A few of my blog friends were inquiring about peameal bacon and I stumbled upon this Toronto food blog that describes it aptly, complete with delicious pictures. Peameal bacon is made from pork loin, trimmed of fat, cured not smoked. Apparently it used to be rolled in peameal but is now rolled in cornmeal which is more readily available. We usually just have it fried with bread and minus the trimmings.
Last night, K pestered L into driving him to the mall, just the two of them! L said he was over the moon. They went shopping, tried clothes on and he bought a new muscle shirt and baseball cap. For him, I think a lot of it was the thrill of how they got there, so independently. Strange how he seemed to be more excited about the whole thing than she was. She's a very confident driver and she got perfect marks on the parking part of the test. Well, last night was her first 'solo' driving trip.
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Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Monday, July 13, 2009
New Thermostat
We had a new thermostat installed today. Our old one was acting up and it's really ancient compared to this new programmable 'touch-screen' version. Luckily, it comes with a manual. We're also having our furnace and air-conditioner serviced as it's been years.
L is officially added to our car insurance policy, and K wants her to take him to the mall sometime soon, without any parents. It should be ok.
There is a lot of construction and repair work going on around town. Everyone has to take advantage of the good weather. A few people were sealing their asphalt driveways today. A neighbour is having all new windows put in. It was strange talking to him as he looked out his frameless upstairs window.
A lady at the Farmer's Market yesterday mentioned it was 45C in Las Vegas, and M mentioned that Texas is not much better. I'd rather have the cooler than normal summer that we're having. It is also helping the more than 20 day old garbage strike in the metro area of Toronto.
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L is officially added to our car insurance policy, and K wants her to take him to the mall sometime soon, without any parents. It should be ok.
There is a lot of construction and repair work going on around town. Everyone has to take advantage of the good weather. A few people were sealing their asphalt driveways today. A neighbour is having all new windows put in. It was strange talking to him as he looked out his frameless upstairs window.
A lady at the Farmer's Market yesterday mentioned it was 45C in Las Vegas, and M mentioned that Texas is not much better. I'd rather have the cooler than normal summer that we're having. It is also helping the more than 20 day old garbage strike in the metro area of Toronto.
News
Jon Gosselin, Girlfriend Enjoy Night Out With Ed Hardy Fashion Designer
'Please come back,' investors beg adviser - this is scary stuff, a trusted adviser went missing with his clients' money.
Timmies takes Manhattan! New stores open in NYC - Tim Horton's doughnut stores are very popular in Canada
WHO Says Health-Care Workers Should Have Priority Access To Pandemic Vaccine
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Today's Thoughts
On Friday night, M, K and I went to the local Ribfest with a couple of friends. It was crowded on a perfect summer night. That meant long lineups for the prize-winning ribs. But they were all delicious, with fries, beans, coleslaw, cornbread and corn on the cob. K noticed there were no lineups and plenty of tables after 9 pm, so that might have been a good time to come. There were live bands on site making plenty of noise.
Last night M went with a friend to a local bar to watch some kind of fighting match on satellite TV. He said they had standing room only but they had a great time cheering along with the rest of the crowd at certain moments. It was $8 for a beer, so these bars make good money.
M and I walked over to the Farmer's Market this morning. We got some pastries and strawberries to take home, and split a peameal bacon on a bun. We ended up stopping on Main Street for cups of coffee. L is off on a day's outing with some of her work friends. I've started stressing that she'll be off to university in little more than a year, how empty the house will be. Well, K will still be around for at least another 4 years. This book I'm reading mentioned that some people will cope by getting a puppy, new hobbies, new jobs. I know friends that did just that. But there is some kind of grieving process that you have to go through first. Hmm.
Well, I'm going to bake some chicken, roast some cauliflower and make a salad for today's meal.
Last night M went with a friend to a local bar to watch some kind of fighting match on satellite TV. He said they had standing room only but they had a great time cheering along with the rest of the crowd at certain moments. It was $8 for a beer, so these bars make good money.
M and I walked over to the Farmer's Market this morning. We got some pastries and strawberries to take home, and split a peameal bacon on a bun. We ended up stopping on Main Street for cups of coffee. L is off on a day's outing with some of her work friends. I've started stressing that she'll be off to university in little more than a year, how empty the house will be. Well, K will still be around for at least another 4 years. This book I'm reading mentioned that some people will cope by getting a puppy, new hobbies, new jobs. I know friends that did just that. But there is some kind of grieving process that you have to go through first. Hmm.
Well, I'm going to bake some chicken, roast some cauliflower and make a salad for today's meal.
Saturday, July 11, 2009
New Scandinavian Cooking
I was browsing through the TV channels and came upon this cooking show called New Scandinavian Cooking. The host was a Norwegian Chef called Andreas Viestad. He was making some delicious looking recipes and at the same time it felt like a travel show. My knowledge of Scandinavian food is limited to Ikea meatballs with lingonberry sauce (a favourite) and if you don't own a Scandinavian cookbook, this website seems to be a handy reference complete with recipes. The series is also hosted by Claus Meyer, from Denmark and Tina Nordstrom of Sweden.
A couple of hours were spent putting 3 year old photographs into an album. I thought it would take much longer. I had to print them off an online website that is threatening to delete my albums unless I make a minimum yearly purchase. There are still a bunch of albums left to print off. I have them all on CD, but I had selected the better ones and captioned and stored them online. One of these days, I may have a good system in place, although technology keeps changing so rapidly.
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Fish For Dinner? Great Lakes Report Might Ruin Your Appetite For It
A couple of hours were spent putting 3 year old photographs into an album. I thought it would take much longer. I had to print them off an online website that is threatening to delete my albums unless I make a minimum yearly purchase. There are still a bunch of albums left to print off. I have them all on CD, but I had selected the better ones and captioned and stored them online. One of these days, I may have a good system in place, although technology keeps changing so rapidly.
News
Fish For Dinner? Great Lakes Report Might Ruin Your Appetite For It
Friday, July 10, 2009
Yves Veggie Cuisine
My girlfriend told me about this soy product called Yve's Veggie Cuisine 'meatless ground round original' and said that her 17 year old daughter thought it was real meat. I'm tried one of the recipes (bolognese) on the website and M and I couldn't tell that it wasn't meat!
Oh, L passed her driving test today! We are thrilled to bits and she is already suggesting the purchase of her new car! Apparently Ford has really good deals. In a year, she has to pass another test to have a full licence as there are certain restrictions on this licence. Now we have to add her to our insurance policy before she can take one of our cars out alone.
News
Lamb fans
Oh, L passed her driving test today! We are thrilled to bits and she is already suggesting the purchase of her new car! Apparently Ford has really good deals. In a year, she has to pass another test to have a full licence as there are certain restrictions on this licence. Now we have to add her to our insurance policy before she can take one of our cars out alone.
News
Lamb fans
Thursday, July 9, 2009
A couple of crows
Here is a shot of some of the infamous cherries
People here are complaining about the weather because their air conditioning has not really had to come on yet. In July, we're supposed to be in heat wave mode. Also, it's rained enough that I haven't once pulled out the water hose. Some nights you have to be outside in a sweatshirt. But the days are nice and sunny and 23C (near 80's F)...so I'm happy and comfortable!
Out on my walk today, a lady stopped me for directions, she had become lost in the neighbourhood!
I took K for his orthodontist checkup today only to find out that he has to have his wisdom teeth removed asap. It seems they've been waiting for a molar to come up so they can finish his braces work but the x-rays show that his wisdom teeth are preventing it from surfacing. It also means an extra year of braces as the molar will come in crooked anyway. Sigh. He's not thrilled at the prospect of getting his wisdom teeth out but at least we have an idea of what to expect since his sister just had hers done. He's only 14.
M says he saw a couple of crows thrashing around in one of the cherry trees, scaring all the smaller birds away and eating the cherries themselves.
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People here are complaining about the weather because their air conditioning has not really had to come on yet. In July, we're supposed to be in heat wave mode. Also, it's rained enough that I haven't once pulled out the water hose. Some nights you have to be outside in a sweatshirt. But the days are nice and sunny and 23C (near 80's F)...so I'm happy and comfortable!
Out on my walk today, a lady stopped me for directions, she had become lost in the neighbourhood!
I took K for his orthodontist checkup today only to find out that he has to have his wisdom teeth removed asap. It seems they've been waiting for a molar to come up so they can finish his braces work but the x-rays show that his wisdom teeth are preventing it from surfacing. It also means an extra year of braces as the molar will come in crooked anyway. Sigh. He's not thrilled at the prospect of getting his wisdom teeth out but at least we have an idea of what to expect since his sister just had hers done. He's only 14.
M says he saw a couple of crows thrashing around in one of the cherry trees, scaring all the smaller birds away and eating the cherries themselves.
News
Savouring summer salads
Boy saves gorillas, one egg at a time
Simple Exercises Could Cure Snoring
The scoop on picking the best neckline
Young adults with strong language skills may be resilient to Alzheimer's later
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
A Great Story
Yesterday afternoon, I watched segments of the Michael Jackson memorial. It was very touching and I was in tears for a lot of the performances and speeches.
I was back at step class this morning after an unplanned 4-week hiatus. I had an appointment one week, a back ailment the next week, and the gym was closed on account of a holiday last week. I usually do some weight training before the class, it was as if I was doing them for the first time this morning...what a difference a few weeks can make. Everything just felt so heavy. The 30-year-old step instructor was a lot of fun, with a great sense of humour. I felt really young for the first half of the class, then as I got tired I became my old self.
My brother-in-law's 79-year-old mother has just moved in with an 86-year-old man. Her husband had passed away several years ago, she then sold her house and moved in with a girlfriend. That worked for awhile, but didn't turn out to be a long-term solution. It turns out that she used to swim with this man at the local community centre and they have been friends for years. His wife had also passed away. So he recently offered that she could come live in his house. She said she could do that on the condition that she paid rent. He assured her that he didn't need rent, but agreed. So she now cooks meals for him and the arrangement sounds to me like a great story! I asked my brother-in-law if he's handsome and he says 'Christine, he's 86-years-old!' So I left it at that.
It's a gorgeous day today and the birds are really enjoying the ripe, red cherries in our yard. I saw one go from branch to branch, choose and pick his cherry, then fly to the ground with the cherry in his mouth, then proceed to eat it most efficiently. M told me he saw the squirrels eating the ones that the birds knocked onto the ground.
News
Enigmatic and gifted: Nico transforms into Rudolph Nureyev -
Rudolf Nureyev was an idol of mine, into my early twenties when I would identify myself on my resume as 'an avid balletomane', so I hope I catch this movie on Bravo TV channel when it premieres! He was gay but in those days, it was never public knowledge.
I was back at step class this morning after an unplanned 4-week hiatus. I had an appointment one week, a back ailment the next week, and the gym was closed on account of a holiday last week. I usually do some weight training before the class, it was as if I was doing them for the first time this morning...what a difference a few weeks can make. Everything just felt so heavy. The 30-year-old step instructor was a lot of fun, with a great sense of humour. I felt really young for the first half of the class, then as I got tired I became my old self.
My brother-in-law's 79-year-old mother has just moved in with an 86-year-old man. Her husband had passed away several years ago, she then sold her house and moved in with a girlfriend. That worked for awhile, but didn't turn out to be a long-term solution. It turns out that she used to swim with this man at the local community centre and they have been friends for years. His wife had also passed away. So he recently offered that she could come live in his house. She said she could do that on the condition that she paid rent. He assured her that he didn't need rent, but agreed. So she now cooks meals for him and the arrangement sounds to me like a great story! I asked my brother-in-law if he's handsome and he says 'Christine, he's 86-years-old!' So I left it at that.
It's a gorgeous day today and the birds are really enjoying the ripe, red cherries in our yard. I saw one go from branch to branch, choose and pick his cherry, then fly to the ground with the cherry in his mouth, then proceed to eat it most efficiently. M told me he saw the squirrels eating the ones that the birds knocked onto the ground.
News
Enigmatic and gifted: Nico transforms into Rudolph Nureyev -
Rudolf Nureyev was an idol of mine, into my early twenties when I would identify myself on my resume as 'an avid balletomane', so I hope I catch this movie on Bravo TV channel when it premieres! He was gay but in those days, it was never public knowledge.
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