It Was a BUG-IN

We headed down to Seattle for the weekend to do some top secret wedding things and, to hang out with two of our favourite people: Paul and Lisa. They are spectacular friends and always have some great adventures up their sleeve. Last weekend was no exception.

We pulled in and Lisa went to work shaking up some brilliant Earl Grey Martini's for us. I love the fact that she can only handle cold things (like martini shakers) while wearing oven mitts. Later, I learned that she even wears oven mitts when she and Paul are sharing a tub of ice cream! We had these martinis first when Paul and Lisa were visiting us during that big winter sporting event some months back, and we stopped at Uva. The waitress gave us the recipe and Lisa has been perfecting the gin infusion ever since.

After drinks, we headed out to a bug in. That's right. A BUG-IN, in which all manner of VW vehicles are buffed, puffed and put on display for admiring eyes. Golly they were purdy....

Mister Man seems pretty pleased with the situation.

Some of 'em weren't spit and polished, but fabulously textured.

Spot the photographer:

But seriously, how could you go wrong when the Bug-In was held in the parking lot of a burger joint called Burgermaster? God bless America!

Playing Catch Up

There is SO much to share with you!!! The blessed tornado of busy-ness continues, so I am going to endeavor to put a few posts "in le bank" for the coming days, which will be filled with the flurry that can only be known as a film set!

So - 2 weekends back, Mister Man's boss handed him tickets to the BC Lion's season opener. I'm not one with the football, but I do love a good spectacle, so of course I went along for the ride. We invited Tamara and Andrew to join us. With regards to the rules of Canadian football, Andrew remains unconvinced. But Tamara and I were hopeful that there'd be good snacks. Besides, she grew up in a football town, so she, unlike me, doesn't have a hard time finding the ball. (I think they should just paint it fuchsia or lemon yellow so that at least you can follow the action!!!)

You see what I mean about Andrew not being convinced....??

Here's a home team fan. *roar*

Here's the enemy team.

Yes. Yes, he DOES have a watermelon on his head. (All we could think about was what that thing would feel like as the sun beat down upon it.) (Um - Eeeeeewwwww!)

The guy next to me was a real flag waver.

So were these guys.

We even got free tea towels!!

And we did have some of the best seats in the house....

While I may never be a die-hard football fan, I can say it was a hoot. (Even if Mister Man DID have to cue me when to cheer...)

A Torch Song from Cat and Colin

Okay. I KNOW postings have been a bit on the skimpy side lately! I've been double jobbing it: gearing up for a film shoot; working at my fabulous day job and doing wedding stuff ALL AT THE SAME TIME. At this rate, I should be able to join Cirque de Soleil as a juggler...

On the sunny side, I know that by the end of next week, life will return to a jog, so that I don't have to keep on sprinting!! However, I did want to share the evening we had with Cat and Colin last week. It was Cat's birthday a few months ago, and a whole slew of her friends pitched in some shekels towards a plasma torch. You see, Cat is a sculptor, and this little chachka is the kind of thing that turns a sculptor into a magician. This torch will cut through metal like butter. It's kind of awe-dropping amazing. So last week, when we went over for a fabulous BBQ, we requested a demo. And here's what happened.

First of all, Colin showed us around their amazing shop. There were all kinds of nifty things in there (including a whole bunch of partially finished sculptures)!

And then he fired up the new beast. The sparks were a flyin' (literally).

I know Cat will wanna strangle me for including a photo of her in this post, but I just HAVE to slip one in there..... because, after all, she's the artist for whom the sparks fly.

After the wedding, Cat's proposed that we all collaborate on an art piece: Cat, Colin, Mister Man, Me and that amazing plasma torch.... oh my....

Bring on the Busy

Phew! It has been busy out there in the world. As the countdown truly begins to the big day (we are now under 2 months away), there is much to be done. Last week, we gathered some of our intrepid traveling friends and did a presentation about our "destination" wedding in the form of an info session about St. John's, Newfoundland. Most of our friends have never been to the "far east" corner of Canada. We had a great deal of fun. Mister Man was in his element as he put post-its on giant maps of St. John's and the Avalon Peninsula showing folks what's where in the oldest English settled city in North America.

Friends from different circles started meeting one another.

We showed slides and short videos.

And had a brilliant moment of utter clarity when we realized that this was indeed the beginning of our wedding. While the date is still weeks away, the party has begun.

Shopping and Sniffing - a Journey to The Perfume Shoppe

When I was in Calgary for my birthday, Mariette took me to a great perfume shop in Banker's Hall. It was run by someone with a great nose who imported scents that aren't burdened with harsh chemicals. Upon my return, I started looking for such a shop in Vancouver. It turns out I didn't have to look far, because about 4 blocks from where I work, there's a lovely little place called The Perfume Shoppe located in Sinclair Centre.

It's run by a lovely woman named Naz. Her father was a perfume guy too, and she learned all about scent from him. She used to sit on the counter in his shop as he trotted out the bottles full of lovely smelling potions. Now it's her turn to luxuriate in top notes and low notes and heavenly concoctions, and to share her knowledge...

So on Brian's surprise! (not) birth-day celebration, we went shopping for a new scent.

Brian gets the royal treatment (as one should on their birthday!)

I love a man who is comfortable holding a perfume bag!

Naz waves goodbye.

SURPRISE!!! (not)

It was Mister Man's birthday yesterday, and I have been scheming for weeks with many people about hosting this SURPRISE! party for him. The only problem is that I may have let the phrase "surprise party" slip in a string of emails about another event. But then, I sort of convinced myself that he had done the typical man thang, and only skimmed the email (as is his wont when there's a long strong of emails). I'd also tried to get to him to press DELETE before he read the offending email - and again, was deluded about the fact that his little peepers hadn't fallen on my hastily typed words!!

You see, Mister Man is a pretty extraordinary individual who does so very much for other people. He helps all of our women friends with repairs and stuff, and he'll drop everything to help our friends in crisis. He gives of himself more than any person I know. So he, more than almost any other person I know, is deserving of such an honour....

The day started out brilliantly. We prepped some ribs for the slow cooker, and they began a 9 hour journey into the world of the delectable. Then, I fixed us some uber decadent french toast that was stuffed with cream cheese, strawberries and pineapple and served up with some lovely bacon.

And then, I took him to shop for a new scent (a gift from The Mums and I). I'll do a separate post about that experience later...

From there, we headed to the Fairmont Vancouver, Waterfront for a cocktail and some snicky snacks. Mister Man had these gorgeous oysters, and we shared a plate of mussels.

Back at the ranch, I finished making the white chocolate mousse for the chocolate cake, checked on the Tres Leches Cake which was still setting (I figgered too much cake was better than not enough!) and took a "surprise" (AKA staged) phone call from Miss Annie and Miss Lara, suggesting that we meet up at The District for a few drinks before our dinner guests arrived. I thought I had fooled Mister Man into thinking that we were celebrating his day with a small, simple dinner with a couple of friends.... I'd told him that folks were coming at 7, so of COURSE we could slip away to Mister Man's fave haunt, The District, at 5:00 for some drinks and appies.

In the meantime, at 5:30, after a flurry of codified text images between us, Pooter, Susan and Diyan descended upon the apartment to prep the space for the arrival of the surprise party guests as Annie, Lara and I stalled at The District. Oh how we stalled.... a plate of charcuterie, a shot of bourbon, many laughs, much chatting - huge eyes between us any time Mister Man stepped away from the table.

And then came the appointed hour, and off we went. My heart was thumping out of my chest. I could hardly stand the tension. I could feel ulcers growing on every part of my gullet. We walked through the door of our apartment, and there were about 15 of the most beautiful and wonderful people I know - all sitting in wait for that moment in which they could all shriek SURPRISE!!

Oh my nerves.

Well of COURSE he read the email I'd written in which I'd spilled the beans! Of course he had been sitting back bemused for days as he watched me wriggle, plot, scheme and act my face off....

But you know what? I wouldn't have traded it for the world, because it was SO MUCH FUN planning this event. And it was SO MUCH FUN hanging around with a roomful of spectacular people, eating the most delicious potluck you can imagine. And it was SO MUCH FUN to honour such a fabulous human being....

You see, there's probably nothing in the world I wouldn't do for him.... so any kind of event that honours his presence on the earth is a good thing.

Welcome to our Secret New Clubhouse

Last Sunday, we were invited to the Grossman's for a game of Canasta. (Okay, we don't actually play Canasta, but doesn't it sound great?) As you know, there's a new member of the family chez Susan and Diyan (AKA "Barbecue"), and Susan has sworn that she will become a BBQ chef extraordinaire. So off we went, with a strawberry chocolate ganache tart in hand to sample the spoils of Susan's new found cooking passion.

We laughed a lot .... which is not a hard thing when Vanessa K is in the house. And we spent a good chunk of time lurking over the BBQ watching Susan display her mad BBQ skills. Who knew that watching someone flip really nice steaks on a grill could be so darn gripping? I think it's because we all knew what was in store for us.

Dinner was unbelievable. From the steaks, to the prawns to the calamari to the corn and the variety of salads, it was a wonderful way to finally welcome summer. Here's a thumbnail of some of the deliciousness that was paraded before our palates.

Also, I have 2 new words for you. Lime Butter. Specifically, lime butter on BBQ corn. How could I get to be this old without knowing the merits of lime butter?

The meal was fantastic, but what was even MORE fantastic was the fact that we all sat around and watched the new reality show "Work of Art". I have to say that watching a reality television show about art with a roomful of artists is hilarious beyond belief. We shrieked, laughed, gasped, spewed our opinions at the television set and had too much fun deconstructing what we saw.

THEN, we decided that we should attempt to do this every Sunday for the rest of the summer (or at least for the rest of the season of "Work of Art"). We realized that this was the inaugural meeting of our new club: The BBQ/Work of Art Club.

I can hardly wait for next week.

Ain't life sweet?