A weekend of champions, this was.
I experienced a rare kind of decadence, one made possible only by the tacit understanding that school was to be put on hold for the entire duration of the weekend. Indulging in books, magazines, paintings and the violin is not an everyday occurrence, if you’re an overworked grad student like [...]

Photo by IDEO.

This photo is wildly inspirational.
It sets my imagination on fire. It fuels my long-lasting love affair with documentation. It keeps the flame of my  anticipated nostalgia alive. This photo is posted here as a preview of a collaborate arts project I have in mind, which will be unveiled soon. Or as [...]

Despite the decision to cut off my daily supply of  recreational reading, I have been enjoying quite a few interesting things these (Porfolio) days. They include:
Neozoon’s Furry Friends series:

Simon Hejden’s trees:

Whitelines Notebooks (they had me at “Swedish” and “innovation”):

Sunday brunch served with digital cameras:

Crowdsourcing my research from various West-end cafes:

Jamming with the Jam Berries:

and veganism.
Waking [...]

Highlights from yesterday:  90 minutes of hot yoga; a pleasant coffee-flavored run-in at my usual cafe; City of Craft on Dovercourt with Roomie Extraordinaire, saying hello to the books and doing some last-minute shopping; almost getting locked in at CSI; dinner at Fresh; Patrick Watson with Jana; sushi (yes, two dinners!) with darling Sarah… and [...]

“If I could do just one near perfect thing I’d be happy.” Belle & Sebastian.

In the theme of things that rock, Saturday was also quite stellar.
I saw the Gerturdes and Bruce Peninsula in the unlikeliest venue ever and got to spend time with a dear friend. The result was memorable and the whole night reminded me precisely of why I love this city so much. I only wish I [...]

Reasons why Thursday and Friday rocked :
- starting the day with a healthy dose of chai latte & Andrew Bird;
- finally going to yoga;
- having lunch with co-workers old and new;
- receiving exciting updates on the Europe front;
- accomplishing all of my Christmas-related shopping needs in under 20 minutes;
- going West of Bathurst for the [...]

Oh I simply had to drop everything I was doing- the simultaneous emails, the chats, the cyber-pings, the planning- to contemplate the absolutely incredible nature of Andrew Bird’s musicianship. There’s something about his ability to craft a song that always causes me to stop, sigh, and get lost in my own thoughts no matter where, [...]

It’s (almost) Christmas present time, which in Chiara-ville can only mean one thing: handmade gifts and crafts! Yay!
The Fall Manifesto was a collaboration between me and a handful of special ladies, and though my crafty plans are not set in stone yet, I think it will take center stage in my merry gift-making this [...]

Ha. I think Lee’s is turning into my default live music hang-out. Who knew.
Last night I had the pleasure of being riveted by Snowblink (one of my new favorite bands) and the incorrigible Apostle of Hustle. Noelle and I saw Apostle of Hustle some good three years ago, I think, but this was my first [...]