Dr. Mrs. Vandertramp

Yesterday, I found myself standing at my Pharma Plus post, awaiting customers, and as always, flipping through the nearby magazines. To my delight, I saw that the September issue of Vogue had arrived on Monday, so I practically jumped on the 600+ page behemoth. I was just about to stash it behind the till, when another magazine caught my eye. Harper's Bazaar, which I admittedly haven't bought in years, was glaring back at me.

...and I want my scalps!

First off, getting my tee shirt for TIFF was a success! Well, a success in that I had a friend of mine pick it up for me so that I wouldn't have to show ID, but a success nonetheless! I'm having some troubles finding hostels, since apparently you have to be 18 or older to stay in some of them. And so my birthday strikes again.
In other news, I saw Inglorious Basterds last night! I loved it, of course, and it's probably the best movie of the year thus far. Everyone was fantastic (Brad Pitt was absolutely hilarious), especially Christoph Waltz, who, at the very least, deserves an Oscar for his performance as Hans Landa.That said, when put in terms of Tarantino's work, I'm not sure how I feel about it. It's one thing to look at the movie as separate from his legacy, but it's quite another to compare it to his past work. As much as it felt like a Tarantino film, it also felt subdued. While the outrageous violence, the eclectic music and the quick dialogue were all there, it felt like some of the Tarantino universe was missing. Maybe it's because it was a period piece, and his usual tricks would seem out of place (and maybe even offend, considering the subject matter), but something was missing. Regardless, I'm going to see it again in a week or so, so maybe my opinion will change.

Anyway, I'm spending today catching up on some things, starting others, and just being by myself, finally. I picked up a military style jacket and a lace clutch from H&M on thursday, as well as a cream coloured blouse from Urban Outfitters. I also found Akron/Family's new album, Set 'Em Wild, Set 'Em Free for seven bucks (!) and Dan Deacon's Bromst on vinyl for ten bucks (!!), so a good day it was.

returned

I meant to blog a lot sooner than this, but I've been surprising busy, and I'm still recovering from my week at the beach! I had a fantastic time, the weather was beautiful and I certainly got a lot of reading/thinking/drinking/smoking done. We went swimming everyday, had bonfires every night, and even went skinny dipping under the stars- twice! In fact, there was a meteor shower the second time we skinny dipped, it was just glorious.
When I came back, well, it was kind of a shitstorm. My hours had been mysteriously cut in half at work (not cool.), and even though I've added an extra nine hours since then, I've decided to put hot yoga on the back burner, simply because of the cost. On the sort-of plus side, I picked up a few shifts during the film festival, though only one of them is at the AGO. And I have to pick up my shirt for TIFF this week, which means I have to show ID, which puts the whole volunteer position in jeopardy. Hopefully, they won't look at my age.
Now on the plus side, I received another email from GeoVisions, asking for a letter to the prospective family that I'd be staying with. So I have to get around to writing that. I also finally found some tiny water balloons, so I can continue my attempts at painting! And I never mentioned how the art sale went. While I only sold one print, and it rained almost the entire time, I still had a lot of fun, and... I kind of met someone there? Maybe? I don't know, we'll see how everything works out.
Now, I'm just trying to pack as much into the last few weeks on summer as possible. I'm in Toronto on thursday, Inglorious Basterds comes out on friday, and friends of mine are having a farewell tea party on saturday. I'm starting to get a bit jealous of everyone who's leaving town for school, but I think I'm really starting to enjoy what's going on in my life.

margaritas and pop tarts

at the beach till saturday

if I bring back the ashtrays, can I have my prefrontal?

I'm completely exhausted after spending all day yesterday running around downtown Toronto, but goddamn, was it ever worth it! I didn't find much in the way of clothes, but I managed to pick up two black skirts (yeah, redundant, but for whatever reason, they caught my eye), a pair of vintage printed shorts, a giant studded belt, a black and gold chain clutch (which I'll probably un-clutch, and add a chain strap) and a couple of "photo cubes" which I plan on using at the art sale on saturday. Most importantly though, I went to the TIFF orientation and interview, and despite being ridiculously nervous and showing up far too early, it went fantastically! I won't go into details, as those only interest me, but I signed up to work at the AGO's theater, which screens avant-garde films throughout the festival! I also signed up for the Ryerson theater, which is a much bigger venue, and holds Midnight Madness screenings, and it all just sounds fantastic! Since I'll really only be in Toronto to work, I figure I'll probably pick up a few extra shifts, hopefully at some of the red carpet events!
In other news, my first solo hot yoga class went well, and I plan on going again tomorrow (for a morning class, yikes!). I'm also slowly getting my shit together for the art sale, tomorrow I'm going to the furniture warehouse to try and find a table, or whatever will work. Tonight I'm taking it easy, finally filling out my GeoVisions application, and watching Blade Runner. And my week at the trailer looms ever closer, ee!

Mostly-Funny People

I didn't mention in my last post that I saw Funny People on Friday night. And as you can tell from my oh-so clever title, I'd sum up the almost three hour behemoth dramedy with a solid "meh". The first half of the film was typical hilarious Apatow fare, focusing on Seth Rogen's character. It was during the second half of the film that everything started to lag. Maybe I'm alone in this, but as great as Adam Sandler was in Funny People (and I never thought I'd be praising Adam Sandler), his storyline lost it's charm quickly. It was as though everything that was set up in the first half was put on the back burner to make room for a storyline that really didn't have a purpose. Aparently, Apatow said in an interview prior to the film's release that he wanted to make a film in which the main character doesn't change, and well, he succeeded. Congratulations? Honestly, I just wanted to see more of Jason Schwartzman and RZA.
Anyways, my weekend of solid work is over, thank god. I met up with Anna, Kylie and Michel to discuss food and booze for next week, when we head up to my trailer! I haven't been up there in almost two years, so I'm excited to return, especially sans parents!
I ran around town earlier today, returning books and movies to their respective libraries or video stores. I renewed VALIS by Phillip K Dick for another three weeks, as I didn't get around to reading it this month. I also picked up More Than Human by Theodore Sturgeon and Ella Minnow Pea by Mark Dunn, two books that have been on my must-read list for a while. And I borrowed Blade Runner, because I've made it almost eighteen years without watching it, and that's just not right.
I'm planning on going to hot yoga again tonight, because I want to get as much in this week as possible. Tomorrow, I'm off to Toronto to go to the TIFF orientation and do a little bit of shopping. I'm really, really nervous about the orientation, and I don't want to talk about it until it's over. I don't even know what I'm going to wear! I'm also slowly planning for the art sale thing on Saturday. I was just going to take some folding tables and chairs, but the more I think about it, the more elaborate I want it to be. I'm considering taking a trip down to a local used and vintage furniture warehouse and picking out a neat looking bedside or end table, and using that instead.
I could even use something like that (only a bigger version, of course) and put my photos in the drawers, and just leave them hanging open. Hmm, something to think about, at least.

blueberry strawberry orange smoothie

I intended on writing a post after my hot yoga experience, as most people come out of their first time a little bewildered, and often pretty out of it. I actually felt great after my first class, and went for a bike ride after, rather than coming home and coming on here. I can honestly say that I have never sweat that much in my life, in fact I really didn't think it was possible to perspire like that! It was a challenge just to stay in the room for the entire 90 minutes, let alone do all of the 26 poses! But I really did enjoy it, and since I bought two weeks of unlimited lessons, I'll be going back. Unfortunately for me, I'm busy as fuck again this week, so I won't be able to go again till Monday, possibly Tuesday.
So yeah, I'm busy as fuck. Today was shift two out of four in a row for this long weekend, hoo-rah. That said, since Monday is a holiday, I get paid time-and-a-half. And I could certainly use the money. I finally had a chance to talk to the rep from GeoVisions, and I've been sent the official application for the program, but I haven't had a chance to look at it yet, and I'm too stoned to look it over now. I also finally made it to the lab to pick up a few rolls of film, and I ended up with about ten or so pictures that are reasonable. Here's one from the Gaudi garden in Barcelona:
I ended up going to a dinner party of sorts at a friend's house, and I actually had a pretty solid time. There was poppyseed cake! And I almost lost my bike tonight, because I managed to leave it attached to the rack on the front of the bus. Waiting for the bus to come around to the stop across the street forced my friend and I to be fashionably late, however, so everything worked out. And I got my bike back. Success!
Anyway, David Cross is on the teevee behind me doing standup, so I'm going to go watch.