So we went to the cinema

I have, quite unexpectedly, met a very cool girl and I feel as though the Art Brut song Good Weekend was written as a soundtrack for the past few days. I’d write more about it but I’m getting very, very sleepy and it’s well past my bedtime.

A quick recap of the weekend:

Friday I was out with Sharon (the cute girl mentioned above) to check out Stella’s on Cambie. This used to be the home of Dadeo’s, our favorite restaurant that had started in Edmonton. Sadly the Canada Line construction on Cambie Street killed their business and they closed down about a year ago. Stella’s is a great place, not the same as Dadeo, but quite good especially with their extensive selection of Belgian beers on tap. Tasty, tasty Belgian beers.

Saturday started with breakfast at Deacon’s where I ran into one of my new co-workers. Turns out he lives just down the street from me and was also in the mood for our favorite hipster breakfast place.

In the afternoon I hosted my second BBQ at my place. The party was billed as the “sausage party” since it was a guys night out and we were going to kick it off by grilling up some bison burgers (and veggie burgers for the less-carnivorous of us). After we ate ourselves silly and rocked out to Steel Panther videos we paraded through Gastown to the Cambie for beer and more good times. The Canucks destroyed Pittsburgh in the game and the whole bar was one big cheering section as puck after puck got dumped into the Penguin’s net.

With the game over we decided to check out this underground jazz venue off Granville. It’s not an official club and you have to find a backdoor in an alley with a hidden doorbell to get in. Once inside we found ourselves in a large room furnished with cast-off couches and easy chairs that faced the low stage in front. Some avant garde jazzer was noodling on a guitar while the room full of people watched him reverently. You couldn’t even hear anyone talking and I felt like I was in some sort of church! As we watched this dude play we noticed he got weirder and weirder with his guitar technique. At first he was playing in the traditional manner but soon began to slap his guitar, then he started to run his mouth across the strings (was he trying to make out with it? Not sure, maybe he just really loved that guitar) and finally began to scrape it across his legs and anything else that would make it squeal and screech like a bunch of farm animals whooping it up at a keg party.

Finally guitar lovemaking guy left the stage and a more traditional jazz ensemble set up their instruments. Chris turned to me and said the drummer was one of the best in the city and was often out touring with international jazz acts. He wasn’t kidding because when these guys began to perform you could quickly hear that they were incredibly talented musicians! Naturally, I was focused on the drummer and the outrageous speed and finesse with which he attacked his drumset. His body language indicated he was barely working but the sticks were flying so quickly that you could hardly see them!

Today I slept in, cleared up my place from Saturday’s shenanigans, and then met up with Sharon for a late brunch at the Alibi Room so she could try what I believe is the best french toast in the city. They do two slices of french toast with a layer of brie cheese sandwiched in the middle and a topping of whipped cream and strawberries. It is delicious! Despite the temptation of the french toast I went for a more traditional chorizo omelette.

After that I chilled out with Sharon for most of the day and then chatted with a few friends this evening. Now I’m overdue for some sleep and I wish I could magically rewind back to Friday and enjoy this spectacular weekend again!

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