My Weekend

What did I do this weekend?

I went to a live show up in a small, artsy upper-floor room, downtown, to see Ari Neufeld and Scott Dunbar...both "One man band"s.

I don't (ok, almost never) go to see live music, and I didn't really know what it would be like, but I loved it!

These guys were so talented, it was a little mind-blowing. They would play an instrument, sing, and then keep a rhythm on a drum with their feet, as well as with little bells and wooden beads attached to their legs. Crazy!!! Ari was always hopping around, it looked like dance.

They played a variety of instruments, from acoustic guitar, to accordion, to banjo, and the atmosphere was extremely relaxed...couches, a coffee bar, people sitting on the floor...I thought it was great, and would gladly pay the $10 cover to see them again, and again.

The CD's are good, but nothing can really compare to watching these guys perform right there in front of you (I had a great view, if not a comfortable seat :D)

Thanks for recommending the show, Rebekah!

Well, that was Friday night.

Saturday morning a couple friends and I hopped into a car and drove out to Kelowna for some bargain shopping at Orchard Park Mall. Its late January, so the good sales are on now, as the stores are clearing out their winter inventory, and the Kelowna mall has a lot of stores that we don't have in Kamloops.

The 2 hour drive is a bit of a trip, but it was a good time to do a little socializing, and ask some tough questions...like, why is there a mural of a tiger on the Westwold elementary school?
And...does the Ogopogo really exist?
And...is Rishelle going to be the crazy lady that feeds the duck in park when she's old? Or has it already begun? Can we save her from this fate?
And...why haven't I ever had Wonton soup before??
It was a good day.

Feelin' Granola

I recently saw a recipe for homemade granola, on A Piece of Cake. I love this blog because it has,
1. Great photos
2. Great stories
3. Great recipes

When I was working at Strathcona Park Lodge, the morning cooks made all their own granola, and it was extremely similar to this recipe. I would eat it every morning before work.

The method is very basic, but it is so versatile. At the lodge, you never knew what would be in the granola that morning...it was always different! Nuts, seeds, dried fruit, coconut...whatever you like can get tossed in, and whatever you don't like can be left out! *I prefer crasins over the cherries, and walnuts instead of almonds.

I made a batch this morning, and I'm eating a bowl now for lunch...yum! It tastes just right.

Carrying a Torch

As you are most likely aware, the Olympic Torch came through Kamloops the other day.
I didn't realize that it started in Valleyview, and had come to the conclusion that I would be working at its time of arrival, and therefore would miss this most exciting event.

Little did I know I had a date with destiny.

My mother was the one that informed me I would have a chance to view one of the runners before work, and she dragged myself and my brother off the couch to witness it.

We drove out through all the traffic, parked, got a hot drink, and arrived at the sidewalk in front of Valleyview Seconday just as the festivities began.

A few decorated cars were slowly going by, blaring music, with runners handing out flags and tambourines. (Tambourines?? Whaaat??)

Mom was rather exited, and got right into the spirit of things, clapping and doing a jig and such. Me? I wouldn't be caught dead doing what these people were doing.
Then it happened.

The coca-cola truck approached.
Whatevs, right? I mean, come on I don't even drink coke, and if given the choice, I'll drink Pepsi instead (please don't throw things at me).
But this was different.
I had my rooibus latte in one hand, and because I am an addicted blogger, I had my camera in the other. I focused in on the shiny red truck thundering by.

One of the runners turned.
I thought, "He wants to be in my picture. Isn't that nic-"

He started running towards me.
He smiled.
He thrust a coke bottle at me.
I juggled my belongings, to accommodate the new arrival.
I smiled.
Our eyes met.
This was IT.
And then he was gone.

Leaving only a token of his love for me to cherish forever.
I don't know your name, or where you are from, but I will never forget you, Mr Coke-bottle guy.
Love like this doesn't happen every day...


Oh ya, and we saw the torch bearer too.

Knitting? Check.

One more step taken towards being little Susie Homemaker.

My toque is completed, and I feel that I have learned a lot of new Skillz. With a Z.

I can cast on, knit, purl, increase, and decrease stitches...the only thing I don't know how to do is fix my mistakes. That might be a problem later on, but for now, I'm just happy to have made something that I like. Hooray!

Stuck

Yesterday I felt like I was on a roll. Look at all the progress I made! (this was taken at the end of the day)


After I had completed a few rows, I noticed a number of evenly spaced holes about 3 rows back. Somehow I had done my "m1" (make 1 stitch) all wrong, and now there were gaps. ARGH! I had to pull out all those rows and redo it.

That took a while, but when I had rectified the situation I felt much better.

Then I got to powerhouse through 12 rows of plain knitting. That was wonderfully restful.

Its those darned M1's that get me.
Somewhere near the midafternoon I got messed up trying to add more stitches, and when I tried to fix it, it just got worse and worse. I had 108 stitches when I should have had 110, and I couldn't figure out how that had happened, or where to put those two extra stitches.

It was very frustrating. Very, very frustrating.

Now my toque has been sitting in the time-out corner for a very long time.

I need my mom to come home and fix it for me, because I just can't face it anymore.

To distract myself I look at the wool.
You can't really tell from this photo, but its quite unique. Sometimes the thread is super super thin, and then in other places its all thick and puffy. This is because it is handspun (and dyed over a wood fire, as well!). I love the way it looks.
Its called "Manos wool clasica", and its from an organization called "Manos del Uruguay" (which means 'The Hands of Uruguay'). The tag reads,

"Manos del Uruguay is a non-profit organization which asssembles over 400 artisans in cooperatives scattered throughout the countryside of Uruguay. The aim of the organization is to bring econimic and social opportunites to rural women."

I guess its not quite fair trade, but considering I didn't even read the tag before I bought it...hopefully it is as helpful an organization as they make it sound.

Anyway, that's as long as I can distract myself from the fact that I can't work on my knitting project. ARGH!

Succumbing to Knittery

In a fit of creative passion, I bought 2 skeins of wool last summer.
I've made a scarf a couple years ago, but I didn't remember how to knit at all. I just figured I would get around to it sometime.
The colors were amazing...a dark, teal-y blue, and a fantastic (almost burnt) orange.
Anyway, these have been sitting around for months. When I went to visit my friend in Vancouver last October, I brought the orange along because I knew she could teach me to crochet. I attempted at making a hat, but ended up working it so tight that I ran out of wool long before it would have come anywhere near completion.
That was discouraging.
The wool went back into its corner for another couple months.

When I bought the wool, I knew that I wanted to make a slouchy toque with it, but after the crochet tragedy I was sure that I didn't have enough to finish one. My mother convinced me that if I worked it a little looser, it would be enough.

I found a pattern on Ravelry, and set to work yesterday.


Since I hadn't knitted in at least 2 years, it was like beginning from the very beginning! After a long lesson on casting on, I began the ribbing...only 8 rows took me the better part of the afternoon (if not the whole afternoon...I didn't keep track)!!! There was a lot of "Oh no, what did I do?" and "Mom, can you fix this?" and pulling out, and re-knitting...

Really slow going.

But somehow its very satisfying! This morning I couldn't wait to pick it up again!
Despite my first couple rows having to be "frogged", I've made a lot of progress, and I'll upload the next picture tomorrow.

The Photobook

I think I may have spent a post saying how wonderful digital scrapbooking is.
Quick, easy, convenient...

True, but it can also be expensive!

A month or two back I decided to get my butt in gear, and start working on my photos of Ireland. I knew I wanted to go digital...couldn't bring myself to even consider printing off a chunk of my thousands of pics.
I also knew I wanted the book to be 12x12. With so many pictures to document, they needed sufficient room.
I had lots of other criteria, but it will bore you. My point:

Turns out Shutterfly came the closest to my specifications. Not perfect, but the lesser of many evils.

I set up an account, and got to work.

For the last 2 weeks or so I've been working hard...no really. It is hard work doing these things.
Not like sweaty-brow hard work...mental and emotional hard work!

My patience has been tested with horrendous uploading times, failed uploads, pictures that won't fit the template, tiny spaces for text, and randomly bumping something that will delete the last hour's progress...you know the one.

Its also been really weird just going through all these old pictures, trying to remember names, places, and thoughts, from the time. I dug out a lot of old memorabilia for reference, and even cracked open my journal from that year. Whew! Emotional overload! I'm tellin' ya...this wasn't an easy project!

Once all the pictures and text were in place, it was time for the tedious work. Clicking page by page...checking that all fonts and font sizes were consistent, that they fit, were spelled correctly, spaced properly, etc. Also adjusting cropped pictures, and making some last-minute swaps.

It took hours...and hours...and hours...

When I knew there was realistically nothing else that needed to be done, I still couldn't click the "next" button. I was afraid.

Afraid that I missed a glaring error, and as soon as it was sent away I would remember and go, "OH NO!"...

and afraid of the price...

I knew roughly remembered how much the book would cost, with its 20 "complimentary" pages. But my book had reached about, well...would you believe me if I said it was 90 pages long? I could hardly believe it either. I didn't know how much those extra 70 pages were gonna cost me.

When I finally decided to get this other with, and went to the "checkout" I had another heart attack. I knew it wouldn't be cheap, but I wasn't expecting it to be quite THAT much!!! (I can't tell you the number, because I can't quite comprehend it myself). It was even 20% off, with some promotional deal going on.

It was a big dilemma. A BIG dilemma.
I began weighing the pros and cons. And thinking of alternatives...

But once the thought of, "Start over and scrapbook them the old-fashioned way" hit my brain, my mind was made up.

After all this time, my corneas bleeding from staring at the glow of the computer screen until the wee morning hours, uploading, typing, re-uploading, and re-typing...

All those hours, wasted?

I couldn't face it, guys.
I couldn't face having to start alllll over again.
So I clicked, "Order".

And that was that.

But get this...

THAT WASN'T EVEN ALL MY PICTURES!

I didn't put any of my backpacking trip in June in that book. Nada.

That's like...another 10,000 pictures! (not really, I don't know how many pics I have from that, but probably an equal amount)

For a second I contemplated starting another shutterfly book...but last night, I decided NO.

I will do them the old fashioned way.

Whether or not its cheaper in the long run, we will have to see. But since I already have a lot of paper, and all the basics needed, I think it will be a better deal.

That's what I'm telling myself, because I won't ever pay that much for a photobook ever again!

Humdinger Hummus

I first fell in love with hummus while in Ireland. There was a grocery store called "Lidol" (of German origin, I believe) that sold this amazing hummus in a little plastic tub. That hummus was unlike any hummus I've ever had before or since- creamy, light, and fantastically flavored. I would buy one every week.

When I got home I tried to find a hummus to match it, but came up empty-handed. However, while I was away this summer, my mom came upon a recipe that has satisfied my hummus-tooth. Its not anything like the Lidol brand, but it is a great hummus!

So without further ado...

The Hummus Recipe

I couldn't resist this opportunity to use my new Cuisinart food processor!

2-3 Cloves of garlic...

1 can of chickpeas, drained...
3 Tablesoons of Lemon Juice...
3-4 Tablespoons of water (or chickpea juice :D), and 1 Teaspoon of cumin...
2-4 Tablespoons of tahini...or just less than 1 Tablespoon of peanut butter, if you have run out of tahini) and 1/4 teaspoon of salt!

Blend well!!
Voila!
Its a tasty (and healthy!) snack, that is so good with tortilla chips, or toasted pita bread with garlic butter! Yum!! And because chickpeas are full of protein, it wards of the grumbly tumblies.

I put a leeeetle too much PB in mine (because I'd always used tahini before) so be careful, because you only need a tiny bit, as it is much stronger than tahini. You could also try making your own tahini by lightly toasting raw (shelled!) sesame seeds, and then giving them a good blend in the food processor with a little veg or olive oil.

Enjoy!

How Do You Rate?

I recently discovered Diamond Dame...a blog about all things vintage. It is one of the reasons I haven't gotten to bed at a decent hour for many days.

While I read, I store away all manners of useless knowledge of the past...oh, how I love it. Love, love, love it.

However, considering that I have recently turned 22 (and I am unspeakably jealous of Diamond Dame's vintage picnic birthday party coming up) and my brother tells me I am on the verge of becoming an Old Spinster, when I found this on the blog, I thought it best to take...

The 1930's Husband & Wife Test

And see what I needed to work on before I was ready for matrimony.
I rated at 62...A "Superior" housewife...but I also cheated, because I have never been married so I can't really know these answers until then.

Would you pass as a good housewife/husband in the 1930's?

It Came!

My package has arrived at last! What a practice in patience. Its been over 2 weeks.

The contents: a CD...Meaghan Smith, "The Cricket's Orchestra".

I first heard her on the "(500) Days of Summer" soundtrack (also worth checking out), and I thought Wow, who is that? I love her voice!

Of course Googling her was the next step! She is a new-ish Canadian artist from London, Ontario, whose work is inspired by music of the 20's, 30's and 40's.

In her bio, she writes,

"[I] decided to create my musical world by using a string quartet, an eight-piece horn section, guitars, keys, upright bass, a clarinet, some flutes, and even an Omnichord. We used Mellotron samples in place of a modern band because we loved the quirky, vintage vibe they brought to the songs, and topped it all off with some turntable scratches. The result is an ideal blend of old and new."

She also admits to watching lots of animated movies and old musicals, even listing "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers" as a favorite!

That's when I knew I'd like her.

I've just finished listening to the entire CD once through, and I really enjoyed it. There is definitely that nostalgic vintage sound the brings old black & white movies to mind, which I adore, but her voice comes through soft and clear. Very, very, easy to listen to. Think Norah Jones meets Mary Poppins.

Its very different from most stuff you hear these days...a refreshing blast from the past.
Music samples can be found here, or watch this music video...

She Knows Me Too Well

I used to be a pretty organized, schedule-loving, list-making, give-me-a-weeks-notice, kind of girl. But somewhere near the end of my teens (perhaps under the hippie influenced air of Quadra Island?) I began to let go of my uptight ways, and morphed into a more spontaneous, adventurous, "you-want-to?-ok-lets-go!" me.
Especially while living out in the boonies this past summer at Strathcona Park Lodge, where internet access was sketchy and cell phones get no reception, I became the person that would call at 9AM and say "Hey its my day off, and I'm driving into Campbell River now...wanna hang out?", or even more likely, 9PM, "Hey I just got off work and tomorrow is my weekend...wanna hang out?"
It was sort of a running joke between my friend Karissa and I, so I laughed when I received this birthday present in the mail.
Its perfect.

Twenty-Two

It feels no different than 21, it just sounds a little more mature to me, perhaps because everyone associates 21 as the age that frees you from all "restrictions" and people tend to go a little nuts with that!

Carrot Birthday Cake with Cream Cheese Icing

Yes, it was my birthday yesterday. Our family doesn't really tend to make much of a fuss about birthdays so it was a very low-key day. I went shopping for a camera in the morning with my dad, because my parents and eldest brother decided to make me the happiest by pitching in some $ to replace my old one that perished in the ocean this past summer.
I bought a Sony Cybershot H20, which is an upgraded model of my previous camera. So far I'm thrilled with it! I loved my old camera, and my only real complaint about it was bad indoor and low-light pictures. This newer model is improved in that area, so that is very exciting!!
Its also slightly more compact, and a little sleeker...I like.
My car-smart youngest brother gave Peppy an oil change (THANKS TIMO!) and I was delighted to receive a mini food processor from Mike and Katie! I'm so stoked about that because it spells H-U-M-M-U-S and P-E-S-T-O and a myriad of other culinary delights I've been dying to make!
We went to Chapters Viewpoint for a nice dinner, lacking only the wit of brother Paul, who was in Vancouver enjoying a 6-2 win for the Canucks vs. Penguins.

Family Shot

I tried Escargot for the first time!

Kind of a funny shot of my first bite

I have to say though, it was a very odd birthday to me, that didn't quite feel like a birthday, because there is simply NO SNOW! It looks like late Spring out there!!! Sunny, mild, and bare...?!?!?! what the heck? Besides the birthday I spent in Ireland, every single one of my birthdays has been well endowed with snow! It felt really strange, and not quite right.

I want the snow back.

Unbelievable.

Disappointment

My package didn't come in the mail today.
I was disappointed. Now it won't arrive until Monday or Tuesday.
Its my own fault, I decided not to pay extra shipping costs and go for the 10-11 day shipping. I figure it a good time to practice some patience. Seems like everything these days is instant. I could've just downloaded it (its a CD) and had the music already in my iTunes, but nooooo...I want a tangible CD because I'm paranoid about files being accidentally deleted. So I wait. And wait.
I keep telling myself this waiting will only make me appreciate it more when it comes.
I hope that is the case.

Wasting Time

I'm sorry this poor blog has been so boring lately. Life has not been very exciting. I know that usually its when life is boring and slow that blogs tend to get more interesting, but let that just testify to how boring my life has been. It can't even be exciting in blog form.
I've been slaving away on my Ireland photobook, and I'm up too 65 pages!!! I have no doubt I will reach the limit of 100 pages. Its going to be one thick book. And that's not even going to include the month of backpacking with Karissa! I'll have to make a separate book for that!
At long last I have taken out "North & South" (Elizabeth Gaskell), and "Sense & Sensibility" (Jane Austen) from the library, and I will make myself settle down and read them. And I will enjoy them.
Last night cleaning, there was water raining from the ceiling in the ladies washroom! A huge mess. The foamy ceiling squares were all waterlogged and discolored...so gross. We (my boss and I) couldn't get a hold of anyone, so I had to leave it dripping all night, with the mop bucket and other buckets strategically placed around the toilet to catch all the water! Its going to be a disaster when I go in to clean tonight...uuuugh.
Anyway that's all I can think of right now. But there is hope for blogs in the future. I have a package coming in the mail that I'm excited about, and when it gets here I will share it with you.

Little House Life

I don't know what to blog about, but I'm trying not to fall out of the habit.
I picked up a "Little House" book while dog-sitting this weekend, and started to read it again for the first time in many, many years...
It was quite entertaining actually! I used to adore those books, but then "grew out of them" (read: avoided them due to mocking brothers) and haven't looked at them since. I was reading, "These Happy Golden Years", which had never been a favorite of mine back in the day. This time I really enjoyed it, maybe because I am older now. There are parts that are quite funny, especially the interactions between Laura and Almanzo at the beginning of their relationship. The writing style is very matter-of-fact and straight-forward, but reading between the lines you can imagine the expressions and reactions!
I also enjoy picturing how life was different back then. They took nothing for granted, and life was so much harder...everyone had to pitch in. Laura was so skilled, even at 15 she was sewing her own clothes, teaching school, educating herself on her own, cooking, cleaning, and helping put her sister through college...I can hardly imagine!
She was very capable, confident, and intelligent. No wonder Almanzo fell in love with her!

Anybody Want One?

I'm doing one of my routine reorganizations, which included jewelery and lotions this time.

These necklaces have been hanging around for a while, and I like them, but I just never wear them. I have already found a new home for a lotion, thrown out an ancient clay masque tube, and a terrible aerosol perfume I bought in the Gatwick airport because I hadn't had a shower in a while, and it was hot. Niiiiice.
Also up for grabs: 2 pairs of little girls' earrings I bought when I got my ears pierced, NOA perfumed stardust body lotion, and a few other random necklaces that aren't as nice as the ones shown in the picture...I know, I know, I'm too generous.
I wish it wasn't too cold for garage sales.

Long Day

Left the house at 8:30am and got back at 11pm...

but I started the yoga class, and it was quite fun and challenging (for me!) and I think it will be a good thing. Ugh, I was going to write more, but I'm absolutely wiped out. Bed time.

Oh, and my iPod decided to start a slow and painful death (at the beginning of a 3.5 hour shift *alone* in a quiet and empty office...not good) on the eve of its 4th Birthday. Almost. Ok, not quite, but nearly. I think that's a pretty good lifespan though, for iPods. I'm just worried about losing all my music now. Oh well. Ok, bedtime. For real.

I Remember This

While attempting to clean up and streamline some bloggy stuff, I came across this post that never got published...until today. Man, that was a bad morning.

Living Vicariously

My brother Mike got this DVD series for Christmas, and has been powering through them. I'm lagging a bit behind him, but watched 2 episodes yesterday, and I've got to say...I'm really enjoying it.
This reality show is about 2 British guys (Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman) who decide to ride their motorbikes across the world. They go East from England and head across Czech Republic, Russia, Mongolia, etc, etc, and then cross the Pacific to the Yukon, down through Canada, to the States, etc etc.

The first couple episodes detail how they get started and all the planning and stress that is involved! When they finally get on the road its quite exciting, and you get to see so much scenery and different people groups.

They also make a point of stopping at different points were Unicef is helping out. They talk and play with kids on the streets or in orphanages, and find out a bit more about what the organizations are doing there. It can be very heart-wrenching, but it is important to see what life is like there.

The two guys are very entertaining as well! Of course everyone has seen Ewan McGregor on screen at some point, wether as Obi Wan Kenobi or Frank Churchill, or whatever (Just had to throw an Austen reference in there) but seeing him as himself is very neat. I think I have a crush on him now. His friend Charley is hilarious, and looks a bit like a frog (its the EYES!), and together they are fun to watch.

I've only watched 4 episodes, but there have already been so many laugh-out-loud moments, a few suspenseful times, and a lot of bizarre happenings! It makes me feel like I'm traveling again...siiiiigh. That paired with the fact that I was looking at a friend's pictures of a trip to France, and hearing about another friend traveling to stay in Nepal for a couple months makes me feel very...stranded. Now I want to travel again. But I'll have to content myself with simply watching The Long Way Round for now.

For The Austen Fans

People like to give me a hard time sometimes, because they think I don't appreciate romance. But that's a lie...I do like romance. My heart goes all gooey and mushy watching a good chick flick, I read the end of Ella Enchanted over and over (I know, I'm sad), and I almost always cry at weddings. But I'm particular about what qualifies as romance...for instance, Twlight doesn't. Unless you're talking about Jacob, 'cause lets face it people, he's the one she should've gone for. Not that she deserves him. Not that I'm picking teams...*shifty eyes*

ANYway....

I'm a sucker for a good love story. And that means, I'm a sucker for Jane Austen.

I own the BBC 'Pride & Prejudice', and 'Emma' starring Gwyneth Paltrow, and I'm always on the lookout for others. I've watched Ang Lee's 'Sense and Sensibility' a couple of times, and its always fallen flat for me. I mean, really...Colonel Brandon is creepy enough already without being played by Alan Rickman.

So imagine my delight when I was lent the (relatively) new BBC version of 'Sense & Sensibility'!
I could hardly wait to watch it.
And it did not disapoint. I loved this version, and found it far superior to the old one. For one, it was created by the same director as BBC P&P, and two, it is in 3 parts...there is just too much to these stories to cut them down into a regular movie length. You have to give them enough room to squeeze all the good bits in!

The Good:
The visuals were rich, and the soundtrack was beautiful. Acting- excellent. Humor- spot on.
Loved the costumes, and scenery, and realistic take on things. Also loved Edward Ferrars.

The Bad (?):
The only thing I cannot give my opinion on is how close to the book it stays...seeing as I've never read the book! I KNOW! Can you believe it? I can't. I started it years ago when I was a lot younger, and there were simply too many Dashwoods in the first chapter. I got so utterly confused, I put it away and I just haven't got around to picking it up again!

The Ugly:
(SPOILER ALERT!)
I just can't get past the fact that Marianne is 16 and Colonel Brandon is 34...and they get married. Especially because she looks so little and young and childlike in this movie. It freaks me out. But that's the only thing. Besides that...

It was a satisfying experience in every way. I need to own it now.
If you like a good love story, and especially if you like Jane Austen, you will like this movie.
Go watch it now!