It's not the same Toronto.

People change. That's a given. For better or worse, I'd run into people after a few years and find they're not quite as I remembered. Recognizeable of course, but usually the interests aren't necessarily the same as before. Some people grow more adventurous, others a little more settled and staid. Others have additions they carry around in diapers.

Toronto's a little different too. Don Mills and York Mills used to be kinda dead, now it's upscale. The condo on the corner of Bayview and Sheppard used to be a big grassy hill on the edge of a parking lot. The garbage dump on the corner of Bayview and Leslie used to be a parking lot too.

While still flooded with immigrants, it seems like the faces are changing. I'm noticing more people with darker skin then before, and hearing more Arabic, along with other languages I don't recognize.

I was wondering, listening to the radio, whether 102.1 was still the Edge. It seemed somehow, a little less edgy. Like how alternative's gone mainstream. Then just yesterday I read about the suicide of Martin Streek. I've been listening to the Edge for so long that his voice had become a fixture. Even though I *know* they come and go (like morning show hosts "Don and Erin" and "Humble and Fred", I still find it mind-boggling when they change or disappear, especially in such a tragic manner.

Speaking of celebrity, does it strike anyone else as kinda odd how the protests in Iran kinda toned down with MJ's passing, and now they're back up and at it now that his tribute's done?

Ok, I know I'm writing about YYZ, but I've been listening to a band from SFO.

Retro Monday.

I seem to be keeping myself pretty entertained these days. I haven't even blogged about camping out in Joshua Tree in June, and already it's July.

There's a deep subtle thrill to camp out in the middle of nowhere. Not at a campground with facilities, but just out there, where there isn't another soul in a 10 mile radius. It might not be as exciting as night in the hustle of the city, but for a moment the world falls into another perspective.

I felt so small and insignificant in the vast emptiness. Looking upwards just revealed an even greater vastness of an incomprehensible scale. The rest of the world seemed so far away and inconsequtial; only the blinking lights of high flying planes or slow moving satellites reminded me of that high tech society on the other side of the mountain range. It felt like the world could end, and I'd miss it entirely. It was brilliant.

On another note, I heard a Matthew Good song on the radio the other day. Haven't heard any of that down here. How's this one for going back a few years?

I do requests.

This NAFTA thing clearly isn't working, because whenever I make a trip back to Canada, 3/4 of my suitcase ends up carrying things that are cheaper when bought online in the US. Take for example:

Anonymous Stranger: hi
me: hi Anonymous Stranger.
AS: can i ask a favour?
me: yes?
AS: do you have room in your bag to bring something for me from US?
me: a lens?
AS: no....
AS: a colon cleanse system?

Yes, my friends can be incredibly funny. In this case, even without joking.

On healthy eating.

Remember those drink your vegetable commercials? Do hops count as vegetables?

What about pesto?

Reminder to self.

The world isn't all bad.

Beyond all expectations.

It's a McG movie, so there's the lowered expectations and all. But how bad can a Terminator movie be, especially with Christian Bale as John Connor? I'll have to say, this wasn't the movie I thought from the trailer. It didn't for a moment, feel dark or gritty. This is the cheeziest, most cliched, feel-good Terminator yet. So, the answer is: about as bad as you can imagine, and maybe a little bit more. Thanks McG, you've exceeded my expectations again!

Whatever happened to winter?

I like looking forward to that last snowboarding trip of the year, the one where you end the season with a bang and wave goodbye to the snow capped peaks for another seven or eight months. Some years don't quite work that way though, a few busy weekends here, bad weather there, and before you know it, it's 35C out and the grass on the east bay hills is golden again.

I had an idea to blog about music, but the days flowed into weeks and months, and I've forgotten most of it. I have noticed that imeem's somewhat become my new radio (Pandora seems down a lot, and YouTube audio quality just isn't that great).

Not that any of these are new, but just an assortment from the past couple of months:

Your Hand In Mine - Explosions In The Sky

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im good im gone - lykke li

Hope For The Hopeless - A Fine Frenzy

L.E.S. Artistes (Single) - Santigold

1901 - Phoenix

Bach: Partita No. 2 in D Minor - J. S. Bach