Wet Blanket

Friday was forecast to have some rain. Around lunch-time, the sky opened up and it rained off and on for the rest of the afternoon. This weather was perfect for a nice bowl of hot Hue-style pho (bún bò Huế) at Pho Linh on College. It would have also been ideal for something indoor. Unfortunately, I had tickets to see beach volleyball at the Pan Am Games. With several billions dollar of public money spent, I wanted to actually check out some events.

So I had my first view of Pam Am Park on the Exhibition Place grounds. It was a rather sad sight to see with few people around. The beach volleyball was a little more lively with a half-full stadium. I sat through 3 preliminary matches, getting drenched now and then. All 3 were straight set wins, though given the weather, I can't complain. The players in the Puerto Rico vs Colombia wore full suits to keep warm. In contrast, the women in the Argentina/Chile match decided to ignore the weather and still played in sporty bikinis. The match between the men of Mexico against Trinidad/Tobago looked like it would end prematurely. After the 1st block, a tall T/T player fell awkwardly. For a few moments, it seemed as if he need to be carried off due to a knee injury. But he rallied after awhile. Not that it helped, as they were outclassed by the Mexican team.

I came home in a tired funk and took a long nap after dinner. I decided to venture out later in the evening and ended up at The Holy Oak near Bloor and Lansdowne. I had missed most of the music except for head-liner Nyssa. Perhaps I was in an uncharitable mood as the bartender had charged me $9.50 for an $8 drink, but I didn't love her set. I saw her once before at The Silver Dollar and really enjoyed her dramatic but morbid synth-pop. Tonight, it was more straight-forward. There are lots of local bands doing a better job on fun and cheery synth-pop.