Foxymoron

The great shark hunt is over

I should be putting together my fact-checking package but I had to pause when I learned of Hunter S. Thompson committed suicide in his Colorado home on Sunday. I've been reading The Great Shark Hunt on and off since the fall and always found him to be an intriguing character.

He's best knownn for popularizing "gonzo journalism" — a very subjective, personalized form of writing, often in a stream of consciousness style. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas is his best known work in which he documents his drug-induced adventures in the Nevada city. The book was later adapted into a feature film with Johnny Depp as Thompson.

Earlier this week, he wrote about his new sport, shotgun golf, for ESPN. Some people hate the guy, but we probably won't ever see someone like Thompson again.

(x-posted in RRJ)

Douglas Coupland's Eleanor Rigby

My friend TR gave me a copy of Douglas Coupland's latest novel, Eleanor Rigby for Christmas and I finished it last night. This is a miracle for me, the girl who hasn't completed a book for non-academic purposes since the summer. I'm still reading Miss Wyoming, another Coupland novel, which I started way back in 2003. I don't read as many books as I should, I usually vear towards magazines for "professional development" reasons, but I was immediately drawn to Eleanor Rigby's main character and voice of the novel, Liz Dunn, a 37-year-old loner/wallflower/cynic.

I've only read Generation X (in addition to two-thirds of Miss Wyoming) but I can say that I like Coupland's writing (his non-fiction work annoys me) despite some flaws. The characters, except for maybe Liz, are one-dimensional and things seem to happen too easily. But I enjoyed Eleanor Rigby for the same reasons I enjoyed Generation X. It's not so much about the plot--the ending is abrupt and predictable--but I love his observations on human character, thought and in this case, loneliness.

"I fill my days fighting a constant battle to keep my dignity. Loneliness is my curse—our species' curse—it's the gun that shoots the bullets that make us dance on a saloon floor and humiliate ourselves in front of strangers."

I secretly know exactly what she's talking about and it's these moments that make a Coupland novel worth reading. Now, back to Miss Wyoming...

Bookstores: The new "it" spot

Forget Yorkville's snobbery. The best place for celebrity sightings is the local Chapters and/or Indigo bookstore. Last month, we saw Anthony Kiedis and Tommy Lee at the Chapters at John and Richmond for their promotional book tours. This week, the Indigo at Yonge and Eglinton is hosting two of my favourite male celebrities: Kyan Douglas (Queer Eye for the Straight Guy) on Tuesday at 7 p.m., and Anthony Bourdain of the Food Network's A Cook's Tour on Friday at noon.

Bourdain is by far, my favourite Food Network personality and he's a great writer. Both his non-fiction works: Kitchen Confidential and A Cook's Tour (which the show is based on and also written about in the book) are funny, well-written, often vulgar and interesting — especially if you love worldly food like I do. Bourdain, the man, is probably an arrogant asshole that would drive me crazy in "real life," but like I wrote about Christie Blatchford, he's kind of sexy, with his smoking and fuck-this-shit attitude. Maybe it's just a persona, but it's kind of hot, y'know, for an old guy. I'm just sayin' is all.

Hunter S. Thompson is an old whore

It's ridiculously late in the game and I have a 10 a.m. presentation tomorrow morning. It's about Hunter S. Thompson, but with less than 12 hours to go I've yet to really nail down the focus. Oh well, I am enjoying the ride thus far. The man is often brilliant, despite his arrogance and neurosis. I like him. And reading The Great Shark Hunt has been a ride. The man has some lines that leave me speechless — or reeling with laughter. This is my favourite so far:

"I've always considered writing the most hateful kind of work. I suspect it's a bit like fucking, which is only fun for amateurs. Old whores don't do much giggling."

Toronto the Creative: Arts Week 2004

Once in a while, I get sent to Vtape to pick up a "deck" (that's industry speak for a VCR or DVD player). It's usually on a beautiful day and so I don't mind, especially since the Vtape offices are in my favourite building in the entire city (maybe even the world!), 401 Richmond — the home of beautiful, nice and talented people.

From the outside, it doesn't look like much. Just a converted warehouse on the southeast corner of Richmond and Spadina. But inside there are creaky hardwood floors, exposed brick, art galleries, publishing companies and other officies devoted to creative creation. Up on the roof is one of the nicest, most private places to enjoy your lunch. There are flowers and plants everywhere and a secretive place to admire the Toronto skyline.

401 Richmond is also one of the sites participating in this year's Arts Week. There will be public exhibits and other events all around the city. The official kickoff is tomorrow at Nathan Phillips Square.

Don't forget, Word on the Street is this Sunday. This year it has moved from Queen's Street to Queen's Park, (so in my opinion it should be Word in the Park). There are a number of cool events including a panel discussion titled "Hearts and Minds: The Struggle of Canada's thinking persons magazine," which will feature panelists, Ken Alexander (The Walrus), Derek Webster (Maisonneuve) and Joyce Byrne (This Magazine). I'll be there.

I will also be at the Shameless magazine booth, where they will have copies of their second issue. This issue includes a profile on Margaret Cho, done by yours truly. I admit, I'm not particularly proud of this article, but I am pretty excited for it anyway. Next time, I'll write better...

Links:
Toronto Arts Online