Now That's Class!

Any guesses as to what these are? I'll give you a hint. We were visiting Brother G and his wife V last night, and they were telling us about their recent trip to South Carolina to visit TC's folks who rented a condo down there this winter. While there, the MIL & FIL insisted that they visit Dolly Parton's Dixie Stampede.

At this point you're probably thinking "Oh, so these are the cheesy souvenirs from that visit." You're partly right.

Apparently, when you order wine with your dinner at the Dixie Stampede, it comes in these white, plastic cowboy boots. Which means that sometime during the design of this establishment, someone thought this would be a good idea. And enough of the people in charge agreed with them to make it happen.

The mind boggles.

Baby It's Cold Outside

Have you ever gone a little bit shack whacky? By the end of the day yesterday, TC and I decided that we'd been stuck in the apartment for long enough and needed to get out. We made plans to walk down to a little Thai place today for lunch, so that's what we did despite the extremely cold temperatures outside. As a result of this little outing, I'm thankful for 2 things:

1) That there's a Thai place nearby which is MSG-free. I don't often get to enjoy Asian food, since the majority of it contains MSG, so it was great to be able to eat at this place without having to worry that my heart was going to go haywire shortly thereafter.

Amusing side note - there was a guy in the restaurant who entertained us greatly with his continual efforts to impress both the woman with him and the waitress. My favourite part?

Guy: (Trying to impress Asian waitress with his extensive knowledge) Did you know that Thailand was named one of the best places to live? It was Bangkok, actually.

Waitress: (deadpan) Are you sure?

Guy: Uhm...well, it could have been...it was somewhere over there.

Tee hee!

2) Did I mention that it was extremely cold today? We walked to and from the restaurant, about a 25-minute endeavour each way. By the time we got home I was painfully cold, which made me realize how thankful I was for a warm apartment to come home to where I could put on warm, fuzzy clothes and make a nice hot cup of tea while I waited for the feeling to come back in my fingers. My heart goes out to the people who I know will be out on the streets tonight.

Weekend of Wonderful-ness :)

I had the most wonderful weekend! In fact, it was almost perfect. I got up nice and early on Saturday and headed out to our local farmer's market, where I chatted with the vendors and did some leisurely shopping before it got too crowded. The weather was perfect for it - sunny and warm with a nice fresh morning breeze - and I came home with two bags full of goodies, which included...

...blueberries that had been picked the day before, local Ontario cherries, organic sweet potatoes (and a couple of 'Oh Henry' potatoes that the vendor threw in because he thought I'd like them - I love markets!), fresh peas in the pod that I shelled when I got home, a dozen organic duck eggs, and a head of crisp leaf-y lettuce. My favourite purchase of the morning, though, was this:

A bouquet of fresh lavendar. It's now in my living room, and I spent all weekend sniffing it's lovely fragrance. It may eventually end up in some soap, but I haven't decided on that yet. For now I'm enjoying it right where it is :)

Once I'd come home and put all of my market finds away, I ran out to pick up the other groceries we'd need for this week, and started on the many loads of laundry that have been piling up because we'd been busy the past couple of weekends. By that time, it had clouded over and become ominously dark, and just after I had brought up the first load of dry clothes, the skies opened up in a torrential downpour that lasted all afternoon and most of the evening.

Have I mentioned before that I absolutely love rainstorms? I especially love them on days when all I'm doing is puttering around the house. It was perfect! I had some rolls in the oven, and a chicken ready to go in once the rolls were done, which made the house smell divinely comfortable. And between running downstairs to shift loads of laundry, I sat out on the sun-porch in my big comfy obesan chair, wrapped in an afghan and reading a good book while listening to the wind and rain. Heaven!

After supper, which included the aforementioned chicken and rolls, as well as the newly shelled peas and sweet potatoes, TC and I played a few rounds of Carcassonne. He'd found the game, with all of its pieces, at a local thrift store earlier last week for $1, and it has turned out to be one of our favourite games.

Sunday, we were off to church and lunch with friends, and then in the afternoon, while it continued to rain, I made these cookies with the left-over sweet potatoes. They're super yummy, so I have to share the recipe with all of you :)

Sweet Potato Cookies

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 1/4 cups brown sugar, packed
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup mashed sweet potato (you can also use canned pumpkin puree if that's
what you have on hand)
2 cups flour
4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cloves
1/4 tsp ginger
1 - 1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

Cream together the butter and sugar. Add the eggs one at a time until well blended. Mix in the vanilla and sweet potato. Combine the remaining ingredients and add to the wet mixture. Drop by tablespoonful onto greased or parchment paper-lined cookie sheets, and bake for 15 minutes at 375 degrees.

I also spent quite a bit of time playing my piano and working on an afghan that is going to be absolutely gorgeous when it's done - I'm not going to post any pictures of it until then, which shouldn't take too awfully long, since I'm already about 1/6th of the way there.

All in all, it was an ideal weekend, and now it's Monday and I'm feeling wonderfully rested and refreshed :)

Yummy Recipe Alert!

My folks have been up visiting this week, and it's been great! Mum flew up on Tuesday night, and then my dad, because he's a crazy person, drove the 1492 km (he counted) and arrived Wednesday night. Just in time for a heat wave and a garbage strike :)

I love it when they come visit, which doesn't happen nearly often enough. If you've been reading this blog for very long, you know that one of the things that bothers me most about living in Toronto is that my family is so very far away, so it means so much to be able to share this little bit of life with them. Unfortunately I couldn't take any time off work, for various reasons, but I have been able to leave early each day, and then there's the weekend to look forward to.

Yesterday when I came home after work, I discovered these on the kitchen counter:

One major benefit of having Mum come to visit! These are rhubarb biscuits, and they're the yummiest thing I've had in quite a while. And because she's a sweetie, Mum gave me the recipe :)

Mum's Rhubarb Biscuits

Biscuit:
2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup milk
butter

In a large bowl, mix flour, baking powder and salt. Cut in shortening until it's about the size of small peas. Stir in the milk, and then roll the dough out into a roughly rectangular shape (approx. 12" long). Spread entire surface with butter, being sure to get the edges too.

Filling:
3 cups rhubarb, very finely chopped
3/4 cup white sugar
3 Tbsp. flour

Combine the rhubarb, sugar and flour in a bowl. Sprinkle mixture over biscuit, and roll it up. Using a sharp knife, cut it into 1" thick slices and place in a 9x13" pan.

Sauce:
1 cup brown sugar
2 cups boiling water

Stir sugar and water together until dissolved, and then pour it over the pan of biscuits. Bake at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

Happy Weekend!

Yay - it's summer!

What a lovely weekend! It was the first one that has felt like a summer weekend, which is my favourite kind :) We were able to get outside and enjoy the warm sunshine, attend a friend's baptism, as well the birthday party for our little friend H who turns 2 today, and still manage to get some stuff done around the house.

One of the first things we did was to give TC a haircut. We recently purchased a razor for $30 so that I can cut his hair at home rather than having him go to the hairdresser every 3 weeks. The end result:

Not too bad for a first attempt, I think (though he doesn't really look all that enthused about it, does he?). We have determined that next time I'll leave it longer on the top, and I need to go a little easier around the ears, but all in all we were very pleased. And in two more cuts, we'll have paid for the razor :)

I also made some yummy apple-cinnamon muffins. I'd post the recipe, but I don't have it with me right now. It's from this book, though, which I have mixed feelings about recommending. It supposedly has 250 muffin recipes, but I've noticed that some of the recipes are actually identical. For example, there are 2 banana chocolate chip muffin recipes - one called Banana Chocolate Chip, and the other Chocolate Chip and Banana. The difference in the recipes? One uses metric measurements and the other imperial. All of the recipes that I've tried from the book have been very good, but I don't like to support that kind of sneakiness.

On Saturday morning, we went for a walk and came home with this little guy from our local florist. I have no idea what he is, but isn't he adorable? I wanted a little plant to have on my desk at work, but needed something that doesn't require a whole lot of sunlight, so the florist recommended him. I'm really hoping I manage not to kill him.

We also picked up this hanging geranium, at TC's request, to put in our sunporch. I love the bright, cheery red - geraniums are such happy looking flowers, don't you think?

Last but not least, we stopped at our local hardware store to pick up some magnetic tape so that I could finish making these fridge magnets. Aren't they cute? They're a birthday gift for my future sister-in-law, and since she lives in a different province I had the extra challenge of finding a gift that met my gift-giving resolution requirements and could be sent through the mail. These fit the bill rather nicely, I think :)

That's pretty much the weekend in review. I'm hoping to get the rest of our France pics up this week, but my land we took a lot of pictures in Paris! I don't want to subject you to 30 pictures of Notre Dame from every possible angle, so it's taking me a little while to sort through and select the highlights. They'll be coming soon!

My head thinks it's 2am...

Whew - still dealing with the jetlag. I left work a little early today because I couldn't put complete sentences together or remember the names of people I work with every day. Sigh. On a brighter note, I've downloaded (uploaded?) the pictures from the camera and can start posting them for you to see. There are over 400 of them, so strap in! Just kidding - we'll stick to the highlights :)

Here are a couple of teasers:

This was a snack we had at a little cafe next to the Seine on our last night in Paris - citron fruit pressé, which is essentially make your own lemonade, and crème brûlée. According to TC, I now need to learn how to make it. I am more than willing to try. Anyone have a good recipe?

Alli, I took this pic for you! We were walking through the Île de la Cité the same night, and I spotted a shop that sold nothing but the most beautiful orchids. Unfortunately the lighting is a little off (taking pictures through a shop window at night is kind of tricky), and since we were leaving the next morning we couldn't go back to see it in the daytime. But the orchids were lovely!

HIvje' vo' Quch

Whew! The week is finally over, and the work situation is now somewhat under control - at least enough so that I can relax and enjoy the weekend :) Why is it that crazy days always seem to wait until I'm overtired to hit? Come to think of it, there's probably a correlation there. Anyhoo, it's my own fault that I'm so tired. A friend of mine hosts a games night every Thursday, and it's always a ton of fun, so I'm usually pretty wired by the time I get home which is late enough to begin with.

They're a fun crowd, and quite unique. Last night the conversation (between myself and 3 guys) ranged from an upcoming "Klingon-meets-Batman" costume party, to an art installation/performance recently enacted in Manchester, to the supreme mediocre-ness of the Leafs, to a rather well-informed discussion of different sorts of tea. I love it! One of them showed us this video, and since it tickled my fancy I thought I'd share it with you. Have a great weekend folks!

Food Week - Dessert

Sorry I missed yesterday's Food Week theme - it was supposed to be a vegetarian dish, and I would have posted one but things at work just exploded (figuratively speaking), so I didn't have time. And I don't really have much time today, but being the absolute dessert-lover that I am, I have to share this one with you all :) It's my new favourite, because it makes me think of spring and sunshine and picnics and meadows - and it can be made all year round!

Strawberry-Rhubarb Crisp

Filling:
4 cups rhubarb pieces (fresh or frozen)
2 cups strawberries (fresh or frozen)
2 Tbsp. cornstarch (if using frozen fruit, add an extra tablespoon or so)
1/2 cup sugar (this leaves it pretty tart, so you can add more)

Topping:
1-1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1-1/2 tsp. orange zest
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 cup cold butter

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Mix the rhubarb and strawberries in a 7-1/2" x 11" baking dish (or whatever approx. size you have on hand). Add cornstarch and sugar; mix well.

In a medium sized bowl, mix together the flour, brown sugar, orange zest and nutmeg. Using a pastry knife, cut the cold butter into the flour mixture until it's crumbly.

Sprinkle the topping over the fruit mixture. Bake for 35 minutes, or until the filling is bubbling and the top is golden brown. If you're using frozen fruit, it can take up to an hour - you just have to keep an eye on it.

Serve with ice cream - bon appetit!

[You can find links to all the other participants' recipes here.]

Food Week - Supper (or is it Dinner?)

I have to say, I'm loving Food Week so far! People are posting such yummy recipes. Thanks for hosting this, Sherrie :)

Today's recipe is supposed to be for supper, so I thought I'd post the recipe for the pasta dish that I made last night. It's relatively new to me, but it's already becoming one of our favourites. Oddly enough, the recipe was created by Colin Mochrie, who apparently likes to cook. It's super easy (less than half an hour from start to finish), and impressive-looking enough to serve as a company dinner :) Anyhoo, here's my version of it:

Chicken & Leek Linguini (or whatever pasta you have on hand - I used fusilli this time)

4 tablespoons olive oil
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 tablespoons butter
3 large leeks (white and pale green parts only), thinly sliced
4 garlic cloves, minced (you can use more or less, depending on how much you like garlic)
1 big can of diced tomatoes, with juices
1-2 tablespoons of Italian seasoning
1 pound linguini, freshly cooked
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
Fresh basil, chopped

Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken to skillet and saute until just cooked through, about 3minutes per side. Cool slightly. Thinly slice chicken crosswise and set aside.

Melt the butter and remaining olive oil in same skillet over medium-low heat. Add leeks and garlic and saute until leeks are very tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in tomatoes, chicken and Italian seasoning. Cook until mixture is just heated through, about 2 minutes. Just before you're ready to serve, stir in the Parmesan cheese.

Serve chicken mixture over the cooked pasta, and sprinkle with basil.

Food Week - Lunch

Today's theme for food week is lunch, and my apologies to anyone who reads this blog regularly - this post is going to be a repeat for you. One of my favourite things to eat at lunch is soup. It packs well, and keeps me full until supper, so I've chosen my all-time favourite soup recipe to share with you (I know the picture doesn't show it, but there are actually veggies in this soup. They're just all at the bottom for some reason.):

Curry Chicken Soup

1 Tbsp olive oil
1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored and chopped
1 small onion, chopped
1 large carrot, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp. flour
1 Tbsp. curry powder
1 tsp. cumin
5 cups chicken broth
1 tomato, chopped
1 large potato, peeled and chopped
1 lb pre-cooked chicken, shredded

Saute the apple, onion, carrot & garlic in oil for 5-6 minutes. Mix flour, curry & cumin in a small bowl and add to vegetable mix. Cook 2 minutes more, stirring constantly. Stir in the broth, tomato & potato, bringing it to a boil. Lower the heat and cook at a gentle simmer for 20-30 minutes. Add the chicken and heat 5 minutes or so. Season with salt & pepper.

[You can see the list of other participants in Food Week here. So far the recipes have all looked scrumptious, so check them out people!]

Food Week - Breakfast

It's day one of Food Week, which Sherrie G is hosting and I'm super-excited about participating in. Every day this week I'll be posting one of my favourite recipes that matches the category chosen by Sherrie, as will the other participants - so tune in for some yumminess this week!

Today's category is breakfast, and my absolute favourite thing to make for breakfast is my grandmother's biscuits. It's a super simple recipe, and takes less than half an hour to whip up. Here it is:

Grammy B's Biscuits

3 cups flour (I often do a mix of 1 cup whole wheat, 2 cups white flour)
2 Tbsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
3 tsp. cream of tartar (scant)
1 tsp. baking soda (scant)
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 cup shortening
1-1/2 cups milk (scant)

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. In a large bowl, mix together all the dry ingredients. Cut in the shortening with a pastry knife until crumbly. Gradually add the milk, trying not to overmix the dough, until everything has pulled together (you probably won't need the full amount of milk). Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and pat down to an approx. 1" width. Cut out in whatever shape/size you desire (I use a small juice glass). Place on a baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown.

Sick Day

It's definitely a winter scene out our front window today, and rather appropriately, I've finally managed to catch this cold/flu bug that's been going around for the past month or so, despite my vigilant hand washing and vitamin taking. It's a doozy too - I'm so tired that all I want to do is lay on the couch, but my sinuses feel like they're going to explode if I sit still for too long, so I'm compelled to be up and about.

Also, I miss the days when I could just stay home and not worry about work, but alas that is no longer the case, so I brought my computer with me when I came home early yesterday and worked from here today. Do you like my home office?

It's a lot easier being sick at home, though, even if I have to work. I made myself a yummy lunch - curry chicken soup, chocolate chip cookies, tortilla crisps with hummus, mmm... And of course my constant companion at the moment - tissue. Isn't the little flower cute? TC bought it for me last week when I was having a rotten day. He's so sweet! Anyhoo, the soup I made is absolutely wonderful for anyone with a cold. It's chock full of flavour, vitamin C and all kinds of chicken soupy goodness. Here's the recipe:

1 Tbsp olive oil
1 Granny Smith apple: peeled, cored and chopped
1 small onion, chopped
1 large carrot, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp. flour
1 Tbsp. curry powder
1 tsp. cumin
5 cups chicken broth
1 tomato, chopped
1 large potato, peeled and chopped
1 lb pre-cooked chicken, shredded

Saute the apple, onion, carrot & garlic in oil for 5-6 minutes. Mix flour, curry & cumin in a small bowl and add to vegetable mix. Cook 2 minutes more, stirring constantly. Stir in the broth, tomato & potato, bringing it to a boil. Lower the heat and cook at a gentle simmer for 20-30 minutes. Add the chicken and heat 5 minutes or so. Season with salt & pepper.

I've also managed to fit in some time at the piano, working on a new song that I'm finding rather challenging but fun. I'm sure TC and the neighbours are sick of hearing it by now - I need to get ahold of some headphones :)

Ugh, I've been sitting still for too long - my head feels like it's going to pop. Cheers.

Comfort Foods

It's Comfort Week over at Sherrie's blog, and today's post is supposed to be about our favourite comfort foods. That turned out to be a perfect topic, since it's a cold, snowy January day, and after the long commute home comfort food was exactly what I needed. Something nice, simple, uncomplicated and easy. What did I make?

A great big, steaming bowl of creamy tomato soup, which I love to fill with crunched up crackers. And for dessert...

...a nice, hot cup of tea and some Toffifee. The comfort factor of tea should go without saying, but the Toffifee is a special treat. For as long as I can remember, my brother and I have always received a package of Toffifee from my grandparents for Christmas. It's become a tradition now, so I'm always reminded of my grammy and grampy whenever I eat a Toffifee. Plus, they have chocolate in them :)

Highs and Lows...

We're back! It was a doozy of a trip, involving a cancelled flight, an overnight stay in the Montreal airport, hurricane force winds, 2 days without power, visiting with as many of our family and friends as we could manage, eating way too much food, and just generally having a wonderful time :)

What was the highlight of our trip? The incredible opportunities to watch and interact with nature. There's a spot not too far from TC's parents where a flock of chickadees live who are so tame that they will come and eat out of your hand. All you need to do is stand still with your hand extended (filled with bird feed, of course) and all of a sudden you feel a little grip on your finger and there's the cutest little bird watching you out of the corner of its eye as it gulps down a seed or two before flitting off to the bushes. The wildlife was a little larger but no less amazing at my parents' place, where they're visited by four or five deer every day - sometimes close enough that you could reach your arm through the window and touch them (though they'd never allow you close enough to do it). They're such beautiful creatures.

And the lowlight? Definitely the innumerable amount of comments from the MIL and FIL about their lack of grandchildren. Seriously, I'm hard-pressed to think of a two hour stretch in which some type of comment wasn't made - even if we were in the company of other people. Actually, now that I think about it, especially if we were in the company of other people! "And I told Mildred that if I had a granddaughter *meaningful glance in my direction* I'd have bought her that little dress...", "We'd like to have grandkids while we're still young enough to enjoy them...", "Well if you'd just forget about the pyjamas at night, it might help things along..." - this one was said while at a church pot-luck. I wish I was kidding, but I'm not. The MIL's last words to her son before he left for another year were "Keep making those babies." Nice.

But we're home now, and starting to get back into the swing of things. I've even come up with my goals for 2009, but I'm saving them for another post...

Resolution Recap - part 3

Resolution #3: Fun - I want to cross one of the things off of my 'to-do-before-I-die' list this year, whether it's going on a ride in a hot-air balloon, having a glass of wine at an outdoor cafe in Paris, or one of the many other things on the list.

Check. One of the things that I had on my list was to have a spa day, and back in March, thanks to my wonderful hubby, I did. It was a lot of fun, but I won't go into great detail because I already did that here.

I also had a great deal of fun visiting with our friends JP & KP this weekend. They came to Toronto for a conference at which JP was presenting and stayed with us. We managed somehow to get a lot accomplished and yet still have a blast :) On Saturday, while JP was at his conference and TC was at school, KP and I got groceries, made brownies, baked bread, roasted a chicken, and made a batch of grapefruit-scented soap with calendula petals (so pretty) all before the boys came home. Very domestic, non? Then we played some games and watched a couple of episodes from the BBC's Planet Earth series, an early Christmas present for TC. Oh. My. Goodness. What an amazing series. If you ever have the opportunity, it's definitely worth checking out.

Also worth checking out - the sermon that our teaching pastor gave this Sunday. I don't normally make unsolicited recommendations in this area, but if you're anything like me, every Christmas season you experience a lot of guilt and/or confusion about the best way to celebrate the season. Our church is dedicating the next few weeks to a series called Don't Drink the Kool-Aid: Exposing the Lies Our Culture Tells Us, and yesterday's lesson was entitled "Lie #1: Christmas is for Giving." I found it really helpful, since the point wasn't to condemn people for how they celebrate Christmas, but to make us aware of the different aspects at work in the process and the choices that we have. You can listen to it online here or download the podcast here.

Three things...

We had a rather nice treat last night, with a visit from our friends Nick & Maureen who are in town for a while. They came for dinner, and over the course of the evening I was struck by three different things.

The first thing: I was reminded of how important it is to always, always, always read the entire recipe when planning to make a dish. That way you won't realize after you start making said dish that it is going to need to simmer for an hour before you can finish making it. Causing dinner to be late. Very late. And then because you won't be feeling rushed, you won't forget to put some of the ingredients in. Causing dinner to be edible, but rather monochromatic. (It was a beef stew, and I forgot to add the green veggies, so everything was red and orange.)

The second thing: I am turning into my grandmother. Whenever anyone visits my grandmother, she will not allow them to leave her house empty-handed. It may be cookies, it may be a side of beef, or a set of decorative tins, but you will be taking something with you when you leave. TC pointed out last night that I do the exact same thing. Poor Nick & Maureen - I wouldn't let them leave last night without taking some grape jam and 2 kinds of soap. At least it wasn't decorative tins :)

The third thing: I'm not quite sure yet how to articulate this one, so please bear with me if I seem to be rambling - there is a point, I promise :) I've known Nick & Maureen since my earliest university days. Maureen I knew sort of in passing - it was a small university, so everyone knew everyone, but we travelled in different circles. Nick was someone that I hung out with on a regular basis, so we became good friends. Life happened, as it usually does, and I didn't see either of them for several years.

Then a couple of years ago, we reconnected through facebook. I learned that they had a blog and became a regular visitor, which has helped me to know Maureen quite a bit better, since she does most of the blogging over there. We also share an enjoyment of tea stores and yarn crafts (though she's a knitter and I'm a crocheter - for the uninitiated, that's sort of like being a Capulet and a Montague), and discovered that we're both part of the online community at Ravelry. Then when I started this blog, Nick & Maureen were some of its first readers and commenters. So when they came to visit last night, it didn't feel to me like we hadn't seen each other in years, although in reality it had been years. Instead, while it was a treat to be able to be with them in person, it was more like we were continuing a conversation that had already been taking place.

It became clear at a couple of points during the evening, though, that this was not the case for TC. As you may or may not have guessed by this point, my husband is a bit of a Luddite, at least in some respects. We do not own a cell phone, and although he's comfortable using email, TC does not and will not participate in any other form of online communication. He does read this blog, and will read entries from the blogs of people we know if I bring them up and put them in front of him and tell him he should read them, but that's about it. And to be completely honest, he's not entirely comfortable with the extent of my own participation in the online world, though he's always supportive. So for him, it wasn't just the first time he'd seen Nick & Maureen in years, it was the first time he'd interacted with them at all in years. And if he wasn't married to me, he would have gone on in that sad Nick & Maureen-less state for who knows how long!

I'm not saying that online communities should or can replace face-to-face interactions with people. There's something important about physical presence in any kind of relationship - that's why it was such a treat to actually spend time with Nick & Maureen. But at the same time, I guess I was struck last night by how friendships that might otherwise never have been possible can be started, renewed and/or maintained through the medium of the internet. It's really a rather amazing thing, when you think about it. Which I did. Until way too late last night. Which is probably why this such a rambling post. Sorry.

It's my treat

One Friday every month, I give myself a little treat. It started back when I hurt my neck and began seeing a chiropractor - the wonderful woman who keeps me aligned and pain-free. Initially I was seeing her every other week as she worked out the immediate issue in my neck, as well as the other issues in my back that were the root causes. Now I see her once a month just to check on things and make whatever small adjustments are needed. It has really worked, too. I used to get these kinks in my back every couple of months or so, but since I've been going to Dr. F, it hasn't happened once. It's amazing - but I digress...

My appointments, like the one I had today, are always very early on Friday mornings. No stores are open, except coffee shops and convenience stores, and a little breakfast place that's about a 15 minute walk away. Every month, after my appointment, that's where I go to sit and enjoy a leisurely breakfast while I read a book that I've brought with me. It's a lovely, quiet time, away from home and work and the sundry pressures of life. I eat my breakfast, drink 2 or 3 cups of tea, read my book, and thoroughly enjoy every moment. It's my treat to me.

What are some things that you do to treat yourself?

Taking Stock

Well, it's officially the last day of September - time to take stock of the 2 goals I had set for myself this month.

1) I am going to start attending yoga classes once a week at the studio down the street.

Okay, this didn't go exactly as planned. It's hard to motivate myself to join something like this on my own, and no one else I know was interested in joining with me, so I took a different path. At the beginning of the month I purchased a DVD with five 25-minute yoga workouts designed to be done in the morning. Then for the first 2 weeks, I did one every other morning, changing it up on the weekends with one of my other workout videos. For the last 2 weeks...let's just say that sleep has been winning out over yoga. On the plus side, though, I've been doing a lot more walking, so I'm hoping it all balances out :)

2) I am going to cut out any and all desserts for the month of September to break the habit of needing something sweet after a meal.

I'm so proud of myself! For this entire month I haven't had a single dessert. I have had some sweets (2 pieces of birthday cake, 2 pieces of 'congratulations on your promotion' cake, 1 piece of 'congratulations on your engagement' cake and 4 of J's brownies, because they're J's brownies), but none of them were for dessert. I couldn't help but laugh at the fact that we had 4 cakes at work this month, when we're normally lucky to have one every other month or so. What are the odds? Now the challenge is going to be keeping myself from gorging on chocolate...mmm, chocolate...

Warning: May Contain Traces of Ranting

Scene: A popular pizza chain. Standing behind the counter is a uniformed adolescent food service worker. A managerial type in shirt and tie can be seen milling around in the back of the kitchen.

[Enter TC.

Worker: Can I help you?

TC: Yeah, I'd like to get a large BBQ chicken pizza, but I need to know first whether it has any MSG in it - that's short for monosodium glutamate.

Worker: I don't know.

TC: Could you please check? My wife is very allergic to it.

Worker: Just a sec...

[Worker walks to rear of kitchen and confers with Manager.

Manager: [hollering from back of kitchen] No, no...there's no MSG in anything. Chinese food is the only thing that has MSG in it.

TC: Not really - MSG is actually in a lot of stuff, like some sauces and processed meats.

Manager: [still hollering from back of kitchen] Oh, yeah, well there's MSG in everything. You can't avoid it.

TC: [getting slightly frustrated] That's not true - your pizza sauce is MSG free, but I'm not sure about the BBQ sauce. Could you please check the ingredients?

Worker: [reading something - presumably an ingredients list] I don't think there's any.

TC: Fine. I'll take one to go.


End scene.

***********************************

Any guesses as to whether or not I ate any of this pizza? It happened a little while ago, but I couldn't help remembering this incident yesterday as I read an article about kids being bullied with their food allergies at school. Remember that Simpsons episode where Bart discovers that Principal Seymour is allergic to peanuts and threatens him with a peanut on a stick to make him do what Bart says? Not so funny when it happens in real life.

Part of the reason behind the bullying, according to the article, was that many people who don't have food allergies just don't understand the severity of it all. To them, it seems that those with allergies are just being picky or trying to get attention. I've run into this attitude more than once, and it never ceases to make me angry.

And it's not just food allergies. I've been blessed (I think?) to have a family that has allergies, so they understand when I tell them that I'm reacting to their perfumes, etc. when I'm there and they try to make reasonable accommodations. But I know someone who developed allergies to dust and pet dander in adulthood, and whenever they visit their family, they immediately start having an allergic reaction to the carpets filled with the offending allergens. And their family's response? You're not really allergic to it - you're making it up - it's all in your head.

Making it up?

I wish that there were some way to make it possible for every allergy-free person to be given a food allergy and/or an environmental allergy for a week. Nothing life threatening - just something that would make them miserable and help them understand what it's like to live with allergies. Then we might see a little less of this ridiculous attitude of blaming the allergic for their allergies.

Testing my resolve...

Remember how I've sworn off sweets for the month of September? I'm happy to report that things are going relatively well in that department. I've only made 2 exceptions to my sugary embargo - one for a piece of birthday cake (I didn't want to be rude), and one for the best brownies on the face of the earth. Seriously, people, you need to try these brownies. My friend J makes them, and I knew that she would be bringing them to home church on Wednesday, so I told myself that I was allowed to have some. After all, I'm only human!

What I didn't realize was that she would leave the leftovers for our home church hosts, who also host a games night every Thursday that I usually attend. And what were the snacks for games night? J's brownies. Who had to sit and watch everybody else rave over them while not being able to eat any? You guessed it - me!

On the plus side, J did give me her brownie recipe, and since I can't make them until October 1 (can you guess what I'll be doing that day?) you'll have to try them yourselves on my behalf. Here's the recipe - it's very simple, but oh so delicious!

J's Brownies

4 rows of President’s Choice extra dark or bittersweet chocolate from a 300 g bar
¾ c butter
2 c white sugar
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 c all-purpose flour

Line a glass 9” x 13” pan with parchment paper. Heat oven to 350. Microwave chocolate and butter in large, dry, microwaveable bowl in 30 second increments. Stir in between. Repeat until chocolate is completely melted.Stir sugar into melted chocolate until well blended. Stir in fork-scrambled eggs and vanilla until completely mixed. Mix in flour until well blended. Pour into pan.Bake until cake tester comes out clean (25-30 minutes). Allow to cool completely. Loosen edges, pull on parchment paper to lift brownies out of pan and onto cutting surface.

Bon appetit!