Favourite Scents

Goodbye January - ACEO art by Christine

Wow, we are at the end of January already!  It's a good thing as winter advances along.  I was at the mall earlier this week, the morning before a big winter storm hit.  Bath and Body Works had a sale on liquid soaps.  A woman was there with her small granddaughter.  I thought it was sweet how she had the little girl sniff the scents and choose the soaps she liked the smell of.  They asked me what one of the ones I had selected was.  It turns out it was eucalyptus something.  They weren't interested in that one as the little granddaughter did not like the smell of eucalyptus.  It was kind of like an educational field trip wasn't it?  The little girl was learning to choose her favourite liquid soaps by smell.  What fun with grandma!

Winterlicious 2019

drunken duck wing appetizer

Chicken Schnitzel with mashed potatoes and vegetables

It is that time of year again when Toronto has a Winterlicious restaurant promotion in the city. Various restaurants offer prix fixe promotions at what must be a slow time of year. We went to the Bier Markt restaurant with some good friends and had a good time. We enjoyed the food, it was busy and quite noisy there that night. I tried their drunken duck wing appetizer, the wings were flavourful and tender. My main course was the chicken schnitzel with mashed potatoes and vegetables.  The restaurant has an extensive beer menu for the beer enthusiast.

Senior Cat

Kathy has a cat who is getting on in years, he had trouble getting up on the couch due to arthritis.  She had a novel solution in getting a baby step stool to help him.  Click this link to see Kathy's photo.

We pulled out the snowblower on the weekend as we had a lot of snow.  Sometimes it is better to do that than stressing our backs shovelling as we often like to do.  Parts of the world are suffering intense heat waves, it sounds just as uncomfortable.  At least it has been sunny, with cold and crisp air here.

On Manuka honey

winter scene - art by Christine

A friend told husband M about Manuka honey from New Zealand.  He is always interested in any good product which may help with his health issues.  We did some research and found an informative link about it.

'Surprisingly, hydrogen peroxide is one of the components of honey. This is what gives honey that antibiotic quality. This is also found mainly in manuka honey. This is because a compound called dihydroxyacetone is found in the nectar from the flowers of the manuka plant. Besides hydrogen peroxide, manuka honey will have MG—methylglyoxal. Other honeys will have only traces of MG.  '

Some benefits of Manuka honey are that it heals wounds (when applied on the skin), it  aids in treating high cholesterol, inflammation, and gastrointestinal issues.

UMF is the Unique Manuka Factor which measures the potency of Manuka honey.  Here are 5 recommended brands with a UMF 12+ rating, be sure it says 'Made in New Zealand'.  (I noticed the Comvita brand that Costco sells has only a 5+ UMF rating.)

1) Comvita

2) Kiva

3) Manuka Health

4) Wild Cape

5) Bee's Inn

We might get this monofloral (not a blend) Wedderspoon brand from Whole Foods, they sell 500g for $47.  M's plan is to take 1/2 teaspoon with tea once or twice a day.

Have you heard about Manuka honey?

Uncured meats

'cured meat' art by Christine

I recently heard of uncured pepperoni pizzas.  It made me curious to know the difference between cured and uncured meats.  This link explains it well.  Uncured meats use naturally occurring agents such as celery powder which naturally transforms into nitrites. If nitrites are not added, meat is considered uncured.  Uncured meat has a paler colour.  People with allergies to nitrites may want to try uncured meats.  The meat must be preserved in some way to avoid spoiling.  The debate is whether it is any healthier. 

Have you tried uncured meats, I haven't yet.

Jose Jose Jose

Martha posted this on her blog the other day, hilarious!

Husband M took the Go Train downtown a few weeks ago.  At the next stop he heard someone shouting 'Jose!  Jose! Jose!'  Jose heard his name and turned around.  He had just boarded the train.  The woman (his wife?) shouted 'you have the car keys!'  Fortunately he was able to dig into his pockets to retrieve the keys and threw them onto the pavement outside just before the train doors closed.  M saw her retrieve the keys and put her hands to her chest in relief.

Paint Party Friday - Jewelry Box Makeover

Welcome to Eva and Kristin's Paint Party Friday! I have a jewelry box makeover for you today. Daughter L had painted this craft jewelry box when she was a little girl. I decided to give it a more adult makeover as pictured below.

Great fruit for diabetics

I bought this Pomelo citrus fruit at the grocery store for when I saw this man buying one. He said they are good if they are a sweet batch which he was hoping it was. Luckily it was sweet and delicious.

Pomelo is a natural non hybrid fruit native to south and southeast Asia, one of the original citrus species from which cultivated citrus came.

Reading about the nutrition, I discovered it is a great fruit for diabetics!  This link says  'Pomelo helps reduce the secretion of insulin, which in turn dampens the appetite to eat.'

Unfortunately it conflicts with some blood pressure medications, along with grapefruit, such as the one I am on.

Scribble Picnic - My Place

Welcome to Michael's Scribble Picnic,  the theme is 'My Place'.  I decided to do a greeting card in acrylic (4 1/4" x 5 1/2").  It features Ontario Place in Toronto, an old waterpark built in the 70's on 3 artificial islands.  My young family at the time spent many wonderful times there, the kids even went there on school trips or with their friends.

 One memory is when my daughter who was on a school trip forgot her favourite swimsuit in a washroom and my husband drove all the way downtown to fetch it the next day.  It was still there on a hook in the stall.

Another memory is when we were stuck coming out of the park on a sudden province wide power outage which clogged the roads.  It was the Northeast blackout of 2003 Aug 14, 2003 which affected parts of the US as well, one of those events where you remember what you were doing at the time.  Daughter L remembers it took us 6 hours to get home that night, she could only have been 8 years old.  She remembers me worrying about us running out of gas which sounds just like me.  Husband M now says we had plenty (1/4 tank).  The outage lasted at least a couple of days.  I wasn't worried as it was in the summertime, not freezing weather, and I thought we could always barbecue our food if we needed to as we had an electric oven.  But of course daughter L says I gave her cold canned ravioli and told her it was cooked and safe to eat.

Ontario Place is at a point now where it either has to be revitalized or torn down.  Residents are in favour of having it revitalized, it was such a beautifully landscaped facility.

The big sphere in the painting is an IMAX movie theatre which was re-opened in 2017.

Male Makeup Ambassador

Sheryl posted this inspirational meme the other day, I loved it.

Have you heard of youtube star James Charles, he is the first male Covergirl ambassador.  He visited Toronto recently and caused a stir at the malls being extremely popular.  Charles is a 19 year old model.

Well it is to be a mild -6C (21F) this afternoon, it has been bitterly cold the past few days -19C (-2F) last night.  My face hurt yesterday walking into the grocery store, although it was sunny.  I suppose a mask or scarf over my face would've helped.  I wonder if blistering, humid heat is worse?

Cassava

My brother-in-law who is often in Costa Rica sent this photo of fried yucca stuffed with cheese from a McDonald's restaurant in Costa Rica. I would try these for sure. Yucca is another name for cassava.

A lot of cheese

One of my brother-in-laws visits Costa Rica often and sent a photo of this Pizza Hut cheesy bites pizza. That is a lot of cheese. It is interesting to know that they have Pizza Hut restaurants in Costa Rica.

There is a full eclipse of the moon Jan 20 visible from North America from 11.41pm to 12.43 am Jan 21.  It is also a super blood wolf moon, large and red.  We are having an intensely cold weekend with some snow.

A nice snack

Daughter L made me try these roasted salted almonds and they are so good. I like the flavour of almonds but I didn't think I liked snacking on them but I must have tried the unroasted raw ones before.  Do you like almonds?

It was very cold last Sunday (-11C or 12F) so my friend S and I decided not to meet for a walk as we usually do.

Paint Party Friday - Beach Scene

Welcome to Paint Party Friday! I did a beach scene with an ocean quote for you today. It is a greeting card (4 1/4" x 5 1/2") in permanent marker.

Texting language

Son K was telling me about this new (to me) texting language that is evolving rapidly among the younger people.  I thought I would share some of these with you.  Let's hope proper English is not dying out!  I understand that with texting you need to be faster and quicker since you are typing everything out in order to communicate, saying more with less maybe.

wym -what do you mean
wyd -what are you doing
hmu -hit me up meaning 'text me something!'
dhmu-don't hit me up 'I don't want to text'
frr - 'for real or are you serious or no kidding'
deadass - seriously
oof - ooh fun
ily -I love You
ilysm - I love you so much
bsf - boy best friend
bae- boyfriend or girlfriend

Good news for Pork Fat lovers

Here is an article that says pork fat is nutritious.  This is a BBC Futures news article so it seems reliable.  It is good news for us pork fat lovers.  I could hardly believe it!

'Scientists studied more than 1,000 foods, assigning each a nutritional score. The higher the score, the more likely each food would meet, but not exceed your daily nutritional needs, when eaten in combination with others.'  Pork fat was ranked number 8 of 100 most nutritious foods!

8. PORK FAT

632kcal, $0.95, per 100g

A good source of B vitamins and minerals. Pork fat is more unsaturated and healthier than lamb or beef fat.

NUTRITIONAL SCORE: 73

Treats

Daughter L and her boyfriend brought these delicious treats home from a popular bakery up north in Gravenhurst when they were in the area. She had said she was bringing treats but I had no idea what she had planned. She knows I love cream filled doughnuts but that I have trouble finding them these days, mostly the ones I find are filled with custard.  The challah bread was so delicious with just butter. 

challah bread

apple fritters

chelsea buns, bacon topped doughnut, sprinkle and m&m  doughnuts

cream filled doughnuts

my favourite

Assume You Will Return

My sister-in-law and her mother went by elevator to the top of the Eiffel Tower on their recent trip to Paris. They did a lot more than we did when we went in 2007. I had the help of a Rick Steve's travel guide, he always advises us to 'assume we will return'.  What is your view on travel are you tempted to see absolutely everything on your trip?

View from the Top of the Eiffel Tower

Memories of Paris

My sister-in-law and her mother took a train to Versailles on their recent trip to Paris. They also had the chance to take this photo atop the Arc de Triomphe. 

It brought back memories of when my family went there.  Daughter L Son K was about 12  We rented what might have been an air bnb today.  I remember we fumbled with a key in a lockbox next to the door of the apartment.  It was a lovely apartment off the Champs Elysees with a view of the Eiffel Tower.  I do remember it being very noisy there with ambulance and fire sirens going off from time to time.  We also took a train to Versailles.  It was in March so it was a bit colder but a lot less crowds at that time.

Versailles

Atop the Arc de Triomphe

Jewellery Collection

My sister-in-law was recently in Paris with her mother. I always enjoy her many photos, these were taken in their tour of the Louvre. We went there many years ago but I missed the jewellery collection although we did see the Mona Lisa. I loved Paris.

Paint Party Friday - An Arrangement

This flower arrangement is based on one I saw in a magazine, I changed the colours thinking I could use it for a Christmas card next year. It is done on canvas pad paper (8" x 10") in Sharpie oil paint markers. Happy Paint Party Friday!

In Paris

My sister-in-law was recently in Paris with her mother and took these photos in the Christmas market there, I thought they were interesting.

Scribble Picnic - Holiday Party

Welcome to Scribble Picnic! Our theme this week is 'holiday party'.
I went with party shoes, of course one needs those for a fun holiday party! My piece is an ACEO (2 1/2" x 3 1/2") on canvas using Sharpie Oil Paint markers, permanent markers and outlined with a PITT pen.

A nice dinner

Husband M, son K and I had a nice dinner at Red Lobster on New Year's Day. Daughter L was out of town. We had not been to this restaurant in awhile, but I had a craving for crab legs and son K loves their biscuits. The biscuits are unlimited so that is a good thing. They were out of romaine lettuce that night so I chose broccoli instead of a garden salad for one of my side items.  We all shared a wonderful chocolate cake dessert.

The book in a nutshell

My mom passed away 2 years ago on Jan 4, 2017.  May she rest in peace. I had painted this picture of her based on a photo towards the end of her life, she did love her ice cream!

Duta asked me to share some of the suggestions in 'The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning' by Margareta Magnusson which I recently read.

The book is a quick read with just over a hundred pages, it is a best seller.  It is a concise book of memories and reflections, appropriately lacking clutter.  She is also an artist between 80 and 100 years old, who has sold most of her artwork.

Death cleaning involves taking responsibility for your things to make it easier  for your successors.  she advises you hold on to your favourite things such as paintings or special furniture items.  It will take time to do a good job, plan for that.  Start in the basement, front door closets, leave photos, personal papers till later, they will take time.

Start with large items, finish with small items.  Get rid of abundance.  Sort furniture, clothes, books, linens.  Have a 'Keep' pile, a 'Discard' pile.  Keep only clothes you will wear or if sentimental.  Purging is a continuous process.

Order is so important, everything should have a place of their own, such as keys.

Set aside one week to clear each room.

She decribes her married life as 50 years of ups mostly some downs, wishes she had started clearing earlier like at 65 when they were both in better health.  We think we will live forever.  Then again, maybe purging is best done alone.

People want to inherit nice things not all things.  We cannot hold on to things forever, we must decide when to pass things on to others, family, friends, charity.

She wisely discusses things that fill up our houses...small appliances, bathroom things such as makeup, medicine cabinets containing expired medicines, even old linens go out of style.

She advises us to reuse, recycle, and live simpler, smaller  lives.

Get rid of old gear you will never use.

On the topic of books...she keeps reference books and only favourite books.

She advises giving away surplus plates, glassware.

Recipe books need purging.

Enjoy looking at things instead of buying them.

She admires beautiful, practical, sparsely furnished homes.

Keep a throw away shoebox  with things just valuable to you.

Recycle, donate even if you have no kids.

And that is the book in a nutshell!

My January 2019 Calendar Page

I print a calendar every year based on my artwork.  It hangs in my kitchen.  This is the painting and quote I chose for January.  We don't have a lot of snow at the time of this posting.

Tracks

Dog tracks?  They have to be walked at any time of year I am thinking.

tracks

Paint Party Friday - Bums Up

Welcome to Paint Party Friday! Happy New Year! This piece is an ACEO on canvas paper in permanent marker, outlined with a PITT fine point marker. It is based on a photo my nephew sent of his new daughter. Isn't it cute how she sleeps with her bum up in the air?

Snowy Walk

I took these photos on a morning walk this past weekend, we had a bit of snow. It was not as bitterly cold as the day before, so it was a pleasant walk if dressed warmly.

Diabetic Rice

I have been making a lot of this simple cauliflower mash. I make it the same as mashed potatoes, with a little milk, butter, salt and pepper. All you need is a good potato masher.  Husband M who is diabetic, adds it to a lot of his meals instead of rice or potatoes.

On Decluttering

Happy New Year 2019!

My daughter and her boyfriend got me this book as one of their gifts this year (I had suggested it). 'The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning' was a quick, enjoyable read. Author Margareta Magnusson describes herself as being 'between 80 and one hundred'. She shares her wisdom with us, urges us to take responsibility for our clutter before we die rather than leave it to others. I am now encouraged to do some decluttering. Hopefully this doesn't go the way of many New Year's resolutions!