The Art and Science of Striking Out

She entered the restaurant without trepidation. Well, mostly. 

This was their third date, and he had asked her several times to pick a restaurant so they could celebrate her passing a notoriously tough licensing exam. When she at last suggested a mid-level Italian place on Whyte Ave, he'd responded, "Oh, you like pasta? Have you ever been to Campio? They make really good pizza."

Puzzled at the jump from pasta to pizza but encouraged by his enthusiasm, she'd agreed. They're both Italian, she supposed.

After they'd ordered their food, he asked what kind of music she liked. Having a deep affection for a broad range of musical styles, she began by saying her preferences are very mood dependent but framing it up in terms of live music, she mentioned her very first concert experience was Muse, but in the last year or so she had attended Charli XCX, Hozier and Noah Kahan, and she'd also gone to Edmonton's Folk Fest in past years.

When asked the same question, he said he also liked a variety of music, and showed her his phone's music player, adding, "the first two playlists are what I typically listen to."

Scanning the lists, she noted a lot of classic and classic-styled rock, and the list labelled 'Metal' contained everything from Lynrd Skynrd to Rob Zombie and Nickelback. Maybe someone else named the list, she thought. "Are you a metalhead?" she asked as she handed the phone back.

"Not really," he admitted. "I'm mostly a rock guy, to be honest."

"I like a fair bit of metal," she offered.  "Mostly power metal, but...do you know Rammstein?"

"Yeah, I know Rammstein."

"I went to their concert a few years ago with my dad and my sister and that was an amazing show; super fun."

He nodded, but was there a trace of smirk in his smile? "So you like Rammstein? What's your favourite song?"

Ignoring the soft sounds of a warning chime deep in her mind, she tried to formulate a succinct but fulsome answer. "Oh, that's too hard to pick - give me a second..." she replied, and began collating a short list in her head.

But before she could answer, he offered a suggestion: "Du Hast right? Probably?"

Taken a bit aback, and aware of the warning chimes increasing in frequency and volume, she replied, "umm, no, actually; I'm not sure that would even crack my top ten. It's a great song and all, and everyone knows it so it's great to hear live, but definitely not my favourite. At the concert, Sonne was the most fun."

Giving no indication he was familiar with that song, she sought to move on. Unlocking her own phone and calling up a list of liked tunes, she handed it over to him and said, "here is the kind of stuff I am listening to lately."

Scrolling through, a chuckle escaped his lips. "What?" she inquired, grinning. "Have I got something weird on there?"  (said knowing full well that she just might).

"No, no, it's nothing, just kinda funny..." he replied.

"What is?" she persisted.

"It's just, you know, this is kind of just... basic white girl music."

"OH." she said. She extended her hand for the phone, choosing, for the moment, to snooze alarm the warning chimes just as they got upgraded to bells.

Later on, the topic turned to travel, after his admission that he had never been out of Canada. "Oh," she brightened, thinking everyone has that bucket list. "So where would you like to go?"

"Oh, I dunno," he said, non-committally. "Probably somewhere warm, like Mexico."

"Ah, cool," she nodded. "I went there twice last year actually, but they were very different trips. Are you more a beachy, resort kind of guy, or would you rather stay in a city and check out all the local things and the culture?"

While not definitively derisive, his snorted chortle certainly underscored his response: "Pfft! Nah, yeah, I would go to a resort - I don't need to get 'cultured.'"

She took a sip of her drink while nodding, not trusting her expression, and muffled the bells that were now clanging like some sort of  incompatibility alarm. and the conversation drifted into safer territory for the remainder of what had just become their final date. 

It's All Greek and Delicious to Me - Autumnal Geekquinox 2025

Having travelled to Greece as part of their comprehensive European honeymoon earlier this year, Pete & Ellen theming the most recent Geekquinox as "My Big Fat Greek Honeymoon" makes a lot of sense. The hit 2002 movie of the same name is fondly remembered as a lot of fun, and obviously that region boasts some spectacular cuisine. (Although their overlooking of 'Greekquinox' as a name until I mentioned it was a bit surprising...)

Audrey was a bit saddened that we didn't have anything particularly Grecian to wear, until I chanced to ask Totty if he still had the toga sheets from G&G XVIII around. Turns out he was planning the same thing himself, but luckily enough he had exactly three of them on hand!

Things opened up with a cocktail featuring ouzo, lemonade and mint leaves that was an absolute delight for both Audrey and I, with the anise flavoured liquor cutting some of the acidity that normally makes lemonade a risky proposition for her.

The first dish was a amazing homemade spanakopita, with loads of homemade tzatziki to go with it. A tandem effort that saw Ellen looking after much of the folding and re-folding of the filo pastry (which would have driven me utterly mad) while pete worked on other dishes, these crispy, creamy hors d'ouevres were absolutely fantastic. Good enough that I reached for a third when two would have been plenty!

Not nearly long enough after that, the grilled souvlaki chicken and Greek rice arrived at the table for lunch proper; Geekquinox begins at noon now to facilitate our aging difficulty in remaining up long past midnight. The grilled chicken was juicy and flavourful, and not tremendously salty (a challenge I often face with grilled chicken), but the rice almost stole the show. Cooked with lemon juice and zest as well as chicken stock and a bit of parsley, this was one of the best rice dishes I have ever tasted, with just the right amount of stickiness.

After a slightly longer break (and some more delicious lemonade cocktails), the main course arrived at the table: a delicious slow roasted lamb leg, Greek potatoes and a Greek salad.  Seasoned and roasted potatoes are one of my favourite sides, but I am generally too lazy or time-pressed to make them myself, and these ones hit the sweet spot right between crispy and fluffy. The salad, with tomatoes, olives, onions, celery and feta in a mild vinaigrette was light and fresh, an ideal accompaniment to the succulent, boneless lamb. How succulent? The first piece that I forked off the platter to hand to another guest, broke apart under its own weight - and it was not an enormous piece. And with au jus for the roast and tzatziki for the potatoes, there was no worry about dryness to be found anywhere.

There was ample time for drinking and chatting before the dessert course was served: a custard dish in an impossibly flay filo pastry shell called galaktobourekos. I would sing the praises of this dessert based on its crust alone, knowing how finicky filo is to work with, but the rich custardy heart of the dish was neither too flaky nor too runny, challenges I have encountered with custard in the past. A delightful finish to the evening, even if it did push me almost to the bursting point!

But there we were, sufficiently fed and watered with full stomachs and fuller hearts even before 9:00 rolled around. And the two dishes that ended up not making it to the table were not even missed, and frankly, might have pushed some of us beyond our limits.

As always though, the wonderful fellowship among dear friends who have done this for well over a decade now, put even the glory of the dishes to shame. Thanks again Pete and Ellen - opa!

Bench Works

I went through a bit of what must have been a nesting period in 2007 when my work situation changed suddenly. I found myself out of my position with 11 weeks of severance pay and (blessedly) health care for that period as well. I wanted to take some time figuring out what I wanted to do next, and was doing some work along those lines at the Bredin Institute, but I also knew my capacity for indolence was practically limitless, and endeavoured to find productive distractions around the home Audrey and I had purchased barely a year earlier.

One of these projects was a workbench and toolboard, something I highly recommend if you have any love of organization whatsoever. The workbench itself, a chintzy Chinese-made jobbie from Canadian Tire, was no great whoop but at least gave me an elevated surface to work from, and a shelf to keep some larger tools off the floor. With some added pegboard and hooks from the local hardware store, I had ample space to arrange my modest collection of tools, including the big set of screwdrivers my sister- and brother-in-law had gifted me the previous Christmas.

I also wall-mounted the grey tool box we'd picked up from Costco shortly after getting married. Again, the tools weren't of any particular quality, but the socket set was decent enough, and it had a specific spot for everything, which I appreciated.

An old change table fit under the grey box as an additional workspace, and it made a good spot for the nuts and bolts organizer drawers I also got as a gift.

To be clear, I do not do a whole lot of handymannin' or project work, but when tools are needed to hang a picture frame, replace a car battery or jury-rig some barriers to isolate the winter tires beside the garage, it is gratifying not having to search too far for the right tool for that job.

And being without work at the time made this an even more satisfying project; lining up the hooks and tools and arranging the screwdrivers was like a mundane and Western version of a Zen garden. AT an unsettled time in my life, this bastion of organization and potential productivity was a genuine balm to my spirits. It made me wonder if Dad had felt the same way about his workspace in the garage in Leduc.

Dad's garage workbench was homemade, constructed out of sturdy 4 x 8 boards and long steel woodscrews as I recall. He mounted both a decent sized vise and a small electric grinder wheel  on it, as well as an overhead fluorescent light. The majority of his hand tools though, he tended to keep in a nondescript but tough canvas bag that I think he'd had since his days in the navy. His electric drill had a dedicated steel box and I recall a few wrenches on the wall, but I think my pegboard game might actually have been better than his. 

That workbench was some kind of solid though.

This weekend, two friends and I went out to their late mother's house in Leduc to get their own dad's workbench out of the basement, in anticipation of selling the home. It's a nice unit, with a treadplate-fronted cupboard and drawers containing that cushy mesh so your wrenches and such don't slide around or clank loudly every time you set them in there. Best of all though, it has a gorgeous, thick wooden top.

Neither of my friends recall this bench from their childhood, reckoning it came in after they'd left home, possibly after their father had retired. What had prompted the purchase? Was it for a special project, of just too good a deal to pass up? Regardless, neither of them had space for it, and I was grateful for the opportunity to give it a new home. 

In anticipation of its arrival, I had pulled the change table out of its niche and swept out almost two decades worth of dust and mouse droppings. I moved the old chest of drawers out of the corner so I could more easily reach the top drawer full of nails and screws, as well as the others with their miscellaneous collections. 

The Mastercraft bench is sturdy and awkward, so getting it up a narrow staircase with a 90-degree turn in it was a challenge, but we managed to do it without damaging the walls or ourselves. It fit easily enough in the back of the 'Lander once one of the second row seats was folded down, and unloading it my garage was a piece of cake for two people. 

When Audrey saw it, she observed that the beautiful wooden top could actually let it serve as a kitchen island if needed. I started to reply about treadplate being an odd design motif for modern kitchens, but stopped when I realized yeah, an incongruous industrial style like that could actually look pretty cool...

There is still some re-organizing needed, as well as a trip or two to the Eco Station and Reuse Centre, but even these initial steps of tidying and reorienting are a salve to my soul, similar to when I had initially set it up. Would that everything in my life could be sorted so easily!

A Half-Century of Terror and Fascination - Jaws

We saw the 50th anniversary re-release of Jaws this weekend, one of my all time favourite movies, and one that had a profound impact on me as a kid. It is a 4K remaster being shown in IMAX, so probably the first time I've seen it in a cinema since, well, the first time, in 1975.

I would have been eight years old at the time, and I have no idea what my dad was thinking when he brought me. I think I wanted to go and may have asked him? Or perhaps he was going anyways and asked if I wanted to come. I know many people in my 4th grade class were two scared to go, and rumours of people becoming physically ill in Leduc's Gaiety Theatre were rampant (and likely apocryphal).

I had planned to put an empty popcorn tub over my head if things got too intense, but a a stern look from Dad dissuaded me, so I watched the film in its entirety. I remember being disgusted at the severed leg settling to the bottom of the estuary, but it wasn't the gore that stuck with me - it was the intensity.

No bad dreams followed me out of the theatre, but a momentary fascination with marine biology did, along with a passion for movies that Star Wars cemented into place two years later.

I revisited the movie with my kids years later and it was Glory's appreciation of it that reminded me what an awesome film this throwaway monster movie truly is.

Since then I have shown it to many people for their first time, and although many will comment on how Bruce the mechanical shark (named after Spielberg's lawyer) doesn't hold as much water these days, especially 30+ years after Jurassic Park, everyone comes away with at least a little apprehension about open water.

I had watched the Jaws at 50 Documentary on Disney+ only a week before, and had learned even more about the troubled film production than I had from my reading and all the special features on DVD and BluRay. I knew Spielberg had run way over time and even more over budget on the film, but I did not know that the responsibility he held for this, and for all the people depending on him, took such a toll on him personally.

Seeing the film in IMAX was a great experience - it made the shooting star that Spielberg puts in every movie much easier to find and for the first time I noticed that when Chief Brody takes a glass of whatever homebrew Quint has served him and hands it off to Hooper while saying "don't drink that," Hooper drinks it anyways - I think I am usually too enthralled by the interaction between Roy Scheider and Robert Shaw.

Shaw, in particular, is one reason that Jaws doesn't need an IMAX screen to be impactful. His telling of the fate of the USS Indianapolis during WWII is just as captivating on a 14" b&w tube TV late at night as it is in this 4K restoration. 

And while our matinee showing wasn't sold out, I still found it a little gratifying to discover that this half-century-old film that the director thought would be his very last movie, actually beat two new releases at the box office.

Jaws is a great story, brilliantly shot and acted, and for the time, Bruce was a very credible stand-in (despite corroding almost immediately due to his being designed for freshwater, not salt). And the story about the story is almost as good - the challenges of shooting on water, the use of the natives of Martha's Vineyard as not only extras but speaking roles. I expect I will see it a few more times in my life, hopefully introducing a few new people to it along the way.

But watching it in the water, like they've done at Sylvan Lake a few times? Not a chance.