Wool shopping

Last weekend Gaspereau Valley Fibres had a wool sale - 20% off! I picked up enough Lamb's Pride (for $6 a ball!) to make another couple meathead hats.And here are some of the friendly beasts on the farm. Caprice (the Llama), and the sheep (whose name I've forgotten), were our new best friends after the farmer gave us alfalfa treats to feed them.

Snug as a bug

There's nothing better than being inside on a stormy evening. And BOY! is it stormy tonight. The forecast calls for 5-10 cm, but I think we've got double that already...and it's showed no sign of slowing.

I'm also delighted with my new curtains. They're red and bright and cheery, and they give my large living room a warmer feel. What is even better is that they were on sale from 29.99/panel to 17.99 at Wicker Emporium, and I bought them on Saturday which was a tax-free day. Hooray!!

Brilliant!

I just have to share this....

My grandmother wins the award for the longest sock ever! She knit a sock for the hose of her vacuum cleaner so it wouldn't scratch the hardwood floors. I think this is the most brilliant idea ever and just consider how much time and effort this took! I'm impressed!

Last Minute Knitted Gift....

....Not so much.

I began the elephant from Joelle Hoverson's Last Minute Knitted Gifts in August, and only just finished it last weekend. Most of it knitted up easily once I figured out how to do a few new knitting techniques. I messed up on the trunk (it's actually upsidedown), and you might notice that one of its legs is shorter than the other. All in all I'm pretty happy with the finished product.

It was gifted to a 3 year old last weekend, and hopefully she'll get lots of enjoyment out of it.

I'm now working on knitting for Christmas gifts and would like to find a project to start with my beautiful new Malabrigo. Any suggestions?

Clementines are $4.77 at Superstore

Go buy some!

A shopping spree in the big city

While I was in Toronto, I went on a little shopping spree. I wasn't shopping clothes at designer shops, or for anything extravagant. I was shopping for things I knew I could get cheaply in Toronto, that I would pay more for here.

My favourite purchases were from one of my favourite stores in Toronto, Andalous. It's an import store where you can sometimes find neat things for really cheap, and then other times you find nothing at all. This time I found a cute purse (on sale from $28, down to $10), and 2 leather belts, one black one brown, for $5 each.

I also made a trip to Chinatown to get supplies for a Chinese theme night I'm having in about a week. I picked up 3 new pairs of chopsticks, chopstick holders for beginners, paper lanterns to decorate with and a Chinese fan as a souvenir for a little girl I know.

And, of course, I couldn't resist a little wool shopping. We stopped at Lettuce Knits in Kensington (how did I miss this shop when I was in Toronto?), but I showed restraint and saved my money for Romni. Romni is probably not the best knitting store in Toronto, but it's definitely the most amazing! It's not difficult to be overwhelmed when you walk inside.

The shop is big, and it's piled high with fibre of all kinds. There are at least 5 of the aisles like the one above, and then there's the basement (which is even more cramped), and a side room by the entrance where you can find knitting books and more wool. The prices are reasonable, for the most part, and naturally they have a huge selection of everything to do with wool. It was hard to decide on what to get and I ended up with an armful of wool that I had to reject (for the sake of my bank account). I settled on this Malabrigo Silky Merino.
It's my first Malabrigo and I have no idea what I'll knit with it - I really just loved the colour (Redwood Bark).And I also came back with a few books. Not as many as I had hoped because I missed the St. Michael's College Booksale, but I did spend some time browsing BMV and Book City and came away with three books that look promising. One in particular, Three Cups of Tea, I've been wanting to buy for quite awhile now, so I was especially pleased with this purchase.


All in all, I'm pretty happy with my purchases. I actually didn't spend that much money, but came home with a few things I'll get lots of use out of!

Dining in the big city

I'm back from a trip to Toronto. It was so good to see friends again and, as always, not enough time to see everyone! I was actually there for business but had the good fortune to turn it into a little vacation. I spent my time visiting, shopping and dining.

I'm going to post photos of the latter today, and save my shopping purchases for another post, another day. So, is it okay to admit that one of the things I miss the most about living in Toronto is the food? I miss the variety and how cheap you can get a delicious meal! So here are the highlights:

An Ethiopian feast from Ethiopian HouseWe ordered the Vegetarian Bayaaynatu plus 2 meat Bayaaynatu....and cleaned the plate of nearly everything! So delicious!!And then we ordered the Coffee Ceremony - strong Ethiopian coffee served with buttered popcorn. It's a perfect way to end the meal...well worth the extra 12.00.
Then there was the Japanese feast - the Supreme Bento Box at Sushi On Bloor. This is super value for your money. It's a 4 course meal - miso soup, then sushi....
The main course of teriyaki beef, tempura vegetables and shrimp, salad with delicious citrus dressing, served with rice. All of that followed with a dish of ice cream (mango, red bean or green tea).
And, last but not least, a Thai feast at Green Mango. I was surprised to find Green Mango had changed back to the set-up they had years ago when I first arrived in TO. They closed their take-out restaurant on the East side of Yonge, and now have the take-out inside the main restaurant. And there's more selection! I was sad to see they no longer have glass noodles (my favourite), but the basil noodles were equally as delicious. I ordered the peanut chicken and the basil chicken with extra cabbage salad - yum! All for less than $9!

And there were other delicious meals too - some in restaurants, some made in the kitchens of dear friends! All were enjoyed especially because of the company they were shared with!

Reality Check

Sometimes I forget how thankful I really ought to be. I complain about making less money, about the expense of the luxuries I enjoy (food, my car, the internet), and about not having all the things I want or that other people have.

Tonight I had a reality check.

I live in a world where 70% of the people make less than $1000 a year, where 850 million people go to bed hungry and where 50,000 people die every day from poverty-related causes. These people are less likely to have access to education or healthcare, and struggle to stay alive.
Makes my troubles insignificant, doesn't it!?

Tonight I participated in Oxfam's Hunger Banquet. It's a fascinating concept and is supposed to replicate the Global Dinner Table. You pay $10 at the door to participate - all the money goes to Oxfam as the food that is served has all been donated by local food producers - which gets you a seat at the table. There are 10 place settings (forks & knives) set at each table, so you're given an opportunity to meet new people. The facilitator at each table then held a lottery to tell you what income bracket you fit into - high ($11K+), medium ($1K-11K), or low (less than $1K). At each table there were 7 people who were low income, 2 who were middle income, and 1 who was high income. And then the meals were served....

This is where there's a catch. The meals were relative to your income bracket. So the high income person got a five course meal (gourmet soup, salad, main course and dessert, courtesy of The Cellar Bar & Grill), along with extra cutlery and a glass of champagne; the middle income people were served a wholesome stew with homemade bread, and the low income earners were served a potato and cabbage stew and their cutlery was taken away.

I was low income.

The experience was very interesting. We watched as delicious looking food was brought out and placed in front of one person. The rest of us had to wait through the first 2 courses before we got our meals. Fortunately, the high income person at our table, was also very generous! Not only did she pass each course around (before she herself took a bite), but she also purchased from the black market (i.e.: a woman dressed in a trenchcoat like a watch salesman) cutlery for each of us who had none ($1/piece). I was prepared to eat with my hands for the full experience, figuring low income earners wouldn't be too concerned about whether or not they had cutlery - but when it was offered, I didn't turn it down either. And so the meal went.

The truth is, I have have nothing to complain about. I have money in the bank, I live in comfort, I enjoy the luxury of driving, I have loving friends and family, and a faith that sustains me. So next time I complain about not having enough of anything, someone please slap me upside the head!

Thankful!

...For a wonderful weekend with family at the cottage.
...For creativity.
For beautiful weather: the crisp Fall air, the sunshine to warm your back, and the gorgeous colours of the leaves.

The best burger EVER!

This is not just a good burger... It's the BEST burger. It's thick and juicy, and topped with cheddar cheese and bacon, and served with homemade potato chips and just enough salad to make you feel good about ordering a bacon cheese burger. Now, you may think this is overly high praise for a Bacon Cheese Burger, but it's not! Since my first visit to the Coastal Cafe, everyone I've talked to who's had the burger agrees that its the best they've ever had. Even the people in the restaurant will agree and encourage indecisive customers (because there are so many delicious choices on their lunch menu!) to go with this choice. And if you think you're not in the mood for a heavy meal, let me tell you that this burger does not sit heavy in your gut when you're done. You don't get that gross "I've eaten too much greasy food" feeling. In fact, my co-worker today said, after she had finished her Coastal Bacon Cheese Burger that she could eat another!
With all this said, however, I went with the Curried Leg of Lamb Naan Sandwich, Tomato Ginger Chutney, Feta and Mint Raita to try something different. And let me tell you, it was delicious! Another winner from the Coastal Cafe! The chutney and the raita were so delicious together and a naan sandwich is such a fantastic idea, I may have to try it at home!

SideNote: It's not on the menu, but you can also order homemade brewed iced tea that is sweetened with peach juice. It's delicious, and less than $2.

Mi Casa es Su Casa

So work on the cardboard castle continues. We've made a lot of progress and, I think, we're getting quite close to completion. We still have to finish the turrets with cones on the top, and a couple of flags. We're going to "plant flowers" in the green land on either side of the drawbridge (it is a girly castle afterall!). And the moat just isn't complete until there's an alligator - so we'll be making an alligator in the near future. As you can see, a lot of work has been done to the interior, including quite a bit of interior decorating! There are several secret passageways and moveable parts that will make for fun play. And, we've also been working on constructing cardboard furniture, and sewing textiles like blankets, carpets and curtains.

I will take more pictures when the castle is finished. Though it may be a while yet - the possibilites for creativity are endless, and we're having a lot of fun designing and decorating.

An anniversary of sorts...

Today is the 2nd Anniversary for my blog. Two years! It's hard to believe! I hope to continue on and blog a bit more regularly in the weeks/months to come. I've had a few things up my sleeve these last few weeks that I'm really excited about and will divulge details in the near future.

I'm also back to knitting though I seem to have taken an unintentional hiatus in August. I shall post photos of the finished Chevron, the latest Baby Sweater and the unfinished Elephant sometime this week or weekend. I'm now working on my first pair of honeycomb mittens. The cuffs seem to be going well, but I'm a little fearful about screwing up the pattern. I've not had much success with dpns (though I haven't really tried very hard either!). Aunt S.: You can count on a call if I get stuck!

That's my little update for now. I will post something more interesting later.

A beautiful day for a hike...

Sunday was a gorgeous day to go for a walk. So we did. We hiked the path that follows the shore near Cyrstal Crescent Beach. Actually, truth be told, we went the opposite direction of the path from the Beach. The path seems to start on your right, but we headed left , with the hope of finding wild blueberries (no luck!). So we trailblazed, sort of. There was a path, but much of it had eroded and it wasn't a well travelled path. We had to walk through thickets of brush, climbing over and through rocks and avoid getting sucked into boggy soil. Being warm I had the brilliant idea to wear shorts, so naturally my legs give evidence to our off-trail trekking. Sigh. Lesson learned.
The view was certainly worth it. We landed on a beach, somewhat removed from the more popular spots (which were crowded, not surprisingly!).

We rested our tortured feet ... and took a dip in the Atlantic. The freakin' COLD Atlantic!!! It took a little getting used to, but once your feet adjusted to the temperature (think: brain freeze for the feet), it was hard to walk away.
Waves crashing on a white sand beach. Nice! This was my first beach trip since I can remember, perhaps since summer camp at Malagash...

After our dip, and then trying to get the sand off our feet so we could put our hiking shoes back on, we doubled back, crossed the main beaches and headed onto to the trail proper.
It was a much different hike, still following the coast, but not always with a view of the ocean as we had earlier. This path was lined with taller brush and these aromatic flowers (anyone know what they are?). Parts of the trail were actually a boardwalk, which was a nice change.

But the real view came down the path a little ways...when we hit the naturists' beach. Yes, my friends, we had quite a view!...full view of very tanned people (without tan-lines). We walked a little further up the trail, just enough beyond the naturists' beach, sat on the rocks a baked a little while - just long enough to get a little sunburn on the patch of skin I must've missed when I was applying sunscreen! Sigh.

All-in-all, it was a fabulous day!

A moment of weakness...

I went into Winners looking for a backpack, and came out with...

...Cute red patent mary-janes! Oops!

"I sing because I have joy"

Last night I witnessed the truest profession of hope, joy, faith and potential I've seen in a long time. The African Children's Choir performed at Birch Cove Baptist, and the packed house (with standing room only) was treated to a fantastic show full of harmony, energy, talent and enthusiasm. These children, aged between 7 and 11, from Uganda, Rwanda, Kenya..., have been performing on the road for almost a year, but you would hardly know it. I'm sure they must be tired of performing the same songs, the same dances, but it certainly didn't show.
This is truly a good news story. These children represent the hope of Africa. They are touring across Canada/USA/UK and Europe to demonstrate their potential, not just as singers and dancers, but as children who will grow up to be teachers, doctors, pastors, secretaries and Presidents. They don't flash images of improverished African villages, refugee camps, emaciated children, or inhabitable drought-filled landscapes; but show you the vibrant culture through music and dance and show you that when given the educational opportunities, they will thrive and live out their potential.

More about the African Children's Choir here and to see a tiny bit of their perfomance:


See YouTube for more clips of their performances.

More about the parent organization, Music For Life.

Check out their Itinerary, they're still on tour and they might be touring near you. If you live in the Maritimes and you're kicking yourself for missing them
...they're coming back in April 2009!

An Engineer's Guide to Cats

Corporal cuddling....tee hee hee!

Eat & Fit

As I'm sure I've mentioned before, one of the things I liked about Toronto was knowing that I had the world's cuisine at my fingertips. I could easily find a restaurant of almost any ethnicity and often within walking distance of where I lived.

Here in Halifax, it's not quite the same. There's not as much cultural representation, and what is available is definitely more expensive. But I'll grab any chance I can get to try a new restaurant, and sample new cuisine. The latest restaurant was Eat & Fit, an Iranian restaurant that's just opened on Quinpool Road. Quinpool Road seems to have become a Middle Eastern hub - with about 4 Greek restaurants, an Iranian restaurant now, and a Middle Eastern restaurant, called Aleppo, in place of the now-closed Ethiopia Restaurant.

To celebrate another pay-day, a small group of us at work went out for lunch. We chose Eat & Fit because it had an online menu, and because reading said menu initiated cravings for delicious food that lasted most of the morning.

Though there were mixed reviews of the food, I quite enjoyed it. It was what I had expected it to be, and definitely very tasty! We started with an appetizer: Kashk-o-Badenjan with pita and then followed it with Friday's Special, Ghormeh Sabzi. Each of us ordered the same, which wasn't perhaps the greatest idea, but the dish sounded truly delicious and none of us could resist (I'm assuming). Our server, who I assume was an Iranian and was very familiar with the dishes, introduced us a little to the food. With the Ghormeh Sabzi, he instructed us to puncture the cooked lemon in the stew to give the dish a tangy flavour. He warned us that some people (who aren't used to Iranian food) find the dish unappealing, but to look beyond it's appearance. The dish was excellent - very tangy (thanks to the entire cooked lemon you can see it covered in stew in the photo above), hearty, and fairly healthy I would expect.

We ended our meal with a date roll and an aromatic Iranian tea spiced with cardamom. We were instructed to put a sweeten the tea by putting a sugar cube in our mouths and drinking the tea through it....but this was difficult to do when you were also trying to eat a date roll.

Anyway, I would definitely visit this place again and recommend it to friends and family. Unfortunately while we were there Friday 12:30-1:30ish we were the only people in the restaurant. I just hope it gets enough business to keep it open.

They warned us....

Environment Canada warned us that we would get a lot of rain as a result of the tropical storm - 50-100 mm to be exact. Well, my already suffering peas and zucchini found out the hard way.... they're drowning. I fear the worst.

I'll have to dry out the planter. It's likely the plants won't surprise, and if that's the case, I'm going to try again and plant leaf lettuce or spinach in the planter instead. Sigh.

I [heart] my grandma !

It's true! Graffiti spotted near Lower Water Street, Halifax.

Oaklawn Farm Zoo

Again, one of the perks of hanging out with a kid, is getting to do things I used to do myself as a kid but don't so much as an adult - like going to the zoo!

Did you know Nova Scotia has a zoo? And I'm not talking about the wildlife parks, like Shubie; I'm talking big cats, and primates and other exotic animals. The zoo is in the middle of nowhere - in the Annapolis Valley. It's Oaklawn Farm Zoo, and it's relatively new (est. 1984).

We saw Zebras and a Zebra colt (and a Zonkey)...

...the backside of a lazy Siberian Tiger...

...a Gibbon mother showing off her baby (see the bald head), only a few weeks old!...

And we saw Rutledge! ... Oaklawn boasts that Rutledge is the world's heaviest lion (a Guinness record), and I have no reason to disagree. We got a wonderful view of him about 20 ft away with nothing but a fence between us. It was spectacular.

One of the best things about Oaklawn are the admission prices! For 2 admissions - an adult and a child, it was less than 10.00! That's incredible. So accessible for families! This is something I'm constantly struck by here in NS - museums, galleries and the like are much cheaper here which makes it so much easier to expose kids to fun/cultural activities.

The sky's on fire!

I had the privilege of witnessing one of the most beautiful sunsets I've ever seen during my vacation at the cottage. Naturally I grabbed my camera and tried to document it as best as I could . So now, as I post and try to decide which photos I like best, I realise it's impossible. I love them all! So here they are, every one of them, in order as I took them.

Leave a comment to let me know your favourite!

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