If you've ever left a comment on my blog and I never replied back, it's because I didn't know people were leaving comments (because I thought nobody ever read what I wrote!). Well, I'm glad to see some people follow what I write every now and then. Hiiii!
PS: This blogging thing is weird...It's so exciting and scary at the same time to know that people read about your life without really knowing you. But I like sharing things, even though I'm mostly talking to myself and most of the time have nothing that would be interesting for others to read...LOL
January 13, 2010
January 11, 2010
I see you...
Yesterday we finally went to see Avatar (3-D at IMAX)...Wow, what a movie! Honestly, I was a bit skeptical going in. We had to buy our tickets 3 days in advance...Mind you, it started playing on Dec. 18! I mean, it's almost been a month, and it's still sold-out everyday?!? I don't think that happened to any other movie I wanted to see before. After all the hype, I thought maybe I'd be disappointed....But nope, the movie was sooo good I didn't want it to end...It's so cool it makes you wish you lived on Pandora as one of the Na'vi people. The visuals were pure magic, the colors, ohhh the colors...This is one of those movies that have to be seen at the movie theater, preferably in 3-D. I can't even imagine what it'd be like to watch it at home, it would probably (definitely?) lose some of that magic.
On a different note, I just found out the other day that the Molson Brewing Co. I see out my window everyday is the oldest brewery in North America. I'm not a big beer fan, and the mass produced factory beers appeal to me the least, but still a cool fact nonetheless. In the below picture, it's the building with the "clock" on it. Oh wait, now that I look at it, it really is a clock!
On a different note, I just found out the other day that the Molson Brewing Co. I see out my window everyday is the oldest brewery in North America. I'm not a big beer fan, and the mass produced factory beers appeal to me the least, but still a cool fact nonetheless. In the below picture, it's the building with the "clock" on it. Oh wait, now that I look at it, it really is a clock!
January 5, 2010
Pawcake
Here's a little paw shape that appeared on one of the pancakes I was making before the holidays...My cat's paw looked exactly like this. She was declawed (before I adopted her...I would never ever do such a cruel thing to my cat) so she didn't have the "claw" part of her paw (unfortunately). The day they had to put her to sleep, they gave me a clay mold of her paw, and the similarity between her paw print and the shape on this pancake surprises me.
January 4, 2010
Back to reality...
The holidays are over. Somehow the Christmas carols they still play at our local grocery store don't sound that festive anymore. The beautiful white snow we've had over the past few days has turned into gray slush, the kind that somehow makes it into your living room on the 11th floor. It's almost as if the weather is playing along and reminding us "it's over, back to work now, you have a full year ahead of you and lots to accomplish, get on it!" Mariachi went to work this morning, and I woke up with a head cold from our trip to the "mountains". We had a blast, blog material for later probably.
It's only the 4th of January and I feel the sound in my head going "sheesh, is this going to be the year you get a job? Will you have those papers published, or what? Are you planning to send an e-mail to that someone you've been avoiding the past 3 months???Are you ready for the reply you'll get? That tummy flab won't go away on its own you know, and certainly by not eating a lot of comfort food. Hey, is that your kitchen pantry that's soooo disorganized? It could definitely use a little organizing, and don't even get me started on those wool sweaters that have been sitting in your hamper for the last 2 months because you have to hand-wash them. And what about that private French teacher that you were going to find? blah blah blah..."
Dammit me! Give me a break!
It's only the 4th of January and I feel the sound in my head going "sheesh, is this going to be the year you get a job? Will you have those papers published, or what? Are you planning to send an e-mail to that someone you've been avoiding the past 3 months???Are you ready for the reply you'll get? That tummy flab won't go away on its own you know, and certainly by not eating a lot of comfort food. Hey, is that your kitchen pantry that's soooo disorganized? It could definitely use a little organizing, and don't even get me started on those wool sweaters that have been sitting in your hamper for the last 2 months because you have to hand-wash them. And what about that private French teacher that you were going to find? blah blah blah..."
Dammit me! Give me a break!
December 24, 2009
Happy Holidays!
Arrrgh! Half of my post mysteriously disappeared as I was trying to upload a picture. It bugs me that blogger does an auto-save and won't let you see the previous version before the save. There should be a way around this.
Anyway, dinner last night was a success. The final verdict on the chicken was not to cook it ahead of time. I rubbed the chicken with a mixture of olive oil, lemon, salt, black pepper, and finely grated garlic. I rubbed it in really hard and also made sure to get it all under the skin. Whole potatoes and carrots also went into the dish, covered with the same mixture minus the garlic. The lemon juice ensures the potatoes and carrots will preserve their color through the baking process. The whole thing was very delicious, and it must mean something when I say that because usually I am overly critical of my cooking. I could not find one thing that was wrong with this chicken (to my amazement he he) and people went for seconds so I think it was good. It was crispy on the outside and very juicy on the inside, falling right off the bone (although not falling off the bone as sometimes happens when I cook chicken in the slow cooker. That's a bit too much falling-off-the-bone for my taste, but I usually manage to overcook chicken in the slow cooker.) We also had bread, tomato-vermicelli soup, rice, and salad. I meant to take a picture of the chicken after it was done, but I forgot. We have some leftovers so maybe I'll try to take a picture tonight of our plates or something. Here's a picture of the salad:
It was a colorful addition to our table. I only use lemon juice, olive oil, and salt as dressing. It's lighter and also very easy to make. The dressing goes in right before we sit at the table, or else the whole thing becomes wilted and less appetizing to look at (if you make it more then an hour in advance that is). I also soak the lettuce (preferably romaine or frisee...I don't like iceberg lettuce that much, as it is crispy but doesn't have any flavor, it's like chewing hay..mmm but the nutty goodness of the frisee or the romaine...yum!Also the darker the color the better it is for you!) in a mixture of water and 2 tablespoons of white vinegar before I make the salad. I don't buy my lettuce prepackaged, so I feel this step is necessary. You wouldn't believe all the crap that falls into the water during this soaking process--very tiny green bugs that would be impossible to detect which mostly don't come off with the regular washing procedure, and a lot of fine brown hmmm earth/soil/sand/no-clue-what. You have to of course rinse the salad after this soak (and I rinse before, too). If you have slightly wilted lettuce, this procedure also restores it back to being good and crispy. I don't exactly know the chemistry behind that but it does help, try and see! Maybe it's just the water and the vinegar has nothing to do with it.
On another note, tomorrow is Christmas day. Everyone in the world is getting ready for some sort of celebration around this time of year, be it Christmas, Diwali, Kwanzaa, Yule, winter solstice, New Year celebrations, etc etc...It is a very festive time with lots of decorations, lot of colors, music, food, new hopes and desires waiting to be fulfilled. It is also the time of year when a lot of shopping happens with much stress and spending. As we officially enter the holiday season, I hope everyone takes a moment to reflect upon what it is that this season means to them, and looks beyond the whole shopping/gifts craze.
I wish you all a holiday season filled with happiness and joy, and Merry Christmas to all my christian friends.
Peace.
Anyway, dinner last night was a success. The final verdict on the chicken was not to cook it ahead of time. I rubbed the chicken with a mixture of olive oil, lemon, salt, black pepper, and finely grated garlic. I rubbed it in really hard and also made sure to get it all under the skin. Whole potatoes and carrots also went into the dish, covered with the same mixture minus the garlic. The lemon juice ensures the potatoes and carrots will preserve their color through the baking process. The whole thing was very delicious, and it must mean something when I say that because usually I am overly critical of my cooking. I could not find one thing that was wrong with this chicken (to my amazement he he) and people went for seconds so I think it was good. It was crispy on the outside and very juicy on the inside, falling right off the bone (although not falling off the bone as sometimes happens when I cook chicken in the slow cooker. That's a bit too much falling-off-the-bone for my taste, but I usually manage to overcook chicken in the slow cooker.) We also had bread, tomato-vermicelli soup, rice, and salad. I meant to take a picture of the chicken after it was done, but I forgot. We have some leftovers so maybe I'll try to take a picture tonight of our plates or something. Here's a picture of the salad:
It was a colorful addition to our table. I only use lemon juice, olive oil, and salt as dressing. It's lighter and also very easy to make. The dressing goes in right before we sit at the table, or else the whole thing becomes wilted and less appetizing to look at (if you make it more then an hour in advance that is). I also soak the lettuce (preferably romaine or frisee...I don't like iceberg lettuce that much, as it is crispy but doesn't have any flavor, it's like chewing hay..mmm but the nutty goodness of the frisee or the romaine...yum!Also the darker the color the better it is for you!) in a mixture of water and 2 tablespoons of white vinegar before I make the salad. I don't buy my lettuce prepackaged, so I feel this step is necessary. You wouldn't believe all the crap that falls into the water during this soaking process--very tiny green bugs that would be impossible to detect which mostly don't come off with the regular washing procedure, and a lot of fine brown hmmm earth/soil/sand/no-clue-what. You have to of course rinse the salad after this soak (and I rinse before, too). If you have slightly wilted lettuce, this procedure also restores it back to being good and crispy. I don't exactly know the chemistry behind that but it does help, try and see! Maybe it's just the water and the vinegar has nothing to do with it.
On another note, tomorrow is Christmas day. Everyone in the world is getting ready for some sort of celebration around this time of year, be it Christmas, Diwali, Kwanzaa, Yule, winter solstice, New Year celebrations, etc etc...It is a very festive time with lots of decorations, lot of colors, music, food, new hopes and desires waiting to be fulfilled. It is also the time of year when a lot of shopping happens with much stress and spending. As we officially enter the holiday season, I hope everyone takes a moment to reflect upon what it is that this season means to them, and looks beyond the whole shopping/gifts craze.
I wish you all a holiday season filled with happiness and joy, and Merry Christmas to all my christian friends.
Peace.
December 23, 2009
Dinner for six and other stories
I have people coming over for dinner tonight. We're going to be celebrating brother-in-law's girlfriend's graduation, and saying farewell to them for a few weeks as they're leaving for the holidays. I haven't got the menu totally figured out yet, but some sort of soup, a big salad, and I think some oven roasted chicken and rice will be on the table along with some good wine. A call to my mom is necessary as I need some tips on cooking the chicken-probably can manage on my own, but I want it to come out perfect...I will cook the chicken ahead of time, so I need a strategy to keep it moist and good for a second heat-up. Or maybe it's better to adjust the timing so that it's ready just as they get here? Hmmm...Also we're going to need some sort of dessert, haven't got that part figured out just yet.
Last night Mariachi and I finished "making" our Christmas presents for our parents. Photo albums with 100 pics in them depicting our 2009 together...With the explanations written on the margins... The albums themselves are really cute to look at even when empty but that wouldn't make a very meaningful gift. I hope they'll like them. Since we're so far away from each other, we (or rather I) thought this would be appreciated. Mariachi helped me get it all together by napping on the couch while I sorted and labeled the photos. Then we put them in the albums, and then I wrote the labels for both albums, because we (I) decided my hand writing is better (and because he didn't really want to do it heh). I forgot how much fun it was to look at photos in an album. We never have our pics printed, we just look at them on the computer screen and I realized last night that it's just not the same. BUT thinking about all the trees and ink we save by not getting the pics printed puts my mind at ease. Also, really, the albums are cool but you look at them 1 or 2 times and then they just sit there in a drawer or on a shelf...It's a different story with parents though, I'm sure they'll be looking at them more often ;).
I got Mariachi a yoga mat and we've been doing yoga together at nights. I'll spare you the details but he looks soooo funny when he does yoga. :D
And now, I have to plan out my menu, my day, and then call mom.
Last night Mariachi and I finished "making" our Christmas presents for our parents. Photo albums with 100 pics in them depicting our 2009 together...With the explanations written on the margins... The albums themselves are really cute to look at even when empty but that wouldn't make a very meaningful gift. I hope they'll like them. Since we're so far away from each other, we (or rather I) thought this would be appreciated. Mariachi helped me get it all together by napping on the couch while I sorted and labeled the photos. Then we put them in the albums, and then I wrote the labels for both albums, because we (I) decided my hand writing is better (and because he didn't really want to do it heh). I forgot how much fun it was to look at photos in an album. We never have our pics printed, we just look at them on the computer screen and I realized last night that it's just not the same. BUT thinking about all the trees and ink we save by not getting the pics printed puts my mind at ease. Also, really, the albums are cool but you look at them 1 or 2 times and then they just sit there in a drawer or on a shelf...It's a different story with parents though, I'm sure they'll be looking at them more often ;).
I got Mariachi a yoga mat and we've been doing yoga together at nights. I'll spare you the details but he looks soooo funny when he does yoga. :D
And now, I have to plan out my menu, my day, and then call mom.
December 21, 2009
Oi!
Fell off the bandwagon again...Maybe this blogging thing is really not for me :S Things I've been doing lately, in no particular order:
-Obsessively cooking soup. Weather's finally gotten cold here...There's something so comforting about soup, especially on cold days...And the possibilities are endless. I love playing around and creating "new" stuff...If you know a few basics, you can't really mess up a soup.It's quick, cheap, and a wonderful "starter". (Side note: one should definitely peel a spaghetti squash before cooking and blending it...And the sucker is so hard to peel! Lesson learned:bake it, then scoop out the flesh...Otherwise you'll have some sort of weird "gritty" soup and a husband unwilling to eat it.)
-Learning French...intensively...I never thought I'd be able to do it, but, yup, I actually can speak French now...
-Making new friends...I've met so many wonderful people!
-Still not believing I am in Montreal...Maybe I keep repeating the same thing over and over again, but it's been 10 months since I moved here, and not a day goes by that this city doesn't amaze me. It really is one of the best places in the world to live, and really, the winter is not that unbearable, it's almost always sunny in the winter, and the summers are hot--at least we have that.
-Looking for a job--still
-Getting ready to adopt a (or two) cat(s)
-Doing laundry...Seriously, I have no clue what's up with that, but we seem to generate twice the normal amount of laundry lately!
-Unsuccessfully attempting to knit
-Getting ready to go on a skiing trip...So excited about this one, hope I'll come back in one piece!
-Researching "self-employment" alternatives
-Reading--Just finished reading Dan Brown's "The Lost Symbol". For me it was a quicker read than "The Da Vinci Code" but I hated the ending...Reading Kundera's "Farewell Waltz" right now. Probably one of his "lighter" works, but it is a good read so far.
-Working on academic papers
-Wanting a Kindle
-Thinking about blogging...
-Obsessively cooking soup. Weather's finally gotten cold here...There's something so comforting about soup, especially on cold days...And the possibilities are endless. I love playing around and creating "new" stuff...If you know a few basics, you can't really mess up a soup.It's quick, cheap, and a wonderful "starter". (Side note: one should definitely peel a spaghetti squash before cooking and blending it...And the sucker is so hard to peel! Lesson learned:bake it, then scoop out the flesh...Otherwise you'll have some sort of weird "gritty" soup and a husband unwilling to eat it.)
-Learning French...intensively...I never thought I'd be able to do it, but, yup, I actually can speak French now...
-Making new friends...I've met so many wonderful people!
-Still not believing I am in Montreal...Maybe I keep repeating the same thing over and over again, but it's been 10 months since I moved here, and not a day goes by that this city doesn't amaze me. It really is one of the best places in the world to live, and really, the winter is not that unbearable, it's almost always sunny in the winter, and the summers are hot--at least we have that.
-Looking for a job--still
-Getting ready to adopt a (or two) cat(s)
-Doing laundry...Seriously, I have no clue what's up with that, but we seem to generate twice the normal amount of laundry lately!
-Unsuccessfully attempting to knit
-Getting ready to go on a skiing trip...So excited about this one, hope I'll come back in one piece!
-Researching "self-employment" alternatives
-Reading--Just finished reading Dan Brown's "The Lost Symbol". For me it was a quicker read than "The Da Vinci Code" but I hated the ending...Reading Kundera's "Farewell Waltz" right now. Probably one of his "lighter" works, but it is a good read so far.
-Working on academic papers
-Wanting a Kindle
-Thinking about blogging...
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