THE ACADIA: 1227 SHERBROOKE STREET WEST

 

Across the street from the Ritz Carlton lays a building of incredible craftsmanship. It is not a building I have noticed before, lacking the larger more intricate marquis that usually commands all my attention when I walk by, nor the menu nor photos of specialty food at heartstopping prices, nor windows of Tiffany jewelry. It is, however, worth a few minutes of admiration itself.

According to the plaque placed by Heritage Montreal, the Acadia Apartments where designed by David Robertson Brown. It was the first apartment building  to take advantage of  a new municipal by-law that allowed buildings to exceed ten stories, following the standards and of apartment buildings in New York City at the time. It was built by 1925 in the Golden Square, with the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts and the Ritz Carlton already in situ. It is described to have been decorated with an artificial "cast" stone from Canadian Benedict Stone Limited, although I am not sure which if any stones apply.

From my perusal, The Acadia appears to be an apartment building with the intricate details above the entrance and near the top of its 12 story frame. There are elaborate corner extrusions that, on second glance, are not functional but represent a time when gargoyles drained the roof of water when it rains. The arcades repeat in the centre, above and below, with floral motifs and elaborate moldings that are almost too busy for my taste followed by faux arches in even numbers reminiscent of Venetian facades. 

When you take a closer look at the building, you see flawless brickwork. The shelf of Ventian arches are build out of cleverly cut out bricks, which leads you to notice a line of perpendicular bricks below that quickly becomes a stepping stone to discovering other patterns buried in the wall of dun coloured brick. 

Above each window is a simple interruption of vertical laying brick. Between two sets of evenly spaced window pairs is a wonderful upright herringbone pattern. At the top of these are another pattern of two stripes woven into long vertical rectangles.

Everything is to the scale of a humble brick, likely brought in by train in the era of the Golden Mild construction. The geometric balance of paired, and unpaired, is perfection.  A smaller brick woven in between other bricks of a varying neutral yellow colour that gives the aging building a patina worthy of praise and adoration.

Smaller brick layers (or are they just turned perpendicularly on end) are the "bonding courses".

My apologies to the Ritz Carlton, because the next time that I turn your corner, I may not be looking your way.

QUILTING

 I started watching a series called 3 Blocks, 30 Quilts to prepare for the sock quilt that has been cooling in a shoebox for too long. The instructor Kate Collaran is quite inspiring. She has a company that designs quilt patterns called Seams Like a Dream Designs.

She suggests colour families, and then pulls in an accent colour. She recommends a pop of colour, with the idea that if you have two complimentary colours, a third is necessary to bring in a contrast. She also sees colour families, or themes to pull colour together. If you have a beautiful complicated fabric, you can use it as an inspiration to pull the colours together for your quilt.

She suggests that you design patterns in a notebook with pencil crayons, which is what I like to do when I see a pattern that inspires me (the last one was from a scene from Shang-Chi). 

She talks about 1 block quilts, log cabins, four patch, and pinwheels! Start at a corner at bottom right, and at a strip to the top, then the left side, until your block is done.  

Don't forget to measure twice; cut once.

Use your iron, and "press" your fabric to start, once seams are sown, press flat, closed, then on the back, creating a four patch pinwheel to lay flat in behind, and then at each additional piece. 

She has a cutting mat that seems like a great size, and encourages the use of 2 rulers without turning your fabric. She uses a rotary cutter, and cuts multiple strips by multiplying and cutting a 6' strip before cutting it in half for 2-3' strips to minimize moving the fabric.

Sewing strips together, she gets a "good" quarter inch seams but starting the seam before she gets to her sewing foot with a guide. She recommends painter's tape as low residue. She recommends sewing slowly and steadily, don't "swing wide" at the beginning, and "following through" by getting all the way off before rushing the end of the seam.

Cross cutting units tidies up the edges to get rid of "wonky bits", of which I think I might have many.

Once you have 12, 24, or 48 blocks, you can arrange the setting of them all following all sorts of patterns. Each block is 12 inches. A large quilt is 48 blocks. A small quilt is 24.

If you are drawing on your squares (with half square triangles), you can glue a sandpaper on cardboard and draw without the fabric moving. 

The squares can be sewn as squares with centre seam allowances, then cut after the fact. Trim your dog ears before joining the next two triangles. This is advanced level!

Frixion pen ink disappears with ironing.

Another great resource is

CREATIVE WRITING PROMPTS: WEEK ONE

A rock is thrown through a window

Write a story about a character who interprets people's dreams

I told you so

INKTOBER

 In the month heading into NaNoWriMo, we have picked up a new daily habit of drawing and posting (to our fridge door) an ink sketch (preceded by a pencil draft), thanks to the prompts from Inktober. 

EVERYDAY IS TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION DAY

It's been an appallingly slow process to improve the heavily biased and often ignorant history taught in school to even begin to tell a more complete story. The Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples was published in 1996, but the apologies and settlements will be ongoing for generations to come. 

This year will remembered as a traumatic one for many reasons, but I don't think we will soon forget the discovery of 215 unmarked graves at the Kamloops residential school at the end of the school year has ballooned to a total that has yet to be confirmed but is being quoted as high as 6509. 

Here is a map of how extensive the system was. These horrific findings are not a surprise, but the rising counts of bodies between covid waves has coaxed along with a national conversation, marking September 30th as the first national marking of the long work that is Truth and Reconciliation.

My daughter participated in her school's organization of the day, wearing an orange shirt in honour of Phyllis Webstad. Like my daughter, her proud memory of being dressed up by her family for the exciting first day of school. Unlike my daughter, she arrived and was stripped of all of her clothes, including that beloved orange shirt, and it was never returned to her. Now we wear orange to recognize the harm done to Phyllis and countless others by the residential school system, and affirm our commitment to reconcile, apologized, and learn from the admission of the truth of systemic racism, and our need to turn this trauma to growth.

It is an embarassment and an affront that Premier Legault denies that systemic racism exists, and that . The coroner's report of Joyce Echaquan's death underlines the need for acknowledgement of systemic racism. 

Here is a link to a document called Myths and Realities of Indigenous People from the Quebec commission of human and child rights.

Coming from the University of Manitoba, that has been proactive in indigenous education of all students, there is a National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation 

THUNDERCLOUDS AT SUNSET

 

NATIONAL DOUKHOBOR HERITAGE VILLAGE, VERIGIN, SK

 Once upon a time, I visited this property while training at the hospital in Kamsack. I have a photo that I was standing in front of the historical two terraced prayer house with my mom. I have no recollection of it!

If I add it up, it was 25 years ago. Yikes!

GOOD FOOD

 

THIS IS HOW MY GARDEN GROWS: August

It's a bit unruly, and will need some rearranging when the weather is cooler and, hopefully, wetter, but the front bed is filling in from the street renovation work last year. 

I was worried that it was a waste of time to plant the garden as late as I did, but the basil, spinach and lettuce are a constant joy, and the peas are blooming so we will have a harvest soon. If the beans and cucumbers don't come to pass before the end of the growing season, I will do better next year. Today, I ate the first peas, and yesterday Princess Pirate said the peas reminded her of Grandma and Grandpa's garden, so that alone was worth the effort.

 

ON WRITING

Writing feels essentially a selfish act.  An attempt to thwart mortality and live on in words, that in future, you will no longer be able to speak. The opportunity to tell a story that no one else in your life is willing to listen to. It requires time away from other social interactions. Carved out from the time you could spend with others. The focus taken away from all sorts of other priorities. Time all for yourself. A pleasure only for the extremely shy and introverted and antisocial. A feeling of guilt for me. A futile exercise. A waste of time.

Living alone in covid, writing feels less selfish. With families insulating themselves at home, the extroverted demands of society dropped precipitously. Writing becomes therapy. One hand clapping in the forest, never to be heard. An attempt to refine one's thoughts. The defence you never had a chance to voice in real time. A legacy you leave without knowing who it is for, if anyone. A voice in the wilderness, perhaps sent out only to the vibrations of the vast magnificent universe itself.

Writing feels like necessity. The vice of selfishness I was taught, I now see as self-preservation. The church's idea of centuries warping the ancient ideas of a spectrum. From a balance of yin and yang, to Aristotle's Golden Mean twisted into black and white. If it's not a virtue, it is a vice. Selflessness is the virtue. Selfishness, the vice. Leaving no room for self-care or self-preservation.

Writing is self-care. Writing is for self-preservation. Writing is for me.

FRIDAY, EVERY OTHER WEEK

 I am always surprised at how low I can go on the day I say good-bye to my girl for another week at her dad's.

It's been almost 6 years since she left for a new apartment. It used to be that it was the end of the weekend, and I would dread beginning the week. A void was left in my heart every other week. 

There were many shifts I went in for in tears, with palpitations.

Eventually, it became clear to me that the schoolweek that followed depended on the weekend before, and after a few months of relentless advocacy, the day to say goodbye became Friday. 

It has evolved from an evening of tears, complete with sobbing to a recurrent disappointment with plans falling through and a bag of potato chips and a bag of licorice.

OUT WITH AN ACHILLE'S HEEL

I have been sitting on my duff for 2 days now, reading the first novel in the Apollo series by Rick Riordan. I am feeling that is ironic to be reading Greek mythology when I hurt my foot running after watching the beautiful race of Eliud Kipchoge in the Men's Olympic marathon. It also feels ironic that my thought was always that Achille's heel was a tendon rupture, but with the familiar lancing pain stemming from the insertion of my plantar fascia, I wonder if this wasn't the Greek hero's heel problem.

Turns out I should have just left well enough alone, and heel step like I had been for the last 6 weeks. None of the runners do that in the Olympics, though, and so I though I should try it out on Monday. By the ten minute mark, I had tried to correct my mistake, but then my ankle didn't seem to get any messages from my foot, and feeling disconnected from my right shin to the ground, I kept up an easy run, starting to shortcut the route, knowing that I still had about 4km left to get home. 

So here I sit, with a pair of crutches my constant companion, and Princess Pirate playing mother with glee. 

At least the ice pack is a relief in this heat wave, but I can feel my muscles atrophying and cardio dropping off, and I am terrified at how long it will be before I can get back it.

So, instead of running, I will write. I will try and get back to running as soon as I can, and not forget what I have done. And I will wear insoles and only run on trails, after I ice my heel as much as possible until I am back at it. 

I will also likely finish the Apollo series, and maybe the Heroes of Olympus, if I have too much time on my hands.

It has been quite a lesson in dependence and gratitude. I am not used to anyone doing anything for me, and I am told that I am bad patient. That being said, Princess Pirate has been very dutiful in taking care of me. She makes me meals, cleans up, carries my crutches, and generally chastises me for trying anything but moving to the couch with crutches. 

She has spent a LOT of time in the kitchen cleaning up, brings me breakfast in bed, composts every day, and revels in making a meal without a recipe. 

She made fresh pesto from the garden basil, and learned that canola oil is not EVOO. She has doctored our drinks with mint and lemon thyme, served me hot beverages, microwaved cheddar apple filled tortillas for a decent quesadilla, and, for the first time ever, boiled water unsupervised to serve us pasta with a side of corn, bean and cheddar salad.

I miss the climbing gym and waterslides and organizing the basement plans that we had this week, but I have seen a responsible side to PP that I didn't know possible, indulged in watching the first sport climbing Olympic event to debut at Tokyo 2020, and started to focus on the writing that was missing in July when I started running. 

My heel has cooled down a lot, so I hope this "sprain" calms down faster than the plantar fasciitis I got when I was in Spain and lasted for 6 months.

In the meantime, I have one more day to be spoiled and cooked for, so I booked us a swim tomorrow afternoon, and will get to bed soon. When breakfast arrives, PP has no qualms about waking me to enjoy it!

LIKE SAND THROUGH AN HOURGLASS, MY THOUGHTS AND MEMORIES PASS BY

Sometimes I have the most brilliant ideas. Mostly I am impressed by the simple brilliant ideas of others, but they inspire me to have brilliant ideas myself. The trouble is that, while they are coming up with these ideas from their memories, I forget mine.

Today, I went for a run and I brought headphones and started my podcast app to distract me from the heat and pain. The speakers were spontaneous, and funny, and brilliant, and some ideas galvanized for me. But as I sit down to try and recreate my thoughts, I am stumped.

I can't even really easily retrace my thoughts, because, in order to keep free data space on my phone, I have the podcasts that I have listened to erased.

I usually end up listening to one of two shows: Planet Money or 99pi. I think that it's funny that my favourite show is about money. It's so far from my focus, but I think I like the logic and math of it. It is also amazing that it talks about most topics in life, and so many shows seems to be spontaneously "lightening in a bottle".

So here is what I remember:

Warren Buffet made a bet for $ 1 million dollars to invest over 10 years, which he won by investing in the first index fund that ever existed: Vanguard in 1976. The index is a great argument for being average. 

This was juxtapositioned with an article about the notion of average ended up leading us to the sizes of S M L clothes. The clincher idea was at some point fighter pilots were making mistakes, and it turned out that the one-size-fits all cockpit fit no one. So that's how we came to adjustable seats that now come standard in our cars. 

Then there was an unusual economist, in that he was also socialist, who explained the problems and the common misconceptions about capitalism. Essentially, the common fear about socialism is that it is confused with the authoritarian models that no one likes. But the idea of socialism was finally put forward in a reasonable way, and the Spanish company of Mondragon (after the name of the town) is a fine example. There are still pay differences, but the highest to lowest paid is within a ratio of 8-9:1 and not the capitalist current rate of 224:1.

There was even the argument made that with capitalism, we have disparities and injustice in our capitalist society, and that the way to even this out is to broaden our use of socialism and have less employees, and more fair employers.

 

JULY IS THE MONTH I STARTED RUNNING AGAIN

The last audio book that I listened to was called "What I Talk About When I Talk About Running" by  Haruki Murakami. I honestly thought it was going to be a book by a runner, but it was actually the story of a popular fiction writer from Japan who runs in his spare time.

Like many autobiographies that I have listened to lately, I disliked the writer for a good portion of the time. But I was inspired, after a hiatus of over two years, to re-aquaint myself with the runner identity that I honestly thought at my age that I might have to leave behind.

The idea was to run, and write. This author, like a favourite fictional character named Kinsey Milhone, made a habit I have never achieved. They both ran daily, and a number of miles, and this always makes me want to do the same. Being a realist, however, I was certain I would never be able to do anything that regularly even if I didn't have to work, so I decided to take my favourite kind of number, and run every other day on the odd days beginning on July 1st.

Now that it is August, I happy to report that I have managed to run every other day for a total of 16 runs. It hasn't been easy, and it has been far from regular distances , but I have done it every single odd day. The problem seems to be, however, that I have even less time to write than ever.

At the beginning, I did what I always do when I lapse and start running again. I took a familiar route after digesting a simple breakfast, and willed my way down the hill, under the golf course, back up again to the waterfront, past the marina and the park, and back up through the streets to the nearby train station and up and around to the park that is at the bottom of my street. All told, a 6.6 km route that took 45 minutes, and the first real cardio in ages.

The next day my knee was swollen, and I had the familiar dread of the right medial meniscal tear that took me out of running for a summer, and probably affected my running for more years than I can remember. 

Day 3 came and it was the second day of ward call. I opted for the first time ever to take care of my health first thing, and went in to work to round on a Saturday after that. I did the same route, but when I look back on the fitbit tracker, I was in the peak heart rate and not in cardio. I was about to learn that I needed to run smarter now that I am older. 

Now I iced my knee, and it was harder to bend it for stretching, that I very quickly felt that I needed. My knee was still swollen the next day. I iced it and treated it gingerly. It didn't feel too bad.  I felt more tired that I usually would early in the day, but I was proud to actually do it on call. Work days are usually bad days for exercise or sleep. In this case I was only sacrificing a little sleep.

Day 5 came and I ran the same route. It was hot and muggy, so I went out in the evening before the sunset. I couldn't imagine doing this everyday, but I thought I might get this every other day thing going.

Day 7 was a late run, and it was a critical decision to do this run, because I had worked all day, and the Habs were in the playoffs. I still had cable for one more day, and it ended up that it was their last game of the season. In mourning, and now after dark, I ran the well lit streets in my neighbourhood, finishing before midnight, on a slow jog around the streets and bike paths without having to cross any traffic, around 4 km. 

Day 9 followed a very late shift, and plans for a walk with a friend in the afternoon. I would have rather hung out with my daughter, but she was keen to get some alone time in the house, so I kept a promise to myself, and ran after supper for a 20 minute 2.7 k run around the neighbourhood, enjoying the sunset.

Day 11 was another late one, with my summer birthday cleanup and Princess Pirate's summer birthday preparations in full swing for the next day. I ran for 30 minutes around 10 pm, with PP up late but encouraging me not to break the chain. It started to feel like the shorter distances were a better fit for me, which was disappointing, but I started to recognize my knees and abdomen again as not so frightfully middle ages as I had feared would be permanent. 

By this point, my running was better, but I had to remind myself that I took up running to get into the practice of writing, and I wasn't doing that at all. Any free time I had was taken up in the act of running. Stretching was also difficult to get in, and my lower back was starting to feel tight.

By the time day 13 and 15 came, I was camping, and sometimes walking far enough that a run felt like a lot of effort. But the habit was kept, and the hills were not as tough as they would have been in the first runs, and I would run around the campgrounds and through the forest trails, even if the length of run was not as long. Combined with the drive and an air mattress deflating for uncomfortable sleeping, my back and legs were contracting up into flexion. I had in mind the visual of a faun, with the bent legs of a goat, but feeling none of the advantages of their natural spring. Stretching in the gravel wasn't easy, and I was starting to think that this was not going to be a sustainable frequency, but I committed to idea of finishing the month, and was starting to know what day it was most days. After covid isolation and decades of irregular shift work, I had often loss the sense of weekdays and weekends. Now, I knew at least that it was an odd day if I was running and it was even day if I was not.

Now it is August, and I did take a pause for a few days, and felt a twinge to watch the odd day pass without a run. I did the smart thing and scheduled my 3 runs a week in my calendar, not based on the day of the week, or an odd or even number. And so on August 4th I ran my first run of the month. Now when I run, I have to run a good distance. In the hot weather this week, this meant that I headed to the local woods where the trails are shaded.

In one month, my legs are stronger, my knee doesn't bother me if I take short strides, and I recognize my body again. I have to stretch before and after for just about as long to feel normal (the toll of the biped is contained in the hamstrings and calves at this age), and I may have run 5.5 k today in 45 minutes, when I ran a 10 k in 49 just 20 years ago, but after a prolonged hiatus, I can call myself a runner again. 

Now I just have to figure out how to be a writer too.

ALGONQUIN PARK

Recommended by friends that go every year, a small group of sites with large areas with a beach right there is to be found at Achray and Brent campgrounds. Like our recent trip to Sepaq's Orford park, there are nature programs for kids and interested adults alike.

The toilets are "drop" ie outhouses, and there is no running water, but if you know that going in, it sounds wonderful.

This last year, it seems like the bots won a lot of spots, resold on Kijiji. Seems a shame, but if you haven't noticed overcrowding of the planet anywhere else, when the campsites are hard to come by, you know times are tight.

 

MONT-ORFORD PARK

July 25-29, 2021

Sarcelle 45 at Lac Fraser

I booked next years camping at the same spot. I hesitated because this camping site is perfect uninhabited, but it was distressing to see the habitat destroyed with the backing of colonialist parents who believed it was their kids sacred right to stay off the trails and stamp down the flora with visible destruction within the day. 

It was close to a wonderful lake that had naturalist activities called Beaver Hut lake, where I actually saw a Beaver (heard first) at dusk. Hopefully next time Rebecca will be with me to see it too!

There is a nice trail near the water to the small beach. I think it would be fun to be on the  Stukley Lake side near the Bonnallie service centre where the lectures were.

This is the view from our picnic table. Very restful, until the children run through it and wake you up!

 The trails are likely beaver made. This pond has an old hut, and trees felled in clear"a beaver was here" fashion. They have had to move their hut upstream (I couldn't find it, but I had fun trying!)

A tiny red-backed salamander on the Three Pond trail, near Cherry tree Lake.

We didn't see a deer, but we did find tracks (Three Pond trail, again!)

Mount Orford Trail Map

SUMMER PARTY FOOD

Both summer birthday parties were a welcome improvement from last year. 

Mine was good food and good friends. 

I had started late, and pushed the start time to get most of my ideas, but not all ready.

I greeted the first guests with two types of sparkling wine from France (and costco). The apple pear was the most obvious, but I liked the apple raspberry the best. With the drinks on the back patio, I had organized individual servings of jalapeño potato chips, beet and sweet potato chips, garden stix, and a toothpick of olives.

When everyone arrived, I served a verrine of Martha Stewart's gazpacho from market vegetables.

Next I tried to make a Pampered Chef warm appetizer gluten free by using rice crackers as the base instead of wonton wrappers. It was a fail, but the recipe called artichoke cups was still tasty enough that none was left behind.

The last item (good thing because my dessert never made it past the halfway stage and no one missed it, or asked for it, anyway) was a vegan"Buddha" bowl with my favourite dressing below.

I had roasted mushrooms, zucchini, sweet potato and red peppers. They look a mess but they taste delicious. I marinated tofu in soya sauce, garlic, ginger, and maple syrup, and pan fried them. Served on a bed of quinoa with pepitas and what I call dragon sauce (1/4 c tahini, 1/4 c nutritional yeast, 1/2 tsp turmeric, 1/2 tsp ground ginger, 1 clove garlic, 2 T maple syrup, 1T vinegar, 4 T water, 1/8 tsp cayenne powder), the main course was a big hit, and far more delicious that it looks! 

Princess Pirate's party was friends, sunshine and one sprinkler. My neighbour texted me that it was so nice to her shouts of laughter after last year's quiet back yard party! 

The cupcakes were Betty Crocker's red velvet, chosen to be nut and soya free. The cream cheese icing that it came was surprisingly good, and the gold sprinkles were a big hit!

 For two Capricorn's with winter birthdays, this year's summer birthdays were a real treat!

THIS IS HOW MY GARDEN GROWS

I had a late start to the garden, but I had already built the rectangle a previous year. I had calculated a new spot that was not so dry as the most exposed south side where things didn't grow so well, even though it was conveniently located next to the water source. It had at least 6 hours of light a day in the summertime, and I had my grade niner calculate the volume to fill it, and bought 17 bags of garden soil on sale for $1.50 each. I don't love to buy dirt wrapped in plastic, but it was number 4 recyclable, so I washed them out and put them in the blue bin, and hopefully won't have to refill it anytime soon. 

I bought $35 dollars worth of seeds, and only used a quarter of them! I guess my eyes were bigger than the size of my garden. 

I had some bamboo stakes, and planted cucumber and beans below. Very early on, there was an excellent rain, and all the peas floated to the top, as you can see if you look carefully in two rows below.

Given the number of squirrels, groundhogs and rabbits in the yard, I made a feeble attempt with a mesh I had used before to keep out as many creatures as I can. My daughter noted these little white jumpers, and associated them with a good start to the soil.

 

COFFEE BETWEEN COVID WAVES THREE AND FOUR

 I finally have a family doctor, thanks to the waiting list anyone can register on to get with the Quebec Health Insurance Plan(RAM), and on my first visit in person to the clinic, the Starbucks had tables open, and I had the time to stop for a cold brew. 

I showed my second wave ordering skills, asking for a cold press, and was politely corrected by the millennial barista that that was a term for olive oil, and not available at Starbucks!

Still, for the edge of a busy parking lot, the greenery and sportcar (and maybe not just a little COVID deprivation) made me feel like I was sitting on Rodeo Drive!

TODAY I WOKE UP AT NOON AFTER A LATE EVENING SHIFT

I…

caught up on my emails and watched Facebook TicToc videos until my screen time limits blocked me, thankfully.

went to the bathroom and got dressed.

petted my kitty, fed her, cleaned her litter, and took her outside.

made and ate breakfast.

booked swimming times at the local pool venture with friends at a local reptile farm.

finished getting ready for a code orange simulation for work.

unwound the kitty’s leash so she could move freely again.

updated my internet bill.

finished off bathroom update following a minor pipe leak.

broke down boxes piling up and updated warranties.

drank lemonade and cleaned up the table and cupboard. 

repacked for this weekend’s camping trip.

did a load of laundry and put away 2 others.

brought the kitty in.

emptied packed recycling bins.

changed the bed linen.

played a round of Wordscapes.

listened to an audiobook about Baye’s theorem and considered its application on medical and teaching practices and how it could help manage uncertainty.

put the kitty outside again.

hung new curtains and an old curtain rod.

fixed the mouldings in my bedroom where I hadn’t put enough finishing nails to eliminate gaps.

put the tools away, and planned for the next cleanup the basement project.

dusted the bedroom, and swept it, the bathroom and the kitchen.

brought the kitty in and fed her.

made tomato kale salad and artichoke kale red onion flatbread.

made chocolate peanut butter energy balls.

turned a cute kitty Kleenex box into a storage solution.

moved the cat tree to the backdoor for an unobstructed view.

watched the first half of a movie borrowed from the library until the blue ray player froze.

video chatted with  Princess Pirate.

installed a new smoke/CO alarm.

saw a last firefly and smiled in admiration of its spirit, even if unrequited.

did the dishes, again.

made this list.

set my alarm.

went to bed.

SIMPLE FOOD

 Back from camping, I had to use up some tomatoes that I had meant for Bruschetta, and after cutting away the mold, I had a nice Boursin garlic cheese that needed to be eaten fast. With some basil from the garden, and President's choice olive oil, I had lunch!

Princess Pirate had found these accordian potatoes on youtube, and I found a potato that needed a quick dress me up. I loved that it was in the shape of a heart. It wasn't perfect, but better than the Hasselback potatoes I had made before that took way longer and weren't so nice and crispy.

MY FIRST GOODFOOD MEAL

 I have tried a meal prep company before, and was comp'd another try with GoodFood. I have to say that it is well thought out, and quite beautifully designed, but the result is definitely more plastic garbage than to do it alone.

The first meal I made was a cauliflower lentil curry that was really quite tasty. The biggest delay was in preheating the over, which took 23 minutes to heat to 450F, but if I discount that time, the cooking time of 35 minutes was pretty accurate.

I grilled the naan for 5 minutes which was obviously way too long, and the sauce, before the suggested dilution, never did reduce well, but there was enough for 4 even though meant for 2, and it tasted delicious!

The next day version was just like the photo, and more company worthy.

CAMPING GOOD AND BAD

I have been in camping sites across North America and Europe, and the ones close to me have really improved the bathroom facilities from what I remember from my childhood and young adulthood. 

The ones at Mauricie Park were almost spa-worthy!

Our food depended on being non-perishable, so we did not always have the healthiest food, but here were a few of our meals:

Our s'mores were made over a propane stove which made it quicker and less smoky, but just as prone to burning! I found the special edition Maple Leaf goldfish after Canada, and grabbed the opportunity to try them.

We were never far from poison ivy, and wore long pants hiking so we didn't haven't to pay such close attention to avoiding it while walking.

This American black duck was very chill and came up on the beach very close to us. Not unduly tame, but clearly had been fed before by humans, although not crestfallen when these humans didn't.

Squirrels left their crumbs from pinecones they were eating.

A curious garter snake (his head is sticking up from the shadows between the boards).

Butterflies of all sorts.

I found in the camping supplies a ring to light to smoke mosquitos away that worked quite well.

The ground was a weird mix of sand and gravel. It drained well, but it was impossible to hammer the tent stakes in all the way, and bent most of the aluminum stakes which was less than ideal for a couple of rainy nights.

PARC LA MAURICIE

We spent a few days last week in one of two Canada Parks that we discovered last year. Parc La Mauricie is close to Shawinigan, and on our epic trip last year our visit to the park was during the day only, because we were staying in a hotel last time. 

This time we stayed at one of three main camping sites called Mistagance.

The park experience was everything I had hope for, except for three nights that were never clear enough to go start gazing.

We visited several lakes, and beaches. We took paths through forests and hiked paths that seem to go straight up a summit. It was a beautiful place to spend time in. 

Here are some pictures:

At the foot of the waterfalls

Lake Wapizagonke at Shewenegan beach under the bridge to the Waterfalls trail

                                      Pine Island from the peak of Bluff trail

An inviting dock at Alphonse Lake where we thought we swam alone, but Princess Pirate came out wearing a couple of unwanted leeches!

 

EATING WELL VEGETARIAN MENU

SEVEN DAYS 1500 calories

Pantry: oatmeal

quinoa

hamburger buns

peanut butter

almond butter

tortilla
walnuts

chia seed

black beans

ketchup

mustard

mayo

hummus

Shop: raspberries

bananas

apples

carrots

1 head lettuce

1 tomato, slice

1 portobello mushroom

1 red onion, sliced

eggs

Greek yogurt

Dark chocolate

PREP:

Bake a batch of 12 Baked Banana-Nut Oatmeal Cups at 375 C for 25 minutes (3 cups oats, 1/2 c milk, 2 mashed bananas, 1/3 cup brown sugar, 2 large eggs, 1 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp vanilla, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 c toasted pecan - 1/3 cup each - Cool for 10 minutes then turn out.)

Shred 1 cup carrots.

Cook quinoa

Make 3 hard-boiled eggs.

Toast walnuts.

Make 4 (DOUBLE?) mushroom-quinoa burgers (Place 1 portobello, 1 c black beans, 2 T almond butter, 1T mayo, 1 tsp pepper, 3/4 cup paprika, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, and 1/2 tsp salt in a food processor. Pulse and mix in 1/2 cup cooked quinoa and 1/4 cup oats. Refrigerate for 1 hour. Form 4 patties and heat in oil until crisp and golden, 4 minutes each side.)

Make special sauce (1 tsp ketchup, 1 tsp mustard, 2 T mayo, 1/4 tsp garlic powder)

Lemon-Roasted vegetable Hummus Bowls
1 serving basic green salad with vinaigrette (8 cups salad, 3 T EVOO, 2 T red wine vinegar, 1/2 t garlic, 1/2 t dijon)

DAY ONE

Breakfast 450 calories

1 cup oatmeal cooked in 2 cups water

1/3 cup raspberries

1 T  chopped and toasted walnuts

Snack 190 calories

1 apple

1 T PB

Lunch 345 calories

Whole-wheat Veggie wrap (8 inch tortilla, 2 T hummus, 1/4 avocado, 1 cup veggies, 2 T sharp cheddar cheese)

Snack 131 calories

1/2 c nonfat Greek yogurt

1/4 cup sliced strawberries

1 T chia seed

Dinner 394 calories

1 serving mushroom-quinoa veggie burgers with special sauce

DAY TWO

Breakfast 421 calories

1 servings Baked banana-nut oatmeal cups

2 clementines

DAY THREE

Spanakopita loaded potatoes - At 400 F, bake 4-10 oz russet potatoes for 50-60 minutes. (Fry 1 cup onion in oil, 3 cloves garlic, 1 lb or 4 cups spinach, and 1 tsp oregano. Reduce oven to 375 F. Remove baked potatoes, half and scoop out and mash. Add 1/3 cup cream cheese, 3/4 tsp pepper, and 1/4 kosher salt. Stir in spinach mixture and 1/2 cup feta. Stuff each half with 3/4 cup filling. Top with 1T each of feta. Return to bake for 25-35 minutes, until feta is browned. 1 h45 minutes. 197 cal per half.

DAY FOUR

Buffalo Cauliflower Salad

DAY FIVE

Roasted Chickpea Curry Bowl

DAY SIX

DAY SEVEN

THIRTY DINNERS