So Close

First, the good on the weekend.

Saturday was a great day. Up, quick and easy and tasty breakfast, and the afternoon was spent wandering the AGO for the first time since the renovation. My friend and I opted to buy the Contributing membership - the selling point was the "bring 2 guests for free every time". The reciprocal membership to galleries all over Canada and the States is nice too, but I doubt I'll be anywhere near those cities before the membership needs to be renewed.

The AGO is great. Love the changes, love the size. The last time I went, with the same friend, we left disappointed. The place seemed small, and they had to rotate their collection due to lack of space. This meant that favourite pieces were no longer being displayed. This time though, they had galleries to spare. We spent hours and only got through the first floor. We did take the new staircases all the way up and down, but outside of wandering the contemporary galleries very briefly, didn't really see the rest of the displays. Which is fine, the place isn't going anywhere. We finished by visiting the member's lounge and enjoying a couple coffees (espresso for her, cappuccino for me), which were dirt cheap in a great setting. Sitting in the window looking out at Grange Park removed any doubts about the membership. The cute, friendly staff doesn't hurt either.

From there we grabbed some dinner at Harlem. Before Friday, we'd never heard of the place, but it was quite good. Drinks were solid, food was well done (ribs were a bit too sweet for my taste), and the ambience was relaxing. I'm pretty sure it was the owner who greeted us and kept checking in, and he knew how to make people feel welcome.

Then off to Lewis Black. Damn, he's funny. Nearly two hours of ranting, politicizing, and pointing out any number of stupidities in the world. He even handled the "contributors" from the audience well, shutting up the few who felt the need to add their own jokes (not heckling, just assuming they were witty enough to be heard). Hard to believe he's 60.

Finally, Beer Bistro to finish. A couple decent brews (Ephémère and La Roja), solid conversation, and called it a night. One full day.

Sunday I woke up in time for the Brit game. First one I've remembered during the BBT. I rolled over the game for the most part, knocking out at least 5 or 6 people. Decent hands, (AA twice for those keeping score), play I was happy with, in first place from shortly after the first break onwards, with twice the chips of second place at one point, and then we got down to 3. I went fucking limp. I basically backed off, let Pushmonkey catch up, and then played like a pussy until I went out on a shitty hand in a shitty situation. So close to a seat. I don't know who won between Muhctim and Push, but I'm sure it was a decent HU match. Nobody to blame by myself for that one. When I should have been forcing my opponents to decide, I was sitting back and waiting for... what? I haven't a clue.