Crosswalks

One of the things I noticed the first time I visited Canada (Vancouver in September 2003) was that people really respect the walk/don't walk lights. Also, people don't tend to cross in the middle of the block.

The same thing is true in Toronto.

I'm astounded by how people will just refuse to cross against the light even when there are no cars in sight. It's much like the scene in "Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle" just after Neil Patrick Harris ("NPH wouldn't do that!") steals Harold's car. My Lonely Planet Toronto has a quote by someone saying that people are so law-abiding here that not even the imminent explosion of an atomic bomb will cause people to ignore the crossing signal.

I'm thinking there's a good rule of thumb for identifying Americans here. If you see someone crossing against the signal or in the middle of the block, 9 times out of 10, that person is an American. I know it's true with me.

Toronto Skyline

I found this great picture of the Toronto skyline on
Wikipedia and thought I'd share it. My building is one of the high-rises immediately to the left of the big white dome on the left side of the picture.

Go Argos!

Went to my first Canadian Football League (CFL) game last night. The Toronto Argonauts played the B.C. Lions at the Rogers Centre (formerly the SkyDome).

All in all a very enjoyable experience, even though the Lions bested the Argos 27-20 in what was a rematch of last year's Grey Cup championship (which the Argos won, by the way). The Rogers Centre is also a pretty nice place and works well for football. Haven't seen a baseball game there yet, but I bet it's good for that too. The roof was closed when I showed up, but they opened it up right at the beginning of the game.

So, as you probably already know, there are a few differences between Canadian and American football (some were obvious and some I had to look up online):

1. 12 players per side rather than 11. On offense they usually use two "slot backs" instead of a single tight end. On defense (er, "defence") there is additional linebacker or defensive back.

2. The field is larger. 110 yards long (the 50-yard-line is not the center of the field!) with 20-yard-deep end zones. Also, it's 65 yards wide instead of 53 1/3 yards.

3. 3 downs rather than 4. Otherwise gameplay seems to be about the same.

4. The possibility to score 1 point independently of another score. This was the most confusing one, because it happened several times, and I couldn't figure out why. Well, it's called a rouge and happens when a receiving team can't return a kick out of their own end zone. The kicking team gets one point. Also, the ball is live after a field goal attempt if it is missed.

Also, here are a couple of pictures from the evening.

This first one is just a general shot of the two teams coming on the field.

There's the CN Tower peeking out from behind the open dome.

Check out that end zone!

Find the center of the field....

And finally, guess what the Argonauts mascot's name is.... Yep, you guessed it: Jason.

Burrito Boyz

Burrito Boyz? What is this, a gay burrito place? Nope. It's a Mission-style burrito shop (think Freebird's) across the street from my office. And you know what? It's pretty dang good. Went there for the first time today and got the steak burrito with everything. This included fresh jalapenos and a very tasty habanero-based sauce. Not too shabby. Now, I must admit that I'm a bit skeptical of the halibut burrito that's on the menu....

Y super gracias a Goya.

Okay, Pink Beans are okay in my book. I opened the can and thought, "These look and taste just like pintos." I looked online, and though they aren't the same thing, several cooking websites noted that pink and pinto beans can be used interchangeably in recipes. Good to know, and a little cooking tip for you, gentle reader.

Also, I neglected to point out some of the good surprises from the grocery store experience. The main one is that the store stocks real Indian basmati rice (in a burlap bag). I need it to make Persian rice, and in Austin you have to buy it at an Indian or Mediterranean specialty store. Very nice.

The Grocery Store (or: Uh Oh, Metric)

Made my first big trip to the grocery store yesterday. Nice store, but there were some things that were a bit tricky:

1. The Metric System. Yes, I know they use the metric system here (the weather forecast is basically useless to me), but it really hits home when you're trying to buy food for a recipe. Also, there's kind of a weird mixture of metric and Imperial units. For example, meat is all priced by the pound, but it's packaged by the kilogram. Huh.

2. Milk in a Bag. What??? So I walk over to the dairy section to get some milk. They have milk in cartons just like I'm used to, but most of it was in plastic bags. I stood there for a while poking at it just to be sure what it was. Apparently people buy it and pour it into their own containers.

3. No pinto beans in a can. That was troubling, as the recipe I was buying for calls for a can of pintos. You can buy raw pinto beans, just not any in a can. I ended up going with Goya "pink beans". We'll see how that works out. Now you can buy canned tomatillos, so I don't think I'm completely out of line to expect canned pintos. I'm sure they're available somewhere....

4. No Rotel products. I must admit that was a long shot. Will end up making my own out of canned tomatoes and green chilis. Yes, I've been forced to buy an Old El Paso product. This is what I've been reduced to ;)

5. Maple. Damn there are a lot of things with maple syrup in them!

Quilt rack and Persian calligraphy 

Bathroom 

Entrance 

Office Again 

Office 

Kitchen 

Bedroom 

Living Room Again 

Living Room 

My condo 

Border Crossing 

Bridge to Canada 

White Castle Detritus 

Kyle and Omid Go To White Castle 

The White Castle is in our sights! 

Omid and me outside bar in Urbana-Champaign, Illinois 

Toronto is Home Now

Well, as you might guess, I'm here now. Sorry for the long delay between posts, but things have been rather hectic. This is the first big move I've ever made, and let me tell you, I didn't enjoy it at all. Here's the quick run-down of the move:

Tuesday, May 31: Movers moved my stuff out of my house in Austin
Thursday, June 2: The last Guy's Night Out (GNO). It was a doozy.
Friday, June 3: Departed Austin (but not before having a massage first!)
Saturday, June 4: Arrived in Chicago. Thanks Greg and Angie for the great time! Those were the best fries I have ever had.
Sunday, June 5: Departed Chicago. Stopped in Ann Arbor for a drink with TonyChen. Arrived in Toronto. Checked into hotel.
Monday, June 6: Picked up keys to condo. Put Dot and JP in condo.
Wednesday, June 8: My stuff departed the warehouse in Round Rock, Texas. What the hell??? Omid went back to Austin.
Friday, June 10: Checked out of the hotel and moved into the condo.
Monday, June 13: Started work.
Wednesday, June 15: My stuff arrived. Finally. Jesus.

As soon as I unpack my camera cable and get the place set up, I'll post some pictures from the trip and of the new pad (which TonyChen called a "wolf's lair").

Timbits

My friend Omid made the drive from Austin to Toronto with me. Somewhere in rural Ontario (between Michigan and Toronto), we decided to stop at a Tim Horton's to pick up some donuts for a snack. Tim Horton's is an omnipresent donut/coffee/sandwich chain here. I stood in line while Omid went to the restroom. Here was the exchange with the clerk:

Me: "I'd like a half-dozen plain glazed donut holes, please."
The clerk looks at me strangely.
Me: "Six plain glazed donut holes."
Clerk: "Our Timbits come in packs of 10, 20, and 30."
Me: "Um, 10 then."

We then completed the sale, but I of course had further questions...

Me: "Now what did you call them?"
Clerk: "Timbits.... Are you American?"
Me: "Yep."
Clerk: "I thought so. Americans always call them donut holes."
Me: "Ah. I'll have to remember that."

So now I'm standing there with a box of "Timbits" waiting for Omid to come out of the restroom, which he does...

Omid (looking at the box in my hand): "TIMBITS?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!"

Of course, all of this is even funnier if you know (or know of) our friend Tim Hampton.