems like a lifetime, but 2 years next month.

Drained; heavy week. Unfortunately didn’t make it to the Le Mons race at Mosport today.

This week’s column is about hacking your car; some meetings this week, a decision to make about that job offer; I have a hankering to go to a casino; and do some no-destination-just-driving in my HFP (which is on my “Top 3 favourite things to do” since I’m 16).  If you hear some superfluous revving this week, wave hi.

TTYT

xo Keri

 

I Love Video Editing, Except for the Time

That’s not entirely true; I quite like how the entire world disappears when I open Final Cut.

(here’s what video editing looks like)

I like creating the video. Designing the flow, rhythm, and story, what innovative cuts can I make, the tone (aside – video editors have the power of god, not being dramatic.  Like, you could be the nicest interview, and I can still cut it to make you seem like a d-bag.

But once that’s done, still have a lot of time to put in ironing out audio, matching up decimal places between cuts, dry and so boring OMG.

Been running all my videos through Viddy lately, do you know them? They’re like, the Twitter of video. Edit the video using their phone app, then filter it, add music, and upload it to an active, friendly community.

Had a video pass 1,000 views recently, this one:

My Favourite On-Ramp In Toronto

It’s a long sweeping right, plus the lead-in is great. Go too: 43.615114,-79.552335

 

All of a Sudden it’s Sunday Again

Sunday Sunday Race-day.  Went to the Indy this afternoon, and a behind-the-scenes tour on Thursday, both of which I’ll blog soon.

Productive week, fast week.  Killed it at work Wednesday, and will blog my Audi A3 review this week, which might be my best review yet. Although, my notes here for my Mustang review are coming together all right.

Friday night in Unionville. I was test driving the city, to see what it’d be like if I lived there.

Like it to visit, but no to living there.

I’m feeling over living downtown.

I can’t just go for a quick drive, something I’ve done my whole life. It’s 30 minutes just to get outside the city to any mildly interesting road.

Then, I got stuck in traffic this week, and it was this moment that tipped it all over.

70 minutes to go 2 km while trapped, no other routes to take and escape. This is no way to live.

Me photographing the Mustang on the weekend.

Black cars are tough to photograph.

And I timed it too, so I took the photos during “magic hour”, but mmm… looks kinda blob-y still, eh.

Night drive.

OMFG I’m behind here, I’m sorry. You can tell; it’s halfway through July and I should be at around 75 photos uploaded for the month, I’m at 50. Not doing this to bug you, I just have so much going on, and newspaper deadlines always will win over blog ones.

I’m around and not boarding any planes this week. I have to return the Mustang tomorrow, and pick up my Jetta that’s been sitting there for 3 weeks. Think it’ll start? I’m 80/20 that it will.

Found a secret waterfall during a walk.

I often walk out the door with only my phone, plus this:

My thinking is: 99% of the time I should be able to get myself out of a situation with $20.

Always a good week when you receive an envelope that comes from here. Saved it.

Proof I take the TTC.

That was en route to the “Canadian Tire Christmas House” this week, which was a neat first, and will blog about it later this week.

Thursday night, best night of the week.

What you can’t see is that except for me, the place was empty. It was great, I didn’t have to overhear / tune-out dumbness. My tolerance for whininess is decreasing quickly.

While I was eating the dinner Tuesday, the girl at the next table complained and whined the entire time; kinda made me lose my appetitte. Going on about something that happened when you were 8, like really.

kk I’ve got a couple big meetings this week, please keep your fingers crossed. This week’s column is about how the hippies and car racing community have more in common than they realize. And I’m still about 6 behind on video editing, coming soon, swear.

TTYT

xo Keri

 

The Great Water Assault of 2013

Monday afternoon, I returned the Range Rover Evoque, and picked up this week’s car – a 2014 Mustang GT 6-speed.

Stopped in Etobicoke for a burger, and to upload a news story.

Oh it’s raining now, should head home.

I took Lakeshore to avoid the parking-lot highway traffic, and then coming into downtown it turned into one of my most nerve-racking drives ever.

Because somehow I won the car lottery, and this Mustang belongs to a VP of Ford Canada.

Imagine?  Thanks for the trust, I’m 1 of 2 all summer huh? This stuff always happens to me.

I passed cars floating in the middle of intersections, you could almost see the water rising before your eyes.  It was the strangest thing ever.

I was impressed how calm the roads were, hardly any honking.

Non-residents: a freak of nature happened to the city last night, it was a rain assault.  90mm fell in 2 hours; the average July monthly rainfall is 74mm.

And poof, just like that Toronto was drowning.

And you saw the floating Ferrari California probably; the Toronto Star got the story behind it.

Check out BlogTO’s photo stream to see the carnage. The last photo is so odd. And here’s BlogTO’s “storm by the numbers” re-cap.  More than a hurricane-amount of rain in 2 hours!

The Mustang powered through no problem. The water was almost past the wells.

I got lucky and made it to the other side of the valleys, just before they became impassable. No no, like, made it home with 45-seconds-to-spare lucky #SoLucky

In the middle of the night, I woke up like GAH, went down to the garage, what if it flooded down there?

It started right away, and I sat there revving my first press V8 ahhh.

 

 

In TO at the TSO with CAA

Never been a music fan; I listen to silence 85% of the time.

When I do though, it’s top 40, house or classical.

The only song on my iPhone is strings; I’ve blogged this place before; and I set all 80 episodes of ‘The Canadian Explorer’ to classical music. Here’s an episode that relies solely on the soundtrack:

Exploring a Fair  # 5/80   aired September 2007

I think hearing classical played live is good for you, in a ‘vibrations & frequencies‘ way.

This was intermission, see? No black tie.

Not sure why the symphony has that reputation. From what I saw, no jeans or jogging pants, and otherwise you’re fine.

TSO, I have an idea: designate a section ‘screen friendly’.  All sound is prohibited obviously, but the etiquette could be, “it’s okay to use your laptop/phone to work quietly in this area”.

Because maybe there’s more people like me, who would love to sit and write/blog/work, while listening to the orchestra.

And to be sitting quietly and daydreaming

with 2,600 other people, I love it.

I went by myself.  I bought the cheapest ticket ($29) at the last minute, which meant no one was behind me, or 3 seats on either side, NICE.

Pro-tip #1 – use your CAA card to receive 20% off

The math is: $29 -20% = $23

Doesn’t matter to be in the nosebleeds, the acoustics are great, and you’re not missing much without a closeup view. Here’s the TSO concert schedule, and here’s CAA’s LifeSide Assistance discount details.  Click here for a full list of CAA partners; their reach might surprise you, it did me.

(Follow CAA on Twitter, friend them on Facebook, and if you’re driving without roadside assistance, that’s foolish, join now)

Don’t feel bad about leaving at intermission, I didn’t.

Pro-tip #2 – take the subway

The parking around the concert hall is finite and expensive, the price of the ticket, at least.

Out-of-towners, it’s easy:

Take the VIA or GO train > Union Station > off train, walk underneath the street, onto subway > 1 stop > off at St. Andrews > follow the signs on the wall to Roy Thompson Hall

(this post has been brought to you by CAA)

PS – Points for an aesthetically pleasing title.