Idly vanity-querying a website that was new to me, 15 years ago, I was amazed to find that my namesake (“a lusty woman”) was a prisoner at London’s Old Bailey in 1764, accused of stealing a gold ring set with diamonds from the Royal Exchange. Fortunately, she was acquitted. Unfortunately, she’d been sentenced for something …
Are there elves in Toronto? I hope so. Reading about Iceland, in preparation for a trip, I learned that a survey conducted by Professor Terry Gunnell’s team at the University of Iceland in 2007 showed that over 80% of respondents refused to deny the existence of elves (source). Love this. Gunnell provides an introduction to …
I’m excited to learn about Iceland’s sagas in advance of a trip in 2026. What are they? As Ben Myers notes in his 2008 Guardian article “The Icelandic Sagas: Europe’s Most Important Book?,” “The Sagas remain an intrinsic part of Icelanders’ identity to this day, their presence around the country unavoidable. Here is a physical …
As I read, sometimes I’ve been struck by descriptive lists (series, catalogs, rosters…) which are so delightful or impactful that I’ve started a collection (a collection of collections). As Christmas approaches, here are two evocative excerpts featuring lists of edible bounties from Ebenezer Scrooge’s encounter with the Ghost of Christmas Present in… A Christmas Carol …
The other day, a woman behind the bar at an event told me she was in television, and had played a part in the “patty wars” documentary (the what?). I’d never heard of the “patty wars,” though I knew that Jamaican patties were a Toronto thing. So tonight I watched CBC Short Docs “Patty vs. …
Yesterday I was fortunate to attend Toronto Public Library’s first AI Summit, which has inspired me set up this, my second personal website. There are so many things I’d like to explore, and this blog is meant to document and share what I’m learning. The AI Summit’s opening conversation featured Jay Alammar, Director and Engineering …