Jungle in Canada in February?

Life is funny sometimes, eh?  Like today, I was thinking about how many different journeys we are all on at the same time.  We've all got our getaway boots on every day, and just don't think about it that way.  Life is a journey, an adventure, or at least we can make it an adventure if we choose to.  Love is a journey.  Music can be an adventure, and a simple trip to the market can be an interesting side-trip if we let ourselves think of it as something other than just a simple trip to the market.

A lot of my friends are down south this week, enjoying the sun and sand and surf and beautiful warm weather while here it's cold and kind of, well,  yucky.  But it's a long weekend, and it seemed like a good day to just take a holiday and have some fun.  It wasn't snowing, in fact, the sun was shining for a good part of the day, or at least trying to shine.  It was a good day to make into a journey.

My journey called "today" started with that simple trip to the market.  I love to go to a little booth that serves locally harvested, sometimes organic food, and they make the best breakfast bagel anywhere.  They start by toasting the perfect whole-grain bagel, and with an omega-3 egg (over-medium in oil), then they fry real smoked bacon in an iron frying pan over open flame.  So far, all we've got is a fancy Western, right?  But wait, there's more.  After putting a slice of parmesan or swiss over all that, they add some organic arugula (just a few leaves so we can fake ourselves into thinking this is actually healthy), and the best aioli sauce I've ever tasted.  Are you smacking your lips?  You should be.

So now that my tummy is full so I won't buy so much food I don't need and will probably wind up throwing out because I bought way more than I can eat before it goes bad....  off I go to explore the rest of the market, and buy some good-for-me food.  Lots of organic fruits, some pea sprouts, mushrooms, spinch leaves, celery, snow peas, trying to ease the guilt-trip over breakfast.  Then I think, maybe I could make one of those breakfast bagels myself, so I get some omega-3 eggs and some real smoked bacon.  But where do I find some really good aioli sauce, and decent whole grain bagels?  Oh yeah, Vincenzo's!!!

The journey called "today" takes a new turn.  I LOVE Vincenzo's.  They have an amazing bakery (because lots of bread is oh-so-good-for-you-ha-ha), smoked Cacciacovello cheese (did I mention that here before already?), organic dairy products, a fantastic seafood department, and some really yummy home-made prepared salads.  So I load up, find some organic arugula for that breakfast bagel, along with some aioli sauce, cheese, bagels, quinoa salad, wild rice salad, grilled mushrooms, and and and and....  OK, better get this home before I buy a bunch of food I won't eat cause I bought more than I can eat before it goes bad.....

How could that bagel have worn off so quickly?  Self-control, must have self-control.  Must move about...  Ah, wait, Spanners had a 1 day, 85% off sale.  I think I have about 6 inches of closet space left.  Look out.  (Oh come on, it's an adventure day!!!)

Ok, a few outfits for work for the price of one suit, and now it MUST be lunch time.  It just has to be.  Yup!  Yayyy!!!  But I'm a good girl, and eat only the good-for-me stuff, and not too much.  Really.

It's "today", a Saturday afternoon on a long weekend in Feburary, my friends are all soaking up warmth, and it's sunny here too, just cold.  What's a girl to do?  Clean?  Oh, come on, that's no fun.  I need a jungle - something hot and humid and green and - Belgian Nursery!!!  They won't have all their greenhouses full, but they should have enough plants to let me pretend I'm in the jungle somewhere south. 

Sunglasses - check.  Running shoes - check.  (no winter boots allowed in the jungle).  Jump in the car, and halfway there it starts to snow.  Not just a little bit of snow, this is like white-out big fluffy flakes should-I-turn-around? snow.  Nope.  I'm on a mission to find a jungle. 

Oh ya, baby.  This is so nice and warm.  And green!  Tall trees and hanging plants and orchids and herbs and even a beautiful blue macaw parrot named Max.  I think it's been about three years since I've been here.  Can't be!  But it's true.  It's my favourite place, and I've been avoiding it... why?  Don't know, but it feels so good to be back.  My house has 0 plants right now, and this is just what it's been missing to make it feel like a home.  First things first, find a plant stand - there's one, looks like it's been sitting here for a few years, but with a bit of TLC should be gorgeous.  Leather shelves, wrought iron with bronze accents, scroll work, love it.  'Twill fit perfectly in the newly decorated master bedroom.

Now, what kind of plants?  Jasmine.  Love that smell.  A prayer plant, string of pearls, schefflera, snake plant, some herbs...  lots of variety.  Perfect.  Oh, and a big bowl of different colours of primula for the dining room table.

My "today" adventure is almost complete.  After setting up the plant stand (it is exactly the finishing touch that room needed), and having a bit of dinner, I'm off to a British pub with a friend to finish the the journey with a music adventure, and some joyous laughter.  What a great way to take another day-step on the life journey!

Next adventure - Lobster!!!

Ah yes, there is nothing quite as yummy as lobster - if you like it, you love it.  If you love it, you absolutely adore it when it is fresh from the sea.  Last year, I considered going on a wee jaunt to the beautiful Canadian east coast, when a friend said "no way would I go unless it was lobster season".  Which made a whole heck of a lot of sense to me.  So I just dilly dallied last year, and bided my time, after finding out that lobster season can be found around Nova Scotia in May.  Ahhhh....

Now, anyone who is frugal enough to save Air Miles for over 10 years and never use them, deserves to get some of that back.  And the first few weeks of May happen to be off-season for flying, even though it is on-season for lobster.  What a magnificent combination - free flights that only use 60% of my air miles, and fresh lobster.  Whaaattt??? 

Checked with the boss at work, checked with the cat (well, the cat-sitters anyway), and I am now in full planning mode for a Peter Pan Getaway Boots adventure to the Maritimes.  I welcome any and all suggestions for places to stay, things to do and see, food to try, so please dear readers, if you have any experience with Nova Scotia, PEI or Newfoundland that aren't already mentioned below, pass 'em on!

Here's the plan so far (I've got 10 days, 9 nights):

1. Fly to Halifax and rent a car, try to take in a day or two of Cape Breton (Cabot Trail, National Park), and south to Peggy's Cove.  I've been to Halifax itself a couple of times, so this time I want to explore the rural NS.  Eat Lobster.  And Digby scallops.  And mussels.  Did I mention lobster?

2. Drive across the new bridge to PEI - this in itself will I'm sure be an experience!  The lure of PEI is mostly the scenery, but if there's anything like a clam dig going on, that would be cool.  I guess as a Canadian, I'm obligated to check out the Anne of Green Gables house, and the beginnings of our country.  And eat more lobster.

3. Fly from Charlottetown to St. John's, NF.  Get a car, pick up my friend Sheila, and head to Gross Morn (not sure if this is spelled correctly?).  I'm not even sure what this is but I'm told I absolutely must see it.  It would be cool to see some Viking stuff if there's any around.  And go whale watching, and iceberg hunting.  Maybe eat some lobster.  If I can fit all of that into a few days, it will be a miracle.

OK, folks, bring it on.  Otherwise I'll just have to sit around and drink Screech for a few days till they pour me on a plane and send me back.

Woot!!!
 

"You Make me feel so Young"

Well, a friend requested that I blog a bit more frequently.  It didn't seem likely that anyone would be interested in hearing of my exploits (ahem, adventures) unless they were somewhat, well, adventurous.  Who knew?  So, here I go again...

After last evening's company "Christmas" dinner (held in February so we could get a better hall at a better rate), morning should not have started so early.  I'm sure that if requested, nature could have delayed morning for at least another hour.  But nooooo....  So when the light started shining in the window, and the cat walked across my head, there didn't seem to be much point in delaying the inevitable.  Besides, the getaway boots were beckoning, even if just for a day.

At first glance out the window, it appeared to be snowing, especially with everything coated in sparkly whiteness, but that's just frost, and the blurred appearance is due to fog.  No, really, it was foggy out, it wasn't just my personal fog from the night before.  Really. 

Am I going to make it to Tonawonda today for the NFCA show, "You make me feel so young"?  Fortunately, the fog clears within an hour, and the sun comes out and the sky is an intense, almost summery, blue.  Soon, a cloud appears in the form of a border guard, with a nasty scowl on her face, and an attitude the size of Texas. 
"What's your destination?" 
Me: "I'm going to Tonawanda to see a show". 
Border b---ch: "What kind of show?". 
Me: "A musical show, all singing". 
Border B---ch: "Talk to me, I need to know what you mean". 
Me: (Thinking, Huh?)  "It's a concert of barbershop singing, a couple of choruses - like choirs - and a few quartets".  (Thinking - How friggin' dangerous does this sound?)
B.B.: "Are you meeting anyone there?" (scowl, sneer)
Me: "Yes, I hope to meet some friends".
B.B.: "How do you know them?"  (translation, why on earth would an American citizen associate with a dumb Canuck?)
Me:  (Thinking, should I tell her that I met them in a Mexican jail?  Probably not).  "I met them through singing".
B.B.: "So you sing?"
Me: "yes"
B.B.: "Are you performing this afternoon?"  (sneer, accusatory tone, as though a Canadian singing on an American stage was a threat to the American way of life)
Me: (laughing heartily) "No, I'm not".
B.B.: "Have a nice day". 
Me: (thinking - ya right, you just spoiled it.  B---ch).

Off I go, finding the venue (a grade school) easily, with just enough time to get a seat, and scan the room for familiar faces (none really, but that's ok).  The bright spot of the show is actually not the star performers/hostesses (NFCA - which will only mean something to my readers that are members of Harmony Inc.).  It is the Senior Men's championship quartet, hot off the presses.  Literally bright (cherry red suits, with cherry red and white wing-tip shoes.  They still make wing-tip shoes?  Yikes!).  Was it worth the trip?  Well, not really this distance, no.  But it got me out of the house to do something besides spend money. 

So, off I go back home.  This time, the border crossing was amazingly friendly. 
Border Boy:  "What was the purpose of your trip ma'am?"
Me: "I went to see a show of barbershop singing" (learning to phrase it less suspiciously)
BB: "Oh, that sounds interesting, did you enjoy it?"
Me: "Yes I did, thanks".
BB:  "Do you have any thing to declare, alcohol or tobacco?"
Me: "No, I don't".
BB:  "Have a nice day".
Me: "Thanks, you too".

(And they say America is the greatest country in the world?   Certainly not if measured by the first face that visitors see).

And the sun shone on...