This time last year, I was fortunate enough to be living in Paris. One of my favourite things to do was to wander the streets with my friends from morning until night, enjoying everything the city had to offer. What is la joie de vivre? The French live by this motto and it translates to the joy of living, where simplicity is key. Since many of you are on exchange, and many 1Ls are thinking about...
We Conclude our Series from Last Issue Jetfuel Free of the pretension normally associated with cafes, Jetfuel thrives in its cozy Cabbagetown alcove. As soothing as minimalist decor is, it’s nice to appreciate a space with a lived-in feel and Jetfuel has that in boatloads. It’s one of Toronto’s oldest coffee shops, but also one that has a multi-faceted feel due to its deep roots in the cycling...
A Reflection In mid-November 2017, I was at my friend’s apartment in Manhattan’s East Village. The path that had brought him to that apartment at the corner of 13th and 3rd Avenues was, to my outside view, flawlessly executed. A gifted musician and instrumentalist from early childhood, he and his piano, microphone, saxophone, and guitar were inseparable. In 2013, his passion became a bona fide...
Matthew Rankin’s Comedy is the Kind for Film Festivals The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) has wrapped up and I hope some of you were able to take some time out of your busy schedules to check out a film or at least walk along King Street just to take it all in. One of the most talked about Canadian films that premiered at the festival was “The Twentieth Century” and I had a...
Jesse Eisenber’s Latest Act as a Leading Man Challenges Conventional Notions of Masculinity Writer/director Riley Stearn’s The Art of Self-Defense opens in hilarious fashion, with Casey Davies (Jesse Eisenberg) getting eviscerated by a pair of French tourists stopping for food at a nondescript diner somewhere in what is probably a flyover state. In a conversation that they think Eisenberg...
Four Books on Hong Kong My original intention was to do a follow-up piece to “A Modern China Reader”, which appeared on the back page of our January 22, 2019 issue. In that article, I recommended five books that I thought were good gateways into modern Chinese — that is, mainland Chinese — history and politics: Jonathan Spence’s The Search for Modern China (3rd ed.), Julia Lovell’s The Opium War...
A Two Part Series Living in a major city like Toronto has many perks, one of which is that coffee is never far away. If simply getting caffeinated is your jam, then there’s a plenitude of Tim Hortons or Starbucks on almost every street corner to scratch that particular itch. But if you’re a coffee aficionado who seeks out third-wave cafés that offer something other than the scorched, chocolatey...
One of my favourite throwaway bits from The Sopranos is the Michael Corleone impression that Tony enlists from Silvio to cheer him up during a card game. Ever the showman and always eager to please the boss, Silvio rises to the occasion and proclaims, “just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in” with noticeably more gusto in both his delivery and hand gestures than Al Pacino mustered in...
Dr. Joan Gilmour Where were you born, and when did you move to Toronto? I was born in St. John, New Brunswick, and we moved to Toronto when I was very young. We were part of the maritime exodus to look for work. My dad moved my family here for a job. How does the Toronto of today differ from the Toronto you arrived to? I grew up in the suburbs, so it felt very quiet. And downtown, where I live...
While Green Day may not have particularly enjoyed September, this wonderful month offers so many exciting opportunities to get out of the library and enjoy various parts of Toronto’s art and entertainment scene. Whether you like comedy, music or visual art, this month is filled with events to keep you busy! For those of you who want your funny bone tickled, “Just for Laughs 42” is coming back to...
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Capping Off Year 1 for Gimeno, 10 for New Orford Summer is usually dry season for classical music in Toronto. The performance calendar ends in June, and musicians disperse to various summer festivals. Audiences follow. Some, like Verbier, have become tourist attractions in their own right. These festivals — with the notable exception of the Proms in London — are nice for those audience members...
All the must-see films from this year’s festival It’s a pity that most of us are already in the throes of readings and thus chained to desks for the foreseeable future, because TIFF 2019 promises to be a belter. While you most likely won’t be able to attend any of the screenings, do take note of these gems and make a point of catching them upon their wider release. Pain and Glory (dir. Pedro...
The festival is going full speed ahead, and I must hurry so I don’t fall behind in telling you about the awesome documentaries to be found here. As a note, I am enjoying the improvements to accessibility in this year’s iteration of Hot Docs. Many issues I noticed last year have been improved upon. For example, some films that were compatible with Captiview did not really need it last year...
Hello, anyone there? I’m Michael McNeely, a 1L at Osgoode waiting to be Remediated, and trying to stave off boredom and other ills by acting as Obiter Dicta’s resident film critic. To this end, I am covering Toronto’s premiere documentary film festival, Hot Docs, which started today (April 26th) and concludes on May 6th. Please read on to see if any of the films I have watched pique your interest...
It’s the last few official days of class. In a few weeks from now, most of us will be free from text-books and dense readings and able to watch a little more Netflix. For those of you who love to curl in and watch some good TV, here is my recommended line up for a post-exam binge: The Fall (TV_series) This TV show features (Gillian Anderson as) Stella Gibson, a Detective Superintendent...
Whether you’re on campus during the strike, or reading this online, I can guarantee that this month will have its share of challenges, and it will be the last column that I write as your Ostrologist. Aries, The month will be filled with turmoil and strife. The disruptions around you will cause things to stir deep within your core. It will be important to hold steady ground over...
They look delicious, [but don’t] eat them. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, we are going to talk about Tide Pod memes. You’ve seen the images with Gordon Ramsay gazing upon a plate of Tide Laundry Pods exclaiming “Delicious. Finally some good F*cking Food!”, or the popular Tide Pod hot pockets as shown above. Google search “Tide Pod Memes” and you will have the lion’s share of detergent obsessed...
Some of us eat for pleasure while most eat because we have to (unless you are able to subsist on air and light like the real-life Barbie). Alas, amidst the Olympic Games hype, potential university strike and playing too many indie horror games, I am left thinking about what to eat. You see, during the tenure of law school, I have seen the advent of my eating habits go whacko. In 1L, I embraced...
Aries Now is the winter of your discontent, but that will soon melt into the spring of indifference, which will turn slowly into the summer of apathy. This roller coaster ride seems more than ¾ done by now, yet you can’t help but wonder when the next maelstrom will happen. Looking ahead seems very bleak, most likely because it is. I wish I could tell you to remain hopeful, but honestly I don’t...
To everyone in the new year, we will be bringing more predictions for 2018. Stay tuned. Aries You are rejuvenated and refreshed. Ready for another term of enduring torture. Get ready for winter sports, chilling reports, and assignments to make you shiver; but don’t worry about that too much yet. You’ve got a ton of fun lined up. I suggest you enjoy it before the oppression of work...
For anyone who heard about this last year and was desperately missing sage advice this year… Welcome to another Ostrology Column. Look for more in the coming weeks. Aries Indecision and indiscretion abounds. You find yourself wondering “why”, and then, “why not?” It is a ramshackle time of year for you. Make sure to temper your indiscretion with moderate amounts of humility...
The Law Student Filter There is a constant refrain among law students: “But I’m in law school!” You become the priority, the exception to every rule, the excuse to not go out when you’d rather stay in, to your mediocre GPA, to binge-watching Narcos because you’re “so stressed” and just “need a break.” Because law school. It’s a different world down this rabbit hole. There are things you can’t do...
The craziest fan theory you’ve heard yet: Westeros is not that different from our world. If you are a big Game of Thrones fan like I am, then you probably agree that no matter how much you love the show, you are not planning a trip to Westeros anytime soon. Firstly, because it is obviously fictional, but secondly because it is ruthless as hell and I would definitely not last a week there. The...