2016 In Letters (and Numbers)
Suzy told me to write an ABC list of my 2016, so here it is:
Almond horns (aka Mandelhoernchen): Probably the most professional bake I've ever done. These are one of my mom's favorite treats and I don't know anywhere to get them in Regina.
Behind the Songs: Jeffery Straker, Cecile Doo-Kingue, and Annette. The Behind the Songs series at the Creative City Centre is always good, but the January 23 edition was extra special. Three extremely talented musicians improvising and playing together. You really should have been there.
Chicago, Birds of: I first saw Birds of Chicago at the Regina Folk Festival, but they played a set at the Artful Dodger this year and it was joyful and beautiful.
Downtown: I didn't go to New York or Chicago this year, so I had to make do with downtown Regina, but it's pretty lovely in its own way. I especially like what they did this Christmas.
Elk Ridge Lodge: It was a short trip and snowier than would have been ideal, but it was nice to go up to the woods.
Farmer's Market: If you want to find me, go to the market on Saturday morning. Really, you should go to the market on Saturday morning anyway.
Going Home Star: The Royal Winnipeg Ballet's outstanding ballet about Truth and Reconciliation. I don't know a lot about ballet, but this was beautiful and challenging and sad.
Halloween: I had 125 people come to my door on a Monday night which meant almost all of my three boxes of chocolates were given away. That wasn't quite a record, but it did come in second and it was a Monday.
Island, The: Hectik Theatre's clown story about being stranded on an island was a lot of fun.
John: After a more than two year battle with pancreatic cancer, my cousin John passed away.
Kara: If you haven't seen Indian Head's Kara Golemba yet, you really need to.
Lizzy Hoyt: I saw Lizzy twice this year and enjoyed both shows. The second time was just before Christmas and it felt like the performance was giving you a warm embrace.
Motto: "Do stuff until you fall over dead". I don't have a fondness for vision statements or that sort of thing, but after Suzy said this, I had to steal it.
Nosferatu: Screened as part of the Caligari project, a city wide celebration of German expressionism.
Ogema: Took a Friday afternoon road trip to Ogema to eat Naples style wood fired pizza. I apparently hadn't been to a small town in ages as I was confused by all the people waving at me.
Politics: A provincial election, Brexit, a municipal election, a US election, and more. Everywhere you looked it seemed like something political was going on.
Quinine: Because I could use a gin and tonic right about now. (I did take a liking to gin this year particularly the oaked gin from Black Fox Distillery.)
Racoon: Apparently we have these in Regina now.
Steamroller printing: A sheet of plywood, a bunch of ink, dedicated artists, a lot of fabric, and a steamroller make for an entertaining afternoon of print making.
Tarts: My preferred source of tarts took parental leave (and her baby is just too adorable) so I practiced making my own. The lemon tart I made at Christmas was particularly good.
Unusual: For most of the past 15 years, I've had a standing dinner with friends on Thursday nights. This year, especially in the last four months, too many other things have been happening. It's been unusual. (Yeah, that's a stretch.)
Vegas: Work sent me to Las Vegas for a conference. The conference was excellent and I had some truly outstanding food, but Vegas really isn't my thing.
Wild, Ava: One of my favorite singer/songwriters, Ava recently moved back to Regina and I think I ended up seeing her more than any other musician this year.
Xmas eve: Spanakopita, sausage rolls, steelhead trout, sweet potato and goat cheese ravioli, roasted potatoes and parsnips, ginger orange glazed carrots, and lemon tart and eight guests. (I should invest in a better dining room table and probably invite people over more often.)
Yummiest: The food at Nobu was spectacular. My credit card bill afterwards was also quite spectacular.
Zero: The number of blog posts I made in 2016. Sure, there's other posts that claim to be from 2016, but that's back dating for you and those are all just summaries of the things I did in the various months, so technically this is my first real blog post.
How about a few more numbers:
105 concerts attended.
11 film events.
6 art events.
15 theatre shows.
3 dance events.
20 other events.
(That's 160 events in total not counting work, visiting friends and family, or shopping, or going to the farmers market. Why do I even own a house?)
Almond horns (aka Mandelhoernchen): Probably the most professional bake I've ever done. These are one of my mom's favorite treats and I don't know anywhere to get them in Regina.Behind the Songs: Jeffery Straker, Cecile Doo-Kingue, and Annette. The Behind the Songs series at the Creative City Centre is always good, but the January 23 edition was extra special. Three extremely talented musicians improvising and playing together. You really should have been there.
Chicago, Birds of: I first saw Birds of Chicago at the Regina Folk Festival, but they played a set at the Artful Dodger this year and it was joyful and beautiful.Downtown: I didn't go to New York or Chicago this year, so I had to make do with downtown Regina, but it's pretty lovely in its own way. I especially like what they did this Christmas.
Elk Ridge Lodge: It was a short trip and snowier than would have been ideal, but it was nice to go up to the woods.
Farmer's Market: If you want to find me, go to the market on Saturday morning. Really, you should go to the market on Saturday morning anyway.Going Home Star: The Royal Winnipeg Ballet's outstanding ballet about Truth and Reconciliation. I don't know a lot about ballet, but this was beautiful and challenging and sad.
Halloween: I had 125 people come to my door on a Monday night which meant almost all of my three boxes of chocolates were given away. That wasn't quite a record, but it did come in second and it was a Monday.
Island, The: Hectik Theatre's clown story about being stranded on an island was a lot of fun.
John: After a more than two year battle with pancreatic cancer, my cousin John passed away.
Kara: If you haven't seen Indian Head's Kara Golemba yet, you really need to.
Lizzy Hoyt: I saw Lizzy twice this year and enjoyed both shows. The second time was just before Christmas and it felt like the performance was giving you a warm embrace.
Motto: "Do stuff until you fall over dead". I don't have a fondness for vision statements or that sort of thing, but after Suzy said this, I had to steal it.
Nosferatu: Screened as part of the Caligari project, a city wide celebration of German expressionism.
Ogema: Took a Friday afternoon road trip to Ogema to eat Naples style wood fired pizza. I apparently hadn't been to a small town in ages as I was confused by all the people waving at me.
Politics: A provincial election, Brexit, a municipal election, a US election, and more. Everywhere you looked it seemed like something political was going on.Quinine: Because I could use a gin and tonic right about now. (I did take a liking to gin this year particularly the oaked gin from Black Fox Distillery.)
Racoon: Apparently we have these in Regina now.
Tarts: My preferred source of tarts took parental leave (and her baby is just too adorable) so I practiced making my own. The lemon tart I made at Christmas was particularly good.
Vegas: Work sent me to Las Vegas for a conference. The conference was excellent and I had some truly outstanding food, but Vegas really isn't my thing.Wild, Ava: One of my favorite singer/songwriters, Ava recently moved back to Regina and I think I ended up seeing her more than any other musician this year.
Xmas eve: Spanakopita, sausage rolls, steelhead trout, sweet potato and goat cheese ravioli, roasted potatoes and parsnips, ginger orange glazed carrots, and lemon tart and eight guests. (I should invest in a better dining room table and probably invite people over more often.)
Zero: The number of blog posts I made in 2016. Sure, there's other posts that claim to be from 2016, but that's back dating for you and those are all just summaries of the things I did in the various months, so technically this is my first real blog post.
How about a few more numbers:
105 concerts attended.
11 film events.
6 art events.
15 theatre shows.
3 dance events.
20 other events.
(That's 160 events in total not counting work, visiting friends and family, or shopping, or going to the farmers market. Why do I even own a house?)
