Friday, 31 August 2007
Toronto Blue Jays 7, Seattle Mariners 5
It was a good game ... Toronto won. As usual, we bought the $9 seats but they were great. The roof was open and there was a nice breeze.
From our seats:
The CN Tower from our seats:
Gord hasn't been feeling well all day so we left early.
He's got chills yet his head is hot. He's in bed with lots of blankets along with KC and Nova. Hopefully he'll feel better tomorrow.
Tuesday, 28 August 2007
Book ~ "The Line Painter" - Claire Cameron (2007)
Claire Cameron has created a unique portrait of Carrie, a young woman whose actions are driven by grief and shame, her personality a beguiling combination of naïveté and streetsmarts. Frank is equally sharply drawn, his flashes of humour and tenderness disguising the wreckage within. Written in spare, unvarnished prose that brims with menace against the forbidding backdrop of a northern landscape, The Line Painter takes us on a riveting trip down a twisted road of memory and redemption.
I read a favourable review of this book on a blog. Since Carrie is from Toronto, I thought I'd check it out.
I enjoyed the writing style. It was a quick pace and didn't take me long to get through it.
I didn't like Carrie and I thought the decisions she made, before and after her car broke down, were dumb. I didn't find Frank likeable either.
So I would recommend this book for the writing style. Let me know if you like the story better than I did.
Sunday, 26 August 2007
Book ~ The Birth House - Ami McKay (2007)
What attracted me to this book was that it is set in Nova Scotia, where I'm from. And the story sounded interesting. And it was.
The characters were believable and I was rooting for Dora to beat Dr. McKay!
I enjoyed this book. Definitely worth a read if you are looking for something different about the way it was a long time ago in a small town. It was interesting to read about the natural tonics to cure whatever ailed them.
The author's webpage
"Nunsense", Stage West, Toronto, ON
Gord and I saw this today. Though it was lively and lots of people found it funny, neither of us really enjoyed it.
We went to the brunch and I did pretty well in sticking to points and the detox. I had some lovely roasted potatoes (allowed). The chicken was deep fried small pieces coated with honey garlic sauce ... not so good. So I had some roast beef instead. Beef isn't allowed on the detox but I figured it was better than the chicken.
For dessert, I had a bite (honestly!) of pecan pie, brownie and apple strudel. My plate was filled with watermelon, melon, grapes, pineapple and strawberries. Much better!
Sunday, 19 August 2007
Tree top trekking, Horseshoe Valley, ON
First we started off with a safety check and some lessons.
I was fine climbing the ladder to get to the top of the tree (about 25 feet up). But then I was terrified! I seriously considered climbing back down.
But I'd driven 1.5 hours to get there and had paid $50 to do this! And I was anchored onto a cable if I slipped.
When I got to the end of the first "activity" (there were about six "activities" in the first course), my legs and arms were shaking! I hugged the tree for a bit.
There are three courses and I did the first two. The scariest part of the second one was the vine swing (you had to swing from one tree to another via a rope like Tarzan). That terrified me!
There is a zipline at the end of each course. I figured the ziplines would be the freakiest ... but they weren't. There were a hoot!
But at least I was free and off I went towards the netting. My hands and fingers were dirty and bleedy so I had some first aid administered. I'm going to have some nice bruises tomorrow!
Though it had gotten less scary, I'd had enough.
Gord did the third course (longer than the first two) and here are some pictures of him:
At the netting at the end of the last zipline |
Friday, 17 August 2007
Book ~ "Bird Factory" - David Layton (2005)
I was attacted to this book because it was set in Toronto.
I enjoyed the writing style and could feel Luke's struggle. His family is whacked, his in-laws are rigid and also whacked in their own way ... and his wife is obsessed with getting pregnant.
Definitely a book I'd recommened.
Toronto Blue Jays 5, Baltimore Orioles 2
From our table at the Hard Rock Cafe:
Angie
Jen and Angie
Because I can't have dairy, wheat, beef or pork because of the detox, it was a challenge to order from the menu. I ended getting chicken wings, since I had enough points left over from my day for them. And I drank tons of water.
We didn't watch much of the game but we had a lot of laughs!
Sunday, 12 August 2007
Breyers Double Churned Fudge Bars
Don't!
They taste like the stick, not "rich and creamy".
Yuk!
Definitely not worth the $6 a box!
Greek Lemon Chicken Thighs And Potatoes
POINTS Value: 7
Servings: 4
Preparation Time: 12 min
Cooking Time: 60 min
Level of Difficulty: Easy
Save time and infuse flavour by marinating this hearty Mediterranean dish overnight. The garlicky-lemon flavour is excellent.
Ingredients
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup fat-free chicken broth
1 Tbsp olive oil
4 clove garlic clove(s), minced
2 Tbsp fresh oregano
1 sprays cooking spray, (5 one-second sprays per serving)
1 1/2 pound skinless chicken thigh(s), boneless, about 8 thighs
1 pound uncooked new potatoes, cut in half (about 10 small potatoes)
Place lemon juice, broth, oil, garlic and oregano in a large resealable plastic bag or medium glass bowl. Add chicken, seal bag or cover bowl, and marinate at least 2 hours or up to overnight in refrigerator.
Preheat oven to 350ºF. Coat a 9 x 11-inch pan with cooking spray.
Place chicken and marinade in pan; add potatoes. Bake 60 minutes, or longer for softer potatoes. Yields about 2 chicken thighs and 5 potato halves per serving. (Note: you may substitute boneless, skinless chicken breasts for the thighs but reduce the cooking time by 15 minutes.)
Saturday, 11 August 2007
Saturday Morning Walk
We passed by this interesting building on Queen Street W (at Ossington). In it's day many years ago, it was a fine home on the outskirts of the City owned by a rich family.
When I moved to Toronto 20 years ago, it was a rooming house with a seedy bar (the flat part in the back) and stayed that way for many years. It's been closed for about three years and is for lease. It's sad that it's lost its former glory.
We live near the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH). It takes up a lot of space (27 acres) so it's a big block to walk around. Plus they have a grounds that offers lots of stuff for KC to sniff.
The space the CAMH is on has been home to a mental health facility for more than 150 years. In 1850, the Provincial Lunatic Asylum, as it was then known, first opened its doors. Throughout the years there have been numerous name changes ... the Toronto Lunatic Asylum, the Provincial Lunatic Asylum, "999 Queen Street" and the Queen Street Mental Health Centre.
Architect John Howard's "Provincial Lunatic Asylum" as it would have appeared in the 19th century.
These buildings have since been knocked down and replaced. They are currently rejuvenating it again.Wednesday, 8 August 2007
Book ~ "Mindscan" - Robert J. Sawyer (2005)
I'm not usually into SciFi stories but this one caught my attention because it was set in Toronto in 2045 (and the Blue Jays still aren't winning!).
And given the storyline, I wasn't expecting to like it ... but it drew me in right away.
Excellent bizarre story! I'd definitely recommend it!
Here's the author's blog.
Monday, 6 August 2007
Happy Simcoe Day!
- Hero of the American Revolution
- Commanding officer of the Queen's York Rangers
- Founder of Toronto
- First Lt. Governor of Upper Canada
- Builder of Yonge Street
- Abolished slavery in what's now Ontario 30 years before the rest of the British Empire did it and 60 years before Abe Lincoln did it
Sunday, 5 August 2007
Book ~ "And God Created the Au Pair" - Benedicte Newland and Pascale Smets (2006)
The style of this book is interesting ... it's just emails, mainly between Charlotte and Nell. Charlotte lives in England and Nelle lives here in Toronto.
I found it funny and interesting for the most part. It started getting tiresome towards the end and could have been a lot shorter.
Bungalow BBQ, Toronto, ON
On Sundays at the Bungalow Cafe, Rob does a BBQ so we stopped in for a couple drinks on our way home. I had a burger and Gord had chicken. Very yummy!
Here's Gord with Jeff's dog, Juliette, on the patio of the Bungalow Cafe. She is very sweet!
Toronto Blue Jays 4, Texas Rangers 1
The view from our seats:
Vernon Wells is up at bat:
Gord at our seats
Friday, 3 August 2007
"Evil Dead", Diesel Playhouse, Toronto, ON
While the title may convey horror - fans, critics and audiences alike are calling it an uproariously funny musical comedy. Based on Sam Raimi’s 80s cult-classic horror films, EVIL DEAD: THE MUSICAL unearths the old familiar story: boy and friends take a weekend getaway at abandoned cabin, boy expects to get lucky, boy unleashes ancient evil spirit, friends turn into Candarian Demons, boy fights until dawn to survive. As musical mayhem descends upon this sleepover in the woods, “camp” takes on a whole new meaning with uproarious numbers like “All the Men in my Life Keep Getting Killed by Candarian Demons,” “Look Who’s Evil Now” and “Do the Necronomicon.”
This play was freakin' hilarious! If you get a chance to go see it, you should.
We were in the second row, in the middle ... the "splatter zone". I got splattered from the waist down.
Here's a taste (warning bad language):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QrDui7xeGv0
Update: It did wash out and Gord's shirt is white again.
Milestones, Toronto, ON
Gord's family had given us a bunch of gift certificates for Christmas so we used them tonight.
Wednesday, 1 August 2007
Banana Muffins ... from Scratch!
Today was the day! I found this recipe on the 'net:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs, beaten
2 1/3 cups mashed overripe bananas
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan.
In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar. Stir in eggs and mashed bananas until well blended. Stir banana mixture into flour mixture; stir just to moisten. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan.
Bake in preheated oven for 60 to 65 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of the loaf comes out clean. Let bread cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack.
You can tell I don't bake much:
- I didn't have any baking soda so I asked Gord to pick up just enough for this recipe ... it cost him $0.03.
- I discovered I didn't have a loaf pan so made muffins instead.
- I didn't have white flour so used whole wheat flour instead (and hoped it wouldn't make a difference)
I added 1/2 cup of walnuts cuz I found them in cupboard.
Since Wendy posted a picture of her cheesecake last week, here are my muffins:
I had one and they are tasty!