as New Year's Eve approaches...

As New Year's Eve approaches I've been thinking about what resolutions I would like to make and well...

Seriously, I guess I can come up with a few resolutions... 

1.  Try to be understanding (to right-wing conservatives) I guess they think they are trying to do some good no matter how messed up I think they are.  Okay, the new year hasn't started yet so technically I haven't failed this one.    

2.  Read more... borrow time from reading newspapers and tackle that ever growing pile of I want to read books.

3.  Exercise more... okay that is given since I have to get the knee back in shape post-op.  

4.  Stop drinking Tim Horton's coffee.  Heck, I don't even like it... it is just next door and sometimes it is just nice to get away from work and yeah, I have no idea why I drink bad coffee.  Gotta stop that.  

5.  Hug my parents everyday and let them know how much I love them.  I've gotta make up for those teenage years while we're still together.    

Okay, that's all folks.  Hope you have a great New Year's Eve.  Celebrate safely!    

Quinoa!

Always someone to try something new, I discovered Quinoa at my favourite local gluten-free bakery Lorenzos Specialty Foods.  And shortly thereafter I discovered Red Quinoa at the local Bulk Barn.  It kept popping up everywhere, how could I not try it?

I have to say that Quinoa is a new favourite.  It kind of has a nutty taste to it and it cooks just like rice.  I love it so much that on my next quinoa run I picked up quinoa flour and Patricia Green and Carolyn Hemming's Quinoa 365 The Everyday Superfood.  This cookbook rocks!  

And so does their website Quinoa 365 which contains new recipes that are not found in the cookbook.

I love their recipe for Quinoa Pancakes.

I tweaked the recipe by adding about 3 heaping tablespoons of gluten-free all-purpose flour just because I found the pancake mix a wee bit thin.

I also made their Strawberry Banana Muffin recipe using gluten-free flour, and 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum and substituting the strawberries for raspberries.  But even if you use the original non-gluten-free recipe you must try this recipe out--the quinoa adds an interesting texture.

Anyway, new favourite food and cookbook that I thought to rave about and share.    
   

I made a conscious decision to let my hair go grey.  I just happen to like it.  It is something different from the mundane brown hair colour that I was sporting to fit into my conservative suburban place of employment.

I love the new organic me!  My hair is free of chemicals and other artificial agents.  It feels healthier, and it is less hassle.  No more special shampoos and conditioners to help maintain the artificial colour.  No more spending hours at the hair salon.  Don't get me wrong, I had a lot of fun colouring my hair when I was in my twenties and even into my thirties.  But I've done that.  Change is good, right?

Not so according to some.  

When I asked my youngest brother what he thought about my new look his response was that I "look like an old hag".  Not that I really care what he thinks, I was just interested because of the reaction I have been getting from others that dare speak their uninvited opinion.  Not that I value his opinion, I just find him rather amusing.    

Is it sexism, agism, or grayism that motivated his observation?

Our hair, in Western culture, has become one of the principal reflections of ourselves that we make to the world.  Or should hair be viewed through the social and cultural settings that we are confined within?

Referring to someone as an old hag contains the tone of a misogynistic attitude when delivered from a male to female figure.  It refers to a woman who has been frightful in view of what is considered aesthetically pleasing within a culture.  Yet there is no cultural equilibrium distinguished between a man or woman exposing gray hair.  Yes, men are often seen as distinguished when they embrace their gray whereas women are viewed as old.

American make-up artist, author, and photographer, Kevyn Aucoin eloquently said "[y]ou can't put on make-up, or dress yourself, or do your hair with any sort of fun or joy if you're doing it from a position of correction".

I don't think that it is my hair that needs correcting, maybe what needs correcting is perceptions of beauty.    

      

  

Conservative attack ads and the Gun Registry Debate

Conservative MP, Shelly Glover sent off an attack ad flyer in the mail trying to promote herself and her government as the only option for keeping Canadians safe.  It reads "our Conservative Government is taking action to get tough on crime and keep Canadian families safe by proposing legislation that will..."

Someone needs to tell Glover and the Conservative Government that "proposing legislation" is the same thing as empty promises.  This is the same government that prorogued government not once, but twice, and in doing so twice killed several crime bills that were going through parliament.  These are the same proposed legislation that are continually being resent through the process...  

Unfortunately, the Conservatives like to talk about crime and keeping Canadian families safe more than they like to actually take any action on the issue.  

I find it hard to believe that Shelly Glover, as she said in a recent news conference, became a Conservative MP so that she can change the laws to make it safer for her when she goes back to work as a police officer.  I don't see any of the proposed legislations outlined in the flyer that would make her position as a police officer any safer than it was before she left the Winnipeg Police Service.  Glover, a former police officer,s is backing the party line against the gun registry while many police chiefs across Canada have come forward in support of the gun registry as a valuable tool that save Canadian lives.  

Excuse me if I find it hard to believe that the Conservatives are serious about keeping Canadian families safe.  

Long gun registration has polarized Canadians on whether or not it violates privacy issues to the cost.  I really can not buy into the cost issue.  If you want to own a gun then I don't see why you should be exempt from the cost of registration of your firearm.  We're all expected to register our vehicles and you don't see anyone in an uproar about that.  Heck, in this province you can't serve alcohol unless you pass a responsible server program.  Get with the program Conservatives and long gun owners... no one is attacking or picking on you.  This is not a rural versus urban issue... it is about expecting everyone to behave like a responsible Canadian.  Suck it up!  You don't see the drivers and servers crying about being a responsible Canadian and doing their small part to keep our country safe.  

   

Apple Liqueur Update...

The apple liqueur is aging nicely... strained and chillin'

... until November ... should be ready for Christmas!

Apple Liqueur

It is raining apples in the backyard--three apple trees have been shedding their fruit.  Each evening some time is spent picking up most of them for the compost and checking out which ones are good for consumption.  Today with about three dozen (or so) ripe and ready apples at my my fingertips I thought that a trip to the liquor store was in order for the remaining ingredients for a batch of apple liqueur.

The apples are napping in a cool dark place right now.  They should be doing their magic over the next month and then the liqueur should be ready late autumn.  Can't wait!

About 20 apples washed thoroughly peeled, cored and roughly sliced
2 750 ml bottles of vodka (you can also use rum if you prefer)
750 ml bottle of brandy

Allow the above ingredients to mingle in a cool room away from direct sunlight.  Visit a couple of times a week to shake up the party that is happening inside the jar with a tight fitting lid.  In about a month, shake things up again by straining the liqueur through a sieve.  Add syrup made with 2 cups of brown sugar and 1 cup of water.  Add the water to a sauce pan and then the sugar, bring to a boil while stirring until the sugar has dissolved.  Let cool before adding to the liqueur.  Return the liqueur to a cool room away from direct light to party a wee bit more until it has matured--one more month.

Enjoy!

Tonight's good eats!

There is nothing like fresh veggies from the garden... a selection of stir-fried summer squash, zucchini, sugar snap peas, bell peppers, shallots, anise.  Saute with sesame seed oil and season with salt and pepper.