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Monday, February 2, 2015

My Life in January: O.Noir, Potted Potter, and Dino Hunts

January was a fun month! There were several exciting events that pertained to my boyfriend and I. First up: our 4 year anniversary.

We went to O.Noir for dinner, something that I had been curious about trying out for a while now. If you don't know, O.Noir is a restaurant in Toronto (and Montreal) in which you dine in pitch blackness. No jokes. Dining in the dark is meant to heighten your remaining senses so that you can savour your meal more than you would otherwise... well, I don't know about that. But what I do know is that the experience was just plain cool.
The servers are all blind and it's a good thing too, because they have the experience needed to guide you through the restaurant and through your meal. I really love the concept of this restaurant. It gives you a feel for what it must be like to be visually impaired and the challenges that come with that. And there's a role reversal here: usually it is the sighted that lead the blind, but here we were utterly dependent on the guidance of our blind - and very kind - server.

At some point during my meal, I must have left my fork on the plate of my starter, which was then taken away by my server. When my main dish was put down in front of me I realized I no longer had my fork, but was too embarrassed to call out to my server to ask for another one. So I ate my dinner by carefully scooping up the food from my plate with my knife. LOL! I also lost my napkin at some point during the meal, so it was a bit messy... But like I say, it was definitely a very cool and fun experience!


We also went to see Potted Potter, a semi-improvised parody of all seven Harry Potter books told in seventy minutes by only two actors. It was pretty fun! It was cool to be surrounded by fellow Potter fans who understood all the Potter-ish inside jokes. We played a live game of Quidditch in the audience and my team (Slytherin) won when our Seeker, a very enthusiastic and feisty young boy, full-on TACKLED the Snitch, ensuring our victory. Definitely check this show out if it comes to a city near you!


And finally, in January we celebrated the reveal of a new ceratopsian dinosaur at our place of work at the ROM. My boyfriend is a fossil preparator at the museum and he is also featured in a new TV series on the History Channel about palaeontology in Canada. All month long, there was a live feed running on the History Channel website in which you could tune in to watch my bf work on the fossils of this new species. I spent much of my month doing just that... avoiding my own work in the process, heh. Ah well, it was a once in a lifetime event and I am quite proud of my boyfriend for being so successful in his field!


Blog Posts in January:

Waiting On Wednesday: HarperCollins Spring 2015 Catalog
Review: Waistcoats & Weaponry by Gail Carriger - 4 Stars
Review: Dreamer's Pool by Juliet Marillier - 3 Stars
Review: Alistair Grim's Odditorium by Gregory Funaro - 3.5 Stars
Review: Catalyst (Insignia #3) by S.J. Kincaid - 4 Stars
Muggle Monday: New Images from the Fully Illustrated Edition of Harry Potter
2014 End of Year Book Survey
My 2014 Bookish Stats
Thoughts on on my 4 year blogoversary
November and December Recap: Berlin and the Holidays


Best Book Read in January:
Ermahgerd!! I finally read Isla and the Happily Ever After this month and obsessively read it over the course of a few days. SO MUCH LOVE!! It's been many years since I read Anna and the French Kiss so it may be hard to say, but I think Isla may be my favourite book of the trilogy! I just adored it and I'm sad that it's over, but I can't wait to read whatever Stephanie Perkins writes next!


18 comments :

  1. Congrats on your 4-year anniversary and eating in the dark sounds like such an unique and fun experience! The Potter parody sounds like fun :)

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  2. Happy (belated) 4-year anniversary to you and the bf! Eating in the dark sounds like it could be equal parts amazing, educational and trippy all at once! I smiled at you losing your fork and napkin - sounds like something that would happen to me XD And Potted Potter sounds like a blast! I wish stuff like that came to my neck of the woods. I love how you guys played Quidditch and everything :D

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    1. Thanks, Micheline! It was pretty triply! I kept imagining that I was seeing things in front of my face, when of course I wasn't. Too bad I couldn't see my fork... Hopefully you'll get an opportunity to see Potted Potter at some point because I'm sure you would have enjoyed it!

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  3. Eeek! It sounds like you had such an amazing January sweetie :D The resturant sounds so different and pretty awesome too ;p And yay for Harry Potter thingy :D Sounds like fun. <3 And dinosaurs are always amazing ;) I hope February will be just as awesome for you Aylee. <3 Happy reading :)

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    1. I did, thank you! It was a great January so February has a lot to live up to, but hopefully it'll be just as awesome, heh :) Thanks, Carina! Dinosaurs are amazing, it's true!

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  4. Wow! What a fun way to celebrate four years. (Congrats btw!) I wish O. Noir existed here in NYC--it would get loads of customers for sure. Same with Potted Potter...I was curious, I checked their tour dates and none in NY. Le sad face v.v

    YAY MORE ISLA LOVE. I watch booktube along with reading reviews and I'm sad to see that more people didn't like Isla. But whatevs. I think what's cool about her series is that you can relate to every girl from the trio at some point. Just the other day I was feeling more partial to Lola xD

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    1. Thanks, Sandy! I'm surprised they haven't expanded yet to other cities because it's a bit gimmicky, but I'm sure it would be a hit in other cities as well!

      I know Potted Potter started out in NY and was there for a long while... so maybe that's why they haven't returned. Too bad :(

      I have heard a few reviewers mention Isla wasn't their favourite, which is surprising... I guess sometimes people get let down because of major expectations they have that aren't lived up to. Oh well, I loved it and I'm thrilled that you did too! And I def agree about the characters :)

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  5. Aw, happy anniversary! That restaurant sounds fantastic. Seriously. I love that the waiters are blind too - it's an interesting role reversal, like you said. I really need to get to Canada sometime soon!

    Congrats to your boyfriend too - that's super awesome. I would have watched it too if that was my guy. ;0)

    And Isla was totally my favorite. I think I just related to her really well. Amazing books all around though.

    Oh, and Potted Potter sounds great. I feel like it's coming somewhere near me...but a couple hours away, so I don't know if I could make it.

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    1. Thanks, Lauren! It was super cool and I bet you would have loved the restaurant! You need to come up here for sure!

      Hee, yes I'm way proud of him :D

      I think I related to Isla the most, as well. Although one of the things I love most about Stephanie Perkins' books is that there a little piece in every character of hers that I can relate to :)

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  6. Congrats on the anniversary, and your bf has such a cool job!!! :D
    I think it would freak me out to eat all, I would be too worried to make a mess.

    Potted Potter sounds really cool, I would definitely see it if it came here.

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    1. Thanks, Alex!! And yeah, I was worried that I would come out of the restaurant with food covering my face :/ Thankfully that didn't happen!

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  7. Sounds like you had an awesome month, Aylee!
    That restaurant is such a crazy concept, but also an awesome one. I wish I had one near me!
    I'll definitely have to see if I can find a Potted Potter showing nearby.
    And so cool about your boyfriend and the new dinosaur reveal.
    I hope that February treats you just as well. :)

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    1. Thanks, Amanda! I really did have a great month :) I hope you have had a wonderful month and that February is good to you, as well!

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  8. You seemed to have had a fun month! And oh my God! Potted Potter sounds so cool. I'm happy you got to experience that.

    And yay for Isla and the Happily Ever After. I only read Anna and the French Kiss and Lola and the Boy Next Door, but I do want to catch up with Isla's book soon.

    O. Noir sounds really nice. We'll definitely go there the next time I'm in Canada. Okay? And finally, that's so nice that you're proud of what your boyfriend does. Dinasaurs freak me out, but oh well... That photo looks nice! And happy anniversary to you both! Wish you lots of happiness.

    Sarika @ The Readdicts

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    1. I did, definitely! And yes, I'll have to take you out to O.Noir once you eventually come to visit me! :D:D Thanks, Sarika :)

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  9. I missed Potted Potter when it came here, but it was pretty expensive and I wasn’t sure if it would be worth it, though I think it sounds like it probably would have been! Perhaps I’ll go next time! It does sound pretty amusing, and interesting that two people re-enact the whole thing in 70 minutes! Fun!
    Sounds like you did a bunch of neat things in January! And now we’re midway through March. How is this happening?!

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    1. It was pretty pricey, true! I try my best to support live theatre though (within reason).

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