A full year. As all years should be. The good, the bad and the ugly, the challenges and successes, the ups and the downs.

A balanced concoction in time, a stable and comfortable base for a new year. May it be as full as the previous, with many more to follow.

As for the highlights of the past..

Traveling to places close is sometimes better than going too far. (trip to Merritton Tunnel was spookier than I thought it would be..)Trips in Ontario proved surprising, educational, extremely inspirational and un-boring.

From Camp 50 (Bowmanville), whose history I did not know before, to Kingston’s Rockwood Asylum I traveled through beautiful farmland to visit places that are not in the stereotypical travel guides, places that speak of a world and a time that is hard to imagine. Travel that is not an escape but rather a forensic discovery.

In Toronto, we’ve built a couple of lovely modern homes in Leaside.

Admired 3d printed installations exploring the social interaction themes through visually stimulating repetition – a powerful series of mini-figurines at the Toronto Image Centre.

Went to the Beaches in a magical, cold weather with a crazy looking sky.

Died my hair red for a few months …

only to realize I much prefer colours on walls than in my hair.

Was completely charmed by one of the most beautiful buildings in town, the Osgoode Hall and it’s grand library.

Designed a truly eclectic home with simplicity and complexity intertwined.

Enjoyed an exhibit by the now famous avant guarde Comme des Garcons in the Big Apple.. together with proudly admiring works by Brancusi at the MET.

The World Trade Centre memorial…more than seventeen years after I walked into the buildings standing up.. I remember even now admiring the Miro in the lobby of one of the towers…

And last… went back in time to a city close to my heart, saw it with fresh eyes and as a fresh start. Vancouver is a place that both evolved and stayed the same, a true city that sprang from water, smooth and flowing, friendly and so imperfectly flawless…