i'm bored - first edition : dim sum/rivoli/GEORGE!

this is my first post.

i recently decided that it would be a good idea to start a blog because i don't really like my current job. in an effort to figure out what the remainder of my life is going to resemble, i thought that maybe writing about my two favorite things could be some sort of a vessel to guide me from my mundane experience as a corporate administrator. at the moment i am desperate to find some answers, and quite frankly, i'm tired of people asking me "what are you going to do with your life?"

so, here goes:

yesterday, i went to catch a documentary at the NFB (Canada's National Film Board = free movies and occasionally a spread of dipables and fair chardonnay). i went with my pals rosie, jason and evan. we were also quasi-celebrating rosie's birthday (she hates birthdays, so it was kinda not her birthday but just a fun-night-thingy). the documentary was about Haiti and the hypocrisy of its presence of child slavery. there were two documentaries, but because this blog is loosely based around food and music, i will focus on the first one.

the documentary, 'Child Slavery: The Hypocrisy of Haiti' centred on the behind the scenes look at those affected by child slavery. this was partnered by an appearance of a celebrity (?) musician from Canada i guess, named 'George'. he even did a performance for the poor nation. i don't know what good this could have done, as he only had what appeared to be one song to perform, and took his shirt off at the end noting in a post-performance interview "i don't know why, but at every performance, i HAVE to take off my shirt! *inane laughter*" i thought it was an endearing undertaking for this kid to go over to one of the least developed nations in the world without having any concept of what was going on. i also felt he connected with the audience when trying to explain what was going on in Haiti and the children's experience as child slaves. after realising that the target audience was 15-25, i further understood the involvement of 'George'. i had no clue who this guy was, but being 23 and at the older edge of the target audience, i probably wasn't intended to know who he was. anyways, it was a good effort by the production teams of plan (used to be foster parents plan) and mobile jam fest.

oh jeez, i'm a beginner at this blog thing, and just realised i forgot to mention two good meals i ate prior to the documentary screening.

after being awake for about 15 mins, mum reminded me that we were going out for dim sum with my sister at 12pm (it was 11:44am at this point). i was so excited, you have no idea. i've never been to a full out, formal dim sum in my life. ya, i've had my odd dumpling, but nothing like i was told to expect. we went to the bright pearl on spadina in the heart of china town. i was a little sketched out climbing the stairs to the place as its surroundings were curious. some of these doubts were taken away as we entered a giant hall with what seemed like 100 tables. we were seated immediately, and given menus, but we were also told that we could chose some selections from a cart.

the carts we interesting. we didn't really know what we were getting, but we seemed to collect an arrangement of shrimp dumplings followed by some scary looking short ribs that mum attacked, an eggplant dish, bean curd dumplings, and some sort of pork dumpling-type steamer. it was all very tasty, except i didn't attempt a taste of the suspect looking short ribs, but mum seemed to like them. the shrimp and porky-type-dumplings were awesome, and the hot sauce was a great compliment. then my sister ordered chicken in a black bean sauce on a steaming plate and some eggplant egg drop soup. both were excellent, except the soup's vegetables tasted like they came from frozen and left much to be desired. the chicken in particular was nice because it tasted very lean and smothered in an msg type sauce that made you want more. it was an awesome lunch, and i would definitely come back again.

however, the meal was quite pricey for a lunch. it came to $71.00 for the three of us. i found this odd. granted, we did eat more than we should have, but to be honest i'd rather go across the street to swatow and shell out $15 for more food that is equally as awesome. but i guess you pay for the 'ambiance' of the 'great hall' and food carts. whatevs.

the next meal i had out was a light one, because dim sum definitely filled me up for the remainder of the day. before we went to the documentary screening, the gang with the addition of jackie, went out to the rivoli on queen street for a bite and a few drinks. i got a pint of stella (only 3 beers on tap, blah) and ordered a caesar salad. i know, i'm boring, but i was extremely full and unadventurous. the other orders included burgers without buns and salads instead of fries', and mushroom burgers with sweet potato fries. evan agreed to let me share his fries with him, because sweet potato fries are my favorite. maybe. it depends, actually. the reason i have conflicting views is because of the lack of consistency. it is hard to find a good sweet potato fry. the best i have EVER tasted in my life were from gold ol' mark's north 44. they were amazing. very thinly cut, not huge like everywhere else i've tried. we would even order them after they took them off the menu, and they would oblige. one of the best restaurants i have ever been to ever. i digress. back to the rivoli: the salad was average, but the croutons surprised me. they were lightly seasoned and easy to get on the fork. however, i do not think they were fresh. the bacon also seemed to be of the 'one minute microwave' variety, and had little taste. the dressing was fair, and i could taste the anchovy. now, being a partial enemy to the anchovy, i don't know if this is a good thing, but it kinda put me off. the sweet potato fries that i sampled off of evan's plate were you're usual pub take on the sweet potato fry: thick cut and soggy with a boring mayonnaise sauce that makes you think of the potential amount of cholesterol that's about to clog your arteries. but there was an awesome chili/hot sauce condiment in the middle of the table that upped the ante on the fries substantially. it was great, because my beer was looking for something to cool down in my mouth. all in all, it's what you would expect for a $20 meal. nothing too fussy, nothing too satisfying, but good enough to set you up for the night.

the last meal i will post about today was the leftover pizza i heated up at 3am. i got home after a night of cultural happenings and a late night dabble into Korea town for some karaoke. ya, i drank waaaay too much, and beer at that. i never drink beer anymore, so it was kinda wierd to be that shmammered off of the suds. i do find though, when i drink beer i have to eat to make a nice pillow in my stomach to soak up the what could be bile in the morning. so, i chose to eat the carbiest thing in the fridge: leftover pizza from ferros on st. clair. mum and dad ordered a bunch for them and a few friends who came round, and i asked if they could kindly save me a few slices because i knew they would be greatly appreciated following my exploits. what i found in the box was half a pizza of prosciutto/hot pepper/black olive combo and half a pizza of the grilled vege kind. they were both stellar heated up in our toaster oven. the anticipation for the cheese to bubble was excruciating, but once it was done, my stomach could not be happier. even though this meal was totally against my battle with the bulge considering the time it took place, and amount of 'bad carbs' ingested, it was TOTALLY worth it. i don't regret it at all, and will run for an extra 10 tomorrow.