08 October, 2006 (Sunday) Toronto, Canada

(Picture: Clement, Laura and myself @the Jersey Giant, across from work, one evening)

Late night rationalisations
The hour is past midnight and I've just returned home from another lot of back-to-back shifts at the Hot House. It was a long day, starting at 10 and working through to close (almost 11pm). I think I had a day off this week... Wednesday perhaps? But it went by so fast with errands that I'm not sure if I can really count it.

My inner sado-masochist
Why do I do it to myself? A big question to be asking at this hour... but looking at my hourly rate this week ($9.71) against the amount of time and effort I'm putting into the place (too much - I swear I've shrunk a belt size with these stupid hours) I'm wondering if maybe I shouldn't ease back. Attempt some of those things on my list; see Toronto, get regular sleep, get a dental check-up, work options for Europe, sift through traveling photos etc etc. Exciting I know.

The HH has almost become like a second home. (Some days I don't know why I don't just bite the bullet and move my sleeping bag in there. I could sleep in the back section of the library. I'm sure nobody would mind.) I like the people there. I enjoy the madcap pace sometimes. I feel like I understand how it works. But the last few weeks it just hasn't been paying it's way. The hours are long and the rewards questionable. I need to get some balance back into things.

Learning to wait
Meanwhile I'm almost through server training. Eight shifts (4 doubles) following senior servers around and trying to run a section. I'm learning to more effectively multi-task and prioritise on the fly. Useful life skills. Sure. My tray skills are improving (yeah, you try unloading a laden tray without flipping the lot!). I've so far managed to only spill one drink on a customer (thankfully water!) and screw-up returning change to another table (they said it was fine). My plastic grin and Crocodile Dundee accent are getting a work out. It's all about the good times.

I'm going in again tomorrow to do some shadowing and I've got my test (377 questions on the menu, bar and opening hours) on Wednesday. Can't hardly wait! Maybe I should have turned on the bravado and lied about how together I feel with my serving skills when I spoke to Michael the other week. Honesty knows no timing. Should know that by now.

18 September, 2006 (Monday) Toronto, Canada

It's 11pm on a Monday night and wonder of wonders I'm not carrying heavy plates across a busy restaurant. Instead I'm here at home, enjoying some down time. (It does happen now and then.) In the world outside Winter is coming. I can feel it already - there's more of a chill in the air. Tonight it is raining. Drizzling. The air feels cleaner for it.

Anyway, at this moment I'm somewhat removed from the rain - I'm slurping my way through a styrofoam bowl of beef congee (a chinese rice porridge). I didn't feel like cooking tonight, despite having shopped yesterday, so I asked my housemate Benita (she's full of answers, from international relations to the best place to buy snow peas) for take-out recommendations. Unfortunately, by the time I got out the door most of the places were closed. I ended up at the infamous Kom Jug Yuen (think about it... pronounced Kum), looking through their take-out menu.

Kom Jug is located on Spadina, just across from where I live. The place is open late most nights, 4am over the weekend. I hear it can attract quite the crowd. It's a ramshackle little place, with a counter bearing peeling stickers and faded yellow walls decorated with cardboard posters advertising menu items "Spring Roll special $1.00##". There's a big couldron resting on a flickering gas stove in the main room, puffing clouds of steam.

As I sat and waited for my take-out I was entertained by the proprietor (at least I assume hs is), a little chinese man with a black visor who was chopping away at a duck that had moments before decorated his front window. A steady stream of local denizens passed in and out while I waited; a handful of young chinese folk who quickly ordered and left, a few weather beaten caucasians with matted beards, and one or two other randoms.

When I paid for my dinner the old man cautioned me on my bag carrying technique - too much swing spills porridge. We started to chat and after complimenting me on my fine choice of meal, inquired as to my heritage. I gave him the simple run-down and he cackled cheerfully, explaining ethnic preferences when ordering Chinese take-out: White guys like noodles and Black guys like big hunks of fried meats. He concluded by introducing himself as Ping, as in "Ping Pong". Seemed like a nice old guy. For my part, I laughed dutifully before bidding him a good night. It was still raining outside.

14 September 2006 (Thursday) Toronto, Canada

Lauren called me today. It was good to hear her voice after so long. She's back in Brisbane working as a manager of a gym or some such. Anyway, she has plans come January - she's headed to Europe and apparently we're going skiing. Skiing in the French Alps. No ifs, no buts. It has been decided. We're in. Lauren, Precious and I. Like old times. Well, like March anyway.

I sent my visa application for the UK through on Friday. Next step is to start working out my options. The resume is looking sleeker, so hopefully I'll be able to land something nice.

Meanwhile, the sale of the Jeep fiasco continues. I thought I had a buyer last week. A cheque came in the mail made out to me in $USD. But no, it was post-marked Ghana which means I'm a victim of an Internet scam.

09 September, 2006 (Saturday) Toronto - Virgin Music Festival

The Virgin Music Festival, Toronto Island. Two days of quality bands on two stages. 20,000 people. Beautiful city views. A last hurrah to summer. An outdoor extravaganza. Tickets were $60/day, or $117 (including tax) for both days. My expectations were high.

Things started falling apart when I first heard rumours that Massive Attack, the second-day headline act, had pulled out due to visa problems. Warning bells started to sound. There were sirens in the distance. But I hadn't seen Toronto Island before and I was music starved. Half-crazed from living at work the past few weeks I decided to go through and see it all.

My experience? All in all, it was probably the worst organised music festival that I've had the pleasure of attending. Perhaps I've been spoilt by my Australian experiences at the Big Day Out (1 day of musical mayhem for $150) and Homebake. Yes, Virgin was smaller, with only two stages - but there was more to it than that.

Distances: The two stages were too far from each other - ten minutes walk between stages isn't cool when you're going from act to act. I understand the need for traffic control with large groups, but it could have been handled more intelligently. Lanes could have been made or the stages could have been better situated.
Poor scheduling: Scheduling was nothing less than abysmal. Good bands overlapped (Star Sailor got robbed!). The main stage fell half an hour behind.
VIP areas: The various VIP areas (FutureShop, Nokia, Virgin VIP) seemed overdone and almost token. A covered area for customers or special ticket holders walled off from the rest of the plebs. Nice one.
Promotion: A lot of promotions, not a lot of alternative entertainment. While I got three AXE gift packs and a spin of the energiser wheel, there wasn't a lot else happening. Were they saving it for the second day?
Merchandise: Merchandising was pure amateur hour. Half the bands obviously didn't think to bring merchandise other than a few crusty EPs. Each stage had about 4 band t-shirts, most in black. Innovative.
Closing words: The Flaming Lips, the first evenings feature act, cut their set short after a huge build up. Four and a half songs in their lead singer, Wayne Coyne apologised because they had to finish up - other bands had taken too long and they were done. The band packed up. The crowd booed. It was pretty disappointing for a headling act to last 20 minutes (when they were scheduled for an hour) and then be booed off stage.
Better management would have just shifted things along as the day progressed, five minutes off this band's set, rush the setup. Event management should have expected some slippage. It happens. But it's not that hard to build a bit of flexibility in the schedule / contingency plan.

Am I done yet?
Well, here's how I felt that night:
I know it's bad when the headline act (Massive Attack) cancel 2 days before
I know it's bad when people are booing.
I know it's bad when the merchandise tent only holds 4 different t-shirt designs, all in black when there are 8 bands on the stage

Thoughts for next time
People have high expectations when they pay close to $70 (including taxes) for a ticket. They expect a full experience which justifies their expenditure. They expect it to be well planned an fun. They expect to have some options and to be able to see some great music.

The two day could have conceivably been done in one day over three stages. It could have crammed a lot more quality in there rather than trying to stretch it over two drawn-out days. The overcast weather probably discouraged quite a few punters, but putting on a poor show doesn't just affect fans, it affects reputation and branding.