Pet peeve – email etiquette

To whom it may concern:

If you are responding to an email I have sent you, in which I have signed my name at the bottom and the email address contains my name, please note the spelling. Actually, please just note the name. Especially if you have never met me, and this is a business interaction.

My name is not Laura. My name is Robin – with an “i”, and a capitol “R”. If you can take the time to press the shift key to spell your name with a capitol when you’re signing off, I’m sure you can take the time to press the shift key when spelling my name.

Sincerely,

Robin Lorway

WorldSkills TV

Here’s a look at what I’ve been doing in Calgary this past week. I’m here until Sept.8 volunteering for WorldSkills International.

WorldSkills TV

Restaurant Review – Little Europe impresses again!

I mentioned this in my movie post, but I went back to Little Europe last week and took Shawn along with me.  I always like taking people to restaurants I love, so I was excited for him to experience the food here.

I had a lovely Honey Chicken Pecan salad, and Shawn had the Roast Chicken Sandwich with the delicious homemade “frites”.  He also had a caesar and I just settled for water on the very hot day.  When the salad first came I thought “hmm, this looks kind of small”, but once I got into it I realized it was the perfect portion.  It was filled with mandarin oranges, pecans, and chicken and I ate every last bite and felt satisfied at the end.  Shawn’s sandwich also looked delicious, but I would say his plate was lacking a bit in colour.  Maybe some red pepper slices or something on the side would have brightened it up a bit.

We finished our meal with some gelato.  Shawn is a very fussy gelato eater based on his travels all over the world, but his pistacio dessert seemed to fit the bill (so much so that he didn’t even offer me a bite….imagine!).  I opted for a grapefruit frozen yogurt because the gelato maker was raving to other customers about it, and everyone who stopped in for gelato seemed to be enjoying it.  It definitely tasted like grapefruit!  It was very yummy and so refreshing on a hot, hot day!

Last but not least, I must comment on the service.  I wish I remembered his name, but I think it started with a “V” and he was wearing a Mickey Mouse shirt.  He was so friendly, and seemed as if he just loved his job despite what a beautiful and hot day it was outside.  He was very observant, and brought additional napkins when I had used the ones provided all up.

After our meal was served, the chef came over to make sure everything was fine with our meals and he was very friendly.  I’ve rarely seen this done before, and I joked to Shawn that he must have read my blog! haha  (I don’t really think anyone reads…)

And finally, our server passed us over to the gelato guy when it was time for dessert.  He sat down with us, went over every flavour, and made it seem as if gelato was his one and only passion in life.  His energy was contagious and I couldn’t help but think his gelato was the best in the city!

So if you’re reading this, and wondering whether or not you should try this place out, just do it!

Movie #18 – The Taking of Pelham 123

The Taking of Pelham 123 – Sunday, July 5
Date : Shawn
Value : $20
Total so far: $309
Location: Dartmouth Crossing

Surprise, surprise – another raining day during this Maritime Summer.  Ah well, I guess that meant another Sunday matinee!  This time it was Shawn’s choice as we hit up Dartmouth Crossing to see Pelham 123.  I wouldn’t recommend this movie if you’re planning a trip to NY any time soon.   If it helps, I’ve been there several times and I’ve always enjoyed my rides on the MTA.

The movie stars John Travolta and Denzel Washington.  John plays the bad guy, and pretty well might I add.  And Denzel the somewhat geeky yet handsome hero of the story.  I don’t have a lot to say about the film.  It was an action packed movie and a good summer flick.  I don’t see anyone winning an Oscar for this one, but it is still worth checking out.

Movie #17 – The Hangover

The Hangover – Sunday, June 28
Date : Holly
Value : $20
Total so far: $289
Location: Bayer’s Lake

It was a rainy day – the perfect day to go see a Sunday Matinee!  Our first attempt to see the 1:00 showing failed after a “Dude, Where’s My Car?” moment from Holly.  She eventually remembered that she left it downtown the night before, and we made it for the 3:30 show.

This movie has been out for a couple weeks now, and I’ve heard a lot of people say how funny it is.  Fortunately, The Hangover did not let me down!  The casting seemed perfect – especially a newcomer to me, Zach Galifianakis.  I’ve since watched some of his stuff on FunnyOrDie.com and it is all pretty funny.

My coworker got to see this movie on the weekend and said she found it a bit lewd, but compared to some of the other comedies that have come out recently (I’m talkin’ about you Superbad) I thought it was fine.  The photos at the end were a bit extreme, but they shouldn’t ruin the whole movie.

There’s not a heck of a lot more to say about the movie without giving too much away (cameos, etc.) so I’d just recommend going to see it if you enjoy a good laugh!

Movie #1 – Slumdog Millionaire

Slumdog Millionaire – Wednesday, Jan. 7
Date : Holly
Value : $18
Total so far: $18
Location: Oxford Theatre

Thoroughly enjoyed this movie!  I saw the preview in the Fall and knew it would be something I would enjoy.  The story is of a young man in Mumbai who is a contestant on Who Wants to be a Millionaire.  He gets all the way to the last question when he is taken into questioning because they believe he has cheated somehow.  The rest of the movie goes through each question he has answered, and how events in his life allowed him to come up with the correct response.

While some of the events were sad and tragic, the feeling of the movie kept upbeat, I think because of the eternal optimism of the main character.   There was a lack of Hollywood glam, and a touch of Bollywood that made this movie unlike most in theatres today.

All in all, a good pick for my first movie!

2009 Year of Movies!

In September I found out that my sister had won a flight for two anywhere Air Canada flies in North America by entering a contest online.  I immediately went online and entered a few contests hoping that the family’s luck would continue.  In October I checked  my e-mail to find that I had won a prize!  A year’s worth of movies from Empire Theatres in the form of an All Access Pass!  Last week I received my pass, and thought it’d be a good idea to keep track of the movies I saw, the money I’m saving, and give a short review!  So that’s what this blog will be for.  Let’s see how many movies I can see in 2009!