A Fine Balance

Once in a while, you read a book that is not only able to entertain you and capture your attention, but really touch a part of you that you forgot about. A book that can reach into your heart, and awaken compassion in you, and not only do you feel the pain of the characters, they come alive in the people you see everyday.

I love reading. It really takes you into another world, another era, another - well, everything. I have read so many good books, there are books that I can stay up all night reading, but not too many books really change the way you look at the world, and Rohinton Mistry's A Fine Balance, is definitely one of those books. I highly recommend this book to everyone. This books takes place in India during the State of Emergency in the 1970's. We are introduced to 4 seemingly different characters: a widow seamstress in the city, 2 tailors from a small village, and a young student. We are introduced to the cruelty of the caste system in the villages, the struggle for women's independence, the effects of modernization and the loss of nature... But above all, I believe the main theme is universal to all cultures - the need for compassion in society. I HIGHLY recommend this book to everyone. It truly is a rare, powewrful and beautiful book.

A song on the radio really caught my attention. I love the lyrics and the music. It's amazing how music can put my thoughts and feelings into one beautiful package. I hope you enjoy the lyrics, I really like them...


Over You - Chris Daughtry

Now that it's all said and done,
I can't believe you were the one
To build me up and tear me down,
Like an old abandoned house.
What you said when you left
Just left me cold and out of breath.
I fell too far, was in way too deep.
Guess I let you get the best of me.

Well, I never saw it coming.
I should've started running
A long, long time ago.
And I never thought I'd doubt you,
I'm better off without you
More than you, more than you know.
I'm slowly getting closure.
I guess it's really over.
I'm finally getting better.
And now I'm picking up the pieces.
I'm spending all of these years
Putting my heart back together.
'Cause the day I thought I'd never get through,
I got over you.

You took a hammer to these walls,
Dragged the memories down the hall,
Packed your bags and walked away.
There was nothing I could say.
And when you slammed the front door shut,
A lot of others opened up,
So did my eyes so I could see
That you never were the best for me.

Well, I never saw it coming.
I should've started running
A long, long time ago.
And I never thought I'd doubt you,
I'm better off without you
More than you, more than you know.
I'm slowly getting closure.
I guess it's really over.
I'm finally getting better.
And now I'm picking up the pieces.
I'm spending all of these years
Putting my heart back together.
'Cause the day I thought I'd never get through,
I got over you.

Well, I never saw it coming.
I should've started running
A long, long time ago.
And I never thought I'd doubt you,
I'm better off without you
More than you, more than you know.

Well, I never saw it coming.
I should've started running
A long, long time ago.
And I never thought I'd doubt you,
I'm better off without you
More than you, more than you know.
I'm slowly getting closure.
I guess it's really over.
I'm finally getting better.
And now I'm picking up the pieces.
I'm spending all of these years
Putting my heart back together.
Well I'm putting my heart back together,
'Cause I got over you.
Well I got over you.
I got over you.
'Cause the day I thought I'd never get through

One of my first times dining out in Toronto was last weekend for Charle's birthday. We went to 5th Elementt on Bay and Bloor http://www.5thelementt.com/. The atmosphere was really good, and the food was delicious and surprisingly well priced! A group shot of the "fantastic four" below.



I went out for dinner with a friend from Singapore tonight after work, again in Yorkville, at a place called "Spuntini". An upscale Italian restaurant, which is apparently frequented by celebrities :) We made reservations (apparently you can't get in without one!), and we felt like 2 "grown up" women making reservations and dining out. The food was delicious, I had some great pasta - and for basically the same price as East Sides ($13.95)!!! The atmosphere was amazing, great service. I was definitely not used to the waiter placing the napkin in my lap. lol.... All in all, a great time, check it out, I highly recommend it! http://www.spuntini.ca/

...Backtracking to Montreal...

I just realized I didn't write much about my Montreal trip. So here goes:

It was some last minute planning and since we only had about 2.5 to 3 days, we wanted to plan this so that we could at least know where we want to be and where to stay to be near these places. We were taking the Greyhound, and got a pretty good deal, although I think that we can find even cheaper tickets, from some random bus company. Our tickets costs us $90 return :)

We stayed at a YWCA hostel right in the heart of Montreal right by rue St. Catherine's (aka shopping heaven!) The first night we went, we just dropped off our stuff, freshened up and then went off for dinner at a highly recommended Mexican place - 3 Amigos. They had some really quesadila's and the daiqueries looked so tempting, but we wanted to hit up a jazz club that night. The jazz club was interesting - in more ways than one. I think I need a couple lessons in flirting back and such... lol... Besides, that I think that the jazz would have been more enjoyable if it was over dinner, and we weren't sitting right by the band. I think we were all pretty tired after that. I think I just passed out when my head hit the pillow.

The next day, we went to some touristy attractions - the biodome, the insectarium and the botanical gardens. It was enjoyable, although nothing too extra ordinary. I'm not sure what it is, I think when I was younger when I went, everything seemed so much "extra ordinary" ... Anyway, later that night, we head out to a local Italian place that was packed for dinner. It was a pretty good choice with great food and big proportions at a pretty reasonably price. We were going to head out to a club, although it was probably going o be pretty dead on a Wednesday night. However, it was pouring, and being the wimps that we were, we decided to just stay in and have a night of cards and some drinks. We had an "interesting" experience opening the Corona's... lol... involving some step by step instructions on how to open the untwistable tops (refer to the picture below).

On our last night, we take advantage of our prime hostel location and shop til we almost drop. I got a fall jacket / sweater for $30, a work skirt at Mexx for $25, 3 tops at Tristan & America
for $5 each. We head to a local deli for some authentic Reuben Sandwiches, and they were huge - waayyy too much meat for my liking, but you gotta have a Reuben sandwich when you go to Montreal! Of course, we also had poutine :) After lunch, we headed over to Old Montreal to see the Basilica of Notre Dame. It was gorgeous, probably one of the most beautiful churches I've ever been in. We ended the night with the diaqueries from 3 Amigos and make our way to BeriUQAM to head back on the Greyhound to home sweet home Toronto.

Night buses are never too fun. You never get much sleep in the awkward sitting position, and they always arrive early. So we were stuck in Toronto at 5 am, and we wait for the Subway to start running to take us back to Brampton. What a journey....

On a side note, the people you travel with are very important. I can definitely see potential friction arising from different expectations, and opinions. Glad this one worked out! Now I have more confidence to plan another trip. A longer time frame would definitely be a plus.

For now, I'm just going enjoy this term in Toronto. Definitely going to be more active, signed up for a bunch of activities. The traveling and eating out is catching up to me. :P Not to mention all the great food in Toronto that I can enjoy guilt free with a healthy exercise schedule.

Moi = A Big City Girl

So I've officially moved to Toronto for the fall :) Con and I are living in a basement apartment which we have nicknamed our "hobbit house". The place is nice and we really got a great deal, everything is really small and cute and I almost feel like we're going to be playing house or something for the next four months. Pretty close to the subway and getting to work only takes about half an hour.

Work is same as any other first week. Nothing much happening just random stuff. Working in downtown is pretty neat, I can certainly get used to the shopping and food. So much to do. I've been looking into some stuff to keep me busy this term, and maximize my time here as a big city girl. :)

I feel like I've been on the go for the last little bit, and its nice to start settling back into a routine again. Of course, I'm still living out of a suitcase until Con and I move our stuff into our hobbit house this weekend. But after that, and after converting the living room to my room, I think things should be more settled down. It really annoys me not having a routine, or straying from a routine. I mean its nice as a break, but after that break, I like to be in that routine again, and it bugs me when I'm not in it. Anyway, this is probably me just starting to sound old now.

So I have big plans for this fall term. I feel like I've always lived so close to Toronto and yet have never really experienced it. Lots of shopping, eating and activities I want to join :) I didn't realize how much of a "non city" person I was til Con and I were walking along the street and we were both just in awe of how much people, and things there were out on the streets. I feel like how I did in Boston, like one of the characters on Sex and they City. I'll be a big city girl with my own favourite place for sushi, for coffee, for breakfast on weekends, and everything in between. Not to mention that the Toronto Film Festival is starting soon, and maybe I can even catch some of the movies.

Its a little scary how this is my last work term before heading back to only four more months of school. I still don't really know what I want to do after wards. I have ideas, but they haven't melded to make a clear "vision" yet. But it's ok, I'll just take it one day at a time, and enjoy it.

Anyway, I took some personality quizzes, and here are the results. I think they're rigged cuz both Con and I got the same results for both tests. Very suspicious. Enjoy, and it's off to bed at 10 30 for this big city girl! :)

O yes, and I've also added some of my favourite pics from my trip to Montreal with the girls. It was a great time, and this was my first time being the person planning the trip. We have to do it again, perhaps, next time in NYC?? :D

What Kind of Guy Will You Fall For?
	You would fall for the geek. If you're looking for love, consider spending a little more time studying up in the library. To you, there's nothing more attractive than intelligence, shyness, and kindness; your future love may have four eyes and zero social skills, but he'll make up for it in brains and heart.
Find Your Character @ BrainFall.com

Which Sex and the City Character Are You?
	You are Carrie. You know what you want out of a relationship and you're not afraid to keep moving until you get it. Wit and charm are your biggest turn-ons, and you like guys who appreciate you for your mind as much as your body. You have fun playing the dating game, but secretly you just can't wait to find the guy who sweeps you off your feet and carries you into the sunset.
Find Your Character @ BrainFall.com