Reliably Unreliable

To anyone who posted a comment this week,  I did approve them, Blogger is apparently working on fixing the issues with comments. They've been working on this since March 29th however, so it's obviously not a priority issue. I, on the other do think your comments are a priority, so I wanted you to know I appreciate them.

Things I Heart This Week

A movie about fonts (and people wonder, out loud sometimes, why I'm single), Jeffrey Lewis and the Junkyard - To Be Objectified, Zachary German, and this homage to my all time favourite painter Dali.

Plautdietsch Word of the Day: abschnied = cut off (as in "Don't do that or your mother will cut off your head")

6 Impossible Things Before Breakfast

I tried to take my grandmother to see "Alice in Wonderland" 3D on Tuesday. After scouring the parking lot for the closest possible parking spot, buying the tickets and redeeming my voucher for free popcorn we discovered we'd been duped into seeing the regular version. Much hullaballoo ensued as I tried to edit undo these transactions with the net result of a $0.77 deficit to my bank account and an agreement to try again at a different theater today as I had dinner plans Tuesday and couldn't stay in the city until the next showing.

So this morning I woke up early and Grandma and I hit the backroad highways back to the city for the second time this week. She told me stories from her childhood, and we swapped road trip tales and she showed me where my father works. After a quick stop for her doctor's appointment we had a half hour to kill so we bought fruit smoothies and gave ourselves freezy headaches.

Grandma had told me she hadn't been to a movie in a theater since before she was married. Last time she went it was $0.75 each to get in. That's right, less than the amount I lost on the extra butter for my free popcorn on Tuesday.

I could hear her laughing a lot throughout the movie and when it was over she said, "Well, that's not the Alice in Wonderland I remember," which made me laugh. I asked her if she enjoyed it and was so happy myself when she grinned from ear to ear and said with shiny eyes, "Oh yes, very much." I grinned right back.

On the way home we lamented the loss of drive-ins and the general ineptitude of my generation. I know I ought to have defended us but frankly I had to agree we are, on the whole, indefensibly useless creatures. I do hope to do better with that myself, starting with learning how to patch my bike tire tube this weekend.

Daily Dose of Plautdietsch: schrickt = scream

Masala

I think dinner was a success. I realized halfway through the afternoon and much too late, that I had been far too ambitious with the menu but Company was kind and seemed to enjoy the fruits of my efforts. While the artichoke was an epic fail, and my garam masala sweet potatoes were met with mixed reviews (though I enjoyed them and was quite tickled at finally learning how to make ghee) I can recommend the cardamom chicken  and my cobbled together squash chutney:

Squash and Apricot Chutney

2 lb squash (butternut, hubbard or acorn)

1 peach

½ cup oil

1 tsp salt

1 cup dried apricots, julienned

1 2”(5cm) piece of gingerroot, julienned

1 red pepper

1 cup sugar

1 cup orange juice

½ cup white vinegar

1 tsp dried chile flakes

1) Bake the squash until just tender (approx 20 mins)

2) Cut the squash and fruit into small pieces and put in a bowl.

3) Peel and mince the pepper. You want tiny pieces so the taste will compliment the rest of the ingredients, not overpower them.



4) Reserve 1 cup of the squash & apricots. Combine the remaining ingredients in a pot.

5) Cook the chutney on medium heat for about 50 minutes. Stir often to keep it from sticking to the bottom of the pan.



6) Put the reserved cup of squash and apricots in the mixture. Add the minced onions and cook for 10 minutes more. This give your chutney a chunky texture and appearance.



7) Remove the pan from the heat. The chutney will continue to thicken slightly as it cools down. You can eat your chutney now or store in the refrigerator for one to two weeks.





I know for certain I enjoyed the conversation, company and walk despite being exhausted which makes it a success in my book.

Kitchen Tip of the Day: You can use coffee filters instead of cheese cloth (thanks Mom!)

Plautdietsch Phrase of the Day: schmurtzpuddel = fat puddles (it's actually some type of food though I can't recall what only the direct translation because it made me giggle)

Dinner Guest

I am the sort of dinner guest who will become enamoured with your appliances if they are circa Madmen. This sleek baby whipped me into a picture taking frenzy. I think my Uncle lined up the wine glass and bottle to provide an alibi for my insanity, but in truth, I would have snapped pictures even in a fit of sobriety. This mixer is not only beautifully designed but quiet.


Dinner was delicious, dessert divine and the spiked (amaretto and grand marnier) blueberry tea was a delightful end to a brilliant evening of good company and conversation.

Tonight I'm hosting a dinner guest who just arrived so I must be off.

Low German Phrase of the Day:

  jebrodne eadschocke -  fried potatoes

Personal Ads

Fun, creative and well traveled Palmolive girl seeks cute, unique and clever boy to subvert fate and make up for lost linear time just for hearts and giggles.

All I Need Is One Stone

Two people who bring out my tourettes in one shot. How very convenient this whole nuclear summit is when there's a scandal afoot. Is that what it would take to get him to attend an environmental summit in person? And I'm still trying to wrap my head around the part where he attended this concert with his neighbourhood pals. It's not like Sussex is home to Ottawa's taxi drivers and school teachers. Who are they trying to fool? Nickelback fans? ... Yeah, okay that might work.

via my Bro