Friendly Find

This past week, I was meeting an out-of-town friend for coffee.
Usually she suggests meeting at Starbucks for our visits, but this time I convinced her to try something new...I'm just adventurous like that.
There was a little cafe downtown that I'd been dying to try out. Cafe Arianna. It looked cool, inviting, and unique.
So we headed down there.

Its situated right on the corner of Landsdowne and Third, right across from the A&W, with its own little parking lot and everything! I didn't know that at the time, so we walked from the (free!) parking in front of Coopers.
Well, when I walked in I quickly scoped it out. I knew that it had only been open for a matter of weeks, and was probably still finding its niche among all the Zack's, Second Cups', and Starbucks' of Kamloops.
The man at the counter welcomed us with an accent I didn't recognize until I spotted a familiar face in the doorway to the kitchen...
Christiana!
Since none of you probably know who she is, I will explain!

Waaaay back, a long long time ago...as in last year...when I was beginning the Culinary Arts course, we had one of the Third Level Students come into the cafeteria (usually they only run the Accolades restaurant) and work as our Sous Chef. Basically, our task master for the day.

We had some real gems. Cocky, arrogant fellows we wanted to empty our boiling soup pots on, and ditzy clueless girls that didn't know one end of a ladle from the other. None of them cared anything about us newbies, and just resented having to get up so early instead of getting up at 2pm like the rest of their classmates.
Cristiana was different.

She had moved from Italy to Canada in 2007, to take the Culinary Arts course and open a "real" Italian place with her husband. That was their dream.
When she was our Sous Chef, she took it seriously. This was not just another school assignment. For a moment, this was her job.
She didn't sit in one one of the offices and watch youtube like the others, she got right in there with us and actually taught us things.

One day she made homemade ravioli with us, as quickly and expertly as only a true Italian can!
I was in awe of her. She took cooking very seriously, was not afraid to voice her opinions to anyone, and my favorite Instructor truly respected her, which made me respect her as well.
Maybe one of the reasons I liked her so much was because she liked me.
I remember one day when I was in my Entrees station, she came to talk to me. Just to talk. She told me I was really good; that I had "it".
"Some of these kids are no good," She told me, "But you understand about cooking."
Coming from this talented, confident, and ambitious woman, that was a compliment that really went to my heart.

I only saw Cristiana a few times after her stint as our Sous Chef, but I still considered us friends.
So imagine my delight at realizing Caffe Arianna was her dream-come-reality. When it dawned on me who was in the kitchen I felt a huge smile spread across my face. It only got bigger when she recognized me at once and waved ecstatically.
When she got a free moment she came over to say hello.
We hugged, and I congratulated her on opening the cafe. She was very pleased with it, and was beaming with pride.
Then she asked the terrible question:
"So have you quit the program? I went to Accolades the other day, and went upstairs to see you, but you were not there! I thought maybe you were sick or something."
I admitted, yes, I had given up cooking as a career. She understood, but was disappointed, too.
"She was very good," she told my friend with a very earnest expression.
Another Cristiana compliment. My little heart can't take it. Made me want to enroll in the next semester right then and there. (glad I didn't though!)

Anyways, it was absolutely fantastic to see her again, and to know that she got to open her cafe after all. It really made my day.
While I was only in there for coffee, I grabbed a takeout menu to browse later on.
There are paninis (yum!), homemade soups, desserts, and salads available, as well as special order homemade pastas! I even noted something about homemade gelato!

I am so, so glad I opted out of Starbucks to try Cafe Arianna! I know I've been picking on Starbucks lately, but the more I think about it, the more I want to support local businesses, and this experience has certainly encouraged me in that. Why not give friends my business, instead of huge cafe chains?

I'm definitely going back. There's a Max's Panini, and Coffee Affagato with my name on it...

Married

Another one bites the dust...

My dear friend Liz Geddert is now Mrs. Liz Taylor, married to the real live Tim Taylor.
I would post more pictures but I didn't take any during the ceremony or reception, and I stole these ones from Rebekah who will probably be posting more soon anyway!

It was a really beautiful wedding, and probably the most unusual and unconventional one I will ever have the pleasure of attending! I appreciated how Liz and Tim got back to the basics and stuck with what was really important in a wedding, without all the frills and unnecessary traditions.

They are now honeymooning for 4 months, rockclimbing in various places across North America.
Normal life resumes for the rest of us.
School will start up next week for many, and the job hunt is on for the likes of me.
It will be an interesting Fall...

Here & There

After an impossibly long day of travel yesterday, I am back in Kamloops, but only for a very short period of time. In fact, I leave again tomorrow morning...Destination: Nordegg Alberta. Wherever that is! Myself and two great friends who happen to be fellow bridesmaids, are heading out to Frontier Lodge to be with Liz for her wedding on Saturday!
As I have far too many emotions swirling about my confused cranial at this time, my blogs will be short until next week. In fact, this might be the only post you get until then.
I'm borrowing my mom's camera for the weekend, so I will definitely post some pics of the trip...
Now I really need to get some stuff done.

Stagette

Poor Rishelle...
She didn't suspect that when we made her wear an ugly sweater and plaid pajama pants in public, it was only the beginning of the embarrassment.
Andrew G. watches from the safety of Starbucks, probably very glad he is male.
The beauty treatment begins...back-combing, hairspray, makeup....
Dang, she still looks good :)
But she's not too happy with her new style...or her assignment.
A shopping list of about 10 veeerrrrry embarassing items.
The "M.O.H", Kelsey is enjoying this a little too much. Does she realize this is all going to come back and bite her in the-
"But I can't do that!"

In her own words.
Haha! Your friends will always honk for you.
Party afterwards! Great gifts, like this pair of used Granny Panties from Value Village!

Liz, consider yourself lucky we were unprepared for yours! You got off waaaay too easy :)

Rice Bowl Rescue

As many of you have probably already read on my Facebook status, today I did a very stupid thing.
Feeling highly motivated to get some chores done this morning, I tossed a load of laundry into the wash without searching the pockets of my pants and hoodies.
Unfortunately, nestled within the clothes was my cell phone. It endured a full cycle, and was discovered at the bottom after I'd pulled all the soggy laundry out.
I didn't feel so enthusiastic about chores after that.
I tried drying it out with a blow-drier set on cool, and leaving it in the breeze via my windowsill.
Then I turned to my friends on Facebook, who almost definitely have more knowledge on this subject than I do! Cell phones go through so much.
You guys didn't let me down!

Apparently letting the phone sit in rice for a couple days will draw the moisture out, and save the phone. I'm going to give it a try. Since I'm moving down to the island in a couple weeks, I will definitely need a phone, and I kinda don't want to spend any money on a new one!!
So we'll see if this rice thing works...I'll keep you posted.

Walkin' in the Woods

The weather was sooooo nice and sunny yesterday, we decided to go for a hike.



And by "we" I mean, Mike, Katie, and Me.

Maybe you haven't met Katie yet! This is she:

Our favorite 4'11" redhead in the world!
She likes to cook with me, and she likes to listen to music and talk about movies with Mike, so things work out well. And she only lives an hour away, so visiting is done often.










Mike and I met her at Homewood in '06, and we both kinda like her. I think Mike kinda likes her a lot. I think she kinda likes him too. Maybe.




We had a lot of fun yesterday doing stupid things. Like rolling tires down steep embankments. And playing "log-ball" with a stick and pinecones. And our ridiculous photo-shoots.














...and watching Katie tumble down a hill. That's always a good time.
If I could change one thing about yesterday, it would be that picture. It would be a video clip instead.









But overall, it was a pretty perfect day. I'm so happy its finally feeling like Spring!

Seven, and Counting...

This would have been so much more effective if I had started it like...in January.
I'm putting up a little text box to the right, so you can see and understand the craziness that is this year. Love is in the air...
Every time another friend/acquaintance gets engaged, that number is gonna go up. Because it seems like the "In" thing to do this year is get married...I don't know why, but apparently its popular! ;)
This week alone, I've discovered 2 more engagements (CONGRATULATIONS LAURA!! :D), and I'm expecting that this will be a monthly, if not weekly, occurrence for the rest of the spring. Everyone's getting hitched!

Growing Up

Last night I got the chance to visit Ange, one of my good out-of-towner friends. As an added bonus I got to spend some time with her 7-month-old daughter, Brooklyn, who is now crawling, and making lots of noise which I'm sure will soon become discernible baby talk!
Since this is only the third time I've seen and held baby B, I really notice how fast she is growing up! And its hard to believe that my friend, only a little older than I, gave birth to this beautiful little girl that is going to be one year old in July! It blows my mind a little!
But it seems like its that stage in life now. Everyone is growing up...
Four of my friends have gotten engaged in as many months. I'm sure there will be more diamond rings making appearances later in the year as well!
Obviously I'm really happy for each and every couple. But inevitably there is a little sadness as well. A sense of change and loss, and maybe a teensy tiny bit of envy :)

My Lizzie is All Grown Up and...

Getting Married!

Congratulations to my friend Liz & lucky Mr. Tim Taylor, on their engagement!
I'm so excited for you both :)
Your names make me laugh, and knowing how perfect you guys are for each other makes me smile.

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun!

Yesterday afternoon 6 good friends of mine and I went up to Robbins Range hills and spent a couple hours "tobogganing" in the snow! Thing is...we had two GTs between us.
It didn't take long for us to ditch the GTs, and step into the new latest thing: Garbage bags!
We poked holes in the bottom for legs and wore them like diapers! It was seriously the best! However we were slightly ashamed of our garb, especially in front of the large groups of snowboarders/snowmobilers gathered around fires at the bottom, so we found a great spot up behind the first hill, where we were mostly hidden from view. It was great. The most fun was when we would all join up in a train...the speed we picked up was amazing!
Whenever the odd snowmobile or snowboarder would come by, we would all flop to the ground and laugh SO hard, hoping they wouldn't notice our, erm, unorthodox sleds.
Later on we became more creative with our bags. Soon it turned into a full-out fashion show! We had tube-top, halter, and off-the-shoulder styles that were so hot the snow was melting...
After much fun and laughter, it started to get dark and we decided to head on back home. We decided on a grand finale: we would make a train slide down the big main hill in front of everyone.
We would prove to the world that we were not ashamed of our garbage bags; they are obviously a superior method of sledding. Ok, maybe SOME of us were ashamed, but we were peer pressured into it.
It would seem that our embarrassment was meant to be. Our train would NOT slide. We inched down the hill, laughing SO hard. When we finally reached the bottom and were packing stuff into the car, Rebekah couldn't get her backpack off-- her clip had frozen shut! Then, as we were about to drive away, a girl knocked on the car window and offered us a glove that had been dropped. And THEN we almost got stuck in the snowbank trying to get onto the road again!!!

Nevertheless is was a lot of fun, and a great memory!
Moral of the story: Garbage bag sleds are awesome. You should try it sometime!

Long Weekend Shopping Trip

Last Tuesday some friends and I piled into 2 cars and roadtripped out to Kelowna for the day! We did the mandatory stop at Orchard Park Mall, LuLu Lemon, and Tim Hortons/A&W. We also stopped for a quick break at the lake to take pictures and enjoy the view.
A good time was had by all.
My favorite part may have been when Rebekah and I were walking through the mall, and a very, VERY, aggressive salesman in a booth flagged us down and shouted as us to come closer and listen.
But that's not all. He was selling.....are you ready for this?.....SHAMWOW towels!
Now...you may not have heard of SHAMWOW towels before...but my infinitely wise brother, Paul, has.
While I was ready to hear the spiel, Rebekah needed a bit more convincing, so he bribed her with a FREE SAMPLE! (which she promptly handed to me)
It was hilarious. He was very energetic and hilarious to watch...but very forceful. So basically when he turned his back I grabbed Rebekah and ran!
With the free sample of course :)
Afterwards we went to the lake and goofed off...




There.
I didn't talk about warts or scabs, or anything gross. Happy?! :P

Heading Out

So its been a pretty stellar long weekend...I so enjoyed playing floor hockey on Friday, and rugby/football/keep-a-way + Soccer on Sunday night, even if it has left me looking as though I am physically abused. Huge purple & green bruises all up my legs. Fun fun!
Spent the day at LeFebvre's cabin on Shuswap lake yesterday-- water was sooo warm! Warmer than our pool. Spent hours in the water which is VERY unusual for me, and then played some "scum" (card game!) and then I fell asleep in the sand until dinner hehe...
I'm hoping to spend today being industrious (aren't I getting a good start??) getting ready for camp and preparing for MY FUTURE (aka School starts on the 27th), plus....meeting up with some friends who now live out of town! Should be a good day.
Now please excuse me while I check on my laundry and try to get some things done before I leave for town...I am a very busy person, dontcha know.

Oh ps. playing soccer the Girls (+Behn) beat the boys. That's right. We even had 1 less player for the first 1/3 or so. Paul, you were SO trying. Just face it. And then go back to the kitchen.

Happy Birthday Liz!

The big 2-0!!!!
We'll have to do some proper celebrating when we are reunited in the Fall....if you come back! Cause it feels like I haven't seen you since that picture was taken. Miss ya!!!

Girls' Night!!!

The Bath Bombs that Wouldn't Be

Last night us girls from the C&C had a Girl's Only night ...and it was SO MUCH FUN! Seriously, it is totally different when the females are all alone! I'm pretty sure we giggled ourselves silly over the littlest things. There would be an explosion of laughter followed by a small siiiiiigh ("Good times...")....and then I would start laughing again and everyone wouldn't be able to help themselves....it was a vicious cycle! By the end of the night our cheeks were hurting from laughing so much. Carissa showed us some expert cheek stretches, which basically makes you look like a fish...
Yeah it was a good time!
We started off by making Spa Bath Cookies...recipe shown below.
I showed off my baking expertise by immediately confusing the teaspoon and tablespoon.

The first time we mixed it, it was too crumbly to mold, so we added another egg.
Which might perhaps have been the biggest mistake ever.

But the extra egg made it stickier, that's for sure.

Seija put them in for 10 minutes, while we did our Bible study.

This is probably my favorite picture of all time!!!!
Carissa was smelling them.
They did smell more like cookies than bath bombs...

And they were awfully hard to get off the pans...

In the end, they didn't fizzle in water like they were supposed to....BUT....they did provide many a belly laugh, so it was all worth it in the end! We even almost got Dave to eat one when he got home, but when he reached for it the room went quiet and we all stared (hopefully), and I think that probably tipped him off....
Too bad!
Maybe Dana succeeded in getting Kurtus to eat some....
heh heh heh....