Ottawa

I went up to Ottawa two weekends ago to visit my old University roommate/friend and another friend of ours (who lived with E all through school). It had been awhile since I was last there and things have changed dramatically.


My friend married her University boyfriend, who she met in 2nd year, and had three children with him. But a few years ago things started deteriorating in their relationship and she stepped out of their marriage. I didn't agree with it & it put me in a very awkward position, but she was also a longtime friend and I tried to be supportive as best I could. I told her she needed to be upfront with her husband and end things if she really wasn't happy. It couldn't be both ways. She finally did and now they are separated with different partners. Her boyfriend is moving in and this was the first time I met him.


It was weird, I'm not going to lie. And I can't say that I loved him. I'm not really sure how I feel about him. He's okay, I guess. She seems happy and I want her to be but it's just very strange. Basically, no one knows what is going to happen in relationships. Maybe I'm cynical but I don't believe anything is forever.


We went to the National Gallery of Canada to see the Van Gogh: Up Close Exhibit. It was really good. I wish there had been more! The man seemed to lead a tortured life but painted so much beauty. There is some speculation he suffered from Meniere's Disease, which caused his vertigo/dizziness, and which may have drove him to cut off his ear. Sadly, he shot himself at 37.


My favourite paintings from the Exhibit included:

Undergrowth with Two Figures from 1890.

Tree Trunks in the Grass from 1890.


I wish I was artistic!


If you've never been to the National Gallery of Canada, you have not seen this giant spider outside.

It was a bit controversial when it first arrived but now it is a part of the downtown Ottawa landscape. It's called Maman ("Mother" in French) and you can see Maman is carrying babies, 26 white marble eggs in her belly. I think that's kind of cool and I HATE spiders.


My friend had a visitor in her backyard:

Bunny!


We had a great late Lunch at Play. We just did glasses of wine (love my rose or white in the Summer) with a Charcuterie plate & Cheese plate. So simple but so good. The server was funny as she steered us clear of a Cheddar wrapped in Potato Sacks which she described as tasting like dirt. Well, okay, we'll pass on that then - lol. It was nice to have cheese since I don't do a lot of dairy normally now, because of my eczema.


Somehow my friends managed to drag me along to see Magic Mike (Warner Bros. 2012). 

Oh God, it was SO bad. First off, I don't regularly go to strip joints. Yes, I'm sure you are shocked. I have been to maybe one in my life, and that was because of a bachelorette party. Let me tell you, the men at real life strip joints do not look anything like the men in Magic Mike. That is not real. Plus, the men in real life strip joints definitely are not into choreography or putting on an entertaining show. They just want to whip it out & grind. So thrilling. NOT. Call me old fashioned but I like a little mystery and if I'm going to be doing any grinding, it's not going to be in public. Anyway, the story was stupid, the acting was TERRIBLE and I was supposed to believe that one of the main characters (who finds himself drawn into the world of stripping) is only 19 years old. I kept saying, "That guy is not 19 years old!" Oh, and the lead woman was a horrific actress too. But evidently she is the daughter of former Warner Bros. head, Alan Horn so gee, I wonder how she got THAT gig. My one friend walked out of the movie, which made me laugh. Me, I stayed and just rolled my eyes and sighed heavily throughout. Even the half naked men couldn't save the film.


On Sunday we went to the Lansdowne Farmers Market and it was fantastic! Bought so many yummy things. Fresh corn, Kirby cucumbers, apricots (so so sweet), beets (golden, candy cane, regular), Karumba popsicle in Raspberry Cream - very refreshing and perfect for the heat and THE BEST doughnuts from SuzyQ Doughnuts. They had so many flavours and I was seriously tempted to buy a half dozen but I knew that would be a bad thing. I just ended up getting one:

This is Cardamom Sugar, pretty plain but very delicious. Probably one of the best doughnuts I've had, next to the apple doughnut from Komoda Bakery. I also wanted to try their Maple Bacon (and compare it to Beast's), Lemon Raspberry White Chocolate, Earl Grey Vanilla, Salted Caramel, Lemon Thyme and Toasted Coconut but alas, next time.


There's other stuff going on with my BFF and my Dad but I don't feel like blogging about it.