September!

 It's September! Where did August go?

I have been a very bad blog member since July but I am mending my ways and renewing my blogging starting today. (You may have heard that from me previously....)   Looks like I am using the 'new" blogger.... well, I'll see if I like it. I wonder if there is any way to get back to the "old" blogger? Let me know if you've done it.

Our local male voice choir, the Men of Note, had to cancel all their concerts since March and haven't had an opportunity to rehearse due to the coronavirus lockdown, but recently they have been able to meet in a member's back yard and practice some of their numbers. Singing indoors is banned at the moment, but the choir have been able to perform on Saturday mornings in July at the local Farmers Market. Everyone spaced at the required safe distance, and wearing masks or face shields, of course. And well away from the public too.

I made sure I was there last Saturday to hear them.... but they weren't there. ONE PERSON has complained that it was unsafe to sing in a public place, despite the masks and the 2 meter spacing and the sanitizer, and the choir has been shut down.

It amazes me that ONE PERSON can have such an impact on something that brought joy to so many. I hope that the choir will be singing next week after some negotiations. We'll see.

Canada Day 2016

Happy Canada Day, everyone!

One day I really want to be in Ottawa to celebrate Canada Day, but not this year....

Pi Day

Pi Day is celebrated on March 14th (3/14) around the world. Pi π is the symbol used in mathematics to represent a constant — the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter — which is approximately 3.14159.

Pi is a constant number, meaning that for all circles of any size, Pi will be the same.

And 3.14 is also Albert Einstein’s birthday!

Image googled from the internet.

So let's wish Albert a happy birthday, and celebrate with some pie!

Another Year.... Another Decade

I had a birthday recently. It was one of those "milestone" birthdays. So we had a party. That's the best way to celebrate a birthday, any kind of birthday.
My family in England sent me some beautiful flowers. No idea what the long green ones are, but they are spiky. The bouquet included ornamental kale.... what could be better, a bouquet you can eat!

We used the community room at the village. The Bride and The Equestrienne worked so hard decorating the tables with a purple and white theme, while OlderSon appears to take the credit in this picture. The Bride decorated the vases, The Equestrienne provided the flowers. YoungerSon organised the photo slideshow and the music. Callum blew up the balloons. Family team work!
Food.... yes, lots of it. Samosas and pakoras from my favourite Indian bakery, spring rolls, spicy meatballs, a cheese tray, crackers, veggies and dip, French pastries, English trifle, all washed down with a choice of ice water, red or white wine, beer, spiced apple cider, coffee, tea.

A purple theme meant purple table cloths, purple streamers, purple candles on the birthday cake, and I even found the perfect purple scarf to wear with my purple top. As you can see.... there were a lot of candles, but luckily I had professional help close by to help me blow them out. We didn't have to call the Fire Department.

The Albert Street Four entertained us with two sets. I used to live on Albert Street, so I know them well. Lots of singalong songs, including my favourite song of all time..... The Teddybear's Picnic.
If you go down in the woods today......

Thank you to my wonderful family who organized the party and to all my family and friends who helped me celebrate. Next birthday party in 10 years. Everyone's invited.
Which "milestone" birthday was it? Well, look carefully and you might find a clue.

Eccles Cakes

I was invited to a Pudding Club event at the weekend. No, it wasn't especially for ladies expecting a happy event, that's a completely different Pudding Club. It was to celebrate and preserve the traditional British Pudding!

Don't mistake the meaning of the word Pudding here. It doesn't mean that creamy chocolatey stuff you can buy in a package at the grocery store. Pudding is another word for Dessert in Britain. Or you could say Sweet or Afters. Preferably steamed and stodgy, laden with calories, and enveloped in lashings of yellow Bird's Custard.

The Pudding table was staggering under the mindboggling assortment of sugary treats. Lemon Drizzle Cake, Marmalade Pudding (YoungerSon's yummy offering), Bread and Butter Pudding, Sherry Trifle, Apple Pudding, Peanut Butter and Chocolate Cheesecake, and of course, the world famous Spotted Dick.

There was actually a plate of fresh veggies and assorted dips, but most people tried to pretend it wasn't there, and concentrated on filling their plates with all the good things they aren't normally allowed to eat at home.

My contribution to the feast was Eccles Cakes.

Eccles Cakes have been enjoyed in Britain since shopkeeper James Birch sold them from his shop in the town of Eccles (now part of Greater Manchester) in 1793. And Eccles Cakes can be baked anywhere in the world and still be called Eccles cakes, they don't have Protected Geographical Status like Cornish Pasties or Champagne.... well, not yet.

I sampled every pudding available, one side of the table first. The second side of the table about 40 minutes later. In fact, I even had a second helping of the Peanut Butter and Chocolate Cheesecake, a very tiny bit you understand. It's salad all week for me now!

Bottoms Up!

The local chapter of the Canadian Association of Retired Persons CARP hosted a FREE beer tasting event at a nearby posh retirement residence. So of course, FREE is the magic word, so I went along with a friend.


Mill Street Brewery is East Toronto's first commercial brewery to open in more than 100 years, producing handcrafted beers and ales in the historic Corktown area of the city since 2002. It is housed in an original tankhouse within the old Gooderham & Worts Distillery built in the late 1870s. 

The Mill Street Brewery brought 4 different beers, and everyone got a small taste of each brew along with a complementary nibble. Cheese, sausage, pretzels, and even dark chocolate. A handsome brewery rep gave a slideshow presentation describing the brewing process and the different beers. Some are produced all year round, and some are seasonal. I didn't know there were so many different ingredients in beer!

After the presentation, everyone was given 2 beer tickets which could be exchanged for, guess what? Yes, a couple of cold beers. The one I liked was the Wit beer.... according to the Mill St. web site "Mill Street Belgian Style Wit is a refreshing beer made with a unique blend of ingredients. The soft texture and pale colour comes from the use of wheat, coriander, orange peel and our special yeast produce the complexity and depth of fruity flavours contained within the glass. This beer is unfiltered. The resulting cloudiness gave rise to the term Wit, or White beer. May be served with an orange slice to enhance refreshment. Best with salads with oil and vinegar dressing, grilled scallops, brunch fare, Gouda cheese."

So we sipped our brew in comfort while enjoying the singalong style music of a couple of Irish entertainers. Now we are eagerly waiting for CARP to organize a wine tasting afternoon!

Christmas Remembered

December was a hectic month totally taken up with shopping and baking and Variety Show rehearsals and trying to stay warm during diabolical bad weather, and so I didn't post much about Christmas. In fact, I'm always relieved when the Holiday Season is over and life can get back to a normal routine. But Christmas memories remain.

The skating rink (in summer it is a reflecting pool) in Nathan Phillips Square outside Toronto City Hall. The rink was closed.... big notices saying telling the public "Skate at your own risk" due to chunks of ice falling from the overhead arches.

 Some of the amazing Christmas decorations at Brookfield Place. Mind boggling!

And more Christmas sparkle looking up into the ceiling of the Chrystal Cathedral of Commerce inside Brookfield Place.

The wonderful "Lights of December" Holiday Concert by Singing Out, Toronto's LGBTQ Community Chorus at the Jane Mallett Theatre. Great holiday music with a quirky touch, loved it! So much fun to see friends up there on the stage, singing their hearts out.

And the Ice Storm! This beautiful corkscrew hazel tree in YoungerSon's back yard normally stands 35 feet high, but here the top branches are touching the ground due to the weight of the ice. Amazingly, now that the ice has melted, the tree has bounced almost upright again! Thank you, Mother Nature! We thought that tree was a gonner.

Remembrance Day

On November 11th, we remember those who lost their lives during war. And we pray that our children and our grandchildren will never have to go though another conflict.

In May 2000, the remains of an unidentified Canadian soldier who died in the First World War were repatriated from France and, with great ceremony, were buried in a special tomb in front of the National War Memorial in Ottawa, Canada. This is the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier was created to honour the more than 116,000 Canadians who scrificed their lives in the cause of peace and freedom. The Unknown Soldier represents all Canadians, whether they be navy, army, air force or merchant marine, who died or may die for their country in all conflicts - past, present and future.

The project began several years ago at the instigation of The Royal Canadian Legion who developed the idea as a Millennium Project, and it was taken up by the Canadian Government under the lead of Veterans Affairs Canada.

Reprinted from November 2013 Community Report by Paul Calandra, M.P.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Are you wearing RED today?
It's Saint Valentine's Day!
But who was Valentine?
He was a young priest who disobeyed Emperor Claudius in 270 AD by conducting illegitimate wedding ceremonies in Rome. The Emperor  claimed that married men made poor soldiers and consequently decreed that all marriages of young people would be outlawed. Bishop Valentine continued to conduct marriages in secret between young people, sometimes as young as twelve, in the name of love.
He was thrown in prison, but became friends with the jailer's daughter, and passed her a note which read "from your Valentine" before he was beheaded.
All over the world people are buying flowers, chocolates, and gifts for their loved ones, and sending cards that say "from your Valentine". Have a happy day!

Happy Birthday Rabbie Burns!

Another Burns Day is upon us. Time to get out the kilts and the tartans. The Poet of Scotland, Robert Burns, is celebrating his birthday on 25 January. He'll be 254 years old, and still lookin' good and ready for some partyin'!
As always. I got myself volunteered in the food preparation in the church kitchen. I don't know why I do that, I make the same mistake every year! First we peeled 50 pounds of tatties and about 70 pounds of neeps (that's potatoes and turnips to the uninitiated!).

Then it was all cooked, mashed, salt and pepper and butter added and piled into serving dishes ready to be heated up the following day.

One of my tasks is to heat the haggis, and here they are in my kitchen, ready to pop into the oven. The national dish of Bonny Scotland - sheep's pluck (heart, liver and lungs) minced with onion, oatmeal, suet, spices, and salt, mixed with stock, and traditionally encased in the animal's stomach.... doesn't that sound appetising? Best eaten with your eyes shut!

The haggis is traditionally piped into the dining hall with the diners standing to attention, and Burns' "Ode to a Haggis" is recited over it as it is ceremonially opened with a sharp knife. We drank a toast to the haggis with apple juice... the closest we'll get to Scotch tonight, this is a church function!!!

My dinner.... roast beef and horseradish, haggis, peas, tatties and neeps, all smothered in gravy, with some coleslaw on the side.

After the dinner is consumed and the tables are cleared, the entertainment! Traditional Burns' poetry, Scottish songs from the church choir and from Susan, a soprano with the voice of an angel, memories of Scotland, a Scottish singalong, and of course, no Burns Night would be complete without the dancing girls! First Sarah demonstrating an energetic Highland Fling.....

.... and then a strathspey and a reel from our Scottish Country Dance Group.... I'm peering over everyone's heads from the back row. 

Snow White

We did it again!
Yes, we gathered up the extended family members and went to the Toronto Pantomime between Christmas and New Year.... it's becoming a family tradition. This year there were 5 children and 7 adults in our group and we sat 4 rows back from the stage. Great place to sit.... easy to see the action yet safe from being asked up onto the stage to be the magician's assistant!

This year it was Snow White - The Deliciously Dopey Family Musical at the gorgeous Elgin Theatre in Toronto.

Picture from the Toronto Sun newspaper

The show is as traditionally "British Pantomime" as it can get. Songs, music, an evil stepmother, dancing girls, fabulous costumes, obvious jokes to please the kids, and slightly more risque jokes to tittilate the adults, and lots of opportunity for the audience both young and old to BOO loudly whenever the bad guys come on stage.

Oh yes, Panto is all about audience participation.

Snow White's stepmother, the Evil Queen, was played in a wickedly funny manner by Ross Petty.... who is a perfect man in a dress, and was wearing far too much makeup, as you do, when you're Evil.

Assorted Nursery rhyme characters populated the stage.... there was Pinocchio, and one of the Three Little Pigs ( I don't know what happened to the other two), Little Red Riding Hood, and Jack-in-the Beanstalk.

Picture from the National Post Newspaper.

In this modern day version of Snow White's story, the Evil Queen was plotting to bulldoze the forest and make her fortune by opening a huge Botox strip mine, and Snow White and her little furry woodland animal friends were going to be banished from the forest. Oh No.... bad news!

But who was there to make sure that Good triumphed over Evil? 007 of course! “The name’s Bond, James Bond,” says 007 after a wonderfully ridiculous entrance. “That’s my full legal name.”

Callum loved it. Isaac loved it. Everyone loved it. We'll definitely be going again next year.         

Arrrr, Me Hearty....

I spent the whole day yesterday on a bus trip with about 50 other people.... and it was great fun!

The destination was Stratford.... no, not the famous town of Stratford in England with its Shakespearian theatres and the River Thames and swans.... we went to the famous town of Stratford in Ontario, Canada, with its own Shakespearian theatres and River Thames and swans. Yes, Canada's answer to Shakespeare in the Colonies!

A yummy soup'n'sandwich lunch was prepared by the local United Church Ladies, and then we had about 90 minutes to do some exploring before the theatre. My friend and I found a great little discount clothing shop... and we both indulged in a little retail therapy. Well, that's what tourists do, right?

Then it was time for the show.

The Pirates Of Penzance..... Gilbert and Sullivan of course!

The Stratford Festival celebrates 60 years this year. It started with performing only Shakespeare's plays, but now offers a varied assortment of modern and classical productions. Pirates was great! Fantastic voices, colorful costumes, swashbuckling pirates, demure maidens, and of course, a thrilling (and very funny) fight scene.
And don't forget "I am the Very Model of a Modern Major General".... how did he remember all those words?

Then a stop at a chocolate shop to satisfy all the chocoholics on board the bus, and then back to the United Church for a roast beef dinner, followed by a choice of lemon meringue pie or pumpkin pie.... oh, divine!

Then home...... a movie on the bus made the 2 hour drive fly by...... what a great day out.

Freedom of the Town

The Freedom of the Town is the act of granting the privilege to a specific military unit to march through the town with "drums beating, colours flying, and bayonets fixed". The Governor General's Horse Guards were invited to pay a visit to town in June.

It's quite an unusual sight to see this 1944 Sherman tank rumbling along Main Street closely followed by a parade of military vehicles.

The Freedom of the Town tradition originates from British military history.  British cities were opposed to having regular standing armies, due to their war-like impression “disturbing the peace and appearing to be a threat to the ancient civic rights of the city fathers.”

The First and Second Guard follows the Horse Guard.

It became a custom for any military unit to request the permission of the chief magistrate, the mayor, before entering a community.

2012 is the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812.. From 1809 to 1812, the threat of invasion across the border from the United States became very real. Many influential American politicians openly urged the annexation of the Canadian provinces, by military action if necessary. Canada had to fight back. In fact, British and Canadian troops got a s far as Washington, and set fire to the President's mansion in 1814. It was repaired and the burnt bits were painted white... hence the name, the White House.

Inspecting the troops.... Mayor Emmerson and Member of Parliament Paul Calandra with the Guard’s Lieutenant-Colonel.

Major General Isaac Brock was sent to Upper Canada in 1810 as Commander-in-Chief to improve the defences of the colony. Part of the defence force was Button's Troop, commanded by Major John Button, a highly respected local farmer. Dr. John Button, who is a direct descendant of Major John Button, was one of the dignitaries in attendance st this event.

The Cavalry Squadron provides a horse-mounted ceremonial presence at public and regimental events, to perpetuate Canadian cavalry traditions.

The Governor General's Horse Guard band includes three specialized musical sub-units: the Fanfare Trumpeters, the Brass Quintet, and the Woodwind Quintet.

Button's Troop of dragoons and light cavalry was formed from the prosperous farmers of Markham Township under the Militia Act of 1808. It was initially designated 11th Company, 1st York Regiment of Militia, and was the first Militia cavalry unit organized in Upper Canada.

Freedom of the Town commemorates local history in relation to the War of 1812 and honours the Governor General's Horse Guards, a military unit that had their origins in Major Button's Troop formed in 1810.

The aftermath.... all cleaned up an hour after the parade was finished.

 More pictures here. Look at Image 13, bottom left hand corner.... that's ME!

Border Crossing

He did it! I don't really know why he did it, other than the fact that nobody else has ever done it, but he did it! What a spectacle. And he was so calm and collected, no sign of any nerves at all. I was more nervous than he was. Just cool confidence that he was going to reach the other side safely. And he even gave a couple of interviews from high above the Falls.
And when he finally reached the other side, two Canadian Customs Officers were waiting for him, and he had to produce his passport, just like any other traveller crossing the border between the U.S.A. and Canada.
Simply a slightly unorthodox form of travel, that's all!

Congratulations to daredevil Nik Wallenda. You survived all the publicity and hoopla, and you survived Niagara Falls. Here's what the Toronto Star had to say.

With the Olympics coming up soon, I wonder if high wire walking could be made an Olympic sport? Nik would win the gold, for sure.

Mom2Mom Sale

It's not a new idea.... recycling baby clothes and equipment once they are no longer needed by growing babies. But recycling on a huge scale at a Mom2Mom Show is a new idea to me.
The Bride and I spent 3 busy evenings in my basement sorting baby clothes into sizes, boy/girl, styles, makes, and bagging, labelling and pricing.

Just a small portion of the clothes we had for sale.

It was all carefully sorted into bins, loaded into YoungerSon's van and taken to the local Fairgrounds. We unloaded and setup at our rented table on Friday evening, ready to join 200 other vendors in two big buildings for the sale on Saturday morning.

The best way to buy baby equipment.... half price or less!

Now they'll have loads more room in their house for even more!

I made some baby quilts to display at the show, but didn't make any sales, unfortunately, although there was a lot of interest. Shoppers were concentrating on the lower priced items, and not on hand made goods. But I'm thinking of opening an Etsy Store and selling through the internet. Has anyone had experience of this? Advice, anyone?

 The doors opened at 9:00a.m.,and suddenly there was an influx of people, lots of pregnant tummies, daddies pushing strollers while the mummies shopped, crying children, tired grandmas.

It was a fun morning. The sale was over at 1:00p.m. We came home with just 1-1/2 bins of unsold small items, which have been returned to my basement ready for the Yard Sale that will happen in the summer. I don't know what the final amount was, but it will go towards new car seats for the twins.