Now THAT'S a piece of meat.

A couple of days ago, Captain Awesome surprised me by taking me for an lovely, impromptu dinner at Kiwe Kitchen.

The restaurant is situated on the corner of King & Portland, about one block from my office. I pass it every day, and have often made a mental note that I need to check it out for the after-work, cocktail scene sometime.

I had been enjoying drinks with Alli & Nadine, doing our usual gossip-catch-up-fest at The Bier Market up the street, when unexpectedly the Captain came swooping in to join us. Very pleasant surprise, indeed.

After the ladies left, we decided to grab a bite. Not wanting to eat the pub-fare on offer at TBM (which is a change for us, since we always eat pub-fare if it's offered), we headed across the street to Kiwe.

It's lovely inside, dimly-lit with low ceilings. There's a very intimate feel, accentuated by the deep, double-booths tucked to the side as you walk to the back of the restaurant, where you find a slightly more open-spaced seating area. The only issue I had was the length of the table in the booth - if you're there with your own Captain Awesome, it's far too much space to enjoy an evening together. So we sat right next to each other, which proved to be just perfect.

As it turns out, I know the Executive Chef - Derek - from my University days. Thanks to him, we were lucky enough to be spoiled with some incredibly fresh, west-coast oysters as a starter.

Then came the entrées. Oh, man.

I had a perfectly cooked cut of beef tenderloin, and The Captain had a lovely veal loin. Both were stupendous, but the tenderloin was quite possibly the best piece of meat I have ever had. Hands-down. I can't even begin to describe it, other than to say that it was melt-in-my-mouth, deliciousness. Perfect temperature, perfect colour. Perfect sauce, served with perfect greens. Just. Perfection.

We had a few glasses of wine along with the meal, followed by dessert in the form of apple-cinnamon shots. Yum!

For a mid-week dinner, it was one of the best ever. And if you're ever in Toronto, I highly recommend going there and seeing for yourself.

An Ode to Captain Awesome:

"Oh the fun in coming, and all the pain in leaving." - Led Zeppelin.

HAPPY, HAPPY DAY!!

This is amazingly, happy, wonderful news.

Congratulations, Georgia and Pete. She's precious.

xoxo

Yay, me!

It's not very often that I do something I'm proud of (those of you who have seen my past attempts at "acting" will understand what I mean).

When I got back from London, I was 10 lbs heavier than I have been for the last few years. Pretty much since University, which was the only other time in my life I indulged in daily pints and fast food. Because I managed to slip back into the lifestyle, I was able to let my - ahem - physique, slip!

And heading to India - where daily I devoured devilishly cheap and deliciously rich food - didn't help the ol' waistline.

It wasn't an overtly noticeable weight gain to others, but I definitely noticed. I felt it more than saw it, actually. I had a bad case of the Beer Bloat and felt gross all the time.

I promised myself that once I got back to Toronto, I would do my best to shed the weight and get back on track with my health (Resolution #1). I've only really been successful at the gym thing once before, when I was living with Alicia. We were working in bars at night, so we'd go 4-5 times a week during the day, for 1+ hours at a time. We were also 24 years old and our bodies responded to exercise almost immediately. Now? Well....

My dad became my personal trainer, of sorts. He started running with me, bless his heart. Actually, I should probably say "bless MY heart", because I was the one struggling along at first.

The first 5 pounds fell right off, which was probably just the Beer Bloat. These last 5?....not so easy.

But! I have persevered, joined a gym, stuck to my workouts and now? The other 5 pounds? GONZO! It was hard......very hard. But man, do I feel great.

I've managed to shed the London-10 and am back to where I was! I don't necessarily want to lose anymore weight, so now its all about getting fit. So, YAY ME!!

HELP!

Seriously. Heather. I need some guidance.

Bday.

Well yesterday was my bday...and it was pretty much exactly how I wanted it to be.

I spent the afternoon shopping with Pam, then had fabulous Indian food at Nataraj Restaurant with some friends and my bro. Then finished off the night with a little karaoke. You knew that was coming, didn't you?

There were only a few pictures taken...none of which will end up on this blog. Or Facebook, for that matter. They are unflattering and embarrassing. The only two I will release were taken by my brother on his Crackberry.

I was given a "shot" of Grand Marnier by the lovely staff at the restaurant. I put "shot" in quotes because it was more like 4 shots in one small snifter. Never being one to look a gift horse in the mouth, I obliged.

Not half bad! I woke up with a slight hangover and a newfound appreciation for orange liqueur.

I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who sent me birthday wishes. I was right chuffed.

xoxo

Resolutions.

I've never been one of those people who is happy to see a year come to an end. Quite the opposite, actually. I always feel a sense of loss, on and during the few days leading up to December 31st. Never was the case more true than last night.

2008 was a great, great year. I spent most of it in London with my second family, and will always remember it fondly with a warm heart.

I have a mildly significant birthday coming up on Saturday, which I'm not particularly looking forward to (never do). Twenty-nine. The last year in my twenties. And even though I'm not looking forward to the actual day, I am really looking forward to the year. I have a feeling that I'm hitting my stride, and that the next 12 months will be just as great, great - if not better - than 2008.

2009 is wide open. And here are some of my "resolutions" for the year ahead:

• Health. Number one. Be healthy, stay healthy.
• Stay connected with friends, old and new.
• Find a creative hobby. I love watching hours and hours of The Food Network after work, but I need something to stimulate my brain.
• Get my driver's licence.
• Go out to more local music show...things. Gigs? Is that what they're called? Pretty much, just be cooler.
• Maintain this blog.
• Upload all of 30 Rock onto my wicked new ipod. Tina Fey is God.
• Stop over-analyzing everything. Especially the teeny-tiny intricacies of the male brain.
• Let go of old ghosts, once and for all. Because damn it...it's just too hard to hold on.

Someone once told me there's only, like, a 3.5% chance of a person sticking to their resolutions.

I like those odds.

Happy New Year, everyone. Love to YOUR mother.